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results from the closely watched gop straw poll. i'm don lemon. joining me is our chief political correspondent, candy crowley. here's the announcement moments ago. >> with 16,892 iowans voting, the winner of the straw poll is congresswoman michele bachmann. thank you, everyone. have a good night. >> a man of few words. congresswoman michele bachmann came out on top in the poll which is one of the earliest tests for the oval office in 2012. some of the thunder may have been stolen by rick perry who just announced his candidacy today. several states away, not even here. we have a poll team of folks standing by. the best political team on

television anywhere. toward break down the results for you, cnn political producer shawn travis is here. our political correspondent, tim acosta standing by in south carolina. the site of rick perry's announcement. and mark preston is in new hampshire where perry traveled afterwards. then of course, candy crowley who knows everything about politics sitting right here with me. so candy, what do you think? should we talk to the man, a man of few words. >> we're plenty mad at you. you walk away without telling us two or three or four. >> matt strawn is the head of the republican party. >> it was surprising today. the turnout we had. it absolutely blew away expectations. it was the second largest turnout we've ever had in the straw poll history of iowa. we've seen in a state that just four years ago, watched barack obama. so i'm very enthusiastic about

what i saw today. especially, well, historically a lot of campaigns are known for busing their supporters in and that's how most of the people show up for the straw poll but we've heard there is a huge oregonic turnout. that tell me there is an energy going into the caucus season and the general election. >> certainly part of it has to be, you do have, if you look at the results, bachmann, paul, pawlenty. certain when i ron paul, he is very passionate. support letters drive up in a driving snowstorm. pawlenty, we know what connection she makes with the voters, i'm sorry work bachmann. what connection she makes with her voters. and then pawlenty who has one of the best team on the ground, we have to say in iowa. so it could be that they're just very good now at getting folks to come. >> that's part of the organization process. the iowa caulk us is known for, for your viewers who may not understand how it works in fefbl it isn't like a primary where

you in this and vote for five minutes and come out. the straw poll is so vital for these campaigns, to test that organize. now they can find out in august who the people they are, that they can rely upon. in those 1,800 precincts. for congresswoman bachmann who has been in the race a month and a half, graze enthusiasm on the ground and today proves she's built an organize to catch up with some of that enthusiasm. >> you stand by with ussism want to you listen to our next report. i want to talk about the write-in votes that he got. rick perry's name wasn't even on the straw poll balanceett. the texas governor launched his campaign today. covering the announcement, okay, i would imagine as folks are gone, you may not have any reaction to how he placed in this. but give us the mood there. when he announce asked if you're hearing anything now. >> well, you can argue that

there are two winners coming out of the straw poll today. michele bachmann for getting the most votes and rick perry for beating mitt romney and newt gingrich as a write-in candidate. we should point out that rick perry did have some of his super parked supporters. he has a political action committee not really affiliated with his campaign. some of those forces were on the ground in iowa trying to rally people to support rick perry so that may have had something to do with why he did so well. the headline coming out of, this you can see it exploding on twitter right now. this was an unexpected result out there in iowa to see rick perry do so well. and i think it was a little unexpected here in south carolina as to the reaction in the room among some of these conservative activists who saw this speech from rick perry. this was the red state conference going on. they could have called at this time red meat conference. he was throwing out the red meat and the conservatives were eating it up. he was going after the president on the economy, on jobs, on the

recent downgrade, blaming the president for all three and then pointing to his record in texas and saying this is the way. let me show you the way. as a matter of fact, the campaign put out a web video today. they just launched a website today. launch ad web video called, it's time to get america working again. when you looked at rick perry today. the way he came across in the room. the way his organization came together to put this event together. this had the feel of not just a republican presidential campaign, but of a nominee running for president in a general election campaign. there was a very strong showing from rick perry today. >> and i have to tell you this, as we were watching you, we're looking at a picture next to you. live pictures of rick perry in greenland, new hampshire today. he works fast. i have to say -- >> he does. >> you c >> when i was watching, it reminded me of george w. bush,

texas, governor, that sort of thing. i wondered if anyone mentioned that. i want you to weigh in here as well. >> yeah. did you hear that from some of the folks in the room today. and remember, there are a lot of conservatives in party who still like george bush. the billboards, miss me yet? there are a lot of republican who's still like george w. bush. but yes, rick perry is going to remind people of george w. bush. it's funny that you mentioned that. if you looked at perry's speech today, there was one word that did not come up throughout that speech. that word is bush. if perry makes it to the white house, he is going to be the second texas governor in a row to do so. the one before him being his predecessor, george bush. >> thank you very much for that. we want to get back to why we're here. that's for the straw poll. that's what many people we have heard. i'll let you weigh in on the george w. bush saying that. but some people are saying, they were upset because perry did this today and didn't wait until

tomorrow or monday or some time next week. what do you think of that? >> i look at it differently. there is no question difference center of the political universe this week and i don't think whether governor palin's visit to the fair yesterday or governor perry's travels to south carolina, new hampshire, whatever. >> we're going to talk about sarah palin. >> i don't know if that would have necessarily happened without this little gathering in ames this weekend. i think that shows that iowa was driving the national political discourse and i know we'll see governor perry in short order. we'll see him in waterloo tomorrow night after he wraps up in new hampshire. the republican iowans will assess that. in my conversations with his advisers, they understand the caucus process. they understand it is a retail heavy process if you want to be successful. and i suspect we'll see governor perry early and often. >> and matt or candy, either one of you, this obviously gives a big boost to the bachmann campaign. they go out confident now.

who else do you think this gives more confidence to? >> certainly rand paul. this is a good showing. pawlenty if we look at the numbers got less than half of the paul numbers. less than half. i think the percentages go from like, i can find this. bachmann's percentage of the vote. about 29% paul. about 28%. and then it drops fairly heavily to pawlenty at about 13%. i have to tell you, we got, and i'll try to read this off with the sun and everything. pawlenty's statement on this which says to me, moving on. and in it, tim pawlenty, first of all, congratulations congresswoman michele bachmann who is a fellow minnesotan for her victory in today's straw poll. we made progress in moving from the back of the pack into a competitive position for the caucuses. we have a lot more work to do. this is a long process to restore america. we are just beginning. and i'm looking forward to a great campaign. i think that right now, that sounds to me like a guy moving

on. he will play heavily into the iowa caucuses. what do you think a third place at this point does for tim pawlenty? >> hold that thought. we'll get a break and come right back. the announcement was made for the iowa straw poll and candy crowley joining me here. rick perry has an impressive record on jobs in texas. is that enough to defeat president obama in 2012? if he becomes the gop nominee, we'll examine the governor's record. >> also, sarah palin made an appearance at the iowa state fair but she insists she wasn't there to steal the spotlight. what's her goal? >> and while i have candy next to me, let me remind our viewers. make sure you watch for the state of the union. she'll have the interviews with president the detention candidates michele bachmann and herman cain as well. sunday, 9:00 a.m. and noon eastern right here on cnn. [ man ] natural gas vehicles are used somewhere...

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nomination. he is the hot name in the republican race right now. but can rick perry keep the golden glow as voters get to know him? what do we hope to know about the man who hopes to win the gop nomination? >> a lot. there is a lot to learn, i'm sure. mark preston is following him and has been for a while. of course, our senior political editor. so a you're watching this speech, you're there today in south carolina and then in new hampshire. and we've been talking about george w. bush and the comparisons there. what do you make of all this? >> well, you know, i was just in the backyard. i saw him deliver this speech to about 150 people here in new hampshire. oftentimes when people in new hampshire go out to these house foirts neat president did he know candidates, these wannabe hopefuls, they're out there to kick the tires. they want to find out if they can connect with this person. i have to tell you what. they bought the car in the backyard tonight, so there is been a lot of talk that rick perry might not play well in new

hampshire. he is somebody who is a social conservative. the fact of the matter is, all he has been talking about today is jobs, jobs, jobs. and in my discussions with the people up here who are really involved in the whole political scene, that's the message they want to hear. in fact, rick perry could play well here in new hampshire. he did tell these folks here, bottom line, he plans to be back. he will be back here next week. >> mark preston, don't go anywhere. stand by. we have a lot coming up. we may get back to mark. you see rick perry giving a speech there. backyard party. he went from south carolina to new hampshire really quickly here. we're joined here by matt strawn, head of the republican party as well as candy crowley. why don't we bring in donna brazile. and mr. eric erickson. you guys have been standing by listening. you saw us.

we were caught off guard. when you look at the results, are you surprised by the bachmann results or anything on the list there? >> you know, not really. i would say the tim pawlenty organization, a really good organization. i expected him to be a little closer. the bachmann team had a lot of energy. a lot of passion. the ron paul folk had a lot of energy and passion. i was surprised it was that close. i think the biggest surprise is that rick perry is a write-in candidate, he was able to top mitt romney and newt gingrich. >> it is interesting. we're going to be talking to debbie wasserman schultz who is the head of the democrat party, a democrat in iowa for a republican straw poll. what might be the strategy behind that? what is the president looking at toward these results, at these results? what he might have to do in the upcoming days? >> well, first let me congratulate the state party

chairman on a fine turnout. i'm sure that he has worked very hard to get such a large and enthusiastic crowd of people to show up on a saturday in august. now, as you know, this is just the first test. and it often tests a candidate's appeal to grassroots supporters, organizational strengths, and as well as, and i think in michele bachmann's position, her ability to get into the arena and to beat out some real big time players in the republican party. like mitt romney and tim pawlenty. this is a great victory for her, although she barely beat ron paul. going forward, you know she has a couple other test that's she must also pass in order to make it to the final exam. that's the iowa caucuses next february. but it is a good day for her. and she can use this to raise money, to try to broaden her

appeal. and there is no question -- >> hey, donna, stand by. we're going to lose our friend from tfrom the iowan republican party. you heard her talking about the candidates. give us a summation. >> one way i've described the race at this point, it is incredibly fluid. we don't blank the final field will look like. it is still more the dating phase than the marrying phase. i think we'll see some of this shakeout over the coming weeks and months. today for the campaign that have aggressively organized to compete in ames, they now know where the organization stands. tomorrow they'll wherng the deficiencies are. what worked. from that standpoint it is a big advantage. they have a leg up organizationally. >> and matt, you are the most wanted man, as we say here. >> in a good way, i hope. >> as far as we know. >> get out of here.

that's your last word on cnn. we appreciate you dropping by. candy crowley, eric erickson is standing by and i'm sure you have some questions for him. >> eric, we got a press release from the pawlenty campaign. it seem that he and michele bachmann had the largest stakes here. what does pawlenty read into these results? >> you know, it he's going to be really disappointed. by all accounts, he had one of the best organizations in iowa. but the citizen civil of paw lenny all along is that he doesn't have a lot of energy and consequently, not a lot of energy for him. he is a tremendously nice guy. i genuinely like him but the energy is not panning out for him in the field. you hear it across the board. in our red state gathering, a lot of the folks said they weren't in it for rick perry but they weren't excited by anyone else, including tim pawlenty as the kind of anti-romney

candidate. >> all right. erick erickson. don't go anywhere. candy is not going anywhere either except the guy sitting next to her just bolted and left. i'm sure he has to go do something for someone else. that's okay. we'll survive without him. when we come back, we'll take a look at the rest of the gop field. michele bachmann comes out on top. who else stands to gain and who else had the most to lose? and later, which hopefuls might pose the biggest political threat to president obama? [ martin luther king jr. ] i still have a dream that one day on the red hills of georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. i have a dream today! [ male announcer ] chevrolet is honored to celebrate the unveiling of the washington, d.c., martin luther king jr. memorial. take your seat at the table on august 28th.

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this is where barack obama got his start. this is where he is going to come to his end. in iowa! >> all right. you've been hearing everybody say that the straw poll, a little more than a snap shot of the candidates, a handful of people in iowa, not really a handful. it was almost 17,000 people. i wouldn't consider that a handful. why don't we bring in now donna brazile who is a democratic consultant, a strategist, i should say and a republican consulant here. and thank you both for joining us. we've been watching this. it kind of caught us by surprise. >> kind of fun. i like it when we don't exactly know what's going on. >> democracy thing are unpredictable. >> we certainly could have

predicted we would see bachmann going into this. not to dismiss that she won it. she won it fair and square. is it also fair and square to say 700 votes for a write-in for rick perry. that's a really big deal or are we getting spun already. >> to your first point, we were sitting here a day ago thinking that tim pawlenty would be strong and he was defeated. that will be very tough to survive and to move forward with after this. and by the way, he is closer to perry than he was to bachmann in these voting results. if he had a lot of time, money, organization and a chance on get in front of the voters and did not really establish a presence here, how can he do it anywhere else? >> to you first and then i'll to go donna brazile. who poses the biggest threat to barack obama here? >> at this juncture, i still the

it is mitt romney, rick pery and possibly bachmann in that order. bachmann has to prove she can go beyond this coliseum. right now she can capture the hearts of the right wing. she has to prove she can be a general election candidate before republicans will really take her seriously and move her into that top tier. so it is romney, perry right now. >> that question to you, donna brazile. is there anyone you see that pose as threat to the president in 2012? >> i won't disagree with his analysis. but the biggest threat is lack of enthusiasm and lack of jobs. if the president is able to turn the economy around, at least people believe that it is turned around and the base and swing voters are enthusiastic about voting, then i don't think the president needs to spend any sleepless nights worrying about michele bachmann, rick perry or mitt romney. >> i was going to ask. what would be the definition, do you think, of turning the

economy around that the american people would accept come next november? >> well, i think, cannedy, as you well know, consumer confidence is down. if people feel the job are coming back and the president is making every effort to get the economy back on track, they feel that banks are lending to small businesses, they feel better about the leadership, not just -- but there is no miracle that he can produce short of getting republicans and democrats to come back to washington after labor day and put their own, put the proposals out there already, the republicans believe that we need more drilling in the gulf and other places. democrats believe that we need an extension of the pay roll tax. i don't know if any of these small ideas will make a big enough dent in the null of unemployed americans right now. before november. but if the american people see him leading, using the bully

pulpit, using the tool at his disposal, i think they will give them benefit of the doubt. the other side, they're complaining and whining. >> okay. we need to get to a break real quick here. >> we need to get to a break but i want to say debbie wasserman schultz is in the house. we'll pose the same question to her. who poses the biggest threat to president obama in 2012? [ male announcer ] imagine all of your missed opportunities in one place. ♪ the front-row tickets you never bought.

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the results are in and michele bachmann was celebrating tonight. she was celebrating even before she won the iowa straw poll. they're hoping to unseat president obama. here are the results for you. michele bachmann came in first. she was follow by texas congressman ron paul with a very strong showing. you see the results on the screen. then the former minnesota governor tim pawlenty came in third. and rick santorum took fourth place. herman cain took the number five spot. >> and here where it gets a bit interesting. coming in sixth is texas governor rick perry. he wasn't on the ballot. all his support came from write-in votes. he beat the man who many have called the overall front-runner in the case. that's mitt romney. he came in seventh. his name was on the ballot. he came in ahead of newt gingrich. and eighth place jon huntsman

placed ninth in the poll. coming in last, michigan congressman mccotter who i suspect most people didn't know was running at this point. >> i want to read this. ron paul tweeted, we won an historic number of votes in iowa today. exclamation point. 27.6%. then he has a link to i guess the results. and then everyone, the straw poll and all. that he said just now. so he is excited. he is excited thinking he did okay. i want to bring in somebody who know, who is a rarity i should say in ames, iowa. that would be a democrat. florida congresswoman debbie wasserman schultz, also ahead of the dnc. what do you make of this? >> not so much. i mean, i think it is notable that whereas before in previous presidential campaigns, we might have chalked upstream fringe type candidates like michele

bachmann and ron paul as an anomaly. that the ames straw poll didn't mean as much. but we're looking at the core of the republican party now. the heart of the republican party is the extreme right wing. >> why do you say not so much? michele bachmann is a tea party favorite. maybe you should be, this is a, this concerns us. >> because michele bachmann and ron paul and the entire collection of republican candidates are totally out of step with what the average american is looking for in terms of solutions. job creation getting our economy turned around. the average american voter is not supportive of ending medicare as he we know it. all the republican candidates are. the average american isn't interested in privatizing social security. the average american voter wants us to work together. >> do you mean the average american voter or the majority of american voter? >> the majority. clearly. >> and privatizing, partially privatizing, we've heard some of the republicans talk about

perhaps means testing social security. you all, of course, are saying you don't want social security tests in any way. that's an argument that go on all the time on capitol hill and on the campaign trailism wonder if anybody, if mitt romney had won, would you not have said here's a radical. he is out of step. because the democratic party's way of going at this, the president's way of going at this, the crazy people are out there. don't elect them. elect the same people. >> well, mitt romney has demonstrated the last two days that he is right up there with the extreme right wing fringe. >> he polls right up there against president obama even. >> i don't think he will be very soon. the other day, he declared corporations and people being equivalent. and he said that corporations are people. i don't think that most people think exxonmobil and general electric trick are the same as people. he raised his right hand i know what all the other eight presidential duties thursday night at the debate and said

that even with the most reasonable of requests in trying to solve our deficit problem, that he would oppose 10-1 spending cuts to revenue. the majority of americans don't agree with all of these candidates for president on the right wing of the republican party. >> so nobody that you saw either in the debate or on this slate today worries the democrats. >> we're focused on making sure the people understand the drama and stark contrast between direction that president obama is taking this country and getting our economy to begin to turn around, creating a 2.4 million private sector jobs, 17 straight months of private sector job growth when we were bleeding 750,000 jobs a month in the months before he took office. >> you would admit that's not much of a base. >> we have to pick up the base of recovery but we're in much better shape than we were before president obama took office. >> i've got just five seconds. i asked sarah palin yesterday, she hasn't declared.

i said why are you here? you're still in the spotlight. as a democrat, why are you here? this is a republican event. >> i'm here because it is important we make sure americans understand the dramatic difference between extremely right wing fringe go presidential candidates and direction president obama is moving in. >> thank you very much. you're a rarity in ames, iowa, and the straw poll. a democrat. thank you very much. more with donna brazile coming up next. to make science as exciting as a video game. i need to reach peter, who's falling behind. and push janet who's 6 chapters ahead. ♪ [ male announcer ] with interactive learning solutions from dell, mrs. davis can make education a little more personal. so every student feels like her only student. dell. the power to do more.

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the fact is for nearly three years, president obama has been downgrading american jobs, he's been downgrading our standing in the world of he's been downgrading our financial stability. he's been downgrading our confidence and downgrading the hope for a better future for our children. >> that of course is texas governor and now president did he know candidate rick perry during his campaign announcement today criticizing the man he hopes to replace in the white house, president barack obama. he had a showing today in the straw poll despite that he wasn't on the ballot and he wasn't there. he had over 700 votes. i want to bring in both our

democratic strategist donna brazile and the republican strategist who is here with us. let me first ask you this. michele bachmann has an opportunity now. she came first. the headlines tomorrow, bachmann wins straw poll. what does she do with that in. >> she has to decide if this is the beginning of her campaign or the end. if she is now the leader of the small conservative core or if she is a general election candidate who can go to new hampshire tomorrow, say here's what i'm going to do about the economy and compete with mitt romney. >> small conservative core is the end of her campaign. >> i think so. she has to demonstrate she can win in the general. republicans won't nominate anyone who can't beat barack obama. you have to demonstrate you can be a good general election candidate. she can do that. we saw it in that hall. the michele bachmann on that stage, very polarizing. the michele bachmann in that video, warm and engaging. if she moves to a more optimistic message, she could score but she has about a week

to do it. >> donna brazile, when you look at michele bachmann as a general election candidate, let's say that she does somehow go on and become the nominee. how does, i think we got a pretty good preview from debbie wasserman schultz about how the president would go at it. how would that kind of campaign play, do you think? >> i think it would provide a very strong contrast between a president who is fighting each and every day for the middle class. fighting to keep the government from defaulting on its obligations. and against a candidate who not only voted against raising the debt ceiling, but went out and advocated against america paying for its obligations to its troops, its seniors and others. you know, the big issue is electability. and ms. bachmann is a crowd

pleaser, especially among the tea party set. can she broaden her set? in these upcoming primaries the next year. independents will also be able to vote. not just the church going, what i call the choir members. so can she broad again her appeal? is she a narrow candidate -- go ahead. i'm sorry, don. >> that's alex. >> just don't forget, that independents can vote here. so yes, this was a very conservative crowd. but independents can actually vote. bachmann has to decide if she will tray to outconservative rick perry or if she is going to outconservative mitt romney. she can do -- >> the one task is harder than the other. >> i'm not a politicalco, i don't do it as much as you do. what i've noticed, a newfound rp for sarah palin the first time i interviewed her. answered every single question and her husband was very gracious and very nice. you may not like some of her

answers some of the time. when i asked her a direct question she gave me a direct answer. on the other hand, michele bachmann doesn't do that. sometimes she doesn't talk to people. she is cocooned by security people and people pushing her away. that may be an issue for her. maybe she can learn something from sarah palin who has become a pro at being real. >> it helps when this is not your first time around the track. when you're a candidate your first time out, you think the whole world is against you. especially if you start at the bottom, an insurgent candidate. you have to get comfortable with it. >> donna, i'll give you the last word before we go to break. >> i don't often agree with alex but i have to agree. when it is your first time around the so-called proverbial track, you rely on your handlers and others to sort of guide you. but look, it is early. michele bachmann, she got a huge victory behind her but this is america. let me tell you, the next few weeks, she will begin to see attacks from those who are still

vying for number one in the iowa caucuses and she will come under even more scrutiny from the media. this is a key test for michele bachmann, whether or not she will be viable, say, five, six months from now. >> thanks. we'll go back to new hampshire, of course. rick perry. rick perry who really stole the spotlight here. speaking of politics. we're back in motels here on cnn. great! at progressive, you can compare rates side by side, so you get the same coverage, often for less. wow! that is huge! [ disco playing ] and this is to remind you that you could save hundreds! yeah, that'll certainly stick with me. we'll take it. go, big money! i mean, go. it's your break, honey. same coverage, more savings. now, that's progressive. call or click today. ♪ let me make you smile

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go find the other folk and say health officially very thankful to have been invited to the state fair. >> that was sarah palin. i was talking to her yesterday. she has not declared. yet, she is here in iowa. you know what? rick perry wasn't here either and he still made a showing in the straw poll. we were in new hampshire two months ago. it wasn't that long ago for the debate. >> june. >> mark preston is there now. >> he is always late to the

game. >> but someone just left the backyard barbecue party where you are. >> welcome back. as matt said earlier, he said all the political eyes were on eye waffle guess what. they're all coming here to new hampshire. rick perry was no mistake that rick perry made his second stop in his announcement tour here in this yard that i'm standing in. no miss take jon huntsman who did not go into the straw poll did four campaign stops in this state. no mistake that mitt romney who also skip the straw poll held a big night last night. so the eyes are shifting to the east coast and to new hampshire. >> i'm sorry. is it my turn? >> you had no idea what's happening out here. we're having a lot of fun. >> mark, it seems to me that perry has two missions now. he has to slow michele bachmann

down in iowa. and he has to slow mitt romney down in new hampshire. and kind of go in for the kill in south carolina. if i were trying to figure out what his strategy is at this point. >> so this is what i suspect will happen. that rick perry will stay positive. he will follow the pattern of mitt romney. he's only been negative about president obama and very negative about the economy. we heard from rick perry today, he is the person who can turn thing around. he can change the economy. what we will see and what i expect we'll see is we'll see the super packed groups will come to new hampshire. we'll head down to south carolina. we'll head out to iowa. specifically here in new hampshire. the ones aligned with rick perry will try the take out mitt romney. his groups will come in and defend him. in south carolina, i expect we'll see the same thing will happen there. and out in iowa, expect the same

thing to happen out there with michele bachmann. candy? >> mark preston in one of our two favorite early states. thanks a lot. it is the same set-up drawing the same questions. republican candidates gather and sarah palin shows up. what was she doing in iowa? and more of a curiosity, what is she doing in the days to come? will she run for the oval office or not? i'm back here in ames, iowa, and i'm with -- i'm not with candy crowley. i'm with don lemon. >> we're going to find out what sarah palin is up to after the break. my name is marjorie reyes. i'm a chief warrant officer. i love the fact that quicken loans provides va loans. quicken loans understood all the details and guided me through every step of the process. i know wherever the military sends me,

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you know the results of the iowa straw poll show michele bachmann winning. that says a lot about the tea party and also says -- there you see her on top and ron paul second, tim pawlenty is third. but also the popularity of sarah palin that we have been seeing drawing crowds as well and she is a tea party favorite. >> by the way, so is rick perry. >> so it says a lot about the tea party and their influence. i want to talk first though with alex and donna about sarah palin.

so, alex, sarah palin hasn't even declared. she's here. she draws a crowd wherever she goes. and even bigger crowds than the people who have declared. what's going on? >> sarah palin is almost like a chairman emeritus of the tea party. she is tremendously powerful. there are other ways to be involved in american politics than to be a candidate. i think sarah palin loves her country. i respect her a fwraet degreat . i think she knows she can't beat barack obama. she has too much baggage and she is doing her job, inspires, mobilizes, gets the base out. >> is she looking for attention or does she really as you say care that much about the tea party and that message? >> i think she cares that much about her country. i think she's genuinely concerned that we're going over the edge of a cliff and that's why i think she resonates with so many voters. i think that's why she still draws such large crowds. i think it's authentic. >> donald, let me ask you about obviously, you know, you are

going to the democrats are going to go after republicans as being out of the main stream, too far right, tea party crazy people. isn't there some danger in that? because what we do see is that there are enormous numbers of republicans as well as independents, some independents, who identify with tea party goals. do you risk overplaying that when you talk about tea party favorites like sarah palin, michele bachmann, rick perry? >> you know, we're not going to attack them personally. at least i won't attack them personally. we're going to attack their ideas or lack of ideas. we're going to challenge them to come up with a plan to help create jobs, to come and meet president obama half way and the democratic leaders on capitol hill and find solutions so that we can get the economy in full recovery for all the american people. i think the american people are tired of politics, tired of politicians, tired of honestly members of congress. congress is as popular as a root

canal. they want our leaders to lead. they want them to stop talking and start leading. i think democrats are going to listen to the american people, start leading with job creation. that's number one for democrats. >> but does it behoove the democrats that you heard the head of the dnc speaking earlier, i said what do you make of the results and she said not much. really sort of downplaying the influence of the tea party. as i said, i'm sort of a political outsider but is that a smart strategy right now to keep downplaying really a group of people who have made their influence on this country in ways that have not been made before? especially you saw it with the debt ceiling and all of this. they're saying they're going to take back the president's health care plan. is it time for the democrats to stop downplaying the tea party? >> you know, they did it once and after the health care debate and that gave rise to the tea party. there is a wave of people in america who thought washington is out of control and not listening to me. same thing happened on the debt

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welcome back. look there. no self-respecting candidate in iowa or new hampshire does not have a button. >> there she is in the white suit there. there is michele bachmann in the white suit being led by the security and police officers. >> she is right behind us. >> walking into camera position for someone. but she is the winner of the iowa straw poll. >> she won. >> she did. before the break i was asking you, as we look at as michele bachmann, her bus still here, do you think it's time for the democrats to stop either downplaying or under estimating the tea party? just a question. >> well, look. i think we should listen to all americans especially the 80% of american people who would like to see our political leaders put aside all of these extreme positions, come together, come up with a balanced solution to fix what ails our economy so we get the american people back to work. we should, at the end of the day we're all americans and we should do what's best for our country. we will from time