a traffic stop in burns, oregon. the fbi says that it arrested eight men in all, including bundy, the leader of this group that took over the wildlife refuge nearly a month ago. they were protesting the handling of a dispute with ranchers in the area. leroy fin ken is an outspoken member of the group. the bundysaid le voy finicum was shot and murdered in cold blood today in burns, oregon. during the traffic stop, everyone cooperated with police except for finicum and his brother ryan, who was also injured in the confrontation. back to our top story. a political stunner. donald trump will boycott tomorrow night with five days to the iowa caucuses.

is this political malpractice, political genius or donald trump? >> reporter: this is certainly the bombshell that escalated quickly. the trump campaign is holding firm saying they are not bluffing. donald trump will not show up to tomorrow night's debate and he will hold his own event instead. with five days left to drum up support ahead of the iowa caucuses and just a day shy of the next gop fox debate. >> i said bye-bye. >> reporter: donald trump going rogue, dumping fox news. >> probably i won't be doing the debate. i will do something else in iowa where we raise money for the veterans and wounded warriors. >> reporter: trump claiming unfair treatment that megyn kelly. >> she is really biased against me. she knows that. i know that. everybody knows that. do you think she can be fair at a debate?

>> reporter: kelly standing by when trump walks. >> the truth is he doesn't get to control the media. >> reporter: how will his power play fair with iowans before the first votes are cast? obviously we would love all of the candidates to participate but each campaign ultimately makes their own decision. what's in their best interest. but ted cruz, trump's main opposition in the gop race, says not so fast. >> apparently megyn kelly is really, really scary. donald is a fragile soul. >> reporter: the texas senator issuing this challenge to the front-runner. >> if he's unwilling to stay on the debate staged with the other candidates, i would like to invite donald right now to engage in a one on one debate with me any time between now and the iowa caucuses.

>> reporter: trump putting the final nail in the coffin. saying in part, "we learned from a secret back channel that the ayatollah and putin both intend to treat donald trump unfairly. >> they can't toy with me like they do everybody else. let them have their debate. see how they do with the ratings. >> all right. now, forget his decision he just made is dominating coverage and that in and of itself is a win. there is a thick of irony here, my friends, and here's why. donald trump was scheduled to moderate a republican debate. moderate. when several declined to participate in his debate, the millionaire none too clear. scolded the candidates while talking to megyn kelly. >> so far only newt gingrich and rick santorum have agreed. >> we are not seeing a lot of courage here, are we? >> not so far.

are you still going to do it? >> trump ended up bowing out of moderating that debate. cnn brian stelter, maeve reston, author of too dumb to fail," matt lewis. maeve, what do you make of the plus/minus on this decision? >> reporter: it is really funny. it did allow donald trump to once again control the news cycle yesterday. at the same time, giving ted cruz a clear opening of opening that donald trump is afraid of debating him, that he doesn't want to be on the stage in the final days. walking through the crowd last night, most iowa voters here that i talked to did not care. this is what they like about donald trump. he stands up to people and goes for what he wants no matter what the consequences are.

i do think, though, given the hazing that he is getting on fox news over this decision, that certainly this could end up looking like a mistake for him. but we'll see on thursday night when he has duelling events and see what the ratings are for both of them. >> matt, do you agree with the assessment that this is a win for trump? this does not hurt him, this helps him? >> until donald trump does something that goes wrong, that there is a backlash, i think we have to assume, give him the benefit of the doubt, this is not crazy but rather brilliant. >> not only because he is playing a different game. because iowa voters don't care about a debate. he is going to be doing a wounded warrior event. don't they care more about that? >> absolutely. i think there are many reasons why trump is doing this. this is him against the man. the game is rigged. he's one of us. he is standing up to fox news.

the liberals in the court. the other thing, though, in a way it is a prevent defense, right? trump is doing well and he's head, according to the latest polls, even in iowa. nothing good could come from a debate. had you're in a football game and you're winning, slow things down, run out the clock. >> this is a calculation by trump. he is just is using megyn kelly as an excuse. he never wanted to be at the debate in the first place. >> they're acting like an aggrieved party. it's not the high road talking about the ayatollah. >> they were mocking trump. >> they were mocking trump. do you sense any regret? >> one is that these men are geniuses. they are playing three dimensional chess and we don't know what's going on. the other is they are stumbling

around in the dark. not so much for donald trump but fox. that was not to provoke trump to leave the debate. >> let me read the statement. this is the one you're talking about. fox put out this statement. god, this is such typical roger ale's playbook. i recognize this. we learned from a secret back channel that eye to la and putin both intend to treat donald trump with him if he meets the president. he has his own secret plan to replace the cabinet with his twitter followers to see if he should go those meetings. they are making hay of donald trump's strategy. this is apparently what tipped the scales for him to say no debate. >> right. so we have this pretty wild press conference, even by donald trump standards yesterday that we were here in iowa. donald trump kept saying there was a child writing press

releases at fox, continually turning to that topic, no matter what the question was. there were so many other substantive topics discussed on abortion, for example. there were a series of questions that trump said he didn't want to answer about the morning after pill, for example. things that could be important to evangelicals in iowa before they vote. but we are talking about fox and trump. and that's the story he wants us to talk about this morning. >> sounds like a stumble to you, j.b.? i think not. this is the clash of the alpha males. how did trump -- in my beta male feelings about this, when he got a punch in the nose from the press release, it was put up or shut up moment for trump. not a guy to back down, whether that's right or wrong. i want people to not talk about you if we're in a close race. who is talking about ted cruz.

is it right, is it wrong. >> cruz is center stage on thursday night. is that a win for cruz? will this be the huge mistake he made? >> he's not going to be able to say it directly to the guy he wants it to resonate on and with the most, which is trump. >> i sat here 24 hours ago and said, of course trump will show up to the debate. maybe i think they're political rules. they're not. they're customs. >> maeve was speaking out yesterday too. it is about process. >> hasn't he won there? that do these other guys do now? i'm fascinate to go think what they will do on the stage without donald trump? are you going to spend two hours beating up on a guy that's not there? do they beat up on each other? they're in a bind here.

>> maeve, i want to talk about the overarching issue what i think it is, journalism. donald trump can pretend that megyn kelly is biased. no. she asked him a fair question that voters wanted to hear. here's what fox news put about that. capitulate to go politicians's ultimatums about a debate moderator violates all those involved. we can't give in to terrorizations toward any of our employees. i don't know if that's a word that is effective. it may have been made up. you still get the point, maeve. this is what donald trump does. we have all been on the receiving end of it. when he likes her interview, he sends a glowing e-mail. when he doesn't, he puts out a barbed tweet. >> this may end up being kind of

a red line in that kind of conduct from donald trump. even in the press conference yesterday he had a very long sort of tangled exchange back and forth with a reporter berating the reportr over and over again asking for an apology. and fox is saying forget it. this is not happening. we're not going to allow this to go on with our reporters. and as more and more attention is played toward that, i think people will will start pay more attention to the bullying aspect of trump's personality. it is a huge issue for some voters who cannot stand him and want to see anyone else but him as the nominee. >> it is a chilling effect for journalism here. that said, i want to underscore what that says about terrorism basically. fox news is saying the gop front-runners campaign manager is acting like a terrorist. this is something we haven't seen in the modern era. fox news is the favored network of the party. yet the gop front-runner is at

full were blown war with it. like i said, there's no rules for this. >> fox news has made itself part of this debate, not just moderating. >> maeve, matt, brian, thank you guys very much. >> what will it mean? here's what we know for sure. five days from the first votes being cast. cnn will have coverage of the iowa caucuses all day next monday. we are taking "new day" on the road for the big event. >> ted cruz is hoping to capitalize on this whole thing. promising to visit all 99 counties in iowa. he's also got a wife who herself is a political operator. now she is speaking to dana bash in an exclusive interview. what does she think of trump's attacks on her husband's likability?

i want a great shape. who doesn't? so i bike. i get all of my greens. and i try not to faint. this.. i can do easily. benefiber healthy shape. just a couple of spoonfuls every day means fewer cravings. plus, it's all natural, clear, taste-free and dissolves completely. it's clinically proven to keep me fuller longer and helps keep me healthy inside and out. benefiber healthy shape. this, i can do. find benefiber healthy shape in the fiber aisle.

♪jake reese, "day to feel alive"♪ ♪jake reese, "day to feel alive"♪ ♪jake reese, "day to feel alive"♪ this is lloyd. to prove to you that the better choice for him is aleve.

he's agreed to give it up. ok, but i have 30 acres to cover by sundown. we'll be with him all day as he goes back to taking tylenol. yeah, i was ok, but after lunch my knee started hurting again so... more pills. yep... another pill stop. can i get my aleve back yet? for my pain... i want my aleve. get all day minor arthritis pain relief with an easy open cap. what makesheart healthysalad the becalifornia walnuts.r? the best simple veggie dish ever? heart healthy california walnuts. the best simple dinner ever? heart healthy california walnuts. great tasting, heart healthy california walnuts. so simple. get the recipes at walnuts.org. ♪

prepare for challenges specific to your business by working with trusted advisors who help turn obstacles into opportunities. experience the power of being understood. rsm. audit, tax and consulting for the middle market. donald trump tells fox news, take your debate and shove it.

the wife of ted cruz is speaking out. cruz is desperately trying to reclaim his lead in iowa, launching a major anti trump ad. and wife heidi is doing her part, cnn's chief political correspondent dana bash joins us from washington. a very interesting player in this campaign.

>> you are very many known, someone who is out going, likable, well liked. are there times when you say, you know what, honey, maybe given the fact this is the wrap on you, maybe try it this way or that way. >> they're not and here's why.

he's fighting for the american people. they want him to be unwaivering. he's unwaivering for principle for him. we should be compromising going forward not backward. >> when you hear these kinds of things said about your husband that he is not likable, unsufferable, is it a punch in the gut? >> you know why it's not? i'm surprised that it's not. because i have emotions. you take your candidates on and just plain old wife. >> plain old wife hat and mother half. i'm the emotional center of our home. so i am surprised personally that it's not. but here's why. it doesn't bother him. which has been amazing. it speaks to how unflappable and steady he is. >> it may surprise some people that ted cruz who went in riding a wave of anti washington

sentiment, that his wife, you, are an executive at goldman sachs, the epitome of wall street. do you see any contradiction there? >> i don't. ted doesn't have an anti wall street sentiment. he has an anticipate government support sentiment. >> ted ran hard against the bailout, for example, which helped all of wall street, including goldman sachs. really? his wife works for goldman sachs kind of moment? >> if people have that moment, they should look what ted is running against and running on and what i do for a living. i run the private wealth business in the southwest from houston. i'm on a full time leave of absence. and the job that i have at that firm is in many ways the heart of helping people who have achieved the american dream. is and ted is running on

reigniting the office of america. >> when we talk about goldman sachs, what donald trump is saying you got a loan from gold man sacks, ted cruz is beholden to this big wall street bank. >> is he bought and sold by the big banks? >> not my question. what donald trump is suggesting that is happening. >> yeah. there are a lot of false suggestions out there. i think some candidates are trying to distract from how well ted is doing in this election. >> and that's what this is about? that's why trump is saying that? >> i don't think so, yeah. >> when you look at our financial history as public, we put it all out there. we paid back those loans. >> donald trump is saying the fact that your husband was born in canada puts into question that he is eligible to be candidate. >> this is not a legally disputed issue. it has come up before.

ted fits the description. it is another example of distractions. >> you and your husband and your girls started the campaign almost a year ago at liberty university. and now jerry falwell jr., who is the heart and soul of that university at this point since his father passed away, endorsed donald trump. is that a punch in the gut? >> we wanted to start our campaign there because of what that university espoused. >> the fact that jerry falwell didn't turn to you and turned to somebody is less overt in his religion religion. >> if you look at people who especial endorsed for president, there is

no doubt who they endorse. >> she is deeply involved in strategy in this campaign. >> she is more than any spouse i can remember since maybe hillary clinton. they met on the bush campaign in 2000. as you said, you nailed it. she clear cannily as political sensibilities. now she is in finance, as you just heard. she has worked for goldman sachs. his aides structure the campaign the way it's run now. she is a primary fund-raiser. she dials for dollars relentlessly asking for campaign crash. i'll ask how she is doing that in the 8:00 a.m. eastern hour. >> really interesting to hear. thanks so much. we'll have much more in the next

hour. a nun is kidnapped. this time it is al qaeda. ♪ ... all nig♪t text beth, what can i do... [siri:] message. pick up milk. oh, right. milk. introducing the newly redesigned passat. from volkswagen. thcompetition, it's protecting buscustomer trust.not every day you read headlines about governments and businesses being hacked, emails compromised, and intellectual property being stolen. that is cyber-crime, and it affects each and every one of us. microsoft created the digital crimes unit to investigate and fight cyber crime. we use the microsoft cloud to visualize information, so we can track down the

criminals. using our advanced analytics tools, analysis that used to take days to run, we can now see in real time. and we're building what we learn back into the cloud to make people and organizations safer. when it comes to the cloud, trust and security are paramount. our passion is making life tougher for cyber criminals, and making it safer for you and your customers. only abreva can heal it in as few as two and a half days when used at the first sign. it penetrates deep and starts to work immediately to block the virus and protect healthy cells.. don't tough it out, knock it out, fast. abreva.

that's a fact. but this whole "blondes have more fun" thing... ♪ standing by for fun. ♪

breaking news. al qaeda affiliate in north africa claimed to have kidnapped beatrice stokely. what have you learned, nick. >> there is one key fact. this is the second time she has been kidnapped from the same area. the first time in 2012. this eight-minute video for much of it narrated by a british accented masked man. they asked for a prisoner exchange. they want a number of prisoners held by the mali government. they also go on to say she has driven many from the fold of

islam by seducing them with the crumbs of this worldly life. that is a reference to the christian faith. obviously a well-known target in that area. after the first kidnapping she is not being known, clearly in the hands of al qaeda. >> nick, thank you very much. please keep us apprised of anything you learn about that. republican front-runner bucking convention, skipping tomorrow's gop debate. he's way ahead of the pack. can trump risk it, or is this helping him? analysis ahead.

just when you thought he could not shock you anymore, he does. donald trump dropping out of tomorrow's gop debate with fox news. clearly a reason trump feels uncomfortable skipping the debate. he is dominating nearly every state and national poll. does it help?

does it hurt? what does it mean overall for the gop? the man who could answer all of these, senior contributor for the daily caller, matt lewis, author of a very good new book, "too dumb to fail." how it can reclaim its conservative roots. you see trump, you see more than a headline. you see almost like the matrix, a whole party dynamic at play. >> absolutely. donald trump is the big story today, no doubt about it. he seems to be playing this amazing chess game. but if you look under the hood, there is a lot of dynamics that building up in the republican party for a long time. for one thing, it is the rise of this populus strain, which isn't conservative. it is called "too dumb to fail". >> which means? >> one is a weird phenomenon if

you say or do something crazy or stupid, you go up in the polls. >> because? >> because you're too dumb to fail. it goes back to the andrew ross sorkin book, too big to fail. the problem with there were these moral hazards. we had the same thing happening in the republican party right now in the primary. you have pundits and politicians with perverse incentives to say or do things that help them individually. collectively harm the republican party and the conservative movement. >> to extend the metapho, the backstop on the banks is, well, we all need them. no matter how much they screw up, we have to support them. is there an equivalent in the gop? >> no. eventually what happens is too dumb to fail won't work. it worked in the republican primary so far. and for a long time, the too dumb to fail mentality has

worked. we have had a lot of republicans get elected by dumbing things down and pandering and playing to the base. but the demographic changes "coming to america" right now are such if it goes the direction of donald trump, which is doubling down on a populist working class, white nativity vote, that will sow the seeds for a long-term demographic disaster. i believe conservatism can survive and win in the free market of ideas. in the 21st ideas, conservatives can attract college educatd folks, urbanites. that's not going to happen if they go the wrong direction. >> and they can win those groups without making those people somehow sully. >> yeah. >> what's the criticism? the criticism is, sure, you can make the people conservative but you would be ruining what they represent in the mosaic.

you say, no, that is the jaundice in conservative. stkph say an urban guy in new york city, if his vision of what a republican is boss hog, the guy with the rebel flag, he is not going to think of himself as conservative or republican. at the same time, that same young urbanite is getting on his smartphone ordering up an uber and getting on stubhub and going to a baseball game, this is a guy engaged in very conservative activities. he is entrepreneurial. he doesn't want the government to control his retirement. he is managing it on his smartphone. that guy should be a conservative and he will be unless conservatives allow the cultural baggage to weigh them down. >> trump says he's a conservative. >> says he is ape conservative. we have this big argument now what does it mean to be a conservative. i hope he would read my book "too dumb to fail."

i see conservative goes back to air stott el. edmond burk and william f. buckley.

it only takes one terrorist to blow this place up. >> you get her take on that, which was considered controversial. trump is attracting young

people. 18-year-old turner eakin from nebraska. >> 18-year-olds, we value action and who is going to come through. and to us that's trump. he walked out to we're not going to take it. >> that is a little sample what all these voters told us. m.j. lee talks about why trump is resonating with so many voters she spoke to. m.j., tell us what you learned. >> good morning, alisyn. as you know, there are a number of reporters at cnn, myself included, who spent the last were couple of months traveling country with donald trump going to his campaign events and valleys. and the perspective we want to bring is what most can't just get by watching his speeches on television, seeing him speak. we have been able to at his valleys speak to voters who are turning up and really getting to the root of why are you here.

why are you supporting donald trump. what is it you're angry about? what are you passionate about. what is driving you to come out to his valleys. we hope this story on cnn politics, by reading this and hearing some on of these voices of the voters, they will really get a sense of the trump phenomena and what is driving it. >> anything that surprised you particularly? >> well, look, i think like all of us the endurance and the loyalty of trump supporters has been surprising. and it surprised us over and over again i think when trump first announced his campaign for president in the summer, a lot of us thought, look, this is an unlikely candidate. this is going to be short-lived. and here we are in the middle of january where we are just days away from the iowa caucuses. the end of january, i should say. he is thriving. something that we have been struck by is he is in part thriving and has accomplished something really amazing by

tapping into the deep fears and anxieties that have really gripped people post san bernardino, post paris. and trump has managed to have this uncomplicated strength and presented himself as a candidate who can really bring the country back. people's attraction to that has been really striking. his voters, his supporters really don't care that he says things that are inflammatory. >> be sure to check out m.j.'s piece on why voters are supporting trump. go to cnn.com. it's a fascinating report. let's go over to chris. indeed. well, so far he's pretty much been the teflon don-ald. is boycotting a debate two days before the caucuses too riski for trump or is it too genius? ?

okay, mostly prepared? could you save 1% more of your income? it doesn't sound like much, but saving an additional 1% now, could make a big difference over time. i'm going to be even better about saving. you can do it, it helps in the long run. prudential bring your challenges iand quit a lot,t but ended up nowhere. now i use this. the nicoderm cq patch, with unique extended release technology, helps prevent the urge to smoke all day. i want this time to be my last time. that's why i choose nicoderm cq.

♪ ♪ lease a 2016 lincoln mkx for $399 a month only at your lincoln dealer.

a depositly shot in the chest and abdomen but able to fireback, hitting a juvenile suspect in the leg. that suspect now in custody. the second suspect on the loose. police in seattle looking for two men opening fire, killing two people at a homeless camp. a man and woman were killed in what police say was a targeted attack. they do not believe the public is in danger. it comes as city leaders sound the alarm on a growing problem. actor abe vigoda has died. he was mafia kingpin in "the

godfather." you can see this iconic scene portraying the corleone family. >> tom, can you get me off the hook? for old time's sake. >> can't do it, sally. >> for old time's sake. tell mike it was only business. >> later he was phil fish in "barney miller." abe vigoda was 90. >> long life. >> there were reports 30 years ago that he had died. he made fun of that for a long time, for decades. >> i always thought that was a genius moment for him. he is smiling for old time's sake. and martin says, can't do it,

sally. even when he is saying, no, i basically got to kill you. apropos of what we are seeing in the elections today. >> 2016. >> donald trump out of the fox news gop debate. is that a winning move? >> tell roger it was only business. >> for old time's sake. when heartburn hits fight back fast tums smoothies starts dissolving the instant it touches your tongue and neutralizes stomach acid at the source tum, tum, tum, tum smoothies! only from tums every auto insurance policy has a number.

but not every insurance company understands the life behind it. ♪ those who have served our nation have earned the very best service in return. ♪ usaa. we know what it means to serve. get an auto insurance quote and see why 92% of our members plan to stay for life. are you ready? are you ready? i mean, really ready? are you ready to open? ready to compete? ready to welcome? do you look buttoned up, prepared, professional? you've got to be ready. the floors, mats, spotless. the uniforms clean and crisp, ready to produce. ready for the unexpected. are you ready to prosper, to grow? do your people have the right safety gear? are they protected? to be ready is to anticipate. prepare. emergency lights, alarm panel. ready. ready?

ready. ready is safe. you think your customers can't tell the difference between who's ready and who's not? of course they do. you, have anticipated, prepared, figured out, focused. you're ready. i'm ready! ready is the hero. a hero. ready? ready. ready. you're ready. everybody wants a piece of ready. ♪ rootmetrics, in the nation's largest independent study, tested wireless performance across the country. verizon, won big with one hundred fifty three state wins. a t and t got thirty-eight, sprint got two, and t mobile got, zero. verizon also won first in the us for data, call speed, and reliability. a t and t got, text. stuck on an average network? join verizon and we'll cover your costs to switch. ♪

prepare for challenges specific to your business by working with trusted advisors who help turn obstacles into opportunities. experience the power of being understood. rsm. audit, tax and consulting for the middle market. i came here to do the debate. when they sent out the wise guys

press releases done with a p.r. person, along with roger ales i said bye-bye. >> five days out from iowa, donald trump said he is not showing up to the debate because of their moderator. now he is starting to tweet about it this morning. i said i refuse to call megyn kelly a bimbo but she is a lightweight reporter. >> that is disgusting. when he doesn't like it, he goes for a sexist attack. you don't call a man a bimbo. megyn kelly asked how he treated women and how he calls them names. >> it is an escalating thing. they sort of came after him with that commentary yesterday. it was really sort of snide.

>> you mean a statement they put out? >> yes. >> that's what you say escalated this. fox news, when he was saying i might not show up, i might not show up, don't push me. they have to dump megyn kelly in order for me to show up. >> he was polling his twitter followers. we learned from a secret back channel that the ayatollah and putin both intend to treat donald trump unfairly if they meet him if he becomes president. a source tells us he has his own secret plan to replace the cabinet with his twitter followers to see if he should even go to the meetings. >> it is mocking him. it is basically saying you're not the front-runner. you're a joke. you'll always get a reaction when you say he's not serious with his campaign. he comes after you, big time. >> that statement was vintage roger ayles.

he was my boss for many years. roger is used to making the rules. he is used to getting his way. what are the fox executives -- i know you reach out to them. what are they saying about what's going on inside the halls about how they are dealing with trump? >> they seem, my impression here, caught off guard by what's happened, by how to handle trump and how he has responded to them each time. this is an ultimate power situation of these two titans of media and industry. it might be a situation where ayles finally met his match. >> this is bigger than fox news and donald trump's spat. he doesn't like to be asked questions, questions he perceives as negative. that is journalism. you ask tough questions. >> not every right to say you can't then be on the show. that's the difference i think. >> it has a chilling effect.

a couple of events where cosponsors have been uninvited because they have been critical of trump. national review. the rnc said, okay, you're not going to be part of a debate happening next month. >> there is an issue here -- >> if you challenge trump too much, you're not involved in a debate. that does have a chilling effect. >> fox has to worry. because most of his audience, his base, is their audience. they can't just say well -- >> this has been bad for megyn kelly. >> how do you know it has been bad for her? >> that is my impression anecdotally. i look at the commentary online, some of the nastiness. i would say she has a very strong program. there is a sign of weakness there at 9:00 p.m. in recent weeks. trump supporters say that's because we're not watching. we are boycotting the show. to be in the middle of this. what does have every moderator

say before the debate, i just don't want to be the story. megyn kelly continues to be the story because donald trump is making sure the story. >> lewandowski just called into a morning show how he feels about fox and what he predicts will happen tomorrow night with fox. listen to this. >> mr. trump, you have a clear leader person who he says is not going to be toyed with. he understands the bad deals in front of him and he is able to walk away from a bad deal. how are you going to have a dewhen you have the clear gop front-runner walk away because he can't be treated fairly on the debate stage. >> will this affect fox news? >> i think it will. somebody will cover what he is doing. >> i think he said he is going to have a wounded warriors -- >> they said they are already

starting that. i think corey has gone too far with this. this debate will still be watched by 10 million people. it will be the elephant in the room or the ghost in the room. everybody will be looking around trying to punch at this ghost who is not there. >> i want to see what he is saying on the other channel. >> it is automatically an under card debate. >> all right. brian, bill, thank you very much. we're following a lot of news this morning, so let's get right to it >> this is cnn breaking news. >> good morning, everyone. welcome to "new day." john berman joins us. donald trump going where no party front-runner is going before. he is skipping the final republican debate. trump going to war with fox news. now the network is hitting back. we do begin with breaking news.

overnight armed protesters occupying a federal wildlife refuge in oregon facing off with state police and fbi. several demonstrators are in police custody, including the group's leader ammon bundy. live with breaking developments. what do we know? >> one man was killed, another injured in the dramatic shootout between members of an oregon protest group and the fbi and state police. the confrontation took place on a traffic stop in burns, or on or. the fbi arrested eight men, including amon pwupbd y. he took over nearly a month ago. they were protesting the federal government's handling a dispute with ranchers in the area. finicum had vowed not to be

taken alive. they said he was shot and murdered in cold blood today by the fbi and state law enforcement. he had his hands up and was shot three times. the fbi says during the traffic stop, everyone cooperated with police except for finicum and bundy's brother ryan. >> a lot of people talking this morning. donald trump telling fox news, i don't need you, i don't need your debate, i do not need your moderator. so is this madness or political magnificence? we are in des moines, iowa with this. unbelievable. >> reporter: it certainly is a bombshell. it escalated very quickly. the trump campaign is holding firm, saying they are not bluffing. they say donald trump will not show up at tomorrow night's debate and is planning to hold his own event instead. with five days left to drum up support ahead of the iowa

caucuses and just a day shy of the next gop fox debate -- >> i said bye-bye. >> reporter: donald trump going rogue, dumping fox news. >> probably i won't be doing the debate. i will do something else in iowa where we raise money for the veterans and wounded warriors. >> reporter: trump claiming unfair treatment that megyn kelly. >> she is really biased against me. she knows that. i know that. everybody knows that. do you think she can be fair at a debate? >> reporter: kelly standing by when trump walks. >> the truth is he doesn't get to control the media. >> reporter: how will his power play fair with iowans before the first votes are cast? the rnc responding to trump's move telling cnn, obviously we would love all of the candidates to participate but each campaign ultimately makes their own decision. what's in their best interest. but ted cruz, trump's main opposition in the gop race, says

not so fast. >> apparently megyn kelly is really, really scary. donald is a fragile soul. >> reporter: the texas senator issuing this challenge to the front-runner. >> if he's unwilling to stay on the debate staged with the other candidates, i would like to invite donald right now to engage in a one-on-one debate with me any time between now and the iowa caucuses. >> reporter: trump putting the final nail in the coffin tuesday night after fox released a tongue in cheek statement saying in part, "we learned from a secret back channel that the ayatollah and putin both intend to treat donald trump unfairly. >> they can't toy with me like they do everybody else. let them have their debate. see how they do with the ratings. >> reporter: there's a certain irony for donald trump. in 2011, he was scheduled to moderate a republican debate on

news max. many of the candidates then decided not to participate. check out donald trump's response then to those candidates. >> we're not seeing a lot of courage here, are we? >> not so far. >> it is supposed to be brave. i was disappointed because i really thought that he would go out and had courage. >> do you really think you're a better moderator than i am? >> no. i could never beat you. >> a little extra irony because that was megyn kelly now at the center of this controversy with donald trump. that debate, chris, later went on to be canceled. >> thank you very much. we have the perfect guest for this topic. a personal friend of donald trump. he knows politics so well, the former new york city mayor. and he knows how to be tough. rudy giuliani is with us. he knows the race. back in 2008, you had your own experience with this. you understand the dynamics.

you know all the players involved. can you believe this is happening? >> well, no. but i can't believe half of what's happening. >> bad move for donald trump on the face of it? >> gosh, i thought he made bad moves before. i think the last couple he won. >> he said he won all of them. it shows he won every one of them. >> as he went along more convincingly than others. there were a lot of republicans who were on the bubble right now ready to support him. big time republicans. last night i had dinner with several african-americans. some aren't going to support him but they like him. one, norman seabrook, is going to endorse him. he has crossover appeal that he

doesn't have. i think it would be better for him to debate. obviously he is saying something to them they like. so keep saying it to them. the message he has is a good one. cruz is going to go after him on choice and all this other stuff. he has a very simple answer. these are all positions he had when he was a businessman. he didn't get much thought to it. now he is running for office. this is my political philosophy and i'm sticking to it. >> you didn't do that. when you were a prosecutor you said i thought one group of things when i was a prosecutor. now i'm a politician. you are what you are inside. right. that's what those positions are about. >> i represent a lot of businesses. you have to play both sides is of the aisle. you have to have some democrats, republicans. >> the proof is in the polls.

>> therefore i don't think he will take such a beating with cruz. >> there's two metaphors that come to life. it is seen between fox news being the establishment and trump. how do you see that? >> that, i don't see. that's the audience that will have a lot to do with the primary. even more than the germ election. you're in a primary right now. talk to the people that are going to vote in the primary. so my advice to friend donald, surprise them. show up. and from his point of view, beat the heck out of them. >> doesn't that look like lose something. >> maybe you can say something like i can take advice. >> wow. like another new york values moment for him. >> one of the questions is is he flexible enough, can he take advice? take advice.

>> can he be the bigger person? >> yeah. some of the best moments i had with public approval is when i apologized. i apologize. i was wrong. >> off times strength is vulnerability. how about on the fox news side, ayatollah, putin joke. >> i think it's a little too far. that's the attack other candidates are going to make against them. >> but is that their job -- >> no. >> -- to make the case another candidate should? >> another close personal friend is roger ayles. >> mine as well. >> he is one thing, loyal. he is sticking up for megyn kelly. i don't think he agrees with donald. he can even agree with donald. he would stick up for megyn kelly. >> i agree with you on the loyalty part. we both experienced that loyalty. i don't know that it's about

megyn kelly. i don't know that it is for donald trump. and i don't know if it is for roger. in fact, according to the campaign manager, lewandowski for trump, said it is not about megyn kelly. it is how fox is dealing. you can argue fox news does symbolize something in the gop. >> right. >> is he trying to protect that? and megyn kelly is going to be fine. do you think that is really the battle line? >> it could be. look, they have treated donald fairly. they haven't gone overboard. i was one of his closest personal friends. they criticize said me. and they supported me back and forth. maybe donald is expecting too much from fox. >> does he win just by this conversation? nobody is talking about cruz. >> this may be what you and i have missed. from the beginning it is when is donald going to fall apart. but we're talking about donald. we're not talking about cruz. we're not talking about rubio.

we're not talking about bush. they're out of the game. it is roger, kelly. where are the other candidates? >> full disclosure, you have always been a very good mentor to me. when you were walking out about one of the appearances you gave me a pat, good analysis. not about trump. it is true. he does not have to play by the normal rules. if rudy giuliani said i don't like the way fill in the blank, i'm not going to the debate, i would have had to beat you with a big stick? i would have been dead i would have dropped 10 points. they hold him to a different statement with the business background, reality tv backgrou background. for me or cruz or trump. >> if he were more traditional conservative, do you think fox news would be doing the same thing? >> yeah. i think they would because of the -- what they regard as a

slap in the face to them, to their show, to their reporter. he does go after her pretty hard. >> just sent out a tweet where he used a word -- the bimbo word. i refuse to call megyn kelly a bimbo. i could call cuomo an idiot but i won't. he gets it both ways. instead i will only call her a lightweight reporter. you would like to say -- if you knew i was going to do something like this, you would say don't do that. that's beneath you. >> i would say don't do it. >> that is an especially insulting word. >> you may agree with it, disagree with it. she is a smart woman, law school graduate.

>> i think that tweet gets him attention. a guy that can fight back. >> calling a professional woman that people respect a bimbo? >> he's done it before and look where he is. he's used that word before. >> and you think there is no red line? >> i haven't seen it. it could be. it may come at some point if you keep it up. >> you don't believe he has a raoeuighteous position? >> i like donald when he defended new york. he got to a poise of eloquence and presidential stature. >> but he had the high road. >> i would ike to see him do that here. you know, listen, i listened to a lot of people. i'm going to see him in that debate. >> but you don't see him on the high road now, not with that tweet? >> i can't see how that helps hip. same thing i said when he first walked out, looks like there are

different rules here. >> michael bloomberg, you know him very well, is there a shot that he gets in the race? >> only one real shot. >> you hold up two fingers. >> it really is a two-part thing. there have to be two candidates. sanders on their side and cruz on our side. i think if it's trump or christie, rubio -- >> but don't friends say trump would be a catalyst for him. he sees trump as a reason to get out? >> i see a trump, hillary or any of the others i mentioned. >> you don't think bloom berg can take trump? >> no. i don't think an independent can take enough votes away from a democrat or republican. >> self funder versus self funder, new yorker versus new

yorker, billionaire versus billionaire. >> no votes in the south. no votes in the midwest on the gun position. that would kill him. pennsylvania. >> he could just change it. >> not mike. that's not mike. you know mike. >> he's a businessman. >> pennsylvania, they take the first monday in december to go hunting. you're anticipate-nra in pennsylvania? forget pennsylvania. he's not going to take some of the deep democratic states away. he may take a few states. what do you have? you have an election in the house of receipts. >> all right. >> what is the house of representatives? republican. >> good analysis on that. we have a lot of time left. we have a whole day before this happens. do you think he winds up at the debate or no? >> knowing donald and how strong he is, no. do i think he should be there? yes. would it be the surprise of the day and tomorrow he could dominate again, yes. i give it 60/30 he doesn't show

up. 10 undecided. >> that sounds perfect for the climate. >> i think it would. i think it would make great news. we'll be talking about that tomorrow. >> please come back. remember, we are just five days from the first votes being cast in this race. that's why it all matters so much. complete coverage of the iowa caucuses. we will be there all day next monday. we will get you set up for the big vote. john. >> great interview there. this morning a new cnn/orc poll finds half of americans are pessimistic about the future of the united states. the president appraisoval ratin just under 50%. the public's view not as strong on lifting the sanctions.

only 43% support. well, the president of the cleveland patrolman's union vowing an appeal after six were fired and six other suspended after a deadly police chase and shooting. officers fired at a single vehicle in a 2012 car chase that killed the two unarmed occupants. the police union calls the rulings politically motivated and the officers have spent the last three years doing their jobs by protecting the city. indiana principal remembers a hero this morning after pushing students out of the way of an oncoming bus. susan jordan was struck and killed after a bus jumped a curb during dismissal. two students were injured but expected to be okay. she was called loving and compassionate by her students. >> what if they had a republican debate and the front-runner

didn't show up? we're about to find out. risk and reward for donald trump. john king joins us with his analysis. that's next. what makes this simple salad the best simple salad ever? heart healthy california walnuts. the best simple veggie dish ever? heart healthy california walnuts. the best simple dinner ever? heart healthy california walnuts. great tasting, heart healthy california walnuts. so simple. get the recipes at walnuts.org.

when your cold makes you wish... ...you could stay... ...in bed all day... ...you need the power of... new theraflu expressmax. new theraflu expressmax. the power to feel better.

donald trump's announcement that he's skipping tomorrow's gop debate has the political world jabbering. how will his decision affect what happens in iowa five days from mao. anchor of inside politics, jong king joins us in studio. great to have you here. >> yeah. >> look, he's not going. he's not going. >> i don't see any indication based on first what he said and his campaign manager said. >> right. >> doesn't look that way. >> right. >> we have six months of what we think is gravity reality and the rules. tomorrow seems to be the opposite. based on how strong they were last night, it is in conceivable. >> it is interesting for us in the news media to talk about it. does it affect anything five days from now? >> it's an interesting question. i was at a rally the other day in iowa he half insulted -- he

thinks it's funny. he thinks it's his new york way. called them stupid for supporting ted cruz. most of the political pros who i would remind you have been wrong about trump since the beginning, his last debate wasn't bad. he came under attack. it was his strongest debate performance. why do anything to mess with what's working. you open it up to seb bush can say i'm right. he's unhinged. they can say, donald, where are you? we're at the top of the pack. are you afraid of megyn kelly. what about putin, the chinese? however, every time trump has done something contrary, he has benefited it. >> the coach of the north carolina tar heels. >> thank you. >> who is this dean of smith? >> look, i'm curious what these

other candidates are going to do on that stage they will take a moment and bash him for not being there. they can't make it about donald trump a full two hours. >> it gives them an opportunity in the sense they get more time. there have been times trump has dominated the time. other times he has stepped back and not been such a big debate. he has -- the last debate was probably his strongest. they are eh. not horrible, but not good. he started tough ads. he wanted that confrontation. he wanted to stand next to donald trump when you said what do you mean you were pro-choice? cruz wanted that. rubio think he is sort of surging. believe it when you see it in the news. >> we just had on rudy giuliani. he is a close friend of donald trump and roger ailes.

he knows how to play hard style, new york style, whatever you want to put on it he said the strong thing to do is to go to the debate. why? >> it's not about you. you represent a message. you have a duty to them. that's what politics is. that's the risk. he knows how to position himself. does he risk that if he doesn't show up and represent them at the debate. >> his core people are very, very loyal. he said i could stand in the middle of 5th avenue and shoot someone and they're not going anywhere. if you can do that, you can walk away from the caucuses five days before a debate. he has bent if not broken every rule of politics. to that point, the strength of

the trump campaign is strength. i'm tough. i'm a leader. they're losers. they are low energy. you can make the case pause of a war of words. you get lost in your own words. >> let's talk about the other side of the aisle, shall we? a new quinnipiac poll shows what's going on in iowa with bernie sanders and hillary clinton. bernie sanders has 49%. hillary clinton, 45%. what do you think is going to happen here? >> this is a fascinating race. when you're out you can see 2008 all over again. younger kids go to college campuses. college was not in session the last two caucus days. hillary clinton gets the older

folk, women, long time democrats. bernie sanders gets younger voters, independents and people who say i'm excited by this campaign. i'm going to play for the first time. the one lesson the clinton team learned, she's much better organized than 2008. she has a lot of obama team helping her in iowa. this is a khafclassic test. there is no question she has the momentum right now. >> i don't know that it will matter. that was the most exposure governor o'malley has had in a long time. you say does it matter? yes, it does. behalf huckabee, santorum get, that comes from cruz. pay attention to the candidates third, fourth, fifth and beyond. >> you spent time looking at huckabee and santorum. are those guys still running for

real? >> yes. remember, both have won the iowa caucuses before. both have their support. evangelical and home schoolers, conservative christians in the small rural counties. he needs those voters. anything huckabee, santorum get, it comes out of cruz. >> john, don't be distracted by chris's effort to distract you from what is the real topic here. >> what is he wearing? >> his jack set. the jacket he wore for the democratic forum in iowa. most people felt it was teensy. this is the view i'm not sure is the best. >> easy.

>> wow. >> yeah. >> it has its own twitter feed. >> the proof that some are wrong, martin o'malley took his office because they knew it could not compare. >> strong point. >> you are talking about the jacket. if you're talking about the jacket he wins. >> i feel like a complete loser. i paid retail for that. >> they said -- >> stozzi. >> jacket by pee-wee herman. >> all good. thanks so much. will donald trump accept the new offer from ted cruz with a one on one debate? how will cruz go after him? we'll discuss next.

these are the hands, the hands that drive commerce, that build business across borders. these are the hands of pitney bowes, the craftsmen of commerce. these are the hands that sew the seeds of business growth, that weave the data, and find the perfect spot to thrive. these are the hands of pitney bowes, the craftsmen of commerce.

that's why i switched from u-verse to xfinity. now i can download my dvr recordings and take them anywhere. ready or not, here i come! (whispers) now hide-and-seek time can also be catch-up-on-my-shows time. here i come! can't find you anywhere! don't settle for u-verse. x1 from xfinity will change the way you experience tv. ted cruz throwing down the gauntlet after donald trump

drops out of tomorrow's republican debate. >> we are effectively tied in the state of iowa. if he's unwilling to stand on the debate stage with the other candidates, then i would like to invite donald right now to engage in a were one-on-one debate with me any time between now and the iowa caucuses. cruz did not stop there tweeting out a link to this website calling trump a ducking donald with a mockup of trump's face on scrooge mcduck. i have never said those words before in a news segment. the author of "what america needs" the case for trump and cnn political commentator and white house political director and alice stewart, senior communications adviser for ted cruz. great to have both of you with us. jeffrey, let me start with you. you face tough questions from us here at cnn every day. why should donald trump shy away from facing tough questions in a

debate tomorrow night? >> you know, years ago roger ailes wrote a book called "you are the message" in which he did communicate the idea that everything -- not just what you say but the way you conduct yourself in sync sin crow tphaoeuzation. fox being the standard at this moment. >> jeffrey, what guff has he taken other than answering tough questions? >> right. that's the journalistic perception, obviously. but clearly out there in america the media, quote, unquote, does not have a particularly favorable reputation. so when he, donald trump, goes about this, what he is trying to communicate is along with everybody else in the world, i'm not going to take stuff from the people, whether it's the media

or anyone else. i'm totally at a loss from that snarky statement from fox. i was astonished they put that out. >> what do you think of donald trump skipping this debate tomorrow night? >> jeffrey is surprised at snark when we were talking about donald trump. here is the man who calls his toughest challenger nasty, stupid, pretty much every name in the book. he is this morning calling megyn kelly virtually a bimbo. this is a behavior unbecoming a candidate. when the decision was made to say bye-bye to the debate, he said, look, let's see what the ratings are for fox after this. this is about respect for the process. this is about respect for the people of this country and the people here in iowa who have been looking forward to this

last chance to see the candidates show how they contrast on the issues, show where they stand on these key areas of contrast. they're making their final decisions on this. we are five days out all important iowa caucus. we are looking to have a good contrast with the candidates. he just took that away. it's not fair for the people of i've eye. if he is afraid of questions from megyn kelly, what is he going to do if he were to become president, talking with putin, kim jong-un. if he is afraid of megyn kelly, then he has no business whatsoever to be in this process. >> alice, you are making excellent points, of course. your candidate, ted cruz has refused to come on our show on "new day". he doesn't make appearances on cnn. what's he afraid of? >> he has done cnn before. he's not afraid of tough

questions. and speaking of what he is not afraid of, he is not afraid of donald trump. we had two events last night after donald decided he wanted to insult the american people and avoid this debate. he challenged them to a one-on-one debate. lincoln douglas style. if donald trump is afraid of a moderator asking tough questions or being mean to him, let's do lincoln douglas style is debate. needless to say, we haven't heard anything like that. >> can we count on senator cruz coming on our show in the next week? >> well, i can tell you right now, alisyn, our schedule is jam packed from here through the caucus. we can certainly look at something down the road. but we are jam is packed. unlike donald trump, we have 30 campaign events in iowa this week. we were done at midnight last night. >> got it. well, our offer stands, our

invitation stands. we would love to have him on. jeffrey, but the point that alice was making, this is supposed to be about the voters. this is not a reality show. this is not about roger ailes. this is supposed to be something bigger. what is donald trump going to do about that? >> well, you know, alisyn, i really do think this is about the media. i don't need to sell you guys of all people that he picks fights with cnn. he picks fights with the new york sometimes, with "the wall street journal". the point is what he is communicating to people is that he is not the typical politician. he's not going to follow the typical route. frankly, these other guys, can you imagine jeb bush standing up to fox news? i mean, i don't think so. and that's one of the points he's making. these other folks wouldn't have the courage to do this kind of thing because they are so standard cookie cutter politician. >> it just gets more and more

interesting. thank you both. we appreciate you both being on here. let's get over to chris. >> so what about the other side, the democrats. we have a new poll, bernie sanders, way ahead of hillary clinton when it comes to young voteers. so what does this mean as a strength for bernie sanders and a challenge for clinton to get young democrats? we'll talk to clinton's press secretary next. this... i can do easily. i try hard to get a great shape. benefiber healthy shape helps curb cravings. it's a clear, taste-free daily supplement... ...that's clinically proven to help keep me fuller longer. benefiber healthy shape. this, i can do. find us in the fiber aisle. ♪ prepare for challenges specific to your business

by working with trusted advisors who help turn obstacles into opportunities. experience the power of being understood. rsm. audit, tax and consulting for the middle market. theand to help you accelerate,. we've created a new company... one totally focused on what's next for your business.

the true partnership where people,technology and ideas push everyone forward. accelerating innovation. accelerating transformation. accelerating next. hewlett packard enterprise.

iowa caucuses just five days away. hillary clinton and bernie sanders remain locked in a virtue wall tie in iowa.

both candidates dead heat. the vermont senator has the support of 78% of iowans, 18 to 44. clinton leads among older members of the electorate. let's discuss press secretary brian fallon. what do you see as the numbers in the new poll? you know where you're strong and your demos are and where you're not. >> so many polls are coming out it makes you dizzy. the point is the race is very close. we're confident in the ground organization we have in iowa. if you look at the behavior of the two candidates in the last two days, i don't think senator sanders is projecting confidence. after weeks of suggesting they were going to win iowa and saying they needed a strong performance, they low balled expectations for next week. today, if you open up the "new york times", you see them

determining whether they run their first personal attack ad going after hillary clinton. they have run ads in the past increasingly negative. this would be an attack on her, wall street, borrowing a page from karl rove's playbook. if he is starting to go back on promises not running personal attack ads, that suggests something about the state of the campaign. >> things get tougher when we get closer to the wire. his camp makes the same accusations towards your camp. it is really criticism. we will have to see the ad and we will judge it. the younger voters's part, is that something you're trying to address? what does clinton do to get the demographic? >> there was a young woman that came up to hillary the other day and was literally in tears just

at the fact of meeting her and posing for a picture with her. so we see that enthusiasm. hillary clinton exudes heart. >> you don't think the young voter thing is an issue? >> i think we are finding we are encounters enthusiasm every day on the campaign trail. the choice before the voters really starts to emerge. bernie sanders has not encountered a lot of scrutiny except the last two weeks, he has to back pedal on issues like guns and his health care plan. i think voters are taking a second look at him. >> a lot of debate drama going on. the headlines going on with trump and fox news. you don't have any problems of that scale. but there is something bubbling up. what is going on? the dnc says you will have to lose one of the sanctions. >> here's what happened. the democratic national committee set up six debates.

we have had four so far. by all accounts they have done extremely well. hillary clinton in particular has performed well at them. in the of math of the four debates, which have been substantive, elevated affairs, there's been a discussion about adding more. and all the campaigns have said they would be will to do that, including hillary clinton. and so yesterday the union leader nbc suggested that -- actually set a debate for the day they want to hold in between iowa and new hampshire. currently there is no debate between iowa and new hampshire. we have said and martin o'malley said we will agree to attend if all the candidates agree. the sanders campaign is the one hold out. we think they should join us in saying they will be in new hampshire next week. >> address the criticism. the reason that the dc had a short schedule was to protect the clinton candidacy. >> that's not true at all. hillary clinton consistently said she enjoys debating. i think it shows in all the debates. i think without exception she

has performed really well at the debates. in the aftermath, everyone says this is really her place to shine because she is so substantive in these forums. now is an opportunity to put another one on the schedule. it is unclear why sanders is the lone holdout. >> how are you feeling about iowa right now? >> we're feeling good. it will be close. it will come down to marbling our forces monday night, next week. we have had a ground organization there since last spring. we were there first. we are extremely confident. we know senator sanders has been on the ground for a while too. he is generating a lot of enthusiasm. it will come down to the wire. >> after the town hall the other night -- i always like to see them meet their families and get back to the team. i heard both of them use the word strong very quickly both

times. which is funny. how do you feel your response has been since you came out of the town hall? was that good for the secretary? has it been resonating? what did you get? >> the last couple of days since that event, people have been remarking on the contrast in the styles of the candidates in that forum. senator sanders was sharply critical of secretary clinton. we think in the closing days that the consideration that is going to loom largest in the minds of the iowa caucusgoers is who can-can protect the gains made under president obama. as we see donald trump or ted cruz being nominated, whichever those two be that emerges, they will want to go back to dodd-frank reform. we need somebody that can stand up against those efforts and make furthering roads on all of those issues. potentially multiple supreme

court vacancies in the next administration. so there is a lot on the line. you know, the last des moines register poll shows 40% of people were still open to changing who they might support. so i think there will be a lot of final processing in the minds of the voters in the last few days. >> iowans have big ears. big ears in iowa. they are open until the last second. we will see you out in iowa. john. >> the presidential race about who will debate with whom and which person moderating. you would think those are the biggest issues in this campaign. what about, you know, something like security? next, we will speak with a congressman about the terror threats that scare him most. and, yes, we will also ask about the debates. i want this time to be my last time. that's why i choose nicoderm cq.

text mom. i'll be right back. be good. boys have been really good today. send. let's get mark his own cell phone. nice. send. brad could use a new bike. send. [siri:] message. you decide. they're your kids. why are you guys texting grandma? it was him. it was him. keep your family connected. app-connect. on the newly redesigned passat. from volkswagen. i'm in charge of it all. business expenses, so i've been snapping photos of my receipts

and keeping track of them in quickbooks. now i'm on top of my expenses, and my bees. best 68,000 employees ever. that's how we own it. you premium like clockwork. month after month. year after year. then one night, you hydroplane into a ditch. yeah... surprise... your insurance company tells you to pay up again. why pay for insurance if you have to pay even more for using it? if you have liberty mutual deductible fund™, you could pay no deductible at all. sign up to immediately lower your deductible by $100. and keep lowering it $100 annually, until it's gone. then continue to earn that $100 every year. there's no limit to how much you can earn and this savings applies to every vehicle on your policy. call to learn more. switch to liberty mutual and you could save up to $509. call liberty mutual for a free quote today at

see car insurance in a whole new light. liberty mutual insurance.

test. donald trump proving when it comes to the presidential campaign he is not following any rules. he's skipping the debate. joining us congressman mccall. chairman of the homeland security committee and the author of the failures to imagination, deadliest threats

to the homeland and how to thwart them. first i want to talk about the campaign because choosing the president of the united states is important to dealing with our security going forward. republican debate tomorrow night in iowa. fox news is hosting and the front runner for your party's nomination donald trump says he's not going to go. good idea? >> you know i think the american people doerve hear from all of the candidates in a debate format. so to sort of dodge that, i don't think that is the american way. on the other hand i understand he's doing an event for wounded warriors. the proceeds of my book go to wounded warriors. so my hats off to that at least. i think having debates is part of the process. and participation is part of the process. >> what about the level of rhetoric right now? how is that part of the process? you have donald trump calling but not calling megyn kelly a

b bim bo. fox news and all. is that a good way from doing it? >> megyn kelly is sort of the queen of fox news. and boy,fy took a shot at her i think would go down in flames. >> donald trump is different though isn't he? >> he somehow survives it. and being on her show she's very brilliant i think. so this election defies all the rules. there is no rules to this election. i've never seen anything quite luke it in my lifetime. nothing applies to this election. no rules. the old traditional rules no longer apply. >> you are not endorsing yet. if you want to right now we'd love it. what do you need to see in your candidate is this. >> well, what is in the book. somebody who can be a commander in chief. whoever is the next president will inherit a mess, hosmt hot

spots of terrorism all over the world. mr. putin, china, north korea, cyber security, iran's threats of nuclear threats and it is all laid out in the book in various scenarios and what can we do to stop it? whoever i think could be a real commander in chief to stand up just like roosevelt stood up to in world war ii and churchill did and reagan and kennedy stood up to communism, i want a leader that can stand up to islamist extremism. >> failures of the imagination, the book. you lay out terrifying scenarios of what you fear could happen. and your fears are different than ours because your share of the homeland security committee. you see things i don't see. attack on the east coast power grid. maybe black widow is releasing a deadly strain of smallpox at disney world. worried about china somehow

rigging the election. these are terrifying. these are scary. you may see things about these things we don't see. the president though says from all the threats to the country and ices and others they are not existential threats. do you agree? >> he said that the in the state of the union and i have to tell you maybe we're getting different briefs. because i don't understand the rhetoric and not meeting the reality of the situation on the ground particularly when it comes to isis. over and over he wanted to downgrade the threat. the purpose of my book is to educate the american people as to what the real threats are facing the nation and what we need to do to prevent them? >> are they existential threats? >> i think isis is an existential threat to the united states. a number one homeland security - issue right now.

europe poll just issued a warning yesterday about sophisticated attacks in europe that could happen fairly soon. those could happen in the united states as well and that is what i warn about in my book. >> let's close on china rigging the election. how? >> they ask me what was the most interesting case you ever prosecuted when you were ale from prosecutor. and hands down the johnny chung base. one because it led me to the director of chinese intelligence funneling money into the clinton campaign. so i felt compelled to tell that story from an inside point of view. in fact this whole book is really sort of an inside point of view from a counterterrorism official. what i do day in and day out. and of course the chung case was -- you can't make it up. it really happens. >> mr. chairman, mike mccall. thanks for being with us. >> thanks john. >> lot of news this morning. dramatic you can shootout

dramatic you can shootout between members of the -- -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com good morning. wednesday january 27th, 8:00 in the east. mic is off. jb is here. and we have news for you. donald trump is doing the unthinkable. dropping out just five days out from iowa of the republican debate. why? his war with fox news raging. he's attacking fox news'

moderator megyn kelly. more on that in moments but we do have breaking news. >> a violent shootout between federal authorities and armed protesters in oregon. the group spokesman killed. several others now in police custody including the group's leader eamon bundy. tell us how this went down sarah. >> reporter: you know a dramatic twist in the story here. one person dead. the fbi and the oregon state police saying there was shots fired. they won't say whether there was a gun battle or not or whether it was just on their end. one person ended up being killed. lavoy finkem. a rancher. this all happened according to a traffic stop. there were two vehicles. they stopped both vehicles and went forward to try to arrest

those who are there. they say these are the men who have been taking over the wildlife refuge headquarters and have been here for some weeks and when they went to do that they say there were a couple of people who decided to resist. and one of those was shot and killed. however we are getting word now from the bundy ranch. and this is the father of mr. ammon and ryan bundy who have both been arrested. saying they believe lavoy finnicem was actually murdered in cold blood that he was not a threat to the police. certainly this is a dramatic turn to the story and the wildlife refuge still has folks on it and you can see just behind me there is a tractor that is blocking the way. the fbi is not here but the protesters are.

the big giant political news this morning. donald trump says he is not going to tomorrow's republican debate in iowa. this is something that doesn't happen in politics and again, donald trump doesn't usually happen in politics. this is all about a growing feud with fox news. >> reporter: this is certainly a bomb shell that's collated very quickly. the the trump campaign still holding firm. they say donald trump will not be there tomorrow night and that he's now planning to host his own event instead. with five days left to drum up support ahead of the iowa caucuses and just a day shy of the next debate. >> i say bye-bye. >> donald trump going rogue, dumping fox news. >> i'm going to have to something else in iowa. we'll do something where we raise money for the veterans and

the wounded warriors. >> trump claiming unfair treatment. >> megyn kelly is really biased against me. she knows that. i know that. everybody knows that. do you really think she can be fair at a debate? >> fox news standing by kelly while trump walks. >> trump is not used to not controlling things. but the truth is he doesn't get to control the media. >> show will his power play fair with iowans just before the first votes are cast in this rnc responding to trump's move telling cnn, quote, obviously we would love all of the candidates to participate but each campaign ultimately makes their own decision what is their best interest. thank you ted cruz says not so fast. >> apparently megyn kelly is really, really scary. donald is a fragile soul. >> the texas senator issuing this challenge to the front

runner. >> reporter: >> if he's unwilling to stand on the debate stage with other candidates then i would like to invite donald right now to engage in a one on one debate with me now and any time between the iowa caucuses. >> reporter: poking fun at trumps threats to back out says we learned from a secret back channel that they intend to treat trump unfairly if and when he becomes president. >> we have an irony alert for you now. back in 2001 donald trump himself was scheduled to moderate. but when several of the candidates declined to participate in his debate, the billionaire scolded those candidates while talking to none

other than fox news host meggin' kelly. >> let's talk about this. so far only rick santorum and one other have agreed. >> supposed to be brave. >> so trump backed out of that in 2011. joining us now michael smerconish and david, thank you for being here. michael, let me start with you. what do you think of donald trump bowing out because he says he doesn't like megyn kelly and her questions? does this hurt or more likely help donald trump? >> i think it probably helps him. it is funny i made a note a momenting a because i heard john berman say this is something that doesn't happen in politics. and i said to myself how many times in the last six months have we all been saying that? in the case of donald trump

today i think alisyn he believes he's winning in iowa. and he wants to freeze frame where the race stands rights now. he's a numbers cruncher. so he's looked at the data and he has said to himself whatever i do on thursday night will overpower whatever it is ted cruz will do in the what, ten or eleven minutes ghooelt on the debate stage. so pure unadulterated calculated move on his part. and his supporters will stay with him. i think probably a net gain for trump. >> i have spent much of my time in the last few days listening to you and benefitting from all that you know about what usually happens and what it means in presidential elections. so tell me, when you look at this move, is there any analogy to it that you have ever seen and how did it work out? >> i don't know that there is a

real good analogy, chris. donald trump is a unique character and this is a unique move this close to the caucuses. i know there's been some talk comparing to ronald reagan's moment back in 1980 when he sort of took control of a debate and, you know, scolded the national telegraph editor saying i paid for this microphone. we'll do it my way because reagan sort of organized that debate. but that was a very different moment than this. that was him arguing to include many people so he wasn't in a one on one fight with george h.w. bush at the time. donald trump is making a play to let everyone know that what he's been doing for the last six months which is dominating the pace of this race, he doesn't plan to stop doing that. and that is exactly what he's doing. he's going to dominate the pace and state of play heading into the final days into the caucuses. >> there is really limited real state. not even five full days of political real estate to make

your case. by the way ronald reagan skipped the debate in iowa before he brought microphone in new hampshire. some people thought it hurt him there. but there was much more time. there wasn't this compressed schedule and there wasn't this media frenzy like today. i do not know how if you are one of these other candidates, certainly besides truz, how you get in the discussion right now with donald trump what he's doing. >> that is why i think it is a net gain for trump. and john, to your point, it guaranteed that we'll be talking about it. the impact of what trump has just done. and it won't be a substantive conversation. i thought that that presser last night was amazing. and i watched it all on cnn. by the way doing a calculus of how much it would have have cost him if he had to pay for it. there were good questions he had to ask.

you maintain that you are pro life. what should be the punishment for a woman who never the less has a abortion and he waved that off. instead it is all about process no substance. >> ted cruz is trying to seize on this. let me play what he said in iowa yesterday. >> we are effectively tied in the state of iowa. >> engage with me any time in a one-on-one. >> can ted cruz make some hay out of this with voters? >> i don't know. ted cruz is going to be in a tough position if donald trump is not on that debate stage because he'll become the punching bag. with donald trump aside, you will have a lot of the other contenders really start going after ted cruz in a way that we

haven't seen fully explored yet. so i'm sure ted cruz would prefer the one-on-one conversation with donald trump than sort of the six on one conversation that may happen tomorrow night without donald trump there. >> should be noted alisyn was initiating and all of a sudden it was a packed schedule. so there is gamesmanship on both sides. most famous republican ever. abraham lincoln, gave the "house divided speech." is that what we're seeing here? is this the metaphor of this cleaving of the gop? >> i think it says a lot about what's going on within the leadership of the republican party. not old school leadership. i mean the media. you have heard me say before chris, i think that the gop today is commanded with men with microphones. some women as well. fox news, the a.m. brand of talk

radio. so i find very interesting that the presumptive gop front runner is now at ods with the primary oracle, fox news, of the party. i'm curious does roger ailes leave an empty podium tomorrow night. >> that is something i think they can't do but of course maybe fox will go ahead and break the rules. what was i going to say? i got lost in the podium talk. >> roger ailes knows how to put on a performance obviously. so it will be fascinating. does the first question deal with donald trump? do they ignore donald trump? who do they do about this? >> david, give me a head on this. my sense is you are going talk about him but he's not there so you are not really going to get good bang for the buck. you may not get the audience more yourself. and you worry about your what

you're competing with in terms of donald trump and what he's doing. >> i don't think any of the fox moderators are going to feel compelled that if one of the other candidate s goes after trump i don't think they are going to defend trump. not only did the abortion conversation yesterday -- i was at that event -- not take place. and that benefits trump as well. he said i just don't want to talk about it. but when he got on stage after that news conference and held his event in that gymnasium he didn't really want to talk about his announced decision to not participant. when he was asked on stage in front of all of these fans he simply said oh i made a little announcement earlier. and he moved right on. he didn't want to hammer it home that he was skipping the debate last night. i thought that was an interesting moment for him. >> he does choose his moments. i now remember what i was going

to ask. the wild card here is iowa. the ego of iowa and the ego of the iowan voters. do they feel somehow jilted in this? and i think a lot of what happens over next 48 hours, how each side plays it, you know, will determine the outcome there michael. do you think the people in iowa are just going to be ticked off that donald trump is thumbing them somehow? >> i don't know what the event looks like that he is going to do for apple pie and chevrolet and wounded warriors. but i'm sure it is going to be staged in iowa so as to dilute exactly what you are saying because that is the risk for him. >> great to get your insight. the next 24 hours shall be interesting as always. just five days from the first votes cast in the race. cnn will be coverage all day next monday. fbi investigators thwart an alleged terror plot targeting a

masonic temple in milwaukee. this is going on right now. the suspect, this man in custody. officials say he was caught in an fbi sting and he allegedly told undercover agents he wanted to commit an act of domestic terrorism and was planning a mass shooting at the masonic center. >> president obama calling for speedy research to stop the spread of the mosquito born zika virus. the infection which typically has no symptoms appears to be spiked to a recent link of mysterious birth defects in brazil. >> chris cuomo making it on "late night" with stephen colbert for asking the tough questions. so funny it made today's "late night" laugh. check it out. >> as you know there is a 15% rule in a lot of these caucuses. so if you don't have 15% of the caucuses in that room, those men

and women have to go to a different candidate. so if you don't have that and your followers now have to go to somewhere else t people who support you, what is your suggestion to them? >> i think that question is way out of line. chris cuomo, why not just ask after you die can i have your ten speed bike? [ laughter ] >> it's the only question though for martin o'malley. it really is. it is an important question. >> look, you know, i thought about this afterwards. because colbert was not unique here, he's just uniquely genius and funny. i get that is a hard question for martin o'malley. here is why we asked it. this is about leadership. this is what you think is best for the people supporting you. he had a great line by the way. by consensus, saying to his supporters, stay strong.

stand stock. but there is going to be a moment where someone is going to win. and those who don't win have to make a decision about what they want people who support them to do. >> and what did martin o'malley think about your jacket? >> i think he was so intimidated by the -- that he had to take his off. >> he was trying to deflect focus. what can i do for chris cuomo? he needs my help. >> he did give me five bucks at the end, get yourself a new jacket. -- cnn's dana bash talks exclusively with his wife, h heidi. the driving force behind the scenes. that is cyber-crime and it affects each and every one of us. microsoft created the digital crimes unit

to fight cyber-crime. we use the microsoft cloud to visualize information so we can track down the criminals. when it comes to the cloud, trust and security are paramount. we're building what we learn back into the cloud to make people and organizations safer. inthe mid-size van, from mercedes-benz. it's got small-ability and big-ability. towing-ability and stowing-ability. rack-ability and hvac-ability. it's fully customizable and sized just right to give you cupcake-ability, entourage-ability... ...garage-ability and even afford-ability. starting at $28,950. available in cargo or passenger. from mercedes-benz.

note sure you have heard. donald trump is not going tomorrow night to the debate. so what does ted do? his wife is sticking up for his husband and talk about their successes individually as a couple and about the work she's doing behind the scenes for her husband. a lot of o work. dana bash joins us with a really big interview.

>> reporter: heidi cruz spent the last ten months working behind the scenes using her skills to help build his infrastructure. but now she's taking on a more traditional role for a political spouse, trying to humanize her husband. >> ted cruz could be campaigning like bill clinton did once upon a time. two for the price of one because your resume is pretty impressive. you a master degree, a business degree from harvard. executive at goldman sachs. so what does your say about ted cruz? >> you know ted and i are a partnership. and it has been the hallmark of our marriage really since day one from the moment we met. we have complement qualities and one of the things that hit he early are the incredible family he has and the women in ted's

family are strong and i think ted is very comfortable around strong independent thinking women. >> behind the scenes, dial for dollars. fund raise big time for him. out on the stump talking passionately why you think he should be president. what do you think your most important job is in this campaign. >> in his campaign no doubt my most important job is to help him win. i'm a person who likes to get things done. and i took a full time leave of absence from goldman sax i needed to be fully booked. i wanted to be behind the scenes. we used 2015 to raise money. the "new york times" said this wasn't be the campaign that could raise any money. >> can i ask you about that because a big part of the reason he's been able to raise tens of millions of dollars, you, his wife. dialing for dollars. >> i'm active and i want to get

things done. what we need to do to raise the money to ensure we could go to distance i'm very comfortable making the a ask. >> what is the ask? i'm a donor. you call me. you are calling and saying i want x number of dollars and here is why. >> so probably many of you viewers have actually heard me make it. i always tell them who i am. and i introduce myself as ted's wife. that is not something i've done so that was a switch for me to page pick up the phone and say hay i'm heidi cruz, ted's wife. i've always had my own identity but that is something that i'm happy to do because i know how talented ted is and what i know what he can do for this country. and if i can be -- if i can give something to this country i'm happy to do it. >> do you have any idea how much money you personally have raised. >> i don't know how much money i raised but i did make 600 cools if first quarter. >> 600 calls. >> but there are so many more people who have made so more

calls for us. >> but most of them are not married to the candidate. >> but i should be doing even more, right? >> let's talk about when you first met him. you were working on the george w. bush campaign and so was he and i heard you say it was love at first sight. >> it was. and i remember looking at him and of course you always think a first thought what is your sense of them, how are they reacting to you? and ted just seemed to be interesting, he was a good look guy. he greeted me with a smile. we started working together. and i found ted incredibly excelling because he had this very unique combination of being the smartest person i'd ever met. on substance, on explaining fundamentals, on articulating things, writing them out. getting it done. but he also was the first guy to say hey let's take a break. go to a movie. let's have some fun. and really fun to be around. >> i read that on your first

date ted cruz asked you what is your ten year plan? what is your twenty year plan? that sounds like a turn on, how did you resist him. >> ha ha ha, well that is only a small part of ted is the planner that he is. and unfortunately -- >> is that true that that happened. >> it is true that that happened. and unfortunately i am more of a planner than he is mush to his chagrin these days. ted is goal oriented and we have a limited amount of time and ted is going to make sure he uses it to his fullest. so he maps out what you are going to do. >> were you taken aback when he asked you. >> i'm probably a little like that myself. i was interested that he asked the question. not many engage in the question. it wasn't necessarily professional. it was personal. he wanted me to start with the birth of my family and personalities. >> i read that one of the things that ted cruz likes to do that

people might not know about him is sing show tunes. broadway tunes. is that true? >> well -- >> and he calls you on the phone and sings them? >> yes. he does. he does. in the middle of the campaign. >> in the middle of the campaign. >> and he often calls to sing the song i i love you. and -- >> what are his gotos? >> he loves phantom of the opera. >> not easy to sing. is he a good singer? >> he chose the right profession. >> wow, heidi cruz going negative on her husband's singing. you know one of the issues with ted cruz is this likability thing. it is not hard to find a senator to say not such a nice thing about ted cruz. now donald trump on the stump saying he's nasty. nobody likes ted cruz. how does heidi respond to that? >> it's interesting, she tried to counter the narrative he's not likable by telling me nice

husband things. he packed her suitcase a few days ago. met her with flowers and went with her to her favorite restaurant at 11:00 at night. so certainly telling stories, anecdotes that would endear people to him. but this is an important but, heidi cruz wants her husband no no way to change the take no prisoner, no compromise style. that is what she likes answer ted cruz. and that those who don't like him, members of congress she said are 11% and the very people grassroots republicans are fed up with. so she's kind of got a turn of phrase and very comfortable weaving in the personal and the political as you saw. >> got them this far. all right. it is shaping up to be a split screen moment unlike any other. the battle between donald trump and fox news. the republican front runner

boycotting the next gop debate. trump tweeting up a storm this morning. we'll bring you the latest. [ female announcer ] take skincare to the next level with roc® multi correxion® 5 in 1. proven to hydrate dryness, illuminate dullness, lift sagging, diminish the look of dark spots, and smooth the appearance of wrinkles. high performance skincare™ only from roc®. iand quit a lot,t and smooth the appearance of wrinkles. but ended up nowhere. now i use this. the nicoderm cq patch, with unique extended release technology, helps prevent the urge to smoke all day. i want this time to be my last time. that's why i choose nicoderm cq.

my name is jamir dixon and i'm a locafor pg&e.rk fieldman most people in the community recognize the blue trucks as pg&e. my truck is something new... it's an 811 truck. when you call 811, i come out to your house and i mark out our gas lines and our electric lines to make sure that you don't hit them when you're digging. 811 is a free service. i'm passionate about it because every time i go on the street i think about my own kids. they're the reason that i want to protect our community and our environment, and if me driving a that truck means that somebody gets to go home safer, then i'll drive it every day of the week. together, we're building a better california.

with me they are toying with something a little bit different. they can't toy with me the way they do everybody else. >> donald trump dropping out saying he does not like one of the fox moderators. for the past 24 hours he and fox have been trading barbs. trump tweeting the statement yesterday by fox news was a disgrace to good broadcasting and journalism. who would ever say something so nasty and dumb? let's just rewind for one second

to less than 24 hours ago. this is the statement that fox put out that really apparently aroused donald trump's ire. let me read it. we learned fox news said from the secret back channel that ayatollah and putin both intend to treat donald trump unfairly. and trump has his own secret plan to replace the cabinet with his twitter followers to see if he should even go to the meetings. >> what we're seeing is a game of chicken between two very powerful media phafigures. as&as they continue to one up each other it got to a point where donald trump felt if he was going to come out of this as the victor he had choice but to ditch out on the debate. normally skipping the last debate before the caucuses is political suicide if you are the

front runner. but of course we've said so many of the things that donald trump has done over the last six months have been political suicide and he's only gone up in the polls. >> what a fascinating split screen will be happening. the gop debate on fox and donald trump now says he's be holding a different event a competing event in iowa for wounded warriors. >> a fundraising event no less. something that will be very heart warming and competing networks will broadcast. this is a network programmer's dream. we haven't seen anything like this in politics. if this was the rule book for how campaigns work, donald trump has ripped it up. he's torn it into the pieces and thrown it all over the place. that is what's happened here. there there are no rules here and because trump is not a politics. he's a businessman. this morning saying all the advertisers who spent money on the fox debate they must be deeply disappoint now that trump

won't there there is the thinking of a po businessman not a politician. >> and donald trump himself was supposed to be moderating a back in 2011 and when some of the republican candidates, namely huntsman and ron paul found out that donald trump was going to be the moderator, they pulled out because they cited a lack of seriousness on his part. mitt romney then followed suit saying that his schedule was too busy. and the person that donald trump went to complain about them boycotting the debate was megyn kelly. >> first let's touch on the debate coming up that you are going to moderate for news max with news max. so far only gring rich and santorum have agreed. >> we're not seeing a lot of courage. >> not so far. >> are you still going to do it? looks like mitt romney is not going to participate. and sounded like you were genuinely disappointed. will it change your view as the candidate. >> i'd like to say it doesn't.

probably does. >> show doesn't think those candidates have courage. it changes his view of them as the candidate. now he's doing the same thing. how do you get your mind around this? >> right. i'm shocked that donald trump is going back on something he said and doing the opposite. no this is something he's done all along. one thing donald trump has taught us is that the american memory is very short and even when reminded of previous statements that would make him seem hypocritical, and there are many out there that, you know, the american people are actually very forgiving the they like their candidate enough. and donald trump said it is not what i said or who i used to be or the fact i used to embrace democratic policies. you can run as many ads as you want with the old footage. you can bring up all the past statements. that doesn't matter. i'm telling you who aim a now. and there is something about

trump's shoemenship, the charisma that makes the old statements not matter and that is confounding all of the republican strategists who would like to throw the book at him and it falls flat. >> so what does fox do tomorrow night? do they mention trump? do they ask questions of trump? how does this work. >> >> people are wondering if there was going to be an empty podium. so i'm not sure if they would go that far. clearly there will be the elephant in the room. i think fox will have to bring it up. clearly cruz and other candidates will take advantage of him not being there. but maybe trump is once again changing the dynamics of the race. maybe as of tomorrow debates don't matter so much because trump says they don't matter. maybe he has that much power. and by the way it is usually fox who has the power. roger ailes right now he seems to be on the defensive.

seems to have his back up against the wall. that is not a pleasant position for him to be in. >> what's your take? tweet us at #new day cnn. we look forward to reading those or facebook.com/newday. >> we're going to give back to the news this morning. it is all just about trump. there is a huge man hunt going on. three escaped inmates in california and they are still on the loose. the search is intensifying. authorities comparing one of the fugitives to hannibal elector. why? next.

prepare for challenges specific to your business by working with trusted advisors who help turn obstacles into opportunities. experience the power of being understood. rsm. audit, tax and consulting for the middle market. ♪ light piano today i saw a giant. it had no arms, but it welcomed me.

(crow cawing) it had no heart, but it was alive. (train wheels on tracks) it had no mouth, but it spoke to me. it said, "rocky mountaineer: all aboard amazing". when i went on to ancestry, i just put in the name yes, we are twins.

of my parents and my grandparents. i was getting all these leaves and i was going back generation after generation. you start to see documents and you see signatures of people that you've never met. i mean, you don't know these people, but you feel like you do. you get connected to them. i wish that i could get into a time machine and go back 100 years, 200 years and just meet these people. being on ancestry just made me feel like i belonged somewhere. discover your story. start searching for free now at ancestry.com. time now for the five things you need to know for you new day. the armed protesters occupying an oregon wildlife refg caught in a fight with authorities.

>> president obama set to meet with democratic candidate bernie sanders in the oval office this morning. sanders 'campaign manager says the pair will talk about the important issues facing the country. rick schneider holding a news conference this morning on flint's water crisis. he met on tuesday to discuss a fifteen point priority plan with residents. and damaging storms in pacifica california. and apartment complex sitting on cliffs that are crumbling and falling into the ocean. wow. for more go to "new day" cnn dotcom for the latest. authorities stepping up the man hunt for three escapees in california. and increasing the reward money.

cnn's live in california with more. >> reporter: you wonder if this trail has gone stone cold. authorities not revealing that they have any new tips or leads, significant developments. the trio escaped last friday. you talked about that 17 hour gap. they were seen at the 5:00 in the morning head count and then not again until later that night where they were supposed to have an 8:00 p.m. head count. there was also a fight involved that looks like it was staged so these men could get away. among them some very dangerous felons. the youngest of them is accused of murder. the second is accused of torcher and kidnapping can the other man also attempted murder. quite a rap sleet for these three. the fear is they might have tried to leave the country. and naerri pulled that off

success successfully once before. >> thank you very much. now they know. so we know that donald trump is skipping tomorrow's debate just days before the iowa caucuses. so is this about fox news? is this just about donald trump? what about the voters? we have iowa potential caucusers, next. ♪ but i can't come home right now... ♪ ♪ me and the boys are playing.♪. ♪ ... all nig♪t text beth, what can i do... [siri:] message. pick up milk. oh, right. milk. introducing the newly redesigned passat. from volkswagen. whfight back fastts tums smoothies starts dissolving

the instant it touches your tongue and neutralizes stomach acid at the source tum, tum, tum, tum smoothies! only from tums you're not thinking about all the money you saved by booking your flight, rental car, and hotel together. all you're thinking about, is making sure your little animal, enjoys her first trip to the kingdom. expedia, technology connecting you to what matters. e*trade is all about seizing opportunity. so i'm going to take this opportunity to go off script. so if i wanna go to jersey

and check out shotsy tuccerelli's portfolio, what's it to you? or i'm a scottish mason whose assets are made of stone like me heart. papa! you're no son of mine! or perhaps it's time to seize the day. don't just see opportunity, seize it! (applause)

megyn kelly soo lightweight. this is a lightweight. this is not a reporter. this to me is just a lightweight. megyn kelly shouldn't be in debate. i don't care about megyn kelly. when megyn kelly didn't ask me a question. she made a statement last night. i thought it was inappropriate. everybody said i won the debate. >> and with that the front runner donald trump is out. he says he will not participate in tomorrow's republican debate. there is less than a week to go before the iowa caucuses. the people will now not have the full slate before them when the debate happens. how does that meet voters expectations? let's ask them. two registered republican voters in iowa. adam and michelle. nice to see you again. yes we sat down, we taped that segment. the cameras didn't work right. we're doing it again. and now we have something knew to talk about so thanks for being with us. adam you have ted cruz in your head and heart right now. but how does donald trump's

decision effect you? michelle i know you are a first time caucuser and you are undecided so we'll get to you next. >> okay. >> well donald trump's refusal to debate is really nothing more than -- i compare to it my two-year-old toddler that throws a fit when i take away a toy because it is time for dinner. this is nothing more than a temper tantrum. i'm proud of the republican party for actually standing up and saying no we're not going to cave to your demands, whether you are the front runner or not. this is just more of his every day drama that he likes to bring and get back into the news cycle. so nothing new from the donald trump camp. just more of what he actually is and it is kind of a big cry baby. >> now adam used the term the gop, the republican party. but this is about fox news. and donald trump, michelle.

when you look at this, does this affect your feeling about trump or do you believe he's standing up for what's right and it's okay? >> i think it does effect my feelings of donald trump because i think it proves that he's not able to get along with people and he's not able to make these compromises which is what we're going to need from someone dealing with foreign leaders. and if you can't compromise with a fox news reporter how is he going to make a compromise with somebody like vladimir putin. >> does it matter to you that he attacks reporters he doesn't like? don't worry you won't hurt my feelings. >> i think it does matter. because i think it is a huge show of character. he's showing that he doesn't have a positive image or the character to stand for something that we believe in. >> so enough about trump. i'm assuming right now that you are not leaning towards him, michelle. and i know you weren't last time we spoke. but let's talk about who you are looking at and why? starting with you adam. you are all in with cruz because

you say you are a true conservative and you believe he is your only and best choice. why, make the case. >> absolutely. he's the most consistent conservative in the field. he has fought every day since he's been elected to office in the senate. and even fought as the attorney general in texas. argued nine cases before the supreme court on every issue of substance. and he's put together the best organization. he's raised the most money of any movement conservative in the race. some of the other guys just simply have not done that. and if you don't want donald trump as our nominee like everybody is saying he's going to be it, i believe ted cruz is the only viable conservative alternative. >> michelle you have a different take. you say you are a conservative too but you are a conservative

who want yours president in the white house. and your concern is well who's going to win once they get our nomination in the general election. and where is that leading you? >> correct. i think it is most important we get somebody who's going to be able to win a jebl election. and for that reason i they that marco rubio is still my front runner. and i really hope that people kind of the take into consideration some of the things he has to say. i think he has a lot of positive messages and i think he is a true conservative as well. so it is not like you have to compromise between being a conservative and getting somebody that is electable. >> adam, would you consider rubio? do you have any second choice opposition? >> at this point in time, no. i'm all in for ted cruz through the caucuses. >> and michelle, if not rubio, who? >> i would say ted cruz would be my second choice because i think he's another conservative that would be a strong front runner in the gop. >> bush, kasich, christie.

>> i'm working on her. >> i know. that's what caucusing is all about. any of those getting any attention michelle? >> i think they are getting some attention but i don't think they have a stronger enough attention but i don't think enough to wane general election. >> thank you for doing this again. i'm sorry the cameras didn't get it done and i know you are out in the cold. appreciate it very much. >> sure you stick us out side. >> i know. i'll make it up for you when i see you next week. it is cold there. and they are also largely representative. we spent a lot of time on the ground there. all of us have. these people listen with big ears and there is a big portion of the elect are the there who hasn't made up their mind. >> it is not that people can't stand the cold in iowa. of course they can. but it's that you can be swayed from what you thought you were

going to do originally. >> they are sampling up to the last minute. and you are not walking into the voting booth. you are walking into a room with people that you know. >> right. >> big points there also. the voters don't like what's happening with trump in the debate right now as sampled by these two. and the idea of going after journalists isn't getting as big a hug as it used to get either. >> we'll see about that. >> we haven't had our last say. >> -- stoor stereo. that is the good stuff right there. ♪

prepare for challenges specific to your business by working with trusted advisors who help turn obstacles into opportunities. experience the power of being understood. rsm. audit, tax and consulting for the middle market. when your cold makes you wish... ...you could stay... ...in bed all day... ...you need the power of... new theraflu expressmax. new theraflu expressmax. the power to feel better.

avo: he gets a ready for you alert the second his room is wilson ready. laquinta.com. avo: so he knows exactly when he can settle in and practice his big pitch. avo: and when craig gets his pitch down pat, do you know what he becomes? client: great proposal! let's talk more over golf! craig: great. client: better yet, how about over tennis craig: even better. avo: a game changer! secretary: your 2 o'clock is here. client: oops, hold your horses. craig: no problem. avo: la quinta inns & suites is ready for you, so you'll be ready for business.

avo: the ready for you alert, only at laquinta.com. craig: laquinta! yesterday started out as a good stuff today. a couple rushes to the hospital to have the bit of their child. what they didn't expect was traffic. >> opened up the vehicle, the father was kneeling on the driver seethe assisting his wife. >> that was detective sharp on his way to traffic court. stopped to find out it was too late for the couple. >> oh boy the. >> the 911 operator instructed mom to push one more time. the baby came out immediately. me and dad helped catch the

child. >> 911 operator says push, you push. talk about perfect timing. after sharp helped deliver the baby an balance was stuck in traffic too, took mom, dad and baby to the hospital. everybody is fine. >> great traffic jam. well done. carol costello right after the break. thanks so much for joining under the circumstances. >> oh there she is. >> a really quick break. >> thanks guys. "newsroom" starts now. thanks for joining me. donald trump rewrites the political playbook and bails from the debate. his slapdown days before the all important iowa caucuses and it all started with this. >> one of the things people love about you is you speak your mind and you don't use a