quick reminder, i'll be hosting two republican town halls from south carolina wednesday and thursday night at 8:00 p.m. eastern here on cnn. that does it for us. thanks for watching. "cnn newsroom" starts now. hello and welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm isha sesay. >> and i'm john vause. this is "newsroom l.a." so much to get to this hour. we will begin with the republican race for the white house and a blast from the past that jeb bush hopes will push him ahead. there he is. former president george w. bush in south carolina. haven't seen him in eight years. out to stump for his brother. >> his first stint into politics since he left office in 2009. the former president looked rested and ready as he took the stage. he didn't mention other republican candidates, but it

was clear it was super clear that front-runner donald trump was on his mind. >> these are tough times. and i understand that americans are angry and frustrated. but we do not need someone in the oval office who mirrors and inflames our anger and frustration. strength is not empty rhetoric. it is not bluster. it is not theatrics. real strength, strength of purpose, comes from integrity and character. and in my experience the strongest person usually isn't the loudest one in the room. >> well, this feud between donald trump and jeb bush boiled over on saturday when the real estate mogul slammed george w. bush's decision to go to war in iraq. >> and in later comments he bashed the former president's overall record on national security. >> i've heard for years he kept

the country safe after 9/11. what does that mean after? what about during 9/11? i was there. i lost a lot of friends that were killed in that building. the worst attack ever in this country? it was during his presidency. i mean, we had the worst attack ever. by the way, after that we did okay. that's meaning the team scored 19 runs in the first inning but after that we played well. i don't think so. >> this presidential campaign seems to be going into uncharted territory. we have never seen anything like this before. so to try to make sense of all of this we're joined by republican strategist john thomas. he's also president of thomas partners. >> also joining us democratic strategist dave jacobson. two of our favorite men two, of our favorite wise men who join us regularly. so welcome. welcome. >> thanks for having us. >> george w. bush on the campaign trail, back on the campaign trail, not naming trump, clearly drawing contrast with him, however.

did he say enough to reinvigorate his brother's campaign, john? >> it's not a bad play to bring up president bush. he's very popular in south carolina. it's a good move for jeb. i'm not sure it's going to be enough to get him over the hump because that state, while the bushes are very popular, national security is very popular, it is trump nation right now in that state. i don't know that it will be enough i don't think to overcome trump. really what jeb's doing is vying for a second place. and ted cruz might have a strong showing as well. >> george bush has an 84% approval rating in south carolina. i just don't know that that translates to jeb bush unfortunately. >> okay. this stuff, bush lied, people died essentially what trump is going on about, this is heresy. this is straight oust nancy pelosi's playbook. she wouldn't go there. this is democratic conspiracy stuff. the only reason i can think trump might be doing this, it's an open primary and anyone can vote, which means democrats can vote for trump. does that make any sense?

>> he's trying to atrablth the independent vote. this is a guy with a 20-point lead. others a magnet when it comes to making headlines and media attention. he's continuing to try to amplify his message and be that insurgent anti-establishment candidate. he's exacerbating that sort of narrative with this new attack against the bush family. >> at first blush you go what is this guy thinking? 55% of the gop electorate nationally say they think going to iraq was a good decision. but you say okay, he's giving up the veteran contingency. but remember, donald trump is a guy who didn't attend one of the major debates so he could go raise money for vets. he's holding big rallies on battleships. this guy, vets love him and i don't think he's going to lose them over this one. >> taking on gop orthodoxy and challenging george w. bush's record so directly, surely it must carry some risks, though, for trump down the line if he was indeed to become the nominee. >> it does. but he's not running as an establishment anything. so the further he can run from

the establishment i think the better off he is. it was a bold move. we're talking about it today. voters aren't voting for donald trump because of his stance on the issues. i know that sounds crazy. they're voting for donald trump because he tells it like it is and he isn't beholden to the establishment. >> looking at that campaign in south carolina a few hours ago i kept thinking make america bush again. there they all were. laura bush was up there. george w. bush. and i've got to say, for jeb bush he had a really good campaign rally. he was energized. >> 3,000 people there. >> lost his glasses. >> he lost his glasses. let's listen to what he had to say, at least some of it. >> the only way a republican and a conservative wins is by campaigning with their arms wide open, with a hopeful optimistic message. campaigning in every nook and cranny of this country. making sure everybody knows we want them on our team. the only way we win is doing what republicans always do, campaign like george w. did, like ronald reagan did. we have to get back to that.

>> clearly he's enjoying the fact that his family's behind him. he's got their support. but just because trump insulted his brother, who remains very popular in south carolina, doesn't mean that those trump supporters will rally around him, does it? >> i don't think so. and i think, look, jeb bush is doing everything that he can to sort of attach himself to his brother at the hip. george bush has an 84% approval rating. this is a state dominated by vetera veterans, military employees. i think he's sort of doing everything he can to appeal to those voters. i just don't know that it's going to be enough. it's kind of too little too late. >> doesn't this make him look weak, the fact he has to bring out his family -- >> you know, it's bizarre because jeb bush's campaign, they're like a drunk campaign in the sense of they launched with the word "jeb" as his campaign logo, excluding the bush last name because the gop electorate is so scared of running a bush, you know, third term. and now he's bringing back the bush. he's ditching the jeb and he's

going with the bush. this campaign is just -- is just trying whatever it can to grasp at straws. quite frankly it's difficult for bush. he's got to have a very good showing in south carolina. i don't think we're going to see him drop out no matter what happens. but it's all of these establishment candidates that are going to keep going that are essentially handing the nomination to donald trump. >> the one thing i will say is jeb bush probably had his best debate performance last saturday. he had his most forceful performance. and had he done this earlier in every consecutive debate he might be in a different position than he is right now. >> i do think it is resonating more as you see cruz almost come late to the game of taking on trump, of saying i've been taking him on the whole time, where were you guys? i wonder whether that counts for anything with the voters. >> the problem is anytime jeb makes an exchange with donald trump i think donald trump wins most of those exchanges. although jeb's trying to be the

anti-trump guy, if you're going to go up against trump you'd better damn well win. and a lot of those, i mean, trump just outyells him and says you're a liar, you're a wimp, you're bringing out your mommy. you know. >> he just can't win. >> what was interesting was that ted cruz was given the opportunity to defend george w. bush and he really didn't go there. marco rubio did. got a lot of cheers for that. but we now have this feud, which is going between ted cruz and donald trump. and we now have some of the sharpest attacks from trump which are being directed toward ted cruz. >> i haven't been doing this long. i've been in it since june 16th. but i will tell you, i've never, ever met a person that lies more than ted cruz. >> truth matters. and we're not in grade school where you just get to say liar liar pants on fire and not respond to the substance. >> so what happened here?

these two on the stage, cruz wouldn't take him on and all of a sudden he's like bring it? what's going on? >> cruz doesn't seem to be great at these debates when he's right -- the heat is on. afterward you noticed his logo on screen was trust ted, right? his whole campaign essence is that he is the trusted conservative. >> sorry to interrupt. but did you see what trump did? cannot be. or can't be trusted. >> i think he knows his number one opponent in south carolina especially going after the evangelical vote, he's right to attack cruz, and it's really fun to watch these back and forths. but ted cruz has to be consistent when he attacks. he can't just show up one day and attack and not the other. >> i think the other thing ted cruz is trying to pull from the iowa playbook is he's going on the attack with sharp attacks against donald trump. why? because it worked in iowa. got him in first place and domd trump in second place. >> we now have trump threatening legal action. this is a little convoluted but trump is saying take down knows

nasty ads, stop telling lies about me, you dirty liar, otherwise i'm going to sue you because you're not eligible to run because you were born in canada. >> donald trump is known to be litigious. he was incredibly litigious as a real estate developer. so this is right in his playbook. but the fact is he doesn't care whether he wins this lawsuit. he's winning because we're talking about it and questioning ted's authenticity and his credibility. >> donald trump also says there's a role for the rnc to play here to get involved. is there a role for them to play as the rhetoric heats up and this gets nastier? >> i think the rnc's done a pretty good job of staying neutral in this process. they could have easily trashed donald trump. they started at the beginning by putting out memos to all of the candidates of what hans if trump wins. i think the rnc should play neutral in this process. >> what this underscores is the fact that donald trump is extremely thin-skinned and really a rambunctious candidate. he can't take these hard hits without pivoting and hitting right back. >> you're saying the rnc's neutral. i think a lot of people may

disagree with that saying if you look at that audience with that debate it was stacked against donald trump. >> i don't know that that -- >> the tickets were distributed amongst -- >> you're right. so the rnc, i don't know that it was them being biased. it's just that's how they sell tickets. they give them away to donors. but in a strange sense every time they booed i thought donald trump is loving, this his supporters are loving, it he's running against the establishment and thert audience. >> the donor class. >> let's get the democratic side. hillary clinton is trying to stop bernie sanders' momentum before the voting begins in the nevada caucus later this week. she's trying to make him out to be this one-trick pony, this single issue guy, and she's doing it with a new tv ad. ♪ >> attacks on wall street speculation. >> the disastrous and illegal behavior on wall street. >> the wealthiest people, the top 1 1/2%. >> so dave, to bring you in

here, what do you make of this line of attack from hillary clinton that bernie sanders is a one-trick pony if you will? and his trick is wall street. is it a winning strategy for her to go down to galvanize her supporters? >> well, clearly she's seen the new polling in nevada that shows her in a dead heat with bernie sanders. they're tied at 45 points. and bernie sanders is starting to close the gap in south carolina. back in november he was down by 50 points. now he's cut the lead by half, he's down by 25 points according to real clear politics. clearly she sees she's got to figure out a way to sort of hold him accountable to his message, raise questions, raise issues when it comes to his vulnerability. the reality is his message is penetrating all across america. his poll numbers are surging because his message is breaking through. people want change, and he represents the change that voters perceive they need. >> here's the problem the two campaigns have. bernie sanders thinks there's no difference between economic inequality and racial inequality. democratic minorities think there is a distinct difference and the candidate must talk

about that. hillary knows it. hillary's talking about of course racial inequality and economic inequality. but the economic inequality argument falls flat because she's living a dual life. she's saying one thing yet she's a multi, multimillionaire and voters know that. >> when does hillary clinton start talking about the cost of bernie sanders's vision, a 40% increase in government spending including the government spending on gop up to 20% the highest it's been since world war ii. not being able to get any of it through congress. she kind of touched on it last week but she's left it on the table. >> we definitely saw that line avenue tack at the debate last week. she didn't follow through and i think she's largely tried to run a positive campaign. but now he's creeping up in early states like nevada that were i supposed to be her firewall and we're approaching super tuesday where 900 delegates are at stake i think increasingly you're going to see these lines avenue tack and see more ads like that. >> they're running a democratic primary, john.

we're scared to attack. they aren't. the general election argument. >> how do you take it down face to face, point on point without seeming as if you're crushing people's dreams and being low on inspiration? >> bernie's saying we're going to solve, it we're going to pay little bit more and he pushes it aside and his base doesn't push back. my base would. his base doesn't. >> your base definitely would. >> thank you both for being with us. >> thank you. >> we got through a lot. that was great. and join us this week for a two-day event. the cnn republican town hall moderated by sooanderson cooper. yes two, days of town hall. 8:00 p.m. eastern live from greenville, south carolina. 5:00 p.m. pacific, 9:00 a.m. in hong kong. >> i think you fooled the audience, they actually think you're excited. >> i am. it's two more days. >> you're going to have to work on that excitement. much more on the race for the white house ahead on "newsroom l.a." what does donald trump's dintd family think of his presidential run? we'll take you to his ancestral home in a medieval german

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welcome back, everybody. white house sources say the obama administration is already working on a short list of nominees to replace the late supreme court justice antonin scalia. >> republicans in the senate are digging in their heels, vowing to block any candidate. michelle fransicsi reports. >> reporter: the white house today leveling its own blows at republicans. in the deep political standoff that started only hours after justice antonin scalia's death. >> this is a republican congress that has a lot of practice saying no. but i also want to point out that this is not the first time that republicans have come out with a lot of bluster, only to have reality ultimately sink in. >> reporter: president obama vows to fill that supreme court seat by constitutional duty. >> there will be plenty of time for me to do so and for the

senate to fulfill its responsibility to give that person a fair hearing and a timely vote. these are responsibilities that i take seriously, as should everyone. they're bigger than any one party. they are about our democracy. >> reporter: but a defiant senate majority leader mitch mcconnell seems unwilling to budge. the american people should have a voice. this vacancy should not be filled until we have a new president. >> tonight we honor his xroert service to our napgs. >> reporter: white house officials are discussing the process for vetting the president's potential picks. names circulating include federal judges. some senators, even attorney general loretta lynch who was approved by the senate last year but only after a record months-long delay. senator claire mccaskill calling it then -- >> base politics at its ugliest. >> reporter: but this fight could be worse, with so much at stake. >> we're one justice away from a radical five-justice liberal majority. >> reporter: ted cruz bringing

it to the campaign trail. >> life, marriage, religious liberty. the second amendment. we're just one supreme court justice away from losing them all. >> reporter: on past supreme court choices the president has often mentioned an element of compassion. >> the judge who is sympathetic enough to those who are on the outside, those who are vulnerable. >> reporter: now, though, politics will be pivotal. does the president choose someone very moderate whom republicans will feel great pressure to at least bring to a vote? criticism if they don't. or liberal to rally democrats, potentially sending more voters to the polls in november. >> i believe that many of the mainstream republicans, when the president nominates a mainstream nominee, will not want to follow mitch mcconnell over the cliff. >> if the republican leadership refuses to even hold a hearing, i think that is going to guarantee they lose control of the senate because i don't think the american people will stand

for that. >> reporter: already this is shaping up to be the president's last big battle in congress. and what is certain is that the outcome will shape the politics and legal landscape in this country for decades. now, on the timeline there's a vetting process that needs to happen. interviews. the president himself will want to speak to his finalists. the white house is indicating it could take up to a month for him to announce a nominee, as it has taken in the past. michelle kosinski, cnn, rancho mirage, california. >> richard hasenjoins us now. professor of law and political science at uc irvine. also author of "plutocrats united." rick, thanks for being with us. it's interesting when we look at the makeup of the supreme court the average eight of the eight justicesize 68. when antonin scalia was there it was around 75. but the reality is when you look at the ages of these people sooner or later someone will eventually retire or sadly what happened to scalia, someone will pass away. so the reality is when you look

at these appointments there isn't just one fight brewing. there's a lot of fight brewing. and they're all going to be more political than the one before it i imagine. >> that's right. so if it would have been an older democratic-appointed justice who would have died, probably the president would have had an easier time confirming that person because they would have just preserved the status quo. but now this potentially changes the balance of power on the court. and it could change back again in a few years. we don't know what the timing's going to be but so much is riding on this very close 5-4 majority. that could over the next ten years shift back and forth. >> this issue of there not being enough time, it's been pointed out that since 1975 no nominee has waited for a confirmation vote longer than 108 days. the president has longer than 141 days remaining. they can get this done. there is the time to get it done. >> right. it's all a question of a political battle. i have little doubt that if the shoe were on the other foot, if this were a george bush on his way out and democrats controlled

the senate we'd see a very similar dynamic going on. and it's a question of whether when obama nominates someone who will -- who's either a moderate candidate or someone with just stellar credentials -- >> a goldi lox candidate. >> yeah. if republicans try to block a hearing or not allow a vote then the question is how are people going to react? is that going to be a political loser? remember there are 24 republican senators that are up for re-election. those that are in those close states, think wisconsin, you think of the places where it could be very close. it may be dangerous for some of those republicans to vote against going forward on a nominee. >> i just wonder about the legality here, what we touched on about the balance of the court going back and forth from the five conservative judges which includes scalia and the four more liberal if you like. if that balance continues to ebb and flow in the coming years, what does that mean for some of the more i guess bigger legal decisions or issues that often come up before the supreme court? >> right.

so the court is not a purely political institution even though to outsiders it looks like it. you have the conservatives supporting cutbacks on abortion, liberals don't. one of the things the justices do is they're very reluctant to change things quickly. there's a belief and respect for precedent we call starri decisis. you have to follow the old rule unless there's a compelling reason not to. i wouldn't expect the president gets someone confirmed tomorrow who's like justice kaing or justice sotomayor, that things are going to turn on a dime. but over the next few years, citizens united, abortion, affirmative action, all the kind of -- guns, the hot-button issues could get back before the court and we could see a different decision or eroding of some of the conservative opinions that have come out in the last ten years. >> briefly, this notion of how he proceeds, do you see him gaming the system to get this nomination through? >> i see him straight out picking somebody who's a strong candidate and then see what happens politically. >> rick hasen. >> thank you for being with us one more time. author of "plutocrats united."

also professor of law at university of california in irvine. thanks for coming in, rick. >> thank you. >> thank you so much. >> take care. time for a quick break. hospitals and schools come under brutal attack in syria. ahead, the devastating civilian toll. thanks. ♪ [ male announcer ] fedex® has solutions to enable global commerce that can help your company grow steadily and quickly. great job. (mandarin) ♪ cut it out. >>see you tomorrow. ♪

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9:30 on a monday night. you're watching "cnn newsroom" live from los angeles. thanks for being with us. i'm john vause. >> and i'm isha sesay. let's get you caught up on the latest in the u.s. presidential race. republican presidential candidate jeb bush has called in a familiar face to stump for him

in south carolina. former president george w. bush is speaking out on behalf of his brother. at a speech in charleston he took a veiled swipe at front-runner donald trump. >> these are tough times. and i understand that americans are angry and frustrate d, but e do not need someone in the oval office who mirrors and inflames our anger and frustration. >> mr. trump has been sniping against the bush family since saturday when he went after george w. bush's record on national security, mentioning the 9/11 attacks. and on monday donald trump did not let up. >> i've heard for years he kept the country safe after 9 -- what does that mean, after? what about during 9/11? i was there. i lost a lot of friends that were killed in that building. the worst attack ever in this country? it was during his presidency.

>> democratic presidential candidate hillary clinton is rallying for votes ahead of the nevada caucuses. clinton is calling rival bernie sanders a single-issue candidate saying he's focused only on wall street. meanwhile, sanders repeated his demand for universal health care at a rally event in michigan. and we move on now to the crisis in syria. and there is international outrage after missile attacks on a number of schools in the northern part of the country. >> killed and injured dozens of civilians in aleppo and idlib. turkey accused russia of an obvious war crime, and the u.n. called the attacks a blatant violation of international law. it's not clear who's responsible. >> there was one school and a number of hospitals which were hit.

and medicines sans frontiers says its hospital in idlib were hit within minutes. it says it's not the first time its facilities have come under a atta attack. >> it's clearly an attack against the medical mission. to be today a doctor or a nurse in the areas controlled by the opposition, it's equal to be a criminal. unfortunately, if you are a doctor and you are working in a hospital clearly you are under attack by the syrian regime. >> the escalating violence in syria is casting a lot of doubt on the so-called cessation of hostilities agreement which is due to go into effect on friday. so too a defiant syrian president bashar al assad who has played down the chances the deal will actually succeed. edward dejin is a former u.s. ambassador to syria and irl. he's also director of public policy at rice university. he joins us from houston.

mr. ambassador, thank you for being with us. >> my pleasure. >> does if look like the groundwork is being laid for this nationwide cessation of hostilities or is the last-minute frenzy we see trying to deliver the blow before there's a time out? >> i think establishing a cease-fire is highly problematic under the current circumstances. i wouldn't even call it a cessation of hostilities. i think what we have now are talks about a truce that could lead to a cease-fire. but the political agendas of the parties are so disparate and even conflicting that i'm highly skeptical an effective cease-fire on the ground could be achieved. >> we've had this report from medicines sans frontiers saying one of their hospitals was hit. they believe it was a deliberate act. does that fit in with a pattern of behavior, systemic attacks on syria's health care facilities?

>> well, yes it does because we've seen this in the past. health facilities. medicines sans frontiers have been target ppd they're a great organization, heroic organization in my eyes and they've been targeted in the past as have other humanitarian groups and medical facilities. and the ploy there is really on the part of the russians and the syrians is they are targeting any, any area in which they believe what they call terrorists, could be terrorists and syrian rebel forces, are located. so that is their main imperative, and that's why you're getting these strikes against civilian areas, because they are targeting areas where they think the syrian rebel forces are president. >> we had the situation where under this cessation of hostilities if you like, all the cease-fire agreement, you alluded to this, that the russians will be allowed to continue on with their air

strikes, with their air campaign. a lot of people would look at that and say doesn't that negate the entire deal? >> exactly. there's no logic to it, frankly. it's an absurdity. and even bashar al assad, the president of cease-fire, has stated a cease-fire does not entail the end of fighting. god knows what sophistry and word games are being played here while the situation on the grind is getting increasingly desperate around aleppo and where the russians and the syrians with their iranian allies are maximizing their position on the ground and bolstering their political position in any future talks. that's the name of the game. we should see this clearly. >> and mr. ambassador, finally here, the russians are denying they were the one responsible for the air strikes on the medicins sans frontiers or doctors without borders medical facilities in syria. do you buy that for a moment? >> well, i'm not there.

i don't have surveillance capabilities to see who did it, but frankly, given the past behavior, past actions i just don't buy that. >> so we'll leave it there. thank you very much. we appreciate you speaking with us tonight. >> you're very welcome. well, the humanitarian need is urgent, and although most parties have agreed in principle to allow aid into besieged areas in syria, isis has not. the u.n. is considering air drops of food and medical supplies. frederick pleitgen visited a u.n. distribution center outside damascus where the world food program is ramping up its relief effort. >> reporter: these images shocked the world. people starving in the besieged syrian town of mediaia. aid groups say dozens have succumbed to hunger in a few months. >> this child is hungry.

if he gets sick and ill and his stomach, his tom sak really, really hurt him. he needs immediately go to hospital outside medaya. >> reporter: world powers have started an urgent push to get aid to those most in need. at this u.n. distribution center outside damascus the world food program is gearing up to escalate its relief effort. pasam al salei shows me the facility. >> with received the commodities in large quantities and we package it into small individual portions. each portion is enough to feed five people for one month. >> reporter: but while the world food program is working to get its aid ready, the problem is many of the warring parties in syria are not willing to allow relief goods to be delivered. the u.n. has accused the syrian government, many rebel groups, and isis of using the denial of food and medicine as a weapon.

the world food program says it could get to places like medaya quickly if it were allowed. once this vehicle is loaded the folks are going to seal it, which makes it easier to get through checkpoints. and the world food program tells us they have many trucks like this one loaded, ready to go and are just waiting for permission. most of the parties involved in the fighting here have agreed in principle to allow aid to besieged areas, but isis has not. the group has surrounded the eastern syrian city of der azor. syrian and russian military aircraft have dropped some food and medical supplies, and soon the u.n. wants to do the same. >> unfortunately, we couldn't reach it. however, der azor there is plans to do an airair drop and hopefully we'll soon manage to do an air drop as well to assist them. >> reporter: the world food program is still waiting to get the green light to enter many

besieged areas. until that permission comes all they can do is keep packing the goods, ready to move when they can. fred pleitgen, kiswei, syria. we'll take a short break here on "newsroom l.a." when we come back, we'll head back to the u.s. presidential campaign and we'll take you to the village in germany, home to the trump ancestors. what do those distant relatives make of the republican front-runner?

welcome back, everyone. donald trump is proud of his german heritage. his roots go back to kohlstad, germany. >> and atika shubert went to this small town and asked what do they think about donltd trump running for president? >> my grandfather frederick trump came to the united states in 188 5.

he joined the great gold rush. he did fantastically well. he loved this country. so they were from germany. i have great german heritage. i'm very proud of it. great place. but we all love the united states the best. but you know what? i love kohlstad also. >> welcome to kahlstad, south germany, population 1,200. its local vintage a dry riesling. famous sons including henry heinz, the ketchup king, and this guy. yes, kahlstad is the ancestral home of donald trump. simone wendell, a great cousin-in-law of trump made "the kings of kahlstad" a documentary on her home town's trump connection just before he launched his u.s. presidential bid. >> do you feel any kahlstad in yourself? >> the people of kahlstad are

very strong reliable people. and i feel that about myself. i'm strong and i'm very reliable. i'm on time. i get things done. and that's basically a whole german culture, not just kahlstad. that's a german culture. and i'm proud to have that german blood. there's no question about it. great stuff. >> [ speaking german ]. >> translator: i wasn't surprised he decided to run for president, she tells me. i think i always knew he was going to do something like this. mayor thomas javorik took us for a tour. >> hello. that's relatives to trump. >> reporter: just outside the house a car pulls up and a man says we served kahlstad wine at the coronation of queen elizabeth, maybe there will be a kahlstad wine at the u.s. presidential innovation. axel messer's family is more heinz than trump.

they have been make wine since the 1600s. he figures trump does have one distinctive kahls. stad trait. kahlstaders are certainly confidence he said and trump is not short of confidence. a ten-minute walk away the country ladies society is busy making something r herring salad for ash wednesday. inn keeper veronica strum says trump wouldn't fit in in karlstad today. "personally i think he's too much of a radical. we're a friendly place," she says. no one we spoke to seemed to think that trump would visit karlstad anytime soon, president or not. but everyone recommended he try the local delicacy, stuffed pig

stomach. atika shubert, cnn, karlstad, germany. >> ich bin ein karlstader. >> that's german for make karlstad great again i think. if he's president. >> we should wait for the hat. >> good idea. >> coming up, it was a night full of music and tributes right here in los angeles. the best moments of the year's grammys coming up next. psoriasis differently. it's a pe some people who took otezla saw 75% clearer skin after 4 months. and otezla's prescribing information has no requirement for routine lab monitoring. don't take otezla if you are allergic to any of its ingredients. otezla may increase the risk of depression. tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts, or if these feelings develop. some people taking otezla reported weight loss. your doctor should monitor your weight and may stop treatment. side effects may include diarrhea, nausea,

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hello, everyone. well, stars from every music genre turned out for the 58th annual grammy awards right here in los angeles. >> music's biggest night was filled with some epic performances and a few moving tributes to artists who are no longer with us. ♪ cha-cha-cha-changes ♪ turn and face the strange changes ♪ ♪ don't want to be a richer man ♪ ♪ time may >> just in case you're wondering, that is indeed lady gaga, who stole the show with a lavish, lavish performance honoring rock legend david bowie. >> who passed away just last month. in case you were counting for those at home she went through 11 of bowie's hits, none of his more recent stuff. some people saying this was one of the highlights of the night. others panning it saying it was rushed, it wasn't very considered, it wasn't particularly good. which is why we have mike bruno here to sort this out. >> senior vice president of digital content at billboard. thanks so much for joining us.

>> thanks for having me. >> what did you think of the lady gaga tribute? >> i thought it was great. it's interesting how people are saying they thought it was a little rushed. at first i did feel the same. i thought she was going through a lot fairly quick. but by the end she truly channeled him and it really made you think about lady gaga the artist and the different personas she takes on and what a wonderful performer and artist she is. and i think she really channeled him and really nailed it. it was one of my faft points of the whole show tonight. >> in some ways she is a successor. that's what i took away from it as well, that kind of chameleon-like quality. >> absolutely. i think she's one of the artists out there that she owes a lot to david bowie. absolutely. >> i want to talk about the other big talker out of the grammys of course. kendrick lamar. and that performance. it had been signpost add head of time. we knew it was going to be something that pushed the envelope, that took a stand. what did you make of it it? i'm sure we've got some pictures. just get your thoughts as to how he set that up whole performance. >> yeah. we did know that he was going to do something.

he had spoken to producer ken ehrlich, or kernelic had spoken to some people and said he was going to do some things. i think l.l. cool j mentioned it as well. but i think it still was jarring to see him up there. he had prison blues and he had -- he had handcuffs on and there was the jazz musicians behind the bars. it was stirring. and kendrick lamar performing given the topics that he hits on, given how he doesn't shy away from issues of race and being a black man in america, and the times that we live in i think we all kind of expected it but i still think he was jarring and it was really, really powerful. >> how much controversy is this going to generate? especially coming after the beyonce performance at the super bowl and the song "formation" as well. of course lots of conversation about is it right to use music so blatantly to push a political message. >> yeah, i mean i think perhaps some people will be ruffled and there could be some controversy. but anyone who listens to kendrick lamar's music or puts on that record, which is just dense and packed and really,

really -- it's a superb record. i think that those people would already know what it is, and i think that the world kind of knows what kendrick lamar's about. >> very quickly let's listen to adele, who had a shocker. ♪ give me a memory that i can use ♪ >> stop. >> yeah. >> what happened? >> well, adele had some technical difficulties we later learned. it was funny because we were sitting there and i was thinking there was something off about it. still -- the instrument, as they say, is so wonderful. but she was a little off. apparently there were some technical difficulties, there were some problems with the telecast, which i was in the theater but i read about later a problem with the telecast and apparently she couldn't hear herself all that well in her earpiece. there was definitely some not so happy people in her camp about that. >> i'm sure. we love adele. but -- >> yeah.

of course. >> i think she tweeted out afterwards something along the lines of "stuff happens." >> it does. >> she also said she's going to get a burger. to wrap the night up. >> there you go. that'll make everything better. >> i'm going to do the same. >> thank you for coming in. >> thank you for having me. >> well, i was actually on the red carpet a little bit earlier on and had the pleasure of speaking to a number of artists about the topic that has taken center stage at this year's award. the issues of diversity and of course with kendrick lamar seizing the headlines it was very much on point. here's what a lot of the stars had to say about the issue. >> the biggest names in the music industry have gathered for the 58th grammy awards. acclaimed rapper kendrick lamar and pop superstar taylor swift generating the night's biggest buzz. but with diversity front and center on the minds of many i spoke about the issue with the stars on the red carpet. how do you feel about the grammy

stage being used for like a political message? >> yeah, we should use our platforms to say something. hip-hop has always been about delivering a political message, you know, from public enemy to grandmaster flash to kendrick lamar and moss def. so use the grammy platform. we've got to do it on every level. >> what do you make of this whole question of politics and music? some people having a really hard time with beyonce's formation. you're from run-d.m.c. you know about messages. >> a record my father wrote for run-dmc on the raising hell album called "proud to be black." i didn't get any flak for it. everybody loved it. you can be proud of your heritage. you can make your music. you're supposed to be creative. >> many people looking at how the record k academy deals with the issue of diversity and inclusiveness. what's your view on how music does with this snish. >> well there, wouldn't be any music business if it wasn't diverse. so i think this is a really good representation of what people listen to on all kinds of radio. so it's very well represented. >> what's your view on using the grammys to take a stand? >> i think that every artist who

has a voice or anybody who has celebrity, celebrity is only as good as it can give other people happiness or give other people opportunity. every artist who uses their voice to speak to make humanity better is to me a hero and those who don't, god bless them, but i think it's great. i always support artists making political or social statements or sharing their opinions with the world. >> we are first of all people. human beings. so we're not just buttons that you push and you push a button and we sing or we rap or we play an instrument. we're whole human beings. we're part of the society. and as a result we have things we want to say, we have things that we want to encourage people about. it's -- what makes celebrity have meaning is to be able to use it to encourage people, to move people forward, to speak to

them, be the voice for the voiceless. >> the voice for the voiceless. and kendrick lamar certainly was that at tonight's grammys. everyone will be talking about this in the hours to come. >> diversity sharing up as a big issue at the grammys. also the oscars. >> it is indeed. i'm isha sesay. >> i'm john vause. stay with us. back in a moment. everyone's lookin' red carpet ready. my man, lemme guess who you're wearing... toenail fungus!? whaaat?!? fight it! with jublia. jublia is a prescription medicine... ...used to treat toenail fungus. use jublia as instructed by your doctor. jublia is workin' it!

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