hello, i'm whole wolf blitzer. wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us. recovering breaking news. two major stories. up first, a dangerous and deadly storm. churning towards florida's east coast after pummeling the bahamas. live pictures from jacksonville beach, florida, where the storm is kicking up big waves. hurricane matthew has strengthened to a powerful category 4 with winds of at least 140 miles per hour.

authorities have told 2 million people in coastal florida, georgia and south carolina to get out of harm's way. it's the largest mandatory evacuation since sandy struck the northeastern u.s. back in october of 2012. matthew could make landfall in florida later tonight or early tomorrow. we'll keep you updated. our other big story, the countdown to the next political showdown. the rematch between trump and clinton just three days away. trump holds a town hall in new hampshire later this evening. it's seen as a sort of dress rehearsal for sunday's town hall-style debate. clinton is also in debate prep mode right now and off the campaign trail. she's getting some help from her surroga surrogates, senator bernie sanders, out there campaigning for clinton in ann ash, michigan, this hour. also this hour, chelsea clinton takes part in an early vote rally in minneapolis. we're watching all of these

political events with less than 33 days and counting until election day here in the united states. meantime, let's get back to our main story, the breaking news. hurricane matthew, the storm is massive. the white house and the florida governor rick scott stressed that point and issued a dire warning. >> it's likely this storm could strengthen further before making landfall. and that obviously is deeply concerning. >> do not go on the beach. this will kill you. these are all projections. it could be much worse. time is running out. we are preparing for the worst. we're hoping for the best. and no one should take any chances. >> we're covering the story the only way cnn can. our meteorologist chad myers is keeping us updated in the weather center. boris sanchez is in daytona beach, florida. where is hurricane matthew

located right now? where is it headed? when will florida, for example, experience the worst of this hurricane? >> it has just left nassau, headed towards freeport in the bahamas. eventually making a run at florida and the governor said best case scenario, worst case scenario. best case scenario is the storm turns and stays in the water. worst case, it stays straight and heads right on to the shore. right on to the shore of the northern side of maybe coco beach, somewhere there around cape canaveral, as a 140 to possibly 145 mile per hour storm. the storm had a little trouble overnight because of the higher elevations of cuba, giving it some dry air. the farther it moves from cuba, the less influence cube has on the storm, so that's why it's strengthening right now, plus very warm water. it's in the gulf stream. the water that comes out of the gulf of mexico, goes around the florida keys and then on up to the northeast coast.

that's why the water in the carolinas is so warm, because it's really out of the caribbean. category 4 hurricane trying to make landfall here somewhere in the overnight hours. a sleepless night for anywhere from about ft. pierce, west palm, all the way up to melbourne. it's that peak wind, it's that peak gust, wolf, that we're worried about, if we get 145 on land with the eye wall. that's where the devastation will happen. here is one of the models. here is a graphic presentation of what a model looks like. 6:00 tonight. not on shore yet. we do have outer bands making very heavy gusts all the way up and down the east coast already from west palm to melbourne. probably gusts around 60. somewhere tonight maybe 4:00 a.m. that's when the eye wall will probably touch land. may not get all the way on shore. it's possible. the best case scenario is if this eye is here. if that's to the right by 50 miles, we're in great shape and

we dodged a bullet. but it doesn't look like it. there's not a single model that's not right along the shore right now, eventually into jacksonville, into charleston, into savannah, into tybee, up the east coast, before it gets to myrtle beach. it stays off shore after that, wolf. >> chad, what about a little further south, miami, fort ladder dale, that area? what can the folks there expect? >> that's a real good question. because the fort ladder dale area i think has the chance of seeing the back side of an eye. the back side of an eye will be -- as the eye moves up to the north, the wraparound from the storm would blow from either the west or the northwest and blow from fot. lauderdale the wrong direction. we think the wind's going to come this way but not if the eye's here. the wind will blow in the clockwise direction. clockwise means we'll have something possibly like this. even if you get a wind of 60 or 70 miles per hour in fort ladder dale, there will be some damage. not like the onshore flow we'll

get here. >> all right, we're going to stay in very close touch with you, stick around. boris, you're in daytona beach, florida, a little bit further north up the florida coast. are conditions dramatically deteriorating even as we speak? >> wolf, it's coming in bands. just about an hour ago, my crew and i were on the second level of the hotel here. things drastically got out of hand. the wind started pushing us around. the rain really pounding where we were standing. and our hotel's actually been evacuated. it's one of dozens in this area that have been boarded up. people have been asked to leave. volusia county in the middle of mandatory evacuation. some people are not heeding the warnings. the hotel next to us, there's at least one family there that is refusing to leave. they asked us earlier, they said they were indecisive about whether or not they would take off. they have decided to stay. despite warnings from the governor rick scott who has said this storm will cause fatalities. for several days now, he's been

asking people in this coastal area to leave because the storm surge is going to be very, very strong. we were standing more or less where the tide is landing now. and the waves keep coming closer and closer and going larger and larger. it looks like blue skies now but in a few hours that will change. despite that, again, a lot of people not heeding the warnings, sticking around, not a very good idea when you consider that more than 2 people are in the evacuation zone now. as you mentioned, the largest mandatory evacuation since sandy in 2012. we heard from the police chief who told us if people decide to stay once we get closer to the hurricane, they will not be able to help them at all. because hurricane conditions make it impossible for them to do their jobs. so they're asking folks to stay out of this area. to get out as soon as they can before things get drastically worse, wolf. >> all right, boris, we're going to stay in touch with you as well. nick, you're in west pal of beach right now, expected to get really the brunt of this bad

weather. describe what's happening when you are right now and what the folks are anticipating in the coming hours. >> the weather has already started to turn here in west palm beach. it was about 30 minutes ago we got alerts on our phones saying the hurricane is approaching, take shelter now. i got off the phone with the mayor. she tells me unfortunately more people are staying in west palm beach and deciding to ride this storm out than leaving. it's going to be a really difficult situation for those first responders when they inevitably have to go in and try to rescue people who try to stay behind. we're here at a hotel now where a lot of local residents decided to take shelter for the next night or so, depending on how bad the storm is. you've been through storms here before. you're a local resident. what are you expecting? >> i am a little bit worried because this storm has had, like, more attention than the ones we had in the past. but i think everything will be okay. >> people were talking about storm surges, falling branches. what worries you as you see this rain and wind pick up?

>> i'm worried. my parents live directly by the intercost intercostal. i'd rather be with them than anywhere else. >> you guys are going to hunker down in your house? >> yes, we're going to -- >> when you hear the local mayor and the governor say you shouldn't be in your home what do you say to those people at home saying, shanaye, what are you doing? >> it's home. it's hard to leave your home. we'll just have to see what happens. >> any added precautions? we saw empty store shelves. no bread, no water, generators gone. have you gone to the store yet? >> no, i'm pretty sure my par t parents stocked up. i heard it's been really scarce. a lot of gas stations don't have gas since two days ago. >> our meteorologists have been predicting it's a desperate situation. we wish you the best of luck out there. shanaye is one of those who chooses to ride it out. the mayor in west palm saying it's unfortunate. they're not going to dispatch anyone once winds pick up. they expect this storm to last

well into friday with clean-up happening perhaps well into the weekend. right now, here, people are on edge as this storm is fast approaching. >> understandably so. nick, we'll get back to you. i want to bring in the mayor of west palm beach, mayor, over at the emergency operations center. you're very busy. what's the message? should all of them be evacuated? >> well, particularly those in the evacuation zones a and b really should leave. it's -- if there are any issues as your reporter said earlier, if there are any issues, our emergency people are not going to be able to help them if the winds are high. it just will be much safer for them if they leave the setting. >> what have the authorities, the experts told you to brace for, mayor? >> well, you know, we're expecting hurricane force winds.

we'll definitely get tropical storm force winds. we expect to get hurricane force winds. and, you know, we're ready. we have a plan. we're working that plan. we're ready. and we're just waiting for matthew to show up in full storm. >> what time do you think that will be, that the full strength of matthew hitting west palm beach? >> well, right now we're seeing bands. it's raining outside. i'm looking outside. it's raining. but i think it will be later this evening when we see the full brunt of the storm. more towards 10:00, 11:00. >> what's your greatest concern, mayor, right now? >> well, my concern is -- my greatest concern is people will not take this seriously. it's a serious storm. it's a large storm. it's going to stay around for a while. high winds will be problematic. and if you are in evacuation zone, you need to leave and go to a shelter. >> what about the elderly?

a lot of seniors in west palm beach, they've retired, they've moved there from all over the country. are they okay? have they been move nod into sa areas? >> well, we have our emergency hot line number. people have been calling if they need help. we have gotten several calls of people needing medical assistance. there is a shelter for people with special needs. if you need medical assistance, you need to get to that shelter. >> where will you ride out this hurricane, mayor? >> i'm at the emergency operations center and i will be here overnight and into tomorrow. >> mayor, good luck to you, good luck to all your constituents, everybody in west palm beach in the entire area of florida. this is a massive, massive hurricane. to our viewers, for ways you can help those affected by hurricane matthew, go to cnn.com/impact.

you will be able to impact your world. coming up, much more. we're following its movements now. also, a check on the race for the white house. hillary clinton is hunkering down while trump hits the campaign trail. take a closer look at how the candidates are preparing for the next presidential debate. that's sunday night in st. louis. also, take a look at this right now. closer look at what hurricane matthew did to cuba. these are images we're just getting in. it's a category 4 storm. it's moving towards florida. closer and closer. we've got some live pictures coming in. pictures from nassau in the bahamas. where hurricane matthew did extensive, extensive damage. and haiti as well. we'll update you on all that when we come back. is it a professor who never stops being a student?

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keeping constant track of hurricane matthew. it strengthened to a category 4. got some live pictures we're showing you from nassau in the bahamas as well as miami. the storm is moving closer and closer toward florida right now. we'll update you completely on the devastation that it has already caused and what we can anticipate in the hours ahead. i want to quickly turn to the race for the presidency here in the united states. donald trump is set to hold a town hall in new hampshire tonight. last-minute event, somewhat of a practice run ahead of sunday's town hall style debate in st. louis. meanwhile, hillary clinton is staying home today. she's prepping for the debate. but her deep bench of surrogates are hitting the campaign trail in her place. sanders is stumping in ann arbor, michigan. cnn's jeff zeleny on the screen for us. what's bernie sanders's message

to the voters today? >> well, wolf, bernie sanders's message to voters is quite simply if you liked me, vote for hillary clinton. there are still some of his old supporters who are thinking of a third party candidate or not enthused about this race. but he is trying to send the message that look, he says explicitly this race is not about donald trump, it's not about hillary clinton, it's about you. you can see him talking behind me, wolf. it vest soury much sounds like bernie sanders rally except of course his punch line is different. he's asking his supporters to vote for hillary clinton. this is what he said earlier in detroit. >> so i want to make it clear, this campaign is not a personality contest. all right, we're not voting for class president of our high school. now, i read the polls. i understand that neither hillary clinton nor donald trump

are particularly popular, i get that. but forget about that for a minute. take a hard look at the agendas of the campaign. what these candidates stand for. >> bernie sanders is on his first full week of campaigning solo. he has been across the country all week and will continue tomorrow. he is going to many of those states that he won during his primary like here in michigan. he is trying to build up this democratic fire wall here. a new poll this morning shows secretary clinton is up by 11 percentage points in michigan. frankly, a lot of democrats here don't necessarily believe that. she is coming back here on monday to campaign. sand se sanders, senator sanders is laying some groundwork here, trying to get people to register and come out for clinton. bernie sanders is campaigning aggressively and full throated endorsement for hillary clinton and urging his supporters to do the same, wolf. >> she's lucky to have a big

bench, a full bench of surrogates like bernie sanders. i must say that again. thank you, jeff zeleny in michigan for us. watch trump and clinton face off in st. louis for the second presidential debate. it will be co-moderated by our own anderson cooper. special live coverage begins sunday, 4:00 p.m. eastern. coming up, this storm will kill you. those are the words from florida's governor rick scott. he says time is running out before hurricane matthew roars ashore florida. we're looking at live pictures coming in from cocoa beach, brevard county, right now. florida is now bracing for this category 4 storm. the florida senator bill nelson, he is monitoring the situation on the ground in florida.

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our breaking news coverage of matthew continues right now. we're tracking the latest projected path of this extremely dangerous hurricane as it prepares to move up florida's east coast. you're looking at live pictures. on the right side there from jupiter, florida. expected to feel its aim fairly soon. the bahamas are bearing the brunt of matthew which has already been blamed for more than 100 deaths in the caribbean. floridians meanwhile are bracing for the worst hurricane to strike the state's central northern atlantic coast in recorded history. our meteorologist chad myers is joining us live from the cnn weather center in atlanta. chad, where is matthew heading specifically and give us an idea of just how much damage a

category 4 storm with winds of about 140 miles per hour may be gusting up to 165 miles an hour. how much damage can that cause? >> devastating. the same damage we see from the same storm when it was just as strong when it hit haiti. we showed you the pictures of haiti, how devastated that was. i know our buildings are stronger but they're not any stronger when you talk about 145 mile per hour wind. it just went by nassau, headed toward freeport and eventually on up to cape canaveral. the close targets in here, the stronger the winds will be the closer it gets to land. clearly that's what a hurricane is all about. something i'm hoping for because of all the things we can hope for here is an eye wall replacement cycle, wolf. i believe that as we look at this eye, it is getting so small that it might blow itself apart. it might not be able to maintain

such a small eye for as long as it takes to get to here. if that happens, then all of a sudden, you lose that 140 and you get 120. sure, a bigger area of 120 this second eye wall here. but you lose 140. so yes, it's hard to describe whether that's a good thing or bad thing depending on the timing. but if we can lose 140, we lose devastation, a lot of buildings will hold up to 120. the shingles will be gone but the roofs will still be there. even after andrew, after the new building codes, all these straps on the buildings and all that. those are new buildings. a lot of old buildings were never retrofitted at all. let's get to something here -- go ahead, wolf. >> finish your thought. >> i was going to talk about the hurricane, about how the eye is the center of the hurricane but it's the calm place, so don't focus on the eye. it's where the air is singering and sinking and it's sunny and it's nice in there. but it's the closest eye wall to

that sinking air that has the biggest rotation, the biggest wind. all of a sudden, we're talking about how big can the wind be. well, it depends on where this storm is. is this storm right down the middle of the path, right to the national hurricane center, but there is the storm, if that happens, then we'll be still in that 120 to 140 category. if the storm falls apart or turns left a little bit, we have a big difference in the forecast. if the storm turns left, even orlando will hit the hurricane forecast, hurricane windfall. if it falls further off shore, then we only get those hurricane winds off there on the shore. that's what we hope for, a right turn or an eye wall cycle that blows everything up, wolf. >> a lot of us remember katrina in 2005, the construction it did along the gulf coast, new orleans specifically. that was, what, a category 4 hurricane as well, right?

>> it was, but in the gulf of mexico, it was a category 5. so when bay st. louis and pass christian and biloxi got blasted with the 25-foot wall of water, that's what all the damage came from. the water came up lake pontchartrain, failed on the levees on the back side, not the river side, on the back side where lake pontchartrain is attached to new orleans and that's where new orleans flooded. so the surge came from the previous strength of the storm when it was in the loop current, before it lowered itself down to category 4. we don't think about katrina as a wind damage storm. there was some. but we think about katrina as a flood event, a storm surge event. katrina killed people because the water came in. it didn't kill that many people because they were hit by flying debris. >> yes, i remember it well. all right, thanks very much. we're going to get back to you,

chad. depending on of course hurricane matthew comes in, the devastation could be unlike anything we've seen in years. joining us, senator bill nelson, in the orlando area. i know you're incredibly busy. florida ready for the worst right now? >> we are. i have enlisted a number of energy operation centers. i'm just arriving at the one in orange county, which is orlando. and they're prepared. the president just signed the preevent emergency declaration. that puts more resources and supplies being prepositioned. but, wolf, we're looking at a monster. the last real monster we had in

florida, certainly charley in 2004, but the real monster was 1992, hurricane andrew. remember what kind of devastation it being whatted south of miami in a relatively unpopulated area and it still did so much damage. >> so what do you need right now? the president has signed this emergency declaration. what else do you need now to brace for this, senator? we need a lot of prayer. if this thing glasses off the coast at cape canaveral, it will certainly tear up the coast and the storm surge, you combine that with high tide, that's going to be quite a wall of water, and just like you were describing katrina with the

breaking of the levees, lo and behold what we have here is a storm surge coming right off the atlantic ocean, which could be absolutely devastating. it will not only come straight over the dune line, but it will fill up all the inland waters that, in fact, such as the indian river lagoon. so people will get some storm surge even if they're not right on the ocean. >> senator nelson, good luck to you. good luck to everyone in florida and up the east coast of the united states. what a monster this storm is already. thank you very much for joining us. >> thanks, wolf. all right, we're going to have much more on the breaking news. this massive hurricane is barreling towards the united states right now. at least 26 million people under hurricane watches or warnings as

we speak. take a look at live pictures we're getting in from jacksonville, florida, and from the bahamas right now as well. traffic is heading away from the area in florida. understandably, these pictures are from jacksonville. you see most of the cars moving away, away from the coast right now. florida congressman pat mcmurphy is standing by. he'll join us live when we come back.

let's get back to the breaking news coverage right now. hurricane matthew. we're following it very closely. it has strengthened to a category 4 storm with winds of at least 140 miles per hour. it's heading towards the east coast of florida. our own sara sidner spoke to a business owner boarding up his business. >> get ready before it gets here. >> your not staying open, are you? >> yes, we are. >> seriously? >> seriously. >> aernt you worried? >> worried about what? what is going to happen? worse than this? we can't do more. we're going to try to hunker

down here. bet it's safer than my house. >> how much work is it going to be to get this place as safe as possible? >> almost three days. we're working on it. the problem is finding wood. yeah, that's the biggest problem. to find the plywood. i mean, we're looking at -- >> were they running out? >> 15 sheet for $40 now. >> wow. how long have you been here? >> 25 years. >> 25 years? >> yes, and we've been through a lot of those. we've been through every single one of them. this one, i know it's going to be a bad one. >> good luck to daniel. congressman mcmurphy represents an florida's 18th district. an area right in the path of this storm. he's joining us via skype from palm beach gardens just south of jupiter. you know that area is supposedly going to be hit really, really hardware you are right now. what are you bracing for?

>> yes, wolf, well, thank you. i was just at the martin county emergency operations center with our governor. that is just north of jupiter. talking to the officials there. we are preparing for the worst. most folks in florida i don't think have ever seen a storm like we're going to get. most of the storms as you know cut across the state of florida. this is perhaps going to be the worst case scenario where it makes landfall around the palm beach area and heads up to jacksonville as a category 4. that will be catastrophic. we're urging everybody that can still leave to please evacuate. do not mess around. don't try to be a hero. get on the road. the roads are clear. the roads are safe. the tolls have been waived. get to a safe location. >> what's the biggest danger you fear? people not heeding the warnings to evacuate? thinking they can simply ride it out? >> yes, unfortunately, a lot of folks think it's going to be a big thunderstorm or aren't quite prepared for what the sea level

rise will be, what the storm surge will be like, what it's like to lose power. and beyond that, what happens right after the storm, when there are so many downed power lines. it makes for a very dangerous circumstance. a lot of folks have been, unfortunately, killed post storm. not only during it. i remember as a child growing u.n. in the florida keys when hurricane andrew hit and the devastation we felt there. this could be as bad if not worse. so we hope people evacuate. there's no reason to be here. get your pets, get your animals, board up your house and get on the road. >> a lot of people presumably can't do that whether they're elderly or handicapped. what can you do for them? >> i was actually just at a shelter a little while ago. most of the shelters, most of them so far about 50% capacity. call a family member, call your local law enforcement. they have firefighters on standby to give people rides.

the shelters are open. they have food. they have generators. they're prepared to handle a lot of folks. >> florida governor scott has activated 3,500 members of the florida national guard. what is their major assignment? >> yes, well, it's number one for life safety. we'll also be ready to hand out water, to hand out tarps, to be prepared right after this system. tomorrow morning early, this storm should be out of the palm beach area, heading up the coast. they'll be there on stand by. some storms, we've had looting so they have to be prepared to protect the businesses and families. god forbid it becomes that bad. we are going to stay in touch with the administration. was just told that the president did approve resources for this storm. we are grateful for that. and i think we're going to need all the help we can get from the federal, state and local governments working together. >> all right. congressman pat mcmurphy florida, good luck to you. i know you're right there in the bull's-eye where this storm is

likely to hit. thanks so much for joining us. >> thank you. >> all right, coming up, we'll have more on the breaking news. hurricane matthew threatening to flatten homes from florida all the way up to the carolinas. we're going live to charleston as businesses board up, residents start to evacuate. stay with us. are you on medicare? do you have the coverage you need? open enrollment ends december 7th. so now's the time to get on a path that could be right for you... with plans including aarp medicarecomplete insured through unitedhealthcare. call today or go online to enroll. these medicare advantage plans can combine your hospital and doctor coverage with prescription drug coverage, and extra benefits all in one complete plan

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right now in south carolina, hundreds of thousands of people are fleeing eight coastal counties under emergency mandatory evacuation orders. brian todd is joining us from outside charleston. brian, not just in florida, but in south carolina, in georgia, the governor said that people

are getting out, but not fast enough. what do the folks where you are saying and what are they doing? >> well, wolf, a lot of people here, having experienced hurricanes, they say they want to ride it out, see what happens in florida and make their decision. they may not have the luxury of doing that. governor nikki haley said a short time ago about 175,000 people have evacuated from this charleston area. she says that really is not enough. you see some of the surge of the waves coming in here. this is under normal conditions. the storm surge later on expected to be 4 to 8 feet. i'm going to tell you, show you where the danger is posed with that. these are low-lying dunes over here. most experts tell us when the storm surge hits, the storm is going to carry the waves well other the dunes, well other the fences and into the roads over there, which flood very easily. so 175,000 people evacuating. not enough in the governor's mind. they want at least 200,000 more to get out. now, we're on

folly island, one of the barrier islands protecting charleston. some people have stuck around, wolf. >> the state began what are call these lane reversals on interstate 26 to speed traffic out of the coastal area where you are. is that helping? >> it's helping quite a lot, wolf, the governor is pleased with how it's gone. a lot of people have gotten out that way on interstate 26. they've closed the eastbound lanes coming into the charleston area to eastbound traffic. you can only go west and people got out yesterday, people getting out today but one thing to remember, there are bridges in this area with 65 feet and above. when the winds get to 40 miles an hour and above those bridges will automatically shut down and there are those bridges at 65 feets and above so if people want to make the late decision to get out, they may not have the luxury if the winds are that high, wolf. >> be careful, we'll stay in close touch with you as well.

we're staying on top of the breaking news, the latest on hurricane matthew. also coming up, we're just three days out from the second presidential debate. 33 days from the u.s. election. some of donald trump's party are turning against him, actually, choosing to vote for hillary clinton over their own candidate. the blistering letter and why dozens of these former republican congressmen signed it. that and a lot more coming up. is that ice-t? nope, it's lemonade. is that ice-t? lemonade.

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we're keeping a very watchful eye on muhurricane matthew. we have brand new reporting first here on cnn. 30 former republican lawmakers, republican lawmakers, have signed a letter saying they can not and will not vote for their

party's candidate, donald trump. they write, and i'm quoting "every candidate for president must be judged rigorously in assessing whether he or she has the competence, intelligence, knowledge, understanding, empathy, judgment and temperament necessary to keep america on a safe and steady course. donald trump fails on each of those measures and he has proven himself manifestly unqualified to be president." that from that letter. let's talk about that with our chief political correspondent dana bash who broke the story. we have the senior politics writer for "u.s. news and world report" also, there have been several letters coming forward but this another one, another embarrassment for trump. >> there was a feeling these letters would stop. the never-trump movement lost a lot of steam as donald trump started to close in on hillary clinton and the fact that there's a former republican operative, andrew weinstein, who has been continuing to carry the

torch of the never-trump movement and he helped to get these former members together. i'll read you more of this letter because it's incredibly strong. "in nominating donald trump, the republican party has asked the people of the united states to entrust their future to a man who insults women, mocks the handicapped, urges the dissent be met with violence, every day brings a fresh revelation that highlights the unacceptable danger in electing him to lead our nation. now, these are not household names, they're former members of congress, but there are some who are suit of pillars in their districts and many of the districts are in swing states, battleground states like iowa, pennsylvania and so forth and i should say that they all say they won't vote for trump. some will vote for hillary, some will just leave it blank, some will write in another candidate. >> interesting. how is this likely to affect, if it will, sunday night's big debate between hillary clinton and donald trump. >> i don't think this will affect the debate. it is a pile on.

it's another news cycle he's going to lose today because of this having to answer this and he can't afford to lose more news cycles with 33 days to go. i will note you don't see -- it would be much more powerful if 30 members sitting in congress today came out and said that but the more likely you're on the ballot, the more likely tour stay neutral and not come out against trump which is telling because republicans are fearsome of their own voters. but sunday night is very important for donald trump. it's the last of two remaining chances to change the trajectory of the race. he needs to score a victory and because it's a town hall he has to do things he is not prone to do -- show empathy, compassion and connect one on one with voters. >> we learned paul ryan, the speaker of the house, saturday, will go out with donald trump and campaign. he's the top republican in the u.s. congress but this is basically the first time. >> yes, they're going

campaign-ish. i was told last night donald trump is going to be the day before this big debate he will be in the state of wisconsin which i don't know how much of a swing state that really is for him. >> pretty democratic. >> but he's going to be there and it's actually a wisconsin republican event. a festival they do annually and it will be a lot of well-known people, republicans in wisconsin. the house speaker, the republican national committee chair reince priebus, the senator there who's in a very tough reelection race, ron johnson, the governor, scott walker and donald trump will be there. what we don't yet know, wolf, is whether they'll share the stage, whether they'll have a made for the cameras photo-op moment. we don't know. >> wisconsin is -- is wisconsin in playwright now? >> it's probably not. there has been some polling that showed him within a couple of points but that was prior to the first debate. he has taken a hit everywhere in all these swing states. that's the real problem. it's important for him frankly

because of dana's reporting on these congressman to show solidarity with republicans. i think trump wants to be next to paul ryan. he needs leaning republicans, not hard-core republicans that a are wavering, suburban women in counties in virginia and ohio. that's why the trump campaign want this is and why this event is important. >> and we'll all be in st. louis sunday night. we'll be watching. he has to stand up and answer some persons question face to face, not as easy as it sounds. >> frank luntz, the redeemed pollster told me in some reporting for this this week that he should chicago someone to show empathy. that he needs that type of moment. >> show john kasich clips. >> show empathy and emotion. >> he has a practice session in new hampshire. >> he'll be practicing a lot of

that thing, learning how to interact with style. >> practice, practice, practice. that's it for me, thanks for watching. i'll be back at 5:00 p.m. for the "situation room." newsroom with brianna keilar starts right now. . hello there, i'm brianna keilar, the warnings could not be more urgent, get out now, this storm will kill you. that's what's being said. that's the word millions along the nation's southeast coast are hearing as a deadly hurricane tears its way toward florida for what officials say will be a direct hit. is. >> awesome! >> there's no gas whatsoever. >> every stop i've come to they were closed like this because they were completely out of gas. >> what wil y