tonight, a presidential debate rematch. donald trump facing a fire storm over his shocking comments about women captured on video. renewing the threat to ratchet up his attack on the clintons and their past. >> the american people have had it with years of clinton corruption and scandal. >> hillary clinton riding new momentum after her first face off with trump heading into this crucial night with new fuel for her attacks. >> this is a man who has called women pigs, slobs and dogs. >> this is cnn's coverage of clinton versus trump in their second presidential debate. >> her run for the presidency will never, ever work out. >> this time, they'll be eye to eye with undecided voters, as well as each other. >> friends don't let friends vote for trump. >> two nominees, one stage and america's future up for debate.

donald trump and hillary clinton about to walk on to this debate stage with donald trump's campaign in crisis. this debate could be trump's last and best chance to rescue his embattled bid for the white house. good evening. we're life at washington university in st. louis, missouri. we have a loud and excited crowd here as we are awaiting the arrival of the presidential nominees here on the campus of washington university. welcome to all. i'm aarerin burnett. this is a special edition of "out front" on this debate night in america. hillary clinton and donald trump have so much on the line tonight. the stakes for trump have skyrocketed higher since the leak of that video. trump caught making sexually aggressive comments about women. tonight, we expect that donald trump will talk about those

remarks directly, going beyond his scripted apology that he posted late friday evening. he heads into the debate with more top republicans abandoning him, formally withdrawing their support and some want him to withdraw completely. he said there is zero chance of it happening. clinton refused to publicly talk about the trump video, but she will be doing that tonight. she saved her fire for this evening. we're told she made it a part of her debate prep once the news broke friday night. she's ready for the possibility that trump will attack bill clinton's history with women and her response to the women. let's go to my colleague, wolf blitzer, who is in the room. wolf? >> tonight's format, erin, will be very different than the other debates. town hall events are all about connecting with the real voters. candidates usually try to avoid full-scale attacks, but tonight, all bets, i think it is fair to say, are off. take a look at the stage behind me. it is a more informal setting.

donald trump and hillary clinton have stools instead of podiums. they're free to move around the stage during the 90-minute debate, as they take questions from uncommitted voters. about 40 voters were selected by the gallop polling organization to be on stage. anderson cooper is moderating the debate with martha raddatz of abc news. they'll be on either side of the auditorium. they'll choose which voters ask questions, and ask questions themselves, including topics raised on social media. crowds are gathering here in washington university in st. louis with the debate less than two hours away. ahead, we'll bring you an exclusive interview with hillary clinton's running mate tim kaine. we'll get his take on the trump video and how clinton will we re responded to it. let's bring in cnn's dana bash. she's getting new information on the rnc chairman reince priebus. what are you learning about where he stands in this? >> one of the key questions,

wolf, is whether or not donald trump is going to keep republicans from completely abandoning him. most importantly, the republican national kmcommittee, which has been doing a lot more of the leg work than any other candidate we've seen in the past. i'm told that jared kushner, donald trump's son in law, but most importantly, he has been effectively running donald trump's campaign, said to reince priebus, the rnc chair, was pressuring him, saying this isn't as bad as you think it is. maybe you shouldn't be so negative, referring to the fact that priebus put out a harsh statement friday night when this broke. trying to make clear to the rnc that it behooves them not to abandon donald trump. that gives you a sense, wolf, of how much of a tipping point we're potentially at right now. my understanding is that it is very, very possible for the republican national committee and all the tentacles, can cease

to help donald trump if he doesn't do well tonight and somehow find a way to turn things around. because the rank and file republicans, people who are running down ballot are going to say, come on, guys, why waste time and money and resources on somebody who is not going to win? let's focus on the senate and the house and everything else. >> stakes are clearly enormous. >> very high. >> couldn't be higher right now. dana, thanks very much. erin, back to you. >> wolf, enormous. of course, donald trump's ex-campaign manager moments ago tells us reince priebus was weak, a failed leader. perhaps an indication that they see where this is going. we're going to talk more about that. we're getting new information about the candidates' strategies to prepare tonight. sarah murray, what are you hearing from the trump campaign? >> erin, the preeminent concern is donald trump going to react to the video?

there are plenty of people in the trump campaign who believes if he delivers a flawless debate, he can mount a comeback. others weren't so convinced. one of them told me this debate -- that the video will be a crippling blow when supersized by the debate. meaning anyone who hasn't seen the footage or heard about the footage will know about it by the end of this debate. donald trump could still mount a comeback by delivering a contrite apology. they say he knows what to say but are not sure he'll address it well on the debate stage. >> let's go to jeff zeleny. what are you hearing about hillary clinton's plan, spee specifically for responding to the tape tonight? >> erin, hillary clinton is planning for several scenarios but they all include donald trump being contrite and offering an apology from the beginning. she spent seven hours yesterday

in debate preparations with her team. this is a lot of what they went over. but another theme emerging, i am told tonight, she's going to tie this into his broader conduct. she's going to use this latest example we've been talking about all weekend long as a way she believes he does not have the temperament for office. she's going to run for a litany of sort of his greatest hits and controversies from this campaign, but try to broaden it out here, all about temperament and fitness for office. this is interesting. a target audience, not just women, also men. men who are offended by this as well and have been having these conversations in their living rooms, around their breakfast tables for the last two days. that is a key part here. hillary clinton also, erin, i'm told, is going to bring republicans into this. saying it is not simply to disavow him now. this is all about the fight for the senate tonight, as well, which democrats are trying to win control of. so those are her basic themes. temperament is something we're going to hear over and over tonight. erin? >> jeff zeleny, thank you very

much. my panel here with me for the hour. michael, i'll start with you. the significance here of this rift within the gop and particularly the establishment now formally running away from donald trump. reince priebus was with him this weekend and with him on the plane. priebus is with him, and yet you had donald trump's former campaign manager call him weak and an effectless leader. the republican national committee could be ready to pull their assistance to trump. how significance is this moment? >> very significant. you can't overstate the significance. i'm reminded of a quote from 2013 from reince priebus when he said, erin, the republican party needs to stop talking to itself. what he was saying at that time, in line with touting the need for immigration reform and the need to grow the tent, is too much of that which this gop has been doing energizes the base without an eye toward growing the tent to win a general election. that's the issue for donald trump tonight, right? he's got to decide.

i think he is itching to talk about bill clinton and what went on in the past. that'll appease the 40% already in his column. i won't win anyone over. frankly, it could fall like a dud in a room full of folks who are self-described independents who are undecided. >> also, i think it speaks to how little donald trump has changed over these last many months he's been campaigning. this is where he began, talking about the republican establishment, being the outsider, having to answer for some of the off color remarks he's made. here we are again. a year later, he's still fighting the primary fight. he hasn't made a pivot to the general election. i think now, here we are looking to see if he's going to change in this debate. we haven't had much evidence he will. >> is that what's at stake tonight? is this a decision has to whether this is a formal rift of losing all the funding and backing, which is so crucial? does it get decided based on whether he can perform well tonight? >> i think they want him to

perform well. reince priebus would like the see him perform well. divorce is often about money. i think what this is about in the divorce is, as dana bash was reporting, is about money and the funding from the republican party, whether they're going to start focusing on the republican house and senate races if trump doesn't do well this evening. and that is why you see corey lewandowski upset about reince priebus. they feel they haven't had the backing. you have this picture of an increasingly isolated candidate up in the guilded tower, while the party runs away from him. what he is saying is i'm going to be the outsider. this is where i started, to your point. this is where i started. i'm the outsider. this is how i won. this is how i'm going to win the presidency. all of you can go you know what. >> is this his campaign ends or he can rise like a phoenix? is it that crucial of a moment? >> i've never experienced

anything quite like this. i know i'm not the resident histori historian, but i think the closest thing may have been the checkers speech in 1952, when richard nixon was threatened with ejection from the republican ticket because of a scandal involving campaign finance. he gave a speech to the nation. eisenhower watched the speech to decide whether he was going to keep nixon on the ticket. i think this reaches that magnitude. here is the problem for the republican party. donald trump may have damaged himself with large numbers of voters. he did not damage himself with most of his base. >> right. >> very, very committed to him. so they are trying to save their candidates, who have to reach these marginal voters, but they don't want to lose the trump base. this has been the challenge throughout this campaign. now, they may have to make a choice. >> jeff, what is at stake tonight though for him, especially when it comes to

women? >> yeah, i mean, sure, of course, he's got to appeal to women. i think one of the things that is going to happen here, he has been tweeting tonight. >> yes. >> he's been tweeting out links to two video interviews. one of juanita broderick and the other of juanita, paula jones, all going after hillary clinton for her conduct in treating them with their different situations. >> yup. >> i think he is probably going to talk about that and say, listen, here are three women who are coming forward to share their stories about hillary clinton. not just bill clinton but hillary clinton. the other thing i want to respond to with david, he's correct about the checkers speech. but -- >> i knew that'd get you. >> but, but, but, you're leaving something out. it wasn't dwight eisenhower totally. nixon very cleverly at the end of his speech said, the appeal to the audience, the wire or

write the republican national committee and let them know. lifting the decision out of eisenhower's hands and handing it back to the public. the public overwhelmed. >> i think it would be a dreadful mistake this donald trump believes by raising these other issues relative to bill clinton, that he somehow gets out of him himself. he needs to show genuine regret, something he has a hard time -- that'll be a news maker right there. >> total contrition. paul, what about when this comes up to hillary clinton? what is the response that she should give if he goes after her and says, oh, but you were so angry at these other women. you tried to undermine them, as well. women who slept with her husband. what does she respond to that? does she say, i was hurt as a woman? >> the best advice is from actually the person on the national stage who is not a politician. michelle obama. when they go low, we go high. that's what she needs to do. she'll be in a room full of

people. in the city, the unemployment rate is higher than the national average. the murder rate is the highest in the country in st. louis. >> she ignores it. >> hillary had pain but nothing compared to the pain that middle class americans are feeling. she'll be fine. trump can say whatever he wants about the clintons. she needs to bring her focus back to the citizens in the room who have real needs, real challenges and real pain. show them why she can help and improve their lives and change our country for the better. whereas donald trump wants to spend all this time in politics of personal destruction and wallowing in the mud. >> hillary clinton did wallow in the mud last time. she brought up a plethora of scandals and personal issues. i think the candidate that'll win tonight will be the candidate that focuses on the issues. we have seen every single focus group, voters express their frustration. i didn't hear from either candidate how my situation is going to improve economically and on the foreign policy front. tonight, the candidate who talks

about the issues and stays away from the personal attacks is going to win. for donald trump, it must begin with an apology. a heartfelt apology, one that doesn't mention bill clinton, but expresses remorse. one that asks the american people for forgiveness. if he does that, he'll be the next president of the united states, but only if he does that. >> i think that is mostly right. listen, these two candidates are in very different positions. hillary clinton had to do something very difficult, which is put down an insurgency in her own party, the sanders rebellion, but do it on terms that let the people come to her. she's largely succeeded in that. the millenials are still grumpy but they're moving her direction. trump had a tougher challenge, which was to actually win an insurgency, grab the party assets and use them to take power. he has failed in the fundamental leadership challenge of this campaign, which is to capture the party. so now, he's in a situation where he's trying to make it a virtue. his failure a virtue.

and he has to do something else. the idea that he -- and by his tweets, he thinks he can just say, bill clinton sucks, too, therefore, i get to be the president. it's absurd. first of all, what he has confessed to, not been accused of, but confessed to is a crime. if i were to go to donald trump and grope him and try to kiss him, i would go to jail. that's called sexual assault. it is a crime. so you have someone who has confessed to a crime, who now wants to be able to say that i'm the law and order candidate, which is now bizarre. he came by attacking five african-american young men falsely accused of being sexual predators. he attacks immigrant mexicans and saying they were rapists. it was all projection. >> it's not true. >> he is a super predator. he cannot attack bill clinton and get out of this. period. >> what does he do if she uses

those words and calls him a predator? what does he say? the other context, of course, is donald trump has been on television a long time. >> right. >> we know one person who worked for the "apprentice." you paid money if you said anything. he has that over his head. there could be something else out there. >> she has, per the videos at the breitbart site, she'll have to deal with being an enabler to a predator. i mean, sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander here. if she goes down the path -- >> who is the undecided voter? paint the picture for me. describe for me the demographic of the individual tonight that doesn't know for whom to vote and hears that pitch and says, oh, my god, i guess i have to go for donald trump. >> fair question. >> sure. what they're saying when they hear that is, she's not what i thought she was. she doesn't have the temperament. >> what is he then, the same thing that we just heard in the video. >> he's -- and so is she. so is she.

so in that sense, it's probably a wash. right? >> he also -- >> and removed from the board. >> jeffrey, he is also on the record having praised how she handled herself during her husband's extramarital affairs, during impeachment, et cetera. donald trump is on the record saying he was against impeachment. >> right. >> so if she wanted to, and from my reporting today, i will tell you that i do not believe she will do tit for tat here, i don't think she wants to go there, i think what she wants to say is this is a pattern. it's not just 11 year ago. it is 11 days ago with alicia machado. apologize to the gold star mothers, to alicia machado and people you called names. i don't think she'll get specific but she could point out he actually praised her. >> to which he could reply, apologize to the benghazi families. >> that doesn't get either of them anywhere.

>> falsely blamed the death of my son -- >> we are going to hit pause. we'll all be back. i want to take a break. as we count down to the start of this crucial debate, everything on the line, we have an exclusive interview with the democratic vice presidential nominee tim kaine. does he know what hillary clinton is going to say about the trump video? more of our special edition of "out front" coming up. at the marine mammal center, the environment is everything.

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♪ washington university pep band playing our music and doing a fantastic job at it. we are back in washington university in st. louis for the second clinton-trump debate. now, the coming hours, of course, could be the most consequential yet in this astounding campaign. we have to always try the right words for it at this point. right now, we want to hear another voice. from clinton's running mate tim kaine, to get his controversy on the trump campaign and the republican party. our jake tapper has this

exclusive interview. >> let's start with this new donald trump tape that came out on friday in which he exhibits a casual attitude towards sexual assault. is hillary clinton going to bring it up at the debate sunday night? what's she going to say if so? >> well, i don't exactly know what she's going to say about it during the debate. i imagine some of the undecided voters who are part of the town hall forum will have questions about it. i think it is for donald trump to try to answer it and take responsibility. his statement, trying to say, look, i regret these words, it's not just words. it really is talking about a pattern of sexual assault. i just -- i can't imagine that undecided voters that are part of this town hall will not want to hear him explain why he thought that was acceptable behavior. >> now, a pattern of sexual assault is what you said. that certainly sounds like what he's saying. do you know of any evidence that

he actually acted in that way? >> my understanding is that there are stories in some papers today with individuals basically saying that they were subject to exactly the treatment that he describes on the tape. so, you know, this would be a question for donald trump to answer. if he says, i may have said those things but i never did them, that's one thing. but, you know, i think the tape raises an awful lot of questions. if you take that tape as donald is accurately describing his actions, yeah, it is a pattern of adssaultive behavior and muc more than words. i think the issue it raises is not just a question for donald trump to address as he talks to the voters during the debate, but it's also something that candidates who stood with donald trump have to address. if you are a gop office holder or candidate and stood with donald trump, people ought to be asking you, do you still think he is qualified to be president

and support him? a number of people are withdrawing their support. anybody who hasn't declared where they are on the question needs to be asked the question. >> donald trump put out a video message on friday. he said, quote, i was wrong and i apologize. he called this a distraction and criticized bill and hillary clinton. take a listen. >> i've said some foolish things but there is a big difference between the words and actions of other people. bill clinton has actually abused women and hillary has bullied, attacked, shamed and intimidated his victims. >> i'm sure that hillary clinton is preparing for that charge to be leveled on sunday evening. what's your response? >> well, there was some chance this would come up at my debate earlier in the week, when trump said clinton's marriage is fair game. i can't say how donald trump

should run his campaign, but i can say this. the clinton-kaine campaign is not about this. it's not about the marriages of folks at the top of the ticket. it's about issues that voters care about. >> there is a story from 2002, when the republican speaker of the virginia house of delegates, wilkins, was facing allegations of sexual misconduct. it says that you were quoted saying, if the allegations are true, he should resign, kaine said. you held the same view of president clinton during the lewinsky scandal. is that your view accurately? is that relevant, do you think? >> not my feelings back in the '90s. we're in 2016 now. there are two names on the ballot for president. hillary clinton and donald trump. that's the choice that voters have to make. >> let's turn to the latest revelations from wikileaks. we finally got a glimpse at expee excerpts from the famous paid

speeches that bernie sanders wanted released during the democratic primaries. in a closed door speech to a brazilian bank in 2013, clinton said this, quote, my dream is a hemispheric common market with open borders sometime in the future. is that her dream? is that what she wants? open borders and open market? >> yeah, jake, i'm glad you asked it that way. because i don't think we can dignify documents dumped by wikileaks and assume they're all accurate and true. anybody who hacks in to get documents is completely capable of manipulating them. but you asked the question about what is her position on policy. hillary's position on policy, on markets and trade is very plain, which is we'll do trade deals but only if they meet three criteria. do they increase american jobs? do they increase american wages? and are they good for national security? if they are, and if we can enforce them, trade deals are okay. if they're not, we can embrace

them. as you know, when hillary was a u.s. senator, she voted for some trade deals when they met her standards. but she voted against others when they didn't. we're going to fight so that the only trade deals we'll contemplate are ones that have the high standards she set out. >> right. but senator, first of all, are you disputing the accuracy of this? did hillary clinton not say to the brazilian bankers that she had this dream? >> jake, i have no way of knowing the accuracy of documents dumped by this hacking organization. i think it is really important. this hacking has been connected, much of the hacking has been conducted to the russian government. yesterday, the director of national intelligence indicated that this kind of hacking has been traced directly to the russian government, and there is a direct intent to influence the outcome of an american election. if that is, in fact, true, you cannot accept as gospel truth

everything they might put in a document. you didn't ask about the document. you asked me what hillary clinton's position was. >> right, that's fair. is this document then, is it accurate? did she tell brazilian bankers that her dream is a hemispheric -- >> i have no way of knowing that. >> you could ask her. >> but the documents are in the thousands. i haven't asked her. you asked about her position on trade. the position on trade is very clear. >> what about her position on borders? she says her dream in the document, her dream is a hemispheric common market with open borders. is that something that -- in the clinton-kaine administration, we would see, open borders? >> we believe in comprehensive immigration reform that would -- with the pillars that we've described. where we would have more border security, jake, as you know. i voted for significant investments in border security in june of 2013. and continue to believe that's part of a comprehensive

immigration reform plan, along with the value of keeping families together and providing a path to citizenship for those who work hard, play by the rules and pay taxes. >> all right, senator, tim kaine, thank you so much. we always appreciate you coming and answering our questions. i appreciate it. good luck on the campaign trail. >> very glad to, jake. >> you saw tim kaine there. as we're counting down to this crucial night, debate night in america, why the timing of the trump tape is as bad as it could get for the candidate and, frankly, for the gop. will it influence early voting? did you know that people in state after state are already voting and voting this weekend? john king coming up. i spent many years as a nuclear missile launch officer.

if the president gave the order we had to launch the missiles, that would be it. i prayed that call would never come. [ radio chatter ] self control may be all that keeps these missiles from firing.

[ sirens blearing ] i would bomb the [ beep] out of them. i want to be unpredictable. i love war. the thought of donald trump with nuclear weapons scares me to death. it should scare everyone. i'm hillary clinton and i approve this message. sprint? i'm hearing good things about the network. all the networks are great now. we're talking within a 1% difference in reliability of each other. and, sprint saves you 50% on most current national carrier rates. save money on your phone bill, invest it in your small business. wouldn't you love more customers? i would definitely love some new customers. sprint will help you add customers and cut your costs. switch your business to sprint and save 50% on most current verizon, at&t and t-mobile rates. don't let a 1% difference cost you twice as much. whoooo! for people with hearing loss, visit sprintrelay.com.

just getting in some video tape. very fascinating videotape. it sets the scene, dana, for what could be an extremely contentious debate tonight. look at this. there in the middle of your screen, donald trump. from left to right. kathleen willie.

withjuanita broderick. shelton. paula jones. these are women who made strong accusations against bill clinton, except for cathy. she has accused -- she was a rape victim. hillary clinton has a public defender represented the man accused of raping her. donald trump is speaking of these women. i don't know if the audio is good enough. we can't understand what he's staying, but this sets the stage for what can be a really ugly and contentious debate tonight. the fact he's brought these women here to a hotel in st. louis, has invited cameras in there to see them, to hear them. i can only imagine what's going to happen later tonight. >> what they're saying is almost irrelevant because it is the picture that donald trump and his campaign clearly want to get out here. paula jones you see on the right side. as you mentioned, kathy shelton

in between. she's a little different than the others. the key point that donald trump has been trying to make on twitter and has been trying to use breitbart news, which is a conservative news outlet, the head of which -- a former head is effectively running trump's campaign. they've all day long been pushing out the notion that bill clinton had these women -- these women are out there, rather, wolf, and they have made allegations that he attacked them, that he went well beyond harassing. we should underscore that in a lot of these cases, nothing happened. no charges were brought. there is a lot of evidence that republicans looked into these real time, particularly in the early '90s, when republicans were working through the impeachment process, and for whatever reason, they didn't continue down the path of

pursuing juanita broderick, in particular, who alleged she was raped by bill clinton. >> it brings back a lot of memories for those of us who covered the clinton white house back in the 1990s. jeff zeleny, you're getting reaction from the clinton campaign. what are you hearing? >> i am indeed, wolf. i was standing with a couple top officials from the clinton campaign outside this debate hall when this news came over, that donald trump had indeed held this press conference. the campaign's communications director told me this. she said, if that's the kind of campaign he wants to run, that's his choice. voters aren't interested in this kind of campaign. wolf, i can tell you for all the planning and practicing that secretary clinton has done, seven hour alone yesterday, they were not at least expecting donald trump to go specifically with names of individuals on the stage. he may not tonight, but they were a bit jarred by seeing the ladies here in st. louis. wolf? >> it truly is a shocking development. setting the stage for what will

be a very contentious debate here tonight. let's take a quick break. more of the breaking news right after this. >> we'll see you at the debate. i'd like to send 50 pizzas to france. oh hey! i'm just keeping the seat warm. but not for the president. for you! you can be president of whatever you want. like president of your own salon... i look good. or your kid's little league team...foul ball! or president of whatever this is! get the domains, websites, and 24/7 personal support to be awesome online.

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welcome back. we're counting down to the debate. now, the breaking news. donald trump, moments ago in a hotel right here in the st. louis area, appearing with four of bill clinton's accusers. obviously, being very clear about what he intends the message to be tonight. let me just play exactly what happened in st. louis with donald trump and the four women. here it is. >> thank you for coming and these four very courageous women have asked to be here. it was our honor to help them. i think they want to make an individual short statement, and then we'll have a little meeting. we'll see you at the debate. perhaps we'll start with paula. >> i'm here to support mr. trump because he's going to make america great again. i think everybody else should vote for him. and i think they should all look at the fact that he's a good

person. he's not what other people have been saying he's been, like hillary. think about kathy? >> i'm also here to support trump. at 12 years old, hillary put me through something that you should never put a 12-year-old through. she says she's for women and children. she was asked last year what happened, and she said she's supposed to defend whether they did it or not. she laughed on tape, saying she knows they did it. >> you went through a lot. >> yes, sir, i did. >> i'm juanita broad widericbro i'm here to support donald trump. i tweeted recently, and mr. trump retweeted it, that actions speak louder than words.

mr. trump may have said some bad words, but bill clinton raped me and hillary clinton threatened me. i don't think there is any comparison. >> i'm kathleen willie, and i am here to support donald trump. the reason -- the reason for that is the first day that he announced for president, he said, i love this country, and i want america to be great again. and i cried when he said that because i think this is the greatest country in the world. i think that we can do anything. i think we can accomplish anything. i think we can bring peace to this world, and i think donald trump can deliver us to that point. >> thank you very much. okay. thank you, all, very much. we appreciate it.

>> mr. trump? >> ask bill clinton that. go ahead and ask hillary, as well. >> thank you. >> you just heard that right there. now on where those women will be tonight. they just appeared with donald trump at a hotel near here. sarah murray, they'll be in the debate hall tonight, you're learning? >> erin, that is what the trump campaign is tell megariging me now. the four women will be in the debate hall. even though trump's advisers haven't admitted one way or another whether this will come up on the debate stage, this sends a strong signal. i can't tell you how many republicans have been telling me they did not want to see donald trump go this route. they believe that hillary clinton could get the best of him on this.

they believe that it could backfire on him, particularly in light of the tape that's come out about him this week. there are certainly going to be plenty of nervous republicans seeing this video and also seeing these women in the hall tonight. erin? >> sarah, thank you very much. gloria, pretty stunning development. this is something nobody expected to happen. >> it's kind of dark and, you know, in a way, very sad. and i think that politically, it's particularly stunning because i'm not so sure what this does for donald trump, if you look at it purely politically. i don't know whose mind he changes with this. and, of course, if you're, you know, an undecided voter, will you then suddenly say donald trump is a champion for women? does this suddenly erase what occurred on the videotape?

i don't -- i don't think so. i think that it shows you that donald trump is willing to do anything to kind of win. and this is not, you know, just to finish for one sec, sarah is saying, and the republicans i've talked to, and you've heard from newt gingrich today and others, this is exactly where they did not want him to go. maybe he won't do it in the debate. he did it here, and it's a head fake and got it out of the way. that's a possibility. >> i agreed that what he needed to do was offer a statement of genuine contrition, and then address himself to the issues that were important to people in their lives. if he goes this route, if this becomes a major part of his evening, then i think the answer to your question earlier, is this the day the campaign ended officially, you know, i would say yes. look, the question has always been, how does a reality show

star get himself elected president? apparently, he feels it is by turning a presidential debate into a reality show. i don't think the american people are going to react well. >> can i say that i think the commission on presidential debates is now in a very awkward position? i remember, erin, at the last debate, when mark cuban was coming and said he was invited to sit in the front row, i had one of the co-chairs on my program here on cnn and he said, we're not going to let it happen. we're not going to allow that distraction to take place. cuban can be there, but not in the front row. i'll be very interested to see if these women are permitted in. i'm also wondering whether trump really says anything tonight about it. he just had his moment on this issue. the third point i would make, because i invested more time than i would have cared to today investigating each case and reminding myself what went on and what do we really know. i watched the juanita broderick video earlier that trump tweeted. found it very compelling. but they're two issues.

one has to do with the bad behavior on bill's part, which i think there is a presumption of evidence. he was impeached for crying out loud. trump is trying to thread another needle, of her being an enabler. that is a different evidentiary hill to climb if he goes there. >> i'm uncertain why the women wouldn't be permitted in. they're american citizens and have been relegated to telling their story on breitbart news because other outlets won't pick them up. they have a right to speak out. their attorneys -- i let you finish. their attorneys have obtained a deposition that says hillary's attorneys hired private investigators to go after the three women on the left. now, it is important the millenials behind me, who care deeply about sexual assault, i've been on a college campus the last seven years of my life. sexual assault is a big issue. the three women on the left, hillary hired private investigators to look after. the woman on the far right,

hillary clinton has an audiotape laughing at the girl, bragging about how she got the innocent rapist off who raped her. >> go ahead and respond. >> they all have a right to be heard. i want to hear their stories and i want all the facts. >> now we do. >> let me finish. >> as my parents raised me to say, time and a place. and a debate, which is about -- supposed to be about independent voters and a variety of issues, will become a blank show. it'd probably end up on a trump audio if i said it. i don't think it is necessarily the best -- >> he might not bring it up. the women spoke for themselves without donald trump saying a word. that is a victory. >> let's say he doesn't bring it up. the head fake that david suggested, say that's what it is. they're in the audience and bill clinton is in the room they were sitting in. how does it play? >> this is what i find so fascinating here. the age old allegation having nothing to do with this campaign, but goes back decades, is the media, writ large, is

always giving an unfair shake to republicans. what they've done here is get this out into the conservative media stream, whether it's picked up -- and obviously it is, here on cnn, and to get this. you can be guaranteed tomorrow morning or tomorrow noon when rush limbaugh hits the airwaves, this will be topic a. >> speaking to the people -- >> but -- >> no, no. >> wait. >> hold on. paul, you were there during all of this. you were there. you were advising. what is the significance of this moment to hillary clinton tonight? she sees this. you saw her senior campaign staff were there. jeff zeleny were there when they heard about it. they were surprised. does this affect her performance, what she does tonight? >> i think it assa it says a lo trump. he has a party in chaos. 16 republican senators said they're not voting for him. it is unprecedented in the modern era. so he's got to do something.

he thinks this is the strategy. i disagree. but especially in a town hall, the tussle is whose election is this? does this election belong to donald trump or hillary clinton, or does it belong to we the people? this, i think, trump is definitely trying to make a play to hijack the election away from the needs and concerns of those voters and make it about himself, about hillary, hillary's husband. i don't think it is a winning strategy. >> so this is a character test for donald trump. and it's an inkblot test, whether he passed it. what you believe is republicans just get rolled all the time and, you know, you want somebody who is going to fight till the end, willing to hit the nuclear button. he's your guy. because what you just saw from my point of view was horrible. because these are very serious issues. and the pain in those women's

lives is very real. for someone to use that, to my side of the inkblot test, was a failure on his character. i would have hoped that tonight he would have come forward and been contrite. shown contrition. he chose to do something, not that. it's an inkblot test. somebody will say, he is a champion for women, giving them a voice, et cetera. some see it that way. i think more people will see this as a cynical move and a -- >> can i say one thing? >> quickly. >> one guy watching with interest is mike pence, who laid down a challenge to donald trump that he show what is in his heart and show remorse, show contrition. i'm wondering what mike pence thought when he was watching the women in the press conference. >> the republican party leaders. that is a real important audience for donald trump tonight. they're trying to decide whether or not they'll hang with him or cut off money. i'm sure they were disappointed

by what they saw tonight. listen, i think it is a victory for the conservative press. they've been talking about this for 20 years. i think hillary clinton is going to be prepared for it. they've been talking about this for 20 years. >> all right. thank you, all. let's go inside in the debate hall to wolf. >> thanks very much. we're here with nancy pelosi, the top democrat in the house of representatives. the minority leader of high profile hillary clinton supporter. these are breaking news developments. >> i want to get your thoughts watching this. it's obvious why donald trump did this. he wants to change the subject. he also wants to rattle hillary clinton in this incredibly important debate hall. how do you think she should handle it? >> i think she should handle it with the usual strength she has and ignore him. what he has done, what we've seen in the statement, the audio video that we saw, what we heard here tonight, is so beneath the dignity of the office of the

president. it is so beneath the dignity of the american people. i would hope it would be beneath the dignity of his family, but that's up to them to decide. so hillary has to be herself, with her vision, her strength, her knowledge about our country. look, people want to hear, it's not about distractions from donald trump but what this election means to them. their job security. the education of their children. whether they can own a home. >> and it's unclear if he's actually going to talk about these women or whether or not their present and this photo op he staged right before the debate was in order for him not to have to talk about it on the stage. but if he does, and you were hillary clinton, or she called you and said, how do i handle this, what would you say? >> i would ignore him because, again, this is beneath the dignity. these members of congress can run from donald trump but they cannot hide. the american people see what is

happening here to a presidential race. the world sees. this is the greatest democratic function that happens. the election of the democratic president. he's taking it into the gutter. always detracting and making it about him. we know he has defined himself by his own words. >> is she going to go after him on the video tape released friday night, in which he said vinyl things about women? >> i don't know. i've not been part of her debate preparation. i hope that she goes after him in terms of saying, this disrespect for women is awful. but it has an impact on their lives when they disrespect the value of women's work, no equal pay for equal work. disrespect women's judgment in terms of a women's right to choose. disrespects women in their retirement in terms of medicare and the rest of that, which the -- there's not a dime's worth of difference in terms of policy between donald trump and republicans in congress. they tolerated all the trash

that he dished out for a long time. now all of a sudden, it is impacting their political future so they're sanctimonious about it. >> these women accused bill clinton of sexual abuse, if you will, rape in one particular case, these women are now going to be sitting in there. the suspicion is he invited them to get her nervous. >> look, hillary clinton is running for president of the united states. when she wins and walks into that oval office, she'll be one of the best prepared people. by her strength, knowledge, her judgment, her vision. and she's not going to be rattled by a joke or -- i mean, this grotesque clown. she's not going to be rattled by that. whether she brings it up is up to her. i think she should connect it to the disrespect the republicans in congress have had for women. >> you've seen your counterparts on the other side of the aisle

flee donald trump over the past 24, 48 hours. do you think that they are going to be able to kind of cocoon themselves away from him, or are you -- or is that something you think is too late? >> some of them had been saying the things that donald trump has said about mexicans, about immigrants, about muslims, about women, lgbt people. pence and trump for a very long time. it's only now that it is politically consequential. >> i mean, those are issues, but it's different than the thing we heard on the tape, of him, you know, suggesting some kind of assault on a women. >> you're right. it is really disgusting, beyond comprehension, about how this person could envision himself as the president of the united states. but let's, on the positive side, we have a very strong candidate. she's not -- look, she wants to be president of the united states. she will be dealing with

consequential problems in the world, not dealing with somebody who thinks that -- like he is going to exploit the people. >> nancy pelosi, thank you for coming? >> my pleasure. >> the top democrat in the house of representatives. we're an hour away right now from what could be the most crucial 90 minutes of this entire presidential election. donald trump is about to debate hillary clinton for the second time and respond to the most damaging controversy of his campaign. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer. we're on the campus of washington university in st. louis, missouri, on this debate night in america. tonight, there is no doubt that donald trump and hillary clinton will address the crisis around the trump campaign. the 2005 video that caught trump making sexually aggressive comments