good morning, welcome to our viewers here in the united states and around the world. we're continuing our special coverage of the first in the nation primary in new hampshire. i'm wolf blitzer in new york.

polls are now open across the entire granite state. this morning only two republican candidates are left standing, nikki haley and donald trump. haley is betting big on new hampshire after an aggressive ground game there. tonight's results could make or break her campaign. both candidates made their final pitches to voters. listen to this. >> there is no drama with me. there's no vengeance. at this point, we need someone who is serious and who is going to work. we can either go with more of the same or we can go forward. >> i believe she's not electable the. we're beginning to win new hampshire and then we're going to defeat crooked joe biden. we are going to make america great again. >> the big question that could be answered tonight is will nikki haley defy the polls or is donald trump on the cusp of cementing his spot as the republican presidential nominee. john berman and kate bolduan are continuing our live coverage this morning. go ahead, guys.

>> we were just talking about how the campaign manager sent out a memo, this is breaking news. >> this is news from the haley campaign that came out in the last hour that we're reporting now for the first time. >> while members of congress, the press, many of the weak fellas who ran for president are giving up and giving in, we aren't going anywhere. later in the mem ho it says everyone should take a breath. their cam main manager says see y'all in south carolina. >> it's the fact of this memo that is as much of the news as the memo itself. this is the haley campaign laying down a marker with so it's either 8 or 9 hours until the polls close saying whatever happens here, it's not over. we're continuing to go on. >> it's also an answer to every stop they have made, every

interview they have done. the question of what's your bar, is this do or die, is this make or break for you. and the ma'am cam pain manager answering it clearly saying today in this memo, no matter what happens here, they are pushing on. it's going to be a long primary. so they are saying. >> it's interesting they are doing it now at the very beginning. people have been voting since 6:00 a.m. but they have no idea what the outcome is going to be. they also know the poll numbers and they aren't great for hnikk haley. but they don't know what's going to a happen. they are being very clear. we have seen it on paper. they are not stopping. south carolina, her home state, she's going to be there. >> they say they are going to be there. you're in until you're out. >> i do remember an iowa caucus day that ron desantis' manager said we're going through south carolina. >> south carolina is her home state. >> then there's open primaries after that. so they say they are in it for

the long haul. then there's something we all noticed on the ground that may play into her thinking. when you talk to voter who is are around that, you actually do find, it's not hard to find people who vote d for donald trump once or twice who are now voting for nikki haley. there's a phenomenon out there that will last beyond this primary. s donald trump losing some trump voters. >> i spoke with a handful of voters as they were leaving nikki haley's event last night. and resoundingly that was a consensus. one man who is very kind lives in salem where the event was last night. he said that he supported trump for the last two elections. he was 100% behind nikki haley and when asked why, he said i'm just tired of the nonsense. the name calling, the nicknames, let the grown ups have the room.

>> that's what she's been saying over and over. enough with the chaos. i'm normal. i'm going to get things done. i'm not going to be drama. she's really gone hard on that. >> alayna treene found that when she was talking to voters. you don't have to scratch the surface here in new hampshire to find those people. whether or not that sways anything today, who knows. but i think it will matter after this. >> wolf, back to you. >> very interesting. i just finished reading this memo from the campaign manager for nikki haley and the closing was really significant. let me read a couple sentences from it. do they want an 80-year-old man consumed by vendetta and confused by basic names and facts that's both trump and biden, or a new generation of leadership with the strength and competence to get the job done? and most importantly, do

republicans want to win. the final sentence in this memo, see y'all in south carolina. i want to head over to the polls in new hampshire. omar jimenez is joining us from manchester once again. you have been there all morning now. what are you hearing from voters? >> we're not just hearing voters supporting their candidates. we're hearing a lot of different reasons for why. i want to show you a little bit about where we are right now. we're at a polling place in manchester. they come in and check in here. they get initially processed. they move on over and get confirmed. then they make their way to the familiar privacy booth to actually cast their ballot for who they want to see representing the gop party as we head towards the election for president. nolook, we have been talking to voters throughout the morning as well. and to give you an idea of that, they all make their way in through this door here. and then they go towards the areas that i was talking about

a about getting checked into that process. and really people have been willing to share their opinions on who they voted for. how is it going? who did you vote for? >> dean phillips. >> why? >> i think dean came in and i liked what he had to say about housing and prescriptions. but a little disappointed in biden and the democratic party and the committee because the democrats in the state, it's a state-run to make a decision. so he did a nice job. >> dean phillips is run ning on the democratic side of things and focused on new hampshire as well. why is it that you are disappointed president biden? >> i supported president biden and thought he would be back in the state. and he hasn't been here.

but i think that some of the things he's done and some of the policies i agree. >> john, nice to meet you. and of course, part of what he's mentioning is the fact that joe bidens's name is not appearing on the new hampshire ballot. so for anyone who is voting for him, they have to write his name in. that's because of a dispute with the national party and the state. we could do another report on that. but again, highlights some of the wide range of opinions we have seen from voters throughout the morning. >> the democratic national committee did not want new hampshire to be the first major democratic contest. they wanted south carolina is to do that. that's why there's this dispute going on. so many folks in new hampshire where you are are clearly disappointed that the democratic national committee and president biden, for that matter, did not allow new hampshire traditionally the first democratic primary, to go first in this particular case as well.

the biden campaign is obviously very closely watching what happens in new hampshire today. some hope trump sews up the nomination and does so soon. they will make their first joint appearance of this election year at a rally in virginia. they will focus on abortion rights, we're told, an issue the biden campaign plans to keep front and center. cnn's senior white house reporter kevin liptack is joining us. what are you hearing from biden campaign advisers? >> reporter: they are watching the results in new hampshire very closely tonight with their recognition that depending on how nikki haley fares, this could amount to the start of the general election. they are very eager for that to happen for that one-on-one contest between president biden and trump. that will make it easier for

them to make the choice argument as opposed to now when president biden is running against a republican in the abstract. we did talk to one democrat who is close to the campaign who said the sooner they can make it a about trump, that's going to be a successful moment for the campaign. so you do really hear the biden folks sort of chomping at the bit for this general election campaign to begin. now today we will see president biden out in northern virginia at a campaign rally focused on abortion and reproductive rights. this will be a central issue for him heading into this general election. just to illustrate that, this will be the first time that we see president biden, the vice president, and both of their spouses at a combined campaign rally and abortion has been a galvanizing issue for democrats. every time it appear ed on the ballot since the supreme court overturned roe v. wade, it's gone in the favor of those favoring abortion rights. kamala harris has been a key

voice on this for the administration. she did kick off this reproductive rights tour in wisconsin. while there, she talked to laura coates. listen to what she said. >> he says he's proud of what he did. and let's be clear. so by inference, he's proud that women have been deprived of fundamental freedoms to make decisions about their own body. president biden has been very clear. when congress puts the protections of roe back into law, he will sign it. similarly, president biden has been very clear if these extremist achieve their other goal, which is to have a national ban, which means state by state by state, joe biden will veto that. >> reporter: there are some democrats who want president biden to be more forceful on this issue. for example, we heard from the michigan governor over the weekend saying it would be helpful for him to be blunter on this topic. certainly, he will have that chance at that rally later

today. >> kevin, thank you for that update. kate, back to you. >> wolf, thank you so much. dana bash had a chance to talk with some new hampshire voters. these are the important people today. the people who are going to have the say in how this goes down this evening. some of the voter who is at attended a trump event. listen to this. >> i'm worried about the border and people coming into this country ill looelly. that's my main concern. >> i'm hoping to get the same presidency we got when he was elected in 2016. >> what specifically are you hoping to get back? >> tighten the borders. i would like to see better economic situation than what we've got currently. >> i'd like to hear what his plans are. i haven't really quite heard what his plans are yet. i haven't heard him come out and say what his vision for the

future is yet. >> so interesting. dana bash here with me once again. what struck you talking to voters last night? >> first of all, they are longing for the days of the trump presidency. full stop. that's a big reason why most of them that have committed to donald trump never even considered somebody else. it's because of what he brings, who he is, but it's also the economy and it is the border. those are two of the biggest issues that they talked about. and i kind of almost didn't hear anything else. >> i heard very similar at the nikki haley event last night, but with the added caveat of we like the policies, border security is everything, but what we're over is the nonsense and the name calling. we want to move forward. one of the gentlemen i spoke with says no candidate is going to be perfect. nikki haley is 80%. that's good enough for me. and i'm just ready to move

forward and move on from the name calling. it's like we are hearing such similar things, but then just flip it in reverse who answers that. >> with the opposite conclusions. >> one thing we have also been hearing, both of them accusing the other of being the political establishment or having the backing and endorsement of the political elite. that was a strong message last night. we also heard her reenforce that this morning when she stopped by a the polling place in hampton. listen to this. >> i think it's not the party uniting around president trump. it's the political elite that are uniting around president trump. and the political elite have never been with me my entire career because i have always fought the political elite. it's why i want them to have term limits. it's why i think i call them out on wasteful spending whether it's a republican or democrat.

it you can't give americans a budget on time, you shouldn't get paid. i fight the political class. donald trump has the political class surrounding him. >> you hear that reenforced in this new memo put out by the campaign manager. if she's saying she's the underdog, she's always been fighting against the political class. it's fascinate ing. >> it is. and we have just been looking through, this font is so small, she's going for the younger generation. i'm trying to read it here. tell me what you want to read it. >> the gist is that she is making the argument just by putting this mem me out. she's kind of their implicitly saying they don't expect to win here. not saying that, but don't expect it. they are talking about moving forward. managing expectations. south carolina is the big question. whether or not as the former governor, whether she's going to

stay through a race that's a month from now. the point of this memo is to say, yes, i'm staying in. noting here that the electorate could be more similar to new hampshire than people think for one reason. that's because it's an open primary. you don't have is to be a republican to vote in the primary. but it is all about expectations. i was talking to an operative this morning who has written a lot of memos like this who said y, you have to do that the day of whether or not it stays valid the day after or that night is a big question. >> they can see all of south carolina. that's the direction they are going to go. what more did you hear from the trump rally? for the trump event in all of the campaign cycle in years that we have covered donald trump, did it feel like an event of i iester year?

>> it definitely feels different than the campaign rallies i covered in 2016. one of the things, three things. social security and immigration, he really is closing on some substance and hitting her on this. he's really stepping it up because the other thing is that there is very much a thread from what we saw and what we heard in 2015 and 2016 that he is saying now, even more so given all of the legal fights that he's in. that is saying i am a vessel for you, the people, who can't fight themselves. listen to this. >> they want to silence me so badly. they have worked for it. i will never let them silence you. they want to silence you. they don't care about me. they want to sigh lebs you. they are after you. i'm just standing in their way.

>> that's it. that is the whole ball game when it comes to who donald trump is as a candidate, who he is as a politician and who he is as a leader and it's the same kind of thing we heard from the beginning when he was new and fresh and it takes on a different understanding now given what he's going through. but it's the same message. it is one does resinate with people. >> as the standard barer of the party he has been for a long time. it's the message that is working. but we have much more to find out where voters are going to land tonight. and also still much more just in the hour ahead. dana bash is going to be sitting down with nikki haley and new hampshire governor chris suh gnu new in the noon hour. it's great to see you. >> thank you for having me. >> we'll all be watching "inside politics" later today for the

special interview that dana will have with nikki haley. it's go time clearly in new hampshire right now. we're keeping a very close eye on all of these developments. much more of our special live team coverage that's coming up. plus other important news we're following including major developments out of israel. a new proposal to secure the release of all of the hostages still being held in gaza is now on the table. we have details, that's just ahead.

we are back here in new hampshire. and we are joined by the former mayor here, who is hanging out with us in manchester. i want to ask you something about this. when you are out and you are talking to people, who clearly are going to tell you all their problems. >> every pothole, every issue, they are talking to you about it. >> what do they tell you about the choices they have in the republican primary. >> so i think me personally and the people i'm talking to, they are looking for someone that's going to get us past the drama and chaos of the the past. and looking for a leader of the next generation. and hopfully i'm feeling the energy, i think new hampshire is going to show up and let the

nation know that that's what they are after. >> the secretary of state believes it's going to be the largest turnout so for of republican voters. but there's also the independent-minded folks here in the state. the state is known for. do you see that happening in manchester. you see people who are independents who may not have voted for donald trump in the past, and nikki haley is my person. i'm coming out strong. >> we call them undeclared here in new hampshire. they could make up as much as 40% of the electorate. and if it's a high turnout election f we beat the water mark that was set in 2016, i have to imagine that nikki haley is going to have a good nugt. trump got 100,000 votes back then. i don't know how many people that are new are going to get on trump train. you get a lot of interest from the independent, undeclared voters that they are going nikki haley's way. >> let me ask you what it was about nikki haley for you. you said this is a person i want to get behind. i don't want to go with someone who has already been in office,

who we already know, who we have heard from. >> there's a couple things. i met with all the candidates. the candidates come and want to talk to me and earn my support as mayor. and nikki was the only candidate who gave me hope about the future of our country. i put it as plainly as that. someone that's not locking to the past, but really looking to the future. she proved that when she came to keene, she came to my city four different times. more than any other candidate. she said take me to main street. let me talk to the coffee shop owners and learn their issues. as you probably know, new hampshire is a very independent-minded place. we're somewhat of a rural community. and one thing we all are r recognizing is this consolidation of power and decision making in washington. so personally, my friends, we're looking for somebody that's going to reverse that. nikki haley was the only candidate came and talked to us about policy. she talked to us about cutting federal spend ing. she talked to us about supporting small businesses. this isn't about perm drama.

this is about moving us forward a as a country and addressing the real issues that new hampshire voters have dealing with every single day, like the fentanyl crisis, like mental health. those issues, we just didn't get that depth of policy from anybody else but nikki haley. that was really refreshing. >> you talked about so many of those different issues that affect voters on a daily basis. the economy has been big. one of the things that people who support donald trump constantly say is remember how good things were when he was in office. remember 2020, things were not so great as things unfolded because of the pandemic. how do you address that with voters? >> i don't though. i would push become on somebody supporting trump right now and say how is he going to get it done. can you imagine a scenario where he is able to deliver on some of the things you like him saying? i don't. he didn't finish the wall. we're $7 trillion more in debt than when we he got in office.

those are promises not delivered. so i'm looking for somebody else that i think has the experience, the temperament to get things done. somebody has to put a boot up congress and get them to do something. is it going to be donald trump. i don't think so. a new voice has the opportunity to do that and address those kconcerns that are affecting people. they are serious. and i don't want to underplay that. we are feeling less safe than we were eight years ago. we are feeling the squeeze of inflation. folks are having a hard time buying a home. i talked to a lot of young people. all they want to do is buy a home, live the american dream and it's impossible right now. extremely difficult when the average home buyer is in their 40s, that's not the america i grew up in. i want to make sure we get back to that. it started by inspiring hope in people. not just voting based on what

you're against, but voting for someone's vision and something you're for. isn't that an amazing concept? nikki haley offered that to me. >> i can see you're 10% behind haley and hoping she pulls it out here in new hampshire. george, i'm sure there's more to you. there's more politics in your life going forward. >> we'll see. i care about this country desperately. i care about my friends and neighbors that i represented over the years in local government. i think that nikki haley offers an amazing opportunity to change the political direction of this country. all eyes are on new hampshire today. i hope everybody gets out to vote because we have an opportunity here to change it for the good. >> former mayor, thank you so much. i appreciate you. we'll be right back.

new this morning, nikki haley's campaign manager releasing this memo, very detailed memo addressing the critic who is say that tonight is a make or break night for nikki haley. among other things, we aaren't g anywhere. we heard multiple members of the press say new hampshire is the best it's going to get for nikki due to independents being able to vote in the republican primary. it includes more states that have this dynamic. until then, everyone should take a deep breath.

let's discuss what's going on with political analyst, the vice president of digital content natasha alfred. also with us is republican strategist, what do you make of this memo? >> i think it's a bit wishful thinking. i'll tell you why. last year donald trump's campaign was very savvy. they went across the country crisscrossing, changing the delegate rules. so you now have many states like california, winner take all. you have states like nevada that switched from a primary state to a caucus state. you have states like louisiana now, where if there is a fight continue convention, they have to support the nominee for at least two ballots before the delegates can switch over. the rules as they are situated benefit donald trump. even if nikki haley wins tonight, and somehow goes to south carolina, donald trump is

still ahead by 50 points. go on to super tuesday on march 5th. most of those voters there if you're doing a profile are very conservative leaning. that benefits trump more than it does nikki haley. >> what to you think they were trying to achieve in this memo in releasing it publicly? can nikki haley win the gop nomination without a win in new hampshire? >> i think when you see a memo like this, you can interpret it as a level-setting moment. maybe they are trying to keep expectations low. that way they can own the narrative about whatever happens tonight. what really matters is about moral courage. nikki haley has not gone all the way in her critiques of donald trump. this idea of being 80 years old somehow being a problem, let's be real. when he's at those rallies, he's talking for hours. he has energy. he's able to use his charisma to persuade and motivate those voters. let's stop using that line.

it doesn't work. the chaos follows him everywhere, it's a passive statement. why is the chaos following him? >> why does he confuse nikki haley with nancy pelosi? >> he's probably not the sharpest tool in the box. it's not just about age. it's does he know what he's doing. he didn't no what he was doing. he's able to persuade people by the way that he talks, by the confidence that he has. and so she has all of this arsenal the that she has not used because she's tiptoeing, trying to curry favor with voters. until she shows the moral courage to say donald trump is the wrong president for this moment, not just then, but the wrong president right now, i think she's going to miss an opportunity. >> she's clearly counting on independents to go with her and help hero win in new hampshire. >> i have worked on three presidential campaigns.

when you start doing your voter profiles to figure out who are your voters you need to target and engage and turn out, if i'm advising nikki haley, aisle thinking new hampshire, i'm look ing at south carolina where probably going to lose if we decide to stay in, but we're going to give it all. the governor endorsed trump. a litany of congress members endorsed trump. several major evangelical pastors in the state, i know the state well, have is now also endorsed a former president. so you're look ing at super tuesday, states like maybe massachusetts, a few other states that are more moderate leaning that she could pick up delegates potentially, but the reality is the math isn't there. she will always be playing catch up. you need 1215 to become the nominee. donald trump appears at this moment to be best suited to win those numbers. >> democrats are watching this unfold. are they more nervous about donald trump being the presidential nominee or nikki

haley? >> i can't make sense of their confidence, what's happening in this moment. there's a focus on abortion rights for them. i think they think that is the winning issue to motivate people. >> it's been an issue for them politically in some of the earlier elections. >> it's personal. it's tangible. it's different than saying i sign the chips and science act. this is something that impacts people right now. the stories are heartbreaking. children being forced to carry children. kamala harris has seized this issue. she was out in wisconsin talking about it. speaking about it with a passion that we haven't seen before. so i think it's effective, but also beyond abortion, what else is the message? they have to hone in on that economic message because right now, that's what people care about. they care about the bottom line taking care of their families and so they have to show not only what we have done, but what we're going to do. >> if i could add really quickly, a lot of those successes were in part because of ballot initiatives.

we don't see any ballot initiatives going into november. without those on the ballot, will democrats be a able to maintain the same level of enthusiasm? i agree with natasha. there will be some level. but when you look at other issues that voters are concerned with, the economy, immigration, maybe they are worried about getting into another prolonged foreign conflict, where does this issue register and rank with all of those others? >> if i may really quickly, joe biden went to north carolina and sat with a family who their student loans were forgiven. those are the stories people will remember. >> people will remember indeed. thank you very much. as we watch republican voters stream through the polls in new hampshire right now, we'll take you live to manchester for a detailed report. that's coming up in a moment.

hello, everyone. i'm john berman in new hampshire. new hampshire is where the first in the nation primary is taking place. we're covering it right here from the ground. we have been talking to voters. what's on their mind, how they are voting today with about 7 hours left to get to the polls and cast that decisive vote. with me is dante, author of "stormy weather." they have been chasing the nikki haley the campaign and covering the democratic side. i want to start with you. you were at a couple polling places. one in manchester here, the biggest city in the state, and also on concorde. you heard from poll workers who said something about turnout. >> this was both volunteers for the campaign, this was new

hampshire voter who is have participated in many of these elections, and they commented to us that they were surprised at how slow turnout had been this morning. we went there when the polls opened. when people might be voting when they go to work. they said they didn't see as many people as they would have expected. so this is expected to be a high turnout election. there's a lot of time left in the day and certainly this is evidence based on where we went. there was not the turnout this morning that the folks would have expected. >> i will had say it's the secretary of state who predicted record turnout. one of the jobs is to actually promote the new hampshire primary. so it's good for the secretary of state to always say it's record turnout. we probably fist met in the 2000 campaign. it's the first i covered on the ground here in your first a as a professor here. and that was the primary on fire. john mccain swept in here and the state was on fire with excitement. feels like a little more of a simmer this time.

how would you describe the level of excitement in general about the primary? >> think back to 2000. john mccain and new hampshire were such a perfect match. and that last week between iowa and new hampshire, mccain just rolled up the score. i was shocked by the margin of victory for mccain. the past week, it's feels as if the haley campaign has had trouble finding traction. getting a good news cycle. it feels as it we've been marking time this past week rather than anticipating primary day. >> i know the polls show that donald trump, his supporters are enthusiastic, but it doesn't feel like 2016 when they were coming out of the woodwork, at least not to me i'm wondering if you're seeing that. >> i think trump is hoping for business as usual. that republicans show up, conservatives and vote and that's the end of it. it's nikki haley who needs to have an unusually great day like with huge turnout, people come out of everywhere, independents

and so forth. >> of the voters we had been speaking to, independents were saying they were voting for nikki haley today. of the voters coming out, she's doing what she needs to do. but it will depend on how many of those independents come out for her today. we are sitting in a county that in 2016, donald trump had 29,000 votes here. in nearby rockingham county as well. that just shows you what kind of work that she has to do here. and in the upper parts of the state where she's also been campaigning, where some of the affluent voters she's been courting, they don't have nearly as many votes in those counties as they do here. >> give us the dekcoder ring. we have 7 hours until the polls close. if we're wait ing the decoder ring, how can we tell where this is going as it gets later into the afternoon and into the early evening? >> to me, it's all about suburban communities up and down

the interstate 93 corridor that connects massachusetts to new hampshire. lots of suburban, well of-educated voters. those should be nikki haley voters. take the town of bedford. very prosperous, well educated, historically republican, trending democratic lately in general elections. haley and bedford should be made for each other. if trump does well there, expect a great night for donald trump. >> he cleaned up in those counties in 2016. i know 2016 was a different time. a lot of the heavily conservative vote went elsewhere. he cleaned up among the more moderate vote. you think haley needs to overperform. >> i think for trump, it's do well in small town new hampshire. hold your own among more prosperous areas. and you're fine. but if you start winning those college-educated towns, it could be a big night for trump. >> i was speaking to a volunteer out a the polls in concorde for

nikki haley who said the same thing, bedford is the place to watch if she's going to pull it off. >> great to see you in person here. again, this is where it's all happening on the ground here in new hampshire. the site of the first in the nation primary. we'll continue to cover it here on the ground. wolf? >> john, also coming up, will there be a cease-fire and hostage release in gaza? what cnn is now learningng abou an israelili initiativive. detailils, when wewe come backc.

new this morning, under increasing pressure to bring hostages home, we're learning that israel is offering what an israeli official is now calling an initiative to hamas. israel says it will agree to a two-month cease-fire in exchange for the release of all the hostages being held in gaza. cnn's jeremy diamond is joining us live from tel aviv right now.

jeremy, can you walk us through what's in this proposal? >> well, wolf, this proposal as first reported by axios would effectively lead to the release of all hostages over a period of two months. and as part of this israeli initiative as it's being termed by one israeli official speaking to cnn, this would effectively allow for the phased release of these hostages starting with the remaining women still held in captivity going up to the elderly men in captivity as well as those with medical conditions all the way up until even the israeli soldiers being held. and this is the longest cease-fire israel has put on the table as part of the negotiations. of course the last deal was a week long pause in the fighting that saw the release of dozens of israeli hostages, but one israeli official telling us that there are still many steps that need to be taken and this is really part of an attempt to establish a framework for negotiations. it would also see israeli forces withdraw from key population centers inside of gaza and potentially even allow the return of palestinian civilians

to northern gaza, but it is coming within the context of a lot of activity, a lot of negotiations with the top advisor to president biden in egypt and qatar this week to see if a deal is possible to release the hostages. separately two sources familiar with the talks tell us israel has also put on the table a proposal to allow hamas' leaders to leave gaza. that's according to our alex mar marquardt. certainly, it does appear there's some momentum and certainly a lot of pressure on the israeli government to reach a deal. >> this is true. thank you very much. to our viewers thanks for joining us. i'll be back later today 4:00 p.m. eastern for our special live coverage of the new hampshire primary. inside polititics with dana bas and d her spececial intervrview nikki hahaley, that't's coming next..