recent weeks. and we're going to have a very important poll coming out tonight in a few hours, the des moines register poll, that has often served as a very strong indicator of what may happen. but sanders seems to be the one with a lot of momentum. and after that it is kind of a jump ball. biden is trying to finish strongly. buttigieg probably have seen their numbers decline, but they built up strong organizations. then amy klobuchar is -- host: that is ken thomas. we lost you a moment ago but let's go back to the metrics. what i hear you saying is that may not be the case if you are close fourth or fifth, you can say you met expectations. is that correct? guest: i think that's right.

in past cycles it has been hard for anybody to finish fourth or claim they have a reason to go on a new hampshire and the other states. [audio breaking up. ] host: i know you are on the bus, so we will let you go as you head to the next event in waterloo. what time can we expect live coverage? play producer. how far away are you? >> we are a good 40 minutes out of the event. we're a good hour and change before the event begins. host: ken thomas with the mr. biden: campaign heading to waterloo, iowa. you can check out his work. the headline is democrats playing a game of expectations ahead of the iowa vote. wjs.com. our next stop is waterloo, iowa

with the biden campaign and joining us is my colleague greta brawner. greta: we are in waterloo waiting for joe biden to arrive. signs like he is running behind. this is the last push for these candidates. they want to talk to all the voters they can and throw all the questions they can. that means typically they are running behind schedule. while we wait for the former vice president to arrive here at le congressl catt in waterloo we will take some phone calls. democrats -- and we want to hear from iowa voters tonight. let me tell you about waterloo. tonight we hear from the biden campaign they are expecting

around 200 people to show up for this event. 52.9% of democrats caucused for bernie sanders while 46.7% for hillary clinton. in the general election the county 150% for hillary clinton. 42.7% for president trump. let's get to our first call. steve waiting in spring hill, florida, republican. hi, stveve. caller: hello? greta: hi. you are on the air, go ahead. caller: great. yeah, i've been watching the coverage on c-span. watching elizabeth warren. and i just feel like this has got to be one of the weakest democratic nominees for president since mcgovern. and it's going to be, if this is the field to choose from, it is

going, make nixon-mcgovern look like a close race. these people are just radicals. elizabeth warren just watched her. she talks to people in a demeaning way. she is not truthful. she's condescending. her two cents tax on the wealthy. it's not two cents. it's 2%. just be honest. greta: well, steve. we will leave it there. michael, great neck new york, democratic called. caller: so excited to vote for bernie. i can't wait. greta: you are voting for burning. bernie? need to seele what a mistake they made not choosing him in 2016. thea: you can heal

marching band warming up getting the crowd ready for the former vice president. inll hear from kendall next jefferson city, missouri, democratic caller. caller: if bernie is elected they will lose 45 out of 50 states. bernie is a socialist. i can't believe anybody is not bringing that up. socialism does not work. that's all i have to say. winston-salem north carolina, republican. caller: hello. i am a republican, but after listening to the impeachment trial i'm definitely. hi. after watching the impeachment trial on tv, i definitely am going to be voting for elizabeth warren. [voice echoing on tv[

] no longer a republican. i will probably be a democrat who supports elizabeth warren. greta: republican saying she will vote for warren. democratic caller, hi, mark. doing well. go ahead. wa somebody whon is going to pay for health care in countryt. it is a shame that you work all your life. you should be guaranteed health care. i worked 44 years. now i'm retired and i cannot afford health care. there is something wrong in this country that the rich people can keep buying and buying into the wealth and the poor guy like us can't get nothing. greta: mark, health care his number one issue. ruby, waterloo, iowa. you are watching tonight. who is your candidate? caller: biden.

greta: why aren' tyou here? caller: i'm sick. i have the flu. greta: sorry to hear that. why is biden your candidate? caller: i believe he is the most qualified. he's the one that can unify people. he's a man of his word. greta: ruby, hope you start to feel better. while we wait for the former vice president to arrive in waterloo, want to show you earlier today we walked out on a lake frozen over lake in the waterloo area to talk to some ice fisherman. jake and got his thoughts on camping 2020. what is your name? >> jake. >> how old are you? >> 35. >> are you from here? >> around the center. >> what do you do for a living? >> i worked at a mill.

i oversee the operations at one of our locations. >> do you have a candidate in 2020? >> yeah. i'm going to support trump aga in. what do you like he has done so far and why are you going to vote for him again? >> i like his take on trade policy with china right now. likenot -- going ahead everybody wants to as fast as it should are everybody thinks, it's gaining ground, i think. i think it will help -- be pretty good in the long run. greta: what has been the impact on the ag community so far with this trade? and why do you have confidence it can get better? >> wll, right now with china they got a lot of diseases with the african swine fever and they lost about a third of their hog

population. that puts trump in a positive physician to get some more trade deals going. pork products and soybeans. greta: is that a major conversation around these parts? >> yep. industry. in the ag that is what is going on right now. this trade deal is pretty major right now. >> what have you caught so far? >> [indiscernible] >> now long will you stay out here? >> probably till about dark. >> what is this -- [wind blowing, indiscernible] >> to get away from things, it is just relaxing for me. been doing this for a long time. hus just a hobby. >> explain what you have around you? >> just a flip over ice shelter,

keeps the wind off you. >> heater? snacks? all of the provisions? >> snacks and drinks. n supporter of the president ice fishing on a saturday afternoon. works in waterloo, iowa. waiting for joe biden to arrive from his last campaign stop. the candidates make their final push before monday's iowa caucuses. we're getting your thoughts on campaign 2020. your impressions of these candidates so far. well go to tommy, an alabama republican. caller: yes. i want to talk about the health cares. i think if the democrats would just at least try to work with president trump, i mean he really wants to do something with the health care. just work with him a little bit, i think he could do something. he has got some great ideas. go trump.

greta: ok. tom in iowa. tom, where are you at? [no audio] tom in iowa? caller: right. greta: who is your candidate? caller: sanders. greta: tell us why. caller: because trump is the symptom not the disease. if the democrats nominate a centrist corporatists status quo, we will in 4-8 years, we will get another trump possibly worse. the reason why is trump appeals to the anger of working-class white voters who have been left behind. and so does bernie. the other democrat candidates don't. so, if someone else other than bernie is nominated trump will not only win but if we get

likeer status quo cneentrist biden or whatever in 4-8 years we'll see another trump or possibly worse. the voters continue to ping-pong back and forth between the two major parties in presidential elections because when it comes to class issues and economic issues there's really not much difference between the parties. so, i want a real change. bernie's the only authentic, only authentic change from the status quo. greta: all right. tom an iowan voter saying that bernie. is is canada bob in new virginia, iowa. good evening to you. caller: bob in des moines, iowa. hey, i'm going to go for biden. i bidesaw biden when he was hee about two, three months ago.

most of the democrats are pretty great. bernie, everybody says socialism will work and i tend to believe they won't be able to pull independents away. but look it, anybody as an improvement over the demagogue that we have is a president. individual, and he should not be president. so, that's how i feel. juliette, rockport, massachusetts. a democratic caller. caller: hi, greta. i love the hat. fantastic. here's something i wanted to mention. first of all, i watch c-span regularly, and i've been noticing joe biden in his gatherings in iowa. in suspended animation.

he is very monotone, he reads from a script. htne you just suppose that to elizabeth warren, who is very vivacious and animated. inarticle and mother june realclear politics by david cor n, he laid it out, if bernie sanders gets the nomination or elizabeth warren trump would win hands down. he reference back to george wallace. 72, ran against nixon in 19 was it wallace? he was a midwesterner but he came across as a populist, but he didn't really have the washington ethos, if you will. the only state-- he won in the country was massachusetts. and gave nixon a second term. nd/or elizabeth get

this nomination, i think it is a doomsday scenario for the democrat party. thanks so much for your time tonight. i really appreciate it. greta: thanks for calling in. manuel, winter park, florida, republican. caller: good evening. i'm glad to be on the air tonight and when i look at the impeachment, for me, it's like a movie. that is number one. number two, when you look at the president with democrats who run for president on 2020 i do not believe any one of them because when, they do not talk my leg which. -- my language. i am strongly conservative and i have kids. when i look at the type of candidate and the democrats, talking about all gp gq, an-- lbgtq. i want a president who believes and things like that. that is the way i look at things

the democrat. i'm strongly going to vote again for trump because trump did a fantastic job in this country and shame for. democrats. thank you. audry, bridgeport, connecticut, democratic caller. hi. caller: can you hear me? greta: yes, we can. caller: yes, i love biden. i think he can do the job. i love joe biden. [laughs] and i think he'll do the job. i think he can do it. i think he can beat trump. greta: ok. the former vice president can be the president in a general election matchu p. well, that is part of the strategy for joe biden.

in argrr and he is making iowa that he has the best chance to be president trump. that he and the other candidates are not only talking to the voters in person but are flooding the airwaves as well. take a look at the latest ads. >> i remember guys like donald trump growing up as a kid. making fun of me for having a stutter. mocking and physically intimidating other kids. i've been standing up to bullies my whole life. i'll stand up to this one. i will be a president who brings us together. who understand that everyone, everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. i'm joe biden. nad i approve this message -- and i approve this message. ♪ >> it's said in here your character is revealed. we saw it with president obama. we're seeing it with president trump. yourt's in life where

character is formed. where you're rom. -- from. who you grew up with and who you love. how you've been tested and what you have overcome. how you step up when the moment demand. and what you do when the cameras are off. where you're fed. what you have done. and what you'll never stop working to do. who you stand with. and who you fight for. ♪ character matters. maybe more here than anywhere. >> i'm joe biden, and i approve this message. ♪ >> imagine all the progress we can make in the next four years. imagine a country where affordable health care is a right not a privilege. imagine a world where america leads. imagine a president who stand up

to the nra and gets assault weapons out of our schools. what we imagine today you can make reality. first we need to beat donald trump. then there will be no limits to what we can do. i'm joe biden and i approve this message. ♪ >> when this campaign started we did not know where it was, but we knew where we wanted to go. >> so, iowa are you ready to bring this country together? >> the ultimate -- there is a hunger for a new kind of politics. defined by the longing. boldness, action. >> i believe in pete because of what he stands for. >> i believe he can bring us

together rather than divide us. >> pete believes that we should pay teachers like doctors and respect them like soldiers. to turn theshot page to what comes next. this part of the country, the so-called rust belt was gutted by corporate description-- corporate decisions by 50 years. i did not know was unusual to have empty factors. right now so many communities are being left behind. the solutions are not going to come from washington. we have to have a plan that works for all of us are we will continue to be divided. we want to make sure rural and urban areas have it was shot at success in this country. i'm pete buttigieg and i approve this message. >> we have a president who thinks everything is about him. his tweets, his golf courses, his ego. i think the job is about you. your health care, your school, your security, your families,

and your future. i'm amy klobuchar. a president and a commander-in-chief who restores decency to the white house and gets things done for you. that's why i approve this message. >> i'm amy klobuchar and i approve this message. >> 100 days, 100 ways to restore decency, opportunity and hope. >> my entire 100 day plan for america won't fit in this ad, but let's give it a go. we join the climate agreement, lower perception drug costs, fire has device, protect voting rights,-- >> as president xi will work to reset our do-- she will work tt our democracy on date one. >> iowa, it is time to choose. times says it is amy klobuchar who is best to put together an agenda. the new york times endorses her midwestern charisma.

clover star unite our party and amyhaps our nation --clovi klobuchar can unite our party and perhaps our nation. >> i know exactly who i'm supporting for president. amy klobuchar. >> she knows how to get things done. >> trump suggesting that he is willing to make cuts to social security and medicare. >> entitlements - >> at some point they will be. need aefeat trump, we nominee who has always fought to protect social security. not going to cut the programs that millions of seniors and people would disabilities depend on. cut sociale to security they may well not be returning to washington. i'm bernie sanders and i approve this message. >> i spent my entire political life fighting for those people who do not have the power. trying to do what is right. that's really what it is about. >this is our nation we are not going to las -- stop the

military machine. we want decent education. we can create a society where all people can have the health care they need. protecting our climate gives us the opportunity to create millions of new, decent paying productive jobs. we want the millionaires and the multinational corporations who have not been paying their fair share of taxes to start paying. if we stand together, there is nothing we cannot accomplish. let us go forward together. thank you. ♪ >> take a look at this. tom steyer. >> tom steyer surging in nevada. >> in south carolina. >> i don't think it is just resources. >> polling at double digits,

up11 points from october. >> that's what's going on in washington, d.c. that has been bought by corporations. my question to the american people is, who do you think is going to change that? >> 12 years ago right here. >> my first trip to greenwood. >> we needed some help. >> there were 20 people there. i heard this voice. >> i said, that was it. >> fire it up. ready to go. >> we need something different to beat trump. tom steyer can bring it. watch him. trump got to go. >> i'm tom steyer and i approve this message. in 2016, i caucus for donald trump in iowa but i am switching parties to caucus for elizabeth warren in 2020. elizabeth warren is not afraid to fight for the little guy. her first priority is ending

corruption and that is what this country needs. so, people say a woman can 't win, i say nonsense. i think a woman can beat trump. this is the man to beat, and elizabeth can do it. >> i'm elizabeth warren and i approve this message. >> we can't afford a fractured party. >> in 2016, i caucus for hillary. >> i caucused for donald trump in 2016. >> in 2020, the person that can unite the party is elizabeth warren. >> elizabeth warren is building a positive movement. >>. i have neverbeen so excited about a candidate and the opportunity to caucus . >> if a former trump supporter can be energized by elizabeth that elizabeth warren can do something great for america. >> the des moines register endorses elizabeth warren in the 2020 iowa democratic caucuses as the best leader for these times. ment, when the fabric of american life is at stake elizabeth worn i-- warren want

sa government that works for people. not one corrupted by cash. the oval office will be occupied by somebody who made rebuilding the middle class or less work. >-- her life's work. >> the biggest reason we lost a millions of jobs were lost in automation and a transforming economy. i'm the only candidate who built a nonprofit that created thousands of jobs. to defeat trump, we need someone with experience of attacking the economic challenges of that time that.t i've done if you do not think automation and a transforming economy is costing jobs, think again because it is happening right now. i'm andrew yang and i approve this message. you have'arre a parent, this thought, our kids are not all right. we are leaving them a future that is far darker than the led. we have

we are facing the greatest economic transformation in our country's history and it is pushing more and more of our people to the side. we talk as if donald trump is a cause. he is not. he is a symptom. we need to cure the disease. the american dream my parents came here to find is dying before our eyes. i'm running for president because i am a parent and a a patriot andand i've seen the future and it is not something i am willing to accept. we need to create a new way forward for our people. theewriting the rules of 21st century economy so we can look our kids in the eyes and say to them and believe it, your country loves you, your country values you, and you will be all right. i'm andrew yang and i approve this message. ♪ >> we are back live in waterloo, iowa. you can see the marching band is up theg to rough

crowd. these people want to hear from the candidate, former vice president joe biden. we expect to hear from them soon. meantime we are taking your phone calls, your impressions of the candidates and who you plan to vote for. we talked to a few voters inside. he talked to four of them. three said they are undecided and trying to choose between andrew yang and joe biden. the fourth person we talked to said that last time around during the iowa caucuses she voted for chris christie and this time she is considering joe biden. let's get to calls. in grass valley, california, democratic caller. caller: hi. i just wanted to say that about socialism, that i have watched the documentary by michael moore. i would highly recommend it. thedocument three--

documentary "where to invade next?" it is about the rest of the world having everything we are dreaming of. doing quite well. socialized medicine. they are happy. also, on the polls, bernie and warren, i'm for them both. bernie and warren together are getting 35% to 40% in the polls and have been the whole time. when i got to a bernie rally, they are wishing and hoping and praying that if bernie is our nominee that he will have elizabeth warren be his vice president. bernie released a statement saying that elizabeth warren could be vice president and secretary of treasury at the same time.

andi'm like, i'm for bernie i'm for elizabeth. their ideas are really good. i'm for bernie i'm for burning the most because of climate change. bernie and elizabeth both are not going to go for nuclear power. a $140rican people have trillion bill they are going to pay for destroying all the nuclear waste, and that was from an article in research paper i did. the information was from 1996. change is very important, that we address it. bernie's plan to put people to work