us. dagen: stay in town longer. sean: dagen, what is coming up next? dagen: well the debate is coming up in about an hour. sean: larry kudlow. dagen: i think ron desantis will get picked apart like they will be like buzzards on a carcass. sean: you think so? dagen: that is my prediction. sean: if they do go after ron desantis the benefit to him that he responds well when he is attacked. he better hope he gets that kind of a pushback. dagen: fight back like agg. mean. that is my mean. "countdown" to the debate with larry kudlow is now. ♪. larry: good evening, folks, i'm larry kudlow. it is debate night here at the reagan library in simi valley, california. we're an hour away from the second debate of the republican

presidential season. they are facing off, fighting for voter support. coming up in the next half hour, we're joined by number of fox all-stars including bret baier and pete hegseth. we'll hear from fox business reporters grady trimble and madison alworth and brian brenberg in iowa with some voters. i tell you at the top, this is the reagan library. i want to see special emphasis on inflation, the economy, falling real wages, return to free market capitalism. let's get right to it. kick off the count down with the debate. here is fox business's grady trimble. grady, what will they talk about out here? >> larry tonight the seven candidates are looking to differentiate their vision for america not only from president biden's but also from each other's. you remember at the first debate it was knives out for vivek ramaswamy but this time around it could be former u.n. ambassador nikki haley with a

target on her back after a strong performance in milwaukee. and florida governor ron desantis who has been sliding in the polls sin then is hoping to hoping to prove he belongs in the number one spot but all seven of the candidates are trying to convince the american people tonight that they are the one who is best equipped to handle those kitchen table issues from crime and immigration to education and of course the economy. the stakes are high tonight, larry. this could be the reason we start to see this still crowded gop field shrink. larry? larry: all right, thanks, grady trimble. we appreciate it. joining me now, bret baier, anchor of "special report" on fox news. bret, welcome. >> hi, larry. larry: how do you see this, how do you see this race? >> i see it as a surreal moment because we're in a race where the former president depending on the poll is up 30, 40, 50 points. everyone looks at this race this

is to get to be alternative, the last man or woman standing with the former president. i think after the first debate i would be interested to see how they perform with each other. it was a little tough herding the cats on the first round, martha and i. this is a different venue. larry: i think you handled it really well. >> i didn't even pay you to say that. larry: herding the cats is exactly what it was like but we digress. >> under the image and presence of air force one and in the reagan library, it carry as little bit different vibe than being in a big stadium. there are fewer people here. i think the mix will be different. i will be interested to see interaction between the candidates how they try to differentiate themselves. larry: on my show earlier, we played a lot, i worked for reagan when i was a very young man. we played a lot of reagan clips, philosophical general clips. in other words big government is not your friend. i'm from the government and i'm

here to help you is not your friend. these are all classic reagan ideas. your check is in the mail is not your friend. republicans have to make a stand tonight. if they chase after each other or if they chase after trump and they waste their two hours, they're going to lose. if they have messages about how to solve the kitchen table pocketbook problems, the problems of high oil and high food prices the problems families are having to make ends meet if they do that, show people they can be commander-in-chief they will win. >> i agree with you. reagan was obviously a great communicator. a outsider, shook things up. you know this, but he was the head of the screen actors guild and led a strike. larry: yep. >> he was also the president who went after the air traffic controllers union and essentially fired 11,000 of them. so that moment is also interesting as the uaw is front and center with president biden and the former president visiting this week. larry: i saw a clip earlier

today, i was on with john and sandra, aoc, okay, distinguished left-wing congresswoman from new york was on about the economy. the economy is no good. she was moaning and groaning about the economy. listening to that well the left doesn't like it anymore than the right does, but, this is where the candidates have to come, aoc, bernie sanders, joe biden will offer a big government solution. newt gingrich calls it big government socialism. the republicans have to say tonight we won't. we'll offer you an alternative. this government model hasn't worked. we want to go back to free enterprise. we want to drill, baby drill. we have to have common sense people know they will not lose their gasoline powered car in 10 years. it is just not going to happen. show the contrast with the other side because "bidenomicses" has failed. i don't think they did that bret, in the first debate. >> i totally agree with you.

you have to remember something about their plan, that person has got this. i'm not sure it has to be herman cain, 9-9-9, rest his soul, i say they have to have something memorable so voters come away -- larry: i remember. that the is a great point. we'll move the ball along tonight. let's go to brian brenberg, co-host of "the big money show," live from the machine shed in urbandale, iowa. brian, you're out there not for your sins but for your brilliance. what are the iowa voters telling you? [laughter] >> cutting into meals all over the place. people are enjoying a good meal. here i come with a microphone. i have gracious folks, la. these guys have a real interesting perspective on that. we have tim here, we talked about costs and inflation trying to get by. talk about some things you've been doing to make ends meet in this environment. >> i work a good full-time job,

make a great income but i need side hustles. >> side hustles. >> i drive limousines part time on the weekends. teach cpr classes in the community. first aid stations. i'm an old paramedic back in the day. maintain some of that. >> you're working all these different jobs. part of that is the environment we're in right now, with the cost of food, interest rates, cost of living generally? >> yes, a lot of things, the inflation and expenses go up but the incomes are not following and that was just mentioned on our local news this morning. that's an issue. people are working two, three jobs. i would love to have more time with the kids, you know. now we're empty nesters. they're on their own doing good but, i'm still having to work three jobs. >> one of those jobs is driving around on the weekends, moving people, limousine driving as you

said. cost of fuel be killing you right now? >> i don't own the company. i'm just a chauffeur. >> somebody is paying for that. >> rates gone up, three hour per minimum, so much per car depending on vehicle. >> price is up everywhere. talking to jody, coming out to eat. machine shed is a trait restaurant, great food here. prices are going up. i asked how often do you go out to eat. this is special deal for you. >> we don't normally go out to eat. even with the kids at home we tended to go out even once and twice a week. as the years gone on we really lessen the that. it is special occasion, birthday or holiday. backed off going out, we can't afford it. >> you add up the bill, it is great food, you add up the bill, it is pretty high. you are lucky you got a gift certificate. this is gift certificate night. >> yeah. >> talk about, what would help

you out, tim, when you think about cost of living for you and your family, what changes would you like to see? what would make a difference with you? >> you used to get a cost of living raise each year, kept up with the economy, and it helped. doesn't see that now. at one time the government gave some not incentives but pay, there was excess and they gave money out to people. >> rebates, that sort of thing. >> rebates and so forth. that helped people but, seem soon as we got it, it got absorbed into the bills you know. >> yeah. >> we're getting so many bills that i call them williams, because they're becoming so norm formal. >> so formal. that is the thing. you talk about cost going up, pay not keeping up. every little bit you get feels like it gets absorbed again, larry. you nailed it right at the top. people can care about costs.

they're looking for answers. they don't want the mudslinging really. they want to see results. i think that is what a lot of people will look back at on the debate stage tonight. larry: brian what is gallon of gas in urbandale? what is gallon of gas? >> $3.36. he got it lower in missouri, 3.25. taxes are lower. everybody complains because they drive trucks and trucks need gas. larry: seven bucks here in california, just short of seven bucks. >> i believe you. larry: brian brenberg best of the best in urbandale, iowa. folks coming up american values are on the decline. we need to find a way out of it. we'll talk about it with pete hegseth. harmed ford, jr., we'll look at

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♪. larry: we are live here in simi valley, california, for the second presidential debate. let's turn to fox business's madison alworth for more on the issues the candidates will tackle tonight. madison what you got? >> reporter: larry, we're outside of ronald reagan presidential library. i want to take you inside where the debate is set to take place in less than an hour. it is all about the issues tonight and with the candidates it is not just about knowing the issues but offering solutions that address the problems that are driving voters. issues like the border, the immigration crisis, spilling far

past our southern border, crippling cities in every region of the country. crime, americans are less safe and it's hurting business. target closing nine locations in cities because of shoplifting and violence. just this week looting sweeping across the city of philadelphia. with more voices sounding concerns of the age of two front-runners you can expect age to come up. we expect the economy to be a big focus tonight. that is consistently the number one issue for voters. like i said, larry, it is not just about knowing the issues, it is about being able to offer a solution the voters buy and believe n send it back to you. larry: you're right about that. they have to punch it out, punch it out, one, two, three, four and they didn't do that last time. madison alworth, thank you very much. we'll see you later in the show. joining me here on set, steve hilton, fox news contribute to be. pete hegseth host of fox and friends weekend and harold for

the, jr., co-host of "the five." gentlemen, it is the economy, the border and what people think is a decline in morn values, family values, education values and and so on. pete you focused on this quite eight b you have a book on the subject. why don't you lead us off. >> there is a sense that the country is not only off the track but off the rails from the republican perspective t goes back to values. it goes to the classroom. it goes to eroding belief in god. there are core things that went into our republic 250 years ago we feel like have been stripped out intentionally. yes it is the economy, yes it is the border. but who are we, what do we represent, what do we stand for? you will hear the argument from the democrats, the state of our democracy, very different things when joe biden is saying it. inside of the republican primary there is lot of appetite for how deep we've fallen and how fierce

we fight to dig out of that hole. larry: steve hilton, how does that stack up? that is a very important argument. you have a justice department that went after parents for daring get into their kids what we call pta meetings, school board meetings, so forth. what about economy, falling real wages and we have to deal with the border? the border is much into news with catastrophic numbers of people coming across the border under joe biden. what do you make of this? >> so i think there are three layers to this. i think on the deep level pete is exactly right. it seems to people that these days if you do the right thing you get punished and if you do the wrong thing you get rewarded and that is true right across society in different areas of policy. then you have the border. and i agree with you that is a massive issue but let's remember it hasn't really been reported basically anywhere else except here on fox for the last few years. so the rest of the country is only just waking up to the total calamity. so at the moment i think that is

not necessarily a really big issue across the board. the one that is the economy because everyone can feel what is going wrong with the economy. amazing numbers now, from these polls on the economy. "washington post" just now, the number of americans who think they're better off under biden, 15%, one, five, that is unbelievably bad. 91% think that biden has done a bad job when it comes to prices and inflation. it is just hugely damaging to the basic fact that people expect their government to make them better off and under this biden administration they're worse off. i don't see that changing in the next year up to the election. larry: you know, harold ford, this panel is talking more about the economy than the collective republican candidates did in the first debate. so i want to come back to this. if you were on that stage as a candidate for president, and you know you could have been at one point, in fact it may not be over until it is over. who knows. i'm just saying what would you

talk about? what would your lead be, if you want to hammer home the key message points so people leaving the debate hall are thinking about harold ford, jr., how would you do it? >> first of all, great to be with you. thanks for having me. i'm 53 years old. my dad was in congress. got elected when i was four when president reagan won first in 1980, jimmy carter a dear, dear family friend, ronald reagan asked him first time i listened to a debate, are you better off than you were four years ago. issues that you mentioned are all implicated whether family values, classroom values the border, obviously everyday considerations you have about your own budget. the second thing he taught me you have to be strong, to project strength, project prosperity. larry: commander-in-chief? >> i heard you earlier -- larry: is that fair? >> you looked like you were running for office earlier i saw you on one of earlier shows what ronald reagan met. we didn't agree on all the things he wanted to do for our

economy but we have to admit we grew, we became safer f i were on the stage tonight i would channel that. i would frame everything i wanted to do for the country through the eyes of this incredible library. we've got great moderators tonight i know will try to get the candidates to do that but i'm looking for two things, one, nikki haley talked about foreign policy, reproductive rights and distinguished herself amongst the other opponents. two, ron desantis will have a lot of pressure on him tonight. three months ago he was into the only defacto nominee but we were ready to anoint him president. he had some stumbles. can he find his groove tonight? can tim scott do the same? that is what i would be looking for. larry: pete hegseth, kellyanne conway and i were talking about the issue, commander-in-chiefness of these candidates. that is not a small thing. some sense that is more important than the specific. they might have a five or six point plan or go to my web site

dot-com, read all about it, the commander-in-chiefness, do we see that? do we need to see more of it? >> we do. you will hear peace through strength tonight as harold pointed out but it is a lot more complicated right now inside of the republican party because a lot of that is seen through the lens of ukraine, what we do there. you have a republican party very split on views what that looks like. if you want to be commander-in-chief, what audience are you talking to? i have my particular views, they do as well, but it is different inside of the republican party. how you articulate that comes with landmines. larry: 15, 20 seconds, steve hilton, commander-in-chief of the economy. >> that's right. it is not just strength you about relates to your convictions. how strong are your convictions solving every issue. top of the list is the economy. larry: terrific stuff. pete hegseth, steve hilton, harold for, jr. coming up,

martha maccallum weighs in on the worsening crime crisis in america. we hear from the debate moderators themselves, stu varney, dana perino. we'll be right back. ♪. my husband and i have never been more active. shingles doesn't care. i go to spin classes with my coworkers. good for you, shingles doesn't care. because no matter how healthy you feel, your risk of shingles sharply increases after age 50. but shingrix protects. proven over 90% effective, shingrix is a vaccine used to prevent shingles in adults 50 years and older. shingrix does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients or to a previous dose. an increased risk of guillain-barré syndrome was observed after getting shingrix. fainting can also happen. the most common side effects are pain, redness, and swelling at the injection site, muscle pain, tiredness, headache, shivering, fever, and upset stomach.

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maccallum, host of "the story." martha, we've been talking about the economy and the border and family values but people are having a hard time shopping in stores. the criminals may be greater than the staff and you're worried about that. what do you expect to hear tonight? who is going to raise that issue? >> you know, larry on a big level i'm excited about tonight for a number of reasons and that is that we get to see the process of democracy play out here. i think what these candidates need to do tonight is to look at people and say you do have a choice, you have options and many of them are standing here on this stage, right? we've seen the numbers for trump and biden that a lot of people don't want to see a rematch of that. so i would call on these candidates to say to people, this is democracy. you have a choice. this process is far from over. on the crime front they also need to look people in the eye and say you don't have to live

like this. you can feel safe in this country, and i hope that they take a breath and they connect with people on this, larry, because people don't feel safe in the country anymore. they don't want to go to walgreens or cvs and have to ask someone to unlock the merchandise. they don't want to feel like if they're going to lululemon or starbucks in philadelphia last night that they're going to be surrounded by a bunch of crazed teenagers and people laughing as they take videos of this. this is not the america that ronald reagan wanted. it is not the america that people across this country want. and i think that one of the things that these candidates have to make very clear is you can be safe in this country again. this is not completely out of our hands. we have tools to deal with this. it just isn't happening but it can happen and we can have law enforcement, we can have respected law enforcement again. we've had so much destruction of trust in this country and we

know that people do still by and large trust the police and they trust the military. so these are the things that i think people need to be reminded of, larry. larry: harold ford, can you comment just on what martha said? i know you declaredded as a republican, which is great news for all us. we'll put you up there on the stage next time around but the fact is, as a life-style measure, safety and security measure, it is getting hard to shop in stores and big cities. the stories coming out of here is getting worse and worse. somebody has to put an end to it. i don't know who the person is. this are no miracle workers. there is difference between federal government and local government but still somebody has to step up with safety and security, don't they? >> we put up the crime bill. joe biden got criticized for support of the crime bill many believed it had racial component or racial implications. crime has no racial implications if you're robbed, or threatened

someone in your family is killed, doesn't matter what your race may be. i hope candidates address this i urge my own party to think about this very differently. the most fundamental thing you can do, talked bit, reagan did. security and safety. they have to talk about that. larry: i want to go back, martha, you heard harold ford. who is going back to this tonight? who are you thinking about? >> well i think you will probably hear from nikki haley about this. i think we all know that the suburban mom vote is extremely important. what you've seen is in a lot of the suburbs you have had car theft, all these issues bleeding out from the cities, people are very concerned about them. i would expect her to bricks i would expect all of them to bring it up, larry. i'm sure you will hear questions coming from dana and stuart and ilia as well. this is very important to people. when you look at the independent vote it swung 10% in the last election against president trump. in the prior election, in 2016

he won that independent vote by 10%. those are the places in america, suburbs of philadelphia, the suburbs of detroit, where there are voters who are persuadable. larry: i don't know. how much, we don't have too much time, we have 10 seconds left. i'm just going to leave it there, martha maccallum. we have a very hard break. i think it is a key point. i thank you for going through it. we got our panel here. we'll go simulcast in just a moment. let's take a break. we're live from the reagan library in simi valley. i'm kudlow. we'll be right back. california, welcome viewers on the west coast. hold on one second. ♪. larry: all right, we're back live from the ronald reagan library in simi valley, california. welcome our viewers on fox business and fox news with our coverage of tonight's second republican presidential debate. i'm larry kudlow. we're just 30 minutes away from

the main event. seven candidates about to take the stage where they will get a second chance to tell voters why they deserve to be commander-in-chief among other things. coming up as we count down to the debate we're going to talk to bret baier, kellyanne conway, karl rove, harold ford, jr., martha maccallum, laura ingraham, brit hume, bill melugin. i will do all of that in seven 1/2 minutes. let's go straight to fox news bill melugin with all the latest. go ahead, bill, take as much time as you want. [laughter] >> reporter: i will make it quick, larry the candidate walk-throughs are officially over. we've seen them strolling around the property today. they have all been getting ready for this debate in their own unique ways. nikki haley's campaign said she is listening to music. she will have a target on her back after the last debate milwaukee. they expect him to get into a couple scraps tonight.

don't be surprised if that happens. governor ron desantis's team telling me expect him to lean in on his conservative record tonight. hone in on a theme of reversing the decline of america, the bottom line here, somebody has to do something to shake this race up. donald trump is blowing everybody out of the water in the polling right now. somebody has to step up to the plate and start chipping away at that lead he's got. if they don't, trump will run away with this ink. is somebody going to have a moment tonight? we'll have to wait to find out larry. send it back to you. larry: bill melugin, thank you very much. we have sean hannity still ahead on this hour. no, he is right there, look at him in all his glory. sean, you're running the spin room. i hear you have terrific guests coming up. tell us about it. >> we do. it will be post-debate right after the debate is finished we'll have all the candidates. to my right the governor of california has been holding court with the press locally.

he will join us here tonight as well. maybe a little preview of that state versus state, red versus blue debate we'll have coming up pretty soon. look, i just want to echo a lot of what i've heard you guys talking about before. there is a lot at stake for all these candidates on that stage tonight. they're coming in to an environment and maybe some of them have been complaining well why isn't donald trump here? in my view they ought to be glad because he takes a lot of oxygen out of any room he happens to be in and by far he is, he has been running away with this poll for the nomination and so i'm pretty sure there is going to be a lot of effort tonight for all of these candidates on that stage, they are going to want to distinguish themselves. separate from the pack if they want. larry: sean, appreciate it very much we look forward to all of it. joining me now, our debate moderators our heroes, stuart varney, host of

"varney & company," dana perino, co-host of "america's newsroom," co-host of "the five." you two have a tough task tonight. dana perino, where will you start? you don't want to blow it open. where will you start this thing? >> i think you will be happy where it starts, larry, right up your alley, the reason is, the energy in this room is palpable what sean is saying is absolutely correct. all the candidates need a big moment, because these people here who support the republican party, they're looking for a big moment. they're looking for change, want to see if any of these people tonight could be a rival for donald trump going into the primary. >> there is a definite need to break out, establish momentum going into iowa and new hampshire. it will be a combative debate i hope. very informative, i hope. we'll cover a lot of subjects, not just the economy. crime, the cities, foreign policy, the border, you name it, it will be covered, it will be a contest between them who can break out. >> there is great energy in the

room tonight. we're excited to get it started, larry. larry: you know, dana, i was going to ask you about that. this is the reagan library. reagan is such a commanding figure, commanding, commanding historical figure, does that make this different than other debates? does that make a difference other than for example the milwaukee debate? >> larry you know better than everybody what it is like here. there is a air of dignity, of grace, economic freedom, the belief in freedom as america a force for good in the world and there is a desire for a lot of people in the party to feel that unity again. we'll feel that tonight. they will be combative, people will look for someone who can bring people together. >> larry, i remember many, many years ago, that classic line from ronald reagan, he turned to jimmy carter and said, are you better off now than you were four years ago? that was a classic. came out of a debate. i would like to see another classic like that tonight. >> we'll see if we can get one. larry: i'm sure you will pull it off if anybody can.

stu varney, dana perino, good luck to our heroes tonight. joining me now bret baier, anchor of "special report," harold ford, jr., co-host of "the five," kellyanne conway, former counsel roar to president trump, fox news contributor, karl rove, former deputy chief of staff and fox news contributor. welcome to all of you. we have several hours to do this just kidding. kellyanne conway, give us your quick thoughts on this. we've been talking about the economy. we've been talking about crimes. we've been talking about family values. what do you expect to hear from these candidates. >> i would like to confirm bill melugin's reporting. i saw vivek in the hotel gym this morning. he did work out. i secondly want to hear all those issues and more. i keep hearing everybody needs a moment. i politely disagree with that analysis. you can't have a moment to undo the former president front run's's lead of 50 some points. you can't have a moment to undo

four years of his record. i think you need to be slow and steady to try to chip away on that. show how you're the best alternative to trump. how you're the best alternative to joe biden. people need to split screen and take all this on. i wouldn't go for the humor. i wouldn't go for the headline. i wouldn't go for the insults. i would respect voters and viewers enough to have a substantive conversation. larry they're here to debate. they're not here to deflect or defer or denigrate. they're here to debate. larry: karl rove, just to ask you, you've been in the game a very long time. is it better to attack or better to talk issues? which do you think pays off more tonight as somebody in this group tries to break away? what's the best path, karl rove? >> well both of them r you have to do both. you can't do one thing in a debate and hope to succeed. i want to echo what kellyanne said. this is a process, not an event.

this is an event tonight, but the event is part of a process which the people get themselves better known in front of the american people, republican primary voters, give a sense who they are, what their values, think about this the biggest moment thus far for each one of them when they announced because they got national attention but the biggest viewership what they did was at the last debate. this is likely to be the second biggest time they have in front of the american people when millions of people tune in and say i want to know more. so both attack and describe what you're going to do and through that all share the values that motivate you on both of those fronts. larry: i think i got to leave it there, guys. i think they are beating me up on this. we'll talk to you later. there is a promise. kellyanne conway, karl rove, harold ford, bret baier you come back. >> 100%. larry: sure? >> sure. larry: i have to move on. i have to hustle here. i have martha maccallum and brit hume in front of us.

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♪. larry: so we're looking at the republican candidates tonight. here's question, what's president biden doing this evening? let's ask fox news jacqui heinrich who is live from the white house. jacqui, what is he doing? >> reporter: larry the president is paying no mind to the republicans aiming for the white house. right now biden is at his second fund-raiser of the night in san francisco. later on he heads to phoenix where tomorrow he has a couple of fund-raisers. he will honor the late senator john mccain. today the senator acted pretty unbothered by the threat of a government shut down optimistically saying nothing is

inevitable despite no movement from house republicans on a budget bill that can pass both chambers but the president's team is not wasting a chance to call out gop priorities. today two committees had their members out touting new evidence ahead of the first impeachment inquiry hearing tomorrow. that all happening with the shutdown looming just two days away. so the white house team is keeping their focus on that while biden is out raising money, larry. larry: all right. thank you, jacqui heinrich. we appreciate it. joining me now, going back to sean hannity, host of the great hannity show. jacqui just reported this, more information about biden scandals. do you think these republican presidential candidates should raise the issue of biden's scandals? what do you think on that? >> i absolutely would. i think, when you couple it with senator menendez i think an argument can be made very quickly, why we have 19 democratic senators want

menendez out, now it is a culture of corruption. eastern though it is not being covered by the mainstream media, certain things, certain dominoes are beginning to fall. first it was maureen dowd, "new york times," david ignatius, liberal joe, david axelrod, james carville, van jones, now bill maher. basically talking about joe being old. i have said for the longest time he is weak, he is frail, struggling cognitively. that cognitive decline seems to be accelerating in my view but when they, the moment you know joe biden is really in trouble in terms of being a candidate in this election cycle, if they start sounding like larry kudlow and sean hannity and start talking about what i believe is the, would be the biggest bribery, potential bribery, money laundering scandal allegations i ever heard in my life. remember, larry, he said over and over i never spoke to my

son, brother or anybody, for that matter about their for run business dealings. should the candidates bring that up he was having meetings with russian roll oligarchs at cafe milano? i would. just quickly what kellyanne and karl were saying. larry: real quick, love. real quick. >> debates are often about moments. you are no jack kennedy. for example, go back to ronald reagan. there you go again. or i'm not going to let my opponents youth and inexperience be a factor in this campaign. just killed it in the second debate after people had questions about his age. larry: sean, we'll see you right after the debate, thank you ever so much. absolutely. martha maccallum, anchor of "the story." brit hume, thank you, have not seen you this evening. >> hi, larry. larry: do the candidates punch away at each other, brit?

do they talk about some serious issues we've been trying to review? how do you see this story tonight? >> it could happen if one of them takes on, takes on one of the others or more than one of the others in a way that requires a response. the hazard you run when you do that, when you attack another candidate is, that candidate gets a moment to respond and the candidates who are attacked the most get to say the most. so it is not all up side. the other thing you can take on a candidate and dot candidate harm. we've seen it happen before but the person doing the attacking isn't often the beneficiary. so that attack politics has its hazards i would say. we keep hearing about the need to have moments. the moments that have been cited here, such as the two sean mentioned were in one-on-one candidate debates in the general election. it is hard to remember a number, any number of moments that occurred early in the primary season when there is a huge field of candidates on the

stage. it is hard to get, it is hard to get a moment going in a situation like that, it just is. larry: martha, i'm hustled up for time but 30 seconds what brit just said. do you punch away, go at issues? 30 seconds, please. >> they have to keep in mind the main audience is on the other side of camera out there in the country. a candidate who can connect with people, say to them as i said before, you have a choice in this election. this is not done. that is something to punch through to people. larry: got to run. >> a human moment what i'm looking for larry. larry: thanks ever so much, larry: thanks ever so much, martha maccallum and brit hume.ke candidates wilnnl take the stage next nt into a depression. (how do you feel about that?) pretty sad. i posted it to show that kenny's not always happy. within 24 hours people had donated over $5,000. no, you're kidding. (we set up the patriotic kenny foundation) (to give mobility scooters to veterans.)

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a clearchoice day changes every day. schedule a free consultation. he says he stands with auto workers... but as president, donald trump passed tax breaks for his rich friends, while automakers shuttered their plants, and michigan lost manufacturing jobs. joe biden said he'd stand up for workers, and he's delivering. passing laws that are increasing wages, and creating good paying jobs. manufacturing is coming back to michigan. because joe biden doesn't just talk. he delivers. i'm joe biden and i approve this message. ♪. larry: all right. we're waiting for the candidates to come on the stage. meanwhile let's bring in laura ingram, host of "the ingraham angle" on fox news, sorry. so, laura, we covered the water

front on this show which has gone on for six hours and 30 minutes now so far. that was a joke. we talking issues on this show? you think they talk attacks on this show? where does lara laura ingraham think the story is playing out? >> vivek ramaswamy, ron desantis they know what the audience wants. the audience out there is very anxious and they're very worried about the future of the country. everyone on the stage want to being number one, they don't want to be number two or three or four. what is the audience watching want tonight? they want to know how you, vivek, nikki, how will you leapfrog to number one and then beat biden? how does that actually work in practice? no one is cicero up there on stage. no offense, they're smart people, obviously very accomplished but cicero knew how to debate, path those, eagan go, he understood that.

this is about connecting with the true anxiety of the american people and giving them some optimism. how do we get out of this? you and i worked for reagan and sighing this all play out in the reagan library tonight is a beautiful thing but he was firm and he was stern when necessary. he was optimistic. larry: one second. i just want to note, i just want to note, that the candidates are coming out on the stage. they're starting to assemble. and, okay, they're standing up and they're with each either and i hope there is some friendly handshaking. we'll see in a moment. here come the photographers. they will take their positions in a few moments. laura, i didn't mean to interrupt, please forgive me. go on. >> larry, the big debate here within the party has already been won by the populace. you add up vivek, ron desantis with trump that is about 84% of the republican electorate. the question is, should 26% of the republican electorate

determine the future of the republican party? i mean i guess that could happen. i'm not sure that would be the most successful path forward given the fact you have to get people to turn out to the polls. you have to give them a sense they can actually be part of a winning coalition that is growing and optimistic. larry the words you like to say a lot, common sense. larry: yes. >> i think you will hear appeals to common sense tonight from all the candidates who all have their strengths. larry: laura, i really, i think you're right. look, and i'm not a big "politico," but the candidate connects with the voters on the voter anxieties and issues dear to their hearts, that's the candidate that the voter walks away remembering, whether it is issues directly or whether it is an anxiety or just cleverness, like you said, i think people are desperate for common sense policies. i hope you're right. i hope it is message driven.

if it is attack driven, i don't think they have done their job tonight. give you the last word. >> i agree, larry, attacks we'll see those from the biden administration and all the big donors who are assembling in the bay area for joe biden. they're opening up their wallets for him. do you really understand what is worrying the country? people are deeply worried. i think the candidates that do that, actually have a very positive optimistic path forward, back to common sense and sanity i think we'll have some fun moments. i'm looking forward to it. larry: terrific stuff, laura ingraham. thank you ever so much. bring back bret baier, harold ford, jr., kellyanne conway and karl rove. bret baier, i kind of like what laura, i think candidates connect connect with anxieties voters have. all the voters. not just republicans and democrats. it is an anxiety ridden country. why i'm pushing message side of

this. >> 100%. i think it is really interesting, what you're talking about here, reflected in our latest poll, very, extremely concerned. inflation 91%. housing costs 79%. taxes5%. you know we started that last, the first debate with questions on inflation but the candidates really take the ball and talk about inflation that much. that's what people are seeing and feeling on their kitchen table. that is what affects their votes. i think it will be interesting to see how they interact, whether they act differently than they did in the first debate in the shadow of ronald reagan's air force one and whether this venue provides a different atmosphere. i bet they will still go after each other pretty hard. larry: i reckon they will. karl rove, you reckon they will go after each other too, i want to ask you, karl, you're in the reagan library here. the gipper casts a long shadow. the spirit of ronald reagan, he didn't particularly like government. he didn't think government solutions were the answers. do you think any of the candidates will talk like that,

not government planning, not big government socialism, that's what the problem is, we need a change? >> yeah i think most of them will. look, i think there will be plenty of attacks, many of the attacks if they're going to suck successful against joe biden and problems he created. peel we talked about can identify with the challenges american people are facing by describing the problem, describing where it came from, describing the answer that they have are the people i think that will come out ahead more than the people who pick a fight all the time and unnecessarily with the people on the stage. larry: wouldn't it be interesting if republicans attacked joe biden for a change? >> i've been on ballot two, three, four five times. give them few elements how you will solve their problem. new challenges abroad and economy is faced with. if you're able to do that, you throw a b.a. rb you have a

better chance. where i agree with kellyanne and karl the most, i don't think you throw a one line zinger that will help you. nikki haley in the last debate talked about her foreign policy and reproductive rights and she distinguished herself. we'll see if someone can do this tonight. i. neil: votes matter than debate pour polls. i don't want to go out too far on a him, ultimately the primary votes will win. kellyanne conway, you know more about politics. at the end of the day, the process is votes. debates that is interesting, polls very interesting but there will be primaries and caucuses kellyanne conway or do i have that completely wrong? >> larry to become president of the united states the main subject matter is not biology and it is not even chemistry. it is math and science. you need more votes than the other people, more votes than your democratic opponents.

complicated process. everybody makes it. want somebody who fighting sake. wants somebody fighting for people that is the difference. two corp. questions tonight. do i like you, that is living room test. more important one, are you like me. are you like me? do we have connective tissue. do you understand my every day struggles and concerns. larry: me too. i'm worries about the same thing we coop coming back to the economy. that is what the polls show. >> that's right. listen they have to identify with people. let's remember this is a little surreal, the former president depending on the poll leading by 30, 40, 50 points. this is effort to be alternative at the end of the day, the man or woman who will stand up against the former president at the end. right now he has a commanding

lead. larry: karl rove, he has a commanding lead. how does that influence this debate? i put that, maybe the elephant in the room, but mr. trump has a commanding lead, period, end of sentence. can that be beaten right look,'t runner and by a lot. but the problem for that is twofold. i think he is emphasizing too much he's in the lead raising expectations and second of all, voters like to have a contest and they like underdogs and if they see something attractive over the course of these two or three or four debates, that could be a problem being absent on the stage. everybody on the stage in the first debate saw favorables go up, everyone saw bernards healthcare centage of the people that said i'm hope to voting form rise. only one candidate in the republican race saw both of the numbers drop in that regard, and that was the guy that was absent from the first debate. larry: all right, i hate to go during the national anthem. i hate to talk during that but

unfortunately that's the exhibits of president watson. kellyanne conway, your last word. >> sure, i think trump is casting himself as the underdog and undere underestimated and tt runner as well and hovering big even if he's not here. what would they do differently than trump did or the same but a different style. the wall, ukraine, crime, economy. give us something different. larry: got it. kellyanne, appreciate it. carl, thank you,. good luck today that and the others. second republican primary debate starts right now. >> high on the hills of california's simi valley stands a monument to one of the most beloved leaders in our nation's history, ronald reagan. the beginner, the great communicator, america's 40th commander in chief. he railed against big government. >> the ninmo