thanks for watching this hour. you guys were a lot of fun. >> are you ready for tonight? >> very ready. >> going to be watching? >> yes. >> going to be epic spp. >> so epic. >> that's what y'all say, the kids. thank you so much. we'll turn everything over the chuck todd preparing for our special primetime coverage. >> thank you, tamron. if it's sunday, it's a debate night like none other, the republican party facing its biggest crisis since watergate. >> tonight, republicans are abandoning trump, many calling on him to step down. tonight's debate could be his last stand. >> you can do anything. grab them by the [ bleep ]. >> plus, this debate is going to be ugly as trump goes on offense

and promises to bring um bill clinton's past. >> bill clinton has actually abused women and hillary has bullied, attacked, shamed, and intimidated his victims. >> and the art of the debate. trump's former ghost righter on how the candidate will handle a town hall format. this is a special edition of "mtp daily" and it starts right now. >> good evening. i'm chuck todd at election headquarters at rockefeller center. welcome to a sunday edition of "mtp daily." we're doing it too, just like ernie banks. a countdown to the second presidential debate at 9:00 p.m. eastern. this is shaping up to be not an ordinary debate but a jaw-dropping spectacle. one kand v-8 is on the verge of

a total meltdown and threatening to take his party down with him. set until. this will likely rank among the most unusual moments in presidential politics ever. the xwop is a s abandoning their nominee in droves. let's put outen the screen. this is a list of republicans either calling for trump to quit or pulling their support all together. by the way, all of these names we're listing were within the past 36 hours. this is just the start of the potential nightmare for the gop. trump is retaliating urging total war on these critics. you may say it is every pan and woman for themselves with an r next to their names. there were rumors trump's campaign manager had considered quitting. she is denying it vehemently.

and the prospect more damaging stories could drop. i didn't even mention the fact that donald trump's running mate doesn't seem to be eager to be on the trail. internal chaos and confusion on how to respond at tonight's debate. his most trusted adviser, rudy giuliani, appeared on every single sunday show today to insist we will see a conscience-stricken and changed man on that stage. >> he was pretty darn shocked he'd said such terrible things. he feels embarrassed about it. he's a different man now than he was then. i know from talking to him that he genuinely feels very sorry about this. he's ashamed of himself and he's embarrassed. >> but literally, at the same moment giuliani was talking trump was attacking his critics and threatening total gop annihilation. "so many self-righteous hypocrites. watch their poll numbers and elections go down.

that was reinforced in the new campaign talking points outlined in "the new york times." we have no idea how trump will handle this tonight and neither does it appear does the campaign. here's giuliani with me this morning with a decidedly mixed message ahead of tonight. >> he'd like to move on to the issues facing the american people. i do believe there's a possibility he'll talk about hillary clinton's situation. the things that she had said and that have been reported in various boox and magazines and other places about the women that bill clinton raped, sexually abused, and attacked. >> at the moment trump appears to be eyeing this nuclear option. he's been tweeting links to news stories about bill clinton's alleged rape accuseer, juanita broaddrick. but trump personally went to bat for bill in the '90s at the peak of these scandals and he did it in ways that only reinforce his image of frankly vulgarity.

for instance, in 1999 trump told "the new york times" this about the lewinsky scandal -- people would have been more forgiving if he'd had an affair with a really beautiful woman of sophistication. mr. paladino, welcome, sir. >> hi, chuck. how are you? >> you are known as somebody who opportunity mince words. >> that's true. >> what is your advice to donald trump tonight. >> first, i think i should put it in right perspective. i'm a little guy from buffalo, new york. i'm one of those guys that that hillary clinton and her speech to goldman sachs elitists called part of a bucket of losers. i look at that and i say, yes, i'm involved with trump right now big time. and the reason i'm involved is that we're in the midst of an

american revolution. this is a revolution by the middle class of america wanting to take their government back, wanting to bring some sensibility to our foreign image and our domestic affairs including jobs and business and whatever. the shame of it is that i'm listening -- i'm listening to you today i mean this morning you declared that donald trump was likely going to lose this election. you declared that. the mainstream press has been opposed to donald trump, okay, from day one because they aring to the work of the washington establishment and -- >> let me ask you this, mr. pal dee foe. i've let you go on for quite a while because i want your views out here. but let me ask you this. this is -- can you defend any of the comments that donald trump has said about women? >> you know, it's not a big deal to me. >> why? >> it doesn't make -- it's not a

big deal. >> he talked about sexual assault. >> what's more important to me -- >> he talked act unwanted sexual advances. does that not boter you? >> chuck, listen for just a moment. what's more important to me and the middle class of america is what hillary has done, okay. the negatives of hillary. the unindicted co-conspirator. the unindicted felon who under subpoena erased tapes, okay, who gave general fur flowers $800,000. who we now found out okay was complicit with obama in starting the iranian isis thing. okay. who we now find out, okay, that benghazi had something to do with her shipping weapons to the isis people. this untruthful government has to stop and that's a lot more important than listening to donald trump on talking about some women 10 and 11 years ago.

it doesn't make any sense and my question is -- >> i have to stop you here because you just threw out benghazi was about a secret arms deal? i mean, you're trying to mainstream a whole bunch of speculation and innuendo none of which has been fact cully correct here. >> no. you guys missed pit. >> the james comey did a great job for the american people and maintained the integrity of the fbi. >> so let me ask you this. do you assume that because he didn't bring charges he did a bad job? why don't you assume that he didn't bring charges because he didn't -- -- >> not only, that but look at the rest of it. he gave mills a walk. he gave heather stand stone a walk. >> is it possible he didn't have evidence to bring any charges? is it not possible? >> he destroyed the evidence. part of his agreement was he wouldn't look after january

15th, 2015, and he wouldn't look at any of the evidence there. >> you're accusing the fbi director of destroying evidence. >> the man should resign. the man is a parasite on the american people. he has destroyed the integrity of one of our greatest institutions. >> mr. paladino, i'll let you go. i know you're full of passion, but you can't just do this and just throw out here stuff that's not true. >> as the press is out of control. the american press is out of control. >> we're so out of control we give you plenty of air time. carl paladino, i'll let it go there. thanks for coming on and sharing your views. let me bring in my panel. welcome to you all. >> that was interesting. >> fascinating. >> it is what it is. steve, you ha some tough words

some groups that i think you said hijacked. >> well weather the complicity of much of the elected leadership of the republican party it's been building for some time. look, when you examine the trump candidacy at this point, let's go back to the first debate where he comes in down 2 1/2 points in the real clear politics national average, essentially in an even race. he was incoherent for at least an hour of a 90-minute debate, had no clue what he was talking about on important matters of public policy, scarily uninformed on issues involving nuclear weapons. and then he proceeds over the course of the next week to be in a fight with the former miss universe, up at 3:00 in the morning, 4:00 in the morning, 5:00 in the morning. what do you think would happen

if you were the captain of a ballistic missile submarine and the united states navy and you lost it at your contractor and you were hate tweeting at him at 3:00, 4:00, 5:00 in the morning. you would be relieved of you command so fast it would make people's heads spin. he has displayed time and time again an unfitness for the office at an intellectual level, at a -- now at a moral level. there is a majesty requisite to the us a of the president of the united states. he doesn't possess it. we couldn't find many people to defend trump today, the trump campaign only had one person they might be able to make available and then we found one other in carl paladino. there's not a lot of people willing to stand up for trump today including even his running mate is not ready to be out there today.

other people were polled on this. this is a crisis inside the gop. >> a crisis and it's remarkable that after all the other things that we saw when he was in some ways said that mexican immigrants were criminals, fighting with the beauty queen, you had people defending him. today it seems as most people are radio silent, but i should say the docking boats we got at "the new york times," they basically tell you what your guest just did, you're supposed to pivot, attack the media, you're supposed to go after bill clinton and go after hillary clinton's past and go -- >> james comey. >> yeah. so the idea is to just avoid talking about this if you can and then if not, of course, apologize, apologize, apologize. very few people want to do that because they know it looks disingenuous. >> what carl paladino was saying about how the middle class feels, there are a lot of people that feel left behind and left out.

question, though, has this campaign lost its moral authority to lead them? >> increasingly i think the answer has to be yes. this divide between the elites and the nonelites has increased in terms of a political issue over the last two or three presidential cycles. at one point it looked as if trump might be able to exploit that. he exploited a lot of that during the primary system and many thought he could continue that. the amazing thing to me, just build tong last point, the points about the kkk and not being able to distance himself from david duke, the comments about the mexican judge, taking on the pope, there have been so many things and this has put people over the edge. the larger question, what i started with, where are we as a country? after this race, secretary clinton wins or if she loses, i hope she wins but where are we as a country? there's a divide here very different in the left/right divide we've been accustomed to in the last several election cycles. >> i want to get into this later in the show but i am going to sneak in a quick break because i think this is a threat to our

democracy, something that i think is the biggest challenge for the next president, anyway. you guys are sticking around. coming up, why donald trump's troubles could be bad news for republicans and hillary clinton has a basket full of problems on her own. she told wall street she has public and private positions and she dreams of open borders in the western hemisphere. you can count on trump to bring that up tonight. and in another planet, in another presidential election, this would be a big problem for her. hey, it's the phillips' lady! there's a more enjoyable way to get your fiber. try these delicious phillips' fiber good gummies, good source of fiber to help support regularity.

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welcome back. we have hillary clinton leading

donald trump by three points among likely voters in florida. pennsylvania this is a state that's been on the trump wish list. up 12 points. cbs has clinton being up in pennsylvania as well. another poll has clinton up four points in ohio. monmouth had her leading trump by two points earlier this week. she had been trailing there most of september. one place trump is hanging in there is iowa. thedes moes rister" polling has trump with a four-point lead among likely voters. it is likely now to be the most friendly swing state to the

republican nominee. that's where things stand on this debate. we'll get you prepared for tonight's candidate clash in st. louis. stay tuned. ♪ everything your family touches sticks with them. make sure the germs they bring home don't stick around. use clorox disinfecting products. becausno one kills germs tter than clorox.

[ cougshh. i have a cold with this annoying runny nose. better take something. dayquil liquid gels doesn't treat a runny nose. it doesn't? alka-seltzer plus cold and cough liquid gels fight your worst cold symptoms including your runny nose. oh, what a relief it is! as you know, this debate is going to be very unusual. there's going to be probably a lot of things slung, a lot of let me ask you what your advice

would be to hillary clinton when it comes to some of the charges donald trump has telegraphed he plans on leveling against her, including her roles when it came to defending her husband against infidelity charges. >> first, i expect secretary clinton to do in this debate what she did in the first, focus on policy, he preparedness to be president and why there are so many differences between the two of them. i defend her to defend herself strongly against the charges i expect trump to throw her way. i expect after a number of attempts on his part she'll make it clear there is no moral equivalency between the things he's been recorded saying which is literally bragging about sexual assault and unproven allegations in e-mails, the sorts of which we still don't fully know that we're discussed earlier today. if this turns into a po s --

>> if this turns into a policy debate, she has a lot to do to explain away some new leaked excerpts from speeches she made before she started running for president. she said in one excerpt, if everybody's watching, all of the back room discussions and the deals, people get nervous to say the least so you need both a public and private position. can you explain what that means? do you have a public and private position on different issues? i'm not sure. >> you haven't paid attention to these speeches? >> we don't know where all these e-mails -- i haven't seen them yet. i have seen some general reporting about them. before we put out as true e-mails that have been released from wikileaks or other sources that there are credible allegations that the russians have been hacking into different e-mail systems and servers and

selectively releasing and possibly editing things to try to influence the outcome of our elections. >> do you have any evidence these are edited? the clinton campaign has not said they are untrue e-mails. >> i don't have any evidence they were edited but i also don't have any certainty about their source. i want to say we need to be careful about taking out of context e-mails that may or may not be true. second, it suggests there will be an effort tonight to undermine secretary clinton's very strong foundation in policy and her long and clear record of leadership on the issues that matter most to the american people. i think she'll do an able job of pushing back with what her actual policy positions have been. >> let's go to tpp because essentially what's been implied here and there's another speech she said my dream is a hemispheric common market with an open trade and open borders sometime in future.

the implication is what she is saying now on trade is not her real beliefs, right? that she is so business groups presents herself as an i rememberist when it comes to trade agreements but on the campaign trail she's adhering to more of the position of bernie sanders. i think the question particularly for progressives who are reluctantly on board with clinton, what is her trade position? when is she? is she going to renegotiate tpp and end up being a supporter of it when she gets to the white house? that seems to be a concern among the progressives. >> i understand that concern. but i frankly would take a chapter from recent speeches by senator sanders. her opponent in the primaries and one of the most outspoken voices far progressive position on trade. senator sanders has been campaigning vigorously for secretary clinton and he makes the argument for why we ought to be supporting secretary clinton. i do think we also in the context of the little excerpt that you just quoted there, need

to remember that the opening two words were "my dream." i think many of us can say that we would hope someday that we might have fair and free trade in our hemisphere yet recognize that the impact on the american working people of recent trade agreements has been far from free or fair. i think it's coherent to say that. >> i want to go back to one of these excerpts and it goes back to the public and private position because i think it gets to the heart of what we're dealing with when it comes to, for instance, trump, and that is in some of -- and some of his supporters. it feeds this notion that elected leaders, people i washington say whatever it takes to get elected and then behind closed doors say another thing. do you see how this is damaging to the reputation of elected leaders in washington? >> i understand that, but there's a gulf of a difference between elected officials, candidates who have a knew

wajsed position on a complex policy issue and the kind of thing that mr. trump was quoted, recorded saying in what he thought was off camera. >> i'm not trying to make an equivalency. >> wildly different things. bragging about sexual assault is very different from having a nuanced position on trade. >> i'm not trying to bring trump into this. i'm trying to talk about the feelings that many americans have toward politicians these days. that this notion of one thing behind closed doors, one thing in public, that that is what gives this outrage and lights the fire among the populace. >> that's right, chuck. look what's happened this week. we have dozens of republicans running for senate who have endorsed or public hi support trump even though we know they don't share his policy positions. donald trump has run for president on positions that are wildly at difference with republicans in the past 50 years not just trade but a dozen other

issues. many of them including the speaker have doggedly held in with donald trump eve anz he has said more and more outrageous things and been more and more continue plikting with their basic policy views. any republican who remains a public supporter of donald trump after these most recent revelations i think really has to question whether they aren't also feeding into this dynamic you're talking about, where they publicly say that they are pro family and pro character and yet they are supporting a candidate for president who is neither. >> senator, i appreciate you coming on and sharing your views. >> thank you, chuck. just a few hours from the second presidential debate at washington university in st. louis. a familiar location for these debates. after a bad first debate and an even worse 48 hours leading up to this one, what can we expect from donald trump on stage in st. louis? "t" man who helped him write "the art of the deal" gaves us his insights. and one person who won't be at the debate tonight, mike pence.

he went to the colts/bears game, saw the colts win. kelly o'donnell will report that despite some rumors there haven't been any discussions about trump dropping off the ticket but it's obvious pence is deeply troubled by the comments and has made his concerns known to the running mate handle has decided to stay in indianapolis tonight. little dakota's nose was quivering in fear. because it knew an ordinary tissue was near. the fiery tissue left her nose sore and red. so dad slayed the problem with puffs plus lotion, instead. puffs have pillowy softness for dakota's tender nose. with lotion toomfortand ot. don't get burned by ordinary for dakota'stissues.nose. a nose in need deserves puffs, indeed. now get puffs plus lotion in the sqezable softpack. the search for relief often leads to this. introducing drug-free aleve direct therapy. a high intensity tens device that uses technology once only in doctors' offices.

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it's not clear if anyone inside or outside the campaign know what is trump is thinking or what he'll do tonight. tony sh wartsz was the ghostwriter for donald trump's best-selling book in 1987, a memoir called "the art of the deal." he spent months following trump around, and ended up getting a unique perspective on his psychology. i spoke with schwartz before the access hollywood tape was released midweek last week, for what it's worth. tony schwartz tweeted, "let's be

clear, anyone who knows trump, and i do, knows his words to billy bush reflect exactly who he is and always will be." tough words from him. after trump's poor performance in the first debate i started asking schwartz how the candidate handles setbacks. >> his typical way is in everything to double down on whatever it is he was doing previously so, i fully expect him to come back with the roar of a lion, which i think will be a mistake. and i think my saying it won't have any effect on it. it's going to move from his prefrontal cortex, where you do your logical thinking, to your amygdala where he feel threat and he'll feel threat quickly and i expect him to do much of what he did the last time. >> there was a lot of -- it's clear he didn't prep for the first debate or didn't do the types of prep work that is traditional.

he seemed to be not happy that he let his campaign people know that he didn't do prep the right way. i assumed they leaked this hoping he would do more prep. there's been no evidence. >> there's no question he leaked it for that. he's incapable of prepping so this isn't about a choice. it's about a consequence and it's the consequence of having literally no attention span. >> how do you know he's incapable of prepping? >> because i did a book with him where i sat with him day after day after day asking him questions and at no point could he ever concentrate for more than a few minutes at a time without getting impatient and trying to change the subject. and that was when i was talking about him. so imagine when he has to think about policy or about bigger issues. >> he views it as a strength, right? he loves coming in without a plan to this day. he likes to start his day not knowing, okay, i know i have a couple meetings but i don't know what i'm going to focus on today. >> yeah. i mean, that's the story that he

has built around the fact of his life. the fact is he can't do it any other way so he's told it as a story about an asset. i don't think it is an asset. there's no evidence it was an asset. god knows it's terrifying in a president. >> if you expect him to double down and we know he's not putting in new prep time, whatever prep he's doing is probably similar to what he did before, so then what should we expect? >> expect that he'll start out for the first few minutes hitting very hard on two or three issues he knows have vulnerabilities of hillary's. >> similar to the first bate. correct pip think he'll be a bit more focused on them because he'll have drilled into them a little more but as soon as hillary does something that makes him feel insecure or humiliated he'll move into attack mode and i expect him to double down. >> interesting with this debate,

ice a town hall so you have to interact with people you don't know. >> wow. >> and that's different. he doesn't do a lot of those events. most presidential candidates do small room events as well as big rallies. they've been trying to get him to do some small room events literally for this debate prep purpose. just tell me how you saw him interact with everyday people. >> here's the thing -- he doesn't like people. that's a big problem. >> that's like some people. >> he doesn't like people. he likes donald trump and he's not comfortable interacting with people except honestly if it's talking about him. >> adulation. >> yes, exactly, including i believe from his own children. that i believe he wouldn't act very well with them if for one moment they stopped being adoring. so i expect that when he is talking to another person he's not going to be comfortable and he's not going to be easy and he's not going to be relaxed because it's not what he's done. short of talking to his chauffeur or his valet or his chef or, you know, one of the people who works for him, who he does, you know, over the years

presumably get a little more comfortable with, i don't think he's comfortable with everyday people. >> what's his talent? you saw talent. >> i did see a talent. >> what is it? >> it's relentlessness. he will huff and he will puff and he will huff and puff and blow the house down. because he will keep doing it. he is a man who is indefatigable in that respect and he'll keep doing it until you finally go no mas, okay, donald, you are the greatest, because it's easier than trying than trying to have a rational conversation with him. by the way, i got along with him fine because i learned what was necessary to do, i did it, and i would say up until, in fact, he has told reporters this, up until the day he found out that i was going to say what i've been saying he thought i was a great guy. >> it's interesting. it seems as if the business deals that are going badly but he's able to renegotiate onto some shockingly decent terms for

himself, is that the relentle relentlessness and wearing people down? >> it's half that and half not having continue a conscience. if you don't feel guilt, bound by ethics, don't feel it's necessary to be honest or fair, you have an advantage in a negotiation. >> tony schwartz, former ghost write we are donald trump, "art of the deal." thanks for coming. >> thanks for having me. >> count do you think to the debate here or there at washington university in st. louis, missouri. after the break, we'll go to the spin room, braz braz joins me to discuss the clinton campaign's response to the trump controversy and how they're dealing with one of their own. ♪ ♪ the highly advanced audi a4.

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someone who knows a thing or two about what's going through a candidate's head right before a debate, the dnc chair, donna brazile. welcome. >> good to hear your voice. how come you're not here? this is a beautiful campus. great campus. great vibe right now. look, as you well know, this debate is designed to allow candidates to interact with those undecided voters. i think this is a great opportunity for secretary clinton tonight to outline her vision for the country, how to continue to keep the country safe and secure, make americans more prosperous. >> is that what she's going to do? madam chair, the last debate, it did seem secretary clinton's plan was to just bring up donald trump at every, you know, any of his problems at any given time. that's not the strategy tonight, not to make this debate about donald trump? because the first debate it was clear her strategy was about making every question about

donald trump. >> i'm not in a position to stalk about her strategy. as a student of this, we have an a lot of undecided voters. tonight is an opportunity for secretary clinton to talk to them. donald trump is going the try to interrupt again and i'm sure that the secretary is not only prepared to challenge him on some of the false assumptions he's made over the last few months but also to challenge the american people to take a look at both of them and decide for themselves and decide for themselves who's fit to be commander in chief pip think secretary clinton will do a great job on that score. >> earlier today you asked if you thought trump mig step down and you said it would be political suicide. do you think it's the right thing do for the country? >> i agree with john kasich who said essentially the republican party knew exactly what they were getting the donald trump.

during the primary. i looked around to lindsey graham and rick perry, bobby jindal. they all tried to make the case donald trump was unfit. but they lost. now the republican party has to deal with the hand that they have. that is that donald trump is their nominee. to push him aside would be political suicide. >> if the rnc decides they atoward nomination last minute to mike pence and start making attempts to get his name on the ballot, is the dnc going to fight those changes? >> the dnc is ready to protect the ballot. voters in several states have cast their ballots. we have early voting in states starting in two or three days from now.

in iowa or wisconsin, people are able to vote in person. absentee ballots have been mailed out. by michy calculation, over 112 electoral votes have been at stake with the early voting. again, this is the republican party and fleet disarray. you have republican candidates one by one disavowing and withdrawing their support for the nominee. we're focused on senatorial races in missouri and congressional races and other legislative races. that's our focused and why we're pleased that secretary clinton on the will address american people, answer questions from those who are undecided and continue to make sure that donald trump is accountable for everything he said. >> donna brazile, i have to leave it there. enjoy the debate. should be an interesting one. >> good to see you. >> up next, why i'm obsessed

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wi another nlavor yout never saw coming... grilled, glazed korean bbq shrimp. and try as much as you want of flavors like new parmesan peppercorn shrimp. just come in before it ends. 80% of recurrent ischemic, strokes could be prevented. and i'm doing all i can to help prevent another one. a bayer aspirin regimen is one of those steps in helping prevent another stroke. be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin a piriregimen. ahead of tonight's debate, a debate from earlier this week and another example of the intersection between sports and politics. carolina panthers quarterback cam newton loves to get into the end zone. last year when he did he broke into a dance called the dad. some thought maybe it was a

little inappropriate for family viewing. fast forward to this week's california senate debate which is taking place between democrats now, no republican made it to the top two in california's top-two system. it was between attorney general camilla harris and congresswoman loretta sanchez. here's what happened near the end of the debate as sanchez on the right went over her allotted time. >> miss sanchez -- >> remember, this on election day psh. >> your sim the expired. >> on election day, don't vote for the establishment. >> your time has expired. miss harris, you have a minute and a half. >> and -- >> you have a minute and a half, miss harris. >> so there's a clear difference between the candidates in this race. >> so you're probably trying to figure out what led to that reaction from harris. here's what the camera didn't show. sands striking a pose. you have to admit, you don't see that every day on the campaign trail. by the way, harris has a big

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what powers the digital world? communication. like centurylink's broadband network that gives 35,000 fans cutting edge game experience. or theetwork that keepa leing hotel chain's guests connected at work, and at play. or the it platform that powers millions of ecards every day for one of the largest greeting card companies. businesses count on communication, and communication counts on centurylink. trump's in a rough spot right now. looks like he's likely to lose this election unless something dramatic happens. question now is how much damage will he do to the republican party? here's where republicans in top senate races stand right now on trump. kirk, ayotte, corkman, mccain, and heck all say they are not supporting their party's presidential nominee, all

obviously in swing states. kirk has never backed trump. the others unendorsed this weekend. three other senators on the ballot in swing states in november are still backing trump. marco rubio, backing trump, mar rubio, blunt and isakson. you have wisconsin's ron john supports but does not endorse. pat toomey hopes to support the nominee but hasn't gotten there yet. richard burr will watch his contrition over the next several days. todd young says he's not sure. the pressure on these republican candidates to do nothing is just as great to do something.

pat toomey, yes, he needs to not get clobbered in the suburbs but can't alienate either. >> real problem, talking to republican sources about the idea that people don't want to alienate trump's base but don't want to give the idea they are not with the republican nominee even if down ballot reaches for people across the country. if you see people start to back away saying he should drop out, with drawing support, what does that tell voters in other states about voting down ballot. people know if people start -- if there's a flood gate of people running away from the nominee, those down ballot races will be slaughtered. >> you say look like a flood gate, is it? >> presidential campaigns move through fluidity and stability. we're moving now. all over the country, in a state

of collapse. the campaigns are in absolute panic mode. if the election were tomorrow republicans lose u.s. senate, i believe lose it on election day, chuck schumer the next majority leader. donald trump is in a position where he could lose a state like utah because you have independent candidacy. >> a mormon. >> a mormon on the ballot. you have seib in the primaries that mormon in western states has always been. >> you've been in senate campaigns where there's an attempt to nationalize races and not. democrats right nor all going to try to centralize their opponents and tie them to trump, whether they have denounced trump or not denounced trump. is that a strategy that can work? >> we'll see. we have to remember, we have 30

days left. if we were 30 days out i'd feel better. trump has a big responsibility and burden. i'm not sure he can live up to and answer questions. trump has to focus on the vision for the country. after tonight if it's a poor performance, i don't think there's any doubt we'll nationalize the race. i don't know if steve wants what he shared but democrats could win the house, the senate and secretary clinton could have an opportunity to really bring that vision to fruition. >> a few weeks ago it was looking like hillary clinton may win presidency because she has her lock on things but republicans feeling good, portman, rubio, it's amazing what the top of the ticket can do. he has a bad debatish horrible week and the bottom starts to fall out and now this. >> now this. i think what's more important -- or at least what's really important is the future of the republican party. you can see that is already

changing so quickly, the republicans i'm talking to are saying, okay, if she wins presidency, we also lose both parts of dock, what does that mean for our party? are we fundamentally a party not moving with the times. republican party after that autopsy report they had was already struggling to figure out what they were going to do with the demographic changes in this country. now if your whole message is off, evangelicals one part and people former trump supporters another part and people maybe sympathetic to other people, i think it's really a problematic thing and republicans are very worried the ones i'm talking to. >> steve, what happens after tonight? if trump does not do the contrition thing, what happens? >> so when you look at this race, you have the number one and number two most unpopular candidates in history of polling running against each other. the history of the race is what it's about. when the spotlight on trump he's

losing. when the spotlight is on her she's not doing well. you'll see them exclusively to divided message. hillary clinton is going to win the election. lent-of- elect me so i can keep an eye on her. i think that will be enough to save the house majorities. >> may not save senate. >> all these candidates may have to unendorse him. >> to pull that. >> to be able to achieve that. >> we shall see. tonight is going to be a spectacle. thank you. we'll be back with "snl's" latest take on the election. as always you can't miss it. that's why i have the spark cash card from capital one. witht, i earn unlimited 2% cash back on all of my purchasing. and that unlimited 2% cash back from spark means thousands of dollars each year going back into my business... which adds fuel to my bottom line. what's in your wallet?

finally in case you missed it, "saturday night live" second episode of the season last night, another doozy. >> many republicans have stood by you through a lot of other scandals but are now pulling their support. people like senator john mccain. >> coward. >> carly fiorina. >> she's a four. >> we now go live to hillary clinton's campaign headquarters where they have just received news of the leak. since mr. trump's comments were so bad. >> so bad, just horrible. horrible. >> do you think he should drop out? >> no, no, no. give him a shot. >> she's so good, i'm sorry.

she's something else as hillary clinton. if you missed it, do your self a favor and watch the rest of the show's cold open online. there is some language we can't really air on tv at 5:00 p.m., but you won't be disappointed. lucky for us tonight's debate should provide "snl" writers perhaps way too much fresh material. anyway, that's all for tonight. we'll be back tomorrow with morning tv daily. keep it here for full coverage leading up to the big live telecast of the single most unusual debate night perhaps in american history at 9:00 eastern. now to st. louis, gateway to the west. >> all right, chuck. good evening from washington university in st. louis. the presidential debate that kicks off on msnbc just three hours from now. i am chris hayes. the pa