my thanks to peter, carol and betsy, i'll be back for hardball at 7:00, and las vegas tomorrow. we'll be on the road tomorrow. i'll be in the spinning room tomorrow night when the candidates come after their big debate. "meet the press daily" starts right now with chuck todd. welcome to tuesday, it is a special edition of meet the press daily coming to you live from las vegas nevada, at the site of tomorrow night's democratic debate. check it out, there it is. the first time michael bloomberg will be on that stage after qualifying today.

the big news from our brand new nbc/wall street journal poll hot off the presses. bernie sanders now has the inside track. he's opened up a double-digit lead over a very bunched up second tier. basically, a four way tie for second. sanders lead has grown, even though his support didn't move one iota. he was at 27% before the first two, he sits at 27% now. what's all happen something joe biden's support is tumbling. like moderates are rising. but they're all crowded together with elizabeth warren. leading one man, bernie sanders the clear leader. even if this field winds down to a head to hid matchup between sanders and a mother moderate candidate. how about pete buttigieg or the billionaire, michael bloomberg, sanders still has an

overwhelming lead. he would be an overwhelming favorite if matched up against them one on one. concerns about the issue of electability with bernie sanders, voters are the least enthusiastic and comfortable with a candidate that identifies himself as a socialist or who recently had a heart attack, or is over 75 years old. he has plenty of potential issues and emphasis on potential. depending on the strategy of his democratic rivals. they've yet to exploit these issues. both biden and bloom bergs are the candidates best equipped to beat president trump nationally. they do much better than sanders. in the wake of his impeachment aquiltal, his approval rating matches his all time high 47%. his approval rating among self-described independences is

above 50% for the very first time. in a sign of how unrestrained president trmtd feels right now, he commuted the sentence of former illinois governor rod blagojevich, which seems to be trump sending the message that he is okay with decriminalizing political corruption. he was convicted of trying to sell the senate seat left open by barack obama. josh letterman is here in vegas covering the campaign. mike memali, mr. biden whisperer is here with me in the debate hall. let me start with mr. letterman. they anticipated they would likely qualify for this debate, they've gotten multiple polls today that put them over the top, and they've leaked word on how they're prepping him. he's never really had a serious debate challenge.

all of his new york city mayoral debates were in the last week, when everything was done. >> yeah, that's right, chuck. and mike bloomberg is hoping that folks leaving the debate tomorrow night will hope there are three people running for president, bloomberg, sanders and trump. the bloomberg officials i've been speaking with today are fully aware he's going to be taking hits tomorrow night from all sides. if he spends all of his time trying to push back on that, he's likely to come across as defensive. if he can make this about block berg versus bernie sanders. which of those two candidates do you think can best defeat donald trump, that's a debate they think they can win. that's you where see the bloomberg campaign signaling today, including from the campaign manager on twitter, that they plan to go hard after bernie sanders tomorrow, they think there is plenty of opposition and research against bernie sanders to roll out just like bloomberg has been getting all of those dumps, these

recordings coming out. there's plenty of materials to use against sanders, if this latest poll is any indication, you can see why they think sanders is the biggest threat. >> well, they also have to be thinking about the fact that they don't have much time if they actually want to try to slow sanders down. let me move over now to shaquille brewster with sanders in reno. they've got to feel good, and realize the target is going to be pointed on their back. more importantly, a financial target may be painted on their back by michael bloomberg. >> that's very true. you saw the bloomberg campaign fire off a warning shot at team sanders with that tweet that josh was referencing. and senator sanders has made it clear, he has ammunition of his own that we will likely here on the debate stage tomorrow night. we know stop and frisk will come up. he's also going after mayor bloomberg for his opposition to raising the minimum wage, for example, in the past, mayor

bloomberg now supports raising the minimum wage. there's proposed cuts that mayor bloomberg had. his openness to cuts like social security, medicare and medicaid. all three of those things are things senator sanders has been mentioning to much bigger crowds we've been sighing. colorado on sunday night, 11,000. last night with 17,000 people, this campaign feels the momentum and is ready to take it on against mayor bloomberg. >> these are the muscles they can flex now on super tuesday. maybe only one state at a time, they now how to target their rallies, very trump like from four years ago. how does the biden campaign feel about essentially bernie and bloomberg realizing if biden's just sort of in the way for the real fight between bernie and bloomberg. >> there are two sources of frustration in the biden campaign right now.

obviously with this significant ad spending, that's one area they're going to look at making some -- >> he had an entyre year to make those ads? >> that's right. if he had his money, he would be doing that himself. he's got one arm tied behind his back. his team works with the obama team to make sure they're okay with everything. and the other candidates have no qualms about doing that. the other frustration is, they don't feel like anyone is going after bernie sanders. joe bide ing is the one doing that. they plan to do it tomorrow, they hope other candidates are -- they're probably happy to hear what they're telling josh, but it remains to be seen if bernie's going to be the target. that's what he hoped bloomberg would do when he got into this race. >> that's the fascinating thing about tomorrow night, is it bernie that is the focal point of everybody's attacks? or bloomberg that is the focal point of everybody's attacks. weirdly enough, the two of them are helping each other now. thank you.

let's dive into the big news. i'm joined by peter hardy, he's also an adviser on our poll. when it comes to our bipartisan polling team. he's a founding democratic pollster of this poll. and peter. take a step back, you've been through so many of these democratic primaries. i don't want to age you, but i believe you're involved in the mess in '68 as well as 72. are you having flashbacks to those years? this democratic party, they're united against nixon -- i mean, trump. but they're divided on how to do it. >> yeah, it is a little bit of a flashback. but more than anything, donald trump is a different type of president and a different type of candidate. the openings are there, the democrats are going to go through a lot of back and forth at this stage of the game. and i would agree with what you were saying, is that sanders is the leader, he is the

front-runner, and he has room to grow. i mean, that's the major difference. it's not that he's hit his ceiling. difficulty for all of the other candidates is who can start to compete and on what level, obviously bloomberg has the money, it's a question of can put gag pick it up. >> i want to put up our chart here, we did candidate types we have a list here, a woman president, a gay or lesbian president, a president under 40, someone who self-funds, recent heart attack, socialist. i'll use two, people are as comfortable with a gay president as they are uncomfortable essentially with someone over the age of 75. you look at these numbers and you think, boy, bernie sanders is vulnerable, yet none of these things seems to stick at him the individual, even though those descriptions voters tell us they

don't like. >> yeah, and that's always the difference. and that is in the abstract they say, i don't like this but he's the candidate that's coming across with more humanity in a grassroots level. and i think that's what's propelled them as much as anything else. it's fascinating he's the oldest candidate and he does the best with the youngest voters. auld of this indicates his strength. >> we decided to go a couple hypothetical two ways within the democratic primary. what was interesting is how basically, buttigieg and bloomberg at best they can't even get 40%. if you believe the new hampshire exit poll, the nonsanders wing was much bigger than the sanders wing, and yet it is sanders that consolidates better than the so called moderates. >> in part, because he's been

there, he seems clearest on his message. and it seems easy. everyone thinks this is going to be an ideological fight. the way i look at it, sanders is most vulnerable in terms of effectiveness, getting things done, being able to pass legislation. i think it is that element you're going to see the campaigns run against him. >> let me ask you this, peter. we're down to about two weeks until super tuesday, which is a national pretty close to a national primary day when you have california and texas on the ballot at the same time. it seems to me the window is closing much more rapidly if you're in the nonsanders wing, if you're trying to stop sanders. it's getting late early? >> it is getting late early. and obviously that's the reason

sanders is ahead. but against that, obviously, we are going to run into a period where there will be a second candidate, i don't know if it's going to be bloomberg, buttigieg or one of the other candidates, but at some stage voters are going to come back to home base. it's going to be about humanity, who can relate to where we are at, and who can provide health care and accessibility. all of that is going to be important, i don't think it's a left/right alignment as much as everybody wants to say it is. i think it has to do with how you attack the problem and can you get things done? that's what we'll see. >> is it as simple as trying to figure out, is trump a symptom? or is trump the main problem? is that the biggest difference between why a democratic voter picks sanders or nonsanders?

>> i think everyone on the democratic side agrees he's the main problem. go back to this poll, you see the president's had his best ratings he's gotten from us in the nbc/wall street journal poll. against that, he loses to all five of the democrats so we can worry about what the democrats are doing and where they're at, at this stage in the game, it's the president that has the major problem in front of him. >> peter, you did an outstanding job not letting on who you think is going to win this nomination. >> never do. >> peter hart, we needed you to explain this mess more than we usually do, thanks for coming on and doing it. what do the candidates need to do on that stage behind me tomorrow night? i'll ask the dean of nevada politics and a debate co moderator next. president trump just gave

executive clemency to rod blagojevich and a few other controversial figures. why it says so much about the post impeachment white house. more "meet the press daily" to come live here from las vegas. to present to you today. [son]: who are you talking to? [son]: that guy's scary. the first item on the list is selecting a chairman for the... for the advisory board what's this? as well as use the remaining... child care options run out. lifetime retirement income from tiaa doesn't. guaranteed monthly income for life. ♪ applebee's new irresist-a-bowls now starting at $7.99. now that's eatin' good in the neighborhood. are you currently using a whitening toothpaste, but not seeing results?

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welcome back, as we mentioned our new poll shows that bernie sanders peers to have the inside track right now for the democratic fwhom nation, that combined with concerns about his electability could make him the prime target on the debate stage tomorrow night. then again michael bloomberg is making his first appearance. with me now, one of my fellow moderators for tomorrow night's debate, john rall stock. also with me is neer tandin. i want to start with you, neer,

i want you to respond to something kevin said yesterday talking abouten saddersp he was narrowing the race down, at this point the primary is bernie's to lose and bernie's to win. bernie knows this, that's why they are united in the campaign against mike. you loot at our poll and his bank account. and you understand why the bloomberg campaign's made that analysis. do you agree with it? >> i mean, obviously, vice president biden in your poll is still in this race. there are many moderates and senator sanders has brought together the left liberal lane of the democratic party. he's consolidated that more than the moderates have been able to consolidate. and in an individual state, you've seen an alternative with

pete buttigieg in iowa and new hampshire. now we're in -- now we're in a more diverse state like nevada, and you go into super tuesday, and i think if there's going to be an alternative, there has to be one or two alternatives on that day, otherwise, it's set up well for sanders. >> i haven't seen the same left right argument here. how would you describe it? >> well, what's reilly amazing is elizabeth warren who was considered on the left with bernie, right? has almost disappeared from the conversation. she's almost seen in the moderate lane now compared to bernie, it hasn't happened, but bernie has tried to make it left right with bloomberg. he's not even even talking about -- he's not on the ballot here, and bernie keeps talking about bloomberg, he loves the contrast with bloomberg. one thing about biden which i think is interesting. biden's people are sensitive that the media narrative is that

he's dead. he is going to be dead unless he changes the electra correctry of the race. >> they were trying to say second place minimum? >> yes, absolutely. if he finishes in third, fourth or fifth. he also ran in the first three states, how do you make an argument that he's viable. they're pouring a ton of resources in here. i don't think it's impossible that he finishes second here. >> let me put up the head to heads. the 24i7b8g that jumps out is this, biden does the best against trump, he's up 8 and more importantly, he is the only person ahead in the spring states outside the margin of error as well. he has an 8 point lead in the swing states. it goes down to one, it's dead

even in the swing states. biden still has this general election strength with voters, even as gms are starting to peel away from him. >>. >> yeah, i think this is the conundrum when you look at iowa. vice president biden still did the best against trump in iowa, a state that had seen all the candidates for a year. senator sanders didn't do that well in iowa against trump. voters are measuring how candidates are doing on the stump. and so they're making that kind of analysis, the vice president has one of the strongest arguments, i think you'll see over the last couple weeks, a lot of the moderates have been fating a lot of the moderates. with the polls, senator sanders being so far ahead, i think you'll see a lot of criticism and focus on bloomberg, i would

imagine there would be some focus on sanders too. i think the challenge for moderates is, they keep fighting each other, and that's given senator sanders a strong opportunity to move. >> what's the biggest -- what do you think the biggest mistake the media narrative is getting right now? >> i think that it is a mistake to say joe biden is done, we're talking about bernie versus bloomberg, you have to give the bloomberg folks credit for that, pretending biden doesn't exist. you although he was the moderate alternative, he's strong in the polls. i'm the guy, i'm the guy that -- >> bernie doesn't want to deal with biden. they like biden, they don't like bloomberg. >> he loves it, the contrast between him and bloomberg. >> very quickly, do you think

they'll go after bloomberg -- >> no. >> does he have an endorsement from anybody he hasn't given money to? >> i can't speak to his endorsement, but he's going to have to defend his record as much as anyone else in the race. i think there's been plenty of criticism over the last couple days and weeks, and i suspect you'll see a fair amount of that. i think tomorrow is a big day for him to show he can throw a punch too. >> we're going to find out. john ralston, you guys are going to stick around. two former 2020 candidates are endorsing two current 2020 candidates, we'll talk to bill de blasio and julian castro. ougg ougg my moderate to severe crohn's disease. until i realized something was missing... me. you ok, sis? my symptoms were keeping me from really being there

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they get that no two people are alike and customize your car insurance so you only pay for what you need. what do you think? i don't see it. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ othroughout the country for the past twelve years, mr. michael bloomberg is here. vo: leadership in action. mayor bloomberg and president obama worked together in the fight for gun safety laws, to improve education, and to develop innovative ways to help teens gain the skills needed to find good jobs. obama: at a time when washington is divided in old ideological battles he shows us what can be achieved when we bring people together to seek pragmatic solutions. bloomberg: i'm mike bloomberg and i approve this message.

welcome back to "meet the press damely" live from las vegas, where we're holding our debate tomorrow night. sanders is facing a new challenger on the debate stage tomorrow night, joining me now is a new york city mayor bill de blasio, who recently endorsed senator sanders for president. he's the guy that replaced him as mayor. welcome back to the show, sir. let me ask you this let me start

with, if you look at our poll, you see opportunity for sanders and the potential hurdles, do you feel like he's done enough, when you consider the reservations people have about a cathdy date of a certain age. reservations about the issue of socialism? how important is it do you think that bernie sanders start dealing with these potential problems that could be exploit ed sooner rather than late summer. >> let's talk about each one. he has tremendous support in the democratic party unbelievable energy for bernie, unbelievable ground game. he's clearly inspiring democratic voters. i don't think people are hesitating at all. let's talk about those things. moved of the major candidates and the current president of the united states are all in their 70s, i don't think the electorate is holding back

support from different people for that reason. bernie sanders had a health issue, he dealt with it, he was open about it, but he's also one of the most vigorous candidats s to the question of his values, i think his consistency, people really want to know you're real, they want to know you believe in something, whoever you are in public life, and they want to know you're not lying for opportunism and what they see in bernie is someone who really believes in what he's saying, there's a strong understanding of that, and even folks who may not share all of his ideology, appreciate his honesty and consistency. i think thatp help him in the long run. >> do you share his ideology? >> look, i am a progressive and a democrat, and i'm someone who believes we need to make a lot of changes in this country. i'm not scared of anyone who likes that label. it's not what i happen to use, but i respect folks who use that

label. when you look at the policy -- >> do you think the labels are interchangeable? do you think they are? >> i think they are less and less problematic, if you will. i talked to people all over this country, and this is not the cold war any more, when people talk about a democratic socialism, which i think could be called social democracy, something i do align with, what it means is, that we have a society that's fair to people and provides civil rights and economic rights, i think a lots of americans believe in that, especially since the great recession, the newer generation has come up and are comfortable with those notions. one thing that's crucial is bernie's stance over the years, really was ahead of the curve in understanding a lot of the dangers facing this country and working people. i think there are a lot of

americans who are not hung up on the label. they're much more interested in what do you stand for and have you been on the right side of these big issues? bernie can say, for decades and decades, he's been talking about working people. and a need for society that focuses on working people first. i don't think there's a lot of people who doubt him on that. >> i know you rang in a campaign that was the most anti-bloomberg of the campaigns that's why you won the primary. you separated yourself in a way, saying this was going to be a big change from the michael bloomberg mayorality. if he's the democratic nominee, are you ready to enthusiastically vote for him? >> i'm one of the people that will support the nominee. when i ran for mayor, we needed something much different.

the relationship between the police and our community separated. really negative. i spent six years undoing what he did. and this is the democratic party, chuck. this is a mayor who attacked teachers and teachers oong ons throughout his tenure. who helped out big real estate developers not working people. when you look at his record, people are going to get to know it, and they're going to say, this doesn't sit with where the democratic party is today. >> do his apoths and conversions matter to you? >> no, when you have someone who for years and years stood by something like stop and frisk, it was a racially divisive policy that denigrated young men of color. and he was defending it as recently as last year. i don't buy that. look, i think this is what people are going to focus on. they're going to say what kind of party are we? what kind of country do we want to have? one of the things bernie has gotten right here, he said to people, we do not have to live with a status quo that doesn't

work for us. we can go some place better. he talks about a green new deal. he talks about an economy that works for everyone, that's where democrats are right now, that's where a lot of independents and republicans are. look at the polling on taxing the wealthy. a huge percentage of republicans and independents think it should be taxed more as well. you're going to see bernie able to make a lot of inroads into the trump base. i think the discussion has been wrong, i think he can excite the democratic base, but he can make inroads with working class people who are really frustrated and veered away from trump in 2016, that can be brought back when they hear a voice that they think is actually about them. >> in our poll, some of what you're suggesting you do see in there, he does better with a certain type of independent voter. does better with some trump interested voters, if you will.

there's something there, it's a different imagine, a different path. mayor de blasio, thank you for coming on and sharing your views. i appreciate it. >> thank you, chuck. let me bring in one of the senior advisers for the biden campaign. >> greetings. >> your important has been un abashed. we need a second place finish here in nevada, because you need momentum in south carolina. why do you need that momentum going into south carolina. are you afraid that democrats are starting to window shop, if you will? >> well, chuck, i -- we're not concerned we are in danger in south carolina, we feel good about our operation john kerry will be in the state this week along with the vice president's

sister on our nation's bus tour, dr. biden was here on monday. we feel good about our nomination. we did some dry runs this past weekend. more than 150 ships were scheduled. there's energy in the state for joe biden, we're excited and we just look forward to the vice president doing well in nevada on saturday, and getting on to south carolina. >> are you concerned that in some ways mayor bloomberg's campaign has tried to push bide ing out of the race, to the point of -- bernie's playing along with it too, both bernie and bloomberg benefit from it for now. >> i find it so ijting, because mike bloomberg has not won a delegate. he's not on the ballot in a single state. he's not graced the debate stage. he's unvetted and spent the bulk of this week weathering headlines, if you will on

everything of his advocation of stop and frisk to sexual harassment in his country to today what he's said about transgender people in america. honestly, i think while the bloomberg campaign and whomever else would like to imagine a world where vice president biden is not a viable candidate, the reality is, he is. there's only one person who's ready to be kmarnder in chief on day one, and that is joe biden. we look forward to seeing everyone on the debate stage tomorrow night to have a conversation on health care, guns and the issues in between. >> are you concerned at this point that the african-american vote is being split bring michael bloomberg? and in some ways it's because his advertising makes it look as if barack obama has put his arm around bloomberg, it was bloomberg who was his running mate at times? i know some former obama staffers are scratching their

head about it, considering in 2012 it was hard to get bloomberg to endorse him. is that a discussion on your campaign, you haven't made enough of the obama ties? >> he was loyal to president obama for eight years, stood behind him as his vice president. look, i really reject the notion that we should be concerned and that mayor bloomberg has made inroads when he's yet to be vetted. it's a chance for folks across the country to see these candidates for who they are. and looking at joe biden, you see that he's a person to have a track record in the african-american community. he's not someone that woke up a couple years ago, and decided to get engauged and evolved, he's been evolved from the beginning, and the totality of his record and what he's done is part of the reason president obama picked him as his vice president. what i would say is, i would

remind folks that joe biden is not new to this, but also the reality is, that mayor bloomberg, not only did he decline to or struggle to endorse president obama in 2012, i mean, he disbarjed landmark legislation of the obama presidency, the affordable care act. right now, you got donald trump and the courts trying to take it away, you have senator sanders and other folks in this race saying, we don't need obamacare, we have medicare for all. joe biden is the only person in this race that will defend the health care that americans need and wants and build on that success with the public option. we have to get real about what people are running on and who they are. and you can look forward to vice president biden doing that on the debate stage tomorrow. >> i know i'm looking forward to watching this debate. >> it's going to be good, chuck. >> trust me as moderators, we're

doing a lot less talking. we're going to let them do the talking. thank you very much. up next, we speak with former presidential candidate, julian castro, who's throwing his support to elizabeth warren. we're going to ask him a lot about nevada coming up. prepared. at fidelity, we can help you build a clear plan for retirement without the unnecessary fees you might expect from so many financial firms. we'll make sure you can cover the essentials, as well as all the things you want to do. because when you have a retirement partner who gives you clarity at every step, there's nothing to stop you from moving forward. ♪ here's wishing you the bluest sky ♪

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welcome back to debate stage. it's set for tomorrow night. joining me now is former secretary of housing and urban development, former presidential candidate, julian castro, he's endorsed elizabeth warren. hugh are you doing some. >> i'm doing great? >> let me start with you were widely seen as having one of the best organizations here, you were a bit frustrated that there wasn't a lot of attention paid to nevada really until this week. >> well, you're right, even in a lot of the media conversations, what happens is, people talk about iowa, new hampshire, of

course. and occasionally south carolina. >> that's right. >> but we were campaigning everywhere, and the good news is, for senator warren, she has taken up that mantle and been campaigning throughout the state, even in rural communities in nevada, which is going ton serve her well. >> what did you learn about the voters here that's different. what's been unique? >> often times they have a different perspective in nevada. one of the heaviest hit by the crisis. the recovery here was slower than in most places. 24 is a place, especially clark county, las vegas, with folks who are transplants. as opposed to iowa and new hampshire, they have a much higher percentage of people who were born and grew up there. you have a lot of people that come in and out of las vegas, and you have a good mix of people who were born and bred

here. >> elizabeth warren's campaign has i just heard for one of her big supporters. she's getting lost. it's about what's going on with bloomberg or biden's campaign. there's a lot of reasons why amy klobuchar is on the rise. what does she have to do here. >> i think she's going to do well. i stop predicting what's going to happen in this race a while ago. >> i hate when people push me. >> i visited a town about 1:15 minutes away called parump. and i saw there a lot of enthusiasm for her, people that were going out block walking, canvassing, calling their neighbors, talking to their family and friends. she has support in the state that is deep, not only clark county.

but throughout nevada. this is also -- you talked about a much more diverse state. she's reached out to different communities. >> nobody is more articulate about this issue of wealth if you will. no matter where you sit, no one wants to debate elizabeth warren on financial issues. >> that's true. >> i have to assume there's opportunity for this campaign with michael bloomberg on this stage. elizabeth warren's campaign i would argue is framed around dealing with the michael bloomberg's of the world not as a candidate, but the billionaires. >> you have michael bloomberg, basically someone that was called by the new york times as the most outspoken defender of wall street, and in elizabeth warren, someone who has been fighting for every day americans for consumers, for folks who are losing their homes and housing crisis. she's been on the side of the american people. and bloomberg has been making excuses for the status quo.

tomorrow when they debate, you're going to have two different visions for america. hers is a vision that for all the rest of us can prosper. >> in, no, no. i've got a wealth tax. i'm on this side now. what do you make of these sort of late conversions? >> look. i think that he is the closest thing we have to a donald trump on the democratic side. >> wow! >> if you look at his weaknesses. stop and frisk. today i saw on fox news that trump has his folks going out there and pointing out bloomberg's network. stop and frisk -- >> there are a lot of people out there that think that -- maybe the best thing we can do is nominate a billionaire like bloomberg, because he has the resources. i think if you look at his record on race, on wall street, all of these sexual harassment complaints that were filed against him, he settled and has

hush agreements with women on. he is donald trump's wet dream. donald trump wants to run against the guy that has all of this baggage on exactly the issues where trump can suppress the vote like he did in wisconsin, michigan and pennsylvania. so he's able to regain his electoral college victory. >> michael bloomberg is the worst candidate? >> he has a lot of baggage. and he gives trump an opportunity to win back the electoral college. >> i think it's going to be a fascinating debate tomorrow night. you have to be careful getting into a financial debate with elizabeth warren or on that stage, it could be interesting. >> thanks for coming on as well. we'll be right back. you don't believe me? hop in. good lookin' pickup, i will say that. oh wow. silverado offers an optional technology package with up to 15 different views - including one enhanced view that makes your trailer appear invisible.

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introducing new tide power pods. one up the toughest stains with 50% more cleaning power than liquid detergent. any further questions? uh uh! nope! one up the power of liquid with new tide power pods. welcome back to "meet the press daily" from las vegas. president trump has matched his highest approval rating even though the majority of voters believe his post impeachment behavior and actions are inappropriate. so is trump politically stronger than ever and how does that impact the democratic primaries? i want to start with you. the president will do what did he in the first two. have a rally out here. nevada is a state that the trump campaign would like the put into play. you remind me about once a week clark county voter registration numbers that the republicans have already lost this state. i'm being a little facetious. trump is making a little national comeback.

what does it take for nevada to feel it in. >> that i think the trump campaign's premise here, and the clark county las vegas numbers, that's where two-thirds, three quarters of the votes are. we'll see more after the caucuses because of same day registration. there's no way the state should be in play for trump. i think what they're banking on now, they think that bernie will be the nominee. or they have that bernie is going to be the nominee. that puts nevada in play. i'm not so sure they're right. >> do you buy that bernie would put in it play? >> i don't necessarily buy that. >> i don't even happening with conventional wisdom is. trump will hold this rally. thousands at the las vegas convention centers. why do you think it is out of realm of possibility that he says, go caucus tomorrow and caucus for bernie. the kind of thing he would do. >> when you look at the president's numbers, a majority

oppose it. 53% believe his actions since he was impeached are not appropriate. only 20% have called him appropriate. you look at the numbers. he looks stronger even as you try on hold him accountable. what does that do to democratic morale? >> i mean, look. i think the president was always going to say that he was acquitted. and this is a moment i think a lot of democrats sort of expected after the trial. his behavior has been highly questionable since. he obviously feels unbowed. you look at what he did today, pardoning people who engaged in political corruption. so i do think this is an interesting moment in the party. which is the party has been focused on electability for most of the last year.

there is, i think, really a gut check time whether they are really going to think about electability given where we are. trump, a lot of democrats, a lot of liberals thought trump is easy to beat. we're now at a moment where he seems harder to beat. who is the best candidate who can put together a broad coalition that includes moderates and liberals to actually defeat him? i think that's the big question. i think that his strength could actually affect how people vote over the next several weeks. >> i think it does have a little impact. is it better to make an economic argument against trump or a character argument? >> well, the character arguments have all been made, it seems to me and they don't stick. >> they're already stuck. remember, nevada was as down as any state with the great

recession. the democrats control the state. they've touted the economic come back so it is tough to make the argument against trump unless you make the bernie like, a utility. it is systemic. not everyone is benefiting. there are people being left behind which is what i think they'll do. >> is that the issue? what should be the case? how would you, what do you think the case should be? >> i think the case is on health care and economic issues, people are still facing a squeeze. i think this has been one of the problems in the primary. they haven't debated how to get economic growth to people enough. it is really important to talk about inequality. we have to talk about how we'll make people's lives better with better jobs.

>> the whole middle class out approach. thank you both. we'll be right back live from las vegas. first, we have a whole new digital tool on show off. choose political paths to white house victory. create your own election scenario. we've done a bunch of these. we've got our own snario. got a how biden winds. there's all sorts of crazy scenarios or do you your own. check it out now. ♪ applebee's new irresist-a-bowls now starting at $7.99. now that's eatin' good in the neighborhood.

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that's all we've got from "meet the press daily." look at this set. at the end of the day, it's a great set. that's what all the debates should look like. all our other colleagues, they know msnbc has the best. joining us live beginning at 9:00 eastern. good evening, ari. >> good evening, chuck. we begin with the firestorm over president trump allegedly corrupting the justice department. president trump using his part power for 11 convictions officials, including a public official convicted of abusing his power and a billionaire convicted of 98 counts of racketeering and fraud. they say it is audacious. these are trump pardons for the powerful, for the rich, the use of the pardon power benefiting people literally convicted of