rachel maddow will start the pre-debate coverage at 8:00 p.m. brian williams and i will pick it up at 11:00. don't go anywhere. stick with us all evening long. my thanks for today's hour to donna, a.b. corinne. "mpt daily" with chuck todd starts now. ♪ if it is wednesday, it is debate night in las vegas and the stage you see right now is set for what could be quite a night. perhaps the most consequential debate so far. good evening. i'm chuck todd. welcome to "meet the press daily" and las vegas where we're hours from now on the debate stage and my colleagues and myself will be among the moderators of a closely watched contest. posing questions to democratic

a chaotic start to this season. one very notable newcomer, former new york city mayor michael bloomberg checking out this stage just a few hours ago. his campaign says it is expecting to be attacked by virtually everyone up there tonight including, of course, bernie sanders debating for the first time as the clear front-runner in the national polls and every candidate tonight has to make a strategic decision and focusing on contrast with the front-runner sanders or bloomberg or maybe both or neither. that's the dilemma of every candidate not named bloomberg or sanders and joe biden exchanging attacks with the bloomberg campaign and whatever tact they take tonight to shape the p trajectory of the race and not giving away secrets, i'll be speaking very little and reporters speaking a lot. top democratic strategist from

the campaigns, the folks including we'll be hering from bloomberg's campaign manager. going to be a lightning round jam-packed hour. everything you need to know coming from the contributors here and starting with the four road warriors here with me on set. as we countdown the debate, josh lett letterman with michael bloomberg. ali vitale with elizabeth warren. shaq is all things bernie sanders and mike memoli with joe biden. shaq, is bernie sanders seeing an opportunity tonight with bloomberg on stage that he is going to have a shield in michael bloomberg? >> almost like they see that they see that campaign. i was speaking with his campaign manager yesterday and made the point that bloomberg is a natural foyle. it was pete buttigieg and before that to target but senator

sanders with a billionaire there from front of him willing to more naturally willing to put the attack on and hearing a sense of that on the campaign trail over the past week. gone after mayor bloomberg aggressively on stop and frisk, the impact on african-americans and latinos, the opposition to a minimum wage, a key part of sanders' campaign in 2016 and the openness to cutting social security and medicare and not only go after bloomberg spending in the race but specific policy issues. >> mike, joeb biden campaign pu out best of bloomberg if you will. are they telegraphing that they view bloomberg as more important to take down tonight than bernie sanders who looks like he is about to take off? >> bigger imperative for the biden campaign to take down bernie sanders, worried that he develops a delegate lead that no

one can surpass. you have to knock out the moderate. they have to knock out bloomberg the big obstacle over his campaign for the last month and not been on a ballot yet and the trick is biden did not have some great debates, mostly forgettable. i think what they have said about that in the past is he struggled to go against fellow democrats. it is not in his wheelhouse and convinced him that your two opponents are a republican and -- >> i was like whoa, he read the tom steyer oppo? >> yeah. >> three or four debates ago. it just cut him off at the knees. >> the idea of buying an election is -- bloomberg it is easier for him. >> ali, elizabeth warren's campaign is not been happy about the media narratives in general.

ego maniacal billionaire? >> not mincing words. >> bernie sanders is also in her way. >> i think that's sort of a dual approach tonight. we know that on both fronts, she is disciplined, she knows when she is departing from the norm and did that this week. she was comfortable drawing contrast with sanders and with the unity candidate pitch days, it was bloomberg always fair game for her and they feel like bloomberg's a good foil. to go by lanes, bernie is progressive. bloomberg is moderate. she wants to bridge both of the lanes and bridge a coalition. you will have to go after both of thome. the stakes are higher than they've ever been. they see there's a tangible path and bump from doing well on did debate stage and you could hear it after she got off the last debate stage and said she didn't fight enough or show enough she wanted this job. i think tonight is different. >> pete or bloomberg first? you have to be the pete reporter first which is he's somebody

else that feels like is getting lost here in this conversation. >> yeah. it is a remarkable state of affairs. you have someone who came out of obscurity and placed dead even with bernie sanders in the first state, did well in the second state and yet not talking about him barely. >> the delegate leader. >> and yet, he is almost an afterthought in the way to cover the race. >> what is the plan for tonight to not be an afterthought? >> they want to put him forward in his best light, explaining who he is when he's explaining why he is a fresh face, different than what's a whole lot of people over 70 standing on that stage. >> all right. mr. bloomberg. it sounds like they have been -- do they view this in some ways as he could really hurt himself tonight with -- they seem to be a little bittner vous about how things go tonight. >> there's not a ton of upside to him being in this. if it is about the message he can accomplish that by spending

hundreds of millions of dollars on the air. and he is. his campaign does see an opportunity in drawing a contrast with trump as he's coming under attack on the different issues that shaq enumerated to say we have a president right now who won't apologize for anything. never admit he is wrong and americans seem to want someone willing to admit when they have made a mistake and also see that for michael bloomberg if he spends the day apologizing and defending himself that's not a great look for him either and looking to quickly turn this into going on the offensive. >> bernie sanders one focal point tonight. just bloomberg. not interested in anybody else? >> he will continue to get the attacks from other candidates and something you have seen in the other debates, has to defend most likely medicare for all, the price tag of many of his policy proposals. so you're getting the sense to defend his policies but in terms of the attack that's where the -- >> the sfreng ftrength for bide hitting immigration, guns, but

sanders is happy to mix it up with him, as well. >> don't you also sort of feel like, though, the spontaneous moments we tack about after the debate, born of hours of prep on the part of the candidate. with michael bloomberg, too, there's two ways to go. hurt them and take them back to gravity comes into play and takes them down or it can elevate them. i agree with you and any press is good press and a lot of press for bloomberg tonight. >> i'm curious. have the candidates mentioned there's a debate next week, too? look. i think i like our debate to be the single most important debate. >> isn't it? >> okay. hard stop. but it seems as if, you know, if you have one strategy that you're thinking you test one this week, might do another one noex week, have you gotten a sense from the candidates they realize this is maybe a two parter? >> i feel like for mike and i maybe our candidates are taking it warren and biden very week by

week. this debate night is i think higher stakes for her than it's ever been because nevada she needs to show that she still has energy here. >> she has to something to pop here? >> yeah. i think that tonight that's it. like the debate stage next week is its own thing. >> for sanders, you can extend it beyond the debate. lock at the schedule. going beyond the states of nevada and south carolina. been in colorado, california, going to texas. so he's looking and making a super tuesday play rath ethan focusing on the -- >> we have been talking about biden in nevada, needs a good debate for a new result on saturday so that he can raids enough money to spend in super tuesday and keep himself afloat. >> two candidates running all over the place. pete to vacuum up money and bloomberg trying to run the super tuesday strategy. >> we talk about how these national polls are not predictive. but this is about to become a national race on super tuesday and that's where people able to just swarm throughout the air

waves like michael bloomberg and tom steyer have an advantage. >> i read today, josh, michael bloomberg now has the largest mississippi presidential campaign in the history of mississippi. >> when you look at the numbers -- >> just saying it is like -- it is -- not a state he's left untouched. >> 2,400 people working for a campaign. >> paid staffers. >> people not getting paid just a few dollars here and there. people well paid people who are out there both in his headquarters an in every single state that's going to be at play in super tuesday. >> what is elizabeth warren's -- she does well here, then what? south carolina or she suddenly going it's super tuesday time and gloss over south carolina? >> i think it is a super tuesday strategy r. you in this until then? she said it's for the long haul. that's true. over about 1,000 staffers, 31 states. they have people on the ground and they have had them earlier than a lot of other campaigns

have. the theory of the case is grassroots. in new hampshire talked about the thousands of doors they knocked and didn't do well. in iowa, ground game. she was supposed to have one of the most respected ground games on the ground in iowa. >> the super pact decision -- come out of desperation? >> they haven't changed the policy but i just found it interesting in the statement they weren't specifically speaking to this persist pact and then talking to a source involved with the pac they're not campaigning with the campaign through public tweets or anything. >> beautiful bio spots. >> they feel like, the pac's view is isn't win the presidency and change campaign finance laws. >> warren already going after her. >> everybody has a superpac. >> it's not a superpac. it's a nonprofit. we have gone back and forth over that. >> they don't release the donors.

>> anonymous donors and dark money, the main point. but you see in emails to supporters going after listing amy klobuchar and linking them with elizabeth warren. >> all superpacs now. what pac wouldn't consider itself good or fairly good? we need two joshes. your altar ego. sorry that you had to do double duty there but thank you. up ahead, talking to representatives of a number of candidates on the stage tonight. first up, michael bloomberg's enterprise. you are watching live from las vegas. the better question would be where do i not listen to it. while i'm eating my breakfast... on the edges of cliffs... on a ski lift... everywhere. ♪ download audible and start listening today.

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nationally and the campaign said he is ready, quote, for incoming fire tonight. bloomberg campaign manager kevin sheekey joins me now. welcome to the show. >> thank you. >> your campaign is now fully engaged so -- >> indeed we are. >> let's start with this. yesterday you made the case that this is a two-person race. it's about sanders and bloomberg. nobody else is viable. you went after joe biden today. if joe biden is irrelevant to you, why waste campaign resources attacking him? >> i don't know we wasted campaign resources. joe biden put a little digital ad against michael bloomberg and we put up a digital ad thanking him and the nice things he said about michael bloomberg in the past but what you said is correct. listen. normally, chuck, and you are a student of politics and the case since 1976, you are after new hampshire have a front-runner and somebody trying to catch up and the primary is over. that's what history shows us. obviously michael bloomberg

chose to launch a national campaign. my theory was that we would have bernie sanders in first and then michael bloomberg in second. that is not the case. the math is very simple for people to understand delegate math. there are two people who can ultimately win because it's so front loaded particularly because california on super tuesday. we did release a memo which demonstrated that fact and we need to think about who that candidate is and who best takes on donald trump in november. >> if this is four or more candidates come super tuesday, do you believe it's impossible to stop bernie sanders? >> i think it's an enormous problem, yeah. to be frank with you. bernie sanders is running against about four and a half candidates who would be a centrist lane to the democratic party. and obviously he represents in my view a minority of the party on the left side of that spectrum. and because of the way that the rules are established and because of what you need which

is called threshold, 15% of the vote in any particular congressional district, yeah, an enormous advantage because a lot of candidates still running fall below that threshold and bernie could win with 30%, 35% of the vote. >> is it fair to say if you don't have the delegate lead by the end of the march you have no path to the nomination? >> you know, might get stronger going through the math if this calendar is upside down and started with jersey and moved to new york, connecticut, delaware, maryland. >> yeah. would have, could have, should have. >> yeah, yeah. but listen -- >> that is not the way it is. >> no. the point is to answer your question might get stronger going through the calendar but i think your question is an important one and falling too far behind too early, yeah it is extraordinarily difficult to catch up the way the rules are written. >> so you guys are expecting to be attacked tonight. if you were in their shoes,

would you do it, too? >> i think we have to take a little bit of a step back. i have watched cable coverage all day. it occurs to me before i sat down that the winner is donald trump. he gets to sit back in the white house and look at democrats fighting, to decide who's attacking who, michael bloomberg or the fear that michael bloomberg attacks back. it is an enormous advantage for him. we have to look at the candidate's record. mike will be defending his. i think he's done more for progressive causes in his public life than everyone on the stage combined. some point we do need to come together as a party to get behind someone to win in november and i worry a lot that we are taking some major steps back in that effort. >> you said something yesterday, you said, oh my god, there's a mountain of oppo on bernie sanders. do you believe the primary is better served for the nominee everybody unloaded everything

prevails on the democratic side and that this o 3po doesn't stick in the fall? >> you know, i think campaigns are always better positive mess attacking others. i think bernie sanders has run an extraordinarily negative campaign. the emails you see from the campaign and the quotes from his spokes people as early as this morning saying blatant lies of michael bloomberg fall into that category. ran a negative campaign against hillary clinton and she chose not to reply but to your question i think we would be vastly better talking about what we wanted to do and not tearing each other down. >> right. but it sounds like you're saying there's a mountain of oppo. is that a threat to sanders? is that a threat to the party? what were you trying to imply with this? >> well, you know, listen. mike's a new yorker. i think he's shown this to

donald trump. if you get hit, you hit back and what he's brought to the president. the president figured out that michael bloomberg is the strongest competitor to him in november and why we see so many attacks by the president this week. i think why we see the president talking about how he feels sorry for bernie and the democratic party has in his view treated bernie sanders. i think he is trying to put the finger on the scales of an election. a campaign is a campaign. and obviously, you know, no one should expect to take hits at someone and not get hit back. >> kevin sheekey, you are not here in the middle of the debate scrum. >> we have a good team out there. i prefer the warm weather. >> fair enough. kevin, thank you. >> thank you. >> we'll hear from more campaigns and the political experts joining us with what they will be looking for tonight. much more "meet the press daily" live ahead from the vegas strip.

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welcome back. coming to you live from las vegas. the site of tonight's democratic debate. let's dive in here. joined here by jennifer palmeri, marie theresa kumar. welcome to you both. i thought, let's talk quickly about bloomberg tonight. i thought, i'll say it again, you came up with the most

fascinating construction. mayor bloomberg versus if i l philanthropist bloomberg. >> he has funded everything that the majority of progressives care about. march for our lives. planned parenthood. >> they have no idea how many things to thank michael bloomberg for. >> exactly. he has a unique mayor university bringing up a cadre of best practices for mayors in the country. but then juxtaposed with the policies of mayor when it was stop and frisk, the words on red lining, the comments that he's had with women and sexism and it is a really interesting to see the dichotomy of the two different individuals and curious to see who will emerge from that and i think what will connect is fe connects with the american people saying let's level with us. we are in a unique moment right now in american history. this is the vision for the day

after we defeat trump. >> jennifer, what do you -- it's interesting to me that you feel like all the candidates not named bloomberg or sanders telegraphing this bloomberg is the target. advising a candidate not bloomberg or sanders, both are problems for you, for biden. what would you be doing tonight? >> i think that you have to go after sanders because if he gets off tonight and he's going to win here, sure feels like h a b- >> he -- if you're not able to catch him. you know? not going to be able to catch him and amy klobuchar who i think has earned points being a really straightforward about the other candidates, very pure in that -- >> yes. >> to be really straightforward about sanders the way she was when she was the only person that raised her hand saying she was concerned of a socialist democrat at the top of the ticket and because if you don't

start getting him under 30 then you're not -- none of the people are able to catch up to him. everybody likes to be the person going after the billionaire, this's more popular in a democratic party they believe. but it's going to mean you are only bernie sanders is a nominee. >> what's the pitfall of going after sanders instead of bloomberg tonight? >> many of the folks that are on the stage are on the moderate bent and want to basically hurt bloomberg so they can pick up the voters to naturally come to them but by doing that you leave the field completely open to bernie sanders and i think that the only other person who would have been able to hobble him is elizabeth warren. >> i would love nothing to see a financial services debate between elizabeth warren and michael bloomberg. >> that's some great television. >> that's saying a lot about -- >> absolutely like i implore both of them. let's go do it.

that would be a lot of fun. that isn't going to happen tonight but she is in this interesting spot. bloomberg's a great foil more her in many ways and who she is thinking about writing half of her financial regulation policy. on the other hand bernie sanders is in the way. >> she is trying to do both. she is trying to say hitting bloomberg on corruption, that this is what i'm talking about talking about a corrupt government that's rigged. for the wealthiest. and pushing off against sanders and his -- the bernie bros and particularly in this state the way his supporters treated the head of the culinary workers union and i don't know. look. that woman is the really -- i think she is the most skilled communicator in the field and may able to take that on but the progress is keep defaulting to bernie and the stronger he gets the stronger he gets and seems it is harder for her. >> there's a lot of like for elizabeth warren in latino community and the african-american community and

not converted it to full-on support yet. >> the biggest issue that hurt her was the fact the iowa mess-up really clouded the fact she came in third. had folks going into new hampshire knowing she was a strong third she would have been in a better space and polls incredibly well with latinas and african-american women and folks want her on the top of the ticket and part of it is because again a lot of what should have been her juice coming out of iowa was missed. >> part of it is it's always harder for women. i see that she has bourn the brunt of the electability question and taken it head on and she believes she had to do but it's just harder for women and i've now written two books about this topic. >> no. i mean -- >> i think -- >> i should run as a woman candidate and running as a candidate who happens to be a woman. >> she gets the questions of people in the selfie lines and doesn't think she has an

alternative than to address it and maybe when she does she's helping amy klobuchar making that argument making that argument in new hampshire and then amy -- >> it is interesting because when you talk to not just folks on the ground but the donor class, the donor class in silic silicon valley is different than new york and espouse what elizabeth warren stands for and reticent thinking she can't beat bernie for michael bloomberg. >> if you're not sexist you can vote for a woman. >> i'm not saying but -- >> i'm not saying -- >> we have heard a lot of that. sneak in a break and talk to two members of congress. one backing joe biden and one backing pete buttigieg. what they'll watch for tonight. we'll have more right after this. ♪ applebee's new irresist-a-bowls

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what's your message to bloomberg? what's your message to

bloomberg? >> become a democrat. >> welcome back. live from las vegas. that was former vice president joe biden earlier today speaking to my colleague kristen welker. biden is in an online back and forth with michael bloomberg today. could be key for former vice president joe biden hoping to pick up momentum out of the nevada caucuses after disappointing finished in iowa and new hampshire. congresswoman, good to see you. >> you, too. >> we are blown away. 80,000 early vote, this is matching the turnout of four years ago. how big is turnout going to get? >> this first time we have had early voting in the caucus and we have it in the general election and people love it. 65% of people turn out early and doing -- fewer people that actually caucus on caucus night? >> i think there's no doubt about it. certainly a lot of seniors want

to do it now and get it over with. they can't stand around for three hours or so on saturday. >> your candidate joe biden, he just said in the clip that you couldn't hear it. what is your message for moib? he said, become a democrat. >> right. >> does joe biden not accept michael bloomberg as a democrat? >> he didn't endorse democrats using that impression just like obama. i think bloomberg's not a lot to answer for. you should ask him these questions of his record and the charges against him in business. we'll see how he answers. >> does the biden campaign view bloomberg as a bigger impediment to the nomination as bernie sanders? >> i think the campaign is looking at what joe biden's doing and not the other two candidates are doing in terms of opposition. we are putting together a broad coalition, talking about the issues, ready to hit the ground running. look strong here in nevada. head to south carolina and ready to roll into super tuesday.

>> got to be a strong second place and not a strong third place for joebld? >> i think he will be at the top of the list. i'm going around to the early sites. >> you feel confident? >> this is my district, the las vegas strip and we work some of the big hotels back at the house. people swarm him. taking a picture. he'll get broad support. >> what is -- is it, what is it that's bringing people over? electability message or hit or medicare for all? >> unions, building, trades and culinary don't want to give up what they have worked so hard to get. that's a factor but they also think he's the right person at the right time. he's a steady hand on the tiller, start from day one. will bring back respect internationally and heal us here. >> are you concerned? whether it's tonight or next couple of weeks to get super nasty? sanders, biden, bloomberg, it is

getting late early. super tuesday is a national primary. do you think it's better for the party to get it out now or to pull some punches? >> i think it's going to get nasty but it's been nasty. the president has been attacking joe biden since he got in the race. he risked impeachment to go after joe biden so that's one of his strengths that he can stand up and keep fighting back. >> are you comfortable with the democrats being the nominee? >> i certainly want to get rid of donald trump and all my constituents, too. too much is at stake to stay home. >> will bernie sanders carry your district? >> i don't think so. he'll get some votes out of the university. >> he'll do well in this district? >> i have one of the largest diverse districts in the state. large senior population and strong unions. culinary and building trades and some of those unions have endorsed him so i think that's the coalition that will turn out

and put joe over the top. >> do you think joe biden will win your district? if he win it is districts he win it is caucuses? >> that's the way it usually works. so everybody focuses on district 1. >> all right. tina titus, congresswoman right here, you heard it. your district do. or die, huh? >> see you tonight. >> see you tonight. joining me now is another member of congress, anthony brown, co-chair of the buttigieg campaign. good to see you. >> great to be on. >> so with the rise of bloomberg, with the rise of sanders, the delegate leader has gotten lost in the conversation. how does he plan on not getting lost in the conversation tonight? >> may have gotten lost on the msnbc and other news jou joutou where he's found is with the voters. building a generational diverse

coalition and now in nevada ethnically and racially diverse coalition. as voters hear the message, learn more about him we're excited about the level of support to see here in nevada and in south carolina. >> do you view this race sort of a way that michael bloomberg's campaign does which is there's bernie sanders and five candidates competing to be theal tern gnat bernie sanders? >> look. this is a diverse field and there's a characterization of like a moderate lane and progressive lane. you know? we're running on health care for expanding affordable quality health care. creating jobs. building a coalition that will not only beat donald trump but to govern successfully with the broad coalition post-trump era. we are not running against any other candidate. we are running for the voters. >> i understand that. is there a point? do you believe that it is imperative to prevent bernie sanders from winning the

nomination or can democrats win with bernie sanders at the top of the ticket? >> democrats better win with anybody at the top of the ticket and i think as tina mentioned, whoever the nominee is, we have to come together around the nominee because the first order of business is to beat donald trump. i think that pete with the background as a veteran, having served in afghanistan, in uniform, the only candidate that's done that, having successfully served and consistently as a mid-sized city mayor, he's got the judgment, character to beat donald trump. >> is there a lesson in maryland from a couple years back? >> probably talking the -- most recent cycle? we had a more progressive democrat run goeagainst an incumbent. >> painted him this way. didn't have the resources to fight back. does that concern you in maryland that could be successful? >> no. there's completely different. we had a republican governor who

was looking at 72% approval rating. i think that's what accounted for the result there. look. i think, you know, democrats will come together. you know? they're going to rally behind pete buttigieg as the nominee and we'll beat donald trump. >> pete buttigieg, what is doing well mean for him here in nevada? i assume since he's not finished lower than second the first two i would assume anything below that would be considered not good night. >> we're focusing on delegate count. we are leading in the count and between now and july that's the most important thing, the delegate count. so we want to take a good number of delegates out of nevada. with the combination of caucus and early voting, it is anybody's guess in terms of the numbers to look like. >> are you concerned, though, that michael bloomberg made it much harder for you guys to scale up on super tuesday? >> biggest concern of michael bloomberg in addition to the what's come up in terms of discriminatory attitudes --

>> do you accept him as a democrat now? >> well, we'll find out tonight. right? >> not sure if he is? >> he hasn't been on the campaign trail vetted by the voters, been in a back and forth. spent a lot of money on tv in a one-way communication with voters so my concern is, you know, is more whether or not the voters have an opportunity to hear from mayor bloomberg. they have heard from mayor pete for over a year now and that's why we did so well in iowa and in new hampshire. and i think we are going to beat expectations in both nevada and south carolina. as voters get to know candidates, they -- that's when you earn the support and what pete's been doing for 13, 14 months now and mayor bloomberg hasn't done any of that. >> there isn't evidence yet that he is the most electable candidate s. that going to be a problem in winning over voters as this centrist lane tries to coa les? >> i think that most of the our democratic candidates are going

to beat donald trump if they're the nominee. i say most. >> who are you leaving in? >> i know pete buttigieg is in there. >