that wraps it up for this hour. now i turn it over to reverend al sharpton at "politicsnation." good evening, and welcome to "politicsnation." tonight's lead, popularity contest, the third nominating contest of the democratic primary went to senator bernie sanders saturday. just like the first and the second. and after his projected victory last night in nevada's caucuses he now leads in the delegate count with 34 national delegates in the sanders column. entrance polls showing a lot of key demographics where democrats were on his side, not least of which being a resounding 53% win

with latino voters in the brownest state to nominate. but sanders and the other candidates standing with minority voters will definitely be tested. next weekend in south carolina's democratic primary, where the latest polling still has former vice president joe biden in the lead at 24%, with sanders in second place at 19%. but biden is still the overwhelming favorite to win the demographic litmus test of this contest. polling first among the state's black voters at 31%. but sanders is again second. but he's at 17%. one candidate not on the ballot in south carolina. former new york city mayor michael bloomberg, who had a rough first step into the national stage this week.

later in the show my exclusive interview with the candidate. his first, after this week's debate debacle. but first, can bernie sanders sustain his surge in the south or will there finally be a biden block? joining me is keith ellison, the attorney general for the state of minnesota, a former u.s. congressman, and a surrogate for the bernie sanders campaign. thank you for being on, keith. you and i know each other so i'll just say attorney general keith. >> good to see you, rev. >> big night for bernie sanders. but can he expand the base as he goes now into south carolina and into super tuesday, and if he does does he do it at the expense of losing some of his most avid supporters? >> well, you know, i think he's going to do it in south carolina. and i know that it's a stretch.

biden has been doing well in the polls. but i was just there, and i can tell you that there's a lot of enthusiasm for bernie sanders in the black community but i also went to a meeting with several hundred people and it was a multiracial group, people blacks, whites, muslims other folks, and even there he was very, very popular and people were very excited. so i think that bernie's momentum is carrying him in and i think that this win in nevada is going to help him in south carolina. i think that people are still making up their minds. there's a lot of undecideds, and i think that biden is in a stagnant place. he's trying not to lose and i think bernie is gaining because of momentum and i think he's answering the questions that every american has. can working class people do well in this economy as we've seen very wealthy people do extremely well over the last several decades. >> there's no doubt he has

momentum. but at the same time he was behind biden in nevada with black voters. he was six points behind with black voters. how does he deal with the question of the black vote, which is the overwhelming majority of the voters in south carolina? how does he close that race gap and why do you think there is that gap with black voters when we saw latino voters overwhelmingly vote for him in nevada? >> well, i think that, you know, a lot of people still have very, very fond memories of our president, barack obama and they associate mr. biden with him. but i think that bernie is surging. you know, bernie sanders is the only candidate running who was arrested in chicago in the '60s fighting for fair housing. he has a legitimate civil rights record and has proven, in many ways, that he is down for improving the climate of racial justice in america. >> but doesn't he have to deal with issues today, keith, the

'60s was 40 or 50 years ago. >> excellent point. >> when we talk about the working class there's a difference between working class blacks and working class whites in this country. doesn't he have to deal with those issues to attract more of the black community? you can't win the general election without a big black turnout. how does he address that? >> well, by doing exactly what he's doing. talking to people, engaging them. talking about things like maternal mortality and how medicare for all is going to help black mothers be healthier, more sustainable and abandon this system we have, by doing stuff like getting rid of college debt. we know black students carry more college debt than anyone else, by talking about the issues of raising minimum wage to $15 an hour. that's going to put money into african-american family's pockets. these are the issues that bernie sanders has been talking about for literally decades and

decades. he's credible on the point. which is why i mention the civil rights because i know we're talking about now, not then but, you know, it does matter that somebody just doesn't change their point of view in the moment. he has a record of fighting for racial justice and balancing the scales of opportunity for everybody. but by going out there, talking to folks, continuing to reach out. you know, i was at -- in south carolina, there's muslims in south carolina, it's african-americans and south asians who go there. they're excite about bernie sanders, their kids are voting for bernie sanders. he's talking to folks who haven't been included and i think a lot of african-americans are really excited about him. i can tell you this, myself and dr. cornell west were with african-american legislators, folks like justin bramberg.

these are black legislators in south carolina stumping for bernie sanders. >> bramberg, south carolina, for viewers that don't know, he's not talking about bramberg, germany. >> yes, south carolina. he's a great african-american legislator in south carolina. >> and i know him and bramberg well. i want you to listen to south carolina congressman jim clyburn who has a lot of sway in south carolina. this was him this morning on "meet the press." >> i think that bernie sanders brings a lot to the table for people to consider. so i know why he's nervous like that. anybody who refers to themselves as a democratic socialist, that word has always had really dire consequences throughout south carolina. >> how do you deal with what congressman clyburn said? is the fact that he calls

himself a democratic socialist, is that a dire word in your regard -- in your opinion with voters in south carolina? and if so, how do you deal with that? >> well, you know, if you have memories of, you know, the red scare, joe mccarthy, yeah, that word can be scary. but a lot of young people, what they know is that their student debt's too high, that they can't afford their pharmaceuticals and medicine and can't hardly go to the doctor without getting a giant bill. their pay is too low and they need change. because of that they're not so much worried about labels. i mean, you remember, so much -- the time that that word got infected with fear was a time that many young people don't remember, didn't live through. so i don't think for this new generation it has a level of stigma. what does have a lot of power to it is that people really cannot afford their lives in this

economy. people are dying because they can't afford their insulin and bernie sanders is talking about doing something about that. and to people are resonating with it. so i just -- you know, look, i got nothing but love for my dear friend jim clyburn. and i think his observation has power for people who live through that. but for a new generation i don't think it has the same kind of effect on folks and i think we're going to find saturday that there's a lot of young people who want to afford their lives, they want to live with dignity and respect. they want to have a future, and bernie sanders' program is offering that. >> i might add you did not support the candidate from your own state. and as always you beat to your own drum. >> she's a good friend though, love her. >> let's bring in the national co-chair for the pete buttigieg campaign. lamel is a long time civil rights activist. i just want to say that in full

disclosure. lamel, why did you go with pete buttigieg and how does he handle the fact that he did less than impressive in nevada? >> reverend sharpton, it's an honor to be with you, my friend, and very glad to serve with you in this path of civil rights and social justice. frankly, i think pete buttigieg is the best candidate in this race. he's sincere, he's authentic and i also think that he has the best comprehensive plan for the african-american community. as an entrepreneur, in addition to my civil rights work one of the things i'm very concerned about as an entrepreneur is a pathway to capital, to expand a business. part of our douglas plan, which you can see at pete for america, there is no other candidate that has a comprehensive plan to address the african-american community. and he is the best candidate to bring our country together. that's why i'm supporting him. >> but he also has had problems with the black community in south bend where he served as

mayor. and he's had complaints from some of those citizens on the firing of police chief and a police brutality situation. so he has a plan but he also has a history that is disturbing to some black voters. how do you confront that? >> yeah, absolutely. so look, being a mayor of a city is a tough job. you don't get -- you know, it's very different than being a legislator in d.c. when you're a mayor you're dealing with everyday, real issues and the fact that pete was a mayor that leaned in and left the city of south bend better than he found it and did not shy away from the tough issues of police brutality and all the other issues he had to face those are all reasons i'm actually supporting him. it's that keen insight into what everyday americans and the everyday issues that we have to deal with on the ground in the cities, bringing that kind of insight to washington, d.c. which is clearly broken and in need of a fresh start, why i'm

supporting pete buttigieg. i think a pete buttigieg administration would bring the fresh start we need for our country right now. >> pete buttigieg had much to say about senator sanders last night. listen to this. >> yes, sir. >> senator sanders believes in an inflexible, ideological revolution that leaves out most democrats, not to mention most americans. i believe we can defeat trump and deliver for the american people by empowering the american people to make their own health care choices with medicare for all who want it. we can prioritize either ideological purity or inclusive victory. we can either call people names online or we can call them into our movement. we can either tighten a narrow and hard core base, or open the tent to a new and broad and big hearted american coalition. >> does that mean pete buttigieg is now aiming his guns at bernie

sanders? because he is by no stretch he is the front runner now. and if he remains that way he will have to unite the party. is mayor pete now saying i'm going after him where they effectively went after michael bloomberg in the first debate. are we looking at buttigieg going after the front runner bernie sanders on tuesday night at the next debate in south carolina? >> well, rev, i so appreciate you playing that clip because you just got a chance to see and your listeners and viewers just got a chance to see and hear the heart of the man and why i'm supporting him. right now we need a unifying message. we need a candidate who can bring the country together, not someone trying to initiate some extreme revolution. as a matter of fact we need a real democrat, someone that has democratic values to lead our candidate and to defeat donald trump. that's why i'm supporting pete buttigieg. it's not about focusing on one

candidate or the other. it's the unifying message we need to take our country forward. now i'd like to go to my panel. amy holmes, speech writer for senator majority leader bill friss. and alexander -- a lot of the debate the other night was after bloomberg. and i think they did very well. i think he did very poorly. i'm going to show my interview with him where i confronted him and said what happened to him. i'll let that go for that part of the interview. but now that we see bernie sanders as the front runner, and he's built a movement, a transformative movement more than transactional candidates. i've said this all along. i'm not endorsing anybody.

are we going to see the fight to see who has the moderate lane by who can attack bernie sanders the more? >> i think that's right and the debate in south carolina will be a testament to who might have that capacity. and i don't think that it's about taking a dagger or a sword. i think it's about earnestly and gracefully differentiating yourself with powerful language, something that senator warren has not really swung at that bat yet and she'll have an opportunity in this coming debate to make that differentiate more plausible to the audience in a way that can power bernie's message but argue that she is actually best positioned to achieve the goals that he espouses. but i think democrats can't be fatalistic. they can't be defeatist. they have to understand there's a -- they have to together constitute the message

ideologically, ethnically and morally and spiritually. >> and gender wise. >> and we need to hear from senator sanders that he is aware that this is a two-deal -- you know, two-person deal. if he makes that argument in the next debate, or on the stump, i think it will reassure people that he understands that he needs a complimentary vp candidate and he can't simply nominate on a whim whoever his ideological partner is. >> amy, what are republicans -- you talked to them, you used to work for friss. some republicans are saying they want to see sanders as the nominee because they think he's the one that trump can easily beat. but as we see the momentum he's building up i don't know that that is going to -- you can be careful what you wish for. what are republicans saying at this stage? >> well, i think it's right that a lot of republicans would like to see bernie sanders as the nominee. they've done the opo research,

seeing the videos trickling out, for example when senator sanders said bread lines are good. they think he will be a good target. >> bread lines are good. >> in terms of would bernie sanders be the easiest to beat, i'm not so sure, rev. i covered bernie sanders' comeback rally in queens, across the east river. 25,000 people showed up, spilling into the streets. and contrary to a lot of of his critics, all of them were happy and excited about bernie sanders and there was very little trump bashing from the stage. it was really about bernie sanders' message that was resonating and i would also say that it was demographically and, you know, in terms of generationally very diverse, not the stereo type. >> it's an a generation --

>> and also ethnically. the store owe type from angry beer know bros, that's coming from -- that's not what i saw. >> bernie bros could possibly be, i understand the russians are trying to playpath in the sanders campaign and the trump campaign. so bernie bros may be imposed from other places but we'll see. >> we don't know. we'll have more with amy and alexander later in the show. but coming up my exclusive sitdown with 2020 presidential candidate michael bloomberg. he addresses his less than stellar first debate performance. and one of his most substantive answers on the use of stop and frisk during his time as mayor of new york, which i was one of those visible opponents to throughout that whole fight. but first my colleague richard lui with today's other top news stories. some of the stories we're watching this hour, the country is mourning the passing of a

legend, famed model, author and entertainer bea smith, she died peacefully surrounded by family at her long island home yesterday, this after a long battle with early onset alzheimer's. she became one of the first black women to grace magazine covers, she was a tv host. basically smith was 70 years old. the governor of new jersey phil murphy has announced doctors found a tumor on his kidney, likely cancerous. the 62-year-old maintains his prognosis is "very good" and that he'll undergo surgery to move the pass next month. he's a democrat, governor of new jersey since 2018. more "politicsnation" with reverend al sharpton right after the break.

at fisher investments, we do things differently and other money managers don't understand why. because our way works great for us! but not for your clients. that's why we're a fiduciary, obligated to put clients first. so, what do you provide? cookie cutter portfolios? nope. we tailor portfolios to our client's needs.

but you do sell investments that earn you high commissions, right? we don't have those. so, what's in it for you? our fees are structured so we do better when our clients do better. at fisher investments we're clearly different. oh no, here comes gthe neighbor probably to brag about how amazing his xfinity customer service is. i'm mike, i'm so busy. good thing xfinity has two-hour appointment windows. they have night and weekend appointments too. he's here. bill? karolyn?

nope! no, just a couple of rocks. download the my account app to manage your appointments making today's xfinity customer service simple, easy, awesome. i'll pass.

understand this, democrats take a huge risk. if we just substitute one arrogant billionaire for another. >> i'm spending that money to

get rid of donald trump. >> the worst president we have ever had. and if i can get that done it will be a great contribution to america and to my kids. >> former new york mayor mike bloomberg was taking fire from all sides wednesday night at the democratic debate and i had a front row seat. his opponents called him to account for his stances as mayor of new york and his questionable conduct as a private businessman. and the may your was rarely able to hit back. so after that disastrous performance i sat down with mr. bloomberg to find out where his campaign goes from here. he ended at what would ultimately be his decision this week to release three of his former employees from their corporate nondisclosure agreements. >> you tell me, what did you feel about your performance, and what can we look forward to? >> wasn't my best night. blame nobody but me.

in the end i get advise from people but it's up to me to decide what to do. what i found, they were all yelling at each other. and they weren't focusing on donald trump, which is what we should be focusing on in the democratic party and i didn't have a chance to really say what i wanted to say. have another debate coming up on tuesday. >> they brought up nda stop and frisk. are you going to release the ndas? >> i will talk about between now and then. >> you may do something different you're not going to say? >> i said i want to talk about between now and then. i want to keep you in suspense. >> even as bloomberg's opponents sharpen knives for him this week he himself didn't mention any names except for one, president trump. the issues that your opponents raised obviously they're making you the target. >> well, that's the good news is they think that i'm a threat. if they didn't think i was they wouldn't mention me.

so that's the good side of it. the bad news is you're the target and everybody's going to go after you. but, you know, i'm able to handle myself. and i'm very proud of what i've done in life. and my 12 years of experience in city hall. i think you would agree the city is a lot better than when i found it. my company has done very well. i give away an enormous amount of money. am i perfect? no, made mistakes. and i think the key is, if you make a mistake, to be mature enough to learn from it, ask for forgiveness. give an apology, but change. you can't rewrite history. people say i made a mistake and then stop there. then it hurts you twice. first that i think you made a mistake, second thing is you're not going -- you're going to make another mistake. i've got to learn every time. and i've been confident in

myself. enough to know i -- what i do well is i put teams together and i ask people and i delegate authority to go along with responsibility. and i'm not so proud that i think that i know everything. i think i can work harder than anybody else but i'm certainly not the smartest guy in the room. i want to know what did i do wrong, al, you tell me, i'll change, if i think it's the right thing to do, or if i don't, at least i'll know. i'll have another viewpoint. >> will you be attacking your opponents on their -- >> strategy, we'll see. i'd be happy to have some advice from you, however. what would you do? >> you know what i would do, what i done when you were mayor, when i disagreed, i was very vocal about it. one thing i would do is probably fire back. but, you know, you've got to do what bloomberg -- >> for 20 or 30 years you and i have been doing things together and all those times i was at the house of justice every mart tin luther king day, sometimes they

were nice to me and sometimes i got yelled at. >> and you handled being heckled and you handled being applauded. >> i got both there. there's different strategies of how you go about it. part of it is just how i feel. you can't role play everything. i'm in there, and i meet a -- i don't plan in advance what i say to him. it's how the conversation goes, sometimes you're in this mood, sometimes you're in that mood. >> let me ask you this. i want to get to -- the stop and frisk, you've apologized, said you regretted it. how do we repair the damage? >> part of the answer is, i've sat down with groups of clergy and business people. african-americans mostly. and asked their advice and asked for forgiveness. but listened to what they had to say. and everybody's got different views. i think what is clear is we had a policy, i was trying to stop 650 murders in new york city.

the policy got carried away. when i realized it, stopped it, cut 95% of it and then apologized. i've tried to meet with people who have been stopped. and people who their friends have been stopped to learn what it's like. i never had the experience and my daughters were never stopped. so i can't tell you that i was that close and that's what i'm trying to fix. i'm trying to go to people who've been there, done that. and can tell me what it's really like because when i talk to people whose sons and daughters were stopped you get a very different feeling than just the academic thing. you've got to get close enough and i spent a good time yesterday with him talking about his experiences. and being incarcerated. and coming back. and he's devoted his life to making it better for a lot of people and he's got a lot more experience at this than i. >> you've said in tulsa that if you had been black you probably would have had a different life. >> i think there is no question,

we have a racial divide in this country, which i have talked about ad nauseam, and there's no excuse for it and we're not doing enough about it. >> contrast you and donald trump, how you handle -- >> well, i'm not going to speak for him. >> policy. >> my father -- i've told this story before. he wrote a check to the naacp, and i said why are you writing a they can to chem and he said discrimination against anybody is discrimination against everybody and that's the lesson that my parents taught me. they were -- you know, we didn't grow up wealthy. i made all my money. my father made $6,000 the best year of his life. i've always grown up thinking that, you know, if there's anti-black, there's going to be anti-jewish, there's going to be anti-everything. and i wouldn't want it directed at me. and the one -- one of the ways to stop it is make sure i don't

direct it at somebody else and in my company, foundation, city hall, we had a large number of different minorities. you know, you've got to understand people. i think this country has unfortunately become more segregated, i think, that the president of the united states should be able to take this country in the other direction. and this president is not trying. coming up, more of my exclusive interview with 2020 presidential candidate michael bloomberg. you're watching "politicsnation," we'll be right back.

you know what's good about this? your sign's pointing at my sign, so people are gonna look at my sign. switch to progressive and you can save hundreds. you know, like the sign says.

- do that are degrading?ideo tapes, film reels, or photos, legacybox professionally converts them to dvds, thumb drive, or the cloud. legacybox is simple and safe, with over half a million satisfied customers. visit legacybox.com today, and get 40% off. and that was all you knew, would you really understand it, with just that point of view? we've got a different way to look at it, from right here on the ground. we don't just the united states we see united towns. we're grateful for what you bring, and all the sparks you've shown, in the thousands of towns that we get to call home.

♪ vo:for president.ver that's mike bloomberg. a middle class kid who built a global company from scratch. mayor of new york, rebuilding the city after the 9-11 terrorist attack, creating 450,000 jobs. running for president - and on a roll. workable plans to deliver on better health care. affordable college. job creation. common sense plans to beat trump, fix the chaos in washington, and get things done. mike: i'm mike bloomberg and i approve this message.

lets you vacuum and wash your floors at the same time. crosswave cordless max dry messes, wet messes. it even freshens area rugs! it releases clean water and bissell formula. microfibers mop while soft bristles scrub and sweep and powerful suction pulls the dirty water into a separate tank. it's cordless for cleaning freedom. it even cleans itself. (cathy) and when you buy bissell, you help save homeless pets. (vo) to learn more, go to bissellcrosswave.com. among the bloomberg campaign's ongoing challenges the need to disassociate the candidate from stop and frisk of which he was an avid opponent as new york's mayor.

i heard from a campaign supporter, activist abdul maleek, himself a victim of police harassment explaining why black voters in his opinion should accept the candidate's contrition years after the damage was done. >> abdul maleek, you run the families united for social and educational development. you've been through the system. you've been incarcerated. mayor bloomberg says you've talked to him about racial profiling and all as he tries to deal with some of the -- his learning experience since he is committed to some things after his apology. tell me why you're with mayor bloomberg. >> i'm with mr. bloomberg because initially when the stop and frisk was happening it was an opportunity, he made an investment in the young men's

initiative. through this young men's initiative there was an opportunity for me to really get involved and do work around what was passionate for me, dealing with young folks entering into the criminal justice system. and through that time i was able to professionalize myself, go back to school and get my degree. and really work with hundreds of young people who have been entered into the criminal justice system and help navigate them out of the system. and a movement was started, the credible messenger movement and it's grown since mr. bloomberg has left the -- you know -- >> this was also connected with my brother's keeper? >> ymi was the blueprint to my brother's keeper. >> was the blueprint. >> i was at the table when president obama decided to do it and we went around the table and there were 20 odd people as i remember, everybody adding something. but i think it's fair to say

that's where the idea came from. >> you're saying that you actually helped work with the -- you came to blueprint for my brother's keeper and worked with president obama. so your ads are not deceiving. >> no, it's not deceiving. two things, one is the whole issue of getting guns off the streets, i've fought the nra tooth and nail and i continue to do that and we have this organization of 6 million people every town it's called -- demand action around the country to get good laws, background checks so you don't sell guns to minors, people with psychiatric problems or people with criminal records. they shouldn't be able to buy a gun. i'm not a big fan of people having guns. second amendment gives you the right. i can't do anything about that. that's one side of the coin, getting rid of the guns. the other side of the coin is taking young men who have fallen by the wayside or not, but have the potential to and given them other things to do. we've done enormous progress in new york city school systems, they have a better education. without that, less likely to get

a better job. programs like young men es initiative, a whole bunch of programs to create businesses and communities that weren't served before, a lot of them black businesses. we had a whole program to mentor and access funds and that sort of thing. that will create jobs. you think of it as two different sides of the same problem. one, make sure it doesn't happen and two if it does, or to prevent it from working with the people whose lives we're talking about. and he incidentally is getting his masters. is that right? >> yes, yes. >> you went through the system. >> yes. >> you and i know about what happened with stop and frisk. mayor bloomberg and i worked with president obama on education but i would even tell him then i disagree stop and frisk, led rallies and all and he has said how prior to privilege is different in this country. now as we go beyond this, to see the -- what people are saying, well, we'll see in the apology is real, what is it that you

think needs to be done to repair a lot of the people that had been affected by this? >> good question. i think the first thing is, one, i wanted to go back a piece and say that there's things that mr. bloomberg has already done in the sense that he invested in ymi. so that's already a part of the legacy of change. and really dealing with some of this -- the systemic issues that occurred with the stop and frisk piece. i think the other part of it is his policy, the criminal justice policy that he's going to -- or has ruled out really talks to some of the things that affect our community, i've read several of the other policies and i really didn't find the information -- >> several policies for -- >> other candidates. and it makes sense to me. but what i saw in mr. bloomberg's policy was the fact that he wanted to -- or he will incorporate credible messengers in dealing with community

policing in the sense that now you have folks who have been a part of the system, who are trained to kind of deal with certain issues in the community. before police get there. and have them be a partner. in keeping communities safe. i think that's the biggest piece for me. because that allows me -- or has allowed me to do the work i've done over the last several years. and being connected to ymi. >> al, if you take a look, the average black family has wealth equal to one-tenth of the average white family. in this country. 90% down. just think about that, one-tenth of -- partially -- i'll give you an example. if you can't get a checking account, you can't get a mortgage, can't get a mortgage, you can't buy a house. if you don't have a house, your wealth doesn't go up. most people's wealth increases with increasing value of their

homes. what you can do to make a difference. i went and visited a small community near tulsa, called black wall street, although it didn't have anything to do with wall street, i don't know where that came from. back in 1921, a wealthy community, all african-american, in 1921 a group of white thugs came through, burnt the town to the ground and killed 200 people. and when i saw the -- heard about it i went to visit it and i thought we're going to have an initiative working on economics and that would be a good place to start because martin luther king talked about freedom and also talked about economics. if you don't have good economics you can't partake and enjoy life and then you have more crime and all that sort of stuff so being able to make the economics work. and we have this greenwood initiative. the commitment is to try to have more banks and more housing and more -- and more wealth and more jobs for this community that is

being left behind. and if we in this country want to have a better life for all of us we have to make sure everybody's included. because whether you care or not about other people they have an influence on the world that you're going to live in. and that's the mistake i think people make. they say, i don't care, i don't see it. yeah, well one day you're going to see it. now's the time to do something about it. >> tuesday night you will be on the stage in south carolina. mostly black audience. and it's a state that has significant black vote majority. though you're not on the ballot. >> not on the ballot. >> given all the publicity around stop and frisk and other issues, what is the argument you make why bloomberg should be trusted by black americans. >> did something to reduce climate. we cut the murder rate by 60%. we saved thousands of lives. it got out of control. i made a mistake. i fixed the mistake. i've apologized for it and asked for forgiveness. and i'm doing other things that will help the community.

i can't go rewrite history but i can continue the fight against get guns off the streets, get better education for people, have more economic opportunity. and the biggest thing i can do, i think, is replace donald trump and put in a president who has a feeling for people because the president is the leader. and whether you like it or not you follow -- people follow whatever he or she does. if he or she doesn't tell the truth. more people will lie. if he or she doesn't have a feeling for other people, different races, ethnicities, orientation, whatever, people downstream will get that. that's why the person at the top is so important. >> are you the one on the stage that fought guns more than anybody? >> i'm sure i've fought guns. they all talk about it. we've actually done something about it. the nra, they're in chaos, stopped raising money, we've got background checks in over 20 states now. we've got red flag laws.

if you really have a psychiatric problem, a relative can go to court and say to the judge this person shouldn't have a gun, take it away for everybody's safety. you know, we've -- in the places where we could do something so far we've done it and where we haven't done it we're working on it. >> are you looking forward to tuesday night to be able to redeem yourself in the bad opening? >> sure, i want to go. i'm gung-hoe. look, i didn't have a good night. let's get serious. will it be the first time i've had a bad night? no will it the be the last? if you had a debate on a stage having never had a bad night, nobody would be on the stage. i'm sure you would have been perfect. >> all my life. >> see, i knew that. but i have not been. >> thank you. >> all the best, thanks for having us. >> my tanks to michael bloomberg and abdul maleek, i will be sitting with all the candidates on the grievances i may have

raised with them. up next with bloomberg not on the ballot in the first four states to vote can he make up the delegate deficit on super tuesday? you're watching "politicsnation." i'm alphonso, and there's more to me than hiv. there's my career,... my cause,... my choir. i'm a work in progress. so much goes... into who i am. hiv medicine is one part of it. prescription dovato is for adults who are starting hiv-1 treatment and who aren't resistant to either of the medicines dolutegravir or lamivudine. dovato has 2... medicines in...

1 pill to help you reach and then stay undetectable. so your hiv can be controlled with fewer medicines... while taking dovato. you can take dovato anytime of day,... with food... or without. don't take dovato if you're allergic to any of its... ingredients or if you take dofetilide. if you have hepatitis b, it can change during treatment with dovato and become harder to treat. your hepatitis b may get worse or become life-threatening... if you stop taking dovato. so do not stop dovato... without talking to your doctor. serious side effects can occur, including allergic reactions,... liver problems, and liver failure. life-threatening side effects include lactic acid buildup and severe liver problems. if you have a rash and other symptoms of an allergic reaction,... stop taking dovato and get medical help right away. tell your doctor if you have kidney or liver problems,... including hepatitis b or c. one of the ingredients in dovato may harm your... unborn baby. your doctor may prescribe a different medicine... than dovato. your doctor should do a pregnancy test... before starting... dovato. use effective birth control... while taking dovato. the most common side effects are headache, diarrhea, nausea,

trouble sleeping, and tiredness. so much goes into who i am... and hope to be. ask your doctor if starting hiv treatment with dovato is right for you. managing lipids like very high tryou diet. exercise. tough. ask your doctor if starting hiv treatment with dovato but if you're also taking fish oil supplements... you should know... they are not fda approved... they may have saturated fat and may even raise bad cholesterol. to treat very high triglycerides, discover the science of prescription vascepa. proven in multiple clinical trials, vascepa, along with diet is the only prescription epa treatment,

approved by the fda to lower very high triglycerides by 33%, without raising bad cholesterol. look. it's clear, there's only one prescription epa vascepa. vascepa is not right for everyone. do not take vascepa if you are allergic to icosapent ethyl or any inactive ingredient in vascepa. tell your doctor if you are allergic to fish or shellfish, have liver problems or other medical conditions and about any medications you take, especially those that may affect blood clotting. 2.3% of patients reported joint pain. prescription power. proven to work. now with a new indication. ask your doctor about vascepa.

it's fundamentally as american as anything. it's an existential threat -- welcome back. despite mayor bloomberg's claim that he's the best bet to defeat donald trump in november, the first national poll following wednesday's debate shows voters aren't buying it. in fact, of the two candidates -- of the candidates, i should say, who are on the debate stage, bloomberg did the worst in a hypothetical matchup against trump. losing to the president by three points. my panel is back with me. amy holmes and alexander hefner, and as i said, amy, i'm going to question all of the candidates on where i have had disagreements and give them an opportunity to express themselves and bring who they want as an example. but what was your reaction to hot you heard from the first one

we did? >> from mayor bloomberg? i thought he was being a bit cagey. when he said he wasn't going to answer you directly about the nda question, that it was a surprise, he wanted to keep you in suspense, campaigns aren't supposed to drop surprises unless it's against their opponent. that tells me he doesn't know how to deal with it. then the stop and frisk issue. he said i opposed it, i live in the west village. you could smell pot wafting in, and i never saw a person in my neighborhood gstopped. he knew this, he knew this, reverend, but now is the only time we're hearing the apologies, this policy now that he's running for president. >> alexander? >> i think that as terrible as his debate performance was, in that interview, you saw him exude the kind of commonsense

practicality, money talks. and he's attempting now to revive his appeal with a broad constituency of the democratic party by giving a little here, giving a little there, and making himself viewed, at least by some, as a constructive solution to racial problems. it's not really that believable, and the problem with the -- >> here's the problem, alex. he talked about, and of course we agree about education, economic opportunity, getting your foot on the first rung of the ladder, but it makes it a whole lot harder if you have a stop and frisk arrest and conviction. that's the problem. >> look, what was frankly repulsive about the debate performance was just the appearance of donald trump. it would depress a huge amount of minority and youth turnout during a general election. i think those statistics are probably accurate, that if bloomberg were the nominee, there would be a very viable third-party effort to enlist sanders and company for a new

wave of democratic politics. >> let me ask this question, and i tend to pose it to the candidates. is there a candidate on the stage who would say i would not accept your support, mr. bloomberg, or your money? he's pledged he's going to spend a billion dollars if he's the nominee or not. is there a candidate who says i am so opposed to you, i wouldn't accept either, and the same to steyer, who is a billionaire? >> there shouldn't be. i think you point out correctly that liz warren in her audacity of integrity might say she would not accept it because she has accused him explicitly of trying to buy the nomination. that's what he's done. >> you think she's the only one on the stage who would say that? >> possibly, i think bernie could as well. i would say both of them would. >> if you were to advise, you would tell both of them, we take supporters and we want to grow the tent. we know that elizabeth warren

has taking big bucks from big organizations. getting back to mayor bloomberg, his appeal to the african-american community. money can buy your celebrity, razzle-dazzle, but it can't buy you love. i think we're seeing that play out. >> or authenticity. >> money can't buy you love. thank you both for being with us. >> up next, my final thoughts. stay with us. do you ever get that? it's nice to finally meet you in person. you're pete nocchio? oh, the pic? that was actually a professional headshot. i'm sure that's it, yeah. i, uh, i think i've lost a few pounds recently too. i'm actually doing a juice cleanse. wait! you don't... (glass breaking) (gasp) ah! oh...! with geico, the savings keep on going. just like this sequel. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. save up to 65% off top mattress brands. mattress markdowns event now through february 24th. score extra savings on mattresses

from tempurpedic, serta, beautyrest and sealy, starting at just $399! kick back and relax while we do all the heavy lifting. because every single mattress ships free! you don't want to snooze on these deals. shop now through february 24th. only at wayfair.com. whatever happens out there you have the hilton app. will the hilton app help us pick the starters? great question, no.

but it can help you pick your room from the floor plan. can the hilton app help us score? you know, it's not that kind of thing, but you can score free wi-fi. can it help us win? hey, hey! we're all winners with the hilton price match guarantee, alright? man, you guys are adorable! alright, let's go lose this soccer game, come on! book with the hilton app. if you find a lower rate, we match it and give you 25% off that stay. expect better. expect hilton. i am totally blind. and non-24 can throw my days and nights out of sync, keeping me from the things i love to do. talk to your doctor, and call 844-214-2424. >> man: what's my my truck...is my livelihood. so when my windshield cracked... the experts at safelite autoglass came right to me. >> tech: hi, i'm adrian. >> man: thanks for coming. ...with service i could trust. right, girl? >> singers: ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace. ♪

this tuesday, we will see

the debate in south carolina. and people will go to the polls in south carolina. the majority of which will be black. one of the things that disturbs me is that many are acting as though, well, it's a stop in south carolina, and then super tuesday. i find that really insulting to the black community because i think that you cannot realistically think you can win the white house without not only winning the black vote but having a huge black turnout. so south carolina is not just a step on the way to the big super tuesday. it is vital to show whether a candidate can really energize a vote that would be really making them a plausible candidate in the general election. so please don't act like south carolina and black voters are a pit stop. know that you need those voters

more than they may need you if you see them as something passing. and let me say that as we look at the issues, like every other community, the black community has issues that need to be addressed, and if you have things in your past, and many of the candidates do. some have things that are more vital than other, you need to deal with them if you want to apologize, you have to weigh whether or not people will accept your apology. because those that were wounded are hurt, have the right to say whether or not they were healed. just you saying you're sorry does not sometimes heal injuries that have lasted for a long time. and that is stop and frisk, but it is also the crime bill that incarcerated people. it is also guns and many other issues. so as we close the night, let me give my prayers and condolences to the family of bee smith, who

i loved, who i loved, and who made us proud and who would want us not to be ignored in the south carolina primary as we discuss this national race. that does it for me. thanks for watching. i'll see you back here next weekend at 5:00 p.m. eastern. like us on facebook.com/politics' nation, and follow us on twitte twitter @politicsnation. up next, "meet the press" with chuck todd. this sunday, sanders surging. >> we have now won the nevada caucus. >> bernie sanders dominates nevada more than doubling his nearest competitor. >> no campaign has the grassroots movement like we do. which is another reason why we're going to win this election. >> joe biden appears headed for his best showing. >> i think we're in a position now to move out of the way that we haven't been until this moment. >> with democrats divided, the