s time to take a look back under the statehouse dome. will bernie sanders weigh in on a congressional race in new hampshire and help the candidate that endorsed him? after a thrilling primary season business at the statehouse. he sat down with senate leaders from both parties to sort out the rest of this legislative session. and a candidate that big with bernie sanders and ended up with a winner. can he cash in with progressives? that pesky first in a nation primary thing throughout tension in the last two weeks but we are getting to the real fun part of the legislative session in

we have teed up senate leaders. thank you for joining us today. first the day of the primary. he previously worked for tee up decades as the chief banking lobbyist in new hampshire. this appointment raised red flags with progressives. do you think he is the right man for the job? >> i think he is a strong integrity and decency. i trust his judgment and he has proven to be a good senator. clearly we do have a difference of opinions but when we get a chance to see people up close and personal, i have full confidence in his ability to balance. many of our banking commissioners have come from the industry comparing wall street to new hampshire banks is not a

i think the calm smart people look at this and say the network, he' s a solid person. >>' s appearance many would criticize as a revolving door. >> that is absolutely not the case. done a terrific job and he does his homework, he works hard, he assembles the fact' s. he really knows the inking laws well, having served as the ceo of the new hampshire bankers association. i don' t see that as any kind of conflict or problem. he was talked into running or the senate. i' m sure he was talked into being the bank commissioner but

>> there is another ointment, that of drugs are -- of drugs are -- of drug czar. you think the governor should be looking to someone who is an outsider? someone who can rattle some bureaucratic cages? or an insider who can restore some confidence and competence to the position? >> no matter who gets appointed it is a daunting task. we have to do a better job of all three phases of recovery and treatment. and prevention to. even though we passed a number of pieces of legislation related to drug and substance abuse

that, in particular because of the impact of fentanyl. one person isn' t going to solve a problem overnight. >> i think senator bradley is spot on. we are going to solve this with a plan. we need to support the person who is in that position, not let partisanship get in the way. and really get to work on this issue. we have made good progress thanks to senator bradley. more needs to be done. clearly we are not doing enough. >> do you have any particular people in mind? >> this is a process that will have to work its way out for you this is a person we agree we are going to work with.

lead this position. you guys are in the senate and member here. there is a general consensus somewhat in the senate. what are the keys you seek this legislation that you are backing , making it out of the house in tact? >> i think the station people understood its implications from new hampshire, that is why the initial house though is as strong as it was. what are some of those implications? 47,000 people they have. they have slipped through the s of obamacare. new hampshire planning to use insurance. there is a positive impact on new hampshire businesses, because these folks get sick. they show up in the emergency

the hospitals then cost shifted to everyone else with private insurance and that is one of the reasons we have one of the highest health insurance costs in the nation. we have put together a new hampshire plan that has no new taxes, no increase taxes, no impact on the states general fund, it will be funded with voluntary contributions from hospitals and insurance companies, the small state share that has to be a part of it, and lastly we just talked about the fact that 40,000 people, 6000 of whom ask of substance abuse benefits, is licensing. -- is life-saving. >> do you support the work

>> it has to be more workable so people get the benefits and move on. a story that hasn' t been told is the people moving through the program. you either move up and make more money or you die. new hampshire should be proud, senator bradley as the architect. there is only one reason to be against it, and that is ideological. it is a great deal at every level because there is no commitment of money. $450 million into our economy. i' m very proud that all 10 democrats in the senate are ready to renew. we appreciate the work that everyone has done and look forward to getting this past and keeping this program going.

>> that is not really a relevant issue. my believe is the evidence will be clear, we need to keep it. the better the results will be, the longer data we will have to compare what it is doing for local hospitals and people. it is i find it -- it is a financial win, a health win. and we are doing it without any additional taxes that senator bradley has mentioned good i don' t cb on the ideological keep -- ideological piece. >> when they come to you -- when i was at rallies, one of the state level conversations was we have to stop medicaid expansion. what do you tell those people when you debate them on this issue?

protection and the two-year authorization jeff mentioned is one of those to ensure the federal government keeps its commitment. 47,000 people are much more productive in their lives. improving our highways or education dollars or environmental dollars or any number why would we not take our money when we are a donor state. we get back $.81 when we sent a dollar to washington. it pushes us down the rising health care cost while ensuring people. those are the arguments new hampshire republicans need here. as we have made those arguments, that is why the spill has the bipartisan support it has enjoyed so far. >> 48,000 people looking at health care today, they were

it very -- at very expensive costs. we look at someone who would pay for drug treatment. those are the kind of unwise investments we need to turn around and say what is most effective way to help a person, but also cost-effective. you need to renew this, democrats are 100% ready to vote today to renew. we appreciate the work. >> a nether issue looking more long-term, commuter rail. geographically from the lakes region, from the north country, i' m curious to know what you think about this issue. it would be a benefit to your constituents. >> it is a long way from any connection from where i come from. i think transportation is vitally important. we get people to the north country and the rest of the

but also people who want to leave here to go to the other places for the ability to not have to drive in boston, which a lot of oaks in north country are comfortable with that kind of traveling. when -- les succeeds, people have money in their pocket and it they come in -- in their pocket that they come and spend. >> the price tag is very high. we need to focus on improving the 10 year highway plan, which is chronically underfunded. i think you could make a case of bringing commuter rail to nashua, but it has to be affordable. that has always been the key issue. to me it would be a step-by-step approach. >> we are talking about accessing federal dollars, putting a fence around new

dollars because ideologically it is against our federal values. where did we want to be practical to access federal dollars? that is a question for both of these. >> there would be a state-level subsidy, you would have to have something going in that direction. >> i think we leave too much federal money on the table and don' t access it. we need to ensure more federal money, even though we are closer than what we set. that is not a good system, we need to work hard to change that. >> i would just say again let' s focused on getting i-93 built and focus on building a commuter rail. >> thank you for your time. we will be right back with the first congressional district candidate shawn o' connor, making a run in that first

endorsements are often great fodder for media types that translate to little with an advantage with voters. there is an adjusting dynamic that could play out in the democratic primary in the first congressional district.

taking on the democratic nomination. you are in on generic, a startup guy. and yet you went with bernie sanders. that seems like an odd pairing. was there any dissonance? >> to understand why i supported bernie sanders you have to sit -- you have to understand where i came from. none of my grandparents graduated from high school. one of them was a wallpaper hanger, the other worked at a roofing company. another worked a third shift. through their hard work and because of the opportunities the country offered, my parents were able to go to school and college. my parent' s became a -- my mother became a teacher. my dad was able to open a clinic. i endorsed senator sanders because i believe every american serves those same opportunities.

and it comes to health care, when it comes to breaking up the big banks, it is going to ensure everybody can have those same opportunities that my parents had and were able to provide to me. i want to make sure that american dream lives on. >> this feels inside out because -- she endorse hillary clinton who did not do well really among any democrats or independents here in new hampshire. describe how you see that playing out in the race. >> i obviously have a strong progressive race. elizabeth warren was a professor at my law school. i think it is important those in wall street pay their fair share in this country. we have a lot of challenges facing us ahead. we need to make sure everybody pays their fair share. as a business person i can

better than anyone else because i am coming from a position of having created many jobs, having run a profitable business, but i still believe for everyone up and down the socioeconomic ladder, senator sanders programs would be better. raising the minimum wage $15 doesn' t just been those who are at the minimum wage. it benefits the entire economy up and down. that is why franklin develin no roosevelt -- franklin delano roosevelt introduced the minimum wage. pam have you see -- have you received any promise from senator sanders that he would help you in this primary? >> i was proud of him that he made very clear there would be no quid pro quo i should expect, no promises in the future, and i don' t expect any. if he chooses to do something for me that is something he will do separate and apart from my endorsement. i endorsed him because this was

so many insider politicians are tied to the d.c. special interests that they make their choices based on what is politically convenient. i made my choice based on what my heart and family had taught me. >> let' s say you go to washington and there is a president sanders. are you comfortable and acting an agenda that would limit the ability of people to do what you did, which is create this start up and a lot of economic opportunity? there would be the argument that this country would have less economic opportunity for on trainers and people moving outside the system to create wealth. >> i don' t think that is true. i don' t think senator sanders is about limiting people' s ability to grow. he wants everyone to rise up, people in the middle class to be of to move up into the upper middle class. i don' t think there is anything

infrastructure creates a huge number of jobs. when we improve education system we are going to have an educated workforce that can come effectively in a global economy. that will allow many to make more than they can today. the situation today holds back entrepreneurship and senator sanders, by giving us -- >> raising taxes on middle class and upper income americans. raise -- and i think senator taxes on the middle class. those who have been very fortunate. to mature everyone has the same as i was. we bailed the wall street banks give back.

wall street banks and those who are speculating, which distorts the market, which affects many middle-class votes. they have money either through a retirement plan, a pension plan, they have money in the markets being manipulated righties big bets. -- manipulated by these big bets. >> the criticism, because you independently wealthy, you have the freedom to reject the inside money that comes in. what do you say to this criticism? >> i think that is an attack not going to resonate with voters. if the former congresswoman wants to toss attacks to me, she is welcome to do so. what i would say as i' ve invested some money of my own in this campaign i think if you look at the great progressives, the roosevelts, the kennedys,

willing to invest their wealth in the well-being of the country. do the same thing. -- and i' m doing the same thing. when you invest in your own campaign you' re only beholden to your and the people in the state of new hampshire, and that is what i' m going to do. we raise the vast majority from myco donors -- from micro donors. >> what do you say to a democrat supporting hillary clinton? >> we have people working with me through her hillary supporters, obviously we have sanders supporters. what i would say is no matter who the republican nominee is, on going to win and hold this seat. -- i'

if you want to win the first district, i think i am your god. -- i think i am your guy. >> a look ahead to upcoming

>> to make sense of politics in new hampshire, there is no

>> we have recovered somewhat. >> it is still going to play a role in our state and local races. bernie sanders promised him endorsement. >> that was fascinating. i guess if bernie wants to stay out of any primaries, it will be a very interesting race. carol porter betrays herself and rose to be a member of the house. this time she did support hillary clinton. it is a mishmash of dynamic here. this year is going to be so unpredictable.

it is unpredictable. the state has voted the way it did in the primary. it throws the so-called experts for a loop. >> governor hassan and/or sing hillary clinton. that was probably not a popular choice be at kelly ayotte having to deal with the possibility of donald trump. do you think the clinton endorsement goes one way or the other? >> the volatility of the race and the fact that the voters of new hampshire show that they are not in any way beholden to anyone in the establishment. primaries over the years haven' t meant a whole lot.

from hillary clinton. she got 38%. it is going to be an individual race. kelly ayotte stayed out of the primary. she is running away or just trying to avoid the possibility of having to address the donald trump factor. i think for any republican it may work. because look at what trumpeted here. it is an issue they have to confront, not only kelly ayotte on the republican side. if trump ends up heading the ticket, democrats are already saying it is his republican party. >> some republicans almost working themselves into position trump. it is a stretch from the policy

>> trump has some issues they are not going to be agreeing with. do they embrace policy, do they embrace the love? i' m not going to make any prediction. the state has changed. it is hard to predict. -- to predict patterns in terms of republicans and democrats. >> a political battle going on with this potential supreme court debate going on. is this trouble for kelly ayotte to? >> there was a pullout yesterday.

kelly ayotte and other republicans are making her point. embraced obama on that point. she is going with the base of the party with the establishment in washington.

>> today on "matter of fact." tensions over terror threats at home and abroad. >> here we are now where the world is falling apart. >> will the president' s strategy on guantanamo leave the nation more vulnerable? plus, is the gop establishment ready to embrace trump? >> going into super tuesday, he has the upper hand. >> and, a visit to birmingham. rooted in civil rights, how this blue city is battling for a voice in a red state. fernando: i' m fernando espuelas. welcome to "matter of fact." every action by president barack