. >> our cnn political commentator is here to discuss, ben ferguson and mark la month hill a professor. thank you for being here. ben, let's just break down the numbers. what do you make of the fact that trump is still in the lead his closest follower jeb bush at 15%, even after the fire storm surrounding his comments about john mccain? >> look, he solidified his base. there are people that are absolutely going to be in love with him no matter what he says. more than 50% of republican likely voters say they think this thing is wide open. and there's also an incredibly high number in the gop that have him unfaveble. this is still very early on. i think it's going to be hard for him to build on these numbers. and i think once you get him on stam with all the other candidates and they lay out their message and going after him, i think you're going to see those numbers come down. i think he's peaked here, and i think it's going to be very hard for him to get above this percentage he already has. >> we heard him say at the end of the interview clip that he thinks he can easily beat hillary

back with me is mark o'marrow, mark lamont hill and ben ferguson.amazing movie and and an amazing book. >> the new book is called go get a watchman -- "go set a watchman." excuse me. atticus finch is portrayed not as a crusader for justice but as a racist who attended a kkk meeting. why are people up in arms. >> i think the mocking bird was sanitized in the aekts '60s because i don't think the atticus finch that we are now finding out exists would have been as accepted back then in the '60s. honestly, this to me, watchman, shows the atticus finch that i think truly would have existed. complex, growing up in the '30s and the '40s and the '50s in the south, you would not have had a person honestly as sanitized as atticus finch. >> we talk about the "n" word a lot. do you think he said the "n" word? do you think it's in this book. >> all the time. and not like trinidad james. he was throw back "n" word. you know what i mean? i think this is quintessentially american. >> gr -- >> all in letters. this is quintessentially an american thing. suddenly we ha

let's talk about all of it with ben ferguson and mark lamont hill. ben, we just quoted two studies. i have a long list, there are a number of studies that point to that same trend. i just wonder how long you think donald trump can stay this high in the polls, galvanize supporters when he is saying things like this that are not based in fact. >> well there's a couple things here. one, you look at donald trump. he fell into this. this was pure dumb luck. when he came out in his campaign and started talking without a teleprompter which he bragged about him being brilliant. he had no idea the reaction to his words were going to make this the core center issue of his campaign. so this is not something he preplanned. this is just donald trump, dumb luck. he connected on an issue and he doubled and tripled down on it. the second issue is this. donald would say i know in response. the person that's going to introduce me, ask them if your studies or your statistics matter because when you have someone that's killed by an illegal immigrant, or an illegal immigrant that's a drunk driver or rap

. >>> joining me now to discuss, ben ferguson and rick wilson. ben, to you.ems -- you and i have discussed this. it seems the gop presidential candidates the other ones they haven't wanted to take on trump at all, unless they are forced to. at this point, are the campaigns now having to come up with a trump strategy? >> yes. but i think it's going to be one very covert. it's not going to be with the candidate coming out and going after donald trump directly. i think what you will see is the campaigns will do their research. they will find a lot of the dirty laundry and give that out to different people in the media and pushing it out there. because ultimately they don't want to be seen as going toe to toe with donald because they think he is beneath them. he's a side show he is not a legitimate candidate. they just want to get this to go away as fast as they possibly can. so that's how they will start to deal with him. >> rick, trump is happy to take them on. listen to this. >> i think bush is an unhappy person. i think he's highly overrated. he's an overrate

joining me to discuss, contributor and professor at moore house college also with us ben ferguson. first to you your reaction to what happened there. >> first of all, i was excited, i was proud. i was impressed by the work that was done by the black lives matter movement yesterday. they've been doing amazing work for a year. this was another testimony to how organized they were committed they were and courageous they were. their agenda wasn't being addressed sufficiently. they asserted the black lives matter in public space. i think that's something that needs to happen nonstop. i am excited. >> why did they choose this particular conference the net roots nation conference? >> i suspect they'll do many places to do this. but i think net roots is an important place to be. there were presidential candidates there. martin o'malley bernie sanders are two people we want to think and talk about as candidates. we want to bring these issues to the table. it would be great if hillary clinton had been there to address these issues as well. sometimes with the protection of media and the prote

ben ferguson is here host of the ben ferguson show. i sense a debate is likely here.ng your passion to the subject. ben, i want to talk about what we heard from kgo. they had an opportunity to talk to the suspect. they asked if he came back to san francisco because he knew they wouldn't actively look for him. he replied yes. is it time to review the policy? or as harris says it shouldn't out rage was because of one man's conduct. >> if you have a family member it affects your life and we should respect these people affected by the illegal immigrants. many of them do in fact go to sanctuary cities because they have a safe haven. this is a man who had been convicted in u.s. courts seven times, been deported five times. if you feel that comfortable to come back into a city and to stay in a city because you know ultimately no one is going to force you, really to leave and if they did, you can come back. you don't have to worry or look over your shoulder that nobody is going to deport you. this is what happens when you allow a safe haven for illegal activity. they should b

. >> ben ferguson host of the ben ferguson show who just loves hearing higher taxes and mark hill, a me to debate it. mark let me begin with you. let's look big picture at sort of the rise of bernie sanders. what does this tell us? >> that americans are looking for economic populism an answer to big, corporate greed, a candidate that cares about people and they're not finding it in hillary clinton. doesn't mean there's really going to be a sanders administration that's absurd but it means he has a shot at chipping away hillary's votes and it means that joe biden has a legitimate entry point. he was standing on the sidelines, but now, they're saying people aren't sold on hillary. maybe it's uncle joe's turn. >> you have a vocal activist left wing within the party. hillary clinton, if she can't energize that, is sanders going to be the one to do it? sort f akin to what he saw elizabeth warn doing. >> bernie sanders is the donald trump of the democratic primary and when there are -- >> come on. >> early on hear me out. if you're not being bold and big and hillary clinton's not making an

. >> let's bring in ben ferguson. ben, we heard from governor perry, senator graham there.you want you to hear from dr. ben carson. because although those two candidates reputuated whreputua said this is what he said. >> is senator john mccain a war hero? >> it depends on your definition of a war hero. i think he has done some wonderful things, certainly the history is consistent with what we would consider a war hero. do we take that away from him because some people disagree with him politically? i think that's probably a stupid way to do things. in your definition, is he a war hero? >> i believe senator mccain has done some wonderful things. >> so i wonder is this a major portion or even a sizable majority in the republican party for whom this is an arguable point, that he is or is not a war hero? >> it's not an arguable point. i think you have politicians so careful they don't want to over step. the question to is john mccain a war hero, the answer is yes. he was tortured and could have even gotten out early but chose not to so the other side didn't get leverage. that i

gloria borger and ben ferguson. ben, trump taking hits.ts maybe representationrepresentutation, but not from voters. a poll conducted in the midst of this controversy. he is taking a stand actually could be helping him. right? >> i think all of this is helping him from his perspective. he looks like he's a victim. he will play this victim card of i'm being picked on because i'm the one saying -- being the truth teller here. back me. support me. i'm the one because they are coming after me. it may work with some voters. ult pat ultimately he is filling a void. no one else in the gop primary right now has come close to being as blunt as he is. some of it i think is crossing a line. but ultimately people want a bold and blunt candidate going into this primary season. >> something certainly is helping trump. i don't know what you want to say it is but something is. it's not just the poll. this one is actually more incredible. this is in iowa a state where everyone said donald trump has no chance. marriage a bunch of times. he is number two. do

let's talk with our cnn political commentator and conservative talk show -- radio talk show host ben ferguson. ben, thank you so much for being here. >> good to be here. >> of course. i know you're not a fan of the trump factor, and it seems clear that other republican candidates, they don't support the comments that he's making, but it seems by and large their first inclination is to simply try to ignore him. is that a good strategy for them? >> it was a united vatty easter strategy early on. almost all the campaigns were saying this is a guy we'll just let flame out. we'll let donald be donald and we won't acknowledge him, give credibility or credence to any of the comments he's making. that strategy has not worked well, and donald understands how to get media attention, whether it be playing the victim card because macy's got rid of him or "the apprentice" and nbc. he understands how to steal a headline. now i think the candidates are realizing, we're going to have to, one, denounce him, and, two, you will see a lot of the campaigns look at his record, go after him and attack him. he's got

we want to bring in former south carolina state senator and ben ferguson is here with us. morning to you. to the two of you, i want to play the sound from governor nikki haley predicting how she thinks it is going to play out. take a listen. >> i don't think this is going to be easy. i don't think that it's going to be painless but i do think it will be respectful and it will move swiftly. >> the same prediction as the governor of south carolina? >> well this is not going to be an easy journey. we have attempted to take this flag down for many years. it was put up in 1961-'62 with the civil right progress we made in the state. there have been many bills filed. while this success is within our reach, we know the tension is heightening. we have to work extremely hard to do the things necessary to make sure it comes down this week. >> the tension is higher indeed. there have been altercations vandalism and violence. in fact ben, i want to show you a tweet. i have been threatened more this week than my whole life combined. civil discourse, anyone. >> why do you think, among su

. >> with me to talk more about this columnist and arthur ellis from new york and ben ferguson because i so rudely interrupted you guys earlier. ellis, how about you first. you were about to make the point that only trump controls trump. at the same time look at the poll numbers. he continues to rise to the top even though he makes remarks that would be so inflammatory that would insult and offend so many. >> clearly there is an audience in the republican electorate for bigotry and symmetry. frankly, i wish that some of the other republican candidates in the race had spoken up at some of the other dumb stuff the guy has said. i didn't hear so much complaining when he called mexicans rapists and talking about the president of the united states being born in africa. only when a senior republican senator is besmir ched. >> at first, many candidates didn't want to say too much, especially after what was said yesterday did guns come out ablazing so to speak with lindsay graham saying trump crossed the line and the rnc saying there's no place in the party for comments like that. will there b

. >> with me to talk more about this our columnist from new york and from dallas ben ferguson.d to see both of you. lindsey graham said trump crossed the line. rnc said quote there's no place in the party for comments like that. so everyone knows only trump can control trump, so ben what do you think is going to happen next >> i think this is going to be what you see a lot from his campaign. he doesn't have an idea about what may come out of his mouth until he says it and on stage. this was obviously something that was not pre-planned. this is donald trump being a reality tv star and not a serious politician. and people love the reality side of him, the blunt talk. but the blunt talk also can dig your own grave politically. i think that's exactly what we saw from him. >> except according to some polls he's rising to the top every time this happens. >> there's a lot of people served this country, a lot of veterans will be highly offended. a lot of people in primaries know people or have family members that served in the military. for him to imply if you get shot down or get capt

with us this morning to talk about these findings ben ferguson our cnn political commentator. and paul begala. >> you've been planning that intro all morning with the trump, haven't you? >> yes. >> i like it. >> finally i have an opportunity to use it. let me put up the poll for you. this is a suffolk university poll. it shows donald trump in the lead with 17%. i believe he's within the margin of error with jeb bush. jeb bush has 14%. you could see ted cruz 6%. >> he's on top. >> there you go. paul is it time to officially begin taking donald trump seriously for everyone? >> absolutely. i've been taking him seriously from the beginning. well no, actually vii haven't. this will make donald mad. the legends dare football coach at my school the university of texas -- donald can't carry off the nomination. >> how do you know? >> i'm smart. i do this for a living. "washington post" just had a new poll out today too he's got a favorable of 57% republicans. republicans tend to be like mr. trump white and angry. they're lovely people. americans generally really dislike trump. republic

joining me ben ferguson and andy dean. great to see you both. andy she laid it out.ve trump but this is also why people don't think he can be president. where is the substance? >> look i think that the piece you just showed over the past couple minutes was unfair to trump. trump is a leader. he is specific on specifics. this is a guy who spend life in the private sector getting things done. when he says he's going to build a ballwall he will build a wall. they can throw them up on his website, but he's good at building things. >> you are saying trust him? first off, it wasn't -- >> he has a record. >> he's got a record? >> how do you trust him to build a wall when he says the financer is going to be mexico and the second -- >> you slap a tariff on -- >> the stimulus that comes into mexico's economy from illegal immigrants sending money across the border is more to -- means more to their country than oil does to their country. they have a lot of oil that they are willing to drill in mexico. there is no incentive for mexico to build a wall when you have billions upon b

. >>> i want to bring in as we await the arrival and face off, michael lloyd along with ben ferguson.start with you. donald trump pinatas for sale for $150 each. something probably donald trump would admire. some enterpriseing individual. >> i'm sure he would. >> obviously, all jokes aside, this is a serious and upsetting image for many. the immigrants rights organization holding this this demonstration. they are filling the pinatas with trash. you do not think that he should back down. >> no i don't. i think there are millions of americans out there that don't think he should back down. i saw today on your network not long ago on your show a man being interviewed, an african-american man who lost his 17-year-old son to an illegal immigrant who shot him dead on the street. this is a real problem. we need to have compassion for these people. we talk a lot of time we use the phrase being in the shadows. the victims of illegal immigrant crimes have been in the shadows for too long. they need to come out. we need to bring them out. i think that's what it donald trump has brought this subj

cnn political analyst ben ferguson and senior washington correspondent jeff zeleny. mark let's start with you. we saw trump surge in the polls after he made comments criticizing mexican immigrants calling them rapists. has he gone too far with this comment? >> you have to ask yourself has the donald trump schtik run its course. today with these comments about john mccain, it very well might have. i have to tell you, while there was some applause and snickering and laughter during that comment, that trump made about john mccain, i think people were a little bit surprised and of course we have seen the outpouring of support now in just the past few hours for john mccain not only from democrats but also the republicans who are challenging donald trump in this race for the republican nomination. at this point as you said donald trump is in full damage control. question is, what is his next step. >> jeff i want to ask you. you are in arizona. did mccain have anything to say about any of this? >> i am in phoenix. i talked to an advisor to senator mccain just a few moments

let's discuss it with democratic strategist robert zimmerman and talk radio host ben ferguson. begin with you. >> good morning. >> pataki following several other candidates who have also spoken out against trump. trump is not backing down and i think this really becomes a question of does he care what his competitors think or does he care what the voters think and frank what some of the poll numbers are showing that is quite good for him? >> well the bigger issue is do we care about donald trump think? at the end of the day he's just another right wing atlantic city lounge act, but the real the real crisis confronting the republican party is whether it's donald trump's racist rhetoric or the vial anti-lesbian and gay rhetoric we heard from ben carson and from mike buck bee, ahuckabee those candidates represent 27% of the republican electorate, and that is not just a very dangerous environment for republicans to build a candidate who can emerge in the general election it's also very dangerous for our country. great credit to george pataki for speaking up and showing leadership t

we also have ben ferguson cnn political commentator. ben, thank you for popping in on short notice.t the bigger picture here first. donald trump is not doing well overall. he has a big built in negative. 80% of democrats, 42% of republicans, 53% of independents. yet what is the real story? it's about his existence, jeffrey, inside those numbers if you look at the slice of the gop that really feels that washington sucks. donald is their man. you use it as a take away and what does it mean for him going forward? >> i do. bingo, chris, you are right. last week i said i thought the big story was rush limbaugh talking about the mccain trump situation and he said he didn't think that was going to mean anything. that trump would survive it in good form. rush was right. in terms of that number it's very important here. i think it was 53% in your poll who think washington sucks and they want something to do with it. my point was perfectly illustrated in that focus group you ran. that first young gentleman summed up the problem for the republican party exactly. if trump wasn't on the ticket a

talk about this with democratic strategist robert zimmerman and cnn commentateor and conservative ben fergusonmorning. >> good morning. so the trump camp is saying michael cohen doesn't speak for donald trump. and it was michael cohen who says you can't rape your spouse. so ben, will this affect donald trump at all? >> i think it will effect him some. i think donald trump is actually pretty good at coming out and understanding when he does need to talk. i wish he understood when he doesn't need to but on this issue i think you will see him come out very clearly and say this was 30 years ago. i did not make this comment about you cannot rape your spouse and i'm sure he will do everything he can to distance himself from that and say that is not what i think. i also think seeing her comments his ex-wife's comments coming out, that will help him tremendously. she said this was a stressed out time 30 years ago. it sounds like there was some gamesmanship there in that divorce. she is now endorsing him for the presidency. from being an actual story of did he do anything wrong with her, i don't think