outliers. >> look, the administration's -- i'm someone who's -- sorry. >> go ahead. >> two davids. >> david axelrod ahead, and we'll get david in. >> no, look, i think that if you were going to -- if you were going to identify two members of the republican party who were likely to dissent, it would be them. but look, they raised an important point, which is that there are constitutionally shared powers here, that congress does have responsibilities and they ought to be treated with respect and, you know, one of the -- you talk about building solidarity in the country, but it's also important to build solidarity for governing purposes. and bringing in the other branch, both democrats and republicans and sharing the burden of these decisions, is an important part of that. and it's a huge mistake to treat the congress as they're treating the congress here. >> david frum, i mean, on that point, it is remarkable to think, you know, having experienced what we all experienced in the run-up to the iraq war in terms of the use of intelligence and just the lies that have subsequently been revealed about, you

. >> van jones and folks like that and david axelrod and those in their orbit are on to something.n't see anybody no holds barred ready to win it because that is required, elderly people running which is fine but joe biden, painful to see him scrunched up his eyes and seemed to wonder where he was. i would be concerned if i was a democrat but as a republican i love it. >> you mentioned david axelrod. he was talking about the former vice president's performance and here's his take. >> you wonder where that energy is throughout the debate. there were times when he seemed very low-energy. >> do you think he captures the nomination? there are people worried that he does and others who worry if you pick someone more progressive that you won't have a chance at all. >> i'm excited for joe biden. i think he is a strong candidate. we know what he stands for, he has a consistent record for 50 years, and environmental leader back in the 1980s, he reaches across blue-collar voters in queer key swing states like wisconsin and david axelrod. i take his criticisms of joe biden with a grain of sal

joining us now, we have cnn senior political commentator david axelrod and cnn contributor john dean, former nixon white house counsel. okay, david, give us your 30,000-foot view of yesterday. what struck you? >> well, what struck me was that the -- that schiff and the house managers presented a very tight, compelling case that is familiar to those of white house have been paying attention. maybe not familiar to senator kennedy and some of the people in the room and certainly to some who are watching on tv. the question is, does it matter? and is the -- the notion that the president is going to be removed, i think, is very remote. and at the end of the day, the thing that worries me is the case was so compelling that the question becomes, if you don't convict, and there are good reasons why you'd be hesitant to remove a president in this way, what is the message you're sending to this president and to future presidents about what their behavior can be? and are there any consequences for doing the kinds of things the president did? >> i think there's also a message being sent by senato

david axelrod. happy new year. >> a new decade. >> i would love to get your context of this race. >> it is playing of the same role which is going to win all the field and it is going to designate a front runner going out of at least a couple of them. for a few candidates it is extremely important for pete buttigieg or elizabeth warren in iowa. it is really important for joe biden to do very well there. he's a front runner in the national race, he has to do reasonably well in iowa and new hampshire in order to make good on that promise. things are looking up the last few weeks as we turn the corner to the voting. >> you know we got a debate in iowa next tuesday night. the biggest issue for democratic voters, what are they going to be? what do you want to hear? >> well, look, i think if you ask people one of the biggest issues, they would say healthcare and national security is moving up. the real issue is who can beat donald trump. that's what biden staked his candidacy on. he deposited himself as t

let's bring in david axelrod. david gregory, and rachael bade, congressional reporter for "the washington post" and a cnn political analyst. ax, oftentimes you have ice water in your veins and can calmly look at things. but there were a lot of people alarmed by what professor dershowitz said on the senate floor because the argument is that a candidate who thinks that he or she, if they get elected, it's good for america. they can do anything to get elected. and that changes. that changes the country, the presidency. >> yeah, a lot of people were alarmed but there was one person a few miles down the road who was nodding his head as dershowitz said that. and that's the president of the united states because, in a sense, we know that's what he believes. he does not believe in rules or laws or norms or institutions. he believes he is the state. he has absolute power. he's said that. and that in effect is what this whole impeachment is about. what he did was way out of bounds in dealing with the ukrainians and then he b

. >> i think ben jones and folks like that, david axelrod, are onto something.a is in three weeks, i didn't see anybody there who was no holds barred ready to win it because there is a fire in the belly required. some elderly people are running, which is fine but for joe biden it was painful to see him scrunch up his eyes and wonder where he was, i would be very concerned if i were a democrat. as a republican? i love it. >> shannon: you mentioned axelrod, here is what he said. >> you wonder where that energy is throughout the debate, there were times when he seemed very much low energy. >> shannon: do you think that he captures the nomination? are people who worried that he does, if you pick someone more progressive or less that you are not going to have a chance at all. >> i am excited for joe biden, i think that he is a strong candidate. we know exactly who he is, we know what he stands for, he has a consistent record for 50 years, he was an environmental leader all the way back in the 1980s. he also reaches across the blue-collar voters and key swing states l

david axelrod, let me start with you. thoughts about what viewers at home right now should be watching for over the next two hours. >> yeah, i think they should be watching for clarity. i think they should be watching for candidates making distinctive cases as to why they are the ones who can beat trump first and why and what makes them different than the other people on the stage. the people who aren't on the stage are largely not on the stage because they failed to do that. and now, as iowans are focusing, making that final closing argument is absolutely essential. >> 20 days left. >> it's true. and, look, you can -- in talking to the campaigns, you can feel the tension and the anxiety in a way that you didn't feel and hear from them almost a week ago. they understand how incredibly important this debate is. and, you know, cnn is partnering with the "des moines register." it is a tradition here in iowa to really focus on "the des moines register" and this final debate as a final arbiter of a lot of these voters or caucu

david axelrod is here from chicago.avid i want to give you the chance to respond to what i thought were two very different presentations from democratic senators. amy klobuchar trying to appeal to perhaps somebody watching like chuck grassley or mitt romney. sharon brown showing his frustration he feels with the republicans he feels are going to let him down. both of them genuine. which do you think is more effective? >> well, i'm not sure either is effective because i think there are other pressures at play here. i think, you know, obviously you heard scott say they're not going to respond well to what brown said. i don't know if that's true or not. i suspect they're thought processes are being effected by what they see on tv. i think the democrats managers have made quite an effective presentation on all aspects of this case. i think the obstruction presentation today was devastating. but it also may be that they have made their own situation harder in terms of getting these witnesses because first of all, mcconnell's

i think it was david axelrod that said he went to a democrat-focus group, first 80 minutes impeachment didn't even come up. so i think that the only i think casualty here is going to be joe biden. because ultimately the president is going to come out of this, his approval rating is going up. you have now joe biden if he doesn't win iowa, is going to have a problem in new hampshire, going to have a problem in nevada and the democrats are going to be on their way to potentially a contested convention. >> john bolton is the other casualty. his reputation has been melted by his former republican friends. when his book comes out it will be the last piece of business for the president's defenders to basically bury him so that this doesn't come up again. >> the white house is trying to block that. >> that is one of the shoes you were talking about yet to drop. >> what happens when -- after leaving the house usually there's don't come outed of that too well off. >> o'donnell: this is john made argument yesterday there's closet with a bunch of shoes in it that the bolton book one of the potenti

. >> this is from david axelrod, former senior advisor to president obama, one of the chief strategistshis campaign. here's what he says about what voters think. >> i was in a focus group for the university of chicago with some democratic voters and it was chilling to hear them talk about this because impeachment didn't come up, nobody volunteered it for 80 minutes into the focus group. you? >> it is what i am hearing on the hill, a critical state, why aren't you doing anything with healthcare. i took time to walk around the capital and people waiting in line to go to the senate chamber. some of them did wait for an hour but i only caught one person that actually came to the capital to go to the trial. a lot of them were just in town, happens to go on a tour and why don't i go? shannon: with that in mind, adam schiff had three days to convince the handful of senators he needed the american public, let's imagine it wasn't joe biden but any one of us, the most powerful man in the world is asking a foreign nation to conduct a sham investigation on us. what would we think about it then? nex

. >> martha: david axelrod came after how many times. tammy bruce and austan goolsbee up next.why i'm partnering with cigna to remind you to go in for your annual check-up, and be open with your doctor about anything you feel - physically and emotionally. but now cigna has a plan that can help everyone see stress differently. just find a period of time to unwind. a location to de-stress. an activity to enjoy. or the name of someone to talk to. to create a plan that works for you, visit cigna.com/mystressplan. cigna. together, all the way. visit cigna.com/mystressplan. i don't make compromises. i want nutrition made just for me. but i also want great taste. so i drink boost for women. new boost women with key nutrients to help support thyroid, bone, hair and skin health. all with great taste. new boost women. all with great taste. [sneeare you ok?fles] yah, it's just a cold. it's not just a cold if you have high blood pressure. most cold medicines may raise blood pressure. coricidin hbp is the... ...#1 brand that gives... powerful cold relief without raising your blood pressure.

. >> and david axelrod, what are you thinking of the legal defense team that he has put together, andt does that say about the president's strategy going into the trial? >> well, look, i thought that what maggie haberman said was interesting, because my empression of donald true impression of donald trump is that we are all living in his reality show, and he is casting how the show should play, and he has recruited the lawyers off of television, and yes, because they have defended him, but also, because they have some star quality that he wants, because he is looking at this as a tv show. he knows how it ends. but he wants to make sure that it is a good show for him. so he is bringing in the star characters, because he does not know whether the starchy work-a-day lawyers are up to task to enlivening the proceedings in his behalf, so we shall see. i don't think that there is any mystery about what is going to happen here. but these guys in the mix do change the equation a little bit. >> i suspect you are right. lulu, what do you think? >> well, it is back to the '90s and the band is ba

joining us now, chief political correspondent dana bash and cnn's senior political commentator david axelrod, host of the "ax files." i just want to talk about for one second what vice president mike pence just said, dana. he just said that they have the intelligence to support that iran fired those missiles intending to kill americans. how can we trust that what he is saying there, since they have presented none of the intelligence to the american public and many of the lawmakers who have seen it dismiss the intelligence as being woefully scant. >> not just that, i've seen reporting, including especially at cnn, that says the opposite, that what iran was doing was, and you heard clarissa talk about it. she's there. she's on the ground. and you see how it's kind of a wasteland where they are and where the missiles hit. that they intended to send a message and not to kill anybody, to de-escalate. so if they are saying that, that will be important to back up, but it's curious that he would say that because it's the opposite of the message that the president and everybody else from the administ

david axelrod, who was a key person to barack obama, had a recent column that said he sat through a focus group of democrats in chicago and it was 80 minutes, 80 minutes before any of them mentioned the impeachment, at which point everyone in the group said that's over, it's not going to happen, i don't want to talk about it. i said, democrats need to understand, this is not working. the democrats ought to be voting to have no more witnesses. the democrats, frankly, want to vote to close it down tomorrow. every day this goes on, the democrats look smaller, more political, more destructive of america, and i think that there is no reason to have any more witnesses, because there's no case. literally, there is no case he here. >> sean: you know, jay sekulow said, they were witnesses that had either been interviewed by deposition in the house proceedings, jury proceedings, and it was specifically, you know, those three people. they knew witnesses were not being called. why would any republican in the senate want to break that precedent. >> i don't think there's any real reason to have any new

not from former obama staffers like david axelrod or "the new york times." >> he is having a tough timens. it seems like the people still want to vote for him. endorsement of elizabeth warren helps joe biden because it cuts into bernie sanders support. the endorsement of amy klobuchar cuts against him, because they might be competing for the same block of voters. i get what they say. there is a battle going on in the democratic party. the people who want to turn the whole thing upside down and moderate progressives who want to keep things moving forward. the republicans want with a disrupter last time. i wonder if the democrats are thinking the same thing. >> martha: which one do they want? it's ridiculous. ben shapiro said, breaking news, they picked the chiefs and the 49ers to win the super bowl. >> i hate to say it, but i kind of agree with chris. i have one slightly different view, i don't think the amy klobuchar endorsement hurts biden as much as it hurts buttigieg. if you are for biden, you are for biden. the biden people don't care. amy klobuchar, we have people around the countr

listen to former obama senior advisor david axelrod, pretty revealing moment. >> i was in a focus group this morning for the institute of politics here at the university of chicago with some chicago democratic voters, and it was chilling to hear them talk about this because impeachment didn't even come up. no one volunteered it for 80 minutes into the focus group. we were in the middle of the trial. when it came up, they said it's terrible what he did. the case has been proven. we know how it's going to turn out so we are not really that interested. we are ready to move on. >> sean: pretty fair interpretation. herewith the reaction, louisiana congressman mike johnson in florida congressman matt gaetz. congressman johnson, a member of the presidents impeachment team. we will start with you. i think this was a beat down. a systematic. they ripped this case apart top to bottom, sideways in every way in between. they had a great team doing it. >> i'm so proud of this legal defense team. i have litigated cases in federal court for 20 years. i've never seen a team work so efficiently and effe

so we tried to talk to people on both sides of the divide, people like david axelrod, one of obama'steve bannon, one of trump's top strategists inside the white house to understand what are the forces that led this country to the place it is. how did we get here. >> those are the questions, those are the people. what are the answers? >> well, what we found was that first, the two presidencies, the two very different presidents were connected, you couldn't understand the times we are in if you didn't understand what happened during the years of president obama, and not just donald trump's rise but powerful forces that were at work inside america, a number of forces, one of which was the economic crisis, the financial crisis, growing resentment inside america toward elite, toward the government, feeling that wall street was bailed out while americans were left behind. transformation inside the media as facebook, twitter, sites like breitbart began to change the media landscape and also a fundamental change in america's demographics that barack obama represented as america's first black

. >> david axelrod, we know you will be watching tonight's big debate. story. >>> also we're minutes away maybe from learning who house speaker nancy pelosi will tap to be the house impeachment mana r managers. cnn is all over it next. can it help keep me asleep? absolutely, it senses your movements and automatically adjusts to keep you both comfortable. and now, save $1,000 on the sleep number 360 special edition smart bed, now only $1,799. only for a limited time. they get that no two people are alike and customize your car insurance so you only pay for what you need. what do you think? i don't see it. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ you downloaded the td ameritrade oh yeah,mobile app?ake off. yeah, actually i'm taking one last look at my dashboard before we board... and you have thinkorswim mobile- -so i can finish analyzing the risk on this position. you two are all set. choose the app that fits your investing style. ♪ dana-farber cancer institute discovered the pd-l1 pathway. pd-l1. they changed how the world figh

and that is -- david axelrod said the other night on cnn, did a focus group for institute of politics in chicago, 80 minutes into it before they talked about impeachment. the country is hard right or hard left or saying to washington please focus on my issues. the longer this goes on -- all bolton's going to do is talk about things we already know about. another witness to say things democrats want him to say, but what we know. it extends it further and carries the drama on that the country is getting sick of. >> don't you think there are people who are -- jared kushner is saying the president is vindicated, he starts having exoneration rallies and bragging about this, as he will, as inevitably he will. don't you think there will be some people agitated about that? >> and they're all voting for democrats. >> yeah. >> already voting for democrats. the question is whether or not there are people out there who would actually be moved to vote based on this, and i just think -- maybe if the election was tomorrow but by the time the election comes around i think it's unlikely that that's th

up front, david axelrod, our political commentator. 18 days to the iowa caucuses.end, that's it for senator warren, senator sanders, and senator klobuchar. meanwhile, pete buttigieg held five events in iowa. multiply that by 18 days. joe biden holding events going to continue on the campaign trail as well. who's going to be hurt the most by missing this time? >> look, it's a nightmare for all those senators who have juror duty now and can't be in iowa. you plan your campaign for a year and then you get down to the final stretch when you have to be there and you can't be there. when i worked for barack obama, he was barn storming the state for weeks before the caucuses, sometimes doing as many as ten events a day. and they are sitting there mute in the united states senate because their duty requires it. i think amy klobuchar is the one who suffers the most from that because she needs to move up in iowa. her whole campaign is leveraged on the idea that she can win in the midwest and she'll do well in iowa. but that requires her preference. so, she's going to suffer

david axelrod has been talking about it this evening here at cnn. that is, the public is facing a dilemma and the senators, there are only two options. it's either acquit, which a lot of people in this country oppose, they'll never get to have the votes -- i'm sorry to, convict or acquit. he's clearly going to be convicted at this point, but if he is -- >> acquitted. >> acquitted. but if he's acquitted, then there is this real danger he'll walk around saying i've been exonerated and he'll feel emboldened. is there some third option they can develop, a vote of censure, something -- >> that's why i mention statements people might make. >> we're going to pick this up shortly. coming up next my conversation with senator jeff merkley of oregon. we'll be right back. i have to w. (vo) why the aceves family chose verizon. we all use our phones very differently. these two are always gaming and this one is always on facetime. and my oldest is learning to be a pilot. we need a reliable network because i need to know he's safe. as soon as he lands, he knows he

david axelrod has been talking about it this evening here at cnn. that is the public is facing a dilemma with senators. there are only two options. it's either acquit, which a lot of people in this country oppose, they'll never get to vote -- i'm sorry, to convict or acquit. he's clearly going to be convicted at this point, but if he is -- >> acquitted. >> acquitted. but if he's acquitted, then there is this real danger he'll walk around saying i've been exonerated and feel emboldened. is there some third option thick develop, a vote of censure, something -- >> that's why i mention statements people might make. >> we're going to pick this up shortly. coming up next my conversation with senator markley of oregon. we'll be right back. apps are used everywhere... except work. why is that? is it because people love filling out forms? maybe they like checking with their supervisor to see how much vacation time they have. or sending corporate their expense reports. i'll let you in on a little secret. they don't. by empowering employees to manage their own

david axelrod and cnn political commentator. john kelly is a retired four star general.dealt with the good and bad as chief of staff for 17 months. he knows john bolton very well over many, many years. he says, quote, if john bolton says that in the book, i believe john bolton. he's well affair president trump today called john bolton a liar. how significant is this? >> the honest to god truth is i don't know how significant it is because i would guess that most of the republican members of congress who have known john bolton for decades also probably believe that he's telling the truth. at this point, i think that the case has been proven and bolton's comments in the book don't come as a great surprise to anyone. and, you know, now as you and adam schiff were discussing, they're looking for an off ramp because they just want this thing to end. so, it's a matter of rationalizing the behavior rather than denying that it happened. so, you know, obviously it's important former chief of staff who had a lot of experience with trump as you mentioned, but let's face it, donald

we have david axelrod, dana bash, arlette sands. again, i didn't know this was going to come tonight, so it is something to deal with on the debate stage. just in terms of a political article, lev parnas, we know the name, he has all the documents and communications with everybody he dealt with getting this done for the president, he says, in ukraine. relevance? >> well, first of all, we should say, and you're the lawyer here, he's trying to reduce his exposure with the feds. >> under indictment. >> so helping in other cases always helps to reduce that. he has a problem with credibility. documents are documents. >> documents are documents. what it means for impeachment is that it is even more pressure on the senate republicans to do something that they have not wanted to do, allow new witnesses and in this case new information. and they go hand in hand, the witnesses, it is what we have been focused on, but it is not the only thing. now it is front and center that the senate will have to deal with the question likely in another one

and that is -- david axelrod said the other night on cnn, did a focus group for institute of politicsto it before they talked about impeachment. so the country is either hard right and hard left or saying to washington please focus on my issues. and so the longer this goes on -- oh, because this is going to be -- all bolton's going to do is talk about things we already know about. it's just another witness to say things the democrats want him to say about what we know. so it just extends this even further and carries this drama on that the country's getting sick of. >> don't you think there are people who are -- jared kushner is saying the president is vindicated, he starts having exoneration rallies and bragging about this, as he will, as inevitably he will. don't you think there will be some people really agitated about that? >> yeah. and they're all voting for democrats. >> what's that? >> they're all voting for democrats. they're already voting for democrats. the question is whether or not there are people out there who would actually be moved to vote based on this, and i just thi

back with me susan hennessy, laura kocoates, david axelrod. that's why i'm laughing.ll start with you then because there is a bigger case being made here. democrats are arguing that the president is cheating and that he won't stop unless he is removed. >> yeah. listen. i think if you take a step back from all of this, you know, what struck me about schiff's remarks today, the opening remarks, were the close of them. when he talked about the stakes here. i think there are stakes on both sides. and scott and i were talking about this earlier. it is a grave thing to remove a president. it's never been done before. we've never removed a president through the impeachment process. we're a deeply divided country. it would be very disruptive to do that and that's something you have to weigh if you're a senator. on the other hand -- on the other hand, if the president is acquitted and -- and he will undoubtedly take from that -- by the way, an argument that he did absolutely nothing wrong, which is what his lawyer said, that is like carte blanche to continue to do what he's do

. >> tip of the hat to david axelrod. with impeachment. calling it jury duty. deal is jury duty for klobuchar, sanders and warren. which will obviously leave buttigieg and mr. steyer. yang and who else wasn't on the stage and joe biden. is it a bigger opportunity for them because the others will be sequestered? or is it more chance to screw up. or both. >> it could be both. no matter how you spin it, i heard senator klobuchar say my husband will be on the trail. my daughter. i have all the people who endorsed me. maybe. maybe that's true. it's not the same as having the candidate. especially someone like her. who you talk about the mayor about how important iowa is to him. it's really important to her to stay in the race. she's the senator next door. she is somebody who has made up some ground here from being really low in the poll. >> i'm a solid fifth. >> by being here and really making personal connections the old fashion way. for senator sanders and senator warren, it might be a bit different because they have such huge campaigns. they are such national fig

. >> david axelrod, obama's top political adviser, very much waed some scalps.obert gibbs, who was the press political aide, wanted scalps.or >> narrator: geithner told the president taking on the banks could make the economic crisis much worse. >> you had to make sure you kept concentrated and focused on the core basic imperative that was going to affect the fortunes of, you know, hundreds of millions of americans-- not get t wrapped up in trying to design political theater. >> narrator: in the end, the iesident would be cautious. >> barack obama erently very conservative. and he also wants to believe the be in other people, and he really does believe that common ground and work together. i think it was a miske, off very easy.nkers really got and the public knows it. >> there was a perception that president obama flinchthat point. at that, in one way or another, he was not prepared to go there, to, to go after c.e.os., or to take people to courand to charge them with, >> narrator: anger and distrust of the government would grow. rowd chanting) >> it was deep, d

david axelrod said something very interesting last night on cnn and he, of course, was a senior advisor focus group impeachment didn't come up once. james comey, when he testified before the senate intelligence committee in 2017, 20 million people watched. michael cohen when he watched 16 million people watched. now, you can't even get 9 million people watching impeachment across all these networks. repeat some jeopardies of jeopardy are beating impeachment across networks a people don't trust people like adam schiff. don't think he is all that dazzling. and fatigued and frustrated with the process. pete: well-said, can't top that george stephanopoulos at abc. former clinton staffer. he was part of the live broadcast. there was one of the president's attorneys was speaking. they were taking -- here is a visual right there. in the middle of it, he is trying to get them, it appears, to cut away from the shot or something, he is making it, you know, hey, hey -- emotion and cut back to him. the viewers will say did he not want to hear what the president's team had to say? what do you make o