confounded republican party establishment they wish what happens in vegas stays in vegas but donald trumums march to the nomination would be hard to bet against. today the victor was in virginia one of 12 states with contest next tuesday. >> we had an exciting evening last night. >> in nevada trump ran the table winning almost every category of voter. highly educated, poorly educated. >> there were twice as many caucus goers as four years ago. most of them were angry with washington and six out of 10 said the next president should be a political outsider. perfect fit for trump's rivals have endorsements but no wins. the senator told cbs this morning that will change. >> we will win in florida the race. that will help us and as far as going into next week we feel map. >> ted cruz is trying to grab a victory in texas where the governor just endorsed him. >> texas has 155 delegates. texas has alone almost 15 set of the delegates you need to be the republican nominee. >> john kasich noted that he is within the margin of error in the race against trunk -- trump. >> in effort to slow trump down t

senator marco rubio is on a mission to take down donald trumum >> flying around on hairforce one which is amazing to me the guy with the worst spray tan in putting on make up. >> and then it's on to the face. >> and little mouth, bing, bing, bing. he's a very nasty guy and i actually thought that ted cruz was a liar but rubio is worse. >> reporter: texas senator ted cruz is in a tough spot he didn't expect leading up to super tuesday. he's locked in the close race with the real estate mogul donald trump on his home turf. cruz is leading by just a small margin in most texas polls. on the campaign trail saturday cruz cut in on the back and forth action between the gop contenders. >> i don't think it's a good thing to see presidential candidates just behaving like school children. i think differences should be on substance. and notice the points i'm making about donald are all focused on substance and his policy versus my policy record. the vision for this country. >> reporter: hillary clinton will be in south florida donald trump will be in palm beach the same day. polls in south carolin

> reporter: the words "liar" or some variation were used at least 22 times. 13 by front-runner donald trumum and yet -- >> didn't call anybody a liar -- >> you called ted cruz a liar. >> reporter: slammed by jeb bush over foreign policy and how to fight isis in syria. >> it is lewdudicrous to suggest that russia could be a partner in this. >> jeb is so wrong. >> while donald trump was building a reality tv show, my brother was building a security apparatus to >> the world trade center came down during your brother's reign. remember that. [ boos ] >> reporter: marco rubio trying to rebound from his last debate came to bush's defense today blaming 9/11 on bill clinton's decision tonnot to take out bin laden. >> it allowed isis to prosper and by 2001 have the ability to strike aperica. >> reporter: they clashed over immigration. at one point cruz took wish something rubio had said in a spanish language interview. >> i don't know how he knows what i said on univision because he doesn't speak spanish. second of all -- [ speaking spanish ] >> reporter: cruz also pounced on trump for billionaire's

. >> reporter: trooults is the first republican to get into a brawl with donald trumum and to beat im. organization. he did it with a single-minded focus on iowa and the here. as for donald trump, he has a new title tonight -- loser. after dominating the polls for months, he has now lost the first contest. in fact, marco rubio had such a strong showing here, 23%, that he almost beat trump out for second place. let me telll you, this is just the beginning. donald trump is now on his way to new hampshire, a state where he has a huge lead. far bigger than he ever had in iowa. so stay tuned. we've got a long way to go, dan. >> a long road for both the republicans and the democrats. jon karl, thank you. so much to talk about tonight. so let's bring in abc news political analyst matthew dowd, good evening, sir. so we've seen in the past iowa and then go on to fit zell. so does ted cruz have a clear path to the nomination at this point? >> no, he doesn't have a clear path to the nomination. iowa's caucus has a larger percentage of evangelical voters than any other state he's going to be face

"and i also like donald trumum" republican rand paul quit the race. so did rick santorum, endorsing marco rubio "someone that can bring this country together, not just moderates and conservatives but young and old." that's rubio's new hampshire presidential candidate "i know that if i'm the republican nominee - we're going to win the election." donald trump ...in arkansas tonight.... he's accusing ted cruz of fraud in the iowa vote. cruz accusing trump of quote, "losing it." presidential canndate "i mean we're liable to wake up one morning and donald, if he were president, would have nuked denmark." sanders is preparing for tomorrow night's debate, not assuming a new hampshire win, he says, despite his big lead in state polls. hillary clinton declared she's not conceding a sanders win kershaw county deputies now have a suspect they believe is behind multiple break-ins in bethune. the sheriff's office says over the past five weeks, numerous businesses in the town were targeted--the latest case happening yesterday at bethune elementary school. deputies

, the republicans in a primary showdown here in south carolina where thehe headline tonight is donald trumum losing ground. in a new nbc news/"wall street journal",marist poll twump leads by five points, 28% to 23%, down from 160points a month ago and rubio virtually unchanged at 15. the next seven days may provide clarity in these races in addition to the republicans voting in south carolina, democratic voters will caucus in nevada tomorrow followed by republicans there on tuesday and then it's back to south carolina next saturday, the 2727h, for the democratic primary. a time line that is urgency in both races. we've got both races covered starting tonight with nbc's katy tur in north charleston for us. hi, katy >> reporter: lester, donald trump will take the stage here in just a few minutes. it's now less than 24 hours before the state votes, and as you said there are indications that this race could be a lot tighter than many had thought. donald trump losing his commanding lead as ted cruz tries to replicate his win in iwhat. donald trump sounding confident to a boisterous crowd in myrtl

our new poll shows him rising to second place in that state behind donald trumum nbc's gabe gutierrez today. >> reporter: tonight, marco rubio is on the rise, but under@ attack. how can you convince the republican primary voters that you are the guy? >> because number one, chance to unify this party. >> reporter: today rubio sat down with us as he prepares for a crucial debate morrow. >> his rececd of accomplishment is slim. >> reporter: some of his rivals already pouncing on his experience. >> this selection about the future, not just the resume competition. being president of the united states is not like being a real estate developer. eight not like being a grn. it is about being commander in chief. >> reporter: rubio argues he passed a bill to reform the va and another to slap more sanctions on the terrorist group hezbollah. was that enough of an accomplishment, though, to put on your top five? >> it absolutely is. >> reporter: was it that hard, though? >> that's not how you judge meaningful things.. >> reporter: with just days before the primary, front-runner donald trump stuck i

righgh now, donald trumum appears to be leing in all of those super tuesday states, except for one, texas. we'r here tonight. he'll again be at the center of the bull's-eye. in texas, where everything's bigger, so are the stakes at tonight's debate. the last stand before super tuesday for donald trump'p' rivals to stop him. he's facing fire today, not from his competitors in houston, but across the border. >> we're going to build a wall, and who's going to pay for that wall? >> reporter: now in a war of words, colorful ones with mexico's former president. >> i'm not going to pay for that [ bleep ] wall. he should pay for it. he's got the money. >> reporter: trump now demanding fox apologize as he gets ready for a different battle with ted cruz and marco rubio in texas. but it's the sunshine state where trump looks hot.t. tonight, as rubio's top strategist guarantees a victory in florida. tweeting, take it to the bank. rubio n nds to win there, le ted cruz needs to in texas. new numbers show cruz still in command in his home state for now. trump and rubio jockeying for second place. a cruz

we spoke to her in her las vegas what do you think donald trumum and bernie sanders have tapped into? it's a powerful thing. >> look, i do think, scott, people are angry. people like, you know, their government's not working for them. the economy's not working. the political system is not working. so i think people are angry, but they're also hungry for solutions. but i also see in the eyes of the people i'm meeting with, okay, tell me something i can believe. don't over-promise. tell me what i can believe you will do for me and my family. and that's what i've tried to do. >>elley: your resume checks almost every box in terms of experience, but that doesn't seem to be what the american people want in this election. >> you know, i think at the end of the day, voters understand they are selecting someone to be both president and commander in chief, and i'm proud of the experience that i have that will enable me on day one to do all aspects of the job. i think democrats are also beginning to really focus on who can actually beat the i know how to go after what republicans stand for and t

. >> reporter: donald trumum is nowow admitting skipping that last debate before the iowa caucuses may have hurt him so we do expect him at the next republican debate on abc this weekend. reena, kendis. >> all right, it's going to b b hosted byy david muir as well as martha raddatz. bazi, thank you. >>> and as they mentioned saturday night in new hampshire, that's what we'ring looking forward to on abc. coverage 8:00, 7:00 central. following, the severe storm system right now in the midwest. it is producing a blizzard, of course, to the north and tornadoes to the south. >> there were severe twisters in mississippi a western alabama yesterday. some buildings were damaged including the federal prison in aliceville. trees knocked down and minor injuries reported. . >> it brought another blizzard to the plains, nearly a foot of snow fell in some parts and winds reaching 45 miles an hour. major highways closed partly because visibility was near zero and alreaea today dozens of flights have been canceled in minneapolis and other airports. >> as you can see right here, the weather radar shows

we are one-on-one w wh donald trumum tonight, and the new controversy over something he repeatedt a rally here overnight. and then calling hillary clinton, que, evil. even bernie sanders' wife defending clintontonight. we're also one-on-one with marco rubio, with jeb bush. abc's political team spread o across new hampshire at this hour, and we begin tonight with abc's tom llamas. >> reporter: tonighta trump takeover of the granite state, anwe are right there with him. is tonight you're night? >> well, we'll find out. you tell me. i think we have certainly big crowds. i'm hearing good things, but you never know. >> reporter: trump taking no changes, visitg with voters in manchester. >> very excited, huh? >> i love it! >> reporter: i van ka greeting supporters in windham. >> we are going to make america >> thank you for saying that. and thank you, you're right here with us. >> reporter: the whole family here, sitting down to dinner at a manchester steakhouse. trump begging voters to make him a winner. >> your wife is disgusted with you, she said, i'm leaving. no matter what, she says, darli

a disqualifying and disgusting response by real donald trumum to the kkk. his coddling of repugnant botry is not in the character of america. >> are we choosinging a president like "american idol"? is that the system and what kind of democracy will it produce? there's a lot of people i think legitimately worried. >> reporter: one big concern for republicans, would trump at the top of the ticket, if he loses, take down with him 24 gop senate candidates, and tonight the first republican senator to say he won't vote for trump if he's the nominee. nebraska's ben sass. in a facebook posos he wrote conservatives will need to find a third option other than trump. >> this is a guy who says things again and again that sound a lot more like vladimir putin than abraham lincoln. >> reporter: there are officials if trump gets the nomination. first, if he wins in november, would he govern as a conservative? and, second, would he even get that far? if democrats are able to successfully attack his past statements and his business record. lester? >> andrea mitchell, thanks

. >> reporter: donald trumum who sends many tweets from an iphone is calling for an apple boycott until the company unlock the shooter's phone. >> apple ought to give the security for the giant now has a week to respond to the judge's order. joe fryar, nbc news, los angeles. >>> powerful wind gusts near 70 m mes an hour swept through chicago today. winds so strong some on the street like this woman needed help to keep from being blown over. it knocked down street lamps and threatened to blow bikes off their racks and factored into a construction collapse that crushed a car. flying debrissrom a high rise forced evacuationed, and the willis tower sky deck was forced to close. well over 100 flights were cancelled or delayed and more than 100,000 were left without power in northern illinois. >>> thousands paid their last respects today to justice antonin scalia as he lay in repose in the supreme court's great hall. president obama and the first lady. as for who might replace scalia on the court, nbc's pete williams reports a new hint tonight about who the president may be considering for th

pope francis asked directly about donald trumums plans to build a wall on the u.s./mexico undocumented immigrants, speaking from thheart. "a person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not of building % bridges is not christian," the pope said. addingl pointedly, "this man is not christian if he has said things like that." and it came after a week of francis in mexico, again and again, preaching a highly charged political message. like those scenes in juarez, a few feet from the u.s. border, francis giving his blessing across the rioiorande to undocumented immigrants ininhe u.s. and then demanding that more be done for all desperate migrants. "no more death, no more ploitation," he pleaded. >> and terry moran is with us live from the vatican tonight. terry, this is a pope who seems to choose his words very carefully. did the pope intend to put himself in the middle of this presidential race? >> reporter: david, you're right. he knew exactly what he was doing. francis knows who trump is, he's llowing these issues. they're very close to his

more controversy - tonight - for donald trumum- that's after an endorsement** - - from the former leader - of the - k -k - k.. k..david duke - is the former grand wizard.several groups have called on trump - to reject the support of david duke -- and other white supremacist* groups.trump says - - he can't* condemn - some- body - he doesn't even know . "i don't know anything about david duke, okay? i don't know anything about what you're even talking about with the white supremacy or white supremacists. so, i don't know. i mean did he endorse me - or what's going on. becausese duke."later today - - trump tweeted - - that he does** reject the support - of the former - klan leader. this week - could have a a huge impact - on the race for president.voters in more than a dozen states - and territories - hold primaries* on super tuesday. tuesday.as steve - nann - nus - reports - it may be the end ofhe line - for some candidadas. cacaidates. with a major victory in south carolina, hillary clinton is hoping to keep that momentum across multiple southern states ahead of super tuesday. sunday - cl

the hostile takeover of donald trumum >> donond trump, a man of peace. >> oh no! >> paid for by me. i pay for everything myself. that's how rich i am. [ cheefs and applause ] >> jimmy: this is crazy too. here in@ california somebody bought a lottery ticket that turned out to be worth $63 million. the deadline to cash it in was today. no one showed up to claim it. so now the money goes to california public schools. what a waste, you know? happen. the story's especially painful to me because losing a winni lottery ticket is definitely something i would do. for whatever reason the winner didn't show up today. maybe the person wasn't in it for the money, maybe whoever had the ticket understands that victory sometimes is its own reward. no? the super bowl's on sunday. denver broncos will play the carolina panthers. you know, between the super bowl and this new o.j.j.impson show, this has been a very big week for broncos. [ laughter ] [ cheers and applause ] >> jimmy: the super bowl is not only the most important sporting event of the year, it's also a disappointingly short beyonce concer

the grand old party, which at first looked more like the grand old pileup with miscues -- >> and donald trumum >> reporter: -- and forgotten candidates. >> yes, we're going to introduce ohio governor john kasich. >> repter: spared no time piling on marco rubio who had the same line four times during the debate. >> barack obama doesn't know what he's doing. this notion that barack obama doesn't know what he's doing. anyone who believes that barack obama isn't doing what he's understand what we're dealing with here. >> reporter: a target on his back, rubio gave governor chris ristie the opening he needed, arguing the freshman senator has no depth. >> marco, the thing is this, when you're president of the united states, when you're governor of a state, the memorized 30 second speech where you talk about how great america is at the end of it doesn't solve one problem for one person. they expect you to plow the snow. >> chris, your state got hit by a massive snowstorm two weeks ago and you didn't even want to go back. they had to shame you for going back and you stayed there for 36 hours and you le

. >> reporter: donald trumum accusing cruz of fraud over it tweeting ted cruz didn't win iowa, he stole it. >> he insulte ben carson but doing what he did. that was a disgrace. >> cruz apologizing to carson. it was a mistake for our team not to forward your subsequent statement. >> reporter: things starting to simmer on the democratic side, too. bernie sanders calling into question whether hillary clinton >> some days an, yes. except when she announces that she is a proud moderate. >> clinton calling it a low blow and saying she can overcome sanders' double digit lead in the new hampshire polls. >> because if it's about our records, hey it, i'm going to win by a landslide on tuesday. >> reporter: and clinton and sanders face off in a debate. then the republican debate here saturday. right here on abc. phillip and reena. >> thank you so much. >>> and again, the final republican debate before the new hampshire primary will be held this saturday. starting at 9:00 p.m. eastern moderated by david muir and martha raddatz. as for who will be on stage, abc will announce the final lineup later t

the #nevertrump is trending online, but donald trumum is making headlines for those who are making headnes. chris christie. out of the spotligh but taking the role as attack dog. we saw christie go after marco rubio hard. rubio in turn ripping in to donald t tmp calling him a con artist. rubio taking this te ahead of super tuesday hoping it is not too late to slow down trump. christie says he will do whatever he can to try to help that is sparking speculation that perhaps christie is angling for a high level spot in a trump administration. maybe vice president or attorney general. christie insists whe his term as new jersey governor is over, he plans to head into private law practice and as he says, make money like trump. sheinelle. >> it was a talker. hallie, thank you. for the democrats, it is primary day in south carolina. it could be a good day for hillary clinton. nbc's kristen welker is in south carolina with the latest. kristen, good morning. >> reporter:. good morning, sheinelle. polls have been open for an hour now. i'm at a polling location in columbia. this is a critical state i

and i would note, look, how do we know donald trumums record on this is going to be bad? he haspported liberals for four decades, jimmy carter, john kerry, hillary clinton, chuck schumer, harry reid, anyone who cares about judges would not be supporting harry reid and chuck schumer and john kerry and hillary clinton. and the consequence is if either hillary or bernie or donald trump is the president, we will see the second amendment written out of t t constitution. this is a basic question who will defend our liberties. >> senator cruz, i have to leave it there this morning. a lot more to get to. hhing you on perhaps next that. thank you, sir. >> excellent. >>> when we come back, we're going to hear from marco rubio who hopes to put new hampshire behind him. and john kasich who hopes new hampshire is a sign of the future. >> the world trade center came we wererborn 100 years ago into a new american century. born w wh a hunger to fly and a passion to build something better. and what an amazing time it's been, decade after decade of innovation,, inspiration and wonder. soso

here, donald trumum is being attacked on an issue where -- where a majority of republican voters are with him on the idea of building a big, strong wall. propose francis was talking about. we have to identify he may have been talking about metaphor cal walls. other candidates who want to get their message out is blocked by >> a new poll was taken i assume before the exchange of words showing trump flipping in south carolina. >> perhaps. one of the interesting things we will look to see in this vote in south carolina is what are the late sdirds doing? ? iowa they didn't doeoe for trump so much the last few days. in new hampshire, they did. what this will tell us is there a way to knock votes off of him as people think more seriously about casting their votes? or does he still have that kind of resilient support that is unshakeable? >> so let's look at second place then with rubio and ted cruz. how important is thaha positioio for either one off them? >> well, if it would be a real boost for marco rubio coming out after his difficult performance in new hampshire, it would be a real pro

made decions based offer the polls that you guys were cocounting o on sunday, we would have given donald trumum the win and this thing would be in a >> we'll see you saturday night. thanks, governor. >> looking forward to itit, george. thank you. >>> george now to the democrats and hillary clion and bernie sanders facing some tough questions at a town hall last night. they are, of course, preparing for a big debate tonight and abc's cecilia vega is in manchester with the latest on alal of at. good morning to you, cecilia. >> reporter: amy, good morning to you. bernie sanders may have the big lead in the polls here but that is not stopping hillary clion from trying to mark her turf right here in his own backyard. overnight hillary clinton on the hot seat. defending the big bucks she received for paid speeches. >> did youave to be paid $675,00000 >> well, i don't know. that's'shat they oered. >> reporter: even bringing back that famous phrase. >> d you still believe there's a vast right wing conspiracy? >> don't you? >> i'm asking you. >> yeah. it's gotten even better funded. >> reporte and clint

followed by donald trumum marco rubi and john kasich. >>> the republican candidates quickly entered succession battle last night taking issue with president obama's plan. here is juliana goldman. >> reporter: the debate started justice scalia's replacement shouldn't be confified until aftete inauguration day, 2020. >> i do not believe the president should apin the someone. >> i think we ought to let the next president of the united states decide. >> the next president need to appoint some one with proven conservative record. >> the senate needs stew say we are not going to give up the u.s. supreme court for a generation by allowing barack obama to make one more liberal apin thee. >> it's's called. delay deerks lay delay, delay, delay. >> reporter: attacks between donald trump and jeb bush blurred the lines between policy and personal. >> the world trade center came down during your brother's reign, remember that. >> let me finish. >> bush campaigning with his brother tomorrow stood his ground. >> i am sick and tired of him going after my family. while donald trump was building a reality tv sho

his klux klan grand wizardavid duke sot donald trump presidentiti ate pper - "w"wld you just say ununuivovolly you condemn them a a you don't wantnthe support?trumum- - "wl, i have look at thgroup. mean, i don't ow what grou you're talkingngbobo." marci gonzalez oncam os tptptpclaimed this morning he dn't hear the question a says he doeses disavow w e e k. memewhile he i pollinbehihi in the bigges super esy state e re i xas - where e senator ted cruz hopes his nstituents will bringngim amuch nded win m' aews s auauin, texas s corado mocrats and republicans will caucus acrs the state. blicanan n't cauc r a a nn, bu willnsns elt legate to couy nventions. hillary intoto& or b bnie nders will win the mocratic caucuses after tersn the de of thslsl ke a prerence poll. a ngtime litical scientist in the springs thks colorado sets s up wl for sanders.s. thone that more to t e left, , more progressive,t, thathe o o o o's likely to win and i'm sing tt onon st pencnc clintotolost t/t president obamamhehe e eht years ago. comingngp at 5, political reporter eric fink will l ke you inside the locaclinton d sandnds hequarters whererla mimite get-outut ththvote ef

trumums playbook. (s(s. ted cruz/(r) presidential candidate) "marco rubio is behaving like donald trump with a smile" the infighting within the top tier comes as donald trump is coasting above every other candidate in the polls. a new c-n-n/o-r-c poll out today.shows trump with a commanding lead in nevada.twenty-six points ahead of any other candidate. (donald trump/(r) presidential candidate) "beyond belief, actually. maybe i don't even have to go there to campaign, i dunno." meanwhile.. jeb bush is still fighting for traction. feeling energized with his family's help, sharpening his attacks. ( jeb bush/(r) presidential candidate) esidential hopefuls has the republican's weweite supportingng another candidate if you log on to jeb bush's website ( jeb bush dot com) it now re-directs you to donald trump dot com. according to a trump spokesperson... the campaign was not responsible for the website the only one out there, there are a slew of other domain names being used to poke fun at the candidates. lukas: and turning to the democratic side of the race... nevada is looking like a tough battleground f f both candidat

. >> reporter: donald trump took aim at president obama in south carolina on tuesday night moments after the commander in chief said this. >> i have reason to believe that mr. trumum will not be president. because i have a lot of faith in the american people. >> reporter: trump still commands a double-digit lead in the pal meadow state. >> i've never seen a human being lie so much. he lies about everything. >> he didn't tell the truth about ben carson in iowa and not my motion on marriage. >> reporter: the texas senator fired back. >> they just scream liar liar liar. >> reporter: on the democratic side, hillary clinton is trying carolina. court minority voters. >> it's not enough for your economic plan to be breakup the banks. you need a plan to address the and neglect. >> we need to provide substantial help to hbcu who have done a great job. >> reporter: democrats hold their primary in south carolina a week from this saturday. now president obama still has not said whether he intends to endorse sanders or clinton. he also has not said when he plans to do so. >> don champion here in new york, thanks a lot, don. >>> jeb bush is getting pounded on sociamedia for a t

trumum trump-trump. trump-trump. hello? who is this? hello, stephen. ( cheers and applause ) >> stephen: donald trump! okay, listen i'll got to make sure this is really you, not somebody abusisi the trump phone. say something only donald >> well, i could say you're fired. >> stephen: i'm not sure you're the only one who would say that mebut thank you very much. >> you're doing so well, that could never happen, stephen. you're doing a great job, so that could never happen. >> stephen: don't make me. ( cheers and applause ) don't make me love you, old man. let's get to the first question of any phone call. what are ylu wearing? >> i'm wearing a very beautiful plu suit a poor tie. >> stephen: i'm wearing a unitard and silver tiara just to talk to you. >> that's good. >> stephen: how do you like south carolina. the best people ever, righ >> i ilove . it's a great place. and i've been here many times, as you know. but it's a great place, and we're in the midst of a very, very strong primary season. new hampshire was terrific. and this saturday, they get out and vote, and hopefully they'll be voting for tru

cr spokeo john dickerson t thatatnd trumums new endorsement for tomorrow's "face e nation" here on >> what did you make of cisis christie endorsing donald trump? >> o o listen. don'n'think that was a big surprise. ththk a blow to the rubio campaign. but at the end of the day, the washington estsdlishnt is gointotoo where they are going to go. for you on super tuesday? >> i tnk super tuesday is the most important day off this entire primary ectionon it is the most delegates awarded in a single night will be arard on super tueueay ynd i thk we are positioned thave a very good night on super tuesday. you know, about 65% of republicans bebeeve t tt d dald trump is not the best candiditete go adado-headitit hillary clinton and we are the only campai that has beaten donald trumand we are the oy candidate that can beat donald trump. if you look at the superuesday stat, we are rni neck a neck with dd in states a across super tuesday and so it is myop that all of the republicans who rognizehat minang aandi who agreesith hillajy clinton a host o o issues, who has very similar record, is not the ph victory andnd if we comee together and if conserv

trumums all-out assault on f fmer president george w. bush's handling of the war in iraq drew loud boos at last weekend's g-o-p debate. ( donald trump / (r) presidential candidate ) "they lied. there were no weapons of mass destruction." the fiery exchange then took a jaw- dropping turn, when trump suggested the former president is responsible for the attacks on 9/11. ( jeb bush / (r) presidential candidate ) "i am sick and tired of him going after my family." ( donald trump / (r) presidential candidatat) "the world trtre center came down during yoyo brother's reign. remember that marco rubio, who's clashed with jeb bush, came to george w. bush's defense. ( sen. marco rubio / (r) presidential candidate ) "the world trade center came down because bill clinton didn't kill osama bin laden when he had the chance to kill him." jeb bush, who's campaigning today with his brother, the former president, enough... ( jeb bush / /r) presidential candidate ) "i do think that he would not be the proper nominee for our party." ...as the pro-bush super pac is p ping on with negegive ads. ( voiceover from attack ad ) "look past the boasting, and you'll s

donald trump was building a reality tv show, my othehe was buiuiing a security apparatus to keep us safe. >> reporter: marco r rio hoping to rebound from his last debate came to bush's defense, slamming trumum >> i thank god all the t te that it was george w. bush in the itithouse on 9/11 and not al gore. >> reporter: but the florida senator clashed with ted cruz over immigration. at one point cruz took issue with something rubio had said in a spanish language interview. >> first of all, i don't know how he knows what i said on univision, because he doesn't speak spanish. and second of all, the other [ speaking spanish ] >> reporter: cruz trounced on trump for what he called the billionaire's past liberal positions on abortion and social issues. >> you are the singlee biggest liar. you're probably worse than jeb bushsh you are the single biggest liar. he's a nasty guy.y. >> donald has this weird pattern, whennou point to his own record, he screams liarar liar, liar. >> reporter: striking a diffffent tone, john kasich. >> i got to telll this is just crazy. this is just nuts, okay. geez, oh, man. >> reporter: and while most on the stage fought each other, dr. ben carson fought for attention.

now, donald trump's b been in a war of words with all of his gop rivals, hillary clinton and bernie sanders, but now the president is personally getting involved. >> i i continue to belve mr. trumum will not be president. and the reason is because i have a lot of faith in the american people. >> reporter: president barack prprediction that the world will never see a president trump. >> come on. get in here saying trump's skills won't help him inhe white house. >>>> it's not hosting talk show or a reality show. it's not promotion. it's not marketing. it's hard. and a lot of people count on us tting it right. >> reporter: trump firing back a direct message. >> you're lucky i didn'tt run last t time when romney ran because you would have been a one-term presidident. >> reporter: but the president's criticisms sound a lot like what the other gop candidates are saying. >> when radical islamic terrorists wage jihadad on the united states of america, the answer is not to tweet insultsts atat them. reporter: do you think donald trump is someby you would fee safe with protecting our country. >> wewell, i don't think donald has shownet an understag of our national security situation. he ha

trumum we know you have a lot to say. we appreciate your time. unfortunately, we're out of time. we appreciate you being here. >> thank you, donald. >> by the way, mr. trump will hold a town hall in charleston. you can watch it on msnbc at 8:00 p.m. >>> on the democratic side, hillary clinton and bernie sanders targeting minority voters critical in nevada and south carolina. nbc news white house correspondent kristin welker in chicago, where secretary clinton good morning. >> reporter: willie, good morning to you. that's right, secretary clinton will hold a get out the vote rally on the south side of chicago later today after deliveriri a major address on race tuesday. she and senator sanders locked in a fierce fight for african-american support. with an eye on south carolina, secretary clinton went to harlem tuesday, making her strongest pitch yet to african-american voters. >> these are not only problems of economic inequality, these are problems of racial inequality. >> reportete despite a nagging cough -- >> too much to say. >> reporter: clinton energized the crowd, proposing new funds for public education and taking a not so