our senior white house correspondent jim acosta is there. m, you're looking at flight track e now? what is donald trump due to land? >> reporter: should be any minute now, and from what we understand, john, you're right. the voters are going to be looking to the skies, because donald trump is expected to arrive via trump force one as it's called, his boeing 57, parked behind him for this event. donald trump pulling out the big guns in this final weekend before the iowa caucuses monday night. interesting about this campaign schedule, you mentioned busy the next 24 hours. right. event here then in clinton, then davenport end of the day. normally doesn't do three events a day. goes to show they want to get this ground operation up and running and this candidate out here to remind voters what they need to get done. the last few minutes we heard one of donald trump's supporters up onstage informing the crowd this is what you have to do, this is -- how you show up on caucus night and register your support for donald trump. they realize there are a

on president obama's speech itself, i want to bring in correspondent jim acosta. what have you learned? >> anderson, i'm told by white house officials and democratic officials that the president will push back on the rhetoric from republican candidates on the campaign trail in his state of the union address tonight, and it won't be hard to figure out who the president is talking about. in a memo on tonight's speech shared by a democratic source with cnn, the president has been struck by the, quote, doom and gloom peddled by republicans. the white house says president obama will instead offer an optimistic vision of the future, if compromise remains a dirty word in washington, we're told the president will say the louder more extreme voices will prevail. judging by what democratic and white house sources are telling us president obama will call on all american toss reject the politics of donald trump. it could be quite dramatic. >> we'll wait for that, jim. when president obama takes any jabs at republicans tonight, as jim was just talking about. marco rubio will b

let's bring in senior white house correspondent jim acosta. he's got the latest. >> reporter: union, christine, in his final state of the union address, president obama called on the nation to reject the politics of division. the president urged congress to tackle climate change and close the detention facility at guantonomo. he also defended the obama doctrine of seeking diplomacy first before eun new lateral action, pointing to relations with cube be and the iran nuclear deal. there was no mention of iran through tuesday to detain ten american sailors. the president also took aim at the race for the white house in some veiled jabs at donald trump, he asked americans to respect the difference of their fellow citizens, including muslims. here's what he had to say. >> as frustration grows, there will be voices urging us to fall back into our respected tribes. to scapegoat fellow citizens who don't look like us or vote like we do or share the same background. we can't afford to go down that path. it won't deliver the economy we want. it will not

jim acosta, the white house. >> and later this hour, we'll have more reaction to mr. obama's plan. we'll hear from the father of a young victim of gun violence. >>> we want to turn to tensions in the middle east. iran's president is lashing out at saudi arabia over its execution of a shiite cleric. he says the saudi government cannot hide its, quote, great crime by severing ties with tehran. >> the execution spurred protests across the middle east and similar diplomatic action by neighboring nations. kuwait recalled its am bass sba to tehran. >> we are joined now live from saudi arabia. nick, more countries are aligning with saudi arabia on this. where's it all going and what efforts are underway to try to deescalate the tensions between iran and saudi arabia? >> reporter: well, there's certainly international pressure on both countries to deescalate both from the u.n., the united states, of course, feeling how this might impact upcoming talks on syria. they're supposed to begin in january. we've heard from the saudi ambassador to the u.n. that he says this won't effect saudi arabi

jim acosta is in the house right there in liberty. jim, give us a sense of what the scene is like. >> reporter: guys, donald trump is getting the christian rock star welcome you might say here at liberty university. this is a packed audience. we should point out to our viewers, talked to some students, they are required to attend these events. while donald trump is known to pack an auditorium, a lot of the students are required to come. one student told me they get one skip. that is partially explaining why there's such a large crowd here, but you're right, the president of this university, jerry falwell, jr., is up on stage. there was a christian rock band playing music. it was as loud as any rock concert you might go to a few minutes ago. as you said, john, this is very much going after ted cruz's lane in this presidential campaign. he is making a direct appeal to evangelical voters, a very key base of ted cruz's support in iowa and with these two candidates really neck and neck in that crucial state, it's no surprise donald trump is

what jim acosta said at the rally is significant. for a while we have been hearing about how some conservatives believe fox is too moderate and don't believe, don't trust what people like bill o'reilly and megyn kelly are saying on fox news. donald trump doesn't just need fox. he has his social media accounts, other channels. he is essentially producing the trump show day in, day out, on whatever platform he wants to. and that is a change from past cycles where fox news was more important, arguably, than it is today. >> it's also interesting, gloria raises the specter of how do other candidates on the stage tomorrow night deal with this? do they go after -- do they mention it, do they attack donald trump? or do they just try to use the fact that he's not there to make the most of their air time? >> well, there's a huge vacuum. on that stage. and i've been talking to the other campaigns today. and it's very clear to me that they're all looking for a way to first of all attack donald trump for not being there. i spoke with jeb bush ear

jim acosta with the trump campaign. senior political reporter covering marco rubio and ted cruz and also with us executive editor for cnn politics, mark preston. we will start with mark preston, with breaking news, not about iowa, mark, but about new hampshire. explain. >> all. attention is on iowa and what will happen 24 hours from now. who will come out victorious. but it moves quickly to new hampshire and who is leading at that point. what we will be doing on wednesday evening, cnn is hosting a town hall, closing arguments for the democratic candidates. hillary clinton, bernie sanders, martin o'malley, all on stage in dairy new hampshire np is very important for many reasons as we all know in new hampshire known for its town hall style meetings. very tough questions from very informed voters. that will take place wednesday evening, 8:00, epic. and again, timing here is fascinating. two days, and tomorrow night, iowa caucuses, someone will win, someone will lose. and then they get on the plane and go to new hampshire

jim acosta, thank you so much, dana bash, jeff zeleny, thanks to you as well. a lot to talk about, talking 48 hours until caucus night in iowa. joining me, cnn political analyst, editor of the daily beast and commentator margaret hoover. a lot going on here today. margaret, i want to start on the republican side. talked about it with dana, ted cruz on the stump. he is fighting a two front war, trying to win, still beat donald trump. his big concern seems to be marco rubio. >> every republican has their ear to the ground that i talked to and beyond seems to feel there's an anecdotal surge for marco rubio. clearly cruz senses that, why would he point that at marco rubio. what's interesting here is trump has incredible ground organization. the guy running trump's ground organization ran rick santorum's four years ago. they're far more organized than anybody thinks. with regard to marco rubio, the story is if he can close the gap, instead of being 15 points behind cruz by end of the day, even if he gets third place if he lost by two or three points, that's the narr

our senior white house correspondent, jim acosta, is getting more information. arning, jim? >> reporter: wolf, that's right, president obama, we can tell our viewers, has been briefed on this situation with iran holding these ten u.s. sailors. but again, the administration trying to caution that they believe that this situation will be resolved promptly, that these sailors will go on their way as soon as possible. that may not happen overnight because it may not be safe to do it overnight, but wolf, as you know from covering this for a long time, having this come down, having the president needing to be briefed on something like this as he's preparing for the state of the union, this is not the kind of interruption that they wanted over here at the white house today, especially when we know that the president will be touting that iran nuclear deal in the state of the union later tonight, wolf. >> the president was planning on saying it's an important breakthrough in stopping iran from developing a nuclear bomb wand going to tout the relations with cuba as well. i

all thank you. >>> coming up next, jim acosta brought up this question. when sarah palin talks, do voters really listen? we'll look at her track record. ted cruz credits her with his victory. >>> coming up later, children poisoned by the water they drink. water tainted with led. talking about the flint crisis. a 360 investigation what people knew about the danger and how long they knew without doing anything to help. mr. watson, come here. i want to see you. it started with a single connection. and the network was born. then, we connected more and more people until it became clear that the network was not a fad or aluxury but a basic human necessity. and so, at&t built a network, just for you. one that connects your family and friends... your businesses, devices... mobile entertainment, connected cars, and connected homes. it grows as you grow. extending your reach to pull you closer to what you need and the people you love. because you are still evolving and so are we. with a network that is invented and reinvented every day to work for you how and where

cnn jim acosta joins us. sarah palin's second day on the campaign trail. what did it have in store? happened. >> you're right. she's a force of nature herself and wasn't only spending her time on the stump with donald trump here at the university in tulsa, oklahoma to talk about the front runner. she was talking about her son track arrested on domestic violence charges this week but palin blamed that on her son's post traumatic stress disorder and said that was in part due to president obama's policies. here is more of what she had to say. >> so when my own son is going through what he goes through coming back, i can certainly relate with other families who kind of feel these ramifications of some ptsd and some of the woundedness that our soldiers do return with and it makes me realize more than ever it is now or never for the sake of america's finest that we have that commander in chief who will respect them and honor them. >> reporter: now, there is no question about it, anderson, a lot of veterans deal with ptsd but one top veteran leader was on twitter earlier today paul saying

jim acosta in virginia with donald trump and max foster is live in london. hat is the latest? it looks like a packed house there. >> reporter: it absolutely is, pam, and i'm going to do my best to hear you as well as i can right now. donald trump is getting the christian rock treatment you might see here at liberty university. the university founded by christian conservatives in virginia, and donald trump is essentially talking to this evangelical crowd because he wants to go after a key voting bloc. now, we should point out, yes this, arena, this basketball arena, is packed for donald trump here. he's going on out in a few moments. i was just talking to some students, talking to officials with the university. we should point out to our viewers that the students are required to go to these events during their semesters here at liberty university. they get one skip a student told me, so they can skip the' ve ev but their attendance is mandatory and it is checked by officials at the university. we also know donald trump can pack an auditorium. he's certainly do

let's get more from senior correspondent jim acosta. >> reporter: president obama will sit down with opponents and pro poen ends here on cnn. while the nation's top gun lobby, the nra declined to participate. the president hopes to use the meeting to take on critics of executive action to strengthen the background checks. >> i'm confident there will be discussion of the politics of the issue. we see this is a very good example of how political dysfunction on capitol hill has serious consequences for the safety and security of communities and kids across the country. >> reporter: the town hall meeting on cnn is part of the big push on gun control in his final year in office. he is expected to challenge lawmakers to pass legislation during the final state of the union address for president obama next tuesday. john and christine. >>> thank you, jim. tonight, 8:00, anderson cooper joins the president to talk about his recent round of executive actions and more. he will take questions from a live studio audience. the guns in america town hall with the president. tonight at 8:00 p.m. on cn

jim acosta, cnn, the white house. >> for days now, republican and u.s. presidential candidate donald trump has been warning that mr. obama wants to take away their firearms, something the president denies. but many of trump's supporters say they do believe obama is plotting to strip away their constitutional rights. randi kaye spoke with them in new hampshire. >> there's an assault on the second amendment. you know, obama is going to do an executive order and really knock the hell out of it. >> when donald trump tells supporters he's attacking their second amendments and he's going to take away their gups, they believe them. >> do you think that obama is coming after your guns? >> i believe that's his main objective, yes. >> do you believe the president is taking away your guns? >> no. >> you don't believe him when he says he's not coming after your guns? >> i don't believe that one bit. >> reporter: we taught up with these trump supporters, many of them gun owners just hours after the president laid out his new requirements for gun sellers and buyers, w

. >> cnn's jim acosta has the latest. >> reporter: christine and miguel, a rally in south carolina and steered clear of the decision to drop out of the debate. his campaign made it an issue saying he will appear at arrival debate. aimed at raising money for veterans groups. trump would say in south carolina that he has been treated unfairly by fox news at previous debates. here's more of what he had to say. >> can you believe we already had six debates? when i did this, i never debated before. i created jobs and built buildings. i get on the stage a number of months ago, i had no idea. it worked out fine. i got an unfair question from somebody. we don't talk about that. i refuse to talk about that. >> reporter: asked if trump could appear at his rally and debate in iowa, his campaign manager said it is not feasible. talking to trump supporters, they sound like they are watching him later tonight and not the debate. >> thank you, jim. rivals kept up the ridicule to his decision to withdraw from the debate. listen to them. >> apparently mr. trump considers megyn kelly very, very scary. a

cnn's jim acosta has more from the white house. >> reporter: the president will talk about the america he hopes to see after he leaves office, but there are still a few things he wants to accomplish. he wants to defect executive action on guns and he wants to close guantanamo bay. as a tribute to the victims of gun violence, there will be an empty seat in the first lady's box. there will be a touch of the nostalgia as he looks back to the 2008 campaign and point to the first supporters, edith ch, iles. there will not be a long list of issues in the state of the union. acknowledging that time is running down and congress is looking to the next election. >>> jim, you can tune in to cnn's live coverage of the state of the union beginning at 7:00 with erin burnet and followed by ac 360. the address is at 9:00 p.m. the republican response is givenly governor nicki haley. >>> and we have breaking news from turkey this morning. a short time ago, istanbul was rocked by an explosion in the heart of the city. in an area where many western tourists visit. we are getting reports of casualties. the

let's go to our senior white house correspondent jim acosta. today he's on the campaign trail with donald trump and sarah palin. jim, they're attacking the republican establishment almost as much with a passion as they're going after the democrats. tell us what happened today. >> reporter: they're attacking everybody, wolf. this seems to be a match made in tea party heaven. christian conservative oral roberts university here, palin touted trump as the only candidate, quote, ballsy enough -- her words, meaning trump is strong enough to go rogue no matter the consequences. here's what she had to say. >> his candidate, trump's candidacy, this movement, this force, this strategy proves that, shoot, as long as that establishment, as lon as they get to keep their titles and their perks in d.c., and their media ratings, they don't really care who wins elections. believe me on this. i've kind of been there and i see how they treat those who go rogue, like mr. trump does, in order to do the right thing. [ cheers and applause ] you want to know proof of t

jim acosta with the trump campaign, as you correctly note, three events for donald trump, we'll check in at the end of the day to see how he's doing. thanks, jim. cnn will be in place for complete coverage. live coverage all day on monday, the very first votes of the 2016 presidential race, so important. we'll be right back with more of our live coverage. stay with us. i think it landed last tuesday. one second it's there. then, woosh, it's gone. i swear i saw it swallow seven people. seven. i just wish one of those people could have been mrs. johnson. [dog bark] trust me, we're dealing with a higher intelligence here. ♪ the all-new audi q7 is here. ♪ where self-proclaimed ofinancial superstars , pitch you investment opportunities. i've got a fantastic deal for you- gold! with the right pool of investors, there's a lot of money to be made. but first, investors must ask the right questions and use the smartcheck challenge to make the right decisions. you're not even registered; i'm done with you! i can...i can... savvy investors check their financial pro's background by visiting smartc

jim acosta is with him. jim? >> reporter: good morning, john. that's right. you could say donald trump is taking a bit of a victory lap out here in new hampshire this morning after skipping last night's fox news debate. he's essentially saying it was the right call, at one point telling the crowd here when people go after you, you have to be tough. he feels pretty good about what happened last night. he even mentioned that ted cruz seemed to have a rough night if you look at the front page of the register, the headline makes it clear, rough night for cruz. donald trump seized that moment here. >> cruz is in second place. he got really pummelled last night. actually, i'm glad i wasn't there. he got pummelled. wow. and they didn't even mention that he was born in canada. >> reporter: now, we know that donald trump skipped last night's debate because of this dust up with fox news. he did not -- his campaign didn't like the statement that fox news put out while donald trump was toying with the idea of skipping the debate. it seems all the sud than donald trump ha

i want to bring in senior white house correspondent jim acosta in honolulu, and jim, you're hearing more about the details on the president's plans. tell us about them. >> reporter: that's right. he's going to be discussing those plans with loretta lynch on monday. we expect to hear about it later on next week, but in the meantime, the president is almost at the end of his hawaiian vacation. time to put down the golf clubs and pick up the presidential pen and don't say the words lame duck around president obama. this president has and ambitious agenda set for 2016 and at the top of the list is gun control. for president obama the final round is about to begin. >> in 2016 i'm going to leave it out all on the field. >> reporter: up first in the president's eighth and last year in office, mr. obama's long promised response to mass shootings in the u.s. sources familiar with the plan say it will be a package of executive actions on gun control. expected before the january 12th state of the union, and aimed at the gun show loophole which allows firearm sellers to avoid conducting background c

for the latest, let's bring in senior white house correspondent jim acosta. >> reporter: john, christine, this was one of the most emotional moment. he cried openly at the white house as he made the case for new executive actions on gun control. under the president's new executive actions, a warning to gun sellers to conduct background checks or risk prosecution. new atf agents, $500 million for mental health care and a push to develop smart gun technology. the new actions are not a gun grab. they fall short of a law mandating universal background checks across the country. here's more of what the president had to say. >> 2nd amendment rights are important. but there are other rights we care about as well. we have to be able balance them. because our right to worship freely and safely, that right was denied to christians in charleston, south carolina and that was denied juice in kansas city and that was denied muslims in chapel hill and seiks in old creek. they had rights, too. >> deanna ray responded saying, quote the proposed executive actions are right by the abuse by the obama admini

cnn's jim acosta has more. >> reporter: christine and miguel, during a rally in south carolina, donald trump largely steered clear of the controversy surrounding his decision to drop out of the fox news debate. the campaign made it official issuing a press release saying trump will appear at arrival event during the debate. trump would only say briefly during the rally here in south carolina that he felt he has been treated very unfairly by fox news at previous debates. here is more of what he had to say. >> can you believe we already had six debates? when i did this, i never debated before. i create jobs, i do deals, i build buildings. i never debated. i get on the stage for the first he did bai debate. i got a very unfair question from somebody, i don't talk about that. i refuse to talk about that. >> reporter: asked whether trump would appear at his rally and the debate in iowa, his campaign manager said it wasn't feasible. talking to some trump supporters in south carolina, they sound like they will be watching him later tonight and not the debate. christine and miguel. >> jim, tha

let's get more now from jim acosta. >> reporter: john and christine, president obama will be sittingnents of executive actions on gun control this evening during a live town hall with anderson cooper. the nra has declined to participate. the white house press secretary josh earnest released a statement. >> i'm confident there will be discussion of the politics too. we do see this is a very good example of how political dysfunction on capitol hill has serious consequences for the safety and security of communities and kids across the country. >> reporter: the town hall meeting on cnn is part of president obama's big push of gun control in the final year in office. he is expected to pass gun control during the final state of the union address next tuesday. john and christine. >>> jim, thank you so much. that event is 8:00 p.m. president obama joining anderson cooper for the live town hall. guns in america. the executive actions he just issued will be discussed. he will face questions from a live studio audience. guns in america with the president. moderated by anderson. >>> look. it is

for the latest, let's bring in jim acosta. >> reporter: president obama confronted critics on the actions of the gun control at the town hall last night. they worry about the executive actions expanding the background checks system could prevent law abiding citizens from buying firearms. the president said it will not interfere with those rights and went off on the nra. accusing the group of skipping the town hall so it could continue to mislead gun owners about his record. here is what he had to say. >> our position is consistently mischaracterized. by the way, there's a reason why the nra is not here. they are just down the street. and since this is the main reason they exist, you would think they would be prepared to have a debate with the president. >> reporter: the president insisted he supports the right to bear arms in the second amendment. the president recounted his meeting with the family members of the children killed in the sandy hook shooting three years ago. he said it is the only time he saw the secret service cry on duty. >> thanks, jim. the president was making a case for

senior correspondent jim acosta is in dubuque where donald trump holds the first event of a very busy, unusually busy day for donald trump, jim. >> reporter: that's right, john, we don't normally see donald trump hold these three a day events, campaign days, yet that's what he's doing today. we understand talking to campaign staff, he will be making quite an entrance into the final weekend of campaigning before iowa caucuses, arriving here in the next hour on what is sometimes called trump force one, that's his boeing 757, it will be parked behind me, parked behind the candidate within the hour. he is making a pretty grand entrance, a huge entrance for the final campaign of the iowa caucus. i saw a guitar tuned up, i don't believe donald trump plays guitar. perhaps might be a musical guest as well. we have to wait and see. interesting when you point out that video posted on facebook this morning by donald trump thanking evangelicals in the state, it would be i think a pretty extraordinary thing for donald trump to capture iowa with backing of evangelical voters. he sno he is not that

our senior white house correspondent jim acosta is joining us. jim, we saw a wide range of emotions from the president today, but as we have been pointing out, it is not everyday that you see the president actually choke back the tears. >> that is right, wolf. this may have been the most emotional president obama has been throughout his presidency when he was lamenting the country's inability to pass any kind of meaningful gun legislation, an gun control legislation, and especially in the aftermath of the tragedies in newtown, and all of the others that we have gone through in the last couple of years. and wolf, what the president is proposing today basically boils down to this, and i am holding it right here, and this is new guidance issued by the bureau of alcohol and tobacco and firearms, and it is going to the gun sellers across the country saying that if you are the business of selling firearms, you have to get a license and conduct background checks on the buyers. and there are hobbyists and collectors who sell are from time to time, and the

jim acosta, cnn, gilbert, south carolina. >>> joining me now to talk about all of this is democratic strategist joe lestangi and jeffrey lord, former reagan white house political director and donald trump supporter. he's on the right of your screen. welcome to you both. joe, i want to begin with you. we have this spectacle now of donald trump holding his counter event to the gop debate. it is adding a sense of drama to what are usually dry events. would you at least admit that trump has once again found a way to dominate the political conversation, unlike any candidate before? >> absolutely. donald trump has taken presidential politics to a whole other level. only the don could do. and he's actually proved one adage that we always talk about in politics, which is there's no such thing as bad press. we thought that went away a long time ago with scandals after scandals. but when his poll numbers lag or they start to drop or plateau he comes out with something that gets everyone talking about him again which then he sees a corresponding bump in his poll. and that's what he needs to do.

while we await the president, i want to bring in or senior white house correspondent, jim acosta, chiefse correspondent jake tapper, gloria borger and john king. jake, this is an important moment for the president. it's his final year in office. he's trying to do now what he has so far failed to do over the first seven years. >> that's right. now, three years ago, after the sandy hook shootings, he also did -- took some executive actions. 23, in fact. but they were minor. there is a lot of build-up about what he is doing this week. when you look at the actual proposals, at least so far as we understand them, they are relatively minor despite the fact that gun control advocates are saying this is a big, historic moment and that gun rights activists are saying this is a horrible thing that's going to lead to the confiscation of guns. these are relatively minor steps, as far as we've been told so far. it gets a conversation going about an issue the president has felt very frustrated about dealing with congress. he wasn't able when there was a democratically controlled senate, he wasn't abl

we know jim acosta was just reporting. donald trump went to church.that said, listen, people criticized him for the fact he's been married a couple of times. he has evolved when it comes to his stance on abortion. that's mr. trump. you have ted cruz, last couple of days, headlines over how much he has tithed, which questions is he a true christian. this is such a toss-up when it comes to evangelicals in the states for candidates. >> jerry falwell jr, and trump talking about spirituality wherever he goes and speaking using moralistic language. even when talking about larger policy issues. this is still undecided as you've said and often times even that iowa poll which we all look to has not caught late surging candidates. in 2012 it did not catch the late surge for rick santorum, for example, brooke. and so, you know, some people are saying, is there marco rubio surge? is there not? that poll ended on the 29th. they are still three, four days left until people good to vote. you're right, a ground game right now. and it still could go any direction. >>

jim acosta is there and is "outfront." palin and trump seems very comfortable together. >> reporter: yeah. it looks like they've been out on the campaign trail for months. this is only day two. donald trump and sarah palin once again together, less than two weeks to go to the iowa caucuses. both sides seem to be throwing cold water on that idea. palin supporters and palin support just might be exactly what trump needs to get over the top in this campaign. >> ladies and gentlemen, governor sarah palin. >> reporter: going rogue times two. donald trump and sarah palin dishing out the conservative red meat. palin praised trump as the only conservative who can stand up to washington. >> our candidate is ballsy enough to get out there and put those issues on the table. >> reporter: trump was eating up every minute. palin's jaw-dropping endorsement lit up the universe of 21st campaigning. >> reporter: iowa is stupid, lady and the trump screamed the new york post. >> she said what you're doing, donald, is amazing. it's a movement

and squim -- jim acosta, we ar look looking forward to your coverage. and let us know as more arises. >>> and now, in iowa and new hampshire, there is and i quote everything that she has to be president" in the new ad. >> she is going shut down the gun lobby, and get equal pi for women, and stop the republicans from ripping away the progress, so on february 1st, stand up for hillary, because if you want a president who knows how to keep america safe and build a stronger economy, hill i have the choice. >> so hillary does remain the choice of at least 52% of democratic voters right across the country, and this is according to the latest monmouth survey, but the democratic socialist from vermont is now 15 points behind her, and that is less than half of the gap that existed among them to a month ago. and then new hampshire, folks. wow, and don't blink, because you are seeing the numbers coming in are from the cnn/wmur poll, and it is all bernie sanders, 6 60% to clinton's 33%. that is significant from just a month ago when it was 50% to 40%. i don't know

she did join up with trump on the trail this afternoon and cnn senior white house correspondent jim acosta is in tulsa, oklahoma. stop number two for donald trump today. jim, she showed up, what did she have to say this time? >> reporter: jake, going rogue never felt so good for conservatives. donald trump and sarah palin on the campaign trail with less than two weeks to go to the iowa caucuses. while they may not be future running mates, palin support as you said might be the boost trump needs to stay on top in this race. it's a match made in tea party heaven, donald trump and sarah palin dishing out the conservative red meat and wooing evangelical voters at the christian conservative founded oral roberts university. >> our candidate is ball enough to get out there and put those issues on the table. the issues that a lot of other candidates have wanted to duck and run from. >> reporter: trump debuted a new line of attack, not on a republican but on democrat bernie sanders. >> this guy, he's a whack job. he's a whacko. he's beating hillary clinton. oh, boy, i tell you what, i really want t

jim acosta, cnn, traveling with the president in honolulu. >>> all right, coming up, the new year isere. and so is election year 2016. candidates are wasting no time hitting the trails. our political panel, weighing in, next. ♪ (vo) some call it giving back. we call it share the love. during our share the love event, get a new subaru, and we'll donate $250 to those in need. bringing our total donations to over sixty-five million dollars. and bringing love where it's needed most. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru. >>> mortgage rates remain the same this week. have a look. mortified mortuary mortality mortician mortgage of all the "mort" words, and there are some doozies, that's the worst. so, we added rocket. sfx: rocket engine sfx: (countdown) 3, 2, 1 (ding) (ding) (ding) rocket >>> all right, a live look right now at democratic candidate bernie sanders campaigning in amherst, massachusetts. he's just one of many 2016 presidential candidates on the campaign trail today. and in the next half hour, republican senator marco rubio attends an event in hilton head, south carolina. h

and jim acosta is there in the room, but as he said it is a small venue, but yet he is very vocal. and the last debate is a reflection of the iowa polls. trump and cruz going over it after values and valor, and marco cruz calling out cruz and chris christie on those issues, and if you missed it, here's a peek. >> everyone understands that the values in new york city are socially liberal or pro abortion or pro-gay parnlg and focused around the money and the media. >> new york is a great place and has great people, and wonderful people, and when the world trade is center came down, i saw something that no place on earth could have handled more beautifully, more humanely than new york. >> and back in september, my friend donald said that he had had his lawyers look at this are from every which way and nothing to it, and nothing to the birther issue -- [ applause ] -- and now since september, the constitution has not changed. but the poll numbers have. >> and here's the problem. we are running. and we are running, and he does great and i win. and i choose him as the vice presidential c

. >> let's go live to our senior white house correspondent, jim acosta. jim, it's not every day that you see the president of the united states break down like that. >> reporter: no question about it, wolf. this was one of the most emotional moments of the obama presidency. the president embraced the crowd of mass shooting victims and their families and as you pointed out cried openly as he made the case for new executive actions on gun control. he also described what he said was the saddest day in office, the sandy hook school shooting, before laying out his proposal and here's some of the finer points. under his new executive actions, a warning to nearly all gun sellers across the country to conduct background checks or risk prosecution. plus new fbi and atf agents, $500 million for mental health care and a new push to develop smart gun technology. these new executive actions are not a gun grab. in fact they stop short of a law man dating universal background checks across the country, but the president felt it was necessary today to once again defend hi

cnn's jim acosta joins me now live at the white house where president obama is getting ready for thiswhat's the white house response to the nra declining the invitation to participate this evening? >> jake, aides are not surprised that the nra will not be involved in tonight's meeting. the white house and nra have been at odds over this issue of gun control for years. but the white house insists president obama will hear from all sides in tonight's town hall meeting. the president will no doubt hear from critics who argue his executive actions aimed at expanding background checks and mental hoelt care will take away their constitutional right to own guns. the president is ready for that question. the white house is also well aware of these spikes in gun sales that seem to happen every time the president starts talking about gun control. i asked press secretary josh earnest on that. he blamed that on the gun industry and not the president's views. here's what he had to say. >> there's a profit motive on the part of the industry to try to convince their customers that the government wan

today he is as fired up as i've ever seen him covering him as president of the united states. >> jim acostae reporting. let's get reaction from former senior obama adviser van jones and conservative radio talk show host dana lash. when it comes to president's announcement, republicans should know how to take "yes" as an answer. what do you mean by that? >> i mean if you listen to republican conservatives yesterday, they were saying this is going to be the apocalypse and the overreaching president. come to them to make new law. they just want him to stay within the existing law and maybe double down and force the existing law. that's exactly what this president just said he's going to do. he's clarifying the existing law, doubling down and wants to be able to enforce it more. and for everything new he's going to congress. i would think that republicans would take "yes" for an answer for what they said they wanted yesterday and yet we hear all of this sort of hemming and hawing. i have never been more proud of this president than today. he was speaking for and two millions of other families t

jim acosta is "outfront" in des moines, iowa, with the trump campaign. >> reporter: looking to close iowa, donald trump is now doing the kind of person to person retail campaigning that iowans crave. the ultimate outsider, trump pulled an inside move, making the tradition alston at an iowa pizza ranch. >> i'm going to be here so much in the next two weeks you're going to be sick of me. you're going to say, i can't stand him. >> reporter: no big arena event on this trip. instead, trump took questions from a small crowd and warned them of the conventional wisdom that his supporters won't show up on caucus night. >> i want to win iowa. i've really -- we have a great relationship with the evangelicals. like fantastic. >> reporter: referring to positive reviews of his debate performance, trump made no mention of ted cruz and their clash over eligibility to be president. when cruz slammed the billionaire tycoon's new york values trump was ready for it. >> not a lot of conservatives come out of manhattan. i'm just saying. >> when the world trade center came down, i saw something that no pla

jim acosta looks at proposals expected to be revelaed next week. natsot: obama playing golf. for president obama, the final round is about to begin. : "in 2016, i'm going to leave it out all on the field." natsot: chopper up first in the president's eighth and last year in office... mr. obama's long-promised response to mass shootings in the u-s... sources familiar with the plan say it will be a package of executive actions on gun control... expected before the jan. 12th state of the union.. and aimed at the gun show loophole.. which allows some firearms sellers to avoid conducting background checks on their customers. think that would be fair yes." the white house argues the president's actions will be within his executive authority... that show broad background checks. : "unfortunately, congress hasn't shown the courage to do so. so that's why the president has asked his team to look at what he can do administratively." vowing to fight the move, the nation's biggest gun lobby.. the nra.. says the president is doing what he always does when he doesn't get his way, defying th

as jim acosta reports, he'll start with gun control. natsot: obama playing golf. for president obama, the final round is about to begin. : "in 2016, i'm going to leave it out all on the field."natsot: chopper up first in the president's eighth and last year in office... mr. obama's long-promised response to mass say it will be a package of executive actions on gun control... expected before the jan. 12th state of the union.. and aimed at the gun show loophole.. which allows some firearms sellers to avoid conducting background checks on their customers. : "the beginning of this year? i think that would be fair yes."the white house argues the president's actions will be within his executive authority... and in line with polls that show broad support for tightening background checks. : "unfortunately, congress hasn't shown the courage to do so. so that's why the president has asked his team to look at what he can do administratively."vowing to fight the move, the nation's biggest gun lobby.. the nra.. says the president is doing what he always does when he doesn't ge

as jim acosta reports--trump backs out of tomorrow's the debate... saying fox host.... megan kelly won't treat him fairly. 00-04 101-113 --reporter pkg-as follows-- toy with everybody else."of all the high stakes campaign gambles, this one is huge. donald trump is showing no signs of backing down from his threat to skip the network's republican debate tomorrow just days before the iowa caucuses. presidential candidate "let them have their debate and let's see how they do with the ratings." asked earlier today whether the g-o-p frontrunner was crack, trump's campaign manager all but slammed it shut. "the short answer is i just don't think so."trump is furious at fox news for putting out a sarcastic statement suggesting the real estate tycoon was afraid of moderator megyn kelly. presidential candidate "when they sent out the wise-guy press releases a little while ago done by some pr person along with roger ailes, i said, 'bye-bye!' okay?"trump lashed out on twitter: "i refuse to call megyn kelly a bimbo, because that would not be politically correct."fox accused the trump

as jim acosta reports, he'll start with gun control. natsot: obama playing golf. for president obama, the final round is about to begin. : "in 2016, i'm going to leave it out all on the field." natsot: chopper up first in the president's eighth and last year in office... mr. obama's long- promised response to mass shootings in the u-s... sources familiar with the plan say it will be a package of executive actions on gun control... expected before the jan. 12th state of the union.. and aimed at the gun show loophole.. which allows some firearms sellers to avoid conducting background checks on their : "the beginning of this year? i think that would be authority... and in line with polls that show broad support for tightening background checks. : "unfortunately, congress hasn't shown the courage to do so. so that's why the president has asked his team to look at what he can do administratively." vowing to fight the move, the nation's biggest gun lobby.. the nra.. says the president is doing what he always does when he doesn't get his way, defying the will of the peop

let's bring in jim acosta for more. >> reporter: in his final state of the union address, president obamaalled on the nation to reject the politics of division. the president urged congress to pass new gun control laws, tackle climate change and close the detention facility at began taun moe. he also defended the obama doctrine, pointing to the normalization with cuba and the iranian deal. there was no mention of the sailors. the president also took aim at the race for the white house and vailed comments on donald trump. here's what he had to say. >> as frustration grows, there will be voices urging us to fall back into our respective tribes, to scapegoat fellow citizens that don't look like us or share the same background or vote like us. we can't afford to go down that path. it won't deliver the economy we want. it will not produce the security we want. but most of all, it contradicts everything that makes us the envy of the world. >> and the president called for a moon shot mission to cure cancer. it was a tribute to the vice president whose son beau died from cancer last year. >> jim

jim acosta, cnn, traveling with the president in honolulu. >>> now the race for the white house. it is official -- 2016, we are now in an election year here in the u.s. and we're already seeing some candidates switch up their strategies to attract more voters, and others seemingly have new campaigns in the new year. mary maloney explains. >> reporter: at the rose bowl parade, skywriters weren't focused on football -- instead set sights on front-runner donald trump. the mention -- america is great, donald trump is disgusteding. he hasn't been quiet saying jeb bush is low in the polls because of his big dollar hit ads on me. they irritate trump. >> it bothers me when i see a guy spending $60 million on ads against me, a lot of it. >> reporter: trump vowing to start spending $2 million a week to ensure victory. >> we're going to to spend money because i don't want to take chances. >> reporter: bush canceled ad buys, moved staff to early voting states, and insisted trump will fail. >> we're living in a reality tv political environment where he says outrageous things. i think the emot

i want to bring in senior white house correspondent jim acosta in honolulu, and jim, you're hearing more the details on the president's plans. tell us about them. >> reporter: that's right. he's going to be discussing those plans with loretta lynch on monday. we expect to hear about it later on next week, but in the meantime, the president is almost at the end of his hawaiian vacation. time to put down the golf clubs and pick up the presidential pen and don't say the words lame duck around president obama. this president has and ambitious agenda set for 2016 and at the top of the list is gun control. for president obama the final round is about to begin.

cnn's jim acosta is in south carolina for us waiting for the start of that donald trump rally. jim, are you getting any hints that trump could change his mind about skipping tomorrow's fox debate? >> reporter: well, they haven't completely ruled it out at this point, wolf, and the campaign has not put on an announcement for some kind of event tomorrow evening but the plan is for that to take place tomorrow night. instead of fighting with his republican rivals, donald trump is at war with fox news. just as the network is preparing to host a gop debate tomorrow night. we understand the trump campaign is still planning to put on its own rival event to that debate to drive down viewership for fox news and drive up trump's poll numbers. >> they can't toy with me like they toy with everybody else. >> reporter: of all the high-stakes campaign gambles, this one is huge. donald trump is showing no signs of backing down from his threat to skip the network's republican debate tomorrow, just days before the iowa caucuses. >> let them have their debate and let's see how they do with the rati

as jim acosta tells us he'll start natsot: obama playing golf. for president obama, leave it president's eighth and last year in office... mr. obama's long-promisee response to maas shohotings in the u-s... gun control... expected before the jan. 12th state of the union.. and aimed at the gun show loophole.. which allows some firearms sellers to avoid of this year? i think that would be fair yes." the white house argues the president's actions will be within his executive authority... and in line with polls that show broad support for tightening background checks. "unfortunately, congress hasn'n' shown the courage to do so. so that's why the president has asked his teaa to look at what he can do administratively." president is doing what he always does when he doesn't get his way, defying the will of the people and using executive action." another controversial proposal coming in the new ar.. e president will ask detention center at guantanamo... a facility mr. obama may close on his own.. if the president also hopes to travel to cuba... and pepe

as jim acosta tells us he'll start by focusing on guns. natsot: obama playing golf. out all on the field." president's eighth and last year in office... mr. sources faaliar with the plan sasa it will be a package of executive actions on gun control... expected before the jan. 12th state of the union.. and aimed at the gun show loophole.. which allows some firearms sellers to avoid their customers. think that would be fair yes." the white house argues authority... and in line with polls that show broad support for tightening background checks. "unfortunately, congress hasn't shown the courage to do so. so that's why the president has asked his team to look at what he can do administrativel" vowing to fight the move, the nation's biggest gun lobby.. theera.. says thee president is doing what he always does when he doesn't get his way, defying the will of the people and using executive action." another controversial proposal coming in the new year.. the president will ask center at guantanamo... a facility mr. obama may close on his own.. if

our jim acosta explains what the executive action might entail. >> for president obama, the final round is about to begin. >> in 2016, i'm going to leave it out all on the field. >> a verse in the president's eighth and last year in office. mr. obama's long promised response to mass shootings in the u.s. sources familiar with the plan say it will be a package of executive actions on gun control. expected before the january 12th state of the union, and aimed at the gun show loophole which allows some to avoid conducting background checks on their customers. all across america, survivors of gun violence and those who lost a child or a parent or a spouse to gun violence are forced to mark such awful anniversaries every single day. yet, congress still hasn't done anything to prevent what happened to them from happening to other families. >> the president will review the slate of administrative changes with attorney general loretta lynch on monday. the white house argues the actions of the president will be within his executive authority and in line with polls that show support for tightenin