kenneth moton has more on the change in tactics. (nats up)republican frontrunner donald trump took the stage with a double-digit lead in florida, - and trump was asked to explain his wednesday statement, quote: "i think islam hates us." q: did you mean all 1.6 billion muslims? trump: i mean a lot of them. i mean a lot of them.//there is tremendous hate. where large portions of a group of people, islam, large portions want to use very, very harsh means. let me go a step further. women are treated horribly." trump was on the spot after breitbart reporter michelle fields accused his campaign manager -- corey lewandowski -- of roughing her up fields spoke with abc newssotmichelle fields reporter, breitbart news network "obviously, no one violated like that." the physical incidents...a concern at trump events...suppo rter john mcgraw was charged with assault after he sucker punched a protester at a trump rally in north carolina. trailing badly, senator marco rubio is making what could be a last stand in his home state. texas senator ted

and our coverage begins with kenneth moton. kenneth, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, donald trump's rivals pointed out those images of violence at his rallies are being seen around the world. some of the toughest criticism came from the two men who have a lot to lose tomorrow if they don't win their home states. this morning, donald trump under fire as violence and protests continue to break out at his rallies. >> it was totally organized. troublemakers. troublemakers. they're not protesters they're disrupters. they're supposed to disrupt. >> reporter: rising tempers sparked incredible scenes at trump events in illinois, missouri and ohio. more secret service agents are now surrounding the gop front-runner after one man even tried to rush the stage as trump spoke. but it's trump rivals on both side on the attack. >> he's trafficking in hate and fear. >> no matter what it takes i will not take the low road to the highest office in america. >> reporter: the violence has been a distraction from the race for the white house

abc's kenneth moton live in cleveland, ohio. h, thank you. >> and it no doubt will be a busy one, indeed. donald trump could all but seal the deal today. >> abc's jonathan karl has a look at what trump needs to accomplish in order to take a massive step towards the republican nomination. >> reporter: we've done the math and by our calculations if trump wins both ohio and florida, he will be well on his way to clinching the republican nomination. he'll still need to win 54% of all delegates going forward, but that will be much easier as both marco rubio and john kasich would almost certainly drop out after losing their home state. >>> one of donald trump's key supporters has let loose on protesters who have been disrupting his campaign rallies. tensions have risen since a rally in chicago last week that trump shut down out of safety concerns, as well as a violent scuffle in north carolina, and now former alaska governor sarah palin is weighing in. >> hi, guys. what we don't have time for is all that petty, punk ass little thuggery

abc's kenneth moton in washington with the latest. good morning, kenneth. >> reporter: good morning, reena and kendis. this morning the nypd has given the all clear after a letter containing some type of white powder was sent to the home of donald trump's son. now, the substance was deemed nonhazardous, but it appears to be the latest attack to intimidate the polarizing billionaire. it's been a steady stream of attacks against gop front-runner donald trump and his family. a suspicious package scared the new york city home of his son eric. secret gop meetings to stop his 2016 run and now the hacker group anonymous. >> donald trump has set his ambitions on the white house. >> reporter: the group claims it has trump's private information including his social security number, cell phone and address, and the hits keep coming after the gop front-runner predicted riots if he loses the nomination. >> i think bad things would happen. i really do. i believe that. i wouldn't lead it, but i think bad things would happen. >> nobody should say such

okay, kenneth moton live in washington, kenneth, thank you. well, the battle of garland's nomination will run right alongside the ongoing presidential campaign. >> after tuesday night's primary results, it's looking more and more likely hillary clinton and donald trump are heading for a showdown. both of them already seem eager for the fight. it's "your voice, your vote." abc's lauren lyster joining us now live with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, reena and kendis. a closed door meeting is scheduled today in washington with some influential conservative leaders to talk about how to stop donald trump and plot a third party run should he become the gop's nominee. in the gop race for president a debate over the next debate. donald trump backing out prompting ohio governor john kasich to do the same. >> i've had more attention in the last two weeks than i've had in the last six months, so it's fine, and i'm pleased with how it's all going. >> reporter: debate host fox news then canceling monday's event in salt lake city, utah,

abc's kenneth moton has more on that. >> reporter: rick, it was a strong gop debate on the issues but today it's back to the political maneuvers, just moments ago marco rubio urged supporters in ohio to vote for john kasich, anything to stop donald trump. >> the home stretch to what is dubbed super tuesday 3. donald trump started the morning with an endorsement from dr. ben carson. a former rival that trump once called a psychopath. trump and the candidates in the race praised their must more tamed gop debate. >> these debates are like vince mcmahon should have put them on, they were like wwe. >> i felt good about the night but i feel positive about it. >> no nancy name calling or personal attacks, just the issues. >> you can't yell china bad and muslims bad. >> we have to control the borders. >> it's this blow to a protester at a trump rally that has brought attention to what is playing out at his events. >> we have had violent people as protesters, these are people that punch -- >> i think what he stands for and says is not representative of american values. >> democrat hillary clin

reena and kendis. >> kenneth moton live in washington. thank you. >>> breaking overnight another provocation by north korea. its launched amissile into the sea. the test firing violates multiple united nations resolutions. that banned north korea from engaging in ballistic and nuclear activities. complicating matters is the student sentenced to hard labor. otto warmbier removed a banner from his hotel room, considered a crime against the state. diplomatic efforts are under way. former governor bill richardson characteri college prank. >>> 26-year-old from virginia captured in iraq earlier this week, he's accused of fighting for isis and now khweis says he regrets his decision to go to iraq and it was all about a girl. >> i made a bad decision to go with a girl and go to mosul because i wasn't thinking straight and on the way there, i regretted. >> once he made it there he found he hated it. it was too strict and he wanted to return to the u.s. he's likely to face hard questions from u.s. investigators about what he was doing in isis terri

kenneth moton, abc news, cleveland, ohio. >> pennsylvania governor tom wolf is urging state lawmakerspass a bill legalizing medical marijuana. the governor reloosed a video yesterday asking the house to pass the legislation. the proposal would let a state board license growers dispensers and processors. patients would need a written certification from a doctor or nurse confirming that they have a condition that qualifies them for the drug. a final vote could come later this week. >> 4:40 now. much more to come on "action news." the man charged in a michigan shooting spree is blaming an app for his deadly rampage. >> an nfl official admits for the first time a link between football and a devastating brain disease. david. >> there's drizzle around this morning butter probably not enough rain to require rain gear for the kids and on the way home they might even see a peek of sunshine beginning to reemerge. temperatures are also milder this afternoon and even better tomorrow. i'll have details on that and we'll talk about a little unsettled pattern in the days ahead with some spotty showe

abc's kenneth moton takes us to the debate tonight. >> reporter: republican front runner donald trumpook the stage with the double digit lead in florida, trump will have to explain his wednesday statement i think islam hates us. >> did you mean all 1.6 billion muslims. >> i mean a lot of them. i mean a lot of them. >> for large portions of a group of people, islam, large portions want to use very, very harsh means. >> reporter: candidates took on issues including how to handle violence in the middle east. >> there is no peace deal possible with the palestinians at the moment. >> i will rip to shreds that catastrophic iran nuclear deal. >> reporter: breitbart reporter, accused his, campaign manager of roughing her up. >> obviously in one wants to be touched, violated like that. >> reporter: trump was asked about violence between supporters and protesters at the his rallies. >> we have some protesters who are bad dudes. they have done bad things. they are swinging, they are really dangerous. >> reporter: trailing badly florida senator marco rubio is making a last stand in his home state

. >> abc's kenneth moton is live in cleveland ohio a state that tends to be a bellwether for the entire presidential race. good morning, kenneth. >> reporter: good morning, matt and tam. yes, ohio is always very crucial and it gives us some insight into how november will go. yes, florida and ohio are the big prizes today but other states voting today could really make the difference. it's here, the day that could be a critical turning point in the race for president. >> this is the place i want to win. this is the place, this is going to do it. >> reporter: gop frontrunner donald trump was in the winner take allstate of ohio overnight attacking its governor and his rival john kasich. >> kasich can not make america great again. can't do it. >> reporter: the stop trump movement is in full effect. >> this country's not about us tearing one another down. >> reporter: rivals spent election eve seizing on the recent violence at trump rally. >> look a bernie sanders sixty nine don't worry you're not going to get beat up at my rally. >> one difference between this and a donald trump rally is i'

kenneth moton, abc news washington a beer truck crashes into a potato chip truck, and sent everything flying. and another crash, much more serious, after a police pursuit caught on camera. today's forecast will be partly cloudy, warm and breezy. temperatures will be in the mid 60s which is a repeat of what we saw yesterday. winds will continue you're watching 9 on your side at noon a high speed chase in texas came to an end when suspects slammed their truck into an innocent driver.investigators say the people in the for an armed robbery.police tracked them down through gps and the chase was on.after the truck slammed into a car, one suspect ran, but both were arrested.the driver of the other car was hurt. this wreck also came to a this wreck also came to a scary end, for snack lovers. two trucks collided in florida this morning.one was a frito lay truck carrying potato chips.the other was a beer truck.police say the beer truck pushed the frito lay truck... causing it to flip and spill chips all over the interstate.the side of the beer truck also ripped open... spilling beer onto the i

abc reporter kenneth moton is in cleveland. this pivotal moment in the race for the white house is now in the hands of the voters.sot hillary clinton "i am asking for your support. i will be honored to receive it, i hope to be your nominee."sot donald trumpthis is a place i want to win. this is the place, this is going to do it. delegates up for grabs in 5 states but gop frontrunner donald trump has his eyes on the big prizes?the winner take all states of florida and ohio. sot trump it's always a complicated process but i think we're going to do very well. we seem to be having great poll numbers. for trump, rival john kasich has become public enemy ohio governor cast his ballot this morning in the tight race. sot john kasichi feel great. we're going to win. i feel terrific. it's great. do i seem like i'm nervous or up tight? i'm having a great time. ohio is a must win for kasich. florida is make or break for marco rubio who is trailing trump by 20 points in the sunshine state. if they lose their home states, it could be down to

kenneth moton, channel 6 "action news." >> thank you. >>> from our new jersey newsroom there is still no deal between rail worker leaders and new jersey transit. more than 4,000 workers are planning to strike if an agreement cannot be reached. talks ended an hour ago and are set to start again tomorrow. >>> time for a check of our "action news" traffic report. it's thursday almost friday. lets go live to matt pellman in the traffic center. >> all i see are a whole bunch of brake lights on the blue southbound side. we are stacked solid from villanova to this point approaching broomall, and an accident up ahead they pushed to the side but it's slowing us down and the travel time of 36 minutess double what it ideally should be. it should take 18 minutes. heading down 476 the pennsylvania turn took, speeds in the teens approaching norristown and a sizable wall of traffic on the roosevelt boulevard on up to roberts avenue, the vehicle fire is gone but the jam remains, meanwhile in the southbound side near somer dale, a crash in the inner drive and a broken down vehicle by university has cl

stake in the crucial battleground stakes like florida and ohio where it's winner take all, and kenneth moton is live in cleveland. good morning, kenneth. donald trump and hillary clinton could go from front runners to likely nominees for their party today. florida and ohio are the biggest prizes, but the other states voting today could really make the difference. >> reporter: it's here, the day that could be a critical turning point in the race for president. >> this is a place i want to win. this is the place, this is going to do it. >> reporter: gop front runner, donald trump was in the winner- take-all strait ohio overnight, attacking his rival john kasich. >> kasich cannot make america great again. can't do it. >> reporter: the stop trump movement is in full effect. >> this country is not about us tearing one another down. >> reporter: rivals spoke of the recent violence from the trump rallies. >> a bernie sanders' sign, don't worry, you won't get beat up at my rally. >> the difference between this >> these are lovefests. >> reporter: and hillary clinton called him out. >> i do call irre

and abc's kenneth moton joins us live in washington, d.c. with more on that. hi, kenneth hi monica.ork city mayor michael bloomberg announced he will not be running for president in this 2016 race and even with that there's still plenty of march madness in this race. republican ted cruz is gaining on donald trump in the delegate count and democrat bernie sanders he's got a lot of work to do to catch up to hillary clinton. the race for the white house is focused on the race for delegates. hillary clinton is working to widen her lead on bernie sanders. >> we have differences but those differences pale in comparison to what we see going on among the republicans right now. you know, i'm interested in results, they're interested in insults. >> reporter: 147 democratic delegates are up for grab in michigan's primary. the math is an increasing problem for sanders. that's not impacting his confidence or the size of his rallies. >> please have the great state of michigan lead this country forward toward a political revolutionism the democrat spent the day on the ground in michigan where flin

abc's kenneth moton is live in washington tonight with more on that. d evening. >> reporter: good evening, rick. tuesday is expected to be a major turning point for the republican candidates as they race for that gop nomination. >> ♪ >> thank you very much. >> reporter: gop frontrunner donald trump is feeling unstoppable ahead of another crucial election tuesday. >> we have to win missouri, that's what i have to win. [cheers and applause] >> if we don't win missouri, i'll be very angry. >> reporter: on the ground in saint louis, trump rallied his supporters and threw out one protestor after another after another. >> our country has to toughen up, folks. we have to toughen up. these people are bringing us down. >> reporter: trump's rally had more fireworks than that gop debate which focused on the issues. >> we need a president who knows what he's doing. >> reporter: marco rubio's campaign is urging all nontrump supporters to vote for him in his home state of florida and for john kasich in ohio. >> clearly john kasich is -- has a better chance of winning

our coverage begins with abc's kenneth moton in cleveland this morning where voting gets under way at 6:30 in the morning. good morning, kenneth. >> reporter: good morning, kendis and reena. the fog behind me here in cleveland describes the state of the republican race, hazy, but stake today to turn donald trump and hillary clinton into front-runners to likely nominees. florida and ohio are the biggest prizes but i can report that there are other states voting today that could really make the difference. it's here, the day that could be a critical turning point in the race for president. >> this is the place i want to wing. this is going to do it. >> reporter: gop front-runner donald trump was in the winner take all state of ohio overnight. attacking the governor. >> kasich cannot make america great again. can't do it. >> reporter: the stop trump movement is in full effect. >> this country is not about us tearing one another down. >> reporter: rivals spent election eve season on the recent violence at trump's valleys. >> look, a bernie sanders sign, don't worry, you won't get beat up

kenneth moton, abc news washington. >>> the florida primary is just three days away and donald trump's biggest opponent, senator ted cruz is eyeing the state. cruz spoke with voters yesterday at a town hall in orlando. he says he's the only person who can compete with trump who's currently leading the polls in florida. cruz is confident he can beat florida senator marco rubio. he shared his father's story of migrating to america from cuba which he thinks will resonate with hispanic voters. >> it was coming to a country where anybody can start with nothing and achieve anything, that is the unbelievable freedom, it is the opportunity, it is the american dream. >> cruz also pointed out he's the only republican candidate who has beaten trump in other states. >>> now, you can hear more of else he had to say to central florida voters on wftv.com. just click on the video section. >>> the 2016 lejts lative session is now over and the governor will now look over the $82.3 state budget lawmakers gave final approval last night. both the house and the senate approve the budget almost unanimously.

. >> abc's kenneth moton is live in one of them cleveland ohio a state that tends to be a bellwether residential race. hey, kenneth. >> reporter: hey, matt and tam, yeah, it's funny how florida and ohio always seems to be so crucial and important every single election and that's especially true today because yes, they are big prizes in this race today. but those other states voting could also make the differenc difference. it's here the day that could be a critical turning point in the race for president. >> this is the place i want to win. this is the place, this is going to do it. >> reporter: gop frontrunner donald trump was in the winner take allstate of ohio overnight attacking its governor and his rival john kasich. >> kasich can not make america great again. can't do it. >> reporter: the stop trump movement is in full effect. >> this country's not about us tearing one another down. >> reporter: rivals spent election eve seizing on the violence at trump rallies. >> look a bernie sanders sign. don't worry you're not going to get beat up at my rally. >> the one difference between

. >> we get the details from abc's kenneth moton joining us from d.c. good morning, kenneth. >> reporter: good morning, kendis and reena. senate republican leaders have made it clear they will not fill the supreme court vacancy until after the november election. but that won't stop the president's nominee from marching up to capitol hill today. this morning supreme court nominee merrick garland will meet face-to-face with democratic senators but it's the republicans who control his fate. >> at a time when our politics are so polarized this is precise precisely the time to play it straight. >> reporter: it intensified the second president obama introduced his pick and the rose garden moment emotional for the >> hadthis is the greatest honor of my life other than lynn agreeing to marrying me 28 years ago. >> reporter: the harvard educated chicago native has dedicated his life to the law. a top prosecutor in the oklahoma city bombing, nearly two decades spent serving the d.c. circuit court of appeals. also known as a moderate, a compromise in the heat of th

kenneth moton has more on the change in tactics. (nats up)republican frontrunner donald trump took the stage with a double-digit lead in florida, - and trump was asked to explain his wednesday statement, quote: "i think islam hates us." q: did you mean all 1.6 billion muslims? trump: i mean a lot of them. i mean a lot of them.//there is tremendous hate. where large portions of a group of people, islam, large portions want to use very, very harsh means. let me go a step further. women are

. >> looks like a wild scene there as abc's kenneth moton reports, the protesters didn't want trump at the university of chicago there because of allegations he preaches hate >>reporter: the race for the white house continues, but rising tensions sparked clashes and violence at gop frontrunner donald trump's rally in chicago. [ crowd noise ] >>reporter: while fights were erupting inside the arena, protests outside caused the campaign event to be canceled. earlier in st. louis trump was protesters. >> our country has to toughen up. these people are bringing us down. >>reporter: trump fired back at the growing number of people disrupting his rallies. >> go home to mommy. get him out! troublemaker. go home an get a job! >>reporter: the incidents are becoming more frequent and more of a concern. wednesday a trump supporter in north carolina was charged with assault and battery for sucker punching a demonstrator while the young man was being escorted out by police. trump and his campaign say they discourage this kind of behavior and assure the safety of any and all attendees. trump suggesti

kenneth moton has more on the change in tactics. (nats up)republican frontrunner donald trump took the stage with a double-digit lead in florida, - and trump was asked to explain his wednesday statement, quote: "i think islam hates us." q: did you mean all 1.6 billion muslims? trump: i mean a lot of them. i mean a lot of them.//there is tremendous hate. where large portions of a group of people, islam, large portions want to use very, very harsh means. let me go a step further. women are on the spot after breitbart reporter michelle fields accused his campaign manager -- corey lewandowski -- of roughing her up fields spoke with abc newssotmichelle fields reporter, breitbart news network "obviously, no one wants to be touched and violated like that." the physical incidents...a concern at trump events...suppo rter john mcgraw was charged with assault after he sucker punched a protester at a trump rally in north carolina. trailing badly, senator marco rubio is making what could be a last stand in his home state. texas senator ted cruz

kenneth moton has the latest from cleveland, ohio. >> there is a lot on the line today as voters head to the polls in ohio. it's do or die in this presidential race. >> i am asking for your support. i would be honored to receive it. i hope to be your nominee. >> this is a place i want to win, this is going to do it. >> delegates up for grabs in five states but gop frontrunner, has his eyes on the big prizes, take all states of florida and ohio. >> i think we'll do very well and we seem to be having great poem numbers. >> and john kasich is public enemy number one in the buckeye state. he cast his ballot this morning. >> it's great. do i seem nervous or uptight? i'm having a great time. ohio is important for kasich and florida is make or break for marco rubio. they either lose at home it could be down to a two man race between cruz and trump. >> for the democrats, bernie sanders is closing in on clinton in ohio, a loss here will slow her down but not enough to block clinton's path to the democratic nomination. >> we are bringing the country to a political revolution. >>> sanders has hi

the duke energy convention center.the two were part of last night's gop debate in miami.and as kenneth moton reports, civility made a surprise appearance. that home stretch to what's being dubbed super tuesday 3. gop frontrunner donald trump started the morning with an endorsement from dr. ben carson...a former rival trump once called a psychopath. sot ben carson we buried hatchet, that was political stuff trump and the candidates still in the race praised their much more tame gop debate sot donald trump 9:29 these debates they've been like vince mcmahon should have put them on because they were like wwe sot marco rubio on gma felt good about the night we dividends, but i feel positive about it. no nasty name calling, no excessive personal attacks...just the issues. sot ted cruz 21:54:31 the answer is not to yell china bad, muslim bad. you have to understand the nature of the threats we're facing and how you deal with them. sot john kasich 22:17:38 where has america gone is what many of our allies say around the world? when i'm president, they'll know exactly where we are because we're comin

we get more now from abc's kenneth moton. >> reporter: republican front-runner donald trump took the stage with a double digit lead in florida. trump was asked to explain his wednesday statement"i think islam hates us." >> did you mean all 1.6 billion muslims.