i am ron desantis. i'm in iraq veteran, former prosecutor. i'm on a mission to protect florida's future for a generation. we need to protect the economic momentum we have enjoyed, you can't do that if you do what andrew wants to do which is raise taxes 40% and introduce a lot of new taxes that will stop our economy and cost jobs. we need to protect our environment in cleaner water, restore the everglades and fight red tide. i'm the guy that can get that done. that means standing with law enforcement, fighting sanctuary cities come in not allowing opioid peddlers to get their way. andrew gillum is a failed man who presided over a crime-ridden city, involved in corruption, he's not the guy to lead our state. i have worn the uniform, protect our community, stood for taxpayers. as governor i will stand for you and protect florida's future. gillum: my name is andrew gillum. in addition to being the mayor of florida's capital city i'm a proud husband to my wife, rj, who is here this evening. my three children, david, jackson, and caroline. my mothe

they're not excite body their candidate or their president and donald trump is going to rally with ron desantishis side and will try to get those trump voters out to vote for desantis. >> is he going to rally with ron desantis? >> he will. >> wasn't there that break with trump when he refuted donald trump on the hurricane maria death toll numbers? somebody told politico it felt like a divorce. donald trump will be down here campaigning? >> the same story quote add few consultants including not my relative michael caputo, donald trump knows he needs a republican governor in office if and when he runs for re-election in 2020. the last thing he wants to do is see andrew gillum. you have to dance with the one who brung you. he can't push himself away. in the case of rick scott, scott has the platform and the finances to rise above those head winds or in the words of one of his political consultants create his own weather patterns. rick scott is a little bit behind or if not tied with bill nelson. andrew gillum is slightly leading though that's pretty close to a neck and neck race. people aren't goi

ron destan advertise. what message detour due expect from desantis? >> gillum is a failed mayor overseeing a crowd-ridden city and probably under fbi investigation. so i think the people of florida -- >> although he says the fbi investigation of the city has nothing to do with him, but please continue. >> unfortunately he's had some text messages, e-mails, trips to new york, trips to costa rica. we'll be learning more about that in the coming days. the people of florida want to know they have someone to respond in the time of need, whether it's rising crime rates or dealing with jobs and hurricanes and all the dynamic things we have in florida. ron desantis has been a combat veteran, a prosecutor, conservative who served in congress and i think he's going to the a great job tonight. >> you mentioned some of the other factors that may come into play, including hurricane michael. how are your constituents doing, and are you concerned voters there may have obstacles in their way to try to cast their votes. >> yeah, i am concerned. we've still got a lot o

especially for the republican, ron desantis. >> then mr. trump said, you're fired. i love that part. >> desantis ran arm in arm, opposing tax increases and supporting a wall along the border with mexico and voting to appeal the affordable care act in the house. >> we're need a governor to advance priorities. >> they believe desandis can attract voters by being himself. >> people need to listen and follow him for that. he was the best for the people. he was the best for florida. >> at a time of fierce polarization, florida politics may be up for grabs. for those who talk to voters every day, the candidate who is able to attract the middle might be the winner on election day. >> how do you merge them together to come out to what is it this one state wants? >> right. >> that's tough. you are going to get a ton of backgrounds trying to merge into one. >> sometimes they vote republican and sometimes they vote democrat. it's shifting. >> absolutely. >> obviously the one thing that really threw this entire race upside down was hurricane michael and it forced andrew gillum

ron desantis is the one who ran "build the wall" and teaches trump catch words. mr. trump said you're fired. i love that part. and he teaches his kids to say "make america great again." the morning after the primary election in which ron desantis learned that he would be the nominee and he would be running against and grew gillum, ron desantis went on the fox knenes and said about and grew gillum, "the last thing we need to do is monkey this up." that and some other things about ron desantis led gillum to enter the most memorable debate line from any candidate running in either party for office this year. >> my grandmother used to say a hit dog will holler, and it hollered through this room. mr. desantis has spoken. first of all, he's got neo-nazis helping him out in this state. he has spoken at racist conferences. he has accepted a contribution and would not return it from someone who referred to the former president of the united states as a muslim n-i-g-g-e-r. when asked to return that money, he said no. i'm not calling mr. desantis a racist, i'm just saying the r

desantis has tied himself to trump. take a look. >> ronaying with the kids. >> build wall. >> he reads stories. >> then mr. trump said you're fired. i love that part. >> he's teaching madison to talk. >> make america great again. >> with us now someone who knows florida and its voters well. charlie crist. he's also the form erp governerf florida. an officer he held as a republican. thank you for being with us. >> great to be with you. sg you' >> you're a democrat now. you were once the republican governor of florida. what do you think of desantis strategy? >> i think it's unfortunate. i think unfortunately he's tended to go low rather negative, not projecting a positive future for florida and an grew gillum has been very positive. trying to tell people what his vision is. what he would like to do if elected in 16 days from today and it's been very compelling. i had the opportunity to spend the morning with him here at several churches and it was an uplifting message about getting health care to people. establishing a minimum wage. trying t

ron desantis congressman, strong supporter of yours. over the weekend you referenced andrew gillum being a thief, what did you mean by that? >> president trump: he took them. he took a trip with the same fbi agent i guess he was posing as a developer or something. the man stone cold took the stuff. i don't even think he should be allowed to continue on. >> laura: he responded by saying your week. >> president trump: i haven't heard that one lately. here's a guide that in my opinion is a stone cold and his city, tallahassee, is known as the most corrupt in florida and one of the most corrupt in the nation. he's a disaster and how he's even close to being tied is hard to believe. but florida can't have -- if florida has a governor like that, and i know florida better than i know practically anywher anywhere. florida will become venezuela. it will be a disaster and you have ron desantis, who was a harvard yale guy. he's a very good person. he's going to be a very good to a great governor. this other guy is a stone cold, in my opinion, he's

those words are not used to describe the republican nominee, ron desantis. there are a lot of republicans who know him from congress, from the florida delegation who don't really like him. so he's not kind of a warm and fluffy guy. >> and in the governor's race, if it plays out where gillum does win, i think democrats are going to have an argument nationally to make for progressive candidates. because that has always been the test case for him. democrats here have usually put up a very centrist candidate for governor. last time it was a former republican. and here they're going all the way in on the progressive message. and if the progressive message bests the trump acolyte message that's going to be able to hold him parallel to 2020, to well, how do you run against trump. this is one way to do it. >>> fascinating insight from our colleagues in florida there. let's face it, politicians will never be as popular as hollywood stars. cue stage right. two-time oscar winner michael caine is my final guest tonight.

ron desantis is governor and heidi heitkamp is toast in north carolina. then you have john tester in the fight of his life. he could lose in montana. i hope the people in indiana reject the libertarian so then joe is toast. it's the house i am worried about. >> president trump with 15 days. that's a lot of time on the clock to get his message out. look what happened to us during the campaign. everybody counted us out after the access hollywood tape and wham he is the 45th president of the united states. that was only 30 days. 15 days, that's a mooch and a half. >> sean: [laughing]. i want to applaud you. you captured something in your book. it's on amazon.com. trump the blue collar president. the people he is helping are the

gillum: ron desantis once to correct his record now but for six using congress he voted over a dozen times to repeal the aca. he voted to allow insurance companies to disseminate against people based on preexisting conditions of those folks at home, if you're sitting on the couch with one other person, between the two of you, one of you have a preexisting condition and this congressman would have allowed for insurance companies to discriminate against you based on a preexisting condition which he told cancer patient who wanted to know without insurance coverage how to get access to healthcare he said you could always go to the emergency room. we disagree on a lot but on that day was alone -- desantis: when you talk about this coverage, what does that coverage get you? with medicaid expansion people didn't have access to doctors. most physicians do not accept new medicaid patientss. the reality is you have people with that card but they are going to the hospital for primary care. that is the reality. gillum: healthcare is the issue on floridians minds.

he will join us tonight with ron desantis who is running for governor. mike brawn in indiana is building a lead over the democrat. if you are in indiana, a vote for the libertarian is a vote for donnelly. and the democrat is feeling heat in montana. holds a slight lead. and even a democrat in the fight for his life in new jersey. he is within the margin of error. the republicans are protected to keep seats. the control of the house comes down to 30 toss up states and most toss ups are held by republicans. i listed them all on my website. 8 days away from the mid-terms. the balance of power rests in your hand. the democratic party wants to impeach the president and rescind the tax cuts and launch every investigation into trump. republicans could maintain control of the house and pick up seats in the senate. option 1. option 2, a split decision. nancy pelosi could become speaker but republicans pick up seats in the senate. finally the final out come is the democrats could take the house and senate. pelosi and schumer leading the way. god help us. you have

certainly ron desantis, nobody remembers tv ads. everybody remembers that ad, teaching your daughter how to build a wall, et cetera. >> right. >> he but for a tweet from donald trump, he probably would not be the nominee and poised to be the next governor because he's very little known. i will say health care overwhelmingly that's the issue people talk about the most, along with in our area of particularly red algae, red tide. >> i want to get into the red tide, red algae. let me take it national a little bit. fred stevens, i want to read you something from "the post" about the president's strategy and i'm curious of your reaction to it. this is the white house political director -- he said voter satisfaction is the enemy of voter turnout. what's changed is why voters are still happy with the direction the president is leading the country, they're angry the way democrats treat justice kavanaugh, they're scared after they hear democrat after democrat talk about socialized medicine for all and voters are plugged in as the president sp

ron desantis repurposing some of his campaign events.event scheduled for veterans has become a relief drive, collecting goods for victims of the storm. and here people filling sandbags. some decked out in andrew gillum for governor shirts. they are still thinking about politics. jake? >> four weeks until election day. ryan nobles, thank you so much. >>> tune into cnn this month for special events leading up to the midterm elections. next tuesday we host a debate between governor rick scott and bill nelson. thursday, we host a town hall in texas with congressman beto o'rourke. and sunday, october 21st, i host the florida governor's debate between mayor andrew gillum and congressman ron desantis. >>> the surprising start to justice kavanaugh's tenure at the supreme court after one of the most contentious confirmation battles in history. stay with us. that kinda put us in a hole. go someplace exotic? yeah, bermuda. a hospital in bermuda. a hospital in bermuda. what? what happened? i got a little over-confident on a moped. even with insuranc

. >> you have ron desantis who is a harvard yale guy. he's a very good person.oing to be a very good governor. this other guy is a thief. how can you have a guy like this? you look at his record and the job he's done as the mayor of tallahassee. he's a total disaster. >> let's bring in our reporter who has been following this race very, very closely. has he ever been convicted of a crime at all? the president is making this charge and the critics are saying it's a racially charged attack. >> if you look at this race, it started out with these charges of racism with the candidate, ron desantis, making a comment about don't monkey this up by electing andrew gill skpum there have been racist robocalls and saying he doesn't think that ron desantis is a racist, but the racists think he's a racist. now you have donald trump injecting himself into the race. that's very important for him. he very much helped ron desantis make his way through the primary and he's the reason he is in this race to begin with. there you have the president inserting himself in the last days

that debate last night made it pretty clear that ron desantis made it pretty clear that ron desa ntist the different wings of politics in america today? i think they represent them pretty well, in terms of right and left. i am more in the middle, andi of right and left. i am more in the middle, and i think most of america is somewhere in the middle, middle right or middle left, not so much right or middle left, not so much right not so much left. that is down to the two parties, and that's a choice we have. you must be the 20th person i've interviewed in the last two days who tells me they are in the middle of american politics and politics has become too far left or right in this country. but somebody is far left and far right, so why are they getting the attention? it isa are they getting the attention? it is a polarity. if you had more than one candidate or various candidates, it's the person who gets the most votes out of that party. if you really look at it, maybe desantis got over 50%, but on the democrat side, there were a number of candidates. whoever got the most percentage o

and ron desantis says it's a battleground. things will always be tough in thing like this, and it's a push for people to just about. and why is this so ugly? you start out the very beginning with the monkey this up comment. it feels like, as an outsider listening closely, i've heard little about the actual issues. >> it has turned into one of those races and i think it's one of the tests also for how when we are looking back on what happens next tuesday, how the progressive base is able -- and i think you could say a similar thing is happening in georgia with a gubernatorial base there. if the progressive base is able to muster all of its anti-trump chemistry and win some of these key races like the one in florida and the one in georgia, that will be huge sign that that they have been able to channel all of this that we have seen building for two years. can they actually turn it into something? they weren't in a lot of the special elections and this is one of the races that will be a test of that. >> i think it will be a test

all right, ron desantis, another close race. florida is very tight.ying close attention to. wishs. you all the best, congre, as you become governor. march 3 after this. ♪ the first and only treatment of its kind offering people with moderate to severe psoriasis a chance at 100% clear skin. with taltz, up to 90% of people quickly saw a significant improvement of their psoriasis plaques. don't use if you're allergic to taltz. before starting, you should be checked for tuberculosis. taltz may increase risk of infections and lower your ability to fight them. tell your doctor if you have an infection, symptoms, or received a vaccine or plan to. inflammatory bowel disease can happen with taltz, including worsening of symptoms. serious allergic reactions can occur. ready for a chance at 100% clear skin? ask your doctor about taltz. ( ♪ ) everybody wants a new, different, better world. here's to the people who do what it takes to build it... to keep it running. the people who understand no matter what the question, the obstacle or the challenge, there's only

that is positive if you're ron desantis, ran close to president trump's side. he's hoping the supporters in florida, remember, president trump won florida in 2016, will then come out again in support of him in 2018. enthusiasm is so important in a midterm election, fred, and that's one of the things we're going to be looking for tonight in this debate. >> all right. ryan nobles, thank you so much. >>> all right. meantime, president trump is hoping his midterm campaign push will secure republicans the votes they need to hold control of congress. he's sticking to talking points that work for his base. and driving home a very clear message. >> the choice could not be more clear. democrats produce mobs. republicans produce jobs. this november, when you're voting, vote for the jobs. not for the mobs. just do it. the choice for every american could not be more clear. democrats produce mobs. republicans produce jobs. that's become a hashtag. >> is cnn's white house correspondent boris sanchez is live for us now at the white house. so, this messaging, is it working? >>

when we spoke about ron desantis, and he said "monkey it up," right smack you felt that was clearly aial issue, and i said he was just joking. i think you mixed up as metaphors, but he wasn't let off the hook for that. >> no, i think whole question was about ron desantis claiming white nationalist -- no, i'm a journalist, you're a journalist, i know the context of that race in florida is quite rich. especially with racial animosity. and when the santas used of that coming out of the box against gillum, like he said in a recent debate, it is not that he is saying he is racist, but that white nationalist think he is racist. >> martha: we can have a whole discussion about the florida race, we actually have more on that, because here is the way it stands right now. andrew gillum up by 46.9, ron desantis at 43.9, and he was -- desantis would say your characterization of him as completely wrong. >> i just quoted what gillum said about him. i don't think it is in dispute, race, in that contest for governor of florida, is a charged issue. >> martha: let's take a look at this thought from pres

former republican congressman ron desantis. good evening, congressman.till call you congressman. i understand that obviously florida is your state and you have been involved in some of the rescue and clean-up there. how bad is it? >> i was born and raids in florida. this is the worst i have seen. i was youngs when andrew hit so i don't remember that as well. but if you look at panama city and mexico beach, this is significant damage. we converted my campaign rallies that were scheduled into supply drops. we were able to fill up two u-hauls. judge jeanine: these are photos and videos of the congressman assisting in florida. go ahead, congressman. >> so we brought a lot to a shelter, and that's going to be distributed from there. there were people in the low-income neighborhoods. they couldn't make to it a shelter. so we delivered some stuff direct to them. those are some of the pictures you are seeing. they were appreciative that we were able to do that. i thank my supporters that we were able to dig in and help our floridians in need. >> 1,500 people in

joining me, ron desantis joins me. welcome back, sir. how are you responding to the storm in light of the campaign that you are fighting? >> well, we did both yesterday and today, we converted our planned campaign rally into supply drives so we could get water, non-perishable food and other supplies into a big u-haul. then we'll drive that u-haul to wherever in northwest florida it's needed. we have water, diapers, anything people may need in this situation. we felt that was the best way to be able to help out. obviously the campaign will eventually go on. but we thought it was the right thing to do. kennedy: what are you already being your candidacy as you face a natural disaster? >> being in the congress, we dealt two years ago with hurricane matthew that affected my district more than anybody else. a couple things i learned throughout that process is we have great law enforcement and first responders in florida. when you are doing it in florida this is part of the job. also governor scott exhibited strong leadership throughout a numbe

he thinks that may have tightened up. >> that is a substantial effect, ron desantis who is running toucceed rick scott who is term limited and running against bill nelson for the senate seat, the race we talked about a few weeks ago started to shift in democrats favor for a variety of reasons, this poll is closer than before. brett kavanaugh is part of it but another factor is gillam's administration as mayor is under federal investigation. in another story, he himself was one of the subject of the investigation. shannon: he is saying i am happy to cooperate but it is not be directly, sounds like it is. >> florida everything is wide open. politico was able to establish he was the subject of the investigation and that will complicate things dramatically and make ron desantis fall in love with the fbi. everything old is new again. heather: i love that florida and west virginia are in the middle of this. almost out of time but manchin is very measured. the fbi finds nothing more than what we know. >> if the fbi comes back with a clean bill of health, as we talked about many times before

so to have a governor and a southern state like florida in ron desantis who explicitly goes out and talksting the trump nationalist agenda will not help to move us forward. it will continue to inflame passions and people like desantis who have assiligned themselves with trump now need to distance themselves from his rhetoric and say they do not support the use of violence in support of political aims. it's something that should never have to be said in american society, but suddenly we're at a point in time where people who are part of the trump movement need to say they don't support violence. >> it's an unbelievable conversation to be having. karine jean-pierre, thank you for spending some time with us today. >>> when we come back, why robert mueller's to-do his includes trying to sus out whether roger stone is telling the truth. with our tendercrisp technology, you can quickly cook food, juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside. go from fresh to deliciously done in half the time. which means it may become the only thing you use in your kitchen. (tapping) for cooking, at least. (up

. >> you have ron desantis, who is a harvard yale guy, he's had a really terrific -- you know, he is a very good person, he is going to be -- he is going to be a very good to great governor. this other guy is a stone cold -- in my opinion he is a thief. how can you have a guy like this? just look at his record. also look at the job he has done as the mayor of tallahassee, he is a total disaster. >> harvard yale guy versus thief. whatever message could the president -- >> the president apparently likes ivy league elitists. >> interesting. so the democratic nominee andrew gillum responded to the president on twitter says in part as my grandmother told me never wrestle with a pig. the nominee's grandmother also talked about dogs. his grandmother a very colorful imagination. back with us, john avalon, david gregory and abby phillip. look, that is a racial dog whistle pure and simple. he did it on twitter, he tried it out in new haven on twitter earlier on the day, talking about ron desantis harvard yale degree and gillum being a thief there, trying to set up that dichotomy. when he is do

. >> your next governor ron desantis!trast, former republican congressman ron desantis has fully embraced the president, who won florida by am razor-thgin in 2016. >> i appreciate your support mra president, butreciate more the leadership you are showing for our great country. >> woodruff: the contest has been rife with allegations of racism. just after winning the republican nomination, desantis said this about gillum: >> the lasthing we need to do is monkey this up by trying to embrace a socialt agenda. >> woodruff: racist robo-calls by an out-of-state whigr supremacisp also targeted gillum. desantis denounced the calls, but when i caught up with gillnd at a weeally at a tampa community center, he said desantis had stoked racial tensions. >> i think certainly he used racial stereotypes in his campaigning all to make look out of touch. so different than everybody else. i think he solely underestimates the voters by going so hard after superficial differences when what voters want to hear about is what we're going to do.

joining me now with how he might do that is ron desantis.ed mayor gillam on but he politely declined. how do pose a gap in these polls at this point? >> i'm not worried about polls, i'm worried about boats. we will continue to do it, and my primary average when i won the primary was 15 points off for gillam. i definitely do not go by media polls, i go by our polling, are targeting and everything going in our direction. the reason is, you have a candidate like andrew who is running on abolishing ice. he said last debate he would not cooperate with ice at all. so you know, if you have someone who is criminally illegal, we want to get them out. he's also embroiled in this ethics scandal because he lied about it on sunday night. he said he pays for everything, he's never gotten anything for free. then documents come out two days later showing he got $8,000 to get to hamilton, display, from an undercover fbi agent posing as a contractor with business before the city. he got a thousand dollars stay at a villa who was trying to get a contract with

you know that -- >> laura: ron desantis, if that's what you're going to try to beat ron desantis -- and why argue the race card? >> when barack obama wins reelection, is that racism, too? >> 57% of white women voted for trump, you don't see that connection there? >> laura: no i don't. >> we have a problem in this country when you can see how much progress black americans have made. we have more houses, more cars, more billionaires than we have ever had it, ever. you cannot say it's worse, you can say that we have made substantial. those comments deny that progress, and they imply that this country is in fact -- you can't win them. >> just -- he's like a head the polls. >> gentlemen, great to have you on and love the panel as always. another debate, coming up. >> the way that democrats use women and sexual assault to get a delay is a total turnoff. >> no one has ever been treated like they treated him. >> we loved kavanaugh and what he was saying. i hate to say it but i didn't believe her. >> it will be their downfall. >> laura: if that sounds awfully different than the narrative democra

republican ron desantis and democrat andrew gillam face-off with a new cloud over gillam's campaign, corruption probe into the city he leads as mayor and the tickets to a hit broadway show. >> in the state of florida we have a lot of issues, 99 issues in hamilton. >> reporter: governor rick scott in a campaign ways in the next. >> shannon: brand-new revelations about an fbi agent and the democratic candidate for florida governor figuring prominently into my spinal debate between democrat andrew gillum and republican ron desantis. leland vittert's separates fact leland that it separates fact and fiction. >> i don't know how much stuff, listen to the republican in the florida governors debate and his opponent is corrupt. no, says the opponent, the republican hangs out with racists. it made you long for a simpler time, the founding of our country where political debate focused on high-minded ideals, policy, substantive debate like in the hit musical hamilton. fitting that a ticket to hamilton, a play about the first secretary of the treasury would place center stage in a corruption scan

that's what happens -- jillian: sparks flying in florida as ron desantis and andrew gillum face off insident trump just weighed in, todd piro is here with the sunshine state showdown, don't go anywhere. million flu shots and counting, starts with protecting yours, today. walgreens, trusted since 1901. - mwith the best ofodi, the prespressure cooking andsps, air frying all in one. with our tendercrisp technology, you can quickly cook food, juicy on the inside and crispy on the outside. go from fresh to deliciously done in half the time. which means it may become the only thing you use in your kitchen. (tapping) for cooking, at least. (upbeat music) the ninja foodi, with tendercrisp, the cooking while parenting technology. jillian: good monday morning, socialism on the ballot, president trump slamming -- far left gubernatorial candidate after firing debate with opponent ron desantis. rob: todd piro with details as democratic advantage seems to be shrinking at this point. >> the gloves were off with immigration front and center. >> would you honor request from donald trump's ice agency if

you have ron desantis, the congressman, who has been backed by president trump. trump's backing helped him win the republican primary. president trump has consistently said he's backing him. we'll see him here in florida shortly. then you have andrew gillum on the other side who's the likes of hillary clinton and bernie sanders who have backed him. he has brought together the democratic party. these are two men with two absolutely different governing visions who will be on stage tonight. the first time that they have ever, ever met. if you're wondering what the state of politics are in america, watch this debate tonight. it will give you a good understanding. >> and gillum said if he goes there, i'm going to go there, talking about the debate potentially turning nasty. i think a lot of people are going to be tuning in to see what the tone is. thank you, mark preston, ron brownstein. good to have you all with us. make sure to watch the florida governor's debate between democrat andrew gillum and republican ron desantis tonight here on cnn. >>> terrifying video fro

we'll have ron desantis with us in couple minutes.good morning. so do you remember when eric holder called on democrats to kick republicans? >> you know when they go low we go high. no. no. when they go low we kick 'em. that is what this new democratic party is about. jillian: now the former attorney general is walking that back a bit. >> what i was really saying is a metaphor for the notion that people try to undermine our democracy should be opposed. jillian: holder says he does not regret making those comment. >>> a judge throws off his robe, chases two men trying to escape court. the whole thing caught on camera as you can see. in this video, one of the guys face plant and with his shoe at at courthouse in washington state. the judge caught one guy after running down three flights of stairs. the cops caught the other three blocks away. >>> do you recognize this accused beer thief? some people say it looks like ross from the show quote friends." >> do you like the beer? >> i do, i do. it is actually a lager. jillian: you have to se

ron desantis has not yet released the plan of any kind, so he has been very much playing defense. >>go showing this has been been one of the big issues that voters have keyed into. they are more likely to vote for a candidate who wants to expand medicaid with federal dollars, and when those federal dollars begin to dwindle, that appears to to to work to the benefit of andrew gillum. >> the other big race, the senate race, nelson and of the average is up 2.4. same kind of deal here. it's tough to pole, and where is his support coming from? is it a gillam wave that brings nelson up? >> i think there is no question. if nelson is able to squeak this out, he will think gillam big time because the excitement on the democratic side is all about that kill them. he's really got -- especially african-americans fired up big time and liberal democrats fired up in a way that we have not seen in a lot of gubernatorial celebrations. >> he's down there in hurricane recovery mode, and how is that working? will that sustain him for those 15 days? >> the governor is succeeding. he succeeded last year i

to say that ron desantis f. that is what you're going to try to beat him with.ue facts. >> beat ron desantis. >>. >> laura: if that's the case why argue the race card? >> there is a specific impact that many people don't believe. that is not our fault people aren't believing it. >> laura: when barack obama wins reelection and gets the majority of white voters was that the same position. >> 50% of white women voted for trump t you don't see the connection there? >>. >> laura: no, i don't. >> we have a problem in this country when you can see how much progress black americans made, we own more houses, more cars, more billion airs than we have ever had, ever, you cannot say it's worse, you can say that we have made substantial progress. >> we have. >> those comments democrat deny that progress. and they imply that this country is in fact opposed to black americans. and you can't window oh you can't window oh you can't win -- >> laura: just win on the merits. he's ahead in the polls, why is he complaining? he's ahead in the polls? >> that is a fact of his experience

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ron desantis, pam bondi and i, we disagree with offshore drilling.ause ron has a great close relationship with the president we were able to work and get florida off the table. progress and cooperation coming as a result. >> congressman deutsch, i know you support gillum for governor. do you think desantis' decision to tie himself more closely, at least in ads, with president trump, might play a factor? might play a role in whether or not he wins? >> sure, absolutely i do, jake i appreciate the panel you brought together today. i have immense respect for my colleague, matt gates and general bondi. on behalf of rick scott, rather than defending the people of florida went to court to sue to take away right force people with pre-existing health condition. >> you're talking about obamacare. >> right and gates, who brings a holocaust denying to the state of the union, that's the trump brand in florida. and while i respect the service they provide, people understand it. they want someone who is actually going to stand up for them, for the people and not fo

and the trump thing is particularly relevant in this case, i think, in this race because ron desantiss primary win, being the nominee strictly to donald trump. he embraced donald trump. he modelled himself after donald trump. he was just asked in that debate by jake tapper if donald trump was a good role model for his children and somehow he started answering about israel. so i do think that andrew gill lum, who has a debate tonight should throw donald trump in ron desantis's face and say, look, you are coming after me when you are a mini me of a president who led to five indictments or guilty pleas, who is violating the emoluments clause and you are obstructing all these investigations. in the same way that ron desantis answered with israel when he got answered about donald trump and moral fitness, i think andrew gillum should answer with trump. either that or break into song. >> the debate is tonight. they have a lot of fodder for that debate tonight. >> they were very good debating, both of them, i thought. >> it was absolutely riveting, and i'm expecting tonight to be just as ente

support rick scott or ron desantis. or guess what, your state will become like the state, new york. 10% state income tax or california, 13.5% state income tax. in florida you have zero state income tax. you might want to keep it that way. in just moments we will have to come republican candidates. martha. running against claire mccaskill. this week project veritas.com exposing mccaskill for just how far left her views are in a series of undercover videos including, of course, her extreme views on gun control, her campaigns plan to lie to the good people of missouri. we are not going to really do this but we just have to act this way. and present mccaskill as a moderate, which she has not. she says she's just like barack obama. take a look. >> on board with this? >> of course. i voted for most of those things before. >> she doesn't openly go out and support groups, like other groups that are related to that because that could hurt, people hurt her ability to get elected. >> saying that you think she's more progressive th

republican ron desantis and democrat andrew gillum aesop in a debate with a new cloud hanging over gillam'smpaign. the corruption probe and free tickets to a hit broadway show. >> in a state of florida with got a lot of issues. we've got 99 issues in hamilton ain't one of them. >> shannon: the current governor republican rick scott in a tough campaign of his own ways in next. ♪ dr me feel. it was like that feeling when you're mowing the lawn on a sunny day... ...and without even trying, you end up with one last strip that's exactly the width of your mower. when you're done, it looks so good you post a picture on social media. and it gets 127 likes. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. fifteen minutes could save you cohigher!ad! higher! parents aren't perfect, but then they make us kraft mac & cheese and everything's good again. you don't always use your smartphone for directions... are we there yet? hey guys, up there. ...or to laugh out loud. ♪ but when it matters most, you count on tracfone to keep you connected for less. ♪ our smartphone plan gi

watch this. >> everyone knows my husband ron desantis is endorsed by president trump.g dad. ron loves playing with the kids. >> build a wall. >> he reads stories. >> then mr. trump said, you're fired. i love that part. >> he's teaching madison to talk. >> make america great again. >> there's some reporting -- i know, the ad is amazing -- some reporting from politico that trump is, i don't know, turned on desantis somewhat, viewing him as disloyal for disagreeing with him on trump's take on the death toll with hurricane maria in puerto rico. does trump -- long way of saying, does trump help or hurt desantis do you think in this race? >> if desantis doesn't have trump on his side, it's big trouble insofar as the florida electorate loves donald trump. his approval rating is a little higher than you would think. desantis has to not alienate the middle of the electorate while keep trump supporters on his side. >> thanks so much. you can see gillum and did he tansies in a cnn debate live sunday night, 8:00. we'll see you there. that's moderated by jake tapper. thanks so much

the governor's race there between democrat andrew gillum and republican ron desantis is one of the mostly watched in the country. the latest polling shows a tight race there with gillum holding a slight edge. i went to florida and spent some time with the democratic hopeful. we took a look at how florida politics stand to once again shape the political landscape of the country. >> with less than a week to go until election day, the gloves are off. >> so we need you! >> on the road and in their debates, the candidates to be the next governor of florida have channelled the no holds bar style of politics that has dominated the nation. >> i'm not calling desantis a racist, i'm simply saying the racists believe he's a racist. >> i'm not going to sit here and take this nonsense from a guy like andrew gillum who always plays the victim. >> headlines have called the race the epitome of politics in the trump era, the candidates representing the polarizing extremes of both parties. >> the democrats get in power, the country goes in the wrong direction. >> if we don't have a blue wave coming, it's