nbc's ron mott joins us from orlando, florida, with that end of the story. n, good evening. >> reporter: kate, good evening to you. newt gingrich has been angry about fighting the republican machine in addition to the other candidates in this field. this as one of the most powerful names in the party rushes to his defense. >> newt gingrich in the house! >> reporter: newt gingrich hit the links today in a good mood. >> what are calista and i doing up here when we could be on the golf course? >> reporter: but wasted little time teeing off on those who are conspiring to take his campaign down. >> under the elites the people who oppose me, some in the democratic party and some in the republican party, under the elites we have become the america who couldn't. >> reporter: perhaps a smallest crowd in florida greeted him this afternoon. a potential blow as he seeks to regain the firmer footing he brought here after last week's surprising victory in the south carolina primary. ever the lightning rod for controversy, gingrich has attracted high voltage opposition. mil

nbc's ron mott has been talking to the people of iowa. he's with us tonight. hey, ron, good evening. >> reporter: hey, brian, good evening to you. the voters we talked to today say they are struggling with their decision, not because of political positions or the blitz of advertising aimed at them. they say they simply cannot decide which of the candidates has the best shot at beating president obama. >> you didn't do anything? >> reporter: breakfast at the whites this morning was served up decisively. cold cereal for 11-year-old jackie, a splash of joe for 9-year-old joe. ask mom and dad who they will vote for in the caucus and they are less certain. >> i don't think of the candidates there is that guy or that woman that's exciting -- you know, that's excited the electorate out here. >> i'm leaning toward mitt romney mostly because i'm looking for somebody i can trust. >> reporter: across iowa, 41% of likely caucus goers were undecided going into the final weekend according to a des moines register poll. >> we have it narrowed down. >> reporter: indecision was

first, let's begin with nbc's ron mott in jacksonville tonight. ron, good evening. >> reporter: hey, brian, good evening to you. long before republicans officially get the chance to beat president barack obama in the fall, newt gingrich is saying tonight he's getting beaten up by the republican establishment and does not plan to go down without a fight. >> you sounded angry today. >> i am angry. i'm angry. every american should be angry. >> reporter: with $14 million of advertising in florida aimed largely at newt gingrich from mitt romney and a super pac backing him. >> if newt wins, this guy would be very happy. >> reporter: the former house speaker had a lot to say today, as evidence surfaces his forward momentum may be slowing. in the line of fire the gop establishment he contends is supporting romney as much as romney himself. >> how can somebody run a campaign this dishonest and think he's going to have any credibility running for president? >> we are not going to beat barack obama with some guy who has swiss bank accounts, cayman island acco

over to ron mott in orangeburg, south carolina. you spent the day on the trail with newt gingrich. if mitt romney is dialing back talking about cautious optimism after last night's red meat moment at that debate what's it like to be newt gingrich today? >> reporter: hey there, brian. newt gingrich is flying high right now. there is a lot of confidence in this camp. he is going in tomorrow full of optimism. they say they have seen late polling numbers that suggest that he has pulled ahead of mitt romney going onto saturday's big election here. what's striking about this reversal of fortune is that newt gingrich came to south carolina ten days ago limping after the lackluster finishes in ohio and new hampshire. he needed a big finish here. he might get it. he got not one but two standing ovations this week during the presidential debates. his crowds are large and enthusiastic. he had an overflow crowd here in orangeburg this afternoon. while the speaker seemed a bit tired of all the travels this week, the crowd hung on his every word. they didn't seem to mind at all. there were no qu

just a short time ago, nbc's ron mott sat down with newt gingrich to ask him about this barrage of attacks against him coming from inside his own party. ron is with us from delray beach, florida, tonight. good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening to you. newt gingrich says matter of factually that mitt romney is the establishment's candidate, and to compete against him he knows he's going up against a powerful machine. we got the former speaker on the record about how he would broaden his base of appeal with voters. women where his poll numbers aren't that strong, to whether he might damage other republicans running in the fall if he becomes the nominee. some republicans are openly critical of you saying you're too polarizing and you're a threat to the gop brand itself if you end up on this ticket. how legitimate are those concerns and should voters think about that when they go to the polls? >> if you're an establishment republican and enjoying life in washington and you don't mind presiding over the decay, i'm a threat. you can tell who they are by how hysterical they get. the fact

ron mott is with us from columbia, south carolina, tonight. good evening. >> reporter: hey, brian, good evening to you. political push came to shove today here in south carolina about what many considered to be mitt romney's achilles' heel, whether he put profits ahead of people when he ran a powerful venture capital firm. the sniping over mitt romney's tenure as ceo of bain capital. >> when mitt romney came to town. >> reporter: dramatized in a 27-minute documentary and tv ads, as well as by two opponents, sparked an intense fire fight within the republican party, with one candidate effectively declaring a cease-fire, while another stays on the offensive against the front-runner. >> are you attacking bain or asking questions? >> i'm asking questions. i'm shocked how defensive they are. >> reporter: today former speaker newt gingrich didn't retreat, expressing surprise at the criticism aimed at him for questioning one of his party's hallmark positions, pro-capitalism. >> there is counterpressure among the elite about raising questions. the ame

ron mott is with us from spartanburg. good evening. >> reporter: good evening to you. south carolina is not for the political faint of heart. the punches here can be hard and painful. all indications suggest we'll see a lot of blows delivered over the next ten days. round three, south carolina. where front-runner mitt romney landed today into an atmosphere saturated by bare-knuckle politics. >> when mitt romney came to town -- >> reporter: his opponents are hitting him online in a 27-minute documentary and on the air with tv ads, including this attack from newt gingrich on abortion. >> what happened after mitt romney changed his position from pro abortion to pro-life? he governed pro abortion. >> reporter: while the group linked him to that '80s symbol of american excess, gordon gekko from "wall street." >> greed, for lack of a better word, is good. >> reporter: fellow republicans were throwing punches about romney's days running bain capital. >> i think companies like bain capital could have helped these companies if they truly were venture capitalists, but they're no

would have the first permanent base on the moon. >> ron mott rounding out our political coverage from the earth to the moon tonight. but there is more to our political director and chief white house correspondent chuck todd we go in our washington bureau tonight. you have new polling numbers. it couldn't come at a more critical time. >> reporter: they were surprising, which is why we are bringing to you earlier than normal. the last six months, government and wall street data indicated the economy is improving. drop in unemployment rate is the most noticeable public figure. during the same six months, the public has not indicated they've been feeling the improvement, when asked by folks like us at the polls. that is until now. our new poll, improvement in three key categories seems to indicate the statistical green shoot about the economy is now actually penetrating the american psyche. the big number is whether the country is headed in the right direction. in december, it was 22%. now it shot up seven points to 30%. that is a one-year high. when it comes to president obama's handling

we've got it all covered starting with ron mott covering newt gingrich. the man at the center of so much of this. good evening. >> reporter: good evening to you. this may well be the most pivotal day of this gop race so far, especially as it relates to newt gingrich. he is clearly on a roll here in south carolina, but his personal past might slam on the brakes. newt gingrich stepped off the bus today with a big endorsement, surging poll numbers and right into questions about his personal life. >> help me better wrestle with that topic. >> i've been very open about my life. i've been very open about the mistakes i made. i've been very open about needing to go to god for forgiveness and to seek reconciliation. >> reporter: on a day when the gingrich campaign seems to have new traction with the striking distance of mitt romney in late polling, backing of rick perry, the marital record could put that momentum on the skids. gingrich's second wife marianne who has been sharply critical of her ex-husband in the past, claims in an interview on "night line" that h

and to do that, we'll go northeast of des moines to johnston, iowa where ron mott is at summit middle school. ron, always having witnessed this, described it to people as voting with your body more than a ballot. it's so tactile and retail, and such a unique slice of democracy. >> reporter: it really is, brian. good evening. these caucuses are a real throw back to a bygone era. this is neighbors coming together, politics, community politics right out in the open. some of these meetings will be held in big spaces like this middle school cafeteria, some are in livin rooms. in a nutshell, here's what's going to happen. voters will go into about one of 1800 of these precinct meetings in all 99 counties across iowa. they will listen, surrogates for each of the candidates will be asked to come up if they want to make one final sales pitch to these voters. they're handed a sheet of paper, write down the name of the candidate they support. the votes will be tabulated, they will head home, turn on the television, and cross their fingers and hope their candidates end tonight as the leader of th

and we begin tonight with nbc's ron mott. ron, good evening. >> reporter: kate, good evening to you from a frigid des moines. the long hot quest for voter support here in iowa is about to end. most voters have already lined up behind their candidates, but a good number of them are still uncertain and they could be a real wild card come tuesday. at church this morning, michele bachmann needed a little intervention to be heard. >> turning on the power. that's what we're going to do this morning. we're going to turn on the power. >> reporter: while bachmann supporters are no longer electrifying voters here -- >> the next president of the united states, rick santorum. >> reporter: -- rick santorum by contrast has seen a power surge, suddenly within striking distance of the front-runner mitt romney. santorum's support spiked on thursday and friday in the newspaper polls, with 41% of caucus voters still unsettled, the last 48 hours and efforts to close the deal could ultimately decide the winner. >> they need to be getting out aroun

nbc's ron mott is on the trail tonight in myrtle beach. ron, good evening. >> reporter: hey, lester. good evening to you. this was a rare day of rest for mitt romney as the rest of the field tried to take advantage, calling on south carolina conservative voters to keep this race from running out of options. >> let us all fight for that -- >> reporter: with republican front-runner mitt romney taking sunday off the campaign trail, his opponents were busy stumping today, rallying conservative support in an effort to slow romney's momentum. >> i hope each of you will peer into your heart and find that individual with the record, with the values that represent your heart. >> reporter: harry and rick santorum hoping to leverage his endorsement this week from a national group of evangelical leaders into a south carolina surge appealed to a christian audience at a prayer breakfast. >> we need a candidate who has accountability to god and accountability to an eternal truth and understanding of our role in the world. >> reporter: since 1980, voters h

ron mott is there where they're getting underway tonight. ron, good evening? >> reporter: brian, good evening to you, this is real voter participation you see going on behind me. we have an overflow crowd at this middle school. these voters are investing some time tonight. mostly listening before they let their own voices be heard. this is a throwback to a bygone era, if you will. what we'll see here across nearly 1800 caucus sites tonight in iowa's 99 counties, we'll hear from the candidates themselves. in one case, rick santorum coming to make a final pitch to voters here. surrogates have spoken here for other candidates in this race. once all the final pitches are made, the voters are handed a simple blank piece of paper. the votes are tabulated, they announce the results of those precinct results here. everyone runs off home, they will look at coverage tonight and hope that at the end of the night, their candidate is the one who is the leader of the pack. ryan? >> ron mott, at the action tonight. more about these entrance polls, nbc news has been asking fo

>> thanks, ron mott. as we noted at the top, a few days ago showed mitt romney with a wide lead in south carolina, but the romney campaign sensing a change in the winds has been trying to tamp down expectations as it ratchets up its attacks on newt gingrich. peter alexander has that end of the story. good evening to you. >> reporter: lester, good morning to you. and roomy took the afternoon off, in fact, to relax and he took his family to the movies today. regardless of what happens here this evening, governor romney's advisers say he's in this for the long haul. for the romney campaign, proudly meticulous about every detail, that visit to tommy's country hamhouse featured an oversight that summed up a week's worth of stumbles. >> we came here. >> reporter: the crowd couldn't hear the candidate because his campaign didn't bring its own microphone. all week romney who is largely focused on attacking president obama -- >> repeal obamacare -- >> reporter: has struggled to fend off jabs from his rivals. newt

nbc's ron mott is there. ron, how are things going? >> hey, rachel.t voted to suspend any further stump speeches from the campaigns, themselves. they are now voting. they're taking those presidential preference polls as i speak. already tonight we have heard from rick santorum and making a final plea to these voters himself in person. anita perry came here to stump for her husband texas governor rick perry. j.c. watts was here speaking on behalf of newt gingrich. josh romney was here to speak on behalf of his father and former governor mitt romney. and there was a surrogate here for michele bachmann as well. so the voters have heard from these folks. they are investing a lot of time tonight to listen and now they are about to be heard. they are going to write down the name of the candidates they support on a simple piece of paper. all the little pieces of paper will end up back at the front of the room and then they will count them. the candidates will stand over that process to make sure every vote is counted and at the end of this process announce t

nbc aes ron mott. thank you, sir.meet the press, rick santorum said president obama's leadership style is dividing the country and insisted he would do better. >> this president has done more divide than any other president i've witnessed. i gives speech after speech to divide america between class and income group and racial groups much this is the great divider in chief. this is about trust. you don't build trust going up and running around the country beating up on your opponent. he's the president of everybody in this country. i would be somebody who would meet regularly and talk and try to build relationships of trustment. >> you can see the full interview of santorum on meet the press when it reairs on msnbc at 2:00 eastern. >>> rick santorum held more than 300 events in iowa in the past six months. why is he gaining momentum now? washington pure owe chief for yahoo news joining me from java joe's. >> david i want to start with you. explain to us what is behind santorum's move up in the polls especially this lat

watching "the daily rundown" only on msnbc. >>> let's bring back our panel, gale, james, ron mott.ours. we may lose michele bachmann in the next 64 minutes. james, did she or rick perry have any kind of organization here that rick santorum can sort of back him up? >> for michele bachmann, all of her staff left her in late october, as far as my count, she had one big endorsement in the state, a smaller tea party-type leader. but she had a moment there in june where she could take off in the state but she did not make that happen. as far as rick perry, yes, there is a strong organization, of course, for his longtime consultant, dave carney's from the state, and the team put together some impressive names. >> there are people to hire? >> people to get, yes. >> gale, rick perry, there's two ways to go when you lose what you want to do. you can do what newt gingrich is doing, or you can do what rick perry tried to do. you felt as if rick perry was trying to leave with dignity. >> there's no way he's going to do a newt gingrich. he was -- i'm not shooure why h ran for president, except p

nbc's ron mott is in johnston just outside des moines, another large caucus site and they just told me ron moth, is they have just seen candidate rick santorum arrive at that caucus site. at some of these larger caucus sites you're seeing the candidates themself, famous and/or big name surrogates appear on their behalf. i'm here with al sharpton and lawrence o'donnell and ed schultz and steve schmidt here in new york. just responding, listening to that newt gingrich sort of closing argument, the tone contrast with michelle bachmann sort of pounding the podium, going fire and brimstone and newt gingrich going full professor newt there is one distinct contrast, but also make the case that people ought to vote against people who run negative ads, vote against mitt romney because he's run negative ads against me. steve, how do you assess that? >> i think he has a couple of problems going forward. he's going to be campaigning in the future in states like south carolina and florida that have unemployment rates of nearly 10%, and i thinks formulation for the election is the biggest problem fa

and from the heart of the beast in south carolina, nbc's ron mott. ron, i want to begin with you.vity. the candidates rushing around. what would you say the excitement level is now? pretty high? >> i would say it's very high, martin. good day to you. the turnout is supposed to be low in some areas. . next the more evangelical part of south carolina. that may bode good news for newt gingrich and rick santorum. but we'll wait to see the polls close at 7:00 p.m. it's been a feisty week on the campaign trail. at the debates, mitt romney is not so much. he's had uneven performances at the debate. stumbles over his tax records. and so as we get to the finish line here today, it's going to be interesting to see who has the most bluster and the most energy at this point. newt gingrich is riding high. he came to the ham-egeddon. mitt romney beat newt gingrich there by 30 minutes. tfrs an interesting morning. we were hoping to get one of those west side story sharks versus jets dance-offs in the parking lots. didn't happen. >> tough be fair and accept that newt gingrich is heavier mitt. it

ron mott is in columbia for us. good sunday morning to you, ron. tell us how we got here this morning. >> hey there, alex. good morning to you. what a week it's been. newt gingrich pulled off something that seemed impossible a week ago. he came down here, he spoke the language, he got out the vote and in the end, he shocked the establishment and then some. at 68, he's far from a kid. but not from a come back. newt gingrich, after o forgettable showings in iowa and new hampshire surprised naysayers and maybe a even few supporters winning the south carolina primary in fashion. gingrich capitalized on their appetite for rough and tumble politic. sharpening his tongue against mitt romney. >> where is mitt? i thought he was -- i thought he was going to stay and we'd have a little debate. >> president obama? >> he's been the best food stamp president. >> in a debate. >> i'm appalled you would begin a presidential debate on a topic like that. >> just about anybody who crossed him or his line. >> what gingrich did in south carolina was unite the conservati

ron mott on the road with newt gingrich. thank you. >>> the era of big government is over. >> will president obama take a page from president clinton's state of the union address? >>> also, why senator john carey showed up supporting two black eyes. we'll tell you about that. >>> raging solar storm going on right now. we'll get details about the eruption. >>> don't forget, you can join the "news nation" on facebook. we're at facebook.com/newsnation. shazi: seven years ago, i had this idea. to make baby food the way moms would. happybaby strives to make the best organic baby food. in a business like ours, personal connections are so important. we use our american express open gold card to further those connections. last year we took dozens of trips using membership rewards points to meet with farmers that grow our sweet potatoes and merchants that sell our product. vo: get the card built for business spending. call 1-800-now-open to find out how the gold card can serve your business. yoo-hoo. hello. it's water from the drinki