iowa, the republicans are a party divided. this man who is staying neutral in the primary is uncertain how that divide will be settled. some are every much pro trump, others are exploring their options. so it will be interesting to see how it plays out. i think time will tell how it impacts his election. one thing is clear, trump s campaign and his legal case have simply one argument behind them, the former president trying to use this indictment and investigations as a weapon to rally support among republicans. the question is can any other candidate break through and challenge him one on one. jeff zeleny, cnn, counsel bluff iowa. joining me is michael mre,
confronting a leading republican rival, florida governor ron desantis. reporter: but trump stepped on his own lines. he returned to iowa as many of his republicans rivals bluntly question his ability to win a general election as they seek to gain attention in a crowded field of candidates, some contenders are taking to the airwaves. small town boy, self-made business leader. the radical left have chosen a culture of grievance over greatness. others are introducing themselves to one voter at a time. former vice president mike pence implored republicans to turn the page. different times call for different leadership. reporter: more than six months before the presidential nominating process begins in
former president donald trump has returned to the campaign trail and he s using his legal troubles to rally his supporter, lashing out at prosecutors and claiming the probes are actually helping him politically. here s jeff zeleny. if i weren t leading in the polls by so much, they wouldn t be indicting me. reporter: donald trump back on the campaign in iowa, trying to use the indictments to rally republicans to win back the white house. they want to take away my freedom because i will never let them take away your freedom. reporter: he says he s consumed with the special counsel s probe. every time i get a subpoena, my polls go up, i get more and more subpoenas. report to a grand jury. he s killing biden. before his appearance, visors told cnn trump would focus on
the national weather surface has issued a heat warning for more than 126 million americans the warning stretch from the central u.s. in places like kansas, up into the east coast. new york city will feel like 110 degrees, washington, d.c., will feel like 111. even out in iowa. here s a little bit of an impact it s having. the sioux falls highway is buckling under the heat index. it s being blamed for the death of a new york giants player who died from heat stroke after working out in little rock arkansas. where the heat index was 1034 degrees yesterday. super bowl champion, young guy
second place. sanders among the candidates at council bluffs iowa this afternoon for a series of events. our own mike memmeli joins us live. you mentioned that joe biden took a hit after that last debate. one of the things we saw at the start of this week was joe biden really leading into that contrast between him and senator sanders on the issue of health care. joe biden selling his vision for improving upon the affordable care act. reminding voters how hard that was to pass in the first place, and talking about ways in which he would seem to improve upon it. at the same time bernien sadders is behind me saying, bernien sadders not only is the price tag much higher, it would cost in the trillions versus his, which is 750 billion. it would end private insurance as we know it. bernie sanders is welcoming that contrast with joe biden. he was talking about his vision