the way ioiowans helped buttigi surge this week, and the way new hampshire voters are making up their minds right now. that brings us to developing news in the poll released this hour. sanders and buttigieg tied now, within the margin of error, 25% and 21%. warren at 14%, statistically tied for third with joe biden. straightforward implications here. a top three emerging in the race, sanders, buttigieg, and warren, with buttigieg gaining the most. a poll by the "boston globe" shows him going up 12 points. also, serious trouble for joe biden's campaign. he is flagging in both states, and it is not just that he is running behind. the more concerning trend for his campaign is this continuing collapse falling from 18% to 11%, and new signs his team is making emergency moves. the "washington post" is calling it a last-ditch effort, moving advertising. polls are a snapshot. you know a candidate is making a dent if more famous candidates suddenly feel a need to take them on. that's what makes what you're about to see here striking. bernie sanders today going right after pete buttigieg. >> i'm reading some headlines from newspapers about pete buttigieg. pete buttigieg has most exclusive billionaire donors of any democrat. that was from "forbes." i like pete buttigieg. nice guy. but we are in a moment where billionaires control not only our economy but our political -- >> i'm joined by "boston globe" political responder. political reporter lauren. and a pulitzer prize-winning columnist for the "washington post." we're all here in manchester for a big night. nice to see all of you. >> you promoted me to winning. i was a finalist. but thank you. >> finalist. >> yes, i'm sure i deserved it. >> i appreciate, fact-checking yourself of your own awards. >> i self-fact-check. >> attention to detail is part of why you're here. new numbers don't tell us everything but tell us something. >> they tell us, actually -- they reaffirm something iknew c iowa. this is a very different race than we thought we had, or that we thought we had a few weeks ago. bernie sanders and pete buttigieg at the top. i was at the event today where bernie sanders, whoa, all of a sudden, he was going after one billionaire, mike bloomberg, then all of a sudden, he started going after the person who also takes money from billionaires. in fact, probably one of the less wealthy candidates, if not the least wealthy candidate in the race. that tells you where the top of this ticket is. i think it is fascinating that the latest nbc poll has vice president biden and senator warren tied. it is going to be really critical for both their fates, to be able to home on to that third place. >> lauren, your new hampshire public radio, you can't get much more new hampshire than that. >> no, you cannot. >> how are people greeting these candidates this week, and what really matters on the ground here? >> i think it's been interesting, you know, with impeachment going on, with all the news that's been happening in washington this week, with some of the senators having to rush off for the impeachment rot vote. it's been a little slower. i've been around a few cycles. this is my first cycle as a reporter, but i grew up here. i know from reporters who have been here decades and decades, it is usually busier. certainly for people showing up, they are making their presence known. you talk about the polling. one thing i noticed in the "boston globe" poll is there are still a lot of people who say they might change their mind before the primary. i think in new hampshire, that is always a key thing to watch. people may say this is who they're supporting now, but they watch the debate tonight, these are things that mean a lot to them, it may change their mind and could thank what we're seeing. >> the degree of volatility in this race is just -- it can't be understated. i've been struck by the number of long-time activists i've talked to over the past -- you know, since the summer, who have had such a harder time. these are the people who don't make up their mind at the last minute. they pick a candidate early and go all in for them. the number of them that have been filled with agony, is how they describe it, trying to make the decision. it all comes down to who can beat donald trump, and it hasn't been clear. it's been such a big field with so many compelling candidates. now, on top of that, iowa is such a mess, that there have been no real, clear signal that has come out of that. i think that's one of the reasons why tonight's debate is such a big deal. it could really make or break a bunch of the candidates. >> is it unsettled because democratic and undeclared voters feel no perfect candidate has emerged, or is it unsettled because of him? there's so much anxiety about him. >> i think the second one more. i think it is a mix of the two, but it is this existential angst you get talking to the voters. they want him gone. this isn't fun. it feels so important and weighty, they can't -- nobody trusts themselves. >> the two go together, isn't it? you can't go with your heart as much if your head is worrying about electability, electability. also, each of the candidates is flawed. i was wondering, since you've been on the ground here, it strikes me as i was driving around in the yucky rain today, the absence of, seems like, much fewer yard signs than normal. >> i thought maybe it was the weather. >> i was wondering. it felt fewer to me. some colleagues of mine reported that in iowa. i was wondering if that was another indication of the unsettled nature of things. >> i don't know about that. i've certainly seen yard signs. i put a lot of miles on my car this week. >> i'll take your expertise. >> if you drive around, you'll see billboards. >> interesting. >> to talk to your electability point, i mean, when i ask voters on the trail, what is your number one issue, what they say is i want someone who is going to beat donald trump. when we didn't get the results out of iowa right away, my first thought was, i wonder if anyone is going to get the momentum that we always talk about with iowa and new hampshire. the big mo, as we all call it, right? it's actually still developing. of course we're seeing, you know, sanders and buttigieg moving up higher, and it is reflected in the conversations i'm having with voters. a veteran told me, active duty military, actually, at a veterans event for buttigieg yesterday, he said he is torn between sanders, buttigieg, warren, and klobuchar. i was like, man, how will you make that decision? he said, you know, seeing sanders and buttigieg do well in iowa actually is helping me, like, look at them closer. >> you hear that more than usual. that's partly because there are so many new and untraditional candidates. i also think something we haven't discussed a ton is seeing some big name brand candidates be out before iowa punctured things. cory booker and kamala harris being gone, and yang and buttigieg being in, may have voters feeling like, okay, everyone has to keep an open mind. if you're trying to settle on four people, that's like being at brunch and thinking about, do i want the eggs or the pancakes or the waffles or the fried chicken and waffle? it's a lot to try to narrow down. >> right. >> the electability point though, we're hearing that a lot. i think it's because donald trump beat expectations. people have watched him perseve persevere. then you have folks like james carville, who is from the new dem, moderate wing of the party, and we were talking to him, and he laid it out, and there was tremendous response on what he said. he views sanders as too progressive. he has a different course in the race. look at james carville. >> well, i'll get behind and of course vote for him. i don't have a choice. but look at the british labor party. we're like talking about people voting from jail cells. we're talking about not having a border. i mean, come on, people. every day, people are out there struggling. we don't win elections because we talk about stuff that is not relevant. these campaigns have got to be more relevant. it matters what a party chooses to talk about. >> lauren, we came all the way out here to new hampshire. here you are. >> welcome. >> when you hear that, does that sound to you like something that resonates with actual people here, or is that more of a projection of what the heartland, what these states want? >> well, here's what i'll say. i mean, as you mentioned, you know, james carville backed senator michael bennett fr, and he's trying to get 50 town halls before election day, shake as many hands as possible. i certainly think that there are people with an appetite for more moderate candidates. i met a guy yesterday who said, the pragmatic part of me wants to go with the moderate because i think it'll have a bigger appetite in the heartland. but i want a big ideas person. the election of donald trump shows there is an appetite for that. i'm glad we talk about undecided voters and people between four people. there are a lot of people making up their mind still. >> 50% or more people in the polls show they're open to changing their minds. what's different is bernie sanders supporters are not open to changing their mind. you see some of the entrance poll data from iowa suggesting, you know, his voters are more liberal. he doesn't have this broad coalition necessarily that people think you're going to need to be able to, again, perform really well against donald trump. >> doesn't that go to the biden of it all? we're having this whole conversation without joe biden. >> the biden of it all. i thought that was hilarious. >> we're having this whole conversation without joe biden. in iowa and new hampshire, he is looking fourth or worse. unlike bernie sanders, who whatever you think, bernie sanders is someone who invokes strong passions in people. he ran before and did very well. he is running now and doing well. he does well in democratic primaries. joe biden, and i should mention, we have an official from the campaign on later this hour, joe biden, as a factual matter, doesn't do well in democratic primaries. he ran twice. he didn't do well. here he is again. is this a last stand, as the "post" put it? >> it very well could be a last stand. he may limp out of here and make it to nevada and south carolina. south carolina is with the african-american community there, supposed to be the firewall. but it is hard to explain, especially when you are the former vice president, why you just can't, and with the name recognition he has, with the experience he has, why you can't seem to make that sale with voters, and why you can't seem to energize voters. that's a big, big problem. >> i think tonight the stakes are the highest for him. because -- and, clearly, his campaign knows it because he spent two days sequestered in wilmingt wilmington, delaware, instead of on the trail. that's different from what you saw bill clinton and the comeback kid. >> you find it unusual, to go into hiding between iowa and new hampshire? >> i don't know if it is unusual -- >> i was being facetious. i'll flip it and hand it back to you. this is the time the people have the most events, the most fundraising. joe biden, for whatever reasons, we'll find out, went dark for a whole day in new hampshire. >> presumably to be -- two days. he had no events yesterday, if i remember correctly. and debate prep. clearly, his campaign sees this as a key moment to be able to turn the tide of what we're seeing in the polls, which is a downward trend. >> when he was in new hampshire, he was really on offense, right? my colleague, josh rogers, was there. he talked in a piece he did about how -- that biden went right for sanders, right for buttigieg. later, when my colleague talked to him, he talked about how, you know, yeah, all right, fine, gut punch in iowa, as we all saw. he consistently talks about how he is focus on the first four gates. the first four states. i think he's trying to make the case, if i don't do well here, i'm looking at south carolina. >> fantastic panel to kick off the coverage. some of you will stick around for more in the show. stay with us. coming up, the trump white house is now openly retaliating against one of the key witnesses in uniform who testified about the facts of the ukraine plot in the impeachment probe. we have my special report on the new hampshire primary, why it is pipivotal, and everything you need to know. an interview with the top official from inside the biden campaign leading up to this critical debate. more in tonight's hour. stay with us. you're watching a special edition, live from new hampshire, of "the beat" on msnbc. ahh no, come on. i saw you eating poop earlier. hey! my focus is on the road, and that's saving me cash with drivewise. who's the dummy now? 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history suggests that candidates don't ever get close down the road to the white house, they don't get very far, without new hampshire. and a strong finish here could launch your entire campaign. take clinton in '92, who managed to benefit from the state who played the comeback after he came in second place. >> we know enough to say with some certainty that new hampshire, tonight, has made bill clinton the comeback kid. >> for democrats, the saying is, there are only two tickets out of new hampshire. that is actually a lot more than a saying. no democrat has ever won the nomination unless they finished in the top two in new hampshire in the modern era. think about that tonight. for candidates like biden or warren, history would suggest this race could make or break their campaigns. history gives us clues, not guarantees. this year is already different with mike bloomberg funding a strategy that skips new hampshire entirely. the state is still very clutch for underdogs. they can deploy grassroots politics instead of money to win over voters, to win over voters and then get out and do a national campaign. in fact, that was the model used by someone who was really not that well-known at all. peanut farmer jimmy carter. he stacked iowa, then a new hampshire win. history also has a warning here for mr. joe biden. big names who falter here, they rarely recover. howard dean got a lot of energy. he was leading in the polls from his anti-war stance. he had an iowa disappointment, and then he said maybe he would rebound here. >> not only are we going to new hampshire, tom harkin, we're going to south carolina and oklahoma, and then we're going to washington, d.c. to take back the white house! yeah! >> this is where the impact can be so fascinating. howard dean began on the national stage as an obscure governor. a year before, it might have been celebrated that he made it to second in new hampshire. remember, we talked about it. two tickets out. the expectation game here is tough, and that second place finish was seen as a letdown. it was john kerry, who i was working for at the time, that excelled in this state near his home turf. >> for the second week in a row, senator john kerry of massachusetts has scored an impressive victory in the race for the democratic presidential nomination. he is our projected winner tonight in this first in the nation primary. >> i love new hampshire. >> no matter what you think of this small state having so much sway, the historical fact is it has sway. it has juice. interestingly, the dynamic does apply to both parties, which is funny, right? democrats and republicans are increasingly polarized, and they're campaigning in very different ways. new hampshire has still had huge impact for both fields. it narrows the democratic race to two, as discussed. it is more pivotal for republicans. the winner of the new hampshire primary has gone on to be the republican nominee in six of the last eight contested republican primaries. narrowing is not the same as selecting. we can remind you, there are also candidates, you'll see here, who did carry this state but not the nomination that year. now, with all the growing criticism of how a couple small states have so much power, these primaries could be reformed. there's talk about that. these small states do enable a contest that basically demands more than just tv ad buys. in fact, critics say that's why bloomberg is skipping new hampshire entirely. voters in both parties took to what happens here, to this independent, undeclared voter tradition, to see who may have what it takes. for newer names, whether an obama, buttigieg, warren, winner here can say something. the voters here don't really start out in partisan corners. we were discussing this. right now, about half say they're still deciding who to support. many voters deciding at the last minute. those who have decided appear right now to be for bernie sanders in new hampshire. he is resonating as authentic. the voters have seen all the moves, all the political tricks, like candidates coming in and trying to do photo ops. remember when the sitting vice president, george bush, wanted to convince everyone what he really loved, talking about more than what was on twitter or who had a hot month in national polls. there are signs that people here want a leader who can pull off the trick of not only handling trump but delivering on results for their lives. >> it comes down to who can beat trump. >> i think that there are so many more issues in this country that can be talked about. veterans being homeless. flint, michigan, not having clean water. women should have the right to choose what goes on in their bodies. >> i've become disgusted with the rank in the system. both sides hurling insults at each other. there is nothing positive coming from either side that i can see. >> that's what we're hearing from some of the real voters on the ground in new hampshire. those are anecdotes. the broader data tells us one struggle looms above all. voters concerned about health care. now, we're seeing candidates speaking to that agenda. here were several making the case in new hampshire. >> rural and urban areas need better housing and need better health care. need mental health help. need opioid treatment. >> let every american have the choice to walk away from the corporate, private plans and toward something better. >> under our administration, we will end the international embarrassment of being the only major country on earth not to guarantee health care to all people as a human right. >> so people here care about health care. they care about who can deliver, and who seems ready for trump. we don't know if past will be prologued, to quote shakespeare, like we didn't know iowa would be different and chaotic this year. in this different political era, voters may take a bet on a candidate who is not top two on tuesday. we don't know that either. they could bet on someone not competing here. i think we do know a lot of people in this state think of themselves as having grit. they expect the same with their leaders. to quote john stark, the new hampshire born general who gave the state its motto, many people still believe it, live free or die. to take on an incumbent like donald trump, many are looking for a brawler who is ride or die. who will fight as hard for working people as he or she will fight. donald trump celebrating his so-called acquittal. a man who outlasted 16 primary opponents. a democratic nominee who won more votes. outlasted a probe led by bob mueller. another one led by none other than adam schiff. who do voters here think is up to that task? we're going to get into it with two great experts to break it down, when we're back in 30 seconds. ♪ limu emu & doug and now for their service to the community, we present limu emu & doug with this key to the city. 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[ applause and band playing ] only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ we're back with david, washington bureau chief, at the new hampshire debate site tonight, and lauren is back with us. david, we have laid out those issues. what do you think is so important, especially heading into the debate? >> -- spoken to voters, find there's a lot of people still not knowing what to do. their choices are sometimes, to those of us who follow this closely, seem a little peculiar. buttigieg or tom steyer. warren or joe biden. they're not looking at this, i think, in terms of an e idealogical framework. a lot of the case history that you just did such a great job of presenting often followed along idealogical lines. often, it was the establishment candidate and the more progressive candidate. certainly, we see that in the biden and buttigieg versus bernie sanders and elizabeth warren. there is a divide, but i don't think it is pulling voters. it'll be different if you have two winners but they're still under or close to only a quarter of the vote. we could have sort of this very beaten democratic crowd with a few, you know, winners crawling on to nevada and south carolina, and even crawling on past that to this michael bloomberg political science experiment. we have no idea what that is going to be like when he enters the picture with hundreds of millions of dollars in campaign ads in the super tuesday states. >> well, as mentioned, the history goes and gives us -- i'm going to -- the history gives us a little bit of a background, david. mike bloomberg seems to offer something that everyone can relate to, which is by not really running here yet, he's like the person you could swipe right on in imagination but never have to actually sit down with yet. does that help him as kind of a potential white knight with some voters? >> right now, we have the idea of mike bloomberg. that idea is really only defined by his own ads. which, of course, are very pro-bloomberg. he hasn't been on the debate stage. he hasn't had to mix it up. >> they are pro-bloomberg. >> you know, you have not been -- he's not been on your show. he hasn't had to answer a lot of tough questions. so the idea of a guy coming in is a lot different than him being in the mix. but he will be there on super tuesday with his bank account. not having gone through this bruising battle that we've seen for the last few months and that we will see get even tougher in the next three weeks. >> stay with me, david. lauren, bringing you back in. i want to get to other stuff, including biden. your thoughts on what we laid out, that new hampshire has been determinative in the past. >> you laid out what the new hampshire primary used to do. i don't know if the story is still out there, a bill clinton, jimmy carter. you know, if you can be a long-shot dand dcandidate. people say, the moment we met buttigieg was on a cnn town hall, not a sot some diner. the primary is complicated. voters say they've had one-on-one communications with candidates, and it means a lot to them. on a whole, this debate situation -- tonight is a great example -- not every candidate running is on the stage because the dnc set the threshold so high. it takes the effect away from new hampshire in a way. we talk to somebody like michael bennet. another candidate who dropped out. maryland congressman john delaney. these people put a lot of stake in the long-shot style of campaigning, hoping they can overcome the name i.d. by doing house parties. they have to compete with the tv name brand, like an elizabeth warren, bernie sanders. people go to rallies then go home and tell their friends. we're in a different moment in new hampshire primary history. i also think with iowa, i mean, you thought the attention was on us, i think it is on us even more if that is humanly possible. because for us, you know, we're kind of closely linked them and always under threat. there are other states who would love to be first. we do a podcast called "stranglehold." i'm one of the hosts, and we talk about this a lot. people ask, why is new hampshire first? even people in new hampshire asked us that question. the answer is, we've been holding on to it for a long time. >> and i think there's participati participation, diversity, and size. you could find other states or rotate to deal with the diversity. i've said before, i think it is a good idea. size though is still important. if you go to a giant state, it is all the tv ad buys and twitter, what's interesting, a lot of americans and democrats don't like the tv/twitter presidency they're living through. i want to play for you, then bringing david back in, so take a close listen to joe biden doing something he may not have thought he'd be doing five, ten years ago, focusing his fire power on trying to prove he is the better choice than bernie sanders. take a look. >> senator sanders, god love him, and the others attacked my health care plan. bernie talked about the sing-payer medicare system for the country for 30 years now. hasn't moved an inch. i'm the only one in this race who has ever gotten a big health care reform pill through tbill congress. it's called obamacare. senator sanders is a nominee for the party, every democrat will have to carry the label senator sanders chose for himself. he calls himself a democratic socialist. we're already seeing what donald trump is going to do with that. >> lauren, how does that play here in your view? >> well, i mean, certainly giving us a preview of what we'll see on the debate stage tonight. we're seeing a lot of them go on offense like this. i think that there are a lot of voters here who were interested to see what vice president biden, as a candidate, in 2020, was going to look like. now, i talk to people who are checking out pete buttigieg who like him because he is younger. there's a big question here. i think people are still very -- we talked a long time about how people are undecided. tonight's debate is going to crystallize things for people in new hampshire. >> david? >> i think it's right. i mean, i do believe that new hampshire is the place -- well, south carolina and nevada to a lesser extent, where the personal interactions still matter a lot. i'm not sure it is a good thing or not, but i think it does count. i do think that health care remains a big issue. i've spoken to a bunch of people who say that they, you know, like bernie, but they're worried they'd lose their own private health insurance, even though they are not enamored with it. i heard people supporting warren say the same thing. bernie is doing great. i saw him this morning at the new hampshire institute of politics. i thought it was the best case i've seen him make for his campaign. he didn't yell. he was earnest. he said, america has to think outside the box. talked about wealth and inequality and social i situations. it gets him part of the vote but can it be a win? can it be beyond the quarter of the democratic party while five other candidates fight for the other 75%? i don't know. >> yeah. that'll be fascinating to watch. david, you and i are both in new hampshire covering a big story, fair? >> yeah. yes, we are. >> if it were any other night, you and i would also be discussing something else that also hangs over tonight's debate with all these democrats. which is, the president just got acquitted of allegations that he was trying to shake down a foreign power to get potentially illegal help in this very election. with joe biden on the stage, and senator republicans, david, making news back in washington, targeting joe biden's family with the same plot at the center of all this. i want to play something important. i know you're at the debate, and maybe this will come up tonight. i want to play something we have, which is historical, archives, factual records of what republicans said about donald trump and his fitness for office, and what they're saying now, having acquitted him. take a look. >> it was wrong for president trump to mention former vice president biden on that phone call. >> i think he shouldn't have done it. i think it was wrong. >> the president's behavior was shameful and wrong. >> the constitution does not give the senate the power to remove the president from office. >> i cannot vote to convict. >> i believe that the president has learned from this case. >> it's time to move on. as far as i'm concerned, it's in the rear-view mirror. >> your view on where that fits in as a substantive story for the united states. it's all just shaking out. and if you think it is relevant at all to tonight's debate. voters hearing these democrats who, as the president would tell us, he says he won another battle with them. >> well, you've just played what i call the tis k-tisk caucus. they say the president did something wrong but don't believe in a single consequence. they're not introducing bills of censure. they're wringing their hands, this is terrible, let's move on. now, the democrats tonight, they're playing for a crowd that already has made up its mind and has reached a verdict on donald trump. so i don't think they need to pound the pavement on this. they need to advance their own story, their own selling points. that's what they're going to focus on. but i do think there's a bit of a disconnect between what's happening in washington with trump on this rampage of revenge and senators giving up on their constitutional oath, while we're up here in new hampshire and sometimes talking about who is shaking whose hands and sometimes getting caught up in what might be fun but also the trivial side of politics. you know, this is a very major week for the future of american democracy. i don't think it is fully resonated with the public. >> yeah. partly because there's so much smashed together on the calendar, which is partly the calendar the politicians set for themselves on both sides. david and lauren, interesting to hear from both of you. thank you so much. still ahead, we're going to dig into what's happening in that retaliation campaign, including breaking news involving the man on your screen, lieutenant colonel livemalive m vindman. also, a joe biden official joins us. a whole lot more when we come back. ome back looks different. the unbeatable strength and speed of advil liqui-gels. what pain? 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>> they'll make a decision. >> to leave? >> they'll make a decision. >> "washington post" reporting trump eager to make a symbol out of vindman. this is after the senate trial acquittal. the news is striking, given what vindman talked about in his testimony, recounting what his told his immigrant father, worried about the retaliation for him speaking out. >> you made the right decision 40 years ago to leave the soviet union and come here to the united states of america in search of a later life for our family. do not worry. i will be fine for telling the truth. >> that's an update out of washington. republicans making news, trying to demand records for joe biden's son, hunter biden, and his travels. all this raising questions about what the end of the acquittal means and whether there is an effort to use government power to go after the bidens or other people that donald trump considers on his enemy list. we'll get into that and a whole lot more. i'm joined by communications director for joe biden's campaign, katie bettingfield. thanks for joining me. >> thanks for having me. >> absolutely. as mentioned, i want to get into that. let me give you a quick, clean opener. where has joe biden been the last few days, and what does he want to get across tonight at the debate? >> yeah. so he's here today in new hampshire. he was sitting down with local media, meeting voters where they are in their living rooms. tonight, he's going to lay out the case for his candidacy. he'll raise really tough questions that voters need to ask themselves, about who they want to put forward to face donald trump. we have candidates in this race tor who are professed socialists, putting health care plans forward costing trillions of dollars, and taking away the right for people to choose their health care. we have candidates who lack the experience and the steady hand, the kind of leadership that joe biden can bring, that he has throughout his career. he has a long record of progressive achievement. and there are other candidates in this race who simply don't have the experience and, i would argue, would not be ready on day one. so you're going to hear vice president biden make a very fiery, forceful case for his candidacy tonight. that he is the right person to put up against donald trump next november. >> in terms of the pressure on him and other candidates, we spoke tonight about how, historically, you know it, there's usually two tickets out of new hampshire. he was fourth in iowa. he is polling fourth here now, or tied for third with warren, depending on how you count it. take a listen to what some people are saying about joe biden's prospects. >> mayor pete is the alternative to biden, and he is taking up votes. >> this is a critical moment for joe biden. he cannot afford to do poorly in new hampshire. he cannot afford to do poorly in nevada and go on. >> i'm saying anyone who hasn't won at least one of those states is toast after next week. >> the last remark coming from the campaign manager for mike bloomberg, as you know, who clearly is gunning for your potential lane and your supporters. what do you say to people who say, look, joe biden is not on pace to be top two here, and if he isn't, he's on pace to lose? >> joe biden is a fighter. he is resilient. he has taken some lumps in his life, and he knows what it means to fight. i think you saw him this wednesday here in new hampshire really give a strong case for why he's the guy who should go up against donald trump. he made a really forceful, kind of fiery case on wednesday morning. then he drew sharp contrast. you'll hear him make some of the contrasts on the debate stage, as well. also that evening, he did a town hall where he was asked about overcoming a stutter as a child. and gave an incredibly empathetic, open, kind, honest, raw answer, that i think everybody watching that town hall felt sort of moved by. i think folks who saw the clip online were moved by it it. it was an incredibly powerful moment and reminds people who joe biden is. it couldn't be a stronger contrast with the president who currently occupies the white house. >> that goes to the last thing -- >> he's trying to restore a sense of empathy. >> it goes to the last thing i promised i'd ask you about, i mentioned it in the lead. does the campaign view senate republicans now, all of a sudden, requesting the records for a biden family member, do you view that as a potential abuse of their power to meddle in 2020? >> i think it is a grotesque political attempt to try to smear the person they most done want to face. they have been very clear from the outset. i mean, you saw senator ernst in iowa last week flat out saying, with the impeachment process, it's been about trying to smear joe biden because we don't want to face him in november. i think it is, again, a grotesque abuse of our political process. it is also a reminder to voters. they have the opportunity to put the person up against donald trump who he most fears and knows is the biggest threat to his re-election. >> wanted to get you on the record on that. i am short on time. >> remind the voters that that's who -- mm-hmm. >> we have a slight satellite delay. i'm short on time. good luck tonight. >> no problem. >> thanks for joining us. love to have you back. if you are in manchester or nearby, you can actually join us on msnbc here live on monday. i'm going to be anchoring at 1:00 p.m. eastern in man chest from penstock, 700 elm street. join us at 1:00 p.m. we'll say hello and maybe have coffee together. we'll be back with a special new hampshire 2020 conversation at this table after the break. k. ♪ as the day begins ♪ time for reflectin' on family and friends ♪ ♪ and hey, we got somethin' ♪ ♪ just for you (sniffing) ♪ it's a cup of your favori-i-i-ite... ♪ (loud splashing) (high-pitched laughter) dang woodchucks! with geico, the savings keep on going. just like this sequel. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. with our moving and storage solutions. pack what you want, we store it for as long as you want. then, we deliver it where you want, so whether you need to move or store your things, pods is here to help you with flexible moving and storage solutions. sowe make aspirin to help save lives during a heart attack... so it never stops the heart of a family. at bayer, this is why we science. quitting smoking is freaking hard.st, like quitting every monday hard. quitting feels so big. so, try making it smaller. and you'll be surprised at how easily starting small... ...can lead to something big. start stopping with nicorette but maybe not for people with rheumatoid arthritis. because there are options. like an "unjection™". xeljanz xr, a once-daily pill for adults with moderate to severe ra for whom methotrexate did not work well enough. xeljanz xr can reduce pain, swelling and further joint damage, even without methotrexate. xeljanz can lower your ability to fight infections like tb; don't start xeljanz if you have an infection. taking a higher than recommended dose of xeljanz for ra can increase risk of death. serious, sometimes fatal infections, cancers including lymphoma, and blood clots have happened. as have tears in the stomach or intestines, serious allergic reactions, and changes in lab results. tell your doctor if you've been somewhere fungal infections are common, or if you've had tb, hepatitis b or c, or are prone to infections. needles. fine for some. but for you, one pill a day may provide symptom relief. ask your doctor about xeljanz xr. an "unjection™". it's friday, and you know what they say in new hampshire? live free or fall back. >> and look who's here. "washington post" columnist ruth marcus is back with me. and i want to bring in nick. he was named the top underground comedian in all of new hampshire by thrillist. thanks for coming by. >> i'm excited to be here. >> excited to have both of you. we're taking you on the road for 2020. who needs to fall back in your estimation? >> i think we need to fall back on new england stereotypes. one big one is we're not all new england patriots fans unless we're traveling maybe. but otherwise we need to break new england stereotypes. first thing needs to go, not all of us have a boston accent. >> a lot of you have a boston accent. >> we don't have a boston accent. takes about five or six beers and then the accent comes out and then everything is week wicked dunkin donuts. >> what is the deal with the patriots fans? >> i think it's the beer talking most of the time. >> is there more pride there than for other groups, other teams? >> i think new england patriot fans have become nike yankees fans of newborn. not all of us are new england patriots fans here in new england. >> ruth, when you look at 2020, what do you think needs to fall back? >> i think we need to fall back on iowa. i know we're in new hampshire, but the iowa fall back is not that things got messed up with the count and the app and everything else. but all this talk about state delegate equivalence. this is just silliness, okay? if you're rounding up and calculating this and calculating that, what you really want to know from iowa is that we did find out and found out on the first night is there was one declared loser. i'm sorry, that was joe biden. and there were two declared winners who were very, very close to each other. that was bernie sanders and pete buttigieg. and all the rest of it and the percentage point calculations didn't tell us anything more because this wasn't a fight about who was going to have two more delegates. it was about who's popular with the voters. >> i appreciate you bringing that up. we in the media need to fall back from putting everything on a political calendar. the facts keep their own schedule. we'll keep reporting on them, keep our eye on them. when we act like it's a big deal, so what? >> the facts keep their own schedule. that is very deep. very deep. >> i didn't get that. >> you've got to earn it. >> you guys can do it. you can dab. you have something in common with these retail politicians which is putting yourself in front of a live audience day after day. so you see what works. you see where peoples' heads at. do you know where peoples' heads at in new hampshire because everyone comes into the state around this weelk. >> i'm excited you're here in manchester, new hampshire because normally this place is a ghost town. every four years, handsome people like yourself come through. >> that's so sweet. >> with cameras and lights. you are like the justin beiber of manchester, new hampshire right now. that's a compliment. >> in the sense of being young and overrated. no shade on beiber. >> you should see the middle aged ladies around chris matthews if you want to see the justin beiber effect. >> i'm worried this segment is going off the rails and i blame both of you. >> you're welcome. >> what does everyone need to try when they're in new hampshire? 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