Welcome to THE TRAIL, your daily rundown from The Hill on all the latest news in the White House, Senate and House races.
All eyes are on New Hampshire, where political-watchers are hoping that some clarity in both parties starts to emerge.
On the Democratic side, Bernie Sanders holds a healthy lead over Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire. Most Democrats aren’t asking whether Bernie Sanders will win, but rather by how much he’ll defeat Clinton. But the Clinton campaign isn’t taking the results lying down and has chosen to go negative against Sanders much earlier than it did against Barack Obama in 2008.
Check out The Hill tonight for more from Niall Stanage and Amie Parnes on the controversial negative tack from the Clinton campaign.
The Republican side has it’s own polling leader–Donald Trump–who boasts a 16-point lead over his GOP rivals. With just 24-hours to make the final sales pitch to Granite State voters, candidates fanned out across the state looking to add to their list of supporters and encourage their faithful to turn out despite reports of snow.
Jonathan Easley and Cate Martel will have more on The Hill tomorrow morning from New Hampshire about the GOP candidates’ final stands in New Hampshire.
And check back on Tuesday for a breakdown on the seven key things to watch come primary dayand come back tomorrow night for primary coverage.
RACE TO 1600 PENN
SNOW NO: The Hill’s Jonathan Swan reports: Snow is beginning to hammer New Hampshire the night before the state’s primary. Bad weather is typically a harbinger of low turnout, which could help shape the race.
YOU CAN’T STAY HERE: The Hill’s Ben Kamisar reports: Donald Trump said he’d be able to look into the eyes of Syrian refugee children to tell them they cannot come to schools in America in light of concerns about safely vetting refugees.
CORNHUSKER TO THE RESCUE: The Hill’s Jordain Carney: Nebraska freshman Sen. Deb Fischer (Neb.) is backing Marco Rubio’s presidential bid, as the Florida senator has won more congressional endorsements than any other GOP candidate.
NO LAUGHING MATTER: The Hill’s Ben Kamisar reports: Donald Trump said that terrorists are “laughing” when they hear that American politicians are discussing whether waterboarding is too cruel, and chided Ted Cruz as weak on the issue.
RUBIO BACKS ANTI-DRUG BILL: The Hill’s Jordain Carney reports: Sen. Marco Rubio is signing on to a bill to combat drug abuse as he competes in the presidential primary in New Hampshire, which has one of the nation’s worst rates of opioid abuse.
READY FOR BLOOMBERG?: The Hill’s Jesse Byrnes reports: Billionaire former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg confirmed to The Fiscal Times that he’s weighing a bid for president.
ODDS AND ENDS:
NO BLAME GAME: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Jeb Bush said he wouldn’t make Barack Obama a scapegoat if he’s elected president.
JERSEY TOUGH LOVE: The Hill’s Mark Hensch: Chris Christie chided Marco Rubio by claiming that his loyal donors are concerned about his electability after Christie bashed him during Saturday night’s debate for sticking to a script.
TOUGH SURROGATE: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: A woman who alleges former President Bill Clinton sexually assaulted her will work for a group opposing his wife’s presidential bid.
CONTESTED SHOT: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Jeb Bush said his rival Marco Rubio won’t be getting an easy “layup” shot at the GOP nomination.
NO TO BERNIE-BROS?: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Former President Bill Clinton lashed out at Bernie Sanders late Sunday, accusing his backers of “sexist” attacks against Hillary Clinton.
TV STARS: The Boston Globe reports: The paper rounds up tons of great data about the candidates’ advertising buys in New Hampshire.
POLL POSITION
SOLID AS A ROCK (GRANITE): The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Bernie Sanders leads by 16 points in the new University of Massachusetts-Lowell/7 News survey one day before the New Hampshire primary.
MORE ROCK-SOLID POLLING: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Donald Trump has a 21-point lead in the GOP section of the same survey.
TARHEEL LEAD: The Hill’s Rebecca Savransky reports: Hillary Clinton is up 26 points over Bernie Sanders, 55 to 29 percent, in the High Point University poll released Monday.
THE DAILY TRUMP
TELL ME HOW YOU REALLY FEEL: The Hill’s Mark Hensch reports: Jeb Bush and Donald Trump traded barbs Monday, with Bush calling the GOP frontrunner a “liar and a whiner.” For his part, Trump bashed Bush as a “stiff” that wouldn’t get a job without his family name.
RETURN TO SENDER: The Hill’s Ben Kamisar reports: Donald Trump said he will return a campaign contribution from a donor described as a “determined white separatist” after the donation was questioned on the trail in New Hampshire.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“There was an article in GQ, he said, ‘Trump’s the biggest winner, you can’t beat Trump’…And I said, ‘Don’t do that, because you may have a sponsor that doesn’t like me.’ They may be liberal…, And I don’t want him to get involved in that stuff.”
—Donald Trump, on his message to NFL quarterback Tom Brady
CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGNS
AND THEN THERE WERE TWO: The Indianapolis Star reports: Eric Holcomb, the former chief of staff to Sen. Dan Coats (R-Ind.), dropped out of the race for his boss’s Senate seat. Reps. Marlin Stutzman (R-Ind.) and Todd Young (R-Ind.) are both running for the GOP nomination.
ON SECOND THOUGHT: The Hill’s Cristina Marcos reports: Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.) is switching to a new Virginia district this year, boosting his odds of reelection following redrawn boundaries in his state.
RUSHING AWAY FROM YOUR COLLEAGUE: Illinois Democratic Rep. Bobby Rush endorsed Andrea Zopp, who is challenging the party favorite in Rep. Tammy Duckworth for the Democratic nomination for Senate. Rush is the second congressman to buck his colleague in favor of Zopp — Rep. Danny Davis endorsed her last year.
MEAN JOHN GREENE: Small-town Mayor John Fetterman, who is running an underdog bid for the Democratic Senate nomination in Pennsylvania, released a video spoofing an iconic Coca-Cola ad on Sunday, just before the Super Bowl. The 6’8’’ Fetterman, who sports the non-traditional look for a Senate candidate of arm tattoos and a goatee, is a former college football player.
MONEY WATCH
ON SECOND THOUGHT: The Hill’s Jesse Byrnes reports: Jeb Bush slammed the Citizens United Supreme Court ruling that has paved the way for super-PACs to raise unlimited sums. Bush’s allied super-PAC has raised more money than any other group supporting a GOP candidate.
HE’S THE BOSS: The Washington Examiner reports: New House Speaker Paul Ryan is fundraising at a record-breaking clip that puts the House Republicans’ campaign arm in solid shape for the elections.
DID HE OR DIDN’T HE?: The Washington Post reports: Mitt Romney’s national finance chairman in 2012, Spencer Zwick, told Chris Christie’s campaign he’d donate the maximum to the campaign after a strong debate performance. But he ultimately decided not to, in the hopes of staying neutral.
WHAT WE ARE WATCHING FOR TODAY AND TOMORROW:
(All times Eastern)
Marco Rubio holds a rally in Nashua, N.H. at 6:30 p.m. today. He’s a guest on Fox News’s “The Kelly File” at 9 p.m. today and holds a primary watch party on Tuesday in Manchester.
Carly Fiorina holds a town hall in Concord, N.H. at 6:30 p.m. today. She will be interviewed on “Morning Joe” on Tuesday and holds a primary night watch party in Manchester.
Jeb Bush holds a town hall in Portsmouth, N.H. at 7:30 p.m. today. He’ll be interviewed on “Hannity” at 10 p.m. today on Fox News and will hold a primary night watch event on Tuesday at Manchester Community College.
Hillary Clinton holds a rally with husband Bill and daughter Chelsea in Hudson, N.H. at 7:30 p.m. today. She’ll hold a primary night party in Hooksett on Tuesday.
John Kasich holds an election-eve rally in Hooksett, N.H. at 8 p.m. today. He’s a guest on Fox News’s “The Kelly File” at 9 p.m. today and will be interviewed on “Morning Joe” on Tuesday and holds a primary night watch party in Concord on Tuesday.
Bernie Sanders hosts a primary night watch party in Concord on Tuesday.
Chris Christie will be a guest on Fox News’s “The Kelly File” at 9 p.m. today holds a primary night watch party in Nashua on Tuesday.
MSNBC’s “Hardball with Chris Matthews” today at 7 p.m. includes an interview with Donald Trump. He’ll also be interviewed on “Hannity” at 10 p.m. today on Fox News. Trump will be interviewed on “Morning Joe” on Tuesday. The candidateholds a primary night watch party in Manchester on Tuesday.
Jim Gilmore will visit polling places in Londonderry, Bedford, Manchester on Tuesday and will host a “Primary Night celebration” in Manchester.
Ben Carson has an “election night party” in Nashua on Tuesday.
Ted Cruz will be interviewed on “Hannity” at 10 p.m. today on Fox News and will hold a primary night party in Hollis, N.H., on Tuesday.
TWEET OF THE DAY
Vermin Supreme is a perennial candidate who sports a boot for a hat. He won 833 votes in the 2012 New Hampshire primary as a Democrat.
Write us with tips, suggestions and news: Jonathan Easley, Ben Kamisar, Jonathan Swan, Lisa Hagen.
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