Clinton’s loyal legion of women backers wary of 2008 repeat

As his campaign manager Jeff Weaver relayed to Anderson Cooper before the event, the format is a good fit for Sanders.

Because Donald Trump is just going to steamroll him.

Sanders is projecting a campaign that can do some of what Obama’s did – first time caucus goers, young caucus goers, enthusiastic boosters – but telling observers not to expect a 2008 redux.

Watch above for what the Democratic candidates had to say.

Sanders was the first of three candidates to address voters at the CNN town hall at Iowa’s Drake University.

Glenn Beck discusses the Iowa caucuses on his eponymous radio program Tuesday.

Trump raised the prospect of skipping the debate as he blasted Fox News Channel for “playing games” and including anchor Megyn Kelly as a debate moderator.

Clinton has been making the case that her time as secretary of state and a senator from NY, make her more experienced.

“On day one, I said the Keystone Pipeline is a dumb idea”, Mr. Sanders said. Trump said. Cruz quickly said he would face Trump “mano a mano” anytime.

Where he excelled: Mr. Sanders’ attacks on Ms. Clinton’s Iraq war voting record continue to hammer home her judgement lapses. But the fireworks Tuesday were on the Republican side.

Yet the normal rules may not apply to Mr Trump.

Trump’s pullout came after Fox News Channel tweaked the Republican front-runner for asking his Twitter followers whether he should debate.

But with the Iowa campaign now in its final week, it’s Sanders’ message that’s generating enthusiasm in the states that kick off the primary contests. The real estate mogul had threatened repeatedly to boycott debates before, only to ultimately acquiesce.

The DNC did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He said Mr Trump was scared of Ms Kelly, telling supporters that skipping the debate was like refusing a job interview.

The national poll by CNN//ORC found that four out of ten Republicans now say they wold back him to be the president. “You’re fired”, Mr Cruz said, riffing on Mr Trump’s famous rejoinder from his reality TV show The Apprentice.

“Afterward, the President will meet with Senator Bernie Sanders. The two will meet privately in the Oval Office and there will be no formal agenda”, Earnest said.

But Sanders, who has surged ahead of Clinton in New Hampshire polls, has no plans to do so, his campaign said. Unlike the Sanders meeting, the White House typically has not disclosed those sessions in advance.

Sanders leads among men by more than 30 points, while Clinton holds a 14 point advantage among women in Iowa.

Sanders says the prospect of former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg mounting an independent presidential campaign “speaks volumes about the state of American politics”. He predicted success in Iowa and New Hampshire, which votes next on February 9, would beget more support from party leaders who have firmly backed Clinton as the party’s best chance for a general election victory.