What’s at stake ahead of Super Tuesday?
>>> 35 PAST THE HOUR. >>> 35 PAST THE HOUR. WE CONTINUE TO FOLLOW THE BREAKING NEWS FROM THE SUPREME COURT RULING THAT STATES CANNOT REMOVE DONALD TRUMP FROM THEIR PRIMARY BALLOTS. IT REVERSES A DECISION FROM COLORADO SUPREME COURT, COLORADO ONE OF 16 STATES HOLDING A PRIMARY TOMORROW FOR SUPER TUESDAY. IT’S THE SINGLE BIGGEST DAY OF VOTING THIS SEASON AS THE PRESIDENTIAL RACE GETS CLOSER TO BECOMING A BIDEN/TRUMP REMATCH. JOINING US NOW, NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT HALL LEE VITALE IN TEXAS AND SHAQUILLE BREWSTER IN NORTH CAROLINA. ALI, HOW IS THE HALEY CAMPAIGN RESPONDING TO THE NEWS OUT
OF THE SUPREME COURT? >> Reporter: WELL, LOOK, THEY ARE ALSO WHAT’S STANDING IN THE WAY, JOSE, OF DONALD TRUMP VERSUS JOE BIDEN 2.0. THE HALEY CAMPAIGN JUST TRYING TO KEEP GRINDING IT OUT THROUGH AT LEAST TOMORROW NIGHT’S VOTING STATES, BUT IN RESPONSE TO THE COLORADO SUPREME COURT CASE, NOTHING NEW FROM THE HALEY TEAM QUITE YET, BUT BASED ON WHAT HALEY HERSELF HAS SAID IN THE PAST, SHE IS CLEAR THAT SHE WANTED THE SUPREME COURT TO MAKE A DECISION JUST LIKE THIS ONE. SHE THOUGHT IT WAS A DECISION TO GET TRUMP OFF OF THE BALLOT THAT
SHOULD BE MADE BY VOTERS AND NOT THE COURTS, SO HALEY OF COURSE PROBABLY — IF SHE MENTIONS THIS — GOING TO MAKE GLANCING MENTION OF IT AND, INSTEAD, JUST REMAIN FOCUSED
FOCUS. >> AND SO THAT MAY BE HAYLEY TEAM’S MAIN FOCUS. WHAT ABOUT THE PEOPLE WHO SUPPORT HALEY, WHAT ARE THEY SAYING ABOUT IF TRUMP IS THE NOMINEE? >> Reporter: I’VE BEEN HAVING A LOT OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS TOO, AS I’VE BEEN TRAVELING ACROSS THE COUNTRY, ESPECIALLY BECAUSE NIKKI HALEY IS POINTING TO THE FACT THAT IN THESE PRIMARY CONTESTS, DESPITE TRUMP WINNING DECISIVE VICTORIES, YOU KNOW, 60% IN SOUTH CAROLINA, 70% IN MICHIGAN, HALEY IS ALSO SAYING THAT THE 30 TO 40%, EVEN 20% OF VOTERS SHE’S BEEN GETTING SHOULD NOT BE IGNORED, AND WHEN YOU TALK TO THOSE
VOTERS, IT’S CLEAR THINKER LOOKING AT HALEY AS THE ALTERNATIVE IN LARGE PART BECAUSE AS HALEY OFTEN SAYS, THEY DON’T WANT TO HAVE TO DECIDE BETWEEN TRUMP AND BIDEN AGAIN. THE PROBLEM AND POTENTIALLY HALEY’S LEGACY IN TERMS OF HER VOTERS MIGHT BE CONVERSATIONS LIKE THESE. >> WHAT HAPPENS IF IT ENDS UP BEING A TRUMP VERSUS BIDEN REMATCH? WHERE IS YOUR VOTE GOING TO GO IN NOVEMBER? >> I WILL PROBABLY BE VOTING FOR SENATOR SNOW AGAIN BECAUSE I CAN’T VOTE FOR EITHER OF THEM. >> NEITHER SIDE REPRESENTS — AT LEAST NEITHER TREEJSEXTREME REPR MY FEELINGS, MY BELIEFS,
AND I COULDN’T VOTE FOR EITHER ONE RIGHT NOW. >> IT MAY BE RFK. I DON’T KNOW. I HAVEN’T REALLY DECIDED. IT REALLY DEPENDS. RIGHT NOW I HAVE A POSITIVE TUESDAY AND I’M JUST — IT’S NIKKI ALL THE WAY, NIKKI HALEY. >> Reporter: AND LOOK, JOSE, THERE’S TWO THINGS THAT STRIKE ME FROM THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH VOTERS. THE FIRST IS THAT THEY NEED TO BE REACHED OUT TO BY THE TRUMP CAMPAIGN BECAUSE IN MANY CASES, EVEN WHEN I TALK TO REPUBLICANS WHO MAY HAVE VOTED FOR TRUMP IN THE PAST, EITHER 16, 20, OR BOTH, THEY SAY THAT
THEY DON’T NECESSARILY THINK THEY’LL COME BACK INTO THE FOLD FOR HIM IN THE GENERAL ELECTION. THEY MIGHT JUST SIT OUT, BUT THEN THE OTHER THING THAT STRIKES ME IS THAT ALL OF THOSE CONVERSATIONS WE SHOWED WERE FEMALE VOTERS, ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU LOOK AT WOMEN IN SUBURBS, SPECIFICALLY PLACES LIKE GEORGIA OR NORTH CAROLINA WHERE SHAQ IS OR MICHIGAN WHERE SHAQ ALSO SPENDS SO MUCH OF HIS TIME. THOSE ARE AREAS WHERE IF THOSE WOMEN STAY HOME THAT IS A PROBLEM. AND IF THOSE WOMEN POTENTIALLY GO BACK TO JOE BIDEN, THAT REBUILDS THE COALITION THAT BIDEN HIMSELF WAS
ABLE TO COBBLE TOGETHER IN 2020. TRUMP STILL STRUGGLES WITH THOSE SUBURBAN WOMEN AND NIKKI HALEY OFTEN ARGUES ON THE STUMP, SHE’S THE PERSON WHO COULD WRING THEM BACK INTO THE FOLD IN A GENERAL ELECTION. YOU CAN’T GET TO A GENERAL WITHOUT GETTING TO A PRIMARY, THAT’S THE HALEY PROBLEM. >> YOU’RE IN NORTH CAROLINA TODAY WHERE NEARLY 700,000 PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY CAST THEIR BALLOTS AHEAD OF TOMORROW’S ELECTION. WHAT ARE YOU HEARING FROM VOTERS THERE? >> Reporter: HI THERE, JOSE, TALKING TO VOTERS YOU REALLY GET A SENSE OF THE UPHILL BATTLE ALI WAS JUST DESCRIBING THAT NIKKI
HALEY FACES. ON PAPER, NORTH CAROLINA LOOKS LIKE A STATE THAT IT COULD BE POTENTIALLY FERTILE GROUND FOR NIKKI HALEY. SHE WAS THE FORMER GOVERNOR OF A NEIGHBORING STATE. THIS WAS A STATE IF YOU LOOK BACK IN THE 2016 PRIMARIES, DONALD TRUMP JUST BARELY WON, JUST WON BY ABOUT 3 PERCENTAGE POINTS OVER TED CRUZ. IT’S A STATE WITH A DEMOCRATIC GOVERNOR, SO A MORE MODERATE STREAK IN THESE VOTERS. BUT WHEN YOU TALK TO MANY OF THESE VOTERS, YOU GET A SENSE OF HOW MUCH MORE WORK NIKKI HALEY HAS TO DO. I SPOKE TO MANY WHO SAID
THEY DIDN’T EVEN KNOW THEIR FORMER NEIGHBORING STATE GOVERNOR WAS ON THE BALLOT FOR THIS ELECTION AND MANY OF THEM SEEING THIS ALREADY AS A GENERAL ELECTION MATCHUP BETWEEN JOE BIDEN AND DONALD TRUMP. I WANT YOU TO LISTEN TO SOME OF THE CONVERSATIONS I’VE BEEN HAVING. >> HE’S A PRETTY GOOD GUY, SEEMS TO KNOW WHAT HE’S DOING, HE’S HELPED THE ECONOMY OUT. WE HAD MORE JOBS, WE MADE MORE MONEY, WE DIDN’T HAVE AS MUCH TAXES, THINGS WERE A WHOLE LOT BETTER WHEN HE WAS OUR PRESIDENT. >> WHAT ARE THOSE ISSUES THAT YOU THINK ABOUT THE MOST
WHEN YOU GO AND BACK BIDEN? >> WELL, MY THING IS I’M LOOKING FOR A MAN THAT’S HONEST MOSTLY, AND WE’RE STANDING IN FRONT OF PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, HE’S ALREADY BROUGHT IN A LOT OF JOBS AND STUFF LIKE THAT. >> NOW, DESPITE MANY VOTERS SAYING THEY SEE IT ALREADY IN THAT GENERAL ELECTION CONTEXT, YOU HAD BOTH REPUBLICAN PRIMARY CANDIDATES HERE IN NORTH CAROLINA OVER THE COURSE OF THE WEEKEND. NIKKI HALEY WITH TWO STOPS, YOU HAD DONALD TRUMP WITH A STOP IN GREENSBORO ON SATURDAY SO THE TENSION IS DEFINITELY THERE. IT REMAINS TO BE SEEN WHETHER OR
NOT NIKKI HALEY CAN OVERCOME THE MOMENTUM THAT’S REALLY AGAINST HER AT THIS POINT, JOSE. >> ALI VITALI AND SHAQUILLE BREWSTER, THANK YOU BOTH SO VERY MUCH. REALLY APPRECIATE IT. STEVE KORNACKI IS GOING TO BE AT THE BIG BOARD ALONG WITH RACHEL MADDOW AND FRIENDS FOR SPECIAL
