Biden Tops New Poll in Crucial Early State of New Hampshire.
TAPPER: In our 2020 lead today, a brand-new look at the Democratic presidential race from the crucial early state of New Hampshire. A Monmouth University poll released this afternoon finds Joe Biden with a commanding lead and with double the support of Bernie Sanders, 36 percent to 18 percent. South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg rounds out the top 3 with 9 percent support. And as CNN's Jessica Dean now reports, President Trump is clearly taking notice.</s>JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With his political star on the rise, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg headed to Hollywood today.</s>PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you, and good morning!</s>DEAN: Buttigieg headlining five Los Angeles fund-raisers today alone, ending at an event hosted by actress Gwyneth Paltrow and Bradley Whitford.</s>BUTTIGIEG: Based on the reception we had so far in L.A., I think this is going to be a great area for us to build support.</s>DEAN: The pull of Tinseltown also drawing in former vice president Joe Biden, as he continues his swing through L.A., stopping for tacos yesterday with Mayor Eric Garcetti in between two big money fund raisers attended by Hollywood heavyweights like producer Jeffrey Katzenberg and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. He'll headline a third fund-raiser today. Back in Washington --</s>SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I really do appreciate Alexandria and working with me on this issue.</s>DEAN: Senator Bernie Sanders joined with New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to unveil new legislation targeting the credit card and banking industries. The bill would cap credit card interest rates at 15 percent.</s>REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): We think that some things are just wrong to make a buck off of.</s>DEAN: And would allow for Post Offices to provide banking services for low-income Americans who otherwise wouldn't have it. Reining in the financial sector is a hallmark issue for fellow 2020 candidate, Senator Elizabeth Warren, who has used it to criticize Biden.</s>SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Joe Biden is on the side of the credit card companies.</s>DEAN: Warren appears on the new issue of "TIME" magazine with her signature slogan "I have a plan for that." And she does have a lot of plans, rolling out 12 policies or proposals since entering the race, including yesterday's plan to combat the opioid epidemic. But will policies help her break through in this crowded field? A new Monmouth University poll in New Hampshire shows Biden maintaining a double-digit lead among likely Democratic primary voters. Biden polling at 36 percent with Sanders at 18 percent, Buttigieg at 9 percent and Warren at 8 percent, just some of the 21 Democrats trying to unseat President Trump.</s>DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'll take any of them. Let's just pick somebody n let's start this thing. Let's start it.</s>DEAN: Back here in Los Angeles, we're just now getting word. A source telling CNN that Biden pulled in over $700,000 at that fund- raiser last night. And I talked to a campaign strategist here about the fund-raising dollars in Los Angeles of which there are many. They told me big donors are taking one of two approaches. They're either hedging their bets and donating to several candidates or they're waiting, they're kind of hanging back and just seeing how the field will narrow. But, Jake, the one thing that person told me they're on the lookout for is how do these candidates combat with and interact with President Trump.</s>TAPPER: All right. Jessica Dean, thanks so much. Let's bring our experts back. Kristen, as the pollster in the gang, is there anything in this new New Hampshire poll that shows Joe Biden with a commanding lead that stands out to you?</s>KRISTEN SOLTIS ANDERSON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, it's just one more data point that shows that former Vice President Biden's entrance to the race, it wasn't just sort of a temporary bounce that he's really in a commanding position, and not just in these national polls, but in places like New Hampshire where you can bet that the name ID of someone like Elizabeth Warren and Senator Bernie Sanders is pretty high. This is their turf. This is their media market. So, the fact that Joe Biden is in such a commanding position not just nationally but in a crucial early state has got to be very positive news for him. That poll standing where you had that top four or five folks matches what you're seeing nationally. It's also very good news for Mayor Pete. Again, there was some question whether his sort of early flurry of support rise in the polls was that just temporary? Was that just a sort of viral moment that would fade? But he's looking like more and more that he has some staying power. But we'll see how this lasts until we get to the very first debates.</s>TAPPER: And, Paul, in this poll, more than half of the Democratic candidates got less than 1 percent. Joe Biden suggested last night that the field could slim down pretty quickly. Take a listen.</s>JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This field is going to be winnowed out pretty quickly. Here in California as well. In order to get any delegates from a congressional district, you've got to get 15 percent of the vote. Coming out of Iowa, you need 15 percent of the caucus. So, look, this is going to -- it's going to work its way through relatively quickly for all of us.</s>TAPPER: Paul, do you agree? You think after the first contest or two the field will go down from 20-something to maybe even under 10?</s>PAUL BEGALA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: It will come down significantly, yes. I mean, keep in mind when Joe Biden ran the last time, he didn't make it past Iowa. He didn't make it to New Hampshire. This has got to be pretty gratifying, by the way, for Joe. He's still on the ballot in New Hampshire and got like 638 votes in 2008. Hillary won the state with 112,000. Now, he's got a commanding lead, whereas Bernie, who ran the last time in New Hampshire, got 60 percent of the vote. He's down to 18. But the most important number in the poll, Kristen will agree with this, is the date. We're a long, long, long way from that primary.</s>TAPPER: Sure.</s>BEGALA: So it's interesting to look at, but it's still anybody's race right now.</s>TAPPER: And, Nia, Senator Elizabeth Warren on the cover of "TIME" magazine this week. Her cover includes a caption, "I have a plan for that". You just heard Jessica mention the dozen proposals that Warren has put out this election cycle. But in CNN's latest national poll, Warren is nearly even with Mayor Pete Buttigieg who has been criticized for talking more about values instead of going into any sort of policy detail. Is there an exchange here? Is there a risk for Buttigieg to not follow Warren's lead on policy?</s>NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER: You know, we'll see. So far, it's worked for him. I think his issue is he basically does well with about 30 percent of the Democratic electorate, primarily electorate. A primary electorate is about 30 percent college-educated white voters and that's where he is able to do really well. So I think the question for him is whether or not he's going to be able to expand beyond that. That's one of the reasons that Joe Biden is doing so well. It's because he's able to do well with black and brown voters who about 40 percent of the Democratic electorate and whites who went to college as well as non-college whites so I think you know, Pete Buttigieg is doing well. He's obviously out in California vacuuming up some money out there which will do him some good. He'll be able to hire folks. But I think the question for him is where is he going to be able to win some states, right, in those early contests. How does he broaden the base that he has so far which is this kind of boutique liberal college, white college elite kind of voter at this point, you know, but he's hanging in there so far so we'll see what he's able to do.</s>TAPPER: All right, everyone stick around as North Korea defiantly test-fires new missiles is a major announcement coming from the Pentagon. Stay with us.