support of a presidential candidate in# less than two weeks.
That's foll week later by New Hampshire's# first-in-the-nation primary.
To give us a read on how the campaigns# are shaping up in their resp we turn to Radio Iowa news director Kay# Henderson and New Hampshire Public Radio## senior political reporter and editor Josh Rogers.
Welcome to you both.
Kay, we will Ron DeSantis, who has spent a ton of# time and money campaigning today spotlighted what he sees as Donald# Trump's broken promises on immigration.
GOV.
RON DESANTIS (R-FL), Presidential# Candidate: Donald Trump is running saying## he's going to do the largest because I was at his rallies in 2016# where he said the exact same thing.
And what was the result?
Fewer deportations than## the first term of Barack Obama.# That is not getting the job done.
GEOFF BENNETT: Why aren't arguments# like that resonating?
Ron DeSantis'## initial premise for his campaign was that# he was Donald Trump without the An d yet Donald Trump, his# polling average right now in## Iowa sits at 50 percent.
What accounts for that?
KAY HENDERSON, News Director,# Radio Iowa: Well, you have a## big group of Iowa Republican And DeSantis is appealing to people who may be# inclined not to vote for Trump.
And in the end,## they may actually go into a caucus# and cast a vote for Donald Trump.## So he's walking a very steady line here,# in that he is criticizing Trump policies,## that he's making the argument didn't# come to the fore or come to fruition## during the Trump presidency as a way# to try to make the closing argument.
GEOFF BENNETT: Kay, how are Donald Trump's legal## troubles and his authorita KAY HENDERSON: Well, the polling shows# that they have made no difference at all.
And if you talk to people at# the rallies, in some respects,## it has increased their ardor, if# you will, for the former president.
GEOFF BENNETT: Well, Kay, for decades, Iowa# had been the center of the political universe,## but no longer.
Democrats removed Iowa entirely as## the leadoff state on that party's# presidential nominating calendar.
What significance does it hold for# Republicans in this election cycle?
KAY HENDERSON: Well, it will be the first test## of whether Donald Trump can# roll to a sizable vi The key here is, what is the margin between Trump# and these two main challengers, DeSantis and Nikki## Haley?
The question is, will Trump score a victory# here, something akin to what Al Gore did in 2000,## when he was the sitting vice president and got# 60 percent of Democrats' votes, or in 2000, when## George W. Bush, who was the favorite heading in,# got more than 41 percent in a competitive race?
So those are sort of the stakes for Trump.
Can he# overcome what happened to him last time around,## when he did not have a campaign apparatus# that was at the precinct level and was## sort of depending on in 2016 his# popularity to carry him to victory?
He has a very much different organization# in Iowa this time around.
He is organized## at the precinct level.
He's been# having these events around the state,## which are in smaller venues than one might# suspect, having seen lots of Trump rallies.## And he is connecting with people that are precinct# captains.
They're people on the ground in Iowa.
GEOFF BENNETT: Let's shift# our focus to New Hampshire,## where polling averages show a tighte Josh, is there time for the candidates# not named Trump to close JOSH ROGERS, New Hampshire Public Radio:# Well, they hope so.
And it remains to be seen.
Certainly, what happens in Iowa could affect# what happe evident in the polls and also out at# events that former U.N.
Ambassador Nikki## Haley is certainly clearly in second place# here, picking up steam.
Whether there's an## electorate that can deliver her close# enough to Trump -- I mean, a lot of the## expectations-setting that Kay was talking about# going on in Iowa, that's going on here as well.
New Hampshire was the first state# Donald Trump won in 2016.
He hasn't## campaigned here a lot.
And I'm not# sure the grassroots outreach that## Kay indicated may be happening in Iowa# has been going on for Trump here.
Nikki## Haley has the endorsement of our sitting# governor, Chris Sununu.
That will help her.
How much it helps her is an open question.# There's time for her to catch up,## but she's still got a great deal of ground# to make up, if you believe the polls.
GEOFF BENNETT: So, Josh, is there# an expectation that more Democrats## will switch their party affiliation and# participate in the Rep potentially as a means of# voting against Donald Trump?
JOSH ROGERS: Well, Democrats are prohibited# from voting in the Republica If you are a registered Democrat, you# must register -- you must vote in the## Democratic primary.
If you are an undeclared# voter, you can pick th So while Democrats can't vote# in the Republican primary,## there are lots of Democratic-leaning# independent voters that the ca ndidates are certainly reaching out# to.
And so where they go -- I mean,## where the independents go in the New Hampshire# primary tends to be with the winning candidate.
And so that's something that all the campaigns# are fighting for, that sort of voter.
GEOFF BENNETT: Well, Nikki Haley# was in New Hampshire today,## and she was making the generational# NIKKI HALEY (R), Presidential Candidate:# Republicans have lost the last seven out## of eight popular votes for president.# Th want to win the majority of Americans.# But the only way we're going to win the## majority of the Americans is if we get# a new generational leader that leaves## the negativity in the baggage behind and# focuses on the solutions in the future.
GEOFF BENNETT: Is that a convincing pitch,# a convincing argument for her?
I mean,## what issues are candidates gaining# traction on in New Hampshire?
JOSH ROGERS: Well, that's certainly a pitch that## has been a stapl And Nikki Haley is interesting, in# that her messaging hasn't real shifted much over the course of this# campaign.
A generational a big component of it.
In terms of issues,# you know, the affordability of ev erything is something voters will# tell you they're concerned about.
Housing costs and availability is a big issue here# in of voters who are attracted to Nikki Haley cite# her experience at the U.N. And some of them cite## her more interventionist views in terms of the# United States' role overseas.
She makes a point of## linking the war in Ukraine with China and Taiwan# and the situation in Gaza as being all linked.
And that is something that some of# the voters turning out to see her## find compelling.
But the generational# thrust is a big one.
And there are a## lot of voters in New Hampshire and elsewhere# who are just fatigued and not enthusiastic## about the notion of four more years of Joe# Biden or four more years of Donald Trump.
And so her message on that# front is finding an audience.
GEOFF BENNETT: Kay, same question to you.
We focus so much on Iowa Republicans say they care# about in this election cycle?
KAY HENDERSON: Well, the biggest applause# line at most of these events for all the# candidates is how they describe their# policies on immigration and Border Patrol.
But I do want to touch off on something# that my colleague in New Hampshire just## raised.
The most interesting thing about# the Nikki Haley crowd in the past couple## of weeks is that it's being populated in# part by people who have participated in## Iowa Republican Party caucuses and# in Iowa Democratic Party caucuses.
And I talked to several people who# are considering becoming a registered## Republican for a day at a Nikki Haley event# this past weekend because they don't want## to see either Donald Trump or Joe Biden# in the White House this time next year.
GEOFF BENNETT: Kay Henderson of# Radio Iowa and Josh Rogers of New## Hampshire Public Radio, our thanks to you both.
JOSH ROGERS: You're welcome.