Victory For Outsiders In New Hampshire As Sanders, Trump Win Primaries; Kasich Second For GOP
MANCHESTER, N.H. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Democrat Bernie Sanders and Republican Donald Trump were the winners of the first-in-the-nation primary in New Hampshire Tuesday.
Early on in the count, the Queens native and New York real estate mogul came in with 35 percent on the Republican side, followed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich with 16 percent, Texas U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz with 12 percent, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush with 11 percent, Florida U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio with 10 percent, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie with 7 percent, Carly Fiorina with 4 percent, and Ben Carson with 2 percent.
When word came just at 8 p.m. that Trump was declared the winner, his supporters at campaign headquarters in Manchester shouted his name and they waved foam fingers emblazoned with the phrase, ``You're Hired.''
Trump came out to speak a couple of hours later, saying he would "make America great again," and vowed to achieve his goals through muscle and business savvy.
"We are going to make America great again, but we're going to do it the old-fashioned way. We're going to beat China, Japan. We're going to beat Mexico at trade," he said.
He added that unlike other candidates who are dependent on lobbyists and outside funding, his self-financed campaign truly had the best interests of America in mind.
On specific policy plans, Trump said he would build a wall to keep out undocumented immigrants, build up the armed forces, repeal President Barack Obama's health care plan, and protect the Second Amendment – blaming strict gun control laws in France for the deadly effects of the Paris terror attacks in November.
Trump also claimed that unemployment was far higher than official figures state, and vowed to do something about it.
"I am going to be the greatest jobs president that God ever created – remember that. Don't believe those phony numbers when you hear 4.9 and 5 percent unemployment. The number is probably 28, 29, as high as 35; in fact, I even heard recently 42 percent," Trump said.
He vowed further to "knock the hell out of ISIS."
"We are going to make America great again – maybe greater than ever before," Trump said.
As CBS2 Political Reporter Marcia Kramer reported, other Republicans also had reasons to celebrate Tuesday night. Kasich came in second, emerging from the back after staking his entire campaign on New Hampshire, having held more than 100 town halls.
He could now be favored as the anti-Trump, Kramer reported.
"Tonight, the light overcame the darkness of negative campaigning," Kasich said in his speech Tuesday night.
"I have both won elections I was supposed to lose, and I have lost elections that I was supposed to win, and what that means is you never know. And it's both the magic and the mystery of politics that you never know which one is going to happen, even when you think you do," Christie said.
Christie congratulated Trump, saying the people of New Hampshire had picked their favorite. He further said he plans to go home to New Jersey on Wednesday and decided whether he will go on with his campaign.
"Mary Pat and I spoke tonight, and we've decided that we're going to go home to New Jersey tomorrow and we're going to take a deep breath, see what the final results are tonight because that matters," Christie said.
CBS2's Kristine Johnson spoke with CBS News veteran Bob Schieffer about the primary results. Schieffer said he was not sure what Christie could use to go forward with his campaign.
"I don't know if it's the end of the road, but I don't see where he goes from here, quite frankly," Schieffer said. "This was all Trump all the time in New Hampshire. I mean, won everything you could win out there. He is firmly back in the driver's seat."
Meanwhile, Sanders came in with 57 percent of the vote compared with 40 percent for Clinton.
Sanders tweeted about his projected victory late Tuesday.
Clinton conceded the primary and congratulated Sanders in her own tweet.
Sanders addressed a cheering crowd in Concord as he declared victory.
"We have sent a message that will echo from Wall Street to Washington, from Maine to California, and that is that the government of our country belongs to all of the people, and not just a handful of wealthy campaign contributors and their super-PACs," he said.
Sanders said he went into the race with no campaign organization or money, but still prevailed with ardent support.
"Tonight, with what appears to be a record-breaking voter turnout, because of a huge voter turnout – and I say huge – we won," Sanders said, "because we harnessed the energy and excitement that the Democratic Party will need to succeed in November."
Schieffer said while he does not see Sanders defeating Clinton, Sanders' decisive victory in New Hampshire does show her vulnerabilities.
"I think what it is is it's a very telling loss for her. I think she will limp to the nomination. I don't see much for Bernie Sanders from here on in. But she's got to correct some of the things that are showing up in these early polls and early primaries and caucuses if she's going to be a strong candidate in November," Schieffer said.
CBS News exit polls showed that nearly half of New Hampshire Republican primary voters -- 46 percent -- made their decision on who to vote for within the last few days. About one-fifth, 22 percent, say they made their decision Tuesday.
The victories for Trump and Sanders are expected to lend needed credibility to the unexpected contenders' pursuit of their parties' nomination.
Trump has led a Republican field that has been in flux in the final days of campaigning across snowy New Hampshire. A rocky debate performance by Rubio has jeopardized his chance to pull away from a trio of governors and firmly establish himself as the chief rival to Trump and Cruz.
PHOTOS: New Hampshire Primary Day
Some voters spoke with CBS2's Kramer as they left their polling places. But none had the experience of Brian Grodman, who had a record-setting face-to-face meeting with 15 of the 16 candidates – all except Republican Mike Huckabee. He had the pictures to prove it.
"When you actually look at a candidate the way I'm looking at you, and you're only one to two feet away, and you look the person in the eye, and you ask a direct question, it's invaluable," Grodman said.
Grodman would not disclose publicly whom he voted for, but he said his decision had to do with improving the nation's foreign policy and security.
Meanwhile at the famous Webster Elementary School in Manchester, some famous people were acting as stand-ins for the candidates they were supporting. Among them was Ted Danson, star of the popular CBS crime drama "CSI," who wanted to dig up votes for Clinton.
"I've known her for a long time. I care about the issues she's talking about, and she's the only one who can truly make change; truly work with people to get these big ideas accomplished," Danson said.
Actress Mary Steenburgen was born in Arkansas, where Bill Clinton was governor. She said Hillary Clinton has been her best friend for 38 years.
"I've walked through life with her. I've watched her deal with all the joys and all the sorrows that life has thrown at us these many years," Steenburgen said. "I'm constantly blown away by her humor and her caring for the world."
A well-known New Yorker was on the bus with Jeb Bush. Though Jets owner Woody Johnson had traded his signature Jets cap for a Jeb cap, he even got a thrill taking pictures of the mob scene around his candidate.
"Game day – it's fun. We feel good… really good," Johnson said. "Very, very optimistic – right man, right message, great record."
Voters at Webster Elementary did not get to meet frontrunners Trump and Sanders, but they did get to meet Bush and his wife, Rubio and Christie.
Meanwhile, the victory for Trump came as a controversy broke out.
On Tuesday morning, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie went after Trump for repeating a vulgar and offensive word a woman yelled at his rally Monday night used to describe Cruz.
"I wouldn't do it, but he did," Christie told CBS2's Marcia Kramer. "It's kind of amazing to be in a race where someone will say things more direct than I do. I don't think it's the kind of thing a presidential candidate says."
At one point during Trump's rally, a woman in the crowd was heard calling Cruz a p***y.
"She just said a terrible thing. You know what she said? Shout it out," Trump told the woman before repeating it himself. "That's terrible, terrible! What kind of people do I have here?"
"I don't think that's appropriate for candidates running for president," said Jeb Bush.
It was not clear if any of the candidate attacks and counter attacks would matter much, especially to Trump supporters, Kramer reported.
"I voted for Donald Trump," said voter Stephen Hebert. "I kind of feel he's saying all the right things that everybody wants to say, but they're afraid to."
Hebert voted at the Webster School in Manchester, which is something of a traditional campaign spot on primary day. Every campaign makes sure to send chanting supporters with signs and many candidates stop off as well.
Rubio is hoping for a strong finish, one that will propel him into major contention, but his yearning for the top spot has also made him a target.
Waiting for his arrival at the Webster School was a man dressed as "Robot Rubio," adopting Christie's charge that Rubio has a robotic, pre-programmed message.
"Everything he says is a soundbite, everything is a talking point," the man said. "I'm tired of the talking points. I want these guys to get real and start talking about the things that matter."
On Monday, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg confirmed he's considering running as an independent candidate.
Schieffer said the prospect of a third-party run by Bloomberg is unpredictable.
"He told me two weeks ago he'd make a decision in about a month. My question is, who does he take votes away from? Right now, that's the question on my mind," he said.
Rep. Peter King praised Bloomberg's achievements as mayor on Tuesday, WCBS 880's Rich Lamb reported. However, the Long Island Republican does not believe the multi-billionaire will run unless it's Sanders against Cruz.
"I would disagree with Mike Bloomberg on certainly a number of social issues, but as far as the economy, as far as strong national defense, as far as homeland security, I think he'd be an excellent president, yeah I do, and he would be, he's incorruptible, he's totally honest," King said.
Bloomberg told the Financial Times the current campaign is an "insult to the voters."
(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
