so roy moore is underperforming roy moore in that very competitive 1992 race.again, it's very early on as you watch this -- as you watch this fill in, but if you're in the two headquarters, you are now calling into these places. most of this is absentee ballots and you are trying to get any intelligence you can about whether these numbers are going to stand up. another key area for doug jones, montgomery county, montgomery, alabama, of course, african-american base. then you get out into the suburbs out here. that number holds on a night when you know it's close, and you're sitting in the campaign headquarters, this is the tense time, you're looking at these numbers, if you're doug jones, this tells you i'm in play, at least for now. we'll have an interesting night. if you're roy moore, you know -- >> you see a 3% still in, but it tightened up a bit. the difference, it's getting tighter even as we speak. >> not a lot of people up here. this is just over 100 votes, but as these come out, it's just 5%, 60% in this county. the key is going to be if a, we'll do som

it goes into allegations and then ask the question, are you voting for roy moore. it taints the poll when you ask a bunch of questions of allegations against roy and say, are you voting for him? many people won't want to say yes, to that. i'm not saying a poll is a good poll, we question it when you have all those allegations before you ask the question, "will you vote for roy moore." i think doug jones is seeing what we're seeing is that the race is close but hee not got it in the bag? >> why do you think he decided to now directly address the accusations against roy moore? >> because like all good politicians he did you know care about the polls until their not favoring him. the smart strategy was to stay quiet and bet roy moore burn. the polls are saying hey, this is a real contest. he has to come out and blast moore because listen, that's what any good politician and that's what the people that don't like roy moore, the people that see these accusers as credible, which many many people do and should, and to attack him now, that's the smart money. >> on the sugge

clients could tell you, he couldn't get the sound of guilty out of roy moore's voice. he denied a statutory rape allegation of leigh corfman about what moore did her when she was 14 years old. she gave a statement to a local news affiliate in alabama today stating i stand by my comments. the article is very detailed. anyone with questions should please re-read it an i want to say thank you to my friends and others who have supported me and my story. and so we'll re-read some of those accusations. her mother supported her story of meeting roy moore in the courthouse where he was an assistant district attorney. "the washington post" reported he struck up a kofrs with her and her mother and offered to watch the girl while her mother went inside for a child custody hearing. he said, oh, you don't want her to go in there and hear all that. i'll stay out here with her, says corfman's mother, nancy wells. i thought, how nice for him to want to take care of my little girl. according to "the washington post" report roy moore had other plans for her little girl. called heren the

those who were already suspicious of roy moore. ns those who were behind him it doesn't change the content of the message or that he signed the year book, signed it love roy. i wish she would have disclosed at the time that she had added the date and the location. i don't think that's an -- an unreasonable annotation to add to a year book signing like that so you have it contemporaneously at the time or whenever she did it so she could remember. but unfortunately given the big deal that was made and the very emotional press conference that she had when describing it, i think it -- you know, it just -- it would have been better if they would have admitted it at the time. but i don't think it's going to change the needled either way. it's just giving fodder to the side that is already in roy moore's corner unfortunately. >> brian, to terra's point, if she is telling the truth, it's kind of a huge oversight for her. but especially for her attorney gloria allred not to have raised that initially and just said the other stuff was added i

roy moore with an advantage over doug jones. the democrat right now 50.4%. 48.4% for moore. 12% of the vote is in. just changed again. moore is ahead by 4,118 votes. that's been going back and forth. let's walk over to john king. 12% of the vote, that's already becoming a significant number, but i just want to caution all of our viewers there's plenty of votes still out. >> if one place comes in, you can have the roller coaster. one of the reasons judge moo are is ahead is there's votes coming in in this northern strip of evangelical rural republicans are. not a lot of votes statewide, but you come in lopsided numbers. almost half of the votes in here in coleman county. 42% of the votes in here. so that's one of the reasons we've seen moore surge up. this part, moore big north of birmingham. if you talk to local reporters, they say watch houston county. this should be part of judge moore's base, but he's underperformed there sometimes. 11 of th 11% of the vote early on. here's the main question i have, wolf, what happens when the

and to think you can elect roy moore without getting the baggage of roy moore is pretty naive. there is no winning with roy moore in my view. >> so, mark, democrats are positioning themselves as the party with zero tolerance. they're starting to take a stand against lawmakers who have accused of them. they successfully pressured al franken, john conyers. are you concerned your party is now becoming the party of sexual misconduct? >> absolutely. senator graham is nothing if not candid. don't always agree with him, but he always speaks from the heart, and he says the tough things. and he's right about that. if roy moore gets elected tomorrow, he's going to get wrapped around the axle of every republican running next year. he's going to be the face of the republican party, he and donald trump. but i guarantee you it will just help the republican party claw its way to the bottom in 2018. >> what do you think that's going to do -- a possible roy moore victory? what will that do to women around the country? we've heard the folks in alabama, and this is religious thing and, you know,

you think that roy moore wins? >> i think he has a good chance of winning, there is some belief, certainly the polls have closed, at least so far this hasn't been a knockout blow, roy moore still very much has a shot of winning, i think there's a school of thought that people don't want to admit to a pollster that they're going to vote for roy moore, therefore his numbers might bhe higher thn the polls reflect. he didn't campaign for roy moore. he just moved on to the next thing. you might even see him go down there and barn storm for this candidate. >> there were people who had already voted before these allegations came out. but i do think it is somewhat of a media by yias that there's be so many defenders of roy moore, versus your average voter in alabama who is horrified by pedophilia and i think it's a bias, and i guess i'm a little sensitive to it as a southerner. but just oh, those people in alabama, they'll be totally okay with it and i don't think that's true. >> i have spent some time in alabama and i hav

is and sinful everyone else is. >> crime, abortion, sodomy, sexual pervasion, sweep our land. >> roy moore insists he's not guilty yetting everybody in the republican party in alabama is making excuses for his behavior. >> some gop leaders in alabama say they back moore even if the worst was true. >> unless he can prove his innocence, burden is now on him within the next day or so i believe he has to step down. >> john mccain and mitt romney calling roy moore unfit for office. >> this to me is the party into the gutter. >> if this does not offend your sensibilities what will. >> republicans need to decide if it's worst to have a democrat in the senate or a pedophile. >> i don't remember every dateding any girl without the permission of her mother. >> today the national republican senatorial committee announced it's severing with roy moore to alabama senate seat on december 12th because of a 14-year-old girl. and a 16-year-old girl. and a 17-year-old girl. and a 18-year-old girl with whom roy moore had inappropriate contact when he was a 32-year-old assistant district attorney according to

>> get out and vote for roy moore! >> and the president pours gasoline on his own "me too" moment. >> it was a sexist smear attempting to silence my voice. >> the first results from election night in alabama when "all in" starts right now. >> one of our attorneys is a s7m >> good evening from new york. i'm chris hayes and it is a very big night. the polls have just at this moment closed in the special senate election in alabama at this hour, nbc news characterizing the race there as too early to call. with polls closed we can now begin tow8u returns. we don't really have any of those yet because they have literally polled -- polls closed 41 seconds ago. there's a lot to keep an eye on as the returns come in and we begin tonight with our first fresh exclusive look at the actual exit polls for the day. joining me to breakdown the latest batch of exit poll data hot off the presses, msnbc national political correspondent steve kornacki. as this happens at 5:00, i believe? now this is the apm, this is the full day what can

democrat doug jones or republican roy moore. moore, who rode to the polls on horseback today is hoping to keep a crucial senate seat in republican hands, but his candidacy has been clouded by multiple allegations of past sexual abuse and assault involving teenage girls, including one woman who says he molested her when she was only 14. the president has raised the stakes and added to the controversy by embracing moore and his denials of wrongdoing, endorsing him in these the final days of the campaign. if moore wins, he could face a bitter backlash in the u.s. senate where some republicans say they believe moore's accusers and have called for an ethics investigation. if doug jones wins, he'll be the first democrat elected to the u.s. senate from alabama in a quarter century. that's an uphill climb in a ruby red state, even with a scandal surrounding his opponent. the decision alabama voters will make tonight will have national consequences, setting the stage for next year's crucial midterm election. we have our correspondents sta

president trump all but endorses alabama senate candidate roy moore, accused by multiple women of sexually abusing and assaulting them as teenagers. the president shrugs off the allegations and slams moore's opponents saying we don't need a liberal democrat, his words, in that seat. >>> kremlin calling. president trump takes a call from russia's president vladimir putin and the two discuss syria, terrorism and north korea. as the president heads to florida, was any discussion about russia's election meddling. >>> just beginning an investigation into accusations that veteran democrat congressman john conyers sexually harassed female staff members. he denies the allegations but confirms settlement with one woman. >>> slaps kim jong-un's regime with new sanctions after putting north korea back on the list of the state sponsor of terrorism. we have new details on the assassination that led president trump to take action. wolf blitzer is off. i'm jim acosta. you're in "the situation room." >>> this is cnn breaking news. >>> breaking news. president trump gives his de facto endorsement to alabam

he says it should happen for roy moore if roy moore wins in alabama next month. and that turns out not to be just an interesting history lesson, oh yeah, there's only been 15 of them in total and not since the civil war. it not only ends up being an interesting point for gardner to take, it also is practically important because it offers a few different potential off-ramps for the republican party if they want to get themselves out of this roy moore crisis that they are in. and of those off-ramps, the easiest one, the one that actually takes the least courage, is to do what senator cory gardner did today and just threaten that if roy moore is elected, he may face expulsion. you can just threaten that. that's a possibility, alabama, if you elect him, we may expel him. if you want to kick it up a notch and be slightly braver than that, they could turn that threat into a promise. republicans could organize the necessary votes in the united states senate to expel him. make a public show of force. don't just threaten, promise that if roy moore is elected he will be ex

roy moore is joined on stage with steve bannon. moore virtually disappearing from the campaign trail, in the days leading up to the election. and doug jones, the doors at his rally just opening now, both candidates tonight dangling the possibility of a surprise guest as the nation watches. and the current and former presidents are dualing it out in the trenches in this race too. >> this is president donald trump, and i need alabama to go vote for roy moore, we're already making america great again. i'm going to make america safer and stronger and better than ever before. but we need that seat. we need roy voting for us. >> president obama also recording a robo call saying, this one's serious. doug jones is a fighter for equality, for progress. doug will be our champion for justice. get out and vote bama. i want to begin with alex at the jones rally in birmingham. i'm going to start with kayleigh at the roy moore rally there. this is the first time we've seen roy moore in nearly a week, and really everything is on the line for him to

voters are deciding between republican roy moore and democrat doug jones. ent trump weighing in for moore. >> we need roy voting for us. i'm stopping illegal immigration and crime. we are building a stronger military and protecting the second amendment and our pro life values. but if alabama elects liberal democrat doug jones, all of our progress will be stopped cold.

she has come forward with these accusations against roy moore. senator susan collins tweeted a little while along, i have now ready mr. moore's statement listened to his radio interview in which he denies the charges. i do not find his denials to be convincing and believe he should withdraw from the senate reece in alabama. garrett haake, you have another comment from a senator? >> yes, ali. it also references the denials as part of the things damming about roy moore in the whole episode. the tweet from a few minutes ago from claire mccaskill, democratic senator from missouri and former district attorney in kansas city, a prosecutor who tweets, as an experienced sex crime prosecutors i recognize the shifts in roy moore's "de "denia "denials" they completely undermine his comments. he doesn't belong in the senate, period. most democrat wos not want to see roy moore here at all, but, it goes to the basis of this. the senate is all about relationships. 100 senators. it's a small group. it's very difficult to fathom someone like a claire mccaskill sit

roy moore finally speaks out today. what he's saying about the allegations as the president goes all in. >>> and the reckoning. franken out, farnhrenthold stil in. and should the president answer his accusers? >>> and prosecuting the prosecutors, the push to discredit bob mueller and his investigation. can they withstand the onslaught? >> are you comfortable that the leader of your party is all out for roy moore? >> within the party, there will be disagreements. obviously we're seeing one now. >> how should people assess the accusers of the president? >> the same thing, is women who accuse anyone should be heard. >> so, you are calling leigh corfman a liar? >> i'm saying leigh corfman's not telling the truth. >> when it got to the 14-year-old story, that was enough for me. >> we have a president who is embracing a candidate in alabama who has ban accused of child molestation, right? >> i couldn't vote for roy moore. i didn't vote for roy moore. >> when roy moore, if he should win, goes to washington, we will always be q

roy moore's opponent. white house officials here repeat over and over again, look, he's never supported roy moore. he's never backed him. and so -- why would he be the right person to kind of reach out to roy moore saying, it's time to drop out of the race. the answer to that may be that the president is very popular in alabama. his approval ratings, 55% in the most recent poll taken. taken several months ago, but still it's an indication that it is a deep red state, ali, an there's a lot of support for the president there. of course, one of the possibilities, batted about, having the attorney general run as a write-in candidate. if roy moore doesn't drop out of the race, would that split the republican vote? would that only energize momentum for the democrat in the race, doug jones? all of the questions and hypotheticals white house officials here are weighing behind the scenes and at this point, again, it's not clear what the president's final decision is on this matter. >> kristen, thanks. standing by f

as reminder any before sexual assault allegations came out against roy moore. moore said homosexual conduct should be illegal and suggested 9/11 might have happened because the u.s. had distanced from god you know we suffered a lot in this country, maybe because we distanced ourselves. back in 2016, whether president obama was born in the u.s., my personal belief is he wasn't. in 2006 moore argued that the first muslim elected to congress, keith ellison shouldn't fb allowed to be sworn into the office with the koran. congress has the authority and should act to prohibit ellison from taking the congressional oath today. this past august 14th he told a reporter quote there are communities under sharia law in our country. also this august told reporter reagan description of soviet union quote we promote a bad of things like same sex marriage. finally on september 17 in response to a question by african-american at a rally moore said he thought the last time he thought america was great at a time when americas were united. moore added we had a direction. back now wi

if, and it's a big win. >> sean: if roy moore loses it will be because of roy moore.e has been notorious in running very close statewide elections. last election the statewide supreme court 52-48. in alabama that's a close race for republicans. >> i understand that. this is going to be nationalized to a rejection in part of trump because he came in did the robo call and rally in pensacola. it will embolden the democrats rest assured. >> sean: will it be that joe concha or be that even with trump's help he couldn't pull him over the finish line because of all the news and information we have been discussing for a long time. >> all the news and information we have been discussing for a long time. if roy moore ends up losing in this case, this will be an election that was decided ultimately by one news outlet and that's "the washington post" when they did this story a couple of months ago. if this story doesn't come out, race already called roy moore wins in heavily republican state. the story was never debunked. "the washington post" did good solid vetting in terms of t

but roy moore has repeatedly denied the allegations. and the moore campaign says there's no chance that he will show tonight. >> yeah, that's right. they say he's staying in alabama. deputy campaign manager hannah ford tells fox news "judge moore is campaigning hard and engaging with alabama voters. he will not be in pensacola but is grateful to have the president rallying conservatives near alabama. we're encouraging supporters to attend the rally and look forward to victory on the 12th." doug jones is also talking optimistical optimistically. he says you can reach out and find common ground. that's the message that he says his campaign will bring to washington. he's trying to reach the common ground by rallying supporters and he hopes crossover republican voters around what he call kitchen table issues, issues of the economy, jobs and healthcare, shep. >> shepard: jonathan serrie in montgomery, thank you. let's turn to "fox news sunday" chris wallace who is with us from washington ahead of his sunday program coming up. good to see you,

roy moore is embarrassing donald trump, okay. roop supporters out with defending moore and they've been blaming the victim and i've seen some people attacking miscorfman, the original accuser for having marriages and bankruptcy. if that is an argument you're making and you think you're helping the president, stop. you're being a complete idiot. >> he's not helping himself. >> she has as much right to tell her story as a businessman from new york has to be in the oval office. you are not helping the president. the loyal trump line tonight, get roy moore out of this race. he's embarrassing the white house. >> the president does not have much moral authority in this area -- >> i think it's ae legitimate question. how does he do that without saying women have accused you of the same thing. >> no one has ever accused him of pedophilia. >> sexual assault. sexual assault. >> they're not the same. >> sexual assault. and we didn't use the word pedophilia. 16-year-old is not pedophilia. >> i do agree that as the head of the party the presid

i said i can't vote for roy moore. the state of alabama deserves better. >> reporter: moore's opponent, democrat doug jones, turning shelby's remarks into an ad and robocall, seeming to avoid the spotlight. remaining out of sight other than a taped program. >> i had no encounter with them. i never molested anyone. >> reporter: jones on the other hand barnstorming the state alongside democrats who are pouring money and resources into the race. >> i want to make sure when my granddaughters grow up they don't have to endure those who women did. >> reporter: an attempt to shore up the black vote, critical for jones. u.s. ambassador to the united nations saying anyone who speaks up about sexual behavior should be heard, including president trump's accusers. >> they should be heard and dealt with. we heard from them prior to the election. and i think any woman who felt violated or mistreated in any way, they have every right to speak up. >> reporter: those remarks from one of the highest ranking women in the trump administrat

number two, i'm looking to compare the roy moore vote tonight to the last time we had a roy moore vote in alabama. moore ran statewide in 2012 against a democrat named bob vance. roy moore beat bob vance 52-48, which is close, actually. so i want to watch the biggest counties in the state, the most populous counties in the state to compare doug jones' performance tonight with this other democrat from 2012 who came close to beating roy moore that night. in 2012 running against roy moore, bob vance won all four of the most populous counties of the state. jefferson county, madison county where huntsville is, mobile county, montgomery. bob vance won them all against roy moore in 2012 with anywhere between 52 and 71% of the vote. so in each of the counties tonight we'll be looking to see in those places is doug jones able to improve in those big populous counties, is he able to improve on that margin that that democrat got against roy moore five years ago when he almost beat roy moore? i'll tell you one lucky part of approaching this election that way is that we're told that madson county w

favor of roy moore? >> there are many of us that are not. the rnc is not engaged in that race. our party is big enough to have disagreements from the part -- from the top. there are other ways to move this country forward. lifeprove the quality of of the average american but there will be disagreements within the party. wins, youmoore represent the head of that campaign committee, he wants to see an ethics committee and vote on expulsion. where are you on that? >> the constitution requires, if see him andhave to then there will be an ethics investigation. we will have a greater opportunity to look into all of the issues, allegations, and even talk with some of the folks that were witnesses. that will give us a clearer picture. thear as i can tell, allegations are significantly stronger than the denial. i will let my decision be made of thebrats -- breadth investigation. spent $30 million down here trying to beat him in a primary and then the fake news from the washington post services. judge roy moore wi

donald trump may not be wearing a roy moore sweatshirt. but donald trump is supporting the moore race and made it clear that he's until a totally different place than all of washington and he wants to see roy moore win that senate seat. >> just to reiterate. we know president trump and family are headed down to mar-a-lago for thanksgiving. on his way out of town, he said, speaking about exactly what we were just listening to, he said we don't need a liberal democrat in that seat. maeve, to you and areva, i want to go through the strategy and picking apart the accusations hearing the final gentleman speaking to alabamians saying the world is watching you. and that trump has exploded the republican establishment and keeps mentioning mitch mcconnell. in a lot of circles in alabama, mitch mcconnell is a bad, bad word. again to david's point isn't that just drumming up the base? >> absolutely. i mean, that was extraordinary television right there. it was such a call to action. to that, those trump voters, that trump base, those people who suppor

do you believe that roy moore, should he resign? why is he unwilling now, david, at this point to moore? >> i think there are a couple of factors going on there. one, this is not so clear-cut politically for donald trump. as you know, he was on the wrong side of that primary race with luther strange. he lost it. many of his core supporters are very supportive of roy moore and so he's not necessarily looking to cut against the grain to some of his own supporters. so politically it's not the easiest thing. as you know, steve bannon is supporting moore and donald trump and steve bannon are still very much in touch about making sure not to do anything to disintegrate his solid relationship with his base. then, of course, there's donald trump's personal history here that makes it complicated for him to weigh in. he's got a lot of women lined up with accusations against him. i think the last conversation he wants to be having is that whether or not he believes roy moore's accusers, because the obvious follow-up question is well, then, why

roy moore denies this. some republican lawmakers are saying that moore should drop out of the alabama senate race, others are using conditions in their language. this was white house press secretary sarah sanders overnight. >> the president believes that we cannot allow a mere allegation in this case one from many years ago, to destroy a person's life. however, the president also believes that if these allegations are true, judge moore will do the right thing and step aside. >> all right. cnn's martin savidge in moore's hometown. martin, breaking news here. you talked to roy moore's brother. >> right. his younger brother jerry moore. spoke to him on the telephone. and he is quite defiant. he is, obviously, in defense of his brother here. and there are a number of things. let me go through the notes because i literally got off the phone with him. he says he knows, the brother knows, that the allegations against roy moore are not true, not true at all. he knows that deeply in his heart. he knows that deepry in

so get out and vote for roy moore!|j mean, get out and vote for roy moore!”own in tears over all of this. this republicans can't bring themselves to vote for roy moore. they've defected to the democrat doug jones. it's because i'm republican. it's because i'm a christian. it's because i'm a christian. it's because the party that i belong to does not support people like roy moore. alabama was a great battleground of the civil rights era. this is also climactic and defining. it has become so much more than a senate race, the battle for the soul of the republican party between the establishment and more radical populist forces. a test of whether any allegation is disqualifying in modern—day public life here. and it's an the indication as to the extent to which donald trump has changed america's political culture. in this age of opposites could this republican state to democrat? straightaway and live now at the rally in birmingham, alabama, where the new democratic senator for alabama doug jones is expected to appearany alabama doug jones is expected to appear an

he didn't back roy moore in the primary. he backed his opponent, and roy moore beat theincumbent. so he already lost a certain amount of credibility and strength down there. if now he were -- roy moore were to lose, and that would be the first time in 20 years or more that a republican has lost this, and the president were backing him all in, this would be a real blow and the democrats would take enormous encouragement from this. >> yesterday here in new york, there were several accusers of the president. before there was the women's march, before the me too movement, there were these dozen accusers last fall accusing the president of improper sexual behavior and in h some cases sexual assault. yesterday they took the cameras and tried to i think revive their movement and they called on the president to resign. and seriously. >> called for a congressional investigation. >> and some have called for him to resign. those accusers called for congressional investigation. i want to listen to what sarah sanders said in this remarkable press briefing yesterday. >> the president has addres

roy moore. >> that's right. and when you look at that here charlie, reflect on what was said by elana and that issue of 51. >> yeah, the people who are saying that if roy moore gets elected, they should essentially swear him in and defrock him, that puts them in the same bind. if he wins the senate, they have to keep him there. and there are plenty of good reasons beyond this misconduct -- these misconduct allegations not to have roy moore not in the senate. he is a theocratic bag of walnuts and the most public null guyer we' e null guyer since george wallace. >> but when we look at locally what is happening, al.com basically saying that we reject roy moore and because that only leaves us one choice, we are going at the moment for doug jones. do you think that will have an impact on the outcome here, jamei jameill? >> it's hard to know, but it is an influential website. so it carries a lot of weight. look, it's clearly into the full throated endorsement of doug jones, but obviously the roy moore situation is ver

alabama without going to alabama, stopping just across the border telling voters why they should send roy moore to the u.s. senate. and about that campaign, new scrutiny over some old comments by moore about when america was last great and why his answer invoked slavery. all of it ahead as "the 11th hour" gets under way on a friday night. good evening once again from our nbc news headquarters here in new york. day 323 of the trump administration and it brings robert mueller's investigation into president trump's very most inner circle the. "new york times" reporting tonight white house communications director hope hicks was interviewed over the past two days by team mueller. hope hicks has a unique role in this administration, a connecticut native, 29 years old. she's a former ralph lauren model who then worked for ivanka trump's product line on the web before joining the trump campaign in its formative days. she has been at donald trump's side ever since. she has seen and heard a lot that includes private conversations, many of which are mueller's team is looking into. "the new york times" is

five accusers of roy moore, a fifth accuser of roy moore emerged this afternoon. and this time, the woman appeared before cameras and told her own story in her own words about what she says roy moore did to her when she was 16 years old. three hours before the newest accuser told her story, senate majority leader mitch mcconnell decided he had already heard enough and read enough about the accusations against roy moore and roy moore's self contradictory defense offered on sean hannity's radio show on friday. >> do you believe these allegations to believe true? >> i believe the women, yes. >> do you believe roy moore, calling for him to step down from the senate race. >> i did. i think he should step aside. >> are you encouraging a write-in campaign? >> that's an option. we're looking at. whether or not there is someone who could mount a write-in campaign successfully. >> would it be senator strange, do you think? >> we'll see. >> mitch mcconnell was the leader of the senate republicans who today stepped out of the if true group into the roy moore must drop out now

what does this mean for roy moore? and i guess i'm asking how much of the vote do you think is malleable and susceptible to being lobbied by an appearance or two from the president? >> it's hard to know specifically where the vote stands because alabama is not a market that's usually competitive. that said the most recent surveys do suggest that moore has the advantage and this is why donald trump's trip is so critical because donald trump imself still, unlike in many states, has an approval rating over 50% in the state. and here is where i think some were surprised tonight and that is that we were definitely expecting him to go after doug jones. were we expecting him to doubt, put into question the verasty of the accusations against roy moore and go after the accuser? well, that is what he did and that heeds into what is happening in alabama and the reason roy moore has been able to stay afloat and because far too few people actually believe the accusations against roy moore and so here you have the president now with

president trump makes it clear, he's all in for moore. >> get out and vote for roy moore. ded down to alabama where accusations of sexual misconduct of moore is the issue. >> it is something that nobody is comfortable with. >> democratic doug jones had a real chance but could a moore

but nothing substantial on roy moore. a quick reminder. nine women accused the alabama republican senate candidate as actions ranging from inappropriate romantic advances to sexual assault. some of whom were in their teens at the time. moore denies all allegations. the stock position from the trump administration and its officials recently has been that the allegations are serious and credib credible, but the people of alabama should decide who they want to be their next senator. white house press secretary sarah huckabee sanders reiterated that today and legislative director mark short and omb director mulvanie pitched that line on the sunday shows. >> we are concerned about several aspects of the story. very concerned about the anticipati allegations but at this point we think it's best that alabama make the decision for them. >> the allegations are very serious and should be taken very seriously. ultimately, it's up to the voters in the state. >> these answers stopped short of other republicans, mcconneit mcconnell, paul ryan and other s

and i need alabama to go vote for roy moore. it is so important. we are already making america great again. i am going to make america safer and stronger and better than ever before. but we need that seat. we need roy voting for us. amy: roy moore has had a long and highly controversial political career in alabama that's been marked by racism, homophobia, islamophobia, and religious fanaticism. judge moore was twice ousted as alabama's chief justice -- first, in 2003 for refusing to remove a monument of the ten commandments in the rotunda of the alabama judicial building. after being reelected, he was again ousted in 2016, for ordering his judges to defy the u.s. supreme court's ruling legalizing marriage equality. he was a proponent of trump's racist and discredited birther theory about president obama. he has compared homosexuality to bestiality. he said minnesota congress member keith ellison's shouldn't have been allowed to be sworn into congress using a koran, which he compared to mein kampf. in 2011, roy moore proposed eliminating all amendmen

roy moore will always vote with us. vote roy moore! so certainly, hallie, the president coming out strong for roy moore. we heard that again last night with steve bannon, just taking on the establishment as he mentioned, within the next hour or so, we expect roy moore to vote himself riding in on his horse named sassy. you can't make this up. >> it's going to be -- it's going to be a moment. gabe gutierrez in mountainbrook, thank you. you'll be plastered all over the network all day along with steve kornacki looking at the data for us. steve, we talked yesterday about how the polls are everywhere, up in the air, it really is a crapshoot at this point who will be on top. but i want to talk about the coalitions that you think doug jones or roy moore needs to put together in order to pull out a win. >> yeah, let's take a look at it. it's sort of old fashioned. forget the polls now, we'll see who votes, where they vote and who they vote for. let me show you this is, this is what it looks like when they have an election in alabama. nobody r

who will win, democrat doug jones or republican roy moore? htning record former judge embroiled in scandal. allegations of sexual abuse involving teenage girls are testing the limits of gop support on traditionally republican turf, even though moore adamantly denies those allegations. this is a new test for president trump as well after he decided to support moore despite the potential consequences for his party. in the senate, many fellow republicans are deeply worried about the political fallout if moore wins. if doug jones wins, it will be a historic victory for democrats who have gone a quarter century without winning a u.s. senate seat in alabama. this contest is promising to jolt the national political landscape heading into next year's midterm election. jake, polls close just minutes from now. >> that's right. all day today, it's been in the hands of the voters of alabama and now the polls are about to close. let's check in with our reporters on the ground with the two respective campaigns. let's start with alex marquardt in birmingham

when he enforces roy moore. he does an interesting robo call for roy moore.sounded like his interesting jerusalem speech. donald trump has gone all in for roy moore after it looked like he was going to hold back. do you know what happened? >> it sounds and based on reporting we've done at nbc news, he felt burned after he was urged to come here in favor of luther strange, and he lost. he felt like the leadership in capitol hill led him astray. he made a mistake and didn't follow his instincts. this president has dealt with his own past in a public way. it's related to sexual misconduct. he often tested people on their loyalty base on the how they acted toward him in that moment. i think there's an element of am i going to stand by this guy who says that none of this ever happened? i think there's an element of that as well. >> yeah. so what are -- what would make a republican say a southern baptist republican, faithful evangelical going to church every week with concerns about roy moore? can you explain to our audience across the country why they would hold t

if they fill still want roy moore over doug jones, how do you tell alabama what's best for them? i think it's really touch but i think going back to moore's comments on slavery because to me it's remarkable that he actually valleysed that. i think for a lot of african-americans who heard make america great, they felt the president and a lot of his supporters were saying go back to this time when african-americans were in chains or in segregated schools. it seems remarkable that people are going to the polls to votes for him. robert: inside the white house, roy moore may win but it could be by a narrow marginal. they're looking at virginia and alabama, the trump bails and seeing some of the more moderate republican voters saying no thanks to either president trump or a trump-aligned candidate. does that worry them? >> it does and going into the medicine terms you have a number of competitive races where there are going to be real divides between the trump bails and when -- what his corps supporters wants and a lot of the more suburban voters. the house is very much up for grabs in

but roy moore, you know, long before steve bannon came around, roy moore had a base in alabama. he's long had universal name recognition in alabama. so i think whatever happens with roy moore, steve bannon will continue to do his steve bannon thing. he'll find other candidates. he's continue to wage his insurgery i against mitch mcconnell and such. and so i don't know. it might be embarrassing, but i don't know if there will be a real lasting impact on bannon himself. >> thank you very much for joining us today. happy friday to you guys. and breaking news on special counsel robert mueller's investigation. a new nbc news reporting on michael flynn coming next. [ keyboard clacking ] [ click ] [ keyboard clacking ] [ clacking continues ] good questions lead to good answers. our advisors can help you find both. talk to one today and see why we're bullish on the future. yours. talk to one today and see why we're bullish on the future. ii need my blood osugar to stay iin control.. i need to cut my a1c. weekends are my time. i need an insulin that fits my schedule. ♪ tresiba® ready ♪ (

if the campaign was on what that strategist talked about roy moore would win on those issues so makeserfect sense that's campaign would shift to because it's a conservative state if the people of alabama elect moore they will have made this decision as americans at battlot box with a lot of information about these accusations. >> to that points if roy moore is elected, do you really believe mitch mcconnell and 14 senators who came out to say they don't want to see roy moore in the senate do you think they would move to push him out? >> i don't think so because once he is duly elected if he wins they chose him regardless of the accusations it is difficult to expel someone for not having ineligibility issues as a senator they have to seat him. as much as they'd like to but not what they would do. i want to say about the media this is why donald trump calls the media enemy of the state and fake news, it is to discredit the media for doing their jobs so when it comes time to hold people running for office, public officials accountable that it has muddied the water and there's so much dist

they feel that her comment sent them back, roy moore back, and worth noting her comment was used on anti-roy moore advertising sent out by democrats, the jones' campaign. it's something that could hurt moore in this race and they recognize that. >> definitely seemed to have left a mark. >> can i say, can i add that that ad that rebecca referred to, the jones' ad featuring ivanka trump, democrats believe that was one of the most effective ads that jones ran in the entire race. >> fascinating. let's see, though, what happens. great to see you guys. we'll be watching it together. polls are open. they close at 8:00 p.m. eastern this evening. >>> coming up, this morning, president trump is firing back, attacking the women accusing him of sexual harassment and a prominent female senator calling for his resignation. gretchen carlson is joining me next with her take on the state of play. plus, new details about the man accused of detonating a pipe bomb during rush hour in the early morning -- busy morning commute in new york city. this as we are learning much more about the heroic officers who captu

according to roy moore's logic expressed right there, roy moore forgot god. in 1979, roy moore was a 32-year-old assistant district attorney in alabama, a team of "the washington post" reporter that is went to alabama to report on the senate race there have come back with a story from 1979 that exploded in our politics today as if it happened today. three women did this extraordinary reporting for "the washington post." stephanie mccrumben, beth rhine hard and alice curtis and there is no better way to convey the essence of this extraordinary story that they have written than to read the words that they wrote in their reporting that they delivered today. lee corfman says she was 14 years old when an older man approached her outside a courtroom in alabama. she was sitting on a wooden bench with her mother they both recall, when the man said he was roy moore. it was early 1979 and moore now the republican nominee in alabama for u.s. senate seat was a 32-year-old assistant district attorney. he struck up a conversation corfman and her mother said and offered to

jones. >> senator sanders, appreciate your time. >> up next the breaking news on roy moore. post" reporting tonight two more women have accused mr. moore of unwand overtures at an alabama mall decades ago. his attorney raises questions about one of his accusers. >>> president trump doesn't answer questions about how he views the candidate and if he should step down from the race. all that ahead. why did you take credit card debt on? second kid. private school. medical bills. moving costs. solid ground. a personal loan from sofi is a smart way to consolidate credit card debt. certain borrowers cut their credit card interest rates 42% and increased credit scores 17 points on average. borrow up to $100,000 with low rates and no hidden fees. find your rate in just two minutes, and take on your debt at sofi.com. . >>> roy moore tops the hour, though probably not in a way that makes the white house comfortable. his attorney speaking out today attacking one of the accusers as two new ones come forward. both worked at the ball in alabama where moore, according to one employee we talk

the women who have accused roy moore of sexually assaulting her when she was just 16 years old. beverly nelson has brought forward her yearbook as proof that he sexually assaulted her because he signed an inscription in her yearbook. the moore campaign has cast doubt on that saying it's a forgery and even though she said yes, she did add the date and location, the moore campaign said that she was lying. president trump has doubted these women and all this comes as president trump is heading to jackson, mississippi today to tour the opening of the civil rights museum. something many black leaders have boycotted. and this also comes in commerce and reservice in recent days that roy moore made back in september when he believed last time they believed america was truly great, he brought up a time when slavery existed. he said at least families were united during that time. >> thank you so much. >>> all right. joining me now to discuss cnn white house correspondent in washington, all right, the president coming out last night, overm overwhelming support. full endorse in the of roy mo