and the Republican presidential field# is now a two-perso Governor Ron DeSantis dropped# out over the weekend.

Meanwhile,## Democrats have to navigate a ballot that will# be missing a key name, President To help bring us up to speed on all# of this, I'm joined by our Politics## Monday duo.

That is Amy Walter of The# Cook Political Report With Amy Wa and Tamara Keith of NPR, who is in New Hampshire.

So, Tam, kick us off here.

Days after lamenting about Re as he put it, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis# does exactly that.

He drops out of the race## and endorses Donald Trump.

What does that say to# you about his campaign and this race rig TAMARA KEITH, National Public Radio:# The DeSantis campaign started with so## much promise, but from the moment it# actually l He launched on X, the social media site formerly# known as Twitter.

It was a total disaster.

It## was just a technical disaster.

And then, from# there, his campaign burned through cash.

He## ended up relying on an outside super PAC that# you're not technically supposed to coordinate## with.

It turns out, turfing your campaign to# a super PAC may not actually work that well.

And he just burned through campaign managers# and super PAC heads.

And in the end, it was## just a failed campaign.

But the big failure was# finding a message that actually worked with this## Republican electorate, because he was saying he# was Trump without the baggage.

And it turns out## a lot of Republican voters, enough Republican# voters, just don't care about the baggage.

AMNA NAWAZ: Amy, it's not like he was out there# alone, right?

He had a lot of support.

He had a## lot of money.

This is the guy, by the way, The# New York Post crowned as the pl aying on his name.

This was# after he won big in the midterms.

He had a lot of key# endorsements too.

What happened?

AMY WALTER, The Cook Political Report: I# mean, I which is that he just never found a me was going to resonate with an electorate# that still really likes Donald Trump.

I mean, at the end of the day, there were# many problems with this campaign.

So,## Tam is absolutely right.

Some of this is# tied to him.

But a lot of it is about the## Republican Party and who Republican voters# are.

If you get Republican establishment,## sort of the elite class, the donor class, they# want anybody but Donald Trump as the nominee.

That's not what voters want.

And that disconnect# has been apparent since 2016.

And so for all the## money and all the effort that a lot# of those folks who are dubbing him,## DeSantis, giving him money, wanted# to believe that this is the formula,## this is how you unseat Donald Trump with a# candidate that's a lot more like Donald Trump,## the problem, as one Republican strategist# said to me early on, is, that strategy,## that idea of being Trump without the# baggage, really what he was Trump-lite.

And for voters who know that they# can get the full-calorie Trump,## they didn't want the diet version.

AMNA NAWAZ: The full-calorie.

AMY WALT You're in New Hampshire.

It's essentially# a two-person Republi Nikki Haley and Donald Trump.

We# have a new poll from Monmouth,# which now shows that, while Haley has# picked up some support from independents,# she hasn't closed the gap.

Some 52 percent# of potential Republican primary there would choose Mr. Trump.

Some# 34 percent would pick Nikki Haley.

I should note this was conducted before DeSantis## dropped out.

So where do his# backers go in New Hampshire?

TAMARA KEITH: I think we have# talked about this before,## but Ron DeSantis is much more People who support Ron DeSantis didn't necessarily# want to stop Trump at all costs.

And so many## of those voters are just going to go to Trump.# DeSantis obviously endorsed him and is rallying## behind him.

Many of Trump's vanquished rivals# are rallying behind him going back to 2016 and## now 2024.

His rivals are up on stage with him,# rallying with him at rallies here in the state.

So, for Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis dropping out# doesn't actually help, though it does give her## that two-person race that she has said that she# wanted, and it will provide a lot of clarity after## tomorrow night about the state of the Republican# Party and the appetite for a Trump alternative.

That said, this is New Hampshire and# independent voters can vote in the## Republican primary.

And I have spoken to a# lot of left-leaning independent voters who,## under any other description, would be# Democrats, but they are independents.## They're registered independents, and# they will be supporting Nikki Haley.

Those sorts of voters can't vote in a# Republican primary in th AMNA NAWAZ: Amy, can those independents# make up the difference for Haley?

AMY WALTER: Yes, there just aren't enough of them.

And, right now, if you do look bu t not as well among the Republican# vote.

And so where it could help is,## it could make the margins a little bit# smaller, especially, as Tam pointed## out if a bunch of people are coming to# vote that pollsters didn't pick up on.

Remember, in 2008, polls suggested that# Barack Obama was easily going to win in## New Hampshire.

That didn't happen.

Hillary# Clinton actually won.

I don't think that's## what we're going to see on Tuesday, but that# Trump is still ahead.

But, for Haley, this## really is a do-or-die state.

I mean, the state,# the electorate is tailor-made for her candidacy.

To not win here would basically be the -- I think## it would be the beginning# of the end of the candidacy.

AMNA NAWAZ: And, Tam, we should mention# the incumbent Democratic presiden is being pushed as part of a write-in# campaign there.

He's not on the ballot,## because New Hampshire state law says they still# go first.

Even so, the DNC chan so South Carolina would go first.# So, Bidens's not on the ballot there.

But I do want to talk about the message# we're hearing from the Biden administra which is on Roe v. Wade.

Today# is the 51st anniversary of that## decision.

We know it's a central part# of their reelection campaign message.

Here actually is part of a new ad# they just put out on that issue.

DR. AUSTIN DENNARD, Suing Texas# Over Abortion Ban: I think Donald## Tr laws.

We need leaders that will protect# our rights and not take them away.

AMNA NAWAZ: Tam, we should note there# are 12 states where abortion is or## could be on the ballot this fall.

Is# this still going to be as potent a## force as the Biden reelection campaign# wants it to be at the end of this year?

TAMARA KEITH: Well, I can't# predict just how potent it will be,## but I can tell you how the Biden# reelection And you can see it.

Vice President Harris# is launching a multistate tour where sh going to be talking about reproductive# rights.

She's starting in Wisconsin,## a state where a state Supreme Court raised# was really decided because ab out this issue and because there was# a restrictive abortion ban on the books.

And, tomorrow, the president, the vice president,## the first lady, the second gentleman,# they will all be rallying another state where abortion wasn't technically# on the ballot, but where it was a So, this is clearly going to be a centerpiece of# the Biden campaign, but they're going to frame## it as a freedom issue and say that it's# not just about one health care procedure,## it's about freedom, and they're looping# it in with other things like gun safety## and the big issues of democracy that we# have seen Biden talking about already.

AMY WALTER: Yes, and I think it was also really# interesting.

In that ad, she makes this connection## between Donald Trump, the choices he made,# especially putting many of the current justices## onto the Supreme Court, and these restrictive# laws in states like Texas, where she's from.

In 2022, Democrats were very effective# in making the individual Republican## candidate look out of step, basically# just showing what those candidates had## said about abortion access.

They had very# restrictive views on the issue.

But it## really wasn't about Donald Trump in 2022.# It was about those individual candidates.

And so what the Biden campaign needs# to do is to make that connective## tissue between Donald Trump and this# issue of freedom and abortion access.

TAMARA KEITH: And Donald Trump certainly helped# them with that in a recent town hall on FOX News.## He once again claimed credit for it.

I was# at Biden headquarters the day after that,## and they were quite pleased to# have that video in their arsenal.

AMNA NAWAZ: All right, Amy Walter and Tamara# Keith joining us tonight from New Hampshire,## good to see you both.

Thank you so much.

AMY WALTER: You're welcome.