Donald Trump (Steve Helber, AP)

This post has been updated

Donald Trump is clearly no fan of George W. Bush, and in an interview released Friday, the Republican presidential front-runner slammed the nation’s 43rd president for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks happening on his watch.

Speaking with Bloomberg, Trump was asked to explain “who Donald Trump is as a man” and how he would make the nation “feel safe” and “proud” — as Bush had after 9/11 and President Obama did after the Dec. 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting in Connecticut.

“I think I have a bigger heart than all of them. I think I'm much more competent than all of them. When you talk about George Bush, I mean — say what you want —  the World Trade Center came down during his time.”

Bloomberg’s Stephanie Ruhle then interrupted and said Trump couldn’t blame Bush for the attacks that left nearly 3,000 Americans dead.

"He was president, OK? Don't blame him or don't blame him, but he was president. The World Trade Center came down during his reign. If you look at Sandy Hook, those people are still begging for help. It’s a disaster.”

Not surprisingly, Trump’s critique drew a sharp rebuke from one of his rivals. Jeb Bush, the former president’s younger brother, tweeted that Trump was “pathetic” to attack Bush over the terror attack, adding that “my brother kept us safe.”

Bush offered a similar defense of his brother at the second Republican presidential debate at the Reagan Library last month.

Trump fired back on Twitter Friday night, calling the former Florida governor “pathetic” as well. He also said he “wanted to be nice” in the Reagan Library debate by not making the argument about George W. Bush and 9/11 then.

This is hardly the first time Trump has criticized the Bush presidency. In an interview earlier this month with Fox News, he called Bush “a disaster” and described the decision to go to war with Iraq in 2003 as “one of the worst decisions ever made.”

President Obama and Hillary Clinton (Pablo Martinez Monsivais, AP)

In declining to discuss Hillary Clinton’s newfound opposition to the Pacific Rim free trade deal, President Obama served notice Friday: He won’t be commenting on lots of things Democratic candidates say during the 2016 election.

“I mean, here is a general proposition, guys,” Obama told reporters. “During the course of what will be a long campaign, I probably won’t be commenting on every single utterance or decision that the various candidates make.”

The reason, he said: “I think that it is natural and proper for candidates to run on their own vision and their own platform.”

Asked specifically about Clinton’s coming out against the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Obama said that, “with respect to the trade and how Hillary views trade, I would have you direct questions to her.”

Obama himself did talk up the Trans-Pacific Partnership, saying the free-trade deal will benefit U.S. workers.

Speaking at a joint news conference with South Korean President Park Geun-hye, Obama did say that he and the Democratic presidential candidates “agree on 95% of stuff.”

While “there are going to be areas where they differ at any given point,” Obama indicated he wouldn’t be discussing them — though it seems certain he won’t be so reticent when it comes to his differences with the Republicans.

Hillary Clinton looks on as Bernie Sanders speaks during the CNN Democratic presidential debate on Oct. 13, 2015, in Las Vegas. (John Locher, AP)

After a commanding performance in the first Democratic debate, Hillary Clinton has regained a narrow lead over Bernie Sanders in the crucial state of New Hampshire, a new Suffolk University Poll of likely Democratic voters finds.

In the survey, taken in conjunction with The Boston Globe, Clinton is at 37% and Sanders at 35%. That’s within the poll’s 4.4 percentage point margin of error.

The poll of 500 Democrats, taken Wednesday and Thursday, is the first public poll released in the aftermath of Tuesday’s debate.

Even what is essentially a tie reflects an improvement for the former secretary of State in the Granite State, which holds the first presidential primary next February. In the four most recent previous statewide polls, averaged by RealClearPolitics, the Vermont senator had led Clinton, 39% to 30%.

In the new survey, Vice President Biden, who hasn’t decided whether to run, was at 11%. Former Virginia senator Jim Webb was at 3%, and former governors Martin O’Malley of Maryland and Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island were each at 1%.

Among the 283 Democrats who watched the debate, a 54% chose Clinton as the winner; 24% chose Sanders.

New Hampshire Democrats also see Clinton as having the best chance of winning the general election next November. A 52% majority chose her, compared with 16% who cited Sanders and 14% Biden.

Even so, questions of trust continues to dog Clinton. Asked which of the potential candidates they trusted the most, 33% chose Sanders, 23% Biden and 22% Clinton.

But by nearly 2-1, 62%-36%, they said the controversy over her emails at the State Department didn’t bother them.

And Clinton’s position in support of gun control measures was more in step with voters than Sanders, who has voted against some of the proposals: 41% say Clinton more closely reflects their position on guns; 24% Sanders.

They also are inclined to say Biden shouldn’t run. Fifty percent said he shouldn’t, while 36% said he should.

Melissa Gilbert in January 2014. (Rob Kim, Getty Images)

A little more than a month and a half into her first-ever congressional campaign, Little House on the Prairie actress Melissa Gilbert has raised more than $200,000 and, as predicted, been able to tap into some well-known entertainment industry pockets for support.

Gilbert, who in mid-August announced her run as a Democrat for the seat held by Republican Rep. Mike Bishop, filed a finance report this week that not only showed she can raise substantial sums in a short time but featured a roster of stars you'd expect to see on a red carpet somewhere.

Alec Baldwin gave $1,000; Jennifer Garner, Rosie O'Donnell and Kiefer Sutherland donated $5,400 apiece. Dreamworks CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg contributed $2,700, and John Slattery of Mad Men gave $2,700.

And that's just the start of a list that includes other Hollywood luminaries from Seth Green, Juliette Lewis and Melissa Rivers to Florence Henderson of The Brady Bunch and Katey Sagal of Married … With Children. Gilbert's sister, actress Sara Gilbert, gave her nearly $1,400.

That's not to say that Gilbert did better than Bishop for the July-September reporting period, however — the first-term congressman out-raised her, barely — or to suggest that she didn't have a sizable number of contributions from Michigan, which appeared to be listed in her finance report. (The FEC has not yet provided for hers or Bishop's quarterly contributions to be tallied electronically by state.)

But it did suggest that Gilbert, a writer, director and producer who is best known for her portrayal of Laura Ingalls Wilder in NBC’s Little House in the 1970s and ’80s, may be able to tap into some deep pockets in New York and California to help fund her bid to take on Bishop in Michigan’s Republican-leaning 8th District next year.

Gilbert, who also is a popular former president of the Screen Actors Guild, moved to the district in 2013 with her husband, actor Timothy Busfield.

Bishop, a former majority leader in the Michigan state Senate who replaced former congressman Mike Rogers this year, raised nearly $214,000 in the three-month period ending Sept. 30, according to his report with the Federal Election Commission.

Of that, more than $146,000 came from political action committees, much of it from industry groups and congressional leadership PACs, including those led by House Speaker John Boehner, House Ways and Means Chairman Paul Ryan and Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton.

While Bishop only did a bit better fundraising than Gilbert in the quarter, he had much more cushion to begin with: His take in the July-September quarter raised his total receipts this election cycle to nearly $530,000 and, as of Sept. 30, he had nearly $400,000 in cash on hand.

Gilbert had far less — $183,000 — on hand at the end of the reporting period, but given that she had collected only $27,000 from PACs — $10,000 of that from New York U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's leadership PAC — and that she did it in about seven weeks’ time suggests that she has plenty of room to grow her fundraising efforts in Democratic circles.

Spangler reports for the Detroit Free Press.

Vice President Biden attends a meeting in the Oval Office on Oct. 16, 2015. (Olivier Douliery, Pool/Getty Images)

This post has been updated.

President Obama declined to comment Friday on whether Joe Biden should seek the White House in 2016, telling reporters that “you can direct those questions to my very able vice president.”

Obama also said he was “very impressed” with the five announced Democratic presidential candidates who participated in Tuesday’s debate, but he declined to make an endorsement, saying that’s up to the voters.

Speaking at a joint news conference with South Korea President Park Geun-hye, Obama confessed he did not watch all of Tuesday’s debate because there  were “some ballgames” going on at the time.

“There was a little bit of clicking back and forth,” Obama said.

Vice President Biden reacts as reporters shout questions asking whether he has made a decision on whether to run for president on Oct. 15, 2015. (Saul Loeb, AFP/Getty Images)

Former senator Ted Kaufman, a longtime top adviser to Vice President Biden, offered clues about Biden’s presidential deliberations in a letter to supporters Thursday night, saying that Biden will run a “campaign from the heart” if he enters the 2016 race.

Kaufman hinted that Biden is close to making a decision.

“I am confident that the Vice President is aware of the practical demands of making a final decision soon,” Kaufman said in his letter, a copy of which was obtained by The News Journal. “He has been in public and political life a long time and he has a good grip on the mechanics around this decision.”

Kaufman, who was appointed by former governor Ruth Ann Minner in 2008 serve out the remainder of Biden’s term in the Senate when he was elected vice president, pledged an “optimistic campaign” from Biden should he decide to seek the Democratic presidential nomination.

“If he runs, he will run because of his burning conviction that we need to fundamentally change the balance in our economy and the political structure to restore the ability of the middle class to get ahead,” Kaufman said. “And what kind of campaign?  An optimistic campaign. A campaign from the heart. A campaign consistent with his values, our values, and the values of the American people. And I think it’s fair to say, knowing him as we all do, that it won’t be a scripted affair — after all, it’s Joe.”

Kaufman’s letter, which was sent late Thursday, was first reported by the Associated Press. The letter comes after reports that former secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s strong performance in the first Democratic presidential made it more difficult for Biden to enter the race and rationalize a campaign.

But Kaufman said Biden’s top consideration remains whether his family can withstand another presidential campaign. The vice president and the Biden family have been considering a campaign just months after the May 30 death of Beau Biden, the vice president’s eldest son and former Delaware attorney general.

“All of you know well that the first and foremost consideration will be the welfare and support of his family,” Kaufman said in the letter. “That’s Joe Biden. He has been clear about this and it is as true today as it has been for the past several months. He is determined to take, and to give his family, as much time as possible to work this through.”

Starkey reports for The News Journal.

The Republican presidential candidates during last month’s debate in California (Associated Press).

This post has been updated

It sounds like CNBC, Donald Trump and other Republicans have resolved their problems over the next GOP presidential debate.

“@CNBC has just agreed that the debate will be TWO HOURS,” Trump tweeted Friday. “Fantastic news for all, especially the millions of people who will be watching!”

The New York Times reported that Republican National Committee officials reached out to senior GOP campaign aides on Friday to inform them that CNBC had decided to keep the debate to two hours, which will include commercials, and allow 30-second opening and closing statements.

Trump, Ben Carson, and other Republican candidates had raised the prospect of boycotting the Boulder, Colo., debate unless CNBC changed some of the rules — namely the length and restrictions against opening and closing remarks.

Trump had accused CNBC of seeking a longer debate in order “to sell more commercials.”

It’s midway through October, so you know what that means — the fundraising numbers for the third quarter are in the house! PARTY TIME (for all you campaign finance nerds). What have we learned from this?

• Hillary Clinton’s donors are making it rain like cray
• Donald Trump doesn’t need your money, but you don’t care
• Lindsey Graham: Can’t stop, won’t stop
• Jeb(!) Bush, remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint
• A single tear is probably rolling down John Kasich’s cheek

Shout-outs to USA TODAY’s Fredereka Schouten, Christopher Schnaars and Mary Orndorff Troyan, and the Cincinnati Enquirer‘s Chrissie Thompson  for poring over all of those numbers so we don’t have to.

Dolla dolla bill, y’all (AP)

#GOPDebateIII: The one where no one comes?

We’re 12 days out from the third Republican debate, but the drama has already begun: Donald Trump and Ben Carson aren’t particularly keen on CNBC not allowing for opening and closing statements (because we haven’t heard those twice already) or on the possibility of the debate going over 120 minutes, including commercials (a point we heartily agree with). They’re so mad about it that they wrote a letter, reports USA TODAY’s David Jackson. And basically threatened not to come if their demands weren’t met. Which sounds a lot like the way Congress works these days. They’re already more like those career politicians than they know.

Trump-Carson 2016 (AP)

Bern, baby, Bern

And there’s are multiple videos to prove it it. God bless America/Ellen DeGeneres.

His appearance on DeGeneres’ show also gave us the gift of another occasion in which he appeared to comb his hair (which he contends is better than Trump’s) and the nickname of “Sandy.” We would also like a pint of “Burn, Bernie, Burn” stat*, especially if we too are stuck wearing briefs on a desert island with Marco Rubio.

*But really, Ben & Jerry’s, get on this.

New Jersey’s over it

The majority of the Republicans in the Garden State, according to Asbury Park Press‘s Bob Jordan, would like to send the following note to their governor:

Dear Chris,
I hope you’ve enjoyed all your time on the road. I wanted to let you know that I’ve found someone else — his name is Donald. He promises that he can make me great again, and isn’t that all anyone wants? I’m sorry to break it to you this way. It’s probably time for you to come home now. We have a lot to talk about.

— N.J.

Time to say goodbye (Mel Evans, AP)

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