[Tapper:] Welcome back to THE LEAD. I'm Jake Tapper. Our politics lead, do you think there aren't enough Republicans running for president? Well, OK. Two more, how do you like that, joining the crowded Republican field today in the race for the White House. Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson officially announcing today they are indeed running for president, with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, who you might recall won the Republican Iowa caucuses in 2008, expected to declare his candidacy tomorrow. CNN's chief congressional correspondent, Dana Bash, joins us live now with all the latest developments. Dana, do Republican officials think that either Fiorina or Carson could actually gain traction?
[Dana Bash, Cnn Chief Congressional Correspondent:] In the short term, probably not. But I think what is fascinating is, you just talked about six. Of the six so far, two Hispanics, one black candidate and one woman. It's a far cry for from what you're used to seeing during Republican presidential primary debates, a GOP stage almost entirely of white men.
[Bash:] A black choir in Detroit singing the songs of rapper Eminem, not exactly what comes to mind when you think Republican presidential announcement, but that's exactly what it was.
[Ben Carson , Presidential Candidate:] I'm Ben Carson, and I'm a candidate for president of the United States.
[Bash:] In a more subdued, but hardly subtle, online video, Carly Fiorina became the only woman in the 2016 GOP field by taking direct aim at the woman on the Democratic side.
[Carly Fiorina , Presidential Candidate:] Our founders never intended to us have a professional political class.
[Bash:] A pair of presidential campaign kickoffs, notable not because they're front-runners, but because they're even running at all. Neither has ever been elected to public office. Ben Carson, a son of a single mother with a third grade education, who became a world renowned pediatric neurosurgeon
[Carson:] I do have a lot of experience in solving problems, complex surgical problems that have never been done by anybody before.
[Bash:] Carson was largely apolitical until his highly political speech just two years ago at the National Prayer Breakfast criticizing Obamacare.
[Carson:] We spent a lot of money on health care, twice as much per capita as anybody else in the world, and yet not very efficient.
[Bash:] That catapulted Carson into Republican superstardom, but the staunch conservative also became notorious for controversial remarks, arguing homosexuality is a choice.
[Carson:] A lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight, and, when they come out, they're gay.
[Bash:] He later apologized, but today owned his gaffes.
[Carson:] I'm probably never going to be politically correct, because I'm not a politician.
[Sen. John Mccain , Arizona:] Thank you, Carly, for being here.
[Bash:] Carly Fiorina's only political experience was advising presidential candidate John McCain...
[Fiorina:] Government does not create jobs.
[Bash:] ... and running unsuccessfully for Senate in California in 2010. She has an American dream story, too, a secretary who rose so far in corporate America, she became the first female CEO of a Fortune 100 company, Hewlett-Packard. Her biggest applause line for conservatives, nominate her and you take the first female president thing off the table for Hillary Clinton.
[Fiorina:] Like Hillary Clinton, I, too, have traveled hundreds of thousands of miles around the globe, but, unlike Mrs. Clinton, I know that flying is an activity, not an accomplishment.
[Bash:] But being a former corporate executive comes with baggage. She lead off tens of thousands of workers, but when she was forced out, she left with more than $20 million in severance. Now, at this point, neither Carly Fiorina nor Ben Carson is registering much in the polls of what will be a very crowded Republican field. Both are in single digits, barely. But, Jake, long-shot candidates are often sometimes very impactful in ways that we don't expect, primarily because they don't have a lot to lose.
[Tapper:] That's right. And we should note that Dr. Carson's mother, Sonya, who you mentioned in that piece, is very ill. And obviously our thoughts and prayers go out to...
[Bash:] And he's not going on the campaign trail. He's going to Texas to be with her.
[Tapper:] Yes. Well, best of luck to her and our thoughts and prayers with them. Let's make a deeper dive into the White House race. CNN political commentator and Democratic strategist Donna Brazile joins us now, as does Bill Kristol, editor of the publication "The Weekly Standard." Bill, candidly, what do you make of either Fiorina or Carson?
[Bill Kristol, Editor, "the Weekly Standard":] I like them both. I think they will add a lot to the race. I think they're each is unlikely to be the nominee.
[Tapper:] What are they going to add to the race?
[Kristol:] Well, Ben Carson actually is one of the leading neurosurgeons in the country, knows a lot about health care, and has a very impressive life story, which he can reflect on. Carly Fiorina, CEO of a major company, a very articulate spokeswoman for conservative views. So, it's good the Republicans we have Democrats should have some diversity. That's a problem. A bunch of people between 65 and...
[Donna Brazile, Cnn Political Analyst:] We have a lot of diversity.
[Kristol:] A whole bunch of white people between 65 and 70. I think it's a real problem for the Democratic Party.
[Tapper:] Donna, as we saw in Dana's spot, Carly Fiorina really trying to position herself as the anti-Hillary, and in fact recently she told an interviewer that she can take on former Secretary of State Clinton because: "I am a woman. There are many things she can't say. She can't play the gender card. She can't talk about being the first woman's president. She can't talk about the war on women." Do you agree? Does she offer that as a as a quality that the others don't?
[Brazile:] But, you know, on the other on the flip side, Carly Fiorina cannot talk about many of the issues that Hillary Clinton can talk about in terms of foreign policy, and talk in terms of the economy. She can't talk about the role that she played in helping New York City recover after that horrific attack on 911. So, I don't think this is about woman on woman, that this is it's much larger than that, but clearly what Hillary Clinton can talk about is the future. She can talk about the economy. And I hope that Carly Fiorina will also talk about those issues.
[Tapper:] And, Bill, Ben Carson is very, very religious. And this is a big part of his pitch and when he talks to people, his relationship with Jesus, and how important God is is that his base that he's going I mean, I know that he holds those views sincerely, but are those his base voters, conservative Christians?
[Kristol:] I think to some degree, but I think it's very good that he's running, because no one can say he's one of these know-nothing religious conservatives who doesn't know anything about science. The guy is one of the leading neurosurgeons in the world, and has been, and has run a whole department at Johns Hopkins. So, I'm happy to have him in the race. And it's good that Donna's defending Hillary here.
[Brazile:] Of course. I will defend her every day, but I will defend Bernie Sanders and any number of other Democrats if they decide to toss their hat in the ring. You know, what I like about Dr. Carson clearly, I will not be supporting him, but I have met him on one or two occasions. He's very passionate, not just about faith, but also about community. And I hope that he will get an opportunity to talk about these issues in the Republican primary, because the Republicans need this conversation, not just on faith. There are many preachers in that congregation. And when I mean preachers, I'm talking about those who know the Bible, but there are not many Republican candidates who could actually talk about what's going on in communities like Baltimore. And I think Dr. Carson will be a much needed voice for that conversation.
[Tapper:] He does have an amazing life story.
[Brazile:] Absolutely.
[Tapper:] Let's turn to the Democrats and the other side of the aisle. The questions about Hillary Clinton and the Clinton Foundation have continued today. I want you to take a listen to what former President Bill Clinton had to say to NBC about his foundation accepting foreign donations while his wife was secretary of state.
[Bill Clinton, Former President Of The United States:] I don't think there's anything sinister in trying to get wealthy people in countries that are seriously involved in development to spend their money wisely in a way that helps poor people and lifts them up. I don't think there's anything bad with that. I think it's good.
[Tapper:] I think it's good. Donna, this controversy, though, doesn't seem to be going away.
[Brazile:] Well, hopefully, there's no controversy about helping poor people, allowing wealthy people to give back to society, and give back on a global scale. That is what the Clinton Foundation is about. President Clinton has chosen to use his celebrity and his power to empower others to give back and to reach to those who don't have resources. So, I support the foundation. I'm one of those $100 donors. So, don't go out and start a foundation any time soon. But I support what they're doing, because he's reaching into places that others have forgotten.
[Tapper:] Bill, you're shaking your head.
[Kristol:] No, the foundation is a big problem. There's huge conflicts of interest, and there are reasons that other secretaries of state have not set up foundations that their husband and daughter are running, where huge contributions are coming from foreign governments, which then those government have business at least pending before the State Department. I am struck my colleague Daniel Halper put it this way. The Hillary Clinton campaign is like a movie that you have paid good money to attend. You pay your $12. You sit you're a third of the way through and you realize, uh, this is really a bad movie. But you sort of pay the money, you hate to leave. So, you say, I will just stay a little longer. And you stay another third of the movie. And then it gets too late to leave. And they are stuck. They're a third of the way through this bad movie and it's getting worse.
[Brazile:] Well, no.
[Kristol:] And will anyone and where is Elizabeth Warren to save us to save us from Hillary Clinton?
[Brazile:] Bill, Bill, Bill...
[Kristol:] That's what I ask you, Donna.
[Brazile:] This is the Republicans trying to find some juice and drippings from a book where there is no gravy. So they're trying to make innuendoes where there's no there's fire where there is no smoke. So I'm sorry that we don't have the controversy that you guys love.
[Tapper:] Juice and drippings and fire. Bill Kristol, Donna Brazile, we appreciate it. Thank you so much as always. Coming up, a New York University student held in North Korea. Our own CNN correspondent is inside the country digging to learn details about his detention. And no need to hack Pay Per View. Instead, thousands saw the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight for free thanks to new live streaming apps. But will they be punished? That's ahead.