inaugural college football playoff. >> did you get to watch any of that yesterday? >> no. college football not my thing. >> really? >> no. >> they say it was a pretty good game. thanks for starting your morning with us. "inside politics" with john king starts right now. president obama promises to narrow the trust gap between african-americans and police. >> too many ameri americans fee unfairness when it comes to the gap between our professed ideals and how laws are applied on a day to day basis. >> the election is over but not the partisan sniping. >> the more the president talks about his ideas, the more unpopular he becomes. >> the new washington is full of old tensions, including tea party complaints that republican leaders just aren't bold enough. >> i would urge to every republican who spent the last

year campaigning across this country saying, if you elect me, we will stop president obama's amnesty. >> plus, a wide open 2016 race on the republican side. "inside politics," the biggest stories sourced by the best reporters now. welcome to "inside politics," i'm john king. welcoming us, robert costa of "the washington post," and malik ka henderson of "the washington post." after a miserable 2014, here's a question to consider this sunday morning. does president obama have an opportunity to end the year on a high note or at least on more stable political ground? yes, there's one more big democratic loss, the louisiana senate runoff. we know republicans will have 54 seats, up from 45, when the new congress convenes next month. but, gas prices are down. friday's job numbers were

robust. the president's executive actions on immigration are stoking the republican civil war and has promised to narrow the gap between trust deficit. >> beyond the specific issue that has to be addressed, making sure people have confidence, that police and law enforcement and prosecutors are serving everybody equally, there's a larger question of restoring common purpose. >> to that question, he had a miserable year. 2014 will be a year he hopes to forget. as it ends and people start to think about a republican congress, you see even in the polls people say they want them to get along, you get in the president's way too much. did they sense the white house can end the year on a better note? >> i think at the white house they hope that looking toward a republican congress where republicans feel responsibility for governing they really can get to a place where there's a little more room for deal

making. listen, they're realistic about the prospects of that. a lot of the things they can work with republicans on, taxes and trade, it's going to be a very tough road to hoe. i do think what's happened in ferguson and with the sort of racial tensions boiling over around the country, the president does see an opportunity to play a coming together role, a unifying role. in that respect, i think he does think he can end the year on a higher note to try to give a hopeful tone to next year. >> that will be full circle for this president. someone who began their career nationally in politics, famous speech in boston in 2004 saying there's no red and blue america. if he were to end his presidency with some efforts of racial reconciliation, it would sort of be a very symmetrical obama era there. >> and it would be good for the country, don't get me wrong, it would be great for the country if he could have that conversation and narrow that trust gap, but would it also in some ways be an admission he has to do bigger, outside of washington things now. important things, don't get me

wrong, because to your point, is he going to cut a grand bargain with republicans? are they get to reach an agreement to significant changes on health care or anything else? >> hard to see that happening. if you see goals from republicans, goals from democrats, there's so much daylight between them, it's hard to see they'll be able to get anything done other than these small ball issues. in terms of obama and race and racial reconciliation, sure, i think a lot of people would like to see that. certainly he catapulted himself to national prominence with this promise. almost a post-racial promise, right? but in reality, i think, you know, a lot of these incidents have shown a divide. and also when obama talks about things, they get worse. >> what does it tell us after the election. sometimes you have a cooling off period. everybody goes off, tries to cool down, get anything done. mitch mcconnell had a private meeting with the president at the white house and said, we'll try to get things done.

speaker boehner in his opening says every time he opens his mouth, his proposals become less possible. mitch mcconnell saying this is a butt-kicking for the president. >> if you look at the way the president reacted to what could only be described as a butt-kicking reaction, so i've been perplexed by the reaction from the election as a in your face move to the left. >> mcconnell and boehner, their old dna loved to cut deals. is this proof they have the grass root conservatives, tea party and others looking over their shoulder? do mcconnell and boehner feel propelled to have this anti-obama bravado? >> as much as old passions from the tea party remain in the gop, there's a pragmatic strain we're seeing emerging. mcconnell, boehner, these are people who want to make deals. look for vice president biden to

be a key player . >> washington has been at its best, which isn't saying much, under the lame duck periods. why is that? because that's typically when the sword over the collective neck of washington. have you to get things done before deadlines. it shows how gridlocked this city is. this is always a pretty ripe season for progress. >> in the white house, i was in the white house a couple days ago, they very much see mitch mcconnell as a dealmaker, the adult in the room, someone they can go to to get things done, in a lot of ways that vice president biden has been the point person. >> mcmcconnell i spent a lot of time with him this summer writing about him, this is someone who is probably in his last term. he's in his 70s. this is his chance to create a legacy for himself. yes, he's a partisan.

as you mentioned, he's also a dealmaker. he wants to get something done with this president in the final two years. it might not be a big deal, entitlements on tax reform but he wants to create a legacy for himself before he retires. >> we talk about the obama/mcconnell relationship -- the mcconnell/boehner relationship. john boehner is the country's top ranking republican. but as mcconnell as the new leader in town, almost more important as to whether this works? >> i would argue, yes. one of the things i've seen on capitol hill since the election, i've been there almost every day, there's a new dynamic in republican power. the house majority led by speaker boehner used to be calling the shots day in and day out. now you have mcconnell with -- running the -- prepared to run the u.s. senate. and he's the one who seems to be playing point guard for the party. and he is the party leader with boehner, of course, but mcconnell i think wants to govern responsibly and set the party up for major gains in '16. that started in 2014 by pushing back the tea party and starts

now by making sure all the passions and eagerness in the house don't overtake the party. >> in a lot of ways, that helps boehner, right? because mcconnell is over there and he has his conference, he has a much tighter rein on that conference than in recent months we've seen speaker boehner has on his conference on the house side. he can make moves like he's going to make on the immigration executive order that shore himself up on the right flank and make sure those people aren't in open rebellion. mcconnell will be there saying, here's the plan, here's what we can do and driving toward what can be a pragmatic set of accomplishments. >> i want to show on you viewers a picture they love at the white house and they don't like if you're speaker boehner or mcconnell. ted cruz standing around with tea party conservatives in the house. this is great for us if you're political journalists, this is great for us. how much of this is a real threat to the republicans getting their act together and doing things -- >> i was there. >> how much was a nuisance? >> i was at the rally. this was a small tea party

rally. probably about 30, 40 people there and the rest were cameras and reporters. the conservatives still have a lot of power in congress. but they are not the power. that's something conservatives are trying to grapple with. >> vocal but less juice in 2014? everybody sit tight. jeb bush on what it takes to win. and why is dr. ben carson moving up in the 2016 polls? first, this week's politicians say the darnedest things. a group called stand with hillary is showcasing its new tune. ♪ and now it's 2016 and this time i'm thinking put your boots on and ♪ ♪ scratch this ceiling ♪ think of one great lady like the women in my life ♪ ♪ she's a mother a daughter and through it all she's a loving wife ♪

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if mitt romney decides to run for president a third time, he would begin as the republican front-runner big time but he says that isn't going to happen. in our brand new poll shows it's a wide open gop race as would-be candidates spend the holidays debating getting in the race. jeb busher is the leader at 14%. dr. ben carson, 11%. mike huckabee, 10%. and then everybody else, all below 10%. others in the fours and fives down there. a lben carson, look at his friends up here, he's the only

one who's not a politician. who is he? you might not know this. he was born in 1951, a native of detroit, michigan, the author of six books. they sell like hot cakes especially in evangelical bookstores. a noted pediatric neurosurgeon. he was a fox news contributor. he just stepped down that post to explore running for presidency. one of the interesting things about ben carson is he's not afraid. he's not shy. listen to a few of the provocative things he is has that, well, raise eyebrows. >> obamacare is really, i think, the worst thing that has happened in this nation since slavery. in a way, it is slavery, because -- because it is making all of us subservient. i mean, very much like nazi germany. i know you're not supposed to say nazi germany, but i don't

care about political correctness. you had a government using its tools to intimidate the population. >> provocative, doesn't care about political correctness, very conservative. has a lot of support out there in the grassroots. is he a serious contender for the nomination or just somebody, if he runs, campaign chairman the other night said they're pretty serious, he'll have an impact on the race. >> yeah he'll have an impact. i don't think he has much chance of winning. he's more of a rick santorum figure and kane without that outside street cred. >> when you travel to iowa, they're sick of the bush family. they're tired of the republican establishment and they're looking for an outsider. and they like someone who is blunt like carson, who has the intellectual background and the education that carson brings. award-winning neurosurgeon and someone with intellectual heft.

they like that because they think it counters the base. >> you mentioned the bush family. a lot of would-be candidates and rubio is waiting for bush. he would have an establishment waiting for him, both the fund-raising establishment, friends of the bush family, campaign aides and operatives. jeb bush was at a wall street journal conference this week and he sounded like a candidate but he says he's not quite there yet. >> i kind of know how a republican can win, whether it's me or someone else, and it has to be much more uplifting, much more positive, much more willing to, you know, to be practical now in a washington world, lose the primary to win the general without violating your principles. it's not an easy task, to be honest. >> i think what he meant there is lose the primary to win the general, meaning don't say things like self-deport. maybe stand up for jeb bush's views on immigration which is

con temporary to the republican base, maybe stand up and stand up on the common core education standards. can you fight your party, stand up against your party on important issues like that and win? >> we have to take him although his word, it's impossible to lose the primary and win the general. he of all people knows how difficult this would be. i think immigration would have be a part of any jeb bush run. that's a very tough road to hoe. >> the cham bers of commerce types who love the prospect of a jeb bush candidate loved that event. they said he was talking about policy, the campaign, optimistic, leaning in, but when you call around to the states, you still get a lot of -- even people who say they got calls from bush operatives, they don't buy it yet. they want to hear directly from him. why the doubts? >> beyond the personal, i think there are also questions because they know that jeb bush doesn't fools gladly and running for a

president, that's part of the question. you have to go to fund-raisers and nod a lot and say, that's a great idea. thanks for your support. it's not pleasant. the question is, how bad does he want it? does he want it bad enough to do that? there are a lot of folks who increasingly think he might, who have been skeptical before. i think you'll hear in the next month or so, one fast reminder, you don't have to get 50.1 to get the republican nomination. i think if he does find a way to get in and run, i think it would be with the expectation that the right would divide up the base of the party and he would run on an unapologetic center right campaign. >> what is that center right campaign? i don't see the fire in the belly. he's not familiar with the conservative movement, the republican party has changed since he left office. he talks about running a joyous campaign. it's not a joyous experience. >> there is an establishment in the party and a lot of the money

people really want him to run. hillary clinton has been careful but in boston she decided to speak about ferguson and the grand jury case where the grand jury declined to indict the police officer. listen to hillary clinton here. >> we have allowed our criminal justice system to get out of balance. and i personally hope that these tragedies give us the opportunity to come together as a nation to find our balance again. >> why -- good for her but why speak out on this issue and not so many others? >> i think before when this happened -- ferguson first happened, there was a lot of why hasn't she spoken out about this particular issue because, you know, democrats, particularly hillary clinton, would need african-american voters to rally

behind her candidacy, so there was a question of, why was she dragging her feet? she spoke out there. not the most impassioned way of talking about it. i think she spoke about it in a much clearer way when this first happened. she talked about how would you feel, white america, if you had to, you know, sort of exist under these same conditions in terms of the criminal justice system. she was actually borrowing a line from bill clinton, but never mind that. >> she's going to do a lot of that. >> not the first or last time that's happened. >> everyone stand by. our great reporters get you out ahead of the political news around the corner, including hillary clinton's possible timetable for that big decision. the conference call.

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around the "inside politics" table. >> 17 have signed on to sue the president over this executive order on immigration reform. led by greg abbott, the incoming governor in texas. if you look at the list of governors, it's all republicans. it includes people who might be in the mix in 2016. people like mike pence, people like bobby jindal, scott walker. does not include chris christie. chris christie says he doesn't want to talk at all about immigration reform, and he won't do that unless he decides to run.

it's a question of whether or not this lawsuit will be kind of a litmus test going forward in 2016, whether or not he'll be pressured to sign on and how he's going to navigate that. that will be interesting to watch over the next couple of weeks. >> a couple governors signed on might be persuaded. >> rick snyder, the governor of michigan, has not gotten the same attention as some other gop governors. he was in washington this past week, got an award from "governing magazine" and while in the capital his folks reached out to reporters and brought them in to talk to the governor. it's a great dance you know. you talk to these politicians and they're waiting for to you ask the question. you finally do. do you want to run for president? of course, he has to enter down, he's fully focused on michigan and telling the michigan story and chief in that is the fact that the unemployment rate has dropped in the state so hard hit by the recession. but he's someone who wants to at the very least be in the mix for 2016. he has sort of a jeb bush style

republican. pro common core. very, very supportive of immigration reform. but keep an eye on rick snyder of michigan, one tough nerd, as he calls himself. who won a second term in a democratic state. >> interesting to see a republican governor from deep blue michigan. >> if house republicans are able to avoid a government shutdown over immigration. speaker john boehner will get a lot of credit and probably deservedly so for wrangling his caucus together and getting it through. another person who needs deserves, the new house house majority whip from louisiana, who's been able to finagle this thing for the last few days and maybe sure conserve ties feel part of the leadership and they aren't looking for a showdown. he's been helpful to boehner and bringing conservatives along. >> julie? >> we're starting to see the first glimmerings of a bigger

rift between the white house and congressional democrats. which we've seen suggestions of in the past and certainly in the weeks after the election. the white house is angry that chuck schumer went out and said, democrats shouldn't focus as much on the health care law, it hurt them in the midterms. i think we'll see in the months and weeks ahead, a real sort of division starting to emerge, especially as the white house starts to really press on trade, which is an issue that divides democrats. i think we'll see that daylight get even brighter. >> worth watching that one as the party strays out. put your money on later rather than sooner. later meaning when will hillary clinton if she's running for president. most expect that answer will be yes but there's been a debate in her camp whether she should say so soon, clear up the confusion in the party, or sit back and wait because her position is so strong in the polls. i'm told she's in no hurry to make this decision and among those the most, most agree

there's no reason to rush it. don't expect it before the year ends or too early next year either. thanks for sharing your sunday morning. "state of the union" with candy crowley starts right now. an american and south african hostage are killed in yemen amidst a clash between u.s. special forces and al qaeda operatives. also today, all in the family politic style. >> it's a love story. i'm not the least bit ashameded to say, it's not very objective. >> our conversation with george w. bush with a portrait of his father 43 on 41 and could there be a 45? >> if i need to reiterate it, i will. run, jeb. >> thank you, all. >> then, a new texas dynasty rises. he's the secretary of housing and urban development and the newly elected congressman from san antonio.