that's all for this televised edition of "reliable sources." but send me a tweet, let me know what you thought of today's show. stay tuned "state of the union" starts right now. uncharted territory. is there a break in the u.s./israeli bond. and is senator ted cruz about to relight a 2016 white house run? this is "state of the union." senator john mccain on escalating tensions between israel and the u.s. congressman steve israel on religion and politics. new fears about the reach and influence of isis. and ted cruz he's all in for 2016. good morning from washington.

i'm gloria borger. the u.s./israeli relationship at a crossroads. first, prime minister benjamin netanyahu rejected the possibility of a palestinian state during his re-election bid, but after he won he walked back his comments. now president obama says the u.s. is evaluating its options. joining me this morning is senator john mccain of arizona. senator, thanks so much for being with us this morning. the president says he's re-evaluating. he clearly was unhappy with what bibi netanyahu said about the palestinian state during his campaign. let me play for you something the president said to the "huffington post." >> when he said it wouldn't happen during his prime ministership and so that's why we've got to evaluate what other options are available to make sure that we don't see a chaotic

situation in the region. >> senator, are we at a dangerous point here in relations between u.s. and israel? >> well, i think that's up to the president of the united states. look, there was a free and fair democratic election. the only nation in the region that will have such a thing. the president should get over it. get over your temper tantrum, mr. president. it's time that we work together with our israeli friends and try to stem this tide of isis and iranian movement throughout the region, which is threatening the very fabric of the region. the least of your problems is what bibi netanyahu said during an election campaign. if every politician were held to everything they say in a political campaign, obviously that would be a topic of long discussion, but the point is, is the j.v., as the president described them, is just moving over into yemen. we see this horrible situation

in libya. we see isis everywhere in the world. we see the iranians now backing the shia militias in tikrit where they're going to massacre a number of sunnis and it is the guy in charge is a guy named solhomeni who imported, excuse me, i'll catch up here, solhomeni moved thousands of copper-tipped i.e.d.s into iraq and killed hundreds of american soldiers and marines and the president of the united states is praising their behavior in the region and the mullahs. this is one of the most orwelian situations i've ever observed. >> you called the president's response to bibi netanyahu a temper tantrum. why is it a temper tantrum if netanyahu ostensibly rejects

during his campaign the very basis for decades of american policy heading towards some kind of a peace process? should the president just sort of pay no attention to that? >> i think the president maybe shouldn't like it, but thousands are being slaughtered by isis. the iranians have now taken over the major capitals of lebanon, syria, beirut and baghdad, and it pales in significance to the situation which continues to erode throughout the middle east and it puts america at risk. bibi's rhetoric concerning an election campaign pales in comparison as to the threat, the direct threat to the united states of america of isis. this is -- the president has his priorities so screwed up that it's unbelievable.

>> well, he's also apparently considering signing a u.n. resolution calling for a palestinian state. what would be your reaction if he did that? should he even be considering that? >> of course he shouldn't be considering it and second of all, if he does that, it would be approved by the u.n., then the united states congress would have to examine our funding for the united nations. it would be -- it would be a violation because the president's anger over a statement by bibi -- by the prime minister of israel, it would be -- contradict american policy for the last at least ten presidents of the united states. >> so you think this is something the president in no way, shape, or form should do. >> which is more important, gloria, a statement made by a politician in the heat of a campaign or the wholesale

slaughter that is going on throughout the middle east? the president at the same time is praising the ayatollahs at the same time he has got this idea of this faustian bargain with the iranians who are on the march about a few days ago. could you just mention, a few days ago, david petraeus said that iran is a greater threat in the middle east than isis is. >> i'm going to get to iran. >> i agree with him. >> one more thing that angers the president about bibi netanyahu before we get to iran. the way he campaigned and said that the arabs are many kolcoming out in droves and the president told the "huffington post" that this gives ammunition to folks who don't believe in a jewish state. do you think that statement by netanyahu is kind of over the line? >> i think that politicians make statements. >> okay. >> i know that israel is our most reliable ally.

it is the only place where you will see a campaign where statements are made by one side or the other. you have to put it in perspective of this incredible threat to the entire middle east with isis on the march with the iranians on the march, with thousands of people being slaughtered and killed, young women being -- >> you think the president is letting his personal feelings toward netanyahu get in the way of important policy issues. >> i am convinced of it. >> okay. >> i am convinced of it, because either that or he is delusional. i am not sure which. >> let me get to iran, which we need to talk about, because there is -- there are nuclear negotiations going on. some movement over the weekend. senator kerry said that -- sorry, secretary of state kerry said there has been some progress as did iran's president. from what you know about the progress, is this something that you think is getting towards a

deal you might be able to live with? >> i don't think they'll reach a deal we can live with because as henry kissinger testified before our committee, we've gone from eliminating iran's capability to develop a nuclear weapon to delaying it, and that, of course, is unacceptable to most of -- to most of us and i would imagine it may be enough to have enough votes in the united states senate to not approve of it. we will insist on approval and not going to the united nations. >> let me ask you this. this week i'm sure you know that president obama himself sent a new year's message to the iranian people which spoke a little bit about this pending deal. let's take a look at it and then i'll have you comment on the other side. >> the weeks ahead will be critical. our negotiations have made progress but gaps were made, and there are people in both our countries and beyond who oppose

a diplomatic resolution. my message to you, the people of iran, is that together we have to speak up for the future we seek. >> what do you think about that message? was he referring to people like you when he said there are people who oppose a diplomatic resolution? >> i'm sure he was, and i wish he had spoken to the people of iran in 2009 when they rose up against a corrupt election and he refused to speak out on their behalf while they were chanting obama, obama, are you with us or are you with them? again, does he believe that anyone in iran is able to speak up? are they able to speak up for anything that the mullahs disagree with? they're either jailed or killed. this is a world view the president has which is totally divorced from reality. >> well, let me -- some could say that you and other senators were interfering, in a way, with

the president's negotiations when you were 1 of 47 senators who signed the letter to iran's leader saying that congress needs to approve any deal that iran enters into. did you feel in any way, shape or form before you signed on the dotted line, you've run for president yourself, that this was undermining the commander in chief before you even knew what he might be thinking of? >> what triggered it, gloria, was the president's announcement that no matter what congress voted as far as ratification of this agreement, and clearly it's so important it deserves the approval or disapproval of congress, he immediately announced he would veto any resolution from congress. that's what triggered the letter and the events. >> should it have been written to the mullahs? >> well i think that mullahs ought to know that congress will play a role. and we will do everything in our power to make sure we do play a

role because we think that's our constitutional obligations. >> you criticize what obama did with the video. isn't what you guys did the same thing as obama did, talking to different segments in iran to a degree? >> well, we were talking to the leaders who are hanging people every day who disagree with him, and he was supposedly speaking to people who have a voice in iran and they don't. no human rights activists will tell you that. >> let me change subjects on you for a moment because you were also in the news this week. we have a fight in the united states senate over the nomination of loretta lynch to be attorney general. it's in limbo now. it's in procedural limbo. it's now part of an unrelated fight over abortion. now there's an open brawl, i would have to say, on the senate floor over whether the delay was racially motivated. let's take a listen to what your colleague, democratic senator

dick durbin said and have you talk about it. >> loretta lynch, the first african-american woman nominated to be attorney general, is asked to sit on the back of the bus when it comes to the senate calendar. that is unfair. it's unjust. >> senator, wasn't just dick durbin the head of the congressional black caucus joined him in saying that this delay was racially motivated. what's your response? >> my response is that you can't erase history. these same democrats led by senator durbin filibustered janice rogers-brown first african-american to a seat on that court. they filibustered miguel estrada. this has nothing to do with race. it has everything to do with trying to get the legislation

through which would prevent or help prevent this horrible issue of sexual trafficking that is going on. and also i will add to that. i will not vote for her because she has said she would uphold the president's unconstitutional executive orders concerning immigration. >> what did you expect her to say? senator, what did you expect her to say? she's a nominee of the president. she said it was reasonable. wouldn't you expect the president's nominee for attorney general to have looked into what the president did and then say it was reasonable? i mean -- >> gloria, i'm very quaint and old-fashioned. i expect people to tell the truth when they testify before congressional committee when there nominations are there for senatorial approval. i expect her to tell the truth. she supports -- she supports it then and she calls it reasonable, then i cannot support her nomination because they are not constitutional. >> why not have a vote and have it not tied up in all of this

other rigamarole that it's tied up with? why not just call for a separate vote on the senate floor and have it either stand or fall? >> i totally agree, and we offered -- senator cornyn offered a very reasonable compromise that has to do with shifting the funding to the appropriations committee and that was turned down. yeah. that's a little arcane but we've offered compromises. >> i have to do one last switch of subjects on you because cnn has confirmed this morning that senator ted cruz, a colleague of yours, from texas is going to announce his candidacy for the presidency tomorrow morning at liberty university. do you think senator cruz is somebody who could lead the republican party to victory against hillary clinton? >> if the republicans party nominates him, i do. he is a valued member of the

senate armed services committee. he and i are friendly and i think he is a very viable candidate. >> that's not an endorsement though, is it, senator? >> no. you know lindsey graham is my -- is my -- the one i think that knows best about national security. >> okay. thanks so much, senator mccain. thanks for being with us from arizona this morning. >> thanks for having me on. and next -- is the strained relationship between prime minister netanyahu and president obama dividing american jews? congressman steve israel is here to talk about that up next.

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was the right move for us. ask your doctor about xarelto®. you may be able to get up to 12 months at no cost. the open split between president obama and prime minister netanyahu prompted republican congressman steve king to say this on friday to boston herald radio. >> here's what i don't understand. i don't understand how jews in

america can be democrats first and jewish second and support israel along the line of just following their president. >> with us is democratic congressman steve israel a member of the house leadership who took great personal offense to what king said. congressman, i want to read to you something you tweeted. you said and i quote, "i don't need congressman steve king questioning my religion or my politics. i demand an apology from him and repudiation from the gop." have you gotten either congressman? >> still waiting, gloria. look i lean to the right on u.s. u.s.-israeli relatios. i'm a staunch hawk on those issues. i escorted bibi netanyahu into the chamber and out of the chamber. i really do not needless sons from people like steve king on what it means to be jewish or a democrat. steve king who said that america is a christian nation should not be lecturinge inging jews about we

should be jewish. steve king doesn't know what chutzpah is but steve king talking about how we can't be democrat or jews at the same time? that's hut spas huttzpah. >> somehow if you support bibi netanyahu as a jew that somehow you are not supportive of israel. how do you personally feel about that? >> look. that great scholar steve king is weighing -- going into areas he knows nothing about. the fact of the matter is that i choose to support israel because it's good for the united states. i've had disagreements with the president on israel. and my leadership on israel is based on one thing, and that is that a strong israel is a secure america.

i hadn't seen steve king at any of the hearings there to increase funding for the iron dome or arrow systems. steve king wasn't with me when i went to israel when the rockets were flying from gaza and hamas. he didn't show up then. i'm not going to take lectures from republicans like steve king about how to support israel. >> how do you feel about bibi netanyahu's treatment of the president? >> you know, everybody needs to just take a deep breath and step back. bibi netanyahu has said, and i fully agree with him, that the most important strategic asset that israel has is bipartisanship in the united states congress. he is right about that. it does israel no service and does the united states no service to make it a partisan football. >> to get back to my question, how do you believe bibi netanyahu treated this president by coming before the congress, being invited by john boehner whom i might add is going back to israel, do you think that netanyahu is essentially

throwing his lot in with the republicans to a degree? >> you know, there's the personality and then there's the policy. look, ronald regan provided $8.5 billion in sophisticated awacs weaponry to the saudis and people said, oh, my gosh, this is a major division between the president of the united states and the prime minister of israel back in the 1980s. who cares. what counts is on the substance. on the substance the relationship between the united states and israel has never been closer on military and strategic and intel issues. gloria, let me give you proof -- >> let me just say, john mccain just said that president obama is throwing what he called a temper tantrum against bibi netanyahu and that he ought to get over it. do you disagree with mccain about the president and his relationship with netanyahu? >> i do not believe it's helpful to that strategic asset, the

bipartisan relationship between israel and the united states, for people to begin using israel as a political football. to reduce israel to a sound bite, to talk about who called who, who's angry at who. what counts is are we providing israel with the critical security equipment technologies they need. and on that, we are. i would remind john mccain that when the rockets flew from hamas to israel, it was in fact president obama who asked congress to support $225 million in emergency funding for the iron dome system. it was the congress who supported that supplemental request. four republicans voted against it. four democrats voted against it. that's not a hemorrhage in the relationship between the countries. >> but are you as a leader in the house democratic party, are you worried about an erosion of support among democrats for israel given this sort of current rift in the relationship between the two leaders? >> not at all because there's no evidence of it.

the fact of the matter is, in congress there's no erosion of support. every democrat except for four supported iron dome funding, every republican except for four supported iron dome funding. i don't see that erosion anywhere else throughout the country. have there been flash points between the united states and israel in the past, show me a president since harry truman, i'll show you the flash points. what counts and what we need to do is get back to the fundamentals and stop thinking about the drama. there's all the drama about the president waited two days to call bibi netanyahu. it reminds me of my jewish mother in phoenix, arizona, to say you had to wait two days to call me? who cares whether it's two days one day. what counts, are we supporting israel and providing them the security they need? and on that it does israel no service for republicans to make it a partisan football and it does israel no service for us to get caught up in the hype and the drama of personalities. what counts is the policy. >> thanks so much, congressman steve israel.

always call your mother, of course. thank you so much. >> of course, gloria, thank you. a dozen years after the u.s. invasion of iraq, thanks to isis the conflict is still not in the rear-view mirror. two iraq war veterans now serving in congress are right here. that's next. ♪ turn around ♪ ♪ every now and then i get a little bit hungry ♪ ♪ and there's nothing good around ♪ ♪ turn around, barry ♪ ♪ i finally found the right snack ♪ [ female announcer ] fiber one.

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twelve years after the iraq war, america pulled out combat troops but there were almost 3,000 so-called advisors back in the country helping to train and bolster iraqi forces to battle isis. i'm joined now by democratic congresswoman chelsea gabber.

she served two tours of duty in the middle east and republican congressman adam kinsinger who served as an air force pilot in iraq. thank you both for your service and thank you for being here this morning. we wanted to have you folks on the show because it is 12 years since the iraq war began and the story this week that seems to be growing is what's going on there and the growth of isis growing more powerful and more deadly launching attacks in tunisia, in yemen. this morning we got word that they're calling for beheadings in the united states. are you concerned that the scope of this problem has grown so much while a solution to isis seems to be slipping away? >> i think that that's exactly the point, is that as we look at this threat of isis and islamic extremism conducting these violent acts of terrorism, not only in iraq and syria, but as we're seeing now in other parts

of the world and on soft targets like we just saw in tunisia, it goes back to the underlying question which is what is our strategy to defeat this threat. we have to go back to recognizing that this is a military component, absolutely to being able to defeat this threat but there also to has to be an understanding of the sectarian civil war and political solutions that will be necessary to do that as welling a the ideological element that's allowing isis to continue to grow to continue to recruit not only in the middle east but all of these foreign fighters who are going there. >> we've been training iraqi forces for years be as you two know better than i do. and they greatly outnumber isis. yet they can't seem to even take back tikrit from isis right? so the question is do you foresee a day in the near future when the iraqi forces would actually be capable of driving isis out without u.s. combat

forces there with them? >> possibly. but let's -- when i left iraq in '09 -- >> possibly is not -- >> that's all i can give you. when i left iraq in '09 we had the war won. iraqi forces were actually acting pretty well. we had the military component figured out and whaten i was flying we were finding bad guys and doing mop-up operations. i went back just six months ago as a congressman and to see what happened there is disappointing. with iraqi forces, when we left in 201 1 maliki basically made the force a secular force for shias, had leadership folks that were in there that had no ability to lead troops. what happens is leadership melted away in the face of isis and as any low-level soldier is going to do if their leaders run, they're going to run too. >> it's because we didn't leave a residual force. >> i think a residual force was important but i think we lost the ability to influence the iraqi military and it became secular. >> then the question is can we get it back. >> the residual force i think is a sidebar point. the underlying issue there is

exactly what you mentioned, the fact that starting with the bush administration continuing now, the united states has supported propping up this shia-led iranian influence government in baghdad that has completely oppressed the sunni people creating this oxygen for isis to be able to come in and tell them look we'll help you. >> as your option who else do you back though? >> well this is where we should empower each of the different people. we shouldn't be choosing sides and funding and propping up the shias versus the sunnis in this sectarian war. >> i agree with that. keep in mind up until the residual force, i think it's not -- not to continually revisit history, but this is why it is important to talk about why pulling the residual force out was bad, was because we disengaged politically with iraq. iran engaged and also you had the sectarian impulses that aen gauged. it takes a while to get this right. >> let me just read to you both something that david petraeus said this week that kind of

struck me. he commanded troops as you well know during the surge in 2007 to 2008. he said "it is impossible to return to iraq without a keen sense of opportunities loss. this includes the squandering of what we and our coalition and iraqi partners paid such a heavy cost to achieve." this has to have a lot of meaning for both of you. you say you were just back. how do you respond to what the general said? >> well i think adam is of the same mind as i am in our hearts every day, we carry with us this incredibly high human cost of war. the friends who we lost there, who didn't get to come back home. and it's for me why i feel so strongly about. as we look at the future as we look at the question that we're dealing with right now about the united states' role in defeating isis in defeating this islamic extremist threat is that we don't repeat the same mistakes

of the past that we truly understand who our enemy is what's driving them so that we can come to a clear and effective strategy to defeat them and protect the american people. >> was that your feeling when you went back? >> oh yes. i mourned it. it was heart breaking to see a 13-year-old girl with her siblings that are younger than her because she lost her parents to isis. but we have to be clear-eyed about the real enemy in this. i think as general petraeus said the shia militia is an issue. the iranian influence in iraq is an issue. that's why it is important for us to step up. iraq is slitliterally looking out and saying we've got to survive here. but iran's help doesn't come without a very steep price. >> i think the question of how we step is is what we're really considering here. the sunni tribesmen came to washington a couple months ago and said we need your help we need arms we need weapons to fight against isis. we look at the battles now in

tikrit and what we expect will happen in mosul. unless there is a plan for these sunnis to take control of these sunni-dominated communities, we're not going to see isis diminish in iraq. >> thanks to both of you for being here this morning. thank you, again, for your service. >> it is an honor. thank you. and, ted cruz. about to be the first candidate to officially jump in to the 2016 presidential race. our political panel will weigh in next. flo: hey, big guy. i heard you lost a close one today. look, jamie, maybe we weren't the lowest rate this time. but when you show people their progressive direct rate and our competitors' rates you can't win them all. the important part is, you helped them save. thanks, flo. okay, let's go get you an ice cream cone, champ. with sprinkles? sprinkles are for winners. i understand. the road. it can bring out the worst in people. but the m-class scans for danger... ...corrects for lane drifting...

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things are ramping up for 2016 already. a senior adviser to ted cruz tells cnn that the texas senator will announce his 2016 presidential run tomorrow at liberty university in virginia. can other republicans and hillary clinton be far behind? i don't think so. joining me around the table, cnn political commentator ana navaro, ken cuchinelli and donna brazile. ken, you're a friend of ted cruz's. can you tell us why he's doing it now and why he's doing it at liberty university? >> i don't know that i can speak to now except that to your comment on the way in here, this is going to start rolling out. whether he may be official tomorrow, but others, rand paul, jeb bush, scott walker have been

running unofficially anyway. that particular part of the timing isn't as interesting to me as announcing at liberty is to me. >> why? >> because i think senator cruz is probably one of the leaders, if not the leader in the movement conservative leg of the republican coalition. this looks to me like a play to compete with huckabee among the more socially focused conservatives, evangelical conservatives certainly it being liberty university. >> ana navorro, there's a lot of ways to the republican party as we know. it's a very broad and deep field this time. as we say, rand paul is going to get in, huckabee is going to get in, now you've got ted cruz getting in. i recently spent some time with governor john kasich of ohio who is kind of at a different wing of the party and he was in new hampshire this week. i spent some time with him in south carolina. listen to what he says.

>> when i ran in 2010 i received self-identified conservatives 80% of their vote. i can't think of anything that's more conservative or more right in terms of what america's about than opportunity for everybody. >> do you think this is a problem for the republican party? >> i will tell you this. if somebody comes into ohio and they're extreme, they're not going to win. i mean, we don't operate that way in ohio. >> well, there goes ohio for ted cruz. >> right. i mean -- >> you would like to think so. >> no republican has won the presidency without the state of ohio. >> no republican has won the presidency without running as a conservative since barry goldwater. >> democrats have won in the last several elections. 18 electoral votes. with all respect to virginia -- >> those two republicans didn't run as conservatives. >> i think what you're seeing with ted cruz and john kasich who are on different sides of the spectrum in the republican party is that we are going to have a lot of different flavors.

this is going to be the baskin robbins of primaries. it will be frankly a fun one. this one i was at the rnc retreat in boca. many of the potential 2016 candidates showed up. i can see their stump speeches getting better. it's fun to see them courting the voters, visiting the early states. for all of us who are political junkies, this is spring training. it is a fun, good process. that make candidates better. >> speaking of fun, and i have to go to our democratic -- >> i had a fun watch of the republicans, trust me. >> we woke up to read "the boston globe" which called for elizabeth warren to run and to challenge hillary clinton. i want to play you -- i tried that a little bit with elizabeth warren during mid-term elections and asked her if she was going to run, and here's what she said to me. >> i'm not running for president. >> okay. >> i am not running for president. i am not running for president.

>> i am not running for president. >> but if hillary didn't run you might give it a shot? >> i am not running for president. >> what about that? >> the senior senator from the great state of massachusetts, she's not running. she's made it very clear to a lot of people that she's not running. that hasn't stopped democrats from just about every wing in the party calling upon her to throw her hat, throw her gloves in the ring. she would make a fantastic candidate. she's the only one talking about the middle class families. the struggles of young people. i think she would be able to capture a lot of the other side -- >> why didn't she run? is it the women's groups who are saying, no, no, this is hillary's turn? >> i think she has made a decision that she wants to be in the senate. she wants to continue to champion those issues for the middle class. you know what? there's time for her to run at some point. >> if i was a hillary clinton supporter and i think people should be begging, pleading, sending money to elizabeth warren to run because it's going to make it a more interesting campaign. right now if you remember 2008,

everybody was titillated between the obama/clinton primary that stretched out to june. on the republican side mccain wrapped it up in february and there was nothing going on and nobody was paying attention. i think number one hillary clinton needs the practice. we've seen she's not at the top of her political game with her book rollout and this e-mail scandal. you know it's going to be boring. 7 >> well, look, can i make a positive comment about elizabeth warren? hopefully the tape isn't rolling. for the record, i don't read "the boston globe." i'm glad to know about the editorial. but, she is tapping into something on the left that you're also seeing ted cruz tap into on the right, and that is sort of an honesty and a sincerity with what they believe and not shying away from it. i give her credit for that. if you look back to the cromnibus debate -- >> don't say cromnibus. >> both parties were saying this

special deal for wall street we're sticking if we're sticking in here. this is not only bad, it's wrong. >> why don't republicans start talking about wall street? >> you will see that. you pay more attention to the left. >> not true. >> i'm no john mccain fan, but you were pretty tough on him. >> he can handle it. >> yeah, he's been through tougher than that. >> he likes it. he's been through worse. >> this is a good kind of populism. this is legislation for all-americans not for special interests. and it's interesting, one thing that this president has proven in the political side is that running to your base works. i mean, romney won independents by eight points and lost the election because so many people in the republican base stayed home. i think the reason for the "boston globe" editorial and for disenchantment on the left is

they're just not that happy. obama left activists are not happy with hillary clinton and she is not going to motivate barack obama -- >> i don't think this is an anti-hillary vote. the folks who are supporting would like to see -- >> some of it is. >> this is a -- this is a group of americans who want to see a change in the way we operate both on the left and the right. and they think elizabeth warren can capture the middle. >> before we leave this morning i know ana wants to talk about a piece that was in the washington post that was a very lengthy article about colomba bush and her life as she grew up and her abusive father. the question i think we were talking about in the green room before is this now just part of the territory for any family when somebody runs for the presidency? >> frankly, i think that piece went too far. i'm very disappointed with "the washington post." i've seen the same exact piece in two other publications but never in a serious newspaper. i think it's tabloid journalism.

we know candidates are going to get scrutiny and their spouses and family. i will tell you scrutinize the candidate. put him through the sieve. rake him through the coals. look at everything he or she has done. look at what kind of first lady, first gentleman the person that's with them might be. do you have to small village in mexico and start digging there you a pain painful childhood with an abusive father? do you have to question whether she's proud of being hispanic? i know her. i know she's proud of having been born in mexico. it is a large part of who she is. i think this is tabloid journalism at its worst and i think it is really frankly, going over the line. and it is the price that people are paying for going into politics and why more good people are not running for office. it's a darn shame. >> ana, you'll have the last

word on that. i'm sure you'll be hearing from the reporters who did that story. >> she better not call me. i got nothing good to tell her. >> thank you all. next up what was it like to come out as a gay member of congress in the 1980s? my conversation with former congressman barney frank up next. man (sternly): where do you think you're going? mr. mucus: to work, with you. it's taco tuesday. man: you're not coming. i took mucinex to help get rid of my mucusy congestion. i'm go od all day. [announcer:] mucinex keeps working. not 4, not 6 but 12 hours. let's end this

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he has a new book called "frank, a life in politics from the great society to same-sex marriage." in it he describes his long career in politics and coming out. i asked him about his early conversations about being gay. >> i knew a book was about to come out that hinted that i was gay. people ignored it. but i didn't know that. i went and said, tip, a book is going to come out that i'm gay. he said oh barney don't let that bother you. they'll always spin that "bleep" about us. don't let that bother you. i said well in this case it's true. i'm gay. he said, i'm so sad. said you could have had a career in leadership and that would destroy it. later mike barnicle great pal of the speakers a journalist, met with him. barnicle said, oh, mike, i'm sad.

barney frank is in politics. he said, what's happening? he said, i think he's going to come out of the room. [ laughter ] >> tip was a very bright guy. people underestimated him. he always got the music right but he had trouble sometimes with the words. >> was it right? >> yes and no. it clearly meant i couldn't be in the leadership. not that the other members were homophobic. but when you're a member if you vote for somebody, that could be used against you in your district. as far as the voters were concerned, my colleagues in the house, i was presently surprised it had almost no negative effect. >> you think they knew you were gay? >> some did, most did not for a couple of reasons. first of all, during that period, particularly under stress. i tend to eat a lot. for a variety of reasons i did not conform to a gay stereotype. let's be honest, i was much to badly dressed from the standpoint of a lot of people to think i was gay. >> do you think now that there are still closeted gay members of congress? >> yes.

>> and is it okay for a gay politician to remain closeted if he wants to? >> yes. as long as he or she is supportive of legal protections. the issue where they lose me is hypocrisy. what i think is unacceptable is to vote a certain set of rules as an elected official and then violate them yourself. if you're a democrat, republican, whatever, and you vote to allow people to do what you do, i have no demand you become public. >> more of that interview at cnn.com/sotu. next up, what did president obama and the 2016 presidential hopefuls have in common? they are all watching their brackets. march madness when we come back. next to me. and then i saw him, slowly coming down the aisle. one of those guys who just can't stop talking. i was downloading a movie. i was trying to download a movie. i have verizon. i don't. i get that little spinning wheel. download didn't finish.

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how do we know march madness is here? president obama unveiled his bracket on espn. >> i'm not a pundit but i agree arizona has the best chance to upset kentucky. i don't think they quite pull it off. >> 2016 presidential hopefuls are also getting in on the action.

so what do their brackets tell us? they all showed early caucus state iowa some love. no surprise there. scott walker, ted cruz, rick santorum and martin o'malley picked iowa state to make it to the final four. jeb bush picked the school to reach the elite eight, as did carly fiorina. others keeping it close to home. louisiana governor bobby jindal picked lsu to win it all, while walker chose wisconsin. former maryland governor martin o'malley picked, you guessed it, maryland. lindsey graham joined many of the 2016 hopefuls and went with the odds picking heavily-favored kentucky to win the national title. jeb bush and carly fiorina chose a swing state school to win it all -- the university of virginia. what about hillary clinton, her own contest might be around the corner.

but as for march madness, she's having none of it. thanks for watching "state of the union." i'm gloria borger in washington. "fareed zakaria gps" starts right now. this is "gps," the global public square. welcome to all of you in the united states and around the world, i'm fareed zakaria. we'll begin the show with benjamin netanyahu's re-election to a fourth term as prime minister of israel. his pre-election maneuvers appear to have put him on a collision course with the obama administration. just how bad have things gotten between israel and washington and who is to blame? bibi or barack? we have great reporting and a spirited debate. then on wednesday, another foreign leader will address congress. but this one will actually be welcomed at the white house.