live pictures here, and we have been watching them all morning. they are trying to put a containment cap on the well in the gulf coast to try and stop the flow of the oil. you can see the live pictures, it's a lot of work. great live pictures we are looking at. it has been fascinating all morning. >> big weekend and big next couple days. we thank you for hanging out with us as always. a safe trip back to d.c. time to hand it over to "state of the union" and candy crow low. the united states of america versus the state of arizona. a legal showdown over illegal immigration. for or against arizona's new law, the issue ignites the streets, but it's not an even divide across the country. cnn polling shows 57% of americans support the arizona

law and 37% don't. do you want your state to pass a similar law? 48% of americans said yes. 35%, no. immigration is just one in a series of issues costing president obama. a "newsweek" poll found a majority of americans disapprove of his handling of the war in afghanistan, 53% to 37%, and his handling of the economy, 58% to 38%. has the president hit a rough patch or is he on the wrong path? today, the president navigates an election year. >> i believe we can put politics aside -- >> white house senior adviser, david axelrod on policy. and trent franks and bill richardson with us. the man in charge of

compensating spill victims, kenneth feinberg. i am candy crowley, and this is "state of the union." he can walk and chew come at the same time. this time the multitasking nature of the president was on display, as president obama was reaching out to republicans, while blasting away as the man who wants to defeat republicans. >> without bipartisan support as we had a few years ago, we cannot solve this problem. reform that brings accountability to our immigration system cannot pass without republican votes. >> these folks drove the economy into a ditch! and they want the keys back, and you got to say the same thing to them that you say to your teenager, you can't have the keys back because you don't know how to drive yet. >> here to talk about the

realities, the most senior adviser, david axelrod. thank you for joining us. the president gave the big immigration speech and goes out and does this on the road. i talked to many democrats that say it's not going to happen this year. the fact is, does that set the environment to call republican -- to equate republicanses joy-riding kids that should not get the keys back, and then say i need your help on immigration. >> let's not mix issues, candy. the last time this debate occurred in the senate, there were 11 republicans that joined in, and president bush helped to lead the effort. and most republicans are not willing to move forward. and now the president said what is obvious, which is if we are going to solve this problem, which is what the american people want, and if you look at the polls, most americans want a

comprehensive solution to this, but we will not get it done without bipartisan support. that doesn't mean we can't have a good, healthy debate about the economy and other issues. that's what is front and center in the election. >> all i am saying is the atmospheric atmospherics. >> believe me, they are not sending him flowers and chachoc out on the road, because they are a good, hard case. it's a theory that is getting us out of the disaster. >> what is the president doing to promote an immigration bill? after the speech, what did he do? >> the president spoke before and after with members of congress, and he met with the bipartisan group last summer, a large bipartisan group, and said, look, we need to solve this problem, we need accountability in the system at

the border. we need accountability among employers so they are not violating the law. we need the accountability on the part of the 11 million who are here illegally. we can do that, but we have to do it together. that is still his position. we have not seen movement, senator schumer and graham came up with a blueprint. we have not seen movement since. this problem has been kicked down the road for a long time. we understand that it's a stubborn problem and a hard thing to solve in the midst of a campaign. >> pretty much impossible? would you agree? >> when we have the opportunity to move forward and solve the problem, we're going to. one of the things about the arizona law is basically -- this is something that we all agree o. the people of arizona are saying we want the federal government to live up to its responsibilities, and we are

calling on those folks on the other side of the aisle who said in the past that said they thought it was an important issue to solve to join us, and when they are willing we will be able to move forward. >> i want to talk to you a minute about independence. i don't need to tell you that you need independents to win elections. and gallon had a poll about independents and where they are going. this is compared to july of 2009, where 56% of the independents supported the president, and as of now, 38%. that's a huge decline. why? >> i have seen all kinds of sets of numbers, candy, and without fully embracing those -- >> would you embrace there has been a decline? >> i think i may have said this to you before, but in december of 2008, when we sat down with our economic advisers, and they told us what the country was in

the midst of, and what the next couple of years were likely to hold, i said to the president, your numbers will not be nearly as good a year from now. we would have had a tough election in any case in 2010, and that would make the election tougher. this is not a big surprise. we are going through a difficult time in this country. it's not the same as we were in the 18 months ago and the six months leading up to the president's inauguration. we lost jobs in the first three months of his administration. the economy shrunk by 6.7%. now the economy is growing. we have had six straight months of private sector job growth. but that's not enough. the hole was huge and took a decade to dig it. >> part of the problem, and we see it talking to people, they

don't like the tone, the president came to town, and he was going to set a different tone in washington, and it was going to be a different kind of administration, and it kind of looks like the same old thing? >> here is the problem. in order to have a partnership, you have to have people willing to be partners. senator mcconnell acknowledged our strategy was not to cooperate on big things. the theory is that somehow if we deprive the president of bipartisan support, we can accuse him of not being bipartisan. this president spent more time meeting with members of the other party than most presidents. we have had all kinds of out reach and we will continue to do that and work with people on given issues where they are willing. no doubt the republican strategy has been to say no to everything and try and turn the clock back in order to win an election and restore the policies that got us into the mess in the first place. >> you don't think the president

has anything to do with the tone? >> i think the president has been good in terms of reaching out. no, i don't think he set the tone. if you look at the comments on the other side, they have been sharp. that's fine, that's politics and i understand that. you cannot layout on a president who reached out time and time again and asked for cooperation. we talked and went to the house caucus. what kind of bipartisanship do they have? we need bipartisanship. i think voters should send a message to republicans, certainly the direction they are going is not promising with the candidates they are nominating. some of the things they are saying doesn't speak to when you call -- when a senate candidate

in nevada calls the $20 billion the president asked to be set aside for the victims in the gulf a slush fund, that's not an encouraging sign. when we return, jobs and the economy. our we headed toward a third depression? with 3g as well.blays n ancan stream livdeo to t web. firshaan hdmi out.♪ rst shar wi-fi with 8 devic at ce. rst is notteen fur firshaan hdmi out.♪ pledunder in al hous firswh will do firsthing. with e, e rs4g? firshaan hdmi out.♪ ly fm rint,thnone deafhaand opitspee dit access www.sprinty

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at meineke i have options, and 50% off brake pads and shoes. my money. my choice. my meineke. we are back with david axelrod, senior adviser to president obama. i want to wrap up the political section by talking about the progressives. i think you read a lot lately about how the progressives are upset with the president because he did not stand up, because he had not pushed hard enough for the energy bill and climate bill. harry reid was on face-to-face in las vegas, a show there. he had this to say. >> he should have been more firm with those on the other side of the aisle.

he is a peace maker. and sometimes i think you have to be a little more forceful, and sometimes i don't think he is enough with the republicans. >> that's the other side of the coin. you have people thinking you are too tough on them -- >> you just showed me a clip saying the president was being too forceful with the other side. in terms of progressive democrats, we were talking about comprehensive health reform that would make health care available to people that don't have insurance and improve health for people that do. we have been talking about financial reform for a long time. we have the deepest reform since the great depression. we have -- we increase fuel efficiency standards for the first time in the country in decades. he is moving on don't ask, don't tell. that policy will be changed. i can go through a long list of

things that have anguished for decades, and this president got done in a difficult period of time. don't make the perfect enemy of the good. we achieved more in these two years in terms of advancing a solid agenda for the country that will help working families and make this a better and more balanced economy than anybody has done, you know, in our generation. >> let me ask you about the economy. paul crugman wrote in the new york times in late june. he said we are now i fear in the early stages of a third depression. it will probably look more like the long depression than much more severe of the great depression. but the cost to the word economy and above all the millions of lives it affects --

>> that was an admonition to congress to pass additional economic stimulus. but the fact is, we were in fact very nearly headed towards that kind of disaster when we took office as i said. >> we are 18 months in. >> the economy is growing. we are growing private sector jobs. >> 9.5% unemployment, though? >> yeah, the hole dug in the course of eight years and the disaster we saw was deep. it will take a while to dig out from under it. we have to accelerate part of the recovery. everybody agrees we have to do more. we need to build these public private partnerships like the ones the president talked about when he was in missouri, an electric auto plant that would

not have happened but for what we did. there are millions of people not working in the country because of things -- he said we were going to double exports in five years. >> the thing people will look at is the 9.5% unemployment. people in your administration as early as last year said we were in the beginning of the recovery, and unemployment is always a lagging indicator, and it will go down, and here we are eight months later -- >> yes. the fact is it went down from 10.2 to 9.5. the important thing is the direction. we went from losing 750,000 jobs the month the president took office, and do we feel like we need to do more? yes. we are working on things to support innovation. we tauwant to pass additional

lending capacity for small businesses. but there is no doubt that we are in a better position now than we were 18 months ago and we are moving in the right direction. >> let me read you something the vice president said the other day and ask you if you agree with it. there is no possibility to restore 8 million jobs lost in the great recession. is the administration admitting we will never get back the number of jobs that we lost? >> look, i am sure he was talking about within a short timeframe. as i said, the hole that was dug was big. and understand, this recession was a tragedy for families across the country. we have -- >> he was talking about -- >> we have five people unemployed for every job vacancy. it will take time to turn that around. you have to grow the economy and build new industries like the clean energy industry, and have you to increase exports and take barriers away. we need patten reform so small

businesses with a good idea don't have barriers they can't traverse to get their work done. this is the single greatest challenge we face. we will keep at it, day after day after day. >> one last question, because we have to run here. guantanamo bay prison. still not closed. why not? >> obviously there is tremendous resistance to that in congress. >> you have nowhere to put them? >> that's part of the problem. when we got there, what we found was there was no case history of anybody there. we had to reconstruct -- >> for 18 months. >> now, some have been transferred and some are bound for transfer and others are bound for trial, and others are there as detainees whose status is undetermined. new order to close guantanamo,

we have to move them to a prison in the states. we identified a location. we have not yet gotten a consensus to move forward on that, and we will continue to work on it. >> will it close this year? >> we'll see. >> david axelrod, thank you very much. >> okay. >> appreciate it. up next, why the immigration case is in court this week. a debate about the future of the immigration reform with congressman bill richardson and arizona congressman, trent franks. the prices.

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laws. this year, 34 states enacted 71 laws. arizona's law requires police to verify the immigration status of anybody stopped for another alleged crime if there is reasonable suspicion the person may be undocumented. as many as 17 states have similar bills pending. lawmakers in oklahoma, and south carolina and utah say arizona-like immigration measures could pass in their states next year. and it's not just states, two weeks ago in fremont, nebraska, population 25,000, residents voted in a special election to ban hiring or renting to illegal aliens. here is supporter joy hanson. >> i think there is enough support where if enough people, enough cities and municipalities come together, the government will have to do something. >> when we come back, two men that disagree on where and how to proceed on this issue. new mexico governor, bill

richardson, and arizona congressman, trent franks. hey, ipz don shula, and i lost 32 pounds on nutrisystem.

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joining me now from boston is democratic governor, bill richardson, and also from phoenix, congressman trent franks. let's start with bill richardson. you are filing to get an injunction from keeping the law from going into affect, but do you not have a certain sympathy for the state of arizona which has a number of problems going on, which is the price to the state of what you well know of the undocumented immigration, and some of the violence in arizona could be attributable to illegal aliens. >> yes, i am sim paympathetic t arizona. they are a border state.

we have had similar problems in new mexico. we are on the border too. there is a need for comprehensive reform. what i don't agree with is arizona taking this issue in their own hands and taking over what is a federal responsibility harming our foreign policy with central america and mexico and basically passing a law that potentially is discriminatory, racial profiling. anybody that looks hispanic -- this is a state that is 30% hispanic with hispanics there with many generations, being pulled over on the grounds they may look suspicious. this issue divided the country. this issue needs to be dealt with by the congress. i toured the border with governor brewer. it's important that the federal government, the congress, deal with this comprehensively with a

legalization plan, with a plan to crack down on illegal hires, and finally to give us more resources, more boots on the ground and more border patrol and more national guard and more detection equipment on the border to stand this illegal tide, not just of workers, but also drugs and violence and smuggling. >> governor, i want to talk to you in a bit about the legalization of some of those who are now here. but congressman franks, you heard the most controversial part of the law has been police who stop somebody on another violation, if they are reasonably suspicious that it might be an undocumented person can ask for those documents. do you worry that arizona does begin to look like it is racists, like it is racially profiling? >> you know, candy, i thicken fortunately, this administration has tried to project that

notion, but the reality is in rhode island and other states that have the same kind of protocol. what is more, in the federal process called 287g, it's a bram that calls for states and the government to work together on these things, and arizona just codified that in state law. it's ironic with all of the arguments this is somehow about racial profiling, i think the united states has spoken known falsehoods about this bill. because in numerous places, it outlaws racial profiling. >> there is intent and, and then there is what actually happens. if an arizona police officer pulled me over for speeding, i seriously doubt he would ask for my papers. but if a person was latino, i am assuming he would ask for the papers.

>> the reality is for 50 years in this country federal law required people that are immigrants or illegal immigrants in this contea to carry documentation to that affect. that has been the law for 50 years. all of a sudden when arizona caughtfies this because the federal government is not doing its job, there is an outcry of racial profiling. the reality is, the administration's lawsuit against arizona is not predicated on racial profiling. if they thought that would hold up in court they should sue in that behalf. but what they are saying here is that, yes, they are saying it's racial profiling, but what they are suing on is somehow arizona is preemtinge the federal government's responsibility. the irony is that that was the whole predicate. arizona had to do this because the federal government was not

doing it. >> i think the federal government has not stepped up to the plate on this issue dealing with illegal immigration? >> well, the reality is the congress failed to act on the immigration reform. >> that's the same thing. >> no, candy, arizona, new mexico, california, and texas, in the last two weeks we have gotten substantial more of national guard troops. arizona getting the most. border security has dramatically improved in my judgment. it's still not sufficient. violence on the border has been reduced, although in arizona and new mexico, we still have problems. it's not obama has been on the border security side, which is very important to me and to arizona and i am sure to the congressman. the issue is congress needs to appropriate more funds and resources. >> barring that, you can understand why a state would

want to act. >> well, they may want to act, but they acted incorrectly. they acted in a way that preempts federal authority, but it's also discriminatory. the brief of the justice department talks about racial profiling potentially happening. it talks about harming a relationship with another country. right now we have six mexican border governors refusing to attend a yearly border conference with american border governors, because of this incident in arizona. it is harming our foreign policy. what we need, candy, is for republicans and democrats in congress to step up and pass comprehensive immigration reform, which they refuse to do, because it's a hot issue. they don't want to deal with it before the election. >> let me ask you, i know that in 1986, ronald reagan got

passed a fairly comprehensive immigration bill. it gave amnesty to something like 3 million undocumented workers that were in the u.s. at that time. now 25 years later, there are between 11 and 15 million, depending on who you believe. what makes you think that going around and documenting illegals wouldn't just sort of say to others, come on in, eventually you will get your citizenship? >> well, what is being proposed now by responsible republicans, like president bush several years ago and president reagan, it's not an amnesty. what they are saying is let's have a path to legalization. if you speak english, you pass a background check, if you pay back taxes and get behind those that are trying to get here illegally, then eventually you get a path to legalization, not citizenship. it will take ten years eventually to maybe be eligible

for citizenship. that's not an amnesty, and that's basically saying with the 11 million that we have here illegally, we are going to give them an opportunity to show that they embrace american values, they can work here if they are law-abiding. if they satisfy those conditions -- >> let me give the congressman a chance to talk about this issue in general. congressman, what about that? it sounds reasonable. president bush used to say all the time, family values don't stop at the rio grand. and so a huge bulk of the people are coming because they need to feed their families. what about the idea that, yes, in over ten years, let's bring all of these people out of the shadows, as they say? >> well, candy, i am sim pympatc to the humanitarian efforts. i want them to be part of the nation. but if we ignore the law

completely, those that are trying to come here legally get pushed aside, and it changes everything. but there is another issue here that is always astonishing to me that this administration seems to overlook and that's the national security component. i have legislation in that regard and won't describe it, but let me suggest to you that some day we may face and encourage from some group that comes over our borders with something that changes our world forever. just recently, a hezbollah leader was arrested in tijuana, south of san diego, and i assure you his intentions were not good trying to come over our border. it's astonishing to me when we live in a 9/11 world, the national security component is greater here. i have to take a secondary shot here. when they try to beat up the governor of arizona, governor

brewer, i served with her in the legislation when i was 27 years old. i will tell you this is a noble and decent lady that as long as i have known her has tried to do what is right. i am tired of her being kicked around and treated like somehow she is at fault for canceling or for being the one to have to postpone the governor's conference, when it was the governors from the mexican states like sonora, and others that were the ones that said they would not come. >> congressman, i think i will have to leave it there. i appreciate both of you so much coming. a republican congressman, trent franks, and governor richardson, thank you for joining us. >> thank you. >> thank you. when we come back, we turn to the gulf oil spill. as early as this week bp could have a new containment cap in place that could catch the oil coming out of the well. even if the oil stops, the

claims will still be pouring in. that's next. they're fishermen, they're shrimpers, they're laborers, they're deckhands, they're people who work in restaurants... these are the people of the gulf coast who need our help. i'm darryl willis. i oversee bp's claims process on the gulf coast. bp has got to make things right and that's why we're here. part of that responsibility is letting you know what we're doing to make it right. we're replacing the lost income for fishermen, small businessmen and others who aren't able to work until the spill is cleaned up. our claims line is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

people can call or go online and 900 people are here to help them file their claims and get their checks. working with the government, we're already paying tens of thousands of claims. we've agreed to create a $20 billion claims fund, administered independently, and it's at no cost to taxpayers. i was born and raised in louisiana. i volunteered for this assignment because this is my home. i'll be here in the gulf as long as it takes to make this right.

ken feinberg is the go-to guy for tough questions in times of crisis. how do you determine pain and suffering? what is the value of loss? how much is a life worth? compensation issues in the gulf oil disaster, feinberg came to be the master of compensation overseeing the fund for 9/11 victims. >> will it ever compensate you fully for what has happened? of course not. i don't want to begin to suggest that's the case. >> he spent three years working with families of victims to help file claims and determine benefits, and did it without pay. as the damage of the oil spill in the gulf continues to take its toll along the coast, feinberg is in charge of bp's $20 billion compensation fund.

he will determine who receives money and how much. >> i am not a government official. i am not a bp official. the administration and bp agreed there all the to be a person to design and implement the program. >> he has been on the road meeting with victims trying to offeree assurance and determine benefits. >> a program like this cannot be designed or administered from washington. you have to come down here, hear what people say, take the time to listen. i learned that from 9/11. when i went to new york, and the

you have to listen to what people say. >> feinberg is with us to hear what people say long after the spill is capped. do your thing. [ bell rings ] that's amazing! i trained him myself. i meant the... okay. same coverage, more savings. now, that's progressive. call or click today.

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joining me now is ken feinberg, administrator of the $20 billion fund to compensate oil spill victims. i don't envy your job, because i have been talking with correspondents this week about the stories they are hearing and what you might deal with. there is the real estate agent that has six deals go belly up on him. there is the fisherman that just bought a boat. there are people whose homes lost value, not anywhere near oil. how many of these people can you please? >> well, you hope you can please everybody in one sense, that the program is fair, it's quick, and

it's consistent. you know, the claims are as diverse as human nature. i have to look at each claim. can't prejudge everything. see the facts. observe the facts. governor riley in alabama, i met with him about a week ago, and i looked at him and he said look me in the eye, ken, and tell me, are you going to do right by the people of alabama, and i told him absolutely and i intent to. >> this is a big question. do you have a staff? are you superimposing over the bp people that are working? >> the latter. bp, they have over 1,000 people working in the gulf now on claims. 35 different offices. within the next couple weeks, i would say certainly by the first week of august, the gulf coast claims facility will replace bp and keep the people who are good, and we'll add people, and we'll accelerate claims and

process the claims as quickly as we can. we are already prepared to give eligible claimant's, not one months of payments with six months of no obligation, and no release requires, just to try to help people in the gulf. >> that will cut down on the lines coming back every month. you are prepared to give half a year's compensation to people so they can count on their lives being stable for the next six months. >> yeah, that's right. some degree of financial certainty -- i work for the people in the gulf. i don't work for the administration or bp. i have to find a way to accelerate claims. i can't help people if they don't file. once they file we will process the claim. if they are eligible, we will give them up to six months emergency comp. they don't have to take six months, but it's without release of any type. >> interesting.

we were talking about it during the break, you found people are not all let's line up and get money? >> no, one of the big challenges is convincing people to file a claim. mr. feinberg, i only get paid in cash. i am afraid to file a claim. are you going to be sending all of my information that i provide you to the irs? i am not sure about what your intentions. no, no, no. this is not easy to convince people that some new program will help them. it takes some work. >> at the same time, this is a lot different from the other things -- the virginia tech victims, 9/11, because there were a controlled group of people. this is massive and it's an on going disaster. i wonder if the worry about fraud is a lot higher in this case? >> well, we only had out of 7300

applications on 9/11, we only had 35 examples of fraud. we have got to create as part of the program that i am establishing, an anti-fraud provision or protection. we are getting tremendous cooperation from the department of justice, which it will help us. we'll make sure nothing can undercut the credibility of this program more than fraud, and we'll take every step we can to minimize the likelihood of fraudulent applications and payments. >> in our final minutes, tell me how you found people down there? are they receptive to you? do they feel as though they are going to get a fair shake? what are the meetings like? >> every meet something different. i spent one day in louisiana going around with senator landrieu, and various town hall meetings. we are back in florida tomorrow morning.

people are uncertain. they are worried about the financial certainty. it will help if the oil stopped, and that's one problem i have. they are worried and angry and disappointed and frustrated. as diverse as imaginable. but we have to meet with them, and walk into the lion's deny and take the heat, which i am prepared, it's part of the territory. if i have a chance to meet with people and give them assurance that we are going to be fair in our consideration of every application, please file your complaint. we will do right by you. >> you have been there enough, i think, probably to gather a sense of economically what we are talking about here. is $20 billion going to be enough? >> we'll see. that i can't answer. the main reason i can't answer that is yet is i have not seen

all the applications. until the oil stops, you don't know how pervasive the oil spill will be. you don't know if somebody who has not been harmed at all today will be harmed by additional oil next week. once the oil stops, i believe we will be able to, very quickly, to get sort of a handle on the comprehensiveness of the complaints population. >> ken feinberg, you are a busy man and will be, i suspect, for the next couple years, actually. thank you so much. >> thank you. up next, a check of the top stories, and then a former presidential candidates new entertainment career. >> oh, yes! that's why it upsets me, when i see lobbyist like yourselves trying to buyoff politicians. makes me feel like you are not part of the team! nutrisystem silver for 2010, the weight-loss program designed for older americans to lose weight and feel great again!

let's face it, the older you get, the harder it is to lose weight. not anymore, honey. it's easy with nutrisystem. for a limited time, get our best tv offer: four weeks free! that's 112 meals absolutely free. even the shipping is free. i look and feel so much better, and so does coach. i'm back to my playing weight. see how nutrisystem silver can change your life. trust me, you will lose weight. don't miss our best tv offer: order now and you can get an extra four weeks of delicious meals. that's right, you can get an extra 28 breakfasts, 28 lunches, 28 dinners, p9 and 28 desserts, 112 meals ú$ee. call or click now. get back in the game.

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time for a check of today's top stories. so far so good in the gulf coast as bp said earlier today that efforts to place a new ca on the leaking underwater oil well is proceeding as planned. however, with the old cap removed yesterday, crude oil is now flowing freely into the gulf. the new cap is expected to be in place in four to seven days as favorable weather conditions are also helping the process. if successful, officials say the cap could collect all of the oil gushing from the well. the boston area is recovering from flash flooding yesterday. heavy rains damaged several cars and closed at least two bridges. according to the national weather service, two to four inches of rain fell in northeast massachusetts. several drivers needed to be rescued from their cars as the rain also caused delays in rail service. no injuries were immediately

reported. and six u.s. service members were killed in afghanistan yesterday, adding to the growing death toll in an already bloody summer for coalition forces. the troops were killed in four separate incidents, including two bombings in eastern and southern afghanistan. one civilian was also killed in kandahar when a parked motorbike laid enwith explosives was remotely detonated. last month 102 coalition troops were killed, including 60 americans. palestinian president mahmoud abbas said yesterday that he doesn't see a point in holding direct talks with israel right now. abbas said he won't negotiate with israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu until israel commits to a settlement freeze and agrees to resume talks where they left off in 2008. netanyahu has refused both of those demands. abbas says it would be "futile and pointless" to start negotiations from scratch. photos appearing to show former cuban president fidel castro surfaced yesterday on a

pro-government blog. the website claims the photos were taken earlier in the week at the national center of scientific investigations in havana. the photos show the former president shaking hands and walking with members of the cuban think tank. the photos have not been confirmed by the cuban government. it would be the first public appearance made by the former president since he stepped down from power in 2006. and soccer fans around the world will be tuning in to watch spain take on the netherlands today in the world cup final. the game will be the 64th and final match in this year's world cup held in south africa. spain defeated germany last week, and the netherlands took care of uruguay to reach today's finals. neither country has ever won the world cup. those are your top stories here on "state of the union." up next, a former politician takes a shot at comedy. [ male announcer ] invest with fidelity and get more for less.

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the name mike gravel ring a bell? in 2008 he was the presidential candidate down at the end in the debates. >> and i've got to tell you, after standing up with them, some of these people frighten me. they frighten me. >> he was the non-conformist

former alaska senator with the puzzling political ads. he had the reputation as the cranky uncle who lives in the attic or the candidate who said what no one else dared say but some people thought. >> our soldiers died in vietnam in vain. what did all these people die for? what are they dying for right now in iraq every single day? let me tell you. there's only one thing worse than a soldier dying in vain. it's more soldiers dying in vain. >> where is he now? at the age of 80 former presidential candidate mike gravel has a new day job -- internet comedian. this fall he'll play president on the barely political web series called "i like mike: our president." a preview. >> mr. president, it's a pleasure to meet you. lloyd blankfein, ceo of goldman sachs. i assume you want to discuss which members of my company will be a part of your cabinet. >> no. >> then why did you ask me here