>> that announcement comes one day after north carolina passed an amendment that defined marriage as between a man and a woman. joining us this morning is mitchell gold, the founder of faith in america. he's the author of "youth in crisis." mitchell, good morning to you. it's nice to see you. can you hear me? >> good morning, soledad. >> oh, good. good morning to you. listen, give me a sense of your reaction this morning after hearing president obama's announcement. >> well, i'm still elated and filled with emotion, what president obama did yesterday was so courageous because, as you know, other past presidents and vice presidents have come out in favor of marriage equality for gay people, but president obama did it while he's still in office and while there's still -- some might consider a risk to his future presidency, re-election but it was incredibly fantastic for 14 and 15-year-old kids to hear the president of the united states say to them that they are entitled to be with the person

that they love. that there is not going to be a hole in their life, that he supports them regardless of what their parents might say, regardless of what their church might say. he supports who they are as a full human being. >> well, he also said, mitchell, he believes that the issue should be decided state by state which really isn't going as far as potentially as he could go. are you disappointed by that? >> well, i'm always disappointed when politicians throw a little bit of nuance to it and try to cover themselves or say something that, frankly, is i think quite idiotic but, you know, we all know what it means when you throw things back to the states, that that is open opportunity for prejudice and discrimination but i really think that the bigger issue is for him to come out as a leader and say that he believes and understands why gay people should be entitled to all the rights and privileges and responsibilities of marriage. that's the bigger issue. >> he talked about it being an evolution and he talked about

even the impact that his wife and his daughter daughters' exp had on this evolution. do you believe it was a personal evolution or more of a political evolution and i know you are often heavily involved in politics where you look at the poll numbers especially how the poll numbers trend among young voters and think this is a smart political evolution actually. >> well, i think that the president has believed for a long time in full equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and i think his actions have shown that. rough in our imperfect country and system politics does play a role in it and i do think that while it was in 199 of the president then running for senate said that he was in favor of full equality, then he took a little different calculated turn and went in a different direction. but i think in his heart and the times i've spoken to him, i

think that in his heart he has always believed this. and i think now he's made a calculation and, frankly, i believe this is going to be one of the major wedge issues against the republican party. i think there's a great deal of people, a great deal of republicans who really are in favor of marriage equality, are in favor of giving lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people equal rights and are much more interested in the economy and national security and individual liberty for people. and i think the other part of the republican party, the anti-gay, christian part in particular, they're not going to be for him no matter what he says. >> interesting to see the polling. as we see the polls break down by democrat/republican you don't see that overwhelming support among republicans as a whole. i'll ask you to stand by. >> i'm not that -- i'm not that quite sure that i believe that much in the polling because, you know, this is -- we're a long way off and there's a lot of

education to be done. i think the president is really going to step up and in the black church community in particular there's going to be a great deal of education and polling between now and six months from now can be entirely different. >> i agree with you on that. let's bring in tony perkins, the president of the family research council. tony, good morning. nice to see you, as always. thanks for talking to us. >> good morning. >> what's your reaction to what the president had to sayed. >> not completely surprised. finally his words are coming in sync with his actions. he as oposed the marriage amendments at the state level and refused to defend the defense of marriage act which is really the line that defends what the states have decided from the courts. so not really surprising. the timing is. i'm not sure that this is politically advantageous for him. but i'm sure that they looked at that. >> what do you mean by that? you have said you think this hands a victory in a way to governor mitt romney. how do you meaning?

>> well, i wouldn't say it necessarily hands a victory. i would say there was probably two groups celebrating yesterday. i think those who are advocating to redefine marriage and some in the romney campaign were certainly celebrating because i think the missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle when it comes to the enthusiasm issue when it comes to the romney campaign, that piece may have been handed to him by the president because clear it's very clear now there is a contrast on this key issue. now, i thought this election was going to be all about the economy and jobs, i think we're going to see another presidential election in which the issue of marriage is going to be front and center in the debate. >> you think this could push the economy off the front and focus on gay marriage? >> well, it's not going to go away completely but i do think the president interjeked it into the debate because he has staked out a clear position that is in contradiction to the position that mitt romney has had. mitt romney has testified before the congress for a federal marriage amendment and sign aid mrnlg saying as president he

would work for and support a marriage amendment so it is, of course, obviously it's a very important issue in terms of social policy. >> well, technically -- >> i can't imagine it wouldn't be an issue. >> technically he's been all over the map on it, mitt romney. hasn't he? you go back to 1994. i know you know this in a letter to the log cabin club of massachusetts which is a group of gay republicans, he said, i'm more convinced than ever that as we seek to establish full equality for americans, america's gay and lesbian citizens i will provide for effective leadership by 2002, right? he said he would support equal rights for all americans. in office he said civil unions were good enough to satisfy a court decision that said denying marriage rights to gays was illegal. by 2005 he actually said he opposed civil union, wanted a constitutional amendment so he's kind of been all over the map on this. are you sure he's -- >> kind of like the president.

the president has been all over the map on it too. he supported same-sex marriage back in the '90s then opposed to it when he ran for the senate and as president now coming out, again, his actions i think have said all along he's been for it. look, there's no question that mitt romney's record on a number of the key social issues but he has staked out very clear ground and made very public pledges on this and i think more so than what mitt romney says, although i think it's going to be important that he not run from this contrast which i don't think he will, but the president has made this an issue, not mitt romney and so i think it is going to play out in this election and it's going to, you know, what many were counting on, the angst over a second term of the president driving and fueling and energizing the conservative base, i think this is a part of that and i see it as this unfolds, i think that's exactly what will happen. >> explain to me -- >> look at the battleground

states. what doesn't make political sense. if you count about 16 of the swing or battleground states, ten have marriage amendments already. one will have it on the ballot this fall and i think it's like 137 electoral votes coming from those states. you know, i don't think that's going to play well in those states for the president to say i don't care what you voted for. you may have decided for -- against same-sex marriage for traditional marriage. i'm not going to defend what you have done in this state and your state amendments can be overturned for all i care because i think they should. that will be in your face. >> i think he made it clear -- i thought his comments were clear he wouldn't be overturned. it could be decided state by state but i want to ask you a question -- >> other than by his inaction. >> what is your big argument against gay marriage? >> it's an argument for marriage. it's an argument for marriage. when we look at what the impact that policy, public policy has had on marriage, you know, we

don't have to guess, we go back to the late '60s with the beginning of no fault divorce. when a government takes a policy position on marriage, it has an effect. >> yeah, like -- >> we've seen the consequences of that and have over 40% of children being born out of wedlock. we have a decline in marriage. rise in cohabitation. the social costs of that are tremendous. >> when government took a position -- but when government took a position, let's say, against the ban on interracial marriage it had an effect too, right? it brought legal marriage to blacks and whites -- >> you're talking about redefinition. there is no rational reason to keep people of different races that were of opposite sex to marry. they met the qualifications of the definition of marriage. what we're talking about here is a further redefinition of marriage. >> but hasn't marriage been redefined and redefined? >> it's going to intentionally create environments where you have children growing up without a mom and a dad. >> we have environments where

children grow up. hetero -- >> forgive me for interrupting but have them already where they grow up without a mom or dad. you're certainly not arguing gay marriage is fine as long as the couples don't want to have kids because you will avoid that problem or an older couple who aren't going to have kids. >> there's no argument those things have occurred and that the state of marriage in this country is problematic. there's no argument there. what i'm saying, you look at the consequence, the cost do government as a result of that, the increased social cost. why woo we want to intentionally do more of that. the point here is public policy -- what we set doesn't mean that everybody is going to reach that standard but we should debt a standard that is best for society. we don't make public policy based on -- >> doesn't it follow culture? but it sounds to me like you're saying public policy sets culture. i would say culture maybe

actually goes first and public policy follows when you're -- certainly if you're going to talk about equality and rights to sort of say, well, you know, i'm concerned about this issue, so we'll overlook the equal rights part of it. seems a little unfair at the least. >> well, it's not an issue of equal rights. everybody has the same rights, what we're -- >> how is it not -- >> and it goes -- >> let me stop you there. i want -- let me stop you. how is it not an issue of equal rights if a group can get married and another can't. >> you can't marry a close relative. you can't marry someone who is already married. everybody has restrictions on who they can marry in our society. this goes beyond the issue of marriage. this goes beyond as we've sen curriculum that is introduced into schools. i mean parents want to have a right over what their children are taught and parents lose their right to determine what values their children are instructed with. that are in contradiction to

their religious convictions. so this goes way beyond just marriage. it goes to the employees and employer relationship. it goes to public facilities, so it's a much bigger issue than just two people who love each other and want to commit their lives to each other. they're free to do that. they just can't redefine marriage and try to bring with that all of the -- >> i think marriage has -- but hasn't marriage been redefined over and over and over in the 1800s, right, women were property of their husband. marriage has been redefined over time on that issue. in slave era black people could not marry each other. marriage has been redefined to say that actually black people can -- people are no longer slaves and blacks can marry. interracial marriage is now legal. that happened as recently as 1967. it was illegal when my parents got married. my dad is white, my mom is black. so marriage is always being redefined what is legal and under the law in marriage,

right? >> now marriage is always been the union of a man and a woman. that has -- that definition has never changed over 5,000 years of human history. what we're talking about here is changing the very core definition of marriage. >> marriage has always been as someone has decided to define it and sometimes they change that definition. that definition has changed. marriage between a man and woman as long as they're white in some law, right, so i would disagree with you. >> never changed from a man and a woman. >> but the idea of marriage and the institution changes all the time. so the idea that somehow this is the first change to marriage, i think, you might be mistaken on it. >> no, i admitted it. we have changed the policy regarding the marriage, the example i used was in the issue of no fault divorce and the weakening of the marriage laws and what it has resulted in significant social cost and ramifications so these things should be evaluated very carefully before we make such a -- this is -- this would go

beyond anything that's ever been done before as i said going back to the core definition of marriage always been between a man and a woman. >> we'll agree to disagree. tony perks, nice to have you on the show. appreciate it. we'll talk to richard socarides, a former senior adviser to president clinton. one of the highest ranking openly gay people to work in the federal government. helped draft don't ask, don't tell. he'll join us this. also ahead on "starting point," the tea party makes another starting play. now another veteran north is on notice. is there any room in the middle in the republican party? well, will anything get done in congress in all the moderates are booted? high school team gives up a shot at a title because they don't want to play with a girl. heading into talk about that. will cain, roland martin and rocker dee snider joins our panel this morning. pleased to have you. >> how are you doing. >> welcome.

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welcome back. lots about partisan politics. a good example of gridlock to come. speaking with richard mourdock. vocal that republicans shouldn't cooperate but should confront. >> the ideas for which the parties are working are really at opposite ends of the spectrum. i don't think there will be a lot of successful compromise. hence you have the deadlock you have today. i hope to build a conservative majority in the united states senate so that bipartisanship becomes democrats joining republicans to roll back the size of government, reduce the bureaucracy, lower taxes and get america moving again. >> those comments may not bode well when you look at the fact that only 17% of the country is approving of the job that congress is doing and they cite as a large part of the problem

partisanship. joining us this morning is congressman jim cooper of tennessee. a moderate blue dog democrat founding member of no labels, a group of democrats and republicans who say they have one goal, which is to make government work again. i think lots of us could support that goal. nice to see you. you heard mr. mourdock saying he thinks he doesn't support successful compromise. that it's not really possible. what do you think of that? >> soledad, what mourdock is saying is popular but it's very dangerous. you have to compromise in order to build a great nation. our nation was essentially founded on compromise and without that today we're going to lose our credit rating again, we're going to have more gridlock and really hurt our nation's status as the nation's only superpower. >> if i don't compromise what i can do is build my team bigger. i don't have to compromise. those will have to compromise to me by brings them to my side of the aisle is his argument. what areas do you think we'll need compromise on some of the biggest issues that the congress is dealing with right now. >> well, we've got to have a

compromise on the budget issues which are crushing our economy and have to have compromise on defense issues. we've got to figure out how to right size the defense budget. virtually every area of government we have to have good people getting along and solving problems, not fighting each other. not a question of combat in washington but a question of getting things dong for voters back home working hard trying to put food on the table so fighting is very selfish and but mourdock is talking about is one-party rule. we've always had a two-party system in america. how we've gotten things done, a competition between the two parties. >> let's take a look at some folks vulnerable. senator orrin hatch obviously in the state of utah who is vulnerable. his challenger is dan littlenqut and ted cruise and he is being challenged with support from club for growth which is spending about roughly i think a million dollars in support for david dewhurst supporting there.

if they're successful, if in fact you can be brought into congress on the philosophy, my way or the highway, what do you think is the risk? what happens at the end of it all? >> fortunately for the voters of indiana, they have a good centrist choice in joe donnelly who is running but in all these other states we've seen some of the finest states in america go down to defeat because they were not partisan extremists. i hope voters realize if they want to keep america strong we have to have enough folks in the middle to get things done. that's the way america has functioned throughout our 200-year history. we wouldn't even have washington, d.c. where it is today if we hadn't had a compromise between the states. virtually every major one was a result of compromise and we have to continue if we remain strong. >> seems to me this is missing the point. what are you -- >> why, thank you, will. >> what are you compromising

towards? compromise isn't just a fetish we laude. you have to ask yourself what are you compromising towards? we didn't want to compromise towards king george. we went to war because we thought our principles were greater. you have to identify what you're fighting for. what principles you stand for and compromise from there as little as possible. compromise in and of itself isn't a virtue. >> focusing on the debt, deficit, education, et cetera, et cetera, all those things are equal to the colonies? i'm asking, the colonies fighting against king george. >> you defined some of the things we should be compromising for but for example when i assume senator-elect or primary candidate richard mourdock says i do not want to compromise, there is a general to go but when he says that he means things like health care. he means things that barack obama finds as part of his core principles and compromise can't be a virtue. >> which is not what he said. we'll give the final word to congressman jim cooper. what he said was he actually thinks he doesn't have though compromise. that what he needs is more

people in his side of the aisle -- >> i don't think you asked him what he would compromise on. i think you haven't asked him -- >> congressman cooper, give she a sense of how this ends. do you think, in fact, donnelly has a shot or that actually what's going to happen is we're going to end up with i 50/50 split roughly which is going to potentially slow things down in congress. >> joe has a great shot in indiana. i hope voters come to their sense and if they want statesmanship -- both need to be done and both parties are wrong when they deny the other part needs to be done. >> thanks for being with us. congressman jim cooper, preert it. still ahead on "starting point," get real. all she wanted to do was play baseball. why is a high school girl being denied the chance in the championship game. we'll tell you. also watch us on your computer, mobile phone while heading to work, cnn.com/live. "he's so cold."

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welcome back, everybody. our got get real." focus on a second baseman, her name is paige sultzbach and just wants to play baseball. many freshman at mesa preparatory academy and that team in arizona had been scheduled to play another team called our lady of sorrows academy in the arizona charter athletic association state championship in phoenix college but our lady of sorrow, fundamentalist catholic school in phoenix decided to forfeit. they decided to forget. see, i think they also lost

twice to mesa so maybe not the worries that paige was a girl. which is what they said. they didn't want to play against girls. they lost twice so paige's mom, pamela said, it wasn't that they were afraid that they were going to injure her or hurt her, they believe that it is not a girl's place to play on the field. paige played softball and valley ball in junior high school but mesa prep tried out for the boys' team and made it. previous in the two games that mesa won against our lady of sorrows she sat out because she did it out of respect for the team's belief. this but this is a championship game and said i'm going to play. our lady of sorrows, said, well, then we're going to forget and everybody feels badly because the winning team wins by forf t forfeit. >> lady of sorry got beat by a girl? >> basically. >> if you are a member of our

lady of sorrow, last thing you want to do is forfeit a game. i would have asked if this was administrators or the church deciding we're forfeiting. >> it sounded like it was a high-level decision not a bunch of ninth graders deciding whether they would forfeit or not but a lose/lose for all the kids. >> you got your butt kicked twice. you probably didn't want to get it kicked a third time. >> i think the real issue dashth exactly. didn't want to get their butt kicked for a third. >> i would agree. your fine analysis on that this morning. still ahead on "starting point," we continue the conversation about president obama's historic support for same-sex marriage. one of the highest ranking openly gay people to work in the federal government will join us to talk about the political impact ahead. a concussion crisis in one sport and we're not talking about football. not even talking about guys. roland martin's play list "mary

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♪ say i do and we'll never be lonely evermore ♪ >> that would be "chapel of love" by the dixie cups. been 50 years since -- we're talking about president obama coming out in support of same-sex marriage, what many people consider to be one of the last civil rights battles in america. >> at a certain point i've just concluded that for me personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that i think same-sex couples should be able to get married. >> that was the president talking to robin roberts. the president also revealing that his evolution was not just political. he said he had been talking about the issue with his wife and daughters and they helped sway his stance. mitt romney quick to make sure his supporters knew where

he stands. listen. >> i do not favor marriage between people of the same gender and i don't favor civil unions if they're identical to marriage other than by name. >> zonk socarides is a former senior adviser to former president bill clinton, also a writer for "the new york." let's talk political implications. you remember working with president clinton when don't ask, don't tell was drafted and also the defense of marriage act so when you hear about this evolution of president obama, maybe i should do evolution of president obama, what do you make of it? >> well, i think it's striking of how far we've come as a country and how far we've come in the debate on these social issues. and how dramatically that shift has occurred. i mean, you're right, in 1996 president clinton signed the defense of marriage act. we all knew he didn't want to sign it but was in the middle of a tough re-election and his political advisers convinced him it was too risky not to sign it.

you know, after the republicans rushed it through congress. today, though, i think -- yesterday i think president obama rejected a lot of the political advice he was getting from his advisers. that was the same advice people giving president clinton 16 years ago saying, no, i'm going to do the right thing and luckily, the mood in the country, the public opinion of the country had shifted enough he could do that. a real profile in courage on the president's part >> a profile in courage if you will up to a certain point because in a sentence later he says these are my personal feelings and, in fact, i believe states should decide. >> i thought he was pretty clear yesterday. i don't think there was any equivocation. he talked about his family. we knew where he stood. states have traditionally decided their own marriage laws. i think it's clear his justice department is out in front in the federal court cases making clear that they don't believe that any state should be allowed

to discriminate based on sexual orientation so letting individual states decide was a qualifier but in context it was very small. >> richard, i have to say, i disagree with you a little bit and deserves a ton of credit for the symbolism of what he did. first president ever to endorse gay marriage. it was a personal endorsement, essentially he said it's something i support but i'm not going to fight for and the president's record on federalism, giving states' rights isn't stellar. it's not one of his core principles. he left himself an out and attempted to leave himself a out -- i am sure why. i'm not sure he's ready to take the political risk yet. >> what is the political risk? >> marriage equality is pretty -- we're pretty evenly divides as a country. the majority support it but it's a bare majority so it's going to probably help him in some place, but it may hurt him in other

places. that's what leadership is about. i think, though, it positions him very nicely in the campaign as someone who is thoughtful, deliberate, willing to take risks and lead on principle. so i think it's very consistent with what his election strategy is going to be and i think to do otherwise to have this muddled position during the campaign -- would have really hurt him. >> richard, voting is the ultimate poll. when there have been same-sex amendments where people voted. supporters are 0 for 32 so you have a national poll that says one thing but you have 32 different elections that say something totally different and so -- >> many of them in swing state. >> what is going on there where people are saying one thing in polls nationally but when it's pit to a vote something he and so i apresidential election is state-by-state election. >> well, i think that's right and i think, you know, we're not -- means that in places like the south we still have a lot of progress to make. but -- >> those 32 states are not just

in southern states. >> very close in california, the polling shows that if the vote were held today it would be overwhelmingly the other way. look, i think that the forces against this have been extremely clever. sometimes even clever, sometimes very lucky in the state-by-state ballot initiatives. we're going to start to win some. we're probably going to win this next one in maine. but -- >> maine, minnesota. >> maine and minnesota coming up in november. you know, there's one in north carolina. they were, you know, strategic perhaps, some would say clever in putting it on during a primary in may may when the traditionally didn't get a representative sample even in north carolina of people coming to the polls because the election was in may, a primary. but you're right. i mean we're not going to win everywhere and will probably hurt him in some places. with young voters will be enthused. progressive democratic base voters will be enthused. what the president did was totally consistent with

everything we know about him. >> it's a calculated decision on his part the way -- >> not an evolution. >> the way mccain shows palin. thought it had be a game changer. obama thinks it will change the whole face of the election. a change people talk about. he think it's going to make him win. >> that's because social issues -- >> it may be wrong but i think he thinks -- >> do you think that's because social issues are what sort of make people emotional and drive them to the polls. how young people poll on gay marriage. overwhelming support or the older white blue collar voters, again -- >> look who we're talking about. everything was the economy up until yesterday. now all i hear about is gay marriage >> that's today. >> long six months. >> it's going to be the economy again. this election is going to be won or lost over who -- who voters think will be best to lead the economy but i would say that, you know, this issue when mitt romney comes up now and says, well, you know, i'll support

civil unions so long as you don't get any rights with them, he looks like, you know, grandpa in this. this is just what mitt romney was trying to avoid. you know, he starts to look in this -- >> tony perkins says now evangelicals say that's our guy. we were not motivated before and now we're really motivated. >> i don't think there's anybody out there who -- i think there are very few people who vote on just this issue and i think those people will vote for mitt romney anyway and were going to come out to defeat barack obama because they hate barack obama. >> just pushing further with the supreme court will have to ultimately decide. because you can't have states voting and state courts judging. >> you are absolutely right. the supreme court is going to decide this issue, not this year but probably next year or the year after. >> right. we'll talk about this more so i won't throw in my two crepes before we get to commercial break. thank you, richard socarides. coming up in our next hour how religion plays into the announcement. dr. tony evans will join us at

8:00 a.m. eastern time. still ahead on "starting point," new doubts about bob woodward's version of watergate. resurfacing in a new book. you can see everything ok? just stay off the freeways, all right? i don't want you going out on those yet. mmm-hmm. and just leave your phone in your purse. i don't want you texting, all right? daddy...ok! ok, here you go. be careful. thanks dad. call me -- but not while you're driving. ♪ [ dad ] we knew this day was coming. that's why we bought a subaru. ♪

won't throw in my two crepes woodward's version of watergate.

welcome back, everybody. ahead on "starting point" this morning, are you a bad mom? yes, i am. i'll just admit it. >> no, you're mott. >> i wanted you to say that. if you don't spend every second catering to your baby are you a bad mom anticipating their every need and desire. "time" magazine is exploring the controversial idea of attachment parenting in this week's cover. talk about that story this morning. plus, a new book doubting the details of watergate. former editor of "the washington post" asking whether the legend of deep throat lives up to reality. his former mentor, bob woodward. you're watching "starting point." back in a moment. .. and our communities... america's beverage companies have created a wide range of new choices. developing smaller portion sizes and more low- & no-calorie beverages... adding clear calorie labels so you know exactly what you're choosing... and in schools, replacing full-calorie soft drinks

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years ago. he stumbled across memos to colleagues, often cursing them out, invites from the kennedy, advice to fans who wanted to get into journalism. jeff himleman chronicles it kau caused "yours in truth: a personal portrait of ben bradley." you came to this as a researcher for bob woodward and got you into ben bradlee. >> he made the introduction. >> what was that task like to kind of do journalism around the man most famous for journalism? >> when i first met ben like a lot of people who meet him i was overawed by the men. he's a legend astin editor and rightly show. it was an amazing experience. unlike anything i've ever done. it was like a tutorial in journalism and the history of journalism and the process of how journalism worked. >> he oversaw so many. i mean he was obviously there

for such a long time and oversaw so many important moments including, of course, watergate, scandal, as well. when the book was previewed he had a statement that said the piece didn't go far enough in the explanation. he said that it sounded as if he was saying that the watergate scandal, maybe he didn't give enough specifics. tell me what happened that ben bradlee felt -- did he feel woodward wasn't giving him all the facts in watergate. >> look, what ben said in 1990 in an interview, there was a residual fear in my soul that isn't quite straight and referring to the sort of straight. he was referring to the hollywood portrayal of the story. ben was responsible for what went into the newspaper. ben feels confident about what went into that newspaper. i think what ben meant is as you go from newspaper to book to movie, you start to take little liberties with how the narrative of the story unfolded. all he was saying is you can't hold me to the hollywood version

of the watergate story. some details are not details i witnessed or edited. you take some of those things on faith. that's what he was saying. >> he was also saying in the book that he felt if you asked me do i think woodward embellished, i would say no. he said that in an interview. he went on in fact to say that woodward did nothing to play down the drama. the question is that bad journalism? >> people can argue about that. it caused a stir in washington. >> he was your mentor. that must be messy for you. >> people have talked about all of those things. i think it's caused more controversy in washington than i had anticipated. i think watergate is such a founding story of modern print journalism that when you touch the narrative of any way, people get excited about it. >> this is a stupid controversy, okay. he stated his position. woodward stated his.

it seems that bob woodward is offended that ben bradlee had reservations. okay. you are reporting him out. it's not like you were fabricating something. why keep making this that big of a deal. i don't get it. >> that's a good point. >> says the man at the center of the very big deal. >> you made a ton of money from movies and books and keep writing it. >> i would like this to go away. let me read something at the start of the book. he gives a lot of advice which is interesting. it's almost impossible to keep personal values out of a story. don't think of objectivity. think of fairness. how much did you learn? >> that's ben bradley right there. there is stuff throughout the book. when he came to "the washington post" in 1965, it was a sleepy paper. partisan paper. and the thing that he came to do was to try to pull the tilt out

of the news coverage. that's a big piece for him. he wanted hard hitting journalism that was exciting and fun to read and writers with flare. that didn't mean you couldn't be objective about the truth and be fair. the cook scandal -- >> tell everyone what that was about. >> in 1980 a young reporter in the paper fabricated a story about an 8-year-old heroin addict. he loved the story. he pushed it. it ran in late september of 1980 and april of the following year she won the pulitzer prize. people started to check her resume and resume she submitted was different than the one she submitted to the post so in short order it was revealed as a hoke. what's interesting from ben's perspective, this is biggest scandal to occur at "the washington post" under his watch and unlike richard nixon, he

made the decision that no fact about the hoax was going to come out in any other paper before it came out on pages of "the washington post." >> tell us about his relationship with john f. kennedy. >> i talk about some of that in the book. i think given recent books that have come out and other things, we know how kennedy operated. i think ben was a little surprised by the fact that ben had been sleeping with ben's wife's -- kennedy had been sleeping with ben's wife sister and he knew that after kennedy passed but i think that kennedy made a pass at his own wife and didn't tell him that until much later. it's a real window into how that guy operated. i don't know how he found time to be president with the tail he's chasing. >> that's not yours in book. bradlee signed his corresponden correspondence. >> as a journalist, it's an amazing read. a philosophy of truth telling is interesting.

>> he lived it. >> thank you for coming in to talk to us about it. >> ahead on "starting point" this morning, women across the country devouring the book "50 shades of gray." very different from jeff's book. we'll tell you why some libraries -- >> in most areas different. >> why some libraries are banning that book and does this look dangerous to you? parents are wondering why this little girl was kicked off a flight. dee snider on our panel this morning. new energy into old standards. you're wactching "starting point." back in just a moment.

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welcome everybody. gay people should be able to marry. reaction to president obama's comments from all angles, political, social and religious fallout this morning. does letting your child out of your sight for a second make you a bad mommy. "time" magazine is exploring the controversial idea of attachment parenting. we're going to debate that this morning. shawn johnson will join us. a hero back in 2008. not giving up on 2012 trying to get ready for london even though at the age of 20 is one of the older athletes competing. ♪ >> one of the greatest groups ever in the history of forever. >> that would be true. and also twisted sister. >> i wouldn't put them in the same level as the temps although

we both start with the letter t. >> that comes off dr. tony evans playlist. he's going to talk to us about president obama's support of same-sex marriage. we'll talk to him in just a minute. dee snider here with us. >> we were doing our long island act. >> don't do that again. >> i'll be dog gone. >> long islanders versus texans this morning. >> that's not an easy fight. >> let's get to our "starting point" this morning. i'm moving on. gracefully. our "starting point" this morning, president obama's historic stand is now the first american president ever to support same-sex marriage. this after years of saying that he was evolving on the issue. here he is in an interview with

abc news. >> i just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that i think same-sex couples should be able to get married. >> the nation is nearly split evenly with 50% saying they support same-sex marriage and 48% saying they oppose it, some analysts say the president's announcement could lose votes in a key demographic that supported him for years, african-american voters. fewer african-americans oppose the issue than before, only 39% of african-americans support same-sex marriage. dr. tony evans is a senior pastor at the oak cliff bible fellowship and joins us this morning. nice to see you. thanks for being with us. what was your reaction to the president's announcement? >> i was disappointed. as a christian and as a person who believes the bible has established clearly what marriage is supposed to be between a man and woman and

because of the reality that the saga of a nation is really the saga of its family's written large and when you redefine the family other than what the creator intended when he established it, then you look at the civilization so i was disappointed and i hope that just as he changed it one way there will be influences to reconsider and change it back the other way. as a christian the bible should establish our authority and not the culture or popular opinion. >> as the leader of the nation, the law should establish the authority, correct? certainly civil rights was fought on equal opportunity and equal rights under the law. it sound like you would be contradicting that. >> separation of church and state. >> separation of church and state should never mean separation of god and right. since government is supposed to be an agency of god and since the nation was established based on a frame of reference, god

shouldn't be marginalized and his authority should not be negated. civil rights is not an issue here. biblical justice is the application of god's moral law in society. when you talk about nation civil rights and combine that to redefinition of the family, god has to have a say so on both issues. >> far be it for me to argue with a pastor about god so i'll preface this with what i'm going to say. leave it to god. at the end of the day you could leave it up to god and say under the laws of the country, we aim for equal protection and equal rights under the law. for example, i would say the institution of marriage has changed over time. i was having this debate with tony perkins this morning. the institution changed over time for women's rights and as you well know rights of slaves

to get married and rights of blacks and whites to get married. it's changed a lot. why not leave it up to god and let man get out of it? >> because god has established what man is supposed to do and he expects man to do it his way and not a way independently of him. and when you do things independently of him, you have consequences you don't want to bear. so god is not just some spirit that is unevolved. he's evolved through the system that he established. government is to respect his rule and not ignore it. >> pastor evans, this sunday you will have a huge number of people in church for what i call one of the holy days, mother's days, because you have christmas, mother's day and easter folks. what do you expect reaction to be from pastors from the pulpit and what if a pastor doesn't speak to this issue? what will that say to their congregation especially african-american pastors?

>> well, absolutely. if we take the bible seriously, which all christians should do, it should be the final authority. the bible is clear in old testament and new testament. a man and a woman. you ought to speak to this issue without involving partisan politics per se because the issue is a moral issue. it's a spiritual issue. it's a national issue because whoever owns the family owns the future. and therefore pulpits should take this seriously and say on this issue the president is wrong. he has a lot of great things he's done. great attributes. on this issue, this is not the direction the country should be going in and pulpits should not be apologizing for holding that banner high. >> what's the political implications to president obama's re-election opportunities and chances among african-americans? when you say someone is saying the president is wrong on this, what does that mean for

african-american support? >> i just finished my book how christians should vote. god doesn't ride backs of donkeys and elephants. there are strengths and witnesses in both parties. because the family is foundational institution upon which all other institutions are dependent for their ability to function properly, this issue needs to be addressed and i would say those who are committed to the democratic party ought to leverage influence to change if you have a christian world view, the president or influence the president's view to be changed once maybe he can change his mind twice because this is nonnegotiable. >> would you advise people not to vote for him because of this? >> what i don't do across my pulpit is endorse candidates. i deal with issues. i go through all issues and tell congregation what god says about all of the issues and then i let them go into the voting booth and pass the law. >> would you personally say i disagree? i will not vote for president obama? >> i will personally say i

disagree. when i get in the voting booth, i'll cast my vote. >> how do you think that's going to go with you get in the voting booth? >> i'll let you know when you bring me back on after i voted. >> how is mitt romney looking to you? mormon, how does that look to you? >> well, i mean, obviously on the family issue if he's going to be consistent with his position, i would agree with that. i'm a christian. i believe jesus christ is the savior. i believe the bible is the absolute word of god and not to be negotiated or tampered with. i believe that that should be the standard by which we make all of our decisions if you are a christian. >> all right. i think we agreed to have you back after you vote. dr. tony evans, nice to talk to you this morning, sir. appreciate it. much more on the president's historic announcement ahead. gop groups are criticizing the president saying it's too little, too late. we'll talk to chris barron and

jared polis. time to get to christine romans. >> good morning, soledad. thank you. in syria a pair of powerful explosions in the heart of damascus. one was captured on tape more than 40 people were killed. 170 others injured. syria blames attacks on anti-government terrorists and an opposition group claims sy a syria's intelligence agency was killed in the blast. adam mayes on the list of top fugitives. authorities believe he's on the run with two young girls. mayes is accused of killing their mother and their oldest sister. there's now a $175,000 reward for information leading to mayes' arrest and the girls. these two little girls on their screen, their rescue. vladimir putin will not

attend g-8 summit in maryland. he says he has to finalize cabinet appointments to russia's new government. his cancellation is seen as another sign of a strained relationship with president obama. it seems no one can explain why a toddler was ordered off a jetblue flight at ft. lauderdale airport. she doesn't look like a terrorist but she and her parents were removed from their new jersey bound flight and detained for 30 minutes. the little girl's parents don't want to be identified. they are middle eastern and despite being u.s. citizens they believe they were profiled by the utsa. >> your daughter was flagged as no fly. >> it was absurd. why would an 18-month-child be on a no-fly list. >> the tsa claims that jetblue made the decision and jetblue

says it was tsa's decision. >> studies show girls report nearly twice as many concussions as boys in the sports they both play and girls who play soccer are getting hit the worst. girls soccer is now only second to football in the number of concussions reported. injuries often happen when players head the ball. they use their heads to hit the ball and collide with other players. girls are more susceptible to concussions because they have weaker next. 50 shades of gray, three states, wisconsin, georgia, florida, say it's too steamy for the library. a library in florida had to send out 200 notices to people on a waiting list for the book when it pulled the novel. i guess they'll have to go to amazon. >> you can read it with one of those readers so no one has to know that you're reading steamy

stuff. i don't know what you're talking about. i'm just saying, i only read books for small children. that's the only reading i do in my personal time. >> right. >> "good night moon." >> still ahead this morning on "starting point," are you a bad mom? if you don't spend every second catering to your baby, are you a bad mom? "time" magazine is exploring the controversial idea of attachment parenting. that would be the controversial cover on attachment parenting that will is holding up for us. >> is that controversial enough for you? >> it is. also dee snider will talk about his new twist on broadway.

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♪ >> that's my playlist. the rolling stones. i had to pay money for it but i finally got it. this morning we're talking about what is an age old battle between husbands and wives and mothers and daughters and how do you parent your kid? "time" magazine tackles the argument in a provocative cover story calling are you mom enough? they look at attachment parenting. on the cover is a woman who clearly who has a kid who is 3 years old who is attached to nursing by his mom. they talk about the doctor that emphasizes the baby bs, birth bonding, breastfeeding, baby wearing bedding close to the baby belief in the language value of your baby's cry and on and on and on. that style is not without controversy. linda is the editor at large of "time" magazine. a mother as well. did you breastfeed your kid until he was 3 years old like the mom on the cover is doing?

>> no. i have no problem if that is somebody's choice but that was not going to be something i could manage. >> the question you have on the cover is are you mom enough? i think it's sort of a version of are you a bad mom, which is a question that women everywhere have been grappling with forever. why is attachment parenting so controversial? what exactly is it? >> attachment parenting as you explained is a type of parenting that really responds very much to the child rather than the mother's needs. this is what one argument would say. the child is never left to cry. if the child cries, you must pick it up straight away. no putting the baby on a schedule. the baby sets the schedule. they encourage breastfeeding. they encourage co-sleeping. you sleep with the baby or babies if you have them. the wearing of the baby all the time. >> why is it so controversial? all of those things sound perfectly fine if it is somebody's choice. >> i think we might find controversy if we ask dads about

this. >> i've seen dads the same way who go along with that. >> breastfeeding? >> not the breastfeeding part. but in terms of letting the child dictate in terms of absolutely sleeping in the bed, not going to name names let's say that's the kid. go to your room. because so what happens is this child then grows up and becomes four, five, six and they are a little adult running the parents. >> that may be happening in some cases. there is really no good science on how much you should let your child cry. obviously you should not make your child cry forever. nobody is saying that. there have been studies among a child left alone. science is really out on whether attachment parenting which is really something the mothers do because it makes them feel bonded to their child and how much it is better for the kid. that's what the story explains. it has to be said that this style of parenting has had an

enormous influence in the last 10, 20 years. it's hard to have not come across this kind of attachment. >> did your wife do attachment parenting? >> married 30 years with four kids. my wife is very dedicated to our kids. she gave up her career for them but there's a limit. there's times for them to go to their room. she hammered me with baby, baby, baby, baby. they are four bs in my life. she draws a line at certain points. >> your wife gave up her career from the article, is attachment parenting a plot to take women out of the workplace and put them back in the home full time or a way to encourage mothers and babies to form loving bonds which is beneficial for long-term emotional health and well-being. this is written by the author. >> my feeling on this is that we could not have attachment parenting if we hadn't first had

feminism. we have been brought up as women to find our own paths and to get really educated and to overdeliver. if you want to be in your position. >> soyou need to work harder at what you do and be better at it. women have brought that energy and engagement in education saying i'm going to be the mother of all mothers especially if i'm giving up my job and whatever. i am going to mother the heck out of this kid. that's part of what it is. >> how much of it is a backlash to how we were raised. most of the people around this table our parents were go out and play and don't come back in the house. call back at dinnertime. we'll call you. stay out of trouble. >> absolutely. >> isn't this backlash like i was raised this way and now i'll raise my kids the opposite of that. i'm sure my children will raise their children opposite of that. >> we're smarter about raising kids.

plunking your kid in front of the tv for six hours a day is not good for their body or brain. smoking when you're pregnant, not good for you. we stopped doing it. we are more educated. has pendulum swung too far, that's the issue. >> there are good things in this article and in this concept such as breastfeeding. it has certain benefits to a child's life. this has evolved into the point where as you describe the child is what is in charge. the child's schedule and that evolves into a child that also has no discipline. this is -- >> i don't know that's true. i think strapping a kid to you is the way it is done in many countries. you take your baby. you put them in a sling and you drag them everywhere you go. that's not a child in charge necessarily. that's taking the kid who you are not going to say i'm not going to leave my house because i'm putting them down on a nap. the kid on a schedule is more in charge than the one you throw in the baby -- >> that's a whole different deal. that's a whole different deal. >> if the kid is on the schedule, mom sets the schedule.

>> that's the point. mom sets the schedule. >> you can't move until the kid wakes up from a nap. >> i'm sorry. i've seen people education does not mean smarter. a lot of old school parents did a better job raising people's kids today because we let folks do whatever they want. >> nice to talk to you. >> so much fun to be here. >> still ahead on "starting point," we're going to talk to dee snider about his new project that takes him to broadway. also dad of four kids. married 30 years. and we'll talk about why tanning mom's infamous look could start fading fast. you're watching "starting point." back in a moment. geget t totogegethther, yoyou u cacameme t to o ththe. bebecacaususe e heherere a at, wewe'r're e ononlyly a abob. fifindndining g yoyou u ththe e isis a allll w we e do. wewelclcomome e toto h hot.

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♪

♪ we're not going to take it ♪ ♪ no we ain't going to take it ♪ we're not going to take it anymore ♪ >> we're mad. we're not going to take it anymore. >> that worked out awesome i got to tell you. >> do you know how many black votes are crazy hair band fans because of mtv? >> i do know. >> i tweeted this one day. twister sister. okay. >> dee snider has been with our panel all morning. we want to talk now about his new book which is called "shut up and give me the mike." i say that all the time. also his new cd called dee does broadway. if you look who is singing with him in the cd, clay aiken, cyndi lauper, let's play a little clip. ♪

>> why do -- you don't think of a guy who was in a big hair band doing broadway. >> you know what? dee on broadway are three words i never thought i would hear in sequence actually. after i did a run on broadway in "rock of ages" a year or so ago, it reconnected me to broadway tunes played in my house growing up but i was brought to shows as i was a kid. i always heard rock in these things. i'm going to bring it out. >> it's a great book for people who just want inspiration like how to get through life. you have had this incredible

lo longevity. the normal kids who don't appear on front page of ""national enquirer." how did you do that? >> that wife point is important. 36 years ago i realized that hanging onto this incredible woman was a smart thing to do. she kept me in line and been by my side through everything. i wrote every word myself in that book. >> you are sober enough to be able to write that. >> i never did drugs or drank. sorry kids. i remember everything. they said you don't have to be in twisted sister or dee snider to get something out of this book. >> it has a lot of life lessons. i thought it would be a walk through the hair band. it's really a walk through how to navigate the ups and downs of life and come out well on the

other side. you write about disappointment and how you manage it. a time when you were on the top and then bottom because grunge came in and knocked the band out. what was that like? >> imagine you studied a form of medicine they found a cure for. the '90s come along. the grunge hits and nobody wants anything to do with what i have practiced my whole life. i am literally in a parking lot and my wife is doing hair and makeup on weekends for weddings. i run from security in the parking lot because i'm afraid they're going to recognize who i am. it's like jay leno of heavy metal. and thankfully i recovered from that. i thought sharing a story in its own way, you don't have to be a rock star to identify with messing up and trying to pick yourself up and start over. >> and making it and sustaining it are two very different things. >> yes. life is a journey and it's a struggle. >> artists talk about that.

how do you deal with it? >> making it is a different opportunity. >> we've been talking about this on this show for weeks in regards to professional athletes. >> they are really correlated. >> going from van to limo back to the van. >> rich and famous is tough. poor and famous is really tough. >> poor is tough. >> we have to take a short break. still ahead on "starting point," we're going to look at the jobless numbers for the week set to be released any moment now. we'll bring those to you live along with that they mean for the economy of course. and president obama reacts for the first time to government mitt romney taking credit for rescuing the big american auto companies. we'll tell you why the president saying it's another etch-a-sketch moment. that was first said on our show. you're watching "starting point."

welcome back. you're watching "starting point." jobless numbers are just in. let's get to christine for analysis president. >> weekly jobless claims 367,000 claims filed for the first time last week. that's down 1,000 from the week before. we want to see this number below 400,000 because that shows a labor market that's improving. futures are up right now suggesting the stock market could open higher. the prosecution in the corruption trial of john edwards will rest its case today without calling the former senator's mistress, rielle hunter to the stand. yesterday a close friend of elizabeth edwards testified. she talked about her final days battling breast cancer and how elizabeth edwards lamented the fact she could die alone. president obama is heading west this morning to collect a

boat load of campaign cash. he will head to a reception at george clooney's home. 150 donors will be there paying $40,000 for the privilege. the event is expected to generate $15 million in campaign contributions. more than mitt romney has ever raised in a single month. she's the well done gift that keeps on giving. several tanning salons surrounding her new jersey home have banned tan mom from their premises and now some new jersey papers are reporting the state department of health is getting involved as well. some have even posted pictures of her. and now the inspiration behind the new tan mom action figure. an action figure from a company called hero builders. soledad? >> and then that tan is going to fade and everyone will leave her alone at some point. >> i don't know.

>> she's trying to look like roland. roland bringing it back to rola roland. >> i think she's trying to look like a baseball glove. >> at some point we're going to let this poor woman off the hook and move off her story. let's talk about president obama with that bold announcement supporting marriage for same-sex couples. here's what he said. >> at a certain point i just concluded that for me personally it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that i think same-sex couples should be able to get married. >> most recent poll shows 50% of americans agree with the president that same-sex marriages should be legal. 48% say no they should not be legal. congressman jerry polis of colorado one of only four gay members of congress and chris is founder of go proud. nice to see you gentlemen.

thank you for being with us. let's begin with you congressman. what's your reaction to the president's announcement? >> it's welcome news frankly. the president like so many american families came to the recognition that gay and lesbian americans ought to be able to have committed relationships and have public recognition of those committed relationships and same rights and responsibilities of marriage. >> he's called it an evolution. do you think that's an accurate way to put it? or maybe a better question is it a political evolution looking at poll numbers and look maybe at younger voters who support gay marriage overwhelmingly or is it a personal evolution as he seemed to tell robin roberts? >> this is a very personal question. people particularly of president obama's generation and generation ahead of him really wrestle with this question internally. most americans want to be fair, treat people fairly, they also

grew up and many people grew up in faith traditions which don't allow gay marriage within that tradition. it's a question of to what extent do we let separate faiths decide who gets married and each faith has a prerogative to do that but from government perspective, those marriages need to be counted equally under federal law and i'm thrilled the president came to that same conclusion. >> when you look at the poll numbers, you might say there's a slight advantage for those who support same-sex marriage but when you actually look at states where they put in a ban or a definition of a marriage is between a man and a woman, that's an overwhelming number of states. 30 states between 30 and 32 states are defining it that way. i guess i would ask you to explain what seems to be a contradiction in those numbers. >> those of us in favor of legal acceptance of gays and lesbian

marrying have to explain that doesn't mean your marriage will support gay marriage. we don't have that in the catholic faith. we don't have that. at the same time, more and more people are willing to accept that before the law they should be treated equally and just as for instance catholics can't divorce within the faith and remarry within the faith, nor will they be able to get married to a person of the same-sex within the faith, other americans will and everybody ought to be able to marry who they love. i hope that's common sense to most americans and i'm glad the president agrees. >> the president left a little bit of an out as he was in his interview with robin roberts. he said this is a personal decision that in fact he believes it should be left up to the states, those 30 plus states i was just talking about. isn't that a contradiction also in and of itself. either something is fair and moral or something is not. why should states get to decide? >> states are where the definition of marriage resides.

in fact, the only federal definition of marriage is limiting one defense of marriage act which prevents states that allow gays and lesbians to get married to be counted for federal purposes. president obama has supported defense of marriage act repeal. it's certainly up to each state how to do that. >> i want to bring in chris barron. he's the co-founder of go proud, gay conservative growing up in north carolina where they just voted in that ban on same-sex marriage. what's your reaction to what the president had to say? >> a couple things. one, i think that the president's decision is a good one. but i think it's a half step. for folks whose number one issue is marriage equality, they need to understand that this is a half step. unlike other presidential candidates like new mexico governor gary johnson, the president thinks that marriage rights, civil rights, should be left up to a vote of the people. and, look, we've been hearing from gay marriage advocates for

a long time that it was fundamentally unfair to put people's civil rights up for a vote and 24 hours after the president made this decision, we have congressman coming out here justifying that position. you can't have it both ways. either it's right to put people's civil rights up for a vote or it isn't. >> where do you stand on this issue as a gay man? i would assume you would support gay marriage, do you? >> i'm married. i'm married here under the laws of the district of colombia. i've been fortunate to be married for two years now. >> do you support mitt romney's whose position is he does not support same-sex marriage. so you would vote for president obama in the election? >> i won't. i'll support gary johnson. he's the only candidate in this race that's been 100% on marriage equality this entire time. by the way, he didn't have to get drugged kicking and screaming there. it was a political process for the president.

it's been cynical and a good step but let's not pretend it's not what it overtly political. >> others that have talked to me this morning say it was a personal decision framed by conversations with his wife. framed with conversations with his daughters who have friends whose parents are gay married couples. why do you say it's overtly political decision? what evidence do you have about it? >> in 1996 he said he was for same-sex marriage when he thought it was a political winner for him. in 2008 when he thought it was a political winner to be against same-sex marriage, he was against it. now biden is out there, arne duncan is out there, the last person in the white house who was for marriage equality was the president. i think he made a political calculation that he simply couldn't tamp it down. left wing base pressuring him on this for months if not years on this issue. he had to do this. like i said, it's a good step but let's not pretend it's not

political. of course he's going to come out and say it's personal. he won't come out on tv and say i'm for this because i had no choice. it's purely political. a ploy for votes. >> like etch-a-sketch you would like to hate to reveal what he knows how politics really works. how would you advise your colleagues in the republican party to vote? >> if anybody whose number one issue is marriage equality, they should vote for new mexico governor gary johnson hands down only one that's been there all along. to my friends in the republican party, i would say you need to get with it. the reality is that the mainstream america is there on civil unions and they are there on marriage equality. we need leaders in the republican party who will stand up and say, you know what? let's focus on jobs and the economy and let's recognize that people who are in loving, committed relationships ought to have recognition. it's good for couples. it's good for america. >> chris barron joining thus morning and congressman jared polis. thank you, gentlemen. president obama responds for the

first time to governor mitt romney taking credit for the auto industry's recovery. why he says -- the president says it's another romney etch-a-sketch moment. america's sweetheart from four years ago is training to return to the summer olympics. shawn johnson is one of the older gymnast at age 20. we'll talk to her live coming up. you're watching "starting point." >> two of the most powerful women in business are keeping it all in the family on the fortune 500 list. frontier communication ceo and campbell's soup ceo are sisters. 13 months apart. they are the eldest of four daughters. all of whom followed in their father's footsteps and became executives. they attribute part of their success to their mother teaching them that "ambition is a part of being feminine." for three hours a week, i'm a coach.

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president obama for the very first time responds to mitt romney's claim -- it's okay. first day on the panel. i'll give you a pass. >> teleprompter, roll back down so i can start at the beginning. here we go. president obama for the first time responding to mitt romney's claim that he deserves the credit for the auto industry bailout. >> frankly that's finally what the president did. he finally took them through bankruptcy and that was the right course. i argued for it from the very beginning. when that was done and the help was given, companies got back on their feet.

i'll take credit for the fact that this industry is coming back. >> i was following him fine until that last line. i'll take a lot of credit for the fact that the industry came back. president obama responded on "good morning america" this morning. >> mitt romney says he deserves credit for revival of the u.s. auto industry. how do you respond to that? >> i think this is one of his etch-a-sketch moments. people remember his position, which was let's let detroit go bankrupt so had we followed his advice at that time, gm and chrysler would have gone under and we would have lost a million jobs throughout the midwest. >> i'm co-anchoring with robin roberts this morning. she was breaking news left and right. i wonder if it will have any impact at all as typical voter who has been working on an album and do these back and forths are

they interesting to you as a nonwashington, d.c. political guy? >> i shake my head. vice president gore viciniinvene internet too. if they think it will win favor with some portion of the public, they'll take credit. >> does it work? >> that was debunked. he never said that. that was lies spread. here's the deal, you've seen the response. presidential elections are state by state elections. folks in michigan are sitting here going seriously? you're taking credit for this when you were criticizing us. it's not going well in that particular state. >> still ahead on "starting point," she won four medals in beijing and now trying to make it to the london olympics. gymnast shawn johnson is joining us next. you're watching "starting point." we're back in just a moment. everyone in america depends on the postal service.

i get my cancer medications through the mail. now washington, they're looking at shutting down post offices coast to coast. closing plants is not the answer. they want to cut 100,000 jobs. it's gonna cost us more, and the service is gonna be less. we could lose clientele because of increased mailing times. the ripple effect is going to be devastating. congress created the problem. and if our legislators get on the ball, they can make the right decisions.

>> let the flames begin. the olympic torch is now lit. it happened hours ago in a dramatic ceremony among the

ancient ruins of greece. opening ceremonies will begin on july 27th. 2008 olympic gold medalist shawn johnson is hoping for a shot at gold this london. you probably remember her from the beijing games where she won three silvers and a gold medal. look at a video called "raising an olympian" which features shawn and her mom, terry. >> i had a terrible warmup and terrible day. i was sick and tired. i found some little ounce of energy and spark in me. went up to my routine. >> it was just more emotion than i've ever felt and couldn't hold it back. >> her parents were crying. shawn is 20 years old facing tough competition from younger

gymnasts for even fewer spots that are available on the team. she has a very serious knee injury as well. she joins us to talk about that. nice to see you. so emotional to watch you in that clip looking back at that routine in beijing. tell me the difference between being 16 and being 20 for a woman who is a gymnast at the olympic level that you are. physically, how much harder is it for you? >> you know, a lot of people laugh because it's only 16 and 20. >> i'm one of them. >> yeah. the difference is extreme. the amount of beating our body takes on a daily basis especially in the all around by the time we're 20 our bodies are 50 years old. the recovery time is harder. time you spend in the gym can't be as much. you are a lot more prone to injury. it's a fine balance trying to figure out how much to train and how much rest to take. this time around has been a big learning experience for me.

not quite as powerful and as energetic as i was when i was 15 or 16 years old but i have experience behind me so hopefully that's playing to my favor. >> wait until you get to 45. you'll discover all that energy is completely gone. let's me ask you about your injury. you hurt your knee. what do you think your chances are for the team? >> honestly, i couldn't tell you. this time around is completely different. it's no longer based on the top two all arounders or by score. we only have five spots this time. it's really a puzzle. each individual piece has specific requirements and needs that need to be fulfilled. it's just about trying to fit into one of those spots and after my knee and everything, you know, it's just trying to cater my training and everything around fitting into one spot. honestly, it's so up in the air. i could have told you in 2008 i had a really good shot and i could kind of guarantee i would

be in one place or another but this time around i have no idea. >> we showed clips of your mom and you. i want to play a tiny clip where you talk to your mom about your injury. let's play that. >> what if this injury doesn't allow me to ever do a black flip again or run down the vault runway. >> i think bad things happen for a reason. >> whether you are skiing or walking on the sidewalk, it was supposed to happen. >> how much of a support has your mom been in all of this? >> my mom has played one of the biggest roles in my entire career and life and she's been my biggest fan, supporter, cheerle cheerleader, best friend and mom. she's got any through high times and low times and couldn't have made it here without her. >> best of luck. shawn johnson, my daughters are so excited i get to talk to you today. they look up to you. end point is up next with our panel. born to leap,

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end point this morning goes to dee snider. >> i'm taking with that young gymnast. at 20, she almost seemed to have a defeatist attitude. i reflect on that. people are constantly just anticipating their demise. and throughout my career i've not allowed myself to ever think the end was ny. even flat on my back down and out, i would not accept that as the end zone there. >> hope she listens to you. i would love to see her in olympic games. >> you can do it! >> coming up tomorrow on "starting point," supermodel turned activist christy turlington burns will join us. divisions and