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ltway politics from inside the loop. >>we tackle the big issues here in our nation's capital, around the country and around the globe. >>dc columnist and four time emmy winner bill press opens current's morning news block. >>we'll do our best to carry the flag from 6 to 9 every morning. >>liberal and proud of it.

another day of primaries, and although the gop presidential contest is over, the internal conflict keeps grinding on. rick santorum has finally endorsed the nominee in a late monday night email, santorum spoke of his recent meeting, saying, and i quote: not exactly a torrid endorsement. perhaps one of the reasons santorum is now comfortable endorsing romney is because of romney's self proclaimed hard work to save the auto industry. despite the op-ed, entitled "let

detroit go bankrupt," governor romney is now attempting to rewrite history. >> i'll take a lot of credit for the fact that this industry has come back. >> i can't wait to hear him explain that one. meanwhile, the republican party is using today's primaries to take a giant step to the right. dick lugar one of the last remaining centrists in the senate was defeated tonight. in north carolinians voted today on the emotionally contentious constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. joining me now national correspondent for the atlantic and author of "china airborne,"james fallows. mr. fallows, thank you for joining us. >> thanks for having me governor. >> the respect party seems to be in search of its soul if in fact it has one. what do you make of dick lugar

being lossed out of the senate? that's hard to fathom. >> it really is incredible and there -- there is only one part missing from the pattern. the republican party really going as far right as it can in this cycle, which is mitt romneyening up as the nominee because he had to fend off challenges from the right. but the cycle in my political memory, most resembles of when i was a kid in 1964 when there was a struggle for the soul of the party and moving farther and farther to the right. so we'll see how this place out in the fall. >> there is within the base of the party, the sort of theological base that rick santorum appealed to and the ron paul libertarian piece, of goldwateresque, determination to go as far right as possible. how do you square that attention

within the party? >> it is a challenge. neither of us is a loyal republican, so it's not the same kind of challenge for us, but here i think is the drama we won't know. we don't know how the presidential election is going to turn out. it looks as though president obama has advantages but anything can happen. if it happens that the president is reelected, you can imagine some parts of the republican party saying look, we have gone too far, we're alienating, women, blacks latinos, gays the young. we have to come back to the center. because governor romney is the nominee, saying look our failure was not trying a real pure conservative candidate. so you mentioned the theme the party has gone so far, it's hard

to say if this is the far cycle or whether we'll see a return. >> one of the things we were watching was whether john boehner would be able to corral the tea party he had to deal with, and the answer was quite frankly no. and frankly, unfortunately in my view, they won more of those negotiations than they should have. and going farther right, perhaps increasing their power? >> you are exactly right about the way a lot of the struggles turned out in the last year. there is some question about whether some of the tea party feels they have gone too far. and may be backtracking. so again the steaks in the election this year are not simply the top of the ticket or simply in the senate but in these house races.

>> look mitt romney has said a fair number of things that has surprised me how does he possibly claim credit for the auto industry's return? >> he thought that the company should have gone through bankruptcy, and they did some version of that. so boy -- it's a feet but i think the issue is there's no really accountable for that within his party. they are not going to -- it doesn't matter. >> let's switch for a moment to north carolina, where one more data point in terms of the republican party, here the entire state voting for a constitutional amendment that would ban civil union and same-sex marriage. there seems to be almost a war between the states. is this a social divide that is going to rip us apart?

>> sure. this is one of many. what strikes me is you can slice this two ways. slice it regionally. you see a red/blue pattern in whether -- authorizing same-sex marriage or banning it. but also it strikes me across the country, you can slice it on a age basis, and the evidence i have seen seems to be people below the age of 30 and 35 there is a huge preponderance of americans that is for this. so certainly now it's regional. we'll see whether five years from now it is national because of the age differential. >> let me switch gears here. your new book, "china airborne," what is the thesis of the work

and where do we stand in the united states vis-a-vis china? >> the main point of this book is to say let's ask whether china can take the next step up whether it will go from being the kind of success we have seen so far, but very successful in low-end manufacturing, so being a more fully successful high-tech compete for in the united states. bowing is our biggest exporter aerospace is our biggest exporter. they are gearing up for a challenge in this realm, how will it play out? >> that will determine whether or not they long-term can eat away of what is still the core of our advantage, innovation high-tech, high-value added design. are they turning out the innovators who can go head-to-head with us?

>> they are turning them into a system where the internet runs at half of the speed it does in the u.s. because of the various controls. there are limits on the free innovation within the chinese society. so that's the main tension. how do they work out that -- that tension. >> fascinating, and i will read and buy that work. national correspondent for the atlantic and author of "china airborne,"james fallows, thanks so much for your time tonight. >> my pleasure. thank you. >> wait until you see how happy vladimir putin was to be elected president.

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scott walker will soon have an opponent besides the 900,000 people who signed a petition to recall him. but first kids drinking hand sanitizer, and suzanne summers illegal beauty benefit. when it doesn't fit anywhere else, we put it in the viewfinder. >> putin's mellow dramatic

governing style, you have to be moved by how much putin is enjoying this moment. there he is. [ laughter ] >> living the dream. >> another underwear bomb plot plussed -- >> i haven't come out and said i would support mitt romney. but there you go. >> i'm referring to page 169 of your 1020 income tax return where you took over $1.5 million in foreign tax credits in ten years. appreciate your comment. >> i'll look at it. [ laughter ] >> who would have thought the key to german world domination would wind up being an international banking conspiracy. >> what are your thoughts on the fact that obama's social security number is from connecticut and he has never

been there. >> sure bears get their heads stuck in the occupational honey jar, but so husband is steve ducey. >> that would explain why this administration department think obamacare wasn't constitutional because they don't know about the constitution. >> our kids are getting tippy. >> he got his arm stuck deep inside a gum ball machine. they took apart the machine, and the kid held on it the entire time. >> it smooths out the skin on my neck by innexting stem cells into my neck. >> and that's not fda approved, right, suzanne?

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in the last two years, wisconsin has been on the front line of the political battlefield. today they went to the polls to decide who would go against scott walker. tom barrett is expected to win, creating a rematch of the 2010 contest. but with less than a month to go whoever the democratic nominee is will face a tremendous challenge. the democrats still have to unify behind a candidate who won't be known until tonight. this has allowed walker to flood

the wisconsin airwaves, and that doesn't include the $3 million from the koch brothers. joining me now is graeme zielinski, communications director for the democratic party of wisconsin. thanks for spending time with us tonight, graeme. >> thank you governor. >> here is sort of baseline question, what is the one issue unifying opposition to the incumbent governor? >> dishonesty. i think more than anything you see a governor that was not honest with the people of wisconsin. you have seen it up and down the lines certainly with the original collective bargaining but everything from education -- and more about the criminal activity that may have occurred in his own office. the pay to play culture he has created here. i think he has radically overreached, and you will see

candidates that will unite very quickly around our nominee. >> what i have been reading and obviously you are on the ground there. i have been reading the clips that i see. it seems as though this has not been a terribly frac house primary. there has been an unspoken rule of comedy, we need to be unified. let's be prepared tocoless is that what has driven all four of the candidates? >> absolutely. it energized the base. they all used the principal of unity. they all understand the steaks here. they all understand that unity is the only way we can beat scott walker. he has more money than god, this guy. he is going to outspend us maybe 20 to 1. the only way we can defeat him is through unity, voter contact,

and get out to vote program. >> i see four issues -- again, i have been watching this from something of a distance but four issues that have emerged over the last year one is the selective bargaining issue. second the equal pay issue, third the criminal investigations although there is nothing yet tangible against him individually, and the economic policies that don't seem to be working. are they sort of in a mall gum that collectively create an argument against them. >> absolutely. there is not a lot of movement with folks when they think about scott walker. he spent $20 million, and he is still in the 40s. that's incredible place for us to be when we haven't spent a dollar basically. and he is still in the 40s. jobs are on everybody's mind here. because that was scott walker's poison that he used to lull the people of wisconsin to sleep in

2010. he promised 250,000, and it was reachable possibly but he started his term in office killing jobs shrinking the middle class lowering property values here in wisconsin. and wisconsin leads the nation in job loss now. we were the only state in the country that lost jobs as others gained jobs. but you mentioned the others the criminal probes, his war on women, and the cuts to education and health care are also very important. >> it would seem to me in a way the job loss issue would be the argument most appealing to make to swing independent voters. they have a base that is there but already knows about it. criminal investigations may or may not metastasize, but the job-loss issue may be one that

independents may want to gravitate to and say he is failing. what he promised simply isn't coming to. is that the one you'll use most effectively. >> i think what you have seen in this $20 million of pure propaganda is the realization that he is vulnerable. he has cut investment in infrastructure, high-tech jobs vocational schools done everything he could to lose job, and yet he has press conferences at friendly businesses every day. he is the number one loser of jobs in the country, and every commercial that you see he says otherwise. and people are confused right now about where the economy is really going and people are starting to realize, what he is saying isn't true, because headline after headline after

headline shows that wisconsin is headed in the wrong direction. >> the elections out of europe would give you an indication that the public across the world is saying this austerity simply isn't working. and maybe you can use that it has been tried. it failed. let's not continue a failed exercise. >> one of scott walker's many excuses is blames greece. the guy takes no accountability for anything. if you want to blame these shadow forces of what is going on in wisconsin, we should look at europe. cut social programs, give tax breaks to corporations from out of state, and look what has hand. wisconsin is prof that these policies don't work, that cutting programs for the middle

class, and the safety net for the middle class at the very time that it needs it the most just doesn't work, and wisconsin has 28 days to make up its mind and i think you'll see a different governor come june. >> analogizing calling your state a petri dish, not a good metaphor. >> yeah. >> graeme zielinski thanks for spending some time with us tonight. >> thank you, governor. >> president obama may have missed a opportunity on civil rights, but now he has a much bigger one. you are welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. thanks current fans. [ train whistle blows ] [ ball hitting paddle ] [ orbit girl ] don't let food hang around. yeah! [ orbit trumpet ] clean it up with orbit! [ orbit glint ] fabulous! for a good clean feeling. ♪ eat, drink, chew orbit! ♪

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sure how many ways i can say how utterly ridiculous and wrong that is. brian dietz from the white house who was instrumental in the overhaul of the auto industry is going to be my guest. and joined by the always outspoken mayor of lancing. we'll go inside the auto bailout like no other program, and reveal just what a factory of deception mitt romney really is. >> i like -- a factory of deception. >> turning them out. those lies. >> you know this better than anybody. you were the governor of that state. do i remember this? >> you do remember that. >> my knowledge of politics is remarkable. all right. jennifer it is going to be a great show. more "viewpoint" coming up next. >>(narrator) with interviews with notables from silicon valley, hollywood, and beyond. >>at the end of the day this show's simple. it's about ideas.

ideas are the best politics. ideas can bring us together. >>(narrator) the gavin newsom show. coming to current tv. vaccinations save lives. >>we are very committed to the safety of our products. >>but are mandatory shots doing more harm than good? >>i see children injured every day. >>the controversy has gone viral. >>how many are being sacrificed? >>see "the greater good" on current tv. >>and while you watch, join the live chat at current.com/greatergood. >>our system is not working. >>there are always some risks. >>i don't think it's that back and white. the science is not there. >>only on current tv. ♪ still to come the politics of food, the good the fat, and the ugly. but first here is my view.

nearly four weeks ago president obama fumbled by refusing to sign an executive order that extended fundamental job rights for lgbt workers employed by federal contractors. most of us were mystified when the president wouldn't take that step. but the president can redeem that error now and do much more. he can claim a leadership role by saying can clarity that he favors same-sex marriage. vt biden intentionally or not laid the foundation this weekend when he indicated his support, and several cabinet members have followed suit. this merely highlights the president's silence on the issue. a grand movement on his part would reinvigorate the passion that drove so many voters in 2008. public attitudes on the issue are changing at warp speed. the president's leadership on

the issue would accelerate that support. and for those who are worried that this may challenge religious organizations. marriage has civil as well as governmental aspects. if religions wish not to recognize same-sex marriage it is their right to do so. nothing would change about that. but civil marriage should be extended-to-same-sex couples. that's my view. wa-- wa-- wait a minute; bobby? bobby! what are you doing man? i'm speed dating! [ male announcer ] get investing advice for your family at e-trade. planned parenthood. anna talked to a conservative and it got a little contentious. drama, when we return.

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[ bob cannon ] samuel adams summer ale is a flavorful wheat beer. it has a very nice spice note. [ jim koch ] it has a little lemon zest and a historic brewing spice called grains of paradise. -it's citrusy. -lemony. sam adams summer ale it totally reminds you of summer, you know? fun... indulgence... one square inch of bliss. hershey's bliss. an epidemic that is growing bigger and bigger 20% of americans will be obese by 2030. but if we keep our obesity rates at the current level, we would save $550 billion.

americans have continued to pack on the pounds. it has become fashionable to blame food deserts. but two recent studies refute this claim, and point to evidence that there is no such limited access and relationship between the type of food being sold, and obesity rates. joining us now, marc murphy, executive chef and owner of benchmarc restaurants and a spokesperson for share our strength, a non-profit that battles childhood hunger in america nutrition, food studies and public health and co-author of "why calories count, from science to politics," marion nestle nestle. thank to both of you for coming in to discuss what is really a critical health issue. marion let me start with you. what is the current best theory about what can be done about obesity. >> eat less. >> that's pretty simple but how do you get people to do that? >> change the food environment,

because one of the reasons people are eating so much more now is because the environment has changed. we live in a food environment where food is everywhere, it is sold in extremely large portions, it has become socially acceptable to eat where it never used to be. i like to ask the question when did it become okay to eat in a bookstore? >> you are exactly right. >> it has become a grocery store. >> how do you change that and the response that comes from some schools of thoughts. but shouldn't people know when they step on the scale they are getting heavier and heavier? >> everybody has personal responsibility it's just very hard to exercise that personal responsibility in an environment

that pushes food. as hard as food -- let me just say one thing about it. personal responsibility hasn't changed since 1980 -- >> but we're getting heavier. >> but rates of obesity has. >> if you could change one thing, what would it be? >> i would have the government make healthy foods cheaper. >> okay. we'll get to that in a second. marc you run a series of stupendous restraints. i'll give you a plug there. what do you think we can do to confront this epidemic. >> i'm pass nate about food and eating, obviously. i think to me basically it's about education. it's about educating people about good food and getting good food in their mouth and saying wow, this is what fresh fruit tastes like. >> and by good not just good-tasting, but new

traditional count, et cetera. >> absolutely. >> i work have city harvest, and i seen it firsthand. we do these mobile food markets. we give them good food and educate them. we teach the people in line how to use the kale we teach them out to make the food taste good and they are like, oh wow, this is easy. it is not that hard. >> you hear complaints about the nanny state, suddenly the government telling us what to eat, and disclosure is certainly calory counts on a package of junk food is one thing, but should the state say no trans-fats? are those good and proper marion? >> the state is already heavily involved in deciding what foods are eaten and what foods aren't. the best example i can think of is the index of fruits and vegetables since 1980 has gone up by about 40%, whereas the

index price of sodas has gone down by 15 or 20%. >> should we tax soda? >> it's not a bad idea. it's not an unreasonable idea. it's something that could be considered. it's an experiment that's worth trying. >> reaching for those things that can be done that would change the on text of the environment you are talking about is a hard thing to do. >> you have to do more than one thing. and taxing sodas is just one. >> your restaurants are not all-you-can-eat buffets. >> no. >> you can't get the government to start stepping into every -- you are not going to go to vegas and tell the buffets to stop serving food as well as i don't think taxing sodas is going to be the issue. take all of the money you just

mentioned, make school lunch part of the curriculum. let these people that are on the front line, which are some of these -- what i call school chefs, we should be teaching them out to eat and all sorts of things. i'm a huge advocate of teaching and i think education is the way to go. not taxing people -- >> less invasive. >> absolutely. >> do you buy the notion of food deserts? do you believe there are areas where i is harder to get the fresh vegetables. >> i don't think there is any question about it. go to harlem and good. >> so you think the studies are flawed -- >> they have their own problems with the way the studies were done, and there are other studies that contradict them. it's perfectly obvious you can

walk around new york neighborhoods and not find decent fresh -- it's decent ones. >> and that access you think would -- >> i think it would help. but you can't just give them the food, you have to teach them out to cook it and make it interesting. that to me is one of the most important things. >> and make sure they have the time, money, and equipment to cook. >> pink slime. i didn't know if it was a horror film? >> it's the biggest public relations problem that the companies that make it has ever confronted. it's lean finely texture meat, and it takes the trimmings from beef that would ordinarily be thrown away or fed to pets. and then it comes from many,

many animals, and it's treated with ammonia to kill the bacteria. >> is it safe? >> it probably is. >> marc is it on your menu? >> absolutely not. [ laughter ] >> should this be banned? >> it was a huge pr crisis in part because the company didn't tell consumers what this product was, and so it came as a big shock when people realized what it was, and there was almost nothing they could do with the public relations problem posed by having what they were doing called pink slime. >> it was a tough one to fight. there were three governors that tried to boost it up and say it wasn't that bad for you -- >> rick perry forgot what it was -- >> well the question is it -- just because it is safe, does that make it acceptable?

a lot of people would say no. >> we have about 45 seconds. i head an article that says because we are giving injections to cows they are gaining 30% more body weight before being taken to slaughter. is that dangerous? >> it sure makes you want to gigantic, doesn't it? >> are these additives something that should be banned? >> i think all of that -- i'm personally you don't like these things, you buy organic. >> yeah. >> you buy antibiotic and hormone free. >> so buy organic, eat vegetables, exercise. >> so boring. >> you are going to make me live an extra ten years. and you subscribe to all of this in your restaurants? >> absolutely. we're all about education. michelle obama has started the movement about healthier food. we have it on our