[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> bill: hey, good morning everybody. what do you say? it is thursday, july 12. welcome to the "full court press" here on current tv. where we do our daily roundup of all of the big stories here in our nation's capital around the country and around the globe. tell you what's going on. take your calls at 1-866-55-press. great to have you with us today. and what about this? the summer olympics now just two weeks away. yesterday we got our first look at the uniforms that are going to be worn in the opening ceremonies by team u.s.a. they're designed by ralph

lauren. that's good. but they're made in china! can you believe that? you tell me they couldn't find an american manufacturing to make the uniforms? it is outrageous. one more reason to boycott the olympics. we'll get into that and a whole lot more. first we get the latest from los angeles with today's current news update. here's lisa ferguson. hi lisa. >> hey bill, good morning. mitt romney is saying he would make things better for the african-american community but he got a less than enthusiastic welcome at yesterday's naacp convention. in case you missed if, here's what happened. >> i'm going to eliminate nonessential expensive program i can find. that includes obama care and i'm going to work to reform and save -- [crowd booing] >> not great. the boos lasted a full 15 seconds which is pretty impressive considering it is about on par with the length of the san diego fireworks show last week. there's my lame joke of the day.

look up the fireworks if you haven't seen them. romney gave a pretty tough critique of president obama's policies saying the crowd support for the president was misplaced. but here is maybe the best part of this story. later in the day on fox news, romney said he does have the support of black voters, it's just a secret. romney says he spoke with several african-american leaders who said people are afraid to admit they won't vote for the president. he also said he is expecting to get the african-american votes. all right, we won't tell. >> back in 2008, president obama won 95% of the black vote. the president will not be attending the naacp's convention this year due to a scheduling issue. he is sending v.p. joe biden instead who will give the keynote speech today. the house has voted for the 33rd time to repeal the affordable care act. yesterday's final vote was 244-185. five democrats did join the g.o.p. that is more than the three who supported the repeal a year ago. but the vote is purely symbolic.

it will not pass with democrats in the senate who have called it a waste of time. we're live in chat, current.com/billpress. won't let go. we push, we prod until the truth reveals itself. we are fearless, independent and above all, we are politically direct. the young turks with cenk uygur at 7, viewpoint with eliot spitzer at 8, the war room with jennifer granholm at 9, the gavin newsom show fridays at 11. and there's only one place you'll find us: weeknights on current tv.

of sununu, you're wrong. mitt romney, you're wrong. we need more teachers, not fewer teachers and more cops and more firefighters that support our

[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> announcer: broadcasting >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: u.s.a., u.s.a.! that's what they used to chapt at the olympics but i know now that the uniforms are made in china, they'll be chanting china, china china! i can't believe it. good morning everybody. what do you say? thursday thursday, july 12. great to see you today. it is the "full court press" here on current tv. on your local progressive talk radio station and of course sirius x.m. this hour only.

great to see you today. thank you for joining us. we've got a lot to talk about. stuff happening here in our nation's capital where you find us on capitol hill, just down the street from the united states capitol building where they had a big vote on healthcare yesterday. we'll talk about that as well. we'll tell you what's happening around the country including mitt romney at the naacp laying a big goose egg yesterday down in houston. and another big defection from the assad government in syria. we've got tons to cover all around the globe and tons that you're going to want to talk about. give us a call at 1-866-55-press. that is our toll free number. hey, it is a busy thursday already. team's been working overtime. team press. peter ogborn and dan henning. hello, guys. >> bill, good morning. >> bill: cyprian bowlding, our videographer. everything good? >> happy to be here. >> bill: the big vote in the

house yesterday. they had to make sure that we understand that they don't like the republicans in the house. make sure we understand they don't like the healthcare bill. i think after the 33rd vote yesterday, maybe we got the message and maybe the message we really got is they're wasting their freakin' time. >> i have to be honest. when we had barney frank in studio earlier this week and he said they're going to vote to repeal it for the 33rd time. i thought it was a joke. i didn't realize that it had been that many times. i knew they had made -- >> bill: i agree. you know, column last week i mentioned they did so like last january. i know they had done it before. when he said 33 times i thought he was exaggerating to make a point. it really was 33 times. as dan pointed out this morning here, this is up on our facebook page, by the way. it costs $30 million a day to

keep congress in session. okay? $30 million a day for those clowns to be down there okay? think of the cost -- $30 million times 33. i would say it is really not 33. it would be 66 because they debate it one day and vote the next day. >> yeah, that's right. >> bill: 66 times $30 million. tax dollars well spent by john boehner then he defends it yesterday after the vote saying this is important that we do this. >> we're giving our colleagues in the senate another chance to heed the will of the american people. >> bill: unbelievable. just a joke. jay carney said yesterday at the briefing, this is why people hate washington. tricks like this. >> could not be any more right on that. this is exactly -- >> bill: everybody knows this

is going nowhere. it is to satisfy the tea party freshmen. not even boehner believes this. the senate won't take it up. obama would veto it. you know what? >> what a waste of time. >> bill: it is pure masturbation. >> political masturbation -- >> bill: is more valuable, is more meaningful. at least there's -- well -- >> of course it is. >> sex with someone that i love. >> bill: better masturbate than vote 33 times on this healthcare legislation. there you go. we've got our priorities. >> quote of the day. >> bill: we have our priorities right around the "full court press" this morning. we've got lots and lots of good people coming in today including congressman chris van hollen, one of the top leaders of the democrats in the house of representatives sat down with president obama yesterday. then the head of the naacp will be along to tell us what he

thought about mitt romney's speech yesterday. and ginger -- i'm sorry. ginger gibson from politico will be here to talk politics of the day later in this hour. but first -- >> this is the "full court press." >> on a thursday, other headlines making news, lots of complaints four years ago when the american athletes showed up to the beijing olympic games wearing ralph lauren uniforms made in china not the united states. those complaints were not listened to. this year's uniforms again made by ralph lauren are again from china. they're not cheap either. the women's blazer cost $600. men's, $800. those prices do not include the shirts or the pants and the berets $55. >> you have a little something on your shirt there. >> bill: were you talking about ralph lauren here? >> a little something on your shirt there. >> bill: no, i'm just being patriotic. i'm not trying to -- >> oh, dear.

[ laughter ] >> bill: whoops. you're right. this is really outrageous. we'll talk about that later in the program. >> americans now have less confidence than ever in the news that they're watching on tv. a new gallup poll finds that just 21% of people have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in tv news. that's down 25% since they started asking the question in 1993. democrats were much more likely than republicans to trust television news. 34 versus 17%. gallup did note the survey was taken before cnn, fox botched the news on the supreme court. >> bill: now it would be even lower. a lot of those people who don't trust the news, where do they go? they go to fox right? idiots. >> peter and bill can tell you what they want about the major league baseball all-star game but lots of americans watched the game. >> i like the all-star game. i'm a supporter. >> viewership is up 3% over the

last year according to nielsen. about 11 million people tuned in to watch the broadcast on average. gave fox its highest prime time rating since the finale of "american idol." >> wow. >> that show is not a huge accomplishment because there's not a lot of tv in the summer that's worth watching. >> baseball numbers are iffy on tv. >> bill: i'm surprised they did that well. just proves that -- >> that you were wrong. >> bill: american people have no taste. all right. thank you. hey, what about that mitt romney down at the naacp yesterday? boy, hit it out of the park. should he have even gone in the first place. that's the question. now look, it is a tough decision okay. you gotta admit it is a tough decision because here you are you are the leader of the opposition party. you know that the african-american community voted

understandingbly why 96% 97% i've seen two different figures for barack obama over john mccain in 2008. so you know you're not going to get a lot of votes. at the same time, you're invited and it would be an insult not to go right? so it is a tough decision. i think mitt romney made the right decision. the right decision is to go to show respect to the organization, to show that you can man up and appear before a group that's not going to be necessarily friendly to you. i remember when i was a candidate, i spoke to groups of conservatives, i spoke to chambers of commerce. when i was running in california, i spoke to gun groups and i was all for gun control. and john mccain, john mccain made that decision back in 2008. the difference is john mccain

went to the naacp and he praised barack obama and said this was something that all americans should be proud of for the first time, we had a serious candidate for president who was an african-american. and he was well received there. so tough decision but the right decision i think for romney to go. here is a stupid, wrong decision. let's go there and talk crap. to go there and talk nonsense, to go there and insult these people. and maybe you saw this. our good friend eric burns from -- formerly media matters now with bullfight strategies, he has formed a new project called the message. and they're going to stir things up on issues other people don't want to talk about. so they put out a mock video of campaign consultants advising romney. again, this is pure satire, pure phony video. advising romney ahead of the

naacp speech. whoa, that's a mouthful. as to what he ought to say. here's a clip from the message. >> this is about keeping the black voters from getting hostile which could scare off the independent white vote so you go on out there and you get all mormon m.l.k. on them -- martin luther king on them, okay? >> bill: what was funny is we thought that was a spoof. that's exactly what romney did! he went in front of them yesterday and the first thing he does is he insults -- he attacks barack obama. by accusing barack obama of running a negative campaign. >> when president obama called to congratulate me on becoming the presumptive republican nominee, a gracious call, he said that "he looked forward to an important and healthy debate about america's future". i'm afraid this campaign has taken a different course than that. >> bill: yeah. as if obama's the one who started the negative stuff. it is romney that's called him

the outsourcer in chief just yesterday or day before yesterday. it is romney who says he's responsible for all the jobs, the fact that we don't have -- job numbers are still at 8.2%. every job lost even under george bush. romney says barack obama's responsible for the whole recession even though it happened under george w. bush. doesn't give the guy credit for wanting -- for opposing him on healthcare. opposes him on trying to give 98% of americans a tax cut. romney, barack obama -- he said nice guy but in over his head. then he accuses obama of running a negative campaign? and then he has the audacity to say hey i'm against everything you stand for but look at me! i'm your friend. >> if you want a president who will make things better in the african-american community you are look at him. >> bill: oh, god.

>> romney: take a look. [ laughter ] >> bill: here i am! not to mention he was a bishop of the mormon church and the mormon church wouldn't even accept black members until 1997, right? or to the priesthood until 1997. >> romney: take a look. >> bill: romney was a bishop then. he never opposed that policy, not that we know of, right? and then finally in front of this group he has the audacity to say that he's going to repeal the affordable care act. >> romney: i'm going to eliminate every nonsense expensive program i can find. that includes boyle care and i'm going to work to reform -- [crowd booing] >> bill: they booed him for about 30 seconds. but you notice how -- i'm going to repeal every program that

doesn't make sense. like obama care. like obama care. trying to slip that one across. the fact of it is he's not going to get the votes. he's not going to get the votes okay. nice try, mitt but no cigar. what's really insulting -- and i think african-americans find it insulting. you tell me. 1-866-55-press. is, you know what, it is the actions and the delivery that counts. it is not their words or promises. you look at every single program that would help members of the african-american community not exclusively but help particularly members of the african-american community republicans have voted against. the jobs bill, they voted against it. public employees, how many african-americans work for government. teachers. bus drivers work in our government offices. they want to shut all of the

public employee unions down. public transit. medicaid medicare, social security. i mean you go on and on. the center for american progress. just put out a thing under mitt romney right? his tax proposal. there were 2 rkz 200,000 after man canadian families who would -- there were 2,200,000 african-american families what would get a tax increase. everything he's got he's against them and then he says you want somebody who's going to help you out. look at me. here i am. white bread. i don't think it will fly. i would say maybe this time, barack obama getting 99% of the vote. romney getting less than mccain. african-american vote of course i mean. 1-866-55-press. tell me what you think. should romney even have bothered to go to the naacp. we'll be right back with your calls. >> announcer: this is the "full court press." the "bill press show."

live on your radio and on current tv. collide on "the gavin newsom show". this week: can a futurist really predict the future? find out on "the gavin newsom show".

take the gamble out of stain removal. only resolve all-stains has two formula chambers to remove all types of stains. using shout or oxiclean? that's just playing the odds. don't chance it, resolve it. see a resolve difference or it's free. ♪ take just one more ♪ it's been dumbed down ♪ long before romney ♪ ever did ♪ >> thank you . >> stephanie: 45 minutes after the hour. we'll be back as we close "the stephanie miller show." >> on "the stephanie miller

show" in suburban america this >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: 25 minutes after the hour. talking about mitt romney at the naacp yesterday. saying he's better for african-americans than barack obama. oh yeah, sure. and then he went on neil kabuto yesterday afternoon on the fox business channel and said they might have booed me but secretly secretly, i'm going to get all of the black votes. >> i spoke with a number of african-american leaders after the event, they said a lot of folks don't want to say they won't be voting for barack obama

but they're disappointed in his lack of policies to improve our schools, disappointed in urban policy. disappointed in the economy. >> bill: yeah, i wonder how many of that audience yesterday have dressage horses. arnold, our roving ambassador down in chattanooga tennessee. what do you think? >> hey man it is amazing how those people work it. that mitt romney, he was out there shoveling to the right wing crazies that he could do. they're going to play this in commercials, i believe. >> bill: i think you're right. >> caller: the way they did man. he brought his own applaud section. he brought 30 black republican to the convention so they could sit up in the front row and clap for his phony right wing points. i tell ya, man, who would do something like that? it makes me sick, man. i stand firm in my commitment a long time ago.

before i vote for a republican, i would rather but a razor blood and suffer all of the pain of it. it would have been better to see -- hey i love you all! [ laughter ] >> bill: i know. it did remind me of that famous quote. that colonel sanders -- any african-american vote for mitt romney would be like a chicken for colonel sanders. and that was -- i always forget his name. the congressman from oklahoma. >> j. c. watts. a black republican. >> bill: renee is calling from washington d.c. what do you think? >> caller: good morning, bill. how are you? >> bill: i'm good. >> caller: i agree with you and the previous caller but i think it was the best political move

considering the stupid things he's done thus far. he went and pandered to the right audience. he pandered to his base. >> bill: that's what he did. he was speaking to them. >> caller: i think the black -- i can keep these black people under control. look at this hard line i can take. a few independents will vote for him as well because of it. i thought it was the best thing he could have done. i thought it was also disrespectful as a black person, i was sitting there and i really wanted someone in the audience to scream at him and say "you lie! ." but nobody did it! i live in fear of this man becoming president. i really, really do. >> bill: you know, renee hey i appreciate the call very much. sorry. we've gotta run along here because we're up against the clock. i do think he should have gone. there are some things that might have won him some support. not what he said yesterday. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

say -- maybe it was starve the beast. i'll look it up during the break. a phrase there. but he said -- exactly what ed is talking about is pile up more and more debt. pile up more and more debt and get to the point where the whole system collapses and then they will have achieved their end of basically shutting down the >>it's the place where democracy is supposed to be the great equalizer, where your vote is worth just as much as donald trump's.

>> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: what do you say? happy thursday, july 12. this is the "full court press" on current tv. and your local progressive talk radio station coming to you live coast-to-coast from our nation's capital brought to you today by utility workers union of america. delivering vital services and a brighter future, the good men and women of the utility worker's union under president michael langford. find out about their good work at their web site, uwua.net. we're talking about mitt romney at the naacp yesterday.

maybe he went in there to get boos. maybe he went in there enough to speak to that audience but to his base because he certainly insulted the audience he was in front of and vowed again to repeal obama care. we'll get back to your calls about yesterday's speech but first, just a quick time-out to say hello to ginger gibson, national political reporter for politico. hey, ginger, good morning. >> good morning. thanks for having me. >> bill: glad you're there. front page story in "the new york times" this morning. we've heard rumbles of this the last few days. republicans saying to mitt romney hey, you know, you better step up your campaign here because the obama campaign seems to have you on the ropes lately on offshore investments on outsourcing jobs. and on opposing tax cuts for 98% of americans and some republicans saying the romney counter punching that we saw so

effective in the primary seems to have disappeared. what do you know? >> there's a rumble that's growing into a roar in the republican party unhappy with the way that mitt romney and his campaign is responding to the attacks coming out of the obama campaign. they're not answering the bain attacks, the offshore attacks. they're sitting around waiting to see what is going to happen. the romney campaign insists they have a plan, they know what they're doing. but it is not -- they think he could be using this election, this month as the obama campaign -- >> bill: i've heard several people -- and some republicans who have told me they fear -- the analogy they see or the parallel is john kerry being swift voted during the summer of 2004 right? where the republicans were trying to define him and knock him down and kerry was slow to

response. i don't think it's that bad for romney. but look at the supreme court decision right? i mean he was really slow stepping up to the plate, i think and getting his message and his response to the supreme court decision. >> that response was muddled at best. he had an answer. he got up. he said i want to repeal obama care and replace it with something else. but then when the real question came up, is it a tax or a penalty, we heard his top advisor fehrnstrom saying oh no, it is not a tax. it is a penalty. then mitt romney said oh, no, it is a tax. after his base got unhappy with that answer. so there's been some miscommunications, there have been some problems in the campaign. we see republicans you know, arrive he locked out the nomination, stop saying negative things about him got out of primary mode. starting to get more comfortable. particularly staffers. >> bill: yeah. so we're talking with ginger

gibson, national political reporter for politico. you can follow her work at pretty cor -- at politico.com. now this week, the obama campaign has been focusing on this aspect of mitt romney. that he's got. here's a guy with a swiss bank account. here's a guy with an offshore tax haven in the cayman islands a tax haven in bermuda. he says he doesn't even know where his money is. how serious an issue for romney? >> he's reported everything. disclosed everything. but this is an issue he seems to not be able to get away from. and despite it being brought up by multiple opponents now he's not putting it to rest by releasing the tax returns. i don't know if it is better for him that he's not releasing the tax returns. keeps going back to and going

back to because as long as they're not public, it is easy to say these things are being hidden and what's in them and what's hidden is always a lot scarier than what's out there in the public. >> bill: sure. doesn't it also reinforce the image of romney as this out-of-touch plutocrat who floats away above the .0001% of americans who have so much money they have to park it offshore. >> we don't know how much money mitt romney has. it is easy to imagine he has a lot more than you or i or anyone else that we know. not releasing the tax returns means that his opponents can say well, he's super rich and he's the guy who's got unknown amounts of money hidden away in bermuda and the cayman and swiss bank accounts. that's the type of image that the obama campaign thinks they're going to be able to capitalize and run with all the way to november as a guy who doesn't understand the middle class and isn't working in the

best interests. >> bill: the other issue we've seen this week, president obama on monday saying -- he said this before but now he's made it a major push. to get a tax -- extend the tax cuts for 98% of americans, not for the top 2%. where romney immediately came out and said all or nothing basically, right? everybody gets a tax cut or nobody gets a tax cut. politically perilous for romney? >> romney's making the argument that those two are in the top bracket of these tax cuts, the ones that president obama once let expire. are actually people. they're small businesses. the guy running the store on main street. he's going to keep pushing that position. it is going to become a battle of messaging. it is going to become a battle of who's able to explain to the

american people their position. it is not clear. both of them could be successful in that message. president obama has 62% in the latest polls of americans who think that the rich don't pay enough in tax but mitt romney has a track record of republicans who have won on this argument and have been successful in arguing the top earners aren't earners at all. they're job creators. >> bill: i heard the president on monday say that 97% of small businesses make less than $250,000 a year. romney better do research on that one. ginger it is an interesting time. the way campaigns are these days, the summer months which used to be the dull months, right, nothing happening they may be the determining months in this presidential election. thanks for following it so closely. ginger gibson from politico. >> thanks for having me. >> bill: you can follow again at politico.com. back to mitt romney. should he have bothered to go to

the naacp. i think he should have gone but don't you think he might have crafted a better message than standing in front of them and pretending that me! i'm the great hope of the african-american community. think black. look at me. mimi from atlanta georgia. hi mimi. >> caller: hi, good morning, bill. >> bill: good morning. >> caller: the thing is he was so condescending in his tone to them. he said stuff like i hope to represent all americans. i didn't know he had a choice in who he wanted to represent. and then he said stuff like you know the obama care act. that's why they booed him. it is not so much that he wanted to repeal him. he booed -- they booed him because he said obama care instead of affordable care act. >> bill: that's a good point. >> caller: afterwards when he was finished, he said they booed me, i expected it. but if they wanted free stuff from the government, vote for that guy?

what free stuff? and who are those people? he was very condescending. he slung mud in their faces and that's why they booed him. he thought he should have gotten a praise. that's why his face looked like oh, my god, i can't believe they did that. he was wrong in what he did. on top of that, he went on fox news and talked about -- >> bill: the secret vote, right? yeah. secretly, they all said privately they're going to vote for me. what's he smoking right? >> caller: what black representative is going to say oh we want to vote for you to repeal obama care? and they use that. why is it good for massachusetts and not good for the rest of the country? if he's going to repeal obama care, is he going to repeal romney care? >> bill: mimi, you're on top of this stuff. marc is down in atlanta as well. hi mark. >> caller: hey bill, how you doin'? >> bill: i'm good. what do you think, yesterday? >> caller: i think the naacp

should have never invited him. i have to disagree with him being invited. first of all -- >> bill: well, they kind of have to. they're a national political organization. >> caller: romney is what's wrong with america. before he disrespected those people there which he called them those people. so you know he's got racist tendencies and he's a bigot toward women. he's been doing this for a -- so to invite him -- they should have expected that. they should have expected that because i expected that. i was not surprised. i was not surprised at all with him standing up there and saying obama care and he's going to repeal it and the comment he made afterwards, those people if they want something for free, vote for the other guy. they need to start telling the truth about this man. he is the problem with this country. and for him to be a nominee for president is outrageous! it is outrageous! >> bill: i'll tell you mark,

we're going to talk to ben at the top of our third hour together this morning and i'll ask him that. whether or not they made a mistake in inviting him whether they should have not given him the platform to promote his right wing agenda in front of a group of people that he basically has worked his whole life against. more calls coming up. mitt romney lays a big egg at the naacp or did he? was he really there to fire up his base? and show them he could stand up to those people? 1-866-55-press. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." fall.

if you missed joy behar one week having fun. >>don't worry because she'll be back. >>where are the lefties besides on current tv? >>joy behar is getting her own show coming to current tv this

the sheriff of wall street. >>this show will be unique because we will not settle for the easy answers. >>the former governor of new york eliot spitzer joins the new news network. >>every night we will drill down on the days top stories in search of facts that inform. we don't stop until we get answers that are truthful, serious, not based on simplistic answers. we're here because we're independent. >>only on current tv.

>> announcer: radio meets >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: hey! yes, we've got it. 12 minutes before the top of the hour. congressman chris van hollen, one of the leaders of the democrats of the house of representatives will be in studio with us in the next hour. right now, we're talking about mitt romney at the naacp yesterday and taking your calls at 1-866-55-press. you know, i could see that romney again, he knows it is not friendly territory. but i could see that he could start off making arguments saying let's talk frankly. let's just be honest. i know that african-americans in far, far great numbers have voted more for democrats than republicans but take a look back over the last 25 to 50 years and

what did you get for that? right? your unemployment is higher in the african-american community than anywhere else. a lot of people are stuck in poverty. they don't have jobs. they don't have a way up. i think -- all of these government programs that the democrats have proposed, they haven't really delivered the way they were promised. i could see you make that argument right? i wouldn't believe it but i think you could make -- not intelligent -- >> he could go there and not make a complete ass of himself. >> bill: instead he did go there and make a complete ass of himself. if you really knew inside of my heart who i am -- >> romney: i believe that if you understood who i truly am in my heart and if it were possible to fully communicate what i believe is in the enduring best interest of african-american families,

you would vote for me for president. >> bill: no way in hell, jose. theodore is up in baltimore. hey, theodore. >> caller: good morning, how are you? >> bill: i'm good. >> caller: i really appreciate political commentary that i've heard from you over the past few years. i really have learned a lot. >> bill: i appreciate that, my friend. thank you. glad you're with us. >> caller: romney did exactly what he wanted to do. he had to insult people to show the people on the far right and republicans that he was going to stand up to quote-unquote those people. >> bill: that's what he was really doing wasn't it? >> caller: yes. look at his record. in the first month of his being governor of massachusetts, he shut down the affirmative action agency. he attempted to force a $125 fee for anybody for any filing of this discrimination complaint in massachusetts. >> bill: i didn't know that. >> caller: when he goes on television later and says if you want more free stuff, vote for the other guy. people don't realize the tax

cuts are not free. subsidies to the oil companies are not free. but everybody knows exactly why he did what he did and that basically painted him and all those who vote for him as to what they are. in reference to the media pointing out or saying that -- mr. obama is ahead in almost every -- every category and in reference to mr. romney -- romney's -- actually lying about the affordable care act, the same thing he instituted in massachusetts, he's now against. basically he sketched himself out. in reference also to blind trust. bill, you can get your engineers, within the last seven years, i think i'm not sure.

there is a video where mr. romney says -- let me tell you something a blind trust is a ruse. >> bill: i've heard about it. i haven't seen it. i think lawrence o'donnell played it last night. >> caller: i tell them exactly where to put my is. >> bill: it is a buddy of his that runs his so-called blind trust. >> caller: nobody is saying there's something wrong with the success. but as the president said, you should spread it out. and if you look at it, the greatest redistribution of wealth in the history of this country was the two bush tax cuts. >> bill: they're the ones that mitt romney wants to continue. theodore, great to hear from you, my friend. call again. you're on top of it. vivian is out in west bloomfield michigan. hey, vivian. >> caller: how are you doing? >> bill: i'm good. >> caller: raises the hair on the back of my neck. i cannot believe that mitt romney went to the naacp to use

them. that's what he did. for his base. first of all, i would really like for journalists the next time he's on a show, to tell me what is your definition of free stuff? to me, that's cold words for welfare, adc. that's what he's talking about. >> bill: you bet it is. food stamps, all of that stuff. >> caller: exactly. that's what he meant by free stuff. if you want free stuff, vote for the other guy. i cannot believe it! but people don't realize blacks are not the biggest percentage that are on welfare or collecting food stamps or adc but they paint it that way. >> bill: yep. absolutely. villian, you know who's getting most of the free stuff these days? people getting most of the free stuff these days are the oil companies and insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies and the millionaires and billionaires that mitt

romney hangs out with who are getting hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars of tax breaks every year. that's where the free stuff is going. but you know the billionaires are going to vote for romney. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

the real world and politics collide on "the gavin newsom show". this week: can a futurist really predict the future? find out on "the gavin newsom show". only on current tv. [ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> announcer: taking your e-mails on any topic at any time. this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: of course we'll talk more about mitt romney and the

naacp with ben, the president of the naacp later in the program. right now, on the e-mail front anita robins says oh, my, i live in texas. ron paul's district. and it sucks. between him and rick perry, i just don't know what we'll get for healthcare. ransom jones makes a good point. talking about free stuff in mitt romney gets a $70,000 deduction for his horse! which means as a taxpayer i'm helping him pay for that horse. and norm montgomery says bill, i'm an old dodger. i was around when reagan told the suckers on accepting trickle down crumbs. democrats need to alter the words and make it dribble down economics. then ask voters every day hey how's that dribble down thing working out for you? i like that, norm. sounds like sarah palin doesn't it? >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

where to dump their trash. [ laughter ]

[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> bill: good morning everybody. what do you say? it is thursday, july 12. so good to see you today. welcome to the "full court press" here on current tv where we bring you up to date on the big stories of the day in our nation's capital where you'll find us right here on capitol hill, around the country and around the globe and take your calls at 1-866-55-press. as we've been talking this morning, mitt romney went before the naacp yesterday and laid a double goose egg. first of all, he promised he would repeal obama care. as he called it. and then later he said, those

people just want free stuff they ought to vote for the other guy. what about all of the free stuff that his millionaire friends get in terms of tax cuts? we'll get into that a lot more and all of the other stories of the day. but first let's get today's current news update standing by in los angeles. here she is, lisa ferguson. good morning, lisa. >> good morning, bill. good morning everyone. mitt romney is weighing in on releasing his tax returns saying he has no intention of doing it. on fox business yesterday romney said he's already released everything that is required by law. we still haven't seen his 2011 returns. just an estimate of what those will be. romney filed for an extension and said he will release them as soon as they are prepared which will supposedly be before the election. got my pages mixed up. all right let's go into a little bit of news out of

california. the state's biggest and most notable medical marijuana dispensary could be shut down. feds have filed papers to seize the oakland and san jose properties of harborside health center. you might recognize the name from weed wars on the discovery channel. the justice department had previously promised to only target dispensaries violating state laws like being near schools or parks. but the u.s. attorney for northern california says the house says marijuana superstores like harborside give the chance of marijuana abuse. owner steve deangelo promises to fight the decision. now we can get into the other story. the house committee voted to pass a new farm bill that would cut food and nutrition spending by more than $35 million. that's $12 billion more than the version the senate passed last month. congress will need to reach a compromise by september 30th. back with more bill after the break. stay with us.

♪ take just one more ♪ it's been dumbed down ♪ long before romney ♪ ever did ♪ >> thank you . the hour. we'll be back as we close "the stephanie miller show." >> on "the stephanie miller show" in suburban america this

. what happened to george prescott bush. >> no, he was jeb bush's son. >> oh, that one. >> the ricky martin look-alike yeah. >> going in another direction. the direction away from his father.

>> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: yeah, house republicans repeal the affordable care act. for the 33rd time! in two years. think maybe they ought to finally recognize it ain't going anywhere? good morning everybody. here we go. thursday, july 12. so good to see you today. and thank you for making the "full court press" your choice of radio and tv on this thursday

morning. and i hope every morning. good to have you with us as we take a look at all of the big stories of the day and to give you a chance to sound off about them. tell us what it all means to you and to your family at 1-866-55-press. we'll bring you up to date on the doings here in our nation's capital. totally ridiculous, meaningless waste of time vote to repeal the affordable care act yesterday. on the part of house republicans. that's what's happening. big story here in our nation's capital. the naacp meeting in houston vice president joe biden goes down there today. i think he will probably get a little better reception than mitt romney got. >> ya think? >> bill: i think he will say some more important things, more -- things people can believe. >> more intelligent things. >> bill: for sure. we're there with you to talk about it on the "full court press" with team press peter ogborn and dan henning and

videographer cyprian bowlding. hi gang. >> hey hey. >> bill: romney, unbelievable. the part i love best is when -- so here he stands in front of this african-american audience. mr. white bread, mitt romney. the mormon church which would not even accept african-american men as priests of course women never but priests in the mormon church until 1997. he was a bishop of the church when that policy was in place. never protested against it at all. i'm not saying he's a racist. i'm saying he was certainly out in front as a leader of what was then a racist organization. >> he is one of the whitest politicians i have ever seen. >> bill: right. i mean bill clinton was white but he was the first african-american president. >> absolutely. >> bill: mitt romney is white white, white white white. okay. no way relates. yet he says look me over! >> romney: if you want a

president who will make things better in the african-american community, you're looking at him. >> c'mon! >> romney: take a look. [ laughter ] >> bill: you take a look! look at me! here i am! just take a look! you could hear people. they were laughing. they weren't applauding. oh yeah, you're the man. they were laughing at him. [ laughter ] >> romney: you take a look. >> so nervous. he knew what he said was total bs. it was just kind of like -- did he really just say that? >> romney: you take a look! >> bill: you want to see me dressage horse? >> romney: you take a look! >> want to see my offshore bank accounts? >> romney: you take a look. >> bill: want to see my 75 foot powerboat? >> romney: you take a look. >> bill: you want to see my car elevator? >> romney: you take a look. >> bill: you could go on and on. we ought to make a spot for the

obama campaign. >> romney: you take a look! >> bill: all right. well we'll keep that up and we're going to be joined by chris van hollen a little bit later in this hour. number three guy i think in the democratic leadership and the ho representatives. way up there. he was meeting with president obama yesterday and he'll be along as well as benjamin todd, the president of the naacp will give us his reaction, his reaction to mitt romney's speech yesterday. but first... >> announcer: this is the "full court press." >> other headlines making news on this thursday, katie holmes and tom cruise's divorce may have been settled so quickly because katie planned well ahead to avoid a messy separation. "l.a. times" reports that katie got the wheels turning early using disposable cell phones she got from a friend to contact attorneys so tom wouldn't know about any of her conversations. >> what? >> yep. by the time the divorce

settlement was reached katie had three firms in three separate states already representing her so he was completely blind-sided. she informed tom she wanted the divorce in a phone call and a week later, it was a done deal. >> bill: whoa. did they have a prenup or not? >> they did. >> this is creepy. this is kind of like -- if she had to put this much thought into a divorce -- >> bill: if you're up against scientology, baby, i hope she's got bodyguards, too. >> drink up, ladies, good for the bones. two new studies from drexel university and oklahoma state university find women drinking more than three glasses of alcohol a week were over 50% less likely to develop arthritis and osteopour owes o -- osteoporosis. >> bill: carol was happy about that. >> it is important to find a balance. >> somewhere between four drinks in two hours and of three drinks

in a week. >> somewhere in between there. >> bill: a glass of wine with dinner. i'm telling you, we were watching the news and that story came on and carol sat right up. she was taking note. >> there are 12 -- [ laughter ] >> there are 12 -- >> bill: ran into the kitchen and came back with a bottle of wine. >> i'm making up for lost time! >> there are 12,000 phone booths in new york city. >> bill: i hope she's not watching. >> after how much she drank last night, she's not watching yet. [ laughter ] >> sorry carol. there are 12,000 phone booths in new york city and of course, most of those don't get used much anymore because of cell phones. rather than paying to take them down or just let them sit and become eyesores, abc reports the big apple has developed an innovative plan to make the most of them. they're turning them all into free wi-fi hot spots. you can walk right up into a phone booth in new york city

with a smart phone or computer and get online at no cost. >> bill: i haven't thought about phone booths for a long time. remember when there used to be phone booths like on street corners? isn't that crazy? >> i'm stunned they're still around in new york. that's wild. >> bill: i haven't seen a phone booth even in a hotel lobby or -- just think ever. >> you could be walking around new york, you see a hot spot. >> bill: phone booths. >> you could take out your computer and they could rob you right there. easy as that. >> bill: and they will. >> of course they will. >> bill: hey, dan, thank you. look, we've been talking a lot of politics here. this is the thing that has me most upset this morning. the story out of the olympics. i really want to like the olympics. but the more i see about the olympics, the more i'm coming to realize the olympics is just corporate america on display. you know. so we talk the other day a

little bit about didn't really get into it but the sponsorships and the two biggest sponsors of the olympics, coca-cola have been a sponsor forever and ever and ever and mcdonald's. i mean again you think of the olympics, you think of sports, you think of healthy. healthy lifestyle. eating healthy drinking healthy. no, not with mcdonald's. the citadel if you will. the magic kingdom of unhealthy fast food, sponsor of the olympics. that's one thing but as outrageous as that is, that pales in comparison to yesterday, they unveiled the official uniforms of team u.s.a. these are the uniforms that team u.s.a. is going to wear at the opening ceremonies, okay? blue blazer for the men. white pants. for the women blue blazer and

white, silk skirt and they had a beret like they had in -- last olympics as well, whenever it was. last summer olympics. so first of all, they're designed by ralph lauren, okay. an american designer. that's cool. but here's -- okay. and i want to admit if you look very closely cyprian, can get a shot of that. i am wearing a ralph lauren shirt today. i didn't do this deliberately. shoot. i don't know. when i get up, it's dark. i reach in the closet, grab a shirt and put it on. >> i thought you had made the olympic team when i saw you wearing that shirt. >> bill: but there is that little polo pony there. a little one. first thing wrong with the uniforms, they don't have a little polo pony. they have a polo pony about six inches high. >> it is the size of a dressage horse. >> bill: it is huge. so basically our olympic team is a walking billboard for ralph lauren.

no. that's not acceptable. i don't believe. so that's number one. number two this is not something that every man or woman can identify with. or afford. the price of these things is -- okay, here it is. men's blazer, because you can buy these right. you want to look like an olympic athlete. men's blazer, $795 for that blue blazer. for the women $598. i mean that's top of the line. you know. for willie brown that's nothing but for most americans that's something, okay? pants, the men's pants. $295 for a pair of slacks. for the women the skirt $498. so we're talking -- >> $500 skirt? >> bill: $500 skirt. it is costing you $1,000. that's without the beret. the beret is another $55.

so again, every man, every woman's line of clothing. here's the worst part. the worst part is they're made in china! american designed, made, sewn, put together in china. why? i mean isn't this outrageous? 1-866-55-press. what i want to know is who was stupid enough -- to say on the olympic committee not to raise this as an issue? with all of this talk today about outsourcing jobs, exporting jobs, sending jobs overseas with all of this effort on the part of the president to get manufacturing jobs back to this country? and with all of these great american manufacturers of clothing hart schaffner suits in chicago. there's this woman who was on abc news last night nanette la poirot is one of the top design -- american designers.

her showroom in new york, she was interviewed by abc news yesterday and all of her clothing that she designs is made manufactured, sewn here in the united states! she doesn't send it to china. here's nanette from the news last night. >> why shouldn't we have pride not only in the american athletes but in the american manufacturers and laborers who are the backbone of our country? what's wrong? why was that not a consideration? >> bill: yeah! why was it not a consideration. how dare the u.s. olympic committee send all of this business -- abc news said it is a billion dollars in business. send it to china rather than have it made in the united states. wouldn't it be so great if our team u.s.a. would march in there wearing clothes designed by an american designer and made by an american manufacturer. that's what it ought to be. then when you chant u.s.a., u.s.a. you really mean

something. now you chant u.s.a., china u.s.a. china. come on! i think it is a big big big mistake. it shows to what extent that olympics have been taken over by the corporate dollar. pretty sad. 1-866-55-press. and unacceptable. i would hate to think that congress ought to get involved in this. somebody's gotta shake up the u.s. olympic committee and say what the hell are you thinking? if it's team u.s.a. then make sure it is all u.s.a.! >> announcer: this is the "bill press show," live on your radio and current tv. >>only on current tv.

dose of politics from a fresh

of sununu, you're wrong. mitt romney, you're wrong. we need more teachers, not fewer teachers and more cops and more firefighters that support our

>> romney you can take it. >> a new ad we will play for you when we come back here with lynn sweet, chicago sun times methderr death shiner from row call and bill cress part full-court press. you are welcome to join our conversation at 866-55-press. we will be right back. >> this is the bill press show. [ ♪ theme ♪ ]

>> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: you mean to tell me that the u.s. olympic committee couldn't find anywhere in the united states of america that could get the uniforms made rather than have them made in china? what an insult! what an outrage. don't you think? 1-866-55-press we'll take your calls. in just a second here on the "full court press" this thursday, july 12. congressman chris van hollen will be in studio with us at the half hour here. first a little reminder. if you were one of those people trying to make ends meet at the end of the month and having a hard time doing so, here's something you ought to consider.

incomeathome.com. they're america's leading work from home business. and what they're asking and what they're offering is something that you all can do. no matter your age education or experience or your background. you can literally be earning money from your own kitchen table using your own laptop 24/7. all you need is a little extra time and the training, the coaching that the folks at incomeathome.com will give you. if you're sick of living paycheck to paycheck, worried about job security or retirement and your goal is to make some extra money each month from home, part-time or full time, at least you ought to check them out. incomeathome.com adding my listeners in record numbers and giving away $1,000 to somebody just for checking them out. that could be you. check them out at incomeathome.com. on the olympic uniforms, randy's got a comment from aurora, illinois. hey, randy what do you say? >> caller: hey, bill, how you doing? >> bill: i'm doing good.

i'm pretty upset about this. i think it is outrageous. >> caller: i do, too. it goes along the same line as the people who were voting for the republicans that are voting there, things that aren't in their best interest. it goes along the same thing. we as americans unions try do this. i was a uaw member about 20 years ago and worked for a company called caterpillar. >> bill: yeah. >> caller: had a big buy american campaign. we tried. we did things. we tried to buy american. we would look at what we were buying and slowly as big business moves these things out of the country our jobs diminished not to mention some of the economic conditions that existed. but you can't give up trying. and for us to allow that, the committee should at least look at this and go hey, are the chinese buying american uniforms? i don't think so. >> bill: no, you know that they're not randy.

abc news had a great program on, this made in america they've been featuring all kinds of american manufacturers make all kinds of products. you know damn well that there were plenty -- that's what that designer from new york nanette i played that cut a little earlier, there are plenty of american manufacturers who could have produced these uniforms for our american team. sandra is in colfax, washington. hi sandra. >> caller: hi, how are you? >> bill: i'm good. thanks for your call. what do you say? >> caller: well, you figure they've had about $25 to $30 of material in each uniform and it probably costs about $15 to $20 for someone to sew it together and then he they have that big logo as advertisement for ralph lauren. it seems like he's really making a killing. >> bill: yeah, he is making a killing. you're darn right. they probably -- $10 or $15 to put it together.

that's probably maybe three times what they paid in china. >> caller: i was being generous. >> bill: exactly. the whole image of our team u.s.a. it's -- there have been stories -- i haven't seen them lately. but i've seen stories in the past about people with american flags, right. put up american flags and the american flags were made in china. come on! this is the time, particularly today, again with all of the emphasis and all of the attempts to bring american jobs back and not to export jobs, for the u.s. olympic committee for team u.s.a., what a showcase in front of the entire world to show who we are and what we can do that the best we can do is have the uniforms made in china. unacceptable. congressman chris van hollen coming up next. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

>> this court has proven to be the knowing, delighted accomplice in the billionaires' purchase of our nation.

>> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> bill: what do you say? 33 minutes after the hour now. this is the "full court press." coming to you live from our nation's capital all across this great land of ours on current tv and your local progressive talk radio station. brought to you today by ascpme, the largest public employees union in country. they're under attack by the republicans. under the new leadership of lee saunders. for more information check out

afscme.org. busy days for the united states congress. at least a lot that they should be working on. maybe that's not necessarily what they're up to. but right in the middle of all of the action, the ranking democrat on the house budget committee, good friend of the program, congressman chris van hollen in studio with us this morning. good to see you. >> bill, always good to be with you. >> bill: i was at the white house briefing yesterday. just around the corner in the oval office or the cabinet room, wherever you guys were meeting democratic leadership with president obama to talk about the agenda, democratic agenda in congress. how was that meeting? how did it go? what is on the agenda? >> it was a very good meeting. president was very upbeat. about our efforts to try and move the economy forward. recognize that we've got a long way to go. obviously the president would like to see the house of representatives take up his jobs initiative, a bill he presented to the congress last september.

here we are yesterday in the house voting for the 33rd time to repeal healthcare law. but we have not voted once, not once on the president's jobs initiative. republicans say they want to do something about the economy. but their actions prove otherwise. >> bill: the healthcare vote, i think this was center for american progress who put this out yesterday. as you mention 33 times -- you know congressman the democrats were in control right now maybe you did this vote once, twice three times, wouldn't you get the message that it's not going anywhere? >> you would think so. >> bill: 33 times! this was pure kabuki theatre. >> it was a purely politically empty gesture. it was a peevish response to the supreme court ruling in support of the affordable care act. and republicans i guess could

think of nothing better to do than one more time, take this empty vote in terms of the repeal. and they're really out of touch with the american people because the american people want to move on. they want to implement the law. they don't want to re-litigate this battle. regardless of where they were on the healthcare bill to start with, number one you find increasing numbers of people recognizing the important patient protections it has. number two others say come on, guys, let's make it work now that the supreme court has ruled. >> bill: i saw a story yesterday that one out of every 14 votes over the last two years has been to repeal -- of the house of representatives has been to repeal the affordable care act. center for american progress put this out yesterday. it costs $30 million to keep congress open for a single work day. so you figure $30 million times 33. >> look, it is a total waste of taxpayer dollars.

it is a total waste of energy. and at a time when we've got very important pressing issues to deal with, especially the economy and to go back to the fact that they haven't even had a vote on the president's jobs bill. >> bill: on the jobs bill, 33 for healthcare and zero -- >> those are the numbers people should remember. 33 and zero. >> bill: i'm sure you talked yesterday about the president's proposal to give 98% of americans a tax cut. does it have a prayer of getting through the house? >> you would think that our republican congress would join us in making sure that 98% of the american people got a tax relief to provide that certainty right now. you would think also they would want to deal with the long-term deficit issue which is why it's important to ask the folks at the very highest entity income ladder to contribute a little more to deficit reduction because if they don't contribute a little bit more, everybody else gets whacked really hard.

that's what the republican budget does. it is the budget that mitt romney has endorsed. and the result of that is if you don't ask folks at the very top to pay a little bit more over time and you really want to deal with the deficit over time, you have to hit everybody else. that's why they would hit seniors on medicare. they would transfer the increased costs and risks on to seniors. they would cut deeply into education investments investments in our research and important economic investments for the future of our country. and so the president's plan both provides relief for 98% of the american people. but also begins this important process of long-term deficit reduction by asking folks at the very top to share more responsibility. >> bill: mitt romney joining the congressional republican leadership immediately came out and said we are absolutely against that. against that. no way we could support it unless the 2% also get --

because these are the job creators. >> two things are happening here right? first, the republicans are holding 98% of the american people hostage. and they're saying we're not going to provide you tax relief unless we get additional tax breaks for the folks at the very top of the income ladder. now, let's figure out who these folks are. they call them job creators but they forget the fact, very conveniently that the whole economic theory that you provide tax breaks to the folks at the very top and it somehow trickles down was tried and failed during the eight years of the bush administration because of the end of that eight-year period, we had actually lost private sectors whereas in the clinton administration, when you have the folks at the top paying a little higher tax rate -- >> bill: by the way not that much higher. we weren't talking about 75% or 80%.

>> that's an important point. this is going -- from 35% to 39%. another important point to recognize is all of the folks are making a lot of money, they still get a tax break on the first $250,000 because the marginal tax rates on income below $250,000 were reduced as part of the tax -- 2001 and 2003 tax cuts. so people who are making over $250,000, they get a tax cut on the first $250,000 compared to what it would have been. so it's actually a little bit of a misgnomer to say 98% of the people. 100% get the tax cut. the folks making more than $250,000 will go back to paying the clinton rates on the amount of their income over $250,000. >> bill: congressman, do you find that -- again congressman chris van hollen, you know him well our guest in studio, ranking democrat on the house budget committee. is the $250,000, now you've discussed this with the president yesterday, is that

locked in stone? i mean in the interest of compromise and in the interest of getting something done, could it be $500,000? could it be a million? as leader pelosi once suggested? flexibility ofibility there? >> the president is right on the policy there because as you look to the future and you look at how we're going to deal with our long-term deficits and be fiscally responsible, you need to have a package that combines cuts and we've already made substantial cuts. people forget the budget control act cut a trillion dollars over ten years. but you also need additional revenue. and to the extent you don't get additional revenue or you get less revenue it means you've gotta really cut other areas more deeply, for example seniors on social security. we proposed in the house that you draw the line at a million dollars. a million dollars and up would go back to paying what they were

during the clinton administration and folks below a million would continue -- >> bill: would that give you enough revenue? >> under our proposal, it would because we would find additional mechanisms for getting revenue from folks at the very top. for example, the buffett rule. and other mechanisms. however, it becomes a little more difficult to do it. that way. and so i think the president's proposal is clear. i should point out that while the million dollar number was floated by people like leader pelosi and others, republicans rejected that. so what it highlighted what it did, it did serve to highlight the fact that republicans really are just interested in making sure that you know, the very wealthy can continue to get this tax breaks. and i want to say one more thing about this job creator claim. in addition to the fact we have this sort of -- this theory was tested against reality and failed. >> bill: real life proof this

doesn't work. >> you also have the nonpartisan joint tax committee. having looked at this. the jct. and they've concluded that it only affects 3% of all businesses. and among those businesses, you've got a lot that are not close to being small businesses. in fact, you've got some of the fortune 100 companies fortune 500 companies you've got all of the washington law firms and lobbyists. these are -- these are masquerading as small businesses but if you actually begin to look under the hood here, you find that many of these businesses making $50 million of course now great that they're making a lot of money. that's not the issue. but they can contribute a little more to deficit reduction at a time when everyone's got to find ways to be more fiscally disciplined. >> bill: congressman also -- we'll take a quick break. i want to get back to this with

you. your position on the budget committee. you've been, i think, a member of every special group that's been formed in addition to the budget committee to deal with this deficit situation. and the subcommittee of 12, whatever it was called could not reach agreement. we're looking at the sequester hitting in and already we hear rumbling from the pentagon. we can't live with these cuts. are they locked in? is there any way to avoid the sequester? congressman chris van hollen our guest in studio. we'll have time for your calls as well, 1-866-55-press. join the conversation any time. we always save a seat at the table for you. we'll be back with congressman chris van hollen. >> announcer: radio meets television. the "bill press show" now on current tv. it's your turn. >>i know you're going to want to weigh in on these issues. >>connect with "full court press with bill press" at facebook.com/billpressshow

and on twitter at bpshow. >>i believe people are hungry for it. these sweet honey clustery things have fiber? fiber one. almost tastes like one of jack's cereals. uh forgot jack's cereal. [ jack ] what's for breakfast? uh try the number one! i've never heard of that.

[ wife ] it's great. it's a sweet honey cereal, you'll love it. yeah this is pretty good. are you guys alright? yeah. [ male announcer ] half a days worth of fiber. not that anyone has to know. fiber beyond recognition. fiber one. take the gamble out of stain removal. only resolve all-stains has two formula chambers to remove all types of stains. using shout or oxiclean? that's just playing the odds. don't chance it, resolve it.

see a resolve difference or it's free. >>it's the place where democracy is supposed to be the great equalizer, where your vote is worth just as much as donald trump's. we must save the country. it starts with you.

>> announcer: on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: mitt romney talked to those people, he called them at the naacp yesterday. ben is president of the naacp will be joining us at the top of the next hour to give his reaction to candidate romney's address. in studio with us, the ranking democrat on the house budget committee, representing maryland's eighth congressional district congressman chris van hollen. i forgot to ask you the most important question of all, do you have a swiss bank account? >> yeah, well, short answer is no bill. but -- as you -- >> bill: i thought all

politicians -- all americans -- >> every american has their own -- and one in the cayman islands and one somewhere else. >> bill: you've got one of those, too, are you? >> here's the thing. your question highlights the fact that mitt romney is not surprisingly now the first presidential candidate to have a swiss bank account. he really should come clean with his tax returns because it is important that the american people know about what their president's financial decisions are. afterall, this is a person that will be making financial decisions for the country. and when cabinet officials when cabinet officials go before the senate for confirmation, they have to present their past tax returns and so it is interesting that the fella who wants to be president and appoint a cabinet would not be able to be a cabinet official himself without having disclosed more of his tax

returns. >> bill: you're on the house budget committee. why would anybody open up a swiss bank account or a tax shelter in the cayman islands? >> well, the experts tell us there are only two reasons to do this. one is to shelter of some your income. from u.s. taxes. and second would be because you're betting on the swiss franc instead of the american dollar. in other words you're betting against the performance of the u.s. economy and the strength of the dollar. that's what experts tell us. but i think by showing us his tax returns as we know his father did his father set the precedent. >> bill: 12 years. >> for that kind of transparency. that he can answer those kind of questions. people don't have to speculate. >> bill: are they legal? >> what's that? >> bill: having a swiss bank account or having a tax shelter in the cayman islands or bermuda under american tax law? >> yes it is a legal way to

potentially shelter your income. but again satisfy the public about what the guy who wants to be president is doing and the guy who wants to run the finances for the u.s. government is doing is to do what his father did. >> bill: the sequester. the question was raised yesterday at the white house briefing whether or not this -- they're going to hit or there's any way around them. as we know, it is 50% of the cuts are going to be at the pentagon across the board. 50% in domestic programs on top of the programs that have already been cut. any way around this? is there any opportunity between now and the first of the year to undo this? >> well, i would hope we could come together and replace the sequester with an alternative amount of deficit reduction and savings. the president has been very clear that he would like to do

that. not only has he been clear about it but in the budget he presented to congress, he has an alternative way of achieving that over a trillion dollars in deficit reduction including a mix of cuts but also closing tax loopholes. >> bill: and having new revenue. >> what's really interesting about this is republicans keep talking about the dangerous impact of the sequester and we agree that we want to avoid the sequester. not just on defense but nondefense. it has been a lot of attention given to the cuts on defense but the cuts on nondefense would be really bad for the american people. but when faced with the very simple decision, would you be willing to close some of the special interest tax loopholes like tax breaks for the big oil companies in order to avoid the sequester on defense, for example, they always choose to protect the special interest tax breaks rather than protect defense spending. and you know, last october you

had people like the chairman of the armed services committee buck mckeon in a moment of candor when he was asked, said you know what? i would choose to protect defense and i would be willing to close some of the special interest tax loopholes. he was quickly shouted down by others in the republican caucus. and the bottom line is they prefer -- despite all of the talk about protecting defense spending, push comes to shove. they will protect those special interest tax loopholes first every day of the week because they've all signed this grover norquist pledge, i shouldn't say all but 98% of the house republicans have signed this pledge saying that they will not cut one penny of a tax loophole for the purpose of reducing the deficit. of course, that's been mitt romney's position. if you look at his tax policy, it is a tax policy that helps people like mitt romney. >> bill: absolutely. congressman chris van hollen, you have a busy day ahead of

you. thanks for starting off your day by stopping by the "full court press." go get them. give them hell. congressman chris van hollen. i'll come back and tell what you the president is up to today and then ben from the naacp is at the top of the next hour. >> announcer: radio meets television. the "bill press show" now on current tv.

hd

pective. brought to you by expedia. find your voice. [ ♪ theme ♪ ]

>> >> announcer: the parting shot >> announcer: the parting shot with bill press. this is the "bill press show." >> bill: hey it's gotta be a quick parting shot here on this thursday, july 12. i want to tell you again how wrong i think it is for the team u.s.a. to enter the opening games of -- the opening ceremony of the summer olympics wearing uniforms designed by ralph lauren, that's good. but no, uniforms made in china. get outta here. that's totally, totally unacceptable. shame on the u.s. olympic committee. simply they could have found a manufacturer here in the united states to make those uniforms and make all americans proud! it is a disgrace that they did not. senator sherrod brown from ohio here in studio with us tomorrow. have a good one! see you back here again tomorrow. if you ask me, my answer is damn right. if we can stop iran from building nuclear weapons

without bombing the country or without sending in the marines then i am all for it! i don't care who leaked the news. that's my parting shot for today. great line-up for you tomorrow. eliot spitzer will be joining us as well as sister simone campbell, one of the nuns at the