[♪ theme music ♪] hey, hello, everybody, good morning, thursday, july 26th. good to see you today. welcome to t c c all to you, and take your calls at 866-55-press. rick santorum and mike huckaby

are back to their gay-bashing days. urging all to show up at chick-fil-a to join them in the boycott of same-sex marriage. and now from lisa ferguson joining us in los angeles. good morning lisa. >> good morning, bill good morning, everybody. the president is back in the oaf value office today after a week of campaigning. he spoke to the national urban league in new orleans yesterday, where his big focus was the company and young people. >> you competing against people in bangladesh and they are

playing video cams and watching real housewives. >> the president announced the new white house initiative to push to cut college costs. the president has said he will work within existing laws to fight gun crime, while he did not promise new regulations yesterday, he said he did say guns like ak47s belong in war not on the streets. mitt romney said he does not believe in new gun restrictions but he also made the mistake of saying he shooter broke existing laws by stockpiling the weapons,

but we know the shooter was able to buy those weapons legally without any background checks. stay with us. >> this court has proven to be the knowing, delighted accomplice in the billionaires' purchase of our nation. >> and you think it doesn't affect you? think again.

septic disasters are disgusting and costly, but avoidable. the rid-x septic subscriber program helps prevent backups by sending you monthly doses right to your door so you will never forget to maintain your system. sign up at rid-x.com.

♪ >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation, on your radio, and on current tv. this is the "bill press show." >> the romney campaigns says that mitt romney is in europe to celebrate america's connection with his anglo-saxon heritage. has mythmy looked at america lately? i don't know. things have changed. good morning, everybody, it is thursday, july 26th. so good to see you today.

welcome, welcome welcome to the "full court press" here on current tv bringing you all of the latest events from washington around the country and around the globe. here in washington, d.c. the senate passing -- surprising everybody bypassing a bipartisan vote to pass a tax cut to everybody making under $250,000 a year. out in colorado a disturbing note if not notebook sent to the university of colorado before the alleged killer walked into the movie theater last thursday night at the batman premier and in syria, more violence more trouble, and morecation that the regime is on the slide. we're covering the news of the day, and inviting you to join the conversation in a couple of ways. go to current tv.

you can go to current.com, and join the conversation with fellow pressers all around the country, and check out our website at billpress.com. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> nice to see ya. >> yeah, and we're all on a role. good morning. there is the old wave. it was yesterday -- a big day for president obama flying from seattle where he spent the night down to new orleans. a couple of campaign events and then speaking to the urban league where he talked about the importance of education and the importance of giving our schools -- our children sort of the same rigorous training and education and discipline that they get in schools in other

countries. >> they are not playing video games. [ laughter ] [ applause ] >> they are not watching "real housewives." [ cheers and applause ] >> i'm just saying it is a 2-way street. you have got to earn success. >> yeah and you got to make them work for it said the president yesterday. >> if our kids are watching "the real housewives" -- maybe watching cartoons all day, but "real housewives" -- >> yeah, do they really allow that in schools. >> i hope not. please don't let your kids watch that. >> man, i got to tell you. what a line upwe have today. senator dick durbin will be joining us as well as

congressman phil courtney from connecticut, and then we will go to london to talk to the washington bureau chief of the -- the london bureau chief of the "washington post" about the opening of the olympic games and it's been kind of a rocky road for the olympics yesterday including -- did you see that? the north korean team showed up and they put up the south korean flag -- >> yeah, that was bad. >> and the north careens said huh-uh, we ain't walking out on the field. i don't blame them. >> right. >> what if we showed up and they had like the cuban flag. >> but way worse. those two sides hate each other. >> yeah, our government doesn't official like the cubans, so the north koreans sat in the standings for an hour and then

finally ended up playing. a little awkward, awkward start. and then what are you going next wednesday? have you thought about maybe going to chick-fil-a? don't! but first -- >> announcer: is the "full court press." >> olympic competition got underway on the soccer field yesterday. the u.s. women's soccer team beat france -- >> usa! >> damn right. the usa quickly gave up two goals early in the game but then they all stepped up their game and put four balls in the net total. >> our women's soccer team is fantastic. >> trouble in the jackson family. michael jackson's mother had gone missing for a few days earlier when a judge took

custody away from her and handed it to tito jackson's son. cbs reports the kids were okay. but police were called to the house monday for a disturbance. >> it's nice to see they are bringing his kids into the high level of dysfunction that he grow up in. >> yeah. >> news week has been in print since 1973, but "politico" yesterday reporting that the magazine's general owner suggested that the magazine may stop printing and be available only online. it has the second-biggest weekly

subscription. >> news week wants to go just totally online. that is the end of news week. >> it's certainly the end of an era. >> yeah, so who is left. us world and report did this a few years ago. and are they around anymore. >> it would be more daily beast. >> yeah. how long before time magazine stops printing. >> yeah. >> dan thank you. what do you know they are big, chick-fil-a. i have never been in one and never will be now that's for

sure. they have 1314 restaurants according to wikipedia, spread across 39 states. and they have got a mission. their official statement the company's official statement -- you know them eat more chicken. they said their corporate purpose is quote to glorify god by being a faithful stewart of all that is entrusted to us to have a positive influence on all who come in contact with ch so they have always been known as a right-wing christian franchise if you will. they are closed on sundays, and people who get their franchises have to agree to close on every sunday and christmas and thanksgiving. but still they basically have been there to serve anybody who wants a good chicken sandwich

right? until recently when the owner dan kathy gave an interview a couple of weeks ago to a magazine called the baptist recorder where they asked if in fact you are, as people have reported really -- have very strong feelings about same-sex marriage. and dan kathy said quote, guilty as charged. he went on to say, quote, we -- listen carefully -- we are very much supportive of the family, the biblical definition of a family unit. we are a family-owned business a family-lead business and we are married to our first wives. [ laughter ] >> thereby saying no same-sex marriage, no gay couples allowed

in our restaurant, and i think he is saying no divorced people in our restaurant either, right? >> yeah, it is sort of doubly offensive. >> yeah. you got a divorce, you stay out of chick-fil-a. you are a gay couple or a same-sex married couple you stay out of chick-fil-a. well, those remarks caused a little fire storm, particularly among progressives liberals, and a lot of conservatives, who there are some believe it or not, who believe in same-sex marriage, because why should the state decide whom you are marriage and whom you can't, and among gay-rights organizations, which -- you know, they didn't call -- i haven't heard a call for a national boycott, but they said maybe this is the place you don't want to go for a bite that

evening. maybe we ought to stay away from there. i know chicago, one organization has called for a kiss-in outside of a chick-fil-a. i mean kind of fun. but boy, mike huckabee says this is terrible terrible terrible. mike huckabee starts out by de-crying the attacks. how dare people attack dan kathy. here is mike huckabee last week. >> i decided that enough was enough when i heard all of this incredible hate speech being directed towards the owners of the chick-fil-a chain. all because they support traditional marriage. they don't enforce it in their stores. it's just their personal beliefs. and last time i checked america was a place where you can express your beliefs. >> sure.

but do you want the owner of every store to tell you what his or her politics and religious beliefs are, before you go in to get a sandwich or buy a six-pack or who knows what -- get your nails done? is that really any place of business. huckabee goes on to say enough is enough we're going to show our support. >> the activist gay community has just gone crazy about this and called for national boycotts and essentially trying to put them out of business, which is a form of economic bullying. chick-fil-a just wants to sell chicken. they don't really get into politics all that much but now they have been drug into it by

these groups that want to destroy their business, and we decided we ought to stand up with them. so i say let's have an appreciation for chick-fil-a, wednesday august 1st. >> this idea that dan kathy was dragged into politics by the gay activists. no, no no. he was the one that spoke out, anti-gay rights anti-same-sex marriage is our position at chick-fil-a. we trumped it and put it out there. so mike huckabee calling for the appreciation day, august 1st. and surprise surprise rick

santorum went out with his children to a chick-fil-a to show his appreciation. i don't even know of a chick-fil-a near here. >> there are several in the area. there is one in my neighborhood right down the street. >> if i would stop going to that store. would you -- would you -- you know patronize them now? i think anybody who believes in the constitution ought to say chick-fil-a we don't want anything to do with you, and we will never go near your store. i would love your comments on that at 866-55-press but maybe the bigger questions is whether we want to know the policies or religious beliefs of any of these stores. i don't. i like to shop at macy's. i think it is a good store. i have no idea who the owner of macy's is and i don't want to

go. when i get my gas or get my haircut, i have no idea. they certainly don't have any big cross over the door when you go in. i don't want to mix my politics religion and shopping. same thing with safeway? are they liberals? conservatives? shoot, i don't care. do you really want to know? i don't want anyone forcing they religious beliefs on me when i am spending my money. eat more chicken but not at chick-fil-a. let's talk about it. >> announcer: on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." ♪ "the gavin newsom show." this week: where will ken burns turn his lens next? find out on "the gavin newsom show."

only on current tv. rich, chewy caramel rolled up in smooth milk chocolate. don't forget about that payroll meeting. rolo.get your smooth on. now in minis. joining us. >> my pleasure. thanks for having me, man.

♪ 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." >> so mike huckabee wants an appreciation day for chick-fil-a. i say let's have an unappreciation day on wednesday august 1st, or every day as far as i'm concerned. and there have been people who have stood up and said what chick-fil-a is doing is not correct or welcome. the muppets of course mentioned yesterday, they pulled all of their cooperation and partnership with chick-fil-a where they were giving toys with the kids meals. the mayor of boston has said chick-fil-a is not welcome in boston, and the mayor of chicago saying they are not welcome in

chicago. marcus what do you say? >> i say it's wrong. chick-fil-a -- that's what is wrong with this country. if you believe in something somebody want to bash you for it. that's not what this country is about. if i don't believe in same-sex marriage why would you boycott me because of that. >> no, no no. the other way around. but why should you come out as a head of a business and basically say that's what this business is all about, and if you are not married to your first wife, you are not allowed in here. what the hell is that -- that businessman -- why should that businessman be pushing his politics and religion down my throat? >> he is basically voicing his opinion. >> no, he is not. what he is saying is this is who we are. we are a christian store and if you are not a inchesian, you are

not welcome here. wrong, wrong, wrong. don from chicago. hey, don what do you say -- >> hey, i got a question for you -- >> i might say to marcus what about the stores that say if you are black you are not welcome here. go ahead, don. >> yes we're listening to dog whistle calls. i think ryan paul said the ultimate goal is to look at title ten and that is if i don't want you in my store, i don't have to allow you to patronize me. >> i forgot that rand paul did say that. he said that businesses had a right to discriminate, and that's the american way. uh-huh. that's un-american as hell. >> announcer: this is the "bill

press show." ♪ everything they've always wanted to kill in the first place. >> 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.

♪ >> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> hey, what do you say? good thursday morning here on the "full court press." good to seeing you today. you are looking good. this is the "full court press" coming to you live coast-to-coast from our studio here on capitol hill. and brought to you today of abstaney. the largest public employs healthcare union in the entire country.

check out their website at afscme.org. rick santorum and mike huckabee calling for a support day on wednesday august 1st, to visit chick-fil-a. this is our opportunity to boycott chick-fil-a. time-out right now, though to check on a couple of important things that happened yet here in our nation's capitol, and we reporting on the goings-on of the national's capitol. the responsibility of ryan grimm who is the washington bureau chief for the great "huffington post." ryan grimm, of course will go down in history as a man who accurately predicted that the supreme court would uphold the

aaffordable healthcare act. good morning, ryan. >> it's my spiking of the football in the end zone right. >> that's right spike the football. let's talk about tim geithner yesterday, who they didn't buy his stories saying he did everything he could to stop the banks from monkeying around with the interest rates. >> yeah. the bank of england said there never told us there was any hint of wrongdoing yeah they made some recommendations of ways to improve it. one of the recommendations was why don't you give the u.s. power when it comes to setting libor. >> yeah. >> and then the other problem that he has is that the

documents that he released show that the recommendations he made from fixing it came directly from banks. so if -- if that is all that you did, and you had knowledge that there was manipulation of the rate, then yeah it's not going to impress folks. >> so what happens to geithner? does he survive? >> i don't think he'll stick around after the first term. i don't have any inside knowledge on that it's the same as my supreme court prediction. but i don't see why he would. he is go get rich i think. >> yeah, he already is. i was surprised the democrats came to his defense. i fail to see how geithner has really helped the obama

administration. he came from wall street he served wall street, and i think obama would have been better off without him, and i'm surprised that liberals like barney frank stood up and supported him. >> yeah, i think the call in the house is that the parties are going to disagree no matter what. if they were thanking timothy geithner for his work on libor, then democrats would have been slamming him for not being tough enough. >> i noticed you were talk about the fact that surprise surprise the senate actually passed a bill yesterday and they passed a bill that some republicans voted for, that would extend tax cuts to every american on income up to $250,000. this is something that mitch mcconnell has always opposed. how did he let it happen?

>> it was a pretty startling day, actually. mcconnell has been blocking this for years. >> yeah they have been filibustering every attempt to do this and yesterday they did not. >> democrats were resolved that they would give only one vote -- you know in the past they have given two votes that republicans can vote on their tax cuts for everybody or they can vote on the democratic plan which is only up to 250, and that was not going to happen this time, and reid procedurally boxed them in so this was the only tax cut vote that they were going to get before the election, and what i heard that a significant number of republicans were feeling like they were really in a jam, and they were going to vote for the democratic proposal. at least people like collins, brown, and snow. >> sure. >> and then one or two others

you quickly get into the high 50s, and maybe even 60 and so mcconnell just couldn't hold the line anymore, so he said hey let's do 50. his thinking is it's not going to become law because we have got the house -- >> the house will belong it right. >> and i think partly he was thinking screw boehner. boehner has been screwing the senate republicans since day one. just sending them stuff and saying hey look we have done our job, why don't you do your job. knowing full well what the house passed would never pass -- >> right. >> and now mcconnell gets to say, hey, here is our bill. >> basically a taste of their own medicine. >> again, we're talking to ryan

grimm, from the "huffington post," huffingtonpost.com. and you can follow him on twitter at ryan grim. >> they are saying over the next ten years or so the affordable healthcare act is going to be cheaper than they thought. reduced by $84 billion. why do those savings come from? >> well, more misery. about 6 or 7 million people who were expected to be covered won't be covered because john roberts said that, you know, states can opt medicaid. >> expansion of medicaid. >> right. >> so in the short-term it will be slightly cheaper, obviously that's the result of a lot of people not getting treated.

>> it's a good news-bad news story. >> sure. >> the bad news is we're saving money by taking health care away from a lot of people who can't afford to buy it. >> yeah, exactly. so i guess that's cause for celebration for the budget hawks. >> yeah, but not for those who believe in universal health care. ryan thank you so much for joining us. we'll get you back in studio soon. >> yeah. hawk to ya. >> so why do you stand on chick-fil-a? is this something to shrug, and say every business owner has a right to express their point of you. they do have the right to express their point of you, but do they have the right to make that the mission of their company, and to kind of force their beliefs on all customers

who walk in their doors? i don't want to know. i don't personally want to know and i certainly -- if i do know and i don't like their politics then i'm not going to patronize their store. tom from kentucky what do you say? >> i tell you what this is crazy. i'm an openly gay man. okay? and i have been to chick-fil-a, but that will be the last time i will ever be there. i'll never brush the door again. >> i don't blame you. but why would it matter right? they sell chicken sandwiches big deal -- >> [ inaudible ]. [ laughter ] >> but why did it matter. all they want to do is sell the damn chicken sandwich right? >> well, you know what -- >> i think it's outrageous. >> they have no right to force

their religion and beliefs on me. why -- who are they to -- to judge me? they are not god. they are not the president -- hell the president says. okay, some states can have gay marriages. so why can't they go with that. live and let live. >> listen, tom, i agree. i think some of these people ought to put the bible down and read the constitution that says as americans we are all created equal, and we all have equal rights. and there were days right when they put a sign on the door blacks not admitted on the doors of the restaurants, on the doors of the shopping malls, or even -- even churches and water fountains and rest rooms and everything else. those days are gone. at least we thought, but chick-fil-a wants to bring it back when it comes to gays

lesbian, or i repeat, people who are no longer still married to their first wife or husband. 866-55-press. conversation continues here on july 26th. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." ♪ that redefined tv journalism. >>we're going to places where few others are going. >>it doesn't get anymore real than this. >>occupy! >>the award winning series "vanguard" only on current tv.

septic disasters are disgusting and costly, but avoidable. the rid-x septic subscriber program helps prevent backups by sending you monthly doses right to your door so you will never forget to maintain your system. sign up at rid-x.com. >> we talk a lot about the influence of money in politics. it is the defining issue of this era. the candidate with the most money does win. this is a national crisis.

♪ >> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> chick-fil-a banned in boston banned in chicago, but open for business in 1614 stores in 39

states as long as you are not gay or lesbian or a same-sex couple, or even if you believe their mission statement divorced, then you are not welcome. mike huckabee and rick santorum standing up for chick-fil-a. would you go back to one of those restaurants if you have ever been there before? 866-55-press. back to your calls in just a second, but how do you like this. this is a story from network world you hate reading. a major internet company has confirmed that its network has been hacked into. saying that user names and pass words for 400,000 customers were stolen. their names, pass words and other information. you hear something like that we see those stories all the time and you just say hey, identity theft it is happening, it is

big. and we ought to be protected. i am with life lock encourage you to get the same protection. they are the only company that also covers your bank accounts. but they can't protect you if you are not a member. i urge you to call now, and mention press 60 for 60 days of free subscription. 1-800-356-6657. where do you stand on chick-fil-a? tammy in north carolina? >> good morning. i fight for gays lesbian, same-sex couples should all go to chick-fil-a get in front of

them order the food and then turn around and kiss each other right in front of their faces, and then turn around and let their partner kiss their butts. [ laughter ] >> i'm from north carolina and we just went to the same-sex voting up here -- >> you have it on the ballot in november, don't you? or did it already pass? >> it already passed. i'm so a shamed of my state. and they have billboards on the outside vote for same-sex marriage, but they just think about political stuff, but yet they have it on their bulletin boards, and you can see it up and down the road. >> i don't like the church taking that stand. i think it's unchristian. but for the church, okay. i'm all right with that. i'm not all right with a restaurant or gas station or

department store or mall or whatever, i don't want to know the politics or the religion of the person i'm buying my gas from, or getting my haircut or buying my underpants from. martin from lynchburg virginia -- or ice cream, i don't care what it is. hi, martin. >> how are you? >> all right. good. what is up? >> well, first of all i'm not too interested in people who elevate themselves above others or to put it in terms that hackby and santorum could relate to, ones who think more of themselves than what is really necessary. >> i also think dan kathy, the owner of chick-fil-a is in that category, martin. >> just to give you a little invite, i live in lynchburg, virginia -- >> huh oh. >> yeah. so we have about 50 square miles is the city.

>> uh-huh. >> it is about the equivalent of manhattan. and we have three chick-fil-as within the city limits. recall three chick-fil-as are within walking distance of liberty university and thomas rode baptist church. >> oh, yeah. >> so we have main arteries that run in and out of the city in high traffic and there are no chick-fil-as anywhere else in the area. so they don't really cater to the general public they cater to people they deem acceptable. >> uh-huh. >> i'm not a business person. i don't have a formal education from a university or anything like that, but why would you shoot yourself in the foot, so to speak? why wouldn't you open your doors to every potential possible customer that you could have and build relationships with versus

isolating them? >> well, look that's -- that's a good question. and i don't have the answer to that question. i think -- i think doing it any other way is anti-thetcall to what business is all about. my dad had his own business a gas station up in delaware. i pumped gas for him. and that was his philosophy and attitude, everybody was welcome, and we never -- i -- i didn't even know -- i found later -- but i didn't even know at that time, my father's politics, certainly none of his customers ever did, and we never asked their politics or religion. and i think when you start doing that that is the death of business. i also think it is anti-american. and i don't give a damn i will never, ever, ever walk into a

chick-fil-a, even if they have a new owner. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." ♪ so... [ gasps ] these are sandra's "homemade" yummy, scrumptious bars. hmm? maybe. rich chocolate chips... i just wanted you to eat more fiber. chewy, oatie, gooeyness... and, and...and then the awards started coming in, and i became addicted to the fame. topped with chocolaty drizzle... and fraudulence. i'm in deep, babe. you certainly are. [ male announcer ] fiber one. fiber beyond recognition. of

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♪ >> announcer: taking your emails on any topic at anytime, this is the "bill press show," live on your radio and current tv. >> meredith shiner from "roll call" will be here in the next hour, and we will jump over to london to check in on the opening of the olympicing over there. meanwhile, jg existing lawses.

hey, bill check the name romney has assigned to unfriendly nations. he calls them rivals. football teams have rivals. just proves that to romney, life is a game. and linda wants to know, what in the world is going on with senator feinstein suggesting the president himself leak classified information. as she lost her mine? just who's side is she on anyway. love to hear from you on facebook, and twitter. keep those comments coming. and keep us honest at least a little bit. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> announcer: on your radio, on

tv, the "bill press show." new on current tv. what's my secret for sunday lunch? my little helpers... and 100% natural french's yellow mustard. it has zero calories for me, and a taste my family loves.

[♪ theme music ♪] good morning, everybody, welcome to the "full court press" this thursday july 26th. i'm bill press, host of the "full court press," the only progressive talk radio show anywhere on cable tv here on current tv. it's good to have you with us this morning, because we have lots and lots to talk about. we're coming to you live from our nation's capitol. and we'll take your calls at 866-55-press. and here is a modern day miracle, the senate actually got something done. they actually passed a bill yesterday. not only that, they passed a

bill to give everybody a tax cut on income up to $250,000. house respects will never go along with that, but at least the senate got something right. we'll talk more about that and a whole lot more here, but first let's get to today's current news update from lisa ferguson. >> good morning, bill. good morning everyone. mitt romney is in london for the start of the olympics. yesterday they addressed -- pounced on the president's you didn't build that line. and in the latest attempt to distort the president's words the romney camp has released this video this morning. >> mr. president built my business. who took the risk? who put in the long hours? your words are bad enough but your actions over the last four years speak even louder.

>> the president is accusing romney of taking his words out of on the next. he said that bridges and roads have helped build businesses and the government has provided loan for small businesses. the democrats proposal passed the senate yesterday 51-48, the gop's version of the bill would have included tax breaks for the wealthiest americans and essentially raised taxes on the middle class, but the senate defeats that by a vote of nine. more bill press after the break, and we are live in chat current.com/billpress.

>> 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.

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♪ >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio, and on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> eat more chicken, but not at chick-fil-a. that's the word for the day. hello, everybody. good morning, good to see you on this thursday july 26th. the "full court press" coming to you live on your local progressive talk radio station and on current tv and coming to you live across the country from our nation's capitol. it's a at least a 2-way street around here. you are welcome to join the conversation at anytime. we always save a seat at the

table for you at 866-55-press and we love welcoming good friends back to the table frequently and one of our favorites, meredith shiner covers the congress for "roll call," as a friend of the "bill press show." good morning. >> good morning. so much flattery but i appreciate it. >> we love having you. >> wow. >> you have your fan club. >> i am better here than in the capitol, because there are people that don't. >> they probably hate seeing you walk up. oh, god, what is she going to ask about this time. >> yeah. >> actually i can't wait to ask you about -- the senate actually got something done yesterday. they passed a bill. >> yes, it was funny. my dad called me i hear you had a good day, the senate did something. and i was like well yes and

no. senator mcconnell gave the democrats the green light to have the major, but it's unclear if what they passed is even constitutional -- >> okay. save some of it for later. >> okay. >> and we welcome back our team with meredith. >> hi, there. >> and our great videographer. >> happy thursday. >> it's a congressional friday. everyone is going to leave town, so it will be great. >> i'm out of here. >> yeah. >> if we had the congressional schedule on current tv -- >> oh no. >> we would be on the air maybe, what 30 days a month -- i mean 30 days a year. >> yeah well, i don't think there's such a thing as a

do-nothing cable network. [ laughter ] >> there is a do-nothing congress. >> there is. >> i thought it was interesting yesterday just showing how much he knows about foreign policy and how up to date he is one of mitt romney's chief foreign policy advisors a man named richard williamson commented to reporters about what the romney campaign thinks about the efforts of involvement of russia in helping syria, and how we should be dealing as americans with russia. listen carefully here is mr. williamson. >> it's strategically important to the soviet union to say nothing of the humanitarian crisis, the rhetoric in libya is hollow to the countries such as

syria. >> maybe romney doesn't know. the soviet union dissolved in 1991. >> that when it happened! >> 1991 and the romney campaign is still talking about our dealings with the soviet union. >> but it is really interesting, one of my friends in college is living in kosovo for the summer and this is a huge huge story in that region. because the russian people have been writing that they are in cahoots. they went to kosovo and talk about developing the government. but the stories happening in russia was the kosovos are our sirrian rebels. so it has become in huge media war over trying to win the perception over what is

happening in syria. >> i appreciate that but i also think it -- i think it would be important that somebody running for president in the year 2012 not be living in the era of the cold war and thinking that we were still fighting the soviet union. >> maybe he likes the beatles song. [ laughter ] >> right. 1991. at any rate. so much to talk about, so little time. let's get right to it. next hour senator dick durbin and congressman joe courtney. and meredith and i are going to london with you just a little bit later in this hour to talk to the washington a bureau -- no the london bureau chief about the olympics. but first. >> north korea's dictator has gotten married.

the country has confirmed that he recently tied the knot. the "washington post" reports this is the first time in four decades that a first lady has not been kept behind the scenes in that country. no word on how young she is or anything else. >> i thought royal weddings were supposed to be a thing. i found no piers morgan coverage. >> nbc is set to make a lot of money off of the olympics. it has now old $1 billion in advertising for the games. the company is airing more events than ever over 5,000 hours of competition across all of its networks. one big buyer, president obama's recollection campaign, they have already purchased $6.5 million of advertising.

no wore on the purchase for the romney campaign. and jon stewart and stevenco bare are staying with comedy central a while longer. stewart will now host the daily show at least through 2013 cobare through 2014. jon stewart continues to host the most watched show for 18 to 49 year olds. they said we want to keep them around. and they say we're not jumping ship we're around to stay. >> i bet they were able to almost name their price too. >> you know it. >> hey, dan, thank you. now let's get back to his tax cuts yesterday the senate did -- 51-48, something like that >> uh-huh. >> but they approved a measure

to give every american a tax cut on income up to $250,000. in other words they approved the obama plan, and mitch mcconnell as you pointed out, did allow this vote, and some republicans voted for it. what was mitch mcconnell -- and then he came -- peter we have that clip. here is mitch mcconnell immediately after the vote saying basically it doesn't matter. >> this is a uniquely bad idea for the economy. the good news i can say to the american people it ain't going to happen. >> that's because john boehner will never go along with it. >> the entire thing was a political exercise. it was a really interesting thing to watch, because people felt very, very serious about it. i think the democrats are a bit thrown, but in a statement of how big of a show vote it actually was, joe biden was

there, and proceeding over the chamber. the only way he can cast a vote is if there is a tie. problem with that there are 99 senator right now, because one is recovering in chicago, so unless joe biden would divide himself in half there was no point. senator hagan was in north carolina for a funeral, and he basically called her and said you have to come back for this. i think the democrats are trying to draw a line in the sand on this and make this is an issue. >> yeah, but they did succeed. this is what obama said he wanted. and the senate did it so now it -- the burden really does shift to the house republicans who are expected to kill it but by killing it they are in effect

saying 98% of americans don't deserve a tax cut, right? >> and i think other interesting thing about the senate democrats -- what they said yesterday, there was actually division last summer between the democrats in the senate and the white house on what that level should be. >> right a million versus 250. >> yeah. and basically the senate democrats seeded their position on that million dollars level and voted for what the president wanted. >> the other thing it seems to show me is that -- how -- what -- what an obstruction, i guess i should say, the filibuster really is. because if you don't have a filibuster, as you did not have in this vote, the senate would be getting a lot more done if you just allowed an up or down vote right? a true majority vote the

democratic way. whether you like what they did or not, they would be accomplishing a lot more. >> i think that is true, and i think you are seeing frustrations that bubble up all the time about this. but harry reid has been talking about filibuster reform and how it is difficult to get things done. but the senate has done a lot of things. they passed a farm bill. the senator was on the floor yesterday begging house republicans to pass this bill -- >> uh-huh. >> so they were doing faa bills, they did the postal reform. they have done actually a lot in these past few months and the house have not taken up the initiative or waited until they could not do anything else but try to compromise before all of these provisions expired. >> meredith shiner in studio with us. you can follow her at

rollcallcome or at meredith shiner on twitter. the other looming issue is the whole sequestration, right? >> yeah. >> we know how it harded, republicans said we're not going for the debt ceiling unless -- so they got their way, and they got this supercommittee that were going to come up and serious debt reduction measures. the super committee failed -- >> in fairness the super committee was harry reid's baby. >> but nonetheless -- >> nonetheless. i think there were people working in good faith, but the conventional wisdom from the onset was, if every other budget negotiation group has crumbled

over the strain of this revenues versus cuts question. how is this going to succeed. >> congress created the problem in a sense. congress set this up and put on this -- this big hammer this sequestration, these drastic cuts for military, that would kick in so now congress is stuck with something they created, and they are crying like help -- help us out of this. how did president obama do this to us? congress did this to themselves didn't it? >> oh, and i think that particularly the members who are -- you know, complaining about the sequester right now, they knew what they were signing. they voted for it. republicans leading the charge about the defense sequester were the people that voted for this bill. but at the end of the day -- if they want to renegotiate this

i'm not exactly sure how they will -- >> but they could. >> they could. >> they could undo what they have done -- >> yes, but they have to find something commensurate. you could potential take care of it in the lame duck session. >> but how did the republicans paint themselves into a corner with this in that, the only way out of this, it seems to me is they are going to have to agree to new revenue somehow, whether it's tax cuts on the wealthy, or closing loopholes on the wealthy, they are going to have to agree to some revenue increases or face the trillion dollars or whatever it is in defense cuts. >> so the interesting thing -- patty murray was the chairman of the super committee, and she has been one of the more vocal people trying to bring at

attention to the domestic side of the cuts, because all of the republicans are talking about how con -- con sequential this will be -- >> yes, and the president has said this is wrong. >> yeah, so i think everybody agrees that that portion is bad, but i think the flip side is that the democrats are trying to talk about what the domestics cuts will be. the point of the sequester were you were trying to hold priorities together. >> absolutely. >> but patty murray gave a speech downtown a week ago and she was talking about how if you let all of the bush tax cuts expire, right? and then you want to do something on tax cuts none of that would violate the grover

norquist pledge because you would have to be cutting taxes. so it was an interesting shift in what the democrats might do in the future and more significantly in congress. >> just to clarify that that means they would let all of the tax cuts expire on january 1st, and come january 2nd, they would vote for a tax cut for 98% of americans, so the republicans raise taxes on the wealthy without having to vote to raise taxes on the wealthy. >> exactly. >> interesting. so do you think the house will be able -- and house republicans will block what the senate did yesterday. we'll get back into that with you at 866-55-press here on the "full court press." >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." ♪

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>> announcer: this is the "bill press show," live on your radio and current tv. >> hey we're up to 26 minutes after the hour. this thursday, congressman joe courtney will be joining us in studio here. first having trouble at the end of the month paying all of those bills, here is one way you might get a little extra help from incomeathome.com. they are america's leading work from home business. they are offering you an opportunity that you can do. everybody can take advantage of this no matter your age, education or experience the opportunity to earn money literally from your own kitchen table, with your own table, 24/7. get a little extra help from

incomeathome.com, you are in business. you ought to check them out if you want to earn some extra money from home. incomeathome.com. they are giving away a thousand bucks a day to somebody just for checking them out. as we mentioned with senator durbin there in the last segment, at least some people are talk about some reasonable limits on gun ownership and gun sales, and ammunition sales. president obama did yesterday after the white house had said the president doesn't see any need for any new gun legislation, never the less he did address the issue yesterday down in new orleans.

>> i believe ak-47s belong in the hands of soldiers not in the hands of criminals. [ applause ] >> that they long on the battlefields of war, not on the streets of our cities. >> and of course one of the guns used in the aurora shooting certainly, the -- an ar-15 i think it was, and the 100-round drum would have been prohibited. he would not have been able to pur chose those if the assault weapon's ban had been in place. it expired in 2004 after being in place for ten years. couldn't we just start right there? something that mitt romney supports, barack obama supports that george w. bush supported. why can't we start right there, and get that passed this year? no reason except our insanity.

>> announcer: this is the "bill press show." ♪ >> 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.

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her unique mix of comedy and politics to current tv. >> it's like a reality show, they're just turning cameras on and we just do our thing. >>politically direct to me means no b.s., the real thing, cutting through the clutter. i'm energized to start my show everyday because it's fun, because i care about what's going on in this country, rather than some sort of tired banter it is actual water cooler talk it's the way people really talk about these issues. we've always considered ourselves a comedy show. let me just say i am not ready for my close up. i think it's important to laugh. i think it will be exciting, because you can't script three hours of radio. what is going on? i can't tell you how many times right wingers call the show and say, "i don't agree with anything you say, but your show is funny as hell." the only thing that can save america now, current tv. can i say that?

>> announcer: this is the "full >> announcer: this is the "full court press," the "bill press show," live on your radio and on current tv. >> 33 minutes after the hour now, on a thursday july 26th. so good to have you here on current tv and your local progress progressive talk radio station. this hour giving a fair day's work for a fair day's pay, you bet. you can find out more at

smwia.org. we are pleased welcome back a good friend of the program, a hard-working member of the congress, congressman joe courtney. good to see you. >> good morning, bill, good to be back. >> you are obviously ready to go to work. >> that's right. >> i'm another fan of chopani greek yogurt. >> a good way to start the morning. >> but you introduced me to the mango and blood orange. and i thank you for that. [ laughter ] >> we were just talking to senator durbin. you have a challenge now in the house, congressman because the senate actually passed a bill good news. >> yep. >> and number two they passed a bill that gives every american a

tax cut up to $250,000 of income. >> certainly we hear a lot of noise from speaker boehner about the dangers of the fiscal cliff that is looming. that is probably the number one thing people are looking for is just to give this country a horizon in terms of tax policy and obviously some deficit reduction which this bill accomplishes both. and obviously the president would sign it in a heart beat, so now the question is will the speaker bring this up for vote and number 2, will they collaborate and work together to get this thing done and out of the way. it would be a gift to the country to get this thing -- so we're not running it up to the christmas countdown clock. >> and if boehner does not allow a vote the impact of that is

that every american, every american, will get a tax increase. >> absolutely. >> every taxpayer. >> the existing law will trigger a tax increase january 1st. and every economist says that probably puts us at risk of a double-dip recession. and that would cause a seize up in terms of the economy. >> so this is an election year, and every member of the house is up for recollection. won't republican members, you know, be putting a lot of pressure on the speaker and on the real speaker, eric cantor to schedule a vote? so -- otherwise, they are going to have to go out and defend raising taxes on everybody who lives in their district. >> this is going to be a real test of their orthodoxy, which is they want to protect the wealthy, they believe in the

trickle-down theory -- >> and they believe in grover norquist, >> absolutely. but i do think that the public polling shows the vast majority of the country supports what the senate did, and i do think they are putting themselves in a corner politically if they stone wall. >> and you are speaking about it today? >> that's right. i'm going to talk about this specific issue. >> all right. we'll be watching on c-span. and give them hell. >> yeah. >> you are a member of the agriculture committee. it seems there are so many issues that used to be routine. >> right. >> members of both parties -- they may not get everything they want but they could always get together and pass a transportation bill usually for five or six years. they'll get together and pass it, and the farm bill always

was, because agriculture is such an important part of the american economy and all of the different aspects of farming, people growing corn or soybeans or pigs or whatever. this one this is the latest to say no it's not business as usual, no farm bill. >> the senate which is usually considered the bottleneck -- >> it used to be. >> right. now it's the functioning chamber. they passed a bill a couple of months ago that was slightly under 70 votes, i think. senator stabenow came up with a bill that will save roughly $23 billion, gets rid of crop

subsidies, direct payments for farms what qualify for assistance. it does replace it with a crap insurance program which is subsidized think the taxpayer. but we're talking about a bill that deals with authorizing rural development which is huge for small opportunities, in terms of sewers hospitals, really it is a lifeline. you have got conservation forestry, and nutrition which is the big issue for making sure that emergency supplies are out will. and on balance i really give senator stabenow high remarks for that bill. >> it is still a good bill not perfect. >> yes. the house produced his own bill. on balance it's pretty close to

what the senate did. it was reported out of committee. the democrat from minnesota worked very hard to get that done. i think we ought to bring the bill up, have a vote get it to conference, ala the highway bill. producers, food-policy folks they are looking again for that five-year horizon. and the speaker has indicated really on pure eye dee logical grounds, that he thinks it is to heavy. >> so he is not scheduled to vote. >> probably not. >> illinois is still largely a agricultural state. >> that's right.

and you look down the line in terms of his caucus this is just bread and butter essential, almost a given in the part as you point out. so, again, it will be another one of these dramas. we're getting word we're going to be in for only eight days in september, and hardly at all in october. you know, we need to pass the tax plan and get a farm bill and frankly get sequestration diffused as well. >> peter and dan did you hear that? we decided we are going to adopt the congressional calendar. [ laughter ] >> so eight days in september, right? >> yeah, exactly. >> all of the people at current tv, eight dayss --

>> i'm out of here. >> all of the other shows can be on, but jennifer grandholm and cenk and eliot spitzer they can work every night. but we are in washington on the congressional calendar, eight days in september. i hope you can shake them up congressman. i want to ask you, these are just opening up here. and we're going to have to take a break, but we'll do this when we come back. good friend from the "washington post," his op-ed is eternal gutlessness on guns. >> right. >> if this isn't the time to talk about doing something sensible about guns and ammunition, i don't know when it is. let's talk about what your constituents think about that, and what you think might be possible. joe courtney is in studio with us here.

it's a thursday edition of the "full court press." you are always welcome to join the conversation. give us a call at 866-55-press, what congress is getting done or not getting doan, but a good move yesterday in the senate. damn good. we'll be right back. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." ♪ >>only on current tv.

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>> we talk a lot about the influence of money in politics.

it is the defining issue of this era. the candidate with the most money does win. this is a national crisis. ♪ >> announcer: on your radio, on tv, the "bill press show," new on current tv. >> how about it? 14 minutes before the top of the

hour, congressman joe courtney on his way to the floor of the house of representatives to urge the house to support what the senate did yesterday voting to give all americans a tax cut up to 250 -- the first $250,000 of their income. of course for most americans that's way more than they earn in a year but every american will get a tax cut under this plan for everything under 250, and taxes would go up 4 points on anything above $250,000. sounds like a good deal to me. >> senator -- some day maybe -- congressman before we go on -- i want to ask you about gun control. gene from albuquerque has a quick question or comment. >> good morning, bill. yesterday mitch mcconnell said the only reason the tax bill wasn't filibustered is that

bills of this nature must be initiated in house. he kind of laughed and said therefore the bill passed in the senate was unconstitutional and cannot stand. can you speak on that please. >> thanks, jean. we'll get your answer on the air. >> if you read the sort of technical wording, there's some truth to that comment. however, the fact that he consented and insisted on having his own tax plan voted on showed there is a little bit of -- >> he got a vote on his plan -- >> yeah. and what i would say is -- is that -- the fact is that if there really is compromise and the two chambers agree, that's an easily fixable issue in terms of just having the house have a technical origination and ping-ponging it back to the senate. so that's really not an insurmountable issue at all.

>> the way i took that comment was that mcconnell just got -- harry reid pulled -- not pulled a fast one -- >> surprised him. >> surprised him or tricked him or boxed him into a corner. >> yeah. >> and mitch mcconnell blew it. >> yeah. i don't think he thought they could hold their caucus together for 51 votes, so he gambled, and obviously that was plan b to come back with this hyperlegalistic -- >> yeah. he complained it might not be constitutional, and also he said i want to assure you it is not going anywhere because now he is counting on john boehner to kill it. >> right. >> here you have got -- we see virginia tech now aurora, colorado, you can go on and on down the list, and something as sensible as a ban on assault weapons. okay mitt romney signed a ban on

assault weapons when he was governor of massachusetts, and he said i'm doing this because these guns don't belong in the hands of ordinary people. president obama said the same thing. george bush says congress passes a renewal of the ban on assault weapons, i will sign it. why can't we at least get that done? >> i mean, it will be an interesting -- >> would you vote for it? >> yeah, i did in connecticut when i was in the state legislature and voted for it, and again, it was a tough vote but the fact is law enforcement lined up universally behind it. >> sure. >> what people should look for next week is the other sort of outrageous fact that was exposed was the fact that you can guy outrageous quantities of ammunition online and it would

not pass through any gun shop or dealer, which is unlike internet purchases of weapons. >> yeah. >> this guy had 6,000 rounds which weighs over a thousand pounds, and i do think you are going to see some real serious focus in terms of trying to at least create parity with weapon purchases and ammunition purchases. >> yeah, he was able to build an ammunition dump in his own apartment. >> right. >> as it was as easy as downloading a song from itunes. >> right. so since we have a precedent on the books, we should hopefully be able to at least clear that bar for ammunition purchases, which, again was beyond any

real -- you know i think reasonable interpretation of the second amendment. >> shouldn't there also be kind of a ceiling. frank lottenberg introduced legislation that would ban any clip that held more than 10 rounds. or if you do a lot of target practice, you could only buy 100 rounds or whatever but not 6,000. >> right. >> here is the question really? >> yeah. >> how powerful is the nra? is the nra able to put the fear of god into every member of

congress? >> not every member, but a lot of them. this guts across gun owners and middle class families and hopefully this will have a life of it's a own, and as i said i think you are going to see movement in terms of measures in the wake of this, that hopefully will break through a lot of that fear factor. >> we count on voices like yours congressman to raise the issues. thank you for coming in. go give them hell. we'll be watching on c-span. get that tax cut passed. >> absolutely. >> i'll be back with today's parting shot. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." ♪

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you've heard bill's views, now let's hear yours. politically direct means no b.s. just telling you what's going on in politics today. >>at the only on-line forum with a direct line to bill press. >>it's something i've been waiting for a long time. >>join the debate now. [ ♪ theme ♪ ] ♪

>> announcer: the parting shot with bill press. this is the "bill press show." >> all right. on this thursday, july 26th my parting shot for today, before he left for europe mitt romney promised he would not criticize president obama while he was overseas. politics stops at the water's edge. well, that didn't last long. within 24 hours he or somebody on his campaign at least had broken that pledge. reporting that the purpose of romney's trip was to rebuild america's special relationship with our anglo-saxon heritage which of course african american, barack obama could not appreciate. the romney campaign now denies that's the purpose of the trip

but the campaign aid did let the cat out of the bag. this is what republicans have been saying about president obama all along, the fact that he is different because his father was black. he came from a racially mixed marriage, grew up in indonesia. it is mitt romney not barack obama who can't appreciate what america is all about. while we were largely a nation of anglo-saxon immigrants for a while, we are no longer minority babies out numbered white babies for the first time last year and we will soon be a majority/minority nation. maybe mitt romney should have taken a trip to mexico. we'll see you back here tomorrow. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."