[ ♪ theme music ♪ ] >> tonight our nation is witnessing a grave injustice, a dangerous american citizen is not only walking around free but will also be the new host of "the view"." there are a bunch of unarmed teenagers walking around with snacks, so it's a good thing that george zimmerman got his gun back. trayvon martin was legally a child. he was not even old enough for florida to suppress his vote yet. george zimmerman is not going to to prison, now it's up to carma to take up the stitch. today's birthday include forest

whittaker, adam savage and ariana huffington who will aggravate those other birthday, and create free content and post it on her site. this is "viewpoint." [ ♪ theme music ♪ ] >> john: i'm john fugelsang and this is "viewpoint." thank you so much for joining us this evening. the judge read the verdict in the state of florida versus george zimmerman for the shooting death of trayvon martin martin. and crowds around the country protesting and mourning trayvon martin death. trayvon martin was only 17 when he was killed early last year with a can of iced tea and a bag of skittles in his hand. and george zimmerman who shot

trayvon it now a free man. after being found not guilty of second-degree murder or manslaughter. president obama issued a statement, the death of trayvon martin was a tragedy not just for his family, but for any one community, not for any one community but for america. today attorney general eric holder headed to that for a speech of mostly african-american sorority. >> we're also mindful of the pain felt by our nation following the tragic unnecessary shooting death of trayvon martin. as we first acknowledged last spring we opened an investigation into this matter. now. >> hour zimmerman defense attorney don west told nbc news that he didn't think that investigation will go anywhere. >> i don't think the federal investigation will develop into any sort of charges. they've been out since the beginning as well.

we've received extensive information within the discovery of our case of what the fbi has done. absolutely would suggest that this was a hate crime whatsoever. >> john: if it does go there zimmerman won't be able to afford those guys any more any way. and mark o'mara suggested that zimmerman might be filing some lawsuits of his own. >> there were maybe some compensation. >> john: but zimmerman's prosecutor told nbc news that they still believe in their case and do not believe zimmerman's accounts that he was forced to shoot trayvon martin in self defense. >> nobody just shoots. even police officers, they can't get their guns out that quickly. >> i think there was a struggle, and at some point trayvon became aware of the gun and backed up. >> john: now trayvon martin's

parents, their attorneys say that they're grieving for their son, and will not let the verdict define their son's legacy. for more, i'm pleased to be joined by kenneth nunn, professor of law, professor nunn, what a pleasure to have you on "viewpoint." >> thank you, a pleasure to be here. >> john: let me ask the most obvious question. were you surprised at this verdict on saturday? >> well, no, i wasn't surprised because these are very difficult cases. you can look at this case as being essentially the same as a police brutality case where the police shot a young black unarmed male. jurors tend to sympathize with the police, and almost everything in this case tracked that path. so it was a difficult case for the prosecution to win. and so i wasn't surprised with

the outcome. i do think that the prosecution could have presented their case in a more compelling way. that might have made a difference. >> john: with zimmerman's background and some of the comments he made on the 911 tape as well, and his choice to ignore the 911 dispatcher, do you think there was sufficient evidence for the jury to convict on second-degree murder or manslaughter? >> oh, yes. i've had many cases that were second-degree murder cases that proceeded on less substantial evidence than we had in this case. so yes there was sufficient evidence. what happens is the jury has to reach a conclusion as to who's story they believe. in this case the jury concluded that they believed the defense's version of facts and therefore they did not come back with a conviction. >> john: professor, what role did george zimmerman's alleged state of mind at the time of

this shooting play into this jury's final verdict? >> well, we really don't know because it's not clear whether the jury decided not to convict zimmerman because they didn't believe there was sufficient eched of his mens rea what we call mens rea his mental state when the charges were brought. was it second-degree murder? was it the recklessness or culpable recklessness that we need for manslaughter or the extreme recklessness for second-degree murder, we don't know that. or did they think that there was evidence of the homicide, but that they believed george zimmerman's statement that he was in fear of death or serious bodily harm, and therefore decided to go with the self defense charge. so at this point we really don't know, but really i guess the answer is that in either case the mindset of george zimmerman

makes the difference. we're not going to know what that mindset is other than by looking at the circumstantial evidence. >> john: do you think that the prosecution made a mistake in waiting near the end of the trial to charge zimmerman with manslaughter? >> no, i don't. basically this is florida. the way this works in florida these lesser included are automatically included in the charge that are brought in a criminal case. so all that had to happen was the prosecution had to ask for the manslaughter charge, and everybody in the courtroom knew that they were going to get it. so there was no surprise in that whatsoever. now it could be a surprise to a jury because they might not have heard any discussion of that, but that's why it was important for the prosecution to walk the jury through all of the elements for each of the charge, and say this is what we need to prove. this is how we proved it, and so we expect you to return a verdict of guilty in the case

because of that. they didn't do that in this case, and i think that's probably the biggest factor that led to the guilty verdict. >> john: do you think, sir the police investigation helped or hampered this case, especially regarding the waiting six weeks to even arrest the suspect? >> well, it couldn't help in any way to wait six weeks. you know, if you're not proceeding with an investigation, then memories get old, witnesses get stale evidence gets stale. evidence gets lost. there are lots of bad things that can happen for six weeks. it didn't help to wait for six weeks in the investigation at all. >> john: when this case was first announced everyone thought this would put florida's stand your ground law on trial. but the judge built stand your ground law in her instructions to the jury. do you think it played a role in

this case? >> yes, she did instruct the jury on stand your ground. they didn't give the entire instruction. there is a law in the state of florida, an element of that law that claims you cannot claim stand your ground if you're the initial aggressor. that instruction was not given to the jury. that's another fault of prosecution, they should have been told that. that would have neutralized the instruction on stand your ground if the jurors were aware of the fact you know, if we find george zimmerman to have started this whole thing he would have to retreat before he could use deadly force. >> john: university of florida law professor kenneth nunn. thank you for joining us on "viewpoint." >> my pleasure. thank you, john. >> john: for more on this story i'm pleased to welcome rashad

robin. thank you for being here. >> thank you for having me. >> john: sorry it's under such sad circumstances. were you surprised? >> unfortunately, after watching the case, and watching it in the courtroom and media no, not surprised. >> john: do you think the state of florida did everything that they could in the prosecution of this case? >> absolutely not. the state of florida and what happened in sanford during the lead up to arresting george zimmerman all left plenty of holes, and it was not the best effort that the state could have put forward. >> john: let me ask, what does a verdict like this say to young african-americans in this country? >> i think it underscores what many folks already know, they're living in a very different world. it's a conversation that parents are oftentimes have with their kids that will be heightened by this moment. that for many will animate a moment in their life, part of their generational story when they sort of recognized that

even in a world that we have a black president and folks can stand around and say yes we can that we can have these moments that prove that this country has a long way to go for true equality and conclusion. >> cenk: you seem very hopeful. do you think good could come from this? >> we have to believe that we can take the energy of every day people, mobilize and we've seen folks of all races turning ought in cities all around the country. we see folks using social media to stand on, but at the end of the day we take this energy and transfer it into real policy change at this level going after stand your ground laws, and also the long term work we can do to hold main treatment media accountable, the depictions that come into our homes every day that underscore why a george zimmerman would see trayvon martin the way he did. >> john: by that, by hollywood

are you talking about images of violence or how black men are portrayed. >> how black men are portrayed and violence. if you look at the preponderance from reality programs and crime procedures that take place in the top 100 television shows over 20 of them are crime procedures. every day americans are coming down and seeing the hero law enforcement figure who may sometimes step outside of the kind of order that he is supposed to, but they get their criminal at the end and we're supposed to root for them. >> john: it's clint eastwood's fault. >> well, yes, and it's also the fault of the larger community not just looking at policy, right? we have work to do to shape the way that policies work, but we have a long road on culture. mainstream media and hollywood is an area we need to concentrate on. >> john: what is the reaction to protests that we're seeing

around the country that is springing up and very racially mixed. >> our reaction is this is great. what we've been working to do is trying to make sure that we get technology out to the organizers, and we capture people's names we're able to register people to vote. we're able to do the other organizing pieces to transfer this energy. we're proud of what has happened so far has been peaceful and the black folks have mobilized using civil disobedience and has been on the road map as well. >> john: you're calling on trayvon martin supporters to turn their frustration into action and go positive. i admire a lot of. i'm sick of hearing no liberals, no peace. to hold the justice system accountable. that sounds great. what needs to be done? how is that practical.

>> there are a wide range of things right on the table that we should be looking at from a profiling act leveraging and holding elected procedures accountable. to here in new york, insuring that we pass this last hurdle in ending stop and frisk. there is so much work we can do just from a policy perspective in leveraging the energy of folks who want to get involved, who are outraged. many of whom this is a defining moment in their generation in terms of what they'll remember, where they were at when the verdict was heard. now we want to transfer that energy using technology, using all the things at our disposal to make long-term change. >> john: i'm a fan of anyone looking for non-violent solution solutions. with respect to the verdict it's safe to say that george

zimmerman profiled trayvon martin and they have said that hehe is a thug, the new slur in this case. how do you go defend when you're up against the wall like that. >> right before the trial when all the lead up, we led a movement to get 52 corporations to lead the american legislative exchange council the organization behind the stand your ground laws. we led that by leveraging the voice of black voice and tell them they couldn't have it both ways. they could not have a relationship with black folks by day and a relationship with alec by night. you build power you organize, you raise people's voices and you create narratives that people can connect to. building common ground around stories. i'm hoping that we see a lot from trayvon martin, telling's parents

telling their story and building power on the ground. >> rashad robinson, thank you for joining us tonight. >> thank you. >> john: we'll have much more on the george zimmerman verdict and its impact on race relations in this country, and we'll ask some questions that you might not hear too much on those other news networks. comingstick around.

cenk off air alright in 15 minutes we're going to do the young turks! i think the number 1 thing than viewers like about the young turks is that were honest. they know that i'm not bsing them for some hidden agenda, actually supporting one party or the other. when the democrats are wrong, they know i'm going to be the first one to call them out. cenk on air>> what's unacceptable is how washington continues to screw the middle class over. cenk off air i don't want the middle class taking the brunt of the spending cuts and all the different programs that wind up hurting the middle class. cenk on air you got to go to the local level, the state level and we have to fight hard to make

anymore. cenk off air and they can question if i'm right about that. but i think the audience gets that, i actually mean it. cenk on air 3 trillion dollars in spending cuts! narrator uniquely progressive and always topical the worlds largest online news show is on current tv. cenk off air and i think the audience gets, "this guys to best of his abilities is trying to look out for us." only on current tv! >> john: congress has three weeks left before the august recess, thank god they're getting time off and a lot of work is still not done on student loan rates the immigration reform and another round of sequestration measures. what will happen with this congress with an approval rating lower than chlamydia before they

recess. john boehner tweeted delay and dismantle the healthcare act. >> we're committed to repealing obamacare. obamacare is raising costs making it harder for small businesses to hire, and frankly with the last week's announcements it's wide open to fraud and abuse. in short it's a train wreck. even the administration knows that this law is unworkable. the president has delayed obamacare's employer mandate but hasn't delayed the mandate on individuals or families. i think it's unfair and indefensible. >> john: that's john boehner coming out against the mandate a year after spending two years of his life trying to elect a governor who made the mandate first. so will boehner succeed? or will they come out swinging. my tiny mind cannot handle these

issues. that's why i need a true insider. the man who hosts the bill press show right here on tv. author of six books including his most recent "the essential obama hate machine" which i stole upon leaving his studio. emmys and a gold golden globe award. here to give us the inside scoop, it's an honor to have with us, mr. bill press. >> i'll come back any time with that kind of an introduction. terrific. don't call me a washington insider. >> john: but you are. >> it's not a compliment. >> john: i have 19 tv sets in current, and every day i see you in the briefing room giving the hard questions to carney that others should be throwing out. >> questions that he does not appreciate. >> john: that separates a

liberal and a democrat. >> a progressive liberal. >> john: in a free society most would consider that most journalists are progressive. >> and reporters should ask the tough questions. >> john: the requirement for all americans to buy health insurance under obamacare despite the fact that they said, no problem esai. now it's going to kill us all. how is this quote going to go? >> it will pass. look, he got to start with--john boehner is a joke. everybody knows in washington he's a joke. he's not in charge of the republican house caucus. the tea party is in charge of the republican house caucus. this will be in affect the 38th time that they have voted to repeal obamacare. one would think that they might

get the message that it ain't going to work. they're never going to repeal obamacare. they will never get the vote. that's the thing. it's like a masturbation society there. a mass masturbation society. it's going nowhere. they're not going to get a vote in the senate. if it were to pass the house obama would veto it. the point is they have to continue pleasuring themselves. >> john: pleasuring them or pleasuring the base. he still has the job. eric canter has not shot him in the back. he still has the job until next year. >> he is letting the tail wag the dog. letting the most extreme members of his caucus decide the agenda. oh so they don't do anything about student loans. they dump--the only way they'll pass a farm bill is to bump food stamps when everybody from george bush to karl rove is saying we need to do immigration

reform, they say mm-hmm, we're not doing immigration reform. you name the issue, on obamacare, gun safety, any of it they're just determined they will not do anything. john boehner is determined to let them rule. >> john: by placating them and letting them rule, is he keeping republicans jobs safe? >> he's keeping his job safe. i don't think he's keeping republicans safe. they're distancing themselves farther and farther, alienating themselves farther and farther from mainstream americans. >> john: let me turn it around and ask about the president. was it a mistake for president obama to delay implementation for larger employers to provide insurance. does it reflect weakness or lack of trust in his own plan. >> i think it was a mistake for this reason. the message that it seemed to send was we don't have our stuff together. right? >> john: yeah. >> and unfortunately people pounce on that. now, you and i both know it's not as big of a deal as they're making it.

4% of businesses are affected by this because 96% already provide healthcare, but it's a sign of weakness, and you can't show that in politics. you can't show that in washington. >> john: why do it? political reasons? to help with the midterms? despite the fact that americans need this legislation to survive. >> here is my unprogressive progressive thought. this is a classic obama wanting to please everybody and he was getting a lot of crap from the u.s. chamber of commerce. he thought i'll throw them a bone and i'll delay this. but here is the hypocrisy. the same voices, right who have been trying to undermine and repeal obamacare for two years are now raising hell and whining because of one little aspect of it that it's going to be delayed for one year. they can't have it both ways. >> john: they know they got up late. let's go on to harry reid. there is clearly a complete lack of faith in congress to get

anything done. the epitome of gridlock in washington is the filibuster. we have senator reid threatening the nuclear option if the appointees are not confirmed. why should mitch mcconnell bill press take anything that harry reid says seriously. >> because harry reid has finally grown up. i've talked to senators who say he's really serious this time. >> john: he told us in 2012 that he was serious. on january 1st it was going to happen. >> i know, and we all--i mean, we were suckered in to it. i thought it would happen then. but if they do not approve seven appointees tomorrow there is going to be filibuster reform. >> john: what would that look like? >> unfortunately, it doesn't go far enough. republicans have abused it more than anybody else 300-some

times last year. anything that moves in washington. anything that moves across the court yard they say filibuster that are guy. >> john: they've broken the record. >> yes for executive appointees appointees, judicial appointees, and legislation. harry reid is only going to use it for executive appointees, and there are seven of them. if it goes through then the president will be able to appoint a cabinet secretary and there will an vote up or down. but the other use of the filibuster will continue. >> john: it seems that we're in the golden age and taking moderate improvement and calling it reform. >> baby steps. >> john: yeah, this is what senator reid tweeted this morning: >> john: now when harry reid says he had to deal with 420 he's not talking about weed, he's talking about the number of

filibusters. >> yeah. >> john: that's the point. >> absolutely. >> john: could we ever see a jimmy stewart style mandate if they want to block they got to talk? >> that would be the ideal solution. first of all, the ideal solution would be to get rid of the filibuster but i've never been a senator, so i never saw the advantage of it. >> john: but do minorities not need to protect themselves in dire times? could it not save the democratic party's life some day. >> i think they have an up and down vote and let chips fall where they may. but short of that, damn right bring the cuts in, make them talk and give them lots of orange juice and they can't go pee. then it's all over, and make them stay up there as long as they can like strom thurman. >> john: what's changed. you've been at this a long time.

i marvel at you're your adeptness with these folks. what has changed to create the hyper partisanship. it's always been bad. bad in colonial days, but it's never been this bad, has it? >> it started with newt gringrich. when newt gringrich came in as speaker, for him it was war. perpetual war. there is no time out now to governor. it is perpetual campaigning. newt gringrich drew up a list these are the words that you use when you talk about republicans. these are the words you use to describe democrats 24/7, in season and offseason. it's always what is good for the party. it's never been what is good for the country. >> john: bill press will stick around, it will be quite interesting. first we'll join north carolina

for moral monday celebration. that's coming up next.

>> john: today our wtf america series goes to the great state of north carolina where my

number lives now where the republican-controlled legislature decreased unemployment benefits for tens of thousands of its citizens by more than one-third. also reducing the number of weeks residents can receive un unemployment aid. that's right as is often the case the story of poor and middle class people being hurt is proceeded by the phrase republican-controlled legislature. this has inspired a brand new protest movement called moral monday which is resulted in hundreds of north carolinaens getting arrested at the state capitol and barely getting home in time for taco tuesdays. some have referred to the protesters as outsiders and morons even though the arrest reports show that many of them are doctors, teachers, librarians, military veterans and clergy. it sounds like a rogue gallery of criminal lowlife to me. i'm sure that obi wan kenobi would describe raleigh, north carolina, on a monday as a

wretched high of criminal. wtf, north carolina, if you're going to pass laws that decimate the lives of every day citizens, you better be ready to deal with the wrath of that protest group known as average, every day north carolina citizens.

>> john: just after george zimmerman was found not guilty on all counts of murder in the trayvon martin case, his brother, robert, not to be confused with the robert zimmerman who changed rock-n-roll, spoke with cnn. when asked if he would work to heal the racial divide this robert zimmerman went from magnanimous to malicious. >> my life's work is bringing people together and not driving people apart. i know for the better part of a year and a half we've been on the receiving end of a lot of attacks, and i think that now that the jury has spoken, like piers said in an american

justice system, we have to grow from this. i want to know what makes people angry enough to attack someone the way that trayvon martin did. i want to know if it was true, and i don't know if it's true, that trayvon martin was looking to procure firearms, was growing marijuana plants, or was making lean or whatever he was doing, i want to know that every minor high schooler that would be reaching out in some way for help, and they may feel it's by procuring firearms or whatever they may be doing that they have some kind of help. >> john: okay, i don't want to get too technical with legal eastese,but the term of what with you just saw is making crap up. we'll bring bill press back, he's host of the bill press show every morning here on current tv. karen hunter runs her own

publishing company and mr. basil smikle, a democratic strategist and adjunct professor at columbia university. welcome. i couldn't be more delighted about this panel. now i hate to say it, but mr. zimmerman there is clearly not alone in his blame the victim approach. i've become a bit numb over the past few days about a young man not around to defend himself. this will continue as the justice department investigation and potential trial kicks off. what do you make of this particular sound bike, sound bite, and what do you think is ahead for the trayvon martin family. >> he is correct. he is bringing people together, i saw blacks and whites coming together to rally around this notion of getting justice with trayvon. he's on to something like that. as far as what is up next for george zimmerman i hope there is a hearing and conviction that

will come and give justice to trayvon finally. there is definitely going to be a civil suit, i'm sure, as we saw with the o.j. trial. he was acquitted, and then found responsible which is definitely the case here. i'm flabbergasted that he would go there so soon, too soon, by wait. >> john: i don't understand why he felt like he needed to go on the air, either. i can understand why going on before the trial. you want to contaminate jury with as many news shows but is it narcissism? >> yes, they won this case, and they feel a sense of vulnerability. and the irony now is that george zimmerman will need a hoodie and so will his brother. the defense attorneys have been

making incredibly insensitive statements. i'm shocked that no one can reigning them in. what that tells me is that they have a sense of invulnerability that clearly this is who they are. >> john: until george zimmerman is arrested for trying to get back his memorabilia. bill, do you think there is a chance that d.o.j. is going to pursue a suit against him? >> i hope against hope that they will. i really think that they should. i hope there is civil litigation as there was in the o.j. case, and i hope that eric holder has the intestinal fortitude to go forward, but i haven't seen much backbone from eric holder so far, quite frankly. >> ironic to have an african-american president and african-american head of the d.o.j. and not have this case-- >> i agree but it doesn't mean that they're going to do it. >> new york has a precedence. there was a police officer who choked to death anthony baez who

was playing football in the streets with his brother. he was acquitted by a judge but then found guilty in a civil rights case as well. there is a precedence for this. >> i've just been five years wanting eric holder to be stronger do stuff and i don't have a lot of confidence he'll do it now. >> the administration is somewhat selective in what they choose to really promote and show fire. i have to--i agree. i have to think african-american president, and mind you, i don't think the president's statement was as strong as i would have liked it to have been. >> john: diplomatic. >> but i can't image that they do not push the civil case forward. >> john: let me ask, we're hearing a lot of talk from politician ohss for for a dialogue on race. if go to the internet that dialogue is in progress. but there is a need to defend

mr. zimmerman, or the stand your ground law to try this person, and the new word is thug and thug is smeared all over the place. when you see that this kind of profile something going on after someone is already dead, how do people who don't share similar experiences and don't even want to look at the other side of someone else's experience begin to have any kind of dialogue? what are we up against here in terms of unity? >> therein lies the problem. if you're not experiencing something on a daily basis, why would you want to. you don't have to. >> john: that's why they came out for marriage equality. >> that's what i'm saying, something is going to have to happen to someone's personal lives to impact them to the point that they're forced to change forced to look at someone else's experiences similar to their own. i think the jury, everyone was like, their mother is on the jury. when i saw the complexion of the mothers on the jury, much like

the o.j. jury where they thought putting all those black people on the jury thinking people were going to be mad at o.j. because he was with a white woman. when you talk about putting yourself in that place, that's who they see. they don't see trayvon martin. until we get to that point we're going to have this discussion leading nowhere. >> john: will this change the discussion on guns in our country? >> no, i think there is a lot of conversation whether or not we're going to be changing--there is going to be a huge movement to stand your ground laws. stand your ground laws and gun control are inextricably tied. there are 31 states with stand your ground laws blue states, red states, southern, western. it's hard to get a national strategy tied to elections to get those laws off the books. it's not impossible but it will

be very difficult. i agree with you. i don't know what will change unless its people's personal experiences. >> john: we have to go to break. john boehner's two son-in-laws i'm thinking the prosecution argued stand your ground for trayvon martin. we'll be back after this with our panel. don't go away. >> jack, how old are you? >> nine. >> this is what 27 tons of marijuana looks like. (vo) with award winning documentaries that take you inside the headlines, way inside. (vo) from the underworld, to the world of privilege. >> everyone in michael jackson's life was out to use him. (vo) no one brings you more documentaries that are real, gripping, current.

this show is about analyzing criticizing, and holding policy to the fire. are you encouraged by what you heard the president say the other night? is this personal, or is it political?

a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i'm given to doing anyway, by staying in touch with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. in reality it's not like they actually care. this is purely about political grandstanding. i've worn lots of hats, but i've always kept this going. i've been doing politics now for a dozen years. (vo) he's been called the epic politics man. he's michael shure and his arena is the war room. >> these republicans in congress that think the world ends at the atlantic ocean border and pacific ocean border. the bloggers and the people that are sort of compiling the best of the day. i do a lot of looking at those people as well. not only does senator rubio just care about rich people, but somehow he thinks raising the minimum wage is a bad idea for the middle class. but we do care about them right? >> john: welcome back. we heard for years the need for

a dialogue on race. what would that mean? what would that conversation look like? let's bring back our esteem panel, the bill press show's own bill press. karen pointed out you look at the pictures and protests around our country were overwhelmingly mixed racially. is the media portrayal of this hurting real progress? >> i think so. across the board. i feel like the pessimist on this, but i've been in washington too long. i think this case proves we have serious problems about racial profiling, but after newtown we said we needed a national dialogue on guns. it's gone. after nsa two weeks ago the president said we need a

national conversation about spying on other americans. no one is talking about that any more. now we're all saying that we need a national conversation on race, which we do, in two weeks we'll be talking about the royal baby. >> john: two weeks ago the supreme court said there is still racial discrimination but no more voting rights acts. >> he's right but there is a deeper problem with the media. everything is surface. we do these quick hits and one- one-minute sound bytes here and there, but we don't get to the root of the problem. we have marchs and protests, what is the end game here. >> john: let me ask you, karen, isn't the reason why we don't get to the root of the problem because it's not about race, it's about class, poverty. >> no, it's about race, and it's a unique thing to this culture but we don't talk about it. we don't talk about slavery. some people can never forget,

but we have to move on. that's the problem and the dual consciousness that black folks have to endure. like you said, you never will be followed around, you will never have to put your hands on the wheel when you're stopped. >> i think hope that i'm very sensitive to the issues, but i've never been profiled. >> i'm going to profile right ever this. >> this is the problem and it gets to your point. one, i do think if we're going to have a national dialogue the president should do something that he did in 2008 when he was running. do you remember associating him with reverend wright. he changed the conversation. in philadelphia he had that speech on race. it was one of the best speeches on race i ever heard. he took it head on, and he changed the conversation. that i think is the kind of leadership he needs to show. and then in the second piece goes to what i call racial

contexts. where we are right now is we're not post racial but we're very comfortable saying i work with black people. i hang out with black people at the bar but there is a context. and what has happened we're coolly hanging out with black people on the job but they get their neighborhood, and then they say, i don't know if that black person belongs there. does that black person belong driving that car? does that black person belong being with that kind of woman. the racial context becomes important. we're not talking about that. >> john: we have countless examples some listed here on the current daily news of young men killed in acts of violence. and women as well. and it keeps on happening. what is it going to take for things to change? do we have to get a black friend for every racist in the country? like the peace corp foraysism.

>> was it archie banker where the racist needed a transfusion. >> yes. >> one drop, baby, one drop. i think really, what is it going to take? can a national dialogue on race open minds and hearts when you don't trust the socialist obama any way? >> i think with the progress we've made in this country yes. but it's going to take real stick-to-itiveness. >> it's going to take leadership and it's not going to come from the president. in the 50s and 60s when we had these massive changes, we had leaders. we don't have leaders. we did a lot of talk. >> john: american race relations are worlds away from where they were 40 years ago. yes, progress has been made, but what does it say about the fragility about it in this

country where we're using this one case to dictate where the country stands on race. >> to be honest with you, i am concerned that we're not going to have the right conversation in this country. my personal belief, it's going to take generation for it to change because all the folks that were there during the civil rights movement that probably sat on the sidelines need--i hate to say it, but they need to die off. this is taught. it's passed down. >> john: but then you have kids now who are not going to be part of the problem in 20 years. i do want to get to this quickly. we asked our audience what points about the case are not being discussed by the media. christopher k calkins replied:

>> john: so social change never happens when people are complacent. do we think that good will come from this terrible loss and tragedy? >> i'm optimistic. but we need to recognize that we have two-tier situation going on. while we head to this post racial thing. now we have a thousand groups, they're mostly young people. at the same time we have this we have a large faction of our country that is, you know, tied to hate in a way that is completely detrimental to our future. we need to decide who we're going to be in america. >> i think we'll make progress if we take a good long close look at stand your ground law and self defense law in florida and scrap them. >> john: basil, last word. >> maybe it will be music that brings us together but i think it will take time.

i'm afraid that these protests will not end up with something concrete at the end of the day but god, i hope so. >> john: you can find out that you have a gay kid but not usually a black kid. >> not in florida. >> john: right, not in florida. you talked me off a ledge. bill press karen hunter, and basil smikle. thank you for joining me. now george zimmerman is already planning to cash in. wait for the f-bomb and we'll show you how.

>> john: are you an aggressive social path. >> a lowly gun toting busy body. >> john: are you a watch leader even though you're not. >> do you regularly avoid watch rules when you see a suspect. >> john: do you call 911 in non-emergency situations. >> are you a vigilante in neighborhoods that you don't live in even though they're not

even bothering anyone. >> john: we have the statement for you. it's the george zimmerman neighborhood watch. the. >> the only watch that will make you tougher and more popular as you defend communities that don't need it. >> john: this will help keep the hood away from your neighbors. the minute a black teen goes in to buy snacks, the alarm goes off. >> you're reporting minorities. now you're on the case. call 911 for instructions and be sure to tell them that the kid is up to no good. >> john: what if the kid is not up to no good, he's black. next you'll receive instructions from the 911 dispatcher. >> ignore them and stalk the kid. >> john: don't most neighborhood watch groups for bid that? >> no, all neighborhood watch groups forbid that but the george zimmerman neighborhood watch.

>> john: if you do your job correctly you'll provoke the fight you're looking for. don't worryish you can tell the police he snuck up on you while you were following him from behind. >> now you started the fight and now you're being pummeled by the kid you stalked. as soon as you see that you're getting your ass kicked kill the kid with your gun. >> john: now my friend you're on your way to having millions of brand new right wing friends who can't wait to have your back, g. that's the best feature if you're part of george zimmerman's watch, then fox news radio tea cutthroats will love it. >> what, i will hip my popularity. >> john: as soon as he's too dead to defend himself you're good. >> what if i assault my fiancé.

>> john: george zimmerman did that. >> what if i'm accused of abuse. >> john: george zimmerman's cousin said that. >> what if i lie under oath. >> john: he got his bail revoked, bro he's gold. >> what if i disobey law enforcement dispatch, and my own neighborhood watch rules. >> john: dude, the kid had gold teeth. he had to be guilty of something. >> wow, i can break all those rules and still be a hero. >> john: it's the george zimmerman neighborhood watch. >> the price is so low you feel like you're getting away with murder. >> john: that's our show. this is tv's frank. this is "viewpoint." this is current. we're still here. good night mom we'll see you tomorrow night. thanks to bill press karen hunter, and basil smikle. [ ♪ music ♪ ]

>> joy: tonight outrage over the george zimmerman verdict. could a civil trial be on the horizon, and should we be worried that he is getting his gun back. plus barbara walters has announced that jenny mccarthy is joining "the view," watch out for barbara's wandering hands. and why do some people insist on singing in the rain? i'll ask music guest, neil sedaka, all of that and more on "say anything." [♪ theme music ♪] >> joy: thousands protest across the country in the aftermath of