[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> bill: hey, what do you say? good morning everybody. great to see you this morning here on the "full court press" this thursday morning. july 18. thank you for joining us and thanks for in advance for all of your calls and all of your comments. we look forward to hearing from you as we bring you up to date on the news of the day and then open up the phones, open up the social media to get your reaction. usually comes in pretty fast. we love to hear from you.

1-866-55-press. our toll free number. give us a call or give us your comments on twitter at bpshow. we're collecting your comments at bpshow and on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. well, what a day, what a day. you probably know your tax dollars were well spent yesterday on the same day that "the new york times" reported that the cost of buying health insurance on your own will drop by over 50% next year because of obamacare. the same day that was reported, house republicans voted yesterday to repeal obamacare for the 38th time. what a bunch of do-nothing morons! meanwhile, rolling stone's in hot water for putting the boston marathon bomber on its cover and queen elizabeth has become the latest to endorse same-sex marriage and not all republicans are happy with liz cheney's

decision to run for senate against mike enzi in wyoming. that and more on current tv. iq will go way up. (vo) current tv gets the conversation started weekdays at 9 eastern. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. the troops love me. tv and radio talk show host stephanie miller rounds out current's morning news block. you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. (vo) sharp tongue. >>excuse me? (vo) quick wit. >> and yes, president obama does smell like cookies and freedom. (vo) and above all, opinion and attitude. >> really?! this is the kind of stuff they say about something they just pulled freshly from their [bleep]. >> you know what those people are like. >> what could possibly go wrong in eight years of george bush? >> my producer just coughed up a hairball. >>sorry. >>just be grateful current tv doesn't come in "smell-o-vision" >> oh come on!

the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo)only on current tv.

if you believe in state's rights but still support the drug war you must be high. >> "viewpoint" digs deep into the issues of the day. >> do you think there is any chance we'll ever hear the president even say the word "carbon tax"? >> with an opened mind... >> has the time finally come for real immigration reform? >> ...and a distinctly satirical point of view. >> but you mentioned great leadership so i want to talk about donald rumsfeld. >> (laughter) >> cutting throught the clutter of today's top stories. >> this is the savior of the i mean really? >> ... with a unique perspective. >> teddy rosevelt was a weak asmatic kid who never played sports until he was a grown up. >> (laughter) >> ... and lots of fancy buzz words. >> family values, speding, liberty, economic freedom, hard-working moms, crushing debt, cute little puppies. if wayne lapierre can make up stuff that sounds logical while making no sense... hey, so can i. once again friends, this is live tv and sometimes these things

happen. >> watch the show. >> only on current tv. >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: the house votes to repeal obamacare! for the 38th time! ever stop and think maybe this isn't going to happen? good morning everybody. what do you say? it is thursday, july 18. so good to see you today. here we are. back in our studio on capitol hill in washington, d.c. looking forward to bringing you

the news of the day and especially looking forward to hearing from you about what it all means what you think about it. your opinions welcome. your opinions worth every bit as much as mine. let's get into it in our daily town hall of the events of the day from our nation's capital from around the country and around the globe. you know how to do it. give us a call at 1-866-55-press you can join us on twitter and follow us on twitter and sign up on twitter at bpshow. and on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. become our friend forever. we need all of the friends we can get to get through this miserable heat wave we're going through. not just in washington, d.c. we recognize that all around the country.

43 out of 50 states had 90 degrees or hire. it was easy 96, 97 here. >> when i was driving home, my car temperature hit all the way up to 100. >> bill: they're always a little higher. ours is, too. little higher than -- maybe a degree or two but still. i've seen ours at 100 too. i'm telling you, it is miserable out there. so you know, stay inside. watch us. listen to us and join the fun. with our team, peter ogborn and dan henning. >> hey, hey, hey. >> good morning. >> bill: alichia cruz has the phones covered. cyprian bowlding, we're all back together again with all of you. cyprian bowlding keeping us looking good on the video cams on current tv. liz cheney jumped in. if she thought everybody was going to jump up and applaud it didn't quite work out that way out in wyoming. a lot of republicans upset she's splintering the republican party and taking on a guy who has a

good reputation. mike enzi, as being a good, solid workhorse. hard to work republican senator. and now is he like too old for the job? he's 69 by the way. he says hell, no, i'm not too old. i'm one of the younger ones. >> i'm not too old to be senator. i'm kind of in the median age for this body. i'm in really good health and i'm on the committees that i wanted to be on. and i have seniority which is really trust that you develop. somebody new coming in, they don't trust them yet. but i have trust on both sides of the aisle, people trust me on what i say i'm going to do and what i do do. >> bill: they trust me and they don't trust her is kind of what he's saying. >> yeah. far from being too old for the senate. >> bill: she was born in wisconsin and raised in virginia and lived in virginia until

several months ago then she moved to wyoming and said hey i want to be your united states senator. vote for me. well, we'll see how that goes. good line-up for you today. michael shure very excited he will be who you see from san francisco every night as the host of "the war room," taking jennifer granholm's place. michael will be here in studio with us in washington, d.c. a little bit later in the program this morning. paul brandis editor, publisher of west wing reports will join us as well as reporters from the root and from yahoo! but first... >> announcer: this is the "full court press." >> on this thursday, other headlines making news, we've learned the details of the accommodations and amenities for the six jurors of the george zimmerman trial. the "usa today" reporting -- >> what's that? >> a marriott. not a four seasons. "usa today" reports for a $33,000 cost to florida

taxpayers, the jurors stayed sequestered in a marriott for 22 nights, ate dinner at an outback steakhouse and several other restaurants though mostly in the hotel and they ate their breakfasts at the hotel. they went to the movies twice. saw world war z and also wasted their money on the lone ranger. they went shopping, got manicures and pedicures went bowling and went to a ripley's believe it or not museum. they were allowed to be visited by family and friends on the weekends as long as they did not discuss the case. >> bill: you know what's interesting is they could take the gang out bowling and no one knew. take them out to the movies. >> it was interesting how they -- >> bill: six girls sitting around at outback steakhouse. if anybody realized -- isn't that funny? >> robert downey jr. made a lot of money over the last year. number one on "forbes" magazine's new list of the highest paid actors for the year period ending in june. he took in $75 million thanks to

the avengers and iron man 3. channing tatum is number two for his success in the movie magic mike. he earned a $60 million paycheck. hugh jackman and mark wahlberg are number three and four both earning over $50 million. >> bill: hope they pay their taxes. >> you know what i heard about robert downey jr.? he put in his contract when he signed on to do the original ironman, any movie that features him playing ironman, he gets a big chunk of what it brings in so the avengers is one of the biggest movies of all-time, he gets cash off of that. he gets paid 100 times more than anybody else on the movie. >> bill: smart agent! >> exactly. >> and msnbc announced who will replaced cupp, the lone voice on the cycle as she heads over to crossfire. abby huntsman, the daughter of former presidential candidate

jon huntsman. she's been a producer for "huff post" live until now. >> bill: she's not going to be the tiger that cupp is by any means. >> she's what we call a sweetheart, i believe. she's not a fighter. >> bill: like her father. >> exactly. >> i think she'll have about as much success as her father did running for president. >> bill: well, you know, i know you sit in anticipation of where we're going to start every day. but the biggest -- >> you never know. >> bill: but the biggest news story of the day that's where we start. we're on top of the breaking news every day. and we can't believe it either. i know. don't blame us. we can't believe it either. the biggest news story of the day today is the cover of "rolling stone" magazine. it is what everybody's talking

about. we've been watching -- all the cable networks are talking about this morning. the big hullabaloo -- of course, you know why. because it's summer, right? and there ain't much else going on or -- and or we're also very easily distracted. most of the media would rather run off and chase a rabbit like this than do some real, honest to god reporting. at any rate, for the last 48 hours, the big story has been about the cover of "rolling stone" and the fact that in this month's issue they have the lone surviving boston marathon bomber dzhokhar tsarnaev, that's as close as i'll ever get to his name -- >> pretty good. >> bill: on the cover. it's a photograph of him when he was pretty cleaned up, you know. cute little curly hair, cute little face. he looks like college freshman,

maybe or high school senior. looks attractive. looks like a kit you wouldn't mind hanging out -- looks like a kid you wouldn't mind hanging out with your sons or your daughters. having his face on the cover has got everybody outraged starting with the mayor of boston who says it is an insult to the victims and to the first responders. >> the cover of the "rolling stone" should be about the survivors, first responders. why be glorifying a guy who created mayhem in the city? >> bill: there's mumbles menino. >> i wonder how he got that name? >> bill: wonder how he got that nickname. the governor of massachusetts weighed in as well, deval patrick. >> apparently pretty good reporting but the cover is out of taste. >> bill: bad taste.

out of taste, out of taste. several retailers walmart says uh-huh. ain't gonna sell that magazine in our store. no no, not with him on the cover! cvs said the same thing. banned in boston. i wonder if that goes for the cvs stores around the country. >> i think it's nationwide. stop and shop. ain't gone that sell it. it is a big local chain up in massachusetts. they will not sell the magazine with him on the cover. love to know what you think about this. 1-866-55-press. i gotta tell you i think this is much ado about nothing. look. "rolling stone" can put whoever they want on the cover of their magazine. by the way, they have in the past. right? charles manson, remember that one. i'm sure there are others we could point to. number one.

number two they don't glorify this kid by putting him on the cover. if you read the cover the cover actually says, here it is, the bomber is the headline and it says here's what the story inside is all about. right under his photo. how a popular promising student was failed by his family, fell into radical islam and became a monster. >> by the way -- >> bill: they call him a monster. >> we tweeted out the cover. we just tweeted a picture of the cover. no link or anything. just go follow us. you'll see it right there. >> bill: take a look at it. if you look at him, he doesn't look like an evil person but i think that's the point. he didn't start out as an evil person. he became an evil person and they call him the monster and i haven't read the article but "rolling stone" is a good

magazine. they do some damn good reporting. remember the general -- >> mcchrystal. done by michael hastings. it was a huge story. >> bill: damn good reporting in "rolling stone." from people i've talked to who have read this article they say this is excellent reporting about him. it brings out details about his life and things that happened and how they caught him. nobody else has reported on it so far. and again, what they do is paint a very frightening picture of how a young kid comes to this country and shows all kinds of promise in school and all kinds of promise in wrestling and everybody loves him. he's got all of these friends and he turns out to be this bomber who does this horrific act. that's an important story. and the article in no way is saying, this guy is a hero. i just think it's a huge overreaction and by the way if i were the publisher of "rolling stone," i would be smiling today

all the way to the bank! because if you can't buy it at cvs or walmart, you can buy it somewhere else. and people will. don't you think? >> absolutely. i think a lot of people will find it and if nothing else, they're going to want to read the reporting that's in it. there are a lot of good nuggets that came out of this. >> bill: check us out at billpressshow.com. >> it is at bpshow on twitter right now. >> bill: if you haven't seen the photo, take a look at it. "rolling stone," did they cross the line this time with dzhokhar tsarnaev. i don't think so. much ado about nothing. 1-866-55-press. this is where we start on this thursday morning. >> announcer: like us at facebook.com/billpressshow. (vo) she's joy behar. >>current will let me say anything.

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>> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: talking about the cover of "rolling stone" here on the "full court press" this thursday morning. by the way i mentioned walmart cvs, stop and shop, they've dropped sales of "rolling stone" so have rite-aid and walmart pharmacies. when you see the photo, you will probably, like me, recognize it because you've seen it before. this photo has been around a lot.

i've seep it published in many, many different places and it was published in "the new york times" in may. nobody dropped sales of "the new york times" that day but suddenly it's on the cover of "rolling stone," everybody is raising a fit about it. >> we put the picture out on social media for you to take a look at and we report, you decide. we're take your comments from twitter at bpshow is where you can find us at bpshow. charisma molotov says we were all brought up watching cartoons where the good guys are beautiful and the bad guys are ugly. this pic sort of blurs the lines a little bit which isn't necessarily saying they're against it. >> bill: here's a kid who's sort of like a model kid. everybody liked him and everybody wanted to have him over playing with their kids and suddenly he goes off the rails. what the f happened. that's what this article is about. >> black cat says no, "rolling stone" is not out of line. so the public doesn't get confused it states the bomber!

directly under the pic. they call him a monster. >> bill: the bomber and then how he became a monster. craig is calling from niceville florida. hey, craig. >> caller: hey, yeah bill, you said he doesn't look like he's evil. i'm wondering what your definition is what someone who looks evil looks like. somebody who is disfigured or somebody in a hoodie or what? >> bill: no but when i saw pictures of like osama bin laden, when i see pictures of zawahri the number two guy in al-qaeda. they look like terrorists. >> when we think terrorists, we've seen what terrorists look like. he doesn't fit that model. the guy on the cover of "rolling stone." >> bill: when i saw the guy, i forget his name now, the big heavy guy -- yeah, yeah, yeah. >> bill: that we water boarded. khalid sheik mohammed. he looks like a terrorist. >> we gotta get past judging

people by the way they look. casey anthony was good-looking. jody anthony was good-looking. >> bill: of course. that's what maybe the magazine is trying to get to. if you saw this kid, you would never suspect. then what the hell happened between this innocent-looking high school or college kid that you see on the cover of "rolling stone" and what happened at the boston marathon. it is very, very important question. and we ought to be able to accept that without banning the freaking magazine. jesus. i mean where do we live? right? brian is calling from louisville kentucky. hey, brian. >> how you doin'? >> bill: how about you? >> caller: i'm doing pretty good. i think what the magazine's done is made him into a celebrity and that's what the fear is that a lot of these people that do these heinous acts like to be celebrities. that's what they're going for.

an example was like in an ncis episode where this kid was killing all of these people, doing it in all of these weird fashions, all he wanted was his five minutes of fame at the very end and at the very end of the episode, they wouldn't even announce his name to the news so he got no fame. they shut him down. if you look at obama -- i'm sorry, you look at all of the guys -- their pictures are all over the place. they make celebrities out of them and it kind of just fuels the fire. >> bill: i disagree with you on this. everybody knows who dzhokhar tsarnaev is. we don't know much about him. his picture has been all over the place. and if you look at that cover again, they call him the bomber. they call him a monster. and the article details about how he went off the rails. they are in no way making a celebrity or a hero of this guy. in fact, it is just the opposite. good for "rolling stone."

>> announcer: this is the "bill press show." iq will go way up. (vo) current tv gets the conversation started weekdays at 9 eastern. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. the troops love me. tv and radio talk show host stephanie miller rounds out current's morning news block. you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. (vo) sharp tongue. >>excuse me? (vo) quick wit. >> and yes, president obama does smell like cookies and freedom. (vo) and above all, opinion and attitude. >> really?! this is the kind of stuff they say about something they just pulled freshly from their [bleep]. >> you know what those people are like. >> what could possibly go wrong in eight years of george bush? >> my producer just coughed up a hairball. >>sorry. >>just be grateful current tv doesn't come in "smell-o-vision" >> oh come on!

the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo)only on current tv.

>> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: hey hey 33 minutes after the hour now. here we go. it is the "full court press" on thursday morning, july 18. coming to you live from our nation's capital and our studio on capitol hill. here in washington, d.c. back to your comments about "rolling stone" and then need to talk to you about an important hearing yesterday about the nsa matter in the house judiciary committee. but first, a quick word about identity theft and a reminder

again how pervasive it is and how important it is that you be protected against it. the story caught my attention out of california. california surgeon is going to spend two years behind bars for taking part in an identity theft scheme that defrauded banks out of more than $3 million. he was using personal identification he stole from his patients. that's why you have to be protected against people like him. i am with lifelock ultimate, the most comprehensive i.d. theft protection available, even covers your bank accounts but lifelock services can't protect you ar our bank account if you're not a member. visit lifelock.com or call and you mention press 10, you'll get 10% off your lifelock ultimate membership. give them a call at 1-800-356-5967 for lifelock ultimate.

>> bill: back to "rolling stone," a couple more calls. >> we did have some comments on twitter at bpshow. terrorists come in all colors. the sooner we accept that, people won't have such a problem with a young jim morrison look alike terrorist. good point. >> bill: he does kind of look like jim morrison. >> "rolling stone" cover, they say he looks a lot like jim morrison in this picture. valley lee says families of those injured have a right to be upset. those injured are also upset. it is about the picture on the cover. and one more comment that we didn't have time to take the call on or couldn't wait on the line. joey says they have zimmerman's whole family in magazines and on the news. george zimmerman. why not have the bomber story too. >> bill: yeah. i've seen george zimmerman's brother one too many times i gotta tell you that.

before we get back to your calls, an important message here that we are sad to tell you and sad to learn that as of monday, sirius x.m. will no longer be carrying this first hour of the "full court press" now. we are proud to be with you on your local progressive talk radio station and we still will be. proud to be with you on current tv and we still will be. we'll be losing you people who join us on sirius x.m. we want you to know it doesn't mean you have to go away. we don't want you to go away. stay with us. three ways you can do it. you can stream the show live while you're driving in your car, use your iphone instead of your car radio. here's how you do it. download the iheart radio app. it's free and then go to "bill press show." or you can download the in tune app or stream the show live at billpressshow.com. maybe the best thing to do is consider getting a podcast.

encourage you to do so. you get the podcast, it is downloaded, the entire show, all three hours commercial free, downloaded to your phone, your computer. your ipad, whatever you want. you decide. then you listen whenever the hell you want. >> the good thing about that is you don't have to have an internet connection to listen to it. you have to have an internet connection to download it but then you can take it wherever you want to go. >> bill: facebook.com/billpressshow. as of next monday, join us one of those three ways and you will be able to on -- you won't be able to on sirius x.m. it is a bad decision but it is their decision. on the cover of "rolling stone," michelle is calling from baton rouge. hey, michelle, how are you doing? >> caller: yes. i wanted to make a comment. i could care less about a picture but i hope when the boston bomber goes to trial the system quits picking people from off the streets who have no law

background, no nothing about the law. you put these people on trial and people -- to me, whether you kill somebody or stole a candy bar out of walmart if you know nothing about the law never been to school for law that's the case, take some of the students that's in college that study prelaw. that's why casey anthony got off. that's why zimmerman got off. that's why a lot more people will get off. even with juror b36 putting her husband on the jury selection. he was a lawyer. but i'm getting sick and tired. the system failed that child. trayvon. right down here in baton rouge. >> bill: michelle, i appreciate hearing from you. i have to tell you absolutely. we're tired of -- i don't worry too much, i must say about dzhokhar tsarnaev getting off but it could happen.

so you're right. the system has failed us again and again and again. that's what we ought to be worried about maybe more than who's on the cover of "rolling stone." final word from dan down in jacksonville florida. what do you say? >> caller: hey, bill. my issue with this whole thing is how the magazine portrayed this guy. as you know, they put the cleanest picture they could up. why don't they put the picture of him in handcuffs and an orange jumpsuit. why do they glamorize him and make him look the way they did. >> bill: i think the answer to that is that's what the whole story is all about. how this kid who again was from all -- what everybody thought, you know, a great model kid and wrestling and doing well in school and having lots of friends, how he turns out to be the boston bomber. that's the story.

>> caller: he was on an fbi list. we failed to connect the dots. >> bill: this picture was taken long before the fbi list. the story is about long before he was on the fbi list. that's the story. you know, how did this happen? how did he go off the rails? how did he become a mass murderer from being -- you know, like a model high school kid? how does that happen? that's what rolling stone is all about. read the article. and don't worry about what's on the cover. one other important thing yesterday, we've been talking a lot about it. don't want to forget about this at all. about the whole nsa spying operation. listening in on -- not listening in on but keeping a record every one of our phone calls every phone call made by every single american every day of the week. every minute of the day. you've heard me rant about it. i've really been upset that congress and the white house all seem to be just saying hey, good

for nsa. yeah. it's great. we don't care. we need to do this and the war on on terror. i've been writing about it. what the hell is going on? this is massive massive invasion of our privacy. a few voices have said this in the senate. rand paul did. the senate intelligence committee, republicans and democrats, the house intelligence committee republicans and democrats have all been just praising the nsa and backing this program. well yesterday finally, we had some voices of sanity. the house judiciary committee held a hearing. they brought the nsa people up and republicans and democrats both pounced all over them. just hammered them. and said no. you took the patriot act. james sensenbrenner the author of the patriot act said you took the patriot act and you took it

to extremes and you have gone way, way beyond what we ever gave permission for and that this program is out of control and has to be reined in. here is john conyers former chair of the judiciary committee, now the ranking democrat, of course our good buddy from michigan. >> but we never had -- at any point during this debate have approved the type of unchecked sweeping surveillance of united states citizens employed by our government in the name of fighting the war on terrorism. >> bill: john conyers went on to say that this program is unsustainable. it is outrageous and it must be stopped immediately. thank god! i thought i was -- losing my mind! and then, all right so that's john conyers. the republican chair of the committee, bob goodlatte from

virginia he also -- i mean these republicans and democrats all dumped on the nsa yesterday and slammed him. so bob goodlatte says you mean you -- by the way they also accused nsa of misleading them, not telling them what they were up to. lying to them and bob goodlatte says you really think you were going to keep this a secret all this time and listen to the response now from the chief counsel of the nsa. here's chairman goodlatte. >> do you think a program of this magnitude gathering information involving a large number of people involved with telephone companies and so on could be indefinitely kept secret from the america -- american people? >> well, we tried. >> bill: we tried to keep it a secret from all of you guys. we lied to you. we really tried as hard as we could so you wouldn't know anything about it. oh, my god. finally, at least the house intelligence committee is saying we're going to fix this and back to james sensenbrenner for a second. he said as author of the patriot act, you say you base all of

this on section 215 of the patriot act? james sensenbrenner said yeah, well you're going to lose it because we won't renew it when it comes up for renewal. tough hearing yesterday and man it's about time. they also said, one final point that we would not have known about this were it not for edward snowden. they may not approve of what he did but they're grateful for the fact that we now know and we would not know without edward snowden whistle blowing. when we come back, beth fouhy to talk about big civil war among republicans. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show."

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 am given to doing anyway. staying in tough with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. 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? vo: the war room tonight at 6 eastern >> "viewpoint" digs deep into the issues of the day. >> has the time finally come for real immigration reform? >> with a distinctly satirical point of view. if you believe in state's rights but still believe in the drug war you must be high. >> only on current tv.

>> bill: 12 minutes before the top of the hour here on this thursday morning july 18. the "full court press." there is life after cnn. i know that. and beth fouhy knows that. we worked together as cnn. she's now senior editor for politics and national news at yahoo! news joining us on our news line this morning. hi beth, how are you? >> hi, bill. >> bill: nice to talk to you again. >> you too. >> bill: we enjoy having two of your colleagues on the air. >> yeah, they're great. >> bill: nice to have you with us too. i was up in new york on monday visiting my friend eliot spitzer when he got the news about the latest quinnipiac poll. it looked like both spitzer and

anthony weiner and their attempts to come back might succeed. how do you read it? >> sure. they're both in contention of spitzer for city controller and weiner for mayor but i don't know if you saw the new quinnipiac poll out this morning, bill. chris quinn is -- in that particular poll has pulled out ahead of weiner fairly significantly. she's now got 27% of likely democratic voters compared to 18% for weiner so that's a little bit of a broader margin than we've seen in all of the polls. the quinnipiac that you referenced that came out the other day had them basically within the margin of error but weiner was ahead. there is a chance he could make a comeback and spitter got stringer got significantly. >> bill: in this morning's poll, he's way up? >> no mention of spitzer in the poll today. it was a mayoral poll. >> bill: 14 or 15.

>> it was pretty significant. i think in that case, it is an issue of name recognition. scott stringer, nice guy. very good public servant, man ha the an borough president. most people who live in manhattan have no idea who their borough president is. so spitzer, in this case is really benefitting from the name recognition in this polling. >> bill: in the mayor's race, are bill thompson and bill deblazeio still contenders? >> they were about at 11%. they're fairly far back. they both have much higher positive negative ratings than either quinn or weiner but they're still way back up the pack. >> bill: we could see a comeback for at least one of the two there which would be very interesting. now, what about -- talking politics. mike enzi got a surprise this week when the day he said yeah,

i'm going to run for re-election, liz cheney says well, guess what, i'm going to primary you. >> yeah, how about that. >> bill: she has not all republicans happy with her decision right? >> well, i mean, it's one of those things no party ever wants to have a primary fight. it is kind of tedious and it involves lots of funding of money that they would rather spend on beating the member of the opposition party. in this case, in wyoming there is not a big democratic presence so there was no race to gear up for for senator in terms of running for re-election against a democrat. liz cheney really could make a splash here. she has a great name recognition in wyoming. very conservative state where her father and her name and her father's policies, you know, may be more popular than they are broadly across the country. >> bill: what's her beef with enzi? >> i don't think she has that much of a beef really. i think she wants to be a senator. she moved her family back there

with the intention of running. he's not exactly somebody who's made a big name for himself nationally all though he seems like a perfectly nice fellow and capable legislator. she wants the job. she figures this is her chance. this is her move. >> bill: we're talking with beth fouhy senior editor for politics and national news at yahoo! news yahoo.com. yesterday at the briefing, dominated by questions whether or not by edward snowden possibly getting asylum in russia that the united states is going to boycott the upcoming summer olympics -- i think they're summer olympics, nine months from now in russia. lindsey graham is the only person who's floated this. why has it become such a big deal? >> well, it's such a sore subject for people because everyone loves the olympics and edward snowden let's face it. there's a pretty broad opinion

over that guy. some people think what he did was a really great thing to expose what the government is doing in terms of surveillance of our private records. this does not meet the same level of opposition as the last time the united states boycotted an olympics which was in 1980. that was after the soviet union invaded afghanistan. not too many people could get behind that. even then, president carter's decision to pull out of the olympics was hugely controversial. widely despised so why lindsey graham would go out on a limb like this on the snowden case is puzzling. john boehner came out swiftly said he didn't approve of that. jay carney, ultimately said the same thing. i don't think lindsey graham's got lots of support there. >> bill: i don't think it's going anywhere. beth good to connect with you again. thanks so much for joining us. come into studio one of these days. love to see you. >> thank you.

>> bill: beth fouhy senior politics yahoo! if you're a sirius x.m. listener, you're going to lose us on monday from sirius x.m. only. you can still stream the show, iheart radio app. download it. it is free. tune in app that's free. listen on the progressive choices channel. go to billpressshow.com and follow us on twitter at bpshow and on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. so we can still stay together. it has been a fun team. we don't want to lose you. whatever sirius x.m. does, we'll stay together. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo)only on current tv.

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>> announcer: take your e-mails on any topic at any time this is the "bill press show." live on your radio and current tv. >> bill: all right on "rolling stone," paul says hey bill couldn't agree with you more. did you notice that every news show that was going hysterical about the picture they all showed the cover! [ laughter ] which is absolutely right. on larry sabato, our guest yesterday, craig says larry sabato is a funny guest and a smart guest. love the show. thank you, craig. and on the filibuster greg from salt lake city says bill, i agree 100% with you, harry should have changed it. the excuse if we lost the senate, we're going to need it is not an excuse. that's already looking negative. all right. we're off and running on the

"full court press."

[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> bill: hey, what do you say? good morning, everybody. friends and neighbors great to see you this morning. on a thursday, thursday july 18. this is the "full court press" coming to you live from our nation's capital. and our studio on capitol hill. just down the street from the united states capitol building where we can see them from here and they can hear us from where they are as they tackle the stories of the day. the issues of the day. we will tell you what's going on here in our nation's capital

around the country around the globe and give you a chance to let us know what you think about it. 1-866-55-press. one way to do it. by phone. our toll free number. or you can join us on twitter at bpshow and invite your comments on twitter and on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. well, your tax dollars wasted again yesterday. the very same day that "the new york times" reported that thanks to obamacare health insurance premiums are going to drop by over 50% for people on their own going out to buy health insurance in january. the very same day the house of representatives yesterday voted to repeal obamacare for the 38th time. what a bunch of morons. meanwhile, "rolling stone" in hot water this morning for putting the boston marathon bomber on their cover. queen elizabeth becomes the latest public figure to endorse

same-sex marriage. all of that and more coming up right here on current tv. iq will go way up. (vo) current tv gets the conversation started weekdays at 9 eastern. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. the troops love me. tv and radio talk show host stephanie miller rounds out current's morning news block. you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. (vo) sharp tongue. >>excuse me? (vo) quick wit. >> and yes, president obama does smell like cookies and freedom. (vo) and above all, opinion and attitude. >> really?! this is the kind of stuff they say about something they just pulled freshly from their [bleep]. >> you know what those people are like. >> what could possibly go wrong in eight years of george bush? >> my producer just coughed up a hairball. >>sorry. >>just be grateful current tv doesn't come in "smell-o-vision" >> oh come on!

the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo)only on current tv.

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 sure they can't buy our politics 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! >> announcer: broadcasting across the nation on your radio and on current tv, this is the "bill press show." >> bill: yes. the house of representatives serving the american people has voted to repeal obamacare for the 38th time. what a bunch of idiots. good morning everybody. what do you say? it is thursday, july 18. great to see you today. welcome, welcome welcome. to the "full court press" coming to you live over your local progressive talk radio station

coming to you live on current tv this thursday morning. good to have you with us. as we tackle all of the big stories of the day. big and little stories of the day and give you a chance to comment. you can do so by phone of course at 1-866-55-press. join us on twitter. sign up, become a twitter follower at bpshow and give us your comments as we move through the issues of the day. and become our friend on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. facebook facebook. we want to be there. we want you to be there with us on facebook. us being the whole team here this thursday morning. peter ogborn and dan henning. >> hey hey. >> good morning. >> bill: with alichia cruz there with the phones covered and cyprian bowlding has the cameras uncovered keeping us looking good on current tv. there's still a lot more

reaction coming in to the george zimmerman verdict down in sanford, florida. we know that stevie wonder says he will not perform in florida as long as they still have their stand-your-ground law. he will not perform in any state in the united states that has a stand-your-ground law. because in effect, it encourages racism and enables people to get away with racism, including murder. martin luther king jr. yesterday was talking about the stand-your-ground law and he suggested maybe there's another way that we ought to be thinking about punishing florida. >> we may have to look at not consuming florida orange juice. [ laughter ] >> not that! >> bill: that would really shake them up. a little boycott of florida orange juice.

he wasn't calling for it. just suggesting it. >> i do drink florida orange juice every single morning seven days a week. >> you better enjoy it while you can. >> the orange juice from ohio is really nice! [ laughter ] >> i don't know how they make it that gorgeous brown color but it's lovely. >> bill: upper minnesota. >> citrus is amazing. >> bill: hey lots to cover this morning. james from politico is going to join us at the top of the hour. michael shure you know him of course our current tv host of "the war room" is in washington and is going to be rolling in here in the next hour. he did the overnight from san francisco. we'll see what kind of shape he's in. and then we'll be talking to danielle belton from "the root," as well. politics of the day with james holman. but first -- >> this is the "full court press." >> other headlines making news on this thursday, the annual

comic-con comic book convention is underway in san diego. there's an unlikely face making an appearance there this week, congressman john lewis. the georgia democrat -- >> what? >> he's not a person you would expect at this. >> not at all. >> at this geek fest for lack of a better term. but he's there to promote his graphic novel called march. he details his work in the civil rights movement. goes on sale next month. he tells the san diego union tribune that in his advanced years, he's seen humans from other planets so he knows he'll be comfortable at comic-con. quote-unquote. >> bill: too funny. not a novel. >> it is a graphic novel. >> oh, if is. >> which is a fancy way of saying it is a big comic book. >> tiger woods has no chance of getting married as long as he stays with current girlfriend lindsey anderson. the olympic skier also once divorced tells "vogue" she's definitely not walking down the

aisle again and has advice to anyone getting married not to mix business with pleasure. she was married to her skiing coach, thomas anderson. that did not work out for her. she will not do it again. >> bill: we'll see. >> some people just aren't the marrying type. >> lots of controversy over -- >> bill: i think she's got a reason not to get married. >> we see what happened last time tiger woods got married. >> lot of controversy over the latest issue of "rolling stone" magazine which has the picture of the boston marathon bomber. several retail outlets have announced they won't sell this week's issue which comes out tomorrow. you will not be able to find it at cvs walgreens walmart rite-aid and kmart among other locations. >> bill: that's right. you can see the picture if you haven't already, you can see it if not on billpressshow.com when we tweeted it out this morning.

well, the political line-up -- got a little shake-up a couple of days ago when daughter liz cheney no surprise, we know that she's politically ambitious. looking for a place to run. at one time was thinking about running in her home state of virginia. decided i guess her chances weren't too good there. she moved to wyoming and announced this week she's going to take on the incumbent republican senator mike enzi. james holman is political reporter for politico. joining us on our news line this morning. so james what do republicans think about liz cheney's big move? >> well, bill, good to be with you. some republicans are worried about it. some are excited. there's a real divide in the party and in wyoming where it is a state of 500,000 the most people who ever voted in a republican senate primary is

110,000. a lot of people know each other. mike enzi, the republican incumbent who she's taking on, the three termer, one of the more conservative members of the senate. and a lot of people really like him. he's someone -- he's not like dick lugar who lost touch with indiana, didn't go home, et cetera. this is someone who has stayed in touch and so the people kind of -- in wyoming they're actually the people who get to choose their senator. they don't know what the rationale for liz cheney's candidacy is. what now? what did mike enzi do from the eyes of a conservative that's a fireable offense? is liz cheney a carpet bagger. she has family ties. her parents were born in wyoming but she only move to the state a year ago. so in the state, there is a healthy skepticism.

she's seen as an underdog at this point. and in washington, you know, she has strong support from the cheney people. there's a lot of folks who are very excited about her candidacy, say that she's going to find a way to win. she'll way outraise the incumbent but it is setting a showdown for a real fight in the party, not just over personalities but policy. the most interesting thing so far has been rand paul has come out swinging very hard against her. dick cheney campaigned against rand paul when he was running for senate in 2010. and cheney said if rand paul gets elected to the senate, he will be dangerous. so they think that they represent everything that's wrong with the republican party. so rand has offered to do anything he can to help mike enzi who is not exactly a

libertarian. and it really speaks to this fight. and you know, to tell you about wyoming, it's not the south. it's not -- it's not evangelical bible belt kind of thing. it is a religious state. the brand of republicanism out there is in a lot of ways, more in line with the rand paul view than the dick cheney view, especially on national security. the people in wyoming a lot of them don't like drones. they don't like the nsa surveillance. those are programs that liz cheney has been vocally supportive of in her role as a fox news analyst. >> bill: is this a generational thing? is this kind of the young -- we need new blood in the party. we've got to get rid of the old farthers who have been around for too long. is that her appeal?

>> shet just did her big roll-out. she did a big video. yesterday she had two press conferences in wyoming and so far, it seems that that's going to be what she does. because there's really not a lot of issues for her to attack enzi on from the right. you know, he's 69. she's 46. she talks about the need for a new generation of leaders. and fresh thinking. then the second part of her pitch is we need someone who will never compromise. we need someone who will not just -- not go along with the system as it is. but someone who will vocally fight and challenge president obama every step of the way. in some ways, she's not saying ted cruz or -- but she's promising to be someone who is a big national personality. sees her job in the senate as much as about battling the administration as passing

legislation. >> bill: mike enzi yesterday was asked about her comments on his age as you point out he is 69. mike enzi says well when it comes to the senate, i'm not that old at all. >> i'm absolutely not too old to be senator. i would say i'm in the median age for this body. >> that's actually true. >> i'm in really good health. i'm on the committees that i wanted to be on. and i have seniority which is really trust that you develop. somebody new coming in. they don't trust them yet. but i do have trust on both sides of the aisle. people trust me on what i say i'm going to do and what i do do. >> bill: so -- he's right about the age thing by the way. so james what will the republican official -- official republican party do? the senate campaign committee? >> senate campaign committee has already come out and endorsed

enzi which they're required to do. the question is are they going to spend money there? the nrsc is called. they want to send money to beat mary landrieu in north carolina. she's the one spending money in a primary battle where whoever wins the primary is going to win the general elections. it is not really -- in terms of thinking about the senate map and senate control it's not a place that republicans want to spend money. >> bill: enzi has not done very well in terms of raising money. what i see, he has a total of $500,000 in his bank account. he raised $150,000 the last cycle. >> it is one of the worst fund-raisers in the senate. he acknowledges that. he said i'm bad at raising money. i don't like doing it. and that, i think, based on my

conversations with people in cheney's world is one of the things that has motivated liz to get into this race is she really feels like she will be able to really outraise him. that she's not in a place where he's going to hustle. on the old side of the senate. they just feel like they can outwork him, especially when there's only 100,000 voters. basically the way to topple together over 50,000 votes and you win. >> bill: and again in terms of -- there's no one issue that we've seen so far at any rate. there's no case where she could say he's not conserve div enough, right or he's not true to our republican values. it would be hard for her to make that case against enzi. >> it will be very difficult but it's also because he's pretty popular. she has to tread very carefully. if she came out swinging and started attacking random votes

he made. i think there would be a pretty big backlash. i think she can get some traction on her generational argument, in her we need someone who is really going to fight the white house argument. but she has to be very careful about you know, mike enzi voted% to allow states to collect tax revenue on internet purchases. that's not a firing offense. that's not going to motivate the conservative grassroots. i think it could risk upsetting some conservative but not very conservative republicans. >> bill: here we go. little civil war in the republican party. always fun to watch. i'm telling you james. and fun to watch it with you. thanks so much for joining us this morning on the news line. >> my pleasure, thanks. >> bill: james hohmann at politico.com. one of the best political reporters.

date, staying in touch with everything that is going on politically and putting my own nuance on it. in reality it's not like they about political grandstanding.

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>> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: hey, how about it. 25 minutes after the hour. paul brandis is publisher of west wing reports in studio with us again for the next half hour here. of the "full court press." michael shure who is the host of "the war room" on current tv, joins us at the top of our last hour together this morning. good to see you today. couple of big items yesterday at the briefing at the white house.

a lot of time spent on this. you are know, the united states not happy with russia because it looks like first of all they've allowed edward snowed ton stay at the moscow airport for the last couple of weeks and now he's applied for asylum there. he's agreed that he will not leak anymore secrets to the united states as a deal for getting asylum in russia. and maybe people are thinking russia, putin will go along and grant him asylum. lindsey graham says if they do that, here's what we ought to do. we ought to boycott the olympics. here's lindsey graham. >> i don't know if putting the olympics on the table is the right answer but i do know this. what we're doing is not working. yes, i would consider it. i know athletes would be heartbroken. >> bill: yeah, of course they would be heartbroken. but so he's talking about the

winter olympics in 2014. remember the last time, well, let's get more comment first. then i'll get you my comment. not all republicans agree -- in fact, i don't know anybody other than lindsey graham who has said this is a good idea. not all republicans agree certainly john boehner does not. >> i love senator graham. we've been close friends for 20 years. but i think he's dead wrong. why would we want to punish u.s. athletes who have been training for three years to compete in the olympics over a traitor who can't find a place to call home? >> bill: not all republicans jumping on board. i think boehner is absolutely right in this case. think about it. the last time we boycotted the olympics was jimmy carter who announced that we were going to boycott the olympics because

russia had invaded afghanistan. okay. now, do we really want to put edward snowden who by the way was praised yesterday by republicans and democrats in the house judiciary committee for leaking this information for letting us know what nsa was up to. do we really think that edward snowden was whistle blowing is on the same par as serious an offense as russia invading another country? and for that, we're going to boycott the olympics? you know, i know lindsey graham is afraid he's going to have a tea party challenger in his primary. i know he's scared to death but you know -- >> we need to have us a boycott. >> bill: lindsey just cool it. cool it. everybody else, don't follow lindsey graham.

>> bill: paul brandis is next. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." (vo) current tv gets the conversation started weekdays at 9 eastern. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. the troops love me. tv and radio talk show host stephanie miller rounds out current's morning news block. you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. (vo) sharp tongue. >>excuse me? (vo) quick wit. >> and yes, president obama does smell like cookies and freedom. (vo) and above all, opinion and attitude. >> really?! this is the kind of stuff they say about something they just pulled freshly from their [bleep]. >> you know what those people are like. >> what could possibly go wrong in eight years of george bush? >> my producer just coughed up a hairball. >>sorry. >>just be grateful current tv doesn't come in "smell-o-vision" >> oh come on!

the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo)only on current tv.

>> announcer: get social with bill press. likes us at facebook.com/billpressshow. this is the "bill press show." >> bill: here we go. 33 minutes after the hour. how about it. on the "full court press." thursday morning july 18. we're coming to you live from our nation's capital and our studio on capitol hill and brought to you today by the communication workers of america. the good men and women of the communication worker's union under president larry cohen providing all of the -- they are

the union for the information age. you bet. you can find out more about their good work by going to their web site, cwa-union.org. it takes a village. i'm not the only one who hangs out at the white house briefings. one of my colleagues joining us again. he's the publisher of west wing reports. one of man operation. paul brandis. good to see you this morning. >> it staying cool? >> bill: in the studio, i am. i haven't figured out how to get from here, air-conditioned studio to my air-conditioned house without walking two blocks. walk two blocks in the heat. >> early in the morning. >> bill: i walk out usually in the morning cool before the sun heats up. uh-huh. you walk out. it is like walking into a sauna. >> it hits you like a wall when you walk out the front door. >> bill: the only consolation is everybody else is miserable

as we are. the whole united states is red. >> that's how we judge things. everybody else is miserable. >> bill: so yesterday historic day that the house of representatives doing the people's work, right? they voted to repeal obamacare. dana milbank in "the washington post" this morning has a funny piece about the fact that nobody yesterday could remember exactly how many times this is. it is at least 38 times in the house. and if you add the times in the senate that they've done it, it comes out to like 67 times they have voted to repeal obamacare. ever get the feeling maybe this is not going anywhere? >> eric cantor said 68th time is the charm. they're going to keep on trying.

the white house did no favor by delaying it. they are saying it proves it should be repealed. there are surveys of small businesses that say yes, we're giving people less than 32 hours so we don't have to give them a benefits or we may just lay people off outright. but then there's this piece in "the new york times" yesterday by the way that said new york state officials say that people will see premium cuts of up to 50%. hundreds of dollars a year. so there's both good news and bad news. you can see whatever you want. >> bill: "the new york times," people -- right now if you go out on your own in new york state to buy health insurance it is about $1,000 a month because of the health exchanges that kick in january it will be like $350 a month. that's a huge cut. so the very day that that article comes out which is going to show like a real benefit of obamacare the house

of representatives will try to repeal it again. don't you think if you were -- anybody -- any sane republican in the house ought to look at this and say maybe obamacare is here to stay for better or for worse. >> the mistake you just made was to lump the words sane and house i think you know better than those two go together. they're playing to their constituents back home. that's all it is about. the way that the districts are drawn is a lot of these republicans, not just obamacare whether it's gun rights or these other issues, they have very little reason to pay attention to what the national polls are because that's not what gets them elected. >> bill: well, i want to ask you about that because it's not just on obamacare you're right. but we saw after the shellacking that they got in

2012 right, the republican party itself put out its autopsy report. college young republicans put out the report saying the same thing. this party is out of touch. we've got to reach out to segments of this population that we sort of left -- left behind. women, students, minorities, at least so what have they done? they didn't do anything about student loans. they passed the most extreme anti-abortion measures in decades. they walked away from immigration reform. and they wouldn't pass a farm bill as long as it had food stamps in it. is this the reformed new outreach of the republican party. >> let's just pick a couple of metaphors here, like the captain of the titanic seeing an iceberg and saying full speed ahead. look the fact is they have the rep -- the republicans have lost five of the six popular votes in

presidential elections. if you factor in demographics, they are in real trouble in 2016 if you just look at demographics. they've doubled down on everything that has failed them in the past, particularly with respect to hispanics. i know the name bush is somewhat toxic in this country right now but i happen to like jeb bush. i think he's a pragmatic reasonable, very successful two-term governor. huge hispanic state. he's saying to the republicans look, you guys are making a big mistake by continuing to alienate not only the fastest-growing voter block in the country but also the youngest. so i've seen forecasts -- >> bill: george w. bush said the same thing. >> exactly. the fact that they continue to double down on all of the policies that failed them, i think to use john boehner's train wreck thing they're headed for trouble in 2016 if

they continue to abide by these policies. to keep saying look, we'll just continue to focus on the older white guys if we can just get out the vote. we will be just fine. well that assumes that the democrats aren't doing the same to increase the vote on -- >> bill: they're doing a better job of getting out the vote. also, a lot of those older white guys are going to die off. right? to be replaced by whom? >> well, again, if you look at the demographics, if the same percentage of the population and voting patterns existed in 2012 that we had in 1992, mitt romney would have been elected. i think as recently as 2000 as well. you know, he got the majority of the white vote by a safe margin. got creamed everywhere else and yet that's what they continue to, you know, to cling to. if you fast forward 20 years further from now as you say who's going to replace them?

>> bill: well, is the problem or is the reality maybe that you mention, you referenced 2016, 2016. house republicans don't seem to care about 2016. they care about 2014 and holding on to the house. and that's a big difference in perspective, right, in terms of what your strategy is. how to win. if your focus is getting back the white house you do this outreach. if your focus is only holding on to the house, you just barrel down. right? >> i think that's probably true in every forecast and every analysis i've read shows of course they're going to hang on to the house. it's going to be midterm for obama and usually the party in power will lose some seats so perhaps he might and in fact, even in the senate, i think the forecast is the g.o.p. may gain a couple of seats. even nate silver of "the new york times," he said

recently that what the g.o.p. may get 50, even 51, when nate silver talks boy i think you have to listen. i think their 2014 strategy they think -- they think that the siller -- silver is right they could have both the senate and the house in 2014 then obama is a lame duck. >> bill: or they could lose both. >> they could. >> bill: the one thing you've been writing about one of the things you've been writing about, food stamps. the one i do not understand is the farm bill because this was like the highway bill used to be right? one thing you could count on no matter what their differences republicans and democrats will say we've got to build these roads, keep america moving. same thing we've got to keep our agriculture our number one industry, keep it going. take care of the farmers and by the way a lot of people can't

afford to feed their families and so we help them out at the same time since 1973, that's been the combination. what's the political advantage of changing that and dumping food stamps? >> well, there are a lot of republicans who i think are privately uneasy about that. i think in the end they're going to fund that. but they're going to get some political shots in, i think. if you look at the data behind -- >> bill: you do think they'll come back -- >> they probably will. you can't just cut off millions of people like that and also from a voting and demographic standpoint. look at what gets food stamps and according to the usda, 47% of people who get food stamps in this country school lunches and those kind of things are people under the age of 18 who don't vote. so they think that they're -- >> bill: we don't care about them. >> they're going to vote a couple of years if they don't starve to death. 8% of people who do get food

stamps are 65 or older and they vote in big numbers. so they're really alienating one -- in terms of the proportion of age group who votes. they're really alienating senior citizens. it makes no sense. how could a politician do something to alienate a bunch of voters like that? >> bill: they keep doing it over and over and over again. paul brandus, you can follow him on twitter and many thousands of you do at west wing report. we'll be right back and take your calls at 1-866-55-press.

(cenk) it's go time! it's go time! it's go time! go time.

you know what time it is. go time! it's go time. it's go time. what time is it rob? here comes the young turks go time! it's go time. oh is it? oh, then it's go time. anybody? anybody? what time is it? oh, right. it's go time! this show is about being up to date, 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.

>> announcer: heard around the country and seen on current tv this is the "bill press show." >> bill: 12 minutes before the top of the hour. paul brandus in studio with us. lots to cover lots to talk about. we'll be right back to the important news of the day but first, here's something you ought to really consider. imagine that you were in an accident. you're unconscious. paramedics arrive and you can't help them out at all. with all of the information that they need to know, one way to be covered is with emergency link. emergency link i.d. it is a small tag that you attach to your key ring or put in your wallet or your purse that tells emergency responders everything they might need to know. your medical history your meds,

your allergies your doctor's contact info and most importantly, whom to notify. that could make the difference literally between life and death. so do this today. go to emergency link i.d. sign up for emergency link, the emergency response service for only $10 a year. you'll receive your i.d. kit free. that's $10 a year for this life saving service and the i.d. kit free. hurry to emergency link.com. and enter press for this limited time offer. enter press again at emergencylink.com. emergencylink.com. enter press. emergencylink.com. paul, you were -- >> i just wanted to point out quickly, one quick story it is july 18th. it is nelson mandela's birthday today. he's 95 years young. what's remarkable is just days ago, we were watching to see what was going to happen with him because he was in the hospital and not doing well but the most recent statements put

out by his family say he's about to leave the hospital. his condition has improved so well. he's watching tv. he's alert. >> bill: amazing. >> they're going to release him from the hospital. happy birthday, nelson mandela. >> bill: happy birthday. we had a surprise guest at the briefing. a young reporter from "the daily caller," tucker carlson's web site. young being 16 years old. junior high school, potomac high school, gave the finger intern at the "daily caller". >> he did actually. he was standing along the wall because he didn't have a seat right alongside of me and jay carney called on him first of all, he said i don't know who you are. he said i'm gabe finger from "the daily caller" and i'm sure

carney said uh-oh and here's the question. >> because of the death threats being received by george zimmerman's parents is the president going to take any action for their security or are they on their own? >> i think i would -- i'm not aware of that story. the president has called for echoing the statements of trayvon martin's family for calm reflection in the wake of the verdict. and that continues to be his position. he certainly would oppose any violence of any kind. >> so they're on their own? >> you can editorialize all you want and i'm sure you will but that's a ridiculous statement. >> bill: the idea that the president would order secret service protection for george zimmerman is pretty ridiculous. while i disagree with "the daily

caller"'s politics, i admire their strategy. >> hutzpah will get. >> long way. that's fine. >> bill: yeah. send them in. jay carney called on him. all's fair. before we go, gotta ask you about your latest piece in the week again is west wing report. west wing reports.com. president obama flounder in chief. that's what you read a lot about these days, the second term is not going so well, you know. president's just laying low all of this is going on in egypt. he hasn't talked about it publicly. do you see -- is he on the rocks right now? how do you read it? >> the polls say that he is -- i mean, you can sort of dissect this any number of ways. but the polls show he's actually lost a fair amount of ground since june. i think a lot of that is attributable to all of these alleged scandals. i don't consider them but the republicans call them. the i.r.s. which appears to be

fading. darrell issa has been silent all of a sudden. benghazi has faded away and so forth. nevertheless, all of these things put togethers a painted this narrative at least that the republicans have clung to that obama is not in control of events events are controlling him. if you look at the polls he's actually about 45% 46% or so even though the economy is gradually healing jobs were up, housing prices were up. stock market is up and so forth. he's lost all of this ground. and if you compare him as did i to other prior two-term presidents at this point into their second term, six months into their second term, he's way below eisenhower, way below reagan way below clinton even below george w. bush at this point. before katrina and the economic collapse nailed him. the only president that obama is ahead of at this point is actually richard nixon who in

july of '73 was in his watergate death spiral. i think all of that is just a reflection of you know, the past. republicans. they're not cooperating. >> bill: at least poll numbers are better than richard nixon. paul brandus good to see you. stay cool. follow paul at west wing reports.com. we'll be right back. tell what you the president is up to today. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >>sorry. >>just be grateful current tv doesn't come in "smell-o-vision" >> oh come on! the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso.

>> if you believe in state's rights but still support the drug war you must be high. >> "viewpoint" digs deep into the issues of the day. >> do you think that there is any chance we'll see this president even say the words "carbon tax"? real immigration reform? >> ...and a distinctly satirical point of view. >> but you mentioned "great leadership" so i want to talk about donald rumsfeld. >> (laughter). >> watch the show. >> only on current tv. (vo) she gets the comedians

laughing and the thinkers thinking. >>ok, so there's wiggle room in the ten commandments, that's what you're saying. (vo) she's joy behar. >>current will let me say anything. >> bill: michael shure -- president -- host of "the war room" on current tv in studio with us. president of "the war room."

general of the "the war room." in studio with us at the top of the next hour. president's schedule now brought to you by sherwin williams. make the most of your color with the very best paint! ask sherwin williams. president obama two big events on the schedule today. after he gets the briefing with the vice president at 9:45, at 11:25, he will be making a major speech at the white house on obamacare and the new provisions of the affordable care act. and then this afternoon he has an ambassador credentialing ceremony in the oval office with about eight or ten new ambassadors from various countries. jay carney holding his press briefing at 12:45. i will be back with michael shure.

[ ♪ theme ♪ ] >> bill: good morning everybody. great to see you this morning on a thursday. thursday july 18. how about it. it is the "full court press" coming to you live from our nation's capital and our studio right here on capitol hill. in washington, d.c. we've got it covered whatever happening here in our nation's capital, whatever is happening around the country around the globe. we'll bring it to you. not only that, give you a chance to sound off about it. you can do so by giving us a call at 1-866-55-press. by joining us on twitter at bpshow and on facebook at facebook.com/billpressshow. with all of the news of the day. and another case of your tax dollars being totally wasted. yesterday, the very same day

that "the new york times" reported that because of and thanks to obamacare healthcare premiums as of the first of the year will drop from about $1,000 a month down to $350 a month. on that same day, "the new york times" reported those tremendous savings. the house of representatives republicans in the house yesterday voted to repeal obamacare for the 38th time. in other news, what a bunch of morons they are. in other news, "rolling stone," as you know, in hot water for putting the boston marathon bomber on their cover. queen elizabeth has become the latest public figure to endorse same-sex marriage. and we'll tell you all about that and more on current tv. iq will go way up. (vo) current tv gets the conversation started weekdays

at 9 eastern. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. the troops love me. tv and radio talk show host stephanie miller rounds out current's morning news block. you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. (vo) sharp tongue. >>excuse me? (vo) quick wit. >> and yes, president obama does smell like cookies and freedom. (vo) and above all, opinion and attitude. >> really?! this is the kind of stuff they say about something they just pulled freshly from their [bleep]. >> you know what those people are like. >> what could possibly go wrong in eight years of george bush? >> my producer just coughed up a hairball. >>sorry. >>just be grateful current tv doesn't come in "smell-o-vision" >> oh come on! the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo)only on current tv.

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>> announcer: this is the "bill press show." >> bill: breaking news, house republicans vote to repeal obamacare. for the 38th time. you think maybe they're finally going to understand this is not going anywhere? hey, good morning everybody. what do you say? it is the "full court press" on a thursday morning july 18. coming to you live as always from our nation's capital. and a big treat this hour because we're doubling up on you with current tv host this morning, joining the host of the "full court press" is the host of "the war room" in from the west coast on the red eye. michael shure. >> hey bill, how are you?

it is great to be here. >> bill: i take the red eye. you look fresher and brighter than anybody i see getting off the red eye. >> i promise you i don't feel fresher and brighter. i can assure you that. >> bill: but you slept for five and a half hours. >> it is a four and a half hour flight. i woke up for the scone. and then so you know, what is that? three and a half hours of sleep i guess. not great. >> bill: it is great to see you, my colleague from the west coast. >> exactly. the west wing. my west wing report for you. >> bill: do a great job. by the way filling in some big shoes. jennifer granholm is super. >> she's terrific. she's been unbelievably supportive of the whole staff has been great. we love having you. real pleasure. >> bill: we have another like six weeks and you and john fuglesang and i. we just have to have as much fun as we can right?

>> that's what we're doing. we are sort of doing whatever we want but whatever we want is -- >> turn the lights out when you leave. have fun while you're here. >> bill: a thought just crossed my mind. i was in studio with john fuglesang on monday. so i think i have to be in studio in san francisco with michael shure. it just occurred to me. we have a house in marin county. >> do it. you don't even have to take a red eye to get there. >> bill: you know our team here, peter ogborn and dan henning. alichia cruz has the phones covered and cyprian bowlding keeping us looking good with the video cam on current tv. president obama had a moment of celebration yesterday at the white house. long time and coming. but because of the deal that harry reid made on the filibuster, he was able to welcome, officially this time,

richard cordray. here he is. >> i'm proud to say that last night, rich cordray was finally confirmed by the united states senate to keep serving as america's consumer watchdog and as the director of the consumer financial protection bureau. >> bill: it is a good moment. >> i was going to say that didn't take long. >> bill: two years. i was there in the rose garden when he brought out richard cordray and elizabeth warren. it has been almost three years ago. >> it is a long time. you know, again it's shocking a, that it took this long and also, i think how quickly it was undone from when they started to have the conversation about undoing it and then undoing it. so, you know, on the one hand, you saw harry reid who you know generally has walked small and carried a small stick. >> bill: do you think it was a good deal? it's hard to say. >> i think when you break it

down, it is about being afraid of the supreme court. hearing the case of recess appointments. i think the republicans were scared of that. i think that's why they dealt -- i never look at them as honest brokers, certainly not the ones in the senate right now. so to that extent, any deal you can get is a good deal. if they were able to get it right now why couldn't they have fought harder and gotten it earlier? >> bill: i know. i know. started to see them cave in. at the same time, nuclear option remains an option, right? they didn't give it away. if republicans do start playing with the filibuster which you know they're going to, i think harry reid knows he's got the votes and he can drop that. >> that's what we learned from this. that's exactly right. he can go in there and he can be the majority leader and say let's do this. >> bill: i think we learned if you're tough and if you fight for it and you hang in there you can win the battles. >> but you have to fight and do

all of the things you just said which they don't do. >> bill: i hope they learn that lesson. good have michael shure here. we'll get into all of the other news of the day and invite your calls at 1-866-55-press. but first -- here we are. big headlines. >> other headlines making news on this thursday. we learn the details of the accommodations and amenities for the six jurors of the george zimmerman trial. "usa today" reporting for a $33,000 taxpayer tab. the jurors stayed sequestered in a marriott for 22 nights, ate dinner at outback steakhouse. >> one of the nicest restaurants in all of florida. >> and some other restaurants. they ate their breakfast at their hotel. they went to the movies twice to see world war z and "the lone ranger" and went shopping in a mall. they got manicures and pedicures, went bowling and went to a ripley's believe it or not museum. >> which is so perfect. >> were allowed to be visited by family and friends on the weekends. >> everything that there is to do in florida. go to the mall, go to the

movies, go to a tacky amusement park. >> now they have an exhibit about them at ripley's believe it or not. >> bill: i was just going to go there. you beat me to it. that was a lay-up, man. there's the latest exhibit. the newest exhibit. you won't believe what these six women did. >> the annual comic-con comic book convention is underway in san diego. there is an unlikely face making an appearance there this week. congressman john lewis the legendary georgia democrat not a person that you would expect to see at this geek fest but he's there actually to promote his graphic novel called march which details his work with the civil rights movement. it goes on sale next month. he tells the san diego union tribune in his advance years i've seen humans from other planets that i know i'll be comfortable at comic-con. >> bill: amazing. john lewis. the last person you would expect. >> the conscience of the comic-con. [ laughter ]

>> and in media news, msnbc announce who had will replace the lone conservative voice on their afternoon program the cycle, as she heads off to cnn's crossfire, it is abby huntsman taking the chair. she's the daughter of former presidential candidate, jon huntsman. she's been working with "the huffington post" until now. >> bill: i think she's too polite. i admire those three daughters of jon huntsman. >> i think so. so is her dad it turns out too. apple not falling far from the tree. >> smart tempered, a disaster on cable news. >> bill: probably a great president. >> certainly a better nominee than the one they gave us. >> bill: let's start with the big story of the day. you can tell it is summertime. everybody's talk building it. the cover of rolling stone. you can't buy it at walmart or walgreens or cvs because of

course on the cover, it has a relatively attractive picture not an attractive story but an attractive photo of the boston marathon bombing. >> it is a picture he took of himself. >> bill: is that right? >> a picture he took of himself. >> here's what i think. i abhor the fact that walgreens and cvs aren't selling the magazine. it seems like self-censorship to me. but i think "rolling stone" shouldn't have put that on the cover. it probably differs with popular opinion. >> bill: no, i think you might be reflect -- in this room. >> popular opinion in the room. >> bill: i think you're freakin' crazy but other than that. [ laughter ] >> exactly. see, i knew i would run into this. i think it's maybe because i have an 8-year-old son. the thought that martin richard's dad and mom have to go buy a newsstand and see this kid's picture. listen when you're on "rolling stone," it has been typically over the years, i know charles manson was on it but typically

99.4% of their covers have glorified the person on the cover. this is a glorification of this guy. it is -- i read the article start to finish. it was really well written. really interesting. i was interested in the subject matter. but when you show this kid as a rock star which rolling stone -- that's what we think when we see the cover of "rolling stone," i think that's a disservice. >> bill: as you mentioned charles manson was on there. the story of the kid is when you look at him and when you read about his early years he's on the wrestling team, did pretty good in school, he had lots of friends, everybody liked him. they wanted him over because he had a wrecked home life. they wanted him over to play with other kids. somehow, he went off the rails and become what they call him on the cover a monster. >> they call him the bomber. had they called him a monster, i would be right there. >> bill: it does say monster. >> the headline is the bomber.

that plays into what i'm saying is the glorification. >> bill: the story is how is this good-looking kid become -- do this? >> it is. it is part of the story. that's what -- it is a very interesting biography. it was really well written. i don't want to take away from that. "rolling stone" is doing some great journalism. >> bill: don't believe it, ask general mcchrystal. >> he's got a bone to pick with them. at the same time, as the story -- i didn't need to see jim morrison as dzhokhar tsarnaev. >> he does look like him. >> first thing i thought when i looked at the magazine was that that was him. >> bill: peter do we turn his mic off now? >> nice to see you michael. time to head back to the west coast. >> bill: we're out of time now on the "full court press." >> listen, by the way, i respect what you're saying. i understand but i think it goes -- i think that's what makes it an interesting conversation because it is like

what are they trying to do. what is rolling stone trying to do? he's a bad guy as far as we know. he's not convicted of anything. he's innocent until proven guilty as much as anybody can be. but i look at that cover and i think, you know, that's -- if i'm related to or the father of an 8-year-old boy i don't need to see that. >> bill: michael shure host of "the war room." who's filling in tonight? >> i will be here with david cerota. he's in san francisco. i will be here. >> bill: david is a great friend too. >> he's smart. >> bill: good to have you here so many things that you and i have talked about. i love to get your take on. let's talk about the trayvon martin the george zimmerman case. everybody now is saying he did not die in vain because eric holder is going to lead the charge and we're going to look at the stand-your-ground laws and see some changes in that.

really? >> here's the thing. had george zimmerman gone to jail this conversation may have gone to jail with him. so there is that silver lining to his acquittal that everybody is talking about it and i think they're talking about it in a pretty measured way. but come on. they're not going to do anything. this d.o.j. case, i think if they're going to try it as a hate crime, it is going to be very difficult. the bar is very high to meet the hate crime. >> bill: no civil rights case filed probably. >> i don't know. i want to say -- i can't say probably not. i think they're going to do it. it might be another disappointment if they file it because of the bar that they need to meet, as far as it being a hate crime. but then, of course, when you hear karl rove out there now. remember karl rove. >> who? >> he's out there race baiting saying that holder is race baiting here. this is the guy who went into south carolina and talked about john mccain's illegitimate black child. he has the gall -- he has the

gall to talk to race bait here to say this is race baiting. this is not a case necessarily about race. this is about a bad law in a state that doesn't realize it. >> bill: you know, you've got the nra pushing the self-defense laws and then alec writing and pushing the stand-your-ground laws which are in i don't know how many states now. 20 plus states. >> let's talk about the six states that put them on the books after trayvon in response to trayvon's. that's the really appalling thing, too, is that these states six states, saw what happened in florida. said we need laws like this. >> bill: so it would take really federal legislation, i guess, right to override some of the stand-your-ground laws and it's not going to happen. it should, i believe but i don't think it is going to happen. >> if there is a beginning to an end of it. i'm as pessimistic as you are. i see the avenues to doing it as virtually impossible to navigate now because it would take

federal legislation. if you had activist governors which you don't, the states are happy with this law. rick scott is happy with this law. >> bill: absolutely. and defends it. michael shure here with us on this thursday morning july 18. we're just getting started. join the conversation. we always keep the phones open for you at 1-866-55-press. the "full court press" will be right back. >> announcer: connect with the "bill press show" on twitter. follow us at bpshow and tweet using the hashtag watching bp. this is the "bill press show." that viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. they can question whether i'm right, but i think that the audience gets that this guy, to the best of his ability, is trying to look out for us.

if you believe in state's rights but still support the drug war you must be high. >> i think the number one thing that viewers like about "the young turks" is that we're honest. i think the audience gets that i actually mean it. >> you're putting out there something that you're proud of. journalists want the the story and they want the right story and the want the true story. >> you can say anything here. >> i spent a couple of hours with a hooker. >> your mistake was writing a check. >> she never cashed it! >> the war room. >> compared to other countries with tighter gun safety laws our death toll is just staggering. >> the young turks. >> the top bankers who funneled all the money to the drug lords, no sentence. there's just no justice in that. >> viewpoint. >> carl rove said today that mitt romney is a lock to win next pope. he's garunteeing it. >> joy behar: say anything. >> is the bottom line then that ever, ever use the "n" word?

>> yes! >> only on current tv. >> bill: 25 minutes after the hour on the "full court press" this morning with our regular team and a big member of our team this morning all the way from the west coast, united

airlines that got you here this morning? >> yes got me here saferly out of san francisco. >> bill: michael shure host of "the war room" on current tv every night at 6:00 p.m. eastern. so michael yesterday in the house judiciary committee they brought in the leadership of the nsa to talk about this big spying program. now, so far, all of the hearings have been senate intelligence or house intelligence where all of the members republicans and democrats said you're doing the right thing. you and i talked about this on your show. monitoring all of the phone calls. that's what we have to do to win the war on terror. different story from republicans and democrats. here is ranking democrat john conyers. >> but we never at any point during this debate, have approved the type of unchecked

sweeping surveillance of united states citizens employed by our government in the name of fighting the war on terrorism. >> bill: james sensenbrenner the author of the patriot act said you're basing all of this on section 215 of the patriot act? it ain't going to be there anymore because we're not going to renew it. >> i had to reread that. this is great news. this is what we wanted to have happen. this is the -- snowden was the fog that we needed to clear we needed to get to this. but i will say in snowden's huge defense here, we would not be having having this hearing, we would not be having this conversation. were it not for what edward snowden did. >> bill: by the way, a republican yesterday made that point at the committee hearing. the other thing quickly, dan so, the chairman, robert goodlatte from virginia, said to the nsa in effect, you really thought you were going to keep this whole program secret all this time and you lied to us about it? listen to what the nsa chief counsel tells him. >> do you think a program of

that magnitude, gathering information, involving a large number of people involved with telephone companies and so on could be indefinitely kept secret from the american people? >> well, we tried. >> i understand. [ laughter ] >> bill: isn't that amazing? >> and the frankness. >> bill: we tried not to tell you about it. >> every hearing about this or every meeting congress has had and every fisa conversation they've had has been done in secret. this is what happens when you see it in action. >> bill: all right. give me 30 seconds on liz cheney. >> where do i begin? my favorite parts of this is mike enzi said he thought the cheneys were friends. that's what's great. first of all who thinks the cheneys -- last person who thought the cheneys were friends, got shot in the face. >> bill: poor harry. >> the notion this is now actually a good campaign ploy for him is to make the cheneys seem like bad friends.

>> bill: he shot his friend in the face and he stabbed enzi in the back. >> that's perfect. >> bill: but you know what? it is great fodder for people like you and me. >> i love it. >> bill: i love having you here. >> such a pleasure. >> bill: teammate. we'll see you in san francisco. >> i can't wait. >> bill: thanks, michael. i'll be back. we're going to talk more about the stand your ground coming up next with danielle belton. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." iq will go way up. (vo) current tv gets the conversation started weekdays at 9 eastern. >> i'm a slutty bob hope. the troops love me. tv and radio talk show host stephanie miller rounds out current's morning news block. you're welcome current tv audience for the visual candy. (vo) sharp tongue. >>excuse me? (vo) quick wit. >> and yes, president obama does

smell like cookies and freedom. (vo) and above all, opinion and attitude. >> really?! this is the kind of stuff they say about something they just pulled freshly from their [bleep]. >> you know what those people are like. >> what could possibly go wrong in eight years of george bush? >> my producer just coughed up a hairball. >>sorry. >>just be grateful current tv doesn't come in "smell-o-vision" >> oh come on! the sweatshirt is nice and all but i could use a golden lasso. (vo)only on current tv.

>> bill: 33 minutes after the hour now. our final half hour together here today on this thursday, july 18. the "full court press," we're coming to you live from our nation's capital. our studio on capitol hill, we're brought to you today by the united steelworkers and their international president leo gerard, united steelworkers, north america's largest industrial union representing over 1.2 million active and retired members and you can find out more about their good work and find out what leo gerard is up to at usw.org. a lot of talk about will there be any changes in self-defense laws or stand-your-ground laws both of which exist in over 20 states in this country. danielle belton is a freelance

journalist and tv writer. she's founder of the blog blacksnob.com and editor at-large of clutch magazine. she's written an article that got our attention on this issue for "the root" and joining us in studio. nice to see you. >> nice to be here. >> bill: you've been all around here. you've got a lot of irons in the fire. >> i'm a busy woman. i need a few more jobs. i love collecting jobs. >> i like that. collecting jobs. >> i can use at least six more. >> bill: do we have another position open here? i'm not sure a desk comes with it. maybe a phone. tell us about the self-defense laws and the nra my understanding is the nra pushed the self-defense laws and then the koch brothers with alec come along with a stand-your-ground law. so these things didn't just like

spring up on their own right? >> this is part of an active effort to solidify -- advance the rights of gun owners. >>i can remember this a few years back, the push of the laws -- when i was in missouri, kill the avon lady law. you felt threatened. someone came to your front door and rang the doorbell, you could fire a gun at them and essentially not get in trouble for it. they had the laws in texas. there was a case where a man shot what he thought was an intruder on his lawn and got away with murdering people. so these laws are under the guise of owner's rights. you can start a fight and if you end up at the losing end, you can kill that person. >> bill: no, that didn't happen in trayvon martin's case, right? that's exactly what happened in trayvon martin's case, isn't it?

i love that. kill the avon lady law. hadn't heard of that. so -- i saw a report on front line about this last night. i was watching. so the self-defense laws used to apply to your home. it was generally understood. an intruder came into your house. you had the right to defend yourself. the self-defense law takes that outside the house right. to where it used to be, okay. you're walking down the street and somebody looks like they're going to do you harm. if you can get away. you get the hell out of there. that's what to expect. the self-defense and the stand-your-ground law takes that concept out to the street saying if you're approached by anybody you think may be a threat to you anywhere, you don't have to move. stand your ground and you pull out your concealed weapon and pow. >> in some ways starks a terrifying proposition. i'm a woman not very tall.

only 5'3". there are many times men approach me on the street that i don't want to have talk to me and i do feel threatened by them but i'm not going to go around and buy a gun and go around shooting men who sexually harass me on the street but i do feel threatened. i'm much smaller than them. they could physically hurt me. i don't know whether they're rapists. i could use the argument and say it was self-defense. that's what terrifies me about these type of laws. >> bill: do you know how many states have the laws? it is over 20, i think. i don't know the exact number. not that it matters. so is there any -- going to be -- before i get to that, george zimmerman was white. trayvon martin was black. what if it had been the other way around and tray vob martin -- trayvon martin, said this white man you know, was following me, right. so i killed him in self-defense. >> he would not win that

self-defense case. recent study done in 2012, publicized by front line that took a look at self-defense cases both in stand your ground and nonstand your ground states. particularly in the case where it was a white defendant who was claiming self-defense who was shot -- who shot an african-american in nonstand your ground states, they had a 250% chance of winning their case and being claimed as justified. >> bill: so this is not -- where there's no stand-your-ground law -- the white person still has a -- >> 250% chance of being declared justified. in a stand your ground state, it is 354%. >> bill: 354% versus what -- >> basically, it is like a guarantee. >> bill: 354 for the white person versus the black person, zero. >> it is in the negative. we're look at below like 60.

>> bill: these laws, i mean, is it fair to say racist laws, or they encourage racism or reflection of the racism that exist or what? >> i think it's more that because we have racism in our society, because we have these issues the law doesn't necessarily help something that's already exasperated. i don't think the law necessarily was intended to be a racist law but because we do have racism, it is not thok shocking to me the numbers reflect this. >> bill: eric holder said something in front of the naacp the other day that he said we're going to take a look at these laws because he said first of all, these are laws that were invented like to fix a problem that doesn't exist. >> exactly. >> bill: how so. explain that a little bit. >> we have self-defense laws on the books. the fact that you make it so easy where just any idea that you feel threatened, you just

think there is a threat, you perceive a threat. no actual threat. you can use deadly source. that's an excessive extension of the law. it is not necessary. current self-defense laws where someone breaks into your house you feel threatened. so you have a gun and yes, you should use whatever force is necessary to defend yourself but it seems it is illogical with the castle laws where someone knocks on your door and if you decide you feel threatened, you can do that. the law is like stand your ground when you can start a fight. be on the losing end of it and kill a person. >> bill: we know that the nra advanced the lawsuit. alec has the koch brothers. we know the republican governors in most of the states support the laws. they defend them. i mean jeb bush is the one who signed the stand-your-ground law. in florida. what are the chances -- you know, who's going to organize

the effort to reform these laws or repeal them and what are the chances that that's going to happen? >> well, you know, it is going to be difficult because anything that involves the perception of limiting gun owner's rights like once you already got the law on the book, it is really hard to get it back off again. people supported these laws, they think that it makes them safer. they per receive it gives them more power to defend themselves. they won't be that motivated to get rid of if. a case like trayvon martin's case that points out how ludicrous the logical end to laws like this. how dangerous they can be. what we can hope is people will organize around stories like trayvon martin to help mobilize ways to get these laws -- >> bill: what i'm trying to get at it is who is going to do this organizing. who is going to lead this charge. who will be the counter weight to the nra and to alec? do we have any counter weight?

>> i don't know necessarily if we have one right now. we have a lot of groups that are anti-gun anti-violence groups. guns. it is going to take a lot of different people working together. >> bill: is it something that could be done at the federal level? it couldn't be done by executive order, i guess right? maybe take an act of congress and -- >> not this congress. they can barely agree on the student loans. >> bill: they haven't yet. >> exactly. >> agree on the student loans. >> i hear people saying and i've seen this in writing well, trayvon martin did not die in vain because this is going to be what we need to show how unjust the laws are. it does show how unjust and unfair and unnecessary the laws are. i'm not sure they're going to see any change. >> i don't think we'll see any change that quickly. i definitely don't.

>> bill: danielle belton who has written this powerful article for "the root," a freelance journalist. i want to ask you the president is saying now that we need a national conversation about race. we've heard that before, haven't we? 1-866-55-press. join the conversation here on the "full court press." thursday morning. >> announcer: connect with the "bill press show" on twitter. follow us at bpshow and tweet using the hashtag watching bp. this is the "bill press show."

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the "bill press show." live on your radio and on current tv. >> bill: you got it. 13 mens now before the top -- 13 minutes now before the top of the hour. we're talking stand-your-ground laws, whether or not there will be any change after the george zimmerman verdict. a lot of talk. will we see any action? back to that conversation in just a second. but here's something to consider. important to consider. put it this way imagine you were in an accident. you're left unconscious. the emergency team arrives and you can't help them out with any information about your health records, your doctor, your medications, any of that information at all. here's one thing you ought to consider. don't let that happen to you. carry around with you emergency link i.d. emergency link i.d. is a small tag that you attach to your key ring or you put in your wallet or your purse that tells emergency responders everything they might need to know like

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laura from sebring florida has a comment or question about the zimmerman trial. hey, laura. >> caller: hi. i live in florida and of course, i watched it very closely from the day everything went down. and the night of the verdict, i was watching it on tv and after the verdict was read, not ten minutes later shotguns were fired. >> bill: in the neighborhood? >> caller: yeah. i was like are they actually celebrating this? are you serious? i cannot believe the ignorance that these people are being bred into that they're being brought up to hate other people so bad. and we're in this together. >> bill: that's very disturbing laura. a lot of people, i think look at florida with a casey anthony case and then this case and say hey -- >> what's going on over there?

>> bill: different standards of justice down there for sure. i want to come back to this conversation about race because the president has said that. do you think we need it? in this country? >> i believe we've had it a few times. a national conversation about race. i want to say bill clinton suggested it. one or two times. obama. >> bill: president obama gave a major speech in 2008. in philadelphia at constitution hall on this issue. >> so we've had lots of conversation. what we -- what we need is actually action. the conversation is great. it is good to talk. it is good to get our feelings out. i also complain when we have these conversations, we're having them with people we already agree with. that doesn't get anything done. what gets something done is when you confront the issue head on. you confront the type of people who have this sort of mindset who do think differently from you and then try to find some sort of middle ground, some common ground to work from.

the problem is can you get those two divergent groups to talk. >> you know one of the things i thought was interesting is when we talked to clinton yates from "the washington post" thel week, he said it is not so much having a conversation on race as it is having a conversation on profiling. it is not about looking at people as equal. like you might look at a person of another color and realize they're equal. when you see a person of color late at night that some people just can't get out of their heads they're up to no good. and that's what really needs to be addressed more than just looking at people as equal. >> bill: the difficulty -- i agree. i agree. but one difficulty with the profiling thing is i would hope and i believe i am very sensitive to these issues, right? but i have to tell you i've never experienced profiling. so in the sense i cannot relate to it. if i'm walking down the street at night wearing a hoodie or

not, nobody's going to suspect me of being up to no good. right? >> exactly. >> bill: that's for the fair but it makes it again, as liberal as i am, not even i right, know what we're up against. >> the real, harder conversation to talk about which is the elephant in the room which is privilege. no one wants to talk about that. we all want to believe we have an equal shot in this country. that we're born on the same level playing field and we just aren't. depending on who your parents are and your zip code determines and lot of times how well you do and the color of your skin often determines what kind of life you have and the fact that we don't want to admit that, that that's a serious issue in our country. that's the crux of the real problem. that's why we have such an wish people being able to relate because a lot of people don't get profiled. every black man i've ever known every black man in my family or

i've been friends with has been profiled no matter what they were wearing. my father has been pulled over with my mom in the car you know they're just two little old people driving around texas. what could they possibly be up to? >> bill: absolutely. this is such an important -- we can't let this stop here, right? and just say well, it's too bad that george zimmerman got off. channel our anger and our frustration into making some important changes and danielle belton, will you help us along the way. thanks for being in this morning. >> thank you for having me. >> bill: we'll get you back and i'll be back with a parting shot.

i think the number one thing that viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. they can question whether i'm right, but i think that the audience gets that this guy, to the best of

his ability, is trying to look out for us. john fugelsang: if you believe in states rights but still support the drug war you must be high. cenk uygur: i think the number one thing viewers like about the young turks is that we're honest. i think the audience gets that i actually mean it. michael shure: this show is about being up to date so a lot of my work happens by doing the things that i am given to doing anyway. joy behar: you can say anything here. jerry springer: i spent a couple of hours with a hooker joy behar: your mistake was writing a check jerry springer: she never cashed it (vo) the day's events. four very unique points of view. tonight starting at 6 eastern.

>> announcer: the parting shot with bill press. this is the brill -- "bill press show." >> bill: hey, what a stark contrast yesterday when it came to obamacare. on the front page of "the new york times," this headline, many new yorkers will see big savings on health plans. they actually reported that the price of buying insurance on your own would go down from $1,000 a month to $308 a month thanks to obamacare january 1. and on the same day republicans in the house of representatives have voted to repeal obamacare for the 38th time. in other words they voted to deny americans lower premiums, to dump kids from their parent's healthcare plans and to let insurance companies once again deny coverage because of a pre-existing condition.

they voted to repeal all the good parts of obamacare everything that's working so far and to replace it with absolutely nothing. my friends, they're wasting our tax dollars. what a bunch of idiots. tomorrow, what a great line-up. tom buffenbarger, president of the machinists, congresswoman rosa delauro from connecticut and tommy wells from the district of columbia. see you back here again tomorrow.

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>> stephanie: all right, current tv, hour number 1 karl frisch of bullfight strategies right out of the box here, and markos moulitsas. good morning jacki schechner. >> good morning, i think karl has some sort of injury you need to ask him about? >> stephanie: i think he twisted his knee at d