romney masks reign. >> it seems okay for a vice presidential candidate, but what about for a presidential candidate? president obama and surveillance had masks as well. megyn: agent for joining us. jenna: "america live" starts right now. megyn: fox news alert. the speech just hours from now that could change the course of our country. for years to come. welcome to "america live", i am megyn kelly. a look now for you on the floor of the national convention were roughly nine hours from now, governor romney will take to the stage and lay out his vision for this country's future. giving some americans their first real chance to get to know him directly through all of the advertising and attacks and what not that we have seen in this campaign. the stakes could not be much higher.

23.5 million americans are either unemployed or underemployed. as paul ryan said last night, you could stretch them across the country run by one single file. our national debt is just days away from hitting the 16 trillion-dollar mark. economists warn us that we are headed for a likely new recession in just months if we cannot break the political gridlock in washington. while we don't know exactly what governor romney is going to say, we do know that he likes to tinker with the speeches up until the very last minute. he has spent months reading and creating speeches, like the one he is going to be tonight. last night, we also got a chance to hear from governor romney's running mate who brought this convention hall to its feet. congressman paul ryan, a republican from the state of wisconsin, had this to say about the romney-ryan ticket's vision for america's future, and about the current administration.

>> everyone who is stuck in the obama economy is right to focus on the here and now. and i hope you understand this, too. if you are feeling left out of pass by, you have not failed. your leaders have failed you. they have no answer to this simple reality. we need to stop spending money that we don't have. [cheers] [applause] >> it is really simple. it is not that hard. i'm going to level with you. we don't have that much time. but if we are serious and smart we can do this. we will not duck the tough issues, we will lead. we will not spend the next four years blaming others. we will take responsibility. we will not try to replace our founding principles.

we will reapply our founding principles. [cheers] megyn: what else can we expect tonight? eric bergstrom is a senior adviser for the romney campaign and we are privileged to have you with us. thank you for being here. so our viewers know, you have been with governor romney for more than a decade. you had been with him during the governorship in massachusetts and his first campaign for president, and now here you stand tonight, as this man in whom you believe so much in what country do know, is about to accept the republican nomination for president of the united states. tell us what that means. >> it is a big moment. for those of us who know mitt romney, it is a very satisfying moment. i feel good for romney. i feel better for the country. because i was with larry mitt in massachusetts. by the time he left, he balanced

the budget and he got that unemployment rate down 4.7%. we have not seen 4.7% unemployment in massachusetts in january 2007 when mitt romney left. megyn: paul ryan talked about that. about how that happened in the state a the divided party leadership. it wasn't a state in which he had an all republican legislature to deal at. >> he had to govern in a very difficult, political environment but i think what characterizes mitt romney's leadership is that he is willing to work across the aisle to get things done. we haven't seen that for president obama. he talks about bipartisanship. he talks about going out of washington and changing our politics. and he did change our politics. but not for the better, but for the worse. it has become more negative and cynical and there is more gridlock in washington. megyn: is it true that mitt romney wrote the speech himself? did he actually penned the speech? >> of course.

every speech that mitt romney gives flows from his own pen and heart. there are people who make contributions and ideas come in summer excepted and others are discarded. but he had a good text when he arrived on tuesday. he has been practicing and he knows this is a big moment. one thing we know about mitt romney is that he always rises to the occasion. megyn: is there anything special or different about going to see versus the stump speeches that we've seen from him? >> i think you'll hear him talk about his vision and a better future for americans. he will talk about the failures of the last 3.5 years of the obama administration. and he will talk a little bit about the personal side of mitt romney. who is mitt romney. we met on that note, i want to show our viewers an excerpt from paul ryan. a funny remark he made, but may that may have been more significant. listen to this. >> we are a full generation

apart. in some ways, we are different. there are the songs on his ipod, which i have heard on the campaign bus. [laughter] >> i have heard it on many hotel elevators. [laughter] [applause] he actually urged me to play some of the songs of the campaign rallies. i said look, i hope it's not a dealbreaker, but my list starts with ac/dc and ends with led zeppelin. megyn: that was a funny moment. but it also showed that he could make fun of mitt romney and will we see any of that for mitt romney tonight? and ability to take a shot of himself? >> i think there is humor in that speech. the paul ryan the mitt romney have great chemistry together. we when they are on the bus campaigning together, there is a

lot of joking. it's a great thing. i think they are going to be great partners in the white house. what mitt romney brings is a great deal of experience on jobs and the economy. paul ryan brings an unparalleled knowledge of the federal budget. he knows every nook and cranny and is going to help mitt romney restrain government spending. megyn: last question. so many people saying that mitt romney needs to humanize himself. he is a live and breathing person. putting that aside, the charge in that question, will he do something to try to connect as a human being with the people watching? >> i think we saw that process on tuesday night when ann romney spoke at the convention. she talked about the personal side of mitt romney as a devoted husband and father and grandfather to 18 grandchildren. will qualify as mitt romney for the presidency is the superior leadership skills that he will bring to the white house. those were acquired over a long

career in the private sector and running games of salt lake and everything else he has done. i appreciate you being here. megyn: coming up now, new evacuations are underway along the border of mississippi and louisiana. the state park in mississippi dam is in danger of failing. that area getting head from tropical storm isaac. the storm is weakening and leaving a huge mess in its wake. search and rescue underway in hard-hit areas around new orleans. at one point when the floodwaters stranded thousands of people in their homes. look at this video. there are currently 730.on 10,000 people waiting for the electricity to come back on in mississippi. the hardest hit area is louisiana's plaquemines parish. that is where water toppled over

levees, leaving people in 12 feet of water. it is far from the only area dealing with devastating flooding. steve harrigan is live in shoreline, mississippi. we are taking a look with him. reporter: the real concerns about that dam for the citizens of louisiana and mississippi, but we are seeing it on a much smaller level across mississippi. where i am now is not coastal, it is further inland. this is water from a river. this is the jordan river. even though the storm is gone, this water is still rising here. we can actually see the river and jordan. cards are stranded, about 1500, about half of them are underwater. people don't have electricity. more than 150,000 people without electricity. you have people on the road trying to get to their houses are trying to get out of their houses. we have seen a steady caravan all day. it is almost it local scene.

people carrying what they can. people trying to get out or get to their houses. no deaths but the that the people really suffering without power and air conditioning and stranded in their houses or on the road looking at their houses. back to you. megyn: steve harrigan, wow, that is quite a sight were looking at. stay state. growing complaints and praise over the rnc speech by paul ryan last night. he received applause for his attacks, but up next, we will see whether he connected with his personal story. plus, a book about the mission to kill osama bin laden is getting new attention. the former navy seal who wrote it answers questions about why he decided to release it in the middle of campaign season. new questions about the media treatment of the romney campaign. after a top media outlet manager is fired for suggesting that team romney has no part partying while people down in tropical

storm isaac. have you heard the story? just hours ahead, we will bring you a sneak peek from the rnc floor in tampa, florida. >> behind me you can see the stage where it goes down tonight. they are extending it into the crowd of delegates. the lectern upfront is one that governor romney will stand at night when he delivers an address. we are told he has written it himself. it will be about 40 minutes long. twice as long as any speeches given on the campaign trail thus far. he was an english major in college, and we are told he will be tinkering with it all the way up to the last minute. for he stands in for this crowd of 20,000 people and another 40 million people at home and accept the republican nomination for president of the united states. went out already? [ sighs ] forget it. [ male announcer ] there's more barbeque time in every bag of kingsford charcoal. kingsford. slow down and grill.

or annuity over 10 or even 20 years? call imperial structured settlements. the experts at imperial can convert your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today. nikki! rick! wow, you look terrific! [ female announcer ] the whitening you've always wanted. crest 3d white glamorous white toothpaste. your smile will shine brighter after just one brushing, and it removes up to 90% of surface stains in just 5 days. for a smile so white, you won't just be the ex-girlfriend. you'll be the one that got away. crest 3d white glamorous white toothpaste. life opens up when you do. and try 3d white brush and rinse.

megyn: some of you have loved it, others attacked it, but no one has accused paul ryan of

being boring last night. here are a few highlights. >> college graduates should not have to live out their 20s in their childhood bedrooms. staring up at baiting obama posters and wondering when they can move out and get going with life. they have run out of ideas. they're moment came and went. fear and division is all they have left. it all started off stirring speeches, greek columns, the thrill of something new. now, all that is left is a presidency adrift, said rising on slogans that already seemed tired. grasping a moment that has already passed, like a ship trying to sail on yesterday's winds. the man assumed office almost four years ago. isn't it about time that he assumed responsibility?

>> we will not duck the tough issues, we will leave and leave you. we will take responsibility. we will not try to retrace our founding principles. we will reapply our founding principles. [cheers] [applause] we will work ahead. these times demand the best of all this. all this, so that we can do this. we can do this. together, we can do this. we visited this country working without effort or it we can get this country working and growing again. we can make it safe again. we can do this. whatever your political party is, let's come together for the sake of our country. join mitt romney in and me. let's give this effort everything that we have. let's take this thing all the way through and get this done.

thank you and god bless you all. thank you. megyn: here was a great speech. chris wallace, you are on the press floor last night. describe the crowd and the reaction to paul ryan versus anything else you have seen at the convention. >> there were a couple of magic malkin's. and romney speech was. condoleezza rice's speech, early last night, and then paul ryan, they were in every word. i thought ryan was a little nervous in the beginning, clearing his throat a little. but about five or 10 minutes in, he hit his rhythm and realized he wasn't going to turn to stone out there. and he really was impressive. megyn: what is the goal as the vice presidential nominee when you go out there? >> i think he had a couple goals.

one, but you didn't see in the clips, was to introduce himself. you have to remember that most americans probably have never heard of this guy until 20 days ago when he was named running mate. to the degree that they had, it was the democratic attack, the democratic caricature of him as the guy who is going to throw granny off the cliff. his biography and story of his dad dying as a teenager and his mom how she struggled, that moment where he talks about his mom and we show the split screen and he is saying that she is his role model, i don't think anyone is going to look at that and say some of this is a hard hearted guy. megyn: harshly anti-female is the line from the obama campaign. >> there are different points of view, but i don't think he comes off in the slightest as an extremist ideologue who doesn't have his own views of what is

best for the nation's. megyn: he was in the news this morning and last night. we are all about to turn the page governor romney. he will be the real newsmaker in this. do people remember vice presidential speeches? how important is it to the romney and ryan ticket? >> i think it is important. it is important because there are two things you did last night. one is i think he did his biography and introduced himself and dispelled some of the attacks on him. the second thing he did, he delivered is potent and coherent an indictment of the obama record as we have heard of this convention and maybe in a long time. he really went through it with a bill of particulars. the stimulus that failed, obamacare, the rate on medicare. again, democrats will say a lot of it was wrong and there are some things that i think were factually questionable. but he made the case against obama. what romney has to do tonight is

make the case for mitt romney. he is the only one that can do that. megyn: we heard in the montage the one about young people sitting there in the room they grew up in. looking at their faded obama posters. that line was effective, because it had an image that you can picture. >> it's more than an image. i think a lot of people think it's a reality. [laughter] >> i think there are parents who have their college kids in their bedroom and neither of them are especially happy. but the other thing that you which was so effective, is the way that he talked about the obama presidency in the past tense. that was devastating. megyn: they're moment came and went. faded dreams and a sputtering win. that was devastating. democrats are to get their chance next week in charlotte. that was very effective last night's. megyn: megyn: part of the obama campaign message is the cool

ticket, the young people, all about the future, hope and change in being different -- and he dismantled that by saying yesterday it is not cool anymore to be sitting in the parents basement observing the poster. >> saying that i accept the calling of my generation. suddenly, he, by reflection, mitt romney, a team of hope and change. that is a big difference from four years ago the one it's interesting that you kept saying that we can do this. it may be a variation on yes, we can. chris wallace, thank you. very nice job covering the rnc. up next, new details on the tell-all book about the mission to kill osama bin laden and the decision to release it. next week, in advance when it was originally scheduled. condoleezza rice, last night asked what has happened to america's standing in the world. new debate over last night for mark is moments away. >> the world knows that when a

nation loses control of its finances, and eventually loses control of its destiny. that is not the america that has inspired people to follow our lead. [ male announcer ] let's say you need to take care of legal matters. wouldn't it be nice if there was an easier, less-expensive option than using a traditional lawyer? well, legalzoom came up with a better way. we took the best of the old and combined it with modern technology. together you get quality services on your terms, with total customer support. legalzoom documents have been accepted in all 50 states, and they're backed by a 100% satisfaction guarantee. so go to legalzoom.com today and see for yourself. it's law that just makes sense. that also becomes headaches. i was very skeptical about aspirin. bayer advanced was completely different.

it really did get rid of the pain. put bayer advanced aspirin to the test for yourself at fastreliefchallenge.com. put bayer advanced aspirin to the test for yourself energy is being produced to power our lives. while energy development comes with some risk, north america's natural gas producers are committed to safely and responsibly providing generations of cleaner-burning energy for our country, drilling thousands of feet below fresh water sources within self-contained well systems. and, using state-of-the-art monitoring technologies, rigorous practices help ensure our operations are safe and clean for our communities and the environment. we're america's natural gas. and what they said is amazing. review 5-hour energy over 73 percent who reviewed 5-hour energy said they would recommend a low calorie energy supplement to their healthy patients who use energy supplements. seventy-three percent. 5-hour energy has four calories and it's used over nine million times a week. is 5-hour energy right for you?

ask your doctor. we already asked 3,000.

megyn: a retired navy seal who took part in the raid that killed osama bin laden is sitting down with 60 minutes to talk about his new book. he says the tell-all book entitled "no easy day" is not a political event. it thinks everyone who worked to make the rate of success. trace gallagher has more. reporter: cbs will not identify

them and they will will cover his face. we have uncovered that admiral mike mullen, chairman of the joint chief of staffs and those who had a special operation, then he says that they waited for the call. listen to this. >> we had a week off from virginia beach, it wasn't completely off, but we had a week off at home. we conducted one more rehearsal. a day of trading on the life-size mockup. and we got the world that we were going. reporter: he said he was on the helicopter that crashed into the mons compound and was the second man who was inside the compound. asked if the book was timed to influence the election, he said

this. >> i don't badmouth either party. we specifically chose september 11 to keep it out of the politics. crazies on either side of the i want to make it political. shame on them. this is a book about september september 11. and it needs to rest on september 11. but we brought in to the political arena. this has nothing to do with politics. reporter: in the book he does say the navy seals were not fans of president obama. but they did respect him for making the call. he compared vice president joe biden to a drunken uncle at christmas. and he did say this is dedicated to those who helped get bin laden in the years leading up to that and that the navy seals were only responsible for the last ornaments of action. megyn: trace gallagher. we heard sharp criticism of the president's foreign policy from condoleezza rice last night. those remarks in the fallout will be moments away.

an influential journalist caught in the hot microphone moment. making comments about teen romney and the gop. we look at the possible immediate challenge for the republicans in this race. insulin users test often. freestyle lite can help you test easy. they need a third the blood of onetouch ultra. zipwik tabs target the blood and pull it in. call now for free strips and a meter.

that's a good thing, but it doesn't cover everything. only about 80% of your part b medical expenses.

the rest is up to you. so consider an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement plans, they pick up some of what medicare doesn't pay. and save you up to thousands of dollars in out-of-pocket costs. call today to request a free decision guide to help you better understand what medicare is all about. and which aarp medicare supplement plan works best for you. with these types of plans, you'll be able to visit any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients... plus, there are no networks, and you'll never need a referral to see a specialist. there's a range of plans to choose from, too. and they all travel with you. anywhere in the country. join the millions who have already enrolled in the only medicare supplement insurance plans endorsed by aarp, an organization serving the needs of people 50 and over for generations...

and provided by unitedhealthcare insurance company, which has over 30 years of experience behind it. call today. remember, medicare supplement insurance helps cover some of what medicare doesn't pay -- expenses that could really add up. these kinds of plans could save you up to thousands in out-of-pocket costs... you'll be able choose any doctor who accepts medicare patients. and you never need referrals. so don't wait. with all the good years ahead, look for the experience and commitment to go the distance with you. call now to request your free decision guide. this easy-to-understand guide will answer some of your questions, and help you find the aarp medicare supplement plan that's right for you.

megyn: the issue of foreign policy on the back burner at this year's republican national convention. that was, until condoleezza rice took that to the stage last night. she is one of the most well received speeches casting doubt on america's standing and asking where we are and about the president's response to some critical foreign policy matters. take a listen to this. >> indeed, that is the question of the hour. where does america stand? you see, when friends or foes alike don't know the answer to that question, unambiguously and clearly from the world is likely to be a more dangerous and chaotic place. mitt romney and paul ryan understand this reality. our well-being at home and our leadership abroad are inextricably linked. they know what to do. they know that our friends and allies must again be able to trust us.

from israel to columbia and poland to the philippines. our friends have to know that we will be reliable and consistent and determined. and our foes can have no reason to doubt our resolve. because peace really does comes to strength. we can only know that there is no choice. because one of two things will happen if we don't. either no one will lead and there will be chaos, or someone will fill the vacuum who does not share our values. my fellow americans, we do not have a choice. we cannot be reluctant to lead and you cannot lead from behind. [cheers] [applause]

megyn: joining me now is simon rosenberg. he is also former campaign adviser to former president clinton. and mark theissen, former advisor to president george w. bush. she was one of the highlights last night. she a personal story and the story of substance. she got to it in an interesting way, talking about where do we stand in the world right now. what about america's standing? were your thoughts? >> well, absolutely. americans believe in american leadership. and she made the point, and i will disagree with her slightly, but she said that barack obama is leading from behind. i would say he's not leaving at all. take a look at the history of his record. negotiations and sanctions are feeling in iran. more progress going to nuclear weapons in the last 3.5 years than they did since iranian revolution. syria, they are massacring tens of thousands of civilians, men,

women, and children. russia and china won't let us. in afghanistan, he announced her withdrawal before sending search forces. they simply have to wait it out. he has put us on track to cut more than $1 trillion in the defense budget. cuts that are so deep, his own defense secretary said that they will lead the smallest army and navy sends 1915, the smallest air force ever. as she pointed out, he has not enacted a single free-trade agreement of his own while china has done 15 of them. but she pointed out importantly on the debt, obama has put over her leadership at risk by racking up more debt in four years than any president that came before him from george washington to george w. bush. america under obama -- we are not leading from hein, we are being left behind. megyn: what you have to say, simon?

[laughter] i think condoleezza rice is one of the most compelling figures in american politics today. and i really appreciate the tone and tenor of the speech last night. i think she is clearly an american patriot and i want to say hats off to her for a great effort. i just don't agree with a lot of what mark said. i think if you look at the world today, we are clearly in a much safer place than we were when barack obama took office. we are seeing a transition. a critical and important transition to democracy and freedom and open markets in the middle east. unprecedented in the history of that region. we know that bin laden is dead. we know that al qaeda has been severely weakened. we are seeing democratic transitions in countries like cuba that have started receiving private property, free trade, there are significant changes going on in the world. changes that have made, i think, the world much deeper than when condoleezza rice left office in

2008. one thing on free trade, i think that was a very unfair attack. this administration pursued fewer to free-trade agreements since world war ii. they were anemic in their efforts. right now, the president of the united states has negotiated the most comprehensive and far ranging multistate, multi- lateral trade agreement in the last generation. it was a partnership with japan and canada, we orienting our foreign policy away from the middle east and other regions towards asia, which is most important region in the 21st century. i think the president has a strong record to run on. i think this is a vigorous debate. we are happy to have this debate in the fall. megyn: but are they less experienced than barack obama was when he ran for office four years ago? >> yes, the community organizer has an organized international

community very well. the idea that obama is responsible for the state of the war on terror, he inherited al qaeda. the operation that got bin laden, which we are hearing a lot about now, it was made possible by the intelligence gathered from the cia interrogation program that he shut down. when obama had the chance to interrogate a guy trying to blow up a plane in detroit, he is using the intelligence that he inherited from the bush administration. one thing he gets credit for is because with the exception of interrogation, he has adopted the counter interrogation policy inherited from the up close era. these are things he campaigned against and has reversed himself willingly or unwillingly. megyn: i want to give simon last word. but i want to ask you something. people paying attention -- are

they paying attention to foreign policy in this debate? >> every presidential election is about foreign policy. they want to understand that their leader has what it takes to ensure america's security and prosperity in the broader world. i think you will see this as we get to that debate. i think foreign policy will matter more and we are at a situation right now, the that we have never been in the last 70 years in the american life. which is an incumbent democratic president is a dramatic advantage over his republican challenger on foreign policy. we have never seen that before. this is a weakness for the republicans in an area of strength for barack obama. which is why we are not worried about having this debate in the fall. megyn: guns and butter. i like that. that's a great way to explain it. thank you both so much. coming up next, a journalist for a major media outlet and a hot mike moment. talking about tropical storm isaac and suggesting that republicans are only too happy to party while black people down. coming up next.

is this an isolated incident or a glimpse into the real media environment or governor romney is facing? new comparisons being drawn between president reagan and governor romney. ronald reagan was able to reshape. michael reagan is here. >> adversaries test to see if our will and resolve. but we are given weakness when we need strength. vacillation when the times demand firmness. the carter administration lives in a world of make-believe. every day, drawing up a response to the base problems, troubles, regardless of what happened yesterday and what will happen tomorrow.

megyn: the story of some inflammatory remarks accidentally caught on an open microphone. the washington bureau chief for yahoo! news. he used to work for abc and pbs. he was fired within hours after audiences tune into a webcast and heard him talking about team romney turning holding a convention during hurricane isaac. saying they are concerned at all and they are happy to have a party while black people are drowning. charlie's words are in the background, so we put the transcription on the bottom of the screen. here you go. let's bring in our panel. don't know, tucker, and the folks on the panel seemed to be getting a big kick out of it. no one saying that's inappropriate or maintaining

silence. within hours, they fire him. what you say? >> it says that yahoo! is embarrassed. he revealed what everybody knows. i'm not saying that they are all bad joke tellers, but they all basically believe that if we see racism everywhere, the gop is basically a racist party. and i kind of feel bad for the guy because it was obviously missed it for he didn't mean to say on her like that. what bothers me is that we tend to sort of create these theories over him accurately revealing what he actually thinks. i think it's better that actually there are people who nobody thinks this. megyn: he said i'm profoundly sorry for making an inappropriate and polish joke. is that what this was? is it something that he can apologize for, or does it say something more about what happens at yahoo!? >> this could be something quite a bit more. i have worked in this bracket

for 10 or 15 years. i traveled on the mccain campaign in 2008. you know, i certainly believe that there is a liberal tilt to the media. this is breathtaking stuff. it is incredible. what is amazing is what you pointed out. not just the fact he would say something like this, that would occur to him to have it come out of his mouth, but that everyone else either laughed and nobody disagreed with them. beyond that, what you saw after he was fired, with numerous high-profile media figures standing up for him. it is mind-boggling. megyn: when ivo called him a god gifted political journalism. "the new york times" called him in first-rate reporter and classy guy that said something awful. it wasn't that he got caught saying that, it's that he thought like that. that was one of the reasons he

got so swiftly booted out of his old job. he did a lot to sort of make amends on that. this is how he thinks for the question is whether this is what the romney campaign and other republicans running for office are up against. the bias against them that is really strong. >> especially on this question. he was not an intern. he was a political director. a well-known washington journalists. but his views conflict with those in the media. the media really are liberal, more than you know. on the question of race, especially. it is so 1955, the republican party is structurally racist. but i don't think what he said would be considered remarkable by 90% of the reporters that i know. the racing that is the most liberal. >> to go into journalism.

the watergate story and the idea that they're going to fight institutionalism racism. institutional racism hasn't gone away. a great extent are fighting now. and the gop -- megyn: it doesn't matter -- doesn't matter -- but say they are as far to the left as they come. biased against mitt romney and doesn't like republicans and so on. does that matter he can do the news in a straight, fair and balanced way? >> i think it does. what you're talking about is your inability to see beyond. i think people should be honest about where they're coming from. what we are seeing is response to the paul ryan speech last night. you have all of these media people talking like. they can point out things we are missing in context, things that maybe he should have developed more than that asked them to

point out a specific lie and nobody can actually do it, and yet you have the "washington post", four out of five most read articles in the "washington post" for one version or another of paul ryan last night. but for this media world, that is the big thing. megyn: tucker, you pointed out that this is part of major news organizations. if this guy is your boss and you are a political unit and you hear him making comments like, let's be honest, this probably was in the first time he said something like that. when the microphone is not on, one can only imagine. the people who report up to him -- there has to be an understanding quirkier of picking stories for doing stories that would be more fair. >> worldview matters. there is no diversity of worldview. everyone is coming from the same political perspective. if you had all be -- byu

graduates, and what effect it in another way. megyn: is it fair that he lost his job? people defending him are saying that he had a long and successful career. do we need to ruin a man's livelihood over the slumping. >> yes. this cuts against the mission of his job which is to present things in a fair and accurate way. it is so far out of what the core truth is, i think he is unable to carry out his job. >> i am more conflicted about it. what bothers me is he is a scapegoat. i don't think he is at all exceptional. he got caught in some of this is the reason for the rest of the institutions is a we are not like him. we fired him for saying this. megyn: he was known to be as a conservative guy, but he was able to go on the news every

night and offer a fair report. isn't there room for people to have political views and the reporters? >> conservatives generally don't go into the news media and try to work for "the new york times" or abc news. megyn: thank you so much for coming. go ven 20 years? right the experts at imperial can convert your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today.

megyn: the lapd lapd is fielding pointed questions today about an arrest on tape and allegations of unnecessary recklessness. michelle jordan was pulled over for using her cell phone while driving. she says she sustained major bruising when police tackled her and it all happened right in front of this surveillance camera. trace gallagher has a story live. >> she is a mother and a registered nurse.

she was arguing with police and probably deserve to be arrested. but the force used on her wasn't excessive. watch the first part. she pulls into a restaurant. issues about to be handcuffed, police say that she resisted arrest. we can hear what they say, but victor were on the ground and they put handcuffs on her. her hands are behind her back. the next part, i want to freeze the video, because this shows her actually up against the police car, you can see both officers there, her hands are behind her back. again, we cannot hear what they're saying. flatus and you will see one of the officers were were down hard on the ground. up and down, hands behind her back. that is where she sustained those bruises and cuts that you saw earlier. here is her journey with us. >> she doesn't appear to be a threat. the cops dealt with her as though she was clearly a threat.

reporter: she has been placed in the back of a squad car. police officers this bump as if congratulations they are wishing each other. police officers saying that the level of force used at the end is not justified, but what i see in the report. here is more with charlie that. >> every los angeles police officer, regardless of rank, will be held accountable for their actions. reporter: gtech has downgraded the commanding officer for a bad lack of responsiveness. the officers involved have been reassigned. one was a 22 year veteran, the other one on the force just 10 months. megyn: new parallels being drawn between reagan's campaign for the white house in the road that mitt romney is traveling. announcing that governor romney can learn from his father. >> we know that war comes not

when the forces of freedom are strong, but when they are weak. we simply cannot learn these lessons the hard way again. not without risking our defense. [cheers] [applause] [cheers] [applause] you know, i was once used for small jobs.

yeah, and i took on all the bigger, tougher ones. but now that mr. clean's got this new select-a-size magic eraser, i mean, he can take on any size job. look how easily he gets things cleaned. it's enough to make you cry. you, specifically. not me. i'm just happy we don't go near rex's mobile home as often. because it's hard to clean or because you're scared of an itty-bitty doggy? [ dog barks ] aah! oh! [ clears throat ] yeah, that was a sneeze. i think i sprayed myself. [ male announcer ] new mr. clean select-a-size magic eraser. lets you pick the right size for every job.

anyone have occasional constipation,

diarrhea, gas, bloating? yeah. one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. approved! [ female announcer ] live the regular life. phillips'. megyn: a fox news alert. they are about to begin the final day of the republican national convention. brand-new hour of "america live." welcome, everyone. i'm megyn kelly. we are giving you a front-row seat to the republican national convention in tampa, florida with the last dave this event just getting started right now. tonight the attention turns to the top of the gop ticket. governor mitt romney who was here when his wife ann made her remarks will come out personally to make his case to the american people. with 23 million of them

unemployed or underemployed and our economy possibly heading for a new recession. the challenge could not be greater. joining me now, bret baier and dana perino who is cohost of "the five." so it's not overstating, this is literally the biggest speech of his career. >> reporter: it is. he has been working up to this after all these months of campaigning. if you talk to some people after years and years of campaigning. his father didn't get to this spot. he talks about how that will factor into his thinking. it is the biggest speech of his life. he has been working on it a long long time. the job we are told on the romney campaign is romney' speech writer because he continues to tinker up until the last min up changing things and moving things around.

megyn: the political teams prefer to have things all set and loaded into the prompter. dana, if you were advising him as a press secretary, what would you say? >> i would say when he come out tonight, he's almost painfully humble. an doesn't talk about himself. so a lot of the chatter is he has to introduce himself to america. can america warm to him and can he be likeable? i think he needs to set that aside and be himself. i think he is engage. the warmup acts have been good. paul ryan was fantastic. i think when he come out he takes a moment to let the crowd cheer for him. take a moment, soak it up, smile and take a few breast before you start. megyn: you sent out a tweet during his remarks and wrote right about now biden's speech

writing team is being called into an emergency meeting. did you think it was that powerful? the. >> i did. i had a year 2000 convention feeling. i remember at that time as a younger press secretary on capitol hill. we load george w. bush, my friend and i. i know people don't like that conservative compassionate conservative label but i did feel like it spoke to me. when he gave that speech that night, i thought we are going to win. this is the new republican party. this is who i feel like i'm a part of. last night big stakes for ryan. i knew it would be a good speech and it would be substantive. i had no idea his delivery what be so fantastic. i wasn't here. i actually watched it from home. i think the electricity translated on the tv the screens. next week the biden speech could be the biggest speech of biden's career. megyn: bret, do you think this is a potential game changer? we have seen how other candidates have gotten a

post-convention bounce then gone on to lose the race. almost half. does this matter? toss this process matter? >> reporter: it does matter. if you look at how much money has been spent on both sides. $500 million on both sides. it's unprecedented. now, a lot of that negative advertising trying to depict romney as this corporate raider, bain capital and how evil he is. if this convention can manage to lift romney up and he come out of here with, you know what, this guy is okay. that's what they want to accomplish. he's a credible choice because the economy is probably going to drive a lot of mitt romney's success. megyn: the way the conventions work. the challenger, the party out of power goes first and the incumbent goes second. is it better for mitt romney to be going first or is it better to have the last word?

>> reporter: i think first is better. >> i think it's better for him to go first. the mantra that he's a secretive person and no one could relate to him. if he was to go second. there would be another week of how bad and evil mitt romney is. i think it's better for mitt romney to go first. >> reporter: if they focus on social issues and roll out on the todd aiken comments, the representative from missouri running for senate and they spend a lot of time on it, it will i think feel like it is out of place because this is about the economy and free enterprise and jobs. >> if you look at polls today almost all of them have obama up by one point or down a point. they are about even. i think after this convention romney might have a little bit of a bump.

and they will be even. it will be neck and neck until november. megyn: romney's senior adviser says now is the time to spend the general election money. they feel they have been at a deficit prior to now. but now it's a whole different ballgame. they feel well positioned on that. panel, thank you so much. bring it, do you feel nervous in. >> reporter: i don't think so. >> i'm freak out. >> reporter: i would freak out if i was with beblg and gutfeld every night. megyn: he's a calming influence. we'll talk later. great to see you both. governor mitt romney is apparently still making corrections and shaping his speech. but his background should be helpful. governor romney was an english major in college and we are told

he's a voir ray husband reader and known to make notes in his journal. over this past weekend governor romney took two days off the campaign trail to finish this thing. when he takes the stage later tonight an estimated 40 million viewers will tune in. imagine 40 million people watching you give these remarks. it's going to be the biggest political speech in this career. bret, dana and i will be here. make sure you catch "the five." "special report" at 6:00 p.m. and prime time coverage later tonight. brand-new information coming in on tropical storm isaac. a weakened isaac is still causing dangerous flooding, storm surges and tornado fears across the gulf coast. new evacuations just ordered and reports that half of louisiana is without power due to isaac's slow crawl across the gulf

states. when it's all over the storm could leave behind two feet of water in some spots. highways, roads, homes flooded out leaving many still in need of rescue. rick reichmuth is live at the storm center. >> reporter: the eastern side of it where the tornado threat is and the tornado watch in effect until 4:00 p.m. the bands west of mobile and again around pascagoula. we'll see that around the norms area again. a little bit later. moving towards the north, heavy rain is falling mere. louisiana-mississippi border there is a lake in there that is now a big concern that that dam is going to breach and break so they are evacuating. up to 50,000 people that are down below this in case that break does happen.

the storm will move upwards north at a quicker break. much of arkansas the threat for heavy rain and severe weather. a big bull's-eye of 4-8 inches of rain across parts of iowa, illinois and indiana. a lot of this area obviously is under so much drought so the rain is good but they will get so much so quickly we'll have flooding threats far inland from where isaac came onshore. megyn: rick, thank you. what he says hours from now will influence an election that could affect generations of americans to come. as we await governor romney's acceptance speech. some are drawing parallels between his path and the one president ray began followed in 1980. three of the gop's biggest names suggesting that president obama is waging a war on success. we'll have a fair and balanced

debate with presidential campaign managers on both sides of the aisle. >> i was on my own paths, my own journey, an american journey where i could think for myself, decide for myself, define happiness for myself. that's what we do in this country. that's the american dream. are you receiving a payout from a legal settlement or annuity over 10 or even 20 years? call imperial structured settlements. the experts at imperial can convert your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today.

>> people can't see a fat man standing next to a thin man and come together conclusion that the fat man got that way because the thin man. megyn: president reagan speak on behalf of barry goldwater. that speech credited with launching him to future prominence. he was able to address the

republican national convention of 1980. earlier this week mitt romney's son tagg suggested his father could be on the same path to the white house. joining us now to discuss it, michael reagan. chairman of the reagan group. tagg romney says mitt romney's path to the white house is a carbon copy of your dad's. your dad won by such a landslide against carter. you forget he was behind considerably for most of that race including well beyond where we are in this race. >> double digits at this point in 1980, my far it was behind by double digits and was able to win by a large margin. it's interesting you play that cut. what has changed? nothing has changed. the democrats are still using the same mantra they used in the

1960s to try and defeat barry goldwater. somehow it's the require, somehow it's business. that's the problem with the world today. we just tax more, have more government. we'll be able to solve the problems. my father goes on in that speech to say you would think at some point they would give us a scorecard to show how well they are doing. they never give you a scorecard because you won't want to see the scorecard and today we are living it. megyn: your dad is talking about the fatman and the thinman. it doesn't mean the fat man took advantage of the thin man to get there. a similar narrative emerged at the republican national convention. the theme that there is a war on success by the obama administration. the other theme that emerged was that the government is incruising too much in our lives. paul ryan says do we want to live in a society where everything is free but us.

listen to your dad on a similar point in 1986. >> i think you all know i always felt the nine most terrifying words in the english lang are i'm from the government and i'm here to help. megyn: are they taking a play out of his playbook? >> god, i hope so. i certainly hope so. mitt romney tonight has the chance to make the party his party and make this election truly about where he wants to take america. mitt romney tonight needs to define himself as ronald reagan did in 1980. he needs to define himself. who is and where he wants to take the united states of america and how he wants to get there. don't make it i for to us understand. hit two or three point and get those done and ram them home. don't go off into a 59-point plan. we don't have time for that. i'm not going to read the book. keep it simple stupid and show america that you are human. that you are vulnerable.

what you need to do tonight is prove that your wife ann romney was correct. megyn: your dad when he went into that 198 some convention had been largely defined by jimmy carter who painted him as this looney conservative the country needed to fear. your dad gets up there. as long as he didn't have two horns coming out of his head he was going to do well because of the caricature that had been painted of him. does mitt romney have a similar advantage in terms of low expectations? >> mitt romney needs to define himself tonight. show america, show the world -- 40 million people will be watching tonight. the side that ann romney talked about the other night. show us that side. show us -- be humble tonight. make your points. drive them home. but be humble in it, talk about "we," don't talk about "i."

ronald reagan in the 1980 speech only mentioned jimmy carter 7 times or mentioned the democrats 7 times. you don't have to mention obama so many time that you need to tell people how you are going to take america with their help into the future and make the world a better place because america is once again going to be successful. megyn: when your dad became the presumptive nominee gallup had his 14 points behind carter. your dad was 9 points behind carter at the beginning of the gop convention. he trailed him for much of the fall, then he largely -- his debate performance is largely credited with the victory. he was so good in the debates, especially the one that happened right before the election. does it hold a candle to the debates in terms of importance? >> the debates are so important because you will see one pitted

against the other. rob portman will take the place of obama in the debates. he will be tough on mitt romney because obama is going to be tough on him. on the other side when you look at the vice presidential debates joe bide will be try to laugh off everything paul ryan says. this debate doesn't need to be about humor. it needs to be about facts and paul ryan needs to take it to him when he starts to laugh. when the vice president starts to laugh at paul ryan, this is nothing to laugh about what's going on in the world we live in. it's not funny. we need to make it right and romney and ryan are the people to do it. megyn: with all due respect to governor romney, he isn't ronald reagan. he has not been credited with being this sort of ore this sorr father was.

>> when i talk about humanizing himself like last night with ryan. when he talked about his grandmother, his children, the death of his father when he was 16. that's what mitt romney needs to do. he needs to make himself human. tell the story. is a said to you before. ronald ray began spoke to us in parables, not sound bites. tonight mitt romney needs to speak to us in parables. tell us stories, tell us how we can get back to that point in our lives and move us forward. if he does that, he will win tonight, he will win the election and we'll go on to a better world. megyn: i spoke with rob portman on the floor of the convention hall and asked how he's going to play president obama. and i said will you give him any heads up about where you are going to go? he said absolutely not. so that will be an interesting process.

>> mitt romney needs to stand up for being successful. success build jobs. megyn: you tee up our next debate perfectly. thank you so much for being here, michael reagan. i want to bring you an update. evacuations are being ordered in mississippi as dams have reached their breaking point. we'll try to get you this live report from the gulf state right after this break on the latest there. and we heard an emerging theme in last night's rnc speeches. michael reagan touched on it a moment ago suggesting president obama is waging a war on success in america. we'll have a fair and balanced debate moment away. >> the he sense of america, what really unites us is not nationality or ethnicity or religion. it is an idea. and what an idea it is. that you can come from humble circumstances and you can do great things. that it does not matter where you came from, it matters where

you are going. [cheers and applause] 8% every 10 years. wow. wow. but you can help fight muscle loss with exercise and ensure muscle health. i've got revigor. what's revigor? it's the amino acid metabolite, hmb to help rebuild muscle and strength naturally lost over time. [ female announcer ] ensure muscle health has revigor and protein to help protect, preserve, and promote muscle health. keeps you from getting soft. [ major nutrition ] ensure. nutrition in charge!

questions. when you're caring for a loved one with alzheimer's, not a day goes by that you don't have them. questions about treatment where to go for extra help, how to live better with the disease. so many questions, where do you start? alzheimers.gov. the answers start here.

megyn: fresh details just in concerning governor romney's nomination acceptance speech. you are getting a first look at the new stage from which the governor will deliver his address. they are changing it in advance of tonight. it pore triewds farther out into the convention hall. so that what's hamming on the rnc floor. but there is also a lot happening on the floors above. some thing the delegates and viewers don't typically get to see until now. let me give you a behind the

scenes look at how things go down behind the fox set. this is a critical stop for all of we anchors. you can seat geniuses who transform us from the sow's ear into the silk purses. they are hard at work every night. thank you for the great enormous work you do. heavy lifting for this team. sometimes you will see big stars waiting in the staging area. look. do i lie? chris wallace are you excited about the big evening? >> i'm so excited i can barely sit. megyn: before we go out on the air we sit in this fox news engineering room for a couple minutes to get our thoughts together and printouts the speeches. it's fancy. a real beauty. dion gets our microphones on and gets our earphones working. that's no easy feat. then we come over here. usually at night this place is

bustling. the delegates are running around getting ready for the big flight. then the fox news set. this is where we broadcast at night sitting next to each other doing the broadcast. you can see the teleprompters set up and the monitors down below. tonight governor romney will accept the nomination from that podium. up above you can see the balloons. they will rain down on the crowd like a bunch of confetti. fine times here in tampa. one of the big questions after today. what's next after this convention closes down. the romney team may feel unstoppable but our next guest knows the race for the white house is about to get really tough. governor sarah palin is here. but before we go to break let's take a his to the sights and

sounds inside the convention hall. [♪] plus, it reduces copd flare-ups. spiriva is the only once-daily inhaled copd maintenance treatment that does both. and it's steroid-free spiriva does not replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms. tell yr doctor if you have kidy problems, glaucoma, trouble urinating, or an enlarged prostate. these may worsen with spiriva. discuss all medicines you ta, even eye drops. stop taking spiriva and seek immediate medical help

if yr breathing suddenly worsens, your throat or tongue swells, you get hives, vision changes or eye pain, or problems passing ure. other side effects include dry mouth and constipation. nothing can reverse copd. spiriva helps me breathe better. does breathing with copd weigh you down? ask your doctor if spiriva can help. 8% every 10 years.age 40, we can start losing muscle -- wow. wow. but you can help fight muscle loss with exercise and ensure muscle health. i've got revigor. what's revigor? it's the amino acid metabolite, hmb to help rebuild muscle and strength naturally lost over time. [ female announcer ] ensure muscle health has revigor and protein to help protect, preserve, and promote muscle health. keeps you from getting soft. [ major nutrition ] ensure. nutrition in charge! i've got a nice long life ahead. big plans. so when i found out medicare doesn't pay all my medical expenses,

i looked at my options. then i got a medicare supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. the rest is up to you. call now and find out about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement plans, it helps pick up some of what medicare doesn't pay. and could save you thousands in out-of-pocket costs. to me, relationships matter. i've been with my doctor for 12 years. now i know i'll be able to stick with him. [ male announcer ] with these types of plans, you'll be able to visit any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients. plus, there are no networks, and you never need a referral to see a specialist. so don't wait. call now and request this free decision guide to help you better understand medicare...

and which aarp medicare supplement plan might be best for you. there's a wide range to choose from. we love to travel -- and there's so much more to see. so we found a plan that can travel with us. anywhere in the country. [ male announcer ] join the millions of people who have already enrolled in the only medicare supplement insurance plans endorsed by aarp, an organization serving the needs of people 50 and over for generations. remember, all medicare supplement insurance plans help cover what medicare doesn't pay. and could save you thousands a year in out-of-pocket costs. call now to request your free decision guide. and learn more about the kinds of plans that will be here for you now -- and down the road. i have a lifetime of experience. so i know how important that is.

>> i thought the these that ran through -- condi rice spoke about we are not jealous of success. then ryan i thought was talking about how everything the administration has done is to denigrate what is so natural to americans, to appreciate success and celebrate and say romney is a success. that very powerful. megyn: that was conservative columnist charles krauthammer talking about a theme we heard in last night's speeches. he said many speakers appear to feel the president is waging a war on success and were there to make that case last night. here are some of the remarks he was talking about.

>> growing up i never imagined a little girl from a border town could one day become a governor. but this is america. [speaking spanish] [cheers and applause] my parents taught me to never give up, and to always believe that my future could be whatever i dreamt it to be. success they taught me is built on the foundation of courage, hard work and individual responsibility. i'm sure there was help along the way. but my parents took the risk, they stood up and you better believe they built it. ours has never been a narrative

of grievance and entitlement. we have never believed that i am doing poorly because you are doing well. we have never been jealous of one another and never envious of each other's successes. [cheers and applause] no, ours has been a belief in opportunity. and it has been a constant struggle long and hard up and down to try to extend the benefits of the american dream to all. >> when i was waiting tables, washing dishes or mowing lawns for money, ier in thought of myself as stuck in some station in life. i was on my own path, my own journey, an american journey where i could think for myself, decide for myself, define

happiness for myself. that's what we do in this country. that's the american dream. [cheers and applause] >> that's freedom and i'll take it any day over the supervision and sanctimony of the central planners. [cheers and applause] megyn: joining me now in a very noisy convention hall suddenly. ed rollins. the former campaign manager of michele bachmann for president and joe trippi, the former campaign manager for howard dean. both are fox news contributors. let me start with you, ed. it was clearly a theme last night. over and over again they pounded that mantra that it is something to be proud of in this country to be successful. it's the foundation of what this country was built on. did they make their case?

>> they certainly did. certainly the individuals who spoke and the two women you just had on were extraordinary speakers and extraordinary achievers in this life. i mean, i have heard condi rice many times and been in many meetings with her. i never heard a more eloquent speech ever than the one she gave last night. susana martinez is a future star of this party and mike huckabee and others who were on before that all have made it. they didn't come from wealth. they worked hard and achieved great things. that's what we want as a party. that's the difference. to a certain extent the president and his team are not bad people in spite of rush limbaugh criticizing us for not saying he's a bad guy. we just have a different viewpoint. they think we need government to interfere and redistribute wealth and government to be the referee. our perspective is give us the freedom to achieve what we want to achieve as americans.

megyn: how are democrats likely to deal with this. the republicans have made such a big deal out of that. next week we'll hear from elizabeth warren who was the original architect of "you didn't build that" narrative. how are they going to deal with it? >> probably with one of the best embodiments of the american dream this country has seen, that's the president of the united states who knows way it's like to have been raised with a grandmother and start off with very little. the governor of new mexico proclaimed in america everything is possible. there is somebody who actually believed that, it's got, barack obama. the same dream of her not seeing her civil as being governor had to have been true back then. he knows about success. and that's what he wants. that's what he's going to project. i thought all of the speeches last night were incredible as was condi rice. but there is a different approach.

he believes we all pull together to build the roads, that we built the foundation of success in our schools. then individual's success comes out of that foundation. i think that's what we'll see. he has to address this. this is a very dangerous thing for him to let this go unchallenged. there is no war on success. he's got to make that clear and project the positive side of his story and his achieving that dream and making it out there for everybody else and doing that at his convention. if he does that he will knock this down, i think. megyn: how dor did we get to the point where this has become an issue about whether one who becomes successful in this country has earned it or not. >> i don't think we made it the issue. i think the president made it the issue. despite joe's story of where he came from from. at the end of the day the policies are such. i think to a certain extent the republican party -- it's why i

joined the relationship can party 30 years ago. i believed in small government. my father was a shipyard worker. i watched him go out every day and work hard to support his family. my grandparents were irish immigrants. we wanted to be a party of opportunity. we wanted to be a party of the working people and i think that's why we tried forcibly to become. i think to a certain extent democrats have have and that will be the end of them in the long run. megyn: is this handy cap the attacks on bain capital. mitt romney as a rich guy. is it an implicit dig that he's too rich and might not understand people? >> no, i don't think so. i think they have different things. romney has to project that he does care about people other

than the rich. it's clear voters are concerned about that. the obama campaign is going to keep trying to push that through. both of these campaigns have given the other side the attack. i think the president would like to take back "you didn't build that" as a way to describe it. mitt romney would like to take back, i like firing people. they both gave the other side some of the ammunition. in a presidential race that's a dangerous thing to do. so they both have got to fight back from their own predicaments that they are partially to blame for creating. megyn: i want to talk about the so-called war on success and i want to talk about this so-called war on women and whether representatives of the republican party like condi rice and susanna martinez and their stories may have office shifted the narrative and we'll do that with our panel right after this break.

standby. [♪]

you. >> on a personal note, a little girl grows up in jim crow birmingham. the segregated city of the south where her parents can't take her to a movie theater or to a restaurant. but they have her absolutely convinced that even if she can't have a hamburger at the woolworth's lunch counter, she can become the president of the united states if she wants to be and she becomes the secretary of state. [cheers and applause] megyn: what a moment with secretary rice right now. we are back with our panel. ed rollins former campaign manager for michele bachmann and

joe trippi, former howard dean campaign manager. megyn: a producer had her teenaged daughter here with her. she said watch this, listen to that. it's something all mothers and fathers want their children to believe, that this is a place where anything is possible. her story is inspirational and she was speaking as a woman and as a black american. there is a question about whether that had a higher meaning in the context of this political dog fight we have been watching, ed. >> it certainly should have. we saw it back to back. we saw ann romney give this extraordinary speech of how she was a mother, five children, a great wife, how much she loved her husband, how they moved forward in life and built a better life for their children and obviously hopefully if they are husband gets elected the president, a better president.

i always have had great irritation -- i have been in politics for 40 years. i was ronald reagan's political campaign manager. at the end of the day the gender arguments that we are anti-woman is absurd. i have a 17-year-old daughter. i have sisters. women are very important to me. as as a voter they are very important to us. we became a pro life party in the 80s. but that wasn't anti-woman. that was pro life. there are many democrats who are pro life. if you have a different position you are welcome in our party. already lots of things economic and other that you can move fon forward on. we are have much for women. you saw many of them on this podium the last few days. megyn: there is a narrative that the republican party is anti-woman, anti-black and

anti-his and i can. they had several ambassadors who may have not intended, but did strike that down. >> i thought the speeches were good and powerful. i think both parties have problems. the democratic party, we have problems winning men over. i can't explain why. we don't have anything against men. but we just do. they tend to vote republican. we never talk about the war on men. so i think both parties have problems. it's not just pro life, it's everything from pell grants, education. there are different issues. more women get older and live longer than men and count on social security more. democrats have always defended social security. so there are just different reasons. i thought last night -- that was a good night for the republicans when they got to these kinds of

speeches where they were talking about redefining their image, about projecting what they want the american people to see, and not the fringe elements of both parties. and the fringe issues. i think that what's they have to do here. has to project who he is, a narrative, what ann romney was able to accomplish for him. people understand so they don't -- the caricature of him being a rich guy is addressed in a way that works for him. megyn: joe trippi, ed rollins, i have got to leave it at that. i appreciate it so much. tonight mitt romney delivers his critical speech. tomorrow it's back to the campaign trail. now the campaign is probably going to get rough. in three minutes former alaska governor palin joins us with her advice for the gop ticket going forward. [ kate ] most women may not be properly absorbing

the calcium they take because they don't take it with food. switch to citracal maximum plus d. it's the only calcium supplement that can be taken with or without food. that's why my doctor recommends citracal maximum. it's all about absorption.

megyn: welcome back here live in tampa. we are awaiting the biggest night of this convention and count down to the biggest political speech of governor romney's political career so far. governor romney will be speaking at the one in the front. the one in the back will be used by the other speakers. the second podium in the back will fall down into the floor by the time governor comes out on the stage. what do governor romney and paul ryan expect after tampa. our next guest has lots of experience in that area.

governor sarah palin joins us by phone. things got ugly and it was a rough and tumble race after your electrifying speech at the convention four years ago. what do you anticipate will happen now? >> things got ugly because the obama lap dogs will stop at nothing to make sure their chosen one is elected. paul ryan has got to be prepared as does governor romney. governor romney is loaded for bear. he's ready for what's coming when the media starts trying to warp his record and his reputation. what they need to do, megyn, is make sure they have a clear path articulated and clear plan on how we are going to turn this economy around and make sure americans understand what road they want to put us on.

because it's tough to defeat an incumbent. people need a reason to make sure that they can have that confidence, that the next buy is going to do a lot better job and the next guys will do a lot better job. they won't allow the debt to continue to increase with the reckless spending obama has allowed. megyn: today about an hour ago we did a story about a buy at yahoo who has been fired, but he used to run several major political units for major news outlets who was caught on an open mic saying the romney campaign has no trouble partying while blacks are drowning thanks to isaac. he was fired by yahoo but we did a panel discussion about whether this is sort of what the romneys are up against as they seek the white house. >> oh, yes, absolutely. by the way, that yahoo dude who said that horrible comment.

it's disgusting and that was racist. but the comment he made. i had to deal with him four years ago. he was a producer for one of the shows that did an interview with me. then tried to change the context of my comments in that interview. i have personal experience with that guy and i'm glad he got canned. but they will have to be prepared for more of that. those very unfair shots that will be taken. and that is why our side of the ticket -- we cannot underestimate the wisdom of people and be consumed with the unfairness of the progressive liberals in the media. we have to be focused on what the plan is to turn things around. what will the cuts in the budget be so people aren't surprised when these cuts do happen, once our side of the ticket is

elected. and we need to make sure people understand that free markets, free enterprise really has been the building block of america's prosperity and we need to get -- we can't punish -- megyn: we have 60 seconds until a hard break. i want to get this question in. i haven't heard your reaction to paul ryan's speech. >> it was great. he talked about the big ideas. that's exactly what we need. i think joe biden will probably be tempted to call in sick the night of their one vp debate and i so look forward to that night. megyn: that would make for an interesting evening for five minutes. governor palin thanks so much for joining us. we appreciate it. megyn: all the best. we'll be right back. don't go away.

: [ wife ] your dad's really giving him the business... the designated hitter's the best thing to happen to baseball! but it's not the same game! [ wife ] wow, he's really gonna get us a good deal.

it's better! no it's not! the pitcher comes up and he's out! [ dealer ] he can bunt! whatever. but we're good with 0% apr for 60 months? oh yeah, totally. thank you so much. that must've been brutal. [ male announcer ] the volkswagen autobahn for all event. at 0% apr for 60 months, no one needs to know how easy it was to get your new volkswagen. that's the power of german engineering. 8% every 10 years.age 40, we can start losing muscle -- to get your new volkswagen. wow. wow. but you can help fight muscle loss with exercise and ensure muscle health. i've got revigor. what's revigor? cid metabolite, hmb to help rebuild muscle and strength naturally lost over time. [ female announcer ] ensure muscle health has revigor and protein to help protect, preserve, and promote muscle health. keeps you from getting soft. [ major nutrition ] ensure. nutrition in charge!