from washington, "the mclaughlin group," the american original. five dollars a cades, the

gallon! >> gas prices are climbing across the country, and when gas prices go up it hurts everybody -- everybody who owns a car, everybody who owns a business. >> $3.74. that's the average cost for a single gallon of gas in the u.s. now. that 3.74 is a spike of more

than 30 cents over the last 30 days. rising gas prices mean less consumer money for goods, like groceries, cars, houses, pharmaceuticals. that zeroing out of consumer spending brings the economy to a standstill. so why are gas prices shooting up? president obama tells us. >> the single biggest thing causing the price of oil to spike right now is instability in the middle east. this time, iran. >> the president is referring to iran's control of the strait of hormuz, a water pathage that controls some 20% of the world's oil. ,-that could happe israel go to war with each other. mr. obama also attributes the gas price hike to massive superpower consumption, named by him -- india, brazil, china. >> over the long-term, the

biggest reason oil prices will probably keep going up is growing demand in china, end 'ya and brazil. nearly 10 million cars were add indeed china in 2010 alone, 10 year! in one country! >> question -- what do you think of that -- those remarks from the president. >> i think the president is right, john. and i say the immediate cause here is the situation with iran and the united states israel. we have netanyahu coming to the united states. he wants this country to commit itself to go to war to prevent iran from having a nuclear weapons capability. he has support from mccain, in the congress, 38 senators have signed a resolution. it is the rising tensions in the persian gulf, the rising possibility of a collision not only between israel and iran, but the united states and iran, before this election i think is driving up the price of oil. and it's going so high it could

threaten the economies of europe, john. this issue of iran and oil and gasoline prices are all coming together. i think it's going to be the principle issue in the fall election. >> let me move along before i turn to you. okay, presidential candidate rick santorum blames obama for knicksing keystone! >> we now have $4-gallon gasoline. it's going to $5 or maybe more this year. why? because the president's doing nothing to allay the fears of the world that america is going to try and help replace the oil that is tenuous now in the middle east. >> question, can president obama reverse his position on the ski stone pipeline? he negated the pipeline a couple month ago. >> first of all, pat is right about the nightmare scenario, if there is military action israel against iran. that might bring us $5 a gallon gas. so i think the president

mightily does not want that to happen. the president won't reverse his decision on keystone. they're going to find an alternative route more environmentally desirable. but the republicans are going to hammer him for it, and they're going to try to get the american people to think that stopping the keystone is denying all this oil to the american taxpayer. and that's not right because the pipeline is canada's gateway to asia. they want to build a pipeline to port arthur, texas, a foreign free trade zone, and they want to export it. none of that oil will stay in the united states. and so to equate the blocking, the temporary blocking of that pipeline until a more environmentally reasonable route is found has nothing to do with the fact that gas prices are rising. in fact, the exported oil last year from this country for the first time. >> thanks to the recession,

which because our demand is down. look, president obama is right about the larger forces driving the price of gas and republican candidates said a lot of stupid things on this. it's not santorum that took the cake on that, it was newt gingrich who is going around promising $2.50 a gallon gas. but where obama has been dishonest and foolhardy is he's claiming credit for increased u.s. production that is happening entirely on private and state land while gas and oil production are decreasing on federal lands because of his policy. and where he is foolhardy is we had to share revolution going on with no reason in the united states should not be a gigantic power in the production of oil and gas. we're sitting on massive amounts of wealth, and his administration is slow walking it and doesn't want to go get it. >> does obama strategy entail decreasing the demand for oil so that we can go green? is he fundamentally and was he dedicated before he ran for

president the whole green world and con system? >> of course. and that -- >> that's not -- a negative -- [everyone talking at once] >> it's a negative if you so decrease the volume of oil. a million barrels a day could be transmitted by the keystone pipeline. as for whether or not it would all go abroad is another question. >> well, that's a pretty big question! >> that's what the obama people are saying. that hasn't been enough -- >> global market, it drops down prices globally, john. and so even if it does as eleanor said that, will bring down prices. if you get extra supplies say 90 million barrels a day, the price would -- [everyone talking at once] >> remember the solyndra disaster? does that give you an idea? do you remember what happened? >> yes -- >> it came in with another, what, enormous amount of money to continue the operation. greene racketeering is going on. that's what obama is doing. green racketeering!

>> are oil import in our energy imports drop from 60% of our consumption to freeh% in the last couple years because we have developed these great new sources as rick was saying of natural gas and oil. it is there in this country, being stopped. the pipeline i might say, canadians are now thinking and have the prime minister going to have the pipeline go to vancouver and export it directly to china, so we will not have a chance to get it. that -- all of that is not being exported. >> you sound pretty learned on this. let's see if you're good with domestic economics. this is ben bernanke. question have seen some positive developments in the labor market. private payroll employment has increased by 165,000 jobs for a month on average, since the middle of last year, annearly 26000 new ivator rse d in january. the decline thyear

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go aron sa day, e wi the orum, the new darling g.o. ght wing. ioto tuesday's primaries, there were nine other primaries, romnur those nine. santorum four. ngchne with michigan, these lever races have been a roller coaster. rom niece's tuesday win makes him the most recent ndidate with momentum. the the big the mo. question, how an romney's michigan vior very significant. he was facing seeing his brenn there would have been cry for otr candidate, fund-raising may have dried up. he could lllo ohio in that circumstance. so now we're looking at a ra i think where you're trngto keep romney below the number of 1144 and it'shard to do that.

certainly -- >>upsd is tuday and these are the 10 states holding pry mary's -- alkageorgi gingrich's home state, idaho, sshu noh kota, ohio, oklahoma, tennessee, vermont, virginia. going to -- take - --omney >> i think romney will dominate sur esy. he will not probably carry ora, which is beginning rich's home state. nggiri ithe he divides the opposition against romney so i think romney will come o this day as the clear republican candidate. >>ouage? >>the big prize is ohio. no republican has wothe presidency without carryi io noton e prar but in the fall. and that's everybody will focus io, whether santorum can catch romney in ohio. then gingrich has yet to wi hihome state of georgia. and santorum said he will come in first or secondn all 10 states. so -- the divide up the delegates and in the only in

that can derail romney is ntumwins a significant -- more delegates which is unlikely. >> we're agreed that he will continue his mo, but it may not the big mo after tuesday. >> the big mo for isreason. i think he'll win six at, romney. i think he'll win io vermont, massachusetts, virginia, dakota and idaho. >> issue three, syria? >> i thk that bad on definitions of war criminal and crimes agnshuni er isn argument to be made that he would fit into that cagory. >> the president of ri bashar assad, may fit the description. but the united states is not dearg at to be the case. the u.s. expects assad step down from power himself. assad is currently cracking down hard on protestors o e

demanding that he resign from thsyrian presidency. the civil rebellion and asd as crackdown on it have already lasted a year. 75 siacilis veee kied by syria's military and assad's security forces, says the u.n. the u.s. ambassador to thu. susan rice delivered this u.s. message indirectly to president assad. >> your days are numbered, and itis time and past time for you to transfer power responsibly and peacefully. >> thu.n. security council 15 members recently reviewed the syrian rebellion and crackdowns. the council drafted resolution calling on bashar assad to step down. the resolution was backed by the u.s. and both the 22-member area abe league and the 27- member urine union. but the resolution never saw

the light of da inanruiatwo powerhouses, blocked the measure and called instead for a brokered deal between assad bels. no ouster of asd! question, regarding international diplomacy towards syria, there's a fundamental international confli foreign policy principles playing out before our eyes. what is the root of that conflict? can you speak that, rick? >> it's sovereignty, humanitarian concerns versus sovereignty. for me it's a huge strategic question. we really want assad to. is only arab ally of iran. he's -- weapons hezbollah, complice knit the murder of amic soldiers in iraq and lebanese politics so at the least we want this conflict to burn on. and ifwee t going to -- the opposition we want the saudis, the turks to do it. we do not want to let assad off the hook. >>ohlo o the on suggestion is.

the opposition has got to for of hamas, the support of al- qaeda, they've got the suor of a muslim brotherhood. if that opposition wins, the christians go to the wall in syria. this is a hoenusme. know the devil got in there but there's devils coming. my judgment the united states should work along with the russians to put an end to this conflict. [everyone talking at once] >> t sovereignty of the state -- that is the -- failure agreement, or will it be huynh assistance? >> it's a sickening huynh. people are starve to go death and freezing to death. and i think -- yes, the saudis are beginning to talk about arng the opposition. the opposition is not a bunch of angels, but i think it's innerrable assad will go, and if you don't arm them it prolongs -- [everyone talking at once] >> let me -- [everyone talking at once]

>> okay, hillary's reprimand. >> the entire world, other than russia and china, were willing to recognize that we must take international action against the syrian regime. it's quite distressing to see two permanent members of the security council using their veto when people are are being murdered, women, children, brave young men, houses are des it is just despicable! >> the security council, 15 members, five of those voted on this proposition. they didn't vote, but it came to their review. what was the results of that? >> china and russia vetoed any real action we could take that the united nations would take against syria. and therefore, that's what she was reacting to. [everyone talking at once] it was dispicable because assad is a terror. now, the real power there is

russia. we have got to find a way to put great pressure on russia because russia's the -- because a lot of the leadership of russia has big personal financial investments in syria, all organized by assad to keep the russians on his side. it's a disgrace what is going on! >> assad's father in 1982 did the same thing. he brutally murdered 10,000 people. what did president reagan do then? it was 1982. >> nothing. in 1991, in iraq war, his father was an ally of the united states in the gulf war. >> this society is not our ally. >> no, it's not. >> most enemy -- >> it's not our problem. >> no, and he is -- a black, evil villain who -- [everyone talking at once] >> namely the respect for state sovereignty. >> 1648 -- [everyone talking at once] >> and people have a right to

decide -- [everyone talking at once] >> you mean you can have the -- assistance without -- [everyone talking at once] >> did you support to the contras >> yes, i did. >> kofi a known is the envoy there and issue four, the lonely centrist! >> we're living with a company, that's for sure. and i know that when someone described is as a vanishing center. sensible center, obviously fewer and fewer within our ranks. >> olympia snowe, the moderate republican senator from maine, announced this week they will not seek re-election. the just turned 65-year-old senator snowe has spent more than half of her life in the

u.s. congress, 34 years. first 16 years in the u.s. house of representatives, second district maine, and 18 years in the u.s. senate, maine. snowe says the reason for her decision not to run for a fourth term in the u.s. senate is because the senate is too divided and too soured to get anything done. >> the point is -- to be a consensus building institution, and we have strayed from that, far from it. we've deferred tax reform, regulatory reform, we've deferred energy policy, deferred budgets -- american budget resolutions and violation of laws. we're not dealing with things that people likely expect should be coming at this time, during this challenging economic period. >> president obama saluted senator snowe, it happens

rarely a salute from a democratic president to a republican member of congress. from her unwaving support for our troops to her effort to reform wall street to fighting for maine's small businesses, senator snowe's career demonstrates how much can be accomplished when leaders from both parties come thing for the american people. senator snowe is seen by many conservatives as too liberal ton a member of the republican party. they point of to her low conservative rating by the american conservative union, the acu. on a conservative scale, zero to 100, snowe has a lifetime senate ratisays the acu. question, did obama's progressive victory, progressive -- liberal victory in 2008 set the stage for political polarization? you want to try that? >> yes, he's hugely polarized

the country. in snowe argument of nothing happened is ridiculous. you had taught huge -- on this thing, had to bail out to the oil companies, a huge thing, enormous stimulus billing, enormous health care bill and obama care and huh dodd frank. when you had divided government things are not going to happen the way they do with unified government and you have a big election that tries so solve -- >> polarization -- >> yes. parties should stand for opposite opposing -- philosophies and take it to the public. >> a politician who sits with his mug on one side of the fence and his wamp on the other. old term. >> can you use that on tv? >> 1887, there is a no-man's land in the center of politics now on capitol hill that republican right is firing at the democratic left and the people in the center are being wiped out.

>> fire at the republican center when she sits in the caucus on the left -- >> the senate. >> call and it what you will. people have saying why don't you vote with the party when she's not voting with the -- [everyone talking at once] >> they get beaten because they -- you don't center to be a member of the party to support every aspect of the party. [everyone talking at once] >> i agree with you. you shouldn't center to vote down the line with your party on everything issue and what she is reacting to is the sticks made by mitch many mcconnell that the party with hang together offer issue she resigned this week on the measure of contraception and to force some moderate senators -- [everyone talking at once] >> she voted against it! >> excuse me! mitch mcconnell -- [everyone talking at once] >> this is outrageous!

>> jesse helms, in an ad against husband democratic opponent, harvey gantt, 20 plus years ago, there are three things in the middle of the road, a yellow stripe, a dead skunk, and harvey gantt. that's the point. >> that's right. >> that's character? >> exactly! >> you think it's a fair description? >> it's a fair description! [everyone talking at once] >> i think it's outrageous description! unless you can put together both parties on -- [everyone talking at once] you're they're in going to get anything down. [everyone talking at once] >> they should predictions, patrick? >> i think if romney wins ohio, it will be virtually over for santorum and the rest. >> if independent form of governor angus king gets in the senate race in maine he would win as an independent.

>> rich? >> the anniversary of obama care coming up, the signing of it. and democrats will be hiding under their desks in not talking about it bus it's such a loser. >> a conflict if >> i predict wisc]nsin republican govern scott walker will win his recall election and democratic presidential candidate barack obama will lose to wisconsin and