>> this is "the chris matthews show" -- >> ask not what your country can do for you. >> tear down this wall. >> i can hear you! >> the time for change has come! chris: stuck. how did a presidency aimed at transforming us get so darn stuck? syria? first, do no harm. gun safety, don't even ask. immigration? none of it makes the administration look good. how did a -- does a once-unstoppable obama get past so many immovable objects? and war in syria? not our responsibility. have americans 4 -- had it with being the unwanted liberators?

finally, in loco parentis. the federal government says kids of any age should have the right to the morning-after pill. where are we going with this? hi, with us is dan rather, the bbc's katty kay and david ignatius of the washington post. rm president obama was elected actually to accept a new reality. look at his caution way back in the early days of his first campaign. ? no president should ever hesitate to use force une i larlely if -- unilaterally if necessary to protect our vital interests whether attacked. but when we use force in situations other than self-defense we should make every effort to garner the

clear support and participation of others. chris: but this this week -- week the president said if chemical weapons were approved for use bit assad forces he may look at a range of options. >> there are some options we might not consider otherwise that we would strongly consider. chris: now he says only if it's proven that the assad forces themselves used them and 9 international community has to accept that fact before we move and even then he's going to just consider options. sounds like he's still cautious. >> the translation is he's very cautious. realizing it's very easy to get in and extremely difficult to get out and realizing that many of those calling for military action in syria, many of them don't have -- have sons or grandsons who would be called to go to syria. we can't commit militarily

every place in the world and he said we're not under, if by his rules we're not under imminent attack and we're not immediately threatened, that's the threshold. i think that's the threshold the american people degree with and i'll be very surprised if he moves off that. of course there is the argument that he could do the so-called no-fly zone and special areas for refugees, but once you put your toe into it, it's very easy to have a whole leg and body in. >> and that's not just dan rather speaking. this week that's george will and 62% of the public. >> i think he went through a cycle of being more ambitious. did the surge in afghanistan thinking it would work there and i think he's concluded it didn't. this president really doesn't want to go to war in syria but there are two factors reshaping

the situation. the first is that the regime of assad is using chemical weapons against its own peemplet the evidence of this is overwhelming. it's firing scud miss aisles in areas of cities of its own country, artillery is shelling the citizens, its planes are bombing them. it's very hard for any president to squast watch that. the second thing is that a leader's eau -- emerged on the syrian opposition side that the u.s. finally trusts. he's a syrian army general who deflected -- defected last year. i've interviewed him a number of times. he talks good sense. he realizes that syria has to stay united and reach out to minorities and somehow you have to keep stability in the country. they have said if we go in, we're going in.

>> hezbollah is already there. assad has said they've made more military gains . now we're in much more of a stalemate position and it is because we have the influence of hezbollah and iranian financing moving into syria as well. but you're right, the obama administration shows very little sign of wanting to get involved in this. chuck hagel, john kerry, two dovish members of his national security team. whiles -- while there may be an argument it's in america's long-tem interests to break up the prospect of a breakup in that area, it's no immediate danger. chris: the president m that preference -- press conference this week, i've never seen him, not stunned, but as much back on his heels. it seems like the people around him have said why do you look so war-weary?

but even on background checks, gitmo, all kinds of reasons we can't get rid of it right now, inability to gailt deal on the economy, immigration looks dodgy even though that looked like the best deal. stuck, stuck, stuck. >> yeah, when he was answering that question about whether he had the juice to get anything through in the remainder of his term, i actually had a moment of empathy. does he understand how to use the power of the presidency to get his agenda through in if you talk to people on the hill, their attitude is the president comes in with all the certitude of the president in the faculty lounge and treats them like they're just dumb and he knows what's right. he needs to go not just to the hand-picked senators, he needs to go to the rank and file. take mini camp mcconnell and john boehner out for a drink. chris: would you? >> that was a funny line at the white house correspondents'

dinner, but the point is he does need to engage these people and try to help boehner come up with a deal he can get through. chris: he used a phrase i thought was very intriguing. he wanted a "permission structure." he's going to try to find a scaffolding he can use to let people like boehner and mcconnell help him. >> he needs the fear factor. >> what's his hammer? >> well, take the gun issue. if he can go after people who voted against background checks and make them afraid that they're in trouble, and that's not happening with senator iota in new hampshire, it happened to max baucus, other republicans who voted against this who it seemed to be in a little bit of trouble in states where there is overwhelming support for background checks. if he can make them afraid, then he begins to change the

calculus. >> and part of the communication problem this white house has always had, whether health care or gun control, and we have joe biden saying they could have begun a better job explaining it to people, why senators and members of congress, even if hurts them in their primary districts or whatever it is, they should vote for it because it's the "p.t.i." -- right thing. >> very important. all these things we said about what the president should do, could do, might acquit him. but his opponents, you talk about taking them out to dinner and making nice, but these people politically want to cut his heart out abandon throw his live tore the dogs. that does make it very difficult to come on nice to them. chris: troubling suggestion over dinner, right? i do think he doesn't enjoy the company of his fell oy politicians. excuse me, mr. president, you are one of them. >> it's too late in the game to

start being charming when he is to -- so transparent. if the strategy is to go over the heads of the american people -- of you and to the american people, you've got to do it. >> who's been quoting them? kelly or iota. they make their points out of beating people. this week hollywood tries again -- the latest movie version of the great american novel, f. scott fitzgerald's masterpiece, i think, "the great ghatsby. " for many, including me, this novel is sacrosanct. we compared two key scenes from the movie to the gatsby of the past, a 1974 robert redford version and one starring the great alan ladd.

n the new movie, carey mulligan plays his love. here she suddenly finds out the mysterious, long-lost gatsby has showed up in her elite world of east egg, long island. >> i don't know a single person that side of the bay. >> oh, you must know gatsby. >> gatsby? what gatsby? >> we live across the sound in west egg. i know somebody there. >> i don't know a single person. >> you have -- you know ghats by. >> oh, he's my neighbor. >> gatsby? what gatsby? >> i've got a little house across the channel. chap named gatsby. >> what gatsby is that? >> funny how the same scene can be brought to the scene three different ws, isn't? next, his climb ak tic face-off with daisy's husband, tom buchanan.

>> what kind of trouble arussia did are you trying to cause in mip home any how? >> tom -- >> your wife never loved you. she never has. she's loved me since 11 years ago the >> let's go home. >> nobody is going home. i'm going to sit down right here and listen to what mr. gatsby has to tell me. >> your wife's never loved you the she loves me. >> please have a element self-control. >> self-control? if that's the idea, count me owe -- out. >> nowadays people begin by smearing family life and family institutions. >> your wife doesn't love you. she never loved you. see loves me. >> judging by that it seems like this time this gatsby may be closer to the reality of the story. anyway, when we come back, most consider abortion morally consequential. what do the people in this room think of a federal judge's order that girls of any age can

chris: welcome back. this week the obama administration said 15-year-olds can by morning-after pills over the counter the if that seems surprising, it's actually the moderate one on this one. the judge has said to lift any agely. at all. mtv has a documentary show called "16 and pregnant" exploring emotions of young mothers. >> my whole life changed. i'm a mom. i don't even, like, i love my child and like i miss him so much but i don't like hearing that i'm a mom. i don't, because, wow, i'm 17.

i wish i would have never got pregnant, most definitely. and sometimes i close my eyes and think what would i be boing -- doing right now if he wasn't here? i would be having fub with friends, using my life and getting to go to college wherever i wanted. chris: there we have her talking about something very grown up, having a baby. and then the morning-after ill, which is a way to allow somebody to have birth control after the fact. >> yes, especially if the science is now saying it's cons -- contraception, not a firth preventing pregnancy once its taken place. i look back at the bbc's reporting on child abuse and this concerns me the most. america has the highest levels of child abuse in the morled --

world. three times higher than canada on -- oirt aly and there is a direct link between child abuse and teen pregnancy. because you are too young to be having a child and responsible at 15, 16, 17. you are more likely to be poor the incarceration rates are another factor. whatever we can do to limit teen pregnancy seems to be a good idea. chris: kids having sids -- kids. >> my main focus is the parental authority. we are every day undermining parental authority in their children's lives and the idea that a child 15 or younger could actually go and buy some medication, that, it may be afe but not innocuous. you can't take a tylenol at school without your parents' permission but you can go by

this. chris: my dad once said, what do you think of parental notification for abortion and he said, well, that defeats the purpose. he didn't have any daughters. but he said make your decisions, do what you have to do, don't have an abortion. >> it's really a tough call. it's hard to harg -- argue that most parents if faced with this, say do you want your 14, 13, 12-year-old daughter to come home pregnant or do you want her to be able to get something that will stop her pregnancy i got a believe a lot of parents would say -- chris: without their permission? >> without it, i think they would say i want her to have it. chris: it's harder i think for the parents -- parents can imagine kids' intimidation by themselves. "mom, i'm 14, i'm pregnant, can

i go buy this pill?" >> it's tricky. really hard. i would love to see these pills, i think they could -- should be available over the counter to prevent unwanted pregnancies for children but i would like every pill to come wrapped in a wrapper that says "talk to your parents now." somehow you need to push that. chris: thank you so much. it's tricky and enough about the book, i want to hear about your date.

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>> welcome back. dan, tell me something i don't know. >> for-perfect colleges and universities, some are paying their presidents $7 million to $15 million a year. more than even football coaches make at most universities. and the microscope is going on what are alleged to be predatory loans to students that have a lot to do with the profit that allow them to pay those salaries. >> democrats are looking at 2014 and thinking they might have a market in running candidates running specifically on the issue of being able to compromise and get job done rather than particular issues. there is a real market for that among voters. -- eng asu -- bengie molina beng azzi hearings start wednesday. i'm sure you know a lot of

people are looking into things and some are saying they've been blocked or intimidated by the state department. chris: what are they trying to get out? what's the buzz? >> what happened in interpreted -- terms of whether they did president extra security and what happened on the day? >> chris: what is the message? >> i can't tell you because no one will tell me. they assure me that waver comes out on wednesday and ensuing meetings will contradict the official line. >> well, fox news -- >> that doesn't mean it's wrong. chris: the whisspl blowers if they whistled on background we could know. >> i'm talking about lawyers that -- i knew you were going to roll your eyes but i think it makes you look good to at least mention it on your show. >> no, i think benghazi is a serious story. we talked about --

>> could you say that a little louder, please? >> benghazi is a serious story. here's the scariest part of it. sources tell me that hundreds of european muslims have moved into syria to fight the apology aud of al qaeda and we have the prospect of the tribal areas of pakistan on the shores of the mediterranean. so worry about that. chris: and they're radicalized? >> these are european muslims who have been radicalized who are coming into syria, fighting and sneaking out. chris: i just want to read something from "ghats by," not just to promote a movie but this is my favorite book. it's to get people back to reading novels again. "most of the big shore places were closed now and there were hardly any lights except the

shadowy moving glove a ferry boat across the sound. as the moon rose higher the insem houses faded away and i became aware of the fresh, green breast of the new world. its vanished trees that had made way for gatsby's house, had panders and whispers for the last of -- and greatest of human dreams. for a moment, man must have held his breath in this moment. face to face for the last time in history with something com incidenceurate to his capacity for wonder. " f. scott fitzgerald. when we come back, the big question of the week the the economy is p

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have brag rights for 2014? >> if it continues on this trend line, yes. >> catty kay? -- katty kay? >> yes. loud yes. >> obviously if it continues. >> if it continues, if -- but there is time for it to go down again before 2016. hold your horses, hillary. chris: once i start this, i got to continue. that's the show. thanks for watching. see you back here next week. ♪ alright, let's go.

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good evening. i'm diane dwyer. >> i'm kerry mcsweeney. a gun battle at a mcdonalds this afternoon left several people wounded. police still at the mcdonald's in east palo alto on university avenue. about 2:30, a group of people outside the restaurant got into a gun fight with customers inside. a spokesman says it appears six people were shot. we do not know the condition of any of the victims. police hope to have more information soon and we'll get it to you as soon as it comes in. now to a developing story. five women are dead, including a bride to be after a limousine they were riding in somehow caught fire on the san mateo bridge last night. four other women are recovering in the