that's how far the republicans have gotten from their positive roots as partner in running this country. that's "hardball" for now. thanks for being with us. a lot more politics ahead. with the reverend al sharpton. the market drops. now, are republicans in washington ready to get serious about jobs? tonight, we know who will be on the special budget committee. and the gop names promise more fighting ahead. should the president call congress back to washington? a debate on that hot question. plus, what the vote in washington tells us about how progressive should fight the next battle with big money. and today, rush limbaugh says, i'm the victim of a secret conspiracy. tonight i'll set the rush record straight. welcome to the show.

i'm al sharpton. tonight's lead, the republicans find themselves in an uncompromising position once again. this s&p situation warned this country that political brinkmanship got us into this mess. well, that political pinkmanship sent the market down nearly 520 points again today. the dow has now lost 2,004 points since july 21st. you would think this would get republicans focused on helping this country. well, it hasn't. and in the pinch for the bipartisan committee is further proof of that. all six of the gop picks have signed grover norquist's anti-tax pledge. all six of them. and the senate picks alone are enough to make you laugh. senator john kyl pulled out fd biden talks because of what he

said was the job killing tax hikes. senator pat toomey voted against raising the debt ceiling because cuts didn't go far enough. and senator bob -- or rob portman, spent a year as george w. bush's budget director. that's not exactly a glowing resume for someone on a debt reduction committee. this is their idea of working past political brinkmanship. joining me now is representative jim mcdermott, democratic from washington. congressman mcdermott is also a member of the progressive office. congressman, you've heard the stance of republicans on the committee. how can we reach a bipartisan compromise with these members? >> al, i'm very, very pessimistic about this being productive at all. the congress, as described in the new republic this week, is a

block congress. that's all the republican party is, is block the president's efforts. and they put together a team which is going to make this debt reduction problem absolutely impossible to solve. if you can't have any kind of revenue increases, and you can't cut defense spending, and you can't stop the wars, how can you deal with the problems this country faces? and those are the guys they put on there and so they set it up so as mitch mcconnell says, the president will get no chance at a second tour of duty as president because we are going to stop everything he tries to do. >> well, i understand the politics of it and they're committed to the defeat of the president and they're not bashful about that. but the american people, look at this poll, 63%, this is a new poll, 63% says that this committee should raise taxes on

heighten ed americans and businesses. so this is on with americans feel some super committee should do. yet the republicans on this committee are all clearly on the record against even entertaining something like that. >> you have to remember, al, this is the right wing fringe. of the republican party. who does not believe in making a government that works. now they don't want a conservative government, they want no government. and so, they are really hell-bent on destroying what is going on. the american people are way ahead of the right wing of the republican party that's controlling right now. they know there has to be increased revenue. they know there has to be -- they know a lot of things have to be changed. but the right wing is determined to get rid of government as we have known it. that's the privatization of medicare and all the things,

getting rid of the epa and clean air and clean water regulation. all of that is their real goal. >> again, it flies in the face of the american people because the poll says when it came to medicare, when it comes to social security, 64% say the super committee shouldn't do any changes at all. so again, they talk and their rhetoric is that we are speaking for the people. yet there is no indication from any poll that the people are at all where they are. >> well, you know, i wouldn't mind their talk. they can say whatever they want. their actions are even scarier than what they do. because by stopping the federal government from functioning, they are second the message to the world, that the united states of america no longer has a government that can deal with the problems it faces. they have so broken the system, by the use of the filibuster,

and now recently with this intractable dragging their feet on the debt limit, they have shown to the world that we're not capable of dealing with things in the short run as long as they adopt that kind of defensive strategy. it is really very worrisome. >> but the politics side, for a second, and the polling aside for a minute, do they understand what they're doing to the american economy? look at what happened again today. look at what keeps happening in terms of the economy and what is going on on wall street. the economy is in real trouble. and when we see the dow keeps dipping. when we see the insecurity of investors, the instability of the economy, i don't care what your politics is, are you willing to ruin the country just for political gain? are these people that

unpatriotic? because that's really what it is, congressman. >> well, i think it is almost as though there is such denial of realities of world, that they cannot accept the fact that whole world knows that unless the federal government invests, for instance in an infrastructure bank and begins to build the projects we need this this country to be built and finds the money to do that, that we put construction workers back it work, that it makes it possible for all of the small businesses to get back into business, unless the federal government makes that kind of investment, we are going to continue down hill. they believe the answer to everything is cutting out government investment. and that simply is not going to lead us anywhere positive. it is -- they believe in this so strongly, that they cannot see the evidence of the -- of the stock market. i don't believe in the stock market much but i watch it and i watch it drop 2,000 points.

i say to myself, there's a problem out there, man. >> thank you congressman mcmcdermott. thank you for your time. joining me now, new york congressman bursting at the seams to counter some of what i have said to the congressman mcdermott and jonathan, msnbc political analyst and author of "the promise, president obama year one." thank you, rick. you were all but jumping in my first segment. >> no, just a couple of inconvenient truths here. number one, is we wouldn't have a super committee if democrats who controlled at one point both house, senate and white house had done anything about deficit reduction. or the president had not but putt forward his budget this year that didn't get a single democratic vote. >> i agree with you that the

democrats should have dealt with bush's tax cuts when they had both. on that, we can agree. they should have ended the bush tax cuts last year at this time when we had both the house and the senate. there's no question about that. >> and you might have had, you might not have had a super committee if president obama had seized the moment when his own fiscal commission led by boels, former chief of staff of bill clinton, came forth with a credible plan and he basically dised it. >> well, if we talk about dising and certain things that happen, we might not have had a super committee if boehner hadn't walked out of talks, he had agreed to having at the golf course, walked out when there was a viable bipartisan agreement on the table. but because the tea party held him hostage and therefore the rest of the country, and would not talk about revenue, he walked out. so we can deal with the ifs all

we want. jonathan, how do we get any kind of bipartisan agreement when you've got three inflexible republicanes from the senate side on this committee? >> well, rev, since everybody else is being to pessimistic, i'm going to look at the glass half full. being a little pollee annish maybe, call me naive. i think in washington everyone tends to fight the last war. the situation with the super committee is different. it only takes one of the six republicans, just one to have a fit of responsibility to want to do something patriotic for this country, and the democrats, you know they're going to vote for some kind of agreement because they are willing to make both some entitlement changes and tax changes which is what this committee is charged with. you just need one. remember, tom woko burn was wilg

to be patriotic in the gang of six. very conservative guy from georgia was willing to be patriotic. so will someone like rob portman or one of these potentially reasonable -- >> tell me which one of these guys -- >> i would say, actually rick lazo is better on this because he served with them but i go wo get portman or camp or possibly one of the others. >> so lazio, you were their former congressman lazio, do you think that one of your guys, will have a fit of sanity, he said of i guess you used the term -- >> i would agree with that. >> and say, look, we've got to deal with stopping this brinkmanship. we've got to deal with how we solve the problem and preserve the economy and be fair to the

american people. do you think there is somebody from the republican side that's willing to be that responsible even if he breaks with the extreme of your party? >> i would say that rob portman is the most capable elected official in washington, d.c. certainly among the people that i have worked with. >> and that means what? >> it means he is smart. he knows thousand work with the other side of the aisle. he is tenacious. i worked in the thousand get a major retirement program that was very progressive, enacted and signed into law. he understands that the tax codes. he understands entitlement programs. when he was budget director, the deficit was heading down when he was there. he understands the nuts and bolts and understands thousand work behind the scene esz. >> he has five years before he has to run for ere election. >> he has five years before it becomes reelection for him so the politics may be removed. does your party understand, mr. lazio, that people in this

country, want to compromise? if you look at the polls and i have hard feelings on my side and others on the other side. if you look at the poll, the american people want to a reasonable compromise. democrats, 67% saying this committee should compromise. independents, 57%. republicans even 55%. people are afraid when they keep getting the economic news everyday from wall street because that trickled down. we never did get the jobs and the benefits that your party promised to trickle down. but we are getting the real pay and it trickled down in big doses. >> i can say the same thing about the stimulus package. >> well if he had the right figures on how much we needed to stimulate we might have gotten a bigger package. >> in using the president's own numbers -- >> we have pneumonia. >> using the president's own numbers, it was a failure.

>> i think your president, mr. bush, gave us a number that didn't end up being right a year later. >> let me try and answer that. >> i just cry tri to correct as we go. >> let me try and answer your question. i think without a doubt, first of all, i wouldn't say people have to follow the polls. that's a big mistake. we need leadership right now. the same poll you are citing, by the way, says the majority of americans don't want to see any cut of defense spending either. let's look for people who are in a responsible positions to provide the right leadership to working to out. we have to get control over the entitlement programs which are almost 60% of the federal budget right now. fastest growing area of the federal budget. we need to make changes to for the pro graksts long run and we have to clean up the tax code. i think a responsibility outcome here would be for republicans to look to the tax code. eye long with democrats. take out some money and provide some innocentive --

>> this is where i'm optimistic, optimist sick too strong. this is where i'm not as pessimistic as other people. democrats and republicans have an office in the simplified tax code so april 15thth isn't so miserable for everybody. get the accounts out of picture. raise revenue if you get rid of things like the hundred billion dollar handout for the oil industry. >> that's reasonable. but there's not any reason in this. >> here is some hard ball politics for you. leon pi netta, difence secretary, almost unanimously confirmed recently, he said the other day that if the triggers go off, if there's not an agreement by christmas, is a threat to the national security of the united states. >> there's no question about it. >> so these republicans, if they vote no, they have to answer to the country, why are you threatening the national security. >> why do we have to go to the brink for our leaders to have

the sanity. i've got to go. thank you jonathan wab an rec and rick. thank you both of you for being with me tonight. i do have hope, but i must say that i am concerned. let's put it that way. very concerned. >> me too. >> should president obama call congress back it washington to do something about jobs? that's next. plus a new michele bachmann correspondents. and it has to do with all the government money she's taking. and rush limbaugh was talking about this show today. >> what happened here is obvious. somebody is sabotaging the reverend sharpton's via the teleprompter. >> oh, you better believe i'm responding to that tonight. stay with us. call rush, tell him to turn it on. every day, all around the world,

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president obama's leadership is being questioned. is it that they don't like his style or has the president lost his mojo? that's next. just one phillips' colon health probiotic cap a day helps defends against occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas and bloating. with three strains of good bacteria to help balance your colon. you had me at "probiotic." [ female announcer ] phillips' colon health. yes! ha ha! [ clicking ] ♪ what happened? power went out, want a hot dog? [ female announcer ] oscar mayer selects are made with 100% beef and have no artificial preservatives.

president obama is under pressure. people are saying he's disconnected. he lost his mojo. others saying more serious things than that. even the word "impeach" being thrown around. let's talk about it. joining me now job joe madison,

sirius xm radio host and of the texas policy foundation josh tvavino. josh, there are a lot of people raising questions about the president and his leadership. >> indeed. >> isn't that a little premature? i mean, the president i think has shown some balance, has shown that he can remain cool under pressure. why is that a weakness? >> you know, you'll have to take it up with the 51% of americans that according to the real clear politics poll average think that president is doing a poor job. and you also have to take it up with the 71 percent of americans who think the country is on the wrong track. can you assert the president is doing a fine job but the american people have turned against him. he hasn't delivered. his record on economic affairs is terrible. unemployment up 25% since inauguration day. national debt up. price of gas is up.

a hundred percent since inauguration day. >> josh you -- >> you have to engame the tate data on this. the american people aren't done. >> have you seen how american people feel about congress where the republicans are the majority of the house? let's look at how only 24% maybe -- >> that's true, yeah. >> maybe a little over 50%, how they feel about congress. i love how well -- >> we are talking about -- >> joe madison, the fact of the matter is, you know, people, let's use a poll. then when you get another poll that says, same poll by the way, that less than half of those, like the republican congress, well, let's not use a poll, let's use leadership. >> al, this is the poll average. this is the real clear poll -- >> the poll is in anyone's folder that says anything other than the republican in this country is totally overwhelmingly lost confidence in the congress. joe madison? >> and they've lost confidence

in the tea party. these are polls after poll after poll. you're absolutely right. i mean, all this grinning that's going on, the reality is, excuse me, this is the same president who by the way, got bin laden. we talk about leadership. this is the same president that passed historic legislation. yes, he is president, not a candidate. and the leadership, leadership -- look, if you're going laugh -- i suggest you go -- i suggest you go watch sesame street, okay? let me give josh something to laugh at. let me show you what bill crystal wrote in the weekly standard in april 2011. this is bill crystal, very well respected conservative in the "kweekly standard."

he says, how do you defeat leader from the front? all those republicans have to do is nominate a real leader a work horse not a show horse. a steady hand. a man or woman with strength he j and confidence in defense of liberty at home or abroad. a week later obama got bin laden. every time you laugh, president obama comes back and does something to show that maybe the joke is on you guys that are laughing. >> yeah and then his poll numbers drop right after that. >> now you are going back it that. >> look, look, get your head together. you just dismissed the poll. then you went right back to the poll. >> no, i didn't dismiss the poll. i acknowledge the poll is correct. but that's a subject change. if we are talking about the president, the poll numbers for

the president is terrible. >> twice more than they are for congress josh. i think it is -- >> oh, this is crazy. >> i can give you a news flash. congress is up for reelection next year. >> the president's going to have to run against someone completely different. he will be judged on his merits. it is a referendum on the incumbent. >> i don't see in many polls that say any of the people you are talking about now has a huge leap. in fact, the latest polls are saying that president beats all of your opponents. but again, let me tell you why this is getting so out of -- to me, out of bounds. when you look at the fact that one man, burgess, is talking about impeachment. i mean, listen to this. how do we go to the point where the president has done something that should even -- we should even bring up that word. it says, it needs to happen.

this is on impeachment. it needs it happen and ai agree with it. it would tie things up, no question about that? the longer we allow the damage to continue unchecked, the worse things are going to be for us. this is congressman michael burgess of texas. >> that's really innistic. he is really innistic at all. >> why not? >> impeachment is not going it happen. that's a single congressman airing his views. there is no support for impeachment of the president. you have to have cause for that and that is not going to happen. the president will be out of office through january 2013 but it'll be through a fair election. >> no, it isn't. >> it won't be free and fair? >> you know, let me speak for myself. i don't need you to talk for me. let me make it clear. if i were the president of the united states, i would run against this do-nothing congress. i wouldn't bother calling them back because they won't do

anything. they are dead set to run this president out of office and they will run into a ditch to do it. if the president of the united states came up with a cure for the common cold, these republicans would not support it. this is what is going on in america. this president has passed extremely important legislation, mostly for working people. and for the underserved in this country and that's what upsets the tea party folks and that's the bottom line. >> i've got to go on that, joe. i've got to go on that, joe. thank you joe madison and josh trevino. and good cheer, because if you are going to run the country into the ditch, at least you know where it is. you ran us into it in the first place. wisconsin democrats didn't retake the state senate last night. but the fight isn't over. and governor scott walker has been won. plus, michele bachmann hates government spending but she has no problem putting her hand out.

and rush limbaugh's latest conspiracy theory was on me and this show. >> what happened is obvious. somebody is sabotaging the reverend sharpton via the teleprompter. >> get ready, rush. i have a good one coming. ♪ ♪

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michele bachmann wants government get out of

everybody's lives except in her district. that's our con job of the day. the michele bachmann controversy getting all the attention lately is her ""newsweek"" cover photo. but the real controversy has to do what she does, not how she looks p.m. bachmann is always toward slam government spending, especially when it comes to the stimulus. >> unfortunately it did just the opposite of what we were hoping it would do. >> i voted against the trillion dollar stimulus. i knew that trillion-dollar stimulus wouldn't yield jobs. this is fantasy economic happening here in washington, d.c. >> but bachmann doesn't turn her nose up at government money. bachmann requested federal aid for a minnesota district at le times. bachmann wanted stimulus funds for road improvements, highway

project opinion she also asked for federal opinion for an industrial park, new busses, commuter train line and bridge work. but best of all, bachmann requested money for water projects and new busses from the environmental projection agency. even though this is what she says about the epa in public. >> what we need to do is pass the mother of all repeal bills and i would begin with the epa. because there is no other agency like the epa. it should be renamed the job killing organization of america. >> if the epa didn't exist, how could bachmann get the money she wanted in the first place. i know michele bachmann likes to twirl around on the campaign trail. but i wonder if she could tap dance her way out of this one. michele bachmann's do what i say, not what i do attitude toward government spending is our con job of the day. summer sale,

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progress ifs in wisconsin showed the country how to fight back last night. they came up just short. calling two state senators out of six and coming up one seat away from retaking control bp but governor scott walker, beware. wisconsin democratic chair mike tate made it very clear today that democrats are ready to recall him. tate said, quote, if this had been a statewide election, i believe scott walker would have been recalled. another big part of this fight for progressives is the big money. thanks to citizens united supreme court ruling lasts year, outside groups can spend unlimited amounts of money in election answers they did it in the recall elections. so now, more than ever, you the unions need it fight back. joining me now is one of those, randy winegarden wp randi, thank

you for joining me tonight. >> it is always great to be with you rev. >> thank pup last night, was it a win or loss? some of us woke up this morning a little defeated. should we, i mean was it a win or loss in your judgment? >> well, look, i'm a school teacher. we set expectations high and we missed the high bar and we missed the high bar by one. but that should not diminish. so instead of getting an a plus, we got an a, b plus. that should not diminish the work that the work wisconsinites did. anybody whose been under wisconsin and i was there on monday, i've been there several times. you see this is a grass roots movement. it is grass roots movement that started seven months ago in the wake of scott walker coming in, blaming workers for a recession they never created and using it as a vehicle to strip people's voice at work, strip people's

voice at the ballot box and defund public education. so what you've seen, just put it in context. in the united states of america since 1908, there have been 20 state recall elections. in one month, there are nine recall elections in wisconsin. what's happening is regular people are saying, enough is enough. they fell short in republican dominated areas, but they have said to everyone, don't, don't play around with our voice. >> well i think that another thing happens as well. you can lose battles and win the war because look at all over the country. from ohio where you and i have traveled together, indiana, look how unpopular the governors are. rick scott in florida, 27%. casey, 35%. rick snyder, 32%. scott walker, 37%. no one thought when these guys were elected, that there would

be this kind of grass roots movement that would turn public opinion to where they have, i mean, let's face it. as you said, we have three seats but who thought you would ever get a recall election. it never happened. >> exactly right. it is like the fact that two senators in republican dominated areas, were defeated. the fact that there is a razor thin margin in wisconsin, in the state senate. the fact that, that this is a grass roots campaign that is saying to republicans, that the issue of having a right at work to speak, the issue of having a right to vote, this is not a republican or democratic idea, this is an american idea. what is really interesting to me is that people are trying to make this about big this, big that. nobody tries to make -- when people look at the tea party, they say that's a grass root movement. anybody who goes to wisconsin,

anybody who was in the capitol, anybody who is on the streets in the last few day s, this is a grass roots movement. and that's what is turning the tide in america. that's why you see poll after poll in america, people say, let's talk about jobs, not debt. >> you're right. that's why we are doing there march, all of us together, august 27 mg in washington. but before i get to that, i need to ask you -- >> let me say one more thing. look what the pundits said about collective bargaining. they thought they could scapegoat public workers and put the entire bufrden after recession they didn't create on their backs. look what americans said by three to one margins. they said, no, americans should have a voice. look at scott walker is under water. even in the republican districts. two republican incoumbent lost - >> and it wouldn't happen if people didn't have the courage it fight back. >> that's right. >> before i get to the march at

the end of the month, secretary of education has come out on the whole question of no child left behind and what the legislature hasn't done and he will supercede and move forward. as what is your opinion of what he is doing. >> well, we have been more frustrated. teachers and parents throughout the country have been more frustrated with no child left behind because of the fixation on testing as opposed to teaching, more than anybody else. we understand the frustration with not fixing it. but we need to get it right. and so, we will engage in terms of this waiver process. but the real issue becomes, what is the impact on students. not what sounds good. not taking governors off the hook because they won't get to total proficiency levels at 2014 or waver the rules are under no child left behind. what is going to happen in a period of time of really bad budgets for kids and for teachers? what is going to happen it make

things better so that teachers can teach and kids can learn? that's what we're concerned about. >> at the end of the day, we are also concerned about jobs. many americans, most americans, at the end. day when you get through wall street and the dow averages and all, we want jobs. august 27th, we march in washington. you and unions and the weekend they'll unveil the martin luther king, jr. monument. martin luther king, jr. died fighting with unions around jobs and the right to collective bargaining. the pressure must be put on the white house and congress and everybody that we need jobs. we don't need a whole lot of double talk and partisan brinkmanship, we need jobs. you can't memorialize dr. king and not deal with what king was about. >> exact exactly right. look, there is the first

monument to someone who has not been a president. >> right. on t on potomac river, correct. >> this is a wonderful moment. but as you and others have said, dr. king's work is not done. not done in terms of equal opportunity for all kids, not just spl kids, in terms of education being the great equalizer and making sure there are real jobs, good jobs, that people can feed their families on in america. ultimately that has to be what we champion every single day. we have to help people have the work force skills so that they can compete in the global economy that we have today. people want to work in america. they don't want this level of unemployment. the triple wammy between the housing market being under water. the unemployment being so high, the poverty increasing, this is regular people yearning and

saying, we want to work. >> randi winegarten, president of the federation of teachers, thanks for being here. >> thank you. >>. it's on between romney and perry. which candidate would the white house rather face in 2012? we will talk about that next. so me and the boys earned a trip to dc twice as fast! oh hi! we get double miles every time we use our card. and since double miles add up fast... one more chariot please. ...we can bring the whole gang! i cannot tell a lie. he did it. right... it's hard to beat double miles! read my lips -- no new axes! [ male announcer ] get the venture card from capital one, and earn double miles on every purchase, every day. go to capitalone.com. what's in your wallet? so, you're a democrat right?

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welcome back to the show. rick perry versus mitt romney. who would the obama white house rather face next year? here's a look at both of them. first, family backgrounds. mitt romney, the son 56 wealthy republican governor of plish began. rick perry, the son of texas ranchers who were democrats. their work experience. romney, one-term governor of massachusetts, failed at getting presidential nomination in 2008. and is renowned for shipping jobs overseas as founder of bain capital. rick perry is four-term governor of texas, whose never lost an election. and brags about texas job

growth. who would the white house rather face? joining me now is christina delantoni. and perry bacon junior white house reporter for the washington post. perry, let me start with you. who would the president rather be up against in your opinion? >> i think he should rather be up against rick perry. the thing the white house needs to make the case, is that republicans are returning the country back it george bush and what the country didn't like about george bush and rick perry is similar to bush. he is governor texas. he was bush's lieutenant governor in the 1909s. he is the easier case it make that this guy is the next george bush rather than mitt romney. >> do you think we can use the whole idea of h is reincarnation of george bush political reincarnation of course, and that that is enough or can perry

fight back and say, well, i've done a, b, c. i was an executive and i did job growth. i mean, do you agree with there? >> i'm talking to christina. >> yeah, well, i think perry, his defense can say, the bush folks don't like me all this much. they have made it very clear as i run for president. that is an area he can hit back. >> you think would he say, christina, that the bush folks don't like me? >> i'm sure that could be one defense. can i see the ads now. do we need another governor of texas coming to washington, right? but it is, perry is totally right, that it is about the way the white house wants it frame this. president obama can say anything he wants about an opponent. they will saying in something about him regardless of whether or not it is true. that's the hard part about campaigning. is it is hard for the white house to run against perry and romney. they would rather run against

bachmann but that is less likely to be the case. >> we saw a story in politico about the white house was supposedly or at least the obama campaign was going to go through this whole thing of romney being weird and some were speculating that being that we are looking at iowa this weekend, that maybe the obama campaign was trying to help embellish romney a little. you don't buy into that, perry? >> i that i they are going to start criticizing the candidates pretty early on. they are doing that in the -- the obama people are and democratic national committee is. right now in iowa, have nine people saying bad things about obama and obama not defending himself. he is doing this bus tour the next few weeks where he is getting his own record out there and defending himself. think i think this is the obama staff attacking one of the republicans so if one of them wins you don't start off fresh next march. they want to start off early finding the republicans in a negative way. >> christina, those that have

criticized. in fact mitt romney says the president shouldn't go on that bus tour. mitt romney said that he should stay in washington. and make the congress work. i mean, the president's bus tour will go to iowa. so now we will see who gets what reaction during a bus tour through some of the same areas. >> congress is not coming back it washington regardless of whether or not president obama is here or not, so i don't think that matters. the interesting thing is what perry said. they are all running against obama. these candidates are pretty much not ataking one another. you br to have a debate again thursday night. that's when you will see them engage each other. the white house can step back and wait and seize their opportunity. they are talking all kinds of information. i talked to them before i came on, essentially they are saying any one of the republicans are supporting the same economic policies to send our country backwards. they will say the same thing regardless of who the nominee is

for them. they want to see them attack each other. >> we are seeing the polls for perry and romney. look at what we are seeing, one poll has romney up 24 to 17. i think we are starting it see that tea party is losing some of its, let's say, favorbility. and in the tea party members,er with seeing rick perry 23, mitt romney 22. so they are about tied there. it will be interesting. we will see where it goes tp christina and perry, thank you very much for joining me tonight. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> today, rush limbaugh had a couple of conspiracy theories for this show. i'll have my answer next.

last night, i made a statement where i used one word

rather than another. and rush limbaugh picked up on it in his show today. watch this. >> well, it's either a racist teleprompter or whoever is preparing the teleprompter is racist or someone is sabotaging. look, there are a number of black accredited certified journalists who are really ticked off that the reverend sharpton is up for this gig. some of them might have gotten together to try to sabotage sharpton. >> rush, there's no racist teleprompter operator. there's no black journalist trying to sabotage me. i messed up a line. just like anybody, including you, that has ever host or was a guest host on a show. i messed up. it was me, rush. i'm the culprit. but let me tell you something else, rush, i did it again

tonight. i gave you a gift. there's no environmental projection agency, it is protection agency. i don't want to preach to the choir. i want your choir, rush. you know, ever since i guested here, there's been all kinds of conspiracies and i don't deal with them because they all make people watch. i laughed, one guy said, only reason i'm here is because of my name recognition. how did i get my name recognition? i march. ten years ago tonight i was in jail doing 90 days. not for blacks but for protesting puerto rico on environment. i look at at stab wound in my chest where i was stabbed and forgave the guy. who was white, by the way, who tried to kill me for leading a march in his neighborhood. i pay the dues for name recognition. i may not be as polished as some. i may mess up a word.