carrying this out? >> not very close at all, chris. because he was under fbi surveillance the entire time. it was an elaborate plot that he came up with to fly these scaled model planes into the pentagon and capitol and then what he told the undercover operatives he would try to shoot people as they came out of the building. but he was under constant fbi surveillance. he was arrested wednesday in framingham, massachusetts. and he is a u.s. citizen and age 26. born here and graduate of northeastern university with a degree in physics. and the fbi says he plotted for the past nine months to do this to use six foot long remote controlled model airplanes. he wanted to get three of them in all and fill them with plastic explosives and then fly them into the capitol and the pentagon. and he did come to washington last may. and took a surveillance picture. at least one picture of the pentagon. but all of this was basically a sting. the fbi says he thought he was meeting with al qaeda recruiters

in massachusetts who gave him quite a bit of help. we what he didn't know was that they were fbi undercover operatives. now he had to borrow the money from them to buy the model plane 37 it was about $7,000. he never had any explosives. the fbi says that he lacked the means to carry out an attack although they say he was clearly deadly serious about wanting to be a terrorist. >> yeah. you can imagine how this is shaking up. people in the terrorism community. we are watching closely. many thanks. now to our developing story. the trial of michael jackson's doctor. testimony due to resume in 45 minutes. we are expecting to hear from paramedics who treated him and one of jackson's security guards. alberto alvarez says dr. conrad murray ordered him to remove a cache of prescription drugs from the bedroom before calling for help. described the frantic and chaotic gut-wrenching scene the devastated children watching conrad murray as he tried to

revive their father. >> paris was on the ground balled up crying and prince was just standing there and he was just a -- had a shocked, slowly crying type of look on his face. >> nbc's kristen dahlgren is joining me now. a good day to you. are we expecting to hear more of the same today? >> reporter: good morning, alex. this could be the most dramatic day of testimony so far because alvarez was the first person other than dr. murray and michael jackson to enter that bedroom on the fateful day. he testified in preliminary hearings not just that dr. murray told him to get rid of propofol bottles but what appeared to be an iv bag. that's significant because the defense contends that the propofol was out of mike's system by the time he left. if there was an iv drip that would not the case. we will also hear from kai chase, michael jackson's personal chef. she has said that dr. murray yelled for help from her but didn't tell her to call 911. the paramedics testified in

preliminary hearings that dr. murray deceived them and say it appeared to them like michael jackson had been dead for at least 20 minutes. he said that they -- they said to him that -- to -- paramedics that they just -- just lost consciousness and also they asked about whether or not he had taken any medication and said dr. murray said no, alex. >> okay. kristen dahlgren outside that courthouse. expecting to resume part of the principals arrived. we will keep a close eye. thank you. two of the witnesses testified about a strange request from dr. conrad murray right after jackson was pronounced dead at the hospital. take a listen to jackson's personal assistant. >> he said that there's some cream and michael's -- in michael's room or house. that he wouldn't want the world to know about. and he requested that i or someone give him a ride back to the house to get it, to the world, you know, wouldn't know about the cream. >> joining me now is diane dimond from "the daily beast"

and "newsweek." diane, good day to you. this is a trial that really has a lot of us focused acutely on this. the prosecution, what are they trying to do? prove that murray was possibly trying to get back to the home? try to hide out things -- the propofol, anything else? or at least have someone else do it? >> well, exactly. you know, this -- the prosecution has to start with its most dramatic testimony. what we have heard so far is a frantic search of the bedroom to clean it up according to some of the witnesses, to -- figure out what to do with this body. i do believe that he was already dead when conrad murray started calling people into the room. i think that what they are trying to do show that this doctor was so negligent in so many ways, not calling 911 for at least 25 minutes, trying to clean up the scene, lying to the first responders about whether or not michael jackson had any medication in his body. this is the most dramatic part of the prosecution's case.

>> there's also defense giving an explanation after court yesterday for that disturbing tape where jackson sounded like he was slurring his words. for those that haven't heard we will replay it here. take a listen. >> we don't know -- what he was doing, michael jackson didn't have a doctor near him and he's self-medicated. >> all right. this is the defense attorney they are speaking of. basically the tape is proving that when murray wasn't around jackson was left to his own devices. what's your take on this? >> well, you know, i found in the opening statement of the defense something very interesting, alex, that's gone overlooked, i think. they claim that dr. murray gave him just 25 milligrams. that's a tiny little amount of propofol and that that goes out of your body. any amount of propofol goes out of your body in ten minutes. he sat with michael jackson for a while and until it got it of his body and that was that. he doesn't admit there was a drip still going into michael jackson's body.

however, jackson was found with so much propofol in his system that he was legally intoxicated with it. where did that amount come from? the defense claims that there was a period of time michael got up, went to the bathroom and adjust adjusted pills and then more propofol. otherwise how did that propofol get into his body? it is the reasonable doubt that every defense attorney looks for. >> yeah. we are expecting today to hear from the security guard who has already testified that murray told him to take the drugs out of the room and the paramedics as well we will hear from who said they were not told jackson was making any medications. those two things does not look good for murray. how will they try to refute this? >> we know what alvarez will say. he's testified preliminarily in another hearing. but this jury hasn't heard this yet. and that -- the conrad murray calls him in and says start putting vial always and things

in it, hide things. the doctor didn't say call 911, oh, my gosh, mr. jackson is in trouble. we heard yesterday, alex, unbelievably, another first responder security guard said the doctor looked up and said "does anybody know cpr." what? he's the doctor. so, you know, these -- this is the third day of testimony and for three straight days, murray going to be hammered every single day of the state's case. >> he has it coming out in another 35, 40 minutes. the death toll expected to rise in the listeria outbreak described it is a worst food outbreak in a decade. it is linked to tainted cantaloupes and caused up to 16 deaths with at least 72 people now sickened across 18 states. the bacteria is linked to whole melons grown by jenson farms in colorado. the map you will see here shows all states affected but cantaloupe shipped to as many as 25 states. bottom line for our viewers, if

you have cantaloupe in your fridge and don't know where it came from, do not eat it. toss it out immediately. will mitt romney be enough to satisfy republican party in the race for the white house? romney leading with 23% of the vote. the gop is still flirting with the idea of a moration trackive candidate most notably new jersey governor chris christie who could announce whether he is running as soon as next week. i'm joined now by wendy schiller. wendy good day and thanks for joining us. >> nice to be here, alex. >> why can't the gop just accept that mitt romney might be their best candidate? why are they still looking for someone else? >> i think it is interesting because it is class warfare to me. within the republican party. this is the elites on the east and west coast and deciding for some reason they don't like mitt romney. chris christie's policy and mitt romney's policies are about the intervention of the economy going to be very similar. then the rank and file and republican party wants somebody

more conservative than rick perry. much less than michele bachmann. they are not happy with romney because he's not conservative enough. i don't know how chris christie becomes the candidate that can unify these two very opposite camps within the republican party. it is a bigger issue than personality and whether you like chris christie or you don't like mitt romney. this is about selling the republican party candidate to the american people to defeat barack obama in 2012. >> do you think you hit the nail on the head? it is about personality. chris christie has big personality. he is a straight talker. he has a few weeks to decide. he's meeting with louisiana governor bobby today. do you think he is considering a race for 2012? >> i think it would shake things up quite a bit. especially fund-raising. a lot of donors have not committed to a candidate yet and stay on the sidelines and come in in full force for christie. problem being a straight shooter that makes christie so attractive as a person, ask rick

perry. you shoot from the hip and sometimes say things people zone like or don't believe. there is a cost to that as a candidate for the presidency and feel a lot of people have been well vetted. so if you look at rick perry's troubles you have to anticipate christie will have some of those troubles particularly with the tea partiers and conservative party. i see that this is a big risk for him. we had this happen in the past where attractive people have been courted by big shot donors and say no and then somebody else really takes the lead and wins the presidency. he has to decide can you wait until 2016, would he be in a better position in 2016 to win the white house? >> okay. wendy schiller, thanks so much. >> thank you. we have live pictures to show you right now. daredevil engine are spendsing a third day scaling the washington monument after finding another series of cracks my atop the rocket shaped landmark. u.s. park service says crews using rubber mallets discovered flaking in the monument's peak up there.

they believe the site is structurally sound and what a view. they also say that this view is in an it is a particular. it is dizzying video for those of you that are not comfortable with that. repair work will continue as long as the weather continues. president obama is selling the jobs plan in a round robin of interviews in several key states. could a rally with the biggest supporters help the pr war? we are going to speak with the receive rends al sharpton? amanda knox's sister speaks out as the american student tries to get her murder conviction in italy overturned. details on the decision that could come in a matter of days. [ male announcer ] if you're only brushing, add listerine® total care for more complete oral care. ♪ it works in six different ways to restore enamel... strengthen teeth... freshen breath... help prevent cavities... and kill bad breath germs for a whole mouth clean. so go beyond the brush with listerine® total care, the most complete mouthwash. now get all the benefits... without the alcohol.

new listerine® total care zero. and a family mobile plan. uh... um... [ bling! ] four score... [ bling! ] ...and seven years ago... [ bling! ] i kissed emily costa... eww! [ male announcer ] unlimited talk and text, only $45 a month, add more lines only $25 each. plus other low prices every day on everything.

save money. live better. walmart. the world needs more energy. where's it going to come from? ♪ that's why right here, in australia, chevron is building

one of the biggest natural gas projects in the world. enough power for a city the size of singapore for 50 years. what's it going to do to the planet? natural gas is the cleanest conventional fuel there is. we've got to be smart about this. it's a smart way to go. ♪ right now at the white house, president obama is sitting down for a series of interviews in an effort to sell his jobs plan. meanwhile, get something help from labor and civil rights groups. next month, reverend al sharpton joining a group of labor, health

care, and teachers unions in a rally and march for the steps of the lincoln memorial to the brand-new martin luther king monument. >> there's more reason now than before for our marriage of civil rights groups and labor. because they no only want to outsource our jobs, they want to cripple our ability to protect our jobs. >> here's how we know the reverend sharpton host of "politics nation" is joining us live. this is all good. let's talk about the reality you set for october 15, correct? the date before the martin luther king official dedication. where do civil rights and job equality intersect? >> i think that -- it did -- clearly intersects when you see that there is a disproportionate number of blacks and latinos unemployed. the unemployment number nationwide is 9.1%.

the official african-americans, 16.7%. white, 8.0%. the institutional inequality is dash is a civil rights issue. but at the same time, when you rob people of their right to collective bargaining, which -- labor unions are dealing with, that's a civil rights issue. so -- as you said, that weekend that sunday that they are committing dedicating the president will officially dedicate martin luther king themmial. when dr. king died in memphis on a labor marseilling it was a civil rights issue. so yesterday national action, there was a group i lead, joined the naacp and urban league and leading labor groups. cwa, aft, weingard. we need labor and civil rights come togethering that weekend since it is the spirit of dr. king to talk about the jobs bill left before the congress now and

to say that as dr. king fought merging the two groups, we are going to march that day to say we need to deal with the unemployment, that is record proportions in our country. >> more than half of respondents say that the president's plan is not going to help bring down unemployment. what does the president need to do to better get his message out? do you think that today's interviews he is doing in key states are going to do the trick for him? is there a lot more work ahead? >> i think that the beginning is some of what he's -- going to do going you a round the country. the fact is that when we look at the economists that -- i think that bloomberg news interviewed, and they said that it would actually change by a couple of percentage points, it would create 1.9 million jobs. it begins a starting point. it clearly won't solve all of the problems. guess what, this is one of the things we discussed yesterday in

washington. it is the only jobs plan on the table. many of the critics both left and right has not put a plan or a bill on the table. we need those 1.9 million jobs as a foundation to build from. we can't build from just, saying we are in trouble and taking shots and at -- criticisms. we must start somewhere this bill, i think, begins moving us in that direction. >> do you think that the president has enough time? because these jobs that are purported to by the economist you talked about on bloomberg, create ex number of jobs. is it a large amount of time? enough time for the president to get this turned around and get re-election and particularly with the african-american community, do you worry that they are going to turn out for him if he hasn't done enough in the jobs front? >> two different questions. one is that -- we need the jobs. independent of the election. and i think that we have to do

that. in terms of the election -- i don't think that the jobs is to just get re-elected, the jobs are because people are suffering. what i think that the -- election is going to come down to choices. i think that what vice president biden said don't compare the president to the almighty. compare him to the alternative. american voters and other vote verse to say this is the president's proposal. >> the second question i asked -- i'm supposed to wrap it quick. apathy. you have to worry about that among any community. >> you have to worry about apathy but also have to say to people that are apathetic, if you do nothing, if you don't come out and vote, there is no plan for you at all. the opposition is saying what to you? that we are going to break down the collective bargaining and that we are going to have tax cuts for the wealthy and hope it trick also down to you? part of getting people energized is that the interests that are involved. they have an interest to come out. >> i'm going to bet that will be one of your rallying cries on october 15. >> well, i would tell you.

>> you can catch the reverend sharpton's show "politics nation" at 6:00 p.m. eastern here on msnbc. a dramatic fine dale for baseball's regular season. in the american league, the boston red sox totally collapsed in the ninth inning against the baltimore orioles. the red sox had a nine-game lead in the wild card race coming into september. they went 7-20 down the stretch. tampa bay rays walkoff win over the yankees, the sox -- eliminated from the playoffs. checking out the national league, atlanta braves lost to the philadelphia phillies. giving the wild card title to the st. louis cardinals. the braves went 9-8 in september and ended the stone one game behind the cards in the wild card race. just a brutal night for those baseball fans that had to get up early for work. we're america's natural gas

and here's what we did today: supported nearly 3 million steady jobs across our country... ... scientists, technicians, engineers, machinists... ... adding nearly 400 billion dollars to our economy... we're at work providing power to almost a quarter of our homes and businesses... ... and giving us cleaner rides to work and school... and tomorrow, we could do even more. cleaner, domestic, abundant and creating jobs now. we're america's natural gas. the smarter power, today. learn more at anga.us. ♪ three, six, nine ♪ the goose drank wine ♪ the monkey chew tobacco on the streetcar line ♪ ♪ ♪ clap, pat, clap your hand

♪ pat it on your partner's hand ♪ ♪ right hand ♪ clap, pat, clap your hand ♪ cross it with your left arm ♪ pat your partner's left palm ♪ clap, pat, clap your hand, pat your partner's right palm ♪ [ male announcer ] the all-new beetle. it's back. ♪ clap, slap, clap your hands [ male announcer ] the all-new beetle. it's back. now there's no need to hold back. new revolutionary scope dualblast obliterates strong food odors leaving your breath minty fresh. hey. [ male announcer ] so there's no trace of evidence... new scope dualblast.

a lot of discussion this

week has been about getting students ready for college. but once they are in college, how do we keep them there? less than a quarter of low-income and minority students actually graduate from college. sometime it is reasons are financial but for many, the pressures of college combined with life are just too intense. now the michael and susan dell foundation created a foundation to help the students out. oscar, good day to you. >> good day. thank you. >> let's talk about this program. what's its goal and who is it designed to help? >> you hit it in the introduction. getting low-income students not just into college but seeing them krad wait with a minimum of four-year degree and it is all to be able to expand their economic and career opportunities. >> are you see good results? >> we are. nationally as you mentioned only 25%, 23% of the students are graduating within six years of entering college. and for us we have been able to have our students persist to and through at 92% since we started in 2004.

>> wow! 92% versus the national average of 23%. i bet there are schools out there that are clamoring to get you involved. >> we have students over 460 universities across the nation. we are very proud we work with a lot of schools and helping our students get through there. it is really more than just about the academic preparation and that's what we wanted to have people focus on. there's so much more that goes into getting these kids through college and it is helping to manage the financial challenges and academic challenges but as you mentioned those life family issues that come up that are often the reason that our scholars that aren't doing as well are attributing to whether or not they are able to continue with education. >> oscar, what sit that the foundation is doing that -- colleges and support groups within those respective communities are not doing? what do you do that works? >> the key thing is we know what's going on with our students. we collected extensive data on their academic, financial and personal and family situations.

so we have a holistic understanding of what's impacting the students and we have the program set up to able to help these students. it is not just about us doing it for them. it is about empowering the students and to manage their own success and so that's really what we feel has been the key to having our scholars graduate and outpace national average the way we have. >> yeah. by a lot. something is working. thank you very much for sharing it with us. oscar lopez from the dell scholar program. tomorrow we will look at innovation in our schools. one of the creators of skype in the classroom will be joining me. worldwide initiative design to help connect a million teachers and students from every corner of the globe. how cool is that? betting on the supreme court? president obama is putting the future of his landmark health care law into the hands of the highest court in the land and it could all come to a head at the height of the presidential election. he's the youngest person ever executed in america. some reports say that he confessed to a double murder of after police offered him an ice cream cone. 67 years later, someone clearing his name. [ kimberly ] when i was 19, i found myself alone

with two children and no way to support them. i put myself through nursing school, and then i decided to go get a doctorate degree. university of phoenix gave me the knowledge to make a difference in people's lives. my name is dr. kimberly horton. i manage a network of over a thousand nurses, and i am a phoenix. [ male announcer ] university of phoenix is proud to sponsor education nation. because we believe an educated world is a better world.

[ woman ] my heart medication isn't some political game. [ man ] our retirement isn't a simple budget line item. [ man ] i worked hard. i paid into my medicare. [ man ] and i earned my social security. [ woman ] now, instead of cutting waste and loopholes, washington wants to cut our benefits? that wasn't the agreement. [ male announcer ] join the members of aarp and tell washington to stop cuts

to our medicare and social security benefits. president obama's landmark overhaul appears to be heading for the supreme court. appealing a ruling by a federal appeals court which struck down the law's core requirement forcing americans to buy health insurance or pay a penalty beginning in 2014. nbc's mike viqueira is at the white house for us and with a good day for you, when do you think the high court could hear the arguments? >> it could come in the thick of primary season. republican primary season. and that is going to be a very interesting predicament. there was no question and everybody agreed from all sides in washington, all over the country, 26 states and national federation of independent businesses, small business lobby in this country, foremost small business lobby, they had all gone to court to try to stop this health care law that was so difficult in passing that the president got passed and that takes -- effect in 2014.

the cornerstone of which is this individual mandate. all of these entities, 126 states, and the nfib, were trying to stop it before then. the atlanta appeals court ruled on, as you said, the core portion of this. the individual plan date requiring americans to get insurance and the reason why that's important, if you remember back to that vitriolic debate that caused so much con stern sxags led to the town halls and big republican victories in part, over the course of the last elections, it is because the administration wanted to have the 30 million americans who were uninsured have health insurance. if you are going to bring the insurance companies into -- it is important to expand the pool of people getting insurance and that was the reasoning behind requiring americans, all americans, to have health insurance and if you recall the argument much like having auto insurance is what everybody said. because you are required to have auto insurance. well, now the administration has asked the supreme court to take that up. the term begins, as you know,

first monday in october. this could be taken up perhaps early next year in the spring. just as the republican primary season is heating up and obviously no one needs to be reminded the current front-runner, as we have seen in the latest poll out today is once again mitt romney who passed romney care. his opponents called tonight massachusetts. vulnerability for mitt romney, it is seen among conservatives. a lot of volatility on every level here on this issue coming up in the next few months. >> i think that we are going to remember the summer of 2010. that's when it was. remember? i mean, all of those. >> town hall. >> yes. town halls. people were really fired up. mike viqueira, thank you so much. now to a setstack for the obama administration as an alabama judge upholds most of the provisions in a controversial immigration law. the administration had challenged the law which is the toughest in the country, law allows police to stop suspected illegal immigrants and detain them if then don't have documentation and it also allows for immigration checks on public

school students. >> it would not have been necessary to address this problem if the federal government would have done its job and enforced the laws dealing with this problem. however, they have failed to do that. >> i'm joined now by congressman from arizona. welcome to you, representative, and thanks for being here. >> thank you. >> your reaction to this ruling? also, can you go through the differences between the law in arizona where you are and these laws that have been upheld in alabama because alabama's being described as even more harsh on illegal immigrants. >> yes. the -- the laws that -- law in arizona which is -- suspended at this point because of a federal judge ruling. the laws in utah and -- the laws that have -- also passed in indiana and georgia. they have been blocked in part or entirely by federal judges. the difference here in alabama is this law is much more restrictive. it is more expansive. and that we now have a judge

that's conflicted in the decision with the decisions that have been made in the other four states. the comparison to arizona's quite simple. it is a more restrictive, tougher, and potentially more divisive law than the one in arizona, pure and simple. if you look at the provisions you mentioned in the introduction, you know, governor brewer here in arizona could never identify what reasonable suspicion was in terms of what was undocumented or not. i'm sure the governor of alabama would ask the same question and would have a difficult time describing what this is. as it applies to children and our public school system, supreme court 30 years ago said that immigration status was not a status for primary education. decision by -- by this federal judge runs in conflict with that decision. all of the -- many of us feel this law is another harbinger of

very divisive issue and it is more politicized and criminalizes a great deal of people in our population in this country. and i agree with the governor. this is spomething the federal government should reform years ago. that's where it lays. this is a federal responsibility. this law will be appealed and it will eventually like the health law end up in the hands of supreme court for decision. >> what's interesting here in this, you know, economic malaise, upholding of the new law will provide more jobs for legal residents in alabama. he has been very outspoken about that. how do you counter or do you agree? >> i disagree. the facts and the data never have proven that out. but unfortunately we are not dealing with facts and data in this debate. this is a divisive debate. it is a good political fodder in

an election year. and obviously the governor understands it. it is good political fodder. nevertheless, it is not fair. and the fact that jobs are being lost at -- american citizens should have or legal residents should have that undocumented, that has never been proved. and ---ing in fact, you know, the jobs that undocumented are taking are the jobs nobody wants. >> how -- >> cleaning of hotels and working in fields. >> the situation with regard to the i.c.e., customs officials arresting almost 3,000 illegal immigrants over a one-week period and deporting them, i mean -- how do you -- >> those were criminal aliens. those are criminal aliens. that should be the job of i.c.e. and i applaud them. the intent of that i.c.e. program and that arrest program was to go after criminal element and criminal aliens in this country and -- what they did and what that -- that raid was necessary and appropriate

dividing families and barring children from going to school. criminalizing a purchase at a store which the alabama law does. that is not -- that doesn't fall within the realm of criminality. as we describe it. >> we will no doubt speak with you again. thank you for your time today. here are some other headlines we are following in the news now. former imf chief strass-kahn arriving at a paris police station for a face-to-face meeting with the woman that says raped her. it is not uncommon in criminal investigations in france. they do not imply innocence nor guilt. strass-kahn vehemently denies any wrongdoing but the woman repeated allegations with increasing force. a final plea from the attorneys of amanda knox hoping to overturn the americans murder conviction in italian court. her attorney says that her life has been swept away by a tsunami

and her sister says she's very anxious as they await a decision. >> i know my sister. she is not the witch everybody says she is. she is a loyal and down-to-earth person. >> amanda was sentenced to 26 years in prison for killing her roommate in 2007. she will address the court on monday. an international outcry. laid to rest in savannah, georgia, saturday. the state of georgia executed davis last week for the 1991 murder of an off-duty police officer. a crime he denied committing to his dying breath. his execution happened despite international protests and petitions from a series of world leaders including pope benedict. former president jimmy carter and administrator bishop desmond tutu. imagine this. you are 14 years old. weigh about 95 pounds and stand only 5'1". so small that people need to stack dictionaries just so you can climb into a chair and in this case it is the electric

chair. that's exactly what happened to george junius stinney jr., a boy of that description when he was put to death in 1944 became the youngest person ever executed in the u.s. and as it turns out, he may not only have been innocent but coerced into confessing to a double murder of two young white girls for an ice cream cone. associate professor at columbia university and host of "our world 37 gts mark good to see. when you reviewed details of this case, what is your reaction? >> this is -- most horrific miscarriage of justice i ever heard of. first of all, just the brutality of having a 14-year-old boy, 95 pounds, as you mentioned, executed, having to stack books on a chair to reach street electric chair is disgusting. when you look at the actual evidence there is no physical evidence he committed this murder. there's no evidence at all he committed a murder. he was part of the search apart looking for the girls. and during that time where he was helping the town look for

the girls he mentioned he had seen the girls earlier that day. just by saying he saw the girls earlier that day that justified at that time probable cause and reasonable suspicion. they then carried the boy into a police station without his parents and without an attorney and grilled him for hours and finally offered him an ice cream cone if he would just say he did it. and then he gave an oral confession, none written down. oral confession which the police used and gave to an all-white jury who found him guilty of murder and the state executed him. it is absurd you have to think about the time. 1944. what does it tell you about the american criminal justice system during that time? and how does a it play a role in the death penalty debate? especially in the wake of last week's troy davis execution? >> it tells you at that moment that the -- despite having the rhetoric of justice and the architecture of democracy you none was happening in real time. none of the mechanisms we have for protecting people's rights or like the constitution for example were in place then. then when you look at 1944 and

fast forward to 2011, we still see that despite having reasonable doubt and despite having all sorts of questions raised around an execution case, we still are committed to executing our citizens. yes, we have come a long way since 1944. when we juxtapose troy davis to this man we don't see a big difference. >> what do you expect to see happen if lawyers try to reopen the case to get him exonerated? will that bring some semblance of justice in the case? >> there can be no complete justice because the young man was deprived of a full life. what we can do is dleer historical record, number one. we can continue to put a spotlight on a criminal justice system committed to executing its citizens. seeing how unjust we were in 1944 and 2011 with troy davis and many others, we can then see maybe the tide is turning and public opinion needs to shift and maybe we can have a different conversation about how we think about the death penalty in our society. >> all right.

mark lamont hill, thanks. herman cain got new momentum zraug more attention to himself. it is what cain said last night about black voters that has everyone talking today. a man warned not to go into the water insisted on going in and now his life is hanging in the balance. an update on the latest shark attack next. then there is this. a flash mob you just have to see. [ female announcer ] among marie claire's top 25 beauty products that will change your life... for the first time ever...

a toothpaste. crest 3d white. if beauty editors notice, who else will? crest 3d white toothpaste. life opens up when you do. when i got my medicare card, i realized i needed an aarp... medicare supplement insurance card, too. medicare is one of the great things about turning 65, but it doesn't cover everything. in fact, it only pays up to 80% of your part b expenses. if you're already on or eligible for medicare, call now to find out how an aarp... medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company, helps cover some of the medical expenses... not paid by medicare part b. that can save you from paying up to thousands of dollars... out of your own pocket.

these are the only medicare supplement insurance plans... exclusively endorsed by aarp. when you call now, you'll get this free information kit... with all you need to enroll. put their trust in aarp medicare supplement insurance. plus you'll get this free guide to understanding medicare. the prices are competitive. i can keep my own doctor. and i don't need a referral to see a specialist. call now to get a free information kit. plus you'll get this free guide to understanding medicare. and the advantages don't end there. choose from a range of medicare supplement plans... that are all competitively priced. we have a plan for almost everyone, so you can find one that fits your needs and budget. with all medicare supplement plans, there are virtually no claim forms to fill out. plus you can keep your own doctor and hospital that accepts medicare. and best of all, these plans are... the only medicare supplement plans endorsed by aarp. when they told me these plans were endorsed by aarp... i had only one thing to say...

sign me up. call the number on your screen now... and find out about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan. you'll get this free information kit... and guide to understanding medicare, to help you choose the plan that's right for you. as with all medicare supplement plans, you can keep your own doctor and hospital that accepts medicare, get help paying for what medicare doesn't... and save up to thousands of dollars. call this toll-free number now. republican presidential candidate rick perry took heat for suggesting it would be treasonous for fed chairman ben bernanke to print more money before the presidential election. he's at it again. his remarks earlier today criticizing bernanke on cnbc. >> i think the statements towards chairman bernanke need to be very clear to him that making monetary policy to cover up bad fiscal policy is bad public policy.

and that's what we are seeing. a fed that is getting involved in things that, frankly, does not need to be involved with so printing more money doesn't do anything at this particular juncture but to make the dollars in our pocket worth less money and puts us in gentleman zi for greater inflation in the future. we would put someone in that believes that the private sector is how you stimulate the economy and not by printing more money at the fed. >> and the texas governor says he would not reappoint bernanke. strong words in presidential candidate herman cain over gop is repellent to african-american voters. the republican and former godfather's pizza ceo says black voters have been, quote, brainwashed into not considering conservative views. >> many african-americans have been brainwashed into not being open-minded and not even

considering a conservative point of view. i have received some of that same vitriol because i am running for the republican nomination as a conservative. so it is just brainwashing and people not being open-minded. pure and simple. >> i'm joined by msnbc contributor karen hunter and comcast network bureau chief robert tranam. good morning to you both. i have to go on the heels what he said to you, robert. what do you think of what he said? i know where you vote. >> i think herman cain was inartful in his language. i don't think that african-americans are brainwashed with anything. as it relates to public policy and so forth. however, there is a larger point here. large earn point is that when you take a look at the african-american vote historically from 1960 on to the present time, african-americans overwhelmingly voted democrat. you asked them why. they say because democrats are my best interest as republicans. republicans simply do not speak for me and do not obviously advocate the policies i hold

dear. when you asked the followup question, what are the issues that are important to you? well, you know what? i'm opposed to gay marriage. that's a conservative view. you know, i'm for faith based. that's a conservative point of view. it is a very interesting dance and dichotomy within the african-american community as it relates to the issues important to them but also how they vote at the presidential level. >> get ready. here comes karen. >> we are tap dancing around the truth here which is that the reason why the vast majority of blacks vote democrat is because the party of lincoln switched shortly after the civil rights movement and people who were turning on water hoses and dogs on black folks in the south became democrats. it is very hard to put your faith behind a group of people who you know not just doesn't have your best interest at heart but have been responsible for some lynchings and a bunch of other negative things to the black -- here in america, sorry. >> do you think herman cain has any truth to what he says? >> what herman cain is speaking to, it is sad to sit here and watch him say that because the

reality is he is not getting vitriol because he is a republican. as he pointed out most black people i know are social conservatives. do care about school choice. you know, do follow certain issues that a are republican issues. the fact the republican party has these problems and herman cain hasn't addressed them is the reason why he is getting vitriol. >> i will look at the stats. in 2008, 95% of all black votes went to president obama. so how does the gop try to take a slice of those away coming up next year? >> look, at the end of the day, 2008 was a very historic election for obvious reasons. that's a bit after skew in that regard. however, i believe 2012 is not about just because, you know, president obama looks like me, i'm going to voted for him. it is about whether or not president obama or the republican candidate is going to speak to republican candidate will speak to me about a job issue, speak to me about a job issue. let's be honest here. the unfortunate truth, from a national average standpoint, african-americans and brown people disproportionately are

unemployed. when you look at the numbers, they are disproportionately unemployed at pandemic levels. what black people need to have ab honest conversation about, whether or not president barack obama, regardless of whether or not he's republican or not, does he have have night best economic interest at heart? when you ask that unfortunate question, a lot of folks are saying, i don't know. >> the problem is the republicans are offering up nothing. in the face of that, what do we sit home? at the end of the day herman cain and the rest of the folks have to make a decision. bush got a lot of black votes. we're not saying black people won't vote republican, because they do. my dad voted for ragen. oops, shouldn't have said that. >> thanks.

this is the best, a proposal she would never forget. why not stage a flash mob when you first met and have frankie valley give you a little extra help? ♪ >> you know what's going to happen at the end of this? it's so great. he gets in the middle of a whole group of people and gets down on one knee and she says yes, it's all good. we're america's natural gas

and here's what we did today: supported nearly 3 million steady jobs across our country... ... scientists, technicians, engineers, machinists... ... adding nearly 400 billion dollars to our economy... we're at work providing power to almost a quarter of our homes and businesses... ... and giving us cleaner rides to work and school... and tomorrow, we could do even more. cleaner, domestic, abundant and creating jobs now. we're america's natural gas. the smarter power, today. learn more at anga.us.

today prosecutors are putting a key witness on stand against dr. conrad murray. testimony from jackson's bodyguard may show that dr. murray delayed calling 911 and tried to hide the use of a powerful surgical anesthetic. we're going to keep a close eye on all of these things. the trial is getting under way about ten minutes ago. we'll keep an eye on it for you.

that's it for me. craig melvin will pick up things next. don't go anywhere. rt. but now it's time to go to the next level. so let's do a little detective work. pick up what we need. roll out... caulk...and install. and pretty soon, we're seeing the fruits of our labor right there at our bottom line. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. owens corning ecotouch attic insulation is only $9.97 a roll. listen to this. three out of four americans don't get enough vegetables. so here's five bucks to help you buy v8 juice. five bucks. that's a lot of green. go to v8juice.com for coupons. you can count on us. ♪ got so many scratches and scars ♪ ♪ maybe time can mend us together again ♪

♪ it's not what we've done but how far we've come ♪ ♪ i know that we will recover [ male announcer ] here when you need us most. ♪ [ male announcer ] what is the future of fuel? the debate is over. ♪ lexus hybrid drive technology is designed to optimize any fuel source on the planet. even those we don't use yet. because when you pursue perfection, you don't just engineer a future-proof hybrid system. you engineer amazing. ♪

good day, i'm craig melvin, another home grown terror plot foiled by fbi agents. this one involved planes being flown into government buildings only they were toy planes. this is the massachusetts man who wanted to fly the planes into the pentagon and u.s. capital. justice correspondent pete williams more. >> reporter: ferdaus was arrested, he's 26, a u.s. citizen born here, got a physics degree from northeastern university in boston. as for how he was nabbed, officials say it was a tip from a source that let the fbi on to him. then they did what they often do in these cases, people approached him claiming to be

from terrorist organizations. he assumed they were al qaeda. they wereundercover fbi operatives. he had an extensive plot, he came down to washington and took pictures of the buildings he wanted to target then wrote up plans and gave them to what he thought were al qaeda computers on a enthusiathumb drive. the planes are 6 or 7 feet long. the plan was to fly one into the capital and two in the pentagon. he never had explosives, he had to borrow the money from the undercover operatives to buy the plane, cost $7,000. even had to borrow the money to come down here to washington to do his surveillance. there was no doubt he was a committed terrorist, made many statement about committing jihad. he made detonators from cell phones and give them to