an audience yesterday. >> there are sme who seem to be suffering from a kind of collective amnesia. after all that's happened, after the worst economic crisis, the worst crisis since the great depression, they want to return to the same philosophy that got us into this mess thamp. they say we're better off when everybody is better off by themselves and by their own rules. >> i wonder how you think the news sort of emboldened president obama. certainly more partisan. is working and will work as we look ahead to 2012? >> i think thisses is the one of the best speeches he's given and one of the most basic. i know everybody is describing it as return to populism, i didn't really hear it that way. i think i heard it as let's take a step back, let's go back to

basics. people are democrats because they believe in basic fairness. let me tell you about what that means. i think when you're jux that posing that in this moment, to the republicans at christmas time saying as it tax breaks, are great for the wealthy, they don't work for the middle class this is a winner for him. >> when you talk about income, he apparently in the white house, the democrats, i would like to hear your perspectives on this. think that income inequality and the question about prosperity in this question is going to define this race. >> welcome to campaign mode. i don't think it's emboldened, the race has started and they're engaging in that way. it's an interesting speech. it's nothing like the president has spoken like, either as a candidate in 2008 or throughout most of his presidency. it's some weird and possibly very effective combination of occupy wall street and bill clinton. ed a and the bill clinton part is people who work hard and play by the rules should be able to have a fair shake in america. if you put that together with

the emphasis on income inequality, you have a very populist, but not a wildly populist message. it's a fairness pitch that doesn't sound wildly left wing. >> and the team in chicago has made it clear they want to create this contrast. this is laying the groundwork for that. i'm for fairness, they aren't. >> jay carney on "morning joe" said i would say this speech wasn't an election speech. >> interestingly. i'll say as the republican here, it was an election speech sounded like somebody who is not the incumbent president. it sounds like somebody that's running against washington. not saying that's not effective. and probably, you know if you imagine that unemployment is going to be at 9% or close to 9% by the time the election comes up. probably the only thing he can do. but he does sort of leave out the point that he's been president for two years. two of those three years with a majority in the house and the senate. >> jay carney will be saying that on november 1st of next year. >> it brings up an accurate

point, if you talk about the policy prescriptions that should inevitably follow a speech like this. there aren't any short of the payroll tax situation. all the stuff we have to take care of in december. being president versus being a campaigner in chief. how does he sustain this kind of going -- >> well there's nothing that's going to happen policiwise in the next year, anyway. the president is going to lash himself to the mast of raising taxes and not saying it that way. he's going to campaign in a full-throated way for allowing the bush tax cuts to rise on the wealthy. that's the clear policy implication if he's going to go hard at high-earners and say look you guys are not going to have these tax breaks if i'm president again in 2013. >> everyone will remember a year ago he was cutting a deal with republicans before taking power in the house to basically extend these and they pushed them until after the election for the whole point that it wouldn't be a campaign issue. well, what do you know. >> matt iglesias, who was a

former think progress and now it's slate, i believe, said the president gave a speech like this in september and nobody paid attention. sort of been here, done that. i wonder, we're all obviously aflurry with praise and interest and talking points regarding the speech yesterday. do you fundamentally think that this is something we will be talking about in three months? >> oh yeah. the speech itself? i think he's probably going to -- >> this is a turning point. >> i think he's going to give this speech. what else can he really talk about. he's going to point out that there's going to be this disparity between the republicans and democrats that plays into the conventional wisdom. to your point, i think at a certain point, once there is a republican nominee, the questions are going to rise again. okay, you're president, what are your proposals. you know, other candidates have put forth their 50-point proposals for creating jobs. if we get back to the economics and the jobs, payroll tax, it's a good issue. i do not deny it and i think the republicans have badly handled it. but somewhere along the line, six months from now, you can't keep playing that. because you know what,

republicans are going to pass this somewhere along the line and next november, everybody is going to take credit for it. >> i think this is the starting point. i think this is laying the ground work for saying, it's fairness versus people who think that any kind of help is detrimental to people. because it gets them hooked. and they feel dependant and it's really saying, this is where we are, this is what you are. you know, it's newt saying, the food stamp president, versus the person -- you know, the president who cares about basic fairness. >> it's a race on the right. the republican fight over who is going to cut capital gains taxes lowest. is it okay to have zero capital gains for everyone or only some of the richest people. that's a battle that the president will savor. it affects people with capital, people with a lot of money. >> and i think the president wants that contrast with republicans. >> and the interesting part of doing it he's not going to the food stamp conversation, right he's going to the middle class,

middle class, 20 times he said it. he's elevated it to because we all think of ourselves as middle class. so it is actually a very smart move. >> for him to say what they want to bring to the conversations, they, republicans want to bring it back to the millionaires again and again. that's their constituency. look at who the bottom line, they will never touch. they will never go for. even to protect basic family -- >> and yet the immediate republican reaction was this is a searing indictment of supply-side economics. this man is an enemy of small business. >> they've been saying that. >> it's the same argument on both sides, the words change a little with obama. it's the basic premise he's been saying as a democrat. and now they're seeing how popular it is to talk about the rich paying a higher share. they're going to keep going at this and the republicans are going to say it's anti-business. >> the president did say in the speech that sly side economics has never worked and trickle-down economics have never worked. >> and they've telegraphed that out to an indictment of capitalism itself.

apparently that doesn't seem to worry the white house. this week is richard cordray week at the white house, a big week. the president is really making a push for cordray to be confirmed assed head of the consumer financial protection bureau. there's a speech that elizabeth warren gave in august, it's almost like he's taking his talking points from elizabeth warren. do we have the sound bite? she says there's nobody in this country who got rich on his own. nobody. you built a factory here? good for you. i want to be clear, you moved your goods to market on the roads, the rest of us paid for. you hired workers the rest of us paid to educate. elizabeth warren, we talk about the occupy movement and i guess it's sort of doff a hat where a hat should be doffed. does this give steam to the engine that is the consumer protection financial bureau? >> silence. >> dead silence. >> either a terrible question or no. >> it's very tricky for him.

because democrats aren't too happy with how he didn't give that to elizabeth warren in any way that was going to work. you know, he hasn't been sounding like elizabeth warren. so he's trying to do this kind of two-step where he's saying, yes, we're going to crack down on the banks and yes, we're going to make sure this consumer protection agency finally, finally happens. but that also reminds people that he -- is seen to have protected the banks and not moved quickly enough on that in the past. >> although his language about the banks was very, very firm yesterday. >> yes, it was. >> just, his language. >> he's pivoting. >> i think again, it is another year where he'll be president. but i think at some point his action has to match his language. if he doesn't want to take even a little shellacking when it comes to the next election. >> and cordray is in the a galvanizing figure among progressives. >> like elizabeth warren is. >> you're not knowsly going to see the fight coming behind him to bolster him up.

other than republicans -- >> nobody is going to head the bureau as a galvanizing figure on the right, i don't think he's going to be confirmed, i don't think that's going to happen. that was my exception to the question that is the engine to the consumer financial protection. they don't want to appoint anyone to head that agency and i think they now see this opening as the president gets sterner with his language, they see an opening to court the financial class. the president in the past hasn't been successful on that. and they'll continue to stall and block the appointment in the future. >> so perhaps richard cordray week stretches into another break. after the gop retreat, does the party now think it's risky to attack president obama? on my phone, i got internet! hotspot five dollars. hey, hey, hey, hey. i can see who's on my network people! lance? lance? yes, yes

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if you want to know the gop strategy to defeat the president, apparently all you have to do is pick up the phone. reporters for yahoo say they were mistakenly given an invite it a private call on which gop insiders discussed what they should and should not do to defeat the president. and i think the most embarrassing quotes, come from a republican pollster of the terrence group who said we are hesitant to jump on board with the heavy attacks personally against president obama. that's lot of people who feel sorry for the president. about you this is my favorite. also voters don't think he's an evil man who is out to change the united states for the worse. my question is -- this has been a line of attack for years at this point. can the gop even pivot? >> well -- >> should they? >> i would like to say we are the party of transparency. obviously since we invite yahoo

on to our phone calls. good work, boys. i think there is a pivot that needs to take place, because obviously look, republicans are feeling insecure because we're in the middle of a primary and the democrats are getting an opportunity to start the campaign. but the point remains the president is at a 41% job approval rating and so really, that should tell anybody with just a b.a. in public strategy, that that's where you need to go. on job approval. not on the person itself. >> but this is what every single politician always says, we're going to keep this on the high brow, talk about policy. always goes to it. >> they said it privately. >> i think it's more about saying hey, you guys be careful and don't do anything stupid that's going it make us look bad, because we have an advantage here because obama's approval ratings are down. >> i think a few consultants saying that does not make it their new strategy. i wish it would be the new strategy for both parties. it would make it a lot less toxic. >> if mitt romney is the nominee, that will be their strategy. the strategy of mitt romney to

say the president is a very nice man, he's got a great family, he tried his best. but that will be -- that will be the strategy of the party. the presidential candidate on the republican side if mitt romney stands up and says over and over again, as he will, the president is a nice man, but he's in over his head. it will create a climate where a lot of the anger and a lot of the really polarizing rhetoric will sup side. that's the way you win a general election. if they go the other way, they lose. >> at the end of a primary when you go after those independents, that's where you need to go and obviously that's going to be a challenge for the republican party and the democratic party coming out of this trying to appease both sides. i think that's exactly right, john. >> we talk so much about this mean out there that the american public is angry, they want someone that's going to channel that anger. that's why there's been this dissatisfaction with mitt romney. why we have someone like newt gingrich. so all of a sudden everyone is going to play nice? >> there are a lot of very angry republican base voters. the people who are going to decide this election are mostly people who are ind bent voters,

not angry at the president. they like the president, but they think he's failed. and those people are the people who you have to get to. >> and it's not romney who is going to say it, but i do think it's going to be a lot dirtier. i hope you're right, but i think it's going to be a dirty election no matter what. >> and you have to make a distinction, is it a personal attack to show a scary, unflattering photo of barack obama and say he's the worst president ever. trying to raise your taxes. >> and he's a communist. >> is that a personal attack and all different types of images that get inserted into ads. they can be a little subliminal there. >> i think it's a way of telling republicans, the birther conversation isn't working and it's over. and yet, cue stage left, the donald trump debate. i think there's a difference between the primary and nominating section of the election. >> i don't think the republican party is really controlling that. >> i'll go with me linda objen s point. since newt gingrich is not going

to be the nominee, it's going to be a discussion. >> running again the food stamp president, it's not going to be pretty. >> we will be talking more about newt and the food stamp president and his rival, mitt romney and what mitt romney may or may not be hiding, that's next on "now." time for your business entrepreneur of the week. rachel weeks ceo of apparel company, school house was manufacturing her products in sri lanka. she wanted to bring those jobs stateside, so she partnered with a durham, north carolina factory, mitt's knits, she continues to expand her business locally. committed to creating products made in the usa. for more, watcher your business sunday mornings on msnbc. in louisiana. they came to see us in florida...

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his record as a governor. when it comes to his campaign, there's a view that he has built a wall keeping his distance from the media and the other candidates. that, however, may all be about to change. specifically on the documents thing, massachusetts is now releasing hundreds of boxes of documents, from when romney was governor. although the email themselves as we see have been wiped away into cyberspace. there could be nothing or there could be something. is there a, does he need to worry about this perception that there's a smoking gun somewhere? that he did something bad during his record? is this an issue for him? >> i think there's probably less here than meets the eye. i don't know for sure, but i think romney has been vetted in a number of ways, particular pli because he ran in 2008 and there was a lot of scrutiny on him from the boston press corps. and the democrats don't like him in massachusetts and they've made sure that a lot of the negative things about his records have come out. so the dnc is having some fun with this but they're not putting any money behind that ad. >> isn't it a testament to mitt

romney's control-freakish nature, about what is released about him? >> if you had an opportunity -- >> every public official would rather not release their emails. >> or reporter who might have some musings that they never sent in the next morning. >> i think in the scheme of things this is not the shame of the city. >> i do think it is important to say it was a legal based on a court ruling and this again shows why the president is more afraid of running against mitt romney than he is newt gingrich. there's a full-court press to do whatever they can, from ynow un january 3rd to take down mitt romn romney. >> do you think they're afraid to run against him? >> totally. >> i can see it both ways, because running against mitt is very unpredictable. >> you know. they know who romney is. >> that's, there's a reasonable analysis to be made that you might be more, that you could

argue either way, but in trucht they are more worried about running against mitt romney than newt gingrich. they've been asking like rick perry's super p.a.c., or michele bachmann's super p.a.c. >> but lately, is there any rethinking about that strategy? because nobody knew that gingrich was going to be in the position he's in. >> it's worked exactly the way they wanted it to work. they've taken romney down. >> they might be sorry they did that. >> the democratic pro obama super p.a.c. running anti-newt gingrich ads in iowa. that will be the test and you won't see it happen. >> let's talk about romney versus gingrich. now we're seeing a surge for gingrich across a number of polls in a number of states, there's been a call amongst gop establishment figures and the like who think mitt needs to take the gloves off, go hard on gingrich. there's been some word that the romney camp is prepared to do

that. >> i hope so. sorry. >> you think that -- in other words, did i say that out loud? >> speaking as a former republican legislator -- >> and a romney supporter. >> if you aren't a romney supporter. what are the five words you would use to describe your feelings if you are running for congress with nit gun grich newt gingrich at the top of the ticket. >> it's not just about the presidency, people in the gop now, why these calls are going out are afraid that this is going to be a redo of what happened in 1996 and 1998 when newt was the issue. look the one thing you have when you have an incumbent president, you have a lot of things to fight against. but you hope the presidential is about the incumbent president. when it's newt gingrich. we can almost all guarantee, maybe we won't admit it in front of tv, that going to be about newt and that's not good. >> and romney, i mean has, i just sort of said that romney is beginning to respond to newt, he

has a new ad out this morning that i think in a lot of ways serves to contrast his marriage with those of newt gingrich's marriages and sort of underscores how long he's been married to his wife, ann romney, 42 or 43 years. the consistency there as opposed to newt's fill an dering. >> all of the iowa's polls show there's some possibility for gingrich. he's selling a redemption narrative to the christian right, which george w. bush did very effectively as a former alcoholic in 2000 in iowa. there's a long record of conservatives if they believe someone has changed, they will forgive your sins. the big question is there somebody who will start spending a lot of money on tv. the mitt romney super p.a.c.s will do that it's the most determinative factor of what goes on in iowa. >> one thing that's interesting to point out, all of these

comments about romney, we wish he would get a little more aggressive and take the gloves off. you heard the exact same thing about barack obama when he was up against hillary clinton. and obama and romney are also a little similar, the slow and steady wins the race, trying to stay back, making other people do the attacks. >> are we going to see, romney had his family out on the campaign trail last go-round are we going to see ann and his kids out there. it a concerted move to keep them off the campaign trail thus far. >> i think his bringing ann is nothing but good for him. who doesn't like ann romney. she's a very, she's a very, big asset for him. however you look at it and we don't, we don't know how, would the christian conservative voters so her as the other woman? would they see her, then there's the whole, i think she does, the basilica. and i hear she's sings well.

but is the tiffany's thing, i think could turn out to be a huge issue. >> i think why romney is you know, never sort of broke through that pattern and the numbers and why gingrich is surging, look, we've all noticed, it's because the republican base wants to see somebody take a right hook. you know, and romney's got to show that passion. you know nobody is sitting there saying he didn't do a good job in the olympics, he's a failure as a governor. they want him to stand up and say, i'm going to take a punch. >> lower the drawbridge and show us your red blood cells? >> okay. >> when we come back, bo biden is fighting for homeowners. after the break on "now." daddy, come in the water!

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foreclosure fighter and i am a part of the 99%. i have lived in this home for over 50 years. my father built this home for his family. until graystone, a predatory broker company defrauded me. the banks are doing what they want. who is standing up for the home owners? >> one of the people fighting for home owners has been delaware's attorney general, bo biden. who join from washington, d.c. program. >> happy to be on, alex, it's a great show. >> thank you. >> to give you know, the audience a sense of what you've been dealing with and delaware alone, there are over 2,000 public auctions of foreclosed homes in the first ten months of this year. up 33% from last year. do you think the country is turning a corner on fraudulent lending? or do we have further to go on this? >> i think we have further to go. i know for sure we have further to go on investigations.

we've done 20 housing workshops across the state of delaware as my colleagues all across the country are doing. where you have home owners coming in and telling stories of just awful egregious conduct by many of these servicing banks. telling stories of a person that is in negotiation with the bank about something short of a foreclosure. in entering into what they believe to be a modification of their note from $1,000, $800. they say if you do that for three months, we'll make it permanent. and on the 91st day or the 100th day, the bank calls up and says, we're foreclosuring on you, anyway. these stories i'm trying to articulate are all over our state, all over the country and that's why you have 50 attorneys general united in investigating the banchs. you know somebody is doing something wrong when all 58 gs are seeing something wrong. >> you know somebody is doing something wrong when you can get many a.g.s doing something about

it. >> when you talk about the work that the occupy movement has done to cement that. i wonder, yesterday was a day of action with the occupy our homes movement. have you, has there been any coordination between you and the occupy folks? have they talked to you about this stuff? i'm wondering, it seems like the work is being done very much in tandem. >> i've not, i've run into a couple of these folks at one of our housing workshops that happen to have attended. what they're articulating is just incredible frustration. and that is the frustration really borne out of a lack of accountability. as you know, alex, you've written on this and spoken about this. in 2008, the american citizens lost $16 trillion in wealth. that's with a t, not a b, a t. $16 trillion in wealth vanished. it just didn't vanish because it was a cyclical downturn in the economy. it vanished because what

happened to the economy. what happened to the economy was a manmade disaster, no the a natural disaster. whether you're in the tea party or a 99%er or anywhere in between. most of america, in between, you're mad as heck because there's been no accountability. $16 trillion flushed down the toilet on something happening in the economy that men and women and entities caused and no one has been held accountable in any way shape or form. more people went to jail in the savings and loan crisis. over 1,000 for something that was, was minor compared to what we experience over the last three years in our economy. >> mr. attorney general, i have a question in regards, it's john heilman. it's a two-part question. for year you guys the state attorneys general have been trying to cut a settlement, at least most of you have, with the largest lending companies over foreclosure fraud, particularly robo signing. is that going to happen or not? a lot of people in the occupy movement think it would be a terrible sellout. that's my first question. my second is, what would you

like to see washington, the federal government do to solve this problem? >> i'm going to piggy-back on this i know the white house is pursuing a settlement with the largest banks, they pay $20 billion and the investigation would stop. and i know you've been opposed to that. so that's a lot of questions for you to tackle. >> i'll deal with them in reverse order. the federal government is working in partnership with all 50 attorneys general. i'm on the executive committee of that investigation and i'll look at it when i see the final settlement proposed. so the federal government, hud, doj, and others are working in partnership with the u.s., rather, with the ags, led by tom miller. i'll look at it when it comes down. in terms of the number and the relief it will give to home owners. i don't anticipate being able to sign on to that, john, for the following reason. what the banks have done from my perspective is come to us and said look, we know you've got us on the fact that we sold bad gutters to this little old lady. the gutters in this case being we've engaged in servicing fraud. but by the way, bo, we built a

foundation of this house and also, we, we did the roof and we did all the electrical work. we'll only agree to settle with you on the bad gutters if you in fracture agree not to investigate us for the foundation, for the roof and for all the wiring in the house. i am, other attorneys general are, eric schneiderman in new york is, we're investigating the roof, the foundation and all the wiring and i'm not going to give up and forgo my responsibility to investigate the entire thing on the limited issue of servicing. that's why i probably won't be a member of that settlement. that's i think you see other attorneys general beginning to walk away from it. that's why i think you begin to see katherine mastow, cortez mastow the leader, she was the first to sue the banks almost 18, 20 months ago. as well as carmella harris. up in massachusetts. the list goes on. all people who are not going to forgo and give up their

responsibility to investigate all aspects of the fraud that took place and was perp taetrat on borrowers and consumers in this country. >> on a personal level when someone comes to you and says i'm being evicted from my home. it's the swaegs, here we are, maybe holidays, my kids. do you say -- you know if they're looking do you for some kind of guidance, what do you tell them to do? and have you had people coming to you and saying, you know, i wonder if i can stay in my house. because again, the people in the occupy movement are saying i'm not going anywhere. >> there's two people in my office, sherry hoffman and jerry kelly who field these calls every day and there's people like those folks in my office all over the country and in ags offices fielding that call. when you're about to lose your home, it's like losing a child and it is the most, it is an incredibly, incredibly painful thing to have to endure, to wake up and to have to fight against. there are people who are going to be foreclosed upon because they're unable to pay their

bills. that's appropriate in many cases. but the problem here is that the servicing arms of these banks are foreclosuring at such a rapid rate because it is, they are incentivized to foreclosure. they are not incentivized to have a discussion about something short of foreclosure. the big issue here is that the banks make it almost impossible for the borrower to get them on the phone, to have a meaningful discussion in good faith about something sort of foreclosure. a short sale, mortgage modification. lower the interest rate, you can make the bank whole and you can make the borrower whole, but keep them in the house. no the going to work for everybody. but the real issue and alex has talked about this other shows i've seen. you cannot, i challenge anyone listening to find out who actually owns their mortgage and have a meaningful discussion about whether or not there can be some modification of the mortgage. by the way, you should try to do this before you're in trouble. because when you do it when you're in trouble, then the

clock is ticking against you. >> attorney general bo biden, thank you very much for your time and we'll be following your work in the days to come. after the break, why gay rights make a wrong for the gop and what the obama administration is doing to promote lgbt concerns. [ male announcer ] an lg smart tv, lg optimus cell phone and...an apology card. this is ridiculous. yeah, and it's got apps. nice. it's got vudu, twitter, facebook.

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like being a woman, like being a racial, religious, tribal or ethnic minority, being lgbt does not make you less human. and that is why gay rights are human rights and human rights are gay rights. >> you don't need to be in the pew every sunday to know that there's something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military. but our kids can't openly celebrate christmas or pray in school. >> the obama administration made a bold announcement about using

foreign aid to permit rights for gays and lesbians abroad. at the same time, gop candidates are doubling down on the anti-gay rhetoric. i thought the juxtaposition of the two is pretty striking. you have the administration deciding some amount of foreign aid going to go towards supporting gay and lesbian rights abroad and here's rick perry basically questioning, questioning gay rights in general in this country. >> and it's the candidates going after that social conservative vote. but i would really argue, this is a generational difference here. it's not necessarily a republican-democrat difference. so many of the young republicans you meet out on the campaign trail, they don't care

>> especially in iowa and new hampshire. >> that's right. i thought, what a juxtaposition in what you're saying, what hillary clinton is talking about is violence against people because of their orientation. and for governor perry to then come out and say, you know, they want special rights, well, no, this is about human rights, this is about not being attacked. >> it's worth saying perry's comment, he responded to hillary clinton saying yesterday that investing tax dollars, promoting a lifestyle that many americans of faith find deeply objectionable is wrong. they're running on any issues. >> i'm not going to defend anybody who is critical of the secretary of state on this issue or anybody who is against the open service of homosexuals in our armed forces. but let's be clear, this is rick perry. >> and it's also michele

bachmann and it's rick santorum. >>s did. but it's not at this moment at least, anybody who can win the republican nomination. and i think to susan's point, republicans did i think learn something in 2010. which was that they did very well by not talking about these issues in the mid-term elections and i think you will not see whoever the republican nominee is, campaigning hard on these issues, it's not the way you're going to win the general election, given the generational things that christina is talking about. it's not a winning issue. >> i do think there's a difference between saying to those people who say that gay marriage is wrong, but those same people probably don't want violence against them, either. i think most of us would republican or democrat would sit there and cheer what senator clinton, secretary clinton has said. >> speaking of cheering, this is where the democrats you go back to the sort of campaign they're going to run. you think we're not going to see the booing of the gay soldier at the debate footage come up. against whoever the republican nominee is?

the democrats want to paint the republicans as anti-gay. >> i tun what you're saying. i think to put into perspective, we just had an election, where personhood issues, gay rights or the question of abortion, is still very much in the ether. >> it is, but not to the point it was 12 years ago, eight years ago. 12 years ago, we didn't talk about, the economy, jobless, the deficit. these are the driving issues and unemployment are going to be the driving issues and the republicans want to stick to those issues, they realize that's when we win elections. >> it's surprising, maybe not surprising given the christian conservative vote anywhere iowa who people are pitching to at this moment. but you know i'm embarrassed to say i spent my saturday night watching that huckabee forum in iowa. >> that's not embarrassing. >> there were no kitchen table topics. it was all -- a purity test and

it was almost all social issues. >> it's mike huckabee, what did you expect to see from mike huckabee and his social issues forum. that's what they were there to talk about. it's true, not making excuses for these people, as susan said, it's the iowa caucuses this is the far right candidates in the iowa caucuses are going to say things like that. >> but it is a conversation that has been very prominent in a year when we say only jobs matter. they had two hours and the word jobs, i don't think was mentioned. >> every other issue disappears, it's not front and center like it was. >> i will say for the record that michele bachmann was asked by an 8-year-old yesterday, at a book signing, his mother was list beian and he brought that up to michele bachmann saying she doesn't need to be fixed. and rick santorum said their relationships would be seen as equal to heterosexual relationships and it would be taught in school. >> stop picking on these

candidates who are not going to win the primary. >> whether newt gingrich, what line he plays. romney has stayed away from this stuff, particularly given massachusetts having a stronger gay rights than other states. and i think whether gingrich sort of goes to one side or the other -- >> takes the bait. >> gingrich has said some things that are interesting. >> he always says interesting things. we'll talk about more of them later. when we come back it's a day of remembrance for the greatest generation. ♪ our machines help identify early stages of cancer, and it's something that we're extremely proud of. you see someone who is saved because of this technology, you know that the things that you do in your life matter. if i did have an opportunity to meet a cancer survivor, i'm sure i could take something positive away from that. [ jocelyn ] my name is jocelyn. and i'm a cancer survivor. [ woman ] i had cancer. i have no evidence of disease now.

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now for my postscript. 70 years ago today on december 7th, 1941, japanese pilots launched a surprise attack on pearl harbor, hawaii. 2400 americans lost their lives. the next day, president

roosevelt called december 7th, a date which will live in infamy. 33 minutes after the president's speech, the u.s. declared war on japan. survivors of the attack are well into their 80s and 90s and are still taking part in ceremonies. as time passes, however, we are losing more and more of the world war ii generation this year is the last the pearl harbor survivors association will gather in hawaii to commemorate the event. they're disbanding on december 31st. president obama has declared december 7th a day of remembrance and in few minutes the nation will take part in a moment of silence to do just that. when i think about pearl harbor, you know and the generation sort of going through national tragedy, i think for a lot of us at this table. what it brings to mind is september 11th and the idea that one day, you know there will be the remaining children who remember those attacks. and the national chapter being closed. >> which is why it's so poignant to think that this is the last

time that the pearl harbor survivors are going to be there. to me it points out remembering 9/11 is why it's so important that we continue to have these traditions. not only to honor those who lost their lives and their families, but to remind us, through this time and through 9/11, that you know, unfortunately evil does not go away in this world and sometimes we have to just stay in memory. >> it's an interesting question. you think about regardless of whether they will go on commemorating this in an official way. partly because of someone we all know well, tom brokaw and having written "the greatest generation" people are not going to forget the world war ii generation. that's a concept that lives in our culture and people think about it all the time and people will read those books for a long time. it's interesting to think about whether there will be a time 20 or 30 years from now. what will people say about the post-9/11 generation. as of this moment, we haven't seen that kind of summoning of national will and sacrifice that we saw in the wake of pearl harbor and the wake of the european part of world war ii.

we haven't seen that in america in this generation, at least not so far. that we can tell it's a little too close to know. i'm curious as to whether the two huge tragedies, who will be said about this generation. >> to your point, john, who we are and what emerges if the days and the years and you know, the decades after september 11th, is very much a question mark in way that i don't think it was after pearl harbor. i think, of course i wasn't alive then, but the sense of national unity, about both events, but more of a collective sense of we are all in this together. >> and sacrifice. >> and certainly a lot said about we were, again, i wasn't there, either, but we were my mom was walking to school on her sixth birthday and thought that kentucky was under attack. when she heard about it, right? i mean so we weren't called to sacrifice after 9/11. we were called to go shopping and i think that a lot of people

rightly have criticized both bush and obama for not asking us and being clear enough about the shared sacrifice and the kind of rhetoric that you're hearing obama start to use now. >> and certainly, you know, when we talk about what happened after pearl harbor was of course the u.s. entrance into world war ii. what happened after september 11th was the entrance into iraq and afghanistan, two wars that are, arguably still going on. and -- >> today is an important reminder, being so grateful for the nation's veterans and make sure we do right by them. >> such a massive difference between a war, a war in which every american, because of the draft, was called upon to serve. and these wars that we now have which are fought by volunteer armies, it's a very different, to the question of national shared sacrifice and the draft is very central to the difference between those two generations. >> hugely in terms of us paying attention to it. we talk a lot in this forum about what is happening in the middle east and our sort of

sense of collective amnesia about it that's a great contrast to what happened after pearl harbor. the ceremony has not yet started, but it will be starting shortly. and i just want to say sort of in closing, it is, frequently we, the sense of history is not often with us. and one of the most marked things about this was, a look back and a sense of who we are as americans. and a time to reflect on who we want to be. and that's not something that we do nationally or even in the news media. and so in that way, i think you know, to be thankful not only for that sacrifice that was made. but also that we had this time to sort of share in the moment and be reflective. thanks for joining us. we will leave you now with a moment of silence to mark the 70th anniversary of pearl harbor day, it will begin with a whistle from the uss chonghun. .

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maying of our national anthem by the pacific fleet band. >> you're watching a moment of silence to observe the 70th anniversary of the attack on pearl harbor. right now on "andrea mitchell reports" can newt's organization catch up to his polls? under new attack, could newt's biggest hurdle be his own campaign? president obama versus republicans, who is winning the fight for america's middle class?

>> the philosophy is simple -- we are better off when everybody is left to fend for themselves, and play by their own rules. i am here to say, they are wrong. [ applause ] >> while our democrat friends continue to insist on massive tax increases, on small business people around america, republicans continue to focus on the priority of the american people and that is jobs. >> with us this hour, senior white house adviser, valerie jarrett. plus west virginia democratic senator, joe mansion. and democratic congressman, chris van holland. confirmation wars, republicans threaten to block the president's nominee to replace elizabeth warren as consumer watchdog. senator richard shelby is leading the charge against the nominee. and he joins us live this hour. plus the white house stands up for gay rights ove