for a holiday ♪ ♪ would it stop my fears ♪ ♪ to go away on a summer stay ♪ ♪ never seems so clear ♪ a deal means that working americans won't get a tax hike and the unemployed get to keep their benefits. for another two months anyway. could unhappy members of speaker boehner's conference still spoil the party? politically the house's painful defeat gives president obama a big christmas gift, but voters' memories are short. we'll look at the impact of the 2012 race. as we head into the last week of 2011 this morning, we look back at the major events, the highs and lows of the past year. it is friday, december 23rd, 2011. this is "the daily rundown." i'm luke russert in for chuck todd who son a very -- or well

earned vacation. let's go to the first read of the morning. it looks like there will be a tax cut for christmas after all. five-day standoff came to an abrupt end on thursday when speaker boehner essentially cornered by the president in his own party called his colleagues and told them the fight was over. >> you know, sometimes it is hard to do the right thing. sometimes it is politically difficult to do the right thing. may not have been the politically smartest thing in the world, but let me tell you what, i think our members waged a good fight. >> boehner surrender paves the way for the senate and the house to approve the two-month extension and send it to the president's desk. the president tried to take his political victory in stride, attributing it to public pressure, not the bully pulpit. after the announcement, he took to twitter and said thanks to all who shared their stories. today's victory is yours. keep making your voices heard. it makes all the difference. mark murray is nbc's deputy political director and joins me here in washington.

thanks for coming on the program. >> thanks, luke. >> so, mark, the morning after, this seems like it was first victory all year for the -- for house democrats and really president obama. >> luke it was a victory for them. and this was something that was obviously set up back in september when president obama turned from deficit reduction and austerity to talking about jobs. and the good news for republicans in this fight is, yes, this is a defeat, but it was a black eye that might last only for four or five days, particularly if today's vote goes as anyone assumes it will. the problem for republicans and the good news for democrats is this all sets up into really the big battle for 2012. we're talking abo ing abouing a inequality, which party is the better deliverer for the middle class. that could set up a narrative that the democrats are the ones looking for a payroll tax for middle class americans and republicans weren't. and that is the potential danger for the republican party.

>> mark, charles krauthammer had an interesting quote this morning in an op-ed in "the washington post," the gop's performance nicely reprises that scene in animal house and row after row of plumed morans plows into a brick wall, crumbling to the ground in an unceremonious heap. we have the video there for you from one of the all time classics "animal house." mark, you know, krauthammer is not one to mince words there. is that supposed to be taken as a sign to the house gop leadership, they really screwed this one up? >> luke it was a tactical mistake by republicans. you look at it in poker terms. the republicans were basically holding a pair of 2s in this fight. this wasn't a -- they did not have a strong hand to play. but they went all in on this pair of 2s and they ended up losing their pot of money. oftentimes whether it is in

politics or poker, you want to be able to go all in when you have a strong hand and the republicans didn't. sometimes with politics, you end up taking your lumps and you try to move on and not pick a fight on something that at the end of the day isn't all of that big of a battle, particularly when you look at a lot of the successes, house republicans have had this year, whether on deficit reduction we saw in the spring or with the debt ceiling increase over the summer. >> mark, in terms of 2012 politics, how does this play out? do you see this as the catalyst that could lead to democrats possibly taking back the house or could this help president obama against a mitt romney or newt gingrich? >> well, luke, some people have drawn parallels to the 1995, 1996 government shutdown with newt gingrich and house republicans were seen as the villains. bill clinton was seen as the victor. and bill clinton was able to ride that to re-election in 1996. of course, this isn't a perfect similarity, but democrats are

hoping that that actually plays true. on the other hand, just do know in today's media environment where things happen so quickly in this 24/7 cable culture, it is worth noting if we're still going to be talking about this two or three months from now. if we are, that's a big victory for democrats. if we're talking about something else, republicans would like to pick other fights. >> well, i have a feeling we'll be talking about this, mark, because it is only a two-month extension and being on capitol hill every day tells me that the same fight will surely boil over again. mark murray, deputy political director nbc news, thank you for joining us. have a very merry christmas. we're lucky here to have maryland congressman chris van hon, thank you for being in the studio. >> good to be with you, luke. >> was this the first win for departments in 2011? speaker boehner said during the democrat limit he got 98% of what you wanted. representative cleaver called that deal a satan sandwich. you guys had a pretty tough

year. was this the first light at the end of the tunnel? >> i see this as a win for the country as the president said this was a win for the american people as we head toward january 1st. it is going to mean they're not going to see a tax hike. now we got to get to work to make sure we keep that payroll tax cut in place for the remainder of the year. i should say, as you mentioned early on, yogi berra famously warned it ain't over until it's over. there is still a possibility that at 10:00, someone could get up and object in the house of representatives. >> you would like that. >> i don't want that at all. >> no. the house gop objected and this was held up over the weekend over christmas? >> luke, i think everybody recognizes we got to get this done for the good of the economy. it is a very fragile state. it is unfortunate that it took this long to get to this point, but let's focus on got news for the country, which is we have a payroll tax cut in place. as you mentioned, millions of people who are out of work

through no fault of their own will have unemployment insurance so they can continue to pay the rent, mortgage and put food on the table for the family. >> you ran the dccc last cycle. is this an issue that can help you regain your majority. is this the signature issue you guys have needed? kathy hoch had medicare in western new york in that special election in the spring. is this one that can carry you into 2012? >> i think the issue in 2012 will be the economy. whether it is getting back on its feet, why it is getting back on its feet and the plans for the future. you got republican presidential candidates out there really taking pot shots at each other right now, where the president has been steady, focused on the economy, as was said, he gave a speech in september, laying out the idea for a one-year payroll tax cut, laid out the idea for unemployment extension. he also asked for a big infrastructure package, investments in our roads and bridges, republicans and the house have not budged on that. so i think the economy will

remain the big issue. and i think the president has taken very important steps to try and get a very tough economy back on its feet. what this is is part of that story. this is part of the story on trying to get the economy going. it was part of the president's job plan. the idea being if americans have a little bit more money in their pockets, they'll go out and buy a few goods and services and then small businesses and others will want to hire more people to meet that consumer demand. >> one thing i found fascinating about how you guys played in this fight was usually the democratic party is known for lacking discipline, that there is a whole bevy of viewpoints and whethn that deal was announced, senator leven said he was against it, a few folks were concerned about the pipeline, but they were silent after that saturday and you coalesced around the senate deal and president obama. how were you able to maintain that discipline? >> well, luke, everybody i think understands these days that if we're going to get the economy moving, you need reasonable compromise. so, yes there were things in that package that a lot of us

didn't like, but if you looked at it on balance, it made sense for the country. i think we were able to persuade our members, which is often a fractious bunch that we need to pull together. we need to pull together. the president, you know, pulled people together. and, look, the result is the right one for the american people. >> let's look at this fight that is going to happen in two months. obviously this is a temporary reprieve of the ongoing battle. there is some serious differences in terms of how exactly to pay for year long extension, the gop wants to freeze federal salaries. they want to have real reform to unemployment benefits. how do you, right now, see this fight playing out, and are you worried that while there is a temporary victory here, the battle will be a lot more bloody as we head into around groundhog day? >> i hope not. but that is a danger. i heard eric cantor at one point say the parties were really close on the one-year deal. that's just not the case. republicans continue to object to some of the methods we want to pay for this. we want to pay for it by closing

corporate tax loopholes. you you got corporate jet loophole. you you got the oil and gas subsidies that we think can be closed. so you got that aspect of it. republicans had proposed to raise medicare premiums on seniors as you mentioned when it came to federal employees like folks at the cia. so we think that this is a time where everybody should share in the responsibility, including folks who are enjoying these corporate tax loopholes. i hope we can come to relatively quick agreement for the additional extension. but we'll have to see. and that's why it was so important to get this tax cut extension in place right now so we can work out the other details. >> congressman chris van hollen from maryland. you have a short commute to whap ta to the capital. we'll be keeping our eye on the

developing news out of capitol hill throughout the hour. will the deal get done or will there be republican obstructionism? and up next, twin suicide bombings rock the syrian capital. could it be the work of al qaeda? and christmas cheer on wall street. the market tries to hold its gains heading into the holidays. you're watching "the daily rundown" only on msnbc. don't go anywhere on this eve before the eve. [ male announcer ] tom's discovering that living healthy can be fun.

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grim pictures out of syria today. at least 40 people are dead after twin suicide car bombings erupted in the capital city of damascus. syrian state television reported the bombs targeted strategic

security and intelligence buildings. the blasts come one day after an arab league team arrived to hold the syrian government to their promise to end a brutal crackdown on protesters. elsewhere in the region today, take a live look at these pictures as thousands of people flood into egypt's tahrir square. they're denouncing the military's brutal crackdown on protesters, particularly on women, who have been brutalized and dragged through the streets. for more on this, i'm joined now by iman muhidin. want to ask you, in syria, the government is saying the bombings were the work of al qaeda. has that been substantiated and is that true? >> well, luke, good morning, first of all, it is very difficult to substantiate any of those claims, particularly because the syrian government bans foreign journalists from going into syria. the syrian government consistently portrayed all the

acts of unrest that have taken place there as the acts of foreign terrorists. there is no doubt the free syrian army carried out attacks. this would be incredibly substantial if there are any links to any of the pro democracy or free syrian army activists that have been operating inside. it is still extremely premature for their part. the free syrian army would deny any activity linked to that attack, they say they act to protect innocent lives from being killed. >> you're in tahrir square where over the early part of this year there is so much protest and it ended up overthrowing the egyptian government, but now it seems there is a protest against the current power, the military, for the crackdown and often brutal on protesters. talk about that and what we're seeing in tahrir square right now. >> absolutely. you can probably see a little off to my shoulder here. there are about 5,000 people that have been here for the better part of the day.

they have named today's protest the restoration of honor. many of the prodemocracy activists over the past week saw the crackdown, the brutal crackdown against protesters and particularly some of those horrific images against women protesters as a crisis of dignity, if you will. the gap between the egyptian street and the military has widened over the past several months. those behind me feel the military is no longer competent enough in being able to lead the transitional process to democracy. but there is no doubt that the military still retains a great deal of popularity and other parts of the country. luke? >> thanks for joining us. stay safe there in egypt. we're just minutes away from the opening bell. so it is time for the market rundown. cnbc's becky quick is here. >> hey, luke. >> how are we looking the eve before the eve? >> the eve before the eve is looking pretty good. so far. right now it looks like the dow is going to open up by 30 points, luke. we did get some mixed economic news when we heard just about 45

minutes ago that durable goods were up by a very strong up in, up by 3.8%, the best we have seen since july. when you dig down in through that number, there were some concerning signs about what is happening with businesses. business expenditures, it was down by 1.2%, the second month we have seen a drop. that has a lot of people concerned. you heard all the talk in washington about how some of the partisan bicker and back and forth, how that is affecting business spending. that has people worried about that number. also, personal income and spending were up by 0.1%. that was a little concerning as well. and, luke, i don't know if you've done all your holiday shopping yet, but there was bad news from best buy, the big box retailer today. >> really, the president shops there? bad news the week the president shopped there. >> the president shopped there and got his goods. if you put in an order on the online website, some of the items are not going to be filled. best buy is saying this is an embarrassment of riches, they had too many people demanding too many things of them. this year is probably not going

to hurt their bottom line but could hurt them in the future as people who got burned by this, say forget it, i won't trust them next time around. >> that wasn't the best buy this time around. becky quick, thanks so much. have a merry christmas. >> you too. up next, a look at the year that was from the death of osama bin laden to protests around the globe to the dysfunctional congress and the race for the white house, we're looking back at the year's biggest newsmakers. first, today's trivia question, where was the first attempt to assassinate a president? tweet us at @dailyrundown. the first correct answer gets a final friday from us. this new at&t 4g lte is fast. did you hear sam... ...got promoted to director? so 12 seconds ago. we should get him a present. thanks for the gift basket. you're welcome. you're welcome. did you see hr just sent out new... ...office rules? cause you're currently in violation of 6 of them. oh yeah, baby? ...and 7. did you guys hear that fred is leaving? so 30 seconds ago. [ noisemakers blow ] [ both ] we'll miss you!

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january 1st is just days away. giving us all a chance to start anew, and that spirit, here is a look back at the memorable sights and sounds of the year that was.

♪ our hearts are broken by their sudden passing. and yet our hearts are full of hope and thanks for the 13 americans who survived the shooting. >> she is a fighter like, you know, nobody else that i know. >> lift off of the maiden voyage of "endeavor" on a satellite rescue mission. >> and liftoff. >> space shuttle spreads its wings one final time. >> the wedding that wowed britain and the world. >> a catastrophic 8.9 earthquake

in japan today, the quake sent tsunami waves barreling across the pacific. >> we will rebuild in joplin. this is our home. >> these are hurricane-force winds and it is brutal. i got to tell you. >> you need to know that america will be with you in your hour of need. >> president hosni mubarak is giving up his powers.

>> moammar gadhafi, libya's long time dictator, has been captured and killed. >> the united states has conducted an operation that killed osama bin laden. >> this ends an era. ♪ >> i'm proud to finally say these two words, and i know your families agree, welcome home.

>> i will support this legislation, but with very serious reservations. >> i reluctantly cannot support it. >> it stinks to high heaven. >> what i think the s&p thing did was to hit a nerve that something bad is going on and it hit the self-esteem of the united states. >> we are the 99%. we are the 99%. >> the whole world is watching. the whole world is watching. the whole world is watching. >> this country we love is in peril. i'm running for president. >> president of the united states. >> our time has come.

i'm ready to lead. >> we did this together. >> how are you? >> 9-9-9. >> nice to meet you. >> as a nation, we must do better. and when i'm president, we will. >> be with me for the next eight years as together we get america back in the right direction. >> good to meet you. about a year from now, you're going to wake up and turn the tv and the tv says mitt is it. if you think tylenol is the pain reliever orthopedic doctors recommend most for arthritis pain, think again. and take aleve. it's the one doctors recommend most for arthritis pain... two pills can last all day. ♪

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back now with "the daily rundown". i'm luke russert in for chuck todd. now to other stories making headlines today. a new report out says the washington monument has extensive cracking, chipped stones and is vulnerable to the effects of rain. the monument has been closed since an earthquake hit the nation's capital last august.

overseas, a series of strong earthquakes hit the city of christ church in new zealand. the quakes rattled buildings and sent holiday shoppers fleeing into the street. so far, no major injuries. former presidential candidate john edwards is asking a federal judge to delay the start of his criminal trial. edwards says he's been diagnosed with an undisclosed medical condition that would make it difficult for him to attend the trial scheduled to start january 30th. edwards pleaded not guilty to felony and misdeneener charges related to campaign finance laws. the drama over the payroll tax cut isn't finished yet. first up, the house will vote in an half an hour from now. that vote will be held under the rules of unanimous consent, meaning if anyone objects, it will require a full vote next week. jonathan alan covers congress for politico and joins me now. and, john, you had in your article the possibility of

republican freshman mo brooks or mike kelly of pennsylvania, will any of those rambunctious members of speaker boehner's conference try and cause a little trouble for the speaker this morning at 10:00 a.m.? >> i know there are 530 members of congress hoping that that handful of other guys doesn't do that. they would like to go home. they understand that the game is over, so to speak. even if they object today, there will be a vote next week. i think some folks in the republican conference would like that vote. they like to put their colleagues on record. they feel that this was a bad deal that got jammed down their throats. but interestingly, i heard last night from congressman tim huelskamp's office, a republican from kansas, this was put on the floor so fast, there wasn't time for him to get back to washington from his kansas district to object, if he wanted to. i think that was part of the plan here, to limit the number of people who would be willing to catch a red eye or could even catch a red eye to get back. >> let's talk about that

silencing of the rambunctious members. this past saturday, boehner had the conference call with his entire conference to sort of hear them out, how they were going to like the senate deal. they got very angry. they objected to it and that sort of forced him to go on "meet the press" and say he was not going to support the senate deal and gave us the standoff. on the conference call yesterday, i understand the mute button was hit, as in he sort of spoke and no one was allowed to counter him. >> right f you've ever been on a conference call where you can only listen, there is no speak function. basically, the speaker wanted to deliver this message, this is the way that we're going. and didn't want to see that sort of wildfire spreading, that mob mentality gather like it had last saturday where each new person seemed to build on the anger of the last person and everything got out of control and they were unable to get this deal done. if you ask for the official line what you'll hear from house republicans is they're angry that everything on the calls ends up leaking out into the

press. they don't want to read about what everybody said on the call and in bloody detail. every time they meet in person, the same thing happens. and so i think this is really more of an effort to make sure this didn't get out of hand that the speaker had an opportunity to lay down the law. this is really a turning point for boehner. we'll see if he's able to keep it, but for him to say to these guys this is the direction we have to go in, i'm your leader, i'm making this call, you need to follow me, we'll see if it works this time, we'll see if it works in the future, but boehner has been criticized a lot in the past for having more or less a lazy fair attitude toward things, consensus oriented leadership style. it will be interesting to see if this is a new boehner. >> you and i are up there every day. even when this deal had gone through the senate, we heard rumblings from canter's folks this would not be acceptable to the entire conference. is it fair to say that sort of canter pushed boehner in having to do this. >> it is clear that speaker b e

boehner went out by himself yesterday for the conference yesterday. i think to the extent that he got some backing and cantor put out a release yesterday, it was very low grade backing from the other folks. this was clearly a boehner move. i think it was clearly intended on his part to show that he was making this move and i think some of the other junior leaders, cantor included have done themselves some damage, frankly, by being seen as so disloyal to boehner. >> publicly this looks terrible for boehner because it looks like he's not in control of his conference. in terms of internal republican politics, does he take on the role of being the wise elder who basically said, look, i knew what was coming, i told you to get behind this on saturday, i went out and fought for you, but you see the damage you did to us? does he have a confidence vote now moving forward? >> i think for some of the republican members, particularly some of the more senior members who have been around the block a few times. they're seeing him in a new

light. they're respectful of his judgment. i think in this case he substituted his judgment for the collective wisdom of the republican conference, which was leading them in the wrong direction. they were sort of -- with him at the back sort of following the rabble, he wasn't able to guide them as a rudder. but now attempting to move them from a leadership position out front, some republicans will like that, others will bristle at it. we'll see what the numbers are. my guess is he didn't go forward yesterday with having some pretty good sense that the majority of the republicans were actually with him, that there was -- there would be a vocal minority dissenting but behind the scenes, a lot of republicans were coming to him saying, please end this. >> john alan of politico, good work as always. we like gio gonzalez, right? >> we like gio gonzalez. >> go nats. ron paul, another wild week in the race for the president.

we'll put it all in perspective. a programming note for you this sunday on "meet the press," a special conversation headlined by tom brokaw about the state of the country and a look ahead to the new year. but first, no soup for you. the white house mess hall is closed today. so there is no soup of the day. you're watching "the daily rundown" only on msnbc. i'll get some chili at jetties down the street then if that's closed. [ male announcer ] tom's discovering that living healthy can be fun. see? he's taking his vitamins. new one a day vitacraves plus omega-3 dha is a complete multivitamin for adults. plus an excellent source of omega-3 dha in a great tasting gummy. one a day, gummies for grown-ups. ♪ but you tonight [ male announcer ] this is your moment. ♪ [ male announcer ] build your own unique memories with persona beads. now at zales, the diamond store.

daily flashback. this day in 1972, in one of the most controversial plays in nfl history, in the final seconds of the playoff game between the steelers and the raiders, pittsburgh's terry bradshaw heaved a pass that bounced off an oakland defender and into franco harris' arms. harris ran more than 40 yards for the winning touchdown. that catch was dubbed the

immaculate reception. you're looking live at pictures here from capitol hill where we're expecting to hear from senate majority leader harry reid on the payroll tax extension deal any minute now. also, moments from now the house will take up their part of the two-month extension as long as no one opposes it on the house floor. on the trail, republican candidates weighed in on news of the deal. >> this is one more temporary gimmick. it is not a permanent solution. that's been the problem from the beginning. >> it wasn't so much it was a disagreement, it was who is going to get blamed. the president is getting blamed, but they weren't dealing with real policy matters. it was just a matter of strategy. >> governor, can we get your reaction to the payroll agreement? early to predict that right now, but i trust it's gonna get done. hope it gets done soon.

>> mike and christina and fasia. guys, if i can start you right off, newt gingrich had an interesting thing to say about mitt romney and his lack of an answer on the payroll tax issue. i want to read it. newt said, if you're a candidate for president, and you're not prepared to talk about the hottest issue right now that affects every single american, there is a concept called leadership and people sometimes think i'm too aggressive. but at least i lead. christina, does that hit mitt romney at all? >> i think a little bit. he's also president obama. you look at polls, people haven't felt that the president has demonstrated leadership on a few issues. he's able to hit both at the same time saying i've been a leader, i've commanded a republican conference, and, you know -- >> sorry to interrupt you. we have harry reid on the senate

floor talking about the deal. >> a state that has been hit really hard by unemployment has also -- is rhode island. and no one in the senate has been more protective of the unemployed than jack reed. the fourth country will be bob casey. bob casey is chairman of the joint economic committee and this is his bill. the payroll tax holiday extension is bob casey's legislation. i've talked to each of them. they're going to work expeditiously to come up with a long-term arrangement on the payroll tax, on unemployment, of course, and on the dock fix. i have great confidence in them. i also want to say that most everything we do around here is based on trust. that's how we get things done. and i want everyone to understand how much i appreciate

mitch mcconnell sticking by the arrange. the agreement we made. i told him that personally. i say that to all of you. when we come back next month, we have a lot of important things to do. i've already talked about the payroll tax package. we have to do that. we can pay for it in many different ways. we have to be somewhat invent e inventive, and during the past few days i've had many calls from my caucus members about ideas they have that would protect the people that would need the extra few bucks each month, but also save money in the long run. unemployment, we have to figure out a way to extend that. this is a first time that we have paid for unemployment tax extension, which i did not favor. but significant number of my own caucus did, so it was something we had to do and we'll continue to fight for the long-term unemployed. i would hope that we can do something to do something final

to get rid of this sgr, this dock fix, so that doctors who take care of the senior citizens don't have to worry every few months as to whether or not they're going to get paid the following month. so those are some of the things we certainly have to do. couple of other things that are paramount in my mind. the faa reauthorization. we have to get this done. we got a short-term extension. this involves the employment of a couple hundred thousand new people, couple hundred thousand. we made many offers to the house and swwe have to get this done d forget about all the extraneous stuff and deal with faa. the same applies to the very good bill that was reported out of the environment public works committee. very conservative, jim inhofe, quite progressive, barbara boxer, have come up with an arrangement to extend this for two years, a very, very good

bill. i would hope that my colleagues don't play any games with this bill. it is important. it will -- the short-term extension saved the jobs of more than a million people during our highway construction. the two-year bill will create new jobs, not just save the jobs. so those are a few things we have to do. i hope this congress has had a very good learning experience, especially those who are newer to this body. everything we do around here does not have to wind up in a fight. that isn't the way things need to be. people wonder why the approval rating is congress solo. i don't wonder. everything has been a knockdown, dragout fight. there is no reason to do that. if there were not -- if there were messages received from this

last thing we have been through, i would hope, especially, i repeat the new members of the house, will understand that legislation is the art of compromise. consensus building. not trying to push their way through on issues that you don't have the support of the american people. i repeat what i said earlier. this institution relies on trust and goodwill to get work done. american people need this institution to work effectively. we have enormous challenges facing our great country. i indicated earlier, but it is certainly true, we have a new year coming very, very quickly. the working families that we have helped for a couple of months, that's not enough. they sent us to washington to find ways to make their life a little easier, and give them the tools they need to try to get ahead. they didn't send us here to wage partisan battles or settle

ideological scores. so i say to my colleagues, it is new year's. let's put those games aside, and make it a -- and make it our top priority, our top priority is not for political advantage, but to get things done. if we are able to get things done, there is lots of credit to go around to everybody. but conversely, if we don't get things done, there is criticism that spills off on everyone. let's show the american people that despite our differences, we can tackle the big challenges that stand before us. the stakes are really too high for us to do anything else. happy to take questions. yes. >> senator, looking forward to -- >> you heard senator harry reid talking about the compromise that has just passed the united states senate, saying in fact that if he hopes that folks realize it was a learning experience, that not everything has to be a knock down, dragout fight, that legislation is the art of compromise. we'll see if that message

carries forward into 2012. let's finish up with the trivia time. we asked earlier, what was the first attempt to assassinate a president? the answer, that was in the capitol rotunda, andrew jackson was the first american president to experience an assassination attempt. a crazed man with a gun came after jackson as he left a funeral being held in the house. don't go anywhere. you're watching "the daily rundown" only on msnbc.

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let's bring back our panel, he graciously stayed here during harry reid. how do you think this fight will play in 2012 presidential politics, mike? >> i think it is inside baseball in washington. what's going to be the biggest issue of 2012 elections is jobs.

that's the number one thing. we can spend all the time we want in washington talking about the war in congress and legislation and i don't think the voters really care. this is a big win for democrats. first one they had in congress. can they translate it into momentum for 2012? >> you have the president's state of the union around when the payroll tax expires. it is a chance for mitt romney and newt gingrich to distinguish from each other. gingrich indicated he is willing to weigh into the fights. romney said he is not going to at all. there's an opportunity to lead the gop caucus, show that they'll be a leader or to punt on this all together. i think it hurt romney to be completely quiet on this issue. >> is that silence heard? >> i think so. gingrich is an opportunity to show case what he did as speaker of the house. also, what's he going to say about john boehner and his leadership, what's he going to

say about what harry reid said. i think it gives him an opportunity to talk about his own history and poke at boehner if he wants to. >> chuck todd sat down with mitt romney the other day, asked him a question. i want to play this exchange for you guys. >> are you going to -- >> i will provide all of the financial information which is an extraordinary pile of documents that show investments. i don't intend to release tax returns. i never say never, but i don't intend to do so. >> chuck todd used to say candidates should release their information. looks like he has something to hide. sounds like romney is getting money from bain. those are the kinds of pieces of information that would be valuable, would be damaging for romney to release, partly the

reason he doesn't want people to know. >> can he side step the issue, keep it under wraps? >> absolutely. people know mitt romney has a lot of money, know he is wealthy and successful. i don't think it matters a hill of beans. voters are thinking about the big picture. the brilliant thing mitt romney is doing, he is running a campaign at a higher level. >> he should release it to get rid of the issue. >> obama said i'll release my college records if you release tax records. >> white house likes to say they're the most transparent white house in history. >> before we go, shameless plugs. >> i think you should follow me on twitter. >> january 2nd, i am starting as political editor at pbs news hour. excited. sign up for morning line. >> congratulations on that promotion. >> in the spirit of the holidays, encourage everyone to go to food shelters, food bank.org.

>> if you're a bruce springsteen show, you know hunger is a problem all across the united states. that's it for this edition of "the daily rundown." next week, chuck heads to iowa as the final count down to the caucus begins. up next, kris jansing, and at 1:00 p.m., andrea mitchell reports. if you want more of your fix of me, come back at 1:00 p.m. happy holidays, merry christmas. have a great rest of the day. th, and in 1942, of course, they were sent away. after the war, as a japanese coming back from camp, he started a little store on main street in seattle. of course they needed some money, and bank of america was the only bank who would talk to my father. and we've stayed with bank of america. we have four stores now, three in the pacific northwest and one in oregon. my parents would not believe how popular it is now.

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patients also taking aspirin and the elderly are at increased risk for stomach bleeding and ulcers. do not take celebrex if you've had an asthma attack, hives, or other allergies to aspirin, nsaids or sulfonamides. get help right away if you have swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing. tell your doctor your medical history and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion. good morning. i am ee richard lui in for kris jansing. right now, it is up to the house. a vote could happen any time. moments ago, the senate signed off on the two month payroll tax cut extension. but one congressman could upset john boehner's plan to go along, senate majority harry reid is urging them to follow the