welcome to "politics nation." i'm al sharpton. tonight's lead -- the president's making his case for re-election, and a new poll shows americans like what they are hearing. >> i deserve a second term, but we're not done. look. when you and i sat down, we were losing 750,000 jobs a month. in fact, we had found out just a few days before we sat down that we had lost that month 750,000 jobs. now we're creating 250,000. we created 3.7 million jobs over the last 23 months. >> now this chart shows what the president is talking about. this economy was bleeding jobs when bush left office. look at those red lines. down, down, down. but then it changed. we now have seen 23 straight months of private sector job

growth, folks. this is a fact. employment is improving under president obama. but on the other side, willard is sticking to his script. >> this week he's been trying to take a bow for 8.3% unemployment. not so fast, mr. president. america needs a president who can fix the economy because he understands the economy, and i do, and i will. >> that's it? that's it? we need someone who can fix the economy? didn't you just see, we have someone who is doing that already. and americans know it. a brand new poll shows president obama beating romney by nine points in the latest matchup. his approval rating is at the highest level it's been since the death of osama bin laden. >> what people also want to see is that everybody is doing their fair share.

that we're all pulling together. what we have been able to do is move in the right direction and what i'm just going to keep on doing is plotting away, very persistent and, you know what? one of the things about being president is you get better as time goes on. but the guy challenging him for president is getting worse as times go by. willard admits he's not, quote, very concerned about the poor here in america. even as he's invested millions in overseas accounts. the ultimate 1 percenter is on the wrong side of this one. 68% of americans say the u.s. tax system favors the wealthy. another 72% want to raise taxes on the wealthiest americans. americans want fairness, not a man who calls any discussion of this envy. joining me, former pennsylvania governor ed rendell, now an nbc news political analyst and michael steele, msnbc analyst

and former chairman of the rnc. thank you both for coming on the show tonight. >> hey, rev. >> governor, let me start with you. president obama leads mitt romney by nine points in the latest poll. is the obama message of fairness responsible for this in your opinion? >> i think to some degree. it's both the message and the president has been on his game since he delivered the jobs speech last fall and he's been doing very, very well. the best i think he's done in his presidency. at the same time, governor romney had a pretty good case to make. has shown that r and keep making mistake after mistake after mistake. so as the president is sort of coming back, governor romney is dropping down. and it's a very bad prescription for the republican party. however, again, al, you know, i've warned all democrats out there and everyone listening to us, things can change. 8 points in february doesn't mean a bloody thing. and there's almost always a little bit of a reset right

after the two conventions. it's good we're headed in the right direction. it's good the president is on his game. it's good governor romney talks about fixing the economy but doesn't give us any concrete ideas. all those things are in our favor. but we shouldn't rest on our laurels. >> look at this. "the washington post" said something that i thought was interesting. unemployment rate under presidents, even though unemployment is high, president obama has moved the needle which bodes well for him. let me quote "the washington post." what matters is not how high the unemployment rate is but how fast it's changing. that suggests the latest numbers, just as you would think, very good news for president obama. i mean, can you deny this that the trend looks like the economy is getting better? it seems as though the president has turned this around. how do you argue against this, mr. steele? >> well, i mean, i think, a,

you're right. the trend line for at least the first month of this quarter says that the economy is making a move in a direction that's positive for the president. the second point, however, and i think it's something that the governor touched on, that's true for both parties. these numbers are going to move all over the map with respect to unemployment. the cbo came out last week and said that their early projections are showing that unemployment going into next year is going to be a lot higher than it is today. when does that trend line if it happens, begin? does it happen in the summer? after the election? so i think we've got to put a little baste bullet next to all of these numbers right now, particularly in the first quarter of the year as things begin to settle out based on what the congress, house and senate does and with the president's budget when it gets up to the hill next week. how we deal with, for example, the unemployment tax, whether that's going to be extended or if it's going to -- the bush tax

cuts that have to be dealt with later this year. there are a lot of variables there that i think both parties need to be cautious about. but the trend lines, you're absolutery righ rly right. they favor the president. romney's gotten distracted with his primary. and the hammering he had on the president in the early part of his campaign. we'll see whether he gets back to that sooner rather than later. >> governor, i think that when michael steele raises the cbo, the cbo also talked about how much the bush tax cuts cost, how much it contributes to the deficit. so i think chairman steele is right that it cuts both ways. both parties have to be cautious. look at the fact that -- look at independents. romney had a 12-point lead last month. just last month. now they are virtually tied. so no matter which way the economy shifts, a lot is going to depend on what positions you're taking while we see these shifts go up and down.

because even though the president could get worse numbers, if they are caused by republicans' positions, it may not help them. >> right. and i think that's right, rev. and i also think it's a little unfair and michael is usually a fair guy. it's hard to say this is a one-month plus in the economy. as the president pointed out in his comments a little earlier in the show, it's been 23 months, almost two years, and in that time, 3.7 million private sector jobs have been created. not everything we wanted it to be, but, boy, certainly movement in the right direction when you consider where the economy was when he took office. >> my point -- if i could real quick, reverend. my point, governor, was this was the first month out of those 23 months where you've had such a significant number of newly created jobs that were out there. 200,000-plus new jobs created, which is a big number. and the question is whether or not that's going to be sustainable, number one, and number two, i want to see the

president begin to address the under employed and those who stopped looking because that number is a big number as well. and mitt romney has been speaking, at least again as i said, up to this distraction point in the primary, about those individuals who are also voters who if they don't get back to work, could have something to say come november. >> again, i think -- >> he's spoken about those that have stopped looking for work? were those the ones he was referring to when he said he wasn't concerned about the very poor? was that what you're talking about he was addressing? is that who -- >> you are mixing an apple and an orange but it's your show. i'll let you do it. >> i'm asking a question. i'm trying to remember when he was talking about -- >> you are making an assumption that the people i'm talking about are the very poor. >> i'm asking a question. >> the very poor are the ones presumably in most analysis are the ones who are not the working poor but the ones who are at the very margins of our social safety net. and that's a very different category of individuals as opposed to those who are working

but are still within that definition of poor. >> all right, but michael, help me out. tell me when -- >> the bottom line is it was an asinine comment to make that he's been very clear about that point. i mean, beating that horse at this point, in this discussion, doesn't further the objective here which is to talk about how do both parties, including the -- especially the president, deal with the numbers as they change. and, you know, both the poor, the working poor, are very much a part of what all of us need to be concerned about, not just those who are in the middle class or the upper classes. >> well, governor, let me go back to you. i just want to make a note. willard it was your former republican chairman that said your statement was asinine. i just want to underscore that. governor, let me say, the middle class trust the president more to protect the middle class than -- well, the people polled say they trust him to deal with the middle class more than they do mr. romney.

the people that i assume that the chairman was referring to. 55% to 37%. if mr. romney thinks he's speaking to and for them, is it that his message is not getting through, or is it that it's difficult supporting ryan's plan and other things for people to say that's going to benefit me, the working middle class, the working poor? >> well, i think you've identified it. there are two things. number one, the fairness issue. governor romney is on the wrong side of the fairness issue and gets beat up badly by his own republican house delegation. they are doing things that are absurd like voting against the millionaires tax. 100% of them voting against the millionaires tax. and number two, the president has laid out a fairly specific jobs plan. it's been beaten back at virtually every turn by the republicans, including things like infrastruct chur is so self-evident. and so far the only thing that

governor romney said is, trust me. i'm a business man. i know how to fix the economy. but other than the same old recipe of keeping taxes low and reducing regulations, which didn't work during the bush years, it hasn't really worked any time in the last 50 or 60 years. there's no specifics. there are no details to his plan. i thing president wins on both. on fairness and on job creation plan. >> well, chairman steele, let me say this. i think it's going to be close the way the country is polarized. but i ask for a sign and i got a sign. i saw a guy from new england throw a ball last night that could have made it, but they dropped the ball. i predict that's going to happen in november. just a prediction from a new yorker who just won the super bowl. >> i understand, reverend. i understand. >> i know you do. governor ed rendell and michael steele, thanks for joining me. >> have a good night. coming up -- the more voters learn about mitt, the less they like him. some devastating signs for the

romney campaign. plus -- republicans accuse clint eastwood of selling out. by selling a positive message of america. the super bowl ad that's become a political football. >> this country can't be knocked out in one punch. we get right back up again, and when we do, the world is going to hear the roar of our engines. yeah, it's halftime, america. and our second half is about to begin. and the rush limbaughs of the world just can't handle the truth when it comes to the president's record on creating jobs. you're watching "politics nation." on msnbc. [ tom ] we invented the turbine business right here in schenectady. without the stuff that we make here, you wouldn't be able to walk in your house and flip on your lights. [ brad ] at ge we build turbines that power the world.

they go into power plants which take some form of energy, harness it, and turn it into more efficient electricity. [ ron ] when i was a kid i wanted to work with my hands, that was my thing. i really enjoy building turbines. it's nice to know that what you're building is gonna do something for the world. when people think of ge, they typically don't think about beer. a lot of people may not realize that the power needed to keep their budweiser cold and even to make their beer comes from turbines made right here. wait, so you guys make the beer? no, we make the power that makes the beer. so without you there'd be no bud? that's right. well, we like you. [ laughter ] ♪

karl rove takes on clint

eastwood. really, rove? you're going to make his day. the super bowl ad that's driving the republicans crazy. that's coming up. [ female announcer ] did mr. intern forget how his boss takes her coffee? just cover your bases. bring her the all-natural sugar in the raw and the all natural, zero calorie sweetener

stevia in the raw. then learn that she doesn't drink coffee, just tea. it's only natural. welcome back to "politics nation." willard mitt romney might be winning the republican race, but he's not winning over the american people. a new "washington post" poll shows 52% of americans say the more they learn about willard, the less they like him. that includes 39% of republicans. 4 out of every 10 republicans

like him less as they learn more about him. that's bad news, and it might explain why they're not coming out to vote for him. in florida, there was a 13% decline in voter turnout compared to the republican primary in 2008. and in nevada, 26% fewer republicans came out to vote. willard supporters would have you believe this says good things about his campaign. >> in an odd sense, when turnout is down it means, contrary to what you're hearing from a lot of people, people are satisfied with the winning -- the candidate that's winning, and they are satisfied with mitt romney. >> in an odd sense. that's very odd. republicans aren't voting for romney because they like him so much? really? they may like him even less after another month of attacks from newt gingrich. >> he's not a bad person, per se, but he's not a person that

goes in there with force and will and fundamentally changes thing. a pro abortion, pro gun control, george soros candidate. i never saw someone that i thought as a serious candidate be that fundamentally dishonest. if you can't tell the truth as a candidate to be president, how can the country expect you to lead as president. joining me is steve kornacki and erin mcpike from real clear politics. thank you both for being here tonight. >> sure. >> erin, when you have that many people in your own party don't like you, it's bad news, isn't it, or is something wrong with me after hearing that odd explanation? >> there are lots of republicans who don't like mitt romney, but republicans all over the country tell me that once there is a

nominee, they'll fall in line and support mitt romney. i do think that that clip you played of john sununu was troubling, and that's very clear that that's not the case because we still have a very competitive primary on our hands. but i would point to you two memos that the romney campaign sent out today and how they are explaining this. one says he's won all of the swing states where they've had primaries so far including new hampshire, florida and nevada. and then they say he's tried to trend toward the middle and get independent voters. but also "the washington post" poll that you were also referencing today, romney's pollster neil newhouse put out a memo and said there was something wrong with the poll. that new negative information was put forth before they asked the question about president obama versus mitt romney in a general election where president obama is now beating mitt romney where he was behind before.

and they are trying to really talk about tactics and it's really on the margins where they are finding these problems. >> well, they didn't say that when they were ahead in the same poll. but help me out, steve. newt gingrich says he's a good guy but he's dishonest, a liar, flip-flopper. but he's a good guy. remind me to not invite newt to speak at my banquet. if we have a diet of newt doing this for the next month, given the polls clearly indicate that the more voters know about mr. romney, the less they like them. that it's only going to feed more fire for newt. and you have low voter turnout. if people wanted to get this president out, they'd be rallying to get him out. the voter turnout in the primaries are down. all of this has got to spell bad news for the romney people when

they get out of the spin room. >> there's some troubling signs here. there could be some real serious damage that's come out of this. the one cautionary note about the low turnout issue is this. what it tells us is it confirms what we've known about mitt romney's status in the tea party air of the republican party. he does not reflect the passion that animates the base of the republican party since 2009. he doesn't reflect it in his style or in his story of politics. i think that translates. plus an opening for a conservative candidate who does and that conservative candidate has simply never emerged. that explain yes the turnout is very low. the x-factor in all of this, when you get to the general election, what animates the republican party base in this era? at its core it's resentment of and resistance to president obama. at that point, will these people who are not voting right now, these tea party republicans, will they -- fine, we don't really care for romney but whatever -- whatever sense there, is that overridden by how

much we want to get obama out? i still think it's possible they'll be very motivated, they'll be very energized this fall. >> i agree that they'll be motivated by their dislike of the president, but erin, isn't that even more the reason why newt continuing to say there's very little difference between the president and romney, obama care and romney care, ultimately can hurt that tea party conservative turnout, they are going to need in november because you got to remember the tea party first raised its head around health care. if we keep hearing newt gingrich in his own party saying obama care and romney care is the same thing, then what does that do to turnout in november? if romney is the nominee, of course? >> well, it's not just newt gingrich that's doing it. and it's rick santorum as well. rick santorum gave a speech on that very thing today on health

care. and you saw a lot of traffic coming from the romney campaign about rick santorum -- attacking him, too. and rick santorum is not much of a threat to mitt romney at all. and what they are trying to do right now is to stamp out any kind of resistance from republicans so that rick santorum can't draw from this and get any of his own traction by going after romney care. you know, again, i mean, i think in the fall, turnout will be fine for romney because of what steve said. that the republican base is motivated against obama. but the romney campaign wants to shut this down now which is why they are continuing to attack newt gingrich and rick santorum. >> but you also have some criticisms, steve, coming from some different places. rudy giuliani. former mayor of new york. he and i never agreed on anything, including the day of the week, but look at what he said about willard. >> he has changed his position on virtually everything.

he was a traditional moderate republican, strong on fiscal matters, conservative. strong on fiscal policy, but basically socially moderate. he changed all of that. all those changes in position give me pause. >> rudy giuliani calling willard a flip-flopper. and like i said, he and i never agree on anything, but even a broke clock could be right twice a day. >> you know, right or wrong, i think we can't overlook the personal an imous that exists there. no candidate -- think back to 2008, the republican presidential race that year. no republican candidate was less popular among his fellow republican candidates than mitt romney. fred thompson didn't really care for romney. john mccain made no secret of the fact he didn't care for mitt romney during that campaign. huckabee. >> but mccain has endorsed him -- >> he has now because the other x-factor, a lot of them have to swallow hard. romney really bothers them, but, a if they nominate gingrich, they are worried, will he take

me down with him in the fall. and a lot of republicans have faced a choice here. we don't like either one of these. >> all right. but i can assure you, they need not worry. he will definitely take him down with him. steve kornacki and erin mcpike. thank you for your time tonight. >> sure. ahead -- the latest right wing conspiracy on those great jobs numbers. it's so crazy, it's actually funny. and this is a fight i never saw coming. karl rove unleashes an unbelievable attack on clint eastwood. and go ahead, karl, make his day. >> this country can't be knocked out in one punch. we get right back up again. and when we do, the world is going to hear the roar of our engines. yeah. it's halftime, america. and our second half is about to begin. [ male announcer ] every day thousands of people

are choosing advil®. here's one story. pain doesn't have much of a place in my life. i checked the schedule and it's not on it. [ laughs ] you never know when advil® is needed. well most people only know one side of my life. they see me on stage and they think that that is who i am. there's many layers to everybody everywhere. singer, songwriter, philanthropist, father, life's a juggling act. when i have to get through the pain, i know where to go. [ male announcer ] take action. take advil®.

[ slap! ] [ slap! slap! slap! slap! ] ow, ow! [ male announcer ] your favorite foods fighting you? fight back fast with tums. calcium rich tums goes to work in seconds. nothing works faster. ♪ tum ta tum tum tums

♪ [ gong ] strawberry banana! [ male announcer ] for a smoothie with real fruit plus veggie nutrition new v8 v-fusion smoothie. could've had a v8.

the right wing in this country has a new conspiracy theory to try to explain away the latest impressive jobs numbers. we reported friday on how the unemployment rate dropped to 8.3%. the lowest level since february 2009. so how do they react to the great news for the country? they pretend it's not true.

>> are they playing around with the numbers? look. it's the bureau of labor statistics. it's supposed to be nonpartisan but that's the department of labor. hilda solis heads the department of labor. >> are you saying they are cooking the books? >> i'm saying there's room for error. >> what's happening is the labor force is shrinking. there are fewer jobs. >> so it's interpretation, i think is the way in which we would describe. >> are you hearing me on this? >> it is corrupt as it can be. >> okay. there's a million less people than we thought working which some have said, that's kind of fishy. >> so because the numbers look good, you think they're fishy. and they are cooking the books. and the conservative blogs are running with the same theory. saying there was actually bad news on the job front. i guess we have two choices. we can trust limbaugh and the gang at "fox and friends" or get

a second opinion. first off, the bureau of labor statistics is using updated census numbers. nobel prize winner paul krugman says the right's trotting out the same old bogosity. "the wall street journal," yes, that "wall street journal" said, quote, the improvement in the labor market is real. people actually found jobs. end of quote. even the conservative american spectator dismissed reports that the numbers were off. they wrote, quote, those things are simply not true no matter how loudly people scream conspiracy and propaganda. i guess they are so busy bashing the president, they forgot to read the papers. nice try, guys. but we got you. that we were on.

that we were on. the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers. the calcium they take because they don't take it with food. switch to citracal maximum plus d. it's the only calcium supplement that can be taken with or without food. that's why my doctor recommends citracal maximum. it's all about absorption. what ? customers didn't like it. so why do banks do it ? hello ? hello ?! if your bank doesn't let you talk to a real person 24/7, you need an ally. hello ? ally bank.

no nonsense. just people sense. had your kraft macaroni and cheese stolen. now there is a policy that covers you in the event of macaroni and cheese loss: macsurance. an insurance policy for mac and cheese? talk to me. i have a policy with kraft that covers me in case a grown-up eats my share. with kraft macsurance you have piece of mind in an unsafe world. coverage feels good! [ male announcer ] gooey, creamy, delicious kraft macaroni & cheese. you know you love it. the two trains and a bus rider. the "i'll sleep when it's done" academic. for 80 years, we've been inspired by you.

and we've been honored to walk with you to help you get where you want to be. ♪ because your moment is now. let nothing stand in your way. learn more at keller.edu. you really want to be careful, you can't use something as abrasive as a toothpaste because it will cause scratches. as a result of those scratches, bacteria will get lodged in that denture and as they multiply in the mouth the odor can get stronger. i always advise my patients to use polident. it has specific agents in it that can kill bacteria. using polident daily, you definitely will not be creating the scratches. you're going to have a fresh bright smile, and you're going to feel confident. we're back with a very simple question. should some people be denied the

same health care rights that everyone else in the country gets simply because of who they work for? president obama says no. that's why his administration is requiring employers to cover preventative services for women, including contraceptive services for free. religious institutions, like churches, are exempt. but universities and hospitals affiliated with those religious groups aren't. some catholics are upset saying the decision encroaches on their beliefs against contraception. but i think we should balance that with health care rights of the many employees who aren't catholic. i talked about it earlier today on "morning joe." if i am a person that works in one of these institutions, i have the right to say the government that i disagree with my employers and want to exercise that. >> if you are giving a catholic hospital money you should be aware of how it's going to be

used. >> stomping on their right. what about the right of people that don't agree with the theology of whoever. >> well, if you don't -- if you were offended by the theology of the catholic church, then do not work for a catholic institution. >> with all due respect to my friend, joe, a lot of people don't have the option of getting another job. they are lucky to have one at all. but they shouldn't be discriminated against because of who they work for. joining me now is kathleen kennedy townsend, former lieutenant governor of maryland and author of "failing america's faithful: how toy's churches are mixing god with politics and si joining me is christian day, executive democrat of democrats for life of america. thank you both for joining me tonight. >> it's great to be with you. >> thank you so much. >> let me start with you lieutenant governor townsend. this is a difficult issue. you support the president's decision. tell us why.

>> i support the president's decision because he recognizes the right of conscience. he has given exemptions for churches, parishioners, parishes. but the large employers, the universities, the colleges, the hospitals that serve many, many people of different faiths, he's saying to them, we've got to protect all women. what we know with contraception it helps women in many, many ways. it makes sure they can prevent pregnancies, obviously, but also prevents ovarian cancer, reduces it vastly and prevents cysts, helps people with pain that they have with their periods. so the question is, do we want, as a country, to say we are going to treat all the women that we can and give them the opportunity to get the best health care that they can? and that's what president obama is devoted to. he understands the right of

conscience. no catholic doctor is going to have to actually give prescription for contraceptions if they don't want to. but many catholic women, and women of other faiths will get the health care they need. >> now what is wrong with that in your opinion, miss day. why can't you support that? >> well, we don't support that because the -- our nation has a longstanding tradition of respecting the religious rights of people. and with this decision, we're saying that catholic institutions or religious institutions will now be forced to go against their religious beliefs to provide and pay for this coverage, which is wrong. the courts traditionally rule in favor of religious rights. and i think what we're losing sight of here is that we worked very hard to pass the health care bill. so more people could get coverage. and with this narrow rule here, we might face people losing

their employee-sponsored health care which would be -- really go against everything we fought to pass when we -- with the health care bill. >> so could that, miss townsend, be interpreted that some people feel that they supported the president and this is unfair to catholics that supported it? >> i think kristen raises a great question about, you know, conscience. and i think what we have to do in america is trust people's conscience. women can make a decision. do they want to follow their conscience and get contraception or do they want to follow their conscience and not get it. but you've got to give them the choice. and you know, it costs about $600 a year to get contraception. so by allowing people freely to get it, you're going to get them to be healthier than they would otherwise. and what is terrific and what i love about my church, our church, is that it believes in taking care of the least among us. it believes in health care.

it believes that that's part of our responsibility. and so you don't want it to be in a situation in which you discriminate against those who work at a university or at a hospital. you want to say you get health care, too. you could follow your conscience. as you know, kristen and reverend sharpton, i'm sure you know as well. 28 states already do this. this is not a new idea. eight states give no exceptions that even the obama administration gives. the obama administration gives exceptions for parishes. so they are actually -- it's just interesting that it's come at this time because, in fact, the obama administration carefully looked at what was the tradition in other practices in other states and said what we need to do is help women get the best health care they can. >> but what about that, kristen. 28 states already does it.

some of them don't have even exemption so why now this kind of reaction? >> well, the biggest difference is that now everyone is going to be -- have health care insurance and nobody can opt out. so everybody will be forced to participate in some sort of health care plan. i think another thing we're missing here is that currently these institutions provide health insurance for their employees. and it's not -- they're not going to lose anything if this rule is widened. and, you know, the only thing they could lose is their employee sponsored health insurance. so i think by continuing to allow people to not have to make a decision between their religious convictions and their belief that everyone should have health care, i think, is -- it's a dangerous road to go down to trample on the religious rights because it won't win in the

courts, most likely, and you talk about politics, and this is dangerous politically as well for the obama administration because it calls to question those of white house really went to batth in worked really hard to get the health care bill passed. it call to question the bill and, you know, all along those on the -- the naysayers were saying that when they pass this, they'll go and fund abortion and we stood up and said, no, this isn't going to happen. in fact, one of our board members, congressman del camper who lost re-election, largely due to groups using the -- the health care bill against her and saying it was going to fund abortion. she said if she knew that it was going to go down this direction she wouldn't have vote forward the bill. >> let me ask you this -- >> but i think there's a big difference, i believe, between contraception and abortion. i think that there is a number

of people who think that's a big difference. and this is for women who want contraception. this is for women to exercise their conscience. you are in favor of conscience. our america has a great belief in freedom of conscience and this allows people to follow their conscience. it doesn't penalize them for where they work. it says you are wise. you are smart. you can make up your decision about what is right and moral in your life. and that is what we -- that is what catholics believe. we believe in freedom of conscience. >> let me ask the question. because, really if we're dealing with the fact that some employees -- we're talking about hospitals that are not of direct church activity, don't they have the right to say that i don't agree with church dogma? what stops the church from saying, divorcees shouldn't have coverage because we don't preach

second marriages. can we have religious institutions, mine, anybody else decides what is allowable by government? >> you know, nothing is stopping women who work for these institutions now from exercising their rights to use contraception. >> can we just look at that? the studies have shown that when you make it free, it's much more used. when it's not free, fewer people use it. it might be easy for you and me, kristen, to afford $600 a year, but a lot of women don't use it because it's just too expensive. and, you know, that's very, very tough. so what we're trying to do is say this is a basic part of being a healthy human being. if you want it, if it's consistent with your moral beliefs, you can use contraception. that should be covered. >> i'm going to have to hold it right there, ladies. thank you both. this will be an ongoing discussion, i'm sure. kathleen townsend and kristen

day, thank you for joining me this evening. >> thank you very much. ahead, a republican trusted to protect voter integrity in indiana was just convicted on three counts of voter fraud. we'll tell you why the only voter fraud in america is coming from the right. like many chefs today, i feel the best approach to food is to keep it whole for better nutrition. and that's what they do with great grains cereal. see the seam on the wheat grain? same as on the flake. because great grains steams and bakes the actual whole grain. now check out the other guy's flake. hello, no seam. because it's more processed. now, which do you suppose has better nutrition for you? mmm. great grains. the whole whole grain cereal.

oh! [ baby crying ] ♪ what started as a whisper ♪ every day, millions of people choose to do the right thing. ♪ slowly turned to a scream ♪ there's an insurance company that does that, too. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? ♪ amen, omen

should we be letting him p-l-a-y with our t-a-b-l-e-t? [ mom ] i think it's fine. it's the new element from at&t so it's w-a-t-e-r proof. cool. what else does it d-o? it's fast. it's 4g lte. what's l-t-e spell? nothing. w-h-y? hey, can we stop spell talking now? ok. a-y. [ male announcer ] buy a waterproof pantech element for $249.99 and get a 4g burst smartphone free. only from at&t.

we're back with a news flash. voter fraud is happening right now in america. only it's republicans who are committing it. meet charlie white, indiana's former republican secretary of state. this man's job was to protect the integrity of voting, to keep fraud out of elections. but on saturday, he lost his job after being convicted of voter fraud. a total of six felony counts, including lying on voter registration card, voting in another precinct and submitting a false ballot. but conservatives are getting pretty good at this voter fraud thing. last month, conservative smear artists went under cover at the new hampshire primary using

names of voters who recently died. and today in maryland, a second trial began in republican robo calling plot to suppress black voter turnout during the 2010 gubernatorial election. one gop operative has already been convicted. no wonder republicans are so worried about fraud. it's happening in their own party. joining me now, judith brown, co-director of advancement project of civil rights group focused on the issues of democracy and race. thank you for joining me again and being here tonight. >> thank you reverend sharpton. >> judith, republicans have proposed all kinds of voting laws. but how ironic is it that they are the ones being caught committing it. >> that's right. this is just true hypocrisy. the people who go around saying there's rampant voter fraud in the system, that there are people voting who shouldn't be

voting are the same people who are getting caught with their hand in the cookie jar. to have the person who is responsible for running elections in the state of indiana, which was the pioneer around voter i.d. restrictions caught red handed committing voter fraud shows that the real voter fraud is being conducted by the right. >> now when you and i and others have come out against this, it's because when we look at the facts, out of 2002 to 2007, 86 prosecutions out of 300 million votes, so there's no real widespread voter fraud. 0.00003%. this is from the bush administration. this is not data from you or i. this is bush administration. so it makes many of us feel there's another motive here

about changing these laws. and then talking about hypocrisy as you said, judith, why didn't they have voter i.d. in the iowa caucuses of their own republican may marries and caucuses leading to nomination. they just had an iowa caucus. no voter i.d. so they must not believe that there's widespread problem other than a few of their own practitioners. >> that's right. they would want to have voter i.d. for some, not for themselves. so in iowa, they didn't use voter i.d. for their own republican primary, but when it comes to the general election, these same folks who are committing voter fraud, who are engaged in trickery to make sure that people are deceived and given misinformation about election day, telling people to vote on one day when the election day is on tuesday. go vote on thursday or don't vote because, in fact, your guy won already. these are the same people who are passing laws that are intended to disenfranchise

millions of voters, most of whom would be people of color, young people, elderly, and the disabled. and it's all for partisan gain. >> we saw in iowa that ballots were lost and results were reversed giving santorum the win over romney. the gop state chair had to resign but yet these voter i.d. laws are being considered in 34 states. one of the other things that was interesting, judith, is when mr. white was convicted saturday, yesterday he was on fox news sunday lashing out on everyone, including republican governor mitch daniels, a fellow republican. watch what he was saying. >> mitch daniels has voted incorrectly, according to the standard put on by me, the last ten straight elections he votes down at the governor's mansion where everyone knows he does not live.

i mean, it's incredible. one of our concerns is to maintain and preserve voting rights. 1965, dr. martin luther king and others marched from selma to montgomery and really awakening the country to the fight for rights. they took five days and marched to montgomery. many of us feel that what's going on with these voter i.d. laws are undermining now the voting rights and last year, last -- end of last year, we marched in washington around voter rights. thousands came out and marched with us in washington and on the anniversary, march 4th of the montgomery march. we're going to take five days in march again from selma to montgomery against these voter

i.d. laws. we're going to do something about it, and we're going to take a lot of our "politics nation" audience with us as we march the footsteps of dr. king. judith, thank you for your time tonight. >> thank you reverend sharpton. >> we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] succeeding in today's market requires more than wishful thinking. it requires determination and decisive action. i go to e-trade and get unbiased analyst ratings and 24/7 help from award-winning customer support to take control of my finances and my life. i tap into the power of revolutionary mobile apps. to trade wherever. whenever.

life isn't fully experienced sitting idly by. neither is investing. [ birds chirping ] what is this shorty? uh, tissues sir, i'm sick. you don't cough, you don't show defeat. give me your war face! raaah! [ male announcer ] halls. a pep talk in every drop. that's good morning, veggie style. hmmm. for half the calories plus veggie nutrition. could've had a v8. the day starts with arthritis pain... a load of new listings... and two pills. after a morning of walk-ups, it's back to more pain, back to more pills. the evening showings bring more pain and more pills. sealing the deal... when, hang on... her doctor recommended aleve. it can relieve pain all day with fewer pills than tylenol.

this is lois... who chose two aleve and fewer pills for a day free of pain. [ female announcer ] try aleve d for strong all day sinus and headache relief.

we're back with the super bowl commercial that's become a political football. the clint eastwood ad promoting chrysler and america's future. >> this country can't be knocked out with one punch. we get right back up again. and when we do, the world is going to hear the roar of our engines. yeah, it's halftime, america. and our second half is about to begin. >> the ad is positive. unifying. upbeat. and republicans hate it. they are scared of anything that reminds americans that president obama saved the auto industry. they know the message is popular so they are going after the

messenger. >> this is a sign of what happens when you have the government getting in bed with big business like the bailout of the auto companies. they begin to -- the leadership of the auto companies feel they need to do something to repay their political patrons. i was frankly offended but i'm a huge fan of clint eastwood. >> this is dirty harry he's talking about. the fact that karl rove is criticizing the ad shows how worried he and the republicans are about the good news coming out of detroit. thanks to president obama. general motors is back on top as the global leader in auto sales. they sold 9 million cars last year. 1.1 million auto jobs were saved in 2009 alone. we all know willard mitt romney was ready to let the auto industry die. he wrote a "new york times" column headlined, quote, let detroit go bankrupt. conservatives like rush limbaugh are now claiming the job numbers in detroit are