the lives of so many of us watching right now that one of the extraordinary things today was quite ordinary. that we americans could all root for one thing together. it was us against the soviets for leadership in space. leadership we knew in science, engineering and in all possibilities. and one of the great things about the early 1960s, besides the thin ties and the 50-mile hikes was the sense we americans could do the things we set out to do and could do them together. as the voice of mission control said back then, god speed, john glenn. that's "hardball" for now. thanks for being with us. "politics nation" with al sharpton starts right now. welcome to "politics nation." i'm al sharpton. tonight's lead -- rick santorum thinks he's been getting away with something. but tonight, we're exposing who he really is and what he really thinks. santorum has become a serious threat to mitt romney. he's leading him in the michigan

primary, and he's beating him by ten points nationally. santorum wants to be taken seriously which means we're going to take him seriously when he makes statements like this about the president. >> this is what the president's agenda -- it's not about you. it's about some phony ideal. some phony theology. oh, not a theology based on the bible. a different theology, but no less a theology. >> a different theology. a phony theology? what exactly do you mean by that, rick? >> do you believe he's less of a christian than say, someone -- >> i'm not suggesting that. i'm saying he's imposing his values on the church. and i think that's wrong. >> but he says he's a christian. your arguing with that? >> if the president says he's a christian, he's a christian. >> if he says he's a christian. really? the santorum camp has spent the last 48 hours trying to spin

that comment. but they did help their cause today when his press secretary accidentally talked about the president's islamic policies. >> he wasn't questioning the president's character. he wasn't questioning the president's religion. he was talking about radical environmentalists. he was talking about -- there is a type of theological secularism when it comes to the global warmists in this country. that's what he was referring to. he's referring to the president's policies in terms of the radical islamic policies the president has. >> santorum's adviser said she meant to say environmental policies, not islamic policies. it was a mistake. but it's harder to believe mr. santorum made a mistake when he invoked hitler while talking about the president. >> your country needs you. it's not as clear a challenge. obviously, world war ii was pretty obvious.

at some point, they knew. we think, well, you know it will get better. yeah, he's -- i mean, he's a nice guy. i mean, it won't be near as bad as what we think. i mean, you know, this will be okay. i mean, oh, yeah, maybe he's not the best guy after awhile you found out some things about this guy over in europe and he's not so good of a guy after all. but you know what? why do we need to be involved? >> joining me now is former pennsylvania governor ed rendell, an nbc news political analyst and former dnc chair. and erin mcpike, reporter for real clear politics. thank you both for coming on the show. governor, let me start with you. is santorum doing so well in the gop race in spite of the rhetoric that he can get away with making such extreme statements clearly comparing the president to hitler? i mean, is he getting away with

this rhetoric because he's doing so well or is he doing so well because of this rhetoric? >> first of all, let me just say, having been exposed to rick santorum in all those races in pennsylvania, even this surprises me. i mean, he's gotten carried away. he's playing to this base. can he get away with it in with the base, yeah. in some ways it may make the base support even stronger, as sick as that is. there are still moderate republicans out there. there are still independents who, as you know, rev, can vote in the michigan primary. it's not a close primary. i think there are women out there and we didn't even get into his position on the women's issues. no prenatal health which they've tried to -- no money for prenatal health which is a ridiculously bad idea because all it does is run up the bill after a baby is born with birth defects, but they've tried to walk that back. but all of these things if you are a woman, how can you consider voting for rick santorum. if you are a jew and you hear

the reference to hitler, i mean, that's nuts. i mean, i think he will pay the price in the michigan primary. and were it possible that he became the republican nominee, he will pay the price big time for this. absolutely big time. >> erin, the governor mentioned his prenatal testing position. let me let you hear what mr. santorum said. >> one of the things you don't know about obama care and one of the mandates is they require free prenatal testing. why? because it saves money in health care. why? because free prenatal testing ends up in more abortions and, therefore, less care that has to be done because we cull the ranks of the disabled in our society. >> free natal testing causes more abortions, erin? hitler, phony theology, prenatal

care causes more abortions so you have women, you have christians, you have jews with hitler. i mean, this guy has no boundaries, it seems. >> yeah, well, you know, right now he is playing the role of social conservative. and he is trying to appeal to that base in michigan and beyond. and really this delegate map and the way that the delegates are apportioned skews to more conservative and more southern states and he's playing for that -- those voters right now. >> but is this a role or is this the real rick santorum? >> here's the other thing about all of these comments, al. for the longest time, the media has been kind of upset because we're not getting into more of mitt romney's head and we don't hear enough about what he's saying and what he's thinking. with rick santorum, at least we are getting more into his head and know what the guy is thinking. i think that's important. we need to at least applaud the

fact that we're -- he's being very honest about what he thinks. >> when you look at the polls, though, 67% among the very conservatives like him. but among independents, as you refer to independents, 35%. and even among moderates, only 26%. so he can win the battle of conservatives very far right conservatives and still lose the war in terms of trying to defeat the president if that is, in fact, his goal. >> sure. and one thing that's important, rev, is electability. santorum has been negating the fact that romney is the most electable candidate. but if you are someone who cares about electability and you hear these bizarre comments, you say, we can't put that guy up in the general election. i think that will hurt him now. on prenatal care, we had a program early on, 20 years ago called healthy start. it proved if you give a child prenatal care, while the child is in the womb it will avoid $6

in post-birth defect spending for medicaid for every $1 you spend on prenatal care. so the obama administration is right. it saves money big time. >> and it is healthier for the child and the mother. so you save money and you preserve health. this is not all about politics. but erin, let me show you he's not finished yet. since mr. santorum, you like to encourage me to get in his head. listen to what he said about income inequality which is probably the campaign issue of at least this season. he's in detroit. he praised income inequality. let me show you the quote. this is in detroit. there is income inequality and hopefully, and i do say that, there always will be. now he says this in a city where the poverty rate is above 37%.

median income of household of less than $29,000 a year. it's also a city with 90,000 abandoned or vacant homes. in this environment, he praises income inequality and says, i hope it always will be. is he tone deaf or is he trying to be confrontational to play to a extreme far right that may applaud this kind of insensitivity? >> i'm not sure what the goal was, al, but that particular comment in my mind, was more damaging than any of the other comments he's made recently. for two reasons. one, as far as mitt romney is concerned it undercuts rick santorum because mitt romney made the comment, as you remember, about not being concerned about the very poor because they have a safety net. and this comment by santorum undercuts anything he can do in throwing that back at mitt romney. the other thing is being intellectually consistent as a

conservative, and he's talking about essentially championing a merit-based society where some people rise and some people fall. but as you remember, he also made the comment about how, you know, the blanket statement about how maybe women shouldn't be serving in combat roles. well, again if you're going to champion a merit-based society if there some are able-bodied women who can -- who want to serve in combat, than in a more hift based society, a true merit-based society, maybe you should let those women serve. i think in several ways for santorum, that was the most damaging comment he's made. >> well, governor, we still have -- it gets worse or better, depending on your opinion. he says that he wanted to get rid of -- well, let me let him speak for himself. this is his views on public education, public schools. >> the idea that the federal government should be running schools, frankly, much less that the state government should be running schools, is

anachronistic. so we build equal factories called public schools. and while those factories as we all know in ohio and pennsylvaniaamentally changed, the factory school has not. >> governor, schools are factories? governments shouldn't be involved with schools, with running schools? then who is supposed to be doing it and why is he running to be the head of government? if government is not supposed to be doing anything. >> it is stunning. he talked about home schooling. home schooling works if there's a parent at home, but in today's families, a lot of parents are single parents or if they are two parents, they both work. it's imfobl home school. and public schools do -- not all public schools, but a lot of them do a very fine job in educating people and a lot of tremendous people came out of the public school system. but you know, this is like a smorgasbord. you're asking people to determine which are the statements that are going to damage rick santorum the most? he's made a myriad of them.

the one that is the worst that we haven't even talked about is when he said contraception should be illegal. 98% of women in this country use contraception and we have a guy running for president of the united states who said it should be illegal. i hate to argue with erin about which is the most damaging statement, but if i'm a woman, boy, you're going to have to go long and hard to persuade me to vote for rick santorum. >> he said all of these things, he's going up in the polls, meaning there is an extreme right in that party that supports that. that's scary. governor rendell, erin mcpike, thanks for coming on the show. >> thank you. ahead -- scott walker is fighting for his political life. and now we know just how scared he is. the money bomb coming his way is scary. and it needs to be dealt with. plus -- a wild story developing in arizona. this sheriff, a rising star in the republican party, quits

romney's campaign after explosive allegations from his boyfriend. and as the president fights for fearness, the republican party is broken and looking for answers. you won't believe how they are scrambling today. you're watching "politics nation" on msnbc. ok! who gets occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas or bloating? get ahead of it! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap a day helps defend against digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. hit me! [ female announcer ] live the regular life. phillips'.

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president obama's getting stronger. mitt romney's getting weaker. and the republicans are getting scared. it's panic time in the gop. that's ahead.

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if we fail, i think this sets aside any courageous act in american politics for at least a decade if not a generation. that is why we must not fail. >> scott walker is worried about failing. he's fighting for his political life and now we know just how scared he is. a year ago, the people of wisconsin vowed to fight back against walker's radical anti-union agenda. today he's up for recall after what's considered the most successful petition drive in the history of the united states. but this one has national consequences. walker is the face, the symbol of the war against workers. he's tried to block the recall and now his buddies are doing everything they can to save him.

billionaire david koch revealed the plan over the weekend saying, we're helping him as we should. we've gotten pretty good at this over the years. we've spent a lot of money in wisconsin. we're going to spend more. this isn't just any rich guy. this is the guy fueling anti-union agendas. the guy fueling the tea party movement. a year ago, walker was pranked by a guy pretending to be koch but it revealed the relationship they have. >> well, i'll tell you what, scott. once you crush these bastards i'll fly you out to cali and really show you a good time. >> all right. that would be outstanding. >> absolutely. and you know, we have a little bit of vested interest as well. >> thanks a million. >> he just might get that million from the kochs. so he's going all in on this union bashing. >> the facts are clear fundamentally so.

collective bargaining is not a right. collective bargaining in the public sector -- [ applause ] collective bargaining is not a right. in the public sector, collective bargaining is an expensive entitlement. >> scott walker is the tent pole holding up the war against workers. we've seen the blowback in ohio, michigan, indiana and arizona. it's time to fight fire with fire. joining me now from madison, wisconsin, is mike tate, the wisconsin democratic party chair. and in washington, msnbc analyst richard wolffe. great to have both of you with us tonight. >> thanks, reverend. >> thanks, reverend al. >> mike, as chairman of the party in wisconsin, you are responsible for fund-raising and competing with the koch brothers. they've already dropped $700,000 on ads and more is coming.

how are you going to keep up with this? >> well, you know, reverend al, they spend $700,000 on television last week. i believe they've spent close to $2 million in just the last, you know, 2 1/2 months on television. you know, and, obviously, we can't pretend that we're going to be able to raise that type of money. i don't have somebody that can write me a $700,000 check or $500,000 check like scott walker does. but we have the people on our side. you know, millions and millions of dollars have been spent trying to promote scott walker and what's happened? over a million people signed a recall petition against him. we've seen his numbers in the poll stay the same or get worse. we haven't spent anything on television yet. this may be one of those rare instances where big money does not win the day and the people of wisconsin, their voice will be heard. >> now richard, when we look at what david koch said about union bashing, this is a quote from david koch. he says what scott walker is doing with the public unions in

wisconsin is critically important. he's an impressive guy and he's very courageous. if the unions win the recall, there will be no stopping union power. so in many ways, as i said earlier, there's a lot of national implications to this because the reverse is true if the recall is not successful and particularly due to money, they will then feel that any governor can come in with a very blatant, aggressive anti-union stand and not have to be held accountable and this will spread like wildfire all over the country. >> well, that may be what they believe. look. the koch brothers, i know they are getting on a bit. i don't know what era they think they're in when they think that public sector unions somehow have the stranglehold on this country. if they want to bank roll every unpopular governor in this country whopts to take this on, then they're going to find their pockets pretty empty pretty quickly. you have to find a number of

politically suicidal governors out there who want to follow scott walker's path. only last week, governor walker had to cozy up to president obama because he knows he's now on the wrong side, not just of the unions, not just of the working folks in wisconsin but of public opinion in wisconsin. he's going into a presidential election year when he's got a recall election. he's in the off-year cycle. the midterm cycle, which is much better for him. he's now in a presidential election year and everything is running against him. i don't know if the koch brothers have enough money to win this fight in every place where an unpopular governor takes on a fight like this. >> now, mike, taking off of what richard said, president obama was in wisconsin last week, and he was touting unions and firing up the crowd. let's listen. >> today, for the first time in 15 years, this plant is running at full capacity. and that's an example of what happens when unions and employers work together to create good jobs.

our job as a nation is to do everything we can to make the decision to insource more attractive for more companies. >> so you couldn't have a clearer contrast, mike. the president very openly pro-union. pro-union and corporate leaders working together. the other side trying to just outright bust unions and demonize collective bargaining. how is this going to play out in your state? >> well, and that trip that the president took to milwaukee last week, it is dead on. and it's, you know, richard is right. the governor did say hello to the president at the airport but then claimed he had the flu and went home. and it's too bad because he would have heard from before the president spoke, the uaw president and the ceo say they couldn't have brought these 100 jobs from mexico back to milwaukee without working together, without bargaining together. the president clearly has the upper hand here. and i think it was a good lesson that, unfortunately, scott

walker didn't learn is that labor and management can work together to create a great working environment for jobs. >> wait a minute. you are saying that the head of the uaw and the head of the ceo of the corporation stood together and said working together they actually brought jobs into wisconsin? >> they did. the uaw president spoke first and was very eloquent and praised the ceo for coming to him saying, how do we get this done? how do we bring jobs back to wisconsin. then the ceo got up next and he said i want to thank the uaw. i want to thank this union for working with me for finding the right balance for making sure we could create good jobs that ten years ago they sent to mexico. now ten years later, they're bringing back and it's because of the partnership between the ceo and the union we're able to get this done. it's a tremendous success story. >> now, richard, isn't that the end of the day, isn't that the problem that with all this union bashing they've not shown where that will provide any jobs or

any help for the average citizen. and on the other side if you have unions and corporate ceos standing together showing people they're going to give them what they need and showing results, isn't it kind of an empty way to run against them with just a lot of slogans and throwing money on the television ads? >> well, scott walker has not helped his cause or the koch brothers cause. he did not, in fact, prove a link between unemployment and public sector unions and collective bargaining. more than that, the chamber of commerce, the big business interest in this country had run a pretty successful campaign for a couple of years. the first half of the obama administration, two to frustro e union agenda. making unionizing easier in the workplace. so they blocked that. what scott walker did was not just fail in his argument about the public finances, but he failed in the argument he turned around the argument that unions were too strong. he made them look like the victims. and in overreaching, in looking

like mean-spirited bully and taking on these public sector workers, what he did was he overturned all of the work of big businesses have been doing to stop united nations for the last couple of years. >> mike tate and richard wolffe, thank you both for joining me. >> thank you. >> thank you. still ahead -- the republican nightmare is becoming a reality. the economy is proving the president's surging. now some are admitting mitt romney is not, or at least may be not the answer. but first, "snl" takes on the gop's oall boys club and their attacks on women's rights. [ female announcer ] feeling that flu all over your body?

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sfl. republicans are still defending their attack on women's rights. last week, they held hearings on birth control and didn't put any women on their first panel. but they just won't admit they're on the wrong side of this issue. take a look at what michele bachmann says about it. >> there is no anti-woman move whatsoever. the republican party is extremely pro woman. >> really? the gop is trying to limit women's access to birth control. how is that pro woman? it's such a joke that the folks at "saturday night live" took it

on. >> really? really, congress? you held a congressional committee on prere productive rights and you did not invite any women? really? that would be like not inviting any men to a congressional committee investigating the maxim top 100. you know who is not all catholic now? all catholics now. 98% of catholic women say they've used birth control and the other 2% are always the ones trying to get the church to start a softball team. really? don't tell me what to do. >> amy said it best. republicans don't tell women what they really must do. really. get ahead of it! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap a day helps defend against digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. hit me! [ female announcer ] live the regular life. phillips'.

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class. in america, we don't give up. over the past 23 months, businesses have created 3.7 million new jobs. and manufacturers are hiring for the first time since the 1990s. president obama talking about the comeback in manufacturing jobs in his weekly video address. since the day he was sworn in, the president has been fighting to turn the economy around. and it's working. this chart from talking points memo shows the nation's jobs picture now trending in the right direction. the lines show three main indicators. the unemployment rate, long-term unemployment and new jobless claims are all going down. the biggest drop to happen in just the last few months. and as more people went back to work, it helped build confidence in the economy. just look at the rise in consumer spending. people are spending again on things like cars and homes. but republicans just can't

handle it when things are going well. listen to them scramble when faced with the fact that president obama's policies are working. >> this president is not the reason the economy is showing signs of getting better. he's the reason it's taken so long for the economy to show its signs it's getting better. >> let's not kid ourselves. this is the worst recovery ever from a serious recession. >> what i'm suggesting to you today is that we can do better. you know, the american people are still asking the question -- where are the jobs? >> republicans can deny all they want. but they can't run away from the facts. i'm joined by nia-malika henderson, national reporter for "the washington post" and chip saltsman, a republican strategist who was mike huckabee's campaign direct nor2008. first, thanks to both of you for joining me tonight. >> good to be with you. >> good to be here. >> let me start with you, nia. is it time for a new set of gop

talking points on the economy? >> in some ways it probably is. i think there is a sense that there needs to be sort of an expansion in terms of what they are arguing about. what they are arguing for. how they are positioning their candidacies to make a reasonable argument that they should replace the president. i think this idea that, you know, that the economy would have been better had the president not taken certain steps is a hard argument to make. you see that mitt romney is trying to make a similar argument around gm. he says that he could have done a better job if there wasn't this infusion of $80 billion cash. but so far it looks like gm is doing quite well having had just record profits on their -- over the last 103 years. it's a record for that company. so it's a very hard argument that they are trying to make. you have seen some movement by santorum to expand this fight along social issues. but even with that, you've seen

him get in some trouble. we'll see mitt romney give a pretty big speech this week thursday in michigan. i think we'll have to see what he does in terms of broadening his case for his candidacy. >> now, chip if you were advising any of the candidates that are running you ran huckabee's 2008 campaign. what would you be telling them to say in terms of the economy? would you be tweaking what they are saying now, or would you take a whole new strategy? >> first of all in 2008, we lost so they probably won't be listening to my strategy. but, anyway, i think you have to say first, this is good news. and that's okay to say it's good news. look. a better economy is not just good for barack obama. it's good for the whole country. i think what you can do, though is take the next level and say what can we be doing better. talking to the manufacturing plants, what can we do to make sure you'll hire more people? that's less regulation. that's when you talk about epa and osha that i think barack obama and this administration has let them get out of control. we have one of the most highest

effective tax rates for businesses. lower those tax rates, less regulation and let's get this economy booming. last, but not least is focus on another thing that could be a big road block is energy prices. with what iran has done with great britain and other european countries is cut off the oil, we can see $5 gas and these energy prices could slow down this growth. i think if i was advising the republican camp, i would say talk about those things that can make the economy grow faster, better. but celebrate the good news because this is good for all americans. democrats, republicans and even independents. >> i agree about celebrate the good news. i almost totally disagree with everything else you said but it -- >> shocking. >> -- makes more sense than anything they are saying. so much so that we are hearing people openly talk about maybe romney can't do it. maybe santorum is too far right. we're starting to hear open discussion about a brokered convention. let me show you a few headlines. politico says worry over romney

sparks talk of tampa. national review quotes a south carolina senator jim demint saying a contested convention is possible. jim demint of south carolina saying that. and an anonymous republican senator told abc news, quote if romney loses michigan, we need a new candidate. what's all of this indicating, nia? >> well, it's indicating that romney, to a lot of republicans, is still a fragile front-runner. he looked like he gained some momentum coming out of florida and then wrapped up nevada. then ran into santorum's three-state streak. now he's running into problems in michigan. i think even if he wins michigan, it's probably going to be a close race no matter what. i was campaigning with santorum last week in idaho. and he was saying that he expects to come in second which would be pretty good for his

candidacy. it's proportional balloting. i think this talk of a brokered convention reflects his general sense that romney hasn't been able to close the deal among conservatives. and he's seeming like a weak candidate. he's not very good on the stump when it comes to the sort of feel your pain aspect that a lot of presidential candidates have to master. and he's not necessarily good at giving speeches. he makes a lot of gaffes. i think people are very concerned. i think the likelihood of a brokered convention is not very likely. it hasn't happened in the last 50 years in terms of the republican party. and i think we're in an era in terms of politics where there are not a lot of party big wigs. who are the party leaders that would broker this convention and what would santorum actually ask for? and is there a space if romney actually comes up with these delegates, you know, does santorum go in there and say i want a vice presidential slot? it's hard to imagine that given that he himself has said that a victory for romney would, in fact, be a hollow victory.

>> now, chip, let me show you some polls and then show you some reactions. if you look at the polls, 44% are not satisfied. one poll has with the current field. this is republican voters. "usa today" gallup poll says 29% want a new nominee from a brokered convention. then on the sunday shows, there was open discussion across the board in sunday shows with some leading republicans discussing whether a late entry from some unknown candidate could work. let me show you what some of them were saying on the sunday shows. >> sure. >> i have a hard time seeing how somebody could get in at this late date. >> i think it's about as remote as life on pluto. and it could happen, sure. you can make up all kinds of scenarios. >> i do think that on the republican side there may be more demand than there is supply in terms of the candidates but that's the nature of the process. >> so the polls are saying that

the party membership or party voters either want someone else or are confused. the guys that have been in key positions in the part of poo-pooing it. where's the disconnect? are the polls wrong? >> no, i think the leadership is saying exactly right. a brokered convention possible, not probable. i think the poll resflect something that we all know that this is a very tough primary season right now for republicans. we're really fighting it out in the trenches. and that's not pretty. and if you aren't in those trenches and are looking from the outside looking in, it's not very attractive. even some of the folks in the trenches are looking out saying maybe this is not the best way. look. we have been through some tough primaries. you've been through some tough primaries and you tend to work themselves out and then a month or two after the primary we look back and go, what was all the fuss about? it wasn't that bad? i think governor romney has to win michigan, set himself as the standard bearer for a lot of different reasons. santorum is the same way.

he's had a bad couple of days in the press. he's going to have to say i'm passionate about these issues. this is why i should be the nomination. it's not going to get any prettier over the next couple of weeks. once it's all said and condition, republicans will come together and put together a strong nominee to beat barack obama in november, not unlike the primary you went through in 2004. that was a pretty tough primary where there were a lot of people in the democratic primary who were not happy with any of the candidates, except maybe for you and eventually got behind john kerry who won enough votes you'd tong win but it was a close election. >> it was a different kind of fight but i'll have to let it go there. and you're right. any time you are in a storm, you can always say the storm will pass. the problem is if you get wet you may catch a cold and it takes longer than that to get over a cold. it might be past november. nia-malika and chip, thank you for joining me tonight. >> good to be with you. still ahead -- a scandal erupts around a rising republican star in a critical

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welcome back to "politics nation." a shocking sex scandal out of arizona this weekend. arizona sheriff paul babyu, a rising star in the republican party, who was co-chair of mitt romney's campaign in arizona and a hard-liner in the fight against illegal immigration was hit with allegations he threatened to deport his secret gay lover. that man who is going by the name jose, to protect his identity, released photos of himself and babyu together. and compromising pictures of the sheriff, including a snapshot of his profile on a gay dating site. it's a stunning twist of fate for the arizona sheriff who became the face of immigration reform in arizona working with top-ranking republicans. >> we're outmanned with all the illegals in america.

more than half come through arizona. you bring state, troops, count and and local law enforcement together. >> and complete the dang fence. >> it will work this time. >> senator, you're one of us. >> he has stepped down from his job as co-chair of mitt romney's arizona campaign in the wake of the scandal. but continues to insist that he's innocent. >> all these allegations that were in one of these newspapers are absolutely completely false except for the issues that refer to me as being gay because that's the truth. i am gay. at no time did i or anyone who represents me ever threaten deportation. >> but the sheriff's ex-lover jose swears he threatened to send him back to mexico. joining me now, monica alonso, reporter from the "phoenix new

times." the story exploded after she broke the story. the invitation. here tonight. >> how did you get this story? hongets say approached us because he wanted to share his story. we started sitting down and talking with him and going through the documents that he had and, you know, trying to validate his story. and after we got done doing all that, then we reached out to the sheriff's camp for comment. so he approached us. i think that the reason he approached us is because not only he was afraid and he felt like the best way to deal with this was just to stand up and the other thing that he had mentioned to me was he thinks there should be some accountability here. and reaching out to the media was the way he thought that would happen. >> now what really caught my attention here is not the story of their relationship. people have their own personal lives. that's their business. but threatening to deport him,

here's a guy who, as we showed, we're talking about building the fence and was a main advocate against immigration, and he was using the threat of deportation on this young man. that is an abuse of his office, and that is also hypocritical to his position. now was jose -- is jose here illegally? >> no, he's not. he's made it clear, as has his attorney, and even on saturday during babeu's press conference, he backed off that allegation that there were any problems with jose's visa. so, no, jose is here legally. >> so him threatening to get him deported is really saying he was going to distort or misstate the facts of jose's status? >> right. and that's definitely what jose alleges. and, you know, the allegation here is that they were questioning his visa. and i know that paul babeu and his camp are saying they never

raised those allegations. but some of the letters jose provided to us during our interviews and while we were having different discussions clearly show that the issue was raised at some point. i've got letters here that he provided to us, and if i can read just directly really briefly, the letter here from jose's attorney to paul babeu's attorney says your claim that jose does not have legal status in this country is simply not true. however if your client mr. babeu wishes to make these allegations, my client will prevail against these claims. so clearly, even though he says that the issue was never brought up, clearly at some point it was otherwise, why would there are this correspondence from the attorneys. the other point, too, that's interesting here is that reference the threats. paul babeu has already said he doesn't deny the veracity of the text messages or the photographs that we've included in our story in the phoenix "new times." and one of those text messages, paul babeu sends to jose says

you'll never have business again and that he's going to cause harm not only to himself but to his family. >> wow. >> and i think what happens here, and i talked to several immigration attorneys who see this all the time is, when you are an immigrant, whether you are here legally or not, you don't always fully understand how the process works. and when you are in a relationship with somebody as high-profile and powerful as paul babeu, you might tend to believe -- okay. they're questioning my visa. maybe i need to be careful here. >> no, that's understandable. let me ask you, what is the impact that this is going to have on the republican party in arizona? and on -- will there be impact on the romney team in arizona? >> well, different political pundits are definitely suggesting it's going to have some impact. as we know, serve trying to be more conservative than the next guy. but it just remains to be seen in paul babeu's congressional run in -- congression district 4 here in arizona, it's a very

conservative district. heavily republican. so ultimately, it's going to be up to the voters to decide whether they are okay with babeu being gay and more importantly because that's really not what the story is about here -- >> i'm going to have to there go here. but we'll be following this story. monica alonzo, i'm sorry for cutting you off. thanks for being with us tonight. we'll be right back. [ female announcer ] crest 3d white was recognized by marie claire as one of the 25 beauty products that will change your life because it whitens by removing up to 80% of surface stains. see how it can change your life. crest 3d white. life opens up when you do.

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today is a day for celebrating the contributions of our nation's presidents. and while we might not agree always with the commander in chief, we should always respect the office. but from the moment president obama was sworn in, he's been painted by some on the right as the other and not one of us. we saw it this weekend when rick santorum talked about the president's phony theology. we saw it last month with that photo of arizona governor jan brewer waving her finger in the president of the united states' face as if she was scolding a

child. all presidents get rough treatment. it comes with the job. but this time around, it's different. it's more personal. >> the reforms -- the reforms i'm proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally. >> you lie! >> that's not true. >> why doesn't he show his birth certificate? there's something on that birth certificate that he doesn't like. >> and at every single turn, the president has appeased those who would do us harm. >> we know that president obama is the best food stamp president in american history. >> this president is attacking religion and is putting in place a secular agenda that our forefounders would not recognize. >> even when you disagree with the president, there's a level of respect that he is due because of the office. i didn't see eye to eye with president george w. bush. we disagreed on most everything. but i went to the white house to