you can link to the kind fund through our website at lastword.msnbc.com. rush week. let's play "hardball." good evening. i'm chris matthews in chicago. leading off tonight, rush hour. rush limbaugh's on the defense. he said today he's sorry for calling sandra fluke those two words. he said nothing about that on-air demand that miss fluke post sex tapes for his amusement or what word he's meant to say instead of slut or prostitute. the number of companies suspending ads on rush's show is up to nine, including aol. rush and the failure of republicans to challenge him is our top story.

and where's mitt romney in all this? silent as a lamb. mitt takes a beating in the new nbc/"wall street journal" poll. and that's no surprise. he's run a campaign of carpet bombing his opponents that's destroyed them state by state and left him down in the process. this may get him the nomination, but it's poison in november. the whole republican field is being damaged in this process. our new poll found 40% say the race has given them a less favorable inl impression of the gop. one of the polls called the process corrosive. the polls also filled with good news for president obama who was at or above 50% against every republican candidate. and a report argues today that african-american voters are being disenfranchised by republicans seeking to hold down the democratic vote this fall. we'll talk to the head of the national urban league. and finally, let me finish with mitt romney's deep fear of rush limbaugh. we begin with rush limbaugh's partial apology today and the failure of republicans to challenge him. senator claire mccaskill is a

democrat. rush led his show with an apology to sandra fluke. let's listen to what he said. >> i descended to their level when i used those two words to describe sandra fluke. that was my error. i became like them. and i feel very badly about that. so those two words were inappropriate. they were uncalled for. they distracted from the point that i was actually trying to make. and i again sincerely apologize to miss fluke for using those two words to describe her. >> right before rush's show this afternoon began, sandra fluke was on "the view" where barbara walters read her a part of limbaugh's apology. this was her reaction.

>> i don't think that a statement like this issued saying that his choice of words was not the best changes anything. and especially when that statement is issued when he's under significant pressure from his sponsors who have begun to pull their support from the show. >> senator mccaskill, it looks like the real boss of the republican party these days is rush limbaugh. they're all afraid to say anything about the guy. he can parcel out his apology while making his point that this woman who dared to speak up for women's rights, for women's health is something like a slut or a prostitute, although he said he could have used different words, and he said she should have put tapes of it on air so he could watch it. he didn't apologize and the republican party seems like they are lemmings here supporting him. >> i wish people would speak out more against what he said and how he said it. especially the leaders in the republican party and frankly my opponents for the senate. the unfortunate thing is

sometimes we are all are not anxious to step up and say that's wrong to talk that way. i did it when david letterman said bad things about sarah palin's daughters. i said, he should apologize to sarah palin. that was way out of bounds. i said that publically several years ago. and the limbaugh family in missouri, you have to understand there are some great members of this family. i supported naming the federal courthouse after his grandfather. i supported his first cousin to be a federal judge. but i will tell you this. i draw the line, chris. rush limbaugh should not be in the hall of fame of famous missourians, and i hope people will go on my website and sign the petition. he shouldn't be in this hall of fame next to harry truman, mark twain, and general omar bradley. >> speaking of harry truman, one of our heroes across the country, there's no harry trumans in the republican party right now. republicans are afraid of rush limbaugh. afraid of him.

let's listen. >> mr. boehner comes out and says, rush's language was inappropriate. using the salad fork for your entree is inappropriate. it is the responsibility of conservatives to police the right in its excesses just these liberals failingly fail to police the excesses on their own side, and it was depressing because what it indicates is that the republican leaders are afraid of rush limbaugh. they want to bomb iran, but they are afraid of rush limbaugh. >> they want to bomb iran, but they are afraid of the guy on the radio. providing the perfect example of george will's point. mitt romney was asked about limbaugh's comments on a rope line late friday night. let's listen to his response. >> it's not the language i would have used. i'm focusing on the issues that are significant for the country today. that's why i'm here talking about jobs in ohio. >> senator, you mentioned earlier that you have three potential opponents come november.

it seems like they are as easily mealy mouthed as romney. >> they've said nothing. in fact, the man who selected rush limbaugh and defending that decision today for the missouri hall of fame is in fact one of my opponent's campaign chairman. i would think the three candidates running for the republican nomination in missouri ought to be like i did when sarah palin's daughter was criticized and say this is wrong. it's wrong for anyone to be using this kind of language. sarah palin was in the public eye. this was just a poor law student using her first amendment rights. regardless, we've got to get back to some civility. along the way, i'd like, chris, for us to get back to talking about some jobs. let's get this highway bill done. let's get off the subject of trying to take contraception away from women in the workplace and get back to making sure we have jobs in the workplace. and i think the republican party has lost its way right now. i think the folks running

against me in missouri are also an indication of that it. >> just to remember and everyone asks why are we talking about contraceptions? because rick santorum said he wanted to talk about it at length in this campaign. the republican leadership blunt and rubio put out the word this weekend, the story on the hill. they had a fight for it. all last week they fought for it and lost by a couple of votes. and rush limbaugh picked up the baton. they have been the ones that want to talk about it. >> that's what i'm saying. i think that the republican party, all responsible leaders ought to come together and work on the economy and work on jobs. we have a highway bill right now that we need to be passing. we need to get it passed here in the senate, which i'm hopeful we will this week. it is completely off track over in the house. they can't even get the republican caucus to agree on a highway bill. and these are jobs. this is infrastructure that we need for our economy. that's what we should be talking about.

i have a bill to take some of the money out of afghanistan where we're building highways over there, chris, and paying off the bad guys for the security to build the highways. let's take that money and build that highway here in the united states. here in missouri instead of building the highways and the power grid over in afghanistan right now. >> i guess you're the kind of missouri senator that cares about highways and the other missouri senator is the kind that cares about contraception. thank you. it's good to have a lot of women in the senate. claire mccaskill of missouri. thank you. our new poll shows that suburban women want democrats in charge of congress. 48% say democrats. 37% say republican. that number has completely flipped by the way since the middle of last year. last year they wanted republicans to control congress by a 7-point margin. what does it mean for the republican party? let's bring in michelle bernard, she's an independent and is president of the bernard center for women, a think tank. michelle, thanks for coming back on the show again.

tell me what you think all this talk about contraception, all this rush limbaugh obnoxiousness is doing to the party label of the republican party? >> this is a complete disaster for the republican party label. it's a throwback to literally hundreds of years ago. there's absolutely no reason to be having this discussion within the republican party. i would imagine if i were president obama and getting ready for my re-election campaign, i'm thinking what an incredible gift. are you really giving me this gift and giving it to me in march which is international women's history month. if you think about all of the strides that women have made throughout the world and particularly here in the united states over the years to be talking about contraception, to be calling women sluts, to be asking for videotapes, and to not have one single person running to be president on the republican ticket to come out strongly and say this is immoral. this is wrong. women matter. women are important.

it's a huge disaster for the republican party particularly when you think about the fact that in our country we always have a gender gap. women vote. women are always one of the most important voting blocs in all. republican or democrat, they are going to be looking at this and thinking, what are you doing? what's next? >> stupidity can only go so far as a motive. why are they avoiding a fight with rush but are taking on women? >> i will tell you from my own experiences in saying things about rush limbaugh that frankly i didn't say were negative but just repeating statements that he has made, what you will see is his 20 million listeners start e-mailing you. they start calling you. rush limbaugh, a lot of people feel when he speaks, he speaks for the republican party. he's a very important man. but given in the republican party in that sense, but given what he stands for, again, i have to come back to the statement i made earlier. be strong. rush limbaugh is not the republican party.

he should not be the republican party. if you were mitt romney or mr. santorum or newt gingrich or ron paul, you need to come out and say that i am not the republican that rush limbaugh is. >> let me, for sake of argument, because you and i like to argue and i enjoy it immensely. here's the question. listen to this. this is what the republicans say. they love rush limbaugh and treat him as the grand poobah of their existence who tells them the secret truths of life. he speaks to and from traveling salesman. he gets them in the car. politicians love this guy. the minute he says something obnoxious, they say he's just an entertainer. did you catch rick santorum the other day? oh, it's just entertainment. it's just absurdity. what do you think of that dodge? >> you know, they say he's an entertainer, but it's just a little voice that says it. we haven't seen anyone who says he doesn't speak for me. he doesn't speak for the republican party. you know, mitt romney the other day said those aren't the words

i would have used. what does that mean? you would have called her a prostitute instead of a slut or do you think that women matter and this is just wrong, regardless of the fact that you are both registered republicans. >> i have to say this just to remind people. first of all, when he said those words, he also said i'd like to see her do a videotape to put it out there online for everybody to see of her sexual behavior, which is beyond words. it's a statement. by the way, my advice to rush limbaugh, take back every single word you spoke on this subject. laguardia, the great mayor of new york once said when he made a mistake. when i make a mistake, it's a beaut. just take it. take it on the chin. he's quibbling. he's doing rolling disclosure. he's breaking all the rules any smart person. he just got some advice. thank you for coming on the program. coming up, the longer the republican presidential race goes on, the worse it is for the

republican party. we have the numbers to prove it. plenty of good news for the president. president obama is riding pretty high you're now. you're watching "hardball," only on msnbc. [ male announcer ] that. right there -- reminds you why you fell in love with her in the first place. and why you still feel the same. but your erectile dysfunction -- that could be a question of blood flow. cialis for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medications, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sexual activity. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or if you have any allergic reactions such as rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat,

or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a 30-tablet free trial. ohio is the big prize tomorrow on super tuesday. new ohio polls coming up right now. right now, we have more numbers from other super tuesday states. let's go to the "hardball" scoreboard. in tennessee, a new ppp poll shows rick santorum holding a five-point lead over mitt romney with newt gingrich a close third. in georgia, the home state of newt gingrich, it's newt with a 23-point lead over romney. santorum is in third. in virginia, a new nbc/marist poll has romney over paul. 69% to 26% over paul. we'll be right back.

it's super tuesday tomorrow finally and it promises to be a big day in the republican nomination contest. 11 states and more than 400 delegates are at stake. but the nasty fight has proven damaging to republicans and their party. according to the nbc/"wall street journal" poll, while president obama's job approval is ticking upward, the economy is improving, two good things for the president. here to break down the numbers and give us a preview of tomorrow's primaries and caucuses are chuck todd, nbc's chief white house correspondent and political director and jonathan martin porks lit co's senior political reporter. chuck, let's start with the damage the republican party has suffered itself as a result of the primary fight. 40% of adults in the new nbc poll say their opinion of the gop has soured as a result of this process. only 12% say it's improved. when asked which party does a better job of appealing to its nonsupporters, 55% say democrats. just 26% say the defeat of the republican party. >> it's amazing. think about it.

we're actually in no different of a place than we've been for 8, 16 years ago. on the cusp of super tuesday. a potential nominee to be could come out of super tuesday. no different than any of the republican races in the past. it was interesting you just said something. it sets up this long, drawn out fight. that's the way republicans in our poll viewed the race. we asked them to give a word or phrase to describe the republican process. we didn't say negative or positive, just give us a phrase. the majority of the words they gave us were negative words. this is republican primary voters. whether the race is actually been longer than before, which it hasn't, it feels this way to the party. you can see this damage inside the party in those numbers. you put up the number which b which party reaches out to its nonhard core supporters? 55% of self-identified republicans picked the democratic party. that is because -- think about it.

think about when we conducted this poll. right in the middle of this rush limbaugh controversy in addition to all the conversations about contraception. a pretty low period for the republicans as far as independent voters are concerned. >> jonathan you get in here. i have a negative view towards advertising. it isn't the kind that reagan put on where you felt better. the ads attack each other and go on and on. you can't get away from it. you can watch "entertainment tonight," "access hollywood" you can't get away from them. and they just make you feel terrible about this country. is that why the republican party, which has been stinking itself up for all these months, is in trouble? >> that's a huge part of it, but it's more complicated than that. not only do you have negative ads that you have in every campaign between candidates, you've got the candidate's negative ads and the negative ads of their super pacs. so you have more negativity saturating the air waves.

i was in ohio the last few days driving around in the car listening to the radio and then watching the news shows in the morning. you cannot get away from negative ads. it's mostly from the super pacs that are not accountable to the campaign. so you have double or even more actually now of the negative activity going on. bashing republicans. it's no question hurt the party in the short term. >> you know, to use a bad term, don't get in a peeing match with a skunk. these ads are making them all look bad. let's take a look at who has avoided the bad news. here's the president. good news for him in the poll. the president's approval rating is up to 50%. that's the highest since the killing of bin laden. on that great operation over there. the voters believe the economy is on an improved path. 57% believe the worst is behind us. just 36% think it's still ahead. in a head-to-head with republicans, the president leads romney, six points, 50% to 44%.

he leads santorum even wider, 53% to 39%. >> still a long way to go. rick perry with ron paul. here's the one that grabs me. 50% to 42% against ron paul which tells me all romney can do after the millions and millions he's spent, tens of millions. he's 54 to obama down to the 44 end. ron paul who is a nobody in terms of being the next president, in terms of having a chance is at 42%. he has hardly any advantage over the guy who no one thinks will be president. >> paul steals part of the democratic base. younger voters. but if you take him out of the equation, look at the obama/romney issue for a minute. the thing about this poll that's unbelievable, chris, is romney's personal negative rating. it's upside down. 28/39. among independents, it's worse. 22% of independents give romney a positive rating right now. and that's where the president has shown some improvement, but the republicans have gone in the wrong direction.

here you have the president showing some improvement. 50%. that's good. that's not great. that's not insurmountable. it's enough. 50%. but what you have is a republican party that's been turning off independents. what's amazing in our poll, another amazing stat is the fact that more people said they were less enthusiastic about voting than -- less interested in this election than last month. that's not supposed to happen in an election year. it's turning the entire public off right now. >> i think so too. tomorrow's battleground state of ohio, this is the big deal. santorum and romney are within the margin of error to lead the pack. santorum at 34%, romney at 32%. nationally, the nbc/"wall street journal" poll shows romney with a six-point lead over santorum, 38% to 32% with gingrich and paul tied at 13%. let many go to this important question with you jonathan. let me ask you about ohio. the stinking negative advertisement of romney through a group called -- what's it called again?

restore our future. restore our future. over and over again. he's spending a total of $4 million just in ohio. a combination of his super pac and his own campaign spending. this negative attack, he did it to newt gingrich in iowa. then he did it to santorum in michigan. he's going to do it again. then he's going to get newt down south. then also santor num tennessee and oklahoma. this nasty negativity. is this going to help romney be ready to run against obama if he's the nominee? >> i think the strategy of going after your opponent and defining your opponent is pretty effective. it has been certainly in this primary period. if romney gets the nomination, and it appears he's on track to do so, it's going to be in no small part because he has very effectively defined his rivals who have had the rag tag operations that have not been able to fight back. give romney and his allies credit. >> but who is he?

who is romney in the eyes of the public right now? besides the guy that creates crazy gaffes and seems like an elitist. >> i'm talking about what he and his campaign have done on being on the cusp of being on their way of winning their party's nomination. yes, it's not been against the toughest opponents in the world, but you have to give them credit for the fact that they have got on to where they are right now. he's seemingly on the verge of wrapping up the nomination. everybody that i talked to in ohio who is not affiliated with either candidate thinks romney probably pulls it out there. if romney wins in ohio tomorrow, i think romney will be in very good shape here in terms of getting nominated. >> we look at things differently. i look at it this way. it was his turn the nomination. he could have won it clean. he's won it negatively. he's come off nasty. >> i'm not sure if he'll want it clean. >> he could not have won this with a conservative. he had to disqualify his

conservative challengers and he did it. he survived the process. it wasn't pretty, but he's got a nomination and it's still worth having. >> in the tea party era he had no choice but to run to the right and try to really take out his opponents. this is not the -- >> you guys are much tougher than i am. i don't think this is the right way to run american democracy. totally negative. >> you may be right. he may pay for it in the general. >> the country is paying for it. >> with the party where it is right now, i don't think he had a choice. >> okay. the end justifies the means. i don't agree. thank you, chuck todd and jonathan martin. you're probably both right, but it stinks. up next, it was the perfect height of the trees in michigan. what's mitt romney got for the good folks in tennessee? davy crockett. that's ahead in the sideshow. you're watching "hardball," only on msnbc. i stepped on the machine, and it showed me the pressure points on

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back to "hardball." now for the sideshow. first up, hit or miss. did mitt romney think he was on to something when he treated campaign rally attendees to performances like this one? ♪ oer purple mountains majesty above the fruited plain ♪ >> this weekend, romney dug up a classic from his childhood to take its place. let's hear how romney kicked off an appearance in tennessee on saturday. this time he spares us the melody. >> this place has a special feeling in my heart. when i grew up, i was thinking about davy crocket. remember the song "born on the mountaintop in tennessee, greatest state in the land of the free, raised in the woods so he knew every tree and he killed himself a bear when he was only 3. davy, davy crockett.

remember that? >> actually, davy crockett killed himself a "bar" when he was only 3. next up, sarah palin says she doesn't plan on seeing the film "game change." the film dramatizes what went down when palin entered the scene in 2008. don't think they are ignoring the release. they are out with their revamped version of the trailer for it. let's take a look at it. >> welcome sarah palin of the great state of alaska. >> this is sarah. >> well i'm not a member of the permanent political establishment. i'm not going to washington to seek their good opinion. i'm going to washington to serve the people of this great country. >> i may not answer the questions the way the moderator

or you want to hear, but i'm going to talk straight to the american people. >> she has that something. >> actually, got a screen of the real "game change." the movie on hbo is irresistible. it's fabulous. now for tonight's big number. do any of these words come to mind when you think about how the republican nomination process has gone so far? uninspiring, painful, discouraged, how about the lesser of two evils? if you answered yes to these opinions, join the club. according to the new nbc/"wall street journal" poll just out today, most people see this race in a negative light. what portion of people offered up a negative phrase when describing the contest? almost 70%. we're not just talking democrats and independents. more than the half the republicans polled gave negative descriptions. 69% overall. that's tonight's big bad number for the rs. up next -- mitt romney's destroyed his opponents, carpet bombed them with negative ads. our new poll shows he's doing as much damage to himself in the process. that's ahead. you're watching "hardball," only on msnbc.

welcome back to "hardball." there's more bad news for mitt romney from the latest nbc/"wall street journal" poll out today. after months of negative campaigning in the primaries, romney's favorability is at the collateral damage of all the ads he's run. take a look at how he stacks up to previous nominees. that's a lower score than almost all the recent party nominees at the same time. of march of the election year. that includes john mccain, john kerry, george w. bush and bob dole. what's behind the low favorability? rob porter is a backer of romney. that's a pretty low favorability rating for a candidate who has spent millions or tens of millions of dollars either directly or through his super pac. >> it's about the primary. once we're through the primary, and he's the presumptive nominee, which could happen pretty soon, then things will be different because he'll be talking about barack obama and there will be fewer negative ads about him. this is typical of a primary.

republicans have formed the circular firing squad and firing at each other right now. pretty soon when super tuesday is over, i think we'll see more and more people jumping on board the romney campaign, as we saw yesterday with eric cantor. and tom coburn. and i think then you'll see more focus on not just the obama record and what he's doing but also our positive agenda going forward. >> let me show you some numbers here that must be dispiriting to a guy like yourself. look at how your candidate is doing among women voters. the latest nbc/"wall street journal" poll shows president obama leads romney among women by 18 points. that's a heck of a gender gap for a guy in a country where most of the voters are women. >> again, it's very early. a lot of what voters are hearing is negative. it's negative about mitt romney and all the other candidates. i think if you were to look at the other candidates, the numbers would be even worse. this too shall pass. i know it worries you, but when

you get to a situation where you focus on the general election, which should happen soon, i think you'll see the numbers shift. >> but look at the topic selection. you may not want to talk about it because nobody in the republican party does, but this rush limbaugh brouhaha, that is getting hotter every hour, that began a couple of weeks ago. actually began months ago when rick santorum said i'm going to make this a big issue in the campaign. contraception. then the republican party in the senate led by blunt is pushing this vote. you lost the vote but kept it up front. limbaugh jumped on it. it's a combination of passing a baton, keeping the story of contraception alive as opposed to the economy. why? >> well, i think you're right. and i think the message has to get back to the economy, and it will. rush limbaugh apologized. i think he pretty much said it was a dumb thing to say. mitt romney said he said the wrong thing. this too shall pass.

that was not the issue that was addressed in the blunt amendment. it was about religious freedom. it's a legitimate issue. i'm in cleveland tonight and a lot of folks are concerned about it. about 25% of the people here get health care through religious organizations. so that religious freedom issue is important to them. >> but this is a student at georgetown, a protestant student. this is what you're talking about. a protestant student at a catholic law school, georgetown, which has a lot of non-catholic students. she wants to have birth control covered as part of her health care. she was called a slut and a prostitute by rush limbaugh. he took back the words, but his intent was to trash her and to say she ought to have videos online of her having sex if she wants the government or the health care to cover her. i mean that isn't just the words he chose. he maliciously maligned this woman. he went after her in such a way, made fun of her as a person. it isn't just a couple words.

>> you and i can agree on that. and it was a dumb thing to say. and again, rush has said pretty much that. and so it sounds like maybe you're keeping it alive more than him in the eyes of the voter. >> no. i want romney to say something. he didn't get to this until friday night. romney let four days pass. romney only responded and he said something like these weren't the words i would have used. he seems more scared of rush limbaugh, according to george will yesterday, than he is of our enemies in this world. why is your party so afraid of rush limbaugh? >> well, i think what the party is is focused on jobs and the economy. if you listen to what he's been saying the last few days, i went to two plant tours with him today and a couple of rallies. it's all about the economy. you've heard that. you've heard his message. >> hey, i'm with you on that.

>> we're talking so much about the jobs and the economy and not talking about other issues. he has very specific proposals on tax reform and energy policy and health care costs. that's what people want to hear about. i was talking to a lot of workers after the visits. they are concerned about their jobs and about what's going on in the economy. they are concerned with energy in particularly here in ohio. we want to develop our energy resources. we have these two big shale finds here and this means jobs. that's his focus. that will be his focus going forward. once you get through the primary process as we saw with the democratic process last time and now we're seeing it with the republican process, there will be a focus on the general election and that's going to be who has the better plan for the deficit and the debt and the economy. it's all going to be about jobs and the economy and the fiscal issues. that's, i think, where mitt romney is going to do well. and i think most independent voters here in ohio are going to agree with him. >> let's come back and talk about this once the cloud has passed. i agree with you. i think this election will be decided come the first week of november, depending on the state of the economy. thank you, senator rob portman, of ohio. now we're joined by msnbc political analyst david corn,

the washington bureau chief editor for mother jones. this is the a cloud over the republicans head for the reason they don't want to attack rush limbaugh. they could have gotten rid of this problem last wednesday if they stood up and said, this guy is a horse's ass. he shouldn't be talking about anything. let alone women's health care. >> they sold their soul to rush limbaugh many years ago. and now they can't even buy it back. it's probably not worth that much these days. you know, remember back in '92 when bill clinton had his sister soldier moment? might have been artificially create bud it was designed to show he could stand up to one element of his own base. and when she said something that people took issue with. the words that mitt romney used were weasel words because he knew if he said anything stronger, he would have a fight on his right, which is something he can't afford to do now as he's trying to keep the santorum

threat at bay. >> "saturday night live" has some fun. i'm not sure it's appropriate, but they had some fun with mitt romney. the constant verbal gaffes about being rich. let's watch "snl." >> i'm focusing on the victories. as we say in the romney house, i'm happier than a poor man eating a can of beans from a dumpster. yum, yum, yum, yum, yum. >> your shoes must be made out of chocolate because you keep putting your foot in your mouth. >> no, my shoes aren't made of chocolate. they are made of a fine italian leather and they were $1200 apiece. they cost more than most americans make in a month. uh-oh. i'm doing it again. >> there was kirsten wiig who is dine night. the whole thing i'm thinking about is romney is only memorable when he commits a gaffe or when he's silent and chickens out. not one of his prepared speeches is remembered. they can't think of anything he said except the stupid stuff and when he's been chicken. >> this goes to the point the senator was just trying to make.

he said, well, you know, the reason his unfavorable ratings are so low is there's been a lot of shooting in this primary. it's what always happens. i don't think that's the full story. i don't think the senator is being honest here. one reason his ratings are low is he's made these mistakes. people have been watching him for years running for president. and he's developing this impression of being a true 1 percenter who doesn't have the touch, who can't really talk about issues outside of platitudes and who keeps putting his foot in his mouth so that it's a joke that doesn't even need a punch line on "saturday night live." that's the thing that won't go away. you and i don't know what's going to happen with super tuesday. but that's going to stick around. >> david, the tragic comic reality is the man we just had on, portman of ohio, seemed like more of a grown up and serious guy than the guy he's backing for president.

>> that's true with all of them. >> up next, new details about the republican effort to hold down the vote. we're going to talk about voter suppression here. a new report says or argues you might say that african-american voters are being systemically disenfranchised, making it harder for them to vote. that's ahead. this is "hardball," only on msnbc. cold and flu relieves your cough 50% longer than tylenol cold multi-symptom nighttime. [ snoring continues ] [ male announcer ] because snoring sounds better than coughing. if you can't take a sick day, here's a cold hard fact. alka-seltzer plus cold & cough may cause marked drowsiness. try dayquil cold and flu for non-drowsy relief of these symptoms. ugh! [ male announcer ] so you can save the day, not worry about falling asleep. ♪

new poll numbers in two of the hottest senate races in the country right now. let's go to the "hardball"

scoreboard. in virginia that race between former governor tim kaine and former senator george allen. the democrat kaine with a nine-point lead, 48% to 39%. that's an unusually large margin compared to other polls that we have seen. but it's nine. it's a big one. in massachusetts republican senator scott brown opened up an eight-point lead over elizabeth warren. brown 49%, warren, 41%. in a new poll from western new england university. still ten points undecided. we'll be right back.

we're back, civil rights activists say black votes rights are under attack in the country.

they argue republican-led state governments have instituted restrictive voter id laws, eliminated voting or absentee voting and the net effect is restrict ballot access to blacks, the most loyal of democratic voters. mark is the ceo of the national urban league, released the state of black america report. eugene robinson the columnist with the washington post. gentlemen, thank you for joining us. >> thank you, chris. >> mayor, come on first and tell us you're making a case here, do you believe the motivation is political on the part of these republican-led legislatures to deny democrats the chance to vote or is it a racial intent to repress the power of black america? >> here is the evidence, all of a sudden in the last 18 months, 34 states that have either -- that have introduced far-ranging legislation, restrict early voting, require a specific type of voter id, to make it more difficult to conduct registration drives.

when you look at the id issue alone, one in ten americans do not have the id contemplated by the laws, and one out of four african americans do not. so this clearly a political motivation, i believe, and i think this is about the defense of democracy in saying a nation that is fighting to defend democracy abroad, cannot erect barriers to democracy in the united states in 2012. we have to speak out against it. >> let's stick with the id issue now. is getting an id something hard to do, can you mail it, can you have to get your picture taken at a government office? how much is a burden for a person in their 80s? >> typical identification card is a driver's license and many states offer a non-driver's license id. you have to show up, you have to bring certain papers and some cases even though it may be free but why do we need a voter id law at this time in american history?

what is the motivation behind these 34 states, who is orchestrating this? i don't think coincidental, i don't think it is surrendipitous. >> gene, everybody votes, you go to a school or local center, you walk in, you say who you are, i don't think you have to show an id, this is all brand new, republican trouble making for the minority voter perhaps. >> you know, i'm not sure. i seem to recall the last time i went to the polls i may have had to produce an id. these are onnerous requirements. the intent is to depress the vote but the impact, will turn out to be racial, and that

should be terribly worrisome i think to all who believe in the constitution and i hope it's worrisome to the courts as well. >> my grandmother never had a driver's license, lived in a row house. row house people don't have cars. here sharpton our colleague saying he believes there are ult terrior motives. >> what will happen when election time comes and people that don't have state id's that have voted historically, voted throughout their lives are blocked from voting. we're coming before there is a problem to say wait a minute, people are being disenfranchised there is no widespread fraud, there is no reason to do this other than suppress the vote. >> watching historic spot there of pictures of violence back in the 60s.

let me ask you, mayor morial the big question, absentee ballot was people who had money to travel, move around the country. now how is it important to black voting, poor people voting? >> i think early voting has caught on in african american and urban communities, people who work, people that have family obligations are more prone to take advantage of the chance to vote early and it's coincidenceal, when you vote by mail, the way most is conducted you don't have to show a voter id, so there is a lack of consistency in many of these laws. but early voting, anything, chris, that expands democracy and expands the ballot is what we ought to be doing in the united states. we ought to be encouraging people to vote and remind people that this argument about fraud is a smoke screen, most voter irregularities take place because of election officials not because of voters.

so people shouldn't be tricked by the smoke screen of fraud. >> thank you very much, marc morial, i love the urban league. thank you gene robinson. whether we return, let me finish with mitt romney running scared of rush limbaugh, he's afraid of the guy you're watching "hardball" [ male announcer ] that. right there -- reminds you

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let me finish tonight with this, politics is about impulse, what do you do when there is nothing to go on but gut reaction?

last week president obama was on the phone to sandra fluke expressing support in the face of rush limbaugh's assault on her. it took mitt romney until friday night to answer a reporter's question and say rush's words were not the ones he would have used. what words would he have used to express rush's insults if not slut or prostitute, what words would he have chosen? there is a finer vocabulary to cast a insult, words to make the same point? back to the impulse at work and what it says, obama's was to champion the cause of the woman being assaulted. people remember such moments so does history. jack kennedy called coretta king to express sympathy and changed history. mitt romney's performance, the money or your life, the robber demands. just a minute, i'm thinking.