of marriage equality of here's what the vice president said to remind you, this was over the weekend on nbc's "meet the press." >> i am absolutely comfortable with the fact that women marrying women, men marrying men, entitled to the same exact rights, all the civil liberties and quite frankly i don't see much of a distinction. >> moments ago, jay carney refused to comment on any change in the personal views on marriage equality but said this about the vice presidents. >> i have no update on the president's personal views. what the vice president said yesterday was to make the same point that the president has made previously. the committed and loving same sex couples deserve the same rights and protections enjoyed by all americans. >> nbc news correspondent kristen welker joins me live from the white house. they're definitely walking a fine dance around this one. what the vice president came out and i believe authentically said over the week, at least his

feelings about what he views for marriage equality. now the white house seems to be doing its best job at trying to keep itself in the conversation but respectfully so when it comes to its politics. >> reporter: absolutely. the white house taking the tactic that, look, there is not a lot of daylight between what the vice president said and the president has said in the past. interestingly, thomas, what the obama campaign is trying to do is to sort of shift the conversation toward mitt romney and to say there is a lot of daylight between what president obama believes and what mitt romney believes. they make the point that romney, for example, was opposed to repealing don't ask don't tell. that is something that president obama spearheaded. they also talk about the defense of marriage act. that's what the obama campaign is trying to do. that's the tactic they're taking. as you pointed out, white house press secretary jay carney was really hammered on this issue and i believe continues to be because the briefing is still going on. one correspondent pointed out,

the president has a number of lgbt supporters who have helped him raise millions of dollars and don't they deserve to know exactly where he stands on this issue of same sex marriage. here's how white house press secretary jay carney answer that had question a few moments ago. >> the president was asked this and said his views, his personal views on this were evolving. the president does have, as you noted, significant support in the lgbt community and that's because of his unparalleled record in support of lgbt rights. >> now, a lot of analysts believe that if president obama does win a second term, that he will come out in support of same sex marriage during his second term. they believe he doesn't want to go that far during his reelection year. in part because he might see a back lash in swing states like virginia, like ohio, north carolina. so that is what a lot of analysts are saying right now. interestingly, thomas, i looked back at a recent nbc news "wall

street journal" poll which showed that 49% of voters now support same sex marriage and 40% are opposed to it. so according to that latest poll, the majority of voters are in support of same sex marriage. so it is certainly a topic that will continue to be discussed this election year. >> thanks so much. joining our discussion, the deputy national political editor for the "washington post." and democratic strategist and former spokesman for hillary clinton's campaign. nice to see both of you. i want to start with you. president obama's education secretary arnie duncan echoed the vice president's comments as recently as this morning. here's what towed say on morning joe. >> do you believe that same sex men and women should be able to get legally married in the united states? >> come on. you're going to start there? >> yes, i do. >> have you ever said that publicly before? >> i don't know if i've ever been asked publicly. >> so do you think that either of these men could have said

what then or had a position or felt free to go out on a limb like this if they didn't have the backing of the west wing? >> well, i don't think people are assuming that every cabinet secretary is going to be speaking for the president on an issue that is not directly related to their cabinet. so i don't know whether they had marching orders from the white house or even explicit backing, but certainly i think in the case of arnie duncan, they'll be able to argue that he was making his own case, airing his own personal views. i think what you're getting at is this implication or perhaps this sense that the white house will be able to get some of the benefit of the president having people around him who are not evolving like the president is who are actually there. he is not the first one to have said this in the administration. and for that to maybe give the president some breathing room while he figures out where he will come down on this. >> the human rights campaign called the vice president's words over the weekend encouraging. had this to say. now is the time for president obama to speak out for full

marriage equality for same sex couple. is the president today unmore pressure than ever to address this issue? or do you think that there is more strategic thoughtfulness going into what the vice president said. the reaction to it now and how they can galvanize themselves to capitalize on this. >> the president has said he is evolving on this. i think that's true for a lot of american. we've seen that systematically over the past couple years, as recently as 2004. karl rove and republicans were putting this issue on ballots across the country to try to mobilize conservatives and put democrats in the defensive position. and that's the exact opposite this year with the president being able to point to a very aggressive agenda. helping the lgbt community. whether it is on don't ask don't tell or adding lgbt community to hate crimes legislation as a protected group under hate crimes legislation. so i think, and this was

referenced earlier. you're going to see a more aggressive contrast with mitt romney and the republican party which wants to roll back a lot of the rights a opposed to president obama and democrats which have been pushing to increase rights for the lgbt community. >> the obama administration has come out to say they have declared doma to be unconstitutional. this is the full repeal. there are still federal benefits that need to go along and discussions that need to go with those service members who would like the protections that heterosexual service members get for their families. there is still discussion on that. you also bring up what happened in 2004 and here we are in 2012. and i'll show this to everybody. state line south with a new map. it shows the states where marriage equality has either passed or is in limbo. you compare this to our map of key battleground states. only to iowa and new hampshire had made the inroads for support of marriage equality.

i'll start with you. does the president risk alienating voters by taking a stance on this issue in digging in deep with six months to go. >> you have to take him at his word that he is evolving on his position. you look at the polls in the same states and you see the voters are evolving. virginia, a state that i've spent a lot of time working in. you see voters in poll after poll are much more open to the idea than they were a few years ago. so i don't think he risks alienating people. especially when he is able to point to this aggressive agenda he has of real accomplishments, whether it is on don't ask don't tell or hate crimes legislation or health care benefits for same sex couples. and i think in a lot of ways, that's what the vice president was getting at as well. making sure that same sex couples, regardless of the marital status, enjoy the same rights. >> the rnc chairman reince priebus addressed this.

>> the president wants to be able to play both sides of this issue. he is obviously concerned about what's going on in north carolina. he doesn't want to fully embrace what his vice president is saying. >> so could lgbt rights become the next battle ground in the culture war between these two parties? and i got this e-mail that the president is going to be in new york with ricky martin next week at the nyc lgbt event taking place on may 14. they're saying this is for the obama victory fun. this will be the last chance, the last fund-raiser for the lbgt community to support president obama. >> and he has raised quite a bit of money with gay supporters. and they've had an interesting time. i don't know if it will be the next battle ground. i think there is some peril for the republicans in doing that because of the number that mo was citing. especially among younger votes across the board. there is a lot more enthusiasm for it for democratic younger

voters, this is their civil rights cause. i think there are some who would argue the opposite, that the president would gain with this. that he won't propose any federal legislation. that's not what we're about. but by voicing his support for it, you could make the case that he would actually benefit from that. so i think we haven't seen the romney campaign going out there trying to make this the issue today, nor the rnc really campaigning hard on it except to point out the gap that you just played. so i will be surprised if the republicans make this a battleground. but anything could happen, of course. >> thanks so much. we are also following developing news from capitol hill for you today. congress is back after a week-long recess ready to face off in an election year and the battle that's are brewing now in both houses. how to keep student lobe interest rates from doubling this summer is one that tops the agenda. while debate in the house is centering on the republican plan to replace cuts in defense that they initially agreed to.

luke russert joins us from capitol hill. let's start with this fight over student loans. the senate has this test vote coming up tomorrow. the house passed a bill on friday to keep the interest rate at 3.4%. both sides, they're at odds how to pay for this. who will take the bigger hit? >> it is the same story we've seen all year on capitol hill. both sides agreed this issue needs to be figured out. what is that issue? student loan rates are set to expire at 3.4% come july 1. they would then move to 6.8%. both parties say that's too much money to put on the backs of kids moving forward in college. how to pay for it? republicans passed a bill out of the house that would take money out of prevent i have the fund that was in pro's health care bill. democrats, the united states senate tomorrow, are going to put forward legislation that would in fact charge wealthier individuals a higher medicare and social security tax.

republicans say that's a nonstarter for them. democrats say getting money out of the health care fund bill is a nonstarter for them. so you're going to have this impasse. it will probably go through all of may and most of june. the dead line is july 1 so there is still enough time on capitol hill. some would say an eternity for this to get done. it is very much a hot button issue because it plays so well in presidential politics with mitt romney and president obama having to weigh in on it quite a lot about ten days ago. ? so luke, senator jack reid says they are willing to listen to any plan touching the health care law. have you heard any of the specific concessions that are being kicked around? >> reporter: as of right now, both sides are confident behind closed doors that something will get done because the dead line is july 1st. if they do not do this, congress is at a 9% approval rating. it would probably even go lower, that they cannot even agree on extending student loan interest rates. something they both say is so

important. as to what the agreement will be, you'll probably look at something they agreed upon before. maybe some cut from this fund that is be to the tunes that the billions that the house republicans want. perhaps you can see some other areas they've agreed on before. you will not see though any sort of tax increases that republicans will not violate the grover norquist pledge in any capacity. >> luke russert on capitol hill for us. thank you. those are no out in polarizing topics in congress. they also underscore one of the key questions of this election cycle. where should the burden of addressing the nation's fiscal problems fall? on the backs of the middle class and struggling families or the wealthiest of the americans? joining us, karen bass from california. also a member of the house budget committee. congresswoman, nice to see you. i want to start with the sequestered defense cuts. defense secretary leon panetta is on the record saying that it would be irresponsible for congress to allow those $50 billion in cuts to go through.

is the defense secretary wrong or are democrats more concerned with the republican alternative to that? >> reporter: well, democrats are definitely more concerned with the republican alternative to that and i appreciate that question. you know, when you're talking about cutting meal on wheels, when you're talking about cutting food stamps which actually is money that goes directly to small businesses, markets, in communities, versus giving tax subsidies to farming corporations, these are the cuts republicans are talking about and i think that is unacceptable in this time period. >> how do you defend the criticism against your party, and some would say that the democrats would be moaning or groaning over the gop budget. but democrats have yet to bring a bug to the floor themselves. how can you say that there isn't a send of responsibility from the democratic side for that? >> well, i do think the democrats have been very responsible.

the president has put forward a budget that i certainly support. and then over this time, the democrats have proposed, even though it has been very difficult, to go along with deep cuts. the differences is that the democrats believe in a balanced approach. unfortunately, my republican colleagues do not believe in a balanced approach. they want to undo the sequestering only on part of the budget. and clearly, all of the cuts that they are proposing impact the most vulnerable. so i'm wearing this blue ribbon today because it is foster care month. if we went along with some of the cuts that the republicans are calling for, we would negatively impact foster care. so while states are trying to come out of the economic crisis, the cuts that the republicans are calling for would put an extreme burden on states. and cutting money to foster care during foster care month, can't go with that. >> i need to switch gears really quickly to talk about the student loan debate. when it come to freezing the interest rate, how far are democrats willing to go to

compromise on this? is the republican plan to pay for it by cutting an obama health care program completely off the table? where can everybody come to consensus on it? >> well, you know, i think it is completely unacceptable to tell the youth of our country that if you don't want your student loans to double, then you need to forego your cancer screening. essentially, if you cut the preventive health services in the health care reform act, you're telling students to make a choice like we're telling seniors to make a choice between whether or not you pay for your medication or whether you pay for food. these are choices that are not acceptable and i do believe the democrats in the senate have an acceptable alternative. and i'm hoping that it passes out and can come to our house and we can be responsible to the next generation. >> congresswoman bass, thank you for joining me today. i appreciate it. >> thank you for having me. >> we are six months out from the general election. the race is a dead heat. we look at the new poll results

coming up. plus -- >> i hope it is not a long, long way to go that i really want to see that in my lifetime. >> what does secretary of state clinton want to see in her lifetime? plus, a mother tell her son to be a stun gun to school to protect himself from bullies. now he's facing expulsion. our "news nation" gut check. and join our conversation on twitter. you can find our page@news nation. [ music plays, record skips ] hi, i'm new ensure clear. clear, huh? my nutritional standards are high. i'm not juice or fancy water, i'm different. i've got nine grams of protein. twist my lid. that's three times more than me! twenty-one vitamins and minerals and zero fat! hmmm. you'll bring a lot to the party. [ all ] yay! [ female announcer ] new ensure clear. nine grams protein. zero fat. twenty-one vitamins and minerals. in blueberry/pomegranate and peach. refreshing nutrition in charge!

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republican presidential nominee mitt romney is getting ready to wrap up a town hall meeting in cleveland, ohio. he's been speaking and answering

questions for about a half-hour. the president was in ohio on saturday as he officially launched his re-election campaign. meantime, two new polls taken in key swing states like ohio are out today and they confirm the presidential election in november will be a nail biter. president obama leading romney in a usa today gallup poll in a dozen battleground states while romney leads the president by a single point in a politico george washington university poll. joining me now, michael coomer who wrote in the new york times this weekend about the nine key swing states. it is great to have you here. you point out that president obama won all of those nine in '08. republicans have made big, big gains. does the president have to win all nine again? when we talk about the crucial swing states and the math needed to add up to get to 270. >> thanks for having me. the president doesn't need to win all nine of the swing states but he needs enough to get to the magic 270 number. he carried them all in 2008. but since then seven have

elected republican governors. many have republican state houses. the question is will it swing back in time to help the president? >> which swing states does mitt romney now have the best chance of winning come november? >> reporter: well, we're not forecasting. we're just telling the states on the ground. the nine states that we're looking at that we consider truly toss-ups are colorado, florida, iowa, new hampshire, nevada, ohio, pennsylvania, virginia, and wisconsin. and what we're finding is that in all of these states, they're very competitive. recent polls show either slightly ahead or tied but in many of the cases, if you ask voters how is the economy doing in their state, they say terrible. some of them two-thirds think they're still in a recession and there are big openings for mitt romney in many states where they see him as able or better able to handle the economy. >> both romney and president obama looking to take ohio. both putting investments in

there. the president kicking off his campaign this week there. one thing he said, the real question, the question that will make a difference in your life and in the lives of your children is not just about how we're doing today. it is about how well we'll be doing tomorrow. and then as you pointed out in your article in reference to what we watched over the week. there is an america, the so-called grumpy voter. and you think that they could be key to turning up in november. >> right. the question you often hear in a campaign, are you better off now than you were four years ago. and in many states, the answer is clearly no. the recession has been terrible. what political scientists have found is it is often more of a case of how it has performed in the last two years before an election, the last year before the election. in that case we look at check data that shows all of them are rebounding to one degree or another. the question is, has it, was the economy so bad to start out with that even with some improvement, it will still be bad enough that voters will be grumpy and the key place to look at that is florida. i talk to people at moody's

analyti analytics. the way they put it is that florida's economy is improving speedily but it is so much worse than it was, you have these grumpy voters and it may be enough to tip it to mitt romney. >> michael cooper, great to have you on today. thank you. still ahead, an american man held hostage by al qaeda with a plea to president obama. his very dramatic message coming up next. plus, the veep fight club. does she show her inexperience by talking about her ex-perience? they employ hundreds of high school and college age

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>> my name -- >> that is the very first time we've heard from 70-year-old warren weinstein about his ordeal. this mental coming out, being released by al qaeda. some suspect that this is done to benefit whether or not any of the requested that al qaeda have made will be seen. he was last seen in pakistan last summer, they were taking him captive. those who know his back story know that he is a maryland resident who has been living in pakistan for some time. however, weinstein it says in this video, that his life depends on whether or not the president will give in to the demands of al qaeda. joining us now, chief foreign correspondent richard engel. we need to say we don't know when or where the january was produced. what do you think about the timing of why this is coming out now? again, he was reportedly kidnapped this time last summer. almost a year ago. >> the timing is al qaeda, i

don't know, it's hard to know. they want something. they have a list of demands. if you listen to what weinstein himself says in the video, there appears to be some frustration that his case isn't getting more attention. that the demands haven't been met. i think the timing is basically just them wanting to put this issue back at the forefront themselves want their demands to be taken seriously. and one way of doing that is to put out a video. i would assume there is also been back channel negotiations as well. with pakistani authorities. oftentimes when you see a video it doesn't mean it is the only communications source that is coming out from the group. >> one thing that has been a big concern is about weinstein's health. the care and conditions of how he's been kept during this extended period of time of being detained and kidnap. the video though offers some clues and some insight into all that. >> they are trying to show that he is not being harmed. that he is in what appears to be decent health.

at least able to present himself for a short video. he is 70 years old. he does have health issues. the militants say that he is getting his medication and his health had been deteriorating in the months before he had been kidnapped. but clearly being kidnapped, being moved from location to location is only the start of his problems will at the end of the day, his freedom is being denied and he is being held by al qaeda militants. so necessary bad health and one has to be concerned about his future. >> real quickly, the u.s. does not negotiate with terrorists. >> yes, the united states does. >> you think that by showing this video -- >> the way out of afghanistan is to negotiate with the taliban. which are a group that the u.s. calls terrorists. the u.s. in practical term negotiates with terrorists all the time. the united states negotiated with terrorists in iraq. that policy was called the surge. they brought a lot of people who were terrorists into the fold who ended up fighting alongside

the u.s. troops. so that doesn't mean that i think they're going to come to a deal with al qaeda kidnappers. i think that's very unlikely. >> richard engel, thanks so much. new details on the mysterious death of an army soldier in afghanistan who died while skyping with his wife. we'll bring you the very latest on that investigation. plus former nba star charles barkley slam mitt romney during an nba broadcast. his comments coming up. power surge, let it blow your mind. [ male announcer ] for fruits, veggies and natural green tea energy... new v8 v-fusion plus energy. could've had a v8. stronger. it's time to believe again. [ female announcer ] weight watchers -- rated number one best plan for weight loss by u.s. news and world report, again. join now for free. hurry. offer ends may 12th. [ jennifer ] weight watchers. believe. because it works.

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may seem like the stuff of fairy tales. but if you take away the faces on the trees... take away the pixie dust. take away the singing animals, and the storybook narrator... [ man ] you're left with more electric trucks. more recycled shipping materials... and a growing number of lower emissions planes... which still makes for a pretty enchanted tale. ♪ la la la [ man ] whoops, forgot one... [ male announcer ] sustainable solutions. fedex. solutions that matter. we're back. now to decision 2012. the battle over who will be the next vice president. this weekend, new hampshire republican kelly who has been discussed as a potential running mate for mitt romney made a bold statement about her experience as a politician. >> are you ready to be president? >> i'll tell you this. i have great experience as attorney general of the state. i'm very proud of that experience and i would have some would say better experience than

barack obama had when he ran, having been the chief law enforcement officer of my state. i serve on the senate armed services committee. what it comes down to me, it is serving new hampshire. >> joining me now, deputy political editor. what is that saying again about the first rule about the veep fight club? we don't talk about it. this is coming out pretty bold of maybe it is a turn. maybe it is a way to talk about the jobs people want in their future. >> i don't think so. i think it was probably more something related, ironically, to her political inexperience with something like this. i think you can get caught in an answer like that where you've got your talking points and then you realize, well, barack obama only had a couple years. let me talk about my resume. then you're there talking about your credentials and you're out there about almost saying you're interested in it. and that's really not what you're supposed to do. usually people are a little bit

more cagey about it. to the opposite extreme, we had marco rubio this weekend talking about it. let's listen to what he had to say. >> i'm not going to discuss the vice presidency. governor romney has a process in place and i'm going to respect that. i'm more than happy to tell you why i'm qualified to serve in the united states senate, however. >> that's going a little bit further than most go. i think he's been asked so much about being vp potentially that he is just decided that i'm not about this anymore. don't ask me about it. it is the job i like. i'm not talking about veep stakes anymore. most people are a little more cagey. look at bob mcdonnell. he might be a little too perfect in the way he handles it. he has an ad campaign up about his state and a lot of people saying he is really trying out to be vp. >> in d.c. for us, thank you. a secret prisoner release program in afghanistan. that tops our look at stories

around the "news nation." the "washington post" reports officials are freeing afghan prisoners in order to stop violence, especially areas without nato security. the only condition is the prisoners must give up violence. the exchange is designed to help end the war through negotiation. american officials describe the program as outside their protocol. u.s. military officials say a soldier who died in afghanistan while skyping with his wife died of a massive heart attack. captain clark collapsed during a live video conversation last month. his family is disputing this saying he was shot. investigators say there is not proof of that. people are watching wall street reaction to those austerity back lashes that are happening throughout europe. as we look at the boards, the dow has been having kind of a mundane monday today as we're seeing a red arrow there. down by a little over seven points. the s&p 500 and the nasdaq are in green. this also after the asian markets took a tumble and all of

this follows the votes in france and greece that could have a huge impact on plans to resolve europe's debt crisis. the french voters fed one the drastic cuts there ousted president nicolas sarkozy in favor of socialist. francois hollande is planning to ease it. the associate press bureau chief joins us now live by skype from paris. how are plans to resolve europe's debt crisis now be threatened by the outcome of the elections in france and greece? >> reporter: hi there. well, first of all, you as you mentioned, france now has a socialist president who says austerity is not the way to go. he wants government sponsored stimulus programs. that's not what germany wants. france and germany are really the engines of the euro zone. so this could be setting him up

on a path for conflict with germany. it is unclear whether germany will let the weaker european nations spend more. then you have greece. that's the really the most nerveracking develople. the political parties lost in parliament yesterday. that opens up the possibility that's the new leaders could reegg in or even d to leave the euro. >> that is bigger question for the euro zone itself. is the destabilization of the countries that support the unification of that currency. did any of these new leaders talk about that? when they were running and the fact that that's something they would have as an option potentially. that will be big a headache for germany and germany's angela merkel. >> yes. during the recent campaigns that hasn't been discussed directly, no, that did not happen in france or germany. however in greece that has come up. the situation doesn't seem quite

as dire as last year. i think everything that has happened in greece over the last couple years has prepared a lot of people in europe for the possibility that greece could leave the euro and all the consequences that could have for the rest of the euro zone. the initial concern would be that other weak euro zone countries could fall and end up pulling out of the joint currency. >> when we look at what is taking place in europe throughout the euro zone, i'm watching the markets there. today we've seen this kind of fickle monday in the u.s. but not an enormous ripple reaction to what we've seen with the changes of leadership for france and for greece. however, there are implications for the u.s. economy. and president obama's re-election chances going forward, aren't there? >> reporter: indeed will everything happening in europe really affects the whole global economy. the u.s. markets are closely intertwined with that of europe. as investors become nervous

about the future, they'll pull back on investments, hurting economic activity. drops in stock markets, american exporters could also suffer if sagging confidence in europe shrinks the value of the euro against the dollar. exports have been one of the economy's few strengths since the recession ended three years ago so this could have an impact in the u.s. and far beyond. >> thanks so much. we appreciate your time today. coming up next, a woman who says she was one of the colombian prostitutes at the center of the secret service scandal now breaks her silence calling them stupid idiots who like to show off their bodies. bringing more of that exclusive interview next. first a lot going on today. here are the thing we thought you should know. secretary of state hillary clinton is on a three-day visit to india where she is meeting with that country's leaders. today she will hole a town hall meeting. and there she faced questions about america and her own future. >> do you think the united states is ready for a woman

president? or is it still a long, long way to go? >> i hope it is not a long, long way to go. i really want to see that in my lifetime. >> you're going to be that woman who will break that final glass ceiling. ? i really -- no, no. i'm very flattered but i feel like it's time for me to kind of step off the high wire. i've been involved at the highest levels of american politics for 20 years now. >> over the week, mitt romney was back in massachusetts where he took in the boston celtics/atlanta hawks playoff game. his presence didn't go unnoticed. now the tv commentator charles barkley. >> mitt romney. >> he's at the game in boston. >> listen, we're going to beat you like a drum in november. don't take it personally. you seem like a nice guy. but you going down, bro. >> after that remark, one of barkley's on air colleagues said

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i'm martin bashir. coming up at the top of the hour, mitt romney in ohio and on the attack, new polls show this election is anyone's game. plus, the vice president speaks his mind on gay marriage and the program that has provided millions of meals to the less fortunate now on the republican chopping block. would you believe it? now back to thomas.

the woman who says she is the prostitute at the center of the secret service scandal is calling agents, quote, stupid brutes. she said she doesn't know how president obama had them on his security force. in an exclusive interview with michelle kosinski, she said she made it perfectly clear to the man who propositioned him that she was charging him $800 for the night. suarez hinted that it didn't seem like it was the first time he or his friends had paid for sex. michelle cost in60 joins me live from spain. what else did she say about that now infamous night? >> reporter: she talk to us for hours. she gave us a lot of details that we had been heard before. she is 24 years old. the mother of a young son. she is here in madrid because she has family here. she said now that she's been exposed as an escort, her life in cartagena is ruined. she said that night three men approached her. they gave no indication they were secret service in town for

an upcoming president obama visit. she said she assumed along with the other ladies that they were tourists, they were partying hard, drinking leak it was water. everything else seem like normal vacationers in town partying. she said there were a few things that did stand out. >> translator: they like to show off their bodies. great bodies. well defined abs. they like the attention and we colombian women are not used to that. i was surprised at every time he danced with me he lifted up his sweater so i could see him. >> reporter: so they were acting very bold and sure of themselves. >> translator: they were full of themselves. there was another crazy guy that will jump up on the bar. >> reporter: were they shy about asking for sex or very direct about it? >> very direct. i will say too direct. >> reporter: did any of them say they had done this before?

>> translator: no. but the way they approached us, it seemed obvious that they were used to doing it. people that do this for the first time are very thigh. >> reporter: what if someone said you went to the bar. you tempted these guys. >> translator: i'm not to blame for being attractive. they are blamed for leaving their duty behind. >> reporter: what do you say to these guys? you laugh. why do you laugh so much? >> translator: they seem completely stupid, idiots. i don't know how obama had them in security force. what dumb men. >> reporter: when she woke up the next morning in the hotel room of one of these agents, he asked her to stay and was very nice to her saying stay, my love, stay, my love, she told us. when she mentioned money and that she wanted to go, he got angry. ordered her out of the room and gave her $50. she claimed very clearly that she had asked for $800. we did ask her was not there

possibly a language barrier? she said no. she even made signals with her hands so that he wouldn't later try to claim that she was asking for $80 or 80 cents. so she told us a lot of details about the way they were acting but apparently it wasn't until he refused to pay her, she claim, that police got involved and that's how all of this erupted to what it is now. u.s. officials acknowledge that agent in question has resigned. >> michelle cokosinski. thank you. up next, a gay teen bullied by classmates decides to take a stun gun to school. now he is facing expulsion. i used to only wear sun protection on a beach day.

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in indianapolis high school student could be expelled for

firing a stun gun at school. here's why. 17-year-old darnell dynasty young who is openly gay says he has been bullied for months, and the mom said the school wouldn't do anything to stop it when they were brought to its attention. over she bought him a stun gun. dynasty said last month the group of students surrounded him and threaten to beat him up. so he shot the gun into the air. and the group. they ran off. he was arrested a short time later. joining me now from indianapolis is dynasty and his mom. it's nice to see you tea. explain to all of us why did you feel so desperate that you thought it was logical to carry a stun gun in the school and did you have an intent ever intend to want to hurt the kids that were bullying you? >> no. my first thing was to say, i do not, my point was not to hurt anybody. i didn't even use the tase gun.

i did not use it on nobody. when the six guys surrounded me, i raised it up in the air and i push the button. the self-protection device, the only purpose was to back them off. i didn't know what else to do. i tried to just think about, you know, how i am a supposed to protect myself at the school if the administrators was not going to protect myself. and that's what i did. >> so let's talk about the administrators in this situation. you have gone to them. you made it well known that dynasty was being bullied by other kids at school. when you felt they weren't listening to help take care of that situation, why did you think that it was a good decision to help dynasty to get a stun gun and encourage him to carry on it school property. >> well, first of all, i want to make something clear. i do not promote violence. not at all.

and the school was contacting me to let me know that my child was being bullied. in the conversation that's we were having back and forthwith me could not tacking them, them contacting me, the result was always the same. that he should not be flamboyant and he is getting what he deserves. >> i want to talk about that. we did reach out to the school for comment. they said they wouldn't issue a comment at the time. you did say, you said that the school shouldn't do anything to help take care of the bullying. the principal though, larry, told the indianapolis star that dynasty couldn't identify the bullies and said if he had known who the perpetrators were, the aggressors were, he would have dealt with them immediately. but you're saying that the school came back to you to say that dynasty is the one that needs to amend his behavior. amen being openly gay or acting, what is perceived to be as flamboyant around the other kids?

>> yes. >> so -- go ahead. >> i'm sorry. yes. that's the only -- they never, there was never no, they never gave me any other alternatives. there was no other alternatives. they didn't suggest one other alternative. it was always the same thing since the beginning of the school year. that dynasty should not be flamboyant. from the beginning of the school year until april 6, april 12. it just got worse. it got to the point where i had to do something. i had to do something to protect my child. i was in fear of losing my child. either at the hands of the bullies or either at the hands of himself. but our kids don't feel safe in our schools. and i had to step up and protect my child and protect the bullies also. because i didn't want anybody to get hurt. that's why nobody got hurt. he raised it up in the air and he sounded it off themselves back off and everybody was safe. >> thanks for joining me today. we appreciate it.

i want to put it out to e that's watching. what does your gut tell you? should dynasty be expelled? you should go to facebook.com. thanks for joining me. martin bashir come your way next. rich in fiber. my dad taught me, and i taught my son out there. morning, pa. wait... who's driving the...? ♪ 99 bushels of wheat on the farm, 99 bushels of wheat ♪ [ male announcer ] yep, there's 8 filling layers of whole grain fiber in those fun little biscuits... so they stick with you, all morning long. kellogg's® mini-wheats cereal. [ mini ] yee haw! a big breakfast in a little biscuit. does this faucet make me look fat? probably because of the lead i can pick up in your pipes. luckily, pur water filters remove 99% of lead. ahh, now i can fit into my skinny glass. hello. and also to build my career. so i'm not about to always let my frequent bladder urges,

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