tv Hardball With Chris Matthews MSNBC May 8, 2012 4:00pm-5:00pm PDT
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it's bad enough the economy has injured them. it's worse, it's irresponsible, to insult the injured calling them names. thanks for watching. i'm al sharpton. "hardball" starts right now. biden rings the wedding bells. let's play "hardball." good evening. i'm chris matthews in washington leading off tonight. a time to spill? president obama will tell us what he really thinks. remember that great scene in "the godfather" when carleone tells tom haguen, i think you should tell me what everyone seems to know. well, everyone thinks president obama supports gay marriage.
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stop saying your position is evolving. just come out and say it already. but the president knows this tricky issue could cost him votes in battleground states like north carolina. he may blame what joe biden said over the weekend for this, but now he has to deal with it. what should the president do? plus, car fooling. mitt romney says detroit, when or so he says, now he is taking credit for a victory lap from president obama's policy. is this a case of grand theft auto? also, spy games. the latest details on how the cia foiled that plot on blowing up an airliner heading for the u.s. and dirty angry money. how could the gps claim to be a nonprofit voting exclusively for social welfare? not supporting a political candidate when they run ads like this one. >> >> reckless spending, massive debt.
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no wonder tim kaine opposes president obama. >> how these groups gain the system in order to keep their contributors anonymous. and let me finish with my thoughts on our evolving president. we begin with president obama in gay marriage. ronald reagan is with us as well as willie brown. among suburban voters, we checked this out n.o.w., support for gay marriage is just about down the middle, almost even. a recent wall street journal poll shows 45% approve and 43% disapprove. that has completely narrowed from 2009 even. three years ago. that's less than a year ago when 37% approved of gay marriage and 54% disapproved. i'm not quite sure where we're headed so i'm going to go to our experts here. ron reagan, everybody in town here and everybody in the country, not just gay activists
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or gay people or liberal activists, seem to think that the president, even when he was senator of illinois, say he doesn't support gay marriage. should he just say it? >> yes, he should. this whole involving thing has really jumped the shark. he's taken more time evolving on this issue evolving from h. the problem is, you can make an argument. a little bit of hyperbole there but i thought i would add some color. we all agree he's making a political calculation, and we can argue whether that political calculation is correct or incorrect, but it's an obvious political calculation. he's taken a civil rights issue and he's trying to kind of, you know, straddle the fence on it and it's unseamly. he's beginning to look ridiculous on this issue. he needs to just get off the fence and go where he knows he really is in the first place.
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>> okay. >> you read his mind, you read his heart, you find him wanting in sincerity. let's go to mayor brown. mayor brown, what do you think i should do politically? he has an election to win. he's got six months to win it. your thoughts? >> above all else, barack obama is running for president. he is running to be reelected. he is going to do whatever it takes to get to the point where voters will accept him over his opponent. his conduct on the question of equality in this area, clearly, unparalleled. there's been nobody before him who has done what he has done to date. i would cut him the slack. as a great supporter of his and as one of the people who at all times has been for same-sex marriage. i'm not demanding that estep up at this moment and swing at that issue. after all, it's going to be voted on in north carolina today. why should barack obama do
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anything any differently than he's doing it? he has told the justice department, don't you participate in any effort to discredit the opportunity for people to have equality on the same sex life. he signed the measure, knocking out the whole question of don't ask, don't tell. and at every level of his appointments, they've been reflective of people of all sexual orientations. i don't know what should be required of him by those of us that support him. >> let me ask you tough question, my friend, ron. >> suppose you wake up the morning after the election and the president lost the election because he lost ohio and north carolina. by the way, they already lost ohio back in 2004. thanks to don king and thanks to other ministers in kie owinga county.
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if mitt romney walks into the white house and says, he doesn't evolve, we won't evolve. he walks into the white house and says he's been an all, although it's not good for the cause. here's the problem. i don't disagree with what mayor brown is saying. i understand what the calculation is. but i think the calculation is now incorrect. you can only make this political calculation when people don't generally see it as a political calculation. if people know that you're not actually speaking your mind and your heart, if you are inauthentic about this issue, and it is an important issue to some people -- a lot of people -- then you're doing yourself harm. you're actually harming your electrical prospects. >> everybody wants to get in on the act here.
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here is former dnc chair. he supports the president on gay marriage. here's ed rendell. >> he should man up and say, this is what i believe. he doesn't lose any african-american votes, and people who vote solely on this issue, a single issue voter, gay marriage. none of them are voting for barack obama. now. and they're not going to vote for him whether he says he's against it. >> that's the first time in my life i will disagree with ed rendell. the trouble with that is that hillary clinton hasn't come out for this yet officially. she doesn't have to. she is secretary of state right now. she is in a nonpartisan political position. but i'm not sure that's good advice because i do believe there will be people from north carolina opposed to same-sex marriage because they are a certain age but they like barack obama. he's saying there is no one out there who will be for same-sex marriage or the other way
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around. i think you have the simultaneous equation. oh, yeah, if you are for me and for same-sex marriage, vote for me. how about if you are just for me is a better question. your thoughts? >> i think that's the question that barack obama is dealing with. i also think that barack obama has evolved. i do not believe that when we is state senator in the legislate tour in illinois he was one of the people leading the charge for same-sex marriages. i think he was part of a religious operation that preached against that and spoke against it. i think he has grown tremendously in the last eight or nine years. >> but mayor, he did support same-sex marriage on the record when he was state senator. yes, he did. >> from the standpoint, however, chris, of his becoming of the guy who carries the torch, he's trying to waft through the process of letting you know how he, as the president, as the leader of this nation, wishes to bring the whole nation along on this equality issue.
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and i understand, and i think it is sincere. unlike ron, i don't think that he is being calculated as a person who is simply doing what's politically appropriate. i think he's walking through the process of saying, all of these reasons or why we should be where we are. and that's why everybody in his admin vags is saying, very clearly, we are for same-sex marriage, whether we are joe biden, david axelrod or others ander with in the same place as barack obama is. we should not require him to simply step up and do the same thing. let him continue in the process of where he is and he will arrive at the right place at the right moment. >> ron? >> i think he already arrived there. i think most people think he already arrived there, he just doesn't want it admit it. and that is 7b a great quality to put forward. he has an opponent evolving on all issues all the time p.m.
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that's a nk against mitt romney. >> that is true. >> you don't want it imitate romney. >> let's look at joe biden, the guy who is stirring this this week. here he is speaking today at ate assembly convention, made light, if that's possible, of the gay fire storm. let's listen. >> no one has ever doubted i mean what i say. the problem is i sometimes say all that i mean. >> that's for sure. ron, was it smart for the vice president to opening this door about the argument you're having right now with the mayor and the country this is involved in sfrs was that good policy? >> i don't know if he intended to spark that kind of argument, but he was speaking from the art and speaking his mind. mr. obama has put himself in a deep place for a solution. nobody believes that. he's too smart, he's too young,
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too can cosmopolitan to have an issue -- >> i'm with the mayor on this. because i believe it is a moving target. i believe if we have this argument three years from now, a year and a half from now, there will be a different context. i think obama could get ahead of crowd but he may lose the presidential election. they used to say, don't get so far ahead of the parade you can't hear the muse ing. and i think a big part of being president is still hearing the music of the people. >> the band is playing pretty loud, chris. >> you are, sir. ron reagan. your thoughts? he is smart doing what he is doing? >> i think he is playing the game the way he needs to play the game in order to save the presidency. and i've said this not only to my friends who are the same-sex marriage advocates, but i've said it to my friends on the black side. remember, he's being criticized by some blacks for not
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advocating on behalf of blacks in an aggressive manner. this man is the president. i want him to stay the president. and i'm willing to wait to have him satisfy me on his utterances when he is taking the oath of office for the second time. >> spoken by a man whose never lost an election, player brown of san francisco. thank you, sir, for joining us. i don't think you have ever lost one. tell me some day, if you have. coming up -- bye, ron, thank you. he want it credit, talk abo hootzpah. let's say it alling to. he says he is taking credit for the bankruptcy of the auto industry. unreal to hear what he saying today. this is "hardball." ♪ ♪
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[ male announcer ] everyone likes a bit of order in their life. virtual wallet helps you get it. keep track of spending, move money with a slide, and use the calendar. all to see your money how you want. ♪ how you want. last season was the gulf's best tourism season in years. in florida we had more suntans... in alabama we had more beautiful blooms... in mississippi we had more good times... in louisiana we had more fun on the water. last season we broke all kinds of records on the gulf. this year we are out to do even better... and now is a great time to start. our beatches are even more relaxing... the fishing's great. so pick your favorite spot on the gulf... and come on down. brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. >> brand new poll in from one of the biggest battle ground states, ohio. according to the new ppp poll,
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president obama is up 7 over romney in the buck high state. healthy. 50-43 in a state republicans need to win. take a look at this. what happened if romney puts portman on the ticket? very little. romney/portman still trails obama by 5, 49-44. that important. we'll be right back. [ donovan ] i hit a wall. and i thought "i can't do this, it's just too hard." then there was a moment. when i decided to find a way to keep going. go for olympic gold and go to college too.
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welcome back to "hardball." file this under the "you got to be kidding me" column. you can give credit to mitt romney for the auto industry coming back to life, at least according to mitt romney. he said the new market is likely the resurgence of gm and chrysler. they hope the private sector would come to the rescue after the bankruptcy.
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both of you, let's go to the videotape, in an interview with cleveland affiliate, mitt romney said he will quote, take a lot of credit for the auto industry coming back. listen to his reasoning. >> well, my own view, by the way, was that auto companies needed to go through bankruptcy before the government help. thankfully, that's what the president finally did. he fimly took them through bankruptcy. that was the course i argued for from the very beginning. was the uaw and the president who delayed the idea of bankruptcy. i pushed the idea of a managed bankruptcy, and finally when that was done and help was given, the companies got back on their feet. so i'll take a lot of credit for the fact that this industry has come back. >> and help was given. like mistakes were made and help was given. guess who gave the president the united states government? we did. we invested. not mitt romney. help was given. what a phrase. and this from the same guy who
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bankrupt. quote, if general motors, ford and chrysler get the bailout that their chief executives asked for yesterday, you can kiss the american automotive industry goodbye. it won't go overnight, but its demise will be virtually guaranteed. john, my buddy, what do you make of this hutzpah here? what he fails to point out is that the americans barack obama invefrted hearly and n the auto industry and brought them back. >> like you said, chris, help was given and because of that op-ed, mistakes were made. i think it reflects as much as everything certainly some hutzpah, unbu it reflects the narrowness of the maps of the romney campaign to win. it's very hard for them to win without ohio, and it's very hard to win without putting a couple other obama states in play. michigan, under normal circumstances, because it's romney's home state, might be
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prime for that kind of a takeaway. i have to say i've covered the republican primary in michigan when he ran against rick santorum a couple months ago. the memories of the auto bailout, the positive failout of that for the president, and the fact that the president won by 216 points in 2008, and there's not a chance people are going to take michigan away from him without reminding michigan every day of be, let the auto companies go bankrupt. >> i must remind you, if voters from ohio are watching, if you vote for him, give the higher electoral votes to mitt romney, you're saying trash us again. we like people trashing us. maggie, if you dump on us, you maggie, it sends the wrong message to politicians. you leave us, out in the cold, we'll vote for you again and again. maggie, that same question right up front? what is romney up to with this
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balanceder dash here? >> i think what john said is exactly right. i think this speaks to the path that he has and what a problem he has, and the memory of it in michigan, i think mitt romney actually has a bunch of problems in michigan. theoretically, he has roots there, but there hasn't been a romney in office forever. this was a tough state for him, anyway. you had the republican governor actually saying, ultimately, not echoing the negative sentiment that mitt romney did about the auto bailout. that sort of underscored where this goes. i think for mitt romney, there is a problem for a leap from saying, look, i think there should have been some managed bankruptcy to, i deserve credit. i think it gives the obama campaign a huge opening to remind people, as john said, look what the president did. the auto industry is still standing. >> let's look at former governor strickland of ohio. he is democrat of ohio. on a conference call to the obama campaign, here's what he had to say. let's listen. this is fresh news from the former governor of ohio. >> the entire country knows what mr. romney's approach was to the
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auto industry, and for him to come back now and to try to lay claim to the credit is astounding. but it's not surprising. you know, it's been said that he does not seem to have a political core, and i know that's kind of a harsh thing to say, but regardless of what issue we're looking at or thinking of, mitt romney has been on one or two or three sides of that issue. >> you know, guys, it seems to me one thing that somebody of a business background like romney should be very good at picking winners and testing business character and who's got it, who doesn't have it. the head of ford hats taken them to number five. ford is back as number five most
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profitable company in the country right now. it seems to me that something should have paid attention that he has this gift and he doesn't didn't bet hm onhim. obama bet on him. snrs. >> yes be obama made a big bet there. they identified the leadership of at least a couple of those companies in detroit as having been capable ever survival and thriving. they just got a little help from government. to be fair to romney, he didn't want it see the car -- offerusly not see the car industry go away. he add different idea about the best way it help it survive was. with the notion of managed bankruptcy is in theory one that some people might embrace. the problem is that steve as other point out, you need have private capital around. >> but nobody wanted to do it. >> nobody wanted to do it at the time. it is not an implausable theory. just in practice that moment, it would not have worked. >> as a republican he should
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have followed what abraham lincoln said, the company should do for the people what they cannot do for themselves. with no free market money, the governor had to be the investor. there were no private sector investors. his theory was based on ideology, not reality. >> i think you hit on exactly what it is, ideology. prior to the 2008 race, romney, or during the 2008 race, romney's passion position was more pro bailout and they were working out a framework. i think this is the problem as john said, as you said, there is a lovely theory of the case. and some people did subscribe to it. but to say, i suggest a manage bankruptcy, yes, that is sort of what happened. but it happened in a very specific way. and to then claim you were the founder of this idea stretches. >> do what you do best now, john, give us a look at the next six months. uaw, auto workers in those states, ground game out of chicago right now, social
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networking, how are they going to put together on the ground getting to the voting booth? people who care about the auto industry in those states like michigan and ohio to turn this thing against the other side? >> first of all i think the question is whether michigan will be in place six monthes from now. what i he is is the romney campaign test driving a message it figure out a way if they can move some numbers in the polling and that will make it worthwhile for them to then really invest in michigan. my guess is that over the the next couple months p t will become clear because bauz they are seer yaus data driven people that michigan is not winnable for them. they won't playing there. ohio they must play because there is really an plausible map. no plausible path for romney to win to get 270 electoral votes. it is true, the auto industry is important as a subsidiary industry in ohio. it is not the same as michigan. they can campaign on other things beside auto bailout
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there. >> maggie, are you sur prused at our poll we just showed that showed so little increments, in porking portman of ohio as his running mate? >> a little bit but not hugely. i think portman is overstated in terms of commodity and someone who has known identity. this is the problem of being described as bland, as you do not have some huge brand, known for excite org interesting. i don't think he is hugely known to his state. that may change as we get closer to the election. there is a reason why people say the vp pick doesn't win a state and you think you are looking at it right there. >> i don't think i've ever been called bland. that's one thing i've avoided. john, i sometimes think you don't know how much we love you and how much we need you on case. >> i feel the love. >> i feel like jack kennedy talking to lindon johnson. you need to know how much we need it. john, so much more important to us than lbj to the new frontier.
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welcome back to "hardball" and now side show. want to see hollywood's idea of a political ad? we catch the campaign between will ferl and zach. here is one of their ads. >> if you love america, if you love your freedom, if you love your family, then you will love cam brady. >> education is our future because schools is this nation's backbone. >> when it comes to his opponent, he won't back down from a fight. >> i've seen a mustache like that before, and do you know who wore it?
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saddam hussein. & and i never and i don't believe we caught two of his sons. udai and felofal. >> he's not afraid to work it. what does marty huggins stand for? >> economist. >> that's a real shame. >> i'm cam brady and i approve this message. >> if that didn't get your vote, try this one. >> what do these men have in common? marty huggins has read about these leaders and said, i can do better. he's a visionary. >> let's get rid of daylight savings time. i hate when it gets dark early! >> he's multicultural. >> glad to be here. it's the first time i rode a yamaha. >> isn't it time to give washington a huggin? >> when i say things are a mess, it's a mess. >> paid for by americans united in unit. >> the real ad wars will be in full swing if august. you have seen the luke war
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winners. george pataki says, quote, there are a none of problems. now the stamp of approval from rick santorum. wonder how you missed it? easy. big announcement came around 11:00 last night eastern via's e-mail. here's part of rick santorum's breathless endorsement. the primary campaign certainly made it clear that governor romney and i have some differences. while i had concerns about governor romney making a case as a candidate about fighting against health care, i have no doubt if elected, he will work with a republican congress to repeal it. my conversation with governor romney was very productive, but i intend to keep lines of communication open with him and his campaign. it looks like a litness test throughout the campaign. and could it at any moment not be endorsing romney? >> up next, dirty angry money. >> how can they claim to be a non-profit devoted to promoting social welfare?
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when it runs ads that be blatantly political and aimed against democrats by name. that's ahead. you're watching "hardball." if you made a list of countries from around the world... ...with the best math scores. ...the united states would be on that list. in 25th place. let's raise academic standards across the nation. let's get back to the head of the class. let's solve this. ♪ got it all. here. have a good day, honey. i love you, ok. bye, mom. [ female announcer ] sam's mom is muddling through her allergies. what can she do? she can get answers at walgreens. with guidance and information to help her make informed choices for her allergy needs. like zyrtec -- with the strength of 24-hour rtec,
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here is a look at what's happening. nbc news is declaring richard murdoch as projected winner in indiana's republican senate primary defeating six term senate. he has the backing of the tea party. while speaking at a college science center in albany president obama unveiled an economic to-do list for congress. he says since it is about the size of a post-it, every lawmaker should have time to read it. gas averaged 3.79 from september to april. now we will take you back to
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welcome back to "hardball." we've been tracking the dirty money out there that's been infecting our political system, and here's a perfect example. a $10 million contribution to crossroads, gps. unlike most political controversies, the group is under no obligation to disclose who gave that $10 million, or even if it was a single individual or a krp racing that gave it. they don't have to say. that's because the group calls itself a social welfare organization, unlike the other group also run by him, which is a superpak. they must be operated exclusively to promote social welfare. cannot make political activity its primary focus. that's a tough argument for crossroads gps to make since the vast majority of its ads are
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attacking by name of democratic candidates. here's one that goes after president obama by name. >> typical washington. obama says spend more and promises jobs. obama donors and insiders line up for handouts. >> true economic growth will always be companies like solena. mr. president, we need jobs, not more washington insider deals. >> well, crossroads gps would call that an issue ad, but who exactly believes that? senior correspondent of the huffington post, and editor in chief. of national mmo.com. i want to start with dan who got us into this issue. i just looked at the law, and it clearly says if you spend this money on advertising in a campaign, and here's a rogue out there spending his gps money against people like tim kaine, all these names in all these ads. directly in violation of these tax profits. how are they getting away with it?
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>> they're defining what they're doing by the sec rules. they have these hair-splitting rules about what's a political ad and what isn't. by the sec rules, you absolutely have to use one of the magic words, elect or vote or don't elect -- >> you mean jumping all over a candidate isn't opposing them? >> if you call them and say, tell them to stop eating live puppies, or tell them to stop supporting obamacare, the sec rules are not considered an ad. >> what about the irs, aren't they tougher? >> the irs has a more commons sense approach and looks at it with what they call facts and circumstances. they seem very clear. but the question is whether they will do anything about it. >> joe, share your opinion because you think about this as much as i do, about our democracy and keeping it somewhat democratic, where people actually count more than the big money people. >> one would hope.
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look, anybody who looks at this understands that the fec has failed to enforce any reasonable standard for these rules for many, many years. it's a political operation. it's staffed and the commissioners are democrats and republicans and the republicans protect republicans, and it's the nature of them to have a stalemated vote. they never really investigate anything with any vigor. the irs is a different story, and i find it hard to believe, frankly, chris, that the irs is going to fail for karl rove's story, and hopefully they'll decide they ought to audit his group and see where they're actually spending the money, not take their word for it and what that money is going for and then see whether it falls within the rules. because i suspect it won't, and i suspect that if they do find that, then the donors who gave a $10 million contribution anonymously, and i suspect that
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rove's deals will be wrong. >> these are right wing people, business people, and they'll say if you give these people money, they're democrats, and that's -- >> right, and if you give money, no one will know who they are. >> let's go to the karl rove operation going after democrats in this case. tim kaine is running for senate from virginia. and ben -- this guy stopped running. he was going to run from nebraska. and john test still running from montana. as a senator, let's watch. >> tim kaine has been obama's cheerleader with every idea. >> it is important to put people back to work. >> as tim kaine's wreckless spending turned into a deficit. big spending, massive debt. no wonder tim kaine applauds obama. >> look at the damage he did. higher taxes.
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cutting medicare spending, embarrassing nebraska. senator, it's time to make it right. remember this from jon tester? >> washington lost its way and we need to set it right. >>? washington, tester's way is obama's way. tester voted with obama 97% of the time. test tester obama's way is the wrong way for montana. tell him to say no to obama's proposed trillion dollar deficit. >> is there place in hell for the people that make those ads? like in a superman movery when they go spin off into space and you never see them again, at least until the sequel. >> the most we can help is for civil penalties and leave the rest to the almighty. >> you know, they always have a grim advice. about to die here. then the black and white and old
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newspaper clippings. aim sold m.o. your turn. >> nothing is going to change about this until people rise up and decide that the politicians seem to reform this system. luckily, there is a sign that finally they're going too far, and that this year, after the republican campaign wall the superpac spending in the primaries, that people are disgusted at long last. you and i both know, chris, that for years now, most voters have paid very little attention to these reform issues. it just hasn't been on the radar for them, either war or economy, something else. but this year there seems to be some suggestion that people are paying attention now. there is a new poll that's going to come out tomorrow from democracy corps and the public campaign fund, and it's going to show this is a salient issue for a lot of voters this year. . >> i heard it's coming. so tax returns just under a hundred donors gave a total of $77 million between june 2010 and december 2011.
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there were four other donations between 4 and $5 million. according to the l.a. times, two donors gave at least $1 million. i don't o know what your views are, but expand on them philosophically right now. if you could run a series of ads and say, and you can just pound the air waves all the way through october, and you had the money to do that without even having your name show up, you've got a lot more power than a couple hundred voters. probably more power than a few thousand voters. >> it'll be effective in terms of defining the candidate, in terms of the mood and the chance of corruption and it is a big slush fund, basically. >> you mean they might get in to see the winning candidate if they give a million bucks. >> it will be secret to us, it won't be a secret to them who
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they gave money to. he looks like a genius until he doesn't. he tends to look really smart -- >> you mean w. isn't still seen as a successful president? i thought he was. he was at architect. he's fair game. >> anyway, thank you very much. the latest on how the cia foiled the plot to blow up an airline. here again, the good guys won. and this is "hardball." our neig. and our communities... america's beverage companies have created a wide range of new choices. developing smaller portion sizes and more low- & no-calorie beverages... adding clear calorie labels so you know exactly what you're choosing... and in schools, replacing full-calorie soft drinks with lower-calorie options. with more choices and fewer calories, america's beverage companies are delivering. with more choices and fewer calories, i've been crisscrossing the gulf i can tell you, down here,. people measure commitment by what's getting done.
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i'm mike utsler, and it's my job to make sure we keep making progress in the gulf. the twenty billion dollars bp committed has helped fund economic and environmental recovery. another fourteen billion dollars has been spent on response and cleanup. long-term, bp's made a five hundred million dollar commitment to the gulf of mexico research initiative... to support ten years of independent scientific research on the environment. results will continue to be shared with the public. and we're making sure people know that the gulf is open for business - the beaches are beautiful, the seafood is delicious. last year, many areas even reported record tourism seasons. the progress continues, but that doesn't mean our job is done. bp's still here, and we're still committed to seeing this through.
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mark rubio tops the list of running mates right now. take a look at this. the florida senator was named by 25% of republicans, the best vp candidate for romney. way up there. chris christie is down at 2nd at 19%. jeb bush at 16%, paul ryan at 8. look at rubio, he's getting a lot of dance time with romney. boy, they are developing a big interest in this guy. we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] imagine facing the day
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people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing skin or eyes. tell your doctor about all your medicines, including those for migraine and while on cymbalta, call right away if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles or serious allergic skin reactions like blisters, peeling rash, hives, or mouth sores to address possible life-threatening conditions. talk about your alcohol use, liver disease and before you reduce or stop cymbaa.lt dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. ask your doctor about cymbalta. imagine you with less pain. cymbalta can help. go to cymbalta.com to learn about a free trial offer. we're back. we've got great new details about that terror plot the u.s.
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intelligence disrupted within al qaeda and the arabian peninsula base in yemen. today we learned the intelligence source was the would-be suicide bomber himself. roger cressey joins us with the latest. it's amazing to have the guy, if you will, that was going to put on the underwear, who was going to blow up the plane, according to people who were working with him who ratted out this whole thing. >> this is a good news story. in some respects it's what we expect the cia to do, is get a source inside early on in any type of development of a terrorist plot. they were in so soon, and there was never a point when this became a credible threat because they knew what could happen and they would have disrupted it. >> the fbi agent said to the american communist party, were there more agents at the meeting than there were communists? were there more at the meeting? a little humor doesn't hurt here. ed ward, coleman, how could you
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score the success of the guy that was going to blow up the plap be our guy? >> what a remarkable change from december of 2009 when the cia recruited someone that would lead us to the highest ranking members of al qaeda and the person ended up being a double agent and kill eed seven cia agents. >> that was horrible. >> he went there and was carrying a bomb in his underwear. it's a remarkable change. i think it's a sign of progress. let's hope we're able to keep recruiting the individuals from within al qaeda's ranks. even al qaeda has acknowledged this is the way in which we defeat them. al qaeda and yemen has acknowledged that fact. >> what we know so far is what we don't know. this was an early penetration within the al qaeda network.
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we think there may have been other nations like the british intelligence involved in supporting this. they were able to identify where this plot was going to go. they were able to work with the individual who was going to build a bomb to identify what type of device it was going to be. at every point in the process, we had far better visibility than was otherwise the case. it's directly related to the fact we had a person on the ground. penetration of the network early on and the threat was never going to be that significant. >> evan tell us about the underwear bomb. what it consists of and how it gets through the tsa. >> they put a lot of time into developing this. they spent a lot of time in thinking how to bring down commercial aircraft.
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it's delivered in a liquid form. the key element is the detonator. rather than using a metal detonator, which is what you see in these explosive devices, aqap has developed up to five detonators. they have no metal in this which means metal detectors don't do any good. >> what is the material used to detonate if it's not metal? >> they haven't said that. it's an organic material. in fact, they have developed it specifically because of that. they wrote a whole long treaties about how they hope to launch a series of a thousand cuts targeting america. they are going to launch successive operations over a shorter period of time to bleed the american economy. that's the objective here. >> they expect to have a lot of
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explosions? >> they are hoping for that. the idea is to keep the tempo up, keep the number of operations up and make it through security. >> roger, if you're attentive and you're wavpi iwatching the , would you be able to see one of these? >> it depends. this device is in the fbi lab. they will run it through several of the ait's these body scanners. you'll get guidance. guidance from the bureau. whatever the evidence is that we draw from the lab analysis, you're going to see that with tsa. it may require new measures that we're going to see as we go into airports. it depends what the fbi determines. >> last question, are we going to have more of these people carrying bombs inside of them,
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surgically implanted? >> surgically implanted, no. they said expect us to send more people like this. expect it to happen again. there are other affiliates that want to be the latest and greatest in terrorism. they are saying let's do this ourselves. next time we'll grab the headline and the focus. >> thank you so much for the bad news. >> thank you. >> when ever you show up, i have a bad night. just kidding. let me finish with my thoughts about our evolving president. ♪ ♪ lord, you got no reason ♪ you got no right ♪ ♪ i find myself at the wrong place ♪ [ male announcer ] the ram 1500 express. ♪
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it says a lot about you. ♪ in a deep, hemi-rumble sort of way. guts. glory. ram. i get my cancer medications through the mail. now washington, they're looking at shutting down post offices coast to coast. closing plants is not the answer. they want to cut 100,000 jobs. it's gonna cost us more, and the service is gonna be less. we could lose clientele because of increased mailing times. the ripple effect is going to be devastating. congress created the problem. and if our legislators get on the ball, they can make the right decisions. ♪ 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. new v8 v-fusion plus energy. high schools in six states enrolled in the national math and science initiative... ...which helped students and teachers
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my problem with two party politics is you're drawn into saying things in public that you would prefer not to. if you're a democrat you're supposed to be down the line for the labor position, down the line for women and down the line for the latest bipartisan push for war. for this reason i'd rather be a commentator and pick my fights. i think the president is with the causes. it's about saying the right thing when it will achieve the
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right purpose. will it advance the cause a year or two ahead of its current pace of acceptance. or cost obama even a surprising state like pennsylvania. would that advance the cause or solidify the republican opposition because they would owe it big time. would it put mitt romney in the white house who said he will never give up his opposition to same sex marriage. i believe the present president knows about the political challenges than the rest of us and is liberal on such matters. i can read his mind or his heart, but i can judge him as a person. he is not the sort to condemn people because of how they were born. the place that he is evolving places him in sin welcome many americans. it's a far stronger reason to
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