this morning, my question. who is the middle man behind the curtain of the republican party. is that you, carl? and, yes, there really are black republicans, seriously. three of them here in nerdland, but, first, the introduction of mitt romney, the man we already know all too well. good morning. i'm melissa harris-perry, time to break out your elephant hats, delegate signs, red balloons and

republican party favors this week, the republican national convention gets underway in tampa, florida. even i am wearing an elephant pin. republicans will come together to vote on the party's national platform and make the nomination official with presidential pick, former governor mitt romney. he has so share the spotlight with one unexpected guest crashing the party. tropical storm isaac. it is expected to dump heavy rains and wind on the more than 50,000 people gathered for convention at the tampa bay times forum. isaac is responsible for republicans deciding to convene the convention on monday and then suspend activity until tuesday afternoon. we'll have an update for you on the path of the storm in a few moments. the storm is an unwanted and rare piece of unmanufacturered trauma at this week's event. modern day presidential conventions are highly chor choreogra choreographed, carefully planned

affairs, and the actual nominating part is another prop in the political theater. the challenge to incumbent gerald ford, the last time in u.s. history there was ever any real suspense over who would be a party's nominee. now that nominee is settled on during the primary process, conventions are about something else entirely. first, a lot of pomp and circumstance. more importantly, about reintroducing the country to the party's official nominee. for those americans who don't start paying attention to the election until conventiontime, no one in nerdland, when rid nominee step -- mitt romney st the stage, they will meet him for the first time. it's time for them to cement in the minds who he is before election day. bill clinton introduced us to the man from hope. or in 2000, we were presented george bush as a country boy

riding around his ranch instead of the yale educated son of a wealthy political dynasty and john kerry combatted questions of his vietnam war record with this visual, arriving by boat, accompanying by swift boat crewmates at the democratic convention in boston. we'll have to wait until thursday night to find out the story mitt romney wants to tell us about who he is. but one thing is clear, the self-portrait will be drawn in etch-a-sketch ink. this is the moment when mitt romney tries to shake off what has come before and recreate himself anew. only what's he going to tell us that we haven't already heard? after all this ain't the first time he's been at the rodeo. mitt romney has been running for president for at least the last six years. to paraphrase a line from the great herald melvin and the blue notes, if we don't know him by now, we'll never know him. thanks to todd akin's junk science claims about rape,

romney is forced to remind us of his views on abortion, or more accurate, paul ryan reminded us on romney's behalf. >> the president sets policy, his policy is exceptions for rape, incest, life of the mother. >> the abortion sepgss that romney endorses are absent from his party's national platform, so romney's idea about who or more precisely qualifies for person hood. >> corporations are people, my friend. we can raise -- of course they are. >> he's also got some views about actual people people, like support of national expansion of health care, individual mandate that he crafted in massachusetts as governor. >> the right way to proceed is to reform health care. that we can do as we did it in massachusetts, and as we propose doing it at the national level. we can do it for the nation, get everybody insured.

>> oops. sorry, that was mitt romney circa 2009 who advocated for a mandate. 2012 rid romney disagrees with health care at the national level. >> i want to return health care to the states. i will repeal obama care and let people have responsibility and authority for their own health care. >> we know that mitt romney has a tendency to switch positions when it's politically convenient. to win the republican primary, that meant overcoming doubts about his conservative credentials, getting far to the right as possible. with this pledge about the dream act. the question, if i were elected and congress were to pass the dream act, would i veto it? the answer is yes. >> and for all of those undocumented immigrants who would no longer have a path to citizenship, we know romney's plan for them too. >> approximate people don't get work here, they will self-deport to a place where they can get work. >> that self-deportation line got a few chuckles at romney's

expense at that primary debate. he was in on the joke when he spoke to an audience of supporters in michigan earlier this week, which is why we also know mitt romney's idea of what is funny. >> i was born at harper hospital. no one has ever asked to see my birth certificate. they know this was the place we were born and raised. >> joining me today. joe watkin, republican strategy, karen finney, buddy romer, chair of the reform project.org, former louisiana governor and 2012 president candidate. and associate professor of law at fordham university. thank you to all of you for being here. joe -- i'm sorry. >> why me first? >> coming to you first and the question is real simple. who is mitt romney? >> i think mitt romney is a family man, somebody who comes

from a great family, also raised a great family with his wife, and somebody who has worked hard to build businesses, hire people to create jobs, and to save businesses that were in trouble and somebody as well who deeply cares about america. served as a public servant, being governor of massachusetts and being the rescuer of the olympics, and i'm very excited about his candidacy. i think that, of course, we saw -- we've seen some of snippets and we know some of the banter that's gone back and forth about one thing or the other, but i think ultimately it comes down to in this campaign who is best suited to put americans back to work. we've got two good candidates. >> i don't think anyone would disagree with the parts you say. he seems to be a nice guy. we all like his family. sometimes i take criticism from the lefties, because i think his dad and mom were fascinating characters. i think people like and respect

ann romney, the five boys she's raised. sure, but i'm not certain that biois sufficient as kind of campaign reintroduction. what will they tell us about who romney is? >> there was a "times" piece earlier this week about the color, shapes, the way they designed the stage to be inviting. that says to me they know there is a real sales job to be done. people from broadway and people from madison avenue to try and help shape the narrative. they will try to introduce us to potentially new elements of history. like his time in the church and his role in the church. perhaps counseling. >> that's a tough one. i think there is this really interesting narrative that many mormons have about their time on mission, right? where they can say i was in guatemala. he was in france, right? many feels like it plays to the

1% story. >> we know mitt romney and most people know mitt romney from the last eight to ten years. we put new polish on it, it doesn't change the core fundamental question of do you trust him, do you trust his ideas and the economy. they also, after this last tomb of couple of beikes, have to redefine mr. ryan, we didn't know much about him, what we leashed about him was scary to people like me. and given mr. akin's comments, you have to redefine the republican party. we've seen the most extreme elements of the party on display and i don't think that's the image of the republican party that they want for the country. >> data on this. let's take a quick look at nbc does news/wall street journal poll. president obama comes in at a 48% positive. 43% negative. would you like to see that

higher than that. if you are in the obama call pain. mitt romney, 34%. we can look although who is more easy going and likeable? president obama is whipping mitt romney on that. nobody likes this guy, and this one is key. who is more caring about average people. and there you have president obama at 52% and governor romney at 30%. and that is what it feels like to me. that's the gap that this convention will try to get over. >> the best chance for republicans in this convention is not mitt romney it's the cast who will introduce him and talk about him. the future of the republican party, that's the strongest point. mitt romney a decent guy. i like his best credentials, he has a chance to create jobs in america. in terms of caring about the average plain people who build a great nation, who fight the

wars, start the small business, he has no connection, neither does obama. let me say this. the fastest growing party in america are the independents. the only party that's healthy and -- >> governor, i don't have a convention, you have no pins. >> mascot. >> you repeat again what you know true. i'm not very social. but i do speak for the people who build a nation. that's small business. and neither party connects with. >> it's an interesting point. i guess, you know i think the difference that the -- if i think about the convention story that the obamas were able to tell, the pure aesthetics. they have a story from coming up from working people. the michelle robinson story, who per family was, that that convention video, i'm the

privileged kid of a wealthy, powerful family in a religion a lot of americans don't know much about and may have negative sterotypes. i went to france to help people, and then i got much wealthier. >> let's be clear about what the convention is for. this is a phenomenally boring event. and phenomenally dull -- dull candidate. >> come to tampa. >> the more people see of mitt romney, the necessary they like him. the real function of a convention may not be introducing the candidate totality public anymore. one of the real social functions of the convention is providing access for corporate and billionaire funders to congress members and candidate members. >> we'll stay exactly that, i'm going to ask whether or not this is phenomenally boring, in part because president obama models his presidency on lincoln's team of rivals, we heard in romney's

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in a recently published huffington magazine article, senior campaign strategist matt rhodes was asked how romney would govern if elected. he responded by name checking a man who was a past president. this guy. president james k. polk. the 11th president -- i'm sorry -- of the united states. >> polk? >> polk. now polk is not winning any

presidential popularity contests. history will remember that he oversaw the expansion to include texas, new mexico, and california. >> one of the most successful presidents we've had. >> okay, all right, all right. let's just come on out. i would fire matt rhodes if he said that i am modeling my presidency after james polk. >> the democrat. the democrat. >> he was so effective. got everything done he wanted to get done. >> he expanded the country in a way that allowed to us have angst about the civil war. can you imagine a more boring candidate. >> can i say something? he got things done. why? because he was a strong president. meaning that he consolidated the powers of presidency. and i thought, and he expanded the size of government. but republicans weren't for.

and we do know, thanks to the second george bush, but preemptive war with mexico, many of us would question, we picked up land from that, but was that a good use of america's resources? i'm just saying i don't known that would be -- >> let me say that texas was not some land. >> no, i love texas. >> they keep threatening to leave again. every five years, they claim they are going to secede. >> he shuffled off slavey, i don't want a president not going to deal with the billing issues sitting on the table. >> i think that polk would say he did deal with them. both boaring and a little odd and one termy and all of that, but it does feel like even though he was a one-term president, this kin of al gory for rhodes, the idea that he did great things, exited the scene. few remember him, but rhoades

suggested that he came and did great things. >> romney this is the first convention with drones, right? and he as boring as a drone and unmanned as a drone. >> oh, poor mitt. >> that was great, big -- >> he has fear in his eyes. they can be effective, but they aren't -- what you see with the shifting positions, i don't think that he -- i think he has a core and probably great relationship with his wife and family, but in the political sphere, he doesn't strike me as somebody that comes with a deep moral conviction and he's so hard to -- >> one of the thicks that matt talks about, a number of people talked about in the article, very focused on the goal. how do i get there? when i read that it suggested to me, this man is running for president. how do i get there? i need you, you, you, what do i

need to make you hope? not somebody with a strong moral core. >> this same guy, when somebody in his little company's girl was lost, shut the company down and focused on finding that little girl. that's a moral compass. that's a moral compascompass. >> that's a personal moral compass, not about a political ideology. this guy said whose great 'chooechlt. one of the things he could run on, would be he's been a governor. his great achievement was the individual mandate, and universal coverage on health care for the people of massachusetts which they really liked. and he did this great thing. but he can't, because he said i'm not for that, this guy said i'm going to be better on lgbt rights than kennedy. but he can't talk about that. and nobody asked for his birth certificate, he has been asking over and over for the taxes. he can't claim he's an open

government type of guy. >> let's see what he has to say. will he talk about an america that he wants his family to grow up in. will he talk about an american that is growing, that has fair trade with china. not dumb trade. will he talk about an america where there is justice in the land. talk about an america where you can read the tax code, an america that has a budget that is sustainable. or talk about business as usual. there is a lot of potential for mitt romney. i'm telling you, he has a lot of tale talent, well educated. >> he's not a dumb guy. >> can he see america? my problem with mitt romney is he misses the real issue. real issue is that the big boys run the country. >> exactly. >> and if he were to stand up and say we'll have a limit on giving per individual, but everybody can give and we'll have full disclosure and we will have -- >> hold on. >> all due respect, i'm not

concerned about what they would say. >> he would win. >> but it's not -- here is the problem. it's not what he will say. it's what has he done? when i look at what he did when he was abain and applied those kind of values to his tenure as governor, come on now. >> saved companies. >> saved a few companies. mitigated risk to his investors, to make sure they were protected from risk when people lost everything, and that's the values he applied to governorship. >> this is always my angst with missmen who run for anything. you have to tell me this. if you believe private industry is the alvation of the economy and have access to being a private industry captain or being in government and exit that to go into government, you have to be honest about your belief that you think that government does have a role. and so you keep telling me -- >> it does have a role. >> he doesn't say that. and so my thing, if you are such

a great job creator, go make some. the more romney talks about work and jobs, the more i learn about him and the more i think what we're learning is not pretty. we'll talk about work when we come back.

you're looking at a live picture of the tampa bay times forum, republicans begin their convention tomorrow. but immediately suspend activity until tuesday afternoon. due to the threat from tropical storm isaac. for an update on the storm's path, let me bring in nbc meteorologist bill karins. >> good morning, melissa they can't win in tampa, the storm taking a track further off the coast. impacts yesterday today than we thought yesterday. rain and wind throughout and some tornadoes. not a devastating flow blow. by the time the storm is gone, we could have a hurricane

approaching areas from mobile to new orleans, they won't be able to win tuesday night either. the latest with the storm. we have a possibility of storms in south florida. a strong tropical storm through the keys in south florida. by florida standards, they probably get one every year. not a huge ordeal, you have to cancel your plans for today, but not a devastating blow for south florida. intensifying for the keys. key to the forecast. the potential for what isaac could become, not what it is right now, 130 miles from the keys, passing over the keys in the next four to six hours. let's talk about where this is heading. the next update will be out here in 30 minutes. the 5:00 a.m. advisory, had the storm going to a category 2 strength as we go through tuesday, 105-mile-per-hour winds, landfall near the mississippi, alabama border, but i think that will shift further to the west once again. i think new orleans is going to go under a hurricane watch with a new advisory coming out shortly. thighs are computer models,

projecting where the storm could head, a lot of them, shifted to louisiana, some of them right through new orleans or the south of the town, new orleans is quickly becoming the focus of where the storm could potentially come. let me show you one of our hurricane computer models. the center of the storm, where the circles are, the forecast for tut average, that storm adjusts to the south of new orleans, landfall tuesday night too wednesday morning. melissa, they will try to get convention going tuesday night, hoping can they really do that with a hurricane possibly hitting new orleans at this time? i mean, as i said, they can't win at convention and all of our fears and concerns, the people of new orleans, serious decisions about whether to stay in the city or start evacuations later today. >> bill, like you a lot. but i'm not sure you're invited back to nerdland anymore, because i live in new orleans, and i got a flight there in a couple hours, and -- >> we can use you for hurricane

coverage. >> i'm feeling like maybe right now my mother, my husband, and my daughter are in a full-out panic. thanks, bill. >> good luck. let's hope it turns away from new orleans in the next 24 hours. >> thank you. let's bring back our panel, although i feel like i should suspend the show for a few minutes and maybe make some flight changes that said, joe cat w watkins, cornell finney, and gather myself. i am still interested in what this -- what this moment might mean in terms of reinventing romney. i want to go to one thing in particular work owning ing on m. his conversations about work. we heard romney repeatedly saying he is one of the unemploy unemployed. let's listen to that for one second. >> i'm also unemployed.

>> we can help you. >> so i get it. that part of him like being folksy. but the new me from the romney folks, president obama doesn't respect work. so let's listen to this sort of welfare to work conversation that is the new main out of the romney/ryan camp. >> if i'm president, those who can work, they have an opportunity for a job and getting state assistance and we will end a culture dependency and restore a culture of good, hard work. >> good hard work is good for poor people, but if you are wealthy, whatever, on the value of work, like this is -- this for me is like the inherit angst that i have with romney. i don't know what he actually

believes. >> i see it as a strategy. this fits nicely with this whole welfare sort of strategy and the whole new birtherism strategy. frankly, their economic predicate that they have been pounding the president. they have not moved a majority of voters toward them. dole took a lead on clinton. kerry took a lead on bush. none of the polls have you seen him take a statically significant lead. >> i need to you say that again, in case folks missed that. we remember who won and who lost. there was a point in the campaigns where each of those challengers against an incumbent actually took a lead in the polls. >> especially when the primary season starts to wrap up, the base of the party starts to rally around them, have you seen them take a lead. romney has never sort of taken a -- a significant lead in any of the polls, even nbc's

polling, cnn, still down a couple of points. he's what we call junior water in -- in our terminology, meaning his unfavorables are higher than his favorables and at an historic level. he goes into the convention as one of the most unpopular nominees, and the economy isn't working for him. it's a return to the cultural wars. >> i think we can't talk about this without acknowledging this anthropology of the language being used. we talked about the culture of poverty. talking about the systemic, poor health, lack of access to education and got bastardized into kind of me that referred to african-americans and the whole narrative about poor people, specifically african-americans as lazy and undeserving of welfare, and caseseer family foundation, along with npr and the kennedy school, did a lot of great polling on this.

you will be proud of this. and whether we like it or not, the really is, republicans more likely than democrats, when we talk about welfare to think of black people and think of white people as more deserving than black people when it comes to welfare, and blacks are more likely than whites to have this idea that you can be poor and be on welfare and still working hard. so i think that to say -- >> at least -- >> culturally -- >> and it's inaccurate. but it's also simply an inaccurate statement about the president's policy position. >> yes. >> i'm actually not a fan of the clinton welfare to work reform. in part because i you this you can't on the one hand say the value of mothers in the home is paramount, but if you're mother of a small child and poor, get out and work at a minimum wage job, because that's more valuable. i was never a fan of that, but fan or not, just impairaly, the

president has not changed that. >> for african-americans, no doubt about it. they will vote for president obama in big numbers as they did in 2008. that's not going to change. the people that need to be moved are the people who haven't yet made a decision about who they want to vote for. those people are wondering how do i get a clear message from either campaign with all of this meanness. meaning all of this character assassination. how do i get a message about where this person really stand, putting me back to work, or more importantly, if i own a small business, like my buddy who owns a pizza shop in long island, i'm not a republican or democrat. who is going to make the economy better? >> maybe or maybe not the answer will be in the convention. when we come back, we'll take a pop quiz about the convention. they are not boring, they are fun, great. when we come back. [ male announcer ] when a major hospital

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assuming hurricane isaac moves away, we are back in class at tulane university. and it's time for a pop quiz. i'm putting my panel to the test on all things rnc convention related. that's right. i'll ask the question, you ring the bell with an answer and we have actual prizes. >> oh, i'm sorry. we haven't started. >> this one, no problem. you will get this one. to begin, with our first question, take a look at this classic convention moment. are you all going to remember it. >> read my lips. no new taxes. >> 1988. >> yes. that's true. but that was not the question.

that, of course, was george h.w. bush at the republican national convention. where was that convention held? >> held in new orleans. >> that convention held in new orleans. hey, put a nerd on it. put a nerd on it. yes. >> you didn't ring the bell. new orleans. >> george busch, new orleans. >> 1988. >> i was governor of the state and spoke at that convention, as a democrat. >> wow, look at that. >> pretty rare. was booed. >> booed off the stage, talking about justice. >> all right. okay, okay. next question. you guys are great. which candidate was nominated at the second-ever republican national convention? >> abraham lincoln. >> oh, buddy romer. i love nerdland sticker for you. and it was in 1860 in chicago, and he was not the front-runner at that convention. it took a lot of politicking and had absolutely nothing to do

with vampire slaying. >> oh, sorry to say, i saw that movie. i'm sorry. >> whoa. we will have a segment on that later. next question, which was the first ever televised republican national convention? >> 1948, philadelphia. >> and who was the nominee? >> thomas dewey. >> it was 1940 convention in philadelphia. and it was a guy who by his name alone, you got to know wasn't going to win. w wendell wilke. by the way, wilke was womped by f dn fdr. >> it was a tough one. >> you don't want to be wendell wilke running against fdr. >> too much like james polk. just a thought. >> too much like james polk. >> all of these parallels. just a thought. >> the fourth one, 2008, what former member of a democratic

national ticket had a role in the republican convention? >> joe liberman. >> yfs joe liberman speaking? >> because he's crazy. >> we don't do crazy here. >> he broke his word. initially he said he wouldn't speak against the democratic nominee, and then he decided that he had to speak because mccain was a good friend. >> and you remember that mccain wanted to choose lieberman as a running mate and ended up with sarah palin. you get a nerdland sticker. >> i really love this. i really love this question. which former louisiana give nor was a delegate at both a democratic and republican national convention? >> buddy romer. >> yes. >> how did you not get this one, buddy? how is this not you? >> give me the sticker. >> joe is stickering it up.

he is nerd landing it up. we have one bonus round. this is a little sort of name that tune. listen to this one. >> and to those correctics so pessimistic about our economy, i say don't be economic girlie men. >> economic girliemen. >> arnold schwarzenegger. i'm giving you this one. nerdland stickers. >> the governator. >> nerdland was? wish happy birthday to my mother-in-law. divorced years ago after a long bachelorhood, i got remarried, 11 years ago, and i'm keeping this one forever. and i want to wish happy birth take to my mother-in-law in madison, mississippi. >> that is lovely. and it's a good day for moms, because it's also the -- it's also the day in which we mark

the passage of the 19th amendment which gave women the right to vote. it was a mom calling her son to tell him you should vote so women can vote. a good day for moms. up next, how the parties are losing control of politics and shadow groups are stepping in to replace them. we're talking rogue when we get back. and every day since, we've worked hard to keep it. bp has paid over twenty-three billion dollars to help people and businesses who were affected, and to cover cleanup costs. today, the beaches and gulf are open for everyone to enjoy -- and many areas are reporting their best tourism seasons in years. we've shared what we've learned with governments and across the industry so we can all produce energy more safely. i want you to know, there's another commitment bp takes just as seriously: our commitment to america. bp supports nearly two-hundred-fifty thousand jobs in communities across the country. we hired three thousand people just last year.

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2.5 billion, that's the long-signed price tag" time" magazine put on pennsylvania avenue. 2.7 million americans are trying to help president obama raise the money he'll need to extend his lease another four years. i tell you how many individual donors the romney campaign had, if they were telling us. but we know they are trailing. $348 million. that's how much the obama

campaign has raised as of this week as compared to $193 million for the romney campaign. $15 million, ought to be the money advantage that president obama has over former governor mitt romney it would be if it weren't for this figure, 4 colora4-1, according to the center for responsible politics of conservative super pacs to liberal super backs. $137 million spent by conservative groups, compared to $31 million by their liberal counter parts during the same time. $325 million is how much the sup superpacs have raised so far with promises from bill on areas with more to come. much headed straight to karl rove. $47 million is how much his american crossroads super pac has raised so far. $5 million from four people in july alone.

what i mean is what was reported by politico. $5 million raised from just four donors and their companies. combine that with the $41.7 million the investigative journalism organization estimates rhoades separate nonprofit has spent to influence the presidential race. beyond rove, the numbers all add up to a new reality for our two-party system. republicans and democrats are now each flanked by their own shadow parties. and when we come back, we'll show you why political money is still just in its infancy. ere tits utthem?thme mso t ben

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did you hear about the amounts of secret money being funneled into campaigns, for some there is something even scarier. bush's brain is back. karl rove, the man that george w. bush deemed the architect is leading the charge to make sure republicans win the white house, but keep a majority in the house of representatives and take back the senate and if political predictions are correct, we haven't seen anything yet when it comes to rove rain making and i'm not talking about the tampa strip clubs. at the table. robert tranum, and associate professor of law and buddy romer, and cornell bechlcher. this is what you guys fundamentally tried to bring me last hour. the convention is really about the money. make the case for me. >> the convention sets a 1980 law have had a loophole which

allowed for corporate giving and don't have to report giving until october. so the conventions have historically been a place where you bring together money donors and politicians. this time, of course, the super pacs playing an active role there is a great story detailing many of the parties given by the super pacs. >> are you saying this is just the beginning? >> yes. the two cases, citizens united, 2007 case which allowed for greater range of what you could say in an ad, both created a whole new way of engaging in politics. like chess was invented this year, two years ago. and what we've seen in the last couple of years is rove and others putting their toe in the water. a lot of reasons to think this is just the beginning. a lot of the money coming from texas, wall street is not really

involved in superpac giving. once we see wall street involved, we'll see -- >> when you say texas. like two guys in texas. we have this amazing -- the amount of money coming from just two extremely wealthy individuals. >> well, 155 people have given all the money in this campaign, democrat and republican. the average american does not give. it is the 1%, not in terms of their wealth, although that's true sometimes. in terms of their special interests. in terms of the need. who gave on the health care issue? insurance companies and pharmaceuticals. look how it changed the whole debate. i'm telling you, america is not just broken, it's bought. and it's bought by people who have never done better, melissa. >> but it felt to me like the most exciting thing of 2008 was the little red button, donate, $10, $5, $15. >> push back a little bit. the obama campaign have a lot of small donors, but here is the

fundamental problem with this one, as a campaign professional, you lose control of your message and marchtive. for -- for better or worse, have you candidates now who are not in control of the message in america. take newt gingrich in the primaries, he did his communicating in the primaries, of millionaires, and you have your candidates literally being puppets of millionaires, and the other problem if you think money is, in fact, speech, you automatically say rich people have more speech. and focus groups a couple weeks back were talking to voters and they feel their voice sk overrun and the system being rigged. this -- this decision does not -- does not expand democracy. it shrinks democracy. >> your point about control of the message, that is maybe the most heartening thing i've heard about this. what i keep trying to figure out, what is the incentive? who has some sort of power and influence, some sort of

incentive to push back against this? ordinary people trying to fight back one vote at a time, collect all of this information. you tell me there is a group of well organized professional people, like, wait a minute, i would like to control my message. there is some sense of pushing back against it? >> right. i totally agree, but i'll flip the coin and remind everybody around the table, back in 2008 to control his own message. barack obama said, no. no i'm not going to take matching funds, not going to take public funds, raise unlimited amounts of money, yes, so i can control my own message. ironically, john mccain is the one who campaigned finance reform who said, yes, i am going to take public funds, yes, i had take control of my message, but did he really? we haven't talked about barack obama, i'm saying that from a historical standpoint, he kind of raised the roof by saying i don't want public funds. >> let's be very clear. >> it's about to get hot, and

we'll all get to talk more about it. more on karl rove and buddy romer as soon as we get back, i promise. [ male announcer ] count the number of buttons in your car. now count the number of buttons on your tablet. isn't it time the automobile advanced? introducing cue in the all-new cadillac xts. the simplicity of a tablet has come to your car. ♪ the all-new cadillac xts has arrived. and it's bringing the future forward.

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introducing at&t mobile share. one plan lets you share data on up to 10 devices with unlimited talk and text. add a tablet for only $10 per month. the more data you share, the more you save. at&t. welcome back. i'm melissa harris-perry and i am in the middle what could become a fistfight. why? i have msnbc contributor robert treanor, and over on the other side i have former presidential candidate buddy romer and cornell belcher. we are talking money and politics. it has been heated. i hate that we were in a commercial. right before we went to commercial, make your point again about president obama, because i think it's one --

>> coming with a blow torch here, but i think we need to remember that barack obama started this. and i'm not saying it's a good thing or bad thing. >> you confide to me how barack obama started. >> make your point, robert. be true. >> tim russert asked him, would you take matching funds? he said under those circumstances would i take matching funds. i won't take matching funds. >> he did say that fast forward to after the primaries, he said, you know what? i'm not going to take matching funds, i need to raise "an unlimited amount of money to define myself and go after the republicans" that's what he did. >> was it under the law not capped how much an individual could give? >> yes. >> okay, thank you. >> whoa. that's fair. you have a moment as a candidate, the man who becomes president says i won't do the public matching funds, go separate on this, but also at a

moment, precitizens united and an individual giving cap, and he makes that decision, and under a different set of circumstance than what we currently exist under. >> a real substantial difference. between unlimited small dollar donors and unlimited billionaires. the criminal money class. and i thought mike crown wrote a wonderful piece in "time" magazine. they talk about it as the republican party. this is not the republican party. aristotle talks about it. >> i don't want to take money out of politics. you provide a service that needs to be paid for. i'm not trying to take money out of politics. i'm trying to do two things. try to reveal who gives it and when. number two, i'm trying to make the playing field more level. and the supreme court, even -- i disagree with citizens united. to me, it's like plessy versus

ferguson ruling in 1896, separate but equal. it's wrong, you do not have the right in america to buy an election or own a president. >> let me ask that on the president question. are we focusing on the wrong thing all together? on the one hand, clearly this is going to have an enormous influence on the presidency. let's look for a moment at the amount of money raised by president obama and the democratic party, action superpacks, and the go pr every p party, and you have millions and millions, and 587.7 million raised, 502 spend on the democratic side. 524 million raised and 396 spent on the republican side. and this is a saturated environment. a lot of money, and a lot of information. and the house.

>> can i make a point? and two things. one, historically, you have a sitting president which is incredible. in some states, we definitely outspent 5, 6-1, and it definitely has an impact. if you are a congressman sitting in medium or small market district, raising money, think are you fine, and all of a sudden karl rove comes in, dumps $1 million negative advertising in your market and that will move numbers. >> even if it doesn't -- so if he dumps the money and the money is about romney or -- it can still impact your local congressionals. >> are you attacking the democratic brain. >> u.s. a tidal wave. no question, the presidential level, almost like a cruise liner if you will. congressional level, like a sailboat. it's carl rove or david axelrod,

someone like that brings money into a battleground state, it definitely has a down market. >> who is the head of the so-called -- i heard you say they are not a party. the republican party, a mass based party. go out with ideas that are better or worse. and people give money to support the ideas they like. and karl rove and, you know, bob perry and harold simmons are the two texas millionaires who together have given $15 million to crossroads, if those three guys can dump that much money, there a party or shadow oligarchy here? >> what about george soros on the democratic side? >> i don't understand -- >> i wish. >> part of the reason, democrats in part are -- >> they are bought. look at the facts, melissa. the republican party is now building the war chest supposedly in a noncoordinated way. do you think this is

noncoordinated. that is a joke. mitt romney spoke to the fund-raiser of his own super pac. let's go to the other side. president of the united states stood in the white house at a press conference and said he would allow super pacs to be formed. in fact, as members of his administration to go out and raise money for him. and the supreme court said -- i'm not saying that. i'm just saying the supreme court's ruling is now a lie. it says that uncoordinated, third-party contributions can't be limited. all these contributions are coordinated. this is america today. elections are being bought. our choice and 314 million americans are two guys saying almost the same thing. nothing about jobs, nothing about trade, nothing about our future. a disgrace. >> nothing to disagree with that. however, at some point you say

to your people running for congress and people running for senate, will you support changing this law? will you support going into the senate and standing there and fighting the-to-change this law, pass this law, roll this back? >> i have to say, i hear you, i hear the passion, it's operating on both sides. >> it's not equal. >> a, it's not equal. first of all, not equal, and secondly we do absolutely have all these progressives saying, we won't go into the super pac. but certainly answering the president on the money raising, i'm not sure that there are no ideas being displayed here. in fact there, are a lot. and we do have a real choice. one party said we will make taxes less for the wealthiest americans. we will restrict choice. >> let's talk about some real thing things. >> let me say this i've been in congress, i've been a governor. i know ho to you get things done. neither party will get it done.

you know why? they are bought. the special interests -- >> i would be back in vermont writing country music songs. the wereason we are here, we thk something is possible. we need to make sure not just cuomo is making move toward matching funds, which he needs to do i think we'll get more support. an extraordinary support for breaking up big companies. neither party is talking about that. they should, if they did. there are these little moments. >> it's important to act now. right now -- >> things can be done. >> just one minute. we're playing the game. first year of playing the game, and right now the political class is not yet bought in. people like you -- >> i'm not the political class. >> night now, you are -- those who are political strategists, still primarily working for candidates. right now, we need to roll this back. because when you finally get the political class bought into the

super pac world, they become the quarter in the oligopoly. >> two words that are uncomfortable. it's term limits. you take look at a president who won re-election in a second term, his overall body language changes. he doesn't have to worry about raising money. he makes tough decisions. so in the process, hypothetically, if, in fact, we had term limits at the senatorial limit and the congressional level, we may have a change. people say i won't take that phone call from richie rich or george p., because i don't have to worry about you. >> first of all, you made the single best case for president obama's re-election that i ever had a republican make. thank you. i like that. but i actually have been a long-time supporter of term limits, although very long term limits, i think there is a great deal of value in people gaining

professional experience and all of that. so i'm fan of a an even 20-limit te time. >> if you raise the temp limit question, term limits in combination with other reforms. >> yes. >> unlimited superpac money. >> we just solved problems of america. >> term limits aren't going to happen. >> oh, come on. >> you think that term limits won't happen? >> you heard people talk about campaign finance reform. let's put it to the members of congress running, get them on record. >> i agree with you. >> we got no take this one step at a time. we know we need reapportionment reform. we know we need term limit reform. we know that, we have to start with the money. >> you do. >> thank you. robert and cornell are sticking around. i love this. not just who are the characters in the game, but the rules of

the game. and i appreciate that you are passionate about that. >> appreciate you, melissa. up next, why condi rice is not the only black republican in america. i have a few more. [ male announcer ] research suggests cell health plays a key role throughout our lives. one a day men's 50+ is a complete multi-vitamin designed for men's health concerns as we age. it has more of 7 antioxidants to support cell health. one a day men's 50+. exclusive to the military, and commitment is not limited to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. with our award winning apps that allow you to transfer funds, pay bills or manage your finances anywhere, anytime. so that wherever your duty takes you, usaa bank goes with you.

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as mitt romney heads to tampa for the republican convention in week polls show the race between him and president obama could still go either way. a new nbc/wall street journal" poll shows one problem for the republican challengers. romney trails president obama in

african-american voters, 94% to 0%. here is a bit of breaking news. not all black people think alike. i know, with all of the talk of the black community and the black church and the black vote, and with that big fat zero in romney's support, it's easy to believe that frip americans have a single political mind. nothing further from the truth. african-american political history is one of spirit the disagreement. think of the fierce condemnation of booker t. washington or decades of debate with ida b. wells, or the differing rhetorical styles of martin luther king jr. or malcolm x. when are you watching the convention in tampa this week, you might see something that will surprise you. black republicans. no, they are not lost. they are there because they support mitt romney and are prepared to work to make him president of the united states. no, this does the nos mean that they hate themselves or other

black people. yes, this means they disagree with the majority of black voter who's are working to get the republican president. why would an african-american be republican? during the first 100 years of black citizenship in america, most black folk were republican, for one really compelling reason. that guy. put today, the reasons are more complicated. among many african-americans, there is a strong ethic of economic self-reliance and a long history of distrusting government. for some, this translates to support for republicans, and black americans, especially those older and living in the south report high levels of religiosity and social conservatism. for some, these beliefs translate to support for the republicans, and another reason, an ambitious, young, african-american who wants to seek office, well, the line is

much shorter in the republican party, and when it comes to seeking office, republicanism is not a bad professional strategy. let's not overstate the point. the democratic party enjoys the robust support of african-american voters, because the policies supported by the national party are demon strabs leah better for african-americans. even that's up for debate. why? say it with me, because not all black people think alike. when we come back, i've got some of those rogue black folk, right here in nerdland. w,

'sen

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issues, all right? as long as he keeps being black -- >> that was comedian larry will more of the daily show entertaining the congressional correspondents dinner last year. obviously, he was joking. with me, president obama's blne is not an automatic requirement for office. and with me, we have a former speechwriter for republicans, and obama 2012 pollster -- >> i'm not in that group. >> i was going to say, one of these kids is doing his own thing. >> right. he's actually doing his own poll, we'll come to in a moment. amy this is your first time here in nerdland, i'm sort of interested. how do you politically identify at this moment, and sort of walk me through a little bit aboutu

politically identify that way? >> sure, i'm a registered independent that voted for bill clinton in 1992. didn't vote for a republican until 2008 when i voted for senator mccain. politically, i identify as a conservative, and came to independently. and a lot of it during the '90s and the big debate over welfare we form, the argument in support of welfare, against welfare reform, didn't make sense to me, i grew up in, you know, middle class family. my mom, a single mom. and we were sort of an up by the bootstrap sort of family, so the story about self-empowerment, and you can take opportunities, take the bull by the horns, that's what spoke to me, and i often say to my mom, did you ever think when you came back to the states with me and my little brother, would you have a daughter who went to princeton and a son who went to more house, and she said, no, i would never imagined it. here we are.

>> your biodoesn't read that different than our country president. a father from the continent. child of a mixed race family. >> yes. >> and all of that makes me, you know, sort of have this kind of political perspective and you're saying, yes and that background makes me feel like i have that political -- >> it just goes to show that biology is not political destiny. and the president and i have shockingly similar biographical backgrounds, my mother ended up moving back to zambia, can me and my brother. split when we were little. i didn't grow up with my father, didn't know him. she got remarried when i was six. this is how a family can put itself together in an independent way. my father is my adopted father and he's my dad and i love him. and i consider myself being from a tradition aal family. >> in my first book project, i really am concerned with -- i am

a very strong progressive, tough to get me not to support a democrat. occasional there will say republican i support because i thought that the democrat was so often and that's happened recently, but not at the presidential level. i don't like how we police authentic blackness. you can only be black if you believe in these ideas. is that something you have come up against? >> i can jump in? >> sure. >> the one thing i have to jump in, you know, when you -- blacks have been conservative for a while when you talk about african-americans in the south and you see conservatism becomes a proxy for relinl ossity. so ints it's not tied for a political spectrum for a lot of americans, particularly african-americans in the south. a large swath consider themselves conservative. or their conservatism takes them to a different place. a regular church-going african-american woman is one of

the strongest democratic voters there is, a regular church going white person, their religiosity takes them something very differently. >> this is not at add odds for being a debt carat. >> being out in public, so forth, i can't tell me how many black individuals come up and say i like what you see on television, i'm conservative too. >> psst. >> that's great. glad to meet you. why are we whispering? and the conversation switches to, well, my brother is a democrat, or my family is a democrat, and i'm chastised because if, in fact, i say i'm a black conservative something may be different. something is off, not part of the mainstream. i'm a conservative adamantly pro life, i believe that the individual of a person, very similar to what amy said a

few moments ago is the essence of someone and by pulling yourself up by your boot straps makes you a stronger and better person. that isn't to say -- let me clear about this that isn't to say welfare and certain social programs are not needed, because they are. but inherently, i can't tell you how much when the government comes knocking on the door, i'm inherently distrustful. >> and that distrust for african-americans has a lot of good history behind it. particularly at the local level. this is the fight i was having with how vice president ryan was introducing republicanism in the reading of the declaration of independence. rights are natural, you don't need government. i'm sorry, actually -- >> vice president ryan. >> uh-oh. i'm sorry. vice presidential candidate ryan. >> no, it's okay. >> oh, god, please help us. and just before we go. i know that you did do a poll

around exactly these issues, and i'm just sort of wondering, sort of what you see practice that. >> we did a poll of b.e.t. that will be released tomorrow. what are you talking about isn't something that's -- that's alien to african-americans. there are two party traits that are -- that are on equal opportunity, fighting for equal opportunity and sharing values that sort of axed no harm republicans, the trait acting on republicans the trait of hostility toward minorities. too many leaders, hostility, not open totality community. if you could get past hostility sort of that many african-americans feel toward the republicans are and that they are, in fact, on their side, equal opportunity there, could be bridges made to african-american community. look, we're about to see a candidate get a historical low of african-americans.

in diversity that is america, can you be president? >> we won't walk over the brick of birtherism. thank you, cornell. rest are sticking around. when we come back, i'll put one of our guests on the spot for his recent turn on "the newsroom." don't miss it. [ male announcer ] with a driving range of more than 550 miles you'll inevitably find yourself on a desolate highway in your jeep grand cherokee. and when you do, you'll be grateful for the adaptive cruise control that automatically adjusts your speed when approaching slower traffic. and for the blind-spot monitor... [ beeping ] ...that helps remind you that the highway

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[ sneezes ] [ male announcer ] you may be an allergy muddler. try zyrtec®. it gives you powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin® because zyrtec® starts working at hour 1 on the first day you take it. claritin® doesn't start working until hour 3. [ sneezes ] [ male announcer ] zyrtec®. love the air. join zyrtec® rewards. save up to $7 on zyrtec® products. the following is a clip from a recent episode of hbo's new drama "the news zone." a scene grew incredibly tense after the news anchor pressed his black gay republican guest on his support for rick son tar um went against who he was as a black gay man. the guest responds like this. >> i am more than one thing. how dare you reduce me to the

color of my skin or my sexual orientation. there are people who look just like me, thousands and thousands, who died for the freedom to define their own lives for themselves. how dare you presume to decide what i should think is important. yes, when it comes to equality for the gay community, senator santorum is wrong, but i'm far more insulted by your high-handed imi had kakplicatio need your protection. >> sir -- >> shutup! i'll let you know when i'm firned. >> the man who it would seem is the direct inspiration of the character, although he has never told me to shut up. former santorum communications director rick treanor is with us. all right. did all your friends call after the episode? >> oh, my goodness. unbelievab unbelievable. that character did a good job of expressing what i think and what i've said in the past and only thing, i would never say shutup

on television. >> right. >> and i have to stick up for robert for a second. that was based on a segment he did with our own chris matthews, not quite like that, but he was pressing with questions about your work with santorum. very respectful. but you were very respectful as well and i thought did a really fine job without having to say shutup. i am like explain it to me. you really represented well and did a good job of balancing. here is what he says a lot of things that you would think are not consistent, but my own values. >> and i think this is -- this is -- i am in disagreement sort of with where at least three out of four of you kilometer down on partisan identification. what i find troubling against any idea that are you not authentically american, not authentically black, not authentically thinking people. even as i critique the birtherism argument from the right that president obama is

somehow not truly american, doesn't really get the american story or something, i think it's a similar sort of kind of bizarre counterbirtherism that occurs when you say you just don't get blackness, just don't understand it. i don't agree with you. i don't come down where you come down on the issues. >> for me, as a christian person, it's important to love everybody. you know, to love everybody, have love in your heart, not be judgmental. the bible says judge not, you be not judged. i happen to be a republican. i work for a republican u.s. senator, and i -- i love people who agree with me i love people who don't agree with me, and i love having the chance to dialog and talk with people. i have love in my heart for the president of the united states. republicans should love and respect the president of the united states. they may disagree with him on issues, but they should love him and pray for him. >> i'm interested on the relimbous piece. i want to push this a little bit. for me, so often what we hear as

the conservatism, where there were republican inroads in 2004 prior to hurricane katrina failure on part of the bush administration, was around religiosity. i am always a little surprised. it presume there is only one way to read a fundamentalist narrative of the bible and great gift of african-americans has been to trouble those narratives. the slave master says slaves, obey your masters and enslaved people say i see that whole moses story with let my people go. why would we assume that one way a fundamentalist reading of the bible would mean a drift toward republicanism? >> i am not a social conservative. i'm pro choice, pro gay marriage. i'm coming from the west coast for my upbringing and seeing a lot more african-americans registering independent and folks who don't feel they are

represented really by either party and want politics that is sort of less combative. when we were having this conversation, i'm feeling as a black conservative, and this came out in the 2008 election, that it's a lot easier, in the '90s, these conversations were far more fraught, far nor fraushs, and really ugly actually. but there seems to be a liber e liberating thing that happened in 200. it's okay, we got obama. we don't need you anymore, black democrats said. we can have this conversation. >> feel free to do whatever it is you are doing over there. >> by the way, i'm conservative too. meeting, 6:00. >> and we need to have a common conversation with african-americans, and say we know what? we speak the same language that you speak when it comes to

religiosity. we speak it the same way we do. it's very comfortable to us. as a republican, and and respect to same-sex marriage, with faith-based religion, joe can speak to about it. the question becomes quite frankly and this is a larger philosophical conversation, can we have a conversation where we respectfully disagree and have a conversation, and quite frankly, you say tomato, i say tomato, and we see things fundamentally different. >> can we have a conversation and work together? that's the real challenge. our country is so divided, so fractured that people see it as -- you are either for me or against me, either on my side or on the other side. and my whole point, why can't we work together? >> part of the problem, robert, to your point, we all hear things differently and one of my biggest frustrations, and that's this dog whistle politics that is reintroduced. when mitt romney makes this joke about his birth certificate, he

may think it's funny, but he doesn't understand that there is a large building section of population, not just african-americans, who are offended by that that's a problem. what it is to be a black person in this country, that definition is shifting and changing, but our country is shifting and changing, and we have to have more respect for the impact language has, and when you tell me you think me using my medicaid to gaetane abortion if i have been raped is some sort of loophole, what do you think of me as a human being? >> and this conversation -- >> we're all in chains. >> but that's kind of -- >> charlie rangel said you bet your ass he was saying that. >> one of the things that i have pushed a lot on, we ought not be fork y focused on the utterances of the left or the right as policies. for me, does vice president biden pretty regularly absolutely put his foot in places i'm -- >> yeah, right.

sure, absolutely. >> in racial territory. >> and absolutely in racial territory and besides that, i'm still not completely over the anita hill hearings. i've got my issues. that said, vice president biden's position on the violence against women act, his position in this administration. the actual policies tell me something very different than where a vice president would be. >> when we're talking about welfare reform and putting the work back in welfare reform, some of the language around that is very much geared toward dog whistle politics without recognizing a huge and growing population hears it a very different way. >> that's never appropriate. the point is, what it means to be black republican and to your point -- >> i get recognized everywhere i go. >> i want to stop the conversation on just -- i'm going to stop the conversation on just that. that's exactly what we will talk about next which is the question of wloo part of the issue there

is professional value to be sort of one of the view. we'll talk about, you guessed it, congressman davis, one of senator barack obama's biggest supporters, but is now speaking at the rnc against president obama. more on that when we come back. the capital one cash rewards card gives you a 50% annual bonus. and everyone, but her... likes 50% more cash. but, i have an idea. do you want a princess dress? yes how about some cupcakes? yes lollipop? yes! do you want an etch a sketch? yes! do you want 50% more cash? no you got talent. [ male announcer ] the capital one cash rewards card. with a 50% annual cash bonus it's the card for people who like more cash. what's in your wallet? i usually say that.

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are. >> that was now former alabama congressman arthur davis' speech seconding the nomination of barack obama for president of the united states at the 2008 democratic national convention. same arthur davis who will this week be speaking at the republican convention. did he make the switch because he has truly adopted a new republican world view, or is the path to political relevance us simply shorter for him as a republican? here again to help examine that question are three conservatives and one liberal. robert traynhum, and karen finney. it is perceived as such among at least my twitter feed and many others that the issue isn't really authentic republicanism, it's that line -- you know, look, the democratic party would have to take some of the blame here, it blocks out new leadership and if you really want to kind of get in there, get a chance to run, get a

speaking gig, you go to the republican party. >> what's interesting, when howard dean was chair of the party, a number of members of the cbc raised that issue, it's very attractive to think about running as a republican, in terms of career opportunity, we have more opportunity to do what it is we want to, otherwise, we are told we have to wait in line. >> president obama is president because he couldn't be a congressman. the reason he runs for the u.s. senate and then president of the united states is because he could not get through bobby rush's district. >> but he's also -- i probably shouldn't say that because jack ryan took his wife to strip clubs. >> i don't understand -- why is that -- can we pause on jack ryan for a moment? >> sure. i love sex talk. let's go. >> he didn't take his intern. he took his wife. she didn't like him, she divorced him. why is that a scandal? >> i certainly wouldn't be

discussing other people's marriage. >> it's not a scandal, it's seedy. we don't like talking about seedy things as it relates to politici politicians. >> part of this idea that part of the reason he can't survive it, he is supposed to be the good -- >> back to the original point. two sides of this bagel. the upside could be what you just said in terms of the -- about the opportunities, right? purely from an opportunitistic standpoint, the other side, could he have a change of heart? >> zell miller went to the republican convention. >> there are scores of democrats that turned republican, but a score of vice versa. >> but -- truly there has been a score historically of democrats that turned republican. most did so because they were southern segregationists. >> that's true. >> it's a little odd to watch the black southerner become

republican when historically, democrats who came republicans from places like alabama. >> i would presume is he going on to the republican party because he believes in the philosophical believes of the republican party. here's why. for him to lead the democratic party and go to the republican party and go to the republican convention and mep nominate mitt romney, you want to make the argument it's political suicide. >> you don't have a speaking gig at the dnc. he just wouldn't. >> and a political calculation, his opportunities, on the democratic side were limited, so, hey -- >> liberals, moderates, conservatives in both parties. you can probably find your space on the other side of the aisle. as a moderate, a liberal, or a conservative. >> let's consider a lot of african-american voters apparently staying home this november. >> i don't think some of. >> enthusiasm is not as high.

>> i got to tell you, i actually think republicans are doing a good job in re-invigorating black democratic voters through voter suppression efforts. >> if you were disappointed in the performance of this president? is that fair to put that tag on mr. davis? i don't think it is. zell miller was a democratic, and then he went and spoke at the republican convention, he didn't like the approach to terrorism. nobody challenges is this authentic, sincere. zell miller is a personality. speaks for himself. >> davis, part of the aftermath when he ran for governor, a political narrative that raises this question far more complicated than that, and if cornell were here, he would tell you, some of the early polling showed that the more the gop

does the birther talk and all that the more african-americans become galvanized around the president. >> all got to get your people. if you would all get your people and have this -- part of what i -- >> republicans in general. i actually think that there are reasons, strategic regions for african-americans to be more of a swing vote, more like latinos are, but in order for that to happen, the kind of discourse and policies that we're seeing are going to have to shift. >> i think it's -- it's just not going to happen when you have the first elected african-american president, black people, the lion's share of black people are proud. they say this has never happened before. we didn't and this to happen. we have got a smart african-american president. >> i'll give you all four years. get your people by 2015. more in just a moment. but, first, time for a preview with "weekends with alex witt." >> a stop to that discussion. tropical storm isaac growing as

it approaches the gulf. live reports on the latest path of the storm and how severe it might get. plus, how the storm is affecting plans for the republican national convention. will it steal the headlines from mitt romney for much of the week? the economy, women's vote, medicare and mitt vote, and mitt romney's critical convention speech. we're going to discuss all that with debbie wasserman schultz and kay bailey hutchison. back to you. >> i appreciate it. this isaac thing has be me worked up. so i'll be watching. and thank you, my footnote is ahead. i'm going to talk about why none of us deserve to be in a big box. ♪ [ male announcer ] you've reached the age where you don't back down from a challenge. this is the age of knowing how to make things happen. so, why let erectile dysfunction get in your way? talk to your doctor about viagra. 20 million men already have. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain;

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first published in 1980 as a contribution to ms. magazine, the big box is a story written by tony morrison and her then 16-year-old son slade. unlike most children's books,

the big box does not seek to impart a moralizing lesson about how to fit into the adult world. it addresses freedom and the consequences freedom brings. there are three kids, and each of them runs afoul of adult authority figures. each is places in a big box, and the box is full of comfortable and material possessions that are supposed to make kids happy. like swings and slides and a canopy bed. but the box has a door with three big locks. and the windows have shutters to keep out the day. when patty first learns that she will be put in the box, she says, i know you are smart and i know that you think you are doing what is best for me. but if freedom is handled just your way, then it's not my freedom or free. freedom is going to be an oft repeated phrase at this week's rnc convention in tampa. but don't be fooled by the ease of the word. the project of freedom in a diverse democratic society is complicated. and it requires tolerance of

those with whom we have fundamental gut level disagreements. a disagreement like the one i have with boyett jr. high school seventh graders in slidell, louisiana. it's just outside of new orleans. and several of them drew inflammatory pictures of president obama, including two that hinted at violence. their teacher, robert duncan, lost his job after displaying the students' pictures in the school hallway. i understand why parents were troubled and community members angered by the images, but firing the teacher and shoving the seventh graders into a big box isn't fair or prudent. if freedom is handled just your way, then it's not my freedom or free. now, the gop needs to get real comfortable with the realities of freedom. the "new york times" describes their platform as extreme and mean spirited, writing, the draft document is more aggressive in opposition to women's reproductive rights and

to gay rights than any in memory. like the children in the big box, american voters are supposed to be pacified with the promise of material gains and while the republican plan for economic growth is debatable, their intentions toward those of us who use their moral reasoning to reach conclusions that diverge from theirs is clear, we should be secured in a big box because we just can't handle our freedom, to which i respond, i know you're smart and i know you think you're doing what is best for me, but if freedom is handled just your way, then it's not my freedom or free. and that is our show for today. thank you to some free thinkers for sticking around. thanks to you at home for watching. i'll see you again next saturday and sunday at 10:00 a.m. eastern. next week, we're going to explore the coming health care crisis in america and why getting a doctor's appointment in the first place may be a big problem. coming up, "weekends with alex witt."

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