territory after the remarks of nontaxpayers and those receiving government assistance. the governor two stops planned this evening in the battleground state of florida which by the way ranks fourth of nonincome taxpayers and where more than 18% of the residents receive medicare benefits. governor romney currently trails the president by four points in the sunshine state and campaign says it's not worried about those 47% comments backfiring election day. but behind closed doors, politico reports that republicans are in a panic writing, quote, did gop nominee's consistently unsteady explanation of what he meant has prompted a chorus of fed-up republicans the speak out about a campaign they see as badly in need of a jolt. nbc news romney embed reporter joins us live. this is governor romney's first public appearance since friday. he's had fund-raisers and open forum for people to ask him

direct questions. >> reporter: that's right, tamron. he will be speaking later this afternoon in miami but if the events happened moments ago here at the fund-raiser in atlanta are any indication he will not be backing off those comments one inch. the campaign made the gamble to co-op some of the comments of the fund raising video and turn it in to an argument about the role of government in society. at this fund-raiser he said this is about president's view of redistributing american wealth, his view is to allow for a more free society. that we don't want people dependn't on government and trying to change the tone ever so slightly of those remarks and make they will fall in line more with the traditional campaign stump speech. >> so, he's sticking to the message and trying to massage the language, obviously, that would mean taking out words like victims and that he doesn't want to do anything about those people or basically giving the impression of not trying to lure the people to his side.

>> reporter: that's right, tamron. in fact, again, in the fund-raiser that just concluded moments ago you saw that change in language. gone is word victim. i wouldn't expect to hear that again any time soon on the campaign trail. he said the president and i both care very much about the middle class and people that need help. the difference is he feels he has a plan to further address this. the president doesn't. they're trying to soften the tone and keep the basic principle here which fires up conservatives that this is an issue of getting people off government dependency and government out of people's lives. it's a semantic issue and could turn delicately in their favor. >> hey, thank you very much. are things going from bad to worse for governor romney? a flurry of new polls shows president obama gaining ground. our new nbc news/wall street journal" poll has the president at the key number, 50%. that's a five-point edge over governor romney and not only nationally. a brand new quinnipiac poll

shows the president widening the lead in the key swing states of colorado, virginia and in vice presidential nominee's home state, paul ryan, wisconsin. the president now at 51%. but again, as politico points out, the game is not over yet and they're not the only ones pointing to that obvious note out. let's bring in the news nation political panel for this lovely wednesday. erin mcpike and democratic strategist keith boykin and steve dais. you are no fan of mitt romney. you said he should not be the nominee and dpaugt him hard campaigning in iowa this time and four years ago. is this the man you expected, the guy that said these peoples are victims and appear to not show very much concern for that 47% that he referred to? >> well, i want to take you back to some things i said in the primary, tamron. if you might recall, i told your audience to look at the

contested proo e mares and what you found in states that didn't have high mormon populations that were contested of san or the um or gingrich, he lost middle class voters in states like michigan, ohio, for example. and this campaign really comes down to right now it comes down to what are voters thinking when they go in to the polling booth on november 6th? are they thinking they're not better off than four years ago or mitt romney's the very kind of republican that we don't trust, that we don't like and even a lot of republican base would rather not trust or like? that's what it's battle about right now and the president obama is having the narrative he wants which is, hey, mitt romney is not who you want. he's the very kind of republican from wall street you have rejected in the past and because it's a narrative he wants and romney is somewhat walking in to that you are seeing barack obama sustain some momentum in the polls. >> okay. but that doesn't answer the question. is this the person you feared would be the nominee when you look at tease remarks?

>> yes. >> this is the person you feared would -- >> yes. i think what -- sure, sure. i mean, this is why i pointed out the numbers of middle class voters. the reality is that this is a conversation that we need to have as a country, which is, we can't sustain this. just regardless of your philosophy. there's a survival instinct. we can't sustain this level of debt, period. that's a conversation we need to have. but when you're the candidate that's the essentially architect of obama care and backed t.a.r.p. and too big to fail it is real hard. some of your very supporters crony capitalists to take care of the system bankrupting us now and hard to be seen as the reformer to do something about this and that's why this plays right in to president obama and the re-election campaign's hands. >> erin, you heard garret hague and we know in the interview yesterday staying true to the word. he is trying to modify some of

the more incendiary language, particularly referring to people as victims and imply that these people don't want better. they want to just live the rest of their lives getting a check from the government. is that enough to quell the firestorm that's coming also from people in his party and to use frank terms, they think he's blown it? >> well, we are seeing that a number of senators and senate candidates and governor of new mexico all republicans are really not agreeing with mitt romney on this. they're saying that he's wrong. we haven't seen a unified response yet from the republican party and i think that's mitt romney's biggest problem. this is reverberating down the ballot and seeing republican candidates fall away from him. that's the big problem for the republicans over the next six weeks. >> it is mott what he has said? obviously, in any case, you can look at, for example, democrats and the president said certain things and not all agreed with him particularly for health care battle. you won't always have your party

100% behind you. but when you say something to the notion that we heard from mitt romney, i mean, that goes beyond the pale of disagreeing. >> you're right because it's -- about the philosophy and how they view a big chunk of the electorate, almost half. and when they are disagreeing with a world view of his, that's a big problem for republican unity over the next six weeks. that's the problem. >> president obama said last night, he was asked to respond to romney's remarks. here's what he said. >> when i meet republicans, as i'm traveling around the country, you know, they're hard working, family people. who care deeply about this country and my expectation is that if you want to be president you got to work for everybody. not just for some. >> so obviously, that line would get applause from, i would imagine, any audience in this country, but nonetheless, the

president is up in the polls. and pretty much every category here. i mean, that would be the logical answer there. what else are you going to say? see the guy falling and sigh what's honest and true in your opinion. >> when barack obama elected on election light night he said he represent even the people that did not vote for him. >> he says it's not a mistake. that the language, paul ryan says the same thing. it is inarticulate and not backing away from the core of what he said during that fund-raiser. >> well, they should be because, you know, here's a guy who hasn't -- may not have paid taxes himself and may be part of the 47% for all we know telling everybody else they're freeloaders. that guy that doesn't -- who gets money basically for not working and perhaps isn't paying taxes. that's what people complain about. the larger problem though for mitt romney is republican

philosophy ronald reagan on down is using government to help people. even the poor. the whole concept of trickle down economics is helping the poor. mitt romney is backing away from republican policies. they don't even believe this. the republican party's always stated that their policies help the poor and the middle class but mitt romney's saying he doesn't care about them. that's what's so devastating about it and republicans themselves are upset about what he's saying. >> steve, i did not ask you specifically, are you upset about what mitt romney said? as a conservative, as a republican. >> presigned. resigned. i mean, this has been a disastrous campaign. everything pegny noonan wrote in "the wall street journal" yesterday is 100% accurate. i would add to it. as conservatives, whether it's what we saw with the rules committee, at the convention, for example, what we saw with todd aiken, we have seen this campaign and the people around it go harder after us than gone after democrats or barack obama. this thing has been, this thing

has been, really, an unmitigated cluster almost from the time that he became the obvious nominee and i have to tell you. you know, going toe to toe with the republican establishment five years in these primary cycles i'm not surprised by any of this. it's people that don't have a great vision for the country. >> yeah. but you say the republican establishment, a lot of what mitt romney, a lot of his actions according to all of the pundits out there, it seems he is trying to play to the right of the party and include you. i mean, eric eriksson of red state and other conservatives applauded these remarks from governor romney and it's interesting that you're a conservative and you're not applauding what he said. >> well, i think it's a conversation. i know why they're applauding it. they would like to use it to drag mitt romney to the right and stand for an issue and might cause a major conversation with the country. i don't think this is the right way to go about it. and using this kind of language, there's just certain terms and phrases you can use.

trust me. i'm a talk show host. i'm a bit of an expert on this. there's certain phrases and things to say and once you use them it turns off the conversation. you cannot have a constructive conversation with people at that point and he's used some of that terminology, unfortunately. >> steve, don't you think the problem of mitt romney is he doesn't have a core. nobody knows what he believes. the republicans aren't convinced he's a conservative. democrats don't know whether he's a moderate or a conservative. everybody warned people about this. jon huntsman said he was a perfectly lubricated weather vain and rick sanatorium said he was -- and now the fruit. >> steve referred to peggy noonan, romney should look straight in to the heart of darkness where lies a republican defeat and almost couldn't lose. it was her assessment and she went down to roll off a number of issues and central problems

with romney at this point. but erin, let's bring you back in. senator graham, interesting comments from him regarding romney. he needs to be talking about the economy and not in utah. he's not going to be beat because of money. he ought to be running in ohio and florida like he's running for governor and in virginia like running for sheriff. every time we would bring up an issue an we'd have a romney surrogate on, say he made an off the cuff comment, this is about the economy. we want to talk about the economy. and at every turn it seems they don't want to discuss the economy. even noted by senator lindsey graham, a republican. >> look. mitt romney does want to be talking about the economy but he keeps getting taken off message. what i think is a big problem and hearing from the republicans is they are not seeing mitt romney out on the trail enough. he was just in atlanta having another fund-raiser. he's been off at many, many fund-raisers and we haven't seen him hold a lot of campaign events in some of the swing

states. he had an event in ohio on friday. that's my home state. a huge swing state. 18 electoral votes. >> down heavily in ohio. >> you are right. it's a state that's been surprising to me he has not parked himself in and campaigned harder in. in fact, i wrote a story today about how michele obama is holding more public events over the past couple of weeks than mitt romney. >> but the key -- the word i think you used is didn't park himself in ohio. you park a car. when's tied to there? the auto industry in ohio and he's stands with the auto industry and the other parts of the economy helped by that bailout. he's not found a way to defend his actions during that auto bailout and perhaps why he's not parking as you said in ohio. steve, what if anything can governor romney do to get conservatives like yourself enthusiastic and might be offended by the comments and even the middle class, you know, white voters out there who the

republican party need right now? is there anything in the next 49 days to get the guy off the ropes? >> there's one thing he can do and i think he has to do it in the first debate. where he has to be credible and sincere as a leader and got to take the attacks against him for being rich and elitist and successful and turn it to advantage by saying, yes, i'm successful and here's how i became successful by not doing things this president has done the last four years to make you not better off than you were four years ago and offer a short, concise, clear transparent plan with benchmarks that the american people can look at and say, hey, that's something to something if he gets in the white house. in other words, he's got to do what he's unwilling to do for this campaign thus far. >> all right. steve deace, thank you. erin, thank you very much. keith is laughing at the advice. i think he won't take it. thank you. breaking news in the trayvon martin case. brand new information. listen to this. regarding the dna found on the

gun used to shoot and kill trayvon martin. we'll have that latest information. plus, democratic congressman van hollen will join the news nation to talk about governor romney's double triple down on the 47% comments and reaction to the brand new poll numbers. what he thinks they say at this point. space shuttle "endeavour" takes off on a cross-country flight in to retirement. join our conversation. you can find us. rogaine? well, i'll admit it. i was skeptical at first. but after awhile even my girlfriend noticed a difference. [ male announcer ] rogaine is proven to help stop hair loss. and for 85% of guys, it regrew hair. save up to 42% now at rogaine.com.

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following breaking news in the trayvon martin case. there's new dna evidence in the case and dna test released.

hundreds of pages of police documents released by the prosecution and interviews and witness sketches of the crime scene. nbc's mark potter joins me live from miami. this forensic test released today specifically on the dna found on the gun itself, mark. >> reporter: that's exactly right, tamron. but this evidence released by the prosecution does not seem to contain anything that anyone right now is calling a bombshell but it is interesting and as you said it does involve dna evidence found on the gun carried by george zimmerman, a gun he said that trayvon martin was reaching for before george zimmerman shot him and what he describes as self defense. according to reports released today, investigators on the grip of that gun, on the handle, found dna evidence clearly from george zimmerman and they say that they were absolutely able to rule out any dna from trayvon martin. so clearly he did not touch the handle of that gun. on the holster, there was dna found of three individuals,

predominantly george zimmerman. the other two could not be determined on the trigger and the slide of the handgun there was insufficient evidence to determine any sort of dna profile. this is the stuff that either side can use to help their case or they can use the evidence a way that helps them. the prosecution might say that it shows that trayvon martin never touched that gun. the defense, however, would argue that that's not what zimmerman said. he said he was reaching for the gun so as i said at the outset it is interesting information and not likely to shake the case. tamron? >> mark potter live for us, thank you for latest on the new information. a federal judge in arizona has ruled that police can immediately begin enforcing the most controversial part of that state's immigration law. the so-called show me your papers provision allows officers now to ask for proof of status of those they suspect of being in this country illegally. the supreme court ruled this

summer that the provision does not conflict with federal law. coming up, a new move of congressman jesse jackson jr. raised questions about his future in congress. it is just one of the things we thought you should know. plus, have you heard this story? this is flooding around today. the question anyway. was jesus married? it's being called a blockbuster discovery. we ole tell you what this piece of paper you are looking at, what it means and what indication that someone, jesus, was married. [ male announcer ] it's simple physics...

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scheduled to take off again at dawn tomorrow and stopping at el paso and then heading to edwards air force base. finally, friday morning in denver will be part of the -- depart from lax where it will be housed at a hangar until december 12th and then beginning a trek through the streets of l.a. to its new home at the california science center. there's controversy over the journey. there were protests because nearly 400 trees in englewood and south l.a. cut down to make room for "endeavour" rolling through the streets. next, who are the undecided? >> essentially, the one thing you really leave out here is they suck lemons. i mean, they're the sourest people i have -- >> really negative? >> beyond. really negative. >> some blunt talk of nbc's pollsters getting the assessment of the voters who claim that they're still up for grabs. we'll check in with nbc's senior

political editor mark murray for the look at the new polls and pollsters. plus, after a week of protests in dozens of countryie there's a fear of a new wave of anti-islamic cartoon published in france. and be sure to check out the "news nation" tumblr page. i i had pain in my abdomen...g. it just wouldn't go away. i was spotting, but i had already gone through menopause. these symptoms may be nothing... but they could be early warning signs of a gynecologic cancer, such as cervical, ovarian, or uterine cancer. feeling bloated for no reason. that's what i remember. seeing my doctor probably saved my life. warning signs are not the same for everyone. if you think something's wrong... see your doctor. ask about gynecologic cancer. and get the inside knowledge.

until i got a job in the big apple. becoming a fulltime indoor cat wasn't easy for atti. but he had purina cat chow indoor. he absolutely loved it. and i knew he was getting everything he needed to stay healthy indoors. and after a couple of weeks, i knew we were finally home! [ female announcer ] purina cat chow indoor. and for a delicious way to help maintain a healthy weight, try new purina cat chow healthy weight. welcome back. news in concerning the fast and furious investigation dogged attorney general holder. the justice department's inspector general says there's no evidence that the attorney general knew about the gun tracking program before congress started pressing him for information last year. and the long-awaited report did fault the agency for misguided strategies and errors in

judgment after hundreds of guns turned up at crime scenes, including where special agent terry was murdered. the attorney general was also held in contempt after congress accused him of withholding information. the attorney general released a statement just moments ago saying the report is consistent with what he said for many months now. also developing news we're watching. just hours away from mitt romney's first official campaign stump since the release of the video that happened behind the scenes in may. romney is in florida today for what's called a meet the candidate's event with univision and facebook. tonight, stopping by a rally with members of the latino community in miami. this is all, of course, surrounding new poll numbers showinging president obama rebounding with the economy and as well as the direction of the country. and joining me to talk about all of this, democratic congressman chris van hollen of maryland. thank you for your time. >> great to be with you. >> let me talk to you about this.

the nbc news able to authenticate the video of 1998 that the romney campaign circulating. it shows then state senator obama speaking at a conference. the romney campaign, it says trying to pivot or get the heat off of him by releasing the video and i want to play it and get your reaction to what's happening now. let's play it please. >> sure. >> the trick is figuring out how do we structure government systems that pool resources and hence facilitate some redistribution because i actually believe in redistribution at least at a certain level to make sure that everybody's got a shot. >> so the campaign spokesperson is saying that the romney campaign so desperate to change the subject that they've gone back to the failed playbook co-authored of sarah palin and joe the plumber, 14 years ago that the senator obama was making an argument for more efficient, more effective

government. what's your thought on the romney team trying to release the 14-year video of the president? >> well, tamron, i think it is a sign of desperation. this is a nonstory. the president has made very clear two things. that he wants to grow the economy. but part of that requires us to make important investments in the kids' education, infrastructure, roads and bridges and we have a system of taxes and we have in this country a progressive system of taxation, although some of the steps took in the bush administration that reduced the amount of that people like mitt romney had to pay has meant that we have a higher deficit and less to invest in some of these important efforts to grow the economy so this is a total nonstory. the reality is that the president has a plan to continue to move the country forward, to build on the progress we've made, recognizing we have a long way to go and he wants to grow

the economy. but he also recognizes that to do that you have to make important investments in areas like education. >> let's talk about this new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll. job approval number there at 50%. seen improvement asked dealing with the economy and some economic questions seen governor romney fare pretty decentury but now the president making headway seen in romney's strong point. congressman, when you look at high interest voters, romney up a bit over the president, 49-46 and breaking it down by republicans and democrats and described as high interest 80% are republican. 71% are democrats. so despite the fact that the president seemed to be scoring well with voters, there is some concern about enthusiasm, at least when you look at these numbers and who will show up in november. >> well, look. this is going to be a very tight race. i mean, the president has known that from the beginning.

his campaign has known that. no one's taking anything for granted but as people begin to focus on the critical choice before us, i think people are confident that when people hear the two paths forward they'll choose to support the president and not go back to the failed policies of the past. and the latest tape by mitt romney will just reinforce the view that's totally out of touch. even for somebody's that out of touch and has that elitist an attitude that tape was breath taking because what it was saying was to people who have been paying in to medicare and social security but no longer pay in income taxes they're freeloading on the system and hard working americans struggling to make ends meet what they're something freeloading on the system so i think the latest comments will just reinforce the view of the american people that mitt romney's out of touch when it

comes to their basic every day concerns. >> congressman van hollen, thank you so much for coming on, reacting to the video we have been able to authenticate and your reaction on it. thank you, sir. >> thank you. with the president's lead just outside of the margin of error, are there any voters still truly people that could be won over? nbc pollsters identified 12% of voters saying they're up for grabs. who are the 12%? joining me now mark murray to talk about percentage, the 12%, the 47%. it's incredible here but these undecideds, i was so struck by the nbc pollster and how this morning he described these people, their sentiment, how they view america. how they see where we're going in this country. >> well, and they're just frustrated by everything, tamron. they're very pessimistic on the nation's direction. they don't like the job of president obama and don't like mitt romney either. as you mentioned nbc co-pollster

peter hart, democratic pollster, said that these people when you kind of look at them seem to be folks who probably won't vote. now, that's not to say that they could still end up voting but they're so down on almost everything right now that it is got a little bit of a caution on will this 12% even show up? >> it's funny. you put it in a nicer form than he did. let me play exactly what peter hart and described the people. >> they suck lemons. i mean, they are the sourest people i have ever -- >> really negative? >> oh my god, beyond really negative. i mean, and neither is their favorite answer. essentially a lot of these people aren't going to vote and talking about up for grabs people but in reality many of whom are not going to vote. >> so if that's true, why are we discussing the people? i love he said they suck lemons. every vote does count but the information says that they're not going to vote, they really don't want a voice at the table. >> tamron, we are looking at the

segment because right now mitt romney trailing president obama in our poll and a lot of other polls and there are some that actually showed a little bit more of a competitive contest. given that mitt romney's trailing, you are trying to find out how could he come back? so these up for grab voters probably give him the best opportunity to come back. he has to actually get them out at the polls, get them to like them better. but as peter hart also said, the most fascinating thing, the poll of voters is smaller and smaller. creating urgency for mitt romney. >> do we know the background? are most of peez undecided men? are they from a certain region? >> we do know they're demographic makeup. they are white, disproportionately. they -- but most importantly, it's how they look at the country and as peter hart put it, not too happy about the state of affairs right now. they're not happy with anyone and sometimes not happy with anyone you stay home on election day. >> wow. interesting insight. i appreciate you coming on.

thanks, mark. >> thanks. there's new outrage in the muslim world after a french magazine published cartoons ridiculing the prophet muhammad. this is in paris and french embassies. and schools in a number of countries. french leaders condemn the cartoon but the government decided the right of the magazine to publish them and more angry protests over the anti-islamic video made in the u.s. and pakistan's capital protesters forced the way in to an area that houses the u.s. embassy before security forces turned them back. in jalalabad, eastern afghanistan, blocking a main road to the capital of kabul. controversy raging i guess you can say in the christian world but people are talking about it. nonetheless, it is the result of a new evidence from an ancient text, that's what it's being called suggesting that jesus may have been married. with the details of nbc's ann thompson. >> reporter: on this scrap of

papyrus, the forerunner, to paper, the explosive words. >> jesus said to them, my wife. >> reporter: the discovery made by the dr. karen king. >> here you can see what looks to be in english like a "i" and a "c" with just a little bit of a line over them. this is a shortened form of the name jesus. jesus. >> reporter: king is a historian specializing in early christianity. the owner, a private anonymous collector that brought it to king last year for translation. >> when i first saw this fragment, it was actually through a photograph. and i couldn't believe it. once we finally came to the decision that it said, jesus said to them, my wife, it was really an astonishing moment. >> reporter: king turned to new york university's roger mcnall to authenticate. >> she knew it was potentially a

blockbuster and that was why the stakes were high in figuring out when it might come from, where it might come from, was it real? >> reporter: the fragment, one and a half inches by three written in the coptic language with eight broken lines and controversy. >> any reference to jesus having a wife would have been seen as deeply offensive by most christians. >> reporter: the discovery is featured in an hour-long special on the smith tone yann channel september 30th. dr. king insists the words written in the 4th century long after jesus died do not prove jesus was married. >> it is not evidence for us historically that jesus had a wife. it's quite clear evidence, in fact, that some christians probably in the second half of the second century, that's between about 150 and 200 a.d. thought that jesus had a wife. >> that was nbc's ann thompson reporting. the life of jesus is often a matter of controversy. this is the not the first time put out that he was married.

most recently "davinci code" depicted jesus married to mary magdalene and attracted criticism of the vatican. i feel like i just took you to church. my interview with denzel washington about the passion to help at-risk kids that remind him of himself. here's things we just thought you should know. illinois congressman jackson jr. has put the d.c. home on the market. the move raises more questions about the nine-term democrat's political future. in june, congressman jackson took a leave to seek treatment for bipolar disorder. an early money issue for mitt romney. the national review said before he became the gop's official presidential nominee there was a period of time when romney had no access to election funds and only spend primary cash. he borrowed $20 million.

some of the things we thought you should know. president obama: i'm barack obama and i approve... this message. anncr: he keeps saying it... mitt romney: this president cannot tell us that you're... better off today than when he took office. anncr: well... here's where we were in 2008... tv anncr: the worst financial collapse...

since the great depression... tv anncr: american workers were laid off in numbers not seen... in over three decades. anncr: and here's where we are today... thirty months of private sector job growth. creating 4.6 million new jobs. we're not there yet. but the real question is: whose plan is better for you? the president's plan asks millionaires... to pay a little more... to help invest in a strong middle class. clean energy. and cut the deficit. mitt romney's plan? a new 250,000 dollar tax break for... multi-millionaires. roll back regulations on the banks that cratered the economy. and raise taxes on the middle class. president clinton: they want to go back to the same old... policies that got us in trouble in the first place. president obama: we're not going back, we are moving forward. anncr: forward.

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whooo! [ sigh of relief ] [ male announcer ] choose taste. choose prego. commonly thought of as a safer smoke compared to cigarettes a study shows that hookah is just as dangerous affecting lung function nearly as much as cigarettes and contributes to wheezing, coughing and chest tightness more than in nonsmokers. welcome back. chicago's students back in school today. that tops the look at stories around the news nation. after seven day of protests delegates voted to end the strike. the 30,000 teachers must still approve a contract which rahm

emanuel called an honest compromise. american airlines sent out layoff warning notices to more than 11,000 people. but a company spokesperson said that job losses will be closer to 4,400 people. and new details emerging in this incident that led to lindsay lohan arrested this morning in manhattan. lohan allegedly man in to a ran driving the suv in to a parking garage. sources say it's unclear if the man was grazed or hit at all. officials say there's no indication that lindsay lohan had been drinking. they're waiting for alleged victim's hospital records to know the extent of the injuries. well, the network of nbc is in the next few days launching the 2012 education nation summit tackling what is working and perhaps what needs improving in our schools. but ahead of the summit the boys and girls club of america issued a stirring reminder. three out of ten children won't

graduate from high school on time. the legendary organization put a platform of ways to break the cycle which include providing safe and healthy environment away from school for students who need it. earlier today i spoke with actor denzel washington, the club's spokesperson for 20 years and tray dudley, the organization just named her youth of the year. thank you both for joining us. >> no problem. thank you. >> so tray, since you are the superstar, you got the award today, we'll push denzel to the side. congratulations. i know this has to mean so much to you, to your family. you've now attended the university of arkansas, majoring in business, but how did the boys & girls club make a difference in your life? >> it definitely gave me a pathway to get to where i am today. going through stuff at home and seeing the different struggles that every day people go through in life, boys & girls opened a way for me to i guess kind of see the positive in those situations and to really help me express myself and for them to

understand where i was coming from was a huge deal to me, so that's definitely why i'm here where i am. >> it's interesting you say they understood where you were coming from. you are from lawrence, kansas. so many kids these days feel like their voices are not understood or that people just don't recognize what they're going through every day. they assume you're a kid and what's your big problem in life other than going to school, it's more complex than that, especially for young girls. >> yes, definitely. >> so tell me a little bit of what it was like growing up in your area and neighborhood and why the club made such a difference. >> well, growing up i witnessed a lot of abuse at home and then eventually when my mom kind of found her voice she kicked my dad out and so being able to -- being able to -- having, i guess, having to step up and be that kind of father figure for my younger siblings is what my life amounted to when i was in elementary school. and so, i think that, you know, even just being a part of this

experience and sharing that story with some of the kids of my club has showed kids at my club that are going through the same thing there's a light at the end of the tunnel. >> we know that, denzel, parents make a difference but it's a larger community and you are certainly experiencing that as a young boy. i think you were 6 years old, as well, when you discovered the club. >> that's right. that's right. you know, one of the most dangerous times for young people, time of the day, is between 3:00 and 6:00 in the evening. you know? because most parent, single parent homes or both parents being there, they have to be at work so what's that child going to do? you know, so many negative influences on the street and positive ones, too, but so many negative influences. the boys & girls club gives this child a place to go that's safe and be inspired and share their experiences with children their age. >> that's what happened to you. i heard an interview you did before not everyone made it out of your neighbor.

you knew people personally who either ended up in jail or far worse. >> right. well, i mean, you know, a lot of people have that story. and much, much worse than me. and but that's a fact. i mean, i lost two or three of my closest friends to the streets. i lost, you know, scores of others to the streets. and by the grace of god that didn't happen to me but the boys & girls club was also a place where i learned and i learned it at home, too, but i learned right from wrong. >> yeah. >> even when i might have been in the situation where i was going to go the wrong way, i knew better. >> right. and you know, it's so good to have tray there with you. when you first met her, i was eavesdropping on the conversation and you were giving her life advice. when you look at tray, when you look at other young men, young women coming through the organization and getting their lives together, does that just make you feel fantastic inside? >> makes me want to work harder. >> yeah. >> i've been a spokesperson for

20 years and hopefully if i'm around i'll do 20 more. >> you will be. >> really, it's food for me and for a lot of us that are involved in the club to hear these young people stories, see the success stories and to know that there are many more young people that need our help. >> thank you both very much. an honor to hang out with two superstars and that includes you, tray. you get the top billing again. thank you. >> you'll hear from my agent. >> thanks, denzel. boois. up next, the top gut check of the day. are mitt romney's comments regarding 47% a so-called game changer? his campaign seems to think it will die down and yesterday, the pro ballplayer whose who nophobic slur on the face landed him in hot water. he's gotten the punishment some say he certainly deserved. join the "news nation" facebook page there. whoa.

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you can join the "news nation" that's the twitter page. time now for the "news nation" gut check. mitt romney's not backing down from the comments caught on tape, that 47% of americans believing they're victims dependent on the government and that it's not his job to worry about those people. his campaign insists or at least they're hoping that it will blow over and actually getting support as you may have heard from some conservatives, as well. in fact, michele balkin said, gasp. he said he's against freeloaders. oh, the humanity. what is your gut telling you? mitt romney's comments on the 47%. game changer? go to facebook.com/newsnation to cast that vote. an update to yesterday's gut check of the shortstop escobar. suspended three games for displaying a homophobic slur on

his face during a baseball game. we ask you, should he be suspended and fined? 78% said, yes. 2 22% of you, sorry, you were wrong. i'm going to be back tomorrow and former pennsylvania governor rendell will join the "news nation." "the cycle" is up next. woman 1: this isn't just another election. we're voting for... the future of our medicare and social security. man 1: i want facts. straight talk. tell me your plan...

and what it means for me. woman 2: i'm tired of the negative ads and political spin. that won't help me decide. man 2: i earned my medicare and social security. and i deserve some answers. anncr: where do the candidates stand on issues that... affect seniors today and in the future? find out with the aarp voters' guide at earnedasay.org

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here's what's happening in "the cycle" today. mitt romney tries to get back on message. >> mitt is rattling nerves with republicans and the guest spot today, fighting for the soul of the grand old party in the obama era. 47% of the country paying no payroll tax but it's still my job to care about them. there's a player in the middle east that holds the cards and could be a deal breaker on