hi, everyone. i'm tamron hall. we're following breaking news right now. president obama expected to land in florida any moment within the hour. the president is expected to address and even take questions at a forum hosted by univision and facebook. it's the same event that governor romney addressed last night. as we wait to hear what the president will say, the political world is buzzing over what seems to be governor romney's leap to the left a little bit anyway on issues like health care, immigration, and gay rights. >> i'm not going to be rounding people up and deporting them out of the country. we'll put in place a permanent solution. i have experience in health care reform. now and then the president says i'm the grandfather of obama care. i don't think he meant that as a

compliment, but i'll take it. individuals should be able to pursue a relationship of love and respect and raise a family they would choose. i can see hospital visitation and rights and similar things provided to individuals. marriage for me continues to be a relationship between a man and woman. >> what about those 47% comments that governor romney did not intend the public to hear? still standing his ground for days, the governor seemed to backtrack on that as well. >> this is a campaign about the 100%. my campaign is about the 100% of america, and i'm concerned about them. i have a record. i've demonstrated by capacity to help the 100%. >> so let's bring in our "news nation" political panel for thursday. republican strategist chip saltzman and michael special correspondent for "newsweek" and the daily beast. gentlemen, thank you for joining

us. chip, i'll play what ed gillespie said this morning on "today." when he tried to categorize this as not a bad week for governor romney but one for the president. >> by just about every estimate this was a bad week for his campaign. would you agree? >> well, i would actually argue the other side of that. i think it was a bad week for president obama. if you look at the polling data, president obama dropped six points in the gallup poll. there's a lot of different polls out there. the target states are tight and close. this is a close election. >> matt said how can you say this was a good week for governor romney? chip, you're the republican here, and we're all honest and this is on camera and not in private. the cameras are on you. you think this was a good week for your candidate, your nominee? >> ed a great operative and good man and he's doing his job, trying to spin it the best way he can. mitt romney did not have a great week last week.

his point is clear. it's a close election and will deny to be. you try to have better weeks than bad weeks. last week was a challenge for governor romney, but i think they're back on track this week and get back on the offense and talk about the economy and the jobs is what they try to do over the next 47 days. >> chip, is that part of the problem? you have ed gillespie, a respected man. we know what we see and hear daily. why not admit this was a stumble and that the governor is now on the right track? i don't know how you articulate it. i'm not a political operative here, but we know when we're sold a bag of bananas and that did not come off correct here. >> tamron, don't sell yourself short. you'd be a great political operative. sometimes better to say not a great week. let's move on. that's a decision the romney camp has to make. we had a bad one. let's move on. tomorrow will be better. put together a couple good days and have the next week be good. >> here is part of the problemle

as well. the inability to admit this was not a great week for whatever reason, and then to also give this counterattack bringing up a video 14 years ago of president obama, the obama campaign says it is an act of desperation. many others have said it's taken the president's words out of context when he was a state senator. we have the entire video. i want to play this 1998 video, this redistribution video as it's been referred to by the conservatives and romney campaign. let's play it. >> i think the trick is figuring out how to structure government systems that pool resources and, hence, facilitate some redistribution because i actually believe in redistribution, at least at a certain level it to make sure that everybody's got a shot. how do we pool resources at the same time as we decentralize delivery systems in ways that both foster competition, can work in the marketplace, and can

foster noinnovation at a local level to particular communities. >> the part not played by the romney campaign, the competitiveness, the marketplace, those keywords there. i love pat benatar. i'm a kid of the '80s. hit me with your best shot. is that the best to be produced there? did it make democrats flinch at all? >> to take another line from the '80s, it ain't exactly the eye of the tiger. what governor romney said behind closed doors was a window into his soul and how he really feels about half the country not being worthy in his view. that attempt by the romney campaign to sort of balance the scales with this quote, you know, half the country is not really offended by what then-senator obama was discussing. senator obama at that time was not saying those people who

disagree with me are worthless. this is a false equivalekwifl s. i think it flopped, because in every major campaign at the homestretch moment we're in right now, every now and then you get a moment of insight into who this person is, what their character is away from the talking points and scripted and everything. that's what the image and sound of governor romney at that fund-raiser revealed. it revealed the disdain for half the country. >> in fairness, michael, we know it this race is still tied and not done to say the least. there are a number of reports about how governor romney is trying to rescue his campaign, this bus tour, getting on the road with paul ryan as well as what we saw yesterday. it is a question of whether or not governor romney was it a one night only or etch a stem cell moment where he has clearly shifted a bit to the middle, moderate, but he's embracing health care in massachusetts.

his interesting comments on same-sex marriage as well. let me play what he said alone about his own father taking welfare. >> my dad was born in mexico with american parents living there. at age a5 or 6, there was revolution and they came back to the united states. my dad had to get help, financial help. the government helped his family to get on their feet again. by the way, that's the way america works. we have big hearts. we care for people who have needs. we help get them back and lift it up. we don't make that a permanent lifestyle. we don't have that become government dependence. we help people and get them on their feet. >> the headline in our first read is a more moderate mitt. when you look at the comments on health care and look at comments about helping folks out, i can only wonder if he said the remarks on immigration at the republican primary if he would have been booed off the stage, michael. who is this man now today? >> that is the question, and you

know, these -- some of these remarks are kind of interesting, particularly his owning up to the existence of the massachusetts health care bill. but i can't help but think, tamron, he should have done this pivot months ago. september 18th, 19th is not the time to do this pivot. april, may, once you secure the nomination, is the time to do this pivot. he couldn't do it because he knew that the right wing of his party doesn't trust him. didn't trust him then and doesn't trust him now. they wouldn't let him make that pivot. they said no, no, no, you prove yourself to us. continue to prove yourself to us. now with 46 days left will they permit him to make this pivot and not jump down his back every time he says something to appeal to moderate voters? maybe they will, and it might make it a little more interesting. i think it's kind of late to do this. >> chip, what are your thoughts here?

i said some remarks made last night by governor romney may have got him booed off the stage in the presidential republican primary. i'm not saying that as a opinion. that's a fact. we saw booing during the debates in the primary. with that said how do you feel, for example, to hear the governor say he takes it as a compliment he's called the grandfather of obama care. he's not looking at running down 12 million people and kicking them out of the country. is it too late to move to a more moderate side here, and is it authentic at this point? >> i was reading the transcripts over. when you talk about immigration, the one thing republicans agree is first, you have to secure the border. if you deported everybody, they would come back. you have to secure the border first and make sure they come here legally and do it in a right way and, yes, in a compassionate way. the bigger challenge for mitt romney is every day over the next 47 days he's not talking

about jobs and the economy is a missed tuntopportunity. at the end of the day they vote on unemployment and the economy. every day we don't talk about that we miss an opportunity. >> karl rove in his op ed says there's little tolerance for more statements by mr. romney that the media can depict as gaffes but concerning about avoiding missteps must not favor cautious and bland. to win he needs to be bold and forceful and he offers a compelling agenda of conservative reform. chip, i go back to this line where he says the president says i'm the grandfather of obama care. i don't think he meant it as a compliment, but i'll take it. he's now taking being called the grandfather of obama care as a badge of honor. >> tamron, he said for many times over and over again that i on day one will repeal obama care. i think he's pretty solid on that issue. >> tamron, can i jump in? >> of course, please.

>> "the washington post" today has a headline story about how virginia, a must-win state for governor romney, has broken way in favor not only of president obama but the democratic senatorial candidate tim kaine. in wisconsin tammy baldwin is pulling ahead of former governor tommy thompson. there's a pattern here, and the mitt romney campaign is desperate to change this direction. the direction is clear. i think what they're trying to do is muddy the waters and have him shuffle to the center on some issues. i agree with the colleague from "newsweek" who said it's a little late for that. the perception of who they are is hardening in people's minds, and we see the results in important swing states. it's not breaking well for mitt romney. >> you have this headline on how the gop invented mitt romney's moochers. that was the headline you wrote for your piece. part of what david is talking about certainly does tie romney

to the republican party. we'll talk about how all the events this week can affect the senate races. >> yeah, yeah. it's really starting to affect senate races and any republican candidates in blue or purple states are having to distance themselves. i want to take my final secondsseconds here to respond to what chip said about romney focusing on the economy. that's what he needs to do. the second he talks about the economy, people talk about his tax plan and people start to ask him again what loopholes he's going to close. he has to answer that question by november 6th, or he can't really talk about the economy with much credibility. >> we know in the big interview on "meet the press" with david he did not have an answer to that specific question. thank you so much. up next former pennsylvania governor ed rendell will join the "news nation." i'll talk about romney's plan it to salvage his campaign and how

romney's words could affect key senate races. why republicans blocked a jobs bill to put veterans back to work? patrick murphy, the first iraq war to serve in congress, will join us live. you can join the conversation on twitter and find us @tamronmall and @newsnation. my producer discovered beyonce's version of this it famous song. take a listen. ♪ and you can't take that away ♪ and i'm proud to be an american ♪ ♪ where at least i know i'm f e free ♪ good times. never taking a bailout. there when you need them. helping millions of americans over the centuries. the strength of a global financial leader. the heart of a one-to-one relationship. together for your future. ♪

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back to politics as republicans brace for ipossible trickle down effect from governor romney's brutal past three weeks. democratic candidates in three key senate races are surges,

elizabeth warren in massachusetts and tim kaine in virginia and tammy baldwin in wisconsin. the gop's concerned quoting the senate's third ranking republican as saying, we need governor romney to dood well. i think there's obviously a down-ballot impact from the performance of the top of the ticket. that sounds logical. let's bring in former pennsylvania governor ed rendell. thank you for joining us, governor. >> my pleasure, tamron. >> let's play what speaker boehner said a few minutes ago. here's how he deflected. >> you have both campaigns on both sides say thing that get off the message. the message is, let's stay focused on jobs, because that's what the american people want us to stay focused on. >> that was the answer to the question about whether he agreed with the 47%. what do you make of his advice trying to get back to jobs, which i don't know how we ever stop talking about jobs on any day? >> well, speaker boehner is

obviously right, but it's easier said than done. as your prior guests said this was more than just a gaffe, something poorly stated. this showed a callous disregard for 47% of america, and worst of it all it continued the romney/ryan tract of saying inaccurate things. this 47% that don't pay taxes are not bums. they don't shirk responsibility. 42 million of those, as you know, tamron, are workers many who work two or three part-time jobs who earn less than $19,000 so they don't pay federal income taxes. they pay state taxes but don't center to pay federal taxes. 12 million are senior citizens or disabled people. does governor romney suggest they're shirkers because they don't taxes? a million are farmers who don't pay taxes because of the tax rules that involve farmers. farmers work their tails off. so he's dead wrong.

in addition to being callous, he's dead wrong. >> isn't that part of the point here? boehner says let's talk about jobs. we are when you're discussing the working peer and there's an implication that the person that wants to be president of the united states seeing them as people who are slacking or not significant enough for him to try and seek their vote through legislation, ideas and policies that might improve their lives. that is discussing jobs. >> of course it is. a lot of those people are romney voters. the demographic he's doing best with is seniors. there are 12 million seniors in that group of veterans, soldiers abroad don't pay taxes. their income isn't taxable. they don't pay taxes. obviously, that's a group he's doing pretty well. it's astounding, stunning that someone would make that statement. >> we want to talk about how this effects down ticket. you have dean heller in nevada, tight race says i just don't view the world the same way as

governor romney. scott brown has a big debate tonight with elizabeth warren. elsd that's not the view he had of the world here. we talked about four gop candidates distancing themselves from romney. the list goes on and on here. you know this game better than anyone else. how confident are you that democrats -- i don't want to use the word capitalize because it seems exploitive, but in the end draw a line between the republican party leader, the nominee, and the entire democratic party who don't subscribe to this same view? >> no, there's no question. p if you're out there and you're republican and you're in a blue or purple state like nevada, you've got to draw some distinctions and make it clear that you don't agree with the front-runner and your ticket. the presidential election, if let's say president obama carries the state, that doesn't guarantee that the democratic senate candidate wins. but it makes it a lot harder for

a republican to buck the trend. if president obama wins some states like wisconsin and in the fox poll he's up by 14 points. if president obama wins by 14 points, it's almost inconceivable that tammy baldwin could lose, that her republican opponent could make up that gap. yes, it's very important. it doesn't always determine it, but the length of the victory is significant. >> which would be incredible in the tammy baldwin case in wisconsin, because she's been behind in the polls. she has a formidable challenger in tommy thompson. the list goes on and on down to scott brown. this ohio bus tour kicking off monday with governor romney, congressman ryan as well, is this enough? is that a solution? is this an appropriate rescue plan? let's get out on the road and shake some hands and eating burgers in diners. >> it's better that raising

money in utah. didn't lindsey graham raise that point. unless there's a new message, it doesn't happen. just by posing for pictures, eating burgers, tamron, that wouldn't wash away the image of what governor romney said and the sort of callous way he said it. again, they've got a lot of work to do and what i would think if i was advising the romney campaign. go for it. spell out what you do. some people will get ticked off, but maybe some people say, wow, that guy really has a plan. maybe it can work. let's try it, because it's a plan. >> i think i heard you say yesterday during our primetime coverage you have nothing to lose. put it all against the wall if he's got it. >> absolutely. but right now it's in shambles. look at tim kaine in virginia. eight points up after being deadlocked or down. it's cutting the other way. >> thank you so much. always a pleasure talking with you. thank you. did the romney camp overplay its

hand trying to counterattack the president with a tape from 14 years ago that wasn't played in its entirety? mark murray joins me. we're talking about the tale of the tapes. why tim pawlenty is stepping down from his position in the romney campaign. it's just one of the things we thought you should know. [ mrs. hutchison ] friday night has always been all fun and games here at the hutchison household. but one dark stormy evening... she needed a good meal and a good family. so we gave her purina cat chow complete.

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made gluten-free cereals in a bunch of yummy flavors. like cinnamon chex, honey nut chex, and chocolate chex... we're in cereal heaven. so thanks. from the mcgregors, 'cause we love chex. welcome back. massachusetts senator scott brown, one of the first republicans to distance himself from mitt romney's 47% comment faces elizabeth warren in a televised debate. some suggest for brown to even withdraw his endorsement of governor romney. a headline in the nation says scott brown should early

renounce mitt romney or admit he's no moderate, to which the editor responded on twitter, quote, in my dreams, but okay. the debate comes as a new poll shows brown with a four-point lead over warren, and joins us now is noah p biermann of the boston globe. there have been several in the past weeks showing warren had a consecutive lead over him in the past four polls we've seen. what's happening in this race? >> there were four polls taken after the convention showing her with a lead between 2 to 6 percentage points among likely voters. one poll was taken roughly the same period this fifth poll was taken. that poll showed her with a lead. this new poll shows scott brown with a lead of four points. within the margin of error in almost every case, so it shows this race is continually volatile. >> it speaks to everything we discussed from the very beginning, even prior to this romney remark. i have to bring up another

statement from senator brown. he told politico regarding mitt romney, we're two different people, obviously, and people recognize that. they know me and have known him. they made their position known on who they support and don't support. i know she'd like to run against mitt romney, but she's running against me. is that a statement that a lot of people buy? >> that's the big question. that's going to be a big part of the debate tonight. he's going to deny to call himself a scott brown republican. she's going to continue to talk about mitt romney, mitch mcconnell. she has a new ad where she concedes that a lot of people like scott brown, and she even says he's taken a few votes you might agree with but he's not there when you need him. that's her counterpoint to that. he's somebody who is only occasionally going to vote with massachusetts dominant liberal political view is her feeling. his, of course, is i'm going to

reach across. we need more people reaching across. she's a rock thrower. she's too partisan. that's the central fight of the debate tonight. >> that should be interesting. we'll perhaps talk about the highlights of the debate tomorrow. later in the gum check, do you think that romney's performance will have a trickle-down effect on senate races, particularly how he handles this 47% issue? we'll tell you how to weigh in. plus -- >> it was really wonderful that clint eastwood came to the national convention and talk it had to an empty chair. i'll remember that for a long time. i thought he was great and i really liked him for doing it. >> it's that time of the year again. with 47 days left until election day, "snl" back with its primetime election specials. they start tonight, and we'll preview it. of any small business credit card! pizza!!!!! [ garth ] olaf's small business earns 2% cash back on every purchase, every day! helium delivery. put it on my spark card!

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univision/facebook forum. moments ago the president answered a question regarding immigration. >> i have never wavered in my support of comprehensive immigration reform. we did put forward a dream act that was passed in the house, got the overwhelming majority of support from democrats in the senate and was blocked by the republican party. we now are confronted with a choice between two candidates in which the candidate sitting here with us today is committed to comprehensive immigration reform, is committed to the dream act, has taken administrative actions to prevent young people from being deported. that stands in contrast with the other candidate, who has said he would veto the dream act. >> let's bring in sandra lily. obviously, the president is referring to governor romney, who was yesterday at this same forum. he took a softer approach as it's being described to immigration reform saying that

you don't want to kick up to 12 million people -- kick them out of the country. he said i'm in favor of deportation, a mass deportation effort he's not in favor of. he did not go further than that. >> right, and that's the issue. it has stayed sort of exactly the same. it's sort of an impasse, on the one hand governor romney saying he won't deport 12 mill people, but he will not support the deferred action president obama has passed and immigration reform which a lot in his party don't agree with. we're in the same place the two candidates are trying to sound like they might be different weemplt in the same place. >> the president has a huge lead when you look at the numbers. it's grown from 25% to well beyond that i think in the upper 30s at this point. in florida he's leading mitt romney in the entire state all voters 49% to 44%. you emphasize in the commercial break to me in your opinion this florida is ground zero for latino voters.

>> it's really ground zero for latino voters because it's changing, for example. it was only the cuban-american population in miami, but now there's a third of a million puerto rican voters. obama has the advantage, but it's turnout. for romney it's convincing people with the economy they can vote republican. obama needs the turnout and needs to keep those numbers high. florida could be won by less than 100,000 votes. every vote counts. >> that's why both are there and participating in this particular forum. thank you so much. greatly appreciate it. to another political story today. the tale of two tapes. on monday hidden video surfaced of mitt romney saying 47% vote for him because they're dependent on the government. a 13-year-old tape emerged with obama talking about the

marketplace. on "today" ed gillespie was asked about the romney campaign count attacking by releasing this video from 1998. >> when you have a policy focused on spreading the wealth rather than an economy that generates wealth, that ail alll for upper mobility, you end up with an economy that results in unemployment over 8% for flee years and household incomes dropping. we want a growth income where household income rise and there's more jobs and take-home pay. >> who is that counterattack playing to outside the conservative base? after all, obama has not exactly hid his intention to raise taxes on the wealthy to help pay down the deficit. mark murray is joining me. first of all, let's talk about the tape in its entirety. the 1998 tape from president obama. what was the message he was articulating? >> well, tamron, when you actual

l ly look at the snippet that was circulated by republicans, it has president obama saying he favors redistribution. then nbc news was able to get the actual video of president obama's remarks in 1998. they actually -- right after that sentence when he was talking about redistribution, then he actually started to talk about free enterprise, competition, buzzwords that are usually very favorable that republicans like to talk about. as we put it in first read, it wouldn't sound all that different from bill clinton in the early 1990s. so it presented a more full and complete portrait of president obama's remarks. >> let's look at the romney tape. was that a full and complete portrait of what he said at that event, whether he tries the change the language or tone, was his tape modified in in way? >> tamron, nbc has been able to produce the entire tape of mitt romney's 47% remarks and everything else in there. it is actually transcribed.

i have heard that there is a one or two-minute somehow pause in there because of the fact that the person who was actually recording it turned off and had to restart it up. but you pretty much get minutes upon minutes upon minutes of mitt romney talking unedited, and so that's much the tale of that particular tape. >> is it fair to put them in the same room, other than they are tapes of these -- well, one was a state senator at the time and the other a nominee or close to securing it. >> tamron, that's a good question. i think you're right. it's not fair to actually compare the two. when you look at athe total although with the romney folks, they're trying to change the subject. ser certainly this 47% situation for them was not good news. they were desperate to change the subject. you see them seize on this dredge report article circulated to news organizations. look, president obama, he favors redistribution of wealth. well, as it turns out and as we

pointed out in first read, president obama has supported a progressive taxation system for the well-off. it's not all that surprising. >> one was at a public event and one where they never thought the tape would come out. a jobs bill aimed at helping veterans find work was blocked. the legislation would you have provided over 1 dp$1 billion. democrats fell two votes short of the 60-vote majority needed to get the bill through. the latest monthly jobs report shows an 11% unemployment rate for veterans. more than 720,000 former service members out of work. joining me now is former pennsylvania congressman patrick murphy who was the first iraq war vet it to serve in congress. i saw you last night in the primetime coverage. you're sickened by what

happened. >> it's the ultimate act of partisanship what happened in the senate. here you had republican senators who con sponsored the bim. it was a bipartisan bill and voted against the bill for one reason. to stop barack obama and stop senate democrats and stop republicans have having an accomplishment. i mean, to have an accomplishment in washington, d.c. should be something -- a source of pride. >> especially one that involves the men and women who fought for this country one would say? >> exactly. they're playing politics with our moat needily troops. here are the heroes that serve in iraq and afghanistan. they come home, and they fight for us. now they're trying to fight to get a job at home, and the senate republicans blocked them. it was a bill that puts these heroes to become cops and firefighters in our communities. it was paid for. it didn't add to the debt. they still voted against it. >> let me play what senator tom coburn was on "morning joe." he called the bill -- i'm quoting -- a gimmick.

let me play it. >> fept to create another veterans program, we ought to do two or three things. one, we ought to know what's happening to the other jobs programs, all six of them. they're already is a preference for hiring veterans in this country. number three is if we're going to spend a billion dollars, we ought to cut another government program to do it. >> your response to that? >> senator coburn is walking the plank for his party. he didn't co-sponsor the bill. other republicans co-sponsored the bill and believed in the bill and voted against it, tamron. it's disgraceful and shameful. i hope america wakes up. we're talking about 47 days before the election. you should hold these people accountable for playing politics with our troops. as you know, every 80 minutes in america there's a veteran that commits suicide, every 80 minutes. to help some of them get jobs as cops and firefighters and these knuckleheads stand in the way? >> i got to talk to you about

don't ask don't tell. today marks the anniversary of the repeal of don't ask don't tell. you were one of the lead sponsors of the house bim. there's a study out last week that showed there was no impact on this military. i think some people and i don't mean to be callous had that duh moment in what did folks opposed to it think would happen nonetheless. you were on the front lines for your country as well, and here we are a day later. >> it's a great day to celebrate one step closer to that in our country. a lot of folks said, patrick, why are you doing this? you're a straight catholic in a swing district? i said, i want my daughter maggie murphy who started kindergarten last week, i want her for proud what her daddy fought for. i want her to see what i did and what the congress did when i got to serve. it made absolutely no sense.

we kicked out over 13,000 troops including eric translators in iraq. >> people needed. >> when was a paratroopers, we need more translators and didn't have them. it was just the right thing to do. the majority of republicans voted against that, too. we still got it done. the president led the way. he's the one on his first state of union address said we have to repeal don't ask don't tell. after he passed don't ask don't tell, four states have passed marriage equality. there's so much work to continue. today is a chance to celebrate but a lot more work. >> i love you gave maggie murphy a shout-out. maggie is my favorite name. i'll tell you why in the break. "snl" is taking full advantage of campaign season tonight. it will bring its primetime weekewee weekend update special. there's a lot going on

today. tim pawlenty is leavingment romney pam contain. he's resigning as the national co-chair to work as a lobbyist. romney calls pawlenty a dear friend and regrets he's leaving. pawlenty says he still supports governor romney. and preparations for the presidential inauguration took center stage auto capitol hill today. congressional leaders hammered the first nail into the platform used in the event in january. it will hold nearly 1600 people. here's a look behind the scenes of president obama's fund-raiser with beyonce and jay-z. the campaign tweeted this photo of the event at jay's 4040 club in manhattan. the president joked that mrs. obama, sasha and malia were mad because they were not there. in the my producer screen saver now, that forecast, because of beyonce and jay-z and not because of the president. we thought you should know.

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no, it's not a late night tv ad. you really can learn while you sleep. in a recent study researchers played a tone in sleeping participants and followed that sound with either a pleasant or unpleasant scent. after waking participants reacted to the toner inhaling or cutting their breath. to feel a little bit like a very squeezed-together "saturday night live." i think joe biden is the front-runner for the comedy, but we have 40-plus days until the election. so you don't know. if the romney campaign gets

desperate enough, you never know what they could try to pull off. they could really come back and take it. >> that was "snl's" head writer seth meyer talking about the treasure trove of comedic material on the trail. they will premiere the primetime election schedule. it's a half hour. they've been experts on satire now. in fact, let's look back at 2008. >> nice to meet you mr. president. i've seen you on tv. >> good evening, my friends. mr. president, always a pleasure. >> good to see you, john, let's get a photo of this. let's get a photo of this. it will really help your campaign out. >> joining me now is ed johnson, variety's magazine politics editor. good to see you. i have to tell you i'm so looking forward to tonight for so many reasons. "snl" lives for these moments and we live to watch them. >> yes, and i have to say if they don't address the 47%

video, it's going to be comedic malpracti malpractice. i mean, can there be a better week for this show to really chime in? i think the big question tonight is does the "snl" mitt romney just simply repeat the words that the real mitt romney had in the video. we saw aspects in 2008 with sarah palin where tina fey repeated words from the katie couric video. >> you mentioned governor romney from the hidden video played a lot now, he referenced "snl" and whether he would appear on the show. let me play what he told that crowd of folks at that event. and there's -- i was asked to go on "saturday night live." i did not do that in part because you want to show that you're fun and you're a good person but you don't want to -- you also want to be presidential. and "saturday night live" has the potential of slooking

slapstick and not presidential. >> you know the list of presidents that have appeared on "snl." what do you make of this notion that he thinks it's not presidential? >> well, first of all, i think that decision could very well change. >> i think so, too. >> especially if -- especially if "snl," the caricature of mitt romney, really takes off in the next couple of weeks. the campaign might feel it better for romney to go on the show and to say, hey, i'm lighthearted about it. i have a sense of humor. i'm in on the joke to try to kind of defuse it and to lighten up mitt romney out on the campaign trail. >> we hear that's something people feel he needs to do. i want to talk about some of the past presidents on "snl" as romney says it's not presidential. >> i'm george w. bush, republican candidate for president of the united states. gym governor of our nation's second largest state, which is bigger than every other state

except one. welcome to presidential bash 2008, a celebration of the best political sat fire from the first 25 years of "saturday night live." >> great obama mask. >> who is that under there? >> i just wanted to let the american people know that, live from new york it's saturday night! >> to there you have it. before i let you go, jay farrell, the guy now plays president obama, you like him? thumbs up on that one? >> absolutely. yeah. i think it's a definite improvement. really like the mannerisms. he's got them right down pat. >> ted, thank you very much. we'll see the show tonight and how it all turns out. thank you. catch it tonight at 8:00 eastern time on nbc. we'll be right back with the gut check on mitt romney and the trickle down. but that doesn't n we should be penalized for it. that's why liberty mutual insurance policies come standard with accident forgiveness, if you qualify. learn more at libertymutual.com.

here we go. this is developing news we're

following. this is the space shulgttle "endeavour" flying over sue son tucson. this is always a beautiful sight to see the shuttle endeavor now over tucson headed to its permanent no permanent home in los angeles. time for the gut check. aas you heard earlier, republicans are facing tough elections around the country are distancing themz from mitt romney and his comments about 47% of the population. as the rcampaign stomach bems, democrats have been surged since the conventions in tampa and charlotte. what does your gut tell you? go to facebook.com/newsnation to cast that big vote. that does it for this edition of "news nation." thanks for watching. i'm tamron hall. "the cycle" is up next. i would ever quit. onestly k

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