take a listen. >> we were the only two in the office, and the girl that came from the other office where this happened, she comes running in saying, call 911. call 911. we didn't know what happened. we thought maybe somebody hb a heart attack or fell or was sick. she kept saying that and finally says, there's a man robbing us. >> listen as we get a live update from the news conference right now. >> -- reporters basically without the mikes over to the side here. okay? >> thank you. >> all right. chief harper giving us an update. >> chief harper giving reporters an update. we'll turn the sound and get it back to you. it again, a hostage situation taking place right now. our wpxi, the station wpxi says that the situation concerning hostages is on the 16th floor. there is one male holding two or possibly more than one person hostage. now, they are negotiating, and

apparently it's some type of investment firm that's in this building there called the gateway center. not the entire building from our earlier reports has been entirely evacuated. but we do know from the police that they are saying that no one is hurt at this time, and there has been no type of gunfire or any shots fired but apparently this individual walked into the investment office and started asking questions before taking people hostage. can we report what we know about the family? all right. so we do understand that the mother of the hostage-taker is on their way to the scene to help whip the negotiators there. again, this man walking into the building this morning of an investment office there, called the gateway center, and they have taken people often within that building itself, in the office, and we're going to work to see exactly how many people they confirm are hostages. again, the chief there just moments ago at the top of the hour giving a press conference to reporters but wrapped up

right as we dipped in. we'll turn around facts and guest it back to you as soon possible. politics topping the hour with another new round of numbers putting the president in certain swing states ahead. however, mitt romney is now capitalizing on remarks that the president made about failing to change washington from the inside out. >> obviously, the fact that we haven't been able to change the tone in washington is disappointing. you know, i think that i've learned some lessons over the last four years, and the most important lesson i've learned is that you can't change washington from the inside. you can only change it from the outside. >> mitt romney seizing on that exact remark to say the one-time candidate of hope and change is now throwing in the towel. >> the president today threw in the white flag of surrender again. he said he can't change washington from the inside. he could only change it from outside. well, we're going to give him that chance in november. he's going outside. >> but it may be romney on the

outside looking in come november, because new battleground polling shows the president is it hadding the psychologically important 50% mark. obama is five points ahead in paul ryan's home state of wisconsin. five points ahead in the swing state of colorado. and leading by a significant eight points in iowa, the state that launched the campaign or the president's campaign in 2008. >> iowa, 50. i mean, a horrible set of polls out this week for mitt romney. >> i can't recall a candidate having a worst week. a seven-day period a worst seven-day period than mitt romney. >> i think it's two weeks. >> the romney campaign has all the markings now, and it is just ugly and evident of a control freak at the top that's not letting his people run the show. >> so today the focus is shifting to medicare with president obama said to address the aarp by satellite within the hour. paul ryan will follow the

president in the 12:00 hour. this as team obama releases a new ad tying seniors to romney's 47% remark. >> so my job is not to the worry about those people. they should take responsibility and care for their lives. >> it frightens me that someone could think that way, and is running for president. >> all right. say good morning and bring in today's political power panel. an msnbc contributor and political editor for the grio. democrat dick strategies and republican strategist. it's great to have all three of you here. alice start with you. the race is becoming a tape gotcha game. the president's campaign responding to romney's remarks by digging up something mitt romney said back in 2008, basically parallels what the president said. take a look. >> i believe that at this time to change washington it would be helpful to have somebody that comes with more private sector skill. experience outside washington.

i don't think you change washington from the inside. i think you change it from the outside. >> so alice, romney was slammed for a jumping on the situation in libya. jumped on the redistribution remarks kind of pulling them out of context, now giving another knee-jerk reaction by seizing on the change remarks. when basically he campaigned that way back in '08. why does it seem so different from mitt romney in his own words from '08 to what the president said on univision the other day? >> well, there's a big difference in romney saying it and president obama saying it. when obama is saying the big evidence thing he's learned, you can't change washington from the inside, news flash. he's been on the inside for the past four years, and we have a terrible economy. we have a terrible crisis overseas, and he's had not only that, he control of the house and senate for the first two years. while he was in office, and he failed to make things better for the american people. >> alice, technically it wasn't the first two years. only several months, because of the ongoing political races that were still taking place. you know that. it wasn't for a full two years.

>> he had control of the house and senate for the first half of his presidency, and he had the opportunity to put policies in place that would help create a strong economy and create jobs for the american people, and at the end of the day, the american people cannot say that their lives are better off than they were when he took office and he said himself, if he can't turn the economy around and he cannot create jobs it will be a one-term proposition and it's looking more like that every day. >> alice, ard coulding to the calendar, that's factually not true he had control two years but i'll move on. >> from new hampshire, the governor, john sununu, just on "jansing and co." last hour. i want to play for everybody exactly what he had to say. his response followed by david axelrod who appeared this morning with savannah guthrie on the "today" show. >> this president throes out phrases that are absolutely inane when it comes to leadership. lead from behind. somebody hab to explain to me where there's one scrap of intelligence in that phrase, leading from behind. >> there are a lot of people who would question whether there was

a scrap of intelligence in the statement about the 47%. >> he said, in order to move washington and to move the congress, you have to enlist of american people and that's a lesson that he's learned over these four years. the fact that governor romney picked up on it and attacked him on it is just one more example how he's just cascading gratuity outside attack to another instead are talking about solutions to the problems we face. >> so engaging, chris, in this back and forth controversies, is the romney campaign missing the bigger opportunities to really connect, talk to the voters, and thereby playing right into the plans of the obama campaign? >> i mean, listen, if they think they're going to win the election having a battle about what change means they are foolish. i mean, this is not the reality of what voters are looking at or thinking about, and i think the polls reflect that. you know, mr. sununu's remarks about the president leading from behind. i wonder if osama bin laden thinks that the president led from behind?

this is just -- these are the type of attacks that fall off people's radar because they're so ridiculous. here's the fundamental problem with the romney campaign. we've seen this not over the last week or two but the last three months. they are the titanic and they keep hitting icebergs. every day it seems they do another self-inflicted wound. and then want to turn around and blame the obama campaign or president obama for somehow doing that. i mean, the reality is they have no vision. they have no policies. they can sit there and pretend that the country has not gotten better when all of the evidence is that it has. and so the fundamental problem they have in terms of connecting with voters is, they're not buying the vision that they're presenting to the country, because voters know that that vision created the problems the president inherited. that's their fundamental problem. >> peggy noonan is out there, with a scathing op-ed of the week on the romney campaign. read it for everybody, noonan writing in the "wall street journal." i called it, meaning the romney campaign, incompetent.

because i was being polite. i really meant rolling calamity. here is ann romney defending her husband on an iowa radio station yesterday. take a listen. >> stop it. this is hard. you want to try it? get in the ring. this is hard, and, you know, it's an important thing that we're doing right now, and it's an important election. and it is time for all americans to realize how significant this election is, and how lucky we are to have someone with mitt's kwkzs and experience and know-how to be able to have the opportunity to run this country. >> so, alice, mitt romney was the one who said during the primary season politics ain't bean bags. were those remarks from ann romney helpful, to sound so indignant and the fax, how dare you criticize what this campaign is doing and how dare you criticize my husband? or does mitt romney really need to toughen up and sharpen up the campaign? >> well, the fact is, thomas, you can well imagine, running for president, it's a difficult job, and as everyone who's been

down the trenches, it ain't bean bag, and ann romney has been right down there working really hard every single day, but at the end of the day, it's her husband out there. i think she made a very great point at the convention when she talk and how hard her husband is working, how hard her family is, would go. and she knows more than anyone who cares about this country, and he has the plan and the policy to make things better, and that's her overall message. that's what she conveying to the american people and that he doesn't fail. when he sets his mind to something, he accomplishes is, and more than anything, day in and day out, that's the message that ann romney conveyed to the american people and people are beginning to see it and will see it as more ads come out and center we'll see it once the president's debates unfold and we'll see a sharp contrast between romney and the president whereas we'll have romney reining in the size of government and create private sector growth as opposed to the president who wants to redistribute wealth and spread the wealth which is not working for this country. >> i want to get into the this. we're 46 days out's in idaho,

south dakota, the first states to actually let people to begin early voting in person and more absentee voting begins in minnesota and more as we get overed weekend. looking at polls for the president, ebs tendering his lead in three different swing states, this, again, alice brings up the 47% remarks. those are having an effect on mitt romney, and in those same battlegrounds state where we see romney's favorability tanking. an article "new york times" in the reports to a lot of grumbling in the battleground states, visit more, spend more money. now we know mitt romney is going to be in ohio starting next week. he's going to lima, cincinnati, dayton, columbus, toledo, toledo. or cleveland. just named it a new place. cleveland and toledo. it's a three-day swing, but can mitt romney really get in there, dig in, and make the difference that he needs with the president leading there by seven points right now? >> i think at this point, ann romney's comments were so odd, because peggy noonan and other

republicans really desperately want to win too. the republicans are angry about president obama and really want to win this race. they're angry at romney because they feel he's giving it away, not doing very well. to me right now these polls have shown for weeks now, romney's not advancing. romney's not advancing. obama's got a bounce whip the convention. the debate is the last chance for romney to change the dynamic of the race. a bus tour won't do a lot. romney needs a fundamental moment that reshapes this race and el its what he would do for the country differently and then the president -- those debates starting october 3rd are what to watch for. yop any anything else can help. if he doesn't do well a real frob come back. >> the fact both sides complementing each other, lowering expectations for these two men to show up and who's going to really go into the ring here and win the debates. we shall see. october 3rd, first one. my thanks to our power panel. i want to take you back to

the breaking news we have been following out of pittsburgh for you today. a hostage situation where an armed man walked into a building there, the gateway center. it has been partially evacuated, ard coulding to earlier reports. we have police talking to reporters earlier, explaining also that the mother of the intruder was going to be on scene to come help police negotiate the safe release of anybody on the inside. we don't have official reports of exactly how many people are being held hostage, but it is an investment building, and investment office that is, where we understand the person came in carrying two duffel bags, unsure what's inside, but also armed with a weapon. we're back after this. teachingg begins with back pain and a choice. take advil, and maybe have to take up to four in a day. or take aleve, which can relieve pain all day with just two pills. good eye.

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we still are in conversation

with him. it is still, the building is still secure. we have not evacuated the building, at the same time, we aren't letting anyone back into the building. so the workers that are in the building, they can leave, but, at their own wish, but they aren't able to return back in, because we're still securing the 16th floor. >> just moments ago, the chief explaining to reporters the situation they're you watching in pittsburgh. the breaking news we've been following over the last hour. a hostage situation in a downtown high-rise. there is a man that went into the 16th floor apparently armaled with a gun and two duffel bags. unsure what's in the duffel bags. the staff wasn't toldful they were explosives or if they're filled with more ammunition for the gun that he was showing when he walked in. the staff, as we're hearing there from the chief, certainly, from certainly parts of the building evacuated. not the entire building has been evacuated, but the mother of this person that walked into the building is on-scene to help

negotiators. former fbi profiler and msnbc contributor clint van zandt joins me now to talk more about this. so, clipnt, with the family member on the scene, a big help for negotiators. correct? >> well, it really does, tolls, f thomas for a couple of reasons. probably part of the ongoing negotiations. in essence, the individual in there who may or may not be armed has probably asked for a family member to be brought there. as a hostage negotiator myself, having been there and done that, so to speak, would you do something like this if you think it's going to facilitate the negotiations. if you think it's going to bring about the safe release of everybody to include the individual who's holding the one or two people hostage up there. >> let's go over some of the facts, because right now, clint what we're getting from police is we have no reports of injuries. we do know a s.w.a.t. team has arrived. at least 20 other emergency vehicles are on the scene.

again, this is happening on the 16th floor of this high-rise building, the gateway center. there was one weapon shown, the duffel bags, they say he's carrying two. unsure of what could be in those. police are evacuating only part of the building. don't you think that they should most likely be trying to get everybody out of that building right now? is that the protocol? >> well, right now -- yeah, well, right now, thomas, they want to stabilize. i know from local authorities there that the individual they're negotiating with is an african-american male in his early to mid-20s. he has a military background. he has some type of criminal record. there was an allegation that he may have had a handgun. there may have been explosives there. 's in most situations, thomas, when someone says they have an explosive, it turns out not to be true, but from a law enforcement perspective, you take this person at his or her word and you conduct negotiations as if there is a

realistic threat, which, of course, there is right now. >> so, again, there is this situation going on in the 16th floor. it's a 24-story building. we're going to keep our eye on this. clint, we appreciate you joining us and for your insights on this but we'll let everybody know as soon as we get more facts into the newsroom, we'll bring it to you. clint, thanks again. developing now, violent protests in cartoon. look at these images. most turbulent seens in pakistan. 16 people died in country. pakistan's government declared a national hol kay encouraging people to peacefully protest. this film made in america. protests were are the roed today in at least seven other countries as well. all this is going on as the last of the surge troops deployed in afghanistan are now coming home. the pentagon says nearly 33,000 americans packed up and left the country on schedule, bringing an end to the american troop surge

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welcome back, everybody. as promised this hour, the president is addressing the aarp convention. let's listen in. >> now, my opponents have pledged to repeal these savings, and benefits, in their first day on the job. which means billions in new profits for insurance companies but also would mean immediately increased costs for seniors and would bankrupt the medicare tru trust fund in just four years. and what would they replace it with? their play replaces guaranteed medical benefits with a voucher that wouldn't keep up with costs. when they tell you that their plan let's you keep your doctor, they're leaving out one thing, and that's the facts. a fnew study says under their plan, just five switch to plans, 40% of doctors who take medicare

would stop accepting it. think about that. millions of seniors would be forced to change doctors. i don't consider this approach bold or particularly courageous. i just think it's a bad idea. no american should ever spend their golden years at the mercy of insurance companies. they should retire with the care and the dignity that they have earned. now, we do have to reform and strengthen medicare for the long haul but we're going to do it by reducing the cost of care. not by asking seniors to pay thousands of dollars more while we're giving millionaires and billionaire as massive new tax cut. and when it comes to social security, we've got to keep the promise of social security by taking responsible steps to strengthen it, not by turning it over to wall street. the last time the other side was in charge, my opponent's running mate wrote a bill that woman have privsized social security. after what happened on wall street just four years ago, does anybody actually think that's a good idea? >> nbc's ron mott joins us live

from new orleans, where the aarp convention is taking place. so, ron, the president is appearing by video, and then after the president speaks, paul ryan is going to get his turn with this crowd. what should we expect from these two duelling addresses? >> reporter: well, i think you're just hearing the president there, thomas. first of you a, good day. you hear the president hitting hard at mitt romney and paul ryan over their plan to simply transform medicare into a voucher program. the president making the case that would result in more money spent out of pocket by senni in to -- seniors. he's trying to do with the care act. hitting back mitt romney with the 47% comments saying how dare he call seniors victims and because they're enrolled in medicare does not mean they're taking a government handout. the punching continues on that front. paul ryan when he speaks in about an hour is um canning here with his 78-year-old mother

betty in medicare. paul likes to joke he won't tell the public how long she's been enrolphed in the program, wants to preserve the program for her and other seniors and future generations. he'll hit the president's plan hard. >> so again the president speaking now. paul ryan to speak shortly. nbc's ron mott reporting from new orleans. thanks sieo much. we'll talk more with bernie sanders from vermont, he joins the show ummi incoming up in a while. you'll love the democratic and republican convention, the speeches, the pageantry. now that they're over you want to relive the most glorious moments of all. introducing "convention cutaways" feech herbing the best from both. women sobbing before anyone started speaking, and the guy who's dancing to no music whatsoever. and relive the majesty of the woman who's just walking around. >> all right. that was part of last night's

"saturday night live" election special pap new round of polling. not only is mitt romney trailing but hasn't been able to connect with female voters. the nbc "wall street journal" marist poll shows the president buy a double digit lead with that voting bloc. joining me now, meghan mccain, nbc contributor, the president has a double digit lead with women until three swing states. we look at them. wisconsin, colorado, and we've got iowa. ann romney has been out on the trail this week more in a solo capacity. speaking out defending her husband and did so on an iowa radio show last night. when we know that in just a short period of time, i believe in less than seven days, that iowa's going to start with early voting. what do you think that this means? we're trying to get the female electorate paying attention, in either camp? >> you know, i think, first and

foremost, there is still six weeks left until the election and a lot of things can happen during a presidential campaign. i think when it comes to the women's vote, the romney campaign is absolute smart to send ann romney on her out campaigning, she really is their secret weapon, as is paul ryan. i'm glad to see they're going to start doing that. >> does she look indignant saying things like, stop it. it looks like someone that's -- politics ain't bean bag, mitt romney reminded us back in primary, about the primary season. >> i mean, i remember that quote. i think with ann romney the one thing i would say, yes, campaigning is the most difficult thing i've bun in my entire life on my father's campaign. it i wasn't obviously my father's wife, but you can't go around saying this is difficult, this is hard. >> totally different story. >> i know. go ahead. >> for her, i think it is, i would pull back a little bit on saying, this is difficult. this is hard. everyone knows it's difficult becoming president. i think both of them should concentrate on the positive things they're going to bring as a first lady and president and

the negative things that president obama has been doing. >> all right. as we look, though and we've put together the recent polls, a lot of battleground states that could go blue. we mentioned, wisconsin, colorado, virginia, iowa, ohio, florida. we remind everybody this time four years ago, now president obama's campaign under fire while nor dad saw a boost. four years earlier, president bush calls it black september. nothing seemed to be going their way. what do you think can help the romney campaign shift the tide? they've had three very tough weeks. >> yeah. i think obama's comment yesterday saying that, you know, he can't change washington from the inside. he was the candidate that ran on hope and change. just pushing the economy, the economy, the economy, the economy. one thing republicans really respond to is aggressive leadership. that might be what romney hasn't been doing. he really needs to be aggressive, a statesman and hit it home. we're all concerned as republicans. poll the don't look good. that being said i know enough, been on enough campaign, my

father declared dead more times than any politician possible. things can change in six weeks. >> i mentioned iowa. seven days until we get early voting there. by this time tomorrow, half the country will be in the middle of early and absentee voting. among them, three battleground states. the romney campaign is relying on the fall debates to right this ship. that's coming up, the start october 3rd. senior obama adviser david axelrod was asked about the debates this morning. it's really interesting, the back and forth between the two sides. take a listen to this. >> governor romney's been practicing for months. i think the invasion of normandy took less preparation than he's putting into these debates. so i expect he's going to be prepared and ready and he's going to be strong in these debates and we have to be ready as well. >> meanwhile, from inside the campaign, both sides complementary to the other side saying obama the great or tore, mitt romney is shiny, and

poshed, been practicing. we'll see what happens in the debates, but it seems as if they're both trying to lower expectations so that people can be impressed by what they snee that very first one. >> mitt romney is a very good debater. i know people that he's being coached with right now. i think they can expect him -- he knows what's at stake and the last chance to convince the american public of what kind of leader he will be, as opposed to the failed leadership president obama has been and at the end of the day, it's the economy and the numbers speak for themselves. deficit 16% people will listen to this. >> meghan mccain, great to see you. exciting. education kicks off on msnbc. on sunday, hosting an extraordinary special talking to hundreds of students on what's working, what's broken in our american education system. also sunday, alex wagner leading a discussion about the role of parents and teachers from the red carpet premiere of the new drama "won't back down."

next week, both president obama and mitt romney give interviews that are going to air on tuesday morning, including romney's live sit-down interview with nbc's brian williams live right here in this hour. so you don't want to nays. back after this. diarrhea, gas, bloating? yeah. one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. approved! [ phillips' lady ] live the regular life. phillips'. it's real milk full of calcium and vitamin d. and tastes simply delicious. for those of us with lactose intolerance... lactaid® milk. the original 100% lactose-free milk. oh, hey alex. just picking up some, brochures, posters copies of my acceptance speech. great! it's always good to have a backup plan, in case i get hit by a meteor. wow, your hair looks great. didn't realize they did photoshop here. hey, good call on those mugs. can't let 'em see what you're drinking. you know, i'm glad we're both running a nice, clean race.

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seven dollar trades are just the start. our teams have the information you want when you need it. it's another reason more investors are saying... [ all ] i'm with scottrade. president obama is still addressing one of the most powerful groups of voters. he spoke vee yao satellite, speech via satellite to the aarp convention. his comments at times seemed to point directly at governor romney the recently recorded remarks. >> given the conversations that have been out there in the political arena lately, i want to emphasize, medicare and social security are not handouts. you've paid into these programs your whole lives. you've earned them. and as president, it's my job to make sure that medicare and social security remains strong for today's seniors and for future generations. >> joining me now to talk more about the medicare debate and

the senior vote, independent senator bernie sanders of vermont. serving on the health committee and pension company kmss to name a few. a new poll out this morning saying when voters in swing states asked which candidate they trusted most to manage healthcare, 50% said president obama. a six-point lead over mitt romney. what factors into that equation most? just the fear of change, or distrust of the romney/ryan proposals? >> i don't know that it's the fear of change, but when you are old you worry about your health, and you worry about when you're 70 or 75, how you're going to be able to pay your health care bills. and you have people like romney. romney and ryan saying, you know, we are going to end a very popular and effective program, medicare, and we're going to convert it into a voucher program. people understand that private health insurance companies, their function is to make as much money as possible. not to take care of the patient. i think a lot of seniors all

over this country rightfully are very, very nervous about the privatization of medicare and the conversion into a voucher program. >> so, senator, the past, if it's prologued, shown that the president historically did not win over seniors. could the paul ryan pick change that? the obama campaign has a new ad out today talking to seniors about that 47% remark mr. romney raised in the fund-raising teep. lp seniors see themselves in that tape? >> my answer is, yes, and the president has to do two things. i do think he has to pick up on this really outrageous statement that romney made in that secret video, where he said, and here's a guy who comes from a millionaire family, goes through elite schools, has all the breaks in life, he is lecturing working families, people who are now old on social security and medicare about personal responsibility. well, these are people who in some cases have served in the

military, defended our country, raised kids, worked 40 or 50 or 60 hours a week. they know life. they don't want to be lectured by some millionaire guy talking to other mill nar friends about personal responsibility. they have lived their lives with regard to person responsibility and the second issue where i really hope the president becomes strong. four years ago at this very same aarp conference, convention, the president said he was not going to cut social security. well, the republicans are about cutting social security. the president to my mind has not been clear enough on this issue. and, thomas, i hope he gets up there today, or in the near future and says, unequivocally, social security has not contribute add nickel to the deficit. social security has a 2.7 trillion dollar surplus, can pay out every benefit for the next 21 years, and that i, barack obama, promise you i will not cut social security. if he does that i think he's going to win that plus medicare. he will win the senior vote

overwhelmingly and in fact win this election. >> senator bernie sanders of vermont. thanks for your time. appreciate it. >> my pleasure. when it comes to the battered u.s. there are new signs the worst may be behind us. new data from the u.s. census showing more young people moving out of their parents' homes to take a chance on college or on the job market and poverty is slowing. the rate of poverty is held steady at 15%. that number does not include americans on government programs, which help to lift nearly 4 million people above the poverty line. let's bring in jerry bernstein, msnbc contributor and vice president biden's former chief economist. gm to see you. we look at numbers, they show the expanded unemployment benefits kept more than 2 million americans from falling below the poverty line. does this underscore the notion the government helping struggling americans helps the overall economy? >> unquestionably. it's really a twol-for in the sense you're helping people ho got really very whacked by the great recession. so many people lost their jobs, and not just lost their jobs but

had such trouble finding work for so many months. unemployment insurance, the safety net general. actually, if you measure pov terry the way you should, as you just showed, by accounting for many of these benefits, the poverty rate barely budged over the deepest recession since the great recession. it's a real sign that the safety net caught a lot of people, and, yes, those folks are income constrained. they take those benefits, they spend them. there's a multiplier effect and it helps the overall economy as well. >> here's the thing people need to pay attention to about the shrinking middle class. this new data from the commerce department is showing that the gap between the rich and the poor is expanding. the median american income at $50,000, down 1.5% from last year. what does that do to the psyche of already pessimistic americans in this country? especially young people, the college graduates out there, who are nervous. i mean, even in a good economy, it's nerve-racking to step out on your own? >> right. one of the things you see here is what growth we have achieved

has largely flowed to those at the top of the scale. some benefits have helped at the bottom, as we described. in the middle, no the a lot of support. you saw the decline in median household income in 2011. now, a lot of that has to do with the economy that hasn't proved since then, and some of the numbers suggest that college grads are finding more jobs, that the median family is perhaps doing a bit better in 2012 than they did last year, but still, a long way to go there, and it's really a very long-term trend where there's been a real disconnect between over economic growth and the listening standards of the middle class. call it income and equality. >> an msnbc contributor, thank you. developing now, talk about the space shuttle "endeavour" on its very final flight and people in california invited to watch. the shuttle just lifted off for a 4.5 hour aerial tour of the golden state. "endeavour" heading north towards sacramento before

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apple workers counted down the final seconds before the new smartphone went on sale today. customers lining up, camping outside apple stores, sometimes up to a week in advance for this. one of the first people to buy the iphone, seems happy enough about it. >> i just played around for five minutes now. it's super fast. yeah. first thing you know, it's very light. i have the 4g and, it's way lighter. and even though it's taller, you don't really feel that's bigger, because the palm pack is really good. like it so far. >> stephanie gosk is live for us in new york outside of one of the main apple store there's. stephanie, talk about the crowds and also the big differences with the iphone 5 so many people want it? >> reporter: hey, thomas. there's been a steady crowd here on the corner of central park. people have been flowing through. takes about an hour to go to the end. apple has it down to a science. as you say, there have been complaints. the principle about the phone itself, this new jack that apple

put in there meaning you have to buy adapters to speakers and other thing. kpeem complaini people complaining about that. and also a new operating system which removed going's maps, you know is a favorite app people use, and replaced it with an apple version. the problems have been, well, they're hard to count at this point. people have been talking about putting in addresses aened being posted to places that don't actually exist. the actual visuals, 3d visuals are messed up, but the one thing that actually has got a lot of people's attention, the town on avon, where william shakespeare was born is actually under water, according to this new app apple's put in there. i can't imagine they would be too happy to hear that. >> stephanie, explain. i'm a blackberry guy and an old school like that. whip the iphone app, the google map not being there, can't you get that downloaded now? it may not been standard, but can't you get it back on this

new 5 gadget? >> reporter: you can access it through the internet, but there's not an app that's set up to work with it yet. if that makes any sense. so the apps are what make everything much easier. they connect to the internet but are built to the phone itself. you can go online and use going's maps. slower and a bit more cumbersome for people. >> launch out through safari and get to google maps that. >> reporter: by the way, i have a blackberry, too. don't feel too bad. >> see? we're old school like that. stephanie gosk, thank so much. appreciate it. debate season is heating up meaning congressional candidates across the country are facing off against each other. right now two candidates are matching up in one of the most heated races in country. todd akin and the verbal comeback between claire mccaskill, getting under way with opening states. sparked a recent uproar over the

controversial comments on rape and abortion. akin kept peace with mckavg ccc. >> thank you to the press association. it is great to be here and thank you to both todd and jonathan for being here today. this election's going to be quite a contrast for you missourians, but not because we're at opposite ends, todd an todd and me. i'm in the middle. it's just he's so far on the fringe that's where the contrast comes in. there have been many comments made in this campaign by congressman ache kin that i find unacceptable but it's his views that will be painful for missourian families. i'm proud of my strong record where i have worked with many republicans to do important things like cutting spending. >> listening to the opening comments of claire mcskas kill.

todd akin began a flashpoint for the conversation about a woman's right to choose when he made those remarks about forcible rape. but it should be a very interesting debate taking place this morning in columbia, missouri. we'll follow it for you and expecting some fireworks so we'll bring that to you when we see them. last night in virginia tim cane scared off with his rival george allen. he asked allen what he thinks about romney's comments on the 47% and kaine about his position about a minimum tax requirement for all americans? >> do you believe everyone in virginia should pay something in federal income tax. >> you think nearly half the country see themselves as victims bau because they're too -- >> i looked very positively at the people of virginia and america. >> would you disagree with governor romney on this point? >> i have my own point of view and my point of view is people of america still believe in the american dream. >> then in the closely watched

massachusetts senate race senator scott brown wasted no time going after his challenger elizabeth warren. the candidates were asked right off the bat about their opponent's character and brown took immediate aim at warren's claim to native american heritage. >> professorer warren claimed she was a native american, a person of color, and as you can see she's not. that being said she checked the box. >> i believed my mother and my father and aunts and uncles and never asked anybody for any documentation. i don't know any kid who did. >> that was the first of four different debates. we're back right after this. [ male announcer ] you like who you are...

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welcome back. up to speed on the breaking news, the situation out of pittsburgh on the hostage. right now police are negotiating or the host j taker, negotiating with a man who's taken one hostage in an office building and learning more about the suspect. 22-year-old klein michael thaxton reportedly, get this, updating his facebook page

according to the reporting of the associated press about what he's doing. thaxton wrote he's tired of the life that he's lived and has lost everything. he's allegedly armed with a gun and two duffel bags. no word on what is inside them but he did go into an office of an investment bank apparently or investment offices. police brought the suspect's mom as you see there to the scene to help with negotiations. that's going to wrap up things for me today. thanks for your time. see you back here on monday at 11:00 eastern. "now" with alex wagner is coming up next. hi, alex. >> we love a friday edition at 30 rock, thomas. with just 46 days to go we're following the campaign rat ta tat. president obama makes a pair of confessions while governor romney tries to fend off grand old problems. have the conservative chattering classes turned on their nominee and my conversation with burmese pro-democracy icon and nobel laureate aung san suu kyi, her thoughts about two decades under house arrest and human right

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