a level playing field? >> mitt romney's some towns don't count tour, because freeport didn't count. >> that question plays out tonight in freeport, illinois. >> everybody should play by the same rules. >> sensata workers have played by the rules for years. helped the company become hugely profitable. and now they will pay the price. 170 families will now have to find work, health care, and retirement security someplace else. we'll show you the local impact and how republican economic policy has devastated the middle class all across the country. and the economic stakes in this election play out in freeport, illinois. the sensata plant is ground zero in the economic differences between governor romney and president obama. good evening, americans. welcome to "the ed show." great to have you with us tonight. from freeport, illinois.

tonight we are in the belly of the beast of mitt romney's economy. the story of the romney economy can be told with 200 jobs here in this small town of illinois, freeport. now, it's important to know, i think how all of this happened. we're going to tell that story tonight. it's important to understand the plea coming from the community to stop it. this is your new america, unless you do something about it. we came here to broadcast outside the sensata auto parts plant here in freeport. sensata closed the doors of the plant for the entire weekend. the entrances are barricaded. workers were told not to report. none of these workers will report to the factory when it closes in december. those jobs, they're headed a long way away. a place called china. we have a huge conversation going on in this country right now about jobs. the guy who wants to take the president of the united states' job, barack obama, mitt romney's

job, it's all about what is happening right here in america. today, the president said, mitt romney is trying to forget how his economic policies benefit the very rich like the owners of this factory. >> he's forgetting what his own positions are. and he's betting that you will, too. i mean, he's changing up so much and back tracking and sidestepping. we've got to -- we've got to name this condition that he's going through. i think -- i think it's called romnesia. that's what it's called. if you come down with a case of romnesia and you can't seem to remember the policies that are still on your website or the promises you made over the six years you've been running for

president, here's the good news. obama care covers pre-existing conditions. we can fix you up. we've got a cure. we can make you well, virginia. >> this disease is contagious. vice president joe biden says paul ryan, oh, he's come down with it. >> ryan's saying his budget doesn't decimate medicare and medicaid and eviscerate education. it's a little like mitt romney standing in an unemployment line in florida and turning to the guy and say, look, i didn't outsource your job, i offshored it. a spokesman for romney said the problem is vice president biden doesn't understand the difference between outsourcing and offshoring. tell that to the guy who lost his job because it went overseas. >> the vice president is right.

i want the romney campaign to come here and tell these people the difference between outsourcing and offshoring. i want to know if it makes a difference to workers like mike shrek who was not allowed to show up for his last day of work today. >> today is my last day working across the street at sensata, and a few minutes i'll be walking over to sign a few papers and hand them my badge and normally i'd be working tonight, but tonight they've shut down the plant for whatever reason. and i got the day off. so my last day's tonight. i got to walk over and sign a few things and get some of my personal items and then i guess 3:01 or 3:05 i'm unemployed. >> mike is unemployed and sensata has never been happier. the company made more than $500 million net revenue in the second quarter this year. it's an all-time record profit

for sensata. the sensata workers were arrested for demanding a severance package. the company made more money than it -- and this is how they want to repay the workers? sensata is exhibit a. in mitt romney's vision for america, it goes to the heart of what's wrong with mitt romney's plan. economic greed. bane kmin capital is a 51% owne sensata. mitt romney owns $8 million worth of those shares. mitt romney is lining his pockets with millions while swrob jobs are shipped overseas because there are people willing to work for less than $1 an hour. hold it right there. id like to know if these people work for $1 an hour, mr. romney, would you suggest keeping the plant here in free port, illinois? as ted kennedy said on the floor in 2007, when does the greed

stop, mr. romney? when does it stop? what do you want from these workers? how much more do you want to give to the wealthiest americans? well, you know what? romney, he won't even look at these people in freeport, illinois, in the eye. he won't do it. his every town counts bus tour refused to stop here in freeport, even though romney was just a few miles away. i guess we shouldn't expect, you know, more from a guy who thinks half the country doesn't take responsibility for itself. this is all part, my friends, of mitt romney's plan for america. he told us so when he helped create bain. >> bain capital is an investment partnership which was formed to invest in startup companies and ongoing companies. then to take an active hand in managing them and hopefully five to eight years later to harvest them at a significant profit. >> we not only need to learn the lessons of freeport, we need to prevent it from happening again.

democrats are trying to pass the bring jobs home act in congress. it would give tax incentives to companies bringing jobs back to the united states and end its tax breaks for those who are outsourcers. the bill was passed in the senate. it was passed in the senate, but the bill got, of course, another republican filibuster. now, how patriotic is it? the bill is exhibit a. in president obama's vision for america. the president understands why we can't surrender the middle class. >> when you think about the economy, i'm absolutely convinced when you look at the historical record that when middle class families do well, when there are ladders of opportunity for poor families to get into the middle class -- >> right. >> -- the entire economy does well. when a few folks are doing very well at the top and everybody else is getting squeezed the economy grows slower and that is the central issue in this election that we've got to make sure we address. >> so where are we?

where are we? we're coming down the stretch in this election. it will define where the country goes. i do not think a man who claims that he cares about the middle class can say he understands the economy if he profits from shipping jobs overseas. and advocates for it. if mitt romney looks at his portfolio, he's going to see how he's butchering the lifestyle of american workers. what about them? don't they count? i have a message for everybody who is watching "the ed show" tonight across america. if you have friends or relatives who plan to vote republican in this election, i want you to tell them about freeport, illinois, because freeport, illinois, is just a microcosm of what's happening across america. ask them if this is the america that they really want. ask them if it's morally correct for a multimillionaire making profits at record profits to fire all of these workers?

where's the moral component in this? fire all of these workers and just ship the jobs to china because instead of working for $17 an hour, we can get some people on the face of the earth to do it for $1. who's going to benefit? a very few people at the very top. ask them, when does the greed stop? are we going to be a country of the haves and the have nots? freeport, illinois, is all about that. get your cell phones out. i want to know what you think tonight. tonight's question. will mitt romney's economic policies destroy the american middle class? text "a" for yes, text "b" for no to 622639. you can always go to our blog at ed.msnbc.com. i'll bring you the results later on in the show. joining me now, congresswoman jan schakowsky of illinois and cheri bustos, a candidate for the illinois 17th congressional district running against representative bobby shilling. great to have both of you with

us here tonight. congresswoman, what's the future of these workers? >> welcome to romney world. this is the business plan that he has to put these people out of work and he says let's get tough on china? he's taking their jobs. they are training those chinese workers that are going to replace them. they've made -- romney, bain has made them, sensata has made them train those workers that are going to go over to china. you're right, ed. this is the central issue of this campaign. are we going to have romney world all across america? and by the way, they make auto parts. the reason they have made so much profit over at sensata is because barack obama saved the auto industry. mitt romney wanted it to go bankrupt. >> cheri, how do you build a campaign when things like this

are happening in your district? >> this issue is central to our campaign. i'm running against, as you said, tea partyer bobby shilling. let me give you an example of what he's done. there's a guy who's going to be on your show later today, tonight, tom gaulrapp. all he did was go to a town hall meeting, ask congressman shilling how he would vote on the bring americans home act. congressman shilling, he turned his back and walked away. and i think that is just a symbolism for a guy who's a tea party republican, how he treats workers like this. >> congresswoman, why won't republicans pass the bill to reward companies for bringing jobs back? >> because they are making a lot of money. their sponsors, the people who give campaign contributions are making a lot of money just the way mitt romney did by outsourcing those jobs. they benefit from the task breaks to outsource the jobs. they get tax deductions for the moving costs of taking all the things that were loaded up in

trucks and moving them to china. >> we clearly have two philosophies. >> absolutely. >> i mean, clashing on november 6th. >> we do. >> what do you say about moving the economy forward if you've got one party who won't help out? i mean, i know with all the obstruction in congress and everything that's gone on, but what's the future of manufacturing in america when you look at the number of jobs we have lost and we gained a few in recent years, but what's the future if this continues? >> well, it can't continue. the american people are sick of it. i call it sabotage, ed. every day in the congress, we have watched in the house of representatives the republicans sabotaging every single effort to put people back to work. to make the jobs stay in the united states of america. >> you think the democrats have done what they've had to do to turn this around? >> we have tried. they have voted 13 times against anything that would keep jobs in the united states of america. >> cheri, is the middle class at stake in this election in your opinion? >> oh, we've got to make sure we

elect the right members of congress who can stand alongside people like jan schakowsky and move things forward again. we have unprecedented gridlock. we're not moving our country forward. i'm ready to stand in there and look out for people. we've got the uaw here, we have the steelworkers here. we have to look out for the middle class. >> i want to point out this is a nonunion shop. so this was not a union issue. i mean, these people weren't trying to get more out of a company that made that kind of money. what does it say about an investor like mitt romney who has a pretty heavy stake in this company that won't step up, drives by, and what's it say about his greed and what it could do for america? >> you know, when these workers try and talk to people from sensata, some have gone to bain in massachusetts, they call out the guards. they have people in uniform guarding against these hardworking people. some of them been there four decades in that plant.

cheri's right. we have to elect people to the congress like cheri bustos who care about their people, about people in their communities, all across this country. >> how big a strain has this been on the community, cheri. >> it's hurtful. they're losing that -- these 170 jobs, think about how that goes out into the community. these are 170 and this is horrible for a town like freeport. >> cheri bustos, good luck to you. >> thank you, ed. >> coe @edshow and on facebook. we always want to know what you think. up next, american workers are losing their jobs while mitt romney is laughing all the way to the bank. we'll reveal the real romney economy and more when we come back in freeport, illinois. stay with us. i have a cold, and i took nyquil, but i'm still stubbed up. [ male announcer ] truth is, nyquil doesn't unstuff your nose. what? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus liquid gels speeds relief to your worst cold symptoms plus has a decongestant for your stuffy nose. thanks.

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coming up, sensata workers played by the rules but corporate ceos aren't playing fair. we'll look at how corporations like bain continue to put

profits over people, next. then, i'll talk to two sensata workers about the effects of the plant's closure. will have on them and their families. and what's happening to sensata is a snapshot of mitt romney's economic plan for america. later, my commentary on the moral obligation we have to rebuild the middle class in america. share your thoughts with us on facebook and on twitter using #edshow. and we will be right back. stay with us. [ male announcer ] you are a business pro. governor of getting it done. you know how to dance... with a deadline. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle... and go. you can even take a full-size or above, and still pay the mid-size price. this is awesome. [ male announcer ] yes, it is, business pro. yes, it is. go national. go like a pro. yes, it is.

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tonight. where americans are losing their jobs so mitt romney can pad his portfolio. bainport is an example of how romney and the republicans simply do not play fair with american workers. here's another example. 31-year-old colin small. he's a republican campaign worker. tonight he's charged with eight felonies were allegedly dumping voter registration forms into trash bags in harrisonburg, virginia. small worked for strategic ally consulting, same company accused of voter fraud in other swing states. the republican party of virginia fired small and says it won't tolerate any threat to the electoral process. yeah, right. this is how republicans, my friends, play the game through the legislative process in many states and by electoral fraud by individuals. they try to keep power in the hands of the powerful. the stakes couldn't be higher in

this election. and what's happening to these workers is a shining example of mitt romney's true financial philosophy. so let's talk business for a moment. the workers here in freeport, illinois, they make sensors. these kinds of gadgets help make your cars safe. they help make, you know, you get good gas mileage with your vehicle. bain capital took control of sensata technologies back in 2006. "the new york times" reports the company's stock has quadrupled in value. bain purchased the plant here in freeport in 2010, and at the very first employee meeting, bain told the workers that they were going to close up shop and move the plant to china. they didn't even give these workers a chance to be profitable even beyond what they have been profitable. it didn't matter how well they performed. they were done. it was over. so the city of about 25,000 people is closing what is really

considered in this town a major employer. bain is killing 170 jobs. you might think, well, that's not that many, ed. in a town like this, it's huge. the americans, you know what they did? these workers? they had to change the chinese replacements. the equipment, where is it? it's on its way to china. now, the employees have been protesting for months. the freeport city council sent a formal request, a formal request to mitt romney asking for help. they got no response. and it's no wonder, bain capital has a lot to gain in this deal. sensata leaves freeport with record profits after a boost from the automobile loan thanks to barack obama. their moving costs, you know what they are? they're tax deductible. the united states claims china also gives massive incentives to companies for moving overseas. it's totally illegal. now, according to "the new york times," mitt romney is personally turning a profit.

he reportedly donated at least $405,000 in sensata stock in his last two tax returns. while bain and romney line their pockets, here's a human cost to their decisions. bain is picking, they're picking chinese low-wage workers over american workers, after they had turned huge profits. sensata provided good jobs here in freeport, illinois. the starting wage is about $17. these workers, you know, they don't live like kings around here. freeport, average salary about $35,000 a year. more than 86% are high school graduates. i mean, it's a good life. it's middle america. compare it to sensata technology workers over in china, what it's like. labor advocates say that workers there make less than $1 per hour. 90% of the workers are women.

70% choose to work 12-hour shifts. two or three workers share a room. they get one day off per month. mitt romney, i wonder if he knows all this. you're damn right he knows it. you better believe he knows what's happening in china. he and other bain investors made more money by firing these workers, but during the debate, during the recent debate, oh, romney, he put on a sad face and really played innocent. >> and the place where we've seen manufacturing go has been china. china's now the largest manufacturer in the world. used to be the united states of america. a lot of good people have lost jobs. >>? mitt romney's world it's good business in good sense for americans to lose their jobs. if it didn't pay off, hey, he wouldn't do it. but it's not good business for america. and it doesn't make sense for our economy if we're going to be a strong country. so when you hear about sensata, i want you to keep this in mind. the company's website says the

word sensata actually comes from a latin word, it means those gifted with sense. let's just hope american voters show good sense on election day. coming up, the workers of sensata. where do they go from here? i'll talk with a few of them when we come back. stay with us. questions? anyone have occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating? yeah.

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welcome back to "the ed show" live from freeport, illinois. this is where decent hardworking folks are losing their jobs. i just can't report enough about it. thanks to the workers, sensata technologies became a very successful company. workers here played by the rules and helped the company make a huge profit. their reward, the plant's being shut down and their jobs are being shipped to china by bain capital. we can't say it enough. this is romney's economy. this is the way things are supposed to work in mitt romney's world. if mitt romney becomes the president, these workers will not only be facing loss of job, they could lose their health care, too. romney has repeatedly vowed to repeal the affordable care act, obama care, which would devastate millions of hardworking american, young adults would be kicked off their parents' insurance plans. folks with pre-existing conditions would be out of luck. and i have to ask you, how much more can american workers take? the way it's set up right now, if the republicans get control

of the government, they will take away what americans have worked for. they don't like obama care. they want to take away from people. they want to take away insurance from 30 million americans, take away insurance from people under 25 years old who could be on their parents' plan. take away insurance from people because they have a pre-existing condition. is that the america you want to live in? i'm joined tonight by two sensata workers. joanne is with us and also bonnie. i'm also joined tonight by fred redmond, international vice president for human affairs for the united steelworkers. great to have all of you with us here tonight. bonnie, you have had some health issues. what happens if your health care, if health care is repealed in this country? what happens to you? >> i will be -- i'm going to have a hard time finding a job now, and if health care's repealed, i won't be able to

continue the, you know, having the health care that i have right now. and i still have some issues with my back. so i probably will have them for the rest of my life. >> you know, what happens when health care gets repealed? it just doubles the problems you're going to have. bonnie, you're 23 years old. your daughter is on your health insurance. if she gets kicked off, what does that mean for her? >> it means she will have to use the state-funded insurance. the medical card for illinois. so, i mean, i'm not looking forward to that. and just in general, you know, losing my health care. >> joanne, you've been working at the plant for six years. you've got two daughters. you're worried about how you're going to be able to clothe them and feed them. is that what it's come to? >> pretty much so.

you know, there's nothing -- it's a town with 26,000 people. it's $7.7 million of income for this town that goes to the local barbers, the, you know, grocery stores. it's a trickle down effect. it's going to effect everybody. i don't know what i'm going to do. >> this town was thriving with sensata doing well, correct? >> yeah, with manufacture ring. >> if you had a chance to speak to mitt romney, what would you say? >> i would ask him why he's going around telling the nation that he's going to stand up to china when he's, a company he helped create and he still profits off of is sending my job to china and he's going to profit off of it. >> fred, are these stories typical? do you hear this wherever there's a plant shut down? >> we hear it wherever there's a plant shutdown, ed. we know in the steelworkers union all too well about bain capital.

we know what they did to our folks at fst steel in kansas city. we know what they did to our folks in marion, indiana. they came in, they took all the profits off the plant and put our people out of work. so this is typical. this is romney's world, as you stated. and this is the world that we got to stop. >> but mitt romney says he knows how this economy works. >> well, see, ed, this is part of a larger narrative. what's happening here in freeport. as we speak, bain capital have ten other investments in china. under mitt romney's watch, bain capital went into china in 1998 before we had the trade agreement with china. if there was ever such thing as the godfather or such thing as the poster child for offshoring jobs, it's mitt romney. >> how does -- you know, fred, how does america turn this around? >> well, what we do to turn it around is first of all we have to re-elect barack obama for president. and then, ed, and then, ed, we

have to support people in the congress, in the senate who are going to support the president's vision of not allowing tax breaks for outsourcing jobs and giving tax breaks to employers who want to keep jobs and make things here in america. that's what we have to do. >> joanne, what's your plan? what are you going to do? >> i'm probably going to end up having to move because there is nothing here. currently our unemployment office is closing. we just had another business close, kmart, so there's going to be nothing left here. >> you know, mitt romney has run around saying that barack obama doesn't understand the economy. yet there is another story in this town where the tire plant was saved because of what he did with china. fred, what about that? >> that's right. because of president obama putting tariffs on foreign tires coming into the country, we was able to save the plant here in freeport. >> so i want america to capture this.

romney's economic plan has played out by the shutting down of a plant here in freeport, illinois, but barack obama's policies in going after, being tough on china, has saved the tire plant in this town? >> and even had the nerve to call out barack obama and call him a protectionist when he saved the jobs around freeport and the country and the tire entry. ed, this is not a person who deserves to be president. this is not a person who's going to stand up for working families in this country. and what we have to do is expose mitt romney for what it is and do everything we can to re-elect this president. >> fred, joanne, and bonnie, great to have you with us tonight. thanks for stepping up and speaking to america. still to come on "the ed show," the local and national impact with the mayor of freeport, illinois, and john nichols will be joining me from "the nation" magazine. then the stakes in this election are sky high. freeport, illinois, is a prime example of the economic

differences between mitt romney and president obama. i will have a commentary coming up at the end of the program. stay with us. we're right back. i have a cold, and i took nyquil, but i'm still stubbed up. [ male announcer ] truth is, nyquil doesn't unstuff your nose. what? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus liquid gels speeds relief to your worst cold symptoms plus has a decongestant for your stuffy nose. thanks. that's the cold truth! keys, keys, keys, keys, keys. ♪ well, he's not very handsome ♪ to look at [ sighs ] ♪ oh, he's shaggy ♪ and he eats like a hog [ male announcer ] the volkswagen jetta. available with advanced keyless technology. control everything from your pocket, purse, or wherever. that's the power of german engineering. ♪ that dirty, old egg-suckin' dog ♪

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some laxatives like dulcolax can cause cramps. but phillips' caplets don't. they have magnesium. for effective relief of occasional constipation. thanks. [ phillips' lady ] live the regular life. phillips'. welcome back to "the ed show." we're in freeport, illinois. where a successful company built up by american workers, sensata technologies, is being dismantled and literally shipped to china. equipment's going, too. they want everything. closing this plant will have a ripple effect and freeport is not alone. since 2000, 5.5 million manufacturing jobs have been moved overseas, most of them going to china. that's because since 2000, 50,000, 5-0,000, factories have closed here in america. this week, the government released statistics on state unemployment rates over the past 12 months. think about the recovery. in almost every battleground

state, there has been a sizable drop in unemployment. in ohio, for example, the unemployment rate is at 7%. down 1.6% from a year ago. in the state of virginia, it's at 5.9%. in iowa, it's 5.2%. in nevada, it's still high at 11.8%. but it's come down nearly 2% over the past year. now, over the past year, 30 states have seen significant drops in unemployment compared to the national average. we could be doing even better with a stronger manufacturing base, as president obama is trying to implement day in and day out. we certainly would be doing much better if romney's economic model had not already killed off some great companies in this country. but, of course, it's all about profit. it's not about the people. they don't have the philosophy that people make the difference. there used to be a philosophy in this country that if you had good people and they stayed with

you and you stayed with them and you treated them right and you made money, america would work. but we're at an economic crossroads in america right now, asking the question, is this going to work? or are we going to become the country of the haves and the have nots? and are we going to be a country that is going to be run by the lobbyists and the corporatists and only a few billionaires who don't care about these workers? we're at a cross roads, america. let's bring in george gaulrapp, the mayor of freeport, illinois, and john nichols, washington correspondent of "the nation" magazine and author of the book "uprising." >> how you doing, ed? >> well, i'm doing great, but, you know, i don't feel good. i don't feel good being here visiting with these people knowing what they got to go through. what's it like. >> i wish you were here on better terms, ed. we have a company, we have a building, 200,000 square foot building a half mile from here, trisar metals purchased it in,

put in machinery. they have employees there. 98 employees. they're going to increase employment. next to it, snack king, they're adding 70,000 square feet of production and employee room. the reason they did this, ask jay mendell, president of tristar metals, because we have some of the best workers around. they're great workers. so why is it we have tremendous workers here who can compete globally, are intelligent, hardworking, great work ethics, why are they losing their jobs. >> john, what's happening across america? is freeport a microcosm of what's going on? >> every state in this country has a freeport. it may have a different name, but across this country, we have seen plants like this shut down. profitable plants full of hardworking americans who are ready to do the job. and the tragedy of it is that so many of them have been shut by bain capital. and there's a guy in the crowd tonight, dr. ray lindsay, he's

from southern illinois university, emeritus professor. he did a study of how many jobs bain capital has taken out, outsourced. more than 15,000. people who made products like mr. coffee, sunbeam. products we know used to be made in america now under the mitt romney model those jobs have been outsourced to china. >> your thoughts, george? >> well, it's a terrible thing. you know, we have asked governor romney, and president obama, to come to freeport. we are home of the lincoln douglas debate site. what a better place to debate than in freeport? >> lincoln and douglass. the lincoln/douglass debate, 1858, went for seven hours. would you be satisfied were seven minutes with mitt romney? >> we'd be satisfied with one minute. mitt romney, governor romney, is the architect of outsourcing. he created the model. so isn't he the person that can create the model to turn the

tide and bring jobs back to our company, our country? we just want to know what his plan is step-by-st by step-by-y that he says on campaign trail. >> you asked him to be here, the city voted about that. >> we had a resolution, sent out letters to both campaigns. we'd love to have president obama in freeport. we sent out letters, e-mails, phone calls. everything. we've gone on different talk shows like yourselves. to invite them here to freeport. i want to invite them. i want to hear what he has to say. >> john, what kind of impact could a story like this and what's happening across america, because there's clearly two philosophies between romney and president obama. what kind of impact could this have have? >> we have a debate coming up next week. the foreign policy debate. those are the highbrow ones. they don't talk a lot about american workers. this foreign policy debate coming up next week between barack obama and mitt romney needs to have a great big

section on outsourcing. and we need to talk about towns like freeport, illinois, because we're living in a global economy. they always say that, but they don't talk about how they're going to manage for americans in a global economy. this town's putting that issue on the national agenda and i'm so proud to be with these people tonight. >> george, what kind of -- what's -- how is this town going to transition through when i just had a worker up here worried about her kids, worried about feeding the family? i mean, this is a time when the community's really got to come together. >> well it's companies like tristar metals that believe in work et ethics, believe in the workers, they're going to keep them here. they're not going to outsource their jobs to china, unlike this company here in sensata. there's a payroll that comes into freeport to the sensata workers, spend their money at schools, churches, unitedway, all the the veevents.

they support the community. 20% goes to health care to support the hospital. these are terrible things when good hardworking people through no fault of their own lose their jobs. >> george gaulrapp, thanks for joining us. john nichols, always here on "the ed show." thanks so much. coming up, mitt romney's vision for america is on full display right here in freeport, illinois. my commentary on why the republican economic model is bad for our country. that's next. stay tuned. if we want to improve our schools... ... what should we invest in? maybe new buildings? what about updated equipment? they can help, but recent research shows... ... nothing transforms schools like investing in advanced teacher education. let's build a strong foundation. let's invest in our teachers so they can inspire our students. let's solve this.

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welcome back to "the ed show" live in freeport, illinois. i got one question for this crowd. what would you say to mitt romney in the wake of what's happened in this town? sir, what would you say to mitt romney? >> if transferring wealth to the top 2% created jobs wouldn't we be swimming in them already? >> i still want to see his tax returns. >> what would you say to mitt romney? >> the three of us here have been arrested defending american jobs. we're waiting. come on out here and talk to us. >> you want to talk to him? what would you say to him? >> save our jobs. >> what would you say to mitt romney? >> he's the devil's twin brother. >> mitt romney, tear down the outsourcing. >> bring back the jobs in freeport, illinois. >> what would you say to mitt romney? >> save my job. >> that's what you'd say to him? >> yeah, save my job. >> sir, what would you say to mitt romney? sir? >> help the people. >> help the people. help the people. how about you, sir? what would you say to mitt

romney? >> save my wife's job. >> i would tell him, please save my mom's job. >> what would you say to mitt romney? >> just be honest. be honest. >> you don't think he's been honest? >> not at all. no. >> not at all? >> nope, he's never been honest. >> what would you say? >> in the debate he said he'd bring back manufacturing jobs. why doesn't he start here? >> see the passion of the people in freeport, illinois. mr. romney, maybe you should come on over. see what the folks have to say. while your pockets are lined. all right. tonight, in our text question, i asked, will mitt romney's economic policies destroy the american middle class? 96% of you said yes. 4% of you said no. coming up, we're going to contrast the very two different visions for america. mitt romney's vision is on full display right here in freeport, illinois. up next, i'll make the case that we have a moral obligation in the voting booth on november 6th. stay tuned. we're right back. i have a cold, and i took nyquil,

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these american workers behind me have done the job. they played by the rules. they've worked hard. in fact, they worked so hard sensata brought in record profits last year. now, make no mistake, this is all about one thing. it's all about greed. this is horrible for these workers. it's horrible for this country. it's horrible for the future of america if this continues. what we're seeing here in freeport, illinois, is a microcosm of what a president mitt romney economy would look like for this country. mitt romney, he believes in this. he believes in outsourcing. he has no loyalty to american workers. romney has a stake in this plant across the street. the candidate has $8 million invested in a group that owns 51% of the sensata plant. mitt romney claims, oh, he understands the economy. but he shows little or no

understanding of what these families are going to be going through. romney has been campaigning for 18 months on a tax plan for what he says are the job creators that will reduce their taxes 20% on personal income, cut capital gains taxes, inheritance taxes and business tax. if romney becomes president, the rich are going to get richer at the expense of the middle class and the poor in this country. mitt romney, you know what he does? he talks a great game about china when he's out on the stump, but it's all talk. that's all it is. when it comes to jobs, they move to china because that's mitt romney's philosophy. mitt romney and his people believe in this economic model and they make money off it. it's that simple. that's it. it's all about the dollar. and on the other hand, president obama has a totally different vision for america. and he's proved it. because the president has cut taxes 18 times on small businesses to help the middle

class. president obama has been pushing hard to bring jobs home act. the bill that would, of course, provide a 20% tax break for companies moving jobs back to america. and it would help have penalized companies who would outsource jobs out of america. but guess who blocked all of that in the congress? the republicans. president obama has cracked down big-time on china. these are the facts. he has brought more cases against china than george w. bush did in two terms. in 2009, president obama put a tax on chinese tires. putting 1,000 americans back to work. mitt romney slammed the president for the move at the time calling it decidedly bad for our nation and our workers. our country has a very important moral decision to make on november 6th. mitt romney sees no problem with destroying jobs like the ones

here in freeport, illinois. romney's economic model has gone beyond profit into the land of the greedy. and shows no moral obligation to american workers. do you want mitt romney's vision for america? do you want mitt romney's america? an america where jobs are outsourced? where the rich play by a different set of rules at the expense of the middle class? or do you want the president of the united states to get another term in his vision for america where everyone plays by the same set of rules? this country, this country may be at a tipping point, and freeport, illinois, underscores what's happening all over america. conservative economic policies ship jobs to china so the wealthiest americans can benefit. and if you think that's fair for this country, then mitt romney is your man. if you don't believe in this model, then you have an advocate in a man who's in the white house, barack obama.

i am here tonight because i believe that this is the fundamental issue in this country. everywhere you go the republicans say, well, it's about the economy. it's about jobs. you're damn right it is. it's about freeport, illinois. that's "the ed show." i'm ed schultz. "the rachel maddow show "is coming up right now. and rachel, the folks of freeport want to say this to you tonight. ed, if i could teleport my way to freeport right now, i would do it. i'm there with you in spirit, man. that's so awesome. hello, freeport. so great. thanks, man. have a great weekend. woohoo. ed has the