hold a press conference with an update on whether in fact the identity of the charred human remains found in yesterday's burning cabin in big bear are those of fugitive ex-police officer christopher dorner. this dramatic scene nearly stealing thunder from the president's state of the union address. went down in flames after he tied up two maids at one cabin and fled leading law enforcement in a car chase through the woods and engaged with a shootout with authorities twice. and this after barricading himself inside another cabin. here's what a man carjacked by dorner said this morning. >> he came up to me with his gun pointed at me. i stopped my truck, put if in park, raised my hands, e he said i don't want to hurt you, just start walking up the road. 10 seconds after that, i was walking up the road and heard gunfire. >> we'll start with team

coverage with miguel almaguer in california. also clint van zent, former fbi profiler is going to join the conversation. we want to start with miguel. the big question remains about with when we all will have positive i.d. on whether or not this the dorner. what are we hearing from police? >> reporter: well, it's going to depend on the body, but we have been told it could take days if not weeks to get positive forensic identification. but multiple sources told nbc news they believe it is the suspect, christopher dorner, who has been on the run now for six days. it was at the center of the six-day man hunt. they believe it's dorner for several reasons. there were several witnesses that saw dorner in this area right before the shooting. >> miguel, let me interrupt a second. the police conference just started. let's listen in. >> first off, i want to just express the extreme sorrow of

our department for the members of the sheriffs department who lost a deputy yesterday in the tragic incidents that unfolded in the mountains of san bern dee know. there's a lot of apprehension today in any kind of celebration because this is not a celebration. this has been a trying time over the last couple weeks for all of those involved and all those families, friends and everybody that's been touched by this dorner incident. again, i would like to express our deepest sympathy from our department. our hearts and prayers go out to the families of those deputies injured and killed yesterday. with that, let me give you some brief -- bring you up to state. the investigation into the dorner incidents and the

homicides related to this will continue. that will continue until investigators have completed everything they need to do related to that. the task force is still in place. they will work until there's nothing left to be done. there's still quite a bit of work to be done on this. what transpired in san ber na dee no is being investigated so i have no comments on their investigation at this time. i can't tell you that the lapd has now moved back into a normal state of police operation. that began late last night and will continue now as far as normal patrol operations. the protective details, some of those are still in place. those will remain in place until the department and those protect tees feel safe.

as you know, until that investigation is concluded and we have any type of positive identification on what transpired up there, we still have some individuals in this department who are still in great fear. when your life and the lives of your family are placed in jeopardy and threatened with death, that's quite something to deal with. so we have approximately a dozen or so of those protective details that will remain in place at this point. all other resources have been returned to their normal functions. the city has not been on any tactical alert since early yesterday morning. we will remain in that status until further. at this time, that's all i have in terms of the investigation. if there are some questions related to the dorner investigation that i'm able to answer, again, i'm not able to comment on anything related to san bernardino.

we have homicide investigations. the fact that the incident transpired yesterday, we won't speculate at this point whether that is christopher dorner or not, but even if it was to be christopher dorner, again, we have a case to close. just because arrest warrants were issued and charges were filed in riverside, there's still a case pending in irvine of the double homicide. there's still much work to be done. we just don't stop an investigation because the suspected individual may no longer be available. >> say that again. >> how long will it take for a positive identification? >> again, that will depend on the condition of the body that's

recovered. it will depend on the forensics that are available and the laboratories that are available. i would not make any assumptions right now, but again, those types of identifications can be expedited in these types of circumstances, and i'm sure everything will be done to do that. right now, this is a san bern d bernardino case. the incident that involved and the shooting and body discovered will be announced by the county sheriffs. >> as far as the reward goes, is that still on the table? and who would be entitled to the reward? >> what are the requirements? >> that will be determined by the city attorneys that are involved. the issuance of a reward, again, is for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of an individual. this is sort of an unusual circumstance.

certainly, there was information that was provided that was very beneficial yesterday and that will be examined and evaluated by the people who deal with the rewards. the los angeles police department does not issue rewards. so we are not in the reward business. those are outside entities that issue those rewards in an effort to support the investigation. >> beyond the emotional and psychic toll of losing officers and deputies, has there been any calculation of the financial cost of all of this? >> not as yet. i don't have any cost estimates in terms of what this particular investigation has cost to this point. i'm sure at some point those figures are an estimate will come out. >> how far will the investigation go? >> our investigation will continue until the investigators have been able to bring their case to a conclusion. a lot of that will deal with the

district attorney's office and making sure that we have covered every base. there are still witnesses o out there. the thousands of clues that -- we have many are related to the investigation and the murder. and multiple murders. so those witnesses still are key pieces that need to be resolved in terms of the investigation and documented. we don't just stop a murder case simply because we think that the suspect in that case is no longer with us. >> when you said officers are still in great fear, do they it doubt that this is over? >> again, if it were your family placed in jeopardy, not knowing for certain that the person that was threatening your family is no longer around and the threat no longer exists, that's a concern. so there are some families who are literally traumatized.

they have young children. they have people who have schools that their kids go to and there's great fear still. that's a trauma they have to recover from. i don't have any information related to accomplices or any other person's involvement. those are parts of this investigation we have to examine and look into. >> can you comment on what the feeling was like? >> like many of you, we were listening on local internet channels that allowed us to monitor aid owe frequency. it was horrifying to listen to that fire fight and to hear those words officer down is the the most gut wrenching experience you can have as a police officer. because you know what that me

means. and tragically, we learned that it truly meant just that yesterday. >> i'm not going to go into that. we're in the early stages as the chief has mentioned of re-exami re-examining the allegations that are in the manifesto. so this is not the time that we're going to discuss that until we have more information on that. >> do you have information on what caused the fire? >> i don't. again, anything related to san bernardino needs to be addressed with them. >> what kind of information did they keep on the former officer? >> just like in any investigation death where identification has to be made, that's all done through the coroner's office. the coroners have access to all sorts of records, not just those

related to employment. certainly lapd does not keep dental records when you come on the job. so there will be other measures that will be sought after to identify that individual. >> getting our first update this morning after that amazing and dangerous fire fight that took place yesterday in big bear, california. but the lapd giving details over how law enforcement and frnzic operations unit will take care of the proper identification of the body that was found inside that cabin. the body that they believe to be of christopher dorner. miguel almaguer is joining us still from california. we have nbc former profiler clint van sant in the

conversation. r they are putting that we need to wait for the results of the identification. >> yes. as they mentioned in the press conference, it seems they are going to try to expedite this as soon as they can. dental records would be the easiest way for officers to positively identify that the suspect is in fact dead. there were several eyewitnesss that said they saw christopher dorner. we spoke to a man who was carjacked who said he was certain it was christopher dorner. the same man that officers say they chased into that cabin where they later found a body. but police need the positive identification. they will look for dental records. they will try to expedite that to make that happen as quickly as possible. at this hour, they are still protecting the 50 families that dorner had threatened. >> the men and women in uniform, just yesterday taking out

another deputy of the force. clint, let me talk to you about that. it seems they are working with caution to make sure those listed, these 40-plus families and colleagues, former colleagues of dorner listed in that manifesto are still under that protective order. . as we heard from lapd, they are living in fear still. >> the worst case would be obviously dorner still out there. but i think 99.9% probability that he's dead. then the next challenge is any co-conspirator, anybody who may have been assisting him, working with him, who would for lack of any other term would be crazy enough to try to continue what he was doing. law enforcement needs to satisfy themselves that christopher dorner was really a lone wolf domestic terrorist and wasn't working with anyone else and no one else is going to follow behind him and try to take some

action against these officers or their families. >> clint van zandt, thank you. and our thanks to miguel almaguer. thanks so much. if we get more information, we'll bring it along to you. to our other big story. the day after the state of the union and the president now taking his message on the road. air force one scheduled to land this hour in a matter of minutes. the presidential road trip over the next few days will take him out of the white house and on to north carolina, georgia and chicago. his message to turn it into action on his ambitious agenda. an agenda that relies heavily on the economy. >> let's set party interest aside and work to pass a budget that replaces reckless cuts with smart savings. let's agree to keep the people's government open and pay our bills on time. it's not a bigger government e we need but a smarter government. >> the president's sweeping

speech met with stoney faces including house speaker john boehner who came out blasting the president moments ago. >> last night the president offered up more of the same. higher taxes and more stimulus spending. weeks away from the president's sequester and the president laid out no plan. >> the speech we got was par for the course. very liberal, fairly partisan. >> does president obama's post speech tour and his message last night signal a commander-in-chief whose second term strategy is with or without you. >> he sure as heck wasn't trying to bring both sides together. his political calculation last night was i'm never going to e get the republicans to work with me. >> the message of the speech to my ears was speaking over the heads of congress and to congress saying do your job. >> connecticut democratic

senator chris murphy joins us. by far the most unforgettable moment was the president's call to action on gun control. heard by an audience of gun violence survivors and families who lost loved ones. >> hadiya's parents are in this chamber tonight along with more than two dozen americans whose lives have been torn apart by gun violence. they deserve a vote. [ applause ] they deserve a vote. gabrielle giffords deserves a vote. the families of newtown deserve a vote. the families of aurora dezersera vote. the families of oak creek and tucson and blacksburg and the countless other communities ripped open by gun violence deserve a vote. >> it was dramatic and with the people that were guests of elected leaders, people who

suffered through gun violence, we saw a lot of our elected leaders wearing the green ribbons in reference to newtown. all this was going on as we look at what was taking place on the west coast, the man hunt for christopher dorner almost overshad overshadowing the president's state of the union address. do you really think that as we look at where we stand and with our elected leaders and the problems on the hill that we will get what the president wants, a vote? these families will see a vote come to the floor? >> i think we will get a vote. and i think we'll get a vote because newtown changed everything in this country. there were a lot of people wearing ribbons on the floor of the house of representatives last night. they were republicans and democrats. the nra said yesterday they were going to wait for the newtown effect or the connecticut effect to dissipate before they went back to lobbying. it's not going to dissipate. the fact is that this nation has been transformed. i think the president was right to say, listen, republicans can't hide from this.

they need to call a vote on the floor of the senate and house and tell the american public what side they are on. if republicans want to be the party of assault weapons, of high-capacity magazine clips, they are on the wrong side of the american public and the wrong side of history. so it was a fiery speech last night, but as i looked around that chamber, i had i had a lot of hope we were going to meet his challenge. >> we have heard from many republicans who took to interviews to explain their positions. take a listen to this. >> i'd like to see a proposal that works. the thing its they have outlined, none of them would have prevented what happened in connecticut. >> we shouldn't paper over the sincere problems. i'd hate to see us miss this opportunity to do that and instead recycle failed policies of the past. >> let's have the debate. let's have it out there. let's talk about what the the constitution says and what the bill of rights is. >> so if we look at what the

supreme court has said has recently as 2008 in the heller case saying we have a right to bare arms, but there can be restrictions on them. is the work done for you and do you think that the senate democrats in the senate can formalize and get something done through harry reid? it seems to be the honous is on you. >> there are republicans and democrats needing to talk about bipartisan consensus on background. chec checks. i think we can get some of that consensus as well. senator rubio and others who say that the proposals on the table wouldn't have changed what happened in newtown are wrong. they are absolutely wrong. if that young man didn't have 30 round ammunition magazines, there would be little boys and girls alive. i'm not the only one that believes that. the families of the kids believe that as well. the fact is that these have become weapons o of mass destruction. they give a false sense of courage to these mass murders who might not walk into these schools and religious

institutions and movie theaters if they didn't have the fault weapon in the first place. and without those clips if they walk in, they wouldn't do as much damage. these people who say that these changes and laws wouldn't have made a difference in newtown, they don't know the facts. >> do dwrou think something big and bold can be done or something small like universal background checks? >> i think it's okay to move incrementally. if we started with background checks and moved to other more serious issues like bans on high-capacity magazines, that's okay too. there's a moment in time right now where we can pass something bigger. i'm going to push for the biggest, most comprehensive bill possible. but i haven't been around this place that long, but a lot of things move piece by piece. i don't think the connecticut effect, as the nra calls it, is disappearing. so if we don't get everything we want, the people of this country are still going to be demanding

action. and unfortunately, i don't think we have seen the last of it. what we're watching in california now is just another example of the destructive power of guns in this country. that's not going away unless we tackle this on a lot of different fronts. >> thank you. for your time, sir, i appreciate it. next up, the fight for voting rights. 102-year-old woman becoming a symbol of voting problems. a woman who waited e three hours and got a special mention by the president last night. the reverend al sharpton joins me next. plus the pope holding his final mass now. our question of the day to you, will emotional appeals like the one we saw at the state of the union address push congress to act on gun control? tweet me your thoughts or find us on facebook. yes! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues... with three strains of good bacteria. [ phillips' lady ] live the regular life. phillips'.

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she was told to wait to vote might be six hours. as time tikd by, her concern was not her tired body, but whether folks like her would get to have their say. hour after hour, people stayed in line to support her. because she's 102 years old. and they erupted in cheers when she finally put on a sticker that read, i voted. >> president obama using the story of a 102-year-old woman to highlight the importance of voting rights. he's proposing a bipartisan commission headed up by people from his and mitt romney's presidential campaigns to come up with ways on cutting down on voting times. joining me is al sharpton. it's good to have you. you had a late night last night. let's talk about the estimated number 200,000 voters in florida

that got turned away because of the long lines. the hours of waiting, what do you think? what do you make of a bipartisan committee put together by the president's team, mitt romney's people to look at this issue? >> i think it's a good move. i would, of course, the devil would be in the details as we see what the commission, who else will be on it, what teeth it would have. but it's absolutely necessary. when the president highlighted the 102-year-old lady, i was in florida chapter with the bishop. it was part of those that kept driving people out. he had a thing called operation lemonade. we would have had more than 200,000 people turned away if you hadn't had the efforts of those activists in florida. i know firsthand what he's doing as president with this commission is needed. but we're kboing to need some

tangible, con crete things from this commission that can be enacted, which is why by making it bipartisan is a wise move. it has to come from a way we won't get into partisan bickering. >> too few poll iing places, la of training, voters with disabilities, voters who may not be fluent in english, do you think, especially as we use florida as an examp, the proble went into who was governing florida and trying to restrict voters. do you think that just because its bipartisan that's going to erase all the problems coming up in four years? >> no. first of all, some of the problems were manufactured. because had they not cut down on early voting days, had they not stopped sunday souls to the polls, they changed that, you wouldn't have had as long as lines. all you have to do is correct

away they took out. now the problem is that if you have a bipartisan commission that say let's agree on extending the early voting days back to where they were or even more, let's agree the sunday before primary day or election day letting people vote, in a bipartisan commission, it gives a problem for a republican governor in florida or ohio or wherever to say a bipartisan commission is being unfair. now it did you want mean they have to abide by it, but it certainly gives them more of a problem than saying they are standing up to a partisan democratic strategy. >> it makes it tougher. so jonathan capehart had a piece in "the washington post" that brought up one thing the president did not address. "advocates wanted president obama to say a word about poverty in his state of the union. he did four times, but he didn't say the magic words. he didn't call for a new national commission on children to combat child poverty in the

united states." do you think the state of the union went far enough in addressing the true issue of poverty? >> when you look at the fact that the president to most people surprised came out for minimum wage being raised to $9 an hour, he talked about pre-k and how to bring poor kids into a level of educational pair dirks he talked about how he we bring poor people into the middle class, clearly i think he addressed the issue of poverty. now children's poverty and the issue and the mammoth problem it is is something we need to address. a lot of people were saying he had given so much that clear ly he would have covered another hour. i think he clearly put on the national agenda that we have a problem with poverty in this country and his administration is going to deal with it and we have to make sure that's going to happen. >> al sharpton, thank you as

always. thanks again. here's a look at some of the stories topping the news now. a special ash wednesday in vatican city, two days after announcing his resignation he delivered his final ash wednesday mass. today's mass is his last major catholic celebration as pope. the frightening ordeal for people aboard a cruise ship is g getting worse. passengers are reporting that the toilets are overflowing with human waste and there's a shortage of food on board. carnival's ceo is down playing the situation saying they are making it as comfortable as possible as they wait for the ship to be towed. across the pond, the royal family is striking back after a gossip magazine published pictures showing a bare baby bump. the fphotos were a clear breech to privacy. this is the same magazine that published nude photos of the

duchess in september. so here we are. we are premiering a new segment, producer's pick. today's pick is by, the fix wasn't in. we voted on this. so vivian jolie-pitt. the 4-year-old was paid $3,000 a week for her role in a movie. siblings have small roles. mom is one of the movie's producers. the runner up today, if you need a gift for your valentine, bacon-scented roses. the scent lasts for a couple months. not in my house! ha ha ha! ha ha ha! no no no! not today! ha ha ha!

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that committee. and the senate finance committee holding jack lew's confirmation hearing. patrick donnahue is being questioned about the post office's financial troubles. and military officials testifying before the armed services committee about the potential impact of the sequest sequester. we have our eyes on all of it for you. we'll keep you posted. the president is less than an hour away from his first post state of the union remarks in north carolina. we want to bring in and say good morning to our state of the union post game political power panel, and it's a good one. michael crowley for "time" magazine. the cover was on the man who gave the republican response. and karen finney, also a columnist for the hill. it's great to have all four of you here. a mega panel. may r your reid, the president has left washington, d.c. taking his message on the road.

stops in north carolina, georgia, and chicago on friday. what do you think the president's strategy is of getting out of d.c. right away? >> to keep the energy up and the pressure on. that's where the president's supporters are. instead of being bogged down, we wants to go over the united states of america communicating directly to the american people. we think it's going to be very effective. it's already showing results. >> what was the biggest take away for you last night? >> well, the biggest take away is the president wants up or down votes. so regarding immigration, he wants a bill, he wants it on the floor of the senate in an up or down vote. so the american people are going to know where our elected officials stand once and for all. so his push to make sure that his ideas get a fair hearing in congress was the most powerful and clear part of this speech for me.

>> so karen, a lot of people are talking about the middle class and the conversations about our economy. there is a really interesting, i guess, dynamic of the reaction today. take a listen to the president from last night. >> the true engine of america's economic growth. a rising, thriving middle class. build new ladders of opportunity into the middle class. prosperi prosperity, broad, shared, built on a thriving middle class. a growing economy that greats middle class jobs. >> so ezra cline in "the washington post" says what's most noticeable what wasn't in it. it was difficult to come up with a favorite by obama's party but left out of his speech. the speech included the politically possible and implausible. as we talk about the middle class and the fact that the president continues on this fair shot strategy of saying that everybody needs to get their fair shot, are progressives

doing enough to prove that trickle down doesn't work and it's a trick to get their message across? >> absolutely. the president went into last night with the advantage that a majority of the american people agree with him on these ideas. and one of the things i thought he did effectively, a lot of those ideas like some of the ideas with high school and education talked about how to we weave in the higher education community and the business community? some of the infrastructure pieces he talked about, how do we engage the business community. he talked about weaving parts of society together to create this broader whole. these are ideas republicans have supported in the past. they enjoy broad support among the american people. and i think he did that knowing that some things, as he said, if you don't act, i'm going to go ahead and get done what i can get done. it's a good thing. part of the goal of the state of the union is to be aspirational

and this is where we're going. >> all right. when we look at this, john, let's look at what we're getting from the right and how much they are willing to work with the president, especially with march 1st, the sequester looming. take a listen to kevin mccarthy. >> we're more than willing to work with the president on any issue he wants to work on. but to be frank, we're kind of tires of being charlie brown and having lucy pull the football out from under us. >> is that an earnest reaction? kind of moving the goal line every time. >> i do. i think often times the president only gives rhetoric he wants to help. last night's speech was clear. he proclaimed that the era of big government and maybe more troubling that government knows better than anybody else is back. and what republicans aren't going to do is roll over when we have a $16 trillion debt and watch him spend more and raise taxes more to pay for it.

>> we got that official response last night was pretty telling for marco rubio. their reaction already crafted within minutes. take a peek at their reaction to responding and their idea that obama wants more money from us, more taxes. >> his solution to vir yulely every problem we face is for washington to tax more, borrow more and spend more. the idea that more taxes and government spending is the best way to help hard-working taxpayers is an old idea that's failed every time it's been tried. >> michael, are republicans setting up the the fact that the president has gone to the well once to get some revenue and it's not going to happen again? entitlements are going to be on the table. major cuts are coming. >> sure. and that's the same message they have had for awhile. what struck me about the response last night was how familiar it was in a lot of ways.

it was really essentially what mitt romney was saying on the campaign trail for about 18 months. and it was not the winning message. i think one key difference was the presenter. rubio pointed out he still lives in the middle class neighborhood he was born in or grew up in. he had $100,000 in student loans, which he only recently paid off. so he didn't inherit wealth. it seemed to be this attempt to say i'm not a guy like mitt romney born with a silver spoon in my mouth. but the ideas were basically the same. so what i'm wondering is whether the republican party is prepared to e rethink its message or whether they are coming to the conclusion that the problem they had was their messenger and that if you can have messengers like rubio who are closer to americans, they will have a better shot at being heard. that remains to be seen. >> one thing i'm getting past is mitch mcconnell's reaction today. i want to read part of it.

roughly an hour ago saying an opportunity to bring the country together instead became another e retread of lip service and liberalism for a democratic president entering his second term it was simply unequal to the moment. mitch mcconnell is one of the first people that was on record saying let's make president obama a one-term president. we get back to thinking the fever just ain't broken, is it, karen? >> no. mitch mcconnell probably wrote that last week. it's a pretty predictable response. particularly given that the president started out talking about here are the things we have to do together. it's our job in this chamber, it's our job as the american people to do these things together. simil similarly in his inaugural address, he talked about what we can do together. one other point that's important. he reframed the notion of the conversation about how we look at budgets and deficits away

from big versus small to smart versus stupid, if you will, in terms of what are smart investments? investing in our children we know is great gains and saves us money. that reframe is also very important way to relook at the way we're going to proceed with this conversation. >> quickly, i have to show the water bottle moment from marco rubio and ask all of you, in one word, define what went through your head when you saw this. john, i'll start with you. >> i was waiting for an announcer to come on and ask "got milk" and it would have been a good ad. >> ouch. >> mayor? >> funny. >> michael? >> awkward. but also sympathetic. >> i sympathize with spittle. i have a problem with that too. thanks to all of you. the president is going to be giving live remarks at the top of the hour.

we're going to cover it for you here on msnbc. so it's the sequester showdown just over two weeks until the cuts go into effect. last night president obama called it a bad idea. maxine waters, ranking member of the house financial services committee, joins me coming up. [ male announcer ] need help keeping your digestive balance in sync? try align. it's the number one ge recommended probiotic that helps maintain digestive balance. ♪ stay in the groove with align. ♪ need help keeping your digestive balance in sync? try align. it's a probiotic that fortifies your digestive system with healthy bacteria 24/7. because your insides set the tone. stay in the groove with align. [ nyquil bottle ] just reading your label. wait...you relieve nasal congestion? sure don't you? [ nyquil bottle ] dude! [ female announcer ] tylenol® cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion. nyquil® cold and flu doesn't.

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so president obama is urging congress to avert the sequester with the round of cuts that will go into effect if they can't come to a disagreement. in reaction, republicans said it's going to happen. >> the fact is we're going to have a sequestration. there's going to be some pain because the politicians on the hill aren't going to make smart decision about alternatives to this until they start feeling some pain. it's a stupid way to govern, but that's the way we're doing it right now. i would say that blind eyes on everybody's shoulders. >> so elected leaders plan tor a

poison pill and we might have to take it. joining me is maxine waters, the ranking member of the house financial services committee. representative, it's great to have you here. is the sequester, in your opinion, is this going to happen? are we going to take this poison pill as a country? >> i certainly hope not. every economist that you talk to will tell you that austerity does nothing to stimulate the economy. if we're going to get people working, put them back to work, if we're going to rebuild our roads and comply with the kind of program that the president laid out last night, we cannot be set back with sequestration. it will damage this country so badly. it will kill jobs, it will constrict communities, and so i'm hopeful that the republicans won't be foolish enough to go down this path of sequestration.

>> one thing our first team is putting out today is in reference to the speech. some hints saying, buried in this speech is something senate president didn't want to advertise but was placed in there where he's ready to compromise on the deficit. he called for cuts to medicare equal to what bowles simpson proposed. congressman, do you think that's where democrats are prepared to go? was that a hint to you directly face to face from the president on where he wants you to go? >> absolutely not. the members of my caucus that i'm talking with that have been engaged with on this whole question of sequestration have made it very clear that we want to stand in support of social security. we e do not want to diminish medicare in any way, shape or form. so we're going to stick to that. we're going to be advocates for

that. republicans would like if we allow them to cut social security as we know it. really to do away with medicare and medicaid. we know they don't seem to have the same compassion that we have about the least of these. and our seniors and those who expect their country to support them and to stand up for them, particularly in their declining years. so we have to fight for them. and i'm hopeful that this congress will not go in the direction of cutting medicare, certainly social security or entitlement programs. >> thank you for your time. >> you're welcome. >> so was elliot angle snubbed by the president? details in the side bar, next. ♪ alright, let's go.

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a presidential snub. hardly nod. it's time for the poly36 sidebar congressman eliot engel saves a prime spot as the state of the union unfolds so he can shake the president's hand when he enters the chamber. well, that didn't happen this year. >> eliot engel from the bronx, he's right there waiting to pounce. there he is, this his 25th time. >> oh! >> the president wept right by eliot engel who remains there on the aisle. >> it's like watching a sporting event, right? but congressman engle reportedly caught president obama as he left the chamber. and he tweeted no swing and a miss.

shook potus' left hand as i introduced. the first lady wore another of jason wu's dresses describing it as a 2013 organza dress. and the casting crew of the "beasts of the southern wild." they're going to answer questions from a.d. middle school and high school kids from d.c. and new orleans. including in this is the 9-year-old academy award nominee quvenzhane wallis. she was the star when she won the role in that movie. wallis is the youngest oscar nominee in history. that's going to wrap things up for me. joining me, representative van hollen, former representative murphy. and my colleague melissa

harris-perry is going to be here. and "now with alex wagner" is coming up. alex, you wore my favorite suit. have a good show. >> thank you, thank you, my friend. we're live in the nation's capital. we're wait for president obama's first comments following last night's state of the union. we'll bring them to you live from north carolina. plus, equality, fairness and populism. the president has doubled down on his analysis. we'll get analysis from chuck stein and mark liebowicz. and watergate 2.0 while mark and rand paul get feisty with the gop party. all of that starts in the near 180 seconds. s has oats that can help lower cholesterol? and it tastes good? sure does! wow. it's the honey, it makes it taste so... well, would you look at the time... what's the rush? be happy. be healthy.

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