chance on choice, women's right, gay rights. a fascinating story published yesterday takes us to ohio where a conservative advocacy outfit conducts focus groups with 20-somethings who voted for obama but were deemed within reach of the republicans until they play the word association game. for republican the focus groupers say corporate greed, old, hypocritical, narrow minded, rigid, racist, out of touch, hateful, 1950s. the article says young americans don't want to join a party that's on the wrong side of history. what's a young republican 2016 hopeful to do about the boulder between the gop and the white house? for rubio tupac is one small way to differentiate himself. to say i'm not out of the '50s. i'm modern and cool. what tupac is to rubio, rubio is to the gop. he's a human band-aid on a gaping bullet hole. most of his message is not that

much different from romney's failed assault on big government, but he's not an older white man so maybe this time it will work. but the gop doesn't understand that voters see through the window dressing. they see through the new face pushing old policies. they see through the tupac loving senator whose anti-gay marriage and pro-life and anti-science and pro gun rights and who voted against the violence again women rights. if pac were alive, he would be battling rubio and the rnc. all right. that does it for requesting the cycle." martin, it's yours. >> you've pumped us up. it's monday, february 18th. president's day and the president is about to return home to washington where republicans are waiting to greet him with a cold shoulder and a wet blanket. >> i'm in palm beach, florida,

not far from the president. >> the president of the united states sf supposed to lead. >> there's no leadership on the other side of the isle. >> if you want to look at ways to find $1.2 trillion in savings, look at obama care. >> the president was out golfing with tiger woods. >> they had a great time. tying ser a great guy. >> leaks don't happen in washington by accident. >> leaking this out does set things in the wrong direction. >> this is the president torpedoing his own plan. >> there are hot lights on you. you're wearing your lucky burlap unitard. >> who would you rather play golf with? >> senators john mccain and lindsey graham said they would not proceed with the nomination of hagel until the oaks provided more information about last year's benghazi attack. >> nobody is really talking about this story. >> what is the cover-up? >> then and only then will they return to the balcony seats on the muppet show. >> it wasn't rare and it certainly wasn't well done!

♪ it is president's day, an extra day of rest for millions of americans and count the president among those who could use it. in the next hour he's scheduled to board air force one and return from florida to washington and when he gets there, it's certain he'll be met with the same republican hysteria and overreaction to any policy that bears his name. and this afternoon it's immigration. yes, this comes after "usa today" obtained a draft of the policy that the white house has been working on in order to plot a pathway to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented immigrants currently living in the united states. the white house called it a backup plan just in case congress fails to produce a compromise on immigration reform that could pass both houses. apparently there's this rumor going around that congress couldn't tie its own shoelaces, let alone pass something as large and complex as immigration reform. at least not without another committee hearing on benghazi

and so the president has decided to plan for that possibility. much as he said he would last month. let me repeat that, much as he said he would last month. so cue the republican frenzy. >> leaking this out does set things in the wrong direction. >> this is the president torpedoing his own plan and shows me he's really not serious. >> does the president really want a result or does he want another cudgel to beat up republicans so he can get political advantage in the next election? >> no wonder if the man needed to play golf with tiger woods if these were your co-workers. don't just take my word for it. even newt gingrich has begrudgingly come to a similar conclusion. >> an obama plan led and driven by obama in this atmosphere with the level of hostility towards the president and the way he goads the hostility, i think it's hard to imagine that his bill is going to pass the house. >> nice haircut, newt.

let's go et to our panel. julian epstein is a democratic strategist and steve kornacki is in his second hour of broadcasting. he comes as the co-host of "the cycle." . "the new york times" says the white house is considering a decade long plan to map the human brain much like they did with the human genome. does that mean that republicans are now going to be against brains? even more than they have been already? >> i mean, look -- seriously. when is the opposition to this research going to be published? >> i think there is sort of an optimistic/machiavellian way of reading the dance we saw over the weekend with the white house kind of leaking this and republicans showing their ref x reflexive opposition. i think there is genuine will on the part of marco rubio and other republicans in an understanding they have to get to comprehensive immigration reform this year. the problem is there's tremendous resistance on the

base both to the concept of immigration reform and to the idea of working couldn't tioper with obama. what this does in a way is it allows rubio and allows some of the others who will have to cut a deal with obama or could have to cut a deal with obama to have that moment where, oh, no, this is presidential overreach, this is king obama, we're walking away and it can bring them back and it can in a round about way make it easier to eventually let them sell a compromise to their base. that's the optimistic way of looking at this. >> we're forgetting the greatest nonscandal of all time, benghazi. shouldn't congress xhond that tiger woods and his caddie appear before a committee because he might now know something about benghazi? >> this would be typical of the republicans. as we discussed the other day, this is a party that has lost three out of the last four elections starting with 2006, and at some point they're going to have to figure out how they can choose issue where is they can win the argument, and it's hard to think of in the last

year or even the last couple years where they have won the argument on a particular issue, and i think, you know, just to segway back to what steve said on immigration, i think at the end of the day this is an excuse a lot of republicans are looking for to walk away from the legislation. i think the leak was probably a mistake. at the same time the refrain you have heard from republicans constantly about this white house is where is their plan? where is their plan? it seems like crocodile tears now that they're complaining about a plan being leaked, but i think steve hits it on the nose here. the republicans are -- have forced themselves into this hobs hobson's choice where they have to cater to their base which represents 20% to 25% of the electorate at most or the rest of voters, the rest of the 75%, and it's very, very difficult for them to try to do those of two things at the same time. and at the end of the day they

understand that florida is becoming a blue state. texas is on its way to becoming a blue state. they understand that if they're going to keep catering to the base, that they are going to become a permanent minority party, and immigration is the perfect place to showcase this dilemma that they have no way how to kind of get their way out of this box they've put themselves into the corner of. what they're doing with complaining about the leak is they're just looking for some opportunity to walk away from this process. >> how about chuck hagel? i think we can confidently say that he will be confirmed as secretary of defense and that's not me saying it, that's republicans who are blocking him. here they are. >> we will have a vote when we get back, and i'm confident that senator hagel will probably have the votes necessary to be confirmed as the secretary of defense. >> but you're not a yes vote for your old friend? >> no. i don't believe he is qualified, but i don't believe that we

should hold up his nomination any further. >> so steve, does that mean that hagel is not the most leftist, iran-loving, israel-hating, possibly terrorist-linked candidate ever to be nominated as defense secretary? >> well -- >> can one interpret that in that way. >> it's interesting when he says not qualified. i'm curious what mccain means by not qualified because when you look at generally speaking when it comes to cabinet nominations, advise and consent, the idea is to ask tough questions but generally confirm unless there's a conclusion that the nominee is uniquely unqualified. you think of the only secretary of defense to go down, john to youer in 1989. there was talk that heavy drinking, womanizing. he was unqualified and unfit for the job. i'm tocurious what mccain means. that is grounds to vote against a nominee. it's not i disagree with him on this position. that is not grounds to vote against a cabinet nominee at

least historically but unqualified, unfit for the office is. that's a little bit of a strange statement. >> this is just a fabricated series of blockages and obstructions which have no substance in any kind of truth. if he's not qualified for defense, who is? >> yes. this is i think the cartoonization of john mccain if you will. this is the guy who believed sarah palin was qualified to be president of the united states, and so the attack on chuck hagel, who is a decorated veteran who served in the senate for many years, most senates think just the fact you held that office makes you qualified. there's always been a deference to fellow colleagues. again, i think this is the republicans grasping for issues and arguments so they can satisfy the base in a way that is offensive to i would say certainly all the democrats and many, many independents, and again it goes to the central point i make. the republicans at some point are going to have to pick an

issue that they can win a fight on. here not only are they going to lose the fight, but they have lost the argument in large part because the argument has consistently shifted. first it was about benghazi. then they conceded they had the information on benghazi. then it was this ludicrous argument that hagel is taking money from foreign enemies that has no support from any of his colleagues. finally as mccain said last week, it's a personal grudge. this is the gang who can't shoot straight in terms of prosecuting a set of arguments on a political issue that they will lose on, and this is a consistent pattern we've seen from republicans over the last year. >> what a way to mark president's day. julian and steve, gentlemen, thanks so much. coming up a very personal appeal from a president and father in the face of endless gun violence. stay with us. >> what makes you a man is not the ability to make a child. it's the courage to raise one. [ male announcer ] any technology not moving forward

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just moments until the president boards air force one and returns to the white house. he spent president's day weekend in the sunshine state and returns to a washington where congress has given itself the week off, even though the senate has yet to confirm a new secretary of defense. let's check in now with our white house correspondent peter alexander. pete, the president will return to washington tonight, largely absent any lawmakers. but on everything from guns to immigration to the sequester, there's no shortage of issues waiting for him to take on. how is he going to prioritize these in the days, the immediate

days ahead? >> reporter: it's a good question. sequester obviously is the most pressing issue that needs to become addressed. those $85 billion in spending cuts hit less than two weeks from now on march 1st. if congress were to try to attack the president for taking a three-day weekend, they don't have much to stand on given the fact that they are gone for this entire week. but i think the state of the union where the president said they deserve a vote and referenced the victims of gun violence i think could have been used for a variety of issues, on immigration, on guns, and on a variety of other topics the president will be dealing with. the white house is confident that they can handle more than one issue at once, although there's great belief that it's immigration that will likely be the first one they truly can get done. >> now, the senate can't take up the nomination of chuck hagel until it returns to work on february the 25th. now, we know that nato commanders are meeting in brussels this week for an important meeting about the future of afghanistan and we

will not have the future secretary of state for defense present. >> and that's a sincere frustration for administration officials, one of whom told me earlier today chuck hagel as was indicated by john mccain even yesterday on "meet the press" who said he wouldn't hold up his nomination any further, meaning that it could happen as early as next week, likely tuesday white house officials believe that that cloture vote would take place, that's the last procedural hurdle that would have to be cleared for hagel to be confirmed. their frustration is he is not going to be there later this week, hagel won't be, meeting with some of america's top allies as the foreign ministers meet at this nato gathering in brussels, and as he is the guy who is going to be implementing the president's policies on afghanistan in particular, their frustration is he won't be part of the conversation. >> frustrating and embarrassing. peter alexander, thank you so much. gun violence remains near the top of the president agenda and not just because of the

massacre of innocent children and sandy hook but also the daily routine of shootings across the nation. something the president made reference to in his speech on friday in chicago. >> there was something profound and unique ly heartbreaking and tragic obviously about a group of 6-year-olds being killed, but last year there were 443 murders with a firearm on the streets of this city, and 65 of those victims were 18 and under. so that's the equivalent of a newtown every four months. >> and there was a tragic koda to friday's speech. 18-year-old janay mcfarlane whose sister was present as the president spoke was killed within hours of his address. mcfarlane had given birth to her baby just four yeamonths ago an was working on finishing her

degree. let's bring in msnbc contributor professor james peterson, director of african studies at lehigh university. this is first time we've had the pleasure of introducing said professor as an msnbc contributor. congratulations. i know this isn't as grand as your own ph.d. but we're glad you are here and we're very, very delighted that you're part of our family. >> thank you. >> on friday the president referred to the death of hadiya pendleton, the chicago teen who performed at his inauguration, and obviously as we know, she was shot and killed just days afterwards. and now we have another death coming just hours after he makes his speech in chicago. and it's all just a sampling of what the president talked about, a newtown every four months happening in our cities, isn't it? >> that's right. i mean, listen, it's very, very important that the president was there and that he gave this speech. it's really a testament like princeton professor said on

twitter, it's a testament to the black youth activists who started the petition and started the pressure on the president to come back home and to address these issues. it's a good model for the black opportunity and progressive activists who are interested in pushing this president to do certain things that making your voice heard does matter. >> the president was deeply personal in this speech about the importance of fathers. take a listen. >> there's no more important ingredient for success, nothing that would be more important for us reducing violence than strong stable families. we got single moms out here that are heroic what they're doing, and we are so proud of them.

but at the same time i wish i had had a father who was around and involved. >> professor, he also told these high school students what makes you a man is not making a child but having the courage to raise one. the president is not ob solving anyone of their responsibilities, is he? >> he's not. we have to take this altogether. it's not just him talking about young people being responsible for what they're doing in terms of children and raising children. he is also talking about the implementation of the promise zone project which will address some of the structural concerns we're worried about. obviously single parenthood is not special to the black community. there's single parenthood in all different communities across america, but the stakes are higher in the black community because of things like structural racism, because of the challenges around education, because of an over aggressive criminal justice system that is racially biased, and so there are a lot of other factors the president didn't necessarily mention there, but we have to understand this thing fairly

wholistically. he's there talking about better wrap around services in preschool and sort of promised zone initiative but also saying to folk, listen, we need adults to step up and be present if and when they can in these communities because that is one of the number one ways to address the kind of gun violence we're seeing in our inner cities. >> so do you feel he was singling out black men? that speech on friday? >> i think it's complicated, martin. i think, again, parenthood or fatherlessness is not peculiar to the black community, but the stakes are higher in the black community, and so if you just say that in a sort of strict absolute sense, it might seem like the president is a little misdirected, but in the context of the initiatives he's trying to bring to the table here, i think it's very, very important. at the end of the day, we do know that we need fathers and parents to step up in communities that need it most. it may hurt for people to hear that, but at the end of the day, that is an important factor and all these other things, background checks, second round gun sales, all the gun stuff is

important, education is important, understanding the role of the criminal justice system, it's very complimecated. it's not just picking one factor out. >> complexity and context from our professor. sir, congratulations again -- >> thank you to you and your whole team. >> you've been a wonderful contribution and addition to aur team. thank you. >> thank you. coming up from appalachian and argentina to the halls of congress? stay with us. [ male announcer ] research suggests cell health plays a key role throughout our lives. one a day men's 50+ is a complete multivitamin designed for men's health concerns as we age. it has 7 antioxidants to support cell health. one a day men's 50+. tens of thousands of dollars in hidden fees on their 401(k)s?! go to e-trade and roll over your old 401(k)s to a new e-trade retirement account.

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governor sanford originally told his staff he's been hiking on the appalachian trail but this was a lie. in fact, he was cheating on his wife with a mistress in argentina. it then emerged that he used public funds for private use a year earlier again with the same mistress. but despite this hat trick of deception, adultery, and the misuse of public funds mr. sanford refused to resign. he divorced his wife, completed his term, became engaged to his mistress, and now he says he's ready to serve south carolina's first congressional district because he knows that god forgives sinners. >> more recently i have experienced how none of us go through life without mistakes, but in their wake we can learn a lot about grace, a god of second chances, and be the better for it. in that light i humbly step forward and ask for your help in changing washington. >> unfortunately, mr. sanford appears not to believe that god's forgiveness extends to others because when he was in

the house, he voted for the impeachment of president clinton following the monica lewinsky affair declaring mr. clinton's behavior to be reprehensible. which has led some to conclude that the only god mr. sanford worships is the one who looks back at him when he's shaving. stay with us. the day's "top lines" are coming up. >> the more we examine the quality of these candidates from top to bottom, the more likely we end up with fewer christine o'donnelled and more rand pauls. >> i'm not a witch. i'm nothing you've heard. led a pauls. >> i'm not a witch. i'm nothing you've heard. led an. >> i'm not a witch. i'm nothing you've heard. d and . >> i'm not a witch. i'm nothing you've heard. and m. >> i'm not a witch. i'm nothing you've heard. s and . >> i'm not a witch. i'm nothing you've heard. what's? bring it up to 90 decatherms. how bout ya, joe? let's go ahead and bring it online. attention on site, attention on site. now starting unit nine. some of the world's cleanest gas turbines

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and it was a doozy. >> nobody really is talking about this story except us. >> massive cover-up of what? susan rice said there was a lot of confusion -- >> do you care, david? do you care, david? >> this was a full frontal assault on our values. >> he didn't wear pants? >> unfortunately, it is at that point the priority of the white house and the president was to get re-elected. >> we've got a quick list of corrections from our first hour. >> god has a funny of reminding us we're humaning. >> lunge to the side and take a drink from the tiniest bottle of water everyone has ever seen. >> can you not see? >> leaks don't happen in washington by accident. >> if congress doesn't ask, i'll put it on their desk and say pass it now. >> if the president proposes legislation, do you think it will fail? >> of course. >> the bipartisan talks going on the hill, if those do not work out, we will have an option -- >> our object is to avoid having stupid candidates who can't win general elections. >> i'm not a witch. >> the more we examine the

quality of these candidates the more likely we end up with fewer christine o'donnells and more rand pauls. >> we have 30 seconds left. you sound like you're running. >> i'm not putting a great deal of thought into it. i'm not foreclosing any opportunity. i may or may not. i don't know. >> i'll take a paul ryan position. it's not on my current list. >> another deaf pit maybe. >> we won't make a decision until 2014. i want the party to become a national party again. i will continue in that vein for a couple years and then we'll decide. >> joining us is angela rye, political strategist and principal of impact strategies. ryan grim, washington bureau chief for "the huffington post" and msnbc contributor jonathan capehart of the "washington post." it's only the middle of february 2013 and we have a slurry of individuals, bobby jindal, marco rubio, rand paul, paul ryan, but as far as jindal goes, he doesn't seem -- he seems to be having a hard time convincing voters in his own state. he only gets something like 37%

of people in louisiana who want to support him. what do you think his prospects are to begin with? >> first and foremost, i think it's a really bad idea to kind of poll or test policies on your state not paying attention to what really matters to the folks and the residents of louisiana. so i think he really has to get a better handle on what his state cares about right now. it's not school vouchers. it's not this new tax proposal he has. it's things that immediately matter like what's happening with the economy. i have no idea what bobby jindal is doing but he's a little off base here. >> that's a fair condemnation. jonathan, paul ryan says he truly, honestly doesn't any if he's going to run for president in 2016. if that's the case though, then maybe he should tell his friends because one of them recently told politico and i'm quoting that ryan has no interest in the sheer grind of campaigning. it's hard to see him having what it takes. jonathan, if that's how his friends are talking about him now, what will his enemies say if mr. ryan does decide to throw his hat in the ring?

>> well, they will say much worse, but if all the people we've been talking about as potential candidates, paul ryan is the one that has a legitimate claim to run. he's young, very smart, has his budget plan that's been passed twice and ignored an equal number of times. >> and derided by virtually every economist who says the math doesn't add up but now he's going to reduce the deficit and achievements not in 30 but in 10 careers but carry on. >> also add $6 trillion to the deficit. >> that's a nice one. >> leave that aside, he is the former vice presidential nom fi of t -- nominee of the party so he has a claim on running because he wants to run. because he's so young he could wait until 2024 if he wants. >> this is very true. what about marco rubio, the so-called savior of the party according to "time" magazine.

the players erer according to t national review. >> i think what he's going to have a much harder time getting over is his record as a politician in the state of florida. and when that stuff starts to bubble up, it just won't allow him to be a national figure. >> you don't mean, for example, supporting rick scott in suppressing the vote, do you? >> you don't even have to go that far. it's just basic level stuff such as earmarking money tof fiu an then taking an unadvertised job with fiu. earmarking money to the law firm he was working. earmarking money to places he then went on to represent as a lobbyist himself. you know, he set up his own lobby firm. there's all kinds of dicey stuff that just lends itself to 30-second commercials and is the

precise kind of pay to play stuff that can really damage somebody in a republican primary, especially with people who look much more squeaky clean like christie and jindal. those are like mccain level reform type folks. they will be able to hammer him on this basic issue of ethics. >> we very much look forward to that. angela, what about rand paul? he's got a ready-made constituency lined up for 2016 on the basis of his father. and, you know, what do you think of him? doesn't he have the best rationale for running? >> i don't know if he does or if he doesn't. here is what i do know. i know rand paul has become the poster boy for tea party politics and tea party politics are going away quickly. forget 2016. for 2014 the republicans have a party, if they don't undergo go a serious reformation like the church had to do, they have a major not only messaging problem, not only a branding problem but a policy problem. most of the country doesn't see high to eye with the rest of these potential candidates. >> jonathan, what do you think of rand paul's possibilities?

>> i don't. i agree with angela. you know, overall -- >> this is very disappointing. you have knocked every single one of them down. i put them all up. they can hardly complain we give them air time and you just eviscerate each one of them. one is corrupt, the other was hopeless and has no ideas, the other was a disastrous vice presidential run. where are we going? >> somewhere else. >> angela is right, the republican party doesn't just have a messaging problem, they have a policy problem. rand paul is on the far right of a party that is to the right of where the country is. the republicans like to say, especially after the last election, the last midterm election, that this is a, quote, center right nation. as we saw with the 2012 election, it's not a center right nation. if anything it's a center left or left of center nation but certainly squarely in the center and the republican party is far to the right of that. >> okay. well, i think i have the answer,

ryan. how about dr. ben carson? now, he's really raised his profile among conservatives by attacking the president on health care and taxes. let's find out what he says about a possible future run. >> are you going to get into politics? >> it's not my intention to do that, but as i always say in every part of my life, i will leave that up to god. >> that sounded far from ruling it out. thank you very much dr. ben carson. appreciate your time. >> ryan. >> hey, you know, far be it from me to predict the future but it me it seems like a sign of serious desperation if they're gravitating around a person who has never held any public office and nobody has ever heard of them up until, you know, a couple weeks ago. so, you know, i just don't see how this becomes a presidential campaign by 2016, but what it goes to show is that our analysis of the other four we

talked about, you know, most of the republican base agrees with it, that those are not national figures. so they know who it is that wants 2016 and they have decided that those folks just don't have a shot at it and so maybe this is the guy. >> is it possible, angela, that god may speak to dr. carson and persuade him to go ahead? >> i think god can speak to anyone, but the last thing i know about dr. ben carson, to ryan's point, i actually do know who he is, gifted hands is a wonderful book. i'm sure it was a better movie, i didn't see it, but i am not sure about his future in elected office. i wish him the best in whatever he decides to do, but they just need to get together and -- maybe they need another retreat. >> yes, okay. angela rye, ryan grim, and jonathan capehart, you have destroyed them all but thank you all. coming up, the ashley judd for senate rumors keep ticking. we'll ned we'll head to kentucky for more. r on may 18th, five days later, i had a massive heart attack.

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karl rove has decided that the time has come to cull the party of those candidates who brought only shame and embarrassment upon the republican brand. >> our object is to avoid having stupid candidates who can't win general elections, who are undisciplined, can't raise money, aren't putting together the support necessary to win a general election campaign. the more we examine the quality of these candidates from top to bottom, the more likely we end up with fewer christine o'donnells and more rand pauls. >> that was mr. rove yesterday. but less than three years ago, mr. rove was actually singing the praises of that self-same candidate as she tried to assure voters that she was not a witch. >> i endorsed her the other night. i said i'm for the republican in each and every case. i mean, i was one of the first to do it. look, i'm also helping her. >> confused? so are we. joining us now is congressman john yarmuth, a democrat from kentucky. >> hello, martin. >> just so i have this right,

karl rove, who raised $300 million of other people's money only to see the majority of his candidates go down to defeat was for the fridge party candidates before he was against them. is that right? >> that's what it sounds like. i'm thrilled what he's doing here in kentucky. of course, his group has already run ads being critical of ashley judd's possible candidacy against mitch mcconnell, and here is karl rove basically criticizing the tea party or essentially slamming the tea party while mitch mcconnell is doing everything he can to cozy up to the tea party. i think republicans around kentucky will be very confused. >> just to be broadening this out slightly, how does mr. rove suddenly pivot from resentment politics that he's been selling to white voters for the last 30 years, they're coming to get your jobs to come and get our jobs. how does he pull that one off? >> yn if he can pull it off, but it's pretty obvious why. he's looking at the people who

are paying the bills and the ones who are putting up the money don't want to pay to run campaigns for extreme radical fringe candidates. so he's going where the money is, which is, i guess, probably predictable. >> i guess it is. in a "new york times" profile last week, it was suggested republicans would be thrilled to run against ashley judd, an actress, who is described by her own grandmother as a hollywood liberal. mr. rove's super pac as you have just mentioned have released a ad attacking her. let's have a listen. >> her own grandmother says she's a hollywood liberal, but isn't that what we need? ashley judd, an obama following radical hollywood liberal who is right at home here in tennessee. i mean kentucky. >> mr. yarmuth, does that not indicate mr. mcconnell is perhaps a little bit worried about this young woman? >> oh, i think mitch mcconnell is totally freaked out about an ashley judd candidacy. the one thing that he has been able to do over the years is

spend lots of money demonizing his opponents and having a huge financial advantage. he won't have as big a financial advantage, but the real difference is ashley judd will be on television virtually every day for the length of the campaign if she runs. mitch mcconnell won't be and people will see and hear from the real ashley judd and then they won't have to worry about relying on the information in mitch mcconnell and karl rove's paid ads. reality trumps political advertising all the time and ashley judd is a terrific candidate. i was with her with a group of people. she is a total natural in terms of retail politics. he endears herself to virtually everyone she meets. >> do you -- >> she's going to be a formidable person. >> do you respect her commitment to service in this way, her political antenna. >> absolutely. ashley has been an activist over the years. she has a public policy masters

from harvard. this has been most of her life over the last ten years anyway is working on public policy issues. human trafficking is another area she's been very, very active in. she is passionate about the issues. she's very knowledgeable about the issues, and the people who have been around kentucky know that she would be a wonderful representative for this commonwealth. >> congressman john yarmuth from kentucky supporting ashley judd. sir, thank you so much. >> thanks, martin. >> just ahead, the president, marco rubio, and the fight over 11 million undocumented immigrants. stay with us. stress sweat. it can happen any time, to anyone! stress sweat is different than ordinary sweat. it smells worse. get 4x the protection against stress sweat. introducing new secret clinical strength stress response scent.

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the president is about to board air force one which you can see awaiting his arrival for his flight back to washington, d.c., for florida. and late this afternoon the white house issued a statement

denying that it had leaked a backup immigration plan to usa today. but despite the denial, senator marco rubio offered an immediate reaction to the president's proposal. this legislation is half-baked and seriously flawed. it would actually make our immigration problems worse. if actually proposed, the president's bill would be dead on arrival in congress. maria teresa kumar is an msnbc contributor and president of voto latino. isn't senator rubio overreacting a little in the way he did in his rebuttal to the president's state of the union address. >> nobody is priced they're putting together legislation on immigration reform. he told everybody very publicly. >> exactly! >> policy isn't done overnight. it takes a lot of negotiation, there's many drafts. unfortunately it got leaked. if anything, he said exactly -- basically that piece of paper stated exactly what he said in

the state of the union and what he said during inauguration. so it doesn't come up as a surprise. >> okay. here is what the newly appointed white house chief of staff said about the president's plan. take a listen. >> we want to continue building on the great strides we've made on border security. we want to make sure we're cracking down on businesses that game the system. we want the legal system which frankly is too cumbersome and too broken, we want that to be reformed as well. >> given that plan, does rubio's stating reaction seem a bit over the top to you when you consider the so-called path to citizenship would take eight years? i mean this is no easy walk in the park. >> no. actually, eight years, for some it's going to be even more. i think basically rubio is basically -- he's a little upset, he's a little hurt. last time he had decided he was going to introduce dream act and then the president basically trumped his game by doing it first. i think that's why president rubio -- excuse me, senator

rubio was displeased with what the president did because once again he trumped him. >> do you think in a way mr. rubio really felt if there was one issue he could kind of make his name and reputation off of, it was immigration, and guess what? the president has stolen it. >> absolutely. but let's be cautious. the republican party does need marco rubio. the gang of eight needs marco rubio because he is a tea party candidate at heart. the more they can make sure he continues these negotiations and owns immigration is actually in the best interests of both parties to get something through. but he shouldn't be snubbing the president because, again, the president said he was going to put something together. it's not a surprise. >> one of the things i find difficult to understand is this idea that republicans have spent the last four years saying the president doesn't have a plan. he's not serious. he doesn't have a plan. then "usa today" publishes the plan and they're upset about the president having a plan. >> because it's a plan that basically, again, goes to the heart of 2016 which is the

latino voter, and i think that's what basically is the reason that they're so upset. and what the republican party needs to do now is actually come up with something serious. what's really interesting about this plan is it drives a stake in the ground and sends a clear's meteorologist to aclea r message to americans that his plan has a pathway to citizenship. it gives the republican party less wiggle room. >> inneed it does. brilliant as always. thank you. >> thank you so much, martin. >> and we'll be right back. oh this is lame, investors could lose tens of thousands of dollars on their 401(k) to hidden fees. is that what you're looking for, like a hidden fee in your giant mom bag? maybe i have them... oh that's right i don't because i rolled my account over to e-trade where... woah. okay... they don't have hidden fees... hey fern. the junk drawer? why would they... is that my gerbil? you said he moved to a tiny farm. that's it, i'm running away.

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everything she had to raise me with the help of my grandparents, you know, i turned out okay. but at the same time i wish i had had a father who was around and involved. >> despite his father's absence, the president according to any measure of personal achievement, has done pretty well. in fact, such has been the transformation of his life that according to one gun safety advocate, he's gone from not having a father to being the father of a nation. >> the president and the first lady are kind of like the mom and the dad of the country. and when your dad says something, you listen. and when you don't, it usually bites you in the [ bleep ] later on. >> chris rock's observation begs an important question. how did this happen? how does a man who didn't have a father become such an effective father himself? conservatives may be tempted to suggest it's all down to the individual, that by sheer effort and endeavor, the president made it through. but that's barely half the