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my talk. >> the president doesn't move the manufacturing in another crisis. >> after spending the weekend on the phone with members of congress, rank-and-file types, president obama taps a new budget chief today. it's wal-mart foundation head and a clinton white house veteran cynthia matthews ber dsz well. >> one of the things we learn very quickly is it's not enough just to talk a big game, but the real test is whether your priorities are reflected in a budget. that's where the rubber hits the road. >> sylvia knows her way around. >> on the street americans are a bit fed up. >> somebody took their ball away and nobody wants to play. >> i know i stop spending when things get tight. >> there you go. while "saturday night live" adds their own take on the sequester drama that was last week. >> these cuts will affect our military, our civil service, federal construction projects,

even grants to native americans. and i'm the one who has to tell these folks, young men, there's no need to feel down. young men, pick yourself off the ground. young man, just because you're funning is down, there's no need to be unhappy. >> it's fun to stay at the "snl." good day. um chuck todd in for andrea mitchell live in new york. administration officials are out in force again today talking about the impact of sequester. >> we are already seeing the affects on some of the ports. eventually the big airports, for example. some of them had very long lines this weekend. >> could a grand bargain still be in reach? joining me now for the daily fix, msnbc contributor and managing editor of post politics.com susan page. the bureau chief of america's

newspaper usa today, and david leon hart with the "new york times". my apologies for calling usa today america's newspaper. easier to get it at hotels in what i say is the rest of america sometimes. i'm just saying. >> i don't know. you can get the "new york times". >> no. you usually have to pay extra. chris, by the way, in case you're wondering, andrea is traveling with john kerry. she's going to have a big interview with him tomorrow. she's literally halfway across the world. chris, the white flag of the budget debate has been waived. i guess the idea of a march madness of budget showdowns totally off the table. how do you read sort of what happened from, say, friday afternoon when the president said, you know what, sequester is going to happen, it's dumb, but it's not the end of the world, and what we heard this weekend from speaker boehner? >> well, i mean, you know, chuck, i would like to think that it's very likely that we're not iffing to have another showdown on march 27th and the days leading up to it over

shutting down the government. i think it's probably the party has recognized it's not in their best interest, but i would say, look, it is hard for me to go back to the language used around the sequester when it happened. this will never happen. this is a sort of thing you're bringing into place so we don't do it, and say, you know well, definitely will avoid a government shutdown because president obama and john boehner don't want to have one. can they make that a reality particularly as it relates to boehner? can he lead his caucus to vote for something that averts this, chuck? is he leading it or is he being led by it? we'll find that out. >> susan page, one of the things i hear is that standing firm on sequester, which is something john boehner and mitch mcconnell are essentially doing, actually gives them leway on not turning the continuing resolution in one government runs out of money at the end of the month into a showdown, and actually will give them leeway to raise the debt ceiling without a big fight internally as long as they stick to their guns on these spending

cuts. >> you know, i think it's really unfair to journalists to not have another showdown in three weeks because it seems like every three, maybe four weeks we should have some kind of crisis that allows us to use hyperbolic language. i actually think that we will not have a shutdown this month. i think it's clear that both sides have decided for just a go along kind of strategy. we'll see if that conveys also to the may debt ceiling debate, which could be tougher. i mean, that is a harder issue, it seems to me, to these real deficit hawks that you have, especially in the house republican caucus. i do think we're going to have, you know, march is going to go out like a lamb when it comes to fiscal politics. >> that's for sure. david, you guys had a very interesting piece over the weekend about the affect on the washington region, and in many ways the washington region protected from the recession the great recession that everybody else experienced. not just because of government stem husband. it really had to do with the fact that we're fighting two wars. defense contracts in particular

in northern virginia. what i found fascinating was how many people you found that said, you know what, maybe it's time for us to take a haircut. >> now it's going to be less so. assuming some version of these cuts going through. whether it's these or some point they come back and try to make them a little bit less blunt, but my guess is the washington region economically will still be okay. even if it's not quite so good because it is by some measures the most educated region in the country, and if you look at minneapolis, if you look at the bay area, if you look at boston, if you look at the other really highly educated -- you haven't had this huge stimulus, but they still have done much better than the rest of the country and wash wash still has that strength. >> chris, three big names -- three new names. not well known names, but three names added to the president's cabinet. omb, energy, at e.p.a. a lot of criticism, if you recall, happened early on with the president. his cabinet wasn't looking like

america. in this case two new women added. somebody of hispanic origin, and but not big names. what message are you taking away from the president's nominees? >> we criticize the president for lack of diversity in his cabinet, givening that he had stated he wanted a cabinet that looked like america. he deserves credit for putting these folks in place. that said, it seems to me, chuck, that what you're seeing in the second term, whether it's dennis mcdonough's chief of staff, dan pfeiffer as senior advisor to the president, or the people at the treasury department, at the state department, at some of these bigger -- and defense. you are seeing a consolidation of power within the white house in many ways. this is -- these are the people barack obama wants, that the white house will be making these decisions, and that the people at some of the lower level cabinet positions really are not iffing to be in a position to be setting policy. that policy will continue to be set at the white house is how

barack obama wants it. >> it's been -- it seems every white house makes the west wing more powerful, and, yet, even from first to second term, i think you make a point, that you see more and more, even with the reports today about vice president biden. both susan and david, hearing from mitt romney over the weekend about sort of he is clearly not yet over losing the election. i'm going to play a clip from his interview from fox. >> the president had the power of incumbency. obama care was very attractive, particularly those without health care. >> i believe it was the media's fault as well. that he was not giving -- being given a fair shake. people weren't allowed really see him for who he was. >> susan, everybody's fault but his. >> yeah. you know, it's hard to lose a presidential race. you know, you get so close. you're the party standard bearer, and i think for mitt romney especially hard because there's not a malplace for him

to be a player in the party. he doesn't have the historic kicks and stature that even a bob dole or walter mondale had that gave them a place in their parties after they lost the presidency. i sort of -- i do not see where mitt romney fits in that, and he clearly is not quite over this loss, and i think that must make it harder. >> david, i want to make a point. he is nott the first guy that's taken a long time to get over a loss. george mcgovern took forever. who knows if he ever really got over the loss to nixon? al gore clearly struggled get over that loss. john mccain. is he in good company, if you will, getting over this. not everybody is bob dole and walter mondale, who both seemed to be comfortable losing, if you will. >> it has to be enormously hard to put yourself out there and lose the presidency. in some ways i wouldn't expect him to be -- he did say some critical things about the campaign. the thing in that clip that struck me is the fact that he really honestly believes that obama care was a big plus for the president, and it's really striking because when the bill passed and then a year or two afterwards it remained

unpopular, the white house just kept saying, no, eventually it will be popular, eventually it will be popular, and it's sort of fascinating that romney now agree with them, that it might be the obama care that it might be the early stages of following things like medicare that are ultimately seen as a benefit, part of the safety net that is actually quite popular. >> i think one thing that was an agreement on, it was very popular among hispanics, which has been part of that conversation that mitt romney was having about what was wrong with his campaign. anyway, chris, susan, david, thank you all. congresswoman marcia blackburn joins me now. congresswoman, i want to start with sequester. are you comfortable this morning? it's three days since the order was officially signed. are you comfortable with sequester taking affect throughout the rest of the fiscal year? is. >> i think that not only am i comfortable, i think that my constituents are relieved that it actually went on the books, and, you know, chuck, what we're hearing from our constituents

is, look, we want you to get in there and protect the military, but all of this discretionary spending, you neat to be cutting it. you got to get busy reforming entitlements. you have to stabilize social security and medicare, and people are ready to see some solutions brought forward, and they're expecting us to do that. >> congresswoman, do you think that now -- i've heard speaker boehner's faift line that the president got his tax hikes. democrats are now going to be able to say the republicans got their spending cuts. does this clear -- does this sort of clear the brush and in september we actually do have the grand bargain that might include a little more revenue and entitlement reform that everything that sort of the third rails inside the democratic primary, missed the republican primary, does that come back, or do you think that just taxes just can'ts be touched? >> well, i think that what people are saying in this economy, in this team period, and certainly i feel like i agree with this. you cannot go around raising taxes. when is enough enough? even now with sequester going

in, we're spending 6.2% more than we were spending in 2008, and, chuck, people are just saying, wait a minute, you got to deal with the debt. here's a great example of that. he said, look, you're cutting 2%. he said when you are borrowing, 35 cents to 40 cents on the dollar, you have a 35% cut that you need to be addressing, and i think a lot of individuals across this country share that sentiment. if this is just scratching the surface -- >> let's remember, it's not a 2% cut. you exempted so much from sequester that it's -- the impact and what is cut is more than 2%. >> right, but, see, what his point is that you have a big delta that you are yet to hit in order to start to bring this budget into balance, and that is why our budget committee will bring out a budget this month that will balance in ten years, and people are saying now is the time to start to have these

conversations about how you clean up the tax code, how you address long-term spending and long-term obligations, and the way that we are dealing with entitlements, they want efficient, effective government. they want government to be accountable to the taxpayer. what they don't want is any more of this kicking the can. i say give me that can. the can is accountable, it's spending cuts. it is bringing things into balance, and that's what we need to do. >> i want to ask you about a vote that happened last week. the house passed the violence against women act. you were an original supporter of it. you put out a statement in may. >> absolutely. >> in support of it. you said you must continue to make every effort to insure that you help these vemz of violence. then you vote against it. why? >> the senate version. i voted for all of the house -- the two house versions that we had. >> what was wrong with the senate version? is. >> the senate version, you know, what do you is begin to dilute

the money that needs to go in to these sexual assault centers, domestic abuse centers, our child advocacy centers. all of those i have helped to start here in my area in tennessee, and when you start to make this about other things and it becomes an against violence act and not a targeted focused act that is there to address the issue of violence against women that, chuck, for far too long. that is something that you couldn't talk about. with the add advent of these shelters we were able to bring this -- >> what part of the senate bell do you like? >> i didn't like the conscience the way the conscience protections were there on the trafficking. i didn't like the way it was expanded to include other different groups. what you need is something that is focused specifically to help

the shelters and to help out law enforcement who is trying to work with the crimes that have been committed against women and helping them to stand up. we've had some great shelters and great success without our shelters. our child advocacy centers, able to receive funds and work with our drug task forces, and some of these judicial task forces that have been so involved in these crimes, and that focus needs to continue. i remain -- it remains a big advocate for carrying forward that good work and supporting those individuals. >> i have to leave it there. congresswoman from tennessee. tennessee republican. >> absolutely. >> thank you for sharing your views this afternoon. up next, the sequester's impact on 9/11 first responders.

we'll talk about new york democratic congressman joe crowley about that, and tomorrow on the show as i steezed earlier andrea is live in doha. she'll be interviewing secretary of state john kerry as he wraps up his first official foreign trip. it's been an incredibly busy trip. don't miss it tomorrow 1:00. andrea mitchell. who else do you want interviewing john kerry? we'll be right back. of this oth. and that much freshness is gonna take some getting used to... [ sniffing ] yep. it's amazing what a single scoop of gain freshness can do. [ sniffing ] yep. all right that's a fifth-floor probleok.. not in my house! ha ha ha! ha ha ha! no no no! not today! ha ha ha! ha ha ha! jimmy how happy are folks who save hundreds of dollars switching to geico? happier than dikembe mutumbo blocking a shot.

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skwlirchlgts this video just in. this is president obama meeting with his cabinet. there's a few new members of the cabinet in that room that have been confirmed, including a new defense secretary chuck hagel. john kerry, of course, is not there because he is on his trip, and he is sitting down with andrea mitchell. we will continue to follow that. there's still a lot of folks that have to get confirmed on

capitol hill. that second term cabinet gets completely filled out. joining me now, congressman joe crowley of new york. he is the vice chair of the democratic caucus. well, let me ask you this morning, or this afternoon, are you comfortable with sequester? three days later. are you comfortable that it's been -- that it's in, and you're stuck with it, and is it manageable, and, second, did you think the white house did enough to stop it? >> well, thanks, chuck. i good to be on your show. i wasn't comfortable with sequestration when it was passed two years ago, and i know my colleagues were concerned about the level of cuts that would take place. on the xhesic side as well as the military side. i applaud pelosi and other democratic leaders for -- i do believe then, i believe today that these cuts are too deep and really are not spread out over a

long enough period. to be done in smarter, more effective way. >> where was the sense of urgency? that's what i -- i'm sorry. i feel like i watched all last week, and i -- you saw action did not meet the words. >> i think what you have going on we've had the discussion of the fiscal cliff. you have the discussion of the cr. we've had discussion about what would happen if the debt ceiling were not lifted, and i think what you really have is the american people are tired of congress that's not -- of a republican congress in the house that's not working to their benefit. >> one of the things that is not exempted from sequestration was the jane act that is $2.7 billion for the 9/11 victim

compensation fund. we're going to see somewhere of a $27 million cut from that fund, and you were upset that it wasn't exempted, but i've noticed what is taking so long, by the way, for this fund to start doling out money. >> well, i think with any program as large as this one, this is a massive effort from the federal government's standpoint. it does take a little while for those moneys to start rolling out. that's no consolation to the victims, and i know many of the victims, my constituents suffered terribly because of the attack. i lost the first cousin as a result of the attack as well, and i know that his friends and my other family members who are subject to those gases and toxic air, it's no -- the help is on the way, but it's going to take some time, but these cuts, again, blind cuts across the board will have a real impact on

their recovery and on their lives, and i think it's immoral. >> do you think that somehow the break, if you will, from a budget fight, if there's not going to be a showdown over funding the government, where it seems that everybody saying, you know what, let's move on from that and let's fund the government, let the budget process work. do you think september after there's five months of sequestration, after everything has sunk in for a while, everybody went back to their corns that the grand bargain comes back? >> i hope it doesn't take that long. i do think that these cuts will have an affect. no matter how you cut it, chuck, the cbo, the congressional budget office has said that 750,000 private sector jobs -- that we'll see furloughs from federal work forces, from the department of defense to homeland security to food inspection. you know, no one in my district, chuck sshgs running up to me and saying that we've done enough in cancer research. you know, i'm fine with the

status quo. you know, we can cut the nih. no one in my district is running up and saying to me, no, we're okay with the chinese hacking into our computer systems. you know, you can cut the department of homeland security. no one is saying that to me. i think these cuts that we have made through sequestration will come back to haunt youing. >> he was quoted at length in the washington post over the weekend, big front page story that the white house is already looking at 2014 and it's a way to fwet into these impasses with house republicans that 2014 is the path out. the white house seemed concerned that this was too soon. do you think this type of campaign rhetoric this early out, is this appropriate, or is it too soon? >> i don't think that there's any limit anymore on when we ought to or not speak politically. steve has a big job ahead of him, as we all do. in our attempt to take back the

house of representatives and bring some sanity back to governing here in washington, so for one, i don't think it's any time soon. we'll be talking to 2014 elections. for some of us they start in primaries, which will be here within a year or so, so i don't think it's too early. at the same time it should not distract us from what we ought to be doing here in washington. that is finding solutions to help move this country forward and developing a vision. what i really see a lack of here in washington, particularly on my republican side of the aisle, my friends there, is a lack of vision. it's all about doom's day. it's all about fiscal cliffs and our way or the highway or no way. that needs, chuck, to come to an end. we need to get back to working together and finding solutions to our nation's problems. >> i think a lot of people agree with that sentiment, no matter which side of the aisle you're on. joe crowley, democrat from new york. thanks for coming on. thank you. >> all right. up next, we're live in rome where the cardinals are meeting to map out their plan for

electing the next pope. a bunch of cardinals didn't show up. we'll explain why. later, nbc news exclusive inside north korea waziristan, an area triktly forbidden to foreigners. that is until now. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports". ] [ bop ] you can do that all you want, i don't like v8 juice. [ male announcer ] how about v8 v-fusion. a full serving of vegetables, a full serving of fruit. but what you taste is the fruit. so even you... could've had a v8. that's not much, you think. except it's 2% every year. go to e-trade and find out how much our advice and guidance costs. spoiler alert: it's low. it's guidance on your terms, not ours. e-trade. less for us. more for you.

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[ male announcer ] in a clinical study, over 80% of treated men had their t levels restored to normal. talk to your doctor about all your symptoms. get the blood tests. change your number. turn it up. androgel 1.62%. >> cardinals gathered in rome today. it was her first official meeting since the retirement of the pope. nbc's ann thompson is live in rome and joins me now. ann, one of the things i learned in an internal meeting before the show was a bunch of cardinals haven't shown up yet. 12, i guess, of the 115 haven't shown up. who are they? are they from just all over the world, or is there a specific reason like some haven't shown? >> they are all from all over the world. i know it's incredible to us. it's like, what, you couldn't get here? they knew this day was coming,

right? >> exactly. you know, we all knew this was happening, but there are about a dozen cardinals that are, in fact, a dozen cardinals who have yet to show up. the vatican says they can all be here by tomorrow afternoon. some of them had speaking engagements. some of them are just coming from a far distance. it's taking them a while to get here, but until all 115 cardinal electors, those are the cardinals under the age of 80 who can vote for the pope. they can't set a conclave. he gave cardinals -- you can do it, but you all have to be here to make that decision. that's what we're waiting for. >> one of the conversations that we expect oosh at least we think may happen this week when these cardinals are having this open conversation perhaps about the future of the catholic church, is this report, and this report on the abuse scandal in some of the things having to do inside

the church that pope emeritus up to whether or not to release it so the cardinals. cardinals would like to see something about it. what do you think will happen here? >> well, when the pope is did is he said the only people who could read the report were him and his successor, but he did give the three cardinals who prepared the report permission to talk about it with their brother cardinals, and there is a great push for that. certainly america's cardinal, francis george from the arrive archdiocese of chicago, he wants to know what's in that report. the french cardinal wants to know what's in that report. in part, because they want to know exactly what is going on inside the vatican that they don't know about, and you hear all these rumors and speculation. they want to know what those three cardinals found out, and they also want to know what the extent of the problem is because it's going to help them figure

out who will be the next pope. >> what was timothy dolan's message? >> i'm sorry, chuck. i couldn't hear you. >> i understand you had a mass yesterday with cardinal timothy dolan. dmroo yep. >> and i know it was sort of a small group of mostly the traveling road show of journalists that are there in rome. what was the message? >> i think the message was that as he said, you know, we're all here, and we're focused on the big issue of the ing a new pope. that's the very basic, most basic. that is what the catholic church is all about.

he also spoke about the issue of change. a lot of people are speculating that there could be all kinds of change coming in the church. certainly benedict's decision to retire is changed, but he said real change doesn't start with the big church. it starts on an individual basis and it starts inside your heart. >> that will be interesting to see what the cardinals, how they do and how they have this conversation over the next day or two and whether it leads to an early conclave decision. ann thompson, at your post in rome. we'll be back. thank you. coming up next, scientists say it's a major breakthrough in the fight against hiv. the mississippi baby who could offer a path to an actual cure. plus, welcome to the new normal in washington. this is "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. max and penny kept our bookstore exciting and would always come to my rescue. but as time passed, i started to notice max just wasn't himself. and i knew he'd feel better if he lost a little weight. so i switched to purina cat chow healthy weight formula.

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in the headlines on "andrea mitchell reports" a potential medical breakthrough. scientists are studying the case of a 2& 1/2-year-old mississippi

child who they believe has been cured of h.i.v. the baby was given anti-virals within 24 hours of her birth. we'll see if this, indeed, is the lead it a breakthrough. more and more study at this is taking place. secretary of state john kerry is in saudi arabia today. it's his first visit to the arab world since taking office. kerry warned iran the time for nuclear negotiations is running out. >> it is absolutely not unlimited. talks will not go on for the sake of talks, and talks cannot be an instrument for delay that in the end make the situation more dangerous. so there is a finite amount of time. secretary kerry will be sitting down with andrea mitchell. >> a moment of healing this weekend. nearly a half century after the civil rights march from selma, alabama, to montgomery ended in bloodshed, it was during a commemoration on sunday that montgomery's current police

chief apologized. on behalf of his department to congressman john lewis. he was one of the original marchers and was beaten by police that day. the chief also gave lewis his badge as a symbol of healing. he accepted the badge, and the apology. >> the chief of the montgomery police department to offer an apology. i teared up. i tried to keep from crying, and i accepted the apology. i accepted the badge. >> 48 years. >> queen elizabeth was released today from a london hospital. the queen was hospitalized yesterday where she was treated for a stomach infection. this is the first time in a decade, believe it or not, that the 86-year-old monarch has been hospitalized. if she's anything like the queen mum, we know she is still a spring chicken, as far as her family is concerned. >> for all the dysfunction in washington, there's at least some political will on both sides to keep the government running and avoid a shutdown.

stephanie cutter, former obama deputy campaign manager and former members of the west wing team, and john a republican strategist who was a former republican speaker of the house back in the day. stephanie, let me start with you. last week sequester just now we've got the president. let me play for you what the president is saying about sequester from his cabinet meeting just a few minutes ago. >> we are going to manage it as best we can to try to minimize the impacts on american families, but it's not the right way for us to go about deficit reduction. it makes sense for us to take a balanced approach that takes a long view and doesn't reduce our commitment to things like education and basic research that will help us grow over the long-term. >> the town -- the tone he took today and friday dramatically different than the tone he took monday through thursday and from the administration about how the impact of sequester. does the white house believe they over-hyped sequester in the

early part of last week? >> no. you know, chuck, i don't see that being dramatically different, and i'm out here in chicago. i'm not there dealing with the day to day, but from an outsider's view in, it doesn't -- you know, i think that the -- any white house, any administration has a duty to tell the american people that government services are going to be impacted by across the board budget cuts that are happening in washington as a result of two parties not being able to come to an agreement. that's part of their duty. last week they spent the week making sure that everybody understood that there would be some impacts, and they won't be all immediately. there will be over the long-term, but what has been consistent from what i just heard of the president that you just played and last week is that he still wants to find a way to find a compromise to achieve some balanced deficit reduction so that we don't have to cut dramatically cut head start to reduce the deficit. we can make sure that everybody pays their fair share, and we're doing this in a balanced way that actually impacts our deficit over the long-term and

still allows our economy to grow. what's happened now because of the sequester is we may be reducing spending, and ultimately reducing the deficit, but it's actually going to come back and bite us because we're going to lose jobs and slow economic growth, and we're not really taking on the big challenges that things that impact our deficit. >> john, i thought one of the things that i was fascinated about from the weekend is the message both the president and speaker boehner sent about a potential government shutdown, which is they're taking it off the table. the president said as long as the continuing resolution is within the framework that they agreed to before and speaker boehner essentially saying the same thing, is it political exhaustion? is that what really is happening here? both sides want a little bit of time? >> i think it's actually smart political man you'ring by john boehner. remember, he reshuffled how these things came about. he decided to do the sequester first and then the debt ceiling fight later in may, and i think that the government shutdown by doing sequester first, he was

able to brand the republicans as deficit hawks and folks who were successful in cutting spending, and it really took the urgency from some republicans of having a government shutdown fight off the table, so i think boehner has been pretty effective in how he has been able to manage this politically, and i do think that for republicans they can now go about -- by the way, i agree with stephanie. i think most republicans do on the idea of sequester is not the best way to get the deficit reduction, and over the long-term, what you really need to do is come up with entitlement cuts, entitlement growth cuts in the future. if you do that, then you'll get a better handle on the deficit. >> very quickly, john, i want to ask you on debt ceiling. if with sequester being put into place, i've had some conservatives tell me that it gives boehner more room to essentially do a debt ceiling extension at least to the end of the year without drama. >> i think this gives him a lot more wiggle room as speaker.

i think that conservativors are pleased. if you think about this year, republicans have made 98% of the bush tax cuts permanent, and they've returned spending to 2009 levels. that's a good message for conservatives. i think it does buy him some time and some wiggle room with the right wing. >> stephanie, i want to ask you about the front page washington post story from the weekend that talked about the president already eyeing 2014. in the story itself it was about house democrats eyeing 2014. less so about the white house and there seems to be some nervousness on the ends of those west wings that maybe it's too soon to be talking politics. do you think it's too soon for the white house to be engaging in who controls the house in 2014? >> i think the president has a lot on his plate right now of things that he wants to get done. immigration reform, reducing gun violence, finding a compromise to this sequester deal. they're impacting our ability to

grow our economy. you're always thinking about the next cycle, and there are lots of people in washington that are currently doing that. many of them were quoted in that story. i don't think that's actively happening inside the white house right now. not at least according to my experience. >> as i said i think that the president has a lot on his plate. a lot of things that he wants to get done. i think that the good policy makes good politics. good progress makes good politics, and i think that's their focus right now. >> john, i have to ask you quickly about jeb bush saying more about being open to running for president than ever before. here it is quickly from the "today" show this morning. >> are you going to run in 2016? >> that's way off into the future. i have a voice. i want to share my belief bz how the conservative movement and the republican party can regain its footing because we've lost our way. >> you will not definitively rule out a run for president in the year 2016? >> i won't.

>> now i've sat down with an interview with him earlier today, and, you know, it is the most definitive he has been even about thinking about it. what does this mean for the rrn party, john? >> well, i think a lot of people hope that jeb bush runs. i think that he would make an excellent candidate. he think he is someone who can kind of unite the conservative wing and the republican establishment. he does have that bush name, which will be a little bit of a liability, but i think he has his own brand apart from his brother, and i think he was such an effective executive in florida, that if he does run, he will be a formidable candidate, and it will be interesting to see bush finally run against a clinton. >> that's what it is, right? you say it's too soon to talk about 2014, but it's 2016, right? >> we never had it. >> yeah. >> we needed a sequel. >> stephanie, thank you both. >> inside waz ear tan stan exclusive access to those calling the most dangerous place in the world. ty. here, it's found in many forms.

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now to an exclusive look at a part of pakistan that's been called the most dangerous corner of the world. it's that tribal area of north waziristan rarely seen by outsiders, but nbc's novaz was granted exclusive abbing social security by the pakistani military, which is trying to adopt a new approach in its fight against terrorism and to get control of the region. >> there are constant reminders of the ongoing battle. but there's a new strategy underway here. the focus is on rebuilding. >> so the military is now trying to fill that void. building homes, roads, and schools to connect isolated tribal communities long cut off from the rest of the world. >> this is giving them an economic opportunity. >> yes. >> that they didn't have before. >> they didn't have before. >> so that they won't perhaps be economically interested in helping the taliban or other elements here? >> correct.

>> when finished, the rope will run 370 miles and be the first of its kind. it's nearly halfway down. work remains slow in some parts due to threat of ied's and ambushes. it's this section of road that the army believes could make the biggest difference because when it's completed, it will not only connect the tribal community here in north waziristan to mainstream pakistan, and it will go across the boardtory afghanistan three miles ahead. >> amna, we've had this conversation in the morning. i wanted to extend some of it, and that is i want to talk about the cultural aspects. being a woman journalist. how much harder or how different was it being in this region that is obviously in literally in the dark ages when it comes to jeshd issues. >> it's -- i think it's very safe to challenge. i think any female journalist in the region, and there are quite a few, would tell you the same thing, and it speaks, as you

say, exactly what this community is going through. i mean, it's a fascinating part of the world. you just don't see women out and about. and north and south both, the women stay inside the homes. they do some work outside the homes, collecting water, firewood but kept away from any public eye. >> did you find some people not wanting to talk to you or nervous? >> i did. there are people all over pakistan who because of their own beliefs won't shake my hand, won't necessarily interview with a female journalist and i found both in waziristan. people comfortable to speak with me and people who said they couldn't speak to a female. >> how serious is pakistan of this time trying to get control of north waziristan? did they cut a deal with the taliban chiefs to let it stay ungoverned? do they want to govern it now? >> from what we've seen, it seems they're very serious. >> that's why they brought you

in, right? they were trying to say, look, we do mean it this time, right? they want to show the world. >> they were absolutely honest about the work they have to do in north waziristan. they have made progress. there's stale lot of work to be done and the first to tell you and in some ways a lot of criticism is like they're fighting two different wars. the u.s. is on one time line and pakistan's not on the same time line and they have a different approach within their own borders they're fighting. >> our bureau chief in islamabad, busy, busy stuff, good stuff. thank you. >> thank you. >> don't miss more of the reporting "inside pakistan" tonight. [ female announcer ] nature valley protein bars,

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it's next 24 time to bring cillizza back for the last part of the show. mr. cillizza, here's what we know tomorrow. brennan's confirmation vote. junkies know there's a mayor's

race in l.a. top two candidates in the race there. we could have more benghazi questions tomorrow with brennan. john kerry with andrea mitchell. what are you watching? >> always watching kerry and mitchell but this is postponed for the vote a week. john kerry, lindsay graham voiced opposition. let's see if they hold firm. >> on l.a. mayor, interesting thing, the leading -- the top two -- the leading candidate in l.a. potentially and the leading candidate in new york city, both cities, neither city elected a female mayor. >> see, that's why i watch you. >> and you know -- >> yesterday's quinn. >> chris, 20th anniversary of the jimmy v. speech yesterday. >> yes. one of the best speeches ever given, i think. love it. i will watch it right now. >> i've tweeted it. chris will tweet it now. >> i will. >> it makes us sports fans saps

and start weeping. this does it for this edition of "andrea mitchell reports." andrea will be back tomorrow. tamron hall, it's all yours. >> thank you. the romneys ruffle feathers on the way back in to the sna national spotlight. on the comments why he lost and his wife blaming the media. jeb bush refuses to rule out a 2016 run and a brand new interview. we'll have that for you and is romney hurting republican party as it tries to move forward? plus, the nra is out with a brand new ad attempting to bring more minorities in to the fold but critics say the organization is trying to scare blacks and latinos in to buying guns. we'll find out what you think about it. wall street profits are up and many asking where are the jobs? we're digging in to the new

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