you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec-d®. powerful relief of nasal congestion and other allergy symptoms -- all in one pill. zyrtec-d®. at the pharmacy counter. hi, everyone. i'm tamron hall. the "news nation" is following reaction to today's jobs report that president obama's former chief economist called an economic blow. >> this is a punch to the gut. this is not a good number. and i think now you're going to interestingly start seeing a lot of discussion about maybe the sequester is a bigger deal than people thought it was. >> politico called the jobs report a mess. the "washington post" went even further with one headline saying, today's jobs report is a disaster but why? and here are the numbers.

employers added just 88,000 jobs in march, compared to the nearly 200,000 economists expected. the nation's unemployment rate fell a tenth of a percent to 7.6%. that is because nearly half a million people stopped looking for work. minutes ago, white house press secretary jay carney pointed a finger at the sequester. >> there is no question that anticipation of sequester as well as the fact of sequester has outside economists have said would have a negative impact on job growth and economic growth. >> house speaker john boehner blames the president saying, quote, the president's policies continue to make it harder for americans to find work. from house majority leader eric cantor. as form he obama economic adviser said, this is a punch to the gut. the dow is down 87 points although it is off the day's

low. cnbc's chief washington correspondent john harwood joins us live from the white house. we heard jay carney reiterate what austin ghoulsby said. this may all be about the sequester. what are you hearing? >> in fairness, austan did not say that the numbers that we saw today on jobs were because of the sequester. he was saying it would strengthen the argument against it. all economists agree it would be harmful. the question is has it been harmful so far? it has only been in effect one month reflecting the numbers and declining employment was not that great in this number. but this will strengthen the argument by the administration to say that once washington stands up from having been doubled over by that punch to the gut, we need to have a more rational approach to deficits reduction. in the eyes of the administration, that means, yes, some cuts but longer term, to entitlements rather than to discretionary spending in an

arrest by trary way right now. they don't want further tax increases but it will be an interesting back and forth and see whether this propels those negotiations over a budget deal. >> back to austan's remarks, he says that now you're going to interestingly start seeing a the love discussion about maybe the sequester is a bigger deal than people thought. we know after that deadline passed, there were many who mocked the president's reaction saying where is the sky falling? we were supposed to see long lines at the airport. a lot of the predictions the president made, people are saying he overplayed his hand. and now they are saying he will eat his own words. we will see in his estimation, perhaps an impact as a result of the sequester on unemployment numbers, or employment numbers and other aspects here.

>> this is a slow impact on the economy. when you take hundreds of billions of dollars out of the economy, that reduction and aggregate demand will hurt. so even conservative economists agree on that point although they disagree with what the alternative policy ought to be. >> thank you so much. always a great pleasure having you on. and the information you can provide us. let me bring in american urban radio washington chief, april ryan, cnbc contributor, and usa today columnist raul reyes. let me start with you, zachary. a the love interesting insiflt one of the comments i want to get to. from the wall street journal, he had this to say. the biggest evidence of recent washington decisions hurting employment comes in the retail sector which slashed 24,000 jobs in march. that's likely due in part to the 2 percent jump in the pay roll

tax on january 1st. that congress set in motion through the fiscal cliff deal at the start of the year. if consumers have less money in their pockets, they'll eventually spend less. so i talked about whether this is the impact or not. a lot of people continue the conversation you and i had about this pay roll tax cut. if people don't have the money, they don't have the money to spend. >> yeah. a lot of people are taking this report and all these reports to justify a lot of argument that's everyone has had from every aspect of the political spectrum. and there is not enough in these to prove any of this. i can point to a lot of stuff from companies coming out now that says the consumers in general, like there is no actual consumer, right? a statistical fiction. but in general they aren't cutting their spending. but lower enconsumers never had any spending to begin with. we should have been talking about that all along. i don't think that this job report says nearly as much as the reaction to it today says. if you add the 61,000 jobs that

were add in the revised numbers for february and for january, you know, you would be at 150,000 today. would the conversation be so different? the media conversation might be different. the structural reality for americans, struggling, not struggling would be exactly the same of we're kind of stuck where we are. >> you believe that some of these headlines, disaster, austan calling it a punch in the gut. >> i think we're underdiscussing some of the structural issues that you and i have talk about for months and months and months. the job creation has been lower wage health creation. health care service workers, lower income temp workers. so 200,000 have been added this month. we would be left that a lot of people are getting not such great jobs, having a hard time ends meet. >> and april, i want to pull up this morning joe marist poll. it says what should be the top priority for president obama and congress? creating a jobs, 64%.

reducing the deficit. 33%. this picks up on what zachary was talking about at least as far as the conversation that folks are having at home and the stalemate. granted, the deficit is greatly important to our future but there is a stalemate, it seems, on both sides, when it comes to addressing the immediate issue of people who have been out of work for too long. >> that poll is really saying something. it is cyclical. because jobs make the world go around. money makes the world go around. i'm going on give you an example. i talk to the acting labor secretary this morning, seth harris. and he said of the jobs numbers that it was a mixed baggism asked him a little about the sequester. he was saying about his budget cut, across the board budget cuts. $3.1 billion in cuts. he said starting this morning they will have furloughs in the labor department. and he said they are already starting to pull back money from states when it comes to job

placement programs and job training. so it goes hand in hand. we need to create jobs so that you can have the cash flow around the country to keep the deficits down. it looks like it won't happen. >> let me play allen from check advisers. he brought in again the sequester. its impact and what could be a slow grind to something worse for us. >> i think the sequester will be a slow grind, as the president said. the congressional budget office estimates that it will reduce job growth by 750,000 full time equivalent jobs. the longer that it is in place, the more damage it will do to our economy. that's why the president is trying to replace the sequester a more balanced approach. >> so they talk about a more balanced approach here. i just got this in my hands. i want zachary to comment as well. carney was asked just now regarding, is it fair to say the white house agrees that these

are the effects of the sequester. and carney went on to say, i think again to a degree, that's hard to measure early on. the answer is yes. i think that we are feeling the negative effects in other wafls kids aren't in head start this week. they're feeling it. their parents are feeling it. to john harwood's point, no one is ready to say it is a sequester. >> it is too early. most of the disruption that will occur from the sequester is, has not taken place yet. because the agencies knew that it was coming, most of its effects, the furloughs, cuts in hours, that is all back loaded. so we will see it going forward. i thought the key word in that memo when he said something to the, to a certain extent. so he is giving himself a little leeway. i think that's critical. looking at the numbers overall. it is an micro story of how many jobs we add. it is a macro story. we have 63% participation in the labor forceful that is not good. that ratio is out of whack. that means we have millions of people, these numbers don't

affect them. opportunity employment rate does not count them. they have dropped out looking for work. that's the problem. it is a big picture problem. when you look at certain sub groups within the bureo of labor and statistics, for example, among african-americans, unemployment is 13%. >> 13.3%. >> young people, 15% plus. >> april, to raul's point, you have the form he, i guess, he was the founder of b.e.t. coming out and taking some heat. he said, listen, the african-american employment, 13%. if that was a nationwide number, president obama would be in the hot seat. we would not exist in a society. we wouldn't just take it if that was the overall unemployment rate. however, this is not a high employment rate that is exclusive to the obama administration. the african-american unemployment rate has always been unreasonably high and ignored, by the way. >> is that an excuse to ignore it? the bottom line is as you said, to your point, back in 1963 when

there was the march on washington, the african-american unemployment rate was three times that of white america. it has come down but it is still a very large rate. the latino rate flag country is 9.2%. you have to remember, one of the main reasons why the african-american unemployment rate is so high is because african-americans are disproportionately employed by federal, state and local governments. so when those cuts happen, they happen to teachers, first responders, things of that nature and african-americans are hit. you have to remember, it is not just sequestration. we're going through that until october. then you have to deal with the budget that also has cuts. this is not a win/win situation. i am hearing it up and down pennsylvania avenue. expect higher unemployment numbers in all sectors. >> i would like to add when we're looking at the unemployment rates, the persistent rates among certain sub groups in our economy, that is something that could prove very troublesome as we go through immigration debate.

when people look up, look at latino unemployment. that could be a bump in the road. ? and let me get you in on this. the forward here. what will be the signs or the indicators that you are looking at as we move ahead for the next report? >> well, all the things that have been talked about, i agree with. none have anything to do with sequester. african-american unemployment, differences for african-american males by education level. hispanics, it is not asians and caucasians. we can have an honest conversation and we could have it for years rather than these micro arguments about whether sequester which is $60 billion is changing the game. in my view, it is not. it is making it a little worse rather than a little better. i think the only thing that will change in the months ahead would be one, that long term unemployment rate. i see no reason how that will come down. it is likely to keep going up. and obviously, massive job growth. i would be saying to you in a month or two if we had 200,000

jobs created. what's the quality? i don't know if we do have great virtues of society for below wage or minimum wage jobs. that's a whole other conversation. >> it's always a pleasure to see you. thank you for joining us. and coming up, a federal judge orders the morning after pill be available over the downer to girls under the age of 17. and in the trayvon martin case, there is word of a settlement. and president obama set to unveil his budget. one democrat is quoted as saying, quote, democrats invented social security and has been protecting it for almost 80 years. they shouldn't be leading the charge against it. we'll tell you who made that remark and we'll talk with the ranking democrat in the house budget committee. congressman chris van hollen.

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hello. we're following some news. we've been talking about the impact of the sequester. now we've learned that the faa has decided to delay the closure of several, over 100 traffic control towers. they were required under the rules of the sequestration to make budget cuts. as a result, the plan was as of this sunday to have closures of a number of control towers. let me go to nbc's tom costello who is standing by with the very latest here. tell us at least, again, this is a part of sequester and the decision being made today. >> this is a big headline. many communities and cities

across the country will be breathing a sigh of relief. the fax has postponed for now the decision to delay, rather, to close 149 air traffic control facilities. these are mostly in small communities across the country. the bottom line is many communities were arguing about it. some were mounding a legal challenge. some said they need more time to come up with their own plan to staff the towers with their own contract employees, come one the money to do that or what have you. now the fax has postponed this decision until june 15th. the overall goal is to save more than $600 million. what is mandated by the sequestration goes into effect. as a result the faa had announced 24 faa towers would close this coming sunday. another 46 on april 21st. another 79 on may 5th. and airports could continue to operate if they came up with a plan them would do it without federal air traffic controllers.

either they come one their own money to pay for contract employees or they go to a contract situation which air maybe pilots communicate with each other. and say i'm about to land. i'm about to take off. they coordinate their see and be seen approach which is very common in many small airports across the country. but the headline for now today, right now, the fax postponing the closure of 149 airports until at least june 15th. back to you. >> thank you very much. nbc news has now confirmed that on wednesday, the white house will send a budget to capitol hill that contains a compromise offer to republicans. later that day, the president will hold another one of those dinners with a dozen senate republicans. one of the most contentious changes, the cuts to social security. it is part of the final compromise after the offer the president made to speaker john boehner and cuts mean bad news for some democrats. independent vermont senator bernie sanders, in fact, tweeted, two-thirds of senior

citizens rely on hash tag social security for more than half their income. former labor secretary said democrats invented social security and have been protecting it for almost 80 years. they shouldn't be leading the charge against it. joining me now, the ranking member of the house committee. thank you for joining us. let me get your reaction to both bernie sanders and robert reich. >> both the house and senate democrats passed their own budgets several weeks ago. the senate passed theirs. we didn't get the votes but we put forth a budget which did not include the so-called chain cpi. and i do have serious concerns about its impact on seniors. what the president is clearly trying to do is send a signal that he wants to meet republicans halfway. my concern is at least given the initial reactions we've heard for speaker boehner and others,

they're not prepared to meet him halfway. so their tactical questions and their substantive concerns. >> let me play what the president said on "meet the press" regarding the chain cpi. >> as you know, one of the proposals was something we made was chain cpi. it basically makes an adjustment in terms of how inflation is calculated. highly unpopular among democrats. not something supported by aarp. but in pursuit of strengthening social security for the long term, i'm willing to make those decisions. >> congressman van hollen, robert hickey, the co-founder said this. there's one part of the proposal that is just, quote, stupid. those are his words. he has taken a republican idea, cutting social security benefits through the so-called chain cpi and made it his idea. less about the compromise or lack there of, that the republicans may be offering up. are we seeing now a battle between the progressives and the

president? >> well, clearly you're going to see some very serious differences. the president has said this will reflect the real inflation, the real cost of living adjustments. >> what is the compromise? >> the concern many of us have is with respect to seniors who use an unusually large share of their income in the area of health care which rises more rapidly than other costs. that it may not be an accurate reflection of true costs and it may not capture their true costs. this will be something we'll look at in the coming weeks. the president will be putting his budget forward as you said on wednesday. that's when we'll get to see all the details. and it will be part of the conversation as congress moves forward. >> you have people at home who will say, we've had republicans on air, on all across the different networks who say that they are not budging when it comes to revenue. in their estimation, they believe, here the administration is again. now looking at what the president said before are the

people lou are hurt the most. we're not looking at, for example, loopholes for the wealthy. at least the republicans have said they're not budging and now it cuts back to cuts who o'those who may need at this time most in our society. >> i just said i have very serious concerns about that particular proposal. the one thing the president has been very clear on. he will insist on shared responsibility. in other words, putting aside whether this particular idea on chain cpi is a good idea or a bad idea, what the president is saying is he will only support that proposal if you also ask higher income individuals to contribute more by elittle nighting or reducing the tax deductions that they enjoy. >> so the answer to that, republicans have said no. that's a nonstart he at this point. in their words, they've already, the president has already gotten his tax revenue, i believe was the quote that we've been hearing over and over. >> that's right. and the president's, i think, what he hopes is that by putting

this idea forward, it will be seen as a signal that he is willing to compromise. i share some of your concerns. at least today republicans have shown no interest in meeting the president halfway. what they will want to do is cherry pick his proposals. take the parts that they like which may include chain cpi but say, forget it to the president when it comes to the revenue piece. that is exactly the concern in terms of the strategy, let alone the substance of the proposals. >> it is a great pleasure always to speak with you. we'll be with you soon. >> coming up, north korea warning staff at the british and russian embassies to consider evacuation saying it may not be able to guarantee their safety if war breaks out. we'll have an update. plus, the former senator scott brown. he said he is thinking about another run for congress.

and it is not for the state of massachusetts. we'll tell you which state he is eyeballing. one of the things we thought you should know. but first, more fall yut from the video of rutgers university basketball coach shoving and using homophobic slurs. tim pernetti has resigned. he watched the video four months ago. he fine asked suspended rice and sent him to anger management. an assistant coach has also resign meantime. at least 13 faculty members are calling on rutgers' president to resign as well. more than two years ago,

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korea, japan, or military bases in the pacific. meantime, north korea urged russia to consider evacuating their embassies. north korea also put a date of april 10th when it could not guarantee their safety. joining me now, the former director of communications from the national security council. thank you for joining us. we were briefly in the commercial break. you believe that there are some things happening if you will behind the scenes involving our new secretary of state john kerry that could possibly be, if you will, putting our allies, including, of course, china on this issue in line. >> well, that's a good starting point. my rgss could have with the administration, it is clear that we're making all the efforts we can to demonstrate publicly and privately that north korea needs to get itself out of the box that it is increasingly putting itself in. every action it is taking from the bluster and the rhetoric to the demonstrations and the videos we see increasingly

isolated. it is this leader and his regime cutting off his nose to spite his face increasingly. and i think secretary kerry's trip next week to the region will be both a slow of solidarity and the strength of our commit toxt securing the region and also a chance to have very frank conversations about what more can be done to demonstrate this to north korea and what the way out is. >> and certainly those who watch the news early, have watched a daily report with more defiance from north korea. another sign of defiance from north korea. you do wonder where is this going? what does kim jong-un want here to happen? right, right. let's start where we are right now in new york city. that i know ambassador rice was just on a little while ago talking about the way the innational communicate has responded. while he may, this leader, that is, see his face splashed across the evening news every day is that have that as a message to his people. what is really happening is the international community is further uniting to demonstrate

both how wrong a course of action this is, to actually help north korea. as the white house has said. if his goal is to increase check and military security, he is doing everything wrong to achieve that. there is a pathway out. and resolution 2094 that the u.n. security council passed also takes steps to limit his ability, the north koreans' ability to proliferate, to cause more trouble in the region or the world. it is coming in on all sides for this leader. >> we know, and we've talked a lot about this in the past. the role of china here. what are we likely to see from china as we move forward? especially with the meetings with secretary kerry? >> i think it is very important that we saw china and russia sign on to this resolution that was passed. it had representative cain on morning joe praising ambassador rice for the role the u.s. played in getting everyone around the table to agree to that resolution. moving forward, china will have an important role to continue to

play and indeed, secretary kerry's visit to the region including china will be an important opportunity to have that conversation, to hear what they're doing and to decide how we can continue to work to show north korea that it shouldn't pursue these threats and this bluster further. >> thank you very much. great pleasure having you on. your first time as a guest. thank you for joining us. >> thank you for having me. still ahead, what was meant to be a compliment from president obama to the top prosecutor has back fired. within the last 30 minutes, flew comments from the president about these headlines. one of them in the "los angeles times." obama calls kamala harris accurate. we have new comments. with the spark cash card from capital one... boris earns unlimited rewards for his small business. can i get the smith contract, please? thank you. that's three new paper shredders.

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our first read team says april is shaping up to be a busy and consequential month in washington. this week, the president used the bully pulpit in colorado on gun control. the group of eight bipartisan senators have said they've reached a deal on immigration reform. one key senator said not so fast. take a look at the week that was. >> with the agreement between business and labor, every major policy issue has been resolved on the gang of eight. i am very, very opt police particular that we will have an agreement among the eight of us next week. >> i think we've got a deal. we've got to write the legislation. 2013 i hope will be the year that we pass bipartisan immigration reform. >> the opponents of some of these common sense laws have ginned up fears among responsible gun owners. if there are any folks out there right now who are gun owners and

you've been hearing that somebody is taking away your guns, get the facts. we're not proposing a gun registration system. we're proposing background checks for criminals. >> when it comes to background checks, 87% support the idea for private sales and for gun shows. >> i really do think it is just a matter of time. politicians at the end of the day are politicians. 90/10 issues remain 90/ten issues. >> vice president biden and i have worked together on so many important issues. and i know what a personal victory it was for him to see the violence against women act reauthorized last month. >> there is no woman like hillary clinton. that's a fact. >> while god may be a god of second chances, at times voters are a little legal forgiving. >> quite a week.

joining me now, senior political editor mark murray. so we ended that with sanford. we want to talk about hillary clinton. the global forum that she is part of. you have this new poll out showing head to head match-ups. 2016, forever away. nevertheless, it's as you said know, it shows hillary clinton defeating chris christie, rand paul, marco rubio. these are polls taken off something that is far, far away. only mr. roarke and tattoo on this political fantasy island. nevertheless, it is abuzz this week. >> we have a very, very long way to go until 2016. when you look at the numbers that show joe biden, hillary clinton versus their respective counterparts, the democrats have the advantage. i think that is generic. they're in a stronger political decision over republicans.

things can change. there will be a lot of twists and turns over the next few years. i would note the one republican who gives both hillary clinton and joe biden a run for their money is chris christie who was uninvited at that recent cpac conference in the washington, d.c. area. so very, very interesting numbers. >> now from the fantasy of the future to the serious issue of right now, gun control legislation, the proposals on the table. president obama back in connecticut on monday. the white house confirmed the first lady will be in chicago on wednesday. >> this was a very busy and consequential week. this is shaping up to be an incredibly consequential month. you write, there will be gun legislation hitting the senate floor sometime later this month. it is a question of whether you he said up having it this week or next as democrats try to be able to get some type of republican co-sponsor for the legislation that includes those background checks. there was rae congressmen morning joe marist poll that showed nearly 90% of people

favoring the background collection but democrats are actively looking for a republican co-sponsor to that type of legislation. >> thank you very much. we'll see you on monday. have a great weekend. >> you too. >> new information out of sanford, florida, and the trayvon martin case. the atlantic sentinel reporting that martin's parents have settled a wrongful death claim against the homeowner's association of the subdivision where trayvon was killed. a lawyer for his parents made it clear that a separate suit against george zimmerman was not part of the deal reached. the total amount of the settlement is not known but it is reported to be more than $1 million. . ? still ahead, a federal judge is giving the government 30 days to make the morning after pill available for girls younger than 17. no prescription needed. we'll examine the legal and medical aspects of this ruling today. but first, there is a lot going on today. here are some things we thought you should know. for the first time, the majority of americans favor the

legalization of pot. a new pugh survey shows that 52% say marijuana should be legal. the number is higher, no pun intended, among young people. 65% of those born after 1980 favor legalization. sflxt scott brown said he is not ruling out another senate bid. this time though, in new hampshire. brown says new hampshire is, quote, like his second home. and points out that his mom and sister live there. brown would challenge democratic senator who is up for re-election in 2014. those are the things we just thought you should know. welcome to the new new york state, where cutting taxes for families and businesses is our business. we've reduced taxes and lowered costs to save businesses more than two billion dollars to grow jobs, cut middle class income taxes to the lowest rate in sixty years, and we're creating tax free zones for business startups. the new new york is working creating tens of thousands of new businesses, and we're just getting started.

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do we hano.a mower? a trimmer? no. we got nothing. we just bought our first house, we're on a budget. we're not ready for spring. well let's get you ready. very nice. you see these various colors. we got workshops every saturday. yes, maybe a little bit over here. this spring, take on more lawn for less. not bad for our first spring. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. black friday is back but not for long. right now get bonnie 4 and 5 inch herbs and vegetables, 5 for $10. today a federal judge lifted ban on the morning after pill for anyone under the age of 17. the ruling goes into effect in 30 days. the judge said government refusal to lift restrictions on access to the pill was quote, arbitrary and unreasonable.

it counteracts an unprecedented move by health and human services secretary several years ago. justice correspondent pete williams joins us live. give us more insight to the judge's ruling here. >> when plan b came on the market in 1999, it was available only by a prescription. the fda eventually said it could be sold without a prescription to women 17 years and older. but only at a pharmacy. not over the downer. and then the fda decided to lift those restrictions but it was the secretary of hhs who intervene and blocked it saying it would be too ricky to let girls as young as 17 buy it. today the federal judge of brooklyn ordered the fda to lift all restrictions. he said this case is not about the potential misuse of plan b by 11-year-olds. these emergency contraceptives would be among the safest drugs sold over the downer. the number of 11-year-olds using these drugs is likely to be

minute skul. he said it was driven by election year politics. not by science and law. so will the government appeal? the justice department said it will act promptly considering appeal options. if there is no appeal, then any store that wants to could put plan b out on the open shelves. it would no longer have to be sold behind the farlcy downer and women's groups say that it's the most important result. making them available more widely and around the clock at 24-hour drug stores and they hope eventually at any store that wants to sell them. >> thank you so much. greatly appreciate it. joining me now, the doctor who works in adolescent medicine at rainbow children's hospital. >> let me play president obama back in december 6, 2011, defending kathleen sebelius's assessment of the concerns of this drug in the hands of young girls. let's play it. >> as i understand it, the reason kathleen made this

decision was she could not be confident that a 10-year-old or an 11-year-old going to a drugstore should be able, alongside bubble gum or batteries, be able to buy a medication that potentially if not used properly could end up having an adverse if he can. i think most parents would probably feel the same way. >> so doctor, the judge said he felt this was about politics and not about science. what is the science here? >> the science is that this is a very effective and very safe drug to use. and there are virtually no significant side effects. it is a one-time use. and we can very confidently prescribe it to any teenager.

pregnancy clearly is a much more serious, with many more side effects at a young age than this pill would be. so medically, this is a very safe drug to use. >> we heard the judge also say that an 11-year-old using this would be minimal. obviously, just to the whole nature of reproduction and the time in which a girl would be able to conceive, rarely are we seeing that at an 11-year-old. certainly not younger. you're seeing some cases, nevertheless, beyond the medical signs of national reply and a woman's body. you have assess he'll richards saying lifting the age restrictions on over the counter emergency contraception is a significant and long overdue step. is this a benefit for women of all ages medically? >> absolutely. a pregnancy in an 11-year-old

has serious medical, could potentially have serious medical complications and clearly could have many serious social implications. so you know, preventing the pregnancy, if the teenager and obviously, the parent at this age should be involved is very essential and very important. so having this method available, easily available is a significant step forward in preventing teenage pregnancy. >> thank you so much for your time. we greatly appreciate it. a lot of people discussing this story and we'll see what happens, if anything, in the next 30 days regarding the decision. still ahead, our news nation gut check. talk about a buzz story. the president called california's top prosecutor, quote, the best attorney general in the country. we've just gotten in new reaction from the white house. what the president said just a

short time ago regarding his comments. and aaron carmone will join us. she has a little issue with what the president said. ...so you say men are superior drivers? yeah? then how'd i get this... [ voice of dennis ] ...safe driving bonus check? every six months without an accident, allstate sends a check. silence. are you in good hands? blast of cold feels nice. why don't you use bengay zero degrees? it's the one you store in the freezer. same medicated pain reliever used by physical therapists. that's chilly! [ male announcer ] bengay zero degrees. freeze and move on.

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time for "news nation" gut check. president obama has called california attorney general kamala harris to apologize for remarks he made yesterday at a fund-raiser at the event. the president said, quote, she is brilliant and she is dedicated, she is tough and she is exactly what you would want in anybody who is administering law. she also happens to be by far the best attorney general in the country. kamala harris is here. it's true. come on. those are his comments. some have said they're friends and others have said it was insensitive. one writes, this hardly the first time obama has been

smarmily sexist. >> the president did not apologize for the remark. he apologized for the distraction that it has caused, meaning some of the buzz online and on twitter. >> it is all about context. this was a context which. >> which kamala's credentials were being discussed. he should have stopped at brilliant and tough and enforcing the lawful her looks have nothing to do with this. in a world where we will's looks are so crucial to how they're judged and how we're valued in society, it is really not on a progressive president to reinforce those norms. he should have just stuck to what was relevant. her qualifications as attorney general. >> so linda feldman of the "christian science monitor" said the president is relax asked jovial and saying what he thinks. the republic will not fall over this and it is not as if obama has a reputation as a skirt chaser, as did some of his

predecessors. >> i think some people are missing the point. yes, they're friends, yes, he makes comments like this about plenty. the reality is that women are judged under a much harsher assess set of standards. >> you made the point, he's made these comments about men. it is not as if he's gone around introducing every woman as some good lady, you know? >> it's true. again, i made this point in my piece. for every joke about a plan being good looking there are 500,000 pieces about is a woman fat, does she look wrinkled? the context is not during in a vacuum. >> we know each other very well. we're friends. you're on stage and here you are very successful, as you are. and someone drouss you. erin carmon, list some of your accomplishments. and the guy says, she's not bad. do you walk up on stage and do you say -- >> i think i would make the remarks privately just for the sake of public display. >> all right. it's a lot topic. we're going to ask the post what

they think. have a great weekend. i won't remark on anything the way either of us look. or the president's remarks about the california attorney general inappropriate. what does your gut tell you? go to facebook.com/newsnation. you can comment to erin as well. that does it for this edition of "news nation." please enjoy your week. coming up on monday, san francisco cornerback from the 49ers, nnamdi asomugha. oh, he's a fighter alright. since aflac is helping with his expenses while he can't work, he can focus on his recovery. he doesn't have to worry so much about his mortgage, groceries, or even gas bills. kick! kick... feel it! feel it! feel it! nice work! ♪ you got it! you got it! yes! aflac's gonna help take care of his expenses.

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right now on "the cycle," compromising position. the details are out early and there are surprises for both sides of the aisle. >> the unemployment rate falls again. there is little to