who needs a compass. and the prince and the governor. chris christie has his royal moment with prince harry on the jersey shore. it is "way too early" for this. good morning, everyone. i'm brian shactman. we got to thinking how do these potential scandals stack up in history. what we need from you is a list. we want your top three political scandals. you did nothing in the caption contest yesterday. give me a list of your top three political scandals. i'll give you 15 minutes. you can take the humorous route. i'll tell you, clinton/lewinsky, the clubhouse leader. i'll show you my own in a little bit. just post yours on twitter,

using the #tooearlytop3. let's get to the news here on this wednesday. attorney general eric holder ordering a criminal investigation into the irs' targeting of conservative groups. this after an internal government watchdog blamed, quote, ineffective management for the scandal. a report concluded the cincinnati office of the irs used inappropriate criteria to single out tea party groups. adding there was, quote, insufficient oversight by management. the report also revealed that some applications for nonprofit status were delayed, some for as long as three years. a "usa today" analysis found that during the same time, the irs approved dozens of liberal groups for the same applications. last night, president obama said in a statement the report's findings are, quote, intolerable and inexcusable, promising to

follow through on the inspect general's recommendations. the white house has denied any role in the irs scandal. but republicans say the administration cannot be trusted. >> what we don't know at this point is whether it jumped the fence from the irs to the white house. but we do know this. we can't count on the administration to be forthcoming about the details of this scandal because so far they've been anything but. >> on this one, the criticism, not just from republicans. former white house press secretary robert gibbs says the president mishandled his response. the tenor of this briefing would be different if the president had spoken about this on saturday or sunday and not on monday. and if the president had spoken on monday, less about losing patience for this, which is what i do with my 9-year-old, and used far more vivid language. and i think come out and announced that there would be a

commission made up of a former -- two former commissioners, irs commissioners. democrat -- one appointed by democrat, one appointed by a republican, that said we're going to deal with -- the irs is going to deal with how to deal with 501-c4s, that had different littal bents, based on what the administration is or isn't. that's always going to be the case. to another scandal grabbing headlines. u.s. attorney general, eric holder again, defending the use of secret subpoenas by the justice department to obtain telephone records of associated press reporters last year. holder says the department's actions are critical to national security. >> this was a very serious -- a very serious leak. a very, very serious leak. i've been a prosecutor since 1976. and i have to say that this is among, if not the most serious, it is within the top two or three, most serious leaks that i've ever seen. it put the american people at

risk. and that is not hyperbole. it put the american people at risk. and trying to determine who is responsible for that, i think required very aggressive action. >> he was referencing the disclosure last year of a failed al qaeda terror plot. i wonder what they're doing in their own -- inside the d.o.j. to see where that leak came from. they should do it on both sides. holder told reporters yesterday he removed himself from the investigation last year. and it was his deputy who approved the subpoenas. chief white house correspondent mike allen. the white house dealing with pretty big distractions. it seems that maybe it's going to suck up all of the political air and energy. and will there be anything left for the president's agenda? >> we talked to house and senate republicans who say these investigations are going to go on for months. the white house is giving them a lot to work with here. we're told they're going to go after the theme of government

overreach, brian. that's the one theme that ties together what was going on with benghazi. what was going on with the irs. what's going on with those probes into the telephone calls. and they're going to look at partisanship, intimidation, in the government. we're told that after the irs, they're going to go on to the health and human services department to look at how they were handling obama care. so, the -- the investigations could go at least until the midterm elections in 2014. they could be affected by outside bents. somebody pointed out to me, if the boston marathon tragedy were to happen next week, something like that, all this would look very different. >> it's interesting. it doesn't seem obama has a ton of friends in some of these situations. and now, you have an article out this morning about some staffers who talk about him being aloof. is some of that coming back to bite him? >> that's a great point. and we have a column behind the

curtain, talking about d.c. versus obama. talking about the fact that there was not a reservoir of goodwill for the president with the democratic friends and allies around town. his political fortunes are no longer tied with democrats who are being more critical of him. and the press corps, has gotten beaten up for being pro-obama, soft on obama. at the same time the white house was complaining to us. they have no incentive to go easy, either. >> mike allen politico. lost in the stories is surprising budget news. the nation's federal deficit is shrinking faster than anticipated. the cbo expects a deficit for the 2013 fiscal year. it's more than $200 billion lower than the previous estimate

just three months ago. the adjustment reflects new revenue, thanks from changes in tax laws and increase in payments from fannie mae and freddie mac. the cbo's current projection would mark the lowest deficit yet under president obama. another u.s. service member assigned to a military sexual assault program under investigation for sexual misconduct. the pentagon says a u.s. army sergeant could face charges for solicitation abusive sexual contact, assault and treatment of subordinate. the soldier allegedly forced one subordinate soldier into prostitution and physically assaulted two others. the report comes a week after an air force lieutenant colonel working in the sexual assault prevention office was arrested and accused of sexual battery. a day after being convicted for some of the worst crimes you

can imagine, dr. kermit gosnell has avoided life in prison. he was found guilty of the deaths of three babies at his abortion facility. under a deal with prosecutors, the 72-year-old will spend the rest of his life in prison, while giving up his right to an appeal. now, to business. the dow and the s&p logging fresh highs yesterday, mostly led by gains in the financial sector. this is an impressive streak for the dow. the 18th-consecutive tuesday that the index has posted gains. i guess you want to buy on tuesday mornings. let's get more of the headlines with geoff in london. france in recession. germany growth is weak. give us a sense of how bad it is. >> we're taking the gloss off the market run in europe. we had a weak print on the

french economy for the first quarter. they're in recession, effectively. about half an hour ago, we got a look at the eurozone and the e.u. numbers. and they are weak, as well. so, at the moment, no real evidence that europe is able to overcome in stagnating growth that's coming from this battle against governments that have spent too much. so, austerity around the euro area is driving growth lower here. and we are weak on our equity markets, as well. remains to be seen if some of this takes the shine off the u.s. session when you guys get started a little later on in the trading day. >> corporate and consumer news. boeing, they're putting the dreamliner problems behind them. how and much cash is airlines making off our checked bags? >> the dreamliner back in the air. we've seen qatar airway was resuming flights. the other airlines will run

through checks. we don't see many of the planes getting back in the air until june. the airlines are really able to stick it to us consumers, aren't they? $6 billion worth of what they call ancillary charges for 2012. that's the highest level we've ever seen from the airline sector. they are working out ways to get money out of our pockets, my friend. >> yes, they are. >> alongside that ticket to travel. back to you. >> $3.5 billion in checked bags alone. you have to gary it on and gate check it. it's a nightmare. geoff, appreciate it. finally, if you take one medicine to sleep you may start taking a little less of it. the fda okayed lower dosages for the drug sold as ambien. according to the findings extended release versions of the drug can stay longer in a patient's system. people who take the drug shouldn't drive the whole next day.

i think a lot of people have been driving while impaired by ambien. with controversy swirling on washington, d.c., we want to know your top three political scandals. my top three, the florida recount. clinton/lewinsky. the number one, the iran-contra scandal. and the reason for it, it's my first memory of political scandal. my first political anything was the hostage crisis. that wasn't so much a political scandal to me. it was a foreign policy. that's why i chose it as number one. you can post yours on twitter. the #tooearlytop3. we'll read the best responses later on the show. still ahead, dangers of the dome. or the roof or the ceiling. i don't know what you want to call it at tropicana field. whether it cost the red sox a victory. and when christie met harry. should be a good sitcom. we'll hear what the governor

thought of the prince later. that story and a check on weather. when "way too early" comes right back. hi! i'm rach.

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that's the idea. before you have any work done, check angie's list. from roofers to plumbers to dentists and more, angie's list -- reviews you can trust. i love you, angie. sorry, honey. a little sports, with bill karins. nba playoffs. they're done. the dishes are done, man. knicks/pacers, game four. new york unable to bounce back from the bad loss. george hill had 26. paul george added 18. the pace verse a 3-1 series lead. the san antonio spurs all over golden state in game five. tony parker had 25. and the spurs held off golden state. they have a 3-2 series lead. tonight, you have oklahoma city. they're on the brink against memphis. >> i think they'll win at home tonight. >> memphis? some people think that's the one team that could beat miami.

miami could close out chicago in miami. but dwyane wade has a bum knee. he's questionable. >> probably don't need him. chicago put up a good fight. to the second round of the stanley cup playoffs. hockey. the kings and the sharks. mike richards and voynov each scored. goalie jonathan quick. made 35 saves helping the defending champ jump out to a 1-0 series lead. penguins and senators. pascal dupuis had his sixth goal in the playoffs, as the pens knocked off the sens in game one. a little baseball. pirates and brewers. >> game tied at 3-3. pittsburgh's andrew mccutcheon. smashes one over for the walkoff homer. have to look at his contract to see how long until he joins the yankees. look at this. >> who's got it?

i think barnacle could catch this one. >> a 3-3 game in the fourth. they lost it in the -- girders. >> that was a laugh. you guys are all red sox fans. >> worst facility in the major leagues. >> you're going to blame the facilities, not the players. >> yeah. they ended up losing 5-3. it's booed, by the way. three games behind the yankees in third place. so much for a good start. are you a yankee fan? >> yes. i'm like the only yankee fan that works on the show that comes out of new york. >> he's a lousy weather man. >> we're going to find out. it went from freezing cold to 100 degrees. >> iowa, minnesota, it was nuts yesterday. it was hotter in areas in the central plains that it has been in vegas or phoenix so far this summer. incredible contrast. we went to work with hots and gloves on in the northeast yesterday. while in the midwest, they had temperatures that were off the charts. new york city's going to be warmer today. we're at 53 in new york. but look at our poor friends in

hartford. 32 to start your morning. it's hanging in new england. and the warm air is not coming your way. we got some rain. it's starting to move towards buffalo and rochester. have the umbrella in the northeast. you'll need it this afternoon. it's not going to pour all day. texas, a little bit of wet weather, too. that 106 in iowa has never happened this early in the year. chalk it up to another weather extreme. >> that's just nuts. i'm looking forward -- i don't want 106. i want some warmth. coming up on "morning joe," the attorney general orders a criminal investigation into the irs' targeting of conservative groups. they will break down the developments and the impact on the white house. when we come back, the russians say they arrested a u.s. spy within their boarders. the evidence that has the diplomat headed back to the u.s. and how it could affect the countries' relationship. ♪

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a classic spy story, disguises, cash, instructions on how to recruit an informant. that's what the russians say

they discovered on an american diplomat when he was detained in moscow. andrea mitchell has all of the details. >> reporter: it was the lead story on russia's state-owned cable news. a u.s. embassy employee supposedly caught spying in moscow. showing being stripped of his disguise. allegedly trying to recruit a russian for the cia. in a scene right out of the cold war, 29-year-old ryan fogle, a low-level diplomat, allegedly caught with a spy's tool kit. wigs, sunglasses, maps, money. even a letter offering his russian contact up to $1 million a year. quote, to discuss your experience, expertise and cooperation. that's instructions for opening up a gmail account. the russians released fogle to the u.s. embassy. he'll probably be sent home. on twitter, the u.s. ambassador had no comment. at washington's popular spy museum, a former cia spy says it

happens all the time. >> even the disguise material, which people have sort of charteled about, i've used d disguise. it can work. >> reporter: the russians call the incident provocative. secretary of state kerry was meeting with his russian counterpart in sweden, presumably not swapping spy stories. >> you see those wigs? a letter telling -- something. >> the wig, the letter. >> something amiss with that. you okay this morn? >> all right. a late night. chris christie was there. it was a lot of fun. >> you're young. you can handle it. >> on monday, president obama was asked the irs scandal at a news conference. jon stewart hones in on not what the president said but what he

found out about the scandal. >> mr. president, when did you find out about the irs targeting conservative groups. >> i learned about it from the news reports that most people learned about this. i think it was on friday. >> what was that day that i found a powerful arm of the government may be using his power for political purposes? let's see? how could nobody in the administration thought to mention this issue to the president. it's a slight oversight. >> i heard on the news about this story that fast and furious. >> it happened one other time. >> it was something we found out about along with all of you. >> and that other time when air force one did an unannounced statue of liberty flyover for this sweet photo op. >> he found out about the news reports yesterday on the road. >> and that the justice department had seized two months of phone reports from a.p.

reporters. i'm surprised that president obama saw that osama bin laden had been killed when he saw himself on television. >> that's really good. governor christie and prince harry spent some time together on the jersey shore yesterday. two peas in a pod over there. the prince is showing his support for the recovery from sandy. christie said he found harry to be smart, articulate and really nice. the prince was wonderfully interactive. >> he's smart and articulate and really nice. and he was wonderfully interactive. >> that was at mika's book event last night. he told a story. the prince wanted to go meet some of the jersey shore people. and chris christie and the security said it's not safe to go down there. he said, don't worry about it. i'm with the governor. >> they hugged it out, too. >> they faced off in a wiffle ball toss yesterday.

guess who won. >> the governor. the governor, obviously. >> they don't play a lot of wiffle ball over in the u.k. >> they play cricket. >> that's like field hockey. >> cricket. >> i know. >> i'm a cricket guy. still ahead, why are you awake? the top political scandals. and "morning joe" is now just moments away. (alarm clock buzzer) ♪ (announcer) friskies. now serving breakfast.

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at the top of the show, we asked for your top three political scandals. we had amazing answers. my top three, the florida recount, clinton/lewinsky, and iran-contra. let's go to john tower for what we had from the rest of our peeps. >> we saw clinton/lewinsky. iran-contra. bush wmds was big. our favorite was from jazz. a little throwback. number three, grover cleveland's love child. number two, grant's whisky ring. and number one, the teapot-dome. >> who doesn't know teapot-dome.

the warren g. harding administration. the bribery scandal before watergate. it was the biggest political scandal in our country's history. who doesn't know that, john? >> obama is being compared to president nixon. how does he feel about that? >> again, i don't have a reaction from president obama. i can tell you that people who make those kind of comparisons need to check their history. >> welcome to "morning joe." it is may 15th, as you take a beautiful look at new york city. with us on set, steve rattner, mike barnicle, willie geist and in d.c., we have lisa myers, kelly o'donnell, david ignatius and unbelievable amount of news