themselves politically, not protect the country legally. it's businesses trying to keep the door open for cheap labor. it's every push in the country, every pressure group in the country. i don't hear one person say with conviction -- i want congress to pass an immigration bill that they will be proud to fully and effectively enforce. if not, why ra they wasting our time passing another joke like they did back in 1986. and that's "hardball" for now. thanks for being with us. "politicsnation" with al sharpton starts right now. thanks, chris, and thanks to you for tuning in. i'm live tonight from washington, d.c. tonight's lead, a major development in the george zimmerman murder trial. after nearly two weeks of intense questioning, the jury has been chosen. six people and four alternatives

will decide whether mr. zimmerman is guilty or not. guilty in the shooting death of trayvon martin. he has plead not guilty and claims he shot trayvon martin in self-defense. here is the jury. all six of the jurors are women. the prosecution described five of the jurors as white. the sixth juror was described as hispanic or black. late today these jurors were sworn in by the judge. >> if you'll stand up and raise your right hands to be sworn. >> raise your right hand, please. do you solemnly swear or affirm that you will well and truly try this issue between the state of florida and the defense according to the laws and rend area true verdict, so help god? >> i do. >> thank you. >> you now have been sworn to be the jury in this case. >> one year, three months, and

25 days after the shooting death of 17-year-old trayvon martin, a jury will now be asked to determine what happened on that rainy night. opening statements will begin monday morning at 9:00 a.m. in the case of the state of florida versus george zimmerman. joining me now criminal defense attorney, paul henderson and lisa bloom. thank you all for joining me. >> >> thanks for having us. >> what's your reaction? >> this is one of the most important selects of the jury. it's a silly name. it's really not jury selection. it's jury elimination. both sides are looking for a specific type of juror. the prosecution obviously wants jurors that will convict. and the defense wants jurors that are going to find george zimmerman not guilty.

and through this process of eliminating jurors, they come up with these six jurors that are going to decide this case. they're going to have to listen to the evidence very carefully, and they got opening statements that are coming up, which i believe is one of the other most important aspects of this trial. >> now, lisa, when you look at the fact that the jury makeup, it's an all women's jury. the prosecution describes five as white. says the sixth jury is white or hispanic. i mean, do you think this is a fair jury? one, it certainly doesn't represent the county. but what is your sense of this jury, if anything? >> well, of course i think that an all female jury is probably a highly intelligent jury. but taking the other factors into account as well, reverend al, the women on the jury are mostly middle aged or older. they are majority white, as you say, and most of them are mothers. if we had to do a composite of this jury, it would be a white,

middle aged mother, somebody a lot like me. so the question is do female jurors decide cases differently? and i took a look at the social science of research on that. it's inconclusive. generally women and men decide cases about the same. but women can be more sympathetic to victims. of course in this case the question is who is the victim, trayvon martin or george zimmerman. so it remains to be seen what effect this will have. >> paul, how do you view this jury? you look at seminole county, the demographics are 66% white, 18% latino, 12% african-american. the final six jurists do not reflect those demographics. and we see that race was a central concern in the jury selection process for both sides. let me show you. >> i would ask that the state identify a race and gender neutral reason for now having struck four white women in a row. >> i understand that. but the court also understands

the makeup of this entire panel is a majority of women. and that's a possibility that would happen. >> yes. i will strike m-75. >> staying with the race neutral. >> okay. what is your race neutral reason for striking m-75. >> for the record, she is a black female. >> okay, what is the race -- >> she is a black female. >> the race-neutral reason for wanting to strike e-22. >> so, paul, mr. o'mara raised the point of the prosecutors claiming they were going after white female jurors when he struck the only two blacks, two of the blacks that was on the jury. we are told the one that did make it is black or hispanic, but he certainly struck two blacks. >> yes. >> does this raise any concern to you? >> well, this is why you heard the judge saying what are your

race-neutral concerns? because you have ingstrom wheeler restrictions. this is all matters in a case like this because we know that the defense has an affirmative defense and has to prove the issues. with the issues that are background to come up that drift into discussions of stereotypes and drift into perceptions and apprehensions based on race, this is all going to, no pun intended, but color how the evidence comes in to this trial, which is why i'm really looking forward to the opening statements on monday, which is when we're going to see both sides frame their arguments and their very first presentation to the jury. and all of this stuff is going to matter. that's why you see everyone dancing around the race issue and not addressing while addressing what is the race of the jury that is going to hear this evidence and make a determination in this case. >> so what is your view of this

jury? >> well, i think the jury is going to be -- i like the fact that there are a lot of women, because i think from my perspective as a prosecutor, i think that they are likely to be more sympathetic with trayvon martin in this case. and i also think that with this group of women, they are less likely to have engaged in activities like zimmerman in the past where they acted aggressively, or initiated a confrontation or followed someone that they had apprehensions about. so i like that about having all the women on the jury there having a sense that is more closely aligned to that approach than of the defense's approach. >> ken, let me ask you. when we look at the makeup of the jury, juror b-37 is a white woman who described the protest as rioting and who used to have a concealed weapons permit. jury b-76 is a white female who

wondered why trayvon martin was out late at night. the state tried to strike her but failed. juror e-6 was a white woman whose husband owned guns. the state tried to strike her and failed. you know, these are concerns. one, as you know, i was there trying to call for a trial. i never saw a riot. and two, for a juror to say that why was trayvon out late. one shows some kind of a bias i would question. and two, when did 7:15 at night become too late for somebody to be out? it was 7:15 at night, around that time he was killed. >> well, this is exactly what the issue is. you can infer that there is some judgment there. not necessarily rising to the full level of bias, but those comments and how they were phrased is exactly why the prosecution was trying to kick

those jurors, because they reflected an element of judgment or a tone of judgment about behavior that they alluded toward trayvon that they didn't want in the jury pool. but as you see, the judge kept them on, because you to show there is a standard of bias. and those comments weren't enough to be a clear definition of bias to keep them off of the jury pool. but you're listening to the right things. >> your reaction to that. you in florida, you do not think that these jurors, the prosecution tried to strike and was unsuccessful? you think it showed not enough bias and not clear bias? >> well, exactly. clearly, the prosecution was concerned as i was when i read about one of those jurors' comments that there was rioting, because everyone knows from the actual fact there's was no rioting. i would be concerned as a prosecutor. and that's why the prosecution i believe attempted to eliminate

that juror and the other jurors for those kind of comments. but it has to rise to that level and not be, you know, racially -- a racial type strike. it has to be race neutral. that may be one of the reasons why the judge did not allow the strike from the prosecutor. so he is basically stuck without having other reasons to eliminate those jurors. hopefully, we cannot judge just from that one comment or those various comments from each juror that entire juror's background, and that juror hopefully will be fair and base their verdict based on the evidence that they're going to see at the trial and not from some ideas that crept in to the jury selection process. >> lisa, it's interesting to me that it is mr. o'mara that has raised race today, probably more than anyone involved. and he again accused the state of being racially biassed in their selection. listen to this.

>> we've got a jury which is great. the case is pretty clear that we are not to have a jury that is impacted on by gender bias, race bias, or any type of bias. and it became very apparent to me that the strikes, four in a row, it's almost simplistic at that point to say they were striking white women. >> he is basically accusing the prosecutor of trying to strike white women. he brought up race. clearly he struck two blacks. i have not heard the prosecutor charged him with race. is this a strategy, or is this in fact a feeling that you think he is trying to credibly launch against the prosecution? >> it is a strategy. if he wants to preserve all of his client's rights on appeal, and clearly he wants to do that, he has to raise now before the judge any arguments about improprieties in jury selection. so one of the improprieties would be discrimination based on race, discrimination based on

gender, or discrimination based on any protected class. he has to raise it now. the prosecution, of course, can't appeal if there is an acquittal in this case. the defense can appeal. that's high the defense needs to do this now. and he is just doing his job. >> let me get a final thought quickly from each one of you. let me start with you, paul. >> well, i think it's really interesting that we have all women. i think it's really interesting, and i think people are going to be talking about throughout the rest of the week and before monday the race issue in terms of what this jury reflects in context what that community reflects. and all of the race issues surrounding this case. so i'm really interested to hear how the opening statements incorporate this specific jury and how the lawyers phrase their opening statements to this jury on monday. >> let me go to you, ken. your final thoughts on the jury that has been seated now. >> well, i think we have a jury of our peers. unfortunately from a perception standpoint, i would have liked

to have seen more black americans on the jury that is not the case. but hopefully the system has worked and we have deselected out people who should not be on the jury. and what is left from this jury elimination process is a fair jury. they're now coming into the opening statements, which i believe is really the most crucial part of this trial. >> lisa? >> jurors are complex people, as we all are. and i think if this case has taught us anything, it's not to pigeon hole people based on race, gender, or other criteria. let's be optimistic. let's give this jury a chance to decide the case based on the evidence. >> thank you for your time tonight. >> thanks for having us. >> thank you. >> thank you. ahead, will this be a fair jury? and how are the parents of trayvon martin reacting to the jury being picked? we'll hear from martin family attorney benjamin crump. and i love hearing from you. send me your e-mails. reply al is coming. stay with us.

the jury has been set in the george zimmerman murder trial. we'll get reaction from the martin family attorney benjamin crump, next. whirring ] [ dog barks ] i want to treat more dogs. ♪ our business needs more cases. [ male announcer ] where do you want to take your business? i need help selling art. [ male announcer ] from broadband to web hosting to mobile apps, small business solutions from at&t have the security you need to get you there. call us. we can show you how at&t solutions can help you do what you do... even better. ♪ i'm in my work van, having lunch,

next minute i'm in the back of an ambulance having a heart attack. the emts gave me bayer aspirin. it helped save my life. i was in shape, fit. i did not see it coming. my doctor recommends i take bayer aspirin to help prevent another heart attack. [ male announcer ] aspirin is not appropriate for everyone so be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. i've lived through a massive heart attack. i don't take life for granted. see your doctor and get checked out. ♪ we're back with our continuing coverage of the george zimmerman murder trial.

as we said, we now know the makeup of the jury that will decide mr. zimmerman's fate. all six of the jurors are women. the prosecution described five of them as white and the sixth as black or hispanic. there are also four alternates two, men and two women. the prosecution described one of the alternate jurors as white. the race of the other three jurors has not been characterized. opening statements begin monday. joining me now is benjamin crump, attorney for trayvon martin's family. thanks for coming on the show tonight. >> thank you for having me, reverend sharpton. >> now attorney crump, you're not prosecuting this case, obviously. but you have been with the martin family from the beginning. how are they feeling now that the jury is set? >> well, reverend sharpton, they are putting their faith in the justice system. and they pray that it doesn't

fail them. they've only asked for equal justice for their child. >> now, do they feel that the process has been fair so far? >> well, you know, we've said all along this case is about equal justice. equal justice under the law isn't a black value, it's not a white value, it's an american value. and with the makeup of this jury, five white women and one hispanic, it's going to be -- the question, can every american get equal justice no matter who sits on your jury panel. so they're just praying that they can get justice for their child. >> we're still waiting to see if the audio expert that the state has called is allowed to testify. we know the tape where you hear screaming and you have the state saying they have an expert that says that that screaming came from trayvon martin, and you

have other experts saying that they can confirm that their finding it is was not zimmerman, even though they did not say it was trayvon, but trayvon and zimmerman were the only ones that were there according to all witnesses. we're still waiting on a ruling on that from the judge. we understand the arguments are over and the judge said tonight at closing they -- she hopes to give a ruling tomorrow. how crucial will that expert's testimony be in your judgment, attorney crump? >> you know, reverend al, it's interesting. you know for your audience in america that no expert said that it was zimmerman screaming. they all said it was either trayvon or they couldn't tell. but really, i want to draw everybody's attention, reverend, al, to something we talked about in your show previously. and that is three days after the tragedy, george zimmerman told detective serino when he played the 911 screams for george zimmerman to hear that it didn't sound like him.

so who is more of a expert on your voice than you are? we already have an expert in this voice analysis issue, and it's george zimmerman. and he said it doesn't sound like him. so i think that is more telling than anything else. >> now, let me go by a couple of questions on the jury that i raise to our experts in the first segment tonight. b-76, that juror is a white female. she wondered why trayvon martin was out late at night. the state tried to strike her, but she made the jury. was trayvon out late at night? when was trayvon out, and what time around approximately was that it he was killed? >> reverend sharpton, he left for the 7-eleven before 7:00. and as we all know now, he was killed right around 7:16 that

evening. so i don't know who thinks 7:00 at night is out late at night for a 17-year-old teenager. but that's the stereotypes and the things we have to overcome. and that's why this really is going to be an important case to make sure that trayvon martin isn't stereotyped and that the verdict is based on the evidence. >> then we go to jury b-37 who is a white female. she described protests in sanford as rioting. and she used to have a concealed weapons permit. and as you know, i was down there and helped organize some of the protests asking for a trial. i never saw rioting and never heard of rioting when i wasn't there. >> right, reverend al. and that's what we've been saying all along that everybody who protested on behalf of trayvon martin was very peaceful. and all his parents have ever asked for is peaceful justice. that's it.

and the question i really have, reverend sharpton, once the jury based their verdict on the evidence, and the evidence is overwhelming. and they come back with a just verdict holding george zimmerman guilty of killing trayvon martin, will the other guys act right? and that's the question we don't know. we know how everybody who supported trayvon martin has acted thus far, and it's been very peaceful. >> i think the family has made it clear that they want peace in all that supported them and all that wanted this trial like me want to see peace regardless of where it goes. there is certainly no one calling for a riot no matter what. and i would hope that we get fairness. i think, though, that we must deal with the obvious is in terms of what the county demographics are, what is on the jury. but we don't think people can be fair or unfair based on who they are. but we think the system ought to

always be questioned as to what we're doing. martin family attorney benjamin crump, thank you for your time this evening. we'll be right back. >> thank you ♪ [ agent smith ] i've found software that intrigues me. it appears it's an agent of good.

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. the far right smear machine is now trying to cover its tracks. in a new interview with "playboy," fox anchor sean hannity was grilled about all of his attacks on president obama. "playboy" asked, you said obama grew up in kenya. do you regret saying that now?

hannity's response, but he did grow up in kenya. and he told "the new york times" that he went to a school there and one of the most beautiful things on the planet is islamic prayer at sunset. actually, the president didn't grow up in kenya. he grew up in hawaii and also spent some time in indonesia. the interviewer pointed that out to hannity, who then admitted his mistake. the interview then asked are you fueling the myth that obama's a muslim from africa by saying that? hannity's response, i never fueled the myth. how do you come up with this stuff? he didn't fuel the myth? fact is hannity poured gasoline on the fire. you couldn't stop him from talking about it on his show. >> he talked about, you know, the prayer at sunset being one of the most beautiful things he has ever seen. you talk about this and he studied the koran and prayers at

sunset were some of those beautiful things he saw in life. he did write about his early years, that he did study the koran. that one of the most beautiful things in life was prayer at sunset. >> and hannity's show has been a consistent form for birther conspiracy theorists on the right who question whether the president is a real american. >> what's the deal? produce a birth certificate. it's done. it's over with. >> all the president has to do is show it there. >> are so many things that people don't know about this man, where he comes from. >> how did he get into columbia with bad grades at occidental? if they're looking for a guy from indonesia but you are a good talker and a good interviewer and you have a exotic story, you're in. >> he could get the birth certificate and it would be over. i'm curious why he wouldn't do that. >> did sean hannity think we wouldn't call him out for trying to sanitize his coverage of the president?

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we need to talk about the health care crisis going on in the country. right now millions of americans are forced to choose between buying food and buying medicine. there are kids who can't afford to see a doctor, adults who have never been to a routine checkup. president obama's affordable care act is helping the crisis. today we learned the law saved consumers nearly $4 billion in premiums last year. a new study finds that in the nine states that have publicized insurance rates under the exchanges, every brand came in cheaper than estimated. and today we also learned the growth of medical costs is falling for the first time. since the 1970s. no question these are positive signs. but right now some on the right are still blocking the solution.

republicans in 21 states are blocking the expansion of medicaid. let me be clear. they're blocking uninsured residents from getting access to care. literally turning down money for the poor. how can they look in the mirror at night? we should all be in this together helping our fellow americans. so we are taking action. we're proud to partner with the national association of free clinics. on july 3rd, "politicsnation" will be live from a free clinic in new orleans. joining me now is nicole lamoureux, the executive director of the national association of free clinics, our partner for free clinic july 3rd in new orleans, and richard wolffe, executive editor of msnbc.com. thank you for being here tonight. >> thanks, reverend. >> thank you so much. >> nicole, today more signs the health care law is working. but we see some putting politics over people. i mean who are the people that

you see coming to your free clinics? >> rev, the people we see come into our clinics are people who work every day. 83% of our patients come from a work household. the last clinic i was at, i saw a man who hadn't been to the doctor, and he was 40 years old, because his employer wouldn't let him get health insurance that shouldn't happen in this country. we're not a third world country. we're america. we're the best place. we should all have access to affordable health care. it should be a right, not a privilege. >> now, what kind of needs do you see at these free clinic likes the one we're going to do in new orleans july 3rd? >> we see everything from physicals. kids need physicals to get into school. you know, substitute teachers need the physicals so they can teach. >> right. >> we see people who need physicals to get back to work, construction people. but we also see times where people have breast cancer and they come to us. people who have heart attacks, and we send them to the hospital and save their lives. everything you can think of, we'll take care of that day.

>> richard, is the politics changing on this at all as we see things go forward toward this law going into full effect? >> well, they are changing because you are seeing although there are all those republican senators holding out against medicaid dollars, a number of them are falling down. the dominos are falling. yes, you're seeing an impact on the industry. there are a lot of people in the industry who don't want to see things change but are saying we're going to have to adapt. that's why you're seeing these cost measures. you're seeing employers change what they do. this is having an impact now. but, you know, i've got to tell you that it's not going to be enough. and that's exactly why these free health care clinics are so important. this law was not defined and designed for the working poor, the people that nicole was just talking about. >> right. >> if we want to see health care change, we have to take action on ourselves. and i'm going to call out our own website, tv.msnbc.com. go to the "politicsnation" page,

to your page. and there is a button there you can click and help out with these health clinics right now. >> now, let me ask you this, richard. we all know arizona governor jan brewer is not exactly best friends with the president. but she did sign medicaid expansion this week. >> yep. >> and said this. listen to. this. >> i want to recognize the lawmakers who made this moment possible. they displayed something we don't see a lot of in politics today, and that is courage. >> and today even michigan governor rick snyder told his fellow republicans they should take a vote, not a vacation, because they failed to vote on medicaid expansion. so there seems to be some movement by some republicans, richard. >> yeah. look, it's inevitable. honestly, they are going to get all the benefits, these republican governors, they get all the benefits by saying we don't like obama. we oppose this thing. we think it's a terrible use of

money. but they get even more benefits if they actually help their voters. if they help people get this health care benefits that are going begging for them. so, look, jan brewer is not a friend of the president's. she has been very up-front, very aggressive with him. and yet even she realizes. this is someone who could barely talk her way through the first two minutes of a tv debate. even she understands that this is completely the right thing and a logical thing, and a politically successful thing to do for her and her republicans there. >> nicole, take me through what are people's needs. what are the kinds of things we're going to see at the free clinic in new orleans july 3rd? >> the first thing we're going to see is many people haven't been to the doctor in more than five years. for many in new orleans that. >> haven't been to the doctor since we were there the last time with you all here at msnbc. we see people who just want to get access to health care. and they have nowhere to go but the emergency room. new orleans was hit hard after katrina.

then we had an oil spill. then we had flooding. these people need help. they want help. and that's what we're going to be able to give them. >> richard, you have the conspiracy theorists that will come out when nothing else works, they try to scare people. rush limbaugh has a new conspiracy on the health care law. listen to this. >> purpose of obama care got nothing to do with your health. nothing to do with your insurance. democrats supporting groups are being given millions of dollars to promote the democratic party, register democrat voters, get them to the polls on election day. and the purpose? to set up a permanent one-party system in this country. >> now in california you'll be able to register to vote when you sign up for insurance exchange. but some, you know, some nonprofits are getting grants to explain how the exchanges work.

but some on the right are saying this is a secret plot to create a one-party system? i mean, richard, what do they think will come up out of this? i mean, i just can't imagine what they would come up with next. >> i thought registering to vote was a good american thing for democracy, right? you're not registering to vote for a president. you're just registering to vote. and that should be in everyone's interest. there are republicans who also need health care. and i'm surprised -- >> absolutely. >> that rush limbaugh, who likes medication himself, he seems so skeptical about this whole program. >> yeah. and it doesn't matter what party you're in, where you lean politically. these free clinics will service you. and all are welcome to new orleans with u.s. july 3rd. >> exactly. absolutely. >> nicole and richard, thank you both for your time. nicole, we look forward to seeing you on july 3rd. i want to take a moment, though, to talk directly to the

"politicsnation" family out there. it really takes a massive team effort to provide these free clinics. and we need your help. i'm asking everyone to find it in your heart to please donate. if everyone just donated $1, it would make a difference. just $1. you can go to urgentcare.msnbc.com, or the national association of free clinics site, nafcclinics.org. with your help, whatever you can do, we can make a difference and get health care to so many americans in need. we'll be right back. i'm a careful investor. when you do what i do, you think about risk. i don't like the ups and downs of the market, but i can't just sit on my cash. i want to be prepared for the long haul. ishares minimum volatility etfs. investments designed for a smoother ride. find out why 9 out of 10 large professional investors choose ishares for their etfs. ishares by blackrock.

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i did not see it coming. i take bayer aspirin. [ male announcer ] so be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. see your doctor and get checked out. here's glenn beck's distorted tea party comparison. >> this is a civil rights movement. it's time for us to start moving as a civil rights movement. we have to be willing to have the dogs be unleashed on us. >> i'll have a response ahead.

50 years after the march on washington, the tea party has found a new successor to the civil rights movement, itself, the tea party. here is glenn beck making the big announcement yesterday. >> this is a civil rights movement. and it's time for us to start

moving as a civil rights movement. we have to be willing to have the dogs be unleashed on us, because believe me, after what i saw today on the way they're handling things at the capitol, you're not very far from having the same kind of oppression coming our way. >> it's unbelievable. he is talking about imaginary unleashed dogs, when real heroes of the civil rights movement actually had to confront those dangers. yesterday, beck made his case at a rally in washington. but even as he talked about civil rights, the slogans on the signs told the story of fear and paranoia. it was similar to what we saw at previous tea party rallies, where this historic president was compared to a tyrant, accused of having a hit list. none of it slowed beck down. >> harriot beecher stowe,

abraham lincoln, frederick douglass, booker t. washington, gandhi, martin luther king, frederick douglass' time was in the 1800s. martin luther king's time is past. this is our time. and the long march towards civil rights is here. >> dr. king's time has passed? just the opposite. his dream lives on in battles over voting rights and women's rights and gay rights and economic justice. all things that the far right has tried to block, obstruct, or roll back. joining me now is james peterson and dana milbank. thanks for coming on the show. >> hi, reverend. >> thanks. >> james, what is glenn beck's obsession with the civil rights movement? >> it's a fairly sinister obsession, rev, and i appreciate your comments opening up this segment. but when you look at it, it does two things. at the same time it's disrespectful to those folk who understand the legacy of civil rights for african-americans in

this country, that speaks directly to his base. so he is able to do two things here, rev. he can allow them to enter into the victim subjectivity, something they always rail against, but they love sort of stepping into the role if and when they can. and number two, his audience and his listeners are also going to be stoked by the fact that he sundays miis undermining that part of our history. >> dana, you know a civil rights throughout the nation's history, as he mentioned frederick douglass, who fought to abolish slavery, martin luther king who fought against legal segregation, and people not being able to vote. those out there today fighting against profiling and bias and rollback on voter rights. what is the civil right that the tea party is claiming they're fighting for. >> there is this straight and unbroken line between frederick douglass and gandhi and martin luther king and now glenn beck. and this isn't the first time he

has done it. he had the march on washington. >> i remember. >> on the anniversary of the king speech. in fairs on the beck, his views are so extreme that there may be some sort of an ideological disability here. he may be entitled to some civil rights protections under the american with disability acts for his views. but, you know, everybody gets into this sort of the politics of victimhood, the identity politics. if you're a persecuted group, that makes sense. otherwise you just sound paranoid. >> but nobody is denying them anything, including the second amendment. i mean, soy don't understand what civil right he is claiming is being violated. >> absolutely right. >> i'm giving him the best of all world, acting like there was even a modicum of this being reasonable. >> i think it's a sign of flattery that he has decided this is what his movement should be doing. and it's not just beck. i think we've seen a lot of that in republican party, the

persecuted minority of conservative republican white males from the south. >> now, you know when you go through this, james, it's not just beck. it seems to be throughout the new right that guns are a civil rights issue. listen to this. >> the modern equivalence of the civil rights act is that you people defending and loyal to the second amendment are not the bull conners. you're the martin luther kings. you're the people marching at selma. you're having your civil rights denied. >> banning people and things because of the way they look went out a long time ago. but here they are again. the color of a gun, the way it looks, it's just bad politics. >> i think martin luther king would agree with me if he were alive today that if african-americans had been given the right to keep and bear arms from day one of the country's

founding, perhaps slavery might not have been a chapter in our history. >> you know, james, i personally get offended by this. i've been in civil rights all my life. i was made youth director of the organization dr. king founded when i was 12 years old. i've been in it ever since. and to equate civil rights to fighting on these issues that have nothing to do with any rights that are denied, and it's all about their polarization is really offensive. i mean we can disagree, but you don't miscast things as something that it's not. >> no, you're right, rev. and you should be offended by these kind of comments. they're borderline absurdity when you put them in the context of how the tea party emerged. on the other hand, there is no encroachment whatsoever on second amendment rights and the whole conversation around common sense gun safety obscures the

fact that the people who bear the brunt of gun violence are inner city black and brown poor folk. so that is striking. but when you look at the roots of the tea party and the ways they racialize discourse in order to consolidate those groups, the ways in which they're funded by the upper-level big-time political doaners who speak the kind of rhetoric that is anti-the so-called 47%, they envision the 47% as being largely black and brown, right? when in fact in reality that's not the case. but that's how they see it. so to sort of racialized ways in which the tea party came into existence makes the comments even more offensive. >> dana, wouldn't it be more credible and interesting if they said that they would have asked to barry goldwater, a famous right-wingers throughout history why do they want to claim the people that have been on the far right? >> that would be more credible. i think it's larger than race and civil rights. it's sort of a reinvention of history in sort of this alice

and wonderland way. a lot of what beck is saying always talking about hitler, fascism, nazism. he says it's a product of the left. it wasn't in fact a product of the right. so it's part of that sort of reinvention. take your opponents' strength and adopt it as your own and use it against him. >> sort of like where they use the analogy all the time of watergate like watergate was a democratic party scandal. >> exactly. >> james peterson and dana milbanks, thank you both for your time tonight. >> thank you. coming up, reply al. and the day i met the actor james gandolfini, who just passed last night. [ male announcer ] this is kevin.

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ask your doctor about the only underarm low t treatment, axiron. it's time for reply al. remember, friend or foe, i want to know. i love hearing from all of you. hi, rev. like you, i'm a proud supporter

of the president. however, i'm curious to know if there are any key issues on which you disagree with obama on. yes, i've said on this show i disagree with afghanistan. i disagree with staying in there any length of time. and i disagreed on this show even to the point where he finally announced leaving by the end of next year. i disagreed with the use of drones. i disagree with guantanamo bay. there are areas i disagree, but i've been a supporter of his and have been mostly happy. and why? because you usually support people that you agree with. at least mostly. but no one do you agree with totally. reverend al, albert says, when tea party conservative republicans talk about taking their country back, which country are they talking about? well, that's a good question. because the country that we live in is a country that is evolving and becoming more and more a place for everyone. i think they want to go back in

time, not take a country back. maybe they really mean taking back words. tim asks didn't the republicans run on the promise of jobs, jobs, jobs in 2010? so why are they spending all of their time passing bills that they know full well will never become law? well, tim, today speaker boehner's house was focusing on jobs by voting on a farm bill that would have cut $20 billion from the food stamp program. it was expected to pass, but was voted down 234-195. but hold on a second. some on the right voted no because it wasn't extreme enough. and republican leaders said the bill could come back to the floor. this is the kind of party we're fighting. and i think that it is outrageous, but that's why we have to keep fighting. i think that if we don't fight,

and if we don't continue to come together, that they are emboldened by our absence of unity for the right causes. and one final thought. last night we learned the sad news that actor james gandolfini had passed away. at the age of 51. three years ago, i met him briefly here. i really met him in new york, going into a fundraiser. i told him that it was nice to meet him, and he told me he always had wanted to meet me. and he complimented me on losing so much weight. we had a nice and brief conversation, and i was teasing him, calling him goldafini. he was teasing me reverend albert. and the next day i received a package, and in it was a three-pound salami. and it was signed from james gandolfini. he was that kind of guy. i don't eat meat anymore, but i was so happy to receive a gift from him.

may his family have their prayers and concern of all of us, and may james rest in peace. thanks for watching. i'm al sharpton. "hardball" starts right now. tony. let's play "hardball." ♪ good evening. i'm chris matthews down in washington. let me start tonight with this, they are the american icons. we see in them something of ourselves, our times, our struggles, even our dreams. in the aftermath of world war ii, it was all about aspiration, of new doors opening, but also of old traditions being honored. our american icons were willie mays and mickey mantle. then thing began to get a little