very same leadership from taking to the floor of the house to blame democrats for the failure of the bill, even though 62 republicans defected on their own bill. >> what we saw today was a democratic leadership in the house that was insistent to undo years and years of bipartisan work on an issue like a farm bill and decide to make it a partisan issue. it really is a disappointing day, i think that the minority has been a disappointing player today, mr. speaker, on the part of the people. >> house minority whip steny hoyer instead offered the gop a heaping dose of real talk. >> majority leader continues to want to blame the democrats for his inability and the republicans' inability to give a majority vote to their own bill! we will take no blame for the failure of the farm bill. none, zero. as much as you try to say it, you can't get away from the

statistics, 62 otherwise known as 25% of your party, voted against a bill. >> but the ultimate smackdown was delivered by minority leader, nancy pelosi, who knows a thing or two about discipline, and excoriated the clown farm across the aisle. >> it's always interesting to me when they blame other people for their own failures. if we ever came to you when we had the majority and said we didn't pass a bill because we didn't get enough republican votes, well, you know, that's really -- it's silly. it's sad. it's juvenile. it's unprofessional. it's amateur hour. >> and, indeed, the amateur hour headlines are rolling in. once again, questioning speaker john boehner's ability to control his troops. six months ago, republicans embarrassed the gentleman from ohio by refusing to back his plan b. debt deal. six months later, speaker boehner is now so accustomed to rumors regarding his impending dismissal, he is making jokes about it. >> the representative said you

would bring immigration reform to the floor without the support of the conference and you would lose your job. do you think that's accurate? >> maybe. >> in an interview with cnbc, boehner acknowledged that getting stand in the back is, hey, it's just part of the gig. >> as a speaker, i take a lot of hits. i get a lot of hatchets thrown at my back every day. listen, it comes with the territory. >> the continual backstabbing and frontal assaults prompted one democratic aide to tell the "huffington post" no wonder he smokes. but the national review observed, the honey badger that is the house gop don't care. >> oh, the honey badgers are just crazy! >> joining me today, "washington post" columnist and msnbc political analyst, eugene robinson. senior contributing writer for the daily beast, michelle

goldberg. business and economics correspondent for "slate" matthew iglesias. and senior fellow at the budget and policy committees, jared bernstein. thank you all for joining me on this day of days. eugene, it's pretty amazing to me that the house republicans are pinning this or trying to pin this on the democrats. >> yeah. i mean, you know, one wonderses what nancy bell osi really thinks of that. i wish she would speak plainly. you know, john boehner really is in a pickle, because a huge chunk of his caucus doesn't want to pass anything. you know, they don't want to pass a farm bill, they're certainly not want to pass immigration reform. they don't want to do anything, basically. and he does. so what's a solution there? i'm not sure. you know, he could ram through immigration and ram through a form bill, lose his speakership. >> ram through implies taking the lead, which john boehner has proven himself constitutionally

unable to do. >> exactly. and he talks about back-stabbing and hatchets and stuff like that. you know, speakers -- you have a problem right there. supposed to be afraid of you. >> and they could get stabbed from the front ostensibly from the other party, but he's actually acknowledging people. >> they're supposed to be afraid you're going to turn around and smack them down. >> exactly. >> and they're not. >> i actually think -- i can't believe we're both somewhat sticking up for john bane e but to say -- you can't be a leader would a caucus that is kind of constitutionally unable to follow, right? these people -- i can't imagine any amount of political sorcery that would make the house republican caucus or at least a large chunk of it willing to play by normal political rules. and kind of -- and actually govern, as opposed to holding fast to their, you know, kamikaze ideology. >> i actually don't feel bad for john boehner anymore. they put this amendment and

tacked it on a bill and forfeited votes as a nod to the i had owe logs, and that is mutiny. >> thank you for bringing that up. i don't think people -- including some of the media reports i'm reading this morning, really understand just how far to the right this bill was. and it's the sutherland amount. this says if through no fault of your job you cannot find a job or training program to get in, then the state can cancel your food stamps. that is for you -- >> and your family. >> and your kids. so you could be a single parent, you could be a disabled person. you could totally want to get a job or to be in a training program, and be kicked off the rolls. here's the thing. why would any state opt into that? this is 100% federal money. because the sutherland amendment pays you a bounty. half the money you save from kicking people and kids off the food stamp rolls, you get to keep. >> but matt -- >> jesse helms in his wildest

dreams. >> this represents a major pivot to the right. warren warnstein says the real power is not boehner, canter, not ryan, not mccar, these it's the extreme right. this shows the dilemma for a speaker weak and conscious of his weakness within the party. i say stop listening to them. if you're going to try and do anything, you're going to have to do it with the democrats, nancy pelosi, so go there. >> what's striking is the hypocrisy of it. why are you taking this money away from poor families, and they say well, we've got too much spending in washington. but this same bill, it preserves money for farm subsidy programs for farmers whose average incomes are 15% higher than the average american household, whose incomes have been rising the past 15 years, while it's been falling for the rest of the people. so they have had a choice of where does the money come from? poor people who need food or does to go to relatively rich people who grow food? and they sided with the relatively rich people. >> therein lies the rub. you talk about the social safety

net, michelle, right, and we talk about what the republicans are trying to do or not do. eric cantor was out there on the floor of the house, pushing forward the sutherland amendment, and then post hoc, saying this isn't about -- >> this shouldn't surprise us. this is the party who spoke contemptuously of people who feel they are entitled to food. you know -- >> correct. >> no -- >> would i add -- i would add the following. i don't think there was any safety net program. maybe unemployment insurance, that actually did a better job in the depths of the great recession, of truly cutting poverty for the lowest income people. and actually, served as a good stimulus for the economy at the same time. >> i mean, and the meme around food stamps has been incredibly divisive. and really false. and i must play the sound from louie gohmert who is really a one-man band in terms of sound bites and outrageous commentary.

let us hear what louie gohmert had to say on the floor of the house yesterday. >> standing in line at a grocery store behind people with a food stamp card, and they look in their basket, as one individual said, "i love crab legs," you know the big king crab legs. i love those and then sees the food stamp card pulled out and provided. he is actually helping pay for the king crab legs. when he can't pay for them for himself. >> so everyone on food stamps is apparently buying king crab legs, eugene. >> yeah. >> they're living off the largess of our government. >> king crabs are going to have to be added to the endangered species list, i guess, according to louie gohmert. you know, it's wrong, number one. it's -- it's insulting. it's demeaning. and it's probably the way he thinks. i mean, that probably is happening inside his head. which is -- which is, you know -- >> terrifying fliplace. >> which i guess we should worry

about. so what does john boehner do with this mess, if he's got people like this and his more mainstream republicans or what's left of them. nancy pelosi would argue, there are ways to get around that. that -- and she would point to instances where she had to pass legislation with republican support, and she found a way to let democrats who were opposed to it, like legislation continuing to fund the iraq war. she found ways to let democrats opposed to it vote their conscience but not stop the funding. she told them, i don't care what you think, i agree with you, but it's got to get through and this is how we're going to do it. you vote your conscience, we get it through, and everybody is not happy, but we move on. boehner doesn't do that. >> well, i mean, that's the question, right, matt? there's a senate bill that's been approved. and there has to be a farming -- at some point, we have to have a farm bill. so boehner really has -- i think the path of lightness and the path of darkness. he can go down the road paved by

the club for growth, issue even more draconian cuts and maybe get the support of the raucous caucus, but what does that mean with reconciliation? is. >> we're going to see this time and time again. this isn't the only legislation that needs to pass this session. and the fact of the matter is, there is no bill that is so extreme for the right wing of his caucus that can pass even the house of representatives. much less with the senate. so, you know, he has to decide. is he going to govern in partnership with democrats, there's a divided government, that's who can get bills passed, or is he going to keep putting us through this charade, first the bill goes right, then sits around anyway, and then we sit around for days, what's going to happen? he's got to learn to count votes. we saw going back to t.a.r.p. he can't get this right the first time, part of your job as a leadership team. and then needs to decide, if people are too extreme -- >> then he's not going to last. >> either way, i don't know how he survives this. but continue. >> i mean, you're going to see this, i think, on immigration. when he obviously is going to --

assuming he wants to govern, he's going to have to work with democrats, but it's going to tear his party in half. you know. and i think there's this kind of persistent myth that eventually the republicans are going to step up. there are certain things -- we have to pass a farm bill, immigration bill. people thought you had to do something to stop the sequester. there kind of i think is no -- there's nothing so destructive that the house republicans won't go there. so they're not going to tolerate him making compromises. especially on something as close to their heart as immigration. he's not going to last. there is going to be a revolt. >> the wheel barrow that john boehner has been pushing around, i don't think any frogs are jumping into it anymore. it's just frogs on the ground, john boehner -- with the wheelbarrow. we have to take a break. when we come back, what goes up must come down. newton's law and news of the red raising interest rates yesterday.

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the dow is still reeling this morning after falling more than 500 points over the past two days. nearly 4%. yesterday was the worst close since november of 2011. the drop began wednesday after ben bernanke announced the fed might begin scaling back its stimulus policies later this year. joining me now to discuss this and so much more, the host of msnbc's "way too early," brian

shactman. brian, welcome and congratulations on your maiden voyage. >> >> yeah, i'm a little nervous with such esteemed colleagues. >> you have a ticker with live updates. >> we're watching the markets. it's not a good sign. the dow is in the premarket up 100 points after losing 350 and 200 the day before. now it's down again. that is not a good sign in terms of the health of the market. but a couple things i want to point out. one, this is a professional trader's market. the average person left in '09, never came back. passively invest indeed their 401(k). but have an expiration on the fed stimulus. we have had a great run, great run since '09. we have the end of the quarter coming up in just a little bit. let's book some profits, let's sit back and wait to see what happens. >> that's what i say. let's book some profits. >> the truth is, the discussion they have, is the economy actually moving toward being ready to stand on its own two feet. and that is the debate that we need to have. >> right. and jerryd, i pose that

question to you. how much is it knee-jerking anxiety from bernanke and how much is foundational instability? >> most is knee jerk reaction from bernanke saying, guess what, folks, as the economy improves, interest rates are going to go up and the fed is going to unwind its historically unprecedented $3.4 trillion balance sheet. so the fed is deeply, deeply into the economy, as it should be. and bernanke has been signaling to the markets very clearly that at some point there's going to be some pullback. but the markets, kind of like honey badger -- are -- >> crazy. >> are just ignoring -- >> that's amazing. >> the chairman. now -- >> all those together. >> first time i've ever used that analogy. i'm not sure it was right. but look, here's the thing. i think the markets are acting extremely manic, volatile, skitti skittish. that seems clear to me. the part that bothers me about this, less the markets and more the real economy. are you ready for that, brian? i think that -- i don't think the economy is actually in a

place where the removal of monetary stimulus is -- is a good thing. i actually think the economy still needs that kind of support. >> when is it going to be okay? now we have headwinds -- they say we had the payroll tax hike, we have some drag from sequester, you have some people say from health care reform, a bit of a drag on hiring there, too. from a personal standpoint, you want to know really what it looks like. you want to peel back oz's curtain and you want to know. bernanke is not a fool. he will change his policy if it's not strong enough. that's the thing people are missing the point here. the fed in the next -- they're next meet could go say we're wrong. >> let me bring up something. i'd like to get your thoughts on this. this also -- the fed has been very involved, because congress has basically been punting. and i want to read an expert from the "new york times" and op-ed pages today. the real responsibility for boosting the economy lies with congress, where republicans have thwarted most attempts to spur growth, create jobs, while successfully focusing the

attention of the obama administration on deficit reduction. exactly the wrong remedy for today's economy. >> you remember the last segment, right? the one on food stamps? that's congress. the congress is not going to step up to the plate, not going to provide the fiscal tail winds it needs, will continue with the fiscal headwinds bernanke has been complaining about. i agree with matt's point but also think it is not time yet for the fed to get out of the game. >> well, and you know, the fed does have to bear some responsibility here. brian was talking about when are we going to get back to a normal state. i think part of the problem here, the fed keeps indicating, as soon as things are okay, we're going to start pulling back. and so that means markets keep being sort of on knife's edge. bad news is good news. because the fed steps in. but good news is bad news because the fed is going to step away. they need to say, clearly, we've got low inflation, we've had low inflation for a long time. and that means there's plenty of room for a lot of monetary stimulus. and we're going to go ahead, you know, until there's something that really forces us to call back, rather than looking to exit as soon as possible. >> refresh my memory.

i was actually busy boog booking profits. >> okay. >> but -- no, but didn't he set specific unemployment targets, for example? didn't he say, you know, when we get down to -- >> he said 7% for shutting off what's called the quantitative easing and bringing interest rates off the floor. >> so why isn't that news the marks markets can use and say okay, not there yet so he's not going to do anything yet. and when it gets closer, then i can see why you would freak out. >> it's a fair question, what the markets don't know, when that's going to happen and they're just very freaked out. >> the fed is saying we're trending in that direction. so by the end of 2014, we should be there. is there -- what they're essentially telling the market. >> what i -- brian, before we let you go, the thing that is amazing to me, because the fed plays such an oversize role in the u.s. economy, everything ben bernanke does, red socks, blue

socks, wakes up on this side of the bed -- >> change a pronoun or preposition. >> the market response in kind. it's incredibly volatile. >> the problem i have is broader than that. i think the market doesn't reflect much, other than the people -- smart money and big money and hedge funds and not america, right? so that's why this is about what's good for the economy, might not be good for the markets. is it too important how much we appropriate to the fed? probably. but in the absence, you know, of what's going on, it's like what they said -- what is it, the american president with michael douglas. in the absence of leadership, people will follow anything. >> i think that's a good point. if he is seen as the guy leading the economy, who has got -- more control over the economy of anybody else -- >> and is by the way -- >> get paid that much more attention to what he says. i think that's right. >> and by the way, that dude at one point is going to leave. and that will send everything into a tailspin. >> welcome back? >> yes. you are invited back. you get to keep the

commemorative cup. maybe you'll get an orange mug next time. brian shactman, thank you, leaning back booking profits. coming back, which is the bigger hurdle, the border or boehner? we'll discuss the push for reform, ahead on "now." time for the your business entrepreneurs of the week. steve white, jack colder and malone all own small businesses on main street in illinois, a town once in economic decline, historic preservation and restoration of their main street storefronts has helped turn it into a thriving tourist destination. for more, watch "your business" on msnbc. ♪ i'm a hard, hard worker every day. ♪ ♪ i'm a hard, hard worker and i'm working every day. ♪ ♪ i'm a hard, hard worker and i'm saving all my pay. ♪

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>> if anybody on either side of the aisle had any concerns whatsoever about the border being secure, certainly securing the border should not be an issue if this amendment passes. >> and when it comes to negotiating a deal on border security, the old idiom applies. give them an inch, and they will take a mile. except in this case, they took 350 miles. the agreement calls for a border surge that would complete 700 miles of the danged fence, in addition to the 651 miles of danged fencing already in place. and would double the number of border patrol agents from 21,000 to 40,000. enhanced technology on border drones, infrared ground sensors, long-range thermal imaging cameras and adopt the e-verify system. the price tag for securing the border? roughly $30 billion. four times what the gang of eight originally proposed. despite the fact that current border enforcement has helped to bring u.s.-mexico immigration to net zero, senators are on board

with the corker and hoeven amendment. yesterday they had passionate pleas to pass the dang legislation. >> the fact that 11 million people live in the shadows and live here in dee facto amnesty, and by god, being exploited every day. isn't it in our nation to come together and pass this legislation and not manufacture reasons for not doing that? isn't there enough of a penalty? isn't there enough border security now, thanks to my colleagues from north dakota and from tennessee? >> we are on the verge of a huge breakthrough on border security. with this agreement, we believe we have the makings of a strong, bipartisan final vote in favor of this immigration reform bill. >> but that optimism seems to stop at john boehner's doorstep. as indeed does most optimism. even if the bill passes in the senate, it will still have to overcome the electrified border fence and alligator-filled moat

that is the u.s. house of representatives. matt, i will read a fairly i think astute observation from jonathan shait in "new york" magazine. basically, did the senate overplay its hand? the trouble is that stronger border enhancement was always the things liberals were prepared to give on and now they're giving it up early in the process because the current version of the bill isn't attracting enough senate republican support. and the house will push whatever the senate passes further right, which means the compromise that might have been dangled to make the bill palatable in the house has already been used to get it through the senate. >> i do think that's a concern. on the other hand, you know, we have doubled the border patrol twice in the past 20 years, about to double it again. there is nothing really stopping us from doubling it two, three, four more times. it's a little -- right, exactly. i mean, it's -- >> a chain of guards. >> you know, i mean, cain has wrote about you can pay people

to dig holes and then fill them in again. i think that's what we're doing at this point. the fact is, if this is what people want in order to get a bill done, you know, i think that's -- is a compromise democrats are willing to make. it's a compromise i'm willing to make. it seems like a waste of time and money but there is a lot of deficit-reducing punch in actually doing comprehensive immigration reform. and that's the reason there is head room in the budget for this kind of bonanza. >> right. and the numbers came out and effectively said immigration reform would cut deficits by $197 billion in the next decade, $700 billion in the next two decades. that's where some of this $30 billion comes from. but even john mccain said, i don't know if it's money totally well-spent. >> well, even corker said that it's almost overkill. and this was his own -- this was his own legislation. i mean, it's ridiculous. and it is -- although i agree with you, matt, that, yes, to a certain extent, you can kind of keep adding elements ad infinitum. i guess you don't even need to

add drones, because they have drones. >> adding more drones. >> yeah, exactly. maybe a stimulus. i do think there is something somewhat sinister about this kind of militaryized -- >> border area. >> border area. where although immigration -- or like you said, immigration is at a net zero for mexico now. there's still going to be people caught in this kind of very militarized gauntlet. >> and, you eugene, i went to the border a couple weeks ago. it is the poorest place, there are cultures on both sides of the border fence to be putting infrared sensors in and drones and, you know -- double layers of fencing. is to ignore a certain reality. >> right. you were there. it's a 2,000-mile-long border. and, you know, river/desert/cactus. i mean, it's -- it is actually physically impossible, in my view, to -- >> to secure it. >> to secure the border in the way they want it secured. but, as matthew said, we'll

spend some money, theoretically, if this gets through, which i'm not sure it will, we'll spend some money on it, and that will be another economic stimulus, in addition to what we get from immigration reform. because i think when the bill gets to the house, i think the issue of path to citizenship is what it's going to flounder on. i just don't think they're going to get past that. >> well, look, i want to say that some of what the republican senators were just saying actually resonated with me in a way that you might not expect. in the following way. i actually don't think you can have true immigration reform, progressive immigration reform, without controlling immigrant flows. the 1986 immigration reform bill, which if it hasn't failed, we wouldn't be talking about this today so demonstrably, didn't work. totally failed to control immigrant flows, ultimately. so unless we're actually controlling the flows, we're really having a very much pretend discussion. now, i agree with what others have said.

the border -- probably the dollar spent on more security at the border, isn't going to get you very much. i would emphasize, employer -- i would emphasize, ports and employer verification. a lot more. that's in the bill. i would probably amp that up. >> exactly. it would have to go much deeper than this bill, though. because what you're talking about, a bill like what you're talking about, would have to recognize the reality of the interconnectedness of the mexican and u.s. economies. and the flows, the annual and seasonal flows of people back and forth across the border, the links people have across the border. and it would take that into account in, you know, a realistic sort of real-world way. and we're expecting real world out of the you see congress? you're not going to get it. >> real world out of the senate, saying nothing of the house, where the raoul labrador, i believe, mocked the fear of a large senate passing, 70-vote passage of immigration reform saying, ooh, i'm scared.

that is not a good sign. this is one of the guys working on the house bill. >> absolutely. you know, i mean, there is big problems getting anything passed the house, talking about this in terms of the farm bill and holds for immigration as well. we also do need to think about priorities here. it's good to have the immigration laws enforced. but it's already more than the whole rest of federal law enforcement combined. and that's the thing to think about. we have organized crime elements that kill people. and then we also have people who, you know, sneak here and try to work without a permit. you know -- and what's really the bigger problem for the country? >> right. >> and i think, you know, a sense of balance about where do we invest our law enforcement resources is very important. >> and before we go to break, worth noting, the u.s. to your point, matt, spends more on immigration enforcement activities than all other law enforcement agencies combined. after the break, while washington sorts through its own politics, or whatever you call that, mayors across the country are taking matters into their own hands. we will talk to the president of the u.s. conference of marylan

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the nation's mayors are gathering in las vegas today for their 81st annual conference. at the meeting, big city leaders will tell of their struggles with crime, foreclosures and unemployment rates and share ideas for leadership strategies. perhaps number one on the list of discussion points is gun control. the mayors will consider a resolution demanding a renewed push for gun safety after senate efforts failed back in april. the white house point man on gun reform, vice president joe biden, will address the conference later this afternoon. in addition to gun safety, more than 100 other resolutions will be debated, including calls for immigration reform, state determination of marijuana laws and efforts to combat obesity by limiting the intake of soda. joining me now from las vegas is philadelphia mayor, michael nutter, who is also the president of the u.s. conference of mayors. mr. mayor, thanks so much for joining us. >> thank you, alex. >> mr. mayor, i have to ask you,

we are talking about dysfunction and obstruction in washington. how frustrating is it to be a mayor, someone who very keenly is aware of where the rubber meets the road and sees what's happening in washington where nothing is getting done? >> well, alex, let me just say and i think i can speak for all the mayors in saying the mayor's job is possibly one of the best jobs in the united states of america. it's a tough job. it's a challenging job. but it certainly is a lot of fun, and you get to do things with your constituents and i'm the mayor of my hometown, greatest honor in elective office i think i'm ever going to have. so we see the things that go on in washington. mayors are about getting stuff done. we have that responsibility, and whether it's public safety or picking up trash, filling potholes, making sure there's water in swimming pools, looking out for the educational opportunities for our young people, it's a big job, it's a comprehensive job. small, medium and large cities across america, all the mayors face the same challenges. it's just a matter of how many

more zeros on the back end of either a budget testify sit or money that you're trying to raise. so it's a great group and organization, the u.s. conference of mayors representing over 1,000 different mayors across the united states of america. so i'm honored to serve as president. the issues in washington, in the earlier segments, i was seeing you had immigration reform, certainly something that we're focused on in the conference. it looks like something might happen in that regard. we're particularly excited about action already by the u.s. senate on the marketplace fairness act. making sure that we have a level playing field, whether you're selling goods and products on main street or on your main home page, everyone should just collect the taxes that are due to the respective cities and, of course, states. $225 billion worth of e-commerce in 2011 as laid out in the ihs global report, just coming out today and the group partnership

among u.s. conference of mayors and national association of counties, and the national league of cities. this is real money, desperately needed by cities and states all across the united states of america. >> mr. mayor, i'm sure john boehner appreciates the optimism in diplomacy in that answer. but i've got to ask you about gun safety reform. >> sure. >> where there seem to be a lot of momentum in congress and absolutely nothing got done, something you're tackling at this conference. >> absolutely. >> and also answer for me, if you will, with an issue like gun safety and gun trafficking, which is a huge issue in terms of inner city violence, it would seem like you need a real national referendum on this stuff to be effective. >> well, no question about that. and i mean, the craziest part of this whole thing is that every survey that just about anyone took show that about 90% of americans believe that you should go through a background check to purchase a weapon. yet the congress, at least at that time, couldn't figure out

how to get a overwhelming majority vote in that particular area. so, again, mayors will take up this issue at our conference and back home, having vice president biden as our speaker today reinforces certainly president obama's commitment and vice president biden's commitment, who has been a true champion on this issue and many, many others, and a great friend to mayors and certainly the u.s. conference of mayors. so if anything, mayors are resilient, we keep fighting day after day. that's what our constituents expect, that's what we do. and i think ultimately, americans will prevail on the issue of gun safety, getting background checks, dealing with, you know, the capacity of magazines and a variety of other issues. everyone wants to be safe. and i think if we take it from that perspective, we can actually work something out. >> mr. mayor, i want to open this up to our panel in new york and one of the vice president's former senior advisers, jared bernstein. you know well the tenacity that -- the vice president brings to many issues.

>> that's right. >> he is tenacious. >> especially on gun safety. >> absolutely. but mayor nut e i wanted to ask you about the economy, and particularly about the sequestration. are there any ways that you have identified in which sequestration is playing out on the ground? it looks to me there has been some problems we're not hearing much about at the national stage. >> yeah, sequestration, i've started saying, is a little bit like y2k. you know, more than a few years ago. there was a lot of build-up about it. there was a lot of concern. we spent a whole lot of money trying to make sure that bad things didn't happen. and the sequestration situation pretty much the same thing. but it's been kind of a step by step almost drip by drip. this is a death by 1,000 cuts. at the end, you still die. but it's not dramatic. >> which in that way makes it different from y2k. >> yeah, because was y2k nothing. >> not much happened out of y2k,

but sequestration is having a serious impact. and in philly, our city council passed our budget. we had to put some dollars in to replace funding in a couple of areas, because of sequestration. and whether it's a lack of daycare slots or impact on programs for senior citizens, a variety of areas will get impacted. the american public is not seeing it dramatically all at one time. it's not this -- it comes one day and then all of a sudden tons of programs disappear or funding disappears. but it is taking place and is having a negative effect on our cities and on our economy. >> philadelphia mayor michael nutter, we congratulate you on actually doing the work which is what many of our elected representatives are not doing. >> that's what we're supposeded to do. >> congratulations on the conference. thanks for your time. >> thanks so much. >> coming up -- coming up, tell the truth. when on a plane, do you power down after the announcement to turn off electronic devices. serious, do you? you may not need to anymore,

though. we will explain and figure out just who is a takeoff trouble-maker. that's next on "now.

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. please turn off and stow all electronic devices. i've always wanted to say that. words you may never hear on an airplane again. the faa is expected to relax the ban on using some types of personal electronic devices at low altitudes. tails are still being debated. and the faa won't make a formal decision until september but alec baldwin is already celebrating. eugene, i'm going to ask each and every one of you. and i expect full disclosure. do you turn off your cell phone when they ask you to on an airplane. >> well, define off. >> exactly. exactly. >> incapacitying airplane mode,

phones go into. >> yes. >> that is not off, my friend. >> well -- >> he's not answering the question. >> i think i'll refer further questions to my attorney. and -- i think i've said quite enough. >> yes, you have. this is, i think, michelle, this provision would allow you to have your phone in airplane mode. you could potentially use your e reader the entire time in flight. possibly. >> wait, which i think everybody has always known is not actually going to cause the plane to crash. >> please, yes. well, let's not be -- >> there's always of these rules that i think, you know, most -- also, like, the three-ounce liquid rule that kind of -- they make absolutely no sense, but they can't admit they make no sense all at once. because then they'll have been hassling us for no reasons. they have to pretend it's based on new findings and the latest information. >> honestly, if we're talking about onerous regulations, the shoe thing and the liquid thing, matt, to me would be if we could get rid of those, it would be incredible. and not to get too serious with

this. but we talk about national security and counterterrorism measures and sort of the inconveniences of the modern-day of -- the post 9/11 era. and the idea of returning to the hall see on time when you used to be able to walk through the airport with your shoes on and bring a gigantic bottling of hairspray on board the plane, i don't know that he'll be able to get back to that. >> it would be nice. just last week, though, i boarded a plane in belgium and kept my shoes on, just walked through the metal detector. that was allowed there. the plane, i'm proud to say, did not explode mid-flight. we were coming down, and i actually snuck this phone out. i checked my tweets before we were all the way on the ground. the plane didn't crash. you know, and honestly, i mean, airplanes are far, far, far safer than driving on highways. the death rate on airplanes is minuscule. and a lot of ways, when you have sort of rules designed to make it even safer, but that also make it more of a hassle, can be

counterproductive if it pushes people into less safe modes of transportation. >> but this is a very little-known fact. if you actually hit shift enter alt l above 10,000 feet, you can make the plane turn left. >> you had those extra minutes to figure that out. it was brilliant. >> let's keep it real here. >> first you got the honey badger in. then you got the apple shortcut. do you turn your phone off, jared bernstein, former government employee? >> i do turn my phone off. and i'm one of these people who gets annoyed with the other people who don't. and the flight attendant is standing over the person, and you're thinking, please, turn your phone off so we can get going. so i think this sounds like a good thing. >> on air force one, do they turn the phones off? >> i was on air force two, and i don't remember anybody telling me to -- >> see, there are different rules. different rules for the president. >> only safe enough for the president. not safe enough -- >> for the proletariat. i have the best intentions, but

my power button is broken and i'm going to get on a plane later this afternoon and i will try and shut it down if i can. that is all for us here today. thank you to eugene, michelle, matt and jared. joy reid will be in the anchor seat next week while i take a short trip to the planet saturn. she will be joined by michael eric dyson and ron fournier. until then, my friends, check us out at facebook.com/now with alex. andrea mitchell reports is coming up next.

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to get comprehensive immigration reform right, we've got to first secure the border. >> we need to fix this. and this is our chance to fix it. >> but will it matter? the bill could still face a dead end in the house. and the failure of house leadership was on full display thursday, as republicans killed their own farm bill. before the vote, speaker boehner shrugged off criticism of his leadership with cnbc's maria bartiromo. >> as a speaker, i take a lot of hits. i get a lot of hatchets thrown at my back every day. listen, it comes with the territory. and i have been clear how we intend to proceed on immigration. i think people are comfortable with it. >> nancy pelosi unloaded on the republicans. >> if we ever came to you when we had the majority and said we didn't pass a bill because we didn't get enough republican votes, well, you know, that's really -- it's silly. it sad. it's juvenile. it's unprofessional. it's amateur hour.

>> how do you really feel? privacy versus security. president obama holds his first meeting with civil liberty advocates, as the "guardian" posts more classified documents about the secret spy program. and heat repeat. miami scorches the san antonio spurs to win their second straight nba title. king james becoming only the third player behind bill russell and michael jordan to win the mvp two years in a row. >> i'm lebron james from akron, ohio. from the inner city. i'm not even supposed to be here. that's enough. every night i walk into the locker room, i see a number 6 with james on the back. i'm blessed. >> and good day, i'm andrea mitchell in washington. the latest documents leaked by edward snowden to the "guardian" suggests the government was able to retain some personal information on residents even in surveillance programs aim