at the detroit institute of art. the federal government could partner with the institute, buy that the heritage and keep it accessible for people in detroit andaround the country. there's a lot of ideas. my point is, our fellow citizens are hurting. there are a lot of things congress can do, but if the largest local bankruptcy in our history isn't the right time for spending on emergency aid and jobs, when is the right time? that does it for us here on "the cycle." martin, it's all yours. >> it's wednesday, july 24th. and amidst sexting smears and slurs, the president talks sense. >> carlos is in greater danger than he thought. >> problematic to say the least. >> how could anybody say they want him to be the representative of new york city. >> some of these things happened before my resignation, some of them happened after. >> hmm, i can't remember exactly. >> it is between us and our

marriage. >> she lifted him out of the political sewer. >> fakes are facts. young black man commit murder ten times, ten times. >> stop young black women from having babies out of wedlock. there is a hustle going on in the civil rights industry. and it's not being challenged by anybody but me. >> whoa, whoa, stop. >> for everyone who's a valedictorian, there's another hundred out there with calves the size of cantaloupes because they're running 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert. >> whoa, just stop. >> you've got to be for something, you can't just be against something. >> it is a wild wednesday so buckle up because we are following multiple headlines this afternoon. new york city mayoral candidate anthony weiner says he's staying in the race after revelations his sexting behavior carried on well after he apologized and

resigned from congress. and one of his direct opponents for the job of mayor, bill deblasio will join us shortly. there is widespread condemnation for remarks by iowa congressman steve king that compared so-called dreamers to drug traffickers saying they've got calves the size of cantaloupes not from all that -- sorry, from hauling marijuana through the desert. much more on that just coming. under way right now in the house, the inaugural hearing of the congressional caucus on black men and boys with an appearance by trayvon martin's father, mr. tracy martin. but we begin with the president. launching a major and concerted effort to the focus on job creation for the middle class. starting today, the president is hitting the road for a series of speeches, laying out his view of how to strengthen the economy. and in a major address today at knox college in illinois, the president called for a positive

agenda and blasted the partisan politics that stand only for obstructi obstruction. >> if you've got better ideas to bring down the cost of college for working families, let's hear them. if you think you have a better plan for making sure that every american has the security of quality affordable health care, then stop taking meaningless repeal votes and share your concrete ideas with the country. >> the president's economic push aims to pivot back toing what americans continue to say is their number one concern. despite the repeal votes and irs nonscandals that republicans have tried to push to center stage. but it also looks ahead to early autumn when the fight over funding the government and the debt ceiling will once again come to logger heads. >> we've seen a sizable group of republican lawmakers suggest that they wouldn't vote to pay

the very bills that congress rang up. we've got folks who insisted on leaving in place a meat cleaver called sequester that's cost jobs, harmed growth, hurt our military, gutted investments in education and science and medical research. >> and ladies and gentlemen, if all that sounds familiar, well, you can sing along with this familiar tune from house speaker john boehner. >> we all know that we've got the issue of the debt ceiling coming up this fall. now, we're not going to raise the debt ceiling without real cuts in spending. it's as simple as that. >> and all this comes amid a new nbc/"wall street journal" poll showing congress's approval rating is at an all-time low. just 12% now approve of congress's job performance. i guess that's mostly friends, family and comedy writers. i'm sure the numbers include the many supporters that democratic congressman chris van hollen who

i'm delighted to say joins us. good afternoon sir. >> it's great to be with you. we may be losing our family's support at this time. >> i fear for you. but the leader of your opponents in congress, speaker john boehner, says his job and i'm quoting him, is not to legislate but to repeal legislation. he also says he's ready once again to use the debt ceiling as a hostage. i assume, i guess, we should appreciate mr. boehner's honesty because basically, what he's saying is that his caucus doesn't care if their actions damage the country. the only thing they will care about, their sing ghoul lar priority for this nation is obstructing this particular president, isn't it? >> well, that's exactly right. as the president said today, we should be building up our economy. we should not be tearing things down. unfortunately, we have a republican majority especially

in the house of representatives, where if the president were to adopt the republican platform tomorrow and say yes, i agree with you, they would all say we don't agree with our own position anymore. and that is exactly what's happened in the house, martin. president has put forward what used to be very bipartisan ideas, let's invest in our infrastructure. let's make sure we invest in our kids' education. these used to be issues. >> these are all sacreligious issues for the republicans. why do you want to do that? >> right, but all of a sudden because the president says that's a good idea, they decide to say it's a bad idea and try and tear things down. look, you mentioned and the president said when it comes to the affordable care act, health care, they used to say they were going to repeal and replace. well, they voted 37 times at least to repeal. never in the last four years have they come up with any idea to replace it. so they obviously want to go back to the days where the insurance industry gets to deny

people health coverage based on pre-existing conditions. they don't have, unfortunately, any constructive ideas which is why i'm glad the president challenged them and why i think the american people, regardless of your political affiliation, should judge ideas on their merits. the president's put forward a challenge. that's their answer? >> congressman, can you explain what the poor have done to offend republicans? we've had a sequester in which millions of elderly people no longer receive meals on wheels. we had a farm bill that will canceled the provision of food stamps all together. there's a housing bill that cuts community development block-grants in half. why do they target the poor with such enthusiasm and zeal? what is behind that? >> we got a glimpse of this in the last presidential election when mitt romney said he doesn't care about the 47% which

included the poor and also a lot of middle income americans, by the way. that's why they're so focused on trying to protect the tax breaks for the very wealthy and special interests. what really worries me, martin, is na what their positioning themselves to do is to take us to this crisis, this artificial crisis this fall and their position will be unless you agree with our sort of radical and extreme vision for the country, unless you support the republican ryan budget wilcrushes support for food staxs, which devastates our investment in education, unless you support that, we the republicans are going to allow the united states of america to default on its full faith and credit. in other words, they're threatening to tank the entire economy if the congress doesn't adopt their version of the budget. >> congratulations. >> no one's -- that's not going to happen. and the republicans need to realize that. and get together today in a

budget conference. you remember they complained forever the senate didn't have a budget. now they have absolutely refused not only to negotiate but refuse to even go to the table to negotiate. and so i'm very nervous about the fall. i'm afraid that their positioning themselves for threats of a government shutdown and another manufactured crisis which will only hurt the country. >> congratulations to speaker john boehner and the house republicans. congressman chris van hollen, thank you sir. >> i hope we can have better news next time. >> coming up, we enter the danger zone. should anthony weiner drop out of the new york mayoral contest? we'll ask his competition straight ahead. [ male announcer ] this is kevin. to prove to you that aleve is the better choice for him, he's agreed to give it up. that's today? [ male announcer ] we'll be with him all day as he goes back to taking tylenol.

i was okay, but after lunch my knee started to hurt again. and now i've got to take more pills. ♪ yup. another pill stop. can i get my aleve back yet? ♪ for my pain, i want my aleve. ♪ [ male announcer ] look for the easy-open red arthritis cap. ♪ ♪ "first day of my life" by bright eyes ♪ you're not just looking for a house. you're looking for a place for your life to happen. because all these whole grains aren't healthy unless you actually eat them ♪

multigrain cheerios. also available in delicious peanut butter. healthy never tasted so sweet. [ herbie ] there's no doubt about it brent, a real gate keeper. here's kevin, the new boyfriend. lamb to the slaughter. that's right brent. mom's baked cookies but he'll be lucky to make it inside. and here's the play. oh dad did not see this coming. [ crowd cheering ] now if kevin can just seize the opportunity. it's looking good, herbie. he's seen it. it's all over. nothing but daylight. yes i'd love a cookie. [ male announcer ] make a powerful first impression. the all-new nissan sentra. ♪

despite calls from the editorial boards of "the new york times" and dailinous to cease campaigning, anthony weiner insists he still wants to be mayor of this great city. this follows an excruciating and hastily organized press conference tuesday in which he was forced to confront new allegations of lewd and lascivious texting. but what has perplexed so many about these new revelations is not that he enjoys sending images of his genitalia to women he never met, but the actual timeline of events. you'll remember he announced his resignation from congress june 16th, 2011. however, 13 months later, weiner reportedly began sexting again this time with a woman identified by the website the dirty acidny leathers. six days later, july 18th, 2012, "people" magazine published a glowing interview with mr. wiener and his wife where

she stated the following, anthony has spent every day since the scandal trying to be the best dad and husband he can be. and yet, according to the web site that broke the story, mr. weiner's online relationship would last another four months. fast forward to april of this year. "the new york times" magazine published another positive interview with the couple where weiner said we are ready to clear the decks on this thing. and yet, the website reports, that the woman claims he contacted her again one day after the article was published. that brings us up to tuesday'snous conference where mr. weiner had this to say. >> there are calls for you to drop out of the race. what do you say to those people who want you to drop out of the race? >> i'm oo sure many of my opponents would like me to drop out of the race. >> joining us is one of his opponents for mayor, bill de blasio. given what has now emerged, is it your view that mr. weiner may

still be in denial about the extent of his addiction to sexting and is that why you would rather he focus on that addiction supposed to trying to run for mayor? >> i think it's self-evident he's in denial. i'd like him to focus on himself and his family and move aside is that we are not able to have a serious debate on the issues facing the city so long as he's still in the middle of this. >> do you think he is addicted to this problem and needs additional help. >> from my vantage point, it seems that way. >> mr. weiner kept repeating nothing has changedness. is enough of another bit of repetition in the story. take a listen. >> things are not that much different than they were yesterday. in many ways, what happened today was something that, frankly, had happened before but it doesn't represent all that much that is new. >> has nothing changed? >> well, i think the whole point

is about trustworthiness and the standard that public bents are supposed to be held to in terms of being honest and being consistent. obviously anthony's failed that test repeatedly. >> you mean he's a liar. >> effectively. i think the point is, we now are seeing huge things happen in new york city. going undiscussed. yesterday the mayor of new york city vetoed legislation to create a racial profiling ban, for example. no front page headlines. no major reporting because everything's about anthony weiner. but the things that really matter for people like hospital closures, two hospitals about to close in brooklyn, i'm trying to fight that, these issues are shouldn't aside because his presence in the race makes it a discussion about scandal and spectac spectacle. >> we're always encouraged to confess our since to the almighty on a an dale lis basis but how often can we seek absolution from our electorate? >> it's one thing to hold a

personal standard of redemption. when you are a public servant, you are held to a higher standard. if you make a mistake, you have to atone for that in a very meaningful way if you want a chance to go before the people again. what's happened here is something very different. unfortunately, the sum total of it is, it is robbing the people of new york city of a serious examination of the issues facing us. by the way, people are struggling in the city as never before economically and not getting that conversation. >>ing if mr. weiner's wife can forgive him, whient can't you and why can't the electorate? >> i think it's very different when you talk about leaders and when you talk about the kind of dynamic we need to choose our next leader of the city. we have every pre right 0 give people a chance to serve again. that's fine. but one, we haven't been told the truth repeatedly. two, somehow there's no way to have a meaningful substantive debate with him present.

i think that's self-evident now. it's been going on since may. in may we had a very serious debate on stop and frisk. >> those debates are continuing. >> but they're not the same in terms of the campaign as they were before. >> one word answers, first of all, have you ever been involved in sexting yourself? >> no. >> do you think mr. weiner will drop out of this race? >> today, no. >> bill, thank you, sir. >> coming up, new developments out of detroit where a judge has ruled on the city's bankruptcy filing. we'll discuss that and what's next for the motor city when mitch albom joins us next. stay with us. >> it takes 58 minutes for the police to come. so wait. hold on. if you get shot in detroit, you can get a pizza faster than you can get a cop. in fact, maybe that's the only way to survive there. hey, dominos, i would like one large pizza with two policemen and a side of paramedics please. can you stuff the crust with --

because i'm bleeding terribly. thank you. [ dad ] so i walked into that dealer's office and you know what i walked out with? [ slurps ] [ dad ] a new passat. [ dad ] 0% apr. 60 months. done and done. [ dad ] in that driveway is a german-engineered piece of awesome. that i got for 0% apr. good one, dad. thank you, dalton. [ male announcer ] it's the car you won't stop talking about. ever. hurry in to the volkswagen best. thing. ever. event. and get 0% apr for 60 months, now until july 31st. that's the power of german engineering. and get 0% apr for 60 months, now until july 31st. [ female announcer ] some people like to pretend a flood could never happen to them. and that their homeowners insurance protects them.

[ thunder crashes ] it doesn't. stop pretending. only flood insurance covers floods. ♪ visit floodsmart.gov/pretend to learn your risk. i've got a nice long life ahead. big plans. so when i found out medicare doesn't pay all my medical expenses, i got a medicare supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. the rest is up to you. call and find out about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement plans, it could save you thousands in out-of-pocket costs. call now to request your free decision guide. i've been with my doctor for 12 years. now i know i'll be able to stick with him.

you'll be able to visit any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients. plus, there are no networks, and you never need a referral. see why millions of people have already enrolled in the only medicare supplement insurance plans endorsed by aarp. don't wait. call now. o0 c1 wait a sec! i found our colors. we've made a decision. great, let's go get you set up... you need brushes... you should check out our workshops... push your color boundaries while staying well within your budget walls. i want to paint something else. more saving. more doing.

that's the power of the home depot. refresh your home inside or out with behr premium plus ultra. interior flat starts at $31.98 a gallon. bankruptcy court is not the best place to spend your birthday, but that's exactly what's happening today in detroit. 312 years after a french explorer by the name of de cadillac founded the fort that would become the city of detroit, a federal judge ruled just a short time ago that bankruptcy proceedings can move forward. that represents a win for officials as they seek profection for up to $20 billion in debt. about half of which represents pension and health care obligations. coincidentally at almost exactly that moment, the president without mentioning detroit by name told a crowd in illinois that america must aid its struggling cities. and joining us now is mitch albom, a sports columnist with the detroit free press and the author of "the first phone call from heaven," scheduled for

release later this year. welcome, sir. >> hello. >> was bankruptcy the only solution in your mind for this great city? >> i think inevitably, yes. >> no alternative? >> well, they've been trying with the alternatives for an all of long time and it hasn't worked. you know, when you owe that kind of money, nearly $20 billion -- it takes severe action to get out from under. we here in detroit have been living with this under for decades. >> there have been many theories regarding detroit's decades long decline.from demographics to corruption. what's your assessment of what fundamentally went wrong? >> a little of all of the above and some other things you didn't mention. we were the fourth largest city in the country back in 1950. we had 2 million people here. but then as the city that basically came into its largest on account of the auto industry, we tend to go up and down with one particular industry unlike other sfepz when the industry started to falter, so did

detroit. now we're a city of 700,000 people and an infrastructure for 2 million people like wearing an oversized coat all the time and trying to serve outlying areas with electricity and water. it's a huge burden on a city that doesn't have people there anymore. it's a kind of perfect storm of some of the things that you mentioned, corruption and all that. but we find ourselves in this situation into there are positive signs, reports of a young entrepreneurial base growing in the downtown area. do you see that pocket of growth as something positive for the future? >> absolutely. and it's very true. there's a lot of young people moving into losts. you can get a house in detroit for 7,000 or $10,000. there's an artistic class that sbrung up. there's a sort of kindling of a downtown entertainment district that does very well. most importantly is the attitude of the people here. we're very, very resilient, not just here to be the butt of late night jokes which it's funny to

everybody in the country but we've been the butt of those jokes for a long time. four years ago, they had us buried when the auto industry was going down and we survive. we keep going to work, keep plowing ahead. we take it on the chin and go forward. that is the most important currency of the future of albomr commitment to the city. beware of flailing politicians and flying fruit. [ male announcer ] this is george.

the day building a play set begins with a surprise twinge of back pain... and a choice. take up to 4 advil in a day or 2 aleve for all day relief. [ male announcer ] that's handy. ♪ but, dad, you've got... [ voice of dennis ] allstate. with accident forgiveness, they guarantee your rates won't go up just because of an accident. smart kid. [ voice of dennis ] indeed. are you in good hands?

from a lot of therapy to very little tolerance, here are today's top lines. calves the size of melons. >> there was breakingnous about

anthony weiner's penis. so we will cover his penis tomorrow wilspoiler alert is a lot more than anthony weiner has been doing. >> our marriage like many others has had its ups and downs. it took a lot of work and a whole lot of therapy. >> i've never seen anything like it before in my life. >> anthony's made some horrible mistakes. >> what she did was step in and step up for a mon who has disgraced her with behavior that is not in the realm of normal acceptance. >> how could anybody say they want him to be the representative of new york city. >> i love him. i have forgiven him. i believe in him. >> i think this is an embarrassment for the democratic party if he becomes the mayor. >> don't you see the rest of the country looks upon new york like we're left wing jewish homosexual pornographers. >> if he were to get elected he would be poster boy for everything that's wrong. >> they weren't all brought in

by their parents. >> votes in the senate. >> for everyone who's a valedictorian, there's another 100 that they weigh 130 pounds and calves the size of cantaloupes because they're hauling 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert. >> in my district, i have multiple schools. who on a regular basis produce valedictorians and they are undoumed. >> they've got calves the size of cantaloupes. >> it is offensive and beneath the dignity of this body and this country. >> you talked about in the report about showing more tolerance on some issues. >> even evangelicals start to grab the excel drin bottles when they hear the word tolerance. >> i don't care for that word myself. >> let's get right to our panel. maria kuma and julian epstein. ulian, reince priebus says he doesn't particularly care for

the word tolerance which i think makes sense since he's the head of a political party that never displaysny, doesn't it? >> yes, and we sawia that did for them during the last election. you wonder when they're going to get the message on this and change things, not just on immigration but a host of other issues, as well. the strange thing that's going on with respect to immigration right now is why the republicans are letting this hang out there for so long. if they want to kill the bill, they should do it quickly rather than taking the beating they continue to take with people like steve king saying the ridiculous things he said. if they want to pass something, if i were advising boehner, i would say pass ten bills on border security and one bill on earned citizenship, let your republicans vote for the ten bills on border security. let those who want to vote against earned citizenship vote against it and go to conference and get something done. there's a strategy if they want to get something done they could

take that would make sense. if they want to kill it, kill it early, but what them are doing right now is letting it sit out there. it makes no sense and makes the point that boehner is a guy scared of his own shadow and can't punch his way out of a paper bag on either optioning >> maria teresa, congressman steve king of iowa must be relieved republicans don't need to pretend to be tolerant of other people. he doubled down on his comments about drug mules just today. what role, if any, will this play, do you think in helping the republican party appeal to voters outside its almost exclusively white and aging base? >> well, that along with what the idea that the rnc chairman doesn't believe in tolerance really, really is contradicting this whole new branding they're trying to do which is trying to attract. >> what new branding? >> it was on a piece of paper. it must be real. >> that meant nothing. that was a complete waste of time and money.

>> exactly right. the fact they even have the college republicans basically taking them to task saying you're even losing us, your base, your next generation, they're not ready. i think what they need to do is have to have a huddle and have a real come jesus moment saying do we want to be the sunsetting party. with the fact they're basically clearly saying they don't believe in the idea of comprehensive immigration reform with a pathway to citizenship, that they keep attacking women's rights, where are they going to go next except for being a party that is dominating perhaps the house but never the white house. >> julian, republicans as we know aren't the only ones who can't help exposing themselves. anthony weiner's political survival very much depends on his wife. take a listen to huma abedin. >> our marriage has had its ups and its downs. it took a lot of work. and a whole lot of therapy to

get to a place where i could forgive anthony. it was not an easy choice. in any way. >> it was not an easy choice in any way either for that young woman to stand alongside her husband in that way, was it, julian? >> yes, and full disclosure, huma has been a personal friend of mine over a decade and she is the only thing i think that stands between anthony weiner and eternal political damnation. while i think the public is very supportive of the idea generally of redemption, i think the weiner story is different for a couple of reasons. if you are asking for redemption and lying about something and continuing to engage in the behavior, that's when people get very, very angry and turn the other way. secondly, there is a -- all of the kind of the character issues, the lying, the compulsion, the bizarreness, the terrible judgment that i think people are saying this guy is

not fit to run the most -- the biggest city in the country but third, people keep making this comparison to spitzer and clinton. the difference i think with clinton and spitzer is they had a very compelling intellect. they had a very compelling political character. i worked with weiner for a number of years on capitol hill. i crossed swords with him a couple of times. most people that work with him would say he was a rather mediocre politician. he was very good at grandstanding but somewhat mediocre when it came to the real political skills. most of the democratic party he had very, very few friends amongst i think his colleagues which was an extraordinary thing. but my guess is the democratic party is going to phish him out because were he in the unlikely event to become mayor, the republicans would make him the poster child for the democratic party. and that's exactly what democrats don't want to happen. i think it's very, very unlikely he gets elected mayor. there's a very good chaps he drops out within a couple of

with ex. >> maria theresa, when she took the podium last night she mentioned she had never before spoken at a press conference. is she being used by her husband or do you think she shares his political ambitions? >> yeah, i think that that moment that clip we saw, everybody feels uncomfortable for her. what she's doing is something that's brave but also they're trying to build a relationship and that is private. i do think she has been mentored by hillary clinton who has basically been able to provide a pathway of how do you get yourself out of this trouble when your spouse does something wrong and it's incredibly uncomfortable. will new yorkers forgive him? i don't think so. you have to demonstrate that you can length late but more importantly that your character is being tested. he keeps being not able to come out and share the truth. that's his critical issue running for mayor.

>> to err is human, to forgive divine. thank you both. coming up, the race conversation continues as the congressional caucus on black boys and men holds its first ever hear. we're back in a moment. [ female announcer ] it's simple physics... a body at rest tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion tends to stay in motion. staying active can actually ease arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain so your body can stay in motion. because just one 200mg celebrex a day can provide 24 hour relief for many with arthritis pain and inflammation. plus, in clinical studies, celebrex is proven to improve daily physical function so moving is easier. celebrex can be taken with or without food. and it's not a narcotic. you and your doctor should balance the benefits with the risks. all prescription nsaids, like celebrex, ibuprofen,

naproxen and meloxicam have the same cardiovascular warning. they all may increase the chance of heart attack or stroke, which can lead to death. this chance increases if you have heart disease or risk factors such as high blood pressure or when nsaids are taken for long periods. nsaids, like celebrex, increase the chance of serious skin or allergic reactions, or stomach and intestine problems, such as bleeding and ulcers, which can occur without warning and may cause death. patients also taking aspirin and the elderly are at increased risk for stomach bleeding and ulcers. don't take celebrex if you have bleeding in the stomach or intestine, or had an asthma attack, hives, other allergies to aspirin, nsaids or sulfonamides. get help right away if you have swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing. tell your doctor your medical history. and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion. bob will retire when he's 153, which would be fine if bob were a vampire. but he's not. ♪

he's an architect with two kids and a mortgage. luckily, he found someone who gave him a fresh perspective on his portfolio. and with some planning and effort, hopefully bob can retire at a more appropriate age. it's not rocket science. it's just common sense. from td ameritrade. it's just♪common sense. and now there's a new way to do the salthy and fit.

it's a no-sacrifices, calorie-light way to help keep him trim, with a deliciously tender and crunchy kibble blend he'll love. and 22% fewer calories than dog chow. discover the lighter side of strong. new purina dog chow light & healthy. >> can we do as parents, what can we do as men, what can we do as fathers, what can we do as mentors to stop this from happening to your child. and i this i that's where the conversation begins. >> that was trayvon martin's father, mr. tracy martin, speaking just an hour ago at the first ever hearing of the congressional caucus on black boys and men. and perhaps nobody knows more about the dangers facing young black men in this country than the father of an unarmed teen who was gunned down while

walking home to watch a basketball game. the event comes just days after the president made a surprise appearance in the white house press briefing room and touched upon some of the issues that are being covered at today's event. >> we need to spend some time in thinking about how do we bolster and reinforce our african-american boys. and this is something that michelle and i talk a lot about. there are a lot of kids out there who need help who are getting a lot of negative reinforcement. and is there more that we can do to give them a sense that their country cares about them and values them? and is willing to invest in them? >> for more now i'm joined by karen finney, host of disrupt with concern finney" and clarence page from the chicago

tribune. this new "wall street journal" poll finds that just 19% of african-americans and 46% of democrats feel americans are judged by the content of their character rather than by their skin color. by comparison, 59% of whites and 65% of republicans believe this to be the case. is it not the first step in dealing with this issue to eliminate this particular discrepancy if so many in the country refuse to face the realities of race, can anything really be done to fix the problem? >> well, i think that we have to look at those numbers and look at the attitudes behind them. i'm saddened first of all, martin, because this is such a replay of the kind of discussions we had after the rodney king beating, after the o.j. simpson trial. you begin to wonder i think on a day to day basis, black folk, white folks as individuals get

along remarkably well, certainly better than when i was a kid in the '50s and '60s. but as far as our macro attitudes go about how we feel about each other's groups, i wonder if we've learned anything at all. the dialogue does have to begin with individuals and work its way out. >> right. karen, there are, of course, those who continue to make excuses and ignore the real problem. let's listen to some things that came out of mr. bill o'reilly's mouth last night. >> the civil rights industry and our leadership in washington will not take on the black crime problem because in order to do so, black culture would have to change. >> so karen, crime is black culture. >> yes. yes, and the industry. i mean he might, as well have been talking like the classic negative image of a pimp in harlem in the '70s with the fur and the glasses. i mean, how we talk about these things is as important as what we're talking about.

and you know, very intentionally o'reilly used language that reinforces those racist negative stereotypes and frankly, it's despicable what he's done because that language also suggests that it's really -- it's a their problem. it's a those people. it's a them kind of language which is so destructive and one of the things i thought was so important about what the president said and frankly in these numbers where i hope there is a positive is, you know, we have to have this conversation. we have to stop kidding ourselves. this is a real problem in this country. and we cannot let those agents of intolerance like o'reilly scare us from having the conversation we need to have. >> absolutely. clarence, i don't know if this struck you, but the whole issue of racial profiling which of course, was ruled out by the judge in the case involving the tragic death of trayvon martin, much of the conversation about this issue identifies with the notion of racial profile.

this whole idea of suggesting that the only thing about black culture that resonates is contractity. it's basically imbuing and attributing to one community of people a particular affect, criminal, just like many people think george zimmerman did in relation to trayvon martin. >> well, yeah, you're right. i think it's been interesting to see what kind of a conversation have we been having. people on the right like bill o'reilly, when you talk about trayvon martin and profiling they company back and talk about black crime and what are blacks doing about black crime. >> exactly. >> what's the president -- which the president talked about. >> especially you chicago people, what are you doing about black crime. where were the white conservatives there when it comes to we as black folks have to deal with black crime. we've also got to deal with telling our kids for what, neighborhood watch patrolmen now

who may have sidearms? the fact is, we deal with those issues every day. as a conservatives, unfortunately, and i'm not speaking of all conservatives because some are people i know well who sincerely want to take action. jack kemp was a model of this kind of outrage. where are those kind of conservatives today to rant want to deal with issues like black crime in the black family when we're not dealing with somebody's murder. >> karen, why wasn't the congressman franchise iowa at the hearing today? >> god, he was too busy insulting some other group in this country. i'm so glad you brought him up and so glad to hear tracie say black and brown young men. it's not just black children. latinos, if you are a muslim with darker skin tone, you get treated a certain way in this country. if we don't create a safe place to have that conversation, those stereotypes continue. steve king's language diagnose

exactly the same thing that oh rile little did, which is reinforce negative stereotypes about mexican-americans. >> msnbc's karen finney and clarence page chicago tribune. thank you both. coming up, the grossly insensitive comment that not even his fellow republicans could stomach. congressman king, what are you running from? >> right now, i'm on a deadline. so i'll be talking to you later on. >> why don't you want to talk to us. >> congressman, do you regret the statements or do you stand by them? >> congressman, do youened sta by the statements. >> i will do this all at one time. >> i'm not going to answer any questions before i pay attention to all of them. excuse me. i've got to keep moving. [ phil ] when you have joint pain and stiffness... accomplishing even little things can become major victories. i'm phil mickelson, pro golfer.

when i was diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis, my rheumatologist prescribed enbrel for my pain and stiffness, and to help stop joint damage. [ male announcer ] enbrel may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal events including infections, tuberculosis, lymphoma, other cancers, nervous system and blood disorders, and allergic reactions have occurred. before starting enbrel, your doctor should test you for tuberculosis and discuss whether you've been to a region where certain fungal infections are common. you should not start enbrel if you have an infection like the flu. tell your doctor if you're prone to infections, have cuts or sores, have had hepatitis b, have been treated for heart failure, or if you have symptoms such as persistent fever, bruising, bleeding, or paleness. since enbrel helped relieve my joint pain, it's the little things that mean the most. ask your rheumatologist if enbrel is right for you. [ doctor ] enbrel, the number one biologic medicine prescribed by rheumatologists. bjorn earns unlimited rewards for his small business. take these bags to room 12 please. [ garth ] bjorn's small business earns double miles

on every purchase every day. produce delivery. [ bjorn ] just put it on my spark card. [ garth ] why settle for less? ahh, oh! [ garth ] great businesses deserve unlimited rewards. here's your wake up call. [ male announcer ] get the spark business card from capital one and earn unlimited rewards. choose double miles or 2% cash back on every purchase every day. what's in your wallet? [ crows ] now where's the snooze button?

coming up, a reaction to

congressman steve king's disgraceful comments on immigration in america. stay with us. asional have constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating? yes! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues... with three strains of good bacteria. [ phillips' lady ] live the regular life. phillips'.

[ herbie ] eh, hold on brent, what's this? oh, that's the new nissan. there's no doubt, that's definitely gonna throw him off. she's seen it too. oh this could be trouble. [ sentra lock noise ] oh man. gotta think fast, herbie. back pedal, back pedal. [ crowd cheering ] oh, he's down in flames and now the ice-cold shoulder. one last play... no, game over! gps take him to the dog house. [ male announcer ] make a powerful first impression. the all-new nissan sentra. ♪ but, dad, you've got... [ voice of dennis ] allstate. with accident forgiveness, they guarantee your rates won't go up just because of an accident. smart kid. [ voice of dennis ] indeed.

are you in good hands? >> they aren't all valedictorians, weren't all brought in by their parents. for every one who is a valedictorian, there's another 100 that weigh 135 pounds and calves the size of capital hopes hauling marijuana across the desert. >> that, of course, was congressman steve king comparing undocumented immigrants to drug traffickers. a kind of lat ral step from last may when he described such individuals as dogs. unless you think that he may have misspoken, he took the trouble last night to make his position abundantly clear. >> it's not something that i'm making up. this is real. we have people that are mules that are drug mules hauling drugs across the border and you can tell by their physical characteristics what they've been doing for months going through the desert with 75 pounds of drugs on their back.

if those who advocate for the d.r.e.a.m. act if they choose to characterize this about valedictorians i gave them a different image we need to be thinking about. we can't be passing legislation looking only at one component of what would be millions of people. >> and in an act of paper courage but perhaps inperson cowardice, senior republicans have criticized mr. king, speaker boehner who has yet to take a stance of his own on the immigration debate issued a written statement which read in part what he said is wrong. there can be honest disagreements about policy without using hateful language. everyone needs to remember that. and house majority leader eric cantor added his own written statement. i strongly disagree with his characterization of the children of immigrants and find the comments inexcusable. for more i'm joined by congressmanen louise gutierrez, democrat from illinois. a member of the hispanic caucus. representative trey gowdy says

there is aren't enough republican who's share mr. king's views to derail immigration reform. but mr. king refuses even to apologize when he's pursued by reporters. so i ask you, do these idiotic reap prehenceable comments detract from the progressing that house republicans may have been making on immigration? >> they may hurt the republican party and their standing, but since we're into numerical equations let me give you this one. there are 25 good, decent republicans for every steve king in the republican caucus of the congress of the united states. i'm working with some of them. one of them is trey dowdy, another is paul ryan and other members, raul labrador and other member who's want to bringing about comprehensive reform. last weekend i was in bakersfield in california with republican, ron congressman. we shared a podium together with

farm workers talking about reform. next day i got to denver last sunday and there was republican congressman kaufman putting an editorial page commentary saying he's for comprehensive immigration and saying the dream kids should go to citizenship and so should their parents so we have a balance. i think steve king is clearly an outlier in the republican party and some of us are doing the hard work ignoring the ignorant racist comments that he makes. >> and do you believe that mr. king is an ignorant racist? >> i can't think of any other words that truly describes the very despicable words that he said. they're both ignorant and racist statements. and there's -- you can't really. but i just want to clear it up. right? we want to talking about equations. there are 25 members of congress, republican congress for every steve king. we're going to work with them and get this done. we're not going to allow him to

detract us because that's what he wants to do. that's his goal. you know what? this is a desperate man that cannot confront the broad and very deep movement that exists across economic, social religious sectors in this america, demanding that we take care of 11 million people and stop their exploitation and we bring them in as our brothers and sisters. >> let's talk policy for a moment then. is simply legalizing the dreamers a viable solution? that is to legalize the children but send their parents back? >> so yesterday i was part of the panel. i had three republican colleagues, one democrat. we were the first panel yesterday. here's what i said. thank you, the cup is half full. i'm happy you're moving away from criminalization, i'm happy you're walking away from demonization of our community and i said to republican colleagues thank you. the cup is starting to get half full. thank you for allowing to have a

conversation on the dreamers and allowing legalization that can end up in citizenship for them. i said let me be clear that isn't not going to be enough. >> if you really care and you think these are upstanding great young americans and everything but a piece of paper and you want to make them citizens, guess what, they're that in great measure because they've got great moms and dads. don't set them asunder in the united states of america because in the end, everybody's going to remember how well you treated the dreamers but you know what they're going to remember even more, how poorly you treated their moms and dads. the nation will remember that. >> so very briefly, and i only have about 15 to 20 seconds with you, sir. are we going to see comprehensive immigration reform during the period of this congress? >> yes. the movement is broad. it's deep. and it's inevitable. i want to many could back and talk to you when we get it done. >> representative luis

gutierrez, thanks you so much. you're more than welcome to come back. thank you, sir. thank you for watching this afternoon. "hardball" and chris matthews are ready to go right now. "new york times" to anthony weiner, get out. let's play "hardball." \s >> good evening, i'm chris matthews in washington. let me start tonight with this. new york has twos historic mayors in a row now, rudy giuliani and mike bloomberg. they are not without controversy, of course. but in the end, both stand today as public figures of renown. they can travel the country and be treated with great applause by broad audiences of the american people. that's a fact. anthony weiner is known nationwide for one thing that he sent pictures of just himself