>> mary kay henry, service employees international union, great to have you on "the ed show." thank you so much. that is "the ed show." "politicsnation" is next followed by "hardball" with chris matthews at its new time associate 7:00 eastern. we'll see you back here tomorrow at 5:00 eastern. thanks to you for tuning in. coming to you from washington, d.c. tonight's lead, heartless gop conservatives are reaching deep into their bag of insults to attack americans who are hurting. and to justify what has increasingly become a republican party hostile to those in need. on fox news, bill o'reilly can't wait to give you his expertise on poor people. >> most of the poor are in that circumstance because of poor personal decision making. this country offers great opportunity to everybody, but you must work hard to seize it.

>> poverty comes from poor decision making? what about if you're a child and poor? is your decision making under suspicion? this cartoonish stuff isn't new for the likes of hannity, beck, or o'reilly. >> my contention is that the obama administration is encouraging parasites to come out and, you know, take as much as they can with no remorse. and this is how a country declines. this is how we become a weak nation. >> so if you need food stamps, you're a parasite. that wasn't exactly his language when he supported billions of dollars to bail out bankers in need. but this is the heartless talk we keep hearing from the right. and bill o'reilly is hardly alone. tea party senator rand paul is comparing the use of food stamps to slavery. in an interview he said access to food and water is not a

right, because, quote, once you conscript people and say oh, it's a right, then really you're in charge. it's servitude. you're in charge of me, and i'm supposed to do whatever you want to tell me to do. so if you take food stamps, you're accepting servitude. senator, what about if you're hungry? and it doesn't stop at food stamps. here is what republican congressman dave joyce was caught on tape saying about the unemployed. >> there's three million jobs every month in this country that go unand -- and want to learn the necessary skills to go forward and be able to do those kinds of jobs. >> three million unemployed people can't find jobs because they're on drugs? this is how mean-spirited and cruel the republican party has become.

here is gop governor tom corbett of pennsylvania a few months ago. >> there are many employers that say we're looking for people, but we can't find anybody that has passed a drug test, a lot of them. and that's a concern for me. >> well, governor, here is what a concern for me. look at this inequality chart. the blue line shows over the last three decades the poorest 20% in this country had income gains of 16%. and this red line during the same period, the top 1% enjoyed gains of 281%. that's right. that 281% growth. something is seriously wrong with this picture. yet they're attacking the unemployed, attacking americans on food stamps, and attacking the poor.

it may fire upp their base, but it's a heartless thing to do, and it's wrong. joining me now is congresswoman karen bass and nia-malika henderson. thank you both for coming on the show. you know, congresswoman, bill o'reilly and his ilk say that poverty is a result of poor decision making. i mean, what do you say to that? >> you know, on the one hand, i do think it's cruel and all, but i also think it's profoundly ignorant. and that's the thing that is so shocking, that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle and newscasters like o'reilly do not have a clue how poor people live. the fact of the matter is the majority of poor folks work. the problem is that people might work one, two, three jobs, but they don't earn enough now in order to support themselves. and that's a problem of our society overall. >> and i think that's a critical

point. the majority of poor people that live under the poverty line. >> right. >> work. >> now, you've got some real battles in congress this fall. this is not just guys talking, firing up the base on talk shows. >>. no. >> you have congress people. >> right. >> who are trying to legislate based on this. >> absolutely. and i know when i come back in a couple weeks what we're going to have to face are the cuts that they're trying to impose to food stamps. it's not just the cuts, but the amendments that individual congress members are introducing really reflects the narrative of what they think of poor folks. >> give me an example of the amendments that are most disturbing to i don't. >> a couple of examples. one, a work requirement, that people work a certain number of hours a week in order to qualify for food stamps. once again, the narrative that they try to project is that people are at home watching tv. people are working minimum wage jobs. they're working at fast food restaurants, which is why you see the actions that are taking place today. >> by the wamgs at these fast

food places. >> right. another amendment requires drug testing. now, why would we waste all of this taxpayers money on drug tests for what? again, the narrative is that people who are poor use drugs. >> right. >> are felons, and don't want to work. and that's just ignorant. >> nia-malika, the fact that you have a guy like bill o'reilly, who has a long history of blaming the poor for their own poverty. listen to this. >> there is almost always a reason attached to it. it is not the capitalist system's fault. it's usually personal responsibility or something like that. and the causes are these -- poor education, addiction, irresponsible behavior, and laziness. the majority of blacks want money spent to level the playing field, to redistribute income from the white establishment. there are 50% of the voting public who want stuff. they want things. and who is going to give them things?

president obama. >> now, nia-malika, does the moderate republicans that you cover agree with this? i mean saying that the majority of blacks want money spent to level the playing field and to redistribute income from the white establishment, 50% of the voters want stuff. do moderate republicans believe this and follow this kind of rhetoric? >> no. i think you hear from moderate republicans that they're certainly more in the mold of george bush, who came into office or at least campaigned on compassionate conservatism, and campaigned against the house republicans at the time saying that he didn't think it was right to balance the budget on the backs of the poor. i think another thing we're missing here in terms of what poverty looks like in america. it's increasingly in the suburbs. if you look at polls out recently, four out of five of adults in this country will in this country at some point struggle with poverty, possibly

have to accept food stamps. so this -- i think sometimes some people sort of focus on this old idea of poverty that it's in certain areas, in the inner city. i think we have ronald reagan in many ways to thank for that consistent image about poverty and about people who are poor and taking advantage of the system. it's just not true. poverty is much more widespread. it crosses much more demographics racially than it has in many, many years. and it's very sad. i think you're going to see somebody like cory booker who looks like he will be the negotiation senator from new jersey, he is somebody who wants to come in and really talk about the poverty. the democratic party i think for many years have not wanted to talk about poverty. and it looks like along with folks like karen bass and cory booker, they're going to have these champions to talk about poverty. >> well, you know, i've been around the country, and i've seen things on the ground.

and this is atrocious, congresswoman. people are really hurting. this is real. i'm talking about people that get up and go to work every day. they do everything they're supposed to do. let me show you some of the priorities how it's hurting real americans, putting politics over people. watch what cuts to head start is doing. >> head start is going to enroll fewer children because of sequester-mandated budget cuts. >> these are the most, you know, devastating cuts that we've ever, ever seen, the sequestration. >> i have my four children with me when i was homeless at the time. >> that make you feel bad about being poor, even though you're doing everything right. i'm going back to school. i'm doing everything i'm supposed to do. but you can't get a break. >> you need this program, because they help them. they give them the support that they need. they give them that little boost. there are kids that needed a lot of help, and they got it from this program. >> and that is a priority,

congresswoman, of some of your colleagues across the aisle, to cut back on head start, when you have people saying how it really hurts, and it really interferes with the future of our country. >> right. >> in terms of our young people. >> absolutely. and i think it's also very important that we look at the ideology that drivers this, because remember how we thought when romney made his quote/unquote slip about the 47%? >> right. >> we see that that's actually the driving ideology for the republican party, which basically says there really shouldn't be a safety net. that safety net should be handled by churches, by nonprofits. but the government really shouldn't be involved in it. however, when it comes to them, you know that 14 republicans receive farm subsidies totalling over $7.2 million. so when it comes to government money for people who are wealthy, well, we are okay with that. when it comes for government money for big business, we're okay with that. but they are trying to divest our society from the responsibility of the most

vulnerable. and i think that's a fundamental change to our society, and one that i certainly won't stand for. >> you know, nia-malika, you look at the cuts to head start. because of gop fuel budget cuts, $400 million slashed from the budget. it will eliminate over 57,000 children from the program. and look at the farm bill, what it does to food stamps. it would cut $40 billion in funding, up to 6 million people could lose assistance. these are very heartless things to do to people that are vulnerable. you say moderate republicans don't agree with this. why aren't they speaking up? >> i think that's a good question. and i think you give those numbers, and it really is children, right, who benefit from some of these programs if you look at food stamps. most of the folks who are getting food stamps, the supplemental nutrition

assistance program, they have children. and head start, i went to head start certainly benefits the kids in the early education years that are so crucial. i do think there is an opportunity for republicans to speak up around thesed in some f you look at, for instance, what rick perry is doing down in texas, a different issue around obama care, he doesn't agree with obama care, but he is at the same time trying to get $100 million in obama care to take care of the elderly and disabled. so it does feel like there is some room for republicans to frame this issue in a way that works for them, in a way that resonates, because, again, this is about children. it's often about the elderly. it's often about the disabled. and this idea that the poor should be demonized, it just doesn't resonate with people. >> well, i hear you about the senator. but even a broke clock is right twice a day. thank you, nia-malika henderson and congresswoman karen bass. thank you for your time.

>> thanks for having us on. >> thank you. president obama will speak at the lincoln memorial at tomorrow's anniversary celebration of the march on washington. coming next, i'll speak with two activists fighting for the protection of the right to vote. and more on donald trump facing a $40 million lawsuit for fraud. tonight you'll hear what some of the alleged victims are saying. and the stunning inside story of michele bachmann's presidential campaign. her former staffer has written a tell-all book, and it's all in there, the firing of a pregnant mother on christmas eve, the money paid to buy support in iowa, the incredible details ahead. what's on your mind? e-mail me. friend or foe, i want to know. "reply al" is ahead.

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have you joined the "politicsnation" conversation on facebook yet? we hope you will. everyone's been talking about the lawsuit new york attorney general filed against donald trump for deceptive business practices. and he says if these allegations are true, i'm with the attorney general schneiderman. deborah says trump can dish it out, but he can't take it. cheryl says now show your records like you asked the president for his birth certificate. good one, cheryl. coming up, you'll hear from some of the victims and see who donald's blaming. but first, we want to know what you think. please head over to facebook and search "politicsnation," and like us to join the conversation that keeps going long after the show ends.

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we believe in a new america. it's time to march for a new america. it's time to organize for a new america. it's time to register and vote for a new america. we are on our way. we're on our way. we are on our way. >> we are on our way. now one day away from the 50th anniversary of the march on washington, president obama will deliver a major address tomorrow, from the same spot where dr. king delivered his famous "i have a dream" speech

at the lincoln memorial. he is expected to talk about the progress, but he is also expected to confront the right wing assault on voting rights in america. and now that we have marched, it's time to take action. today we are fighting some of the same battles we fought 50 years ago. we've seen the lines, the chaos, and the suppression. today north carolina has the most radical voter suppression law on the books. a strict voter id requirement. no same-day voter registration. early voting slashed by the week. but we're ready to act. >> we're on our way to north carolina. we're on our way to texas. we're on our way to florida. and when they ask us for our voter idea, take out a photo of medgar evers. take out a photo of goodman,

cheney. out a photo of viola louisa. they gave their lives so we could vote. look at this photo. it gives you the idea of who we are. >> it's not enough to commemorate the activists that paved the way, we must emulate them. joining me now two activists fighting to protect the vote, the reverend dr. william barber, the president of the north carolina naacp, and congressman g.k. butterfield, representing north carolina's first congressional district. thank you both for being here tonight. >> thank you, reverend al. >> reverend barber, let me start with you. your state now has the country's most radical voter suppression law. how are you fighting back? >> well, you know, reverend al, what they're doing is they're fighting to roll back what we want. we've been organizing and fighting with the naacp in more than 150 organizations.

and we want same registration and early voting. what we're seeing is extremism on steroids, jim crow 2. they have rolled back early voting, sunday voting. they're wanting to deny 17-year-olds from preregistering. they want to end public financing. and all an attempt. they passed a voter id law that is worst than alabama, south carolina. for 13 weeks, we had thousands of people come to the legislature, nearly a thousand people registered. we're moving across the state. within one hour after the governor signed this monster bill we had already filed suit working with the naacp, and with the advancement project. we have 13 rallies tomorrow. we're organizing massively on our college campus, and we'll have a massive march on the governor's mansion in the early part of september. we are not going backwards, reverend al. we say forward together not one step back. well will win in the courts. we will organize in the street. we have the most massive coalition right here in north carolina.

we're building a movement from the bottom up. this is our selma, and we will stand our ground. >> now congressman butterfield, you and reverend barker was with us saturday here at the march. but tell me, that's what we're doing with agitation. how do we stop this with legislation? what is going on in the congress, what can go on? >> first of all, reverend sharpton, let me thank you for putting a spotlight on what is happening in north carolina. we now indeed have the worst elect laws in the united states. it happened very quickly. three things were standing in the way of the republicans doing this. number one, they didn't control the legislature. now they do. they were not in the governor's mansion. now they are. and then section 4 of the voting rights act was invalidated by the supreme court on june 25th. and by july 25th, these laws had been enacted. so we have a real struggle in reverend barber and a conference of the naacp has worked very hard in organizing more on mondays. but now the attorney general of

the united states must act. have i written a letter to mr. holder asking for justice department intervention. i spoke to him saturday at the march in washington, and, again, reiterated the importance of bringing federal action against north carolina, because we have thousands of thousands of not just african-americans, but students and senior citizens, and many other groups who are now going to be disenfranchised. >> now reverend barber, you have put together an unusually effective coalition of all races, all ages, all religion, and have civil disobedience. many of us coming in to support that after this national march. how important is activism to achieving this? >> it's extremely important. it's important we build it from montgomery up, not from washington down. it's important that it's broad, that it's deep, that it's diverse.

it's important that we frame the issues, not necessarily republican and democrat, but who is immoral versus moral. who is extreme versus who is constitutional, that we root it in our deepest biblical values and our deepest moral values. that's why we're seeing republicans and democrats coming together. we were in mitchell county a few weeks ago, talking about these issues, not just voting, but attack on medicaid, the attack on poor, the attack on public education. and in a county that is 89% republican, the republican chair sent his daughter to bring people to moral monday, and they're organizing up there and joining forces with us. and then join 10,000 people in asheville. what we need is for people to support indigenous leadership as we build a movement state by state by state. >> and that's the only way it's going to work. that's the way it worked 50 years ago. congressman, conservative phyllis schlafly, she defended the north carolina voting law by saying, i'm going to quote her,

the reduction in the number of days allowed for early voting is particularly important because early voting plays a major role in obama's game plan. the obama technocrats have developed an efficient system of identifying perspective obama voters. so early voting is an essential component of the democrats' get-out-the-vote. she flat-out admits the real reason of the laws is to actually keep people from voting. >> reverend sharpton, i need to explain to you what is going on in north carolina. the republicans did not expect president obama to win north carolina in 2008. it was a complete surprise. we won. the president won by 14,000 votes in north carolina. and they developed a strategy after that to make sure that president obama and democrats never again win a presidential election in north carolina. and so the tea party emerged. and they got active. they became well funded. they had a national network. they were very vocal.

and won the legislative races in 2010, came back in '12 and won the governor's mansion. but they still couldn't execute their agenda. and you know why? because of the voting rights act. section 5 was standing in their way. >> right. >> but then june 25th by 5-4 decision the supreme court struck down the provisions that enable section 5, that's when the floodgate opened, and all of this discriminate story legislation got passed. so the only way to stop it now is to go into the federal courts and ask for a review of these decisions. >> what about the congress? could the congress do a new voting rights act? let me show you congressman james sensenbrenner who said as a republican he would fight to restore voting rights act. >> i am committed to restoring the voting rights act as an effective tool to prevent discrimination. more subtle discrimination now than overt discrimination. this is something that has to be

to be done by the end of the year so that a revised and constitutional voting rights act is in place before the 2014 election season, both primaries and general elections. >> can that happen by the end of the year, congressman? >> it can happen. i'm cautiously optimistic. as you know, i'm the vice chair of the congressional black caucus and chair the rights committee of the caucus. and we have put together some recommendations that we have given to nancy pelosi and steny hoyer, and they have those, and they're in negotiation right now with eric cantor and mr. sensenbrenner whom you just saw a minute ago. we have dozens of republican congressmen who were in congress in 2006 when we extended the voting rights act then. and i believe these men and women who voted for it in '06 do not want to be inconsistent with their votes. they don't want to send the wrong message. i believe at the end of the day, the 202 democrats will support

it. i believe it will happen by the end of the year. >> we're going to keep pressure on. reverend? >> reverend al, and that's why we're having these 13 rallies in the 13 congressional districts, to call on them, the congress people to do the right thing. it's also why we must put this pressure on. on the day shelby case came down, now that the headache has been removed, we're going do what we want to do. he described a bill that was written in medgar evers' blood as a headache. that's why we're going to fight. that's why we filed a lawsuit in federal court with advancement project, and why we're doing everything we must to not allow them to turn this country back or this state back. >> well, that's why a couple hundred thousand of us said on saturday. you've been doing it every monday. we're going to keep on for the good of the country. congressman g.k. butterfield and dr. william barber, thank you both for your time. >> god bless you. >> thank you. one program note.

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donald trump is facing a $40 million lawsuit for allegedly defrauding students at his trump university. serious accusations from the new york attorney general. but i'm sure he has a reasonable explanation. >> i've been a very harsh critic of the president. they meet on thursday evening. i get sued by this ag schneiderman. i get sued on saturday at 1:00. he met with president obama. he then signed the lawsuit. >> so you're saying president

obama is behind this? >> george, let me -- it's possible, who knows. >> he didn't try and blame the president. but we're hearing from the alleged victims. donald, it's your time to show us the transcripts, next. we've had this farm for 30 years. we raise black and red angus cattle. we also produce natural gas. that's how we make our living and that's how we can pass the land and water back to future generations. people should make up their own mind what's best for them. all i can say is it has worked well for us. she loves a lot of it's what you love about her. but your erectile dysfunction - that could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet

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whenever trump put up a condominium, that we would get first crack at getting into it. he took my self-respect, and he embarrassed me. >> i just felt foolish. i said i must have been pretty stupid investing so much money in this. maybe i didn't see something that i should have seen. but it looks like i wasn't the only one. >> no, it doesn't. the new york attorney general says thousands of people have gone to the school after seeing ads prominently featuring trump. and he promised success. >> i think the biggest step towards success is going to be signing up at trump university. we're going to have a professors and adjunct professors that are absolutely terrific, terrific people, terrific brains, successful. we are going to have the best of the best. >> the best of the best. but what exactly does the best of the best include?

don't ask mr. trump. the new york daily news just obtained the deposition that he gave last year where he was asked about trump u. when he was asked, he said which of your real estate secrets were taught as part of the mentorship, he answered you would have to ask trump u.'s president. he has all that information. it's his university, named after him, but he doesn't have the information? maybe he should go get that team of private investigators back from looking for birth certificates in hawaii to help him find out what is going on at his own university. joining me now is bill press. thank you for being here. >> you know what, it's great to see you, reverend al. >> and your first time back on the show. >> i know. in quite a while. good to see you. >> let me ask you, what is your reaction when you hear these alleged victims speak up? >> two things, i think.

one is just the arrogance and the cruelty of this bill maher, donald trump, to prey on these poor people, to fleece them just like he fleeces people in his casinos, taking advantage of them in what looked like, look, innocent until proven guilty. i've looked at a lot of this stuff today. a classic bait and switch. bring them in at one level and says you're going to learn a lot. but you got to pay more if you really want to learn the secrets, and you still have to pay even more. they come in at a thousand dollars. they pay $35,000 for a course and learn nothing. that's one. the other reaction is i must marvel at the suckers who fall for this. again, a classic bait and switch. remind me of the people who give money to tv preachers. you're going to be -- you're going to get salvation. and the more money you give us, the more certain you're going to go to heaven. it's sad. and i think trump is in real trouble. this looks like consumer fraud to me. >> now, the new york attorney

general says trump was actively involved in recruiting. let me play you the attorney general. >> the former president of trump u. has testified under oath that trump was very interested in the promotional materials. he was the chief pitchman. he was very involved in luring in students with with using his celebrity status. the students thought they were going to get to meet mr. trump. what they end upped is getting a chance to have their picture taken next to a life-sized poster of mr. trump to make it look as though they had met him. >> bill, a cardboard cutout? >> yeah. >> this is a serious accusation. the attorney general says trump lured students in so he could how could he not be there? forget the obvious. how do you do that and you're not involved, the students that you lured in with that promise? >> again, this is classic trump operation. what he does, he puts his name on whatever it is. neckties or shirts or a tain or a hotel or a building or a golf course, and then he has nothing

to do with it. it's just his name. in this case he promise head was personally going to select the professors. he did not, apparently. he said they were all going to be real estate experts. they were not, apparently. they said he was going to show up, right, and be part of it. he never showed up. and then as you said, they're going to get their picture taken with him, and it's a cardboard thing like you see of barack obama on the streets of washington, d.c. total fraud. >> now, people might hear about this and say the school sounded too good to be true. but here is what allegedly happened. people would go to a free lecture, get convinced to buy a three-day seminar that costs $1500. once they were there, instructors told them we need longer than three days. and they would get convinced to sign up for the elite programs. that costs from $5,000 to $35,000. in a gradual process like this, is it easier to be convinced to

spend, bill? >> well, it shouldn't be. it was for too many people. 5,000 people fell for this hook, line, and sinker. and you know what they're doing, reverend al, they were told to do this by the trump people. oh, you can't afford this? put it on your credit card. oh, your credit card level is too low? well, then lie to the credit card company. tell them you got a source of income they didn't know about. get your credit card level raised and then use that credit card to give us more money. trump himself made $5 million in profits out of this university. >> well, it's very serious allegations. we're going follow this case and see where it goes. bill press, thank you for your time. >> good to be here, reverend al. coming up, think michele bachmann's campaign was made for "saturday night live"? today we're learning just how similar it was. and how is sarah palin president obama's secret political weapon? she is in the news today again. stay with us.

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thank you for welcoming us. i'm michele bachmann. i am running to be president of the united states of america.

>> remember when michele bachmann ran for president? yeah, that actually happened. and now we're hearing the amazing story of what went on behind the scenes in her 2012 campaign. a new tell-all book from her former adviser reveals the incredible details, allegations of bribery, back-biting among staffers, reasons behind the ethics investigation. but really, there is one part we need to talk about. are you ready for this? it's the story of how she decided to run. her husband mark counselled her, quote, the test of whether his wife should run for president was ultimately a simple one in marcus' view. he instructed her to get off the bed and go to the full-length mirror in the bedroom. if you can look at yourself and say it, then you are ready to run and you should, he explained. she listened nodding internally.

she stood in front of the mirror, said michele bachmann, looking at herself, i am the president of the united states. now i wasn't there, but i imagine that it all unfolded like this. >> i'm good enough, i'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me. >> who knew the bachmann campaign is even more like an "snl" skit than we ever imagined? joining me now are dana milbank and angela rye. thank you both for coming on the show tonight. >> good to be with you, reverend. >> i mean, dana, what would you have given to be a fly on the wall at the bachmann mirror? >> oh, it's so terrific. but it's a very common practice in politics. right now president obama is looking in the mirror and asking what he should do in syria. so we see this sort of thing. >> there is a little difference in this. >> slight difference on that.

>> i had previously i thought the congresswoman had indicated god told her to run. so now we have her doing mirror mirror on the wall who is the most interesting candidate of us all. >> angela, with all the talk of bachmann being not really authentic, the book alleges she was anything but that. let me quote from the book. bachmann was not able to make a decision on her own without a consultant's filter. this speaks to who she was. so far right minnesota candidate who got in over her head and turned huckster for advice. >> well, i think we not only see she needed to rely on consultants, she probably needed them in her ear just like this, because we also see that she always fails politifact tests. i looked through four pages and

all of them are either pants on fire, false or mostly false. so perhaps she probably should have hired some more consultants, but maybe in an ethical manner. >> there is an article to carry a full length mirror around with her. >> so you hired these hucksters. >> you know, bachmann build herself as a christian candidate. that was one of her big things. but behind the scenes they say she was ruthless. dana, her consistent services are notoriously lousy. her treatment of staff objectionably unchristian. my favorite example of this is when she fired a staffer with seven children, the eighth on the way on christmas eve. >> it sounds kind of dickensian, doesn't it? this is not the first time we've seen the preaching one way and acting in sort of a different way. but politics is a ruthless game. and you don't get into this because you are -- you're always because your motives are pure.

if you started out that way, it becomes an absolutely ruthless game. and it did catch up with the congresswoman, because some of the people mention this book, got in all kinds of legal trouble that she is still battling right here in the capital. >> angela, you wonder where balconyman gets all these crazy ideas and crazy theories from. how about the far right wing's websites. according to the book, she pretty much read all the time what was a concern of her chief of staff, though, was her reliance on world net daily which he thought was a little too tin foil hat, even for him. >> sure. this is a woman who chaired the tea party caucus in the house. my personal experience with the tea party members and also hearing the reflections of cbc members is that they were awful. during the affordable care act vote, these members were spat upon by tea party supporters. so i'm not surprised. >> the word on that daily, dana,

is the same website that thinks president obama is a gay muslin kenyan. so much for her being well informed. >> though that is a lot of mainstream in a lot of republican thought right now. so it's not that far out there. this is the same website i have heard ted cruz quote from repeatedly now. occasionally what you read on world net dally is correct, but that's only a chance. >> michele bachmann was of course, angela, a gaffe machine. before her run for president and after. watch this. >> i wish the american media would take a great look at the views of the people in congress and find out are they pro america or anti-america? obama care as we know is the crown jewel of socialism. not all cultures are equal. not all values are equal. >> we were extremely careful and we were almost mistake-free. >> the very founders that wrote

those documents worked tirelessly until slavery was no more in the united states. men like john quincy adams, who would not rest until slavery was extinguished in the country. >> i haven't had a gaffe or something that i have done that has caused me to fall in the polls. >> and la, she was leading the pack at one point. the iowa straw, the thing they do early, the iowa straw poll, she won. i mean, how does this happen? >> well, i think easily. one, iowa straw poll isn't necessarily leading the pack, rev. i know it can kind of be a fluke. so i think her leading is not exactly right. she lost the caucus. i think she placed sixth in the iowa caucus just days later. she wasn't tremendously a leader. but easily, anyone that says that the founders of this country were also the folks that

emancipat emancipated slaves. >> basic history. >> but i think the other part of this, all jokes i side, dana, the book talks about very serious allegations against the congresswoman, among them she paid an influential iowa state senator $7500 a month under the table in the lead-up to the iowa caucus, that she used presidential and political action committee staff to promote her memoirs, and that she pays her legal council $20,000 a month to purchase silence. that's some serious allegations. >> the congresswoman said that her plan to retire from congress has nothing to do with all these legal and ethical actions against her. but they're very much there. and they were very serious things. and very serious policy issues she took, such as the vaccine program lie were overshadowed by some of the crazier things like saying the revolutionary war began in new hampshire. >> dana milbank and angela rye, i'm looking in the mirror to say

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it's time for "reply al." remember, friend or foe, i want to know. harrison wants to know with the 50th anniversary of reverend martin luther king's speech, what would he say about things today? well, i don't know, and i don't think anyone can say exactly what he would say. but i can only imagine and only say with some certainty he'd have the same principles and the same values he had 50 years ago. and would judge the things going on today like voter suppression, like the fact we can't pass a jobs bill, we would judge them the same basis he judged similar things 50 years ago would be the way i think he would respond. well, thanks for watching. i'm al sharpton. "hardball" starts right now.

bread line for the right. let's play "hardball." good evening. i'm kris matthews in washington. he has done it to damascus, now he is doing it here. president obama today drew a red line here at home. any republican who tries to bring this country into the default, fails to pay interest on the national debt is the enemy. there will be no deals, the president says, no talks, no schmoozes, no bedtime stories, no nothing. you are cut off. america will pay its debts. it will not