hi, everyone, i'm tamron hall. following another big hearing on capitol hill where members of the administration were repeatedly asked about the deadline that the healthcare.gov website will be ready to go by november 30th. >> mr. park, will it work on november 30th? properly, fully? >> the team set a goal of having healthcare.gov function smoothly for the vast majority of americans and they working hard to meet that goal. >> can you give more more specific? >> the goal that has been laid out is for site not to be perfect by the end of november -- >> functional people can logon. >> vast majority of americans will be able to use the site completely. that's the goal we're going for. >> the white house technology

officer and other key officials testified before the house oversight committee. the tough grilling included questions about the november 30th deadline along with concerns over privacy and security risks. one of the more intense exchanges came with republican congressman joe jordan pressed the panel about a report from a private contractor showing the site was not fully tested. >> you're the chief information officer of the united states of america. that's a pretty big title. you didn't know about this d. the biggest policy program website in the history of this country ever is launched. >> i haven't seen this document. >> mr. park, you're supposed to be the guy that's going to solve everything. you're clark kent coming out of the phone booth. >> there were heated exchanges between lawmakers and their colleagues across the aisle. take a listen. >> american people do not want to see a kangaroo court here.

and the way this hearing has been conducted does not encourage good private sector people to want to join the federal government. we do face problems sometimes but the american spirit is the can do we can fix it attitude, not the blame game. >> no witness here today has been cut off. >> but mr. chairman -- >> every witness has been allowed to complete their entire answer. kangaroo courts -- quite an accusation. >> it's not about self-serving, it's about getting to the truth. and i would not insult your staff and -- >> i wasn't insulting your staff. >> well, i take it as an assault. >> what i said was -- >> it's not about self-serving -- >> the hearing comes as the white house pushes back against a "washington post" article that in part said, quote, software problems with the federal online health insurance marketplace especially in handling high

volumes are proving so sub born the system is unlikely to work fully as the white house promised by the end of the month. ahead of the hearing a spokesperson told our first read team, we expect the website to function effectively for the vast majority of users by the end of the month. joining me now, nbc news capitol hill correspondent kelly o'donnell. kelly, a lot of what we heard this this hearing, we know where republicans stand and many democrats are still standing by the website and administration. and trying to give cover here, i do think that the answer given by todd park regarding the deadline as a goal does raise more eyebrows. >> well, they are sort of using the phrase vast majority to give a bit of room, to not define it as 100% usability. a lot of this hearing, it was grueling for witnesses, hours of often difficult questioning in an environment that had lots of political kind of sparks flying

between republicans and democrats. there is some difficulty in making it understandable to the general public as well because some of the conversation was more technical in nature. but you've got these officials who had various areas of expertise and todd park is a policy adviser on technology and brought in, said he's been sleeping on the floor of his office at times working on this. but they aren't able to say definitively that it will be ready to go by the end of the month. and they are gunning for the goal is the phrase he used. each time pressed for specifics, they dont have them at this point. and then it becomes a case, well what happens next? and that's part of what will unfold here on capitol hill over the next several days as well as the white house trying to come up with its own ideas about what to do with the issue of if you like your plan, you can keep it. there's a legislative plan being put together, a couple of different versions on how to give people that option if they want to keep a plan they

currently have. we're being told the white house is considering other fixes that it can do from its perch to retool this to give greater confidence to the public using the system. if they can get it too a point that the usability goes up greatly, that will lead more people to have confidence in it. they are telling you through testimony we've watched about 17,000 registrations are doable and that's a big improvement and shooting for the ability to register 30,000. there are improvements happening, the questions are will it be fast enough and is the system going to be foolproof enough and will it be secure enough. lots of doubts about those things as they keep working on trying to make fixes. >> we just got this in at the white house briefing, jay carney said we can expect an announcement from the president, quote, sooner rather than later, on how to deal with the problems of people's insurance if they want to keep being canceled. that in just for jay carney. also, kelly, there was a report

out that a top homeland security official said there had been 16 cyber attacks on the healthcare.gov website as well. you have hackers now also a part of this dynamic. >> reporter: is your personal information secure if it's placed there? and the hacking attempts we learned in a separate hearing, a look at the ability of outsiders to get in and muck up the works and prevent it from being useable, which would of course further hamper the plan going into effect. so cyber security is one of the issues we live with now. it puts this very massive system to a new test. a lot of lawmakers don't feel confident enough has been done to check out the different elements of what make the website work, to be sure they are secure, especially as fixes are added. so it's the functional side, the security side and policy side, and it was always a big, big

issue and now we see it as a big, big issue in terms of just getting it going and it's a lot to chew on here. >> thank you. joining me now, april ryan, white house correspondent for american urban radio networks and reporter for plitco and wendell potter. obama care, what's in it for me. with the president saying at least through jay carney, we can expect to hear something from them sooner rather than later on a deal with people who had insurance canceled. you are an insurance whistleblower and know the dirty side of these insurance companies who have dropped people for years and not cover people with preexisting conditions and now we have these canceled policies, some of them zribled as lousy, that people want to keep for whatever reason. what's your take? is this benefitting the secret

world of insurance industry? >> it really is. i think in the pressure off the insurance companies and putting it on the administration. the administration probably is working behind the scenes with insurance companies by constructing the law as congress did. you have to work with them. they are not reliable, trust worthy partners but they are who you have to deal with. the president will come up with some kind of solution working with those insurance companies to be sure insurance people can have good coverage going into 2014. we'll see exactly what that looks like. >> you've got some lawmakers and the president will talk about for example, mary landrieu, who are looking for political cover, in states where obviously their re-election depends on what they say and do in these next cycles of obama care. again, at least one m.i.t. professor on with chuck todd said some of the ideas may in the end hurt the affordable care

act and hurt the entire point of providing health care to those who have not had it. let me play what jonathan gruber had to say with chuck today. >> we currently have highly discriminatory system where if you're sick, if you've been sick and get sick, you cannot get health insurance. the only way to end that discriminatory system is to bring everyone into the system and pay one fair price. that means the genetic winners, lottery winners who were playing art fishltly low price now have to pay more in return. and that is about 4 million people by my estimate. in return we'll have a fixed system where over 30 million people will now for first time be able to access fairly priced and guaranteed health insurance. >> wendell, your thoughts on that? >> he's exactly right. you don't want to have a so-called fix to make waters worse and take us back to the bad old days where they were able to discriminate against us because of our health status and age as much as they had been in

the past. so i understand what members of congress are doing who are up for re-election. we don't want to pass anything and i don't even think the president expects congress to pass anything to open up the affordable care act. it won't happen. >> you have the new numbers out, an all time low for the president, approval at 39%. as highlighted by other shows and this as well, the honesty and trust worthy heavily questioned from americans as well. this messaging problem persists with explaining to people the benefits and how as wendell and others have pointed out, it's this system that has existed prior to this, you could not get health care coverage if you were sick. the benefits outweigh the -- some of this difficulties we're seeing. pre preexisting, conditions, don't get discriminated against, women who need mammograms can get a

mammogram. cannot successfully communicate all of the pluses and especially now when there's so many negatives with the website, this website is an alba tros around the president's neck and he's trying to come back and take the narrative back. that's why he's going to talk sooner rather than later. especially as these numbers, poll numbers are so, so bad right now. >> you wrote about the article that you have up, the making of obama care management failure, the notion that obama wasn't clued in seems to defy logic there. why does that defy logic for you. >> well, i said in that paragraph that there are a couple of things that would explain that, that being that this is an extraordinarily important law to the president's success, the fact that he was so clued into the power of technology and just because there were warning signs all

around the aadministration over the last year. but i go on to write, that the white house was focused on a lot of problems that they foresaw. but none of them were the biggest problem that presented itself and they really had no idea that they would have to worry about the fundamental health of the website. and you know, they explained to me that they were so concerned about so many things. leading up to the launch, but the idea that the website just wouldn't function, really wasn't the top of their list. >> you mentioned as well some of the things they were worried about was the font size or color scheme used on the website and not whether or not the website would be working and now mr. parker, we heard in the testimony there, according to the new york times, this guy is sleeping on the offense floor. i don't think anyone feels sorry for him, it's a challenge in front of him and when things fall apart, all hands on deck.

he's sleeping on the floor working furiously in an attempt to fix these problems that they cannot guarantee will be the majori majority. we don't know what -- >> we don't. >> i'm sorry, go ahead. >> we don't know how that's defined and that's the key point that the white house is grappling with itself. are they metrics that we can point to with the website, something else. we don't have an idea. they haven't said and therefore that gives them some wiggle room like kelly said to define that in the next few weeks based on where they are. >> and april, i want you to comment on that. some of the notion or perception they are looking for, wiggle room, i think adds to suspicions and people believing there's an honesty issue or no transparency when anyone looks for wiggle room, i think. >> i think it's the definition of what this is. the problem is they are saying, it's working. yes, they have -- you're hearing

out of new york, 50,000 people have signed up. hearing out of maryland, 40,000 and saturday night live, 6 people signed up. when you pull it all together, there has been registration and enrollment and we have to wait for those numbers but you have to remember november is the big launch date. that's the launch time that they wanted it all to work within the first month. but you have six months, i'm not -- it sounds like justifying what's happening, but you still have six months. you have until march 31st when you have to have insurance by then. so they have to have this all done. but come november 30th or even next week, we'll find out or later this week we'll find out how many people actually enroll. i think when you pull the numbers around the nation together, it's not necessarily just about this one website. it's about the tent cals and the interfacing of all of the websites and everything together to enroll for aca.

>> there have been comparisons to what happened to massachusetts and the abysmal numbers in the beginning and eventually -- >> 123. >> and the healthier young people come on board and suddenly everyone seems to enjoy what they have available. but, again, knowing the industry the way you do, wendell and having blown the wistle on some of the dirty business, can't say it enough here, what is your major concern now? >> the big concern is waiting for two and a half weeks. one of the things to keep in mind. this is politics. we will see even if we get to 99.9% operation for the website, those who don't want this to be -- to continue will look for that small number of people to be dissatisfied. we know this is going to be a political issue for some time to come. >> all right, thank you all. we appreciate your time. april carey, we'll talk with you soon. >> the woman who became the face of obama care's website, she's now stepping forward and she said she's now the victim of

cyber bullying, one of the things we thought you should know. plus, there's no food. water, we cannot live here. >> we're going to need to really scale up our operations on an ongoing basis. >> the latest from the philippines as a shipful of aid from the united states is expected to arrive tomorrow. and the florida woman sentenced to 20 years for firing a warning shot against her alleged abusive husband, may be set free today. the latest on this controversial stand your ground case we've been following. and of course, join our conversation on twitter, find ugs at tamronhall and at newsnation. you get your hair cut here. you find that certain thing you were looking for here, but actually you get so much more. when you shop at these small local businesses, you support all the things that make your community great.

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efforts were given a boost today, u.s. military officials say the uss george washington, the aircraft carrier sent in to provide much needed aid will arrive tomorrow along with two cruisers and destroyer and supply ship. it can process 400,000 gallons of purified water a day. authorities are struggling to keep order as survivors become more desperate in the search for food and water. in one hard hit area, thousands of people stormed a government owned rice warehouse. eight people were killed in the crush. ian williams is manila with the latest. we know, ian, the situation is dire on the ground and the government has been very been has been able to do very little as they don't have order as well. >> reporter: that's right, tamron, the philippine government described this as the biggest logistical exercise they've ever undertaken.

now, they say it is gaining momentum but not nearly fast enough for people desperately in need of aid who complain they are simply not getting, even the basics like drinking water and food and shelter and medicine. we saw that storming of a government warehouse which was described as act of self-preservation rather than looting. we've heard about efforts that dig up water pipes to try to crack those pipes to get drinking water. so pretty desperate situation. the government is very much on the defensive here. blaming, again the extent of the debris for delaying aid efforts. they are also saying that local government structures, officials, police, simply weren't there to implement the aid to give out the aid and having to put their own structures in from manila. they do insist law and order is being re-established, there's a curfew in tacloban and things

will be stepped up and get better. but clearly the need is very great. >> quickly, with the for example with the "uss george washington", this 400,000 gallons of purified water a day, even with that capability, the issue is getting the water to those in need. >> reporter: well, that will make a big difference. my understanding is some of the other ships coming down from japan, may have amphibious landing capability. we saw these crafts in action after the tsunami up there. with the incredible ability to bring ashore supplies. having the ability to process water right there, right outside tacloban, the most heavily seriously affected area, i think will make a big difference. certainly the u.s. ambassador today was fairly upbeat when he was put on the spot by local tv. look, we've done the assessment,

that stage is over. we're going to step things up. that is very much what the philippines wants to hear, tamron. >> what the world wants to hear. thank you very much, ian. greatly appreciate your report. for information on how to help victims of these typhoon, log on to our website, newsnation.msnbc.com. convicted boston mobster whitey bulger goes face to face with victims of his sentencing today. words to described, rat, coward, even satan. we'll get a live report what happened in court today. that way with health care. with unitedhealthcare, i get information on quality rated doctors, treatment options and cost estimates, so we can make better health decisions. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare. ♪ ♪ if i was a flower growing wild and free ♪

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day one of the sentencing hearing of whitey bulger wrapped up ago in boston. the prosecutor called bulger a little sociopath and adding the

carnage he called is grotesque. he was called satan and domestic terrorist and a sad, lonely and ir relevant old man. at least dozens of relatives of bulger's victims are expected to speak before the gangster is sentenced tomorrow. ron mott joins us from the federal court in boston where things wrapped up today and day two tomorrow. ron, as i understand the judge has offered an opportunity for whitey bulger to speak as well at this hearing? >> caller: yes, she did. hi there, i want to let everyone know, you might hear banging behind me. there's construction going on outside the courthouse. the judge did give him an opportunity to address the court. he stood up really the only physical activity he had and he finished telling his lawyers what she was offering him, nope and sat down. that was it. for the most part all of these victim's family members addressed the court.

he sat with his head peering down and pen in his right hand writing whatever. and really expressed no emotion at all as one after another the family members told the court how the loss of the loved ones affected their lives, some of them as small as 6 or 7 or even younger. a lot of victims wanted to get a lot of anger off their chest. one woman got up and asked him, mr. bulger, would you please turn around to at least look at us? he did not. his attorney afterward said whitey bulger did express emotion, could feel it sitting next to him but did not turn aaround to address them. a lot would have been more satisfied if he had given them that much. >> not just for the facts, of course, they have the most pain. they lost loved ones, but for all of boston. when he was finally sentenced, this is a closure to this man

who was made into for some a hero, for most others not. even movies and books inspired by his story and his path of murder. >> reporter: yeah, exactly. one gentleman in particular said you've got this notoriety but all you are is a punk. and of course whitey bulger didn't respond to that along with other things called in court. tomorrow he'll be formally sentenced. the government is asking the judge to sentence him to two consecutive life sentences. he is 84 years old and likely to die in prison. a lot of family members said this was closure for them. they don't ever get over the loss of loved ones and fathers and mothers and daughters and sons, whatever the instance may be, but they did want to have the opportunity to tell the court what it means to lose someone the way they did and another thing that was really telling today, one young lady talked about waiting for her father to come pick her up. they found out he died by

reading the front page of "the boston globe." my goodness, why would you have to show his body on the front page of the paper. that's how their family found out they lost someone. a lot of emotion four years worth of emotion pouring out of this courthouse behind us, tamron. >> thank you very much. up next, new polling shows approval ratings for the president and congress, some to record lows. but whose slide is worse? our first read dug into the numbers. the convicted child killer wants to donate his organs to a failing family member. officials are saying no. and it's our "news nation" gut check. ot gain with lift & lock, he loves the way his laundry smells. [ woman ] honey, isn't that the dog's towel? [ panting, growling ] [ male announcer ] eh, what are you gonna do? the amazingly clean scent of gain with lift & lock. step two, baconated cheese for awesome.

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from now when she is expected to update us on how many people have enrolled. during the hearing on healthcare.gov rollout, republicans did most of the grilling, but growing dissatisfaction was seen amongst democrats. >> i need, we need, my constituents need this website to work. they need to enroll in exchange and i know you've heard all day long we're all frustrated. i'm frustrated. while i wish we had better solutions for them earlier on. my biggest concern is we're reaching a critical point in the implementation timeline. >> joining me now, democratic congressman chris van hollen. thank you for your time. we may in about an hour from now hear numbers that have been speculated and reported on. we'll hear the facts. we do know kathleen see breel yus, secretary sebelius has already said they are going to be low. what does that do to the discussion in moving forward with this deadline looming of

november 30th and today the testimony being that the vast majority of people will be able to get on the website but we cannot guarantee 100%. >> i think everybody agrees the website situation is absolutely unacceptable. even if it was running perfectly, we would expect the enrollment numbers at this point in time in the affordable care act through the exchange to be very low. we know that based on the experience they had in massachusetts where at the state level they implemented a very similar plan. it shouldn't surprise anybody even if the website were up and running perfectly, most people take a little bit of time to shop around and don't need their final selection until the deadline gets near. so yes, we've got to get this website up and running because right now people aren't able to figure out what their alternatives could be. but even if it were running perfectly, you would not see a big tick up at this point in time.

i'm hearing signs that the enrollment in medicaid is going to be i think fairly robust. and that means many, many americans are going to have access to that health care, except of course those in states that have refused to expand medicare and they are going to leave 5 million people behind. >> absolutely. let me ask you about some of your colleagues, some democrats who as we play now and including dianne feinstein, she is co-sponsoring a bill with senator mary landrieu that would require insurance companies to continue offering the existing health care plans people have, basically the promise that the president made turning it into a realty here. it's seen as an abandoning of ship by some democrats who could be in political peril. >> well, two things, one, we want to look for days right away to address the concerns that have been raised. you want to make sure your remedy is not worse than the

problem. and the proposals that have been put on the table, some in the senate and some in the house, would increase premiums significantly as you go into next year. so trying to find a way to fix a problem right now by creating an even bigger problem down the road is not the way to go. the other thing i would point out, there's been a lot of confusion about this, there's nothing in the affordable care act itself that prevents any of these insurance companies from extending any of their insurance policies for another year, so long as they do it before the end of this year. and so, these notices that are going out from insurance companies are decisions that are being made by the insurance companies. and i think that is the source of much confusion because those decisions are not being forced by the affordable care act. there are some states that accelerated the movement in that direction but the affordable care act does not prohibit those insurance companies from

renewing for a year as long as they do it by the end of this year. >> what is the proper fix here? that would -- if people want to keep their insurance plan, what is the proper fix to make certain that that happens? >> well, one thing. >> if that is the goal. >> one thing we should do immediately is begin to go to the insurance commissioners in the various states and ask them to look into why these insurance companies are not using the authority they have to extend these policies for one more year, as long as they do it before the end of this year. because a lot of these insurance companies that sends out letters saying the affordable care act was making them terminate these policies, that's just not the case. in some cases you have states that passed state laws that prevent that. but the affordable care act does not prevent it.

>> chris van hollen, thank you for your time. >> thank you. >> president obama's approval rating has dropped to 39%, his all time low but another poll, this one from gallup shows that congress, their approval is significantly lower, 9%. that is the lowest mark in the 39-year history of the poll. while both congress and the president are seeing consistent slide in the numbers, our first read team asks the question, whose slide is worse? it boils down to this, obama isn't ever running for office again and the republican party's current brand issues aren't doing the standard bearers any favors. this is worse than 1992 and truly unchartered territory. joining me now dminco mont nero. not because of affordable health

care act, because insurance companies are doing this to people. the bottom line is people are reacting to these issues and they are blaming, it appears here mostly the president as it relates to obama care. congress has whole another barrel of junk in there box. >> they are blaming everybody for a lot of different things. you've seen a lot of people really upset with washington and how it's been operating and i think this is just -- when you thought you couldn't get worse, it just did. 9% in that gallup poll is the worse of all time -- >> you don't get a 9% with a one issue problem, not because of health care. that means people don't like what you're doing across the board. >> here's the thing, think of where we were a month ago. we were still in a government shutdown and talking about how republicans have hurt themselves so badly for the 2014 midterms and our pollster joked the saving grace is they have a year. we thought, that's kind of funny. here we are less than a month

later and the shutdown is sort of in everyone's rearview mirror and they are talking about website failures of the health care law and that's having an effect on the president. what is everyone going to be focused on a year from now is what's going to be determine tif of what happens in this 2014 election. i think what we are seeing already is that increase in primaries and increase in activism on both sides for trying to take out incumbents and mostly democrats will be playing on republican territory if they want to take back the house. they are playing on republican territory if they are going to try to defend the senate. they want to get this obama care, affordable care act stuff, with the website behind them as quickly as possible. >> i want to play with bill clinton said, this reaction is making the rounds. there's a question of context, what it really means. let me play what the former president said. >> i personally believe even in it takes a change in the law, the president should honor the

commitment the federal government made to those people and let them keep what they got. >> i often hate these kinds of things, what did he really mean? trying to set the stage for 2016? the bottom line, context here, what is it? >> the context on this is tremendous. if you watch the entire video, you would have to pick this out, right, to find that he disagreed somehow with the president and of course, republicans were easily able to pick it out. part of it bill clinton isn't maybe as familiar with the landscape and in fact if you say anything that remotely different than what the president has to say, that's going to be used against you. now there are females out there in the past hour from republicans saying i stand with bill clinton. and you saw that in the hearing today and that's going to continue to be used. we saw it used in the 2012 election. i wouldn't be surprised if you hear bill clinton say, actually, here's where i completely agree with the president on everything else. i do think this again, winds up

becoming something that now the white house has to respond and say, well, are we just for an administrative fix or something larger, whether it's mary landrieu's plan or -- it's a headache for the white house to have to deal with those little snippets. >> it's great to be in d.c. >> thanks for having me here. >> developing now, marissa alexand alexander, fighting her 20-year prison sentence for firing a warning shot at her allegedly abusive husband. she could be set free today. new details on her case. twins. i didn't see them coming. i have obligations. cute obligations, but obligations. i need to rethink the core of my portfolio. what i really need is sleep. introducing the ishares core, building blocks for the heart of your portfolio. find out why 9 out of 10 large professional investors choose ishares for their etfs. ishares by blackrock. call 1-800-ishares for a prospectus which includes investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. read and consider it carefully

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in jail since the shooting, in which no one was hurt. she was denied using stand your ground as a defense and convicted on three counts of aggravated assault. that was thrown out by appeals court and her new trial will begin next march. joining me now from the grio.com, thanks for the time here. this is not the end of her legal battle but if things go her way this evening, she would be free pending her next trial. >> today is a big day for marissa alexander and her family, including her three children. she's getting an opportunity to released on bond. she has a couple of challenging facts on her side. she was previously released earlier on the case and ended up having an altercation with her soon to be exhusband. so the judge will decide whether circumstances have changed, sufficiently changed so she would finally be released and let go and go home to be with her family.

>> there are many people, the grio has written about this, were it not for trayvon martin case that she would have wasted away in prison and not been given this opportunity to fight back and perhaps ultimately clear her name and become a free woman. >> i think that's absolutely true. the stand your ground law did not work for her, even though the facts as we know them seemed that stand your ground should have worked. in her own words, she thinks she had the right to stand her ground because she was in her own home and had no duty to retreat. so in the wake of the zimmerman verdict, he's walking around free and marissa is not free. trayvon martin's case allowed her case to get even more of the media spotlight xbr and national attention and perhaps we would not be here at this point without it. we'll see what happens this evening and of course we'll update our audience and reverend al sharpton has been following

this from the beginning. thank you very much. next, outrage over washington's column about the next mayor and his family. richard cohen said de blasio's interracial marriage made some people gag. michael smerconish wants to weigh in on this one and he will join me next. ake one pepcid® when i could take tums® throughout the day when my heartburn comes back? 'cause you only have to take one... [ male announcer ] don't be like the burns. just one pepcid® complete works fast and lasts. rely on unitedhealthcare for their medicare coverage. if you're looking at your options, see why aarp medicare plans from unitedhealthcare could be right for you. as you know, medicare doesn't cover everything. that's why it's important to consider your choices. aarp medicare plans offer a range of options, including plans that help lower your prescription costs or let you enjoy extra wellness benefits.

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there's a lot going on today. the smiling woman originally pictured on the healthcare.gov website, says she's the victim of cyber bullying as a result of a website's flawed kickoff and said i don't know why people should hate me. i didn't design the website. i didn't make it fail. well, ot hot topic, richard cohen finds himself at the center of an internet firestorm following his comments about new york mayor bill de blasio's multiracial family.

in tuesday's column, new jersey governor -- analyzing the christie landslide re-election, he wrote, today's gop is not racist then goes on to say people with conventional views must repress a gag reflex when considering the mayor elect of new york, a white man married to a black woman with two biracial children. joining me now. michael smerconish. i got a call you want to go at this one. go at it. >> i read the criticism before i read the actual column. i was appalled, there's that critical line of he speaks conventional views needing a gag reflex with regard to an interracial couple. when you read the entire column as you mentioned, tamron, he's trying to analyze what becomes of a chris christie candidacy in

2016 and can he really succeed within this very conservative gop base. then he shifts his attention to talking about whether the gop is racist at its core. he concludes that it isn't. and then comes that line. i guess the point is, this is not richard cohen speaking. this is not richard cohen saying i think people of conventional views but rather it's him trying to get in the minds of the gop hard core. i get my point is, i'm surprised by the criticism from the left. i'm surprised by the criticism by way of illustration from huffington post. the people who should be most offended are those within the gop base. his word choice was poor but i do think i understand where he's coming from. he's not racist for saying it. >> i don't think a lot of people do. you're in a unique class. ezra klein no gagging over interracial marriage is --

gallup poll shows 97% of interracial marriage. 87% is not liberal land. 87% of americans don't have the gag reflex. >> richard cohen is not saying that people should have the gag reflex or that they need one. he's trying to say this is what's driving the gop base today. and listen, here's what i think he's a victim of. i think he's a victim of a 20 second sound bite and a world where we're in a 24/7 news bubble and you better get it out in a hurry. if they take time to read the 800 words he wrote, they'll come to a different conclusion. >> i read the entire thing and think he might be victim of hanging out with people who are too similar to him -- >> but he's trying to assess -- >> i get it. i get what you're saying. i wish we had more time and we do not. i'm not kidding, we're two seconds from being over time.

i'll call you and we'll discuss it. >> all right. >> let's do it. >> time for the "news nation" gut check, a child killer in ohio scheduled to be executed tomorrow has been denied a last minute request to donate ork ans to his ailing mother and sister. he is scheduled to be put to death by lethal injection tomorrow. he's accused of raping and murdering his girlfriend's 3-year-old daughter. he asked to be allowed to donate his kidneys to his mom and heart to his sister. his attorney said the request was not a delay tactic but an attempt to make a final gesture of good. they rejected the request saying it would present logistical challenges. what does your gut tell you? should he be allowed to donate organs to his mother and sister before being put to death? cast that vote. that does it for this edition of "news nation." i will see you tomorrow back in new york. "the cycle" is up next. huh, fifteen minutes

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straight ahead, 39, that's not how many signed up for obama care, but it's no good news for the president. down is up and left is right and dick cheney agrees with bill clinton? what? >> moving on to new legislation that has no chance of passing. what's up with that? >> i wish i knew, i'm abbi huntsman, the state of hawaii says aloha to marriage equality. no matter where you are, it's time for "the cycle." ♪ >> we do begin on a more serious note this