assembly, which in the past has not been a big deal. >> thank you for your time. everybody should read that book. the show is ending. "the ed show" is up next. good evening, americans and welcome to "the ed show" live from new york. stop fast track. let's get to work. >> what is fast track? >> this is the next big battle on the horizon. >> this is the way to railroad through disasterous trade agreements. >> negotiations are being held behind closed doors in secrecy. >> if we are not included, we will oppose fast track. >> this has been classified. >> i'm talking about the transpacific partnership agreement. >> they can look at it. they can't have staff and they

can't take notes and talk about it. >> this major issue is sitting under the radar screen. >> i think the american people would say absolutely not. >> we have to plush the tpp. >> the middle class is being offshored and we have to prevent that from happening. >> we can mount a pushback. good to have you with us tonight, folks. thanks for watching. i'm always been a believer that americans, you, me, your next door neighbor, we have this inai -- innate sense of fairness about us. i think this is a story of severe unfairness. we start tonight with what i think is the most uncovered

story in america, but the good news is some people in congress are paying attention. it's finally starting to get the attention in congress that it absolutely deserves. the two most powerful democrats in the congress have expressed concerns about this trade agreement, the transpacific partnership. nancy pelosi says she has problems with transparency of this political deal. harry reid has said no repeatedly. make no mistake, crystal clear across the board, this free trade agreement is a job killer. i don't mean to sound like a republican fighting health care right now, but this truly is a job killer. we have a lot of material on the table. we have a real history.

we have a real ledger that's been put together over the years because this country, the united states of america, over the last 40 years has never been involved in a trade agreement that has given us the ability to create more jobs in this country. isn't this what we're talking about in america? jobs, long-term unemployment. job creation from state to state. tax incentives for corporations that will hire people. it goes on and on in income inequality. if the tpp passes, it outsource good american jobs to this portion of the world, like vietnam. there's fast track legislation. this measure would give the white house, the president of the united states, the power to present a deal to congress, a

trade agreement to congress, that lawmakers can't do anything about once it comes to the floor for a vote. there's not going to be any debate or charlie from missouri standing up saying, i don't like that. there's not going to be ralph from wyoming saying, this isn't a good deal. that's all been done. the only thing you can do as a lawmaker with fast track legislation is vote up or down. if you vote down, you're going to be targeted big time by the corporations next election cycle. you can see how this is set up politically to advance. when majority leader harry reid was asked if he would bring the agreement up for debate, he responded no four times. now the good news is it's not just harry reid. earlier this week i sat down with seven lawmakers from the house, and they spoke up about the issues with tpp. they have some serious concerns

and made it very clear that fast track needs to be off the table. >> our constitutional authority says that we are engaged or supposed to be engaged in treaties and in trade agreements. >> and you're not? >> and we are not. we are now galvanized once again as if that fast track transportation authority has not changed. that's conclusive of congressional input. and the committees that we serve on, if we're not included, then we will oppose fast track. >> do you want your lawmaker included in this? lawmakers express concern about the secrecy of the transpacific partnership deal. >> this is a classified document. if a member of congress wants to see it, they can look at it. they can't have staff, they

can't take notes, and then they can't take about it. it's been shared with corporations, but not with the elected representatives of the american people. with fast track, they spring it out. we've got 60 days to vote on it up or down, no amendments. that's the way they did nafta. >> there's going to be much more of that interview coming up later this week. we'll bring you the entire interview on this show on friday. he mentioned nafta at the end of the clip. since nafta came into effect in 1994, we have lost 700,000 jobs, most of them in the manufacturing sector. they've been outsourced. if the tpp is rammed through, the consequences will be even worse because the working conditions in the countries that are involved in this deal have no standards whatsoever. it's important to point out that

president obama is 100% behind fast track and the tpp. the white house wants fast track legislation and the president, he hasn't been shy about looking for support for this in any way shape or form. he wants the free trade agreement to go through. oddly enough, he gave a speech today talking about the importance of manufacturing jobs. >> i'm here to take to make raleigh, north carolina a magnet for manufacturing jobs. manufacturing is a bright spot in this economy. for decades, we've been losing manufacturing jobs. but now our manufacturers have added over 550,000 new jobs, including almost 80,000

manufacturing jobs in the last five months alone. we want to keep that trend going. >> we sure do. look i'm a supporter of the president of the united states. and i know there are a lot of people who watch this show and this network that love the president that think he can do no wrong, but i'm terribly confused. i'm here to tell you tonight the president has not explained the tpp to the american people, nor has he explained what fast track will actually do to american jobs, but this is what we get today down into north carolina. i'm not taking issue with the president and the numbers he's throwing out there. he's correct on that, but we're not getting the full story. you can't have it both ways. you can't say you're for manufacturing jobs and then turn around and do exactly what nafta did, except it's going to be on steroids. how can 190 members of congress

be wrong on this? that's how many are opposing it. everyone some republicans are opposing this. of course republicans they're afraid of me, they don't want to talk to me. i'll talk to them if they want to talk about it because it is bad for workers. if president obama wants to keep this trend going, he should put an end to the tpp. i have to call him out on this in all fairness to american workers. there's no way you're going to rebuild the middle class in this country to where it was four years ago if this trade agreement goes through. there's no doubt that the tpp will ship jobs overseas. tell us that. tell us the tpp will not ship jobs overseas. i don't hear that audio, and i'm being fair about it. i started this segment talking about fair play. fair play is transparency and

open debate. when you send this to the congress and they get no input whatsoever, that's not democracy. the american public deserves to know what's going on with this bogus free trade agreement. at the beginning of the segment, i mentioned fairness. we have a guy max baukuss on our hands. there will be four people who are in favor of fast track and there will be one voice opposing fast track. sound fair to you? no. that's not fair. it's not going to be three people for and three people against. this is going to be manufactured. there's going to be one lone voice out there and that's going

to be larry cohen, the president of the communication workers of america. i don't think that's fair. by the way, it was max who introduced the legislation and by the way, max is not running for reelection. he's going to china. he's going to be the ambassador to china. he's going to be able to grease the skids and send american workers sliding downhill. tonight's question -- should there be more transparency on the tpp? text a for yes. text b for no. you can always leave a comment on our blog. for more, i want to bring in former governor of montana. governor, good to have you with us tonight on "the ed show." good to be back, ed. >> would you sign this?

would you push for this? >> hell no. i was against nafta. i've noticed nine out of ten of the best business schools are in america. every time we make a trade deal, we get second place. these trade deals are driven by corporations who want to take these jobs in america and move them offshore. it happens every single time. and they get carve outs. pharmaceuticals that were made in the united states shipped to canada, we can't legally bring them back. why? they carved themselves out so they can charge three times as much. that's why it is secret. they want fast track because they want to pay off their donors. they are members of congress both democrats and republicans that get a lot of money from these corporations.

george bush is a person who began the negotiations on this. she's on the corporate board of federal express and boeing and caterpillar. i wonder if any of them are going to make out like bandits. >> there seems to be a real issue of secrecy. the corporations have put this together behind closed doors. it is the restriction of information to representatives of the people in a democracy that is just so outrageous as i see it. how does this get turned around in your estimation? how does it get stopped? >> you're telling the american people right now how it gets stopped. you have to get on the phones and send e-mails and say this is a democracy. we're not going to let corporations do this to us.

those other countries need to have the same kinds of protections of air and water as we do if it's manufactured here. >> wiki leaks has obtained a draft in the tpp related to environmental protections. there's a statement saying it rolls back key standards set by congress to ensure that the environment chapters are legally enforceable. what's your reaction to that? >> you got that right. even in the bush administration, the law was pretty clear. that if we have these kinds of deals, these trade agreements, there's got to be provisions protecting water and air and the rest of the environment. this has these provisions, but there's no teeth. these other countries are going to be able to violate those

provisions and there's not a dog gone thing we can do. >> there's a sovereignty issue as well. they can bring grievances in front of an international tribunal. this has brought tea parties on board to oppose this. what does that mean? i know it's a mouthful about circumventing american law, but this means that corporations, multinationals, would be dictating american policy all based on whether they can make a profit or not, correct? >> and these are the same multinational corporations who are doing business in the united states and around the world who have asserted their provisions in the american tax code so they don't even pay taxes. they make the bulk of their profit in the united states and they don't pay a dime in taxes because they have all these give me provisions and the senate finance committee wants to do this? we ought to see who is behind

this. >> the one big thing that jumps at me is when we did this 20 years ago with nafta, we were told it's not perfect. we'll come back and fix it tomorrow. tomorrow never came. once this gets in, it can't be rolled back. can it? is there any way to roll it back? you'd have to have an unbelievable majority of the house and senate that would be untouchable by opponents. am i right or wrong on that? i want your clarification on that. >> once these corporations get their free ice cream, they're going to make sure that there's no change because they've already paid for this. they gave lots of contributions to lots of members of congress and they're going to warn them just like you said, ed. they're going to wave this finger at them and say, you messed with our trade deal and it will be their trade deal,

we're going take you out in our next election. >> how could a national candidate oppose this deal and survive? >> i think a national candidate would not just survive, but would thrive. all you've got to do is point to naf nafta. this won't be any better. what is the rush for us to do a lot of trade with vietnam and brunei? >> does president obama's position surprise you on this? >> not particularly. you know, i guess we're kind of fallen to the point where we have the corporate party and the corporate like party. there's nothing wrong with corporations, but they ought to play by the rules. they ought to pay taxes like us small businesses do. they ought to protect the environment like small businesses should do. but when they get their way by buying congress, it means

everybody else in the country gets second place. >> remember to answer tonight's question at the bottom of the screen. a lot to talk about on this issue. coming up, bully for you. a recent poll shows new jersey voters and how they feel about their governor. trenders is up next. stay with us. and the southbound bus barreling down i-95. ♪ this magic moment it is the story of where every great idea begins. and of those who believed they had the power to do more. dell is honored to be part of some of the world's great stories. that began much the same way ours did. in a little dorm room -- 2713. ♪ this magic moment ♪

you raise her spirits. we tackled your shoulder pain. you make him rookie of the year. we took care of your cold symptoms. you take him on an adventure. tylenol® has been the number 1 doctor recommended brand of pain reliever for over 20 years. but for everything we do, we know you do so much more. tylenol®. time for the trenders. social media action out there. facebook.com/edshow. of course you can find us on the radio on channel 127 noon to 3:00 monday through friday. we have decided and we are

reporting. here are today's top trenders voted on by you. the number three trender, head turner. >> we're having a baby. >> that's a bad looking baby. >> a viral movie promo has new yorkers jumping. the number two trender, born to make fun. ♪ governor let me in i want to be your friend ♪ >> you told me it's official. we're friends. >> jimmy fallon and bruce springsteen take on bridge gate. ♪ cheek to cheek with blue collar truckers and man i've really got to take a leak.

you're killing the working man. and today's top trender, jersey fresh. >> i don't hide my emotions from people. >> are you stupid? >> my approach is you punch them, i punch you. >> the garden state is stuck over his bully label. >> if you want to be a successful leader, listening and reaching across is the bigger part. >> i have no interest in answering your question. >> 40% says he's more of a bully. >> i don't how he can say he's not. he's creating this absolute persona of bullying. >> i am who i am. >> joining us tonight a congressman of new jersey. >> always good to be with you. >> the people of your state are

split on governor chris christie. 40% of the state consider him a bully. is that a large number in your opinion? >> i would say most people in new jersey who have watched him in his town meetings where he berates teachers and bullies them, when they've watched him in negotiations with unions and teachers where he bullies them, where mayors and council members and elected officials who tell me they have to go along with him if they want to get anything for their towns, i think all of those people would say he acts hi like a bully. anytime you have to deny you're a bully, i guess it raises questions. >> congressman, there's a few things that have come out. i would like your opinion on the authorities unit that was put

together by the governor after he was elected and how they oversee these commissions. this is rather interesting, the workings of government, when you have an appointed authorities unit. what do you make of that? >> well, that oversee it in an unfortunately political way. one thing that hasn't been talked about is how far the port authority in new jersey and new york has sunk. for decades, this was a highly efficient organization that served the public interest. going back to the whitman administration in new jersey, it's become a cash cow for the states and it has become highly

partisan. a few decades ago, no port authority people would have taken an order from the governor himself or an underling in his office to stop traffic. >> an authorities unit, is it necessary to have that? >> i don't think so. >> the new jersey state assembly is creating a special committee with subpoena power to further investigate the lane closures and concerns about the abuse of government power. what does this mean for governor christie and his aids? are you confident that they're going to be a thorough investigation and democrats and republicans will come together to get to the bottom of this? >> i'm very confident there will be a thorough investigation. others have been bulldogs.

they've stuck with this for months now going way back to september when lots of people said, forget it. this is small stuff. now the rest of the legislature has shown they understand this is an abuse of power. >> the state attorney general in new jersey has brought on former assistant u.s. attorney reed shar as the special counsel for the committee. what does this mean for the investigation, you think? >> well, that it is serious. this is not just petty political politics. the act at the bridge might have been petty political politics, but this abuse of power where the governor has received power from the citizenry and is using it not for the public good but for partisan political purposes, whoever did it, no one could

argue that this was done for the public good and that's a serious matter. it strikes at the heart of the governmental contract, why citizens give powers to officials. this shows they understand it. i think the legislature, i think, really dig into it. >> appreciate your time tonight. thanks so much. coming up, obstruction is the republican way. once again the party says no to helping the unemployed in the country. rush made comments about the president and michelle obama's marriage. stay with us. [ male announcer ] the new new york is open.

open to innovation. open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state. move here, expand here, or start a new business here and pay no taxes for ten years... we're new york. if there's something that creates more jobs, and grows more businesses... we're open to it. start a tax-free business at startup-ny.com.

[ male announcer ] your eyes. even at a distance of 10 miles... the length of 146 football fields... they can see the light of a single candle. your eyes are amazing. look after them with centrum silver. multivitamins with lutein and vitamins a, c, and e to support healthy eyes and packed with key nutrients to support your heart and brain, too. centrum silver. for the most amazing parts of you. thanks for watching "the ed show." thanks for texting in all the

questions. we love this segment. our first question tonight. how small does government have to be for it to be acceptable to the gop? they want to privatize everything. they want government out of everything. not some things. everything. our next question. were you surprised to learn that scott walker supports governor chris christie? birds of a feather flock together. rapid response panel coming up next. i'm morgan brennan. markets rally for a second straight day. the s&p 500 gains nine and the

nasdaq is up 31 points. the beige book reports showed an improving economic outlook in most fed districts. profits at bank of america came in better than expected. the number two bank benefitted from a steep drop in mortgage related losses. our flat rate box ♪ ♪ we'll come to your door and return them ♪ ♪ gifts you bought but never gave away ♪ ♪ or said you liked but thought were cheesy ♪ ♪ you don't even need to leave your house ♪ ♪ we'll come and take them, easy-peasy ♪ [ female announcer ] no one returns the holidays like the u.s. postal service. with improved priority mail flat rate, just print a label, schedule a pickup, and return those gifts at a same low flat rate. we're gonna be late. ♪ ♪

♪ oh are we early? [ male announcer ] commute your way with the bold, all-new nissan rogue. ♪ with the bold, all-new nissan rogue. (voseeker of the sublime.ro. you can separate runway ridiculousness... from fashion that flies off the shelves. and you...rent from national.

because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle... and go. and only national is ranked highest in car rental customer satisfaction by j.d. power. (natalie) ooooh, i like your style. (vo) so do we, business pro. so do we. go national. go like a pro. at a company that's bringing media and technology together. next is every second of nbcuniversal's coverage 0f the 2014 olympic winter games. it's connecting over one million low-income americans to broadband internet at home. it's a place named one america's most veteran friendly employers. next is information and entertainment in ways you never thought possible. welcome to what's next. comcastnbcuniversal.

welcome back to "the ed show." once again republicans have chosen obstruction over helping the unemployed in this country. this game after democrats made a major concession by agreeing to offset the cost of the extension. republicans clearly unwilling to compromise. they made it clear they're willing to abandon the long-term

unemployed in this country on partisan reasons. the senate is going to go into recess next week. that's the way it is. for 1.3 million workers, jobless benefits on december 28th -- well, its all ended. it expired on that day. the number of people who have lose their unemployment benefits will jump to 4.9 million by the end of this year. going without benefits for just one week, costs state economies $400 million. congress has done nothing tangible to address this issue other than to say, we'll try to put public pressure on these lawmakers to get this thing done. give me a break. the democrats made a bad budget deal and now 1.3 million people plus more will have to pay for

it. this is exactly what we talked about on this program back in december. if they had not taken the deal, yes, there would have been sequester cuts. it would have been rough, but i believe it would have intensified the conversation a lot more. 1.3 million people and a few more after that doesn't rise to the level of getting the republicans their attention. now they're talking about the midterms and jobs and obamacare. there is to trust between both parties, period. and this is proof. joining me now is our rapid response panel connie shultz and e.j. dion. trust has left the building. connie, i think that this is a total breakdown that when you can't get a party to agree to help americans, where does that leave us? >> part of the problem for us

now is how we cast this argument. i think we've been spending way too much time talking about the process. i blame the democrats for this. they need to be talking about what some of the proposed amendments are from the republican side. one of the solutions introduced would eliminate the tax credit for children of illegal immigran immigrants. these parents do pay taxes. they have a federal id number. they're not trying to slip by unnoticed, but let's punish the children. i thi why aren't we talking more about that instead of these procedural arguments that are definitely in the weeds that mean nothing to most of the americans effected by this right now? >> e.j., have the democrats lost political capital on this?

>> i don't know if they've lost political capital. a lot of democrats are mad. procedural fights are the last refuge of politicians obstructing a popular cause. the republicans have had great success here trying to get the issue away from what's at stake, which is unemployment benefits for people and getting everybody talking about all the procedure. i agree entirely with connie we should focus on the offsets. normally we extend unemployment benefits without any offsets, without any big debate. democrat democrats went as far as to give offsets, but it wasn't the right ones for republicans. >> take a listen to what south

dakota senator had to say. >> they'll argue republicans are being obstructionists, but you have to look at the record. if you look at since july, there have only been four republican amendmented vo es voted on in t united states senate. >> what's your reaction to that? >> first of all, one in five unemployed ohioans right now are getting none of these benefits. i would just invite anybody who thinks this is simply about procedure to visit my facebook page today. i knew i was coming on this show. i asked people to share some of their stories about what's going on with their unemployment. the thing is you don't hear anger from them. you hear shame.

you hear sadness and fear. a lot of them talk about their fear of becoming homeless. these are heart breaking stories and these are real stories of real americans who don't give a squat about procedural argument. >> what about that? are republicans using the issue of long-term unemployment just to get a protest back to the senate rules? >> i think that's part of it. if you could actually bring substantive legislation to the floor and get it passed, you might have had a lot more republican amendments. george miller who is retiring said in many ways mitch mcconnell is becoming the choreographer of the obama years because he's been so successful at slowing down action on the most basic legislation like unemployment benefits. for republicans to come back now

and say the democrats are playing these procedural games, let's look at the last four years and see how long it took to get health care and things passed in the first place. >> the democrats have to learn something when it comes to the budget. we have seen exactly how the republicans are going to act when it comes to money. they don't care about workers or long-term unemployment. they don't care about the stories of unemployed americans. we are now becoming a third-world country because we are so concerned -- it's mind boggling to me how ruthless they can be. 58% of voters support the extension. these numbers don't matter to the republicans. it's not what the american

people want. john thune's answer saying, they didn't give us enough votes so we're not going to help out this country. what kind of person thinks like that? >> every member's office is getting messages. they're getting e-mails and they're getting letters and calls about what this is doing to the people in their districts and in their states. and i wish the democrats would take to the floor night after night and start reading these stories, start telling these stories, show pictures of these families who are afraid of losing their homes and water and electricity. start showing the faces, start telling those stories, and we would change that conversation almost immediately. >> we're on the horizon on a terrible trade agreement. we could be in the long haul for the long-term unemployed in the

country. great to have you with us tonight. coming up, republicans admit for the first time they're making a strategy for the election year. [ male announcer ] this is the story of the little room over the pizza place on chestnut street the modest first floor bedroom in tallinn, estonia and the southbound bus barreling down i-95. ♪ this magic moment it is the story of where every great idea begins. and of those who believed they had the power to do more. dell is honored to be part of some of the world's great stories. that began much the same way ours did.

in a little dorm room -- 2713. ♪ this magic moment ♪

we know we're not the center of your life, but we'll do our best to help you connect to what is. ♪ nothing says, "you're my #1 copilot,"

like a milk-bone biscuit. ♪ say it with milk-bone. [ male announcer ] the rhythm of life. [ whistle blowing ] where do you hear that beat? campbell's healthy request soup lets you hear it in your heart. [ basketball bouncing ] heart healthy. [ m'm... ] great taste. [ tapping ] sounds good. campbell's healthy request. m'm! m'm! good.® it's almost too late. or is it? introducing new, fast acting advil. with an ultra-thin coating and fast absorbing advil ion core™ technology, nothing works faster to stop pain in its tracks. new fast acting advil. we're gonna be late. ♪ ♪ ♪

oh are we early? [ male announcer ] commute your way with the bold, all-new nissan rogue. ♪ and in pretenders tonight, the wolf of wedlock, rush limbaugh. he is tired of chris christie's boring old bridge scandal. trouble with the federal law isn't enough for the radio host. >> why can't we have obama running around on michelle? good old fashioned just -- what? don't go there? okay. look, it's just wishful thinking. we love to have exciting things happening in the news. wouldn't that be a much better scandal than christie and bridge closures for crying out loud? >> who told rush limbaugh what

to say there? i didn't know that happens. the radio host actually loves marriage so much he's done it four times. limbaugh can do whatever he pleases at the whatever he pleases at the alter but if he thinks the president will oblige his form of 's just for guys. now, it's your turn. get my training tips at guardyourmanhood.com getting the right nutrition isn't always easy. first, i want a way to help minimize my blood sugar spikes. then, a way to support heart health. ♪ and let's not forget immune support. ♪ but now i have new glucerna advance with three benefits in one. including carbsteady ultra to help minimize blood sugar spikes. it's the best from glucerna. [ male announcer ] new glucerna advance. from the brand doctors recommend most. advancing nutrition for diabetes.

open to innovation. open to ambition. open to bold ideas. that's why new york has a new plan -- dozens of tax free zones all across the state. move here, expand here, or start a new business here and pay no taxes for ten years... we're new york. if there's something that creates more jobs, and grows more businesses... we're open to it. start a tax-free business at startup-ny.com.

we are the thinkers. the job jugglers. the up all-nighters. and the ones who turn ideas into action. we've made our passions our life's work. we strive for the moments where we can say, "i did it!" ♪ we are entrepreneurs who started it all... with a signature. legalzoom has helped start over 1 million businesses, turning dreamers into business owners.

. welcome back. this is the story for the folks who take a shower after work. a new republican strategy is

emerging ahead of the address. >> i think the election is going to be about the issue of jobs. and when you look at it the american people have a right to continue to ask the question where are the jobs? the president has been in office for over five years. it is time for the president to admit that his policies are not working. in addition to that and also part of that is the issue of obamacare. obamacare is part of the no jobs problem. >> on january 28 president obama will give his 2014 primetime state of the union address. last week the white house announced five promise zone areas where the federal government will partner with local communities to create jobs. the president previewed this program in his state of the union address last year. earlier today president obama travelled to north carolina, again, talking about jobs.

>> this has to be a year of action. and here in north carolina you're doing your part to create good jobs that pay good wages. congress has to do its part, too, because restoring the american dream of opportunity for everyone willing to work for it is something that should unite the country. everybody has a shot if they are willing to work hard and take responsibility. >> joining us tonight congressman of new york. appreciate your time. >> so boehner is talking election. he says jobs and health care. you feel like you are on solid ground? >> absolutely. when speaker boehner says where are the jobs the only jobs he is -- since we can't afford to extend unemployment insurance and increase the minimum wage and invest in infrastructure and manufacturing this guy doesn't

care about middle class jobs but only about special interest jobs. >> i visited with lawmakers in washington the day before yesterday and there seems to be some candidates, some folks talking about running for office. there seems to be a lack of confidence or reluctance to talk about the affordable care act in front of crowds. from what i heard it is almost as if some folks are having a hard time explaining how good it is and talk about i'm not against the health care law but for fixing it. do the democrats have a hard time explaining obamacare, affordable care act, the upside of it all and what it is doing? >> it shouldn't. the vast must just of the american people want to improve the affordable care act. they do want to make the affordable care act better and stronger. they do not want to repeal the affordable care act. and so when republicans go out

there and say they want to go back to the days when insurance companies can make fundamental health insurance for people based on profit margin that is an indefensible strategy. when we say no longer will a woman with breast cancer be denied health insurance or a child under the age of 26 be told he or she has no coverage. those are strong arguments. we have the high ground on the arguments and we will continue to talk about the importance of the affordable care act and republicans defend wanting to repeal the affordable care act and go back to the days when health insurance didn't work. >> in his press conference speaker boehner spoke to the dozen of job related bills the house has passed and have been bottled but by the senate's democratic leaders. a lot of blame game going on.

do you think that the republicans have done anything of merit when it comes to jobs? >> they are good at sound bytes and partisan rhetoric. let's not forget this is a group of people willing to shut down the entire federal government a few months ago to pursue their right wing orthodoxy extremism. >> jobs bill. >> they haven't done it. a $40 billion subsidy to big oil, that's a big bill. you want a jobs bill create infrastructure and education. >> congressman, where are you right now if the election were held tonight? how many do you defend? >> we need 17 seats to take back the majority. it is too early for me to tell you whether we are north or south of 17. there was a poll that showed house republicans managed to achieve a favorability rate of

13%. and so this is a good environment that we're in. and we are going to continue to focus on electing democrats and returning a common sense problem solving must just to the house of representatives. >> is it hard to get people to run on the democratic ticket? you have had a few folks step out. george miller decided to retire. will you get good people in the positions? >> the retirements have been almost a catastrophic problem for republicans. nine republicans in seven districts announced they were retiring because a sign was put out saying moderates are not welcome. there are nine seats we are able to compete in. about two or three competitive democratic announced they are retiring. we feel good about our landscape. >> how much hope do you hold out for getting anything done in 2014 legislatively?

>> if republicans are willing to stand up for the middle class instead of siding with special interest we can get things done. education, infrastructure, increase the minimum wage. we are ready, willing and able to work with republicans if they are ready, willing and able to stop defending special interest. >> thanks for your time. "politics nation" with reverend al sharpton starts right now. >> thanks to you for tuning in. tonight's lead, a tangled web. a few minutes ago we received governor christie's public schedule for tomorrow. here it is. two events for sandy recovery. and he is traveling with the community affairs commissioner. here's where it gets awkward in this new era for christie. remember jersey city mayorer steven ip