tomorrow night, watch state of the union coverage beginning at 9:00 p.m. don't mess with bill. let's play "hardball." good evening. i'm chris matthews in washington. we'll get to the latest on the chris christie george washington bridge scandal in just a minute. he said the president stands guilty today of predatory behavior with former white house intern monica lewinsky. he described clinton as, quote, someone who takes advantage of a young girl in his office and asks how it squares with the democratic charge what it's the

republicans who are waging a war on women. this direct personal shot at the clintons shows that senator rand paul is ready to take on the front-leading democratic candidate as if they were just another set of obstacles in his way. it shows he is not afraid to duke it out, hitting the potential democratic candidate on a point of recognized vulnerability. question, at what stage of the 2016 campaign will this help or hurt rand paul? will it be in the next several days and weeks when he has a chance to fill the gap being created by the demise of chris christie? will it grab him the network spotlight at the state of the union? will it help him win the republican nomination? will it be something he wants to come up if he is standing on the debate stage with democratic nominee hillary clinton in the autumn of 2016? let's top this fight. was rand paul right to go with the sucker punch? will the trash talk at the weigh-in be good or bad for him when he is in the ring? howard fineman is an msnbc political analyst. and joy reid. boy is joy reid joy.

she is managing editor of the grio and is now in new host of the 2:00 p.m. superstar eastern hour of msnbc. congratulations, my colleague joy reid. >> thank you. i appreciate it. >> well, here is what senator rand paul said yesterday on "meet the press" when he was asked about comments his wife made about bill clinton. let's watch. >> the democrats, one of their big issues is they have concocted and says republicans are committing a war on women. one of the workplace laws and rules that i think are good is that bosses shouldn't prey on young interns in their office. and i think, really, the media seems to have given president clinton a pass on this. he took advantage of a girl that was 20 years old and an intern in his office. there is no excuse for that. and that is predatory behavior, and it should be -- it should be something we shouldn't want to associate with people who would take advantage of a young girl in his office. >> the press gave bill clinton the pass on monica lewinsky?

what planet were you living on? anyway, paul went on the defend hitting the monica lewinsky issue. let's watch. >> yes, i think it's a factor. it's not hillary's fault. >> but it should be an issue -- >> but it is a factor in judging bill clinton in history. >> right. but is it something that hillary clinton should be judged on if she were a candidate in 2016? >> no, i'm not saying that. this was with regard to the clintons. and sometimes it's hard to separate one from the other. but i would say with regard to his place in history, that it certainly is a discussion. >> well, let's talk about this. surely, not in moral terms, joy, or in politically deep philosophical terms, as a sucker punch, which is what it was, although he was simply backing up his wife, his spouse in this case. howard, he puts this punch out there. i go to it in a simple tactic. down the road i have a different view. tomorrow night when we do state of the union, and we're on the cameras of every network are going to go right to one person in that audience, rand paul,

because he is the guy that sucker punched the probable democratic nominee for next time. >> yeah. he sucker punched him, trash talking as you said. rand paul is great at getting short-term publicity. and he thinks in terms of short-term publicity. and this was a brilliant move if your goal is to excite the tea party base. >> so hate everybody on the democratic side. >> if you're not talking about barack obama, if you're not talking about michelle obama, then talk about the clintons. that will do well in the tea party base. >> because? why do they like this? >> they like it because they view the clintons as part -- >> they're going win. >> yeah. >> they view them as the very definition of everything they despise about the role of government in american life and about the values that the clintons and the obamas hold dear. >> before i ask you, joy, and again, congratulations, i have this view of why they do it. i think they're looking at a big loss in 2016, the republicans. they don't think they beat hillary clinton. their own wives are saying give

her a break, and let's not be so nasty. there is all kinds of crosscurrents in this election coming up that we're not even familiar with because no woman has ever been at this precipice, right at the edge of grabbing the presidency and taking it against probable weak opponents. so this guy comes out and says at least i'm going to fight them. i may lose, but i'm going down fighting. what about the tactic, first step, right in the next couple of day, do you agree with me he is going to be the focus of attention tomorrow night? >>, no absolutely. not only does rand paul want to be the focus of attention at the state of the union tomorrow night, he wants every time the media reports on another war on women story for them to -- the next thought to be bill clinton. he is trying to use a football metaphor as a preventative defense so this becomes a ready made answer to the question about the war on women. here is the problem with that. number one, clinton hatred as it regards bill clinton is a lot less potent than it was before. you know, rand paul pretty much appeals to a younger cohort of the republican audience.

they probably barely remember the monica lewinsky affair, trying to reeducate the public to bill clinton circa 1997-1998 to me doesn't really fit his brand. he is supposed to be the guy that attracts the young libertarians. being the chief scold of bill clinton doesn't strike me as the way to do it. and the second part is, and it gets to what david gregory was trying to ask him, how does any of this impact hillary clinton? it's easy to tell them apart. she has had a completely separate and distinct career. she has been secretary of state. she has been a united states senator. are you telling me that she is simply just an offshoot of bill clinton and that she should be judged by him? that's insulting. >> that's a smart argument. but is the argument he is making even more delicate and more narrow? he is saying this guy shouldn't be allowed to come back to the white house. isn't that what he is saying? he is attacking bill's right to come in as a spouse. >>, no not only that -- >> but i think they're pretty clear about that. the both of them, the two pauls, right, howard? >> well, what rand paul is

saying to his base is that we don't want people with those kinds of values. we don't want those people with those kinds of values back this the white house. and, yes, he is definitely trying to make hillary answer for bill. but the other risk in doing that is that hillary clinton, when you put hillary clinton in that role of the bearer of the burden of bill clinton, she's done superbly well. they've also been together for 40 years. and if you make a victim out of hillary clinton, that is exactly the worst thing for any opponent to do. >> well, let me go back to you on this story, because i think there is a question here which we're going to be talking about for months and years now it looks like. the clintons are on the road back to the white house. i think we all assume that. if they choose not to or secretary clinton chooses for all kinds of reasons this isn't what she wants to do, fine. but it's a good bet she is coming back, right? >> yeah. >> they're both coming back. so the republicans have to shoot at the weakest link. what do the animals do in the jungle?

i was just over in africa. you go for the smallest one, the one you can kill. i think it's a mistake for this reason. and i also want to ask you this. if you were hillary clinton, wouldn't you do the opposite of what al gore did in 2000? run as a teammate. say look, we're together. i love this guy. he is a good man, and you're not for making a shot like this? total defense has always struck me as the smartest defense. >> and it's also the family's argument. if he is trying to encroach on the religious right part of the base by going after bill clinton's morality, a lot of things they believe is heterosexual. i think this is problematic, but i do see your point part of what i think rand paul is trying to do is to try to keep the war on women rhetoric out of the mouth of hillary clinton. this is also a shot across her bow to say if you try to run on the basis of your gender and try to rally other women around you using war on women rhetoric,

well, here is an available way to blunt those attacks, to actually make it harder for hillary to make the arguments that are really obviously available to her on the ideas of the war on women. if i say we'll get you on your husband. >> you're saying you don't just throw the women into the entire gender. oh, yeah, hillary can have them. that would be a pretty stupid political move. >> i think that's what rand paul may be trying, but i think in the long run it won't work, because the issue -- >> he loses. >> the issue of gender equality, the issue of opportunities for women, the question of hillary as the first woman with a serious shot here, i think they all transcend that. and also, the other thing that the base believes in, the republican base believes in is redemption. and they believe in the road back. and the republicans ought to be careful what they wish for here, because if bill and hillary handle this the way i think they're capable of handling it, it will be one of the great soap opera redemption stories of all time.

>> let me take the soporific out of it for a second and just put in. what does this country need more than anything, joy and howard? more than anything in the world. we don't need perfection. we don't need sure winners. we need resilience. >> you need results too. >> people can come back from problems. people have come back from problems before, have come back from failure and humiliation. they've done it again and again and again. this is a family, both of them now, who know how to come back from defeat and how to come back from humiliation. mistakes, they come back from mistakes. and that's what this country knows it has to do in 2016. no matter what goes on between now and then, we know that's going to be a winning story. anyway, this isn't the first time senator paul has gone after hillary clinton. here he was back in november during a speech at the citadel, attacking her on the go-to issue for right wingers. it begins with a "b," benghazi. >> hillary clinton was asked for more security. she turned the ambassador down. i find it dereliction of duty. she wants to blame it on somebody else.

it's absolutely her responsibility. her failure to provide our ambassador and his mission with adequate security should preclude hillary clinton from ever holding high office again. >> this is so dishonest. for the record, there is no evidence that secretary clinton personally turned down any security requests. the evidence cited by concerns out there in crazy land is that her name was on memos from the state department. and all state department cables coming from washington bear the secretary's name automatically. i used to get cables from rogers, william rogers. i don't think the secretary of state at that time was dashing off letters to me in swaziland. but that's how they send letters out of the white house. joy, this thing won't hunt. and she sat and watched it and stamped some passengers denied to this guy, her friend chris stevens out there in libya. i don't think it's going to sell. because it is dishonest. >> it's dishonest. now hillary clinton is both the helpless acolyte of her cheating husband and she is also the

grand vizier where watching are from secret drone watching as the attack went on. it's ridiculous. there is actual data. there has been a report that gives hillary clinton no culpability. i think that she is smart, though, to have tried to get out in front of it and say listen, as a matter of human compassion, obviously this is her friend who was killed among those four. and to express her sorrow at the tragedy of the attack is good. because that sound of her and her testimony saying what difference does it make, out of context as it is, is going to be in every campaign commercial by whoever becomes the republican nominee for president. >> and regret is a much more appropriate word here than apologize. anyway, thank you so much howard fineman. and congratulations again, joy. near 2:00 p.m. or a different time depending where you live. watch this person. there she is. coming up, trenton, we have a problem. chris christie's problems are moving from political to legal.

this isn't just about losing charisma. it's about going to prison maybe. who knows who is going to go to prison here. today two state committees in trenton combined into one super committee to investigate the bridge scandal and other possible abuses of power. his critics are uniting. also, want to know how far to the right the gop has become? john mccain, the senator from arizona, has been formally censured by the arizona republican party for betraying party positions. that's right. john mccain, liberal. he stands accused of consorting with the democratic enemy. and we've heard a lot of conservatives say they're sorry lately. glenn beck, chris christie, bob mcdonnell. but if you listen closely, you won't hear them admit that they did anything wrong. finally, mike huckabee, women's libido, yes, and late night comedians is a perfect combo made for the sideshow tonight. and a reminder. rachel maddow and i will be working tomorrow night from 9:00 eastern on to midnight.

and a late night edition of "hardball" where we go through all the politics, who won, who lost, how hard he got bashed by the other side. we'll do all that at midnight. this is "hardball," the place for politics. i always say be the man with the plan but with less energy, moodiness, and a low sex drive, i had to do something. i saw my doctor. a blood test showed it was low testosterone, not age. we talked about axiron the only underarm low t treatment that can restore t levels to normal in about two weeks in most men. axiron is not for use in women or anyone younger than 18 or men with prostate or breast cancer. women, especially those who are or who may become pregnant, and children should avoid contact where axiron is applied as unexpected signs of puberty in children or changes in body hair or increased acne in women may occur. report these symptoms to your doctor. tell your doctor about all medical conditions and medications. serious side effects could include increased risk of prostate cancer, worsening prostate symptoms, decreased sperm count, ankle, feet or body swelling, enlarged or painful breasts,

problems breathing while sleeping and blood clots in the legs. common side effects include skin redness or irritation where applied, increased red blood cell count, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, and increase in psa. ask your doctor about axiron. hillary clinton today named the attack on benghazi as her biggest regret she had in her time at the state department. speaking at a conference in new orleans, she was asked if there were any do-overs she would take of her time as secretary of state. let's listen. >> my biggest, you know, regret is what happened in benghazi. it was a terrible tragedy losing four americans -- two diplomats, and now it's public so, i can say two cia operatives, losing an ambassador like chris stevens who was one of our very best. >> well, this you have it. we'll be right back after this.

welcome back to "hardball." for new jersey governor chris christie and his allies, the fate of their political reputations may already be sealed. it's one thing, however, to lose your charisma. it's quite another to go to prison, of course. and that's the next stage, the next phase of the battle of trenton, the legal assault. today two state committees in the legislature formally combined forces into one super committee to investigate the bridge scandal and other alleged abuses of power. the group reissued 20 subpoenas. responses are due to those subpoenas in one week. on top of that, the u.s. attorney in new jersey has subpoenaed christie's inner circle, seeking a trove of communications via e-mails, text messages, voice mails, and other condolence. christie's team may not want to talk, but generally speaking, their e-mails, sadly, can't take the fifth amendment. bridget kelly, david samson and others who christie contends all went rogue are bringing in expensive fire-breathing defense attorneys, meanwhile.

it's pretty clear they're not going to roll over. their boss is going on the offensive, publicly calling them liars generally, and her, kelly particularly, bridget kelly a liar. it's now their turn to fire back. now governor christie may be completely innocent, of course. but for that to make it in court, no one on his staff can testify he said anything that resembled an order on this matter of the bridge closing, that he talked to any of them about the bridge matter, that he talked to the lieutenant governor about squeezing hoboken mayor dawn zimmer to support a real estate deal, that he knew what they did, the planning and execution of that bogus traffic study. in other words, the guy that spent his entire career looking for opportunities was in this case suddenly and repeatedly out to lunch. that's what it has to look like in court. congressman frank pallone and bill pascrell are both democrats from new jersey. let me start with congressman pallone. i know this whole idea that we can't judge before a courtroom is set and before the jury makes its finding. but it does seem to be an interesting cultural question.

it is credible, would it surprise you to find out that chris christie was totally uninterested in everything his staff did, that he wasn't interested in whether they sought vengeance or they wanted to hurt somebody who had failed to play ball with them, he wasn't interesting when they were putting on a squeeze play with regard perhaps to hoboken, that he just wasn't interested in power. that the guy you know, congressman pallone? >> no, i don't think it's credible. first of all, we know this culture of bullying and threats existed within the administration for years. and, you know, that leads to abuse of power. and so to suggest that somehow he is not responsible, i mean, he is the one at the top that created this culture as i say threats and bullying that we know about. and these are just some extreme examples of it, very serious charges that are being brought. but i think he has long been in charge of that, you know, cultural mentality as you might

put it. >> congressman pascrell? >> i'm sure the committee is going to look into this as they subpoena more records what they'll provide to the committee. who knows. but you know, chris, in our business, it's what goes around comes around. and we can't be glib about this, because this is serious business. frank and i have been looking into not only what happened in the g.w. bridge. i sent letters back on september 13th of last year, never got an answer about the bridge -- the lane closings. but we've been -- we've got letters, document that we've looked into how sandy money was being spent. this is just another brick in

this wall between the administration and the people of new jersey. they haven't been forthcoming. the company of hammerman & gainer, all of the sudden we find out two weeks after the event happened that they let them go. they were the overseers of the money of how this money is being spent. i think they had over $55 million contract with the state of new jersey. and yet people are still out of their homes in the state of new jersey. this is incredible. we don't need e-mails. we can just look at what the record is of how much money we haven't spent from the last allocation. and we're to be get our new allocation in new jersey for the coming months. so there is a lot here. let's get the facts out on the table. i don't wish anybody harm. i have never in my record, in my total career in politics never wished anybody harm. and the gosh has a lot to account for.

before he was the governor and after he is the governor. and i think the people in new jersey are going to get the truth sooner or later. >> let me go to congressman pallone on that. i'm one of those guilty of liking the charming sort of independence of behavior he did with the media and people like us saying i don't really care what you think. but if it goes further than that to the bullying, really this manipulation of power, that's the question, is it your sense that this guy didn't care, it was his way or no highway? if you don't go along with him, there is no highway, to use that reference, that he was willing to play that tough. is he like that with you? i'm not going to answer any of your questions. i'm hiring and firing contracts when i want. to i'm opening and closing what i want and that's the way i'm going to be. is that your notion of the governor's performance so far? >> i think it is. i mean, as you know, bill pascrell is talking about this effort that we've been critical

with hgi. this is the company that administered the sandy contract which now last week we learned was fired. we don't know who is administrating that money now. and there is a serious question of what happened there. you have dawn zimmer, the mayor of hoboken saying that she was threatened, that she had to approve a development project if she wanted sandy money. i brought out to the inspector general at hud that he took a high bidder for the stronger than the storm tv ad series because he insisted that he had to be in the commercials, and that's why the high bidder was chosen. so we have a pattern here of saying look, i'm going to do whatever i want. put the ads on or else approve this development contract or else you're not going to get sandy money. and i have to tell you, my constituents are hurting. you know, i represent the jersey shore. we have people that are on waiting lists, that don't know why they're on waiting lists, that haven't gotten their money

to rebuild their homes. i mean, you been down there, chris. you know what it's like. a lot of the people are still hurting. >> you make it sound like a dictatorship, you guys. this what it's been in trenton? >> bullying and threats, that's been the culture. >> chris, let me say this. the governor is really had a motto, do as i say, not what i do. and what he does is now coming out. now, of course it's after the election. he has been duly elected. he has been sworn in as the governor for the next four years. that's not going to stop people from asking about the very issues you have referred to in the past shows. frank has just been talking about some of them. this is important that we get to the bottom of this. >> thank you congressman frank pallone and congressman bill pascrell. >> thank you. up next, mike huckabee's comments on women's libidos, i don't know why these guys talk about these, didn't go unnoticed in the late night comedians. this is "hardball," the place for politics.

utah senator mike lee will deliver the tea party response next week. it's expected to be the exact same text of obama's speech, but delivered in this voice. >> well, addressing the republican national committee's winter meeting, mike huckabee is said trying to convince they can't control their libido without the help of government, though it's usually the government who has trouble controlling its libido. >> time for the side show that was "snl's" update on mike huckabee's foray into the birth control debate. it's an issue that tends to boomerang on republicans almost every time they talk about it. and bill maher not so subtly pointed that out on "realtime" on friday. >> i love this. he blamed democrats.

he said democrats make american women believe that they are helpless without the government providing birth control. really? you know, this is what democrats campaigned on? i don't seem to recall any obama speech starting with where all are all my pregnant nymphos at? it's been more than a year since his lost his bid for the white house, but mitt romney has been enjoying a comeback since the release of "mitt." jimmy poked a little fun at one of the big mistakes he made in 2012. here they are together slow jamming the news. >> at the end of the day, we're all americans and we all want our country to be healthy, strong, and prosperous. and that means putting an end to all the partisan bickering in washington. >> now, you just wait a minute, book of mormon. you keep talking like that and people are going to start thinking you're running for president again. i've heard of sloppy seconds,

but i ain't never heard of sloppy thirds. >> jimmy, i'm not running again. there are a lot of great candidates for 2016, and i'll be supporting the republican nominee 100%. >> don't you mean 47%? >> that's a low blow. but it's pretty funny. >> i had to do it. >> up next, john mccain has been formally censured by the arizona republican party. can you believe it? his crime out there, suspicion of harboring liberal thoughts. anyway, you're watching "hardball" -- he is a traitor, didn't you notice -- the place for politics, coming up. i was having trouble getting out of bed in the morning because my back hurt so bad. the sleep number bed conforms to you. i wake up in the morning with no back pain. i can adjust it if i need to...if my back's a little more sore. and by the time i get up in the morning, i feel great! if you have back pain, toss and turn at night or wake up tired with no energy, the sleep number bed could be your solution. the sleep number bed's secret is it's air chambers which provide ideal support and put you

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welcome back to "hardball." here is the latest example of how far to the right the republican party has gone. the arizona republican party has adopted a resolution to censure their five-term u.s. senator and former presidential candidate john mccain for being too bipartisan. the nonbinding reprimand said that mccain has, quote, amassed a long and terrible record of drafting, co-sponsoring, and voting for legislation best associated with liberal

democrats. and this record has been disastrous and harmful to arizona and the united states. mccain received a 92% rating from the american conservative union, however, in 2012, the last time he was rated by them. but challenging the credentials of any republican who works with democrats or president obama has become the rule now. not the exception for the tea party element of the gop. tim schwartz is a member of the arizona republican party, and he is the author of the resolution censuring senator mccain. david corn is of course washington bureau chief for mother jones and an msnbc political analyst. mr. schwarz, go ahead, make your case. david will respond. take your time. what is your evidence that john mccain is not a loyal member of the republican party? >> well, first of all, i want to correct one thing you said. >> go ahead. >> excuse me on the bipartisan issue. our gripe, our complaint is that john mccain is always working on the other side of the aisle and he never lands on our side of

the aisle. we don't mind bipartisanship, someone reaching across the aisle. but john mccain has proven, and the constituents here in arizona, this is not a small fringe group of the republican party as i've read some of the articles telling the story. this is the overwhelming, and i want to emphasize that word, the overwhelming majority of the republican party not only in our state meeting, but in the county meetings throughout our states. we have 15 counties. six of those counties have formally made their own case for censure. at our republican county meeting -- by the way, maricopa county here in phoenix has 63% of the electorate in arizona. >> okay. but here is the question. >> let me finish. >> well, we got a lot to say here. >> maricopa has 77% approval of the censure. we cannot continue to cry out for change and be ignored by a senator who claims to go to washington on our behalf, but yet he ignores the will of the

american people and won't listen to his own constituents. he is there as a representative for us, not himself, not his own agenda. thank you. >> okay. let me ask you about that question. when i look at john mccain, i recognize that he has had compromises with the other side. and i see your point to that extent. but when i look at john mccain, i look at a guy who has been hawkish, supported war in every instance, supported the iraq war, supported the afghanistan war, wants intervention in libya, wants intervention in libya. he is a 100% hawk in league with your party. your party is a hawkish party. now maybe you aren't, but your party is on its record with w. and the whole crowd that was in office for eight years and since. you have always taken the hawkish position. how can you call him a renegade? >> this is not about me. >> no, with your party 100%? >> our state party this past weekend overwhelm leg passed this resolution. >> i know. but where is the logic? but where is the logic.

>> represent their legislative districts. >> yes, you said that well. i accept your process. how do you say john mccain is not a republican when on foreign policy issues he is 100% republican? how do you -- >> let me ask a basic question. >> let me answer that. if you remember the days of ronald reagan, some of us do, he was for smaller government. and yet we need a leader that goes to washington today that fights for smaller government. and he wants government intervention into the lives of all americans. >> so why -- just answer the one question. why is mccain 100% republican on foreign policy and you act like he is some kind of apostate? >> look, mccain's record speaks for itself. >> okay. you're defending liberal -- if he -- >> let me answer your questions. >> can i get to the heart of your point?

what was his position on obamacare in terms of voting for it? what is his position on abortion in terms of that? those are some of the most heated issues we're talking about these days. he not conservative enough on those issues? he voted against obamacare. he votes all the time -- >> to impeach clinton. >> yeah, clinton. how conservative does john mccain have to be to be conservative enough for you? if you compare him with the rest of the country, aclu votes or anything else, he is far to the right. not in everything. >> let me answer your question with a question. let's go back into john mccain's record. >> i just asked you about his record. i just asked you about his record. address those points of his record. >> john mccain's record, he never, and i repeat, never drafts, co-sponsors or votes with legislation put up by republicans. all the bills he has signed on to draft or to co-sponsor is always with democrats, whether it's mccain-lieberman,

mccain-feingold, there is a long list. it's always with the other side. we need to go to washington. we don't need somebody to play for the other team. we need somebody to fight for our team. we need to win touchdowns. >> you have are just giving me rhetoric. i've asked you a very simple question. is opposing obamacare not good enough for you? >> okay, everybody is telling me obamacare is the law. let's look at what happened. they fought that. they bought off deals in back rooms to make it law. >> i'm talking about john mccain's vote. >> not support of the american people. they pushed it through. nancy pelosi said i'm going to push this through regardless of what the marine people say. >> stock talk about the american people. you haven't been elected to anything. you can't talk for the american people. the american people wanted gun control bills because -- >> i'm the chairman of legislative district 30 republicans here in arizona. i'm a precinct committeeman, a state committeeman. have i been elected, and i do get elected regularly. >> you represent republicans. most americans want gun safety

bills that john mccain has opposed. he opposed these gun safety bills in congress. that's not good enough for you? >> tell me who tried to diminish the gun rights of americans just this last year? tell me who fought for the gang of eight amnesty when it's a failed policy over and over and over again, yet he refuses to give up. the people in arizona are a border state, and we have that issue on our front page. we need a senator that will fight for the rights of us people here back in arizona. >> you know, you can't have it both ways. you can't say he is not doing the american will, but he is also not doing what we want when you're a minority. most americans want a path to citizenship. >> can i ask some fact questions? thank you for coming on, mr. schwartz. we disagree with you. but thank you for coming. can i just thank you for coming on. >> fought to have our freedom and our liberty. >> i want to get a sense who have you are politically. do you believe president obama was legitimately elected president of the united states? >> oh, i knew that was coming. listen, i'm going to stay on track. this is about the resolution. it's not about me or my policy.

>> no, i'm just asking a simple question. >> this is about what the party has done. >> why is that a trick question? >> i'm not going to get side tracked with little rabbit trails. this is about senator mccain and the horrible job he is doing as our representative in washington. >> okay. you want the take a pass at that. okay. let me ask you this. was obama care, the affordable care act passed legitimately by the united states house and senate and signed by the president legitimately under law? >> no, because it was back room deals. we all know that. >> so it's not the law? >> they did it in the middle of the night against the will of the american people. >> what do you mean against the will of the american people? >> it's not legitimate law when you have to buy the votes, when you to bribe people. it's bribery. it's extortion. and another word, it's treason against the people. >> i have a suspicion -- >> we have freedom. >> i have a suspicion that there is a war going on between you people who are legitimately tea party people. you have a perfect right to all your views, of course. >> i don't belong to a tea party, sir. >> let me ask you. okay, hard right. why did you avoid three times

when i asked you did you ignore the foreign policy of john mccain? >> because we're here to talk about the censure of bohm. >> but his voting record is consistent with the right wing foreign policy of this government. why do you say that's irrelevant that he sought for all these wars? why do you think that's irrelevant to your positions? is there a war between the right and the republican party or the party you call the republican party of arizona? is it at war with the hawkish policies of -- >> absolutely. and john mccain -- >> answer my question. okay. >> never plays on our team. that's all we want. we would welcome john mccain if he played on our team and scored touchdowns for us. >> sir, i think you're embarrassed by the hawkish policies of the republican party nationally. i think you're embarrassed by the fact they took us into two wars, that they would like to go in more wars. i think you're really against that, but you don't have the guts to say so. >> you're bringing up one issue. i'm bringing up the whole john mccain. i want to address the whole person of john mccain. [ overlapping dialog ]

>> and how -- >> we have got into it. the right wing doesn't like the policies. >> we want to censure because we want the american people to know that we stand for them. >> okay, thank you. i'm glad -- sir, i'm glad you agree with me on foreign policy. thank you very much, david corn, timothy schwartz, who supports the removal basically of john mccain as a legitimate republican. up next, to quote elton john, sorry seems to be the hardest word, especially if you're a conservative. and this is "hardball," the place for politics.

join us tomorrow night at 7:00 eastern "hardball" as we preview the state of the union. then i'll join rachel maddow for coverage of the president's address beginning at 9:00 eastern. and be sure to stay up late with us tomorrow for a special midnight eastern edition of "hardball." we're going to go through all the politics to find out who won tomorrow night. well, in just a few past she thought she'd feel better after seeing her doctor. and she might have if not for kari, the identity thief who stole jill's social security number to open credit cards, destroying jill's credit and her dream of retirement. every year, millions of americans just like you learn that a little personal information in the wrong hands could wreak havoc on your life. this is identity theft.

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when you call lifelock right now and try 60 days of identity theft protection risk free. 60 days risk free. use promo code onguard. order now and get this document shredder to keep sensitive documents out of the wrong hands. a $29 value free. ♪ ♪ well, in just a few past weeks, we heard a lot of words out there that sound like an apology for stage right. new jersey governor chris christie over the bridge scandal. glenn beck for some of the divisive antics on his fox news show, and former governor, virginia governor bob mcdonnell for accepting lavish but legal he says gifts from a certain

businessman. but listen closely, and what you really hear is not exactly apology. more than anything, governor christie sounds sorry for what he -- that he was lied to by a staffer, or so he says. glenn beck is sorry the american people were so fragile. that was his word, that they were vulnerable to his divisive language. was doing things perfectly legal in his state. how about a simple "my bad." a headline named "apologize and then say something else." let's start with chris christie and the epic press conference on january 9th. here he is. >> i come out here today to apologize to the people of new jersey. i apologize to the people of ft.

lee, and i apologize to the members of the state legislature. i am embarrassed and humiliated by the conduct of some of the people on my team. this morning i terminated the employment of bridget kelly, effective immediately. i terminated her employment because she lied to me. i am heartbroken that someone who i permitted to be in that circle of trust for the last five years betrayed my trust. >> governor christie did acknowledge mistakes, he constructed the sentences to make the clear impressions that they weren't made by me, those mistakes. let's take a listen. >> the fact is that mistakes were made, and i'm responsible for those mistakes in a government of 65,000 people t there are going to be times when mistakes are made. >> you know, dana milbuck, i thought that phrase "mistakes

were made" in a passive voice is like retiring a number on a baseball team. it sounds like you're lying. >> yes. i think what's happening here is people know that they're supposed to say they're sorry. they're supposed to apologize. they see it as a box to check. they don't really feel they've done anything wrong. so they're only apologizing because ultimately they're in charge and the buck stops with them. >> have you ever seen the transition, sam stein, the transition that i'm deeply sorry for that no good lying s.o.b., whatever her name was, i just terminated her. i don't trust her. she lies. she's stupid. and i apologize for what? for her? no because i just fired her. it's a strange catch-22. i apologize, but don't blame me, i'm the victim. >> in the construct he's a victim of her transgressions, right? i guess for him he has to do it this way because he's holding on

or insisting that he's in the matter. if he wants to continue to argue then he would apologize for something he didn't do. but it's an evasive technique. it doesn't actually give you a full apology. it sort of skirts around the issue. it leaves the voter yearning for a little bit more. >> in her fox news show the kelly file, megan kelly asked former fox host glenn beck the question, when he looks back at his time on fox news, how does he remember it? let's listen to mr. beck's reply. >> i remember it as an awful lot of fun and that i made an awful lot of mistakes, and i wish i could go back and be, and be more uniting in my language because i -- i -- i think i played a role, unfortunately, in

helping tear the country apart, and it's not who we are. i didn't realize how really fragile the people were. i thought we were a little more in it together. >> is thought what he when he called obama racist? that he was testing the fabric at this point? >> not only basically blaming his listeners for being a bunch of idiots, and then he goes onto say after that, well, i really couldn't have done anything differently. people don't want to hear the hitler things anymore. he's trying to reinvent yourself. >> thank you, you're a funny guy. i love the way you liven up the set with satire. and one of them is definitely beck. sam stein, a voice of sobriety. we'll be right back after this. >> thanks, chris.

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let me finish tonight with thoughts about the clintons and what rand paul said about them yesterday. here goes. bill and hillary clinton did not get to where they got by being sure things. nor did they get to where they are at now by being perfect politicians or human beings. their appeal is their wonderful resilience. bill lost his race for student council president as georgetown. he lost his race for u.s. congress. he lost his race for re-election as governor. he lost the 1992 new hampshire primary. he lost a half century of democratic control to congress in 1994. he was impeached in 1998.

is that the clinton story? doesn't look like the clinton story. no way. and the reason is he came back from every setback. winning the attorney general's race in 1976. the governor's seat in '78 and again in '84 and '86 and '88 and '90. he won the election that fall and after losing the set and after being impeached in '98, he left office with a huge job approval rating. hillary clinton has shown the same strong character under pressure. after the difficult situation in 1998 she won a senate seat for new york in 2000. after losing the iowa caucuses in 2008, she fought back a string of big state victories against barack obama. faced with defeat, she accepted and triumphed in the position of secretary of state. resilience and unity are the clinton tickets. through it all they have stuck together. they are better than winners.

they possess a deep strength of character to have character, humiliation and come back fighting strong. it may be the very ticket this country needs to regain its own fighting spirit. that's hardball for now. thanks for being with us. "all in with chris hayes" starts right now. >> good evening from new york. i'm chris hayes. will a couple of things happened in the state of new jersey today. there were in developments in chris christie's bridge scandal, and i went over to jersey city to interview richard sherman of the seattle seahawks. that interview is coming up. two bridge investigations joined forces today to become one joint committee with the pursuit to interrupt any other corruption charges that may come to light on the way. that is big. this as another abuse of power ak sigs that did not much attention before the scandal comes under new scrutiny. after the governor at the center