good evening, americans. and welcome to "the ed show" live from washington, d.c. let's get to work. >> it isn't income inequality, it's income opportunity. >> you might think paying people enough to live is so self-evident that even crazy people could understand it, but you would be wrong. >> do you believe in raising the minimum wage? >> i believe in opportunity. >> you said back in 2005 that taking away the minimum wage could virtually wipe out unemployment. where's the evidence for that? >> i'm just asking if you believe there should be an increase in the minimum wage. >> no, i don't. >> so you're saying that the minimum wage is one of those regulations that you look at and try eliminating.

>> this economic death spiral where workers get paid next to nothing so they can only afford to buy next to nothing. >> can i finish a point? >> when you say something that isn't true, i have to correct it. you're losing manufacturing. i want job growth. >> okay. >> i want people's wages to go up. well, in the age of obstruction, does michelle bachman speak for the republican party? no, she doesn't. but she represents a mind-set that this country has had forced upon it for some time. the american people tonight are going to find out just how aggressive president obama is going to be. in four short hours from now, president obama will be entering the house chamber for his fifth state of the union address.

the president has made it clear he's going to be talking about bypassing congress with executive orders in tonight's speech. this has republicans already hinting at possible impeachment. >> i think it is a constitutional violation. we have a minimum wage. congress has set it. he's outside the bounds of his article 2 limitations. i think he knows it takes a couple of thiyears to work. this threat, we've never had a president with that level of audacity. >> he's really abusing his constitutional powers. some would say that's grounds for action against the president. maybe even an impeachable offense? >> i've stayed away from that word. >> really? you hear it all the time out there in the middle of iowa.

i find that hard to believe congressman. quit making stuff up. president obama is planning to sign an executive order that will raise the minimum wage for federal contractors to a mere $10.10. that's not a whole lot either. the increase will only impact future federal contracts. the president will highlight the executive action in tonight's state of the union address. it is something liberals have been fighting for for a long time. then there's house speaker john boehner. he's already crying foul. they're giving reaction to the speech before the speech. >> let's understand something. this affects not one current contract. it only affects future contracts with the federal government. so i think the question is how many people, mr. president, will this executive action actually help? i suspect the answer is somewhere close to zero. >> well, the speaker is flat out

wrong again. someone should inform the speaker of the house this executive action is suspected to impact 22,000 workers in the future. the speaker said that there are options available for republicans to fight the president. >> house republicans will continue to look closely at whether the president is faithfully executing the laws as he took an oath to do. i think dealing with federal contracts in the minimum wage, he probably has the authority to do that, but we'll watch very closely. >> are you saying he's overstepping his authority? >> there are options available to us. we're going to have a discussion about that as well at our retreat. >> they haven't used the word impeachment not yet, but i bet it isn't far off. the president will, again,

pressure congress to send him a minimum wage increase in tonight's speech. if there is a national minimum wage increase, it could impact up to 28 million workers. >> when you raise the cost of something, you get less of it. we know from increases in minimum wage in the past that hundreds of thousands of low income americans have lost their jobs. so the very people the president proports to help are the ones that are going to get hurt by this. >> lawmakers are pushing minimum wage legislation because the feds have been so slow to move for workers. the american people do not agree with republicans on this issue. 71% of americans support a minimum wage increase. michelle bachman and senator burnie sanders had a debate on

the minimum wage increase. bachman represents everything that's wrong with the house of republicans. >> do you believe in raising the minimum wage? >> i believe in economic opportunity. >> do you believe -- >> the minimum wage in australia is $20. they're losing the ford plant. they're losing the gm plant. they're losing manufacturing. i want people's wages to go up. >> we all do. >> excuse me. >> people's wages have gone down 8% in seven years. >> do you believe that the minimum wage should be increased? >> what i think is we need to create jobs and we need to look at the example of australia. >> it's a major issue in the president's speech tomorrow

night. >> do you think it should be raised to $20? >> i'm just asking $10.10. do you believe there should be an increase in the minimum wage? >> no, i don't. >> so that's what the president is up against. that mind-set. senator sanders was advocating from a position of 71% of americans. bachman finally admitted she has no problem blocking the president's agenda. this is why president obama is going to make the move he's going to make tonight. he's going to bypass the republicans in congress and do something. republican obstructions have done nothing but block president obama's agenda since day one. the american people know it. they're doing everything to stop the agenda that the american people voted for twice. here's how i see tonight's state of the union address.

the republicans talk about tone. the white house and the president, they're talking about action. okay, we're ready for action. last year the president asked for corporate tax reform. he wanted to move on climate change. he didn't get any of that. this year it is unemployment benefits to be extended, it's also the minimum wage, there's something about jobs in there obviously. this beyond all of what the president's wish list is going to be in tonight's speech, i view tonight as someone who is an ardent supporter of the president. number one, i believe that the president has to realize and liberals have to realize -- who support the president, as i see it -- that you just can't continue to try to lead people that are simply never going to follow. how much never do we have to have in "never"? the president can set the tone for this year, can motivate the

base, and leading people is going to be very easy because the american people are against everything the republicans are for. the question is has obama been affected by this bad process in washington, d.c.? the bottom line is the president has the people behind him in the vast majority. he needs to move on it and i think he will. i think tonight's tone is going to be a lot stiffer. i think it is going to be different from what we've seen in the other state of the union speeches. remember a year ago this time, we had a raging debate in this country about gun legislation on the heels of sandy hook. 90% of the american people wanted background checks. we didn't get that either. it's an uphill battle. it's time for the president to turn to the folks on the other side of the chamber and say

you're at odds with the american people. you will see the republicans shaking in their boots for the midterms in 2014. tonight is a night for leadership. tonight's question -- will republicans try to impeach president obama over executive actions? text a for yes. text b for no. you can always go to our blog. we'll bring you the results later on in the show. for more, let's turn to senator bernie sanders. good to have you with us. >> good to be with you. >> how important is tonight's speech? >> it is hugely important. on issue after issue, the vast majority of the people are in strong disagreement with republican priorities. republicans want to cut social security, medicare, and medicaid. they want to abolish the environmental protection agency. they want to give more tax

breaks to billionaires. nobody believes that. the american people want to raise the minimum wage. they want a jobs program, which puts millions of people back to work. they want a change in our trade policy so we're not exporting jobs to china and they want to deal with this issue of income and wealth inequality, which is moving us in the direction of p plutocracy. the president has to make the issues as clear cut as possible. rally the american people. >> when does the president stop trying to lead people that are never going to follow and also going to obstruct? when does that moment happen? >> this is an issue that drives me a little bit nuts, because i think the president should have learned that lesson years ago. human nature is that we try to work together. you reach out to people.

you're prepared to compromise. but after people cut your left hand off and cut your right hand-off, these people do not want to work with you. what's the alternative? the alternative is to give the republicans an offer they can't refuse, and that is rally the american people and let them know what the republicans stand for. >> if the president goes out tonight in somewhat of a dogmatic style, which is not his style -- he's not a guy that points fingers too much -- there's no downside, is there? are the people who put the president in office waiting for a breakout moment from all this obstruction, because we know the republicans aren't going to change? >> are they ready? >> yeah. >> i would say they are more than ready. they are frustrated that the president has not been tougher.

look, ed, we have made progress in the last five years. five years ago we were losing 700,000 jobs a month. now we're gaining some jobs. the middle class and the working class of this country is hurting. people on top are doing phenomenally well. how do the american people feel about it? they are angry and frustrated and want leadership from the white house. >> executive actions, what are your expectations of what can be accomplished that would change this dynamic? >> first thought, and i want to applaud the president because this is an issue we've been working on, i want to give him credit for doing the right thing. if you are a federal employee contractor, you should earn $10.10. it gives us some momentum in the fight to raise the minimum wage for all workers in this country.

>> what do you think the reaction of the republicans will be of any executive order? >> well, you heard some of it. oh, this is unconstitutional. he's being too bold. who cares? what we can expect is obstruction, obstruction, obstruction. we have got to rally the american people so that every congressional district in america will not support them. if they know that, the republicans are going to be in serious trouble. >> unemployment extensions is that still possible? >> you have 1.6 million americans who have worked long periods of time now have no income coming in from unemployment benefits. it is a real crisis. we ought to continue that fight. >> i would imagine the president tonight is going to be talking

about the debt ceiling come up. how many time does he have to speak on that? >> they do not want to pay our bills, what we owe, in aand in g that, drive the entire world into a depression. you have to pay your bills. that's it. >> income inequality is going to be an overriding theme for tonight. it's long overdue. you and many other progressives have been talking about this for a long time. can the president through executive order do something to change all of this when on the other hand he's pushing the tpp, which is in total contrast to what middle class families are going to be facing when it comes to economic pressures? i hope the president talks about the tpp tonight and talks about

the upside. >> as a person who has voted against nafta, what you've had is corporate america reaching out to democratic presidents and republican presidents to get them to pass these disasterous trade agreements. second of all, i think the president does have to make the point that the american economy is not sustainable when so few have so much and so many have so little. it's a moral issue and it's an economic issue because the people don't have money to spend. you don't create jobs. >> thanks so much. the state of the union begins at 9:00 tonight. i'll be in the chamber. remember to answer tonight's question there at the bottom of

the screen. share your thoughts on twitter and on facebook. coming up, some underwear super bowl predictions. plus, four is a crowd for tonight's republican response to the state of the union. during the day, we generate as much electricity as we can using solar. at night and when it's cloudy, we use more natural gas. this ensures we can produce clean electricity whenever our customers need it. ♪ some brokerage firms are but way too many aren't. why? because selling their funds makes them more money. which makes you wonder. isn't that a conflict? search "proprietary mutual funds". yikes!! then go to e*trade. we've got over 8,000 mutual funds and not one of them has our name on it. we're in the business of finding the right investments for you. e*trade.

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time now for the trenders. the ed show social media nation has decided. here are today's top trenders voted on by you. >> the number three trender, one deflection. >> i talked to the head of the anti-defamation league apologizing for the use of the word crystal naught. >> how did someone that stupid become so monumentally rich?

>> gosh, we're all really impressed down here, i can tell you. >> to demonize the rich who stimulate the economy is crazy. the number two trender, animal instincts. >> the sea cow, have you ever seen that animal? >> you may want to hear which team a pair of mantees picked. one of them has picked the winning team the last six years in a row. hugh went for the seahawks. buffet, who seems to know his football pretty well, picked broncos. >> it's time i stop letting these mantees tell me what to

do. number one trender, fight for the spotlight. >> mike lee will deliver the tea party response. >> senator rand paul giving his own response. >> ain't nobody got time for that. >> four republicans will carry on the gop's post state of the union tradition. >> my name is congresswoman michelle bachman. >> there's something called volcano monitoring. >> if y'all needed water, you should have asked. >> instead of monitoring volcanos, what they should be monitoring is washington, d.c. joining me tonight a congressman from california. it's almost comical the number of people that the republicans are going to be rolling out to the respond to the president's state of the union address tonight. what does that say? that doesn't say much about

unity, does it? there's a lot of factions that have to speak up tonight. your thoughts on that. >> my thought is i want to talk to the mantee because the republicans aren't going to make much sense tonight. i think it's a symptom of the disunity and the kinds of problems we've been faced for the last two or three years here. in the republican caucus, it's been badly divided. we've not seen any good policy come out that would create jobs. >> they're trying to be all things to all people. they've got an identity crisis. they don't know where to go. they've had no agenda. tonight, the president's whole theme is going to be about this chart that we have made famous, the vulture chart. the income inequality in this country. what has happened to the middle classers and where the top 2%

has gone in this country? how the president going to get some economic fairness in the system? >> he has to make the case. he's been working towards that. he has been working towards making that case. he needs a full-throated argument tonight about income inequality. the men and women who go to work every day are not making it in america, in part because american manufacturing isn't here anymore. he needs to make that argument. we need to follow up with pieces of legislation, continue to hammer away on the theme that the middle class needs its time in america. the as a ruvultures, they've ha share. now it is time for the rest of america to share in the great wealth and opportunity that this nation continues to have. >> boehner and the republicans are saying that they're putting

all options on the table in response to the president's use of his executive authority. how do you take that? >> well, i take that's what's happened over the last three years, and that is to take the options off the table. to do nothing to create jobs. the president put a jobs bill before the congress two years ago. it was simply rejected. not even heard in any economy. it was a bill that called for infrastructure investment, education investment. and the republican congress has refused to do it. >> could this use of executive authority walk the country into a big impeachment conversation? that's being implied by some members on the right. >> that's foolishness. the president cannot do anything that's not allowed by law. his action today dealing with

the minimum wage in contracts, it was all authority that he has under law to set the standards for federal contracting. that's what he did. >> okay. finally, congressman, what about the tone tonight? does this have to be somewhat of a little different president obama? does he have to be somewhat more poignant or direct or dogmatic? what are you looking for tonight? aggressiveness, where is it? >> i think he needs to be very hopeful about this nation, very optimistic about what we can become if we undertake certain policies. i'm sure he's going to lay out those policies, the policies of economic growth for the working

men and women, so the great wealth we generate in this nation is available to them. i think he's going to do that. it doesn't have to be aggressive or confrontational, but it needs to be strong and clear. he needs to make that argument very forcefully, but not in an aggressive or ill-mannered way to the american people. >> never has been that way. this is a turning point to say we're leaving republicans behind. we have to run the country. great to have you with us tonight. with that, i don't think there is any kind of a downside if the president does that. coming up, sealed with a chris. find out how little trust americans have in governor chris christie these days. next, i'm taking your questions. ask ed live. stay with us.

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welcome back to "the ed show." let's of questions. we can only pick two every night. tonight our first question is from reg, will republicans agree with president obama on anything he says tonight? hell no. if you could ask the president a question, what would you ask him? mr. president, thank you for joining me tonight. ed shultz here on msnbc. why to you support the tpp when all indications are that is a job killer for the american people and for our job market? will you explain what the upside of the tpp is that would bring you to the point you are an ardent supporter of it? stick around. market wrap.

stocks end with gains following positive earnings reports from fiezer and ford. s&p 500 adds 10. the nasdaq is up 14. rising consumer confidence. the index of sentiment came in ahead of estimates. home prices rose more than 13% than last year. that's it from cnbc.

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welcome back to "the ed show." the numbers don't lie. americans are losing trust in chris christie. it makes sense. there are current ligations looking into bridgegate.

wait a minute, now there's a new development tonight. according to a story in today's star ledger, governor chris christie helped channel $6 million to a project conceived years before the storm in belleville, new jersey. the funding was announced less than two weeks before the town's democratic mayor formally endorsed chris christie for reelection as governor. there's no doubt that the mighty media darling has fallen. 29% of americans now have a negative view of christie. just 22% view the governor favorably. it's an 11-point drop from a poll down just three months ago when he had a 33% favorable rating. it probably has something to do

with the fact that 42% of those polled in this survey do not believe he is telling the truth. he has a lot of ground to make up if he's interested at all in 2016. ft. lee mayor is set to attend tonight's state of the union address as a guest of the new jersey congressman. another shoe seems to be dropping in the christie investigation and now this story about funding going to a project where a democratic mayor was favorable to the governor. what do you make of it? >> the narrative that chris christie is a take charge kind of guy, who has control over his office, that media created

narrative is over for chris christie today. certainly the news in "the star ledger" about the money that went to the town of bellevue versus hoboken, it shows you what happens when the governor's office is endorsed by someone. you can see the opposite side. what happens when they do something the governor likes? you get the money. if you do something the governor doesn't like, you don't get it, even though you need it. >> why doesn't he come out and explain this story? does he have to be under oath? all the governor has to do is come out and clear the air about this most recent story. your thoughts. why didn't he do that? >> i think he's not doing it because there are probably more shoes set to drop. here's the problem for chris christie. he thought one press conference

was going to solve his problems. and what he did was he promised cooperation and what he's done since then -- he's gone to florida to campaign for a governor who didn't want to be seen with him. now he's basically gone underground. he's not saying anything or doing anything. ed, i think his bigger worries now are whether or not he can survive his governorship more so than whether or not he can be a presidential contender. >> i've been covering his assault on the working class for years. >> tonight, we are going to expose the real chris christie, the media darling of new york city, the media darling of the mainstream media. he's done nothing wrong. he's really a moderate. no. he's a wolf in sheep's clothing.

>> one of the first things he did as governor was to go after 6,000 educators in new jersey. it was a budgetary move. it was an attack on public education and this was back in 2009 and this is why i've been on this guy's trail all along. along before any traffic problems and now all this is starting to uncover. why has he been such a media darling? is it his moxy, style, off the cuff? how fast is that wearing thin? >> part of it is personality. republicans right now have no one who can challenge the possible candidacy of hillary clinton in 2016. you need somebody you can build up and build hype around.

he fit that bill before. now he does not. he is down 20 points among independents. that's killer for his potential as a general election candidate, which is the only reason republicans would have voted him out of the primary. >> would he be doing the republican association a favor by stepping aside? >> i think so. consider this. he was in the state of florida. he was raising money for rick scott, who had some point in the past few years, has been the least popular governor in the country. rick scott didn't want to be seen with chris christie. he's a problem for the republican governors association. >> what do you think they have

combined the investigative committees in new jersey? >> i think this is big trouble for chris christie. the "e" in e-mail stands for evidence. when you get 20 subpoenas for documents -- they do not have the appropriate level of discretion when using their g-mail accounts. like we've said before, there's many more shoes that will drop. i think chris christie is in big trouble and needs to be concerned about keeping his job as governor and ignore any talk about the presidential campaign. >> now that this story is out about bellevue, new jersey, and an alleged, you know, kickback for a political favor of support, i would seem to me this is going to make other people who are going to be subpoenaed really nervous.

i mean, it just continues to drip. people are going to be playing with their careers and lives if they don't come forward and tell the absolute truth. do you think we're going to find out chris christie knew a lot more than what he was saying? >> i think we'll probably find out he knew a lot more than he's saying. there's an issue here about what he should have known or what was willful ignorance. why was he not more curious about what happened in ft. lee? why didn't he do something about it at the time? we'll find out he at least promoted a culture that encouraged this stuff that happened or he was directly involved in it right from the top. >> good to have you with us tonight. coming up, rush limbaugh lands in tonight's pretenders.

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[ male announcer ] let quicken loans help you save your money with a mortgage that's engineered to amaze. thanks, "g." in pretenders tonight, face the music rush limbaugh. he is in a twist over the grammys. the radio host seized the display of equality as an open attack. >> gay couples were married to the song "same love" and that song openly attacked right wing conservatives and christians

because we have sound principals and guard rails, if you will, and we have definite beliefs in right and wrong and good and evil and how to best raise families and live lives and it just don't comport with anything they believe. we're a big threat. we are just a huge threat to these people. and this is them striking back. >> rush limbaugh is only a threat to someone whose arms aren't quite long enough to reach a radio dial. he has had four marriages. as you say "we," which family are you talking about? one, two, three or four. reaming] ♪

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welcome back to "the ed show." this is the story for the folks who take a shower after work. millions of americans are going to be listening to the president tonight, the state of the union address. and they're looking for a strong, clear message about manufacturing, a very important part of our economy. president obama is calling this a year of action. however, funding innovation and job training to meet demands is a major concern in this sector of the economy. congressman tim ryan of ohio says a number of bipartisan bills aimed at establishing support for job creation obviously have stalled in congress. now president obama has vowed to use his executive powers to

expand his vision for american manufacturing. i'm curious about that, without help from congress. >> where i can act on my own without congress, i'm going to do so. and today i'm here to act. to help make raleigh durham and america a magnet for the good high-tech manufacturing jobs that a growing middle class requires and that is going to continue to keep this country on the cutting edge. >> there is a problem. job growth in manufacturing in the united states is way off target. during his reelection campaign, president obama pledged to create one million new manufacturing jobs by the end of his second term. more than 25,000 new jobs a month would need to be created until 2017. and reaching that number will take more than an upward swing in the business cycle. joining us tonight is scott paul, president of the alliance manufacturing joining us here in studio in washington, d.c. you know, there are good things

out there, scott. consumer confidence is up. home value is up 13%. the market again today is scratching 16,000. 47 months of private sector job growth. all without any bipartisanship in washington. but why is manufacturing being left. why are we not seeing the gains in manufacturing? >> that is a good question there is a couple of reasons for it. one, we really don't have a strategy to enhance the manufacturing base in the united states. one that focuses on the innovation the president was talking about in raleigh, durham. we're doing a very small amount of what other countries do. another is investing in workers. and perhaps most importantly, ed, it's about our trade policy. we have a huge imbalanced trade relationship with china. $315 billion trade deficit in 2012. that translates into a lot of missed job opportunities, downward pressure on wages. so you don't see that in the service sector because there is not as much competition globally.

but in the united states, our workers, our businesses really don't feel like they have the support from washington going to bat for them for having a strategy and for getting trade right. >> so when the decision is being made by a job creator, okay, i'm going to invest in manufacturing in this country versus somewhere else, where are we losing? is it wages? it is regulation? is it tariffs? what is it? where are we losing this whole issue? >> there is a lot of myths that folks like to put up like oh, it's too expensive to manufacture in the united states. the wages are too much. energy costs. but when you look at it globally, you combine the productivity of our workforce. you look at natural gas becoming more abundant and more available, driving the price down. we can be very globally competitive in terms of a price basis. but what we lack is what i would call the ecosystem for manufacturing, that trade policy that says if you want to sell here, you got to make some of it here in the united states. that tax policy that says you

can invest in america. we're going to give you a tax break if you send your jobs overseas. we're going to hit back at you. i think those are important elements that too many forget. i hope the president will talk about it tonight a little bit. it seems that the trade agenda has been tilted towards opening markets but not nearly enough on trade enforcement. >> so make it in america, buy american doesn't have the oomph so to speak, legislatively doesn't have the legs that it needs to resonate? >> that's right, ed. and it's a very popular policy both among voters, where it gets over 58% support. >> but nothing happens in washington. >> not enough is being done. in fact, we have to fight every year just to keep what we have. if we had good buy america policies on tracks trade, on procurement, we could create that million jobs the president so desperately wants. >> okay. we're looking at this trade agreement, the tpp. how dangerous it is in your opinion? >> it could be very dangerous there are a lot of things we don't know about it because it's being negotiated behind closed

doors. what we do know about it should give anyone pause whether you're right, left, or center. you have the auto companies in the united states very concerned about how we're going to treat japan on market access. it's very hard to sell a vehicle in japan. and it's not because japanese consumers don't want to buy american vehicles. you have to look at currency manipulation and the tpp, we'd be competing against countries that heavily subsidize their own businesses, in fact own them. it's not very fair to ask a private sector american firm to go up against that state subsidized competition. so there are a lot of questions that have to be answered about the tpp. >> so it would affect just off the top of my head plastics, glass, steel? >> absolutely. >> rubber. all of the things that go into automobile manufacturing. now, we have revived with the automobile loan the automobile industry in a big, big way. they've got numbers that a lot of people didn't think were ever going to be reached again. but now we're seeing the chinese

saying that they're going to come after our automobile parts industry. so what is our counter-strategy to that? i mean, they're reacting to our recovery, are they not? >> they certainly are. and they see the united states successfully got our car companies, our workers back on their feet. the auto sector has created an outsized number of jobs. one out of every nine manufacturing jobs is related somehow to auto production. you pointed out the glass, the steel, all of that. >> yeah. >> the challenge is that we're not pushing back against these unfair trade practices. we haven't been willing to stand up to the chinese and say if you want access to our market, and believe me, they have plenty of access, you just have to look at your shelves in any box store, we're going to threaten to cut that off unless we can get into your market and unless you're competing fairly so that our private sector firms have a chance and that your government isn't subsidizing it, isn't polluting in a way that hurts their own people, isn't keeping their workers down. that's really been a big detriment to our economy. it's cost us millions of jobs.

>> scott paul, good to have you with us tonight. >> good to be with you. >> that is "the ed show." i'm be in the reporting later on the prime time coverage here on msnbc. now it's time for reverend al sharpton and "politicsnation." good evening, rev. good evening, ed. and thanks to you for tuning in. tonight's lead, the year of action. in just three hours, president obama will lay out his agenda for 2014 in his state of the union address. the president will focus tonight on his promise to fight inequality. the major theme of his presidency. >> a dangerous and growing inequality and lack of upward mobility that has jeopardized middle class america's basic bargain, that if you work hard, you have a chance to get ahead. i believe this is the defining challenge of our time. >> the defining challenge of our time.