switzerland and czech republic on the usa network. and on nbc-sn, sweden and lath via. for our entire crew behind the scenes, so long. my job is over. i've won. >> this morning, my question. is it too late to put the marijuana jeanie back in the bottle? plus, who is senator mitch mcconnell really running against. and the whole gritty city of new orleans railike you've never se it before. but first the bogus line of washington is just a matter of trust. >> good morning. i'm joy reid in today for melissa harris-perry. this week our members in congress planned to pull off a feat that seemed nearly impossible just a few months

ago. they did their job and passed actual legislation with no brinksmanship, no hostage taking and no shutdown shenanigans. they agreed to borrow money to pay the wibills. in fact, the clean debt ceiling bill was just the latest example of how our lawmakers can play nicely with one another when they want to. in december they came together on a bipartisan budget agreement and just last month they compromised on a trillion dollar spending plan and the passage finally of the farm bill. but before you get all excited and think bipartisan. >> shep: and functioning government are breaking out all over, permit me to dim your optimism for just a minute because our newly cop rahhive congress hit another wall. just a few weeks ago it seemed like immigration reform would be next on the list they would find a way to compromise.

they were striking a different tone very suh last year when they were rejecting a bill and house speaker john boehner refused to even bring up the bill in the house. so it was a sign of progress when just two weeks ago house republicans emerged from a policy retreat with their own blueprint for immigration legislation, but then came this surprise announcement just one week later from speaker boehner. >> listen. there's widespread doubt about whether this administration can be trusted to enforce our laws, and it's going to be difficult to move any immigration legislation untull that changes. >> so in just one week's time, the gop who seemingly had gone from let's make a deal to deal's off, and republicans were giving one explanation for their change of heart. trust issues. more specifically with president obama who's been locked out of the republican circle of trust. so now the new narrative for republican resistance goes like this. republicans were willing to deal

on the multi-trillion dollar budget and the once talk of debt ceiling but because they have trust issues with the president, we can't have nice things like immigration reform. others have joined speaker boehner on why they can't trust this president and it comes down to one word. the one ring to rule them all in the 2014 deficits. obamacare. >> there's a real trust deficit the speaker is facing and it's relating to obamacare and the disastrous rollout. let's face it. immigration means doing a lot of complex things well and in addition to that the administration keeps issuing executive orders to change the law very frequently. >> here's the issue that all republicans agree on. we don't trust the president to enforce the law. >> meanwhile last month at a breakfast with reporters organized by "the wall street journal" florida senator marko rubio explained what he said

were the other reasons his fellow republicans don't trust the president. they pointed to the irs scandal, the benghazi stuff and the nsa revelations and then the obamacare decisions by the administration as evidence of how the government and administration unilaterally decides which portions of the law to enforce and which ones not to enforce and that further undermines. you see what senator rubio just did there? the same menu of conspiracy theories and full obama scandals that animate the far right have become the excuse for not doing policy that's in the republicans' own long-term interest when it comes to administration and they ran to ride this trust narrative into the november elections but there are a couple of problems with this argument. first, the gop's regulation that they can't trust it sim sli isn't supported by this record because the fact is no president has been tougher on enforcing immigration laws than this president. take a look at this chart. the rate of annual deportations

was higher in the first term than it was during any term of the entire bush administration. today more than 1,100 immigrants on average are reporting daily under this administration. so at the current rate the obama administration is on track this year to surpass a total of 2 million deportations. problem number two is that speaker boehner and the republicans are not acting in a vacuum. in fact, they're promising to make sure there's no vacuuming at all . in a conference call this week this promise was made to house republicans saying, quote, let me just be clear about one thing. from now on, any lawmaker who does not support comprehensive immigration reform should expect relentless and constant confrontations that will escalate until they agree to support immigration reform. in other words, republicans may not trust president obama but if they refuse to act on immigration reform, they can trust that there will be political pushback.

joining me now are indicakayton dawson, christina greer, kika matos, the aforementioned of the fair immigration reform movement and she's also the director. and ralph reyes who's an attorney, columnist and my pal. thanks everyone for being here. kika, i do want to start with you. you issued i guess we could call that challenge or threat to republicans that essentially you do immigration reform or you're going to face opposition. tell me what that's about and why you're also saying people who are for reform -- immigration reform, you have it. >> this is an issue. there is a sense on the part of

them. last year we played nice. we engaged with the legislators, we did a lot of lobbying, education, in-district work. yes, we had rallies and acts of civil disobedience but our strayedgy was to move both parties and congress so we could finally get reform done and people could stop suffering and it felt like we made a lot of progress. we had a bill pass the senate and the house passed it with 196 sponsors. speaker boehner hired a very highly regarded policy expert, they leased the principals and all of a sudden they throw cold water, and we feel like we've had enough. our communities have suffered too much and now it's team to engage in some hardball, and we're going to do hardball in two different ways. one is we're going to really escalate our advocacy in

congress but also we're going to ramp up our civil engagement efforts and we're going to work to make sure that our communities go out to vote and that we register people to vote. >> caton, i want to go to you. it seemed for a moment that john boehner was trying to move the caucus in the direction of moving immigration refofrmt ascii ka mentioned he hired a highly regarded pro-immigration advocate and then it was sort of whiplash. he snapped back in the other direction. why did that happen and do you think republicans can ride out 2014 without doing something on immigration? >> i think they're going to and focus back on the winning issues. i'm with you and understand we're now inside the window, and i think what people are missing here is we now have filing in march. >> right. primaries. >> and i never fault a politician on either side for wanting to keep their job, i don't. and so now we get inside the window of we've got factions in the republican party.

that tent's got big holes in it. so we've got elected officials sitting in there, getting ready to file. i think you'll watch after the filings in march -- and both parties have. it's a hot issue both ways. it cuts both ways in our party right now. let's get march out of the way. thing speaker boehner is doing a marvelous job. i like him. i like speaker boehner and speaker gingrich. two remarkable speakers. i knew you all wouldn't, but i'm okay with that. watch after the march filings. the republicans are not going to lose the house. that's a pipe dream. and that's why talking about trust issues with the president is good politics for our party. >> if you look at where hispanic voters are concentrated, right, it's most decidedly with texas, not where republicans are facing them. we have a map that gives you the cluster of sort of the hispanic congregation.

so to kayton dawson's point. if you're playing sort of smart primary politics, knowing people can file in march. republicans are doing that. they're doing what's right. >> they're doing what may be right for them in the upcoming primaries, but that's a very my op oh pick way of looking at things. not just the fact that it's a very contentious issue on the right, but the longer that they wait to do immigration reform, that is longer that the democrats can use this against them with latinos and other american voters and the longer it can cement latino antipathy to the gop. you went through the list of reasons why they said we could not do immigration reform. that was only half the list, joy. remember we couldn't do it because of the crisis in sear yas and because of the sequester, we could not do immigration reform because of the boston bombing and the fact that some of those suspects were immigrants.

we counseln't do immigration reform because president obama issued the affirmative action. these are continual excuses. the baottom line is espionager boehner cannot get hisqaa caucuses together. if you look at -- i love maps so we've got to have another map. i really do love maps. if you look at where the affo affordable care act. let's look where people are signing up for it. these are in red states where republicans are saying it's not in my interest to do it because people don't trust president obama and he's the reason we can't do it. if you look at states like florida and alabama, you have 60%. people in kentucky, they're actively signing up the for it. the toxicity of it, i wonder if that's going be enough.

we hate it because we don't like president obama, therefore do immigration reform. does that make sense? >> to say it's just obama isn't enough. so long as they stay in this homogeneous idea -- caton says that i have factions -- >> how would you explain that to somebody who says i'm gentz opening the borders. this is popular how? >> with immigration reform we know 20% are small business owners and entrepreneurs. we know they represent many republican industries large and small so we kent look at it as -- when we think about it. we also in our minds often think about mexico. there's immigration from all over the globe and people are contributing to so many different factions in our economic society. there are people who are native

born who have immigrant relatives to understand having family members in other countries. >> that strikes me as a general election question. i think what caton was saying in the primaries that's not as potent. we're going to talk more about this. when we come back, what immigration has in common with the super bowl. seriously. that's next. [ female announcer ] who are we? 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. and we're here to help start yours. ♪

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house speaker suddenly reversed it last week and it's met with outrage. this week on the floor of the house, democrat luis gutierrez made a point. >> mr. speaker, you can't ignore your way out of this or blame your way out of this or blame president obama out of this. you thought super bowl was a blowout? wait until 2014. you can tell the babysitter you'll be home on election night. it's democrats and the white house by a landslide. >> kayton dawson, isn't that true? if they don't do immigration reform, they're in serious trouble in terms of the numbers? >> we have to skpant our numbers, there's no secret there.

it's an independent vote. they're taking a look at the tone of the debate, what it is, and the concerns, and it's very personal. and i've been with people -- so if the republicans -- now, we said it earlier. if the republicans don't first enact something, and i think speaker boehner will set up that in '15, and change our tone, we're going to miss our last big chance in a federal election. >> the problem is you talk about in the primaries the negative tone is what's necessary. the anti-american rhetoric is what -- >> it's a tough thing to do. i think that's the tone. the thing that i hear from the tea party groups is the word amnesty is the one that's always thrown around. that's the one they kick the can down the road. that's the excuse they do to get nothing done on it. in my polling i'm seeing people want things done. they all hate washington but they sort of want things dub.

on the hard side of our party they want to shut the door, lock it down. on the left side they want more things as far as the democrat. so it's convoluted. if we don't do something as a party to expand our base in places like colorado. move on through that section of the country that we've been losing. florida's a tossup, then we've got problems. >> kika, are you essential to that argument? what the organization is saying is we're not listening to that, we want to see them support and vote for immigration reform now despite the primary issues. >> yes. let me just say a couple manufacture things. we do want to make sure that we have an impact in purple states, right, because there are an increasing number of purple districts where they do have to pay attention to the latino and asian and immigrant votes, so that's one thing. you know, the other thing is that as a nation, we're also a

country that is moving its -- its demographics are changing and we have an increasing number of young voters who are more progressive. we have the fastest growing demographic which is latinos. and even amongst white folks there's increasing support for immigration reform. it doesn't matter which way you slice it and look at it. i think republicans are in trouble and the message we're sending is no republican is safe and no democratic legislator either is safe if they don't get right on reform and i feel like if the republicans don't get right on reform, i really truly believe that the party's quickly on its way to extinction. >> kika mentioned people that are in trouble. i love to look at these things in parallel. if you look at who voted for the clean debt ceiling, look at where they are, ohio, virginia, kentucky, new jersey, michigan,

you see where i'm going. it's not that there are hundreds but there are maybe 15. >> right. but look at that situation. you know, the debt ceiling situation, john boehner was in an untenable position and what he did was he took the logical strategic steps, so he passed it with the majority of democratic support. so going forward that is what he absolutely must do for immigration. >> to that point i'm aware that republicans are aware. but kika will -- we talked about it earlier. we're at the point now where immigration has become more than just an issue in our community. it's really reached the point of being a true movement where people are mobilized and energized like i have never seen, and going pack to some of these republican talking points and excuses that they use, they say president obama hasn't been willing to compromise and he's not been willing to work with them. that's not true. he's been willing to work

piecemeal legislation, opening to accepting it. he's resisted granting relief from deportations and that's cost so much tremendous heartbreak and devastation in our communities. all of those things he's exercised tremendous restraint. >> difficult issue. well, first of all we have to thank kika matos. thank you for being here. >> thank you for having me. up next, president obama and the democrats are upping the ante on minimum wage. >> so we sign the executive order, these folks are going to get a raise, and what i said yesterday is that now it's time for congress to act because america deserves a raise. >> right. [ male announcer ] this is betsy.

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earned the trust of low level workers when he made a pledge during his state of the union address. the president promised in his speech to use his power to race the minimum wage for federal contract workers. on wednesday he did that, signing an order to raise the member mum wage for businesses that do business with the government from $7.55 to $10.70 an hour. he'll initially raise it temporarily to certain ones since it applies to new federal contracts. for americans to get a pay raise, congress would have to act and pass legislation. and on thursday, house democrats announced their plan to force the issue with a discharge position that would bring an increase in the federal minimum wage to the floor for a vote. the petition would require the vote of a majority of house members including the unlikely prospect of at least 18 republicans going rogue against their leadership but the move

would force the republicans before the midterm elections to go on record, opposing an economic policy that's popular not just nationally but also in their home districts. take a look at this december local news report from cincinnati that's part of a republican district in ohio. >> reporter: this is all about maximum exposure, minimum wage, that's why you have a little over 20 organizers out here in ridge and highland and scores of other taking on what they say are unfair wages. >> joining us at the table is john nicholls. is this a potent political issue? >> without a doubt.

even last year president obama was dancing around $9 an hour and people were saying that's dangerous. then they started doing polling on it. it's amazing on polling. democrats were through the roof in favor of it. independents are through the roof in favor of it. a majority of republicans are in favor of it. >> there ooh's a quinnipiac pol. republicans, 52%. democrat, 93%. independents, that's the big deal, 69%. >> the quinnipiac is good. there's lots of other polling. it's real in-depth. what it finds is when you go up the numbers, grow to nine, you go to 10, you go to 11, you go to 13, yes, it does start to slow down, but not that much. what the democrats have figured out and it's very, very important for this. if you're going to try to make this an issue, you're not going

to make it awn issue by talking a quarter to 50 cents. yo view to talk about a real increase in the wage and couple it with a core reality that speaks to republicans and that is people work 40g hours a week shouldn't end up working in policy. >> a lot of positions called entitlements are not necessarily tied to work. you talked about immigration in the previous segment has become a bread and butter issue. is this another one that's a opponent issue because of the pocketbook? >> it is. all the members of the house are up for re-election. they understand that pocketbook issues actually matter especially for the core base that's going to come out, right? we call it an off year. i don't like to call it that. it implies we should all take off. this is a nonpresidential election year. republicans understand. we're in a recession. so an increase in the minimum

wage makes sense, makes political sense, economic sense, fabld you want to keep your seat, the goal of all officials is too get elected and get re-elected. if you want to stay employed. you have to -- you have to come up with something. >> and kcaton, i'm curious? >> it's always easy politics about giving a pay raise. the hard numbers will come from the chamber of commerce. i was a small business owner for 37 years. i remember when minimum wage tipped and i had to sit people down and say, i'm sorry, i can't pay you and you.

it's good argument coming in the fall. it's coming in the fall. they're not going to leave electoral politics. there's going to be pain among the real people whose insurance has risen cost-wise, so it's good politics, but i'll tell you as a guy who owned the business, i remember saying here the government's told me to raise it. i've got let you two go. that's where it comes to heartland. small businesses in america. >> i see what you did there. we're out of time in the segment. do you -- smaller work hours. that was people who were able to not work those extra hours and not work triple overtime. i see what you did there though. that really wasn't about them cutting wages but thank you very much. really appreciate it. stay with us. when we come back, we'll talk about the senator actually encouraging workers voting against better working conditions. [announcer] word is getting out.

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last night workers in a volkswagen plant in chattanooga, tennessee, made a decision that could be a major blow to the power labor movement. they voted 712 to 726 not to join the united autoworkers labor union and become the very first foreign autoworker in the u.s. to be represented by the uaw. the workers made the decision despite a level of support from volkswagen that was unprecedented but they also heard from plenty of opponents for organized labor like tennessee republican bob corker who led the 2008 pitch to build the plant in chattanooga. on wednesday corker made a surprise announcement saying, quote, i've had conversations today. based on those i'm sure that

should the workers vote against the uaw volkswagen will announce in a few weeks announce its manufacture of the new volkswag volkswagen. there was a vote made by the company on where the new suv would be made. so here we have, john, a direct sort of appeal by corker, essentially saying, if you want those suvs, you're going to want to vote against that union and that was successful. >> that was the intent. the important thing to understand is there are often folks who say uaw and old school unions are inflexible. in fact, here they had gone maximum inflexible. they said we will work wo volkswagen to develop a works council. we're really going to demock kra tiez this place. the german manufacturers said we like this. we're going to bring you in to

making decisions at the international level. final a globalization of the voice of workers. now, bob corker promised he was going to stand down. he wasn't going to mingle in. he was going to let the workers decide. comes in full force. now, the playout of the statement. if you read the statement, the fan na fascinating thing is he says i have a feeling the workers will vote no. so what he was really doing was playing a language game here. the volkswagen people were put into a bind. they came forward quickly and said, no, we're not judging on this vote. but i think when you look at a defeat by really a small number of votes, it is very possible that a united states senator intervening in an election of a future of manufacturing in america and screwed it up. >> what does it say about the country and the state of the

economy that you essentially have them luring in people saying, listen, we promise we'll have lower wages. >> i'm not sure in the long run that's necessarily good for the american worker but what i find so fascinating about this case is it's unique. the dpaep, voeks waken, was not fighting. it was these outside influence including the senator. and volkswagen, in fact, has a pretty good record with its labor relations. and what really struck me is that in a sense it goes against conservative principles which is let the free market work. keep the government out of business, stop the meddling. not only that, when they do that, think ink they have created a climate of fear, economic uncertainty, which, again, supposedly conservatives don't like. they want stability. it creates economic growth and promotes business. the concepts were very unique. maybe it will come up for vote

again since it was close this time. >> one thing just very quick. senator corker was one of the moderate players in this. there were tennessee state legislators who came forward and said, boy, if they vote for the union, we may have a hard time continuing get benefits to this plant and you're thinking, wow, that's -- that's getting to the level of saying you will use the power of the state to -- people who want to -- >> that's oppressive. >> caton, is there any discomfort -- you talk about raise the minimum wage. the argument, that may not be good for your future, we may not build the plant here. it does feel like the entire message, the package, goes against the average working stiff. >> well, let me give kudos to bob corker. he is a wildly popular u.s. senator in tennessee.

a bit of a national figure. he save add business going down. had his own business. but with bob corker, sure, what's wrong with exercising your right. the pro union side was piling money into tennessee. >> back to my question. very good and i'm sure bob corker is very thankful but the package in this message is saying lower waging is what you want. isn't that an anti-working guy message? >> the package in south carolina, north carolina, is more jobs. >> for less money. >> we also raced to the bottom in the textile industry and we have mills all through there closed but a whole another itch. that's how we've done it. it's how texas has historic gains. we're right to work states. we're not pro union states and we're creating jobs right now

and creating them anywhere we can. >> is that argument prop blemat for you? >> the republicans remind me of the new york knicks. there's no long-term strategy. let's keep them understood paid, under organized because they don't have jobs. there are these unaged ones. the republicans want to go back to the old values. back in the old days people had unions and could make a limping wage. they were able to afford things and they had jobs and they could afford their homes. this is. thank you so much christina greer. you are the author of black, ek issings about race immigration. pick it up. thanks, raul reyes. up next, the thing about pregnant pigs and weeks.

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and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion. okay. let's talk about the florida state constitution. it's pretty zarpd with articles on the state and local taxes, university system and how to fill a vacancy in public office and then there's article 10, part 1. it reads in part it shall be unlawful for any person to confine a pig during pregnancy in an enclosure irour terter a big in sich a way she account turpd around freely. it was added in 202 by ballot

measure. 55% of florida voters agreed and said it should be outlawed. the pregnant pip's initiative appeared on the ballot after 500,000 signatures were collected. by the same process another much derided amendment was added in the year 2000. one that require add high-speed monorail system be built in the u stace. the term pregnant pigs still stands. governor jim bush went as far to say in his 20 u 3 state of the state address, quote, the bottom line is pregnant pigs don't belong in our state constitution and i believe reforms are long overdue. indeed the republican controlled florida legislature set about making it harder to amend the state constitution. at the time they passed it all

that was needed was a simple majority vote. in 2006 they plashs a measure on the value that would require 60% to approve it. it passed by 58%. this november florida will vote on another constitutional amendment and it's created sharp division. will it increase the turnout. or is it true that medical marijuana or pregnant pigs don't decide who's going to be governor of florida? more on that part of the story when we come back. a small busd with amazing rewards. with the spark cash card from capital one, i get 2% cash back on every purchase, every day. i break my back around here. finally someone's recognizing me with unlimited rewards! meetings start at 11, cindy. [ male announcer ] get the spark business card from capital one. choose 2% cash back or double miles on every purchase, every day.

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what is this place? where are we? this is where we bring together the fastest internet and the best in entertainment. we call it the x1 entertainment operating system. it looks like the future! we must have encountered a temporal vortex. further analytics are necessary. beam us up. ♪ that's my phone. hey. [ female announcer ] the x1 entertainment operating system, only from xfinity. tv and internet together like never before. in florida this november voters will have a chance to weigh in on whether to allow medical use of marijuana in their state. according to a recent quinnipiac poll, the legalization is overwhelmingly popular in the sunshine state. just getting question on the

ballot has been a battle. the republican administration of governor rick zot scot fought the initiative in court arguing that the language will misleed voters. some think it's a ploy to get more younger democratics out there. some democrats have accused the scott administration of fighting the medical marijuana initiative purely to prevent that from testimony happing. so the question is can pot really get out the vote? with me at the table is kayton dawson. chardon qasr ran. glenn and from miami, florida, mark caputo, political writer for "the miami herald." mark, i'm going to start with you. let me ask you.

as far as whether they get out more democratic voters to the polls, what do you make of it? >> i think it could be an inspiration for voters to get out but it's really an open question whether it will put chris christie over rick scott. he's been rather quiet about it. there will be a libertarian in the race and independent voters who don't like either party who may sign with the independent, adrian wiley. so it think it's a bit up in the air. there's certainly politics at pla play. cy do agree with what the republican strategist saft, that people are going to go out to vote for governor to vote for governor. but i do see this passing right

now according to the polls. it's really up in the air. >> you and i both know the last sort of experience was in 2010 with the fair district. in the end, i mean what impact did those have in 2010? >> you raise a great point. it was a liberally sought amendment and the republicans destroyed it at the polls so you had a liberal constitutional amendment and a republican waive year. in 204 we had a constitutional amendment, do you remember a.c.o.r.n.? >> yep. >> then 2008 we had -- gay marriage was on the ballot. they voted for -- better said we had a gay marriage ban. it seems like the republicans

has a way of winning and vice versa. >> that's bad news for charlie crist. in general, this idea of putting drug legalization on the ballot, is this sort of the way we're going to see this happening that we're going to see states going ahead and voting for this rather than a top down change in policy? >> i think what you see with this issue is american people are way ahead of the politicians on it. 58 percent in favor of full legalization. in florida you have 82% in favor of it. even in states like texas, louisiana, and west virginia, you have a majority of people supporting medical marijuana. politicians are still very tepid in some of their public statements about it, although you have bobby jindal conservative coming out and saying he's okay with it. rick perry just in davos said he wouldn't be opposed to states. it's something people have led

and pow tishians are following. >> yet the question of the voter. nationwide, 2008 to 2012. you had a 20% increase in overall turnout but in states thad ha ballot initiatives that had to do with legalized marijuana, washington, you had a 12% increase, colorado, 6% increase. there's an anecdotal increase. to mark's point it doesn't necessarily help democrats specifically. >> right. i wouldn't is be surprised if you had an increasing turnout. if you think of the criminal justice system. i think young people have the most stake in moving away from that, not just criminalizing so many youth but attaches all

these that tends to follow them for the rest of their lives. >> and yet there's still a lot of resistance to this. >> but it's in the political class. let's try to impact this in a way that doesn't always get talk talked about. think what mark says is right. the candidate has to talk about it and that's a big deal. democrats have to deal with this. they have to take a message on it. that's a big deal. if they don't, then you do scatter it often. if you do, then i think you draw those voters out. >> we're going to get our republican on to talk it. stay with me just a second. we do need to take a quick break. and has mann reaching the tipping point? a surprising look at who ease supporting it on both sides of the hour.

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♪ yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah! ♪ we are one, under the sun ♪ under the sun... [ female announcer ] fiber and protein. together as one. introducing new fiber one protein cereal. welcome back. i'm joy reid in for melissa harris-per harris-perry. in 1996 california was the first state to legalize medical pot use. in 2014, 20 states in the district of columbia have medical marijuana laws and in two states they've agreed to legalize the recreationial use of pot. in 2012, 12 states agreed.

in october 2013 for the first time a majority supports legalization. support surged 10 points in just the last year alone and now stands at 58%. it's familiar path. in 2004 massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage. now 17 states in the district of columbia recognize same sex marriage. the supreme court has struck down the defensive marriage act and they're offering it to same-sex couples and the support roughly mirrored the trend for marijuana legalization. in 1996 just 27% of people supported legal marriages for same-sex couples. in july 2013 the number jumped to 54%. still support for marijuana legalization is outstripping support for same-sex marriage and support is not only growing but broadening across the political spectrum. governor rick perry said last month he supports

decriminalizing marijuana. new york governor andrew cuomo a moderate democrat who had opposed medical marijuana has use his power the allow 20 hospitals to dispense marijuana. twhoes have been tough on marijuana in the past is edging toward more relaxed policy and his attorney general said he will allow colorado and washington businesses to sell recreational pot at least for now. there are efforts often bipartisan. here to help us sort out how it happened and how it became a potential winner is kayton dawson, john nichols and glenn

martin. i want to go to you first. this has become not just a der crammic but a fair issue. there are a fair number of politicians getting on board. >> there's two issues. there's not the tremendous lobbying effort. living proof is 13 states have it up there now and kentucky, georgia, utah, and ohio are not exactly liberal states. look at utah, kentucky, florida, republicans sponsored legislation to put it on so that become as whole separate issue. legalization will bring it out. it will be a whole other conversation. i've never been in a conversation with ee ann elected official where we've talked about the politics of pot. it's not one that moves a lot of voters either way, so there's

not going to be a lot of capital. nobody sate sat the there in th room and said let's go do this. >> the point is not to move voters. >> the's exactly right on this up to a point. the point is to bring new voters out. and in an off year election cycle. this is what we know. democrats win. they do really well all over the place. in an off year cycle where the young people do not show up with the same numbers, you ship back. issues like this that frankly can bring a portion of younger voters out and take a look at the numbers you had on the chart. that was amazing. washington state, was it 12%? >> yeah. >> that wasn't a battle ground state. here's a nonbattle ground state. >> if you look at it overall nationally, if you take a look at the latest gallup polling,

they all support at least medical mauchblt 35% support it. 65% for democrats. 62% for independents. when you look at it, should it be legal period young voters are really at the top end. 67% of voters, 18 to 29. by the time you get to 65 and older, cataracts be damned. the older voters are the most reliable. >> they're important as we focus on the medical marijuana. but i'm going to keep pushing the conversation. i think for the longest it's been good politics and bad policy and essentially one out of three people arrested are young folks who are, again, saddled with these convictions for the rest of their lives and i think this is a bipartisan

conversation, reducing our criminal justice system. our president and mepeople, norquist, et cetera, this is the biggest item on the budget. socy i'm hopeful as we move the conversation forward, this is the first step, i'm actually shocked we're still having this conversation but i hope the next step easily is legalization of marijuana across the board. >> john nichols made a good point. it really depends on whether they talk about it. are either -- is charlie crist, is he talking about it and has he come down on one side or the other in terms of legalization? >> crist hasn't come out in terms of legalization or not. charlie loves him some populism. so if it polls well, he's generally in favor of it. and in this case in the medical

marijuana ballot amendment in florida, the man who employs him. orlando attorney john morgan, is a main funder of the effort to get it on the ballot which is why republicans are suspicious but you can rest assured if there's a pop larp, popular amendment, charlie crist will be before it. interestingly with rick scott, he's made a niche for himself when he tells us what he believes in. scott has been pretty quiet. he certainly doesn't want to talk about it. he's made his career and whole political agenda, creation of jo jobs, jobs, jobs, that's what he doesn't want to talk about. crist is doing that. >> mark, there's one other thing

that rick scott, the governor of florida has made his bones on which is drug testing. drug testing state workers, everything. how us that sandusky that play into this question of legalization? >> drug testing welfare recipients polls well. speaking of things that they support the poll well, that's one of those issues. but rick scott has been pretty anti-drug. he had a family member who had at least an alcohol problem so he's made that kind of a top concern and a top issue. but, you know, scott has had bad luck when it comes to enforcing some of the ideas of drug testing welfare recipients. courts have canceled it. same with drug testing of state workers. again, he's probably focusing more on talking about jobs, the unemployment rate is falling and the like. medical marijuana does play to charlie's strengths. as i said, you're going to hear more about it in the coming days tochl your other guest's point which is interesting, whether it's going to happen outride, florida in the quinnipiac poll

it shows more regas morality is situation. some of these folks who make money off of incarcerating people aren't going to like laws that make it harder to incarcerate people. >> i get the feeling that you mouth charlie crist might be a boost of a -- >> some are better at it than others. >> thanks so much mark caputo coming out of miami. coming up next, positive attitudes are also changing law enforcement. ♪ turn around

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what is this place? where are we? this is where we bring together the fastest internet and the best in entertainment. we call it the x1 entertainment operating system. it looks like the future! we must have encountered a temporal vortex. further analytics are necessary. beam us up. ♪ that's my phone. hey. [ female announcer ] the x1 entertainment operating system, only from xfinity. tv and internet together like never before.

some of the change on marijuana policy is happening at the very local level spurned by the locals. saying the case is needlessly clog the city's criminal justice system and having a criminal record makes it harder for former offenders to lead productive lives and contribute to society. in washed they're looking to decrimind decriminalize it dramatically to just a $25 fine but for the most part it constitutes the latest redistance. major organizations like the sheriff's association and others staunchly oppose legalization.

they've krcriticizes president obama's comment on smoking pot. i view it as a bad habit and vice but not any more dangerous than the cigarette ls i smoked. you do still have some entrenched law enforcement. >> i think so. it's propped up lots of bad practices. it's out of step where where the people are and the majority are. they're looking out of touch. it's a bad use of law enforcement reinforcements. we've got three times as many marijuana arrests than all combined. it's putting a scare resource into something i think the american public realizes is not

popular. it doesn't make any sense. >> i think focusing on ken thompson is really interesting because that's state where governor owe mow said last year he was interested in thissy idea of legalized small amounts of marijuana because of the disproportion at amount of arrests and is now embracing this medical marijuana piece. but law enforcement -- i have a brother who's a federal marshal. that's how you do, that's how you respond over the last few a decades, that's your natural respon response. i think that's core ranges in a state -- >> i'd like to point out you have law enforcement coming out in favor of ending proheb biggs. >> absolutely. >> exactly. >> you see where this is actually degraded their alkt to be effective as people who are in charge with protecting public safety. >> let me take it a step deeper.

ken thompson ran on that issue. we talk about law enforcement and we think about a lot of the cops on the beat. i happen to think they'd like to see the change too. it's a broad zone with prosecutors and others and what i am increasingly seeing is when i talk to working police officers, sheriff's deputies, they say, yeah, there are drug problems. there are real issues to deal with. it's not just marijuana. >> and if you look on the date on it, it's sort of staringing. the number of arrests and the volume of policing. almost 750,000 arrests for marijuana offenses in 2012 alone. 31% of those were black. $50 billion spent every year on the war on drugs and if you look apt whose -- 51% is in prisons.

so, caton. >> you saw what he said. go back to the war on drugs. this is a reason why he has large contingent. listen to what perry has to say about it because it's coming from a whole other angle whattet it cost us. he's one that's been criticized for it. you've about got to pay attention to it. 25 million people talking about this issue. >> not just him. rand paul. no liberal rand paul. i want to play what rand paul has had to say and his comments actually could fit right around this table. >> the war on drugs has

disproportionately defended them. the aclu reports they're more likely, although surveys indicate that blacks and whites use drugs at about the same similar rate. >> i mean, glenn, when you have that kind of con senn sis across the aisle, i wonder why there isn't even larger rough when you do seem to have some bipartisan consensus? >> i think part of it is the privatization of prisons. the whole body that benefits. so now you have this natural lobby you didn't have a few decades ago essentially pushing to keep the existing laws in place. the momentum is going to outweigh that. they're going to have to catch up with the general public at 58%. they're going to stand up and say i believe in this. i believe in legalization. >> two states have pass id it. the sky hasn't fallen in

colorado. so it's hard to jeff fustify it you're one stateover and you see where a state has done this and actually the worst-case scenarios haven't happened. it's turned into a sensible situation. >> at the end testify day, john, you're going to have federal policy. >> it's interesting. it's happening. we're sort of dancing around this. it is going, to in my opinion, get legalized in alaska in august, i believe. arizona may well be voting on it. so this thing -- so the fact of this matter is when you've got not just two states but six, seven, eight states, you're going to start to see the federal government saying we've tot rationalize it. thank you so much to kayton

dawson, schaar hardas is sekara glenn. up next the kentucky sinkhole you may not know about. the volkswagen passat against all comers. turbocharged engines against...engines. best in class rear legroom against other-class legroom. but then we realized. consumers already did that. twice. huh. maybe that's why nobody else showed up. how does one get out of a death cage? vo: right now, get 0.9% apr on all passat models plus a total of $1000 in bonuses. there's nothing like being your own boss! and my customers are really liking your flat rate shipping. fedex one rate. really makes my life easier. maybe a promotion is in order. good news. i got a new title. and a raise? management couldn't make that happen.

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isn't it time you discovered the lighter side of dog chow. purina dog chow light & healthy. okay. did you hear the big news out of kentucky this week? eight corvettes were swallowed up by a massive sinkhole that opened under the national corvette museum in bowling green. it was an amazing site. and while the museum remains open, the corvette isn't the only thing in the bluegrass state that's in danger over sinking. that's why this week's letter goes to the kentucky politician whose career may be sunk by his own d.c. colleagues. dear senate republican leader mcconnell. it's me, joy. i know it's been a rough week. i mean if you can't trust the people in your own party, who do you trust. he really corked things up for the leadership this week.

new york he didn't take to the floor and start reading trchlt sues again. this time instead of allows them to pass it. your friend ted objected which meant the bill needed 60 votes to advance. needing at least five republicans needed to vote with democrats some of you and senator cornyn of texas who like you is facing a primary challenge plus ten of your colleagues had to join the senn at democrats. all 12 of you opposed final package but the dame was all right done. you voted to raise the debt ceiling before you voted to vote against it. matt befben jumped on your vote immediately releasing a statement that says i wish i could say i'm surprised that mitch mcconnell volted to hand him another blank check. sadly i am not. this is the same politician

who's voted for these other thing lgs. ungo natalie for you, senator mcconnell, that wasn't all. there's this ad. >> his ideology is power. that's why he's voted to raise the debt ten times. mcconnell even joined harry reid in opposed the defunding of obamaca obamacare. if he wants to vote like a democrat, he can become a democrat. >> ted cruz may tell you something. he ripped the curtain off it which had been kind of growing together lately and he put you andovers at risk. so much for the olive branch.

but that is exactly what he has done and it could affect gop chances of grabbing the majority inform the senate. not only do they need to keep the senate seeds they already have, they have to gain an additional six seats for the balance to change and senator in your race, you here not exactly sitting in the catbird's seat. right now your opponent is beating you in the polls. they're making sure you don't make it to the general election. ted cruz may not be the only friend w.h.o.'s looking more like a frenemy. rand paul your fellow kentucky senator said, because he asked me. he asked me when there was nobody else in the race and i said yes. wow, rand, your passion is

really touchy. snort mccome, from here on out you might want to watch your back. if you don't watch out, your political career could wind up joining those corvettes in the kentucky cinch hole. sincerely, joy. ♪ [ male announcer ] we all deserve a good night's sleep. thankfully, there's zzzquil. it's not for colds, it's not for pain, it's just for sleep. ♪ because sleep is a beautiful thing™. ♪ zzzquil. the non-habit forming sleep aid from the makers of nyquil®.

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today marks the start of the 2014 mardi gras celebration in new orleans. colorful parades, outrageous come to costumes. tonight cbs is airing the whole gritty city. hosted by legendary jazz musician wynton marsalis. it's high lighting the reality of the children and the amazing impact music has on their lives. ♪

>> new orleans buries too many of its young. our city has one of the highest murder rates in the country and almost half of our kids live in poverty. >> this is the neighborhood i don't like because they have guns. >> for so many kids in new orleans, this is their refuge, the band room. it's their save haven from the lures and dangers of the streets. >> right here. keep control. >> you never know what a kid is going through. you know, you have kids dwhoenlts have stable homes. a kid needs to be spoken to daily, well, how was your day. you know, just to feel like they're alive, they mean somethi

something. i am somebody. you are somebody. >> they have a chance to be somebody at center stage at mardi gras. >> you have some kids who never played before, never marched before, never played an instrument before. >> everybody should be marching. here. anybody have a problem with this young man leading you down the street? why? what's the problem? >> you can't see him. >> why aren't you on the front linesome. >> the kids in marching band, it's a test of skill, talent, and endurance. >> can you march for three or four hours? >> i can march longer than you.

>> i can march for 16 hours, my brother. >> how many can you march? >> 29,000 hours. >> that's per post truss. >> it's one bad ge of honor. >> i feel like it's the best day in the world. >> now, in full disclosure, the host of this show melissa harris-perry donated money. she has no ongoing stake in the film and with now now is the director and producer and editor of the whole gritty city richard barber and the co-producer andre lambertson and joining us from new orleans is a standout band director from landry walker high school. he's featured in the film.

i want to ask you what inspired you? >> i had been working on a broadcast at "48 hours" about post katrina murders and i looked at the footage about -- there was a murder of a young mufgs. he had started a marching band at one of the first high schools that opened up at the school. they talked about how much it meant to have this guy come in and give them this band and give them the attention and give them a purple. >> and one young man who talked who i think arguably is the star of the show his name is bear. he says people don't understand the struggles. i want to play a little clip and

then i want you to respond. >> my brother was in the gang. he got out. when he came downhill, he was in his car. they came up to him and they shot him. that's my brother. he never had a fight in his life. he never had a gun. he was intelligent. >> drain, what was this like? this because couple of years watching this young man go through what they go through in their life. >> we spent three years but we didn't spend that time constantly with the characters. bear is like a genius and so to spend time with him was really a lot of fun. we gave the kids cameras. the beauty of the show is you get to see them, you see bear. you see unexpected places.

even though bear had lost a brother he was one of the most positive funny kids i ever met. >> it really is interesting when you're walking through his world with him. and i want to bring you in because you're working with these kids on a daily basis. talk a little bit about the challenge. you talk about how when they're in that band room they're theres and you can mode and shape them but they've got to go into an area. >> i call it getting in the hood again. when you go into neighborhoods and societies you have to put on a front to be accepted in these areas. but when you're in a band, an environment that's wholesome and rich and youy actually be yourself, once you strip away all of the layers of a child, the bad behaviors that have been learned over the years because of gang -- like i said it's an act. it's something you have to do in

order to fit into that society. once you fit in there, it's all about that. you move on. try to matriculate college so they can understand that little small part of the world is just what it is. it's just a little small part of the world, you know. >> when we come back, we want to talk more to you about the experience that you've had changing the lives of these young at risk people -- at risk young people. but first here's another scene from "the whole gritty city." >> this is the neighborhood i don't like. these are streets i don't like

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>> i have friends. i'm the only one of my friends i grew up with that's still living. it was eight of us, man. four of them got killed, man, at different times. three of them overdosed on heroin. i'm the last one living. >> come on. the relentless pursuit of perfection. five, six, five, sick, seven, go. >> that was a clip from the amazing documentary "the whole gritty city" featuring one of mice guests wilbur rollins. the fact that you went through some of the same issues that are out on the street that you talk about with the young people that you mentor, does that help them

to relate to you better? >> yes, it does. it helps them to relate to me and it helps me to relate to them it helps me to tell kids not to go down the same roads i traveled. i was one of the most fathered and mothered children growing up. my father was a professional drummer with stevie wonder and rail charles. i came from a musical background. my mother, she kept us -- she tried to keep us out of the environmental as much as is she could, but they both had to go to work. and my brother and i, lawrence raw license who's also featured in the documentary, we had to leave our home and go to school.

yes, our past and upbringing led us to what we're doing. both of us are band directors. i find it funny that at an early age i knew what i wanted to do in life. i kind of -- i kind of took on the roll of my band director, you know, herman jones, walter harris. these guys were larger than life to me and later i met isaac graves. i found out the band director had more power than any other person in my life other than my parents, so i think my past and, you know, what i've gone through in life directly relates to how i can affect children nowadays. >> yeah, absolutely. and i want to show one more moment where you see how much time you spend perfecting these young kids craft. >> you got to teach him. you can't let him do that. teach him.

five, six, seven, eight. five, six, seven, eight. let's do that again. ready? seven eight. now let's try it fast. ready. seven eight. go back in line. i want to see you do it. >> there you go, baby. that's what i'm talking about. you did a good job. >> i do want to come out and ask the filmmakers one more question, but, wilbert, when you looked that clip of you talking to those kids, you're almost sort of a father to them in a lot of ways or almost a member of their family. is that how you feel about them as well? >> yeah, i do. i feel as though all those kids are my children. and i don't have any biological children, so, i mean it's much easier for me to, you know, grab a child like that.

and i know what it's like growing up. try i to hug my kids each and every day, male and female. males, we need hugs also and a lot of these children, they don't get those essential elements in life. you need someone to tell you, i care for you, i love you, you know. you're great, you're wonderful, you know, you deserve the best in life. you can be whatever you want to be. and if no one tells them that, they'll never know that. so, again -- and i had it. i had it, so i mean it's kind of easy for me to give up. i'm an affection at person. it's great. it was wonderful watching the clip and that young man by the name of tray james is the guy who you saw on there. i remember he couldn't get a simple whip turn and now he's up in college. he's add texas southern college and he's one of the sectional leaders and he's doing well. he's on a full pay scholarship and life is good for him.

i remember him when i first met him. he had anger management problems. >> you were able to help him. >> yes. >> absolutely. >> you turn them and blossom them into beautiful people. >> indeed. richard, you used the mardi gras framing for the film. this is really a story about mentorship and really love. it's a story about people who care about kids in their neighborhoods and want to help them. >> definitely. mardi gras is the fee was for these bands. that's how they prepare them. it really is this amazing way it really is an amazing path. it gives them a whole world of opportunities. >> yet, andre, because people

know new orleans, this really is a different new orleans. it's something people are not used to seeing. >> in my whole thing i talk about this all the or i try to. you're used to seeing a lot of negativitity in certain neighborhoods. you acee because there's violence or drugs or poverty, there's not a lot of drugs or hope or inspiration rngs so i think certain kids or communities are demonized and marginalized. partly we were lucky enough to meet wilbert with the show. >> there's a character in the film named kirk. people think if you're from this area, these are actually -- these are some of the best people that come from here and i think the film really does show that. really excellent job. terrific film and hopefully all will tune in to watch that. thank you, everyone, once again "the whole gritty city" airs tonight on cbs. up next, a two-foot soldier

making history, helping other women march in her footsteps. as fast as you used to, which is funny, 'cause i still do it better than her. you know, i don't think i was meant to sweep. it's a little frustrating. look. [ zach ] i can't help out as much as i used to. do you need help? [ doorbell rings ] let's open it up. it's a swiffer sweeper. swiffer dusters. it can extend so i don't have to get on the step stool. i don't know how it stays on there. it's like a dirt magnet -- just like my kids. [ afi ] this is a danger zone. that is crazy. ah haha! [ zach ] yeah. no, this definitely beats hanging out on a step ladder. good jump, baby. ♪ every now and then i get a little bit hungry ♪ ♪ and there's nothing good around ♪ ♪ turn around, barry ♪ i finally found the right snack ♪ [ female announcer ] fiber one. ♪ i finally found the right snack ♪ ♪

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of the 167,000 women enlisted in the united states military, nearly one-third are black women. in fact, as of 2011, black women were enlisting at rates higher than either black men or white women. when this week's foot soldier joined the army after college, she did not know she would be making history. as the highest-ranking black woman in the army or army reserve in 2011, after 32 years of service, major jenmar sha anderson became the first african female two-star general in the history of the united states army. while major general anderson works as assistant chief at the army reserve, she is paving the way for other young women who hope to one day serve their country. as military officers, by providing them with a career road map that she did not have

when she dwbegan as a second lieutenant. joining me now from d.c. is major general marsha anderson, acting as assistant chief of the u.s. army reserve. thank you so much for being here. >> it's my pleasure. >> so you joined the army late. you weren't an high school rotc. you actually joined after high school. what made you want to join the united states army? >> i actually joined while i was in college. and it's a really quick story. i needed a science credit as i was registering for classes. and military science fit the bill. it also looked a lot like physical education, so i just decided to give it a shot. and as it turns out, that was the best decision, truly, i could have made for either my civilian or my military career. because it taught me a lot about leadership, and it challenged me, and it's been the best thing i ever did with my life. >> so talk about what it means to you to be the first black woman to really achieve this great feat, the rank of two-star general. >> well, the day i was promoted in 2011, i spoke a little bit about the tusk key gee airmen

and how they had influenced me. but to be truthful, it was not just the tuskegee airmen, it was many thousands of african-american women who volunteered starting in the civil war and were finally accorded the opportunity to fully join the military during world war ii. they were an inspiration. and i think often of the challenges they overcame to allow me to sit here today and talk to you. >> right. and so while 31% of military women are black, black women are still a minority in the armed forces. can you talk about your experience at the intersection of race and gender that you've experienced in the army? >> well, i am a member of the army reserve. we're about 200,000 citizen soldiers, and of that, about 45,000 are women from all ethnicities. it's an opportunity to serve my country. but it's also an opportunity to explore and challenge myself. we have over 300 unique career fields that you can take part in if you're in the army reserve. because we tend to lean more

towards stem, which is, of course, as you know, science, technology, engineering and math. so that affords a lot more opportunities for women. and i see every day that i serve. >> so i do want to talk about, because there has been a lot of controversy around the issue of military sexual assault. and so while encouraging young women to join the military and talking about all of the opportunities, as you just did, how can we ensure that young women who are seeking careers in the military do so in safety? >> well, i think first it's been good that we have had this debate, because it's forced us as an institution, as it will any institution, when you talk about challenges, to look at ways to improve reporting, to reduce the stigma for women and men, incidentally. and also to provide adequate legal counsel for both the accused and the victim. i think in terms of women joining the military, i think we need to look at it as not just being about diversity, it's about being inclusive. and every organization is going to benefit if you fully include,

promote, train and nurture your work force. because human capital is one way we as a country, not just a military, but as a country, can be more globally competitive. >> and you spend a lot of time talking to young people, to young women. what do you tell them about the most important things about your job or the thing you like best about your job and the biggest challenges you face? >> the thing i like best about my job is it's never the same every day. and i started out as a very shy young woman. so joining rotc was the best thing i could have done. because it forced me to learn how to be a leader, it made me stretch and extend myself. but one thing you have to understand about the military is, we will it tell you how to do something, we expect you to try to do it. and then we give you positive feedback after you have completed that task. and that's the only way i think you actually grow. >> okay. and the biggest challenge? >> the biggest challenge is not being so hard on myself. giving myself the space sometimes to make mistakes, to learn from those mistakes, pick myself up and start all over

again. >> all right. well, thank you so much to major general marsia anderson in washington, d.c. you indeed are our foot soldier of the day. >> thank you very much. >> that is our show for today. thank you at home for watching. i will see you tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. eastern. and we'll get into the president's new plan for young men of color. and the takeaway from michael sam's history-making announcement. also tomorrow, we have a special announcement you will not want to miss. we have got something brand-new in the works for nerd land, and we're inviting everyone to participate. now it's time for a preview of "weekends with alex witt." alex? >> wait, what is it? what? i have to tune in tomorrow? niceties there, i love that. thanks so much. wardrobe malfunction for team usa. new questions about what those new high-tech new speed skating stutes had to do with the showing. and how hillary clinton reinvented herself from the feat of 2008 to 2016. controversy over a restaurant whose officials t-shirts are drawing criticism for attacking

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just a few more ways allstate is changing car insurance for good. [ female announcer ] call an allstate agent and get a quote now. controversy at the games. could one article of clothing be costing the u.s. olympic gold? we're going to hear from one of the skaters involved. it's still here. and more is on the way. another crippling blast of winter expected here in the northeast. where and when in a live report. still no word. jurors may be deadlocked in the trial of a man killing a teen because of loud music. so what could be the holdup? a report that takes a kr comprehensive look at the george washington bridge incident. what it means for chris christie. hey there, everyone. high noon here in the east, 9:00 a.m. out west. welcome to "weekends with alex witt." another blast of winter weather expected to hit the northeast this