and greg abbott and bring you a look at the number one solution you have to proezed so far in this week a's call to action on voting rights. first, our headlines. john kerry has arrived in the ukrainian capital of kiev. >> an emotional wake through the square. >> we will stand with the people of ukraine. >> have had mir putin saying this morning -- >> there is no need for further russian military intervention but the possibility still exists. >> angela merkel told obama she wasn't sure putin was in touch with reality. >> making smart spending cuts and closing tax loopholes that right now only benefit the well off and well connected. >> it is primary day in texas. >> in the last gubernatorial election, the latino turnout was make or break issue. >> the voices in south texas will be the voices if they engage. >> are you homephobic? >> i'm not homephobic, are you?

>> if you had more gay friends you would not wear that tie? we begin today with breaking news. today the tug of war over ukraine is intensifying with russia's president defending his intervention and u.s. upping the ante. here's president obama over an hour ago. take a listen. >> although russia has legitimate interests in what happens in neighboring state, that does not give it the right to use force as a means of exerting influence inside that state. >> doesn't have the right to use force and then we turn from d.c. to kiev where secretary of state john kerry made a symbolic stop in independence square where that revolution began and visited a shrine to the fallen

and after that he blasted russia. >> it is diplomacy and respect for sovereignty, not unilateral force, that can best solve disputes like this in the 21st century. >> kerry brought a lot more than just talk with him. he actually put a big offer on the table, one billion in aid, including energy assistance. just for his arrival, putin took to tv to defend his presence in the crimea region. he called it a unconstitutional coup and any military intervention would be a mu humanitarian mission. >> there's no reset with vladimir putin. he is not going to expect the

president to be more flexible after he is re-elected. >> the first shots were fired in the erupting crimea region. video captured russian troops firing warning shots at ukrainian soldiers who marched on an air field to demand their jobs back. let's gets more from kiev with ian williams. what type of reaction are they getting from the people on the ground in ukraine? >> reporter: hello from from a damp and foggy kiev. the initial reaction has been good to the visit and offer the aid. kerry said he was coming as a gesture of support to the interim ukrainian government. he was well received when he visited the barricades that turned into a shrine covered in

flowers for those many of whom were shot by snipers during the violence of just a few days ago, which saw the overthrow of yanukovych. now, also at the same time, he went and met leaders and told them about this offer, a bill dollar loan agreement. i think the tone of what he has been saying here is well received in terms of the passion and also in terms of the disdain towards the comments that came from putin earlier. so generally it's been very well received here. good comments on the social media. and i guess really now is how he can turn this offer the financial aid into something concrete with the help of the imf and the eu, ronan. >> a tough climate out there. we appreciate you joining us. ian williams reporting from kiev. thank you again. in this tug of war you just heard about between america and russia, the question remains is

anything strong enough to over -- on why russia is so invested in this fight? is there military might rests on it. the large navy that russia has stationed in crimea's warm water port, a few numbers you should know. 6,000, the estimated number of russian troops that arrived in crimea in the past few days. also 15,000, that's how many members of russia's navy were already stationed there. and finally, a big one, 845,000, that is the total number of armed forces in russia. here to dig deeper in the russian perspective is former u.s. ambassador to russia and former colleague of mine, michael mcfall. thank you for joining us. what stood out most to you about putin's comments today?

>> the dual messages. there were two major messages in con tradition contradiction to each other. he tried to justify the legalities of having soldiers in crimea, and know he denied they were ordered by him rather strangely and said the ukrainian government was illegitimate and therefore russia's legal comments to ukraine before this revolutionary government took power are no longer valid. that was a threatening set of comments he made about what might come next. at the same time, he also left the door open for negotiation. he said i have no interest in an exing crimea and we want to see the return of a legitimate government in ukraine. i think it shows he himself has not decided what is going to be the end game for him in terms of this crisis. >> and what do you think the end game is for president obama

here? >> the end game for president obama and the western world and i would say the entire international community is that russia needs to withdraw its forces, to recognize again the territorial integrity of ukraine and to allow ukrainians to decide what kind of government they'll have on what kind of election process they'll have. including, perhaps, changing the constitution. some have mentioned that a more federal system of government might be away to placate the worries that ethnic russians in crimea and eastern ukraine have. that could very well be the case. but ukrainians need to decide that by themselves not with an occupying power in their country. >> we just talked a little bit about how important ukraine is strategically to russia militarily in terms of the energy pipe lines that run through it. do you think secretary kerry is capable of offering any diplomatic proposal that will sway putin in light of those

things? >> i don't know. i honestly don't know and don't believe anybody that knows. it obviously, ukraine plays a very important role in terms of the way that president putin sees russia's role in that region. he's been trying to create something called the you're asian economic union to create a counter to the european union and wants ukraine to be a part of that. he's frustrated that his partner in that endeavor, president yanukovych fled and is now in russia. that's why he did what he did in crimea, an impulsive response to the failure of the yanukovych regime. i don't think he figured out what his next move is. i don't think he knows what he wants to do. he understands the risks of an all in and out war in ukraine between russian soldiers and ukrainian soldiers, that is a complete disaster for russia. i think he's still trying to figure out what his long-term

strategy is here. >> and ambassador mcfaul, i did want to get your take on the domestic stakes, senator mccain raming against barack obama. we've got several saying he's viewed as a weak actor. do you think vladimir putin views obama as weak in this? >> i don't think weak or not. i think he was going to go into crimea no matter who was president in the white house. and i would remind your viewers he went into georgia when george w. bush was president in 2008. if you go back over time, eisenhower was president when the soviets went into hungary in 1956 and poland when they declared marshall law with soviet assistance, that's when ronald reagan was president. >> there's only so much you can control. >> we would be better served to think about how we can unify to help the ukrainians right now rather than talking about who's

weak and who's not. >> michael mcfaul, good to see you. thanks for joining us. >> thanks for having me. >> coming up in just a few minutes, president obama released his ambitious new economic plan, including expanded tax credit and closes tax loopholes for wealthy investors. you can stay tuned on this show with a real power broker insider but first, you can also start weighing in right now with us because today's battle of the day is on whether you think president obama's proposals can help level the playing field. you weigh in again through hash tags as usual. today's are rfd level. if you think this proposal could work. or rfd no change. we'll be updating you and sharing your responses all through today's show. also coming up on the show, there's been emotional testimony at the trial of oscar pistorius,

our panel of experts weigh in. the 2014 election season is kicking off where wendy davis is slamming her republican rival, greg abbott. >> already referred to the southern part of texas, the border communities of texas -- >> where we are right now. >> as third world. >> i went to texas to catch up with davis and got surprisingly frank fighting words from her and her opponent. that's all coming up next.

♪ geico motorcycle. see how much you could save. it's amanda. hey sweetie. what? [phones rings] okay, i'll send it. one hundred seventy-two dollars for a chemistry book, what is it, made of gold? just use citi popmoney. boom. ah, she's feeling lucky. hey sweetie...cancun, yeah no, you'll be spending spring break with your new chemistry book. with citi popmoney it's easy to send money to just about anyone, anytime. visit your local branch or citi.com/easierbanking to learn more.

to nbcuniversal's coveragens of the biggest loser olympic winter games ever, with the most coverage of the most events on every device. and the most hours of streaming video on the nbc sports live extra app, including the x1 platform from xfinity. comcast was honored to bring every minute of every medal of nbcuniversal's coverage to every screen. so what's next? rio 2016. welcome to what's next. comcast nbcuniversal. welcome back, first primary of the 2014 election season is underway today in texas. the eyes of the country have been on the lone star state over last year as it became the stage for an explosive fight over women's rights and another one

over immigration. there are a number of important statewide races unfolding right now today and we're going to take you inside one of the most heated. the race to succeed governor rick perry. i was in texas over the weekend right on the border and caught up with both the republican and the democratic front-runners in that race. >> democratic state senator wendy davis was all smiles at saturday's parade in the texas bordertown of brownsville. a saturday campaign stump for davis and for her republican opponent, attorney general greg abbott. >> what do you say to critics it's too much of a side show, you're hammering him too hard? >> i disagree, we're all responsible for our actions. >> reporter: davis has been hammering abbott over recent appearances with former rocker and current republican rouser, ted nugent. he recently made headlines when he called president obama a

quote, subhuman monogrolg and controversy with admitting to relationships with underage girls. it became ground zero in the fight for women's right. just last week davis slammed nugent and abbott with an ad featuring a rape survivor. >> it sends the wrong message and that he partnered up with this man that is very vocal about liking underage girls. >> so he didn't make the comment but you feel the association is enough? >> he stood with this person and said, i'm appearing with this person because he is a fighter for freedom. >> davis' fund raising numbers have gone through the roof since she started focusing on nugent. she raised $680,000 in the last

six days of the month. more than the entire 505,000 she raised in the 24 days before. and as abbott mentioned when we caught up with him along the parade route, the polls show davis down? >> she is avoiding issues and because of that that's why she's falling in the polls. >> reporter: the latest poll from the university of texas and texas tribune shows abbott a full 11 points ahead. >> whenever she's talking about me, not creating one job or improving our roads or making the state of texas safer. >> reporter: but davis staffers reminded us that that poll was taken before abbott appeared with nugent. >> you saw that fund raising spike in response to the nugent attack. do you feel you'll also see a corresponding rise in numbers in terms of -- >> i do believe we will. we have eight and a half months

to go in the election. i understand what it is i will offer as their next governor in contrast to the alternative, which is greg abbott. >> eight months to go until election day and already these candidates are at each other's throats, battling for the souls texas. wayne slater of the dallas morning news, also the author of "bush's brain." wayne, first question, wendy davis and greg abbott are running with nominal opposition, they will be the nominees for the parties. what comes next? >> yeah, but basically what has to happen is that abbott as a republican running in a state that hasn't -- with a democrats haven't ee leked a governor since ann richards, hold onto the republican voters that have elected republicans to statewide office for two decades, white men, suburban women and just a

smidgen, maybe a quarter or third of the hispanic electorate and he can hold on. what has to happen for wendy davis is tougher. she's really facing a head wind, a political head wind in texas. and i think that interview that you had with her was good. it shows that candidates in texas have to show they can do two things, lead a prayer and shoot a gun and be pretty darn tough. texas voters want someone like annie oakley, at least democrats do and they think they may have that candidate in someone like wendy davis. what she has to do is expand voter turnout among hispanics where you were in south texas and draw a number of moderate women from the suburbs. if she does that, she could win. >> more than 12,000 democratic volunteers have been pouring into texas. i saw a lot of those people on the ground. do you think that's going to be a game changer? why does texas matter so much to the democratic party nationally right now? >> it could be, it's too soon to know whether the folks,

including a number of obama campaign political effective operatives in the state trying to turn out and generate the greater democratic ternout, we'll know more in november. but texas is important, democrats not only here in texas but nationally recognize, if you can make texas a competitive state, if in fact wendy davis, generates the kind of turnout and this group can generate the kind of political machinery to re-establish the democratic party as a competitive party, if that can happen, then texas can become competitive and any future presidential democrat candidate say in 2016, 2020 or 2024, if this can win california, new york and massachusetts, and texas, they are halfway to the electoral votes to win the white house. >> last question, you were the first person to bring out the inconsistencies in davis's biography among the core of

texas reporters following that story. how much do you think that particular story hurt her prospects? >> i think it's hurt her prospects in the short term. ultimately though, among other things, it has given a wake-up call to wendy davis's folks that they have to do a better job in vetting her and presenting who she is and as a candidate. i came away from that interview with wendy davis with one very distinct impression, she is very, very tough. and i think that's the candidate we're going to see in the next eight months. >> thank you so much, sir. wayne slater of the dallas morning news. prerve you taking the time to speak with us today. and up next on "ronan farrow daily." president obama is looking to tackle income inequality. we'll look at the president's proposals and whether you can expect to pay more to uncle sam. stay with us. if i can impart one lesson to a

new business owner, it would be one thing i've learned is my philosophy is real simple american express open forum is an on-line community, that helps our members connect and share ideas to make smart business decisions. if you mess up, fess up. be your partners best partner. we built it for our members, but it's open for everyone. there's not one way to do something. no details too small. american express open forum. this is what membership is. this is what membership does.

humans -- we are beautifully imperfect creatures, living in an imperfect world. that's why liberty mutual insurance has your back, offering exclusive products like optional better car replacement, where, if your car is totaled, we give you the money to buy one a model year newer. call... and ask an insurance expert about all our benefits today, like our 24/7 support and service,

because at liberty mutual insurance, we believe our customers do their best out there in the world, so we do everything we can to be there for them when they need us. plus, you could save hundreds when you switch -- up to $423. call... today. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? you want a loan to build you can't do that.ica? nobody builds factories in the us anymore... you can't do that. using american raw materials makes no sense... you can't do that. you want to hire workers here in the states? they're too expensive, you can't do that. fortunately we didn't listen to the experts. at weathertech we built american factories, we use american raw materials and we hire american workers. weathertech.com, proudly made in america. quality like this...you can't do that.

hello, folks, welcome back to "rf daily." we got developing news as the president released his proposed budget for 2015. that plan would expand the earned income tax credit which offers federal assistance to 13.5 million low income workers, it would cost $60 billion, over the next decade. where is that money going to come from? well, the plan also closes two tax loopholes for the ultrawealthy. take a listen. >> right now our tax systems provides benefits to wealthy individuals who save, even after they've amassed multimillion dollar retirement accounts. by closing that loophole we can create jobs and grow the economy and expand opportunity without adding a dime to the deficit. >> house budget chairman paul ryan already come out swinging

against the plan. yet another disappointment and added the president has three years left in his administration and seems determined to do nothing about our fiscal challenges. that's paul ryan. this budget isn't a serious document he says. will this budget proposal help flagging republican opinion of president obama's track record. we turn now to financeer and former treasury official and cnbc economic analyst steve radener. thank you for being here. >> thanks for having me. >> i wanted to start out with your gut reactions to this. is it the expanded credit for low income workers? >> this is a policy statement of what he believes should happen in the budget, more spending on things like the earned income tax credit which is today's headline but also things like infrastructure and pressing needs. he wanted to put out what he believes in and indeed what the democrats believe in in advance

of mid-term elections. >> you have a background in private equity yourself and roll with a crowd of people most affected by the closed loopholes. what is the reaction you're seeing from colleagues and people on wall street? >> this is not necessarily a new f proposal, it's been talked about for a good while. it's a mixed reaction. some people in the private equity world and i'm still a beneficiary of that loophole who believe the right thing is to close it. it should be tax like work and shouldn't be a special break. there are others with a different view. there's a mixed view in the private equity community about this. >> but you are clearly taking a frank stance on it yourself? >> i think people who work for a living and get paid at the top salary, pay 40% now. people who have the benefit of the loophole pay 20%. i don't really understand the argument for why someone -- some of these people who make hundreds and millions of dollars a year should be paying a 20% tax rate instead of 40% that someone who has a job in a

corporation pays. >> that is a strong, clear statement. what been the political prospects? is this something that could ever feasibly get through the hill? >> this is honestly just a statement. we have gridlock on capitol hill. nothing is happening. as part of resolving the government shut down last fall, two sides agreed on a two-year plan and they can go back and agree on something else. as you heard paul ryan state his views, in the current climate, this is really -- to his credit coming out and saying, this is what i believe in. i wouldn't hold your breath until this happens. >> the latest polling on the economic track record has been pretty harsh. do you think that this proposal has an opportunity to turn any of that around? >> the president's problem is because we still have high unemployment and wages are not going up. i don't blame him for either of those. but what i think he hopes for and what i would hope for is that as we get into the mid-term

elections and people as they do every two years have a choice between two different visions for how they want the government to function and what they want the government to do. the people will see the president's budget has a better chance of reversing unemployment problem and income problem than what the republicans want to do. >> all right thank you for that assessment. always a pleasure to be with you. >> thanks so much, ronan. >> still ahead on "rfd", a witness breaks down on the stand at the trial of a man some are calling south africa's o.j. simpson. we have testimony footage plus an exclusive interview with the victim's mom. >> it's not going to matter anything to me whatever happens to him because she's not coming back. also, a florida woman could face 60 years in prison for firing a warning shot at her abusive husband. our daily panel of legal expects weigh in, and i get to dust off

my law degree, probably with disastrous results. stay with us. [ male announcer ] winter olympian ted ligety

can't take a sick day tomorrow. [ coughs ] [ male announcer ] so he can't let a cold keep him up tonight. vicks nyquil. powerful nighttime 6 symptom cold and flu relief. ♪ [ male announcer ] how did edward jones become one of the biggest financial services companies in the country? hey. yours? not anymore. come on in. [ male announcer ] by meeting you more than halfway. it's how edward jones makes sense of investing.

welcome back, it has been called south africa's o.j. simpson trial. if the first two days in court are any indication, it may turn out to be equally dramatic. double amputee olympic sprinter, oscar pistorius shot and killed his model girlfriend on valentine's day last year. he said it was an accident and thought he was shooting an intruder. the first witness in the case took the stand and described what she heard on that night. >> i heard a female screaming terribly, her life was threatened in the house. i cannot imagine her not being threatened in the house. i could only hear her shouts and terrible screaming. >> the victim's mother was in the courtroom to face her daughter's killer on the first day of this trial and she spoke to the "today" show about it earlier. >> i wanted him to see me, the

mother of reeva and you know, it's just important for me that he saw me there. we just want the truth. we want the truth of what happened. only she and oscar were there. and she's not here anymore. >> not here anymore, obviously a wrenching situation for the family. for legal expertise on this trial, we're going to turn to our super mart daily panel, we've got joe tacopina, the taco, i've been told to call him and represented juroren van der sloot and seema ire, thank both of you for being here today. help me out, my law degree as i've said is dusty. let's go through the basics. i'll start with you, what are the key differences that could

actually affect this case? >> one and most importantly, i wonder if joe agrees, we only have a judge here. in 1969, they've eliminated the jury system because of apartheid and the concerns for racism that would happen on a jury. we have only a judge here and another important difference is that when they say that oscar is facing life in essence, that actually only means 25 years. that's another key difference where in this country if you see life you're going to get life. another important difference is the appeals process, you are not guaranteed an appeal. there's no right to an absolute appeal. it's within the discretion of the court. >> in general, you want to go through a trial like this in the united states more than you do in south africa? >> for oscar pistorius, i think he may have a better chance with a judge only. >> interesting. >> because of the media? >> because of the media i think in general and joe tacopina

could speak better because of his a list clientele. >> i was going to ask you, he's out on bail. we've soon footage of him being swarmed by paparazzi and media. how do you think the media component of this either plays into his hands or is a problem for him? >> it could be a problem in the case you have a high profile defendant because it could sway potential jurors. you don't know what they are thinking and reading when cases are on the internet or the cable networks such as msnbc all the time. people get -- they get saturated with information and you worry about that. in this instance, you alleviate when the judge is your fact finder and in some high profile cases i've removed that concern by going with a judge trial. we went with a judge trial and it turned out to be successful because it takes away the

emotional element and the media perception of things and how that's portrayed. >> that's agood thing for him. >> except there's a caveat here. this is south africa. i don't understand all of the political ramifications, how judges were made and appointed and how that could affect -- >> actually, the only second female black judge since apartheid has been abolished, so that's what joe is saying getting to the political ramifications -- >> and obviously a woman is the victim here. following the social media traffic, a lot of outcry from women in particular from this. >> what is disturbing that i see in high profile trials is that good looking female victims are usually not sympathized. i'm concerned that the public will sympathize more with him being that he's a celebrity and that he's very good looking and he's been put on a pedestal for numerous years. >> let's say it, part of the media appeal is they are very good looking people. it is an arresting story

visually for that reason. >> like the oj simpson trial. >> female judges, female historically are more sympathetic -- >> no, you're 100% right. females are more sympathetic or more harsh, they judge women harshly. when you're -- >> this may have the opposite effect of what you would expect. >> except when you're a judge, that is supposed to go by the wayside, you're supposed to be trained in the law and understand you cannot let emotions play into your deliberations in your mind and all of that thing. therefore, if you go with a judge, all of the concerns you have -- these are all real concerns, all been properly identified are generally not there anymore. >> i want to turn for a second to the united states back in florida, you have a lot of news this week out of the mmarissa a who fired a warning shot at her husband as he was advancing on

her she claimed. she could face a huge jail sentence and we just learned this week that some of the intri catcies of what the prosecutor is asking for. she had been serving a 20-year sentence for three counts of aggravated assault. she tried unsuccessfully to use florida's stand your ground law in her defense. an appeals judge threw out that conviction and freed from prison right before thanksgiving. she faces a retrial and delay and this week the prosecution announced they are seeking consecutive, not concurrent sentences which would make it 60 years. that's practical terms a life sentence. >> for shooting a wall. >> for shooting a wall. >> i disagree with that. i don't think it's shooting the wall. >> let's start with you. the taco, what is your take in legal terms, what's the basis for seeking consecutive? sfl the law permits it and she's charged in three counts. there are 20-year counts. look, the attorney general,

prosecution is doing what the law gives them the ability to do and discretion to do. this case i think underscores more than anything the unfair results and sentencing you can have when these guidelines and sentencing sort of mandatory minimums strip the judge from the judge's discretion, evaluate all of the facts and circumstances. this lady was given 20 years and the judge all but said i wish i could do something else. i've been asked by many people to give her leniency and consider her circumstances. she was someone in such fear of her safety with a very abusive husband that she took matters into her own hands. the problem is the law did not permit the judge to consider those factors. that's all he could have done. >> sima, when she last used the stand your ground law defense, florida has -- the judge actually threw out that defense on the basis of the fact she went back in after firing the warning shot, which she found

inconsistent with someone in fear of their lives? >> completely inconsistent. alexander went from the master bedroom, through the living room, past the victim, went into the garage, went into the glove compartment of the car, retrieved a weapon and went back in the house, could have left through the front door and back door and did not do that. stand your ground means stand your ground, doesn't mean go out and circle the block for 30 minutes and come back with a gun. and it wasn't in her house, another important factor. >> thank you so much for schooling me on the legality of these cases. appreciate it. >> sure. >> thank you for joining us. let's check back in first on today's battle of the day. we asked, remember, would president obama's budget proposals help level the playing field economically? here are the responses, 69% picked rfd level and 31% rfd no

change. lisa picked rfd level and tweeted, unless you're a billionaire who doesn't like to share, bill picked rfd no change and shared this. no matter republican or democrat, the government will continue to work for things that benefit them, not the citizens. keep them coming. stay with us because up next we have got our heroes and zeros. ukraine is a country in turmoil right now but in the chaos, a strong show of unity. we'll tell you why it's making our heroes and zeros up next. the end. lovely read susan. may i read something? yes, please. of course. a rich, never bitter taste cup after cup. 340 grams. [ sighs ] [ male announcer ] always rich, never bitter. gevalia.

never bitter. [ mala body at rest tends to stay at rest... while a body in motion tends to stay in motion. staying active can actually ease arthritis symptoms. but if you have arthritis, staying active can be difficult. prescription celebrex can help relieve arthritis pain so your body can stay in motion. because just one 200mg celebrex a day can provide 24 hour relief for many with arthritis pain and inflammation. plus, in clinical studies, celebrex is proven to improve daily physical function so moving is easier. celebrex can be taken with or without food. and it's not a narcotic. you and your doctor should balance the benefits with the risks. all prescription nsaids, like celebrex, ibuprofen, naproxen and meloxicam have the same cardiovascular warning. they all may increase the chance of heart attack or stroke, which can lead to death. this chance increases if you have heart disease or risk factors such as high blood pressure

or when nsaids are taken for long periods. nsaids, like celebrex, increase the chance of serious skin or allergic reactions, or stomach and intestine problems, such as bleeding and ulcers, which can occur without warning and may cause death. patients also taking aspirin and the elderly are at increased risk for stomach bleeding and ulcers. don't take celebrex if you have bleeding in the stomach or intestine, or had an asthma attack, hives, other allergies to aspirin, nsaids or sulfonamides. get help right away if you have swelling of the face or throat, or trouble breathing. tell your doctor your medical history. and find an arthritis treatment for you. visit celebrex.com and ask your doctor about celebrex. for a body in motion. welcome back, it's time for our heroes and zeros of the day. question, can sports transcend political upheaval. today's heroes are showing that the answer can be yes. two days ago as russian troops were on the move, it appeared that a scheduled match between

the ukrainian men's national football team and the u.s. would have to be called off. the game a key warm-up for the world cup was originally scheduled to be playeded in ukraine. clearly that is not going to happen with the situation raging on ground there. the solution? moving the location of the match. it will now take place in cypress, although the ukrainian team is drawn from different regions across that divided country, they are in fact, a team. despite whatever political differences that exist between them, these athletes are united in their desire to play. so for keeping the spirit of sportsmanship alive in the face of a crisis, the players of the ukrainian national soccer team are our heroes today. on a very different note, this week, angry parishioners are refusing to reach into their pockets to support their arch bishop's appeal for charity funds. one churchgoeer said, i'm

disgusted the archdiocese will not get another penny out of me. why? because john j. myers has lux living standards, expanding his 4500 square foot, $800,000 home, which already features an outdoor swimming pool and now construction is underway on a 3,000 square foot addition to the home that's likely a suite party pad, but also raising a lot of eyebrows, going to include a hot tub and one of those fancy infinity pools. pope francis began reshaping the image of the church with his choice to live in a modest apartment in the vatican and criticized bishops who live like princes. for ignoring that model, john j. myers is our zero of the day. up next on "ronan farrow daily", our call to action this week, voting rights. we asked what your number one challenge is when it comes to voting.

nicole says long lines, six hours or more here in south florida last election. more on this issue and your responses as well as a potential solution next. the conversation about her mortgage didn't start here. it began on her vacation in europe. someone stole her identity and opened some credit cards in her name. checking her experian credit report and score allowed her to better address the issue...and move right in. experian.

humans. even when we cross our t's and dot our i's, we still run into problems. namely, other humans. which is why, at liberty mutual insurance, auto policies come with new car replacement and accident forgiveness if you qualify. see what else comes standard at libertymutual.com. liberty mutual insurance. responsibility. what's your policy? that's a good thing, but it doesn't cover everything. only about 80% of your part b medical expenses. the rest is up to you. so consider an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement insurance plans, they could save you in out-of-pocket medical costs.

call today to request a free decision guide. with these types of plans, you'll be able to visit any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients... plus, there are no networks, and virtually no referrals needed. join the millions who have already enrolled in the only medicare supplement insurance plans endorsed by aarp... and provided by unitedhealthcare insurance company, which has over 30 years of experience behind it. with all the good years ahead, look for the experience and commitment to go the distance with you. call now to request your free decision guide.

welcome back. remember, each week here on "ronan farrow daily" we are issuing a call to action. we want to hear from you about changes you would like to see. this week we're talking about voting rights, and we asked you all to tell us what your main challenge is in voting. shrinks from manhattan tweeted that her number one problem with voting was not having easy access to mail-in ballots. jillian said, quote, my husband works monday through sunday and tends not to get home until after 7:00 p.m. for him it's practically impossible to vote. susan from santa rosa said, quote, when i took my elderly mother to vote in the last

presidential election in maryland it took about two and a half hours to vote. in my opinion there should be a national voting standard that applies to all states, not what we have now which is customized plans for each state. we hear you, susan. and here to explore that very possibility is denita judge. thank you for joining us. i know you're in the trenches and you have a lot of insight. let's start with susan's concern. people want more of a national standard. that was a big subject of the public debate coming out of the last presidential cycle. where is that debate right now? >> right now i would say the debate is pretty much standing by itself. most people would be surprised to know that there is no fundamental right or explicit fundamental right to vote in our constitution. i think that when we see so many different standards throughout the country in terms of different jurisdictions having different election laws, a

national standard would help us to have a more uniformed system. so as we look at states like ohio and we look at states like north carolina, i think that people are clamoring for basically what susan said, a national policy where everyone has an opportunity to vote and have free, fair and accessible elections. >> what would that take politically? would this require a constitutional amendment or is this a symbolic fight for you because if that's the case it's not going to happen, right? >> certainly it would take a constitutional amendment to pass a national standard but there are other things that we can do, too. certainly states have the same opportunity to pass amendments to their constitutions to guarantee that there's a fundamental right to vote in their states and that any time an individual's rights are taken away that we hold our legislatures to the highest

standards possible when you attempt attemto take away the r to vote. >> what do you think would be changed on that level? >> early voting, guaranteeing that individuals have a certain amount of time to vote. we've changed in this country. we no longer only need to vote on election day. certainly we would have standards that would look at felony disenfranchising laws. many people, after they have completed their sentence, they are no longer to vote in this country. we need to look at standards that guarantee that everyone can have a voice in our democracy. >> what is the number one resource that people should look at on this? >> really look at your legislature, look at the rules in your state and guarantee that those rules really are fair and that they apply to everyone

equally. >> thank you so much. really appreciate you joining us and we'll come back to you as we pursue this story more. all week we are going to turn to you to ask what your number one challenge is and get your proposed solutions. send us your replies on twitter, facebook, e-mail. we will use some of them to highlight this issue across the country. let's check in for the last time today on the battle of the day. we asked you if the president's proposal could help level the playing field. 71% said yes. that wraps things up for this edition of rfd. it's that most excellent time of the day, the reid report with my wonderful colleague, joy reid. what do you have coming up for us? >> coming up on the reid report, the latest from ukraine and how russia's fight is setting up a

big fight in washington. then how voting restrictions will impact mid-term elections. we'll head to texas. and paul ryan is declaring war on the war on poverty. does congressman ryan say cutting taxes and funding is the way to help poor people? the reid report is just moments away. you can't always see them. but it's our job to find them. the answers. the solutions. the innovations. all waiting to help us build something better. something more amazing. a safer, cleaner, brighter future. at boeing, that's what building something better is all about. ♪

phone: your account is alreadyg somethinpaid in full.ll about.

oh, well in that case, back to vacation mode. ♪boots and pants and boots and pants♪ ♪and boots and pants and boots and pants♪ ♪and boots and pants... voice-enabled bill pay. just a tap away on the geico app. ♪ huh, 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. yup, everybody knows that. well, did you know that some owls aren't that wise. don't forget about i'm having brunch with meagan tomorrow. who? seriously, you met her like three times. who? geico. happy fat tuesday to everyone and that's about mardi gras. senator harry reid is on the floor to take on the coke brothers. we'll tell you what he says. later it's primary day in the lone star state.

wendy davis wants to turn it blue. can she do it and can the tea party help her. we start with ukraine. in particular, the u.s. response not just to russian troops but vladimir putin claims that there are no russian troops in crimea. this morning the russian leader held court, stunning the world with a claim that russian troops do not occupy crimea. rather, those armed troops that people see in front of them and on their tvs, those are pro russian local forces of self-defense. president obama appearing at a function had this to say regarding putin's claim. >> there is a strong belief that russia's action is violating international law. i know president putin seems to have a different set of lawyers making a different set of interpretations, but i don't think that's fooling anybody. >>