♪ billie jean is not my lover yeah, why are you awake not to see me moonwalk so early? i was going to say pearly. anyway, earlier in the show we asked you why you were awake. now we have some of the best tweets for us. >> this is a bad one. my cat brought a dead mouse in my bedroom and dropped it on my face. >> we love people that get woken up by dead mice. this is the friday edition of "way too early." thanks, gang. "morning joe" starts right now. >> this is what i'd like to suggest. let's have a conversation. rather than an interview. i would ask you to begin by stating all your questions. i will jot them down and try to answer them.

fine. let us stop here for now. i will begin. don't interrupt me. >> i forgot, it was an interesting fact. in russia, the word for conversation is the same word as the word for shut the [ bleep ] up. >> good morning, everyone. it's friday, march 7th. welcome to "morning joe." with us here in the studio, we have jen. >> jen's back. >> jen's back. >> in her red sweater. >> yeah, looking rested and glamorous. well, i guess that's what happens when you are picked by the network to go to sochi. >> sorry. >> what's that? >> she was working the al michaels show. she's a superstar. >> i'm surprised she's back. did she give her two weeks' notice? >> she resolved the ukraine crisis. >> i got a present. did you get one, know? oh, just me? >> yeah, just you. sbhoo what's that right there? >> another present for you. >> oh, thank you, jen.

that's so nice of you. we missed you. although -- that's nice. all right. with us now, national affairs editor for "new york" magazine and msnbc political analyst john heilemann. hi, john. >> hi. >> and msnbc and "time" magazine senior political analyst mark halperin. halperin. and in washington, pulitzer prize-winning columnist and associate editor for "the washington post" and msnbc political analyst, yew queen eu robinson. >> it was an exciting day. >> why? >> cpac began. >> i thought it was very colorful. >> very good. very exciting. a lot of people that are going to be written about in "game change '14." exactly. anybody make an impression? >> chris christie and ted cruz made big impressions. >> in fact, i think what you do in a case like this, mark halperin, john heilemann, let

the stories speak for itself. the conservative political action conference better known as cpac is under way in washington, d.c. the annual event giving party leaders the chance to talk directly with the conservative base. and yesterday the speakers list was a roster of potential 2016 candidates. ted cruz, one of the crowd favorites was first up, speaking for 18 minutes without a teleprompter. the senator took aim both at the republican establishment and obamacare. >> they say when you stand for principle, you lose elections. the way you do it, the smart way, the washington way is don't stand against obamacare. don't stand against the debt ceiling. don't stand against nothing. i want to tell you something. that is a false dichotomy. you want to lose elections? stand for nothing. and then, of course, all of us remember president dole.

those are good men. they're doesn't men. but when you don't draw a clear distinction. when you don't stand for principle, democrats celebrate. we need to repeal every single word of obamacare. when millions of americans stood up last fall and said stop this train wreck, this disaster that is obamacare that is hurting millions of people, the democrats said, the mainstream media said, although i repeat myself, they said this is hopeless. don't you understand? just move on. just accept it. you can't do anything to stop this. yes, we can. >> he's definitely very off the cuff. what did you think? >> i mean, 18 minutes without a

teleprompter delivering a message that was built for the base. i think for where he was, he spoke to his audience and spoke to his audience very well. >> i thought the romney came was -- isn't that sort of -- >> speaking of false dichotomies, though. nobody ever suggested during the fall that you stand for nothing. charles krauthammer, scott walker and myself and others suggested you stand for something. but you stand for something smartly and you figure out how to win while standing for that. i thought, again, for where he was, for who the audience was, for the republican base, i thought he did well and he certainly is a talented, talented speaker off the cuff, 20 minutes, no teleprompter. my god.

i don't know what. how do you speak without a teleprompter? isn't that funny? everybody is freaking out about that. >> 18 whole minutes. >> oh, my god. you do that before you wake up in the morning. >> then for about three hours after it. >> exactly. >> but the cat doesn't really listen to me when i wake up and start talking about obamacare. let me tell you about crimea. this is what we ought to do. >> back when i was in congress. >> you know what the cat says? meow! feed me! ted cruz, though, where he was. >> look. he has been, as we noted, he has been a little edged off the stage since his kind of not having a great fall. rand paul is getting a lot more attention than he has in the republican ranks. this was a good opportunity for ted cruz to stand up in front of people. if he has a chance to becoming the republican nominee these are the kind of people get him there and he delivered a message for those guys. i continue to believe that

repealir repelling obamacare not the way to win the election. >> i think he missed an opportunity. he's good for the base in the room but i think he still has not -- not doing anything to reject the establishment which he wants to be the republican nominee, he needs to do. george will last night on another cable channel was completely dismissive of his speech. george will is not like the king maker but he represents a school of thought. >> why was george will on another network? >> just rhetoric. if you got a choice between impressing tucker or george, george i think is the nominating electorate of the republican party. ted cruz can do fine if he runs playing in that lane but i still think he missed another opportunity to expand. he has broader appeal than he should in that speech to other parts of the electorate. if the big three didn't run, if ryan and bush and christie don't run there is a huge space there

and he could be taking up some of that. >> i must say if i'm at cpac, though, and i'm interested in impressing either george will or a guy that runs the daily caller, i would prefer to impress the guy that runs "the daily caller." >> you could do both, though. >> i think many people who could do both and, yes, i could do both but many people who could do both. it's not an either or. >> i guess it's good for yesterday. how do you take the message into the middle. if he wants to run for president, how bo you repeal obamacare and people in the corridor? >> you're just saying everything -- >> he believes it. good for him. >> that's what i said. >> but if he is ready for president, that's a tough lane down the middle. >> governor christie also spoke

yesterday. i think he was a no-show last year which is interesting. >> he wasn't invited. >> i was actually just about to say that but thank you very much. he was off last year's invite list. he spoke of his achievements in new jersey, including education and had a message for republicans looking to change washington. >> i'll remind you just one simple truth in this democracy. we don't get to govern if we don't win. and it's not only bad when we don't get to govern because we don't get to mold and change our society. what is worse, is they do and they are doing it to us right now. so, please, let us come out here and resolve not only to stand for our principles but let's come out of this conference resolved to win elections again. that's what i intend to do for the next year and i hope you'll join me. thank you very much. >> so governor christie also took time from his speech to defend the republicans biggest donors, the koch brothers. take a listen to this.

>> the reason we have to start talking about what we're for and not continuing to rail against what we're against is because of one simple reason. our ideas are better than their ideas and that is what we have to stand up for. just look at what is going on in terms of what they are for in washington, d.c. what they are for in washington, d.c. is that the leader of the senate democrats stand up and rail against two american entrepreneurs who have built a business, created jobs, and created wealth and flaphilanthr in this country. >> there was plenty of criticism for president obama with senator marco rubio and governor bobby jindal taking shots at the president's handling of ukraine. >> because we have a president who believed but by the sheer force of his personality, he would be able to shape global

events. we have a president that believed that by going around the world and giving key speeches in key places, he could shape the behavior of other nations and other people. we do not have the luxury of seeing the world the way we hope it would be. we have to see the world the way it is. >> having witnessed the events abroad these last several days, as we see the president of russia invade a neighboring country while our president wants to downsize our military. president carter, i want to issue a sincere apology. it is no longer fair to say he was the worst president of this great country in my lifetime. president obama has proven me wrong. >> it was a theme throughout the day going after president obama. going back to chris christie for a minute. we just talked about ted cruz and his message of stand on your ground and stand on your principles and come what may. chris christie, a quick quote. he said we don't get to govern if we don't win so let us come out of here not only a resolve

to stand for our principles but this conference resolve to win elections again. governor chris christie taking a bit more practical approach for a general election and competing against a democrat national. >> yeah. that was a good first sentence, i thought, but he didn't follow it up by -- look. republicans have lost the popular vote in five of the last six elections so why is that? and it can't just be that nobody is properly articulating republican ideas, it's got to be that they got to come up with some new stuff, it seems to me. it didn't really come up with any new stuff. i didn't hear it from him. i didn't hear it from ted cruz, although he is a terrific performer, though. he really is. you know, 18 minutes without a teleprompter is not -- it's not dimaggio's 65-game streak or anything like that, but he was really entertaining and fun to listen to. but in the final analysis, did he say anything that really takes the party forward?

i don't think he did. so maybe rand paul, you know? maybe it will be interesting to hear what he has to say. he has some different ideas and maybe he'll light up cpac and show a way forward. >> we should get to ukraine which we saw was a discussion of cpac as well. a couple of other stories to get to as well. in ukraine a vote behind closed doors is reneveinforcing the de divisions playing out the in the open. crimea voted to succeed from ukraine and join russia. it will be followed on a referendum on leaving ukraine on march 16th. crimea's prime minister shut down ukrainian tv station yesterday. it was replaced by a russian broadcaster. they include travel bans to the u.s. and freezing -- and the freezing of assets. the eu is also considering sanctions. president obama issued yet

another stern warning to russia about the possibility of a divided ukraine. >> the proposed referendum on the future of crimea would violate the ukrainian constitution and violate international law. any discussion about the future of ukraine must include the legitimate government of ukraine. in 2014, we are well beyond the days when borders can be redrawn over the heads of democratic leaders. >> hours later, president obama spoke on the phone with russian president vladimir putin for one hour. he told putin there is still a way to resolve the crisis diplomatically including talks between russia and ukraine. moscow responded that president's putin and obama remain far apart how to resolve the crisis in ukraine. the second time in less than a week the two leaders spoke on the phone. >> gene -- i'm sorry, mika, go ahead. >> that's okay. i was flipping through the channels yesterday and i saw

literally the undermining of president obama going on with certain ideologues saying putin is more of a leader than obama. i didn't understand the concept of the conversation at this incredibly important moment. >> gene, when you talk about what is going on in ukraine, mark halpern forwarded me an excellent article this morning that talked about how divided that country is and how divided it always is. every time you have an election, you have the pro western candidate fed up about 50% of the vote and the pro russian candidate getting about 50% of the vote. and it is a horrible problem, not only for the president, but for the western world because we have a treaty with ukraine, the western world saying, give up your nuclear weapons and we will make sure your borders remain intact. now it doesn't look like that is

going to happen. >> no, it doesn't look like that is going to happen. president obama is right. it certainly violates the ukrainian constitution for crimea to vote to succeed. it also violated the ukrainian constitution for the new government to just kind of overthrow the old government and kick yanukovych out and that wasn't exactly constitutional either. we clearly don't consider this some sort of sacred document. you're right about the fundamental issue which it is a divided country. there are two distinct sort of world views and points of view in ukraine and i'd say probably a majority doesn't want, you know, like go back to the old russia thing and, once again, all of ukraine becomes kind of part of russia. but there are two visions for which way the country should lean and that's not solved by the new government just going its way and ignoring what the

eastern half of the country wants to do so that has to be taken into account. >> charles krauthammer on wrote in "the washington post" to put this in perspective how long crimea has been a part of russia, they annexed crimea, russia did a few years before jefferson did the louisiana purchase. so there's a mystery there. >> we will go over that in must reads. i want to get a couple of other -- darrell issa did you see he apologized yesterday with the situation with elijah cummings. did you see that? >> i didn't but it's nice he did that. >> called it an unfortunate incident and would have made major decisions. this is disappointing but, yet, hope with another piece of legislation coming up. the military's chain of command will remain intact when prosecuting sex assault cases right field a bill to change the system failed in the u.s. senate. the legislation which was pushed

by democrat kristen gillibrand fell five votes short to advance to the floor. it divided members over how to deal with an epidemic of sexual assaults in the armed forces. a pentagon study estimates as many as 26,000 military members may have been sexual assaulted in 2012 alone. the bill aimed to remove top commanders from decisions involving the prosecution of alleged attackers, something senator gillibrand says is long overdue. >> we know that the deck is stacked against victims of sexual assault in the military today and, today, sadly, we saw the same in the halls of congress. for two decades, every secretary of defense has said zero tolerance for this crime but all we have seen for nearly 25 years is zero accountability. >> republicans rand paul and ted cruz both supported the bill. something lindsey graham seemed to suggest would hurt their chances running for president.

>> people wanting to run for president on our side, i will remind you of this vote. if you want to be commander in chief you tell me a lot today who you are as commander in chief, candidate. you are willing to fire every commander in the military for reasons i don't quite understand so we will have a good discussion as to whether or not you understand how the military actually works. >> does anybody want to -- >> sweeping legislation sponsored by senator claire mccaskill who opposed senator gillibrand's motion. the army's top sex crimes prosecutor, let me say this again. the guy in charge of prosecuting sex crimes in the military is

now under investigation for groping a female lawyer in 2011. in a second case an army general is pleading guilty to carrying on an affair with a female captain who accuses him of forcing sex. and threatening to kill her family if she exposed the adultery. i would say, gene robinson, as a man who has long understand the chain of command and talked about the importance of it, there are times where maybe it's good to bring somebody in from the outside when you have this sort of rampant abuse inside the military. >> we are talking about a military structure that has been in place like during world war ii. we can update, can't we? >> right. the chain of command is not working here. the chain of command is delivering a terrible result on the sexual assault cases. it seems to be getting worse, not better.

it seems clear to me it's time to try something different and i just -- lindsey graham's adamant on this question puzzles me. he, obviously, knows the military. he was in the military in the legal branch but i think it's a mistake, frankly. i think gillibrand's legislation should have gone forward. >> you listen to lindsey graham you wonder who is he talking about? ted cruz and rand paul decided with gillibrand's legislation. >> what is the problem? >> two things you can say about rand paul and ted cruz is that they are in with that vote showing some cognizance of the notion the gop needs to appeal to a younger demographic and to women and it's a long-term problem for the republican party. i think they probably also believe in the bill of principle and i would challenge that. i think there is also a recognition there that the party has a problem and that, i think, they are -- they have been doing this for a while and making a

conscious effort to get in a better place. >> democrats and republicans alike that didn't like the idea of gillibrand's bill. >> no. there's an -- >> i understand the chain of command. you clearly have a problem, a pattern of abuse here and it's not being responded to properly inside the chain of command. >> we don't have time to talk about the entire dilemma right now, but, obviously, it's far more complicated than black and white. it's kind of interrupting the chain of command, it's poking a hole in something that, you know, is incredibly important to the security of our country and if it was easy, everybody would have voted for it. having said that, lindsey graham seemed a little off message, off tone in terms of, you know, how he feels about this vote. >> we will see. we will see. >> 26,000 cases. >> 26,000 cases. >> he might say there is a great problem but this specific

legislation isn't the solution. we perhaps need to find other ways. >> he, obviously, felt very passionate about and tand we will see if other people do on the campaign trail. i'm not so sure they will. >> the silver lining you have a ted cruz and barbara boxer vote for and people are doing updates on the merit which we don't see any more. >> helpful. tina brown is coming up on the show and david gregory and former governor jon huntsman and paul taylor. also the man behind cpac takes us on a behind the scenes look at the most talked about political conference of the year. up next, top stories and the political playbook. first, here is bill karins with a check on the forecast. >> winter not giving up easily. the mid-atlantic dealing with over a hundred thousand people have lost power from freezing rain, downed trees on power lines in north carolina alone is

trying to make its way up toward the washington, d.c. area. if you're traveling in central virginia, this pink area it's freezing rain. it's trying to inch its way up to d.c. so be careful if you're driving through that area. further to the south we have significant ice around the winston-salem, greensboro area and where most of the power outages are. another cold start in northern new england but even you are going to warm up this weekend. today's forecast across the country, the warm weather is found today. all from kansas city down to dallas. we are going to move that to the east coast on saturday so look at washington, d.c. that's a nice day. 56. atlanta, 68. florida looks fantastic. and even to the 40s in new england is much better than what we have dealt with. by the time we end the weekend another chilly shot through the great lakes and the northeast and nothing horrible but another warm air mass is on the way. denver at 66 and kansas city 5.4 i won't talk about the winter storm in the middle of next

week, i don't want to depress you but i guess i already mentioned. more "morning joe" after this. ♪ i love when you tell me to speak i own you i know you ♪ i have your back but it's going to take a week ♪ [ male announcer ] at his current pace, bob will retire when he's 153, which would be fine if bob were a vampire. but he's not. ♪ he's an architect with two kids and a mortgage. luckily, he found someone who gave him a fresh perspective on his portfolio. and with some planning and effort, hopefully bob can retire at a more appropriate age. it's not rocket science.

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♪ ♪ let's take a look at the morning papers, shall we? from our parade of papers the seattle times. the next girlfriend of os ka pistorious is testifying today in the olympian's murder trial. she says he always carried a gun and once shot at a traffic light during a traffic stop. she says he cheated on her twice, once with reeva steinkamp he is accused of killing. >> the death toll continues to rise as violence continues in venezuela. yesterday two people died after

a clash erupted of residents in a caracas neighborhood and armed men who tried to take down a barricade. the opposition says the government is using excessive force to break up protesters. the president says those building barricades are, quote, vandals who hate the people. 19 people have died in the ongoing conflict. the dallas morning news. the manufacturer of the ride that claimed the life of a woman last summer says six flags over texas is to blame for the accident. the roller coaster manufacturer urged the park to have seat belts. six flags said they were told the ride was safe without safety belt. the family is suing the theme park and the ride manufacturer. from "the boston globe." staples is closing more than 200 of its stores to focus on online sales. the office supply company says nearly half of its sales take place on line.

staples is pushing technology products and is also expanding its inventory. >> increasing home values and a strong stock market explains the gains. many americans may not be reaping the benefits. 80% of stocks are owned by the richest 10% of americans. the post standard. the national day of unplugging begins tonight at sun down. thank god. it's about time. i am not feeling well. to honor the new holiday, people across the country are encouraged to unplug from their devices and spend time in engaging with friends. what do you do if you have no friends? participants can plug back in tomorrow at sunset. you can head over to national day of unplugging.com to take the pledge if you really have nothing better to do today.

let's go to willie geist right now. >> mark halpern is currently on three devices in honor of national unplugging day. blackberry, iphone. >> but i'm writing hiku in my head. >> with us now the chief white house correspondent for politico, mike allen. he has got a look at the playbook. mike, good morning. >> good morning, willie. happy friday! >> happy friday. the weekend officially begins with that. let's get to the rnc possible sites for 2016. las vegas is one of the favorites among, i guess, eight finalists of the cities but you guys are reporting that a democratic group is threatening to track every move republicans make at that convention if, in fact, it's held in vegas. >> that's right, willie. when the republican national committee announcesed five finalists. nevada is a swing state. the governor there is a republican and a big criteria

for them picking the cities. brian sandoval a big rising star. the casino owner would bankroll a lot of the convention and would take away a lot of the money problems. but as we have talked around, aides, lawmakers are worried about late night bad behavior. that had always been the big asterisk next to las vegas. now american bridge, the democratic group headed by brad woodhouse founded by david brock says if republicans choose vegas they will employ two or three dozen trackers carrying video cameras end to end to cover the late night carousing. they have already bought the website sin city gop where they say that they will post this video. we are going to have capability to do live ads on the website it says. what happens in vegas will be right here.

>> wow. j john heilemann think vegetablas safe oasis. do you think this will factor into the decision, mike? are participants in the conference so unable to control themselves that they couldn't hold the rnc there? >> yes and yes. >> really? >> of course, it will be a factor. from the very beginning when las vegas came up, of course, they are concerned about these lawmakers. it's on west coast time as you know when a convention is on west coast time, there's more time for bad behavior because tv gets up there in the east. there is more hours. you're going to have a lot of young people who have never been to vegas and it's just asking for trouble. >> we need to walk them through it. >> the thing about the west coast time thing sounds wrong to me. vegas is a place that there is no time. that's what we like about it.

>> it's not happening. >> you don't think so? >> no. >> columbus, ohio, is also one of the finalists. >> there you go. >> and cleveland. >> mike allen with a look at the playbook, thanks so much. >> have a great spring ahead weekend. most people think the university of california at santa barbara, ucsb is pretty laid back. this guy not so much. a fan runs onto the court and confronts the opposing team face-to-face. we will tell you why in sports. ♪ are you reeling in the years stowing away the time ♪ what can your fidelity green line do for you? just take a closer look. it works how you want to work -- on your own... or with a fidelity investment professional, helping you find new ways to plan for retirement

and save on taxes where you can so you can invest in the life that you want today. tap into the full power of your fidelity green line. call or come in today for a free one-on-one review. coach calls her a team player. she's kind of special. she makes the whole team better. he's the kind of player that puts the puck, horsehide, bullet. right where it needs to be. coach calls it logistics. he's a great passer. dependable.

a winning team has to have one. somebody you can count on. somebody like my dad. this is my dad. somebody like my mom. my grandfather. i'm very pround of him. her. them.

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we start in the nba. san antonio and tspurs hosting east for the first time since last year's final. san antonio led at the half and 62 in the first half. lebron cuts the heat deficit to six but the spurs kick it back up in the fourth. kawhi leonard makes it a 15-point game with the big steal and the dunk. they beat the heat. lebron james is frustrated with that mask that is covering his nose. threw it off early in the game and got a text from his wife and

told him to put it back on. clippers and lakers. the end of the first xavier henry has a floater in the paint. all downhill for the lakers after that. blake griffin on the break. ow! >> 20 points. >> i love that. >> oh, my god. oh, my goodness. >> hurt ankle? >> no. impossible. >> not a third angle. three-peat looking down into the basket. the clippers blow out the lakers by 48 points! >> could that be the worst blowout in lakers history? >> it was the worst blowout in lakers history. >> are you kidding me? >> no. >> who would have guessed that. college hoops. this is crazy. hawaii and ucsb. hawaii coach arnold tee'd up for yelling at the reverend. a fan runs on to yell. the players have to throw the guy off the court and physically

throw him off the court. he is eventually escorted away and arrested. you just can't do that. >> you can't do that to gibbs. >> new top selling jersey in the nfl. anybody want to guess who it is and which player is it? >> peyton manning. >> it's a trick question. >> doug flutie. >> trick question. >> number 12. >> not a player. >> seattle seahawks jersey with fan on the name plate and the number 12, the 12th man as they are known the tenth best selling jersey represents seattle's 12th man and nicknamed for the fan base that gets loud up there in seattle. why not the 12th man or the 12th man? you ask? texas a&m has exclusively licensed the phrase "the 12th man." >> up next, maggie murphy and tina brown are here for the must read opinion pages. don't go away. we will be right back with more "morning joe." ♪ the secret is out. hydration is in.

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♪ >> tina brown doesn't waste any time. i just got booked and i'll do it. >> good! >> mother/daughter, i like it. >> in the world summit. saturday morning. >> can i bring moo daughty daug? >> bringing your daughter and the whole place is going to be packed. my daughter 24 is going to be there. >> i love your daughter. she wears crazy nail polish. on that note tomorrow is international women's day. tina brown is joining the table and editor in chief of "parade" magazine, magazigie murphy. what is the message, maggie? >> the message is to ban bossy. >> what? >> ban the word bossy. i'm sure that word has never been used.

>> it's been used but i think it's used in a negative context. >> that is exactly the point. in the piece cheryl sandburg talk about the subtleties of that word and that they have bigger merngs aanings and they going with the girl scouts to talk about this. by the time girls get out of middle school they are reluctant to be leaders. the goal if we start now we can maybe change the course of the next 10, 20 years in terms of leadership in women. >> create more leaders because they feel that space to do so? >> absolutely. you know, i think the challenge is that, you know, girls are under assault in terms of social media, bullying but i think we need to role model girls leadership and we are still -- we have, what? 20 female senators, 79 representatives. condoleezza rice says she will not be running for president in this piece but encourages women to run for state office,

gubernatorial races and things like that. >> i love what sheryl sandberg says. i tell parents instead of saying my daughter is bossy saying my daughter has executive leadership skills. >> that's cute. that's good. >> when she says that about her daughter, people giggle. when people say that about her son, people don't. that is the point. we need to sort of message that. i think what condoleezza rice says she says her parents used to elect her president. she was a single child and her mother always voted for her. she would run the family meetings, the dinner. i thought what just a lovely idea. obviously, we are not disenfranchising boys. we need them to be comfortable with female leadership as well and partnerships as you guys have piloted here. but i think it's part of a whole discussion that we need to just keep having. >> i think raising boys to understand and accept these traits is just as important as raising girls to be able to do them. one of the things i always say, tina, when i talk to women is how many of you have used the

"s" word today? after i tell them it's not -- it's s as in sam but the word is, i'm sorry. they all go, oh, no. and then raise their hands because women tend to start every conversation with, i'm sorry, i know this is a bad time or i'm sorry, i don't mean to interrupt. no, we are not. >> i have to say i have far more worse words. in new yorker i was called stalin in high heels which is probably accurate. those who say it was a woman writer. sometimes women can be very resentment of that too because i think it's cultural as well. i do think we also have to toughen up. you want raise your daughters to fight back and to be clear and to be just charge ahead. >> and they say if you want to be a leader you need to have like skin assi ivtough as a rhinoceros. if we model that with the girl

scouts and girls we know, i think we can get there quicker. >> something you, obviously, are thinking about raising a little girl yourself in terms of trying to strike that balance. >> there is no doubt about it but she runs the house. >> she is president? >> she does the calendar? >> nobody calls her boss. >> that's great. i think that is kind of what we want to see happen. i think that it's just a really great conversation women's history month to start thinking about girls that age, not just girls -- >> i think sheryl has been great about raising the bar on these discussions because there is a huge pushback and it's great to give our girls confidence but i want to make them tougher. plenty of guys with big swinging appendages out there and try to bully us. >> what? >> talking about t.j., i'm sure. no, absolutely not. >> a look of panic on your face, joe. >> not a sheer look of panic but sheer boredom. the thing it comes down to expectations.

you know why condoleezza rice ran the house? their parents expect them to and they don't expect a girl in their home to be treated any different than a boy. in fact, i expect kate to actually do better than the boys! because she is such a smart girl. but, you know, it does all come down to expectations. if your parents think you are going to be successful, whether you're a boy or a girl, then you're going to be successful. chances are very good. and like if you don't act inside the house like a girl is to be treated differently and you keep talking about being tough, i talk to kate in the same way i talk to joey and andrew and jack and expect them to be tough and not pampering them like why don't you go off and play with your barbie doll. >> farges athers are stepping u

islamic. >> the problem is that we have got single mothers raising children, you know, 70% so the reality is that culturally we need to role model this because we have a lot of people who don't have that father figure in that household so anything we can do as group, as a society, watch "frozen" more, whatever it is. >> we were watching that last night! >> hillary clinton 2016. >> we are really thrilled to tell this message. >> i fear by end of it all, mika, i will see "frozen." this time period. >> as fox? >> as i saw "the lion king." >> i saw it five times. what are you up to? >> three times in the theater and twice at home and itunes. >> have you been to the theater? >> i did. >> what? >> they put the words on the

screen the whole theater is dancing and singing. you got to go back and see it. >> you are sad. >> oh, no! >> i actually haven't seen it. >> get to the part of the conference. >> definitely. >> all right. the new issue -- tina, you're on. the new issue of "parade" is out now. maggie murphy, thank you so much and tina brown, thank you as well. coming up our exclusive one-on-one with cpac king maker al cardnis. "morning joe" will be right back. honestly? i wanted a smartphone that shoots great video. so i got the new nokia lumia icon. it's got 1080p video, three times zoom, and a twenty-megapixel sensor. it's got the brightest display, so i can see what i'm shooting -- even outdoors, and 4 mics that capture incredible sound. plus, it has apps like vine -- and free cloud storage. my new lumia icon is so great, even our wipeouts look amazing.

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and speaking russian and they are wearing russian army uniforms, kind of. >> translator: look at the form former soviet republic. a lot of uniforms. you can go to a store and buy a uniform. >> right but i'm not sure you can go to store and buy 10,000 of them. or have that store throw in some russian tanks! or are those just part of crimea's new city tank program? >> very good. welcome back to "morning joe." the devil dam bois is still with us. kind of a cool name along with eugene robinson in washington. joining the table is the moderator of "meet the press" david gregory and former republican governor of utah, jon huntsman. good to have you all on board this morning.

>> it is friday! >> are you happy? >> i'm always happy. why are you asking that? i'm just a joyful person. how can i not be joyful being here, working alongside you every day? >> i know. what would be better? >> nothing! are you sure. >> maybe going on stage at cpac. >> bang, bang. why do you do that? >> i don't know. >> better known as cpac is under way in washington. >> do you think that change that he carried a gun? >> it just seems -- well, i'm just reading the news here. we have to get the story across here. the annual event giving party leaders the chance to talk directly with the conservative base and, yesterday, the speakers list was a roster of presidential potential presidential candidates. ted cruz, one of the crowd favorites, was first up, speaking for 18 minutes without a teleprompter. the senator took aim both at the

republican establishment and obamacare. >> if you stand for principle, you lose elections. the way to do it, the smart way, the washington way is don't stand against obamacare. don't stand against the debt ceiling. don't stand against nothing! i want to tell you something. that is a false dichotomy. you want to lose elections? stand for nothing and then, of course, all of us remember president dole and president mccain and president romney. look. those are good men. they are decent men but when you don't stand and draw a clear distinction, when you don't stand for principle, democrats celebrate. we need to repeal every single word of obamacare. when millions of americans stood up last fall and said, stop this train wreck, this disaster that

is obamacare that is hurting millions of people, the democrats said the mainstream media said, although i repeat myself, they said this is hopeless. don't you understand? just move on. just accept. you can't do anything to stop this! >> yes we can. >> yes, we can. drafed david gregory, how about ted cruz do? >> he is a terrific speaker and has great poise and great presence and represents a wing of the party that is going to be a purist wing. to me a stage of the debate stage with chris christie. ? he says, christie says we have to focus on winning and not just principle? he's got it wrong. he will represent that wing of the party that under to take on the establishment and defund

obamacare. i think the challenge for paul ryan and for chris christie is not just to sound moderate and say there is actually a robust conservative vision that is somehow more moderate than that, that is winning and still conservative. i think that is the sweet spot. i'm not sure they are there yet. >> governor huntsman, what are the two best things you can say about the positive impact ted cruz is having on your party? >> well, i think he's actually throwing out some interesting narratives that capture the attention of leach grassroots organizers and, two, i think he may prove the point that you can move from right to a more mainstream position over time and maybe capture the imagination of the party. i think he is doing the reverse of what we have seen mccain and romney do in recent years, that is wrapping up the right wing of the party. he has a narrative that allows him to do that. he's a very exciting, and i think, captivating figure and i think over time you'll hear more

about the harvard and princeton credentials and he was a trade lawyer in washington, d.c., very respect respected. he is a talented and smart guy and should not be underestimated. >> he is nailing down the base and we talked about it the past couple of months as the governor has that he does seem to be, again, mainstreaming it a bit more. doesn't mean he doesn't make stands that still agitate john mccain and lindsey graham and other establishment republicans but no doubt there has been movement towards not the ideological center. >> chris christie spoke yesterday and left off last year's invite list. he spoke about education and pension reform in new jersey and had a message for republicans

looking to change washington. >> i'll remind you just one simple truth in this democracy. we don't get to govern if we don't win. and it's not only bad when we don't get to govern because we don't get to mold and change our society. what is worse, is they do and they are doing it to us right now. so, please, let us come out here and resolve not only to stand for our principles, but let's come out of this conference resolved to win elections again. that's what i intend to do for the next year and i hope you'll join me. thank you very much. >> he was received pretty well, given everything, heilemann. >> well, you know, a lot of republican ranks the attacks on chris christie over the course of the last couple of months of the year have actually kind of elevated his standings with conservatives and feel he is vim timized by the local media. a contrast the last year they didn't want to have him come there. i want to ask gene robinson about chris christie.

where do you think chris christie is now, today, after everything that has happened with him over the course of the last 60 days or 90 days in terms of his viability as presidential candidate in 2016? >> right now, he's in purgatory. he is not viable at the moment, but he might be in six months from now. it kind of depends on how investigations play out, what happens in the whole bridgegate thing. and also on what he does. he is working on new jersey and kind of getting back into the good graces of the people of new jersey and if the investigations proceed and nothing else is found out and he's damaged, but he's not necessarily out of it. who is the better sort of moderate candidate that the party can turn to right now? and i'm not sure he's got -- everybody else is running so hard to the right. i'm not sure there is anybody else out there who is occupying

that space, taking up that space as well as christie potentially could. >> david? >> i actually think he is wounded for now, but i don't think there is any kind of fatal blow. i think you think of the big money in the republican party and where are they thinking about? they are still thinking of a chris christie, a paul ryan and scott walker as more of a mainstream. >> the big money, though, they were looking at christie. >> yeah. >> christie goes through what he goes through over the past 60 days and they go, let's look at jeb. >> right. >> and you're hearing jeb's calling everybody up. >> yeah. >> saying stay on the sidelines and basically have him sit on ice. i may do it, i may not do it but you talk to people who are close to him and they go, you know what? his heart is not in it and he probably is not going to do it. so this huge money, which never really went to anybody else, it was christie, sort of went over to jeb. christie is in trouble. now you almost just sort of sense the migration.

>> he has got time to build it back up and a speech like this helps. so you got a pocket of candidates who are in that bucket and thn you got the more right wing candidates who, you know, the tea party wing who are going to be that kind of second front in a primary fight. i think if you're looking at that, you still have to look at christie's viability. one of the questions i have of jeb bush is almost temperamental. he always seemed very frustrated by the process. >> yep. >> even before it starts. >> yep. >> i just wonder if that is a great place -- >> listen. the thing is nobody in america, nobody in the world knows the sacrifices it takes to run for president of the united states more than jeb bush and nobody knows more than jeb bush that he don't go into it halfway. and, right now, he's not wringing his hands, he's not mario cuomo and, you know, in '92. but, you know, he still just doesn't know whether he wants to do it or not and i would think for somebody like jeb who knows

better than anybody else on the planet what it takes to get through that republican primary as a bush now especially that being down the middle is a no. >> plus, joe, plus he is going to have his mother sniping at him the whole time. >> right. >> by the way, barbara bush foundation 25 years yesterday. congratulations to her. she has done extraordinary work. thank you, barbara, for also giving us sound bites for jeb to run and i like when she backs off and does the same thing. barbara doesn't do 180s and. >> and won't be told to. governor huntsman, is chris christie a viable candidate, given what you saw yesterday? >> first of all, about jeb. i think he is a terrific human being in the bush family. they are wonderful public servants. >> they really are. >> he might be more influential outside of the presidential arena just shaping the policy

agenda for 2016. he has been so good at it. >> governor, i'm sure you'll agree with me also that barbara bush has a right when she says nobody else in america is more qualified to be president of the united states than jeb bush. >> she is a very keen observer and i like her a lot and she knows what she is talking about. could well be he is more influential on the outside and shaping the issues he is passionate about, economic and development and education which is core to republican success in 2016. as for christie, listen. he has two things going for him. not least of all the fact he is a very compelling and talented political personality. he's at the sweet spot of the american media. the world media. and everybody loves a comeback story. the comeback story will be there somewhere and the second part is that he is actually a governor and as a governor, you can pull the levers of power and get things done and show the efficacy and results of your work and if he is smart, he'll pick a couple of things and really kind of create a record going into 2016 if he is serious

about this. it will show he is a problem solving can do optimistic inclusive politician which is exactly what the american people will be looking for in 2016. >> go ahead, quickly. >> i think the republicans need an honest to got conservative whose credentials are not going to be questioned at a time when they are trying to expand the base of the party. that's what romney faced and what mccain faced and what christie faces. that is a great advantage of jeb bush. i don't think you can have that influence unless he's in the race. >> interesting. >> chris christie was on the stage yesterday in a debate with hillary clinton and close your eyes and imagine that, very strong. >> i agree with you on that. two final cpac notes. marco rubio and bobby jindal as we move on to ukraine now took shots at the president on his handling of ukraine. obviously, there's an ongoing crisis there which is another top story we are talking about. here is what charles krauthammer writes in "the washington post." the wages of weakness. vladimir putin is a lucky man and he's got three more years of luck to come. he takes crimea and president

obama says it's not in russia's interests and indeed a sign of weakness. really? crimea belonged to moscow for 200 years. russia annexed 20 years before jaevers acquired louisiana. so there's a mystery there. if he bites off crimea and threatens kiev obama's response will be minimal and ability to lead the europeans less so? would putin have lunged for ukraine if he doesn't have a clueless adversary? no one can say for sure but it made putin's decision easier. >> governor huntsman, i guess call you mr. ambassador. >> your excellency will do. >> that works very well too. what happens now? what is the press's next step?

there are only limited options, are there not? >> well, you're dealing, first wlve a guy who doesn't like the way that the cold war ended and he has proven that in 2008 with georgia and he is proving it again with ukraine and crimea specifically. what troubles me is the fact that we don't have a strategy toward europe. that is the biggest problem of all. let's forget the tick tock daily issues that play out here. the broader context in which this is playing out is one without a real strategy. in the cold war we had containment and we had deterrence and a thing called alliance maintenance. we just don't do that any more. we are waking up to the fact we have done a pivot to asia and reset with russia and completely neglected europe. now we are looking at nato and the eu and saying what do we do? there isn't a strategy and that is the first thing that has to be worked out is developing a strategy with our partners in europe that will then have implications for the broader geographic region.

number two, you know, this isn't just about crimea. the whole world is watching this play out, not least of all ping, the head of china this week has the national congress playing out and he is watching this in context of the east china sea and south china sea and so is the rest of the world. so this goes well beyond as the president should view this thing, well beyond just what is playing out in a tiny geographic region on the black sea. i think, finally, i would just say that the big issue that would hurt putin most is probably not the one we are talking about much and that is you've got to hit it economically. russia is a big oil and gas play and until such time we can win market share from the european customers, germany would be first and foremost among them. >> even critical of this president but also served under

him as ambassador to china. as you look at all of these problems, notably the relationship with putin, do you think president obama has a clear vision for america in the world and how america projects its values and its strength around the world in this post-war, post-first decade of 21st century world? >> we are still struggling. we have come away from the cold war. we were hit during 9/11 which completely threw us for a loop and we have been in the middle east 12 years trying to make sense out of all of what that means and our economy has completely imploded the last seven or eight years. i don't think this country has a strategy right now. the most important thing, a president or a candidate could be doing would be to come up with a national strategy. >> governor, the president is five years into his term. >> well. >> he still doesn't have a strategy? it's about time, isn't it? >> listen, the rest of the world

having lived overseas four times, the rest of the world looks at our strength based upon our economic strength. are we producing jobs? are we exporting or trading with the rest of the world? that is a sign of success and until we get our act together here on the home front in terms of creating jobs and getting our financial balances right, we are never able to project power to the rest of the world so it's foolhardy to create any kind of national strategy that doesn't first again with some aspect of economic strength at home. >> i think it's interesting. so president bush invaded two countries and putin still deceived him and invaded a neighboring country after all of that. i don't know that a projection of power alone somehow has an impact on putin. >> i think in 2008, putin read that not only the bush administration, but also america was exhausted. i don't think he would have done

it. he certainly didn't do it in 2004 during the orange revolution. >> that's true. and was still exhausted. >> there is no doubt this is one more example of how we have paid for a decade of wars that -- the world knows we are exhausted and knows we are not going to move. >> which is why i think the energy piece of this is important. you confront him by taking his market away i think that has to be part of an approach. >> former governor jon huntsman, thank you so much. >> thank you, governor. >> thank you. i look forward to seeing the show on the cpac stage. is that today or tomorrow? >> what is that? >> is joe on the cpac stage today or tomorrow? >> i don't remember. let me check my calendar. >> we will tune into animal plant to find out. >> you will absolutely love it. no, i'll tell you what. al was very kind to ask me to go down to a book signing and be down there and couldn't do it. but we did the next best thing. we sent louis bergdorf and louis has done a fantastic package and we will be showing that and

playing it coming up next. any way. good to see you, jon. greatly appreciate it. >> best to you. thanks, mika. >> as your kids call you, your excellency. the buzzfeed and talking about the top 15 worst places to have an argument. number one, it was on the transatlantic flight. today's buzzfeed countdown. signs your relationship may be in trouble. number one, you start taking relationship advice from fortune cookies. number two, i like this. you both have online dating profiles, quote, as a joke. >> that's a bad sign. eugene, thank you as well. >> here is three. the last time you actually celebrated valentine's day together you were too young to drink champagne. >> that's not good either! you have to celebrate valentine's day, right? and get lots of gifts and flowers, right? >> you guys did that, right? >> oh, yeah. >> yeah? >> if you can only imagine.

>> we will be reading your column, gene, in today's "the washington post." what is on sunday, david? >> we will talk about the pope one year and his tenure with cardinal timothy dolan. i'm curious to know what is the agenda? he has this great status in this amazing francis effect. what influence does he really want to have now as he digs in? >> fascinating. the baby boomer generation retires, america prepares for what is next. the pugh center paul taylor joins us with a "morning joe" exclusively. you're watching "morning joe." we will be right back. ♪ ♪ [ girl ] my mom, she makes underwater fans that are powered by the moon. ♪ she can print amazing things, right from her computer.

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here with us from capitol hill, executive vice president of special projects at the pew

research center paul taylor. the author of "the next america." this morning, the pew research center is debuting that on "morning joe." did you see what mike murphy tweeted on this book? >> i think he likes it. >> he says how good is this new pew/taylor book? no one in congress should get another paycheck until they read. that's read it. >> let's run down what the millennials are. >> they are more politically independent than previous generations and less religious affiliations than other generations and many are more married than previous generations and kind of concerns me. millennials are more socially connected at least on facebook. paul, anything about these results surprise you? >> not really. we have been tracking the millennial generation a decade now. we call this new report we are

releasing now millennials in adulthood. we thought of them as teenagers and young adults. the oldest of them are now in their early 30s. they are at a time when you ought to be crossing the milestones into adulthood and many of them are not. they are not bored to the traditional anchors of society. you mentioned political parties and organize religion and marrying and marrying at half the rate their parents did when they were the same age. we can see from our data it's not that they don't want to marry. the majority of unmarried millennials say i would like to marry one day. what is holding you back? i'm not a good marriage prospect because i don't have the money. that is the other aspect of their lives. the older millennials came into their working lives as the economy tanks and it still hasn't fully recovered. they are forging a different path and in many ways a slower path into adulthood but they are not terribly concerned about it.

this is' a very confident generation. >> they are not terribly concerned about it. a lot of them, john heilemann, the guys are staying home playing video games late into their 20s. >> who could blame them? the poll is talking about how it takes a long time for the guys to go into adulthood and looking across to you and thinking people at this table. >> one of these days. >> i get in the vicinity of 50 and not emerge into adulthood. >> i will go into it. funny how you hear some women complaining about guys that they can't marry them because they sit at home and play video games. they are in their late 20s! >> it's absolutely true. the serious side of that is what paul point to that this has been a very bad protracted period where there has been not a lot of economic opportunity and economic compliment to this that is real but the cultural thing is true. the rise of the youth culture now encompasses people that are

not teenagers and not in their 20s but well into their mid-30s who still dress and look and act and want to be like they were when they were kids. >> when they were teenagers. i remember reading 25th anniversary of "rolling stone" tom wolf actually said this is a generation that is more awash in money and cash and more awash in consumer items than ever before. i think this is in the late '90s. he said the irony is, too, they are also on more prescription medication and face more depression and more disorders than any generation also. it was one of the effects of growing up in the '90s with just this avalanche of cash coming a lot of millennials way. their parents way. >> the materialism. what has been asked of them? historically, there just hasn't been -- during war time, young people are asked to serve. it's not like that any more. people serve now if they need

the money and you sort of don't have -- >> there are a lot of proud americans that have served for all of the right reasons. >> ask people around this table. >> hold on a second. let's be very clear. that's a small percentage of the population. >> right. i didn't mean to gloss over it. ask people at the table who they know who are serving or many people who are responding to some sort of call, mission. it just doesn't seem like our millennials feel like they are needed in any way. >> i have a cousin who served in the army and now looking for a job and just got out and another cousin more gen-x generation who served in the army still and still looking to find that right job and reconnecting. good friends from college in the rotc program who are committed to serve because of the cash they got from school but then had to serve in iraq and afghanistan. it is a different when you think we don't have the draft any more and people don't have to be

afraid of that. i remember in the first gulf war i was afraid i was going to get drafted. right when i was getting out of high school and going into college. there was talk of whether or not president bush was going to enlist a type of draft for that. we didn't go through that but it was certainly a big concern and i fall right in that sweet spot for gen-x. >> another side is paul talked about the notion a lot of people have not attached themselves to the traditional institutions we think are associated with adulthood. political parties, religion and others. part of it those institutions have been in the state of long-term collapse for a while and so there's -- the most of the big institutions in american life are having various kinds of crises whether in the political system, the catholic church, the mainstream media. there is a thing going on that is a response in this generation to what it sees as these institutions losing a lot of legitimacy. >> paul, let's talk about that. boomers grew up in a lot of them

in the eisenhower '50s and post-war americas where our institutions seemed to click and everything seemed to be glorious and wonderful. millennials grew up with contested 2,000 presidential election. the next year september 11th. the next year, in iran. the next year iraq. the next year, abu ghraib. the next year, katrina. i could go on and on and on. i would guess a deep dissolutionment with institutions as john heilemann said has to run straight through the heart of this generation. >> i think that's right. i think, frankly, the most important difference between how this generation is coming of age and earlier generations are their economic circumstances. this is the first generation in modern history that is doing less well at this stage of their lives than their parents were on any indicator you want, on employment, on unemployment, on wages, on wealth. and they feel that and that is

part of the reason they are slow to adulthood. they are somewhat disillusioned with institutions. they actually -- the first generation who are digital native and create their own personalized networks on social media, we have a finding about 80% of them are on facebook, their median friend count is 250. they engage with their friends by taking pictures, the selfie. got a big moment the other day on the oscars. it's part of who they are. it's part of the way they are neve -- navigating passage into adulthood. younger adults are taking longer to cross the milestones into adulthood. frankly, middle age and older adults are taking longer to retire because they have economic worries and keeping them in the job market longer. the very old, this is very happy story, are taking longer to depart this veil of tears.

the increases in human longevity and decreases in birth rates are doing something else to our society which is turning it into the oldest society we have ever had and it's going to create a big challenge to rebalance the social safety net because the numbers simply do not work as you go further into the 21th century. as the baby boomers cross the threshold of 65 at the rate of 10,000 baby boomers a day every single day until the year 2030. at that point social security and medicare are broke and kid don't think it's there for them. in our survey 6% of millennials think those programs will be there. we have big generation gaps and a big challenge to rebalance the safety net going forward. >> wow. >> fascinating. the book is "the next america" paul taylor, thank you so much. >> thank you for having me. what the health of the economy is. "morning joe" will be right back.

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failing to reach the very people the law was designed to help, the uninsured. according to the survey, just 27% of the people who have signed up for obamacare through exchanges didn't have prior coverage and with the march 31st deadline to sign up approaching, the survey finds 56% of the unassuru uninsured haven't begun shopping for health insurance. we learned the white house is delaying the law for individuals who have policies that don't meet the obamacare guidelines and two-year grace period impacts 1.5 million people and president obama recently announced 4 million people have signed up for bobamacare. it's stel well short of their goal of signing up 7 million people by the end of this month. >> guys? anybody? anybody? >> there's still a chance for them to close strong here in this last deadline, but most of

the statistics are not great and most of the individual stories are not great. they have got to get more momentum. >> any young people. >> they have to get young people invested so there is a surge at the end. >> millennials are so self-centered. stop taking selfe ining selfies for obamacare. >> the commercial breaks. >> the stuff that goes on here could be a reality show. talk about "real housewives." >> i thought it was a reality show. >> it is a reality show. >> wait for the finale. >> it's a combination of "real housewives" and jersey detective" rolled up into one. >> the finale. >> will set the set on fire. >> i saw opera's new reality show coming up with lindsay lohan. >> oh, no.

>> oh, my lord. okay. so seriously on the guest reality shows, i hate stars in reality shows. >> what is it called? >> it's called "lindsay." it looks fan tablous! >> why? >> because you actually see and i had to take a shower after looking at it and saying how great it was. it's because you see her struggling with addiction and this is her last chance on television. it really is. this is the truman show for a young pop star. she knows this is her last chance and, at one point, she melts down. oprah comes on and she goes, you know what? i think you can make it. i don't really care whether you do or not, okay? you have to decide. everybody told me not to do this and they say you're not going to make it. we'll see. maybe you do. maybe you don't. but you're going to have to make

that choice. but you know what? if you don't want to it, i'll just send everybody home right now. i mean, it's heavy stuff. >> it's why television was invented. >> forget "petticoat junction." >> it is. i saw it. >> i don't want oprah mad at me. >> you don't. they get her in the car and she's driving and she sits down and it's scary! >> it got you to take a shower, right? >> well, you know? >> i love it. >> once a month is not bad! right? >> exactly. how many times? is it just on once a month? oh, god. chairman of the american conservative union al cardenas joins us. with a unique behind the scenes look at cpac. we will be right back.

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from high profile u.s. senators to politically curious college students, cpac is the super bowl for conservatives. the organization that runs, it turns 50 this year. 50. can you believe that? we caught up with the man behind it all. ♪ >> all the way from hawaii this lady came. >> the only one. >> wow. >> reporter: 11,000 people have traveled from across the country to be here at cpac this weekend. and there is no telling how many of their hands al cardenas has shaken. >> thank you. >> you're welcome. >> reporter: megaphone to the mainstream and part frenzy and seen and be seen. an opportunity to spend time with leading conservatives up close and on stage. >> if you're in cpac, my

definition you're a young person because you believe in the future of america. >> reporter: it's become a mecca for the young, the blue blazer crowd, and the fringe alike, but, above all, it's a place for ideas. >> our ideas are better than their ideas and that's what we have to stand up for. >> i believe in the excitement of civil discourse where one exchanges intellectual points of view and have better ideas. >> let's see. >> oh, that's cool, right? >> oh, yes. >> reporter: as a boy, al cardenas fled cuba for florida going from fidel castro fidel castro rule to helping ronald reagan carry the state in 1994. >> what we do as conservatives to give every america a better opportunity for success. >> reporter: he is part king maker and part peace maker. and the schedule of speakers cardenas sets, sets the agenda for the conservative movement. >> for every one person you end up inviting, four you don't, every once in a while when you

hear somebody quipping in the paper about something typically because they didn't get invited but that's how it works. >> reporter: who is not there is often as newsworthy who is. this year, john boehner. last year, chris christie. >> the only one i regret not catching up to is chris christie. >> really? >> i just had difference. >> he was in and out of here. >> he was. he was received well and i thought his message was right on. >> will you invite him next year? >> we will see. everybody gets a year review. >> reporter: as the american conservative union turns 50, cardenas is the first to admit things can't stay the way they have always been. 2012 ended without a majority in the senate or a republican in the white house. >> conservative community has been short sided in reaching out to minority communities. i'd be remiss if i share with you that is one of my greatest priorities for this. >> let's bring in al. good, long time friend of mine, al cardenas and he joins us from cpac.

thank you, al, for your kind invitation. i would have loved to be down there this week but couldn't but we did the next best thing and sent louis bergdorf. i thought he got a great view of it. but, al, 50 years. talk about the 50-year anniversary of this extraordinarily important organization that you run. >> well, you know, it was founded 50 years ago, almost in a state despair after bayer grr goldwater lost. taking our marbles and giving up we started the american conservative union. we have had good times and difficult times. ronald reagan in his heyday, was the icon of what we are all about and we have had some dry spells and weir here today to recharge our batteries and do the best we can. let me tell you if you're hear and if you had doubts and if you lost hope, you come to this conference for three days and you leave energized, you leave

full of solutions, with more tools for your tool box to talk to your fellow citizens and inspired. inspired that you can do something within the system, within the democratic process to change the country in the way you see fit and that is why we love cpac. >> al, i've heard you say publicly, i love talking to you privately, about what you want this organization to be. you've said a couple of things that you want it to be for bedrock conservatives but bedrock conservatives not only reach out to minorities but bedrock conservatives, conservatives that reach out to mainstream republicans. that this is about growing the conservative tent and getting conservatives elected that actually win elections and make changes in the way washington and america is run. >> joe, i lost, you know, i came to this country as a refugee.

i believe in the free exchange of ideas and stimulation of different thoughts and we don't believe in marching in lock-step and don't believe there should be a credo and don't believe in propaganda. we believe in you have courage of your prediction is how you wl be successful. i feel, my friend. >> amen, my friend. the conversion business. that is the idea. you actually want to bring people over to your side and telling people you're not welcome here. >> you know, no one in america wants to follow an angry mob. people in this country want to be inspired. they want an optimistic message. they want a clear vision for the fouts. but they also want a movement that embraces us all and if we don't portray that, we don't win. that was the magic of ronald reagan. he had the firmness of his convictions and believed in all americans. and he was out there to convert americans into his point of view. we don't -- you know, we need to

do that in the movement and, frankly, there are too many things we need to engage by engaging in a positive manner. these intramurals within the movement. people criticizing each other. e criticizing each other, and bigger fish to fry than that, and you'll find at cpac a positive, energetic message. >> sometimes when someone leaves a job, they want to spend more time with their family, people are skeptical. some of the people that skipped cpac said they are scheduling conflicts. why is your good friend jeb bush not speaking at cpac this year? >> well, i wish he was. he came last year. you know, we stay in touch all the time. he's actually had fund-raisers for acu at home, and i thank him for that. he had a long-planned trip out of the country, and i talked to him about it. i wasn't persuasive enough. but fortunately, you know, his son won a big race in texas. he's a happy man, and i'm happy for him and his family. >> al, congratulations, man, on

the 50th anniversary. and i was very impressed. the picture, do you see how al next to ronald reagan -- >> oh, yeah. >> a young guy, but he just keeps looking better. >> you haven't aged a bit, al. >> not a bit, al. >> well, the only thing missing from cpac, joe, are you and mika dancing to our salsa music. >> i had so much fun at that dance. do you remember that? you didn't like that i was dancing. >> they love mika there. you know, al -- >> you need to come back. >> thank you. >> no doubt about it. >> i look forward to it. >> thank you so much. >> thank you. thanks for having me. my pleasure. coming up, forecasts are predicting -- >> who did you dance with? >> frank lunsford. >> it wasn't luns. no, i was sitting there and mika did the salsa -- >> the macarena. >> paul ryan was speaking. >> it's all a blur. >> we were really out there on the dance floor. crazy. >> it's kind of like -- not like

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up next, challenging the chain of command. why the senate voted down a bipartisan plan to remove top commanders from decisions involving sexual assaults in the military. also, i really do think we need to get this lindsay lohan teaser. >> oh, yeah. >> are you going to do that for us? >> yeah, coming up. >> coming up, baby. or how ornate the halls are. it doesn't matter if there are granite statues, or big mahogany desks. when working with an investment firm, what's really important is whether the people behind the desks actually stand behind what they say. introducing the schwab accountability guarantee. if you're not happy with one of our participating investment advisory services, we'll refund your program fee from the previous quarter. it's no guarantee against loss and other fees and expenses may still apply. chuck vo: standing by your word, that's what matters the most.

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♪ good morning. it's 8:00 on the east coast, 5:00 a.m. on the west coast, as you take a live look at new york city. >> oh, willie, it's beautiful out there. >> gorgeous. >> oh, my god, call the chamber of commerce. >> back with us on set, we have

john heilemann, mark halperin, and in washington, eugene robinson. the conservative political action conference, better known as cpac, is under way in washington, d.c. the annual event giving party leaders the chance to talk directly with the conservative base. and yesterday the speakers' list was a roster of potential 2016 candidates -- ted cruz, one of the crowd favorites, was first up, speaking for 18 minutes without a teleprompter. the senator took aim both at the republican establishment and obamacare. >> they say if you stand for principle, you lose elections. the way to do it, the smart way, the washington way is don't stand against obamacare, don't stand against the debt ceiling, don't stand against nothin'! i want to tell you something, that is a false dichotomy. [ applause ] you want to lose elections, stand for nothin'. and then, of course, all of us

remember president dole -- [ laughter ] -- and president mccain and president romney. now, look, those are good men. they're decent men. but when you don't stand and draw a clear distinction, when you don't stand for principle, democrats celebrate. we need to repeal every single word of obamacare. [ cheers and applause ] when millions of americans stood up last fall and said, "stop this train wreck, this disaster that is obamacare, that is hurting millions of people," the democrats said, the mainstream media said -- although i repeat myself -- [ laughter ] -- they said this is hopeless. don't you understand, just move on, just accept it! you can't do anything to stop this! >> yes, we can! >> yes, we can. [ applause ]

>> he's definitely very off-the-cuff. what did you think? >> 18 minutes without a teleprompter, delivering a message built for the base, i think for where he was, he really spoke to his audience and spoke to his audience very well. >> this is an opportunity for ted cruz to stand in front of the people, if he has the chance of becoming the republican nominee, these are the kind of people that will get him there, and he delivered a red meat message for those guys. i continue to believe that repealing obamacare is not a winning message in a general election, but he has to get first the republican nomination. he did pretty well. i thought it was fine for what it was. >> mark? >> i think he missed an opportunity. he's good for the base in the room. he still is not doing anything to reach out to the establishment, which if he really wants to be the republican nominee, he needs to do. george will last night on another cable channel was completely dismissive of his speech, and george will is not like the kingmaker, but he does represent a school of thought -- >> why was george will on another cable network -- >> just a bunch of rhetoric. he did impress tucker carlson on

that same network. if you have a chance to impress tucker or george, george is more representative of the nominating electorate of the republican party. ted cruz could do fine if he runs, just playing in that lane, but i still think he missed another opportunity to expand. because he has appeal. he has broader appeal than he showed in that speech to other parts of the electorate. look, if the big three don't run, if ryan and bush and christie don't run, there's a huge space there, and he could be taking up some of that, and -- >> i'm going to say something, cpac, though, and i'm interested, willie, in impressing neither george will or a guy that runs "the daily caller." i would prefer to impress a guy that runs "the daily caller." >> you could do both. >> i think there are many people who could do both. and, yes, i could do both. there are many people who could do both. it's not an either/or. you don't have to make that choice. >> yeah, i guess the question is, it was good for yesterday. how do you take that message into the middle? if he does decide he wants to

run for president, we don't know that's his intention, how do you take, repeal obamacare, establish a flat tax, how do you get people in the i-4 corridor -- >> you just -- i mean, you need the -- >> he believes that. he believes it's good for him -- >> no, abolish, just a flat tax. >> if he is ready for president, that's a tough lane down the middle. >> so governor christie also spoke yesterday. i think he was a no-show last year, which was interesting. >> he wasn't invited. >> no invitation last year. >> well, actually, i was about to say that, but thank you very much. he was off last year's invite list. he spoke of his achievements in new jersey, including education and pension reform, and had a message for republicans looking to change washington. >> i'll remind you of one simple truth in this democracy. we don't get to govern if we don't win. and it's not only bad when we don't get to govern, because we don't get to mold and change our

society. what's worse is they do. and they're doing it to us right now. so please let us come out here resolved not only to stand for our principles, but let's come out of this conference resolved to win elections again! that's what i intend to do for the next year, and i hope you'll join me. thank you very much. >> so governor christie also took time from the speech to defend the republicans' biggest donors, the koch brothers. take a listen to this. >> the reason we have to start talking about what we're for and not continuing to rail against what we're against is because of one simple reason. our ideas are better than their ideas, and that's whoo we have to stand up for. just look at what's going on in terms of what they're for in washington, d.c. what they're for in washington, d.c., is that the leader of the senate democrats stands up and rail against two american entrepreneurs who have built a business, created jobs, and created wealth and philanthropy

in this country. harry reid should get back to work and stop picking on great americans who are creating great things in our country. >> there was also plenty of criticism for president obama. when senator marco rubio and governor bobby jindal taking shots at the president's handling of ukraine. >> because we have a president who believes by the sheer force of his personality he would be able to shape global events. we have a president that believes by going around the world and giving key speeches in key places he could shape the behavior of other nations and other people. we do not have the luxury of seeing the world the way we hoped it would be. we have to see the world the way it is. >> having witnessed the events abroad the past several days, as a president invade as neighboring country, while our president wants to issue a downsize. president carter, i want to

issue an apology. it's no longer to say he was the worst president of our lifetime. president obama has proven me wrong. >> going back to chris christie, we talked about ted cruz and stand on your principles, come what may. chris christie offered a variation. i'll read you a quick quote. he said, we don't get to govern if we don't win, so please let us come out of here resolved not only to stand for our principles, but let's come out of this conference resolved to win elections again. so governor chris christie taking a more practical approach, perhaps, at least for a general election and competing against a democrat nationally. >> it was a good first sentence, i thought, but he didn't follow it up -- look, republicans have lost the popular vote in, like, five of the last six elections. so why is that? and it can't just be that nobody's properly articulating republican ideas.

it's got to be that they've got to come up with new stuff. -- really is. you know, 18 minutes without a teleprompter is not, you know, it's not dimaggio's 56-game streak or anything like that. he was really entertaining and fun to listen to. but in the final analysis, did he say anything that really takes a party forward? i don't think he did. so maybe -- maybe rand paul. you know, maybe it will be interesting to hear what he has to say. he has different ideas, and maybe he'll light up cpac and show a way forward. >> okay, we've got -- we should get to ukraine, which we saw with the discussion at cpac, as well. a couple of other stories, as well. in ukraine, a vote behind closed doors has reinforced the deep divisions playing out in the open. crimea's parliament voted to secede from ukraine and join russia. the decision will be followed with a referendum on leaving

ukraine on march 16th. crimea's prime minister also shut down a ukrainian tv station yesterday. it was replaced by a russian broadcaster. the u.s. is pushing forward on a series of sanctions for those involved with the russian intervention in ukraine. they include travel bans to the u.s. and the freezing of assets. the e.u. is also considering sanctions. president obama issued yet another stern warning to russia about the possibility of a divided ukraine. >> the proposed referendum on the future of crimea would violate the ukrainian constitution and violate international law. any discussion about the future of ukraine must include the legitimate government of ukraine. in 2014, we are well beyond the days when borders can be redrawn over the heads of democratic leaders. >> hours later, president obama spoke on the phone with russian president vladimir putin for one hour. he told putin that there is

still a way to resolve the crisis diplomatically, including direct talks between russia and ukraine. moscow, however, responded that presidents putin and obama remain far apart on how to resolve the crisis in ukraine. this was the second time in less than a week that the two leaders spoke on the phone -- >> gene robinson -- >> -- i'm sorry, mika. go ahead. >> i was flipping through the channels yesterday, and i saw literally the undermining of president obama going on with certain ideologues saying that putin is more of a leader than obama. i just didn't understand the concept of the conversation at this incredibly important moment. >> gene, and when you talk about what's going on in the ukraine, mark halperin forwarded me an excellent article this morning that just talked about how divided that country is, and how divided it always is, and every time you have an election you have the pro-western candidate

getting about 50% of the vote, and the pro-russian candidate getting about 50% of the vote, and it is -- it is a horrible problem not only for the president, but for the western world, because we have a treaty with ukraine, the western world saying give up your nuclear weapons and we'll make sure that your borders remain intact. >> yeah. >> and now, it doesn't look like that's going to happen. >> no, it doesn't look like that's going to happen. and president obama is right. it certainly violates the ukrainian constitution for crimea just to vote to secede. of course, it also violated the ukrainian constitution for the new government to just kind of overthrow the old government and kick yanukovych out. it wasn't exactly constitutional either. we clearly don't consider this a sacred document. you're right about the fundamental issue, which is it is a divided country. there are two distinct sort of world views and points of view in ukraine, and i'd say there's

probably a majority that doesn't want, you know, go back to the whole old russia thing, and once again all of ukraine becomes part of russia. but there are two visions for which way the country should lean, and that's not solved by the new government just going its way and ignoring what the eastern half of the country wants to do. >> the military's chain of command will remain intact when prosecuting sex assault cases after a bill to change the system failed in the u.s. senate. the legislation, being pushed by democrat kirsten gillibrand, fell five votes short needed to advance to the floor. it divided members over how to deal with an epidemic of sexual assaults in the armed forces. a pentagon study estimates as many as 26,000 military members may have been sexually assaulted in 2012 alone. the bill aimed to remove top

commanders from decisions involving the prosecution of alleged attackers, something senator gillibrand says is long overdue. >> we know that the deck is stacked against victims of sexual assault in the military today, and today, sadly, we saw the same in the halls of congress. for two decades, every secretary of defense has said zero tolerance for this crime, but all we have seen for nearly 25 years is zero accountability. >> republicans rand paul and ted cruz both supported the bill, something lindsey graham seemed to suggest would hurt their chances running for president. >> people wanting to run for president on our side, i will remind you of this vote. if you want to be commander in chief, you told me a lot today about who you are as commander in chief candidate. you were willing to fire every commander in the military for reasons i don't quite understand.

so we'll have a good discussion as to whether or not you understand how the military actually works. >> does anybody want to -- >> less sweeping legislation sponsored by mccaskill, who opposed gillibrand's proposal, passed 100-0, and it's set for a vote next week. the army's top sex crimes prosecutor. let me say this again. the guy in charge of prosecuting sex crimes in the military is now under investigation for groping a female lawyer back in 2011. and in a separate case, an army general is pleading guilty to carrying on an affair with a female captain who accuses him of forcing sex. >> okay. >> and threatening to kill her family if she exposed the adultery. i would say, gene robinson, as a

man who has long understood the chain of command and talked about the importance of it -- [ laughter ] -- there are times when maybe it's good to bring somebody in from the outside when you have this sort of rampant abuse inside the military. >> we're talking about a military structure that's been in place, like, during world war ii. we can update, can't we? >> right. the chain of command is not working here. the chain of command is delivering a terrible result on the sexual assault cases. it seems to be getting worse, not better. and so, it seems clear to me that it's time to try something different, and i just -- lindsey graham's adamance on this question, it puzzles me. he obviously knows the military. he was in the military. >> right. >> the legal branch. but i think it's a mistake, frankly, and i think gillibrand's legislation should

have gone forward. >> yeah. >> as you listen to lindsey graham, you wonder who he's talking about, ted cruz and rand paul both sided with the gillibrand bill. >> what's the problem? >> two things you can say about rand paul and ted cruz is they are in with that vote showing some cogny zans nn cognyzans, they believe in the principle. i would also say there's a recognition there that the party has a problem, and that, i think, they're making -- they've been doing this for a while. >> coming up on "morning joe," did another month of brutal weather hurt the economy? >> boy, willie, that was brutal, wasn't it? what a brutal month. >> we'll bring you the latest unemployment data as the february jobs report is released. up next, las vegas is a top contender for the 2016 republican convention. >> what do you think of that, willie? >> mm-hmm. >> are you going to help me

here? >> i feel good about that. >> that's great, willie. >> but will a democrat plan to spoil the conservative fun in the sin city -- wait, why would they do that? let them go to vegas. mike allen explains in today's "politico playbook." >> willie says, mm. >> mm-hmm. >> yes'm. >> first, the forecast with bill. >> maybe we can cover the convention from vegas, so we can get ourselves in trouble. imagine those mornings. north carolina, what a morning you've had. winston-salem, greensboro area, and a little in the durham. the pink freezing rain has been with you all night long. there's trees down. it's a mess. it will be a big day of cleanup once we warm up. it never made it up to washington, d.c. the precipitation stopped right about richmond. that's good for the d.c. area, but north carolina is who got it the worst. no other big storms on the map. just a little bit of light freezing rain or snow heading

for areas of minnesota, wisconsin today. otherwise, a quiet weather map. it's actually slowly warming up, especially minneapolis at 26 degrees, one of the warmest mornings you've had all winter. of course, we know how bad it's been. the forecast through the week d weekend. we finally get some warm air down in texas today, kansas city will have some beautiful weather. that makes its way to the east coast on saturday. notice the 50s almost all the way up to new york city. so enjoy that. be a little cooler on sunday. not a lot of stormy weather out there, even into sunday. we're actually looking pretty mild through many spots. next week, in the middle of the country, we are going to see -- this isn't a forecast for snow, just one of the computer models -- but it does show snow through the heartland and then up through new england as we go through wednesday, thursday. so that's the timing. we'll pinpoint details and give them out as we go through next week. let's just try to enjoy a pretty mild weekend first. in d.c., look at that. a lot of the snow's already gone. by the weekend, it will all be gone. you're watching "morning joe."

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♪ let's look at the morning paymers, shall we? from the parade of papers, "the seattle times" the ex-girlfriend of oscar pistorius is testifying in his murder trial. she said he always carried a gun and once shot at a traffic light during a traffic stop. she said he cheated on her twice, once with reeva

steenkamp. his defense team said he mistook steenkamp for an intruder. the death toll continues to rise as violence continues to rise in venezuela. yesterday, two people died after a clash erupted between residents of a caracas neighborhood and armed men who tried to take down a barricade. the opposition says the government's using excessive force to break up protests. the president says those building barricades are, quote, vandals who hate the people. 19 people have died in the ongoing conflict. >> "the dallas morning news," the ride manufacturer who claimed the life of a woman last summer said six flags over texas is to blame for the accident. the roller coaster manufacturer said it urged the theme park to install seat belts when the ride texas giant was built in 2011. six flags said they were told the ride was safe without safety belts. the family of the victim is suing the theme park and the ride manufacturer. and from the "boston globe,"

staples is closing more than 200 of its stores to focus onion line sales. the office supply company says nearly half of its sales take place online. staples is pushing technology products and is also expanding its inventory to include industrial and medical supplies, office party items, and educational toys. >> "usa today," american household wealth rose by nearly $10 trillion in 2013. the federal reserve says increasing home values and a strong stock market explains the gains. many americans may not be reaping the benefits. 80% of stocks are owned by the richest 10% of americans. >> and "the post standard," the national day of unplugging begins tonight at sundown. thank god. it's about time. i am not feeling well. to honor the new holiday, people across the country are encouraged to unplug from their devices and spend time engaging with friends. what do you do if you have no friends? participants can plug back in

tomorrow at sunset. you can head over to national day of unplugging dot-com to take the pledge if you really have nothing better to do today. let's go to willie geist right now. >> by the way, mark halperin currently on three devices in honor -- blackberry, iphone -- >> are any of them -- >> but i'm writing heiku in my head -- >> imaginary friends. >> with us, the chief white house correspondent, mike allen, who has a look at the "playbook." good morning. >> good morning, willie. happy friday! >> happy friday! yeah, the weekend officially begins with that. let's get to the rnc possible sites for 2016. las vegas is one of the favorites, among eight finalists of the city. you're reporting that a democratic group is threatening to track every move republicans make at that convention if, in fact, it's held in vegas. >> that's right, willie. when the republican national committee announced its eight

finalists, las vegas looked like the favorite. nevada is a swing state. the governor there is a republican. that's a big criteria for them picking the cities. brian sandoval, one of the party's great rising stars. and a big factor, shulden addleson would bank roll the convention and take away a lot of the money problems. as we've talked about, aides, lawmakers are worried about late-night bad behavior, that has always been the big asterisk next to las vegas. now, american bridge, the democratic group headed by brad woodhouse, founded by david brock, says that if republicans choose vegas, they'll deploy two or three dozen trackers carrying videocameras end to end on the trip to record republican candidate office and their late-night carousing. they've already bought the website sincitygop, where they

said they'll post this video. they are going to have capability to do live ads on the website, it says. what happens in vegas will be right here. >> wow. you know, john heilemann and i happen to believe that las vegas is a safe place. an oasis in the desert where people can express themselves and be americans. >> that's right. i would not want a lowjack on me when i'm in las vegas. >> no. mike, do you think this will factor into the decision? are participants in the conference so unable to control themselves that they couldn't hold the rnc there? >> yes and yes. >> really? >> of course, it will be a factor. you know, from the very beginning when las vegas came up, of course they're concerned about the lawmakers. it's on west coast time, as you know, when a convention is on west coast time, there's more time for bad behavior, because tv gets off the air in the east. there's more hours. and you're going to have a lot of young people who have never been to vegas. and it's just asking for trouble.

>> we need to walk them through it. >> well, the thing about the west coast time thing seems wrong to me. vegas is a place where there is no time. that's what we like about it. >> exactly. >> 7-to-5 odds this ain't happening. >> you think so? >> columbus, ohio, on the other end of the spectrum. >> wendy's was invented there. up next, the february jobs report with cnbc's sarah iseman. so there i was again, explaining my moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis to another new stylist. it was a total embarrassment. and not the kind of attention i wanted. so i had a serious talk with my dermatologist about my treatment options. this time, she prescribed humira-adalimumab. humira helps to clear the surface of my skin by actually working inside my body. in clinical trials, most adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis saw 75% skin clearance.

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♪ we're all looking at our tablets and iphones. the february jobs report was just released. we get the numbers now from sarah eisen. sarah? >> it looks like it was good news on the jobs front. 175,000 jobs were added in the month of february. economists were only looking for a number just over 150,000. this comes after two months of very disappointing reports because of the weather. so perhaps that momentum that we had seen in the labor market is really picking up. also want to flag the unemployment rate. 6.7%. that actually ticked up. but it may be good news, because it may be a sign that people are out there looking for jobs. labor force participation rate, 63%, right on par with what happened back in january. it's still pretty low, the lowest near the 1970s, late

1970s. but ticking a little bit higher. so not as bad news to blame it on the weather. and u.s. equity futures pointing to a higher start here for wall street. >> all right, cnbc's sarah eisen. thank you. 175,000 added, miles. >> that's a good number. >> it is? >> well, the number i had heard, people expected was 139,000 jobs, so 175,000 is actually quite good. 150 has sort of been the average over a longer period of time. look, i can tell you from the clients'businesses of ours, and you're talking about $50 billion of sales that's retpresentative of the client base, business is good. it's not great, it's solid. it's steady. and it is getting better. just not at an accelerated rate. you're talking about 3% to 4% gdp growth, expectation, probably in the lower range of low threes. it's up from 2% last year. >> so you're chairman and ceo of the holding -- ndc partners.

>> right. >> you deal on a daily basis with multiples -- >> biggest marketers in the world. >> when you say business is good, is that all relative? to what we've seen? or how would you characterize the way things are going? >> look, when business is great, gdp growth is north of 4%. we haven't seen that, and we probably won't see that for a period of time. but 3% growth is quite respectable. it's important, though, to keep in mind where growth is coming from. actual growth outside of north america, the trees of brazil, india, china, is greater than that. the top 500 businesses outside of north america, the businesses are growing more rapidly. they expect the s&p 500 earnings stream to grow by 7%, 8% this year, so that's a reflection of 3% sort of north american growth and much higher growth outside. i think it's respectable.

you know, i think the stock market is reflecting an expectation of continued increase in earnings momentum going forward. >> miles, when we look at the markets now, and so many people think q1 is a great indicator for how the rest of the year will shake out, what are your predictions, your forecasts for how 2014 is going to go down, if we're going on that determiner? >> well, i'm not a forecaster, and so, i can't tell you. i can only tell you what i saw other people reflect. i think it will be a respectable year. you won't get 26%, 30% appreciation in the stock market that you got last year. i think people are talking about sort of 7% to 10% appreciation on the s&p 500, and the average company's yielding 2% to 3% in dividends, and if you had sort of 6%, 7% earnings growth, you got all in returns of 9%, 10%. i think that's very respectable. so i think the market's higher

by the end of the year, but the geopolitical issues are bringing a lot of uncertainty, and that's causing huge volatility in the markets. >> go ahead. >> i think to mika's point, there's a question about relative, and certainly after the horrific stretch we had for a while after the -- in the great recession, and the fallout from that, 3% looks pretty nice. but most of us think great would be better than good. so what -- you said we're not going to see north of 4% anytime in the near future. what would need to happen for us to get to great? what would need for us to get to 4%-plus gdp growth on either the policy side or on the private market side? >> it's a great question. i think there's two fundamental things. one is you need political stability in washington. you need a clear sense of direction about what's the direction on health care, what's the direction on fiscal policy. but more importantly, what's the direction on employment? at the end of the day, if we don't start creating a lot more jobs -- i'm talking about, you

know, 200 to 250,000 jobs a month, then the uncertainty that's been caused is causing corporations to be reluctant to open new plants, invest in new technology, and stimulate employment domestically. internationally, they are. so i think those are the critical things. and with the uncertainty that's happening in washington, i'm a member of an organization called the business roundtable in washington, 200 of the top ceos in the world, and if you hear them, they're still as uncertain as ever about where washington's direction's going to be, and what policies are going to be put in place to allow them to have terra firma to make investment decisions over a long-term basis. >> miles, that 250 number has been a sweet spot that's been -- tried to be attained. it has not been on a consistent basis. here we see the fact it's a better-than-expected jobs number, but the unemployment rate ticks up? >> i think as sarah articulates,

part of that is a big game. how many people left the marketplace and are permanently unemployed or no longer looking for a job, et cetera? i care more about the number of jobs created than the employment percentage, unemployment percentage, because that one -- it depends on how many people leave the workforce. i care about the number of jobs. we're still at a very modest level. i think the other thing that's happening is the advent of the growth of technology is reducing -- it's increasing productivity and technological innovation, which is reducing the requirement for employment to some degree. so you've got those two things conflicting. but overall, the economy's good and corporate liquidity is at an all-time high. you have $3 trillion of excess cash on the balance sheets of corporations. >> profits are good. >> profits are -- profits are very respectable. and margins are very good. dividends keep being increased, which i think is fuelling part

of the stock market. >> so can i ask you a question, then? >> sure. >> because, you know, if you have certain things that respectable levels that have stayed there for a few years, how long can companies who are making profits sort of stand behind this veil of uncertainty and not hire new people and not raise rages? you gave a pretty good gauge of where a lot of major companies are standing. >> i think part of the issue is that there isn't a fundamental need -- i mean, i think companies are more efficient and more productive, and so, therefore, technology is taking away some of the requirement of incremental demand on labor. overall, labor's pricing power across the world, though, has not grown. i mean, you know -- i think wage inflation is happening at a more senior level, but at the grassroots level, it's quite modest.

i think the bigger issue is the obamacare, what it has done, it's reduced corporations' requirement to have full-time employment -- 42 hours -- down to temporary employment, down to 29 hours. and the big misnomer that exists in washington is that economically raising the minimum wage is not as important as getting people full-time back to work for 42 hours. because the increase in the minimum wage does not have the same economic impact as increasing the number of hours from 29 to 42 to get people full-time employed. i think at the end of the day, until washington has a clear direction about where it's going on these major policies, you know, health care reform, taxation, et cetera, i think corp corporations will continue to be uncertain. there is still growth. it's just not that significant. it's not the kind of robust growth we all want to make

america great, which is we need 4%, 5% gdp growth, stimulated by, you know, higher employment. >> yeah. all right, miles nadal. >> rising wages. >> oh, rising wages, good. thank you so much. thank you for everything that you do. >> pleasure. up next, the fallout from the dustup from darrell issa and elijah cummings. an apology issi issued. [ male announcer ] what if a small company became big business overnight? ♪ like, really big... then expanded? ♪ or their new product tanked?

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♪

that's the best snapchat. all right, thank you. i'll send that to her. 44 past the hour. after an explosive exchange on capitol hill, it appears the rift between congressman darrell issa and congressman elijah cummings is over. issa has apologized for cutting off cummings' microphone. the house oversight chairman walked out on the congressman while he finished up his statement. issa called it an unfortunate incident saying, quote, i could have offered to reopen the hearing and allowed him to make a second statement. as chairman, i should have been much more sensitive to the mood of what was going on. i take responsibility. earlier in the day, democrats unsuccessfully called for issa to be sanctioned for his, quote, offensive and disrespectful manner during the hearing congressman cummings since that hearing has accepted issa's apology and says he hopes to avoid unnecessary conflict in the future. it blew up. >> shouldn't we adopt this symbol, like, issa --

>> well, i think he -- >> i think that's a good thing. cut the mike. >> yes, i do that often. >> international. >> it's similar to the fonz apologizing. >> i could tell issa sort of couldn't figure out what to do, so he's apologizing. >> good he did it. he's not a big apology guy. the top military officer says the united states is still trying to recover from edward snowden's security leaks. general martin dempsey tells congress it will take billions of dollars and up to two years to determine the extent of the damage. general dempsey says a majority of the documents snowden stole from the nsa contained classified information about the u.s. military. snowden is currently living in russia under temporary asylum. >> the year will be up soon. the one-year asylum. will he remain? >> okay. >> just did an interview in the next few days. by video. it will be interesting. he's not done a lot of those. >> the russians are just awesome

to us. they do everything we ask. >> yeah. up next, touted as an alternative to smoking, but is the marketing behind e-cigarettes intentionally targeting teens? that's next on "morning joe." people don't have to think about where their electricity comes from. they flip the switch-- and the light comes on. it's our job to make sure that it does. using natural gas this power plant can produce enough energy for about 600,000 homes. generating electricity that's cleaner and reliable, with fewer emissions-- it matters. ♪ afghanistan, in 2009. orbiting the moon in 1971. [ male announcer ] once it's earned, usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation.

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♪ medical marijuana is now legal in new jersey, and we're

getting our first look at the ads that have hit the airwaves. >> yo. you want sushi? i got sushi. i got the best sushi. this area is dry, man. you know that. i know that. nobody's sellin' but me. i got tuna. salmon. sweet shrimp. i got the finest sashimi this area has seen in years. i need you and you need me. let's make this work. throw in rice paper, man. totally free. i got everything. even california rolls, baby. >> announcer: you wouldn't buy your sushi from this guy, so why would you buy your marijuana from him? marijuanadoctors.com. >> what's in your coat, heilemann? >> ooh. >> the whole sushi in the coat thing is just disturbing to me. >> to another form of smoking. >> i don't like that. >> this time involving teenagers and e-cigarettes. as nbc's john yang reports, states are looking to crack down on underaged vaping. >> reporter: the study just out

found that e-cigarette use by middle and high school students more than doubled between 2011 and 2012. >> it's increasingly so rapidly that we're concerned about what we're going to see in the future. >> reporter: it found adolescent e-cigarette users were more likely to smoke tobacco, smoke heavily, and less likely to quit. experts are divided if e-cigarette use may lead to smoking tobacco. an industry trade group slammed the study, saying conclusions should be based on factual science, not assumption or opinion. e-cigarettes use a battery to heat a flavored liquid containing varies amounts of nicotine into a vapor. >> nicotine from any source in an adolescent brain, if applied regularly, impairs the normal process of the adolescent brain development. >> i finally found a smarter alternative -- >> reporter: e-cigarette makering se6 -- marketers don't

target adolescents. >> there's blatant association of e-cigarettes with sex. >> reporter: at this year's golden globes, leonardo dicaprio was spotted vaping. >> like a buffet. >> reporter: across the nation, hundreds of lounges have sprung up. some of the college students all over 18 are former smokers. is this a way of getting the nicotine without smoking tobacco? >> it's a way of weaning myself off the nicotine. >> reporter: others never smoke and choose nicotine-free flavors. >> is it the social aspect more than anything? >> yeah, the main thing. >> reporter: a growing trend that has medical experts worried about consequences for the next generation. >> i don't know. it's not attractive, is it, these kids? i guess it is a way of weaning off smoking. >> we know one star light not afraid to catch a fog in front of the camera. >> who's that?

>> lindsay lohan. oprah takes a swipe at lindsay and tells her to clean up her act. >> i don't want all of the negative [ bleep ] going on and all of the stress to show through on the camera. you're getting me angry, because you weren't good for me for a long time. >> if that's what you believe, it's fine, honey. >> it's good, good, good, and then there's that thing in my head well, time to sabotage. don't put words in my mouth. >> you know, my truth is that i really do want you to win. i really do. if that isn't what you want, i'm okay with that. you know, i will tell these guys to pack up and leave today. >> no, it's not that i'm not ready to do that. i do want to. >> you need to cut [ bleep ]. you really do. >> i know that this is my last shot at doing what i love to do. >> spellbound.

i've never been more riveted in my entire life. [ laughter ] it's riveting. like an archie comic book meets "planet of the apes." >> i have no idea what that means. >> i think i know what i learned. what, if anything, did we learn today? we'll be right back. why are house republicans "cooling," "retreating," and privately saying they'd rather do "nothing" on immigration reform this year? doing nothing puts jobs on ice... forces us to lose out on revenue for roads and schools. and sends a message to millions of dreamers, who study hard and want to serve our country, they might as well dream on. no, nothing won't do. call house republicans today. tell them we've waited long enough: pass immigration reform.

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♪ [ humming ] >> all right. >> time to talk about what we learned today. mika, what on earth did you learn today? >> i want to know, we had lewis down in washington, but who else, alex? clayton. >> and ben. >> ben. great job on the piece and al cardenas. >> and what did you learn? >> i learned there's compelling lindsay lohan reality show i must watch. >> we decided how to make it more compelling which is by making it about lindsey graham and lindsay low ham called "lindsay and me." >> jon huntsman kind of a fan. who knew? >> that is kind of news. we try not to make news, but we accidentally did. >> i would totally watch lindsay-squared and jen litman is back. she should be in the reality show, too. causes of the crimean crisis, but that's okay.

hey, stick around, we've got chuck todd with gary kasparov, bobby fischer, and you won't believe this, paul lynde from "hollywood squares." >> joker, joker. ♪ checkmate, as russian leaders cheer crimea's craving to leave ukraine and join russia. vladimir putin makes public and private moves to map out the future of russia's neighbors. we're going to hear from legendary chess champion turned putin provocateur gary kasparov. also, the tdr 50 features texas titans taking their turns at the conservative party on the potomac. plus, a look at rising lone star state stars, and a chat with one who shared blunt thoughts about the reality of life in washington. and at cpac, rolls on this morning. one rebl