>> they wanted to hurry up and get it done. with as little transparency as possible. this is what they get. we have pivoted from the severe weather to the flooding. >> the flooding has been historic. worse than many of the hurricanes we've dealt with recently. >> flooding from new england all the way down to the panhandle of florida. the poll shows that 38% approve of the president's handling on foreign policy. overall, though, the president's job approval ratings are better than last month's records low. this photo was posted oen the official "star wars" site. join the cast of the franchise seventh film assembling at a london script reading. >> so far we know mark camel, carry fisher and harrison ford are all going to be in the new movie which will be titled "episode 7: a new hip." first up today, the clippers scored a big win on the court last night.

but big questions still loom today as nba commissioner adam silver begins his plan to force l.a. clippers owner donald sterling out of the league. completely. following yesterday's lifelong ban on sterling's interactions with the league and the $2.5 million fine that was levied against him which will be donated to anti-discrimination causes, silver says he will now pressure the board of governors, that's the nba's shadowy group of team owners, to make sterling sell. it will take a super majority of the board, three-quarters o f them, to terminate sterling's owner sh e ownership. so what are the odds? >> there's no way that they can continue to own a team and, on the other hand, support what mr. sterling espouses. >> even if there are some owners, let's say a handful, that have some misgivings not because they have any sympathy for sterling, but because they think there's something about the process that disturbs them, they can't run the public relations risk of appearing to

in any way either side with donald sterling or to mitigate his guilt. >> also unclear, whether sterling will fight his ouster in court. the team, after all, is his property. joining me now is former nba player aton thomas. thank you so much, sir, for joining. >> thanks for having me. >> first off, forcing sterling's to sell comes down to the league's owners. you've worked with these guys. how do you think they'll respond? >> i think they have no choice but to respond the way commissioner adam silver said to respond. the way he did it, he didn't say he was going to poll them. he didn't say he was going to leave it up to them. he said he was going to drive this through. they don't have any other way they can do it. mark cuban before was talking about how he was pretty much against it. after adam silver said what he said, mark cuban automatically tweeted, he's like, okay. i'm all for what adam silver said. because he has -- he wasn't given any other option. >> right. and, actually, even for those relatively measured comments, he got a tremendous amount of blowback. in some senses they can't afford to appear to be supporting him.

of course there's also the issue of wealth here. sterling paid $12 million for the clippers in the early '80s. if he sells now he could make as much as a billion dollars. >> right. >> given that he still stands to profit and this much, is the punishment enough, do you think? >> well, you know, i would have liked to see him, you know, return just what he originally paid it for. they're not going to do that. i mean, he's still going to fight it. he's definitely going to fight it. this is something where if it was worth $12 million in 1981 and right now he could sell it for almost a billion, what do you think it's going to be worth in 20 more years? so he wants to keep it. he's sitting on a gold mine. he doesn't want to give it up. i saw a clip of him saying he's going to fight this. he's not going to bow out gracefully. he's not going to offer a public apology and say he's sorry for what he did. he is who he is and who he has always been. when he settled the discrimination case back in 2003, he didn't apologizapologi. it was the biggest case in l.a. history to $2.7 million. him and his wife. i don't know why they don't put

his wife with him. they were both in the discrimination case. >> his wife is not banned. >> right. he didn't apologize anything. he said this is not an admission of guilt. that is just the type of character he has. he is a proud racist. >> mr. thomas, when you were in the league, did you experience this kind of culture of exploitation? is it bigger than just this one individual? >> i think what -- what donald sterling remits presents is a b issue of society. it's interesting because affirmative action was just turned down again earlier this month. and donald sterling is a perfect example of why we still need affirmative action. becau because donald sterling is not an anomaly. there's a lot of donald sterlings out there in positions of power. he can discriminate against the people he doesn't like. he's symbolic of the college acceptance board that looks at an application and knows that one child comes from an inner city school and knows another

one is coming from the suh bubu and knows they're not getting the equal education but give them the same standardized test as though they're being educated equally. >> you're saying -- >> it's all a big setup. he is part of -- it's bigger than donald sterling. he's part of a racist system. the prison to pipeline -- the pipeline from school to prison that is -- right now he's representative of the judge who would give a little white kid affluenza and a black kid who does the same crime a prison sentence. >> what we all felt in response to last week's news, you scratch the surface there's a lot of ugliness underneath. etan thomas, thanks for that. in just under an hour oklahoma governor mary fallin is hosting a press conference to discuss the famously grisly execution of this death row inmate that went awry last night. we want to look at that for a moment. last night as i mentioned the state of oklahoma injected clayton lockett with an

experimental mix of drugs. they refuse to disclose the source. here's what happened according to the reporter in the room. 6:23 p.m. execution begins. 6:28 p.m. inmate shivering, shaking, gritting his teeth. 6:38 to:39 p.m. inmate appears to be struggling. trying to talk. says, man. appears to be trying to get up. finally it was announced that the execution had failed. as a result, clayton lockett died of a massive heart attack 40 minutes after oklahoma began trying to kill him. just last month nbc affiliate kfor spoke to lockett's stepmother, ladonna holland, who expressed the family's fears about this exact kind of outcome. >> i know he's scared. he says that he's not as scared of the dying as much as the drugs that's being administered. i want to know what mixture of drugs are you going to use now? is this going to cause horrible pain? >> lockett had sued the state

for refusing to disclose those details about the drugs' origins. his attorney was outraged at what he saw last night when the state rushed, ignored lockett's appeal and went ahead with the execution anyway. listen to him. >> this was a horrible thing to witness. one of the things he said was, something's wrong. he said, man, at one point. he kept trying to raise up. they wanted to hurry up and get it done. with as little transparency as possible. this is what they get. >> just after lockett's execution went so awry, oklahoma governor mary fallin issued a stay of execution for the second inmate, charles warner, who was scheduled to die last night. look, these are some of america's worst criminals. warner raped and killed his girlfriend's 11-month-old daughter in 1997. lockett shot a teenage girl and then buried her alive. the question on many people's minds is, should they die like this? joining me now is stephanie

mensimer. stephanie, we know lockett and warner were appealing their death sentences. what was the state's rush to get these executions done last night? >> well, the state has been actually trying to defend a larger statute that goes beyond these two men. they've been working very hard to hide the source of the drugs they're trying to use in these lethal executions. that's really what the legal issue was all about. and i think they were just hoping that no court was going to rule against them before they executed these guys. because they've -- they don't want anyone to know where they're getting the drugs. what's necessarily in them. and how they were manufactured. >> and why do you think that is? >> well, i think that there is -- over the last couple of years, there have been drug shortages for the drugs that are typically used in lethal injections and the death penalty. >> partly because, of course, the european union has banned these drugs to be exported for this purpose, correct? >> right. and one of the manufacturers in

the united states stopped making it completely. and so the states have been in a bit of a bind if they want to keep continuing to do lethal executions -- or lethal injections. they have to find new sources of the drugs or different drugs. and it's kind of this -- this wild new experiment that they're doing on human beings to try to find new ways to kill them. >> what are they afraid people will find out if they reveal the sources of these drugs? >> well, you know, it's funny. they've made some crazy arguments. they say that the people who are supplying the drugs have been -- you know, might be threatened with violence. because, you know, anti-death penalty advocates are such violent people. there's some really absurd arguments about this. and i think really what they're trying to do is keep the defendants from making a constitutional argument that these drugs that they're using would constitute cruel and unusual punishment because of the way they were made or potential adulterations or in some cases they're getting these drugs from compounding pharmacies, which have a really bad track record of, you know, distributing other sorts of drugs that have killed a bunch

of people inadvertently. there's some real concerns about where these drugs are coming from. so they're trying to keep the inmates from making that case in court. >> as we mentioned, the governor of oklahoma did stay the execution for 14 days of this next planned killing. do you think that that's long enough? she claims they'll make a thorough investigation. is there enough time to do that in 14 days? >> well, they might be able -- i mean, i guess they've said that this execution went awry because of something that had to do with the vein exploding. which sounds really horrible. but that would indicate, if it's true, that it didn't really have anything to do with the drugs they were using. >> we should point out, by the way, we've had some of our experts look at that. when they say exploding it's a term of art, apparently, that doesn't literally mean exploding. it's a collapsed vein, a damaged vein. >> right, right. which is actually pretty common. something like 7% of all lethal injection executions go awry. it's often for this reason. the veins, you know, the needles aren't put in right because it's not done by doctors. it's usually done by prison

guards. so there's a lot of, you know, complications just from inserting the needle itself. but i think the bigger issue is whether the state can continue to, you know, hide the source of the drugs. and that's what i don't think they can litigate in 14 days. and so if they want to get at that issue, they're going to need more time. >> thank you for that, stephanie mencimer. we'll be watching this issue closely. >> thanks. remember what paul ryan said about the tail spin of culture in our inner cities. up next, why ryan is now the one doing some spinning. those little things still get you. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment is right. cialis is also the only daily ed tablet approved to treat symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess. side effects may include headache, upset stomach,

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to clear the air following ryan's controversial comments on a radio show last month. here's a reminder of what he said. >> we have got this tailspin of culture in our inner cities in particular of men not working and just generations of men not even thinking about working. or learning the value and the culture of work. so there's a real culture problem here that has to be dealt with. >> ryan faced a barrage of criticism. he later said in part that he was inarticulate, not, in fact, implicating the tculture of any one community. members of the congressional black caucus say ryan has some pointed questions to answer. >> we see it as an opportunity to have a serious discussion with him about poverty and about ways to alleviate the lack of job and job opportunities with african-americans. we want to really challenge his assumptions about the laziness, as it were, of inner city men. >> if you don't know and speak

about that which you don't know, you're going to end up in a mouth trap. and that's where chairman ryan has ended up. >> that meeting just broke. apparently congressman elijah cummings has already said that paul ryan, quote, still has a lot to learn. we are expecting a news conference in the wake of that meeting. we'll keep an eye on that. joining me now, howard fineman, msnbc political analyst. corey dade, contributing editor at the root. thanks for being here. corey, let's start with you. what do you think paul ryan will or should take away from this meeting? >> the black caucus and the members aren't anything new to paul ryan. he works with them every day in one way or another. i think what he'll take away from this is that, you know, the left, particularly democrats and the black caucus members, aren't going to move off of this. this is really sort of a political meeting for both sides. for the black caucus, they get to hold ryan accountable for his remarks from the radio show.

but on the other side, you know, this is part of paul ryan's effort to soften his image and conservatives' image coming into an election year. you know, he's been on this tour through the hood over the last several weeks. but he's yet to come up with any policy alternatives that address the issue of america's poor. >> i mean, you know, the earned tax credit in certain elements of his budget would suggest there's some substance in his commitment to poverty. what do you think of that. >> the earnings tax credit is a start. it's almost negated by so many other things in his budget plaen. he's been very clear in saying his budget plan wasn't meant to include new ideas on addressing america's poor. which to me kind of speaks to the fact that it was really a political manifesto in election year more than anything else. >> he wasn't expecting it to pass, clearly. howard, listen to what buzzfeed's mckab cobbins writes. ryan is fighting a well-drawn caricature of himself as a wolf in bro's clothing.

a right wing radical who disguises his agenda to dismantle the social safety net with an ernest homecoming king of congress act. fair caricature? >> i think what you have to do is look at the -- at the ryan budget. and the ryan budget contemplates huge cuts in programs that -- that people need, who need a job, who need help, the poorest of our society. whether they're in the inner cities or in rural appalachia or whatever. medicare, medicate, social welfare programs, medicate programs, you name it. that speaks louder, the numbers there, reliable or not, speak louder than whatever he's saying behind closed doors to the congressional black caucus. my understanding from talking to some of those members is that was a point they made to him today. >> corey mentioned some of paul ryan's bigger political

ambitions. we'll see whether there's a 2016 run in the works. we have interesting new numbers in our nbc news/"wall street journal" poll about other contenders and the landscape going into that race. one interesting thing we pulled out of that, 7 in 10 americans say there should be more candidates for president than simply a clinton or a bush. corey, do you think americans are over political dynasties? >> when they stop voting for the members of those political dynasties, yeah. then they'll really be over it. i think americans always want expanded choice. but the truth of the matter is, this is a -- america runs on a two-party system. and we've seen time and again that candidates who aren't anointed by those two parties don't get very far. especially in a general election. >> it's certainly something i personally as a voter lament. that there's not more space outside of that rigid two-party system. howard, within that two-party system and within those dynasties, the numbers we're looking at right now to this latest poll are 48% viewing clinton positively. 32% viewing her negatively. on the other hand, 21% viewing

jeb bush positively and even more, 32% viewing him negatively. what do you think of this question of whether 2016 is going to be a dynastic drag race if you will? >> i think it's way too early to say that. i think somebody is going to run against hillary. maybe several people. there's very little downside risk to doing it. right now on the democratic side she's a prohibitive favorite. if you run and make a statement, you don't spend or lose all your political capital because you don't have very much to begin with. nature abhors a vacuum. so does the media. i think there'll be a run against hillary clinton. elizabeth warren says she's not going to do it. i just saw her the other night. she said again she's not going to do it. but let's see who does. and the republican side is absolutely wide open. jeb has a considerable number of personal and -- and even career issues that he was going to want to deal with before he definitely gets in the race. i'm not convinced that's going

to happen. >> one of the striking takeaways from this poll, corey, is that 47% of americans believe the u.s. needs to be less active around the world. what do you make of that? do you see that affecting how candidates run in this next election cycle? >> you know, i think this, ronan, is just a continuation of the fatigue from iraq and afghanistan. i mean, you know, the united states, for starters, americans in general, have always been less interested in foreign policy than domestic policy. right now with the economy being what it is, with sort of the continued negative polling, negative sentiments among americans toward the affordable care act, quite frankly americans are over foreign policy for now. whether that's, you know, realistic or mature of them or not, that is the case. i think that obama always has to thread a needle here. you know, he is expected to project strength. >> right. >> you hear the criticisms with his policy with russia. but at the same time, you know, his, you know, diplomacy first

is actually something that suits the needs of americans right now. but it's still not resonating with them. >> all right. howard fineman and corey dade, thank you, gentlemen. straight ahead, developing news. there has been water rescuing going on all day long in florida and alabama. it's 24 hours of historic flooding with and we're going to have the latest. stay with us. why is our arizona-based company relocating manufacturing to upstate new york? i tell people it's for the climate. the conditions in new york state are great for business. new york is ranked #2 in the nation for new private sector job creation. and now it's even better because they've introduced startup new york - dozens of tax-free zones where businesses pay no taxes for ten years. you'll get a warm welcome in the new new york. see if your business qualifies at startupny.com transit fares! as in the 37 billion transit fares we help collect each year.

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trapped in their cars. florida governor rick scott has declared a state of emergency in 26 counties because of the historic flooding caused by the same storm system that brought those devastating tornadoes earlier this week. so that's dominating headlines today. but we also remember, want you to tell us what underreported storieses you want to see covered next. last week you chose gerrymandering. we are reporting that story tomorrow. be sure to tune in. this week, the topics you brought upmost were, first of all, a lot of you voted for boko haram and the abductions of more than 200 schoolgirls in africa. many voted for atheism and the rise of atheism in america. going back to this choice you guys had, school resegregation as a trend across the country. to vote in the poll go to our website. ronanfarrow.msnbc.com. make your pick and we'll cover the winning story on the show. we've gotten to know donald sterling probably more than we like. what do we know about the women in his life? up next a unique perspective

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you're looking at congressman paul ryan and congresswoman marsha fudge of the congressional black caucus discussing a meeting that they just convened in the wake of some controversial comments congressman ryan said about inner city and urban culture. take a look at congressman ryan's remarks earlier. >> let me just say, we all have to do a better job at challenging the status quo on how best to fight poverty. we've shared a lot of ideas together on how to do that. what is good out of this is we need to talk about better ideas on getting at the root cause of poverty to try and break the cycle of poverty. i'm excited that we're having this conversation. policymakers from all sides of the aisle need to take a look at whether we are fighting poverty successfully or not. and i think we can learn from

these exchanges with one another. and i think what we're trying to accomplish here is improving the tone of debate so that more people are invited to this debate so that we can do a better job of actually getting a control of our problems with poverty. the status quo doesn't work. we can do better. we each have things to offer. we will disagree on macroeconomics and budgets and things like that. but hopefully out of a good dialogue, we can find some common ground and make a difference. >> and that's where we are. thank you all. >> so that was congressman paul ryan. we heard some signs of conciliatory language from congresswoman fudge saying the conversation will continue. on the other hand, congressman elijah cummings of that caucus said paul ryan still has a lot to learn. corey dade is back with us. he was here earlier on the show. corey is of the root. he, i believe, is here with us. thank you so much, sir. >> hi. >> tell us, what do you think the focus of these conversations behind closed doors were? >> first of all, when's the last

time we've seen a republican and a democrat appearing together from the house, appearing together at a press conference. that byi istself is an interestg optic for the american public to see. they talked about the main tenants that separate both parties, right? so the congressional black caucus, they're adamant about protecting the social safety net. and the paul ryan budget, which really speaks far clearer about his positions on helping the poor than anything he said today, you know, that paul ryan budget would propose enormous cuts in food stamps and medicare, even privatizing different parts of medicare. >> and the congressional black caucus's policies really aim at combatting inequality through some of those mechanisms, correct? >> if anything strengthening some of those social safety nets. reforming social security, for example, without cutting the benefits to many people. that's just an example. so, you know, i don't expect both sides to actually come out

with any agreements. i don't expect them to meet in the middle. >> all right. thank you, corey dade. it'll be interesting to see how this conversation plays out. a lot of substantive differences you highlight there. now, turning to the nba story that's at the heart of all those headlines today, at the center, of course, is the woman who said she made those audio recordings of donald sterling. vi stiviano emerged from her apartment yesterday wearing roller skates. the only word from her attorney was, quote, it wasn't her fault that the tapes got out. she never wanted that. she is a private person. she just wants to be left alone and she thinks she has been treated very unfairly by the media. hence the roller skates, i guess. who exactly is vi stiviano? are money and sex inextricably intwined in the high stakes big money world of sports like professional basketball? joining me here for a look is crystal mckrarry, director of little ballers. author of "home court advantage." she also happens to be the ex-wife of nba player greg anthony. she knows the nba both as a family and as a brand.

also remotely from washington is "washington post" columnist ruth marcus. who's column today emphasizes that relationship. >> i had great material to work with. >> great material you're working with here. to listen to the taped conversation between the octogenarian owner and the 30 something v.stiviano is to glimpse the tawdry and inherentry arrangement between, well, let's put it primly, benefit and recipient. >> some people how you respond to that depends on maybe partly what your gender is or partly what your perceptions are. it's been incredibly well read. i've been reading some of the comments. >> are you finding women are angry at that characterization at all? >> i don't think so. and it maybe depends on whether you identify with -- i don't really want to say identify with the wronged wife. because she sort of has her own role in all of this.

i think what's interesting to me about this story is we all sort of looked at that picture, right? we understood what we thought was going on here. and my initial reaction was, look, both sides in this transaction knew what it was all about. they were both getting what they wanted. in some sense getting what they deserved. when i listened to the tapes, i think i was really struck by the degree to which v.stiviano was just so degraded and degrading herself in order to, it seemed to me, at least, even as the tape was rolling, she seemed really eager to keep this relationship rolling. >> let's get a firsthand take on that from crystal. you see a very different side of the nba. you were in that community. i don't know whether you found it exemployee taytive or not. you certainly have highlighted in some of your comments on this the positive side. tell us about that. >> first of all, i look at the nba and professional basketball from a very different perspective. right now having worked with nba players in my documentary "little ballers" as well as little boys that look at nba as

something that is aspirational and something that is hopeful, i see a very different perspective. i also see the brand that david stern spent 30-plus years building. and that silver has come onboard and sees the same value in it. which is why they so swiftly acted in banning sterling for life. so i don't see the perspective of the owner who is, you know, cheating on his wife. that's not the experience that i have. what i'm struck by in this is how these comments that sterling has made is affecting so many youth. i look at my 13-year-old son who plays professional basketball. for him it offers hope. for his teammates and for little boys and girls across the country, the nba stars, they are their heros. >> to see this reaction is something you think they've drawn strength from? >> i think they've absolutely drawn strength from it. when my son heard that, he said that is messed up. did you hear that? i hope they get rid of that guy. i was particularly encouraged by lebron james, a current player,

coming out so swiftly and actively speaking about this is not acceptable. same thing with chris paul and steve nash. if you look just not even 50 years ago at john carlos and tommy smith in the 1968 olympics, when they gave the, you no e, now infamous and iconic black power fist, that was such a huge step for them to make as a show of solidarity in protest against, you know, injustices that affect minorities and all communities that have been discriminated against. >> to the extent that this sort of scratches the surface and reveals a much larger culture of exploitation, both sexism and racism, how do you think the women of the nba and associated with the nba should respond? is there more that wives of players and wives of owners can or should do? >> well, i think that they look at it quite candidly from -- i can't speak for all of them, but they're mothers. they are bringing their children up in this environment where they watch basketball. they're fans of basketball. they live it.

but i think what's interesting, some of the remarks i've gotten from, you know, ex-wives or wives is that they were so offended also like many in the public that sterling said, i feed these guys. i clothe these guys. i buy their homes. in a complete disregard that the men that play in the nba, the women that play in the wnba, they're not being given something. they're being paid to do something that they operate at the highest level in the world. so that was also particularly -- >> it's incredibly grueling. he's profiting off of that. >> absolutely. so they're being paid for something that only 300 people in the world can do. >> ruth, do you think that this will change the culture around how women are treated in the nba? >> i don't want to hold myself out as an expert on how women are treated in the nba. but i think i said in the column that this was a transaction as old as time. i'm not sure really shedding even a very small amount of light on it as we talk about the

main story, which is the racism, is going to change the older man, younger woman. i said wealthy troll and attractive younger woman. i like to get the word "troll" in the newspaper. i don't hold out a lot of hope for change. >> crystal mccrary and ruth marcus, appreciate it. ahead on "rfd," guess who's running for congress in north carolina's second district. i'll give you a hint. it starts in a "c." it sends with a lay aiken. he's here with us in the studio next. this is the first power plant in the country to combine solar and natural gas at the same location. during the day, we generate as much electricity as we can using solar. at night and when it's cloudy, we use more natural gas. this ensures we can produce clean electricity whenever our customers need it. ♪

we're back. north carolina's congressional primary is now less than a week away. a very vocal candidate is having a tough time pulling ahead right now. clay aiken is, of course, a former "american idol" star. he's trying to win the democratic nomination for congress on may 6th. but he's facing stiff opposition. last week aiken released this ad

explaining his platform. >> i'm running for congress. when my mother escaped my violent father we slept on the floor of this livie ing room. she worked nights at sears and bought clothes a t the thrift store. that life led me to become a special ed teacher for children with autism. my foundation helps children with special needs in 35 states. i'm running for congress and i approve this message because every child deserves a chance. but too many in washington are letting them down. >> aiken's democratic primary opponent, former state commerce secretary keith crisco wasted little time. he got a response ad on the air the very same day. >> no show clay aiken. clay aiken says helping children with special needs is one of his top priorities. but when the president appointed aiken to the committee on people with intellectual disabilities, no show clay aiken skipped every single meeting. 8 out of 8. aiken's excuse?

he was just too busy. no show clay. if he's too busy for the president and special needs children, how can we count on clay? >> i'm keith crisco and i approve this message. >> oh, campaign ads. tough words in the tarheel state. joining me now to mull it all over is clay aiken. thank you, sir were for coming here. >> thank you for having me. >> it's a tough race you're running here. let's talk about that ad. can you talk about those allegations, that you were a, quote, no show on the presidential commission for people with disabilities. >> i take quite a bit of offense that someone would question my record on children with disabilities. it's something i've dedicated my life over the last 11 years and before to working towards advocating for kids with disabilities. that particular incident, that commission was something that i was appointed to in large part to bring awareness to the mission and the organization of that commission. i did go to the first meeting. so it's already a little bit false as is. and it was understood when i was there that i wouldn't be able to make all the meetings.

it was understood by the commission that i was on tour and i wasn't going to be able to be available. i gave my name and my voice and that's what was important this them at the time. >> it does need to be said appointments to these commissions are often for symbolic in value. >> for me having a microphone and a platform, that's what was important to them. the ad to me is an example of if you live in glass houses you shouldn't throw stones type of thing. this particular opponent is someone who has a less than stellar record in a lot of other areas. being able to kind of refocus the microscope on to me. >> but one area where it seems like his track record is good so far in this particular race is in the latest fuc filings released this last week you apparently brought in $54,000 in the last quarter in fundraise ing. crisco raised four more times than that. why do you think that is? >> in the last quarter we raised $209,000. he raised about the same. he's given his campaign almost db over half a million dollars.

raising. raising something out of your pocket isn't raising money. >> you don't feel you're at a fundraising disadvantage? >> we're at a fundraising advantage. we have far more donors, enthusiasm, dollars raised from individual contributors than him by far. his ability to self-fund his campaign, you know, to me it's an example of someone who's trying to buy a seat. we see a lot of that on one side of the aisle. we're unfortunately seeing it on our side of the ali, too. >> given your close association with the white house i want to talk about the impact of president obama's numbers on this race. take a listen to what you said on "face the nation" recently, looking at the relationship you have with the obamas. sorry. this was two years ago during the last election cycle. i think it speaks to your relationship. take a listen. >> clay, where do you go from here? are you going to be out campaigning? are you going to vote for president obama this time? >> i voted for president obama this time. i'm sure -- i think all gay men and women are probably more energized to vote for president obama now. and so i'll definitely be helping how i can. >> are you distancing yourself

from the white house in the intervening years? is the white house doing anything to support you back after that track record? >> i've not -- i didn't go out and speak on behalf of the white house, necessarily. i spoke on behalf of north carolyn yans which is what i'm trying to do now. it's not an issue. that particular issue is not an issue we're running on. not an issue important to the majority of the people in this district. >> do you fear negative backlash if you return to those talking points and get into it on that issue? >> people know my position on issues like that. people know where i stand. however, it's not, again, what i'm running for. and so it's not something that i plan on necessarily talking too much about on the campaign. >> all right. sir, you know, you're having a tough time in the race, but also it's fascinating to see someone show a lot of courage and switching tracks in the way you have. appreciate your joining. >> thank you for having me. just ahead, from "game of thrones" to miley cyrus's vma performance, little people are reaffirming their place in the

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welcome back. lifetime will soon begin airing a new reality series called "little women los angeles" show casing performers and celebrity impersonators who are little people. the show made controversy about how our culture views those people. little people were curiosities. in the 19th century, general tom thumb was an entertainer. in 1939 mgm hired 124 munch kki in "the wizard of oz." things are changing. peter dinklage has won an emmy and golden globe. he recently graced the cover of "esquire" magazine.

that includes hollis jane, a former backup dancer for miley cyrus who said she felt like a prop when she performed in a bear costume during miley's infamous vma performance. hollis xbran, thank you for coming back. >> happy to be here. >> with this new show coming out, i wanted to get your take. do you think using these performers perpetuates a freak show atmosphere? should they be showing little people in a more normal light? >> i think that's what the show is striving to do, "little women of los angeles" i think it's called. they asked me if i would like to be a part of it. i turned them down. i'm trying to be an actress in l.a. reality isn't the way i would like to go. the issue with reality in shows like this is they want the ratings. so they want the fights and the negative and everything like that about certain shows, especially with the real housewives. >> which doesn't portray anybody in a good light. >> right no one looks good. this show, it's really how they

decide to do it. they could go the route of a little couple, a wonderful reality show about a couple that are little people. >> more a sensitive portrayal. >> it shows their day-to-day life. that shows we're no different. if you take it and go to the real housewives and go with it. >> you see them here. it does seem like this is less likely to be a sensitive nuance portrayal. >> they are trying to veer toward the real housewives. this is going to be juicy and scandalous. >> which is particularly risky when you have a minority group of any kind. >> my dad was a motivational speaker, on the radio in detroit. i was raised in the sense that i may be the only little person someone sees their entire life. anything i do or anything i say, they may take that and go i met a little person once, she was really rude. >> you feel a responsibility to fly a flag for little people? >> right. i'm not saying i'm the only one. i think anybody who is a minority who might be different should be aware that anything they do could be taken and used

against them. >> what's the biggest obstacle that little people face in terms of how they're portrayed by the entertainment industry? >> i think it's the whole idea that we're just meant to be jokes. it's kind of strange. it's a joke that -- i may be biased -- but i don't particularly find it funny. someone is short. >> get over it. >> exactly. it's no the that funny. with the entertainment industry it's just the idea of seeing us as the same. things like that. >> we've been asking our viewers all week to explain why they think they're beautiful and changing standards of beauty. why do you think you're beautiful, hollis jane? >> oh, god. sorry. i was not prepared. >> well, let me tell you why. you're lovely. you are funny. >> i like to think i'm funny. >> you have rallied for this cause. if you're in a position where you're flying a flag for a lot of people, that's a tough burden to bear. >> thank you very much. i really appreciate that. >> thank you for that hollis jane. >> absolutely. thank you for having me. >> look forward to having you

back. >> absolutely. our call to action this week focuses on the definition of beauty. we're asking you to answer that same simple question. why are you beautiful? record your answer and send us the video or in a pinch a selfie with a caption. use #beauty on facebook, via e-mail or twitter. here's a tweet, it's my sense of style in a hospital gown. good luck, jeb. keep them coming, everybody. send us more videos. we'll look at your responses all week. that wraps things up for "ronan farrow daily." catch my shows daily at 1:00 p.m. on msnbc. joy reid, what's coming up for us? >> ronan, great show. and peter drinklage is awesome. next on the "the reid report," banned for life, the nba clips donald sterling but does the punishment go far enough? one of the nba's winningest

coaches, lenny wilkins, former clippers all-star norm nixon way in. how a botched execution in oklahoma is urging a look. i'm only in my 60's. i've got a nice long life ahead. big plans. so when i found out medicare doesn't pay all my medical expenses, i looked at my options. then i got a medicare supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses.

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well, knowing gives you confidence. start building your confident retirement today. good afternoon, everyone, i'm joy reid and this is the "the reid report." coming up, clippers owner donald sterling has been banned for life but can he be forced to sell the team? it could be an epic legal battle. plus, congressman paul ryan meets with the congressional black caucus to explain his inner city views. was anything accomplished or was it just more talk. a botched execution in o oklahoma is renewing the legal debate of capital punishment. >> his body continued to move, locking up, his head was lifting, tightening his muscles.

he was exhaling. >> he's still lifting his shoulders and head off the gurney, grimacing. >> he was struggling but those are the words he got out, man, i'm not and something's wrong. >> seemed like he was trying to get up. at 6:39 they lowered the blinds. >> we didn't know what was happening on the other side of the blind. we didn't know if he was dying or pumping drugs in him. >> governor mary fallen ordered a review of procedures in her state after the execution of clayton lockette went horribly wrong. you're looking at the state capitol in oklahoma city where any minute we're expecting to hear from the governor. the state had planned back-to-back executions last night using a new untested three-drug lethal injection combination. 38-year-old lockette was given the death sentence for the 1999 murder of a 19-year-old woman who was shot and buried alive. witnesses say soon after the drugs were administered