we are doing our entire living room in stainless steel. >> very good. good morning, everybody. tuesday, october 7th. look at that times square. it's buzzing or still is. with us on set, we have associate professor from columbia school of university, along with willie, joe and me.

>> yeah. what's up? >> we need to talk about what we'll wear, before we wear it. this is like -- >> just get it out of the way. >> a holiday party. i've got to change. >> it's still october. what's going on? >> halloween -- >> i don't like this. this is not going to work. this is not going to work. >> i'm sorry. >> can you do -- i'm going to change. hold on. i'll be right back. you read the news. i'll be right back. >> no, please don't change. i like that sweater. it doesn't look like it will walk away. it doesn't look dirty. >> i'm going to get another garanimals going on. >> that's the first time he actually wore a different sweater. all right. well, okay. he's gone. let's do the news, shall we? willie, dorian? i can't believe it. >> i like the holiday look. >> i thought he looked good. you know? just trying to mix it up a little bit. okay. if you believe the latest polling, allison lunder gram

grimes has a real chance at unseating the top republican in the senate. according to a new kentucky bluegrass poll, grimes leads senator mitch mcconnell 46 to 44%. a month ago, mcconnell was up by eight points in the nbc news maris poll. that's not the only race by the way where democrats are showing strength. so we're seeing this in a couple of other key places. north carolina, kay hagen, has a four-point lead on tom tillis. still pretty close, but still leading him. the race in kansas already starting to look out of reach for incumbent pat roberts. he's down by 10% to independent greg orman. in colorado, mark udall has a three-point edge on cory gardiner. that's close to a tossup. gardiner was leading by as much

as eight points. and jeanne shaheen is now leading over scott brown by seven. and in iowa where joannie ernst was leading by six, she is tied with democratic bruce braley. i don't know. you think the president is such a hindrance as sort of the narrative has been, dorian. yet, we are seeing something, potentially happening here. if you believe these polls. >> right, you know, we haven't seen the clintons in action yet, by the way. >> well, we're going to talk about them. good point. >> so that'll make a difference. but this -- it's hard to disentangle is this an anti-incumbency wave or potential wave or is this something that the democrats are doing in terms of their campaign strategy that republicans aren't? >> grimes, that's particularly remarkable. it started to slip away and then you saw mcconnell get some distance.

so she's closed that gap now with a month left to go. as you say, that whole campaign for mitch mcconnell has been about pairing her with president obama. >> yeah. >> now, here she is tied. >> i find that to be extremely interesting to watch. in alaska, mark begich has been losing ground. and tom cotton has a slight edge. and louisiana senator mary landrieu is down by six points to republican bill cassidy. there we're seeing a fight there for senator landrieu's life. the comeback kid though, as you mentioned is looking to help democrats in his home state. former president bill clinton returned to arkansas to headline rallies for democratic senator mark pryor. and gubernatorial campaign mark ross his former driver. he urged them to reject the

republican efforts to make the elections about president obama. >> thank you. you cannot afford to do what their opponents want. they want you to make it a protest vote. all three of these races they're saying you may like these guys, but you know what you have to do. you have to vote against the president. i promise your last shot. it's a pretty good scam, isn't it? i may wander and groan, but i may never be far from home. you're in my heart and you'll always be arkansas, you run deep in me. vote your heart. don't vote for what they tell you you have to be against. vote for what you know you should be for. vote for mark pryor. vote for mike ross. vote for pat hayes. vote for the legacy and you'll be happy a month from now. thank you and god bless you. >> boy, he's something isn't he? willie geist -- >> yes you are. >> could he be any happier? getting to -- >> please don't do the face

scratching. don't do it. >> and how about mitch mcconnell, huh? he's down. >> yes. i mentioned that at the top of the show when you walked away. [ laughter ] >> that was great. >> we were chatting about that. >> i was excited about your reaction and you left. you just left. i'm going to do that. let me try that. >> me too. >> why? i thought we looked good. >> because i didn't want to hear andy williams' holiday song in my ear. we were talking before the show as we were coordinating our sweaters -- >> yeah. >> if you look what's happening with mcconnell and we were out asking what were the polls going to look like after the beheadings? after barack obama went out golfing. after the beheading. specifically. and now we're starting to see, like a big turn around in kentucky. you look in north carolina, big turn around, republicans were sure a month ago this is a wave election. it may still be a wave election. you just don't see the evidence of it out there. in fact, democrats are doing so

much better now than they should be doing. and republicans now are going to lose kansas? >> what do you make of kentucky though? i don't see it as sort of related to isis. do you? i mean, is that what's happening here? >> well, -- >> this is -- >> all democrats were hurt a month ago by barack obama's seeming obliviousness to what was going on with isis and the jv comments and the golfing after. but i think you're starting to see the races go back to sort of their set point. and the set point is, let's just say it, a lot of kentucky people can't relate to mitch mcconnell. they may not agree with grimes on a lot of issues. >> she and other candidates have run a smart campaign, distancing themselves from the president,

right? so as the president -- as the former president bill clinton said in arkansas yesterday -- this is not a vote for barack obama. this is a vote for mark pryor or lundergren grimes. this should have republicans worried for 2016, by the way. because they have a lot more seats to defend in 2016. >> on clinton's comments, they were interesting too. as dorian points out, he said this is two more years of president obama. don't worry, it's only two more years, but these guys are applying for six-year jobs. >> right. >> don't make this about president obama. maybe if you want to read a few things into that, there could be somebody else -- >> he's very, very good. >> if you talked to any republican strategist six months ago, a year ago, listen, a month before the election -- >> to an independent candidate. >> and there won't be a democrat in the race, you're losing north carolina, you're going to -- in some polls you're going to be losing louisiana. arkansas is going to be split

down the middle. i can tell you as a republican we're screwed. >> iowa is tied. >> iowa is tied. by the way, i'm sorry, the democrat out in iowa is a clown. i mean, democrats say quietly that guy is a clown. he's ill-fit for candidacy. he goes to texas trial lawyers, hey, the last thing we want is somebody from iowa -- dumb farm base is what he's saying running committees. >> joannie ernst -- >> against the candidate? >> clearly, iowa voters are thinking something else now. >> i don't know. i think if you look at the trend, it's all decidedly against the republicans right now. there are exceptions but go to scott walker, a guy i like very much. who was, you know, the great hope for a lot of conservatives like myself, he may not even win this year. >> well, he's being investigated

for corruption scandal. >> go a state over to michigan, one tough nerd. you know, the governor of michigan. a year ago, everything looked great. now, he's on the run. this is -- and here's the thing. this is what republicans need to understand. i have been saying -- you have to stand for something. you just can't be against president obama and if the republicans can't win, and reince priebus will say this, if the republicans can't win in 2014 when everything is breaking their way, when they are fighting on -- in red states, then in '16 all the senate fights will be in blue states, plus the presidential race is going to be especially ugly. >> yeah. let me get one other headline in here. officials are confirming the first case of ebola to be contracted outside of west africa. a nurse in spain is in stable condition at a hospital this morning after testing positive

for the deadly virus. officials say she cared for two spanish priests who both died from ebola. meanwhile, the parents of freelance nbc cameraman ashoka mukpo said he's in good spirits after arriving in omaha for treatment. meanwhile, dr. nancy snyderman and her team arrived in the united states last night on a charter flight and were checked by a health official upon arrival. all are feeling well, in good health. they're deemed low risk, but will be staying home and monitoring their temperature for the remainder of the 21-day period recommended by health authorities. and in dallas, the man being treated for the ebola virus remains in critical condition. we have learned thomas eric duncan is being given an experimental drug that was approved by the fda. president obama says his administration is working on increased screening for ebola at airports here in the u.s. and overseas. it comes as a new pew research poll finds nearly 60% of americans have either a great or

fair amount of confidence the government could prevent an ebola outbreak in the united states. but there's a sharp divide among parties. 69% of democrats share that confidence. while 51% of republicans have little or no confidence in the u.s. government in terms of how it could stop an outbreak. i think screening is going to be difficult. i don't know how they'll do it, because it's not just about cutting off flights if they go a step further. flights coming in from all sorts of different countries and flights going back. >> willie, what do you make of the poll, the republicans -- >> they don't trust -- >> it looks like it's about president obama. it's just a blind referendum. it's kind of strange that that -- that became a political question. >> i think it's a lot of things. obamacare, irs. a lot of things that have kind of made us think -- >> i agree. i think democrats feel the same way about government. if you asked them how is george

w. bush handling the outbreak you'd see that flip. this is political. >> it's strange. >> about ebola? >> and i guess -- at the local level versus the federal level especially since president obama's been in office. so that's not unusual. it's just the broad trends. but it is strange around ebola. it's not an explicitly political question. >> and the bigger question of whether people are losing faith in institutions we talked about for some time. anyway, we have a big show today. did you see chris matthews is dropping by to say hello? >> i can't wait. i can't wait. you two be nice now. all right. still ahead this hour, why you may look like a member of the courts militia if you stop at h&m -- if you shop at h&m. have you ever shopped there? >> i was there yesterday for the sweater. >> the kids love it. i can't believe you changed in the middle of the show. and plus an update, the bubble man. he is safe on land.

but what about the bubble? you're watching "morning joe." we'll be right back. >> what's wrong with that? it's ok that your soup tastes like my homemade. it's our slow simmered vegetables and tender white meat chicken. apology accepted. i'm watching you soup people. make it progresso or make it yourself [ male announcer ] when you see everyone in america almost every day, you notice a few things. like the fact that you're pretty attached to these. ok, really attached. and that's alright. because we'll text you when your package is on the way. we're even expanding sunday package delivery. yes, sunday. at the u.s. postal service, our priority is...was... and always will be...you.

holy cow. >> like a cashew? >> okay. >> wow. first time i heard that expression. >> well, so we have -- we're reading stories from local -- >> no, time to look at the morning papers that you care about. "the los angeles times," pope francis has called a meeting of 200 cardinals and bishops in rome to consider controversial issues for the church. including divorce, contraception and sexuality. no topic is off limits and the holy father has encouraged attendees to speak openly and freely. they'll discuss the survey of catholics worldwide which many feel that the church is out of touch with their needs. "new york times" t waldorf astoria hotel will be sold to a

chinese insurance company -- >> of course it will. >> for nearly $2 billion. one of the highest prices paid in a hotel sale. the landmark hotel which has hosted social gatherings will undergo a big renovation. the company plans to return the 47-story building to the original art deco style. h&m has come under fire for a khaki jumpsuit which many say resembles the uniforms worn by the female kurdish militia. >> i think it's fetching. >> what the heck is this story? so far reaction -- >> would you wear that? i kind of like that, mika. >> i don't think i could pull it off. >> but if you could, would you wear that? >> sure. >> the one on the right, with the gun and the hat. >> i could do that. the reaction has been mixed with some saying it celebrates the

females who are currently fighting the islamic state in syria, but others say it is insensitive. what? h&m spokesman -- i know the designer was not thinking kurdish militia. come on. move it on. i'm not reading it, it's stupid. that's stupid. anyone who would argue with that has no life. >> and i read the delaware news journal every morning. >> then you already read this story. the police have arrested the mother of a 4-year-old after the kid showed up to her day care with a backpack full of heroin. >> what? >> not good. >> the little girl was caught handing -- oh, my gosh. handing out packages of drugs. >> no! >> to her classmates, thinking it was candy. the mother has been charged with endangering the health -- >> what? >> heroin? >> what do you send them to

school with? >> coke. diet coke. he loves it. he gets him buzzing around. >> mm-hmm. little jack. don't say that. not right. >> just joking. just joking. >> the telegraph -- stop it, willie. this is important. >> i don't know what that means. >> michael bloomberg was given an honorary knighthood by the queen of england. the british embassy said he was granted the honor due to his entrepreneurial and philanthropic endeavors. don't call him sir mike. bloomberg will not use the word sir because he's not a british citizen. >> thank you for clarifying that, mika. >> okay. go to new orleans. >> a collision between a train and a big rig has left two rail workers injured. thank think no one was injured. a truck was stuck on the track and here it comes. >> oh, no, not good.

>> the train cut the trailer in half. the driver of the truck escaped unharmed. >> i with wish we could show that in slow motion. >> the train's conductor and engineer suffered minor injuries. residents have been evacuated due to concerns over a gas spill. >> my goodness. incredible. all right. >> coming up next, voters are still hungry for gun laws despite it getting little to no interest on the campaign trail. and joe biden defended by the editorial board that's standing up for the vice president ahead. don't go away. we may have another outfit change. >> no, no fashion changes. nothing. we'll be right back. stop! [ hoof beats ]

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who is joe biden? >> i have no idea. >> do you want to take a guess? >> a man. >> who is joe biden? >> joe biden? wasn't he our governor? >> he's the governor or something? >> joe biden, i don't know. terrorist group -- terrorist. >> who is joe biden? >> no comment.

>> who is joe biden? >> who is joe biden? i have no idea. >> do you know who our vice president is? >> um, no. i don't. >> do you want to take a guess? >> condoleezza rice? >> you're right. first female black vice president. >> i don't know. the guy joe biden, he is a republican and he's going to be president soon? i'm assuming. >> he's coming in to town today. >> he is. >> he's like an assistant president or something, i don't -- >> that's right. he's the assistant president. >> assistant president. [ cheers and applause ] >> i -- >> that's just not funny, actually. >> yeah. i watched the first two, funny. but when it kept going? >> that is just tremendous. whoa! >> scary. >> okay. so let's do the must reads.

we have a bunch to get to here. "the wall street journal," joe biden's apology tour. and this is what the paper says. mocking joe biden is a national sport, but today we come to defend him. the vice president spent the weekend apologizing to middle eastern strongman for his comments about syria, but he's apologizing to the wrong people for the wrong reason. they did arm extremists in syria. if mr. biden is feeling contrite he ought to apologize to the syrian and the american people. for three years the obama administration sat on its hands in syria as the moderate army was marginalized on the battlefield, isis and others moved in. >> dorian, what's your take, is that true? >> this is the 111th apology tour he's gone on. that's his trademark, speaking honestly in a field that it's

hard to do that. >> sure. >> in terms of the actual apology, i don't think he needs to do that. but the editorial is interesting because there's an issue to be raising, what's our relationship with the previous ally in terms of the rebel forces in syria? >> and why? i understand he has to be diplomatic, but why apologize to turkey? turkey should be apologizing to us. turkey, if they continue to act this way should be kicked out of nato. turkey should be called out for what they are. >> well, when is the president in turkey going to apologize to the united states for having isis on his doorstep? and he's quite close to having to call nato 911 to rescue the turkish border. >> that's right. >> all right, let me get two more on this while we're on it. this is -- i'll go to "the wall street journal" again actually because senators john mccain and lindsey graham penned a piece.

remove assad. how can we arm and train 5,000 syrians and expect them to succeed against islamic state without protecting them and their families? from the assad's air strikes and bombs or expect moderate groups to take advantage of u.s. air strikes if we do not coordinate or communicate our operations with them? this is reportedly not happening. instead, mr. assad is exploiting u.s. air strikes to kill the very people we want as our partners. this is not just a recipe for failure. it is immoral. >> willie, okay, how do we do it? how do we invade syria and take out assad? how do we -- how do we do that? >> well, we have swung in a year from saying we wanted to get rid of assad to now kind of supporting people who are helping assad. we are fighting the people he's fighting inside the country. >> what void is created? >> i don't think people are talking about this, how is the

assad regime responding to what? we have gone into his air space and launched military strikes in here. what's his reaction, is there any coordination, what's going on between us and him? >> so we have this -- >> right now, it's -- >> right. >> he's like, go ahead. again, for lindsey and senator mccain, i would ask, we go in, let's say we take him out. what does syria look like in a decade? i'd like them to answer the question. i'm sure maybe one of them will. like to answer the question. would the middle east be safer today with saddam hussein in power or out of power? at what point do we start judging characters in the middle east by one very simple question. do they want to kill people in the united states of america or do they want to be left alone in their open countries? it's that simple. saddam hussein did not have

plans to blow up america. >> no. >> al qaeda did. isis does. >> saddam was never coming here. >> yeah, i know there's talk about a possible, you know, possible assassination attempt against 41. you can ask the same question though about -- as horrible of a human being as he is, does assad want to blow up buildings in washington and new york? i mean, and if he doesn't, who is going to replace him? possibili possibly -- these are questions that we don't answer before firing. >> i want to read part of "the new york times" editorial on ebola because it points to one of the reasons why it's so complicated to just sort of deny access and sort of siphon off an area of the world. they write in part this, top health officials are strongly opposed with good reason to take the more extreme step of banning

all travel to the united states from guinea, liberia and sierra leone where the epidemic is concentrated as several prominent republicans like louisiana's governor bobby jindal have recommended. that could actually hamper the battle to contain the epidemic abroad. the first line of defense against the disease in part by leaving americans who are risking their lives to contain the epidemic stranded in africa, with no way to return home. if volunteer workers can't return home, they may elect not to go in the first place. that's weakening the fight against the epidemic. >> that's a silly argument. >> i don't think it is. >> that's a silly argument. >> you do not want to it to explode there. >> that's silly. >> why? >> because you go, do you have an american passport? thank you. this is a false choice. to say, well, we can't ban people coming from west africa. that aren't aid workers here. i'm not recommending we do it. i am saying we need to ask the question.

and that -- this is -- this is why there's not a real discussion on this, because dorian this is a false choice to say somehow we aren't advanced enough to see who has an american passport and we allow them to come back, versus somebody like the gentleman that came back to dallas? >> all right. but i'm going to defend that editorial, joe, because the premise is that the -- there's an incentive. there's a signal that i would send to potential people that would go over. your plan sounds just fine to me. yes, maybe we could carve it out so that only american aid workers could get back in. but to a lot of people they just hear we're banning all people coming from west africa. that creates an incentive for people not to want to do good and go over and help. >> i think the aid workers, all the aid agencies, would be sending people over there, mike, would again, they would know if they were able to come back. >> but there's a larger issue

here and it gets into what we were talking about earlier. it gets into turkey and syria and saudi arabia and qatar. it's us. the world needs -- looks to us, to the united states for everything. where are the other countries? every country in the world can be affected by the ebola virus. >> that's true. >> you can carry it -- ships. you can -- it can leave by sea. it can leave by air. now, if you're in liberia and you have even a scintilla of evidence that you or a member of your family have the ebola virus, where are you going to go? you're not going to want to stay in liberia. >> you'll want to go to the united states. >> you'll want to come to the united states of america. so the larger universe depends on us for so many things that we should start using our influence and say to other countries, come on, come on. >> and the international response has been so slow and so -- >> yes. >> just -- >> the world health organization it has been absolutely scandalous. i just -- this op-ed you're talking about, in "the new york

times" i'm not saying put a wall up and don't let anybody come over from west africa. i just want a better argument. that's not a strong argument at all. you can allow aid workers to go over and to come back. and i just -- i want to know what's the argument for having people from liberia and the other affected countries not coming to the united states. unless they pass a really rigorous screening process. because again -- >> working on new -- >> if i had a child that had ebola i would figure out how to get to the united states. >> i would lie on every form. >> uptick screening process. what are we going to have at airports? you can't have the tsa people like two or three tsa people instead of one tsa person. you need nurses and doctors at the airports. >> the real problem, you have to have them camp out for 21 days. >> right. >> so even the screening process seems to be a nonstarter in many

ways as well. up next, yesterday's ground breaking decision by the supreme court by not making a decision at all. plus, chris matthews will be with us at the top of the hour. more "morning joe" next. when laquinta.com sends him a ready for you alert the second his room is ready, ya know what salesman alan ames becomes? i think the numbers speak for themselves. i'm sold! a "selling machine!" ready for you alert, only at lq.com. just take a closer look. it works how you want to work. with a fidelity investment professional... or managing your investments on your own. 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.

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fulfilling the promise of equality. >> that was virginia's attorney general praising yesterday's decision by the supreme court. the justices declined to rule on challenges to lower court decisions that overturn same-sex marriage bans in indiana, oklahoma, utah, virginia and wisconsin. marriage equality now exists in 24 states, plus the district of columbia. and the supreme court's decision will soon bring the marriage equality to 30. still, the supreme court did not settle the issue for the country as a whole. so joining us now, executive director of the national center for lesbian rights, kate kendall. good to have you on board with us this morning. >> great to be here. >> so kate, i take it you agree with the virginia attorney general that this was a great day for proponents of same-sex marriage? >> oh, it's a sweeping day. it's a ground breaking moment. i think it's a moment last year with the windsor decision and the striking down of the defense of marriage act, we hit an

undeniable tipping point. i think yesterday is the undeniable no going back point. it's really extraordinary. >> well, isn't there -- wouldn't it have been extraordinary if the supreme court actually decided to take the cases and rule on them? there's still ambiguity out there, right? >> we have to pick up the other 15 states, no doubt about that. i will say that the court's decision to deny review in all five cases and to now have the three circuit court rulings stand and to have marriage now immediately in another 11 states was not something any of us anticipated. but the momentum that that signals -- i think what the court is essentially indicating by declining review is that it is confirming that these circuit courts are getting it right. i think that's huge. >> but you said what you think, you're guessing which allows in another -- again, i'm not knocking you.

obviously if i were in your position and i took your position, i would be excited about it. everybody is saying this is a glorious day, but even your morning, you're saying i think what the court is saying, but this still allows another what, 25 states to ban same-sex marriage, right? >> well, it has 15 -- there will be 15 states that will not be states that recognize the right of same-sex couples to marry or perform those marriages itself. but you have to agree that this is a sweeping momentum shift and we had momentum before and now it's momentum like turbo charged. and i can't imagine a situation -- i think this is a clear signal to the remaining circuit courts that the -- where the court is on the ultimate question. because they're not going to have a ruling like this that they know will be so sweeping and then take it away. they're in our corner, they're ready to rule then we that moment comes. but they're happy to let this

play out. >> joe, i want to show you the response from republican governors, but governor pence,ly always believe in the importance of traditional marriage and abide by the rule of law. under our system of government, people are free to disagree with the court decisions but not to disobey them. governor walker says for us, it's over in wisconsin. the federal courts have ruled that this -- that this decision by this court of appeals decision is the law of the land and we will be upholding it. >> well, again, it was -- again for proponents of same-sex marriage yesterday was a great day. but it's not a slam dunk, kate, obviously until the supreme court rules at least five justices on the united states supreme court rule that you are a -- a state is violating the equal protection clause if they ban gay marriage. >> well, no, that's a really important point.

and we are one country. it is an untenable situation that we will have couples who will be married in wisconsin and if they -- if their car rolls across the state line, their relationship will not be recognized. that is obscene. so that -- that has to change. >> let me ask you, why do you think -- what's your gut on why the justices were afraid -- and they were. the justices did not want to touch this case. what's your gut? just your politics aside and your beliefs aside, as a legal analyst, why did the court shy away from ruling on this case? >> well, i think there are a couple -- i mean, i can't read the tea leaves any better than anyone else, but i think there are two reasons. one, they decided two really important cases for the lgbt community just last term. the windsor ruling and the

ruling on prop 8. and the second thing, this is like really from my first year in law school, there's no split in the circuits. every circuit -- fourth, seventh, tenth, all ruled in favor of marriage equality. i think if you go back to the classic reasons why a court would take a case for review, they want to settle a question among which there is disagreement. you know, ginsburg signalled this in a law school speech she gave a few weeks ago. it was the first time she laid out this possible scenario. i have to say a lot of my law school professor friends pretty much said to me, kate, that's how it's going to be. i actually think in some ways this is brilliant because what it will signal, as more people live with the reality of same-sex couples getting married in their communities and their marriage is still fine, the community is fine and they're celebrating love and they're seeing the relationships strong and nurtured by the government, people love it. it's fine. >> kate, thank you.

next hour -- good to have you. next hour we'll speak to a former law clerk to justice scalia on this issue, ed whalen. we visit a place of unbridled joy born out of unspeakable tragedy. more "morning joe" in a moment. when folks think about what they get from alaska, they think salmon and energy. but the energy bp produces up here creates something else as well: jobs all over america. engineering and innovation jobs. advanced safety systems & technology. shipping and manufacturing. across the united states, bp supports more than a quarter million jobs. when we set up operation in one part of the country, people in other parts go to work. that's not a coincidence. it's one more part of our commitment to america. so why treat your half mouth any differently? complete the job with listerine®. kill up to 99 percent of germs. and prevent plaque, early gum disease and bad breath.

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it began as an act of defiance, a way to turn a tragedy into a symbol of hope. 26 playgrounds have been built to honor the 26 victims of the sandy hook elementary school shooting. each one uniquely celebrates the children or teachers who lost their lives. brian williams brings us that story from the site of the 26th and final play ground. >> reporter: on a startlingly beautiful october day, happy children swarmed all over the brand new playground in connecticut, dedicated to the principal who died trying to protect her students at sandy hook elementary school two years ago now. after the ceremony and the flyover and the honor guard, there was raw emotion. a reading from a book that dawn loved to read to the children. it was led by one of her daughters.

the young children don't understand why this playground was built, but their faces remind us what it's meant for. >> it is amazing. she would be so, so happy. >> reporter: all 26 of the memorial sandy hook playgrounds are now happy places. they're all scattered around the new york area in towns that also suffered damage from hurricane sandy. and at each one, the family members pitched in. >> put my hands in the cement. >> reporter: what is your favorite job to watch and favorite job to do yourself? >> my favorite is probably the sidewalk. and my favorite job to watch is probably the panels that they put on the -- >> reporter: okay. for the other families who lost someone at sandy hook, this project has held so much meaning. >> we became a family with all the firefighters. >> our little daniel loved to go to the playground.

it's a beautiful tribute. >> today, the angels are looking down at us. wow, this is the final one. it's beautiful. >> reporter: the group behind this is a foundation called where angels play and they plan to keep doing this across the country in places where there's been tragedy. like boston, aurora, colorado, and moore, oklahoma. bill lavin is the founder of this whole concept. he's a retired new jersey firefighter who told me on the job site last week it doesn't get more personal for him. if you close your eyes can you see all 26, do they have a special meaning to you? >> every single one has a miracle that's happened. think of the moms and dads who have inspired this group here. who will work from dawn to dusk. then thank me for allowing them to do all of that. you know? they'll thank us. but quite frankly this is our blessing and privilege. >> what a beautiful idea. >> really is a beautiful, beautiful idea.

hard to believe, but this december it will be two years since sandy hook. and mike, tell you what, i just can't -- i can't, other than 911 i just can't think of a day that has shattered the peace of this country more than that day. and there's a lot of talk after about gun control. there are a lot of battles. nothing has been done on any front. the issue i talked about the most, the background checks. i went back and checked -- checked to see. because there are a lot of things like -- people talk about assault weapons bans and even mike bloomberg said that won't save lives down the ground. but the background checks, a new quinnipiac poll shows that -- i say new this year, still overwhelmingly support background checks. even gun owners. even gun owners.

even gun owners. >> yeah. >> support background checks. 92% to 6%. not gun control. background checks to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally deranged. out of the hands of terrorists. out of the hands of convicts. and congress does nothing. nothing, nothing. >> you mentioned september 11th. after september 11th, this country came out of that epic tragedy with a sense of purpose. with a sense of unity. now, it became misguided. we invaded iraq. after what happened in connecticut two years ago this december, it raises the question, who are we? i will forever be amazed that there was no sense of purpose, no specific sense of outrage

directed at our institutions, the congress, various state legislatures, ourselves as to why we can't do minimal steps to remove weaponry from the hands of the deranged. >> the cowards in congress ran and hid despite the fact that in some states 94, 95% of the people in their states supported background checks, expansive background checks, like ronald reagan supported background checks, like george w. bush supported background checks. like 92% of gun owners support background checks and they were afraid of the 4%. by the way, if -- forget gun control, forget ale the things that diane feinstein wants. if you take care of that, and you realize that the gun

violence is committed by the people who bought the gun, you take care of so much violence in this country. so much gang land violence. i'm wondering who thinks it's conservative? >> right. >> to let gang members traffic guns? who thinks it's conservative for drug addicts and drug dealers to traffic guns? i don't know. where i come from, that's not conservative. that's radical, that's dangerous, that's stupid. >> a good question. we'll be right back. then there's trusting your vehicle maintenance to ford service confidence. our expertise, technology, and high quality parts means your peace of mind. it's no wonder last year we sold over three million tires. and during the big tire event, get up to $140 in mail-in rebates on four select tires. ♪

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a pair of newscasters up in boston came back from commercial and something was a little off. just watch. >> good morning, everybody. thanks for joining us this morning on the october 4th. >> look at that guy's coffee mug again. just hold it -- the only way you can save that, mugs are they safer held upside down? a new report finds the answer. >> oh, my goodness. that's so funny. see, if we did that, all of the vodka would fall out. you have to keep it upright, joe. welcome back to "morning joe." joining us from washington, i've got a copy of tip and the gipper. did you get yours? >> a paper back. >> the host of "hardball", chris matthews.

his book. "tip and the gipper, when politics worked." now out in paper back. more than ever before, we need this book. >> chris, we'll talk to you about this book in a little bit. we want to get through some news first. but we'll talk -- looking through the lens of a story we just talked about about background checks. 92% of the people supporting it, but congress -- >> we'll do that. >> let's go through the polls first. >> if you believe, chris, the latest polling, alison lundergan grimes has a chance of unseating the top republican in the senate. according to a new kentucky bluegrass poll, grimes leads senator mcconnell 46 to 44% that's within the four-point margin of error. a month ago, mcconnell was up by eight points in the nbc news/maris poll. what do you think is going on there? >> well, i think that's a robo poll. so i'm not sure that's not an

outlier. we have to watch the pattern, i think it's an outlier. >> not the only race that democrats are showing strength. kay hagen was a four-point lead over tom tillis. the race in kansas is starting to look out of reach for incumbent pat roberts, he's done by ten to greg orman, an independent. >> we'll save this tape until wednesday after the elections. let's make our predictions a month out. in the republicans win the senate i think they have a good chance to do it. it will be the following route they'll take. they'll win south dakota, montana, west virginia for sure. the next states will be alaska, arkansas and louisiana. they'll then have to win iowa which i think they'll win because they have make up for the loss to the independent orman. again, south dakota, montana, west virginia, alaska, arkansas, louisiana, and iowa. if they want to pick up a little bit of a benefit or a premium, they'll win in north carolina. but i don't think they will. or in colorado or new hampshire or michigan.

>> chris -- >> just a minute, joe. just a minute. >> no no, it's my show. i'm going to ask you a question. >> no. >> you always do this and you act like you never ask follow-up questions and you come on my show and you're shocked and stunned that somebody stopped you and asked you a question. to the follow-up question, what's happening in north carolina? >> i think she's going to win it. >> why? >> really? >> she's a really good candidate. >> why though? i'm just curious. this is a state that obviously it's sort of a purple state right now. >> yes. >> she was supposed to be weak. look at the south, mary landrieu is keeping it close. arkansas is closer than it should be. north carolina is closer than it should be. it seems like the solid south for republicans isn't so solid anymore. >> yeah, well, i made my prediction for what i think going to happen. the net six pickup they'll squeak in. but it's a month out, of course. i think north carolina is interesting because tillis has to play defense as well as

offense. i know the state is moving to the right. certainly -- and i know that, i don't like it, but it's happening. but i think she's been running consistently well. this is going on for months now. a consistent performance ahead of tillis. i think she's capable of -- a winner again this time. >> i wonder if in north carolina you had republicans take over in 2010, they went further right than a lot of people in north carolina were ready for them to go. you have the state senator who's actually paying for that on the campaign trail now. >> yeah, well i have a sentimental thing, we're bringing the whole team down to follow around that race and i'm getting -- i'm bragging now. the north carolina hall of fame i'm getting down there. so i love the place down there. >> of course you do. congratulations. you sound like my dad right now. >> i love it. >> let's go to some other races. >> well, you mentioned colorado, mark udall has a three-point edge over cory gardner. >> yeah.

i think he'll win. >> last month cory gardner was leading. jean shne shaheen was tied with scott brown and now is leading. and now joni ernst is now tied -- >> maike barnicle i want to ask you, remember we heard in new hampshire, the day after president obama went golfing, right after the isis beheading, you had people up there telling you they saw immediately a drop in polls? >> yeah. >> a month ago we had republicans coming on here saying oh, this is going to be a wave election. we're feeling good about it. we have those elections after the president seemed disengaged on isis. and now in all of the states -- not all, but most, it looks like we're back in the democrats' favor from a tie a month ago in new hampshire to the seven point lead for jeanne shaheen.

i know chris said it's a robo call, but a lot of the twists around turns are going in the democrats' direction. >> you're seeing one consistent pattern, both in north carolina and in new hampshire. shaheen and in north carolina, both have achieved some separation from barack obama. and they have had to. because on the ground in both new hampshire and north carol a carolina, i assume in north carolina it would be the same as new hampshire, they don't want him in there. both candidates do not want the president of the united states in there. jeanne shaheen is a different, unique case. she is of new hampshire. >> she's of new hampshire. let's really quickly, willie, where republicans are ahead in alaska. mark begich has been losing ground. sullivan has a slight edge over pryor in arkansas. you know, that race keeps -- i'll tell you, i thought tom cotton would be six points ahead. but this race is still close.

cbs news/"new york times" poll, louisiana senator landrieu is down by six to republican bill cassidy. much different from a poll a couple of days ago. >> it is. you mentioned that arkansas race, president clinton was in the state yesterday. really feeling up in his home state. looking to help democrats get a win there. the former president returning there. headlining rallies for mark pryor and gubernatorial candidate mike ross who is the former driver by the way. >> that's great. >> he urged them to reject republican efforts to make the elections about president obama. >> you cannot afford to do what their opponents want. they want you to make it a protest vote. all three of these races, they're saying, you may like these guys but hey, you know what you've got to do. you have to vote against the president. i promise you your last shot. it's a pretty good scam isn't it? i may wander, i may groan, but i'll never be far from home.

you're in my heart and you will always be. arkansas, you run deep in me. vote your heart. don't vote for what they tell you you have to be against. vote for what you know you should be for. vote for mark pryor. vote for mike ross. vote for pat hayes. vote for the legacy and you'll be happy a month from now. thank you and god bless you. >> it's like seeing elvis in vegas. it disn't matter -- it doesn't matter what happened before he got there and put the long scarf on, when he belts out like, you know, jailhouse rock. he's still elvis. that is a sight to behold. >> a man on his home turf. singing his favorite songs. >> i may go far -- >> chris matthews, were you moved? >> i hear 2016 calling already. >> it runs deep in you. >> it runs deep. 2016, yeah. >> hey, chris, let's say your

scenario plays out, that you laid out and republicans do squeak out the senate. okay, so they take the house. the senate. what are the last two years of president obama's second term looking like? >> well, it looks like -- go way back in history the republicans when they got the congress in '46 when truman was president, i see a lot of probes, investigations, a lot of that. you know, a lot of darrell isa stuff going on. mainly investigations and again going back to obamacare i don't think it will look good going into 2016. i think the no vote is what they're selling this time. but by 2016, people are looking for a yes candidate. somebody who offers something for the future. so they have to do a hell of a quick turn around from being the no party to the yes party.

i still think hillary has the yes, potentially over them. people want to say yes when they pick a new president. not no. i think. >> now, they do. and mika, things look very different for barack obama if republicans get in versus if the democrats hold. i will tell you this. for republicans it's the same. no matter what. whether they get in or not, if they don't have a forward looking, positive agenda they're doomed in '16. if getting in means stopping barack obama, they're going to lose in '16. the party just fold up the tent and go away. if winning the senate means they're moving forward with a positive, hopeful forward looking agenda, they have actually a shot at '16. when they're in the minority or the majority, it really doesn't matter for the '16 candidate if they're the party of no. as chris said, they are doomed in '16. i'll say it right now. they are doomed in '16 if they don't stop just playing. >> there's still time for

constructive ideas and candidat candidates who are exciting. let's get to the next story, same-sex couples in another five states are now able to be married. the supreme court declined to rule on challenges to lower court decisions that overturned same-sex marriage bans in utah and other states. and joining us now edward whalen, a former law clerk to antonin scalia and served on the senate judiciary committee. great to have you on. >> i'm just wondering, does this go on the pantheon of conservative disappointments when republicans supposedly rule the supreme court? sandra day o'connor, back in the famous missouri decision on abortion and now the roberts court deciding not to move on this issue? >> well, i think it's a

disappointment to all parties concerned, that is there are folks on both sides of the issue who thought it should be decided by the court and it's disappointing that they're letting the lower court ruling stand. that said, this seems to be a consequence of the court's opinion a couple years ago. especially in the united states versus windsor where the court ruled 5-4 that the federal defense of marriage act was unconstitutional. in reasoning that i think most people would find baffling. that act was passed by the overwhelming majorities by both houses of congress, including lots of strong supporters of gay rights. signed in to law by president clinton, but it could be explained only by an intent to injure. so i think with that sort of baffling reasoning, the conservatives on the court which a group that does not include justice kennedy, probably concluded that justice kennedy

was beyond persuasion on this. >> so governor walker said the fight is over when it comes to gay rights. do you agree? >> well, i think the question isn't one of gay rights broadly. the question is one of marriage and -- >> i misspoke. gay marriage. >> what marriage is and who decides what marriage is. obviously, in the state of wisconsin for now, there's been a judicial imposition of same-sex marriage and it's difficult to see what could possibly be done there. >> he's -- >> well, as a practical matter right now, it's difficult to see what can be done. now one could sketch a scenario in which it's not over. i won't claim to be an optimist on this. again, when one looks at where five supreme court justices appear to be there's little cause for short term optimism. >> ed, thank you so much. greatly appreciate it. again, none of the circuits disagree. if the circuits aren't disagreeing, they won't weigh in. >> chris matthews, "tip and the

gipper when politics worked." 92% of gun owners support background support and yet the extremes control so much. the big money on both sides control so much. we get nothing done. >> yeah, the funny thing is that for years, joe, you and i know that the slogan of the nra was guns don't kill people, people do. find out who are the people buying the guns. it's not about the gun, but about the person. so let's make sure that the right people are getting guns if they have to have a gun. and the wrong people don't. i mean, that seems to me consistent with what they have always argued about training and safety and everything else. isn't one of the safety precautions for the gun making sure that crazy people and murderers don't get them? isn't that safety precaution? it is logical and consistent with the way they have always approached at least theoretically gun ownership. >> chris matthews, we'll be watching "hard ball" tonight.

i love it. it's the show i'm watching as i'm winding the day down. >> can i tell one story? >> sure. >> i was on the air -- >> take about ten minutes. >> one second. one second. i was trying to explain my book when i started this push for the paper back the other day. and somebody gets on the phone with me from one of the local stations and says, when did tipper gore and ronald reagan begin their relationship? [ laughter ] >> oh! oh. >> i had no idea, mika, where to go with that. >> wow. >> i gave the bill clinton answer from the debates. i acted as if she had said tip o'neal and ignored what was -- >> that is so funny. don't you love book tours? >> sometimes you have to roll with it. like when pat buchanan had -- >> i had a doozie, remind me to tell you about it. thanks chris. after a rescue at sea, the bubble man is back.

>> he's back! >> and he wants his bubble back. >> what an idiot. >> then republicans can already claim victory in one key battleground area. that story is apparently on youtube. that's the area they've won. we'll explain when we come back. how much money do you have in your pocket right now? i have $40, $21. could something that small make an impact on something as big as your retirement? i don't think so. well if you start putting that towards your retirement every week and let it grow over time, for twenty to thirty years, that retirement challenge might not seem so big after all. ♪ oats go! wow! go power oats! go!

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we'll take a look at the morning papers. "the wall street journal," the joe biden apologyç tour. it comes after making remarks critical about the allies in the middle east. >> he was right, other than confusing -- >> well, he shouldered the blame for the rise of isis and now the vice president is reaching out to officials in saudi arabia to clarify and apologize. he's spoken to leaders from turkey and the united arab emirates. >> shouldn't have done that. >> yesterday, the white house stood by the vice president. >> the vice president is somebody who has enough

character to admit when he's made a mistake. the vice president is somebody who continues to be a core member of the president's national security team. he is somebody who has decades of experience in dealing with leaders around the globe. and the president is pleased to be able to rely on his advice as we confront the variety of challenges that are so critical to american national security. >> and by the way, if you're keeping score at home, the no criticize joe zone still -- >> it applies here on the set of "morning joe." >> yeah. we're not going to criticize joe biden here. from "usa today," floyd mayweather said he's $1.4 million richer after bet on the indianapolis colts. >> hmm. >> the boxer took to instagram to share his ticket, showing he bet on week 3. he bet $373,000. negative 105 odds and the colt won it despite ending with 0-2 record. >> "the miami herald," the

endurance athlete rescued in the inflatable bubble off the coast of florida, this story brought to you by my sister-in-law. may be safe -- >> but he's still stupid. >> but he wants the bubble back. reza baluchi was attempting to run the border of the bermuda triangle in a bubble, it's called a hydropod. his journey was cut short on saturday when he was rescued by the coast guard due to extreme fatigue. his bubble was left in the water and now he wants it back. it cost him 4,500 bucks to build and it still has his green card, passport, wallet and cell phone and shoes inside. there's something so ridiculous about this story. and the guy's dead serious. he wants his bubble back. >> and how much did the coast guard spend on that, rescuing that idiot? >> yeah. maybe they can balance out after he pays them for what they did

for him, he can get his bubble back. >> we go from that story to a serious one. how about some fighting kangaroos. this is posted to reddit, two kangaroos boxing on a residential street in australia. nbc can confirm this is in fact a residential street and that those are in fact kangaroos! >> that looks like you and me after the show. >> well, sometimes during the show. look at that. >> oh, my goodness. is that -- they're raging roos. a good lower third. >> can you believe that? look at that. >> yeah. oh, yeah, you deserve that. all right. i don't know how to do this transmission. >> i'm mesmerized by that. >> can we see that again? >> okay. >> let's put it in the box in the lower left of our screen. as we take to mike allen, we can gaze at the kangaroos kick boxing. >> put it in the loop.

i'm serious. keep this up. >> keep it up and we'll talk to mike. >> we have mike allen, here with the morning playbook. if you know don't like what mike is a saying, look to the left side of your screen. mike, according to politico the midterm race for the campaign viral videos isn't close. we are going to be showing you this viral video throughout this entire segment, but first, let's take a look at what republicans are doing online. >> i'm matt rosen dale, this is how i look from the government drone. and this is what i think about it. >> sometimes when a politician has been in d.c. too long it goes to his head and he can't seem to get the job done. if you have a boehner lasting longer than 23 years seek immediate medical attention. >> i'm joni ernst, when i get to washington i know how to cut pork. >> mom, this is my decision. i see a better future with rick scott. >> sometimes it's hard to let go of old styles, but it all worked out in the end because brittany

said yes to rick scott. >> uh. >> i'm stuck on the first one. >> all right. now, the first one is pretty good. all right. so mike, why have -- i'm sorry, i don't see the kangaroos fighting, there we go. why have the republicans fared so much better than the democrats when it comes to this season? >> well, politico analyzed traffic stats from youtube and facebook and said that the republicans have a much bigger lead in the viral videos. and that's such a change from 2012 when obama and the democrats were so dominant in creating digital comment. the republicans are much better and one of the reasons is they're taking the more gorilla approach. the outsiders trying to take the senate, taking on obama. many of the most clicked ads which were made by the koch network had to do with obamacare.

and democrats say now they're more -- putting their digital resources into fund-raising e-mails. >> is there any evidence that this actually has an impact on supporters? >> i'm so glad you asked that because yes, this can change elections and could change the senate. joe, joni ernst had her stand out in a field of republicans. nobody knew who'd win that primary and now ernst who is looking strong in iowa could be a bluish state that could go red. she could be the majority maker. so in this time when everybody's attention is fractured a viral video can change the senate. >> we're looking at one right now. mike allen, thank you so much. we appreciate it. it's kind of like those old -- >> kick boxing kangaroos.

>> like the old palmolive videos, you're soaking in it. remember madge? >> yeah. bill clinton comes to the defense of mark pryor. but first, relieved to be back in the united states, but the freelance nbc cameraman still has a long way to go for recovery. we'll have kate snow with a special report coming up. and many more kangaroos kick boxing.

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now the very latest on the ebola outbreak and the efforts to keep that virus from spreading. there's a nurse in spain that's the latest to be infected. the first diagnosis outside of west africa. meanwhile, the white house is rejecting calls for a travel ban but says it's working on increased screening at airports here in the u.s. and abroad. and we're learning new information about the nbc freelance photographer who arrived for treatment less than 24 hours ago. kate snow joins us live from home omaha. how is his treatment because they were deciding on what type of medicine to give him.

>> that's right, thomas. last night we learned that he will be given some kind of a experimental medication. his father telling us that his dad happens to be a doctor in his own right and he says they're really lucky that they caught the ebola virus pretty early. ashoka mukpo is waking up in isolation. he was able to walk off the plane from liberia. >> he gave a little wave earlier when he first came in. that was reassuring. >> he and his girlfriend lived together in liberia for two years. helen was due to join him in liberia this past weekend. >> i miss him i really miss him. i was meant to see him, you know, a couple of days ago. and i wish it was under different circumstances. >> his parents say he's scared by ready to fight. >> he said i'll get through this. >> it's a combination of emotions. we have been very afraid, on the

other hand we're very confident. >> the 85-year-old mother of ebola patient thomas eric duncan arrived in dallas monday. she drove 15 hours to be near him. hoping to find a way for him to hear her voice. he is taking an experimental drug. he was given the same dose on saturday, the same day that his condition took the turn for the worse. if duncan infected anyone else, they would likely have symptoms this week. so far, none of the 48 people being watched is sick. >> 100% seen yesterday. 100% of them had no signs of fever. had no signs of illness. 100% were doing well. >> still, authorities worry about the toll this ebola case is taking. >> the stress of this and the fear of this, you know, could be more damaging to this community than the virus itself. >> now, experts say we have the tools in this country to stop any kind of ebola outbreak.

the key tool is finding anyone who's been exposed to the ebola virus and making sure that we monitor those people. that's exactly by the way what's being done with dr. nancy snyderman and her team. the nbc news team returned late last night on a charter flight and we know that they were monitored by health officials when they got here, back to the u.s. we are told they're in good health, showing no symptoms. but just out of an abundance of caution they're quarantined and staying away at home for the next 21 days. >> explain the process that h e have -- that was and the decision process made to take mukpo to the hospital in omaha. >> yeah, it sounds random, but they have a bio containment unit here that has been set up for a number of years. they have been training extensively to handle any kind of infectious disease. by the way, they already treated one patient with ebola. remember, dr. rick sacre, he was treated here. so they have experience.

the doctors were pointing out to me yesterday this is not something that's been in the u.s. much before. so it's very new so they wanted to send him somewhere where they had the expertise. >> all right, kate snow, thanks. appreciate it. coming up next, bill clinton saying arkansas runs deep in him. >> yes, it does. >> when he's not in new york city. >> we'll hear more from the former president turned star in his home state as he fights -- as he fights it falling into republican hands. joe, what do you say to that? >> i want to see kangaroos.

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democrat mark pryor is still hanging on in arkansas, but he's been slipping in the latest polls. he's now down by four to tom cotton. time to bring out the big guns and there's no one bigger in arkansas than bill clinton.

casey hunt is on the trail. >> i love my native state. without you i never would have had a chance to do anything. and i didn't come back to the briar patch, i came back to the future. >> reporter: for bill clinton this is where it all began. >> bill clinton who announced today he wants to be a democratic presidential nominee. >> i'm proud to say here in arkansas we have led the way. >> reporter: now clinton is trying to save what's left of his party in his home state. senator mark pryor, the son of clinton confidant david pryor in danger of losing to tom cotton. >> i didn't come here to talk about my opponent, but let me take this opportunity to do so. you know, he went to harvard. right? i know. he couldn't get into uca, what can i say? >> the president's unpopular in arkansas. they want you to make it a protest vote. all three of the races they're saying you may like the guys,

but hey, you know what you have to do. you have to vote against the president. it's a pretty good scam, isn't it? >> reporter: arkansas had just one republican in congress and now pryor is the last democrat left. >> people like my parents used to vote democratic. but now the obama democrats in washington no longer represent arkansas's conservative values. >> is this still the arkansas you governed? >> oh, i think so. i think we've got a really good chance. i think he's run a great campaign, i think he -- i expect him to win. >> can he win this race for you? >> i have got to win this race on my own. >> reporter: if there's one thing they agree on it, might be bill clinton. >> i think a lot of arkansans look back on the clinton years like the obama years and view them favorably. >> president clinton, can i get a selfie? >> wow. >> with us is -- nobody draws them like bill clinton. certainly not in arkansas.

but this race has been up in the air. i said a couple of hours ago i thought tom cotton to be up by ten points now. but it's a lot closer. what keeps pryor close and what makes democrats think they can still win this race? >> reporter: it's a couple of factors, joe. this is a democratic state for decades. only recently it's finally started to slip away from the southern democrats and at this point, mark pryor still has a ton of goodwill from his father, david pryor, who is very close do former president bill clinton and bill clinton himself has been really engaged here. you know, he noted in his speech, hey, this isn't the only time i have been down here to arkansas. he's been back for three funerals, coming back for his high school reunion. he's still very connected to it. and if there's anybody that can make a difference for mark pryor it's bill clinton. that's what you're soing over -- seeing over the next few days.

>> what did you see down there? >> well, i travelled with tom cotton on saturday. i'm upset with the pryor campaign, he's a wonderful man. i asked what events, and they wouldn't tell me. >> that's weird. >> but aside from that -- >> okay. you have vented. >> aside from that, pryor is a very decent, lovely man. cotton is, you know, -- is moving with the trends down there. i saw him on saturday talking to a gun rally and saying that the right to bear arms was not just a constitutional right, but a god-given right. >> oh, my. >> and -- >> well, you obviously, it's the 11th commandment. >> yeah. >> okay. >> or the 12th maybe. >> so it's a very conservative state, but arkansas still a little different than let's say alabama or mississippi or tennessee.

there's still sort of -- >> yeah. >> more of the yellow dogs still running around in the south. >> one thing i noticed when talking about north carolina a little while ago, i was there as well on my road trip and the thing that -- that's keeping the democrat afloat there is the fact that tillis' legislature cut education funding. and in north carolina, there is a long, moderate tradition, 50 years since terry sanford of boosting education as a way to bring in industry. >> you know, i'll tell you what, for conservatives who are shocked when i say this, i mean, you've got to look at the tea leaves this year. this is in many ways i think a -- an election where the warning flags -- if they haven't gone up for republicans already, they need to go up on issues education and tax cuts. you can cut education to pay for tax cuts, you need to talk to

sam brown back, it's not paying anymore for republican. this tax cuts at all costs mentality, if brownback goes down, this as the center plank for the republican party -- >> i agree with joe scarborough on this one. i think you see two states now, north carolina and kansas are education cuts are paying heavily in the democrats' favor. what's interesting about a arkansas you have obamacare there and i'm curious what casey can tell us about how that -- obviously, medicaid expansion has insured a lot of people. i think arkansas has the steepest drop in the uninsurance rate in the country. casey, did you pick up anything from this? >> yeah, president clinton actually offered a pretty row

best defense of the president's health care law. which was interesting to me. following senator pryor's campaign. it is something they have tried to kind of run on a little bit. they have the one ad sort of praising obamacare and then they backed away from it. i think it illustrates this broader problem that he has in dealing with president obama. president clinton alluded to it, noting that president obama was unpopular in arkansas. and i asked pryor about the ebola crisis yesterday and i think it illustrates the problem he has here in the ad talking cotton. this is what he had to say. >> do you think that the obama administration has done an appropriate job handling the ebola crisis? >> um, i would say that it's hard to know because i haven't heard the latest briefing on

that to know all -- i read the paper and all, but my impression is that we have people over there, both from cdc and other medical type people and even some engineers to try to build, you know, medical facilities. that's what they need over there. they need the medical infrastructure. >> have we been aggressive enough in helping these people? >> um, again, i have to see the latest numbers. >> wow. >> stop it. stop it. stop it! stop it! >> what? >> just stop. >> you're like -- >> throw in the towel, casey, what was going on there? >> nice, gentle question. >> i'm not sure. i thought he would have a yes or no answer. but -- >> could i -- >> what was that, casey? >> she asked a gentle question. she was just being honest and the guy just collapsed. >> you were there, why were the questions so hard for the senator to answer? >> well, you know, like i said,

i was a little surprised that they were so difficult because he had aired this out on ebola late in august. accusing his opponent tom cotton of not doing enough to fight global pandemics. i -- >> you thought that was a softball? >> -- for that ad. >> news of the day question. >> joe klein? >> compare and contrast on saturday i asked cotton about ebola and he immediately said we have to shut down flights from that region because -- and this was the brilliant part, because the terrorists might send people infected with ebola over here. and, you know, when you think of boko haram, i think that deals to the sense of fear in the last three weeks -- >> that was an answer. >> a professional answer even if it was -- >> sam stein, you brought up the

ad that senator pryor had used before on ebola. >> yeah. >> trying to blame tom cotton for it. he was very critical and yet to have him stammer there with casey, pretty stunning. i mean, it's painful to watch. >> yeah. and the answer is pretty self-explanatory from mark pryor's perspective. go back to the facts of the ad. the budget for the centers for disease control has been cut by $600 million from 2010 to 2014. listen, the republican party and the austerity movement has cut cdc funding, but he stammered and couldn't come one the word, it was really awkward. i would say cotton referencing ebola patients and sending them across the border -- >> well, split screen with the kick boxing kangaroos -- >> no, no. let's watch this quickly. >> can you guys play it again? >> how do you say no mas in kangaroo? >> stunning.

>> do you think that the obama administration has done an appropriate job handling the ebola crisis? >> um, i would say that -- it's hard to know because i haven't heard the latest briefing on that to know all the -- i read the paper and all, but my impression is we have people over there, both from cdc and other medical type people and even some engineers to try to build, you know, medical facilities. that's what they need over there. they need the medical infrastructure. >> do you think we've been aggressive enough in -- >> um, again, i have to see the latest numbers. >> oh, my god. casey hunt, you have done it again. >> what is wrong with you? >> she is so mean. >> you're cruel. >> she asks such simple questions. >> it's a trap.

>> you're cunning. >> casey, thank you so much. we'll put that side by side with australian kick boxing. sam, painful. >> joe klein, thank you. i'm sorry you're upset. >> boy, they just -- up next, one high school cancels the entire football season. and prosecutors are now involved. we'll tell you the major reason why. willie has that story for us next on "morning joe." but your erectile dysfunction - that could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently. 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, delayed backache or muscle ache.

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welcome back to "morning joe." there's outrage in one new jersey town this morning after a high school canceled the rest of the high school football season amid a hazing investigation. seniors on the team intimidated and bullied freshmen, including some acts that could be considered sexual assault. >> this district, in this board of education is making unified stance to say no. no to bullying. >> last night school officials in sayerville, new jersey, announced they will cancel the remainder of the football season. from freshmen to versety squads. the drastic measure less than a week after widespread allegations of hazing by senior team members towards freshmen, including severe bullying and possible sexual assault. >> there were incidents of

harassment and bullying that took base on a pervasive level, a wide scale level, and at a level in which the players knew, tolerated and in general accepted. >> the cancellation comes as schools nationwide are cracking down against bullying. >>. >> i'm not satisfied with the way we handled it from the get-go. >> meanwhile, in sayerville -- >> it's unfair for the kids that didn't have nothing to do with it. >> the community itself is like family. >> you're still proud of this community? >> absolutely. absolutely. >> it's just very devastating. it's very sad for the parents and the players. >> wow. >> no players have been suspended from school as the investigation goes on. there are questions about the role the coaches played. the superintendent said he asked the the assistant principal at the school to look at the sports

team and their protocols. they have a pretty good football program. >> so obviously for those of us -- i started playing football when i was 6. now play it your whole life. a lot of these kids, football has been their life for a decade. they get to senior year and because of the hazing, they're not going to have a senior year. this will impact them for years to come. >> why not just punish the people that were committing the mistakes, instead of the entire team. >> i sympathy in the context of everything going on in with the nfl and everything else, they want to make a big statement. it also includes the cheerleader and the band. all these people have their season completely wiped out. >> yeah, but to me it sounds like that's the leadership the nfl could use. >> they won three state titles in four years, then these seniors who were freshmen, this is behavior they've seen

cultivated over a certain period of time. >> it would have to be widespread, i would think, mike. to cancel the entire season. >> that's a huge crisis. >> for people that understand these kids, over a decade, their entire life, and the parents and the family every friday night. >> yeah. yeah. >> and so i'm just wondering and again, it does start at the top. those coaches should never coach again in jersey. >> if they knew. >> yeah, up next, a great poll showing a surjs of support for democrats across the country. is there any connection to president obama remaining off the campaign trail? plus, the most expensive hotel ever sold. who is buying the waldorf and what they plan to do with it and whatnot to send your kid today

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in most of these jurisdictions now, same-sex marriage will be de facto legal. >> now we're in a situation where 30 states have same-sex marriage. the momentum when you have that many people living in a world

where same-sex marriage is legal makes it inevitable, it seems, that the rest of the country will follow. >> inevitable that the rest of the country will follow. well, i guess that's it. i would like to thank my wife lorain for 25 good years. what can i say? we gave it a ghood shot, honey. i was just about going to get a photo of you. and i was going to announce my new governor appointed life partner, roger and i are registered at restoration hardware. we're doing the entire living room in hammered stainless steel. >> good morning, everybody. it's tuesday, october 7th. look at that times square. it's already buzzing. or still is. with us onset, we have msnbc contributor, associate professor at columbia university school of international and public affairs

along with willie, joe and me. >> yeah. what's up? we need to talk about what we're going to wear before we wear it. >> just get it out of the way here. >> it's ha holiday party. >> it's still october. what's going on? >> i don't know. i don't like this. >> this is just not going to work. >> i'm sorry. i'm going to change. i'll be right back. you read the news. i'll be right back. >> don't change. i like that sweater. it doesn't look like it's going to walk away. >> i'm going to get another. read the news, mika. i'm sure there's a lot to talk about. >> it's the first time he actually wore a different -- all right. okay. well, he's gone. let's do the news, shall we? >> i can't believe it. >> i like the holiday look. >> i thought it looked good, you know. just trying to make it up a little built. if you believe the latest polling, can you guys believe this? has a very real chance at

unseating the top republican in the senate. this didn't look like it could happen until now. according to a new kentucky bluegrass poll, grimes leads mcconnell 46 to 44%. that's within the four-point margin of error. a month ago mcconnell was up by eight points. it's not the only race, by the way, where the democrats are showing strength. we're seeing this in a couple of other key places. north carolina, kay hagan has a four-point lead. but she's leading. the race in kansas, already starting to look out of reach for incumbent pat roberts. he's down by 10% to independent greg orman. in colorado, mark udall has a three-point edge of corey garner. that's close to a toss-up. he was leading by eight points at one point.

last month jeanne shaheen. and in iowa where two weeks ago joni ernst was leading by six, she's now tied with democrat bruce braley. i don't know. you think that the president is such a hint rans as the narrative has been, dorian. and yet we're seeing something possiblily happening here if you believe the polls. >> and we haven't seen the clintons in action by the way. >> we're going to talk about that. >> that mr. make a difference. it's hard to figure out, is this an anti-incumbency wave, or is this something the democrats are doing in terms of campaign strategy that republicans are not? it remains to be scene. >> particularly remarkable. grimes looked like she was starting to slip away. she had done so well for several month ls. you saw mcconnell getting some distance. so she closed the gap now with a

month left to go. and as you say, that whole campaign has been about pairing her with president obama, and now here she is tied. >> i find that to be extremely interesting to watch. in alaska, mark begich has been losing ground to sullivan. tom cotton has a slight edge on pryor in arkansas. and the cbs news "new york times" poll has louisiana senator mary landrieu down by six points to really bill kasz di. so there we're seeing a fight for senator mary landrieu. the comeback kid, as you mentioned, is looking to help democrats in his hometown state. former president bill clinton returned to arkansas to headline rallies for mark pryor. clinton urged votered to reject republican efforts to make the elections about president obama. >> you cannot afford to do what

their opponents want. they want you to make this a protest vote. all three races. they're saying you may like these guys, but you got to vote against the president. it's your last shot. it's a good scam, isn't it? i may wander and roam, but i will never be far from home. you're in my heart, and you will always be, arkansas, you run deep in me. vote your heart. don't tell you for what they tell you you have to be against. vote for what you know you should be for. vote for mark pryor. vote for mike ross. vote for pat hayes. and you will be happy a mon from now. thank you and god bless you. >> boy, he's really something, isn't he? >> yes, you are. >> i love that guy. >> could he be any happier? >> please don't do this. just don't do it. stop. >> and what about mitch

mcconnell, huh? he's down. >> yes, i mentioned that at the top of the show when you walked away. i was excited about your reaction. but you just left. i'm going to do that. i'm going to try that. why? i thought we looked good. >> i didn't want to hear andy williams holiday song. we were coordinating our sweaters before the show, it's a showing. if you look what's happening with mitch mcconnell. we were all asking, what were the polls going to look like? the first wave of polls after the beheadings. after barack obama went out golfing after the beheading specifically. and now we're starting to see a big turnaround in kentucky. you look at north carolina. big turnaround. republicans were sure ap month ago this is going to be a wave election. it may still be. you just don't see any evidence

of it out there. democrats are doing so much better now than they should be doing. and republicans are now going to lose kansas. >> what do you make of kentucky? i don't see it as related to isis. do you? is that what is happening here? >> all democrats were hurt a month ago by barack obama's seeming obliviousness to what was going on with isis. and the jv comments and golfing after the beheading. but i think you're starting to see these races go back to their set point. and the set point is a lot of kentucky people can't relate to mitch mcconnell. they may not agree with grimes in a lot of issues, but they just can't relate to mitch mcconnell. >> and she and other candidates have run smart campaigns distancing themselves from the president.

as the former president bill clinton said in arkansas, this is not a vote for barack obama. this is a vote for mark pryor or london grimes or other particular candidates. this should have republicans worried for 2016. they have a lot more seats to defend in 2016. >> i'm sorry. i was just going to say clinton's comments were interesting, too. he said this is just two more years of president obama. he's almost saying don't worry. it's only two more years. but these guys are aplaying for six-h year jobs. so don't make this about president obama. >> oh, my gosh. >> he's very, very good. >> if you talk to any republican strategist six months ago, a year ago and said a month before the election you're going to be losing kwst by ten. to an independent candidate. and you're going to be losing north carolina. in some polls you're going to be

losing louisiana. arkansas is going to be split down the middle. i can tell you as republicans we're screwed. >> iowa is tied right now. >> and the democrat out in iowa is a clown. i mean, democrats say quietly, that guy is a clown. he's ill fit for kansas. he goes to texas and say, the last thing we want is somebody from iowa, a dumb ass iowa farmer is basically what he's saying. >> well -- >> although i would say, joni ernst commercials -- >> the the castration candidates. >> i those were brilliant before. clearly iowa voters are thinking something else now. >> i don't know. i think if you look at the trend, it's all against the republicans right now. there are exceptions. scott walker, a guy i like very much. a great hope for a lot of conservatives like myself. he may not win this year. >> he's being investigated for

corruption scandal. >> go a state over to michigan. one tough nerd. the governor of michigan. a year ago everything looked great. now he's on the run. and here's the thing, this is what republicans need to understand. you got to stand for something. you can't just be against barack obama. and the problem is. if the republicans can't win. and priebus will say this. if the republicans can't win in 2014 when everything is breaking their way. when they were fighting in red states, then in 16 all the senate fights are going to be on blue states, plus the presidential race. r is going to be especially ugly. >> yeah. let me get one other headline in here. officials are now confirming the first case of ebola to be contracted outside of west africa. a nurse in spain is in stable condition at a hospital this morning after testing positive for the deadly virus.

officials say she cares for two spanish priests who boelt died from ebola. the parents of ashoka mukpo said he's in good spirits after arriving in omaha for treatment. dr. nancy sneiderman and her team arrived in the united states and were checked by a health pishl upon ail rival. all are feeling well, in good health. they're deemed low risk but will are be be staying home and monitoring their temperature for the remainder of the 21-day period. and in dallas, the man being treated for the ebola virus remains in critical condition. we've learned thomas eric duncan is being given an experimental drug approved by the fda. president obama says his administration is working on increased screening for ebola. it comes as a new research poll finds nearly 60% of americans have a great or fair amount of

confidence the government could prooent an ebola outbreak in the u.s. but there's a sharp divide among parties. 69% of democrats share the confidence. 51% of republicans have little or no krz in the u.s. government in terms of how it could stop an outbreak. i think screening will be difficult. i don't know how they're going to do it. the it's not just about cutting off flights. >> willie, what do you make of the poll we just talked about? is this -- >> it looks like it's about president obama. it looks like just a blind referendum. it's strange that became a political question. >> i think it's a lot of things. obamacare, irs. a lot of things that made us think, do you guys do anything? >> i think democrats feel the same way. how is george w. bush handling the outbreak, yould see the numbers flip.

this becomes split call. zblf it's strange, isn't it? >> and the government at the local level versus the federal level. especially since president obama has been in office. that's not unusual, the broad trends. but it is strange around ebola. >> coming up on "morning joe." as the white house plans new airline screening procedures to minimize the threat of ebola, we'll look at how one key american city is handling the the crisis. plus, michael bloomberg gets knighted by the queen. but don't call him sir just yet. speaking of sir, he always wants us to call him that. he always wants him to call us -- what is that? can we say it on the air? >> yeah, he loves that. it's better than what you could have gone with, i guess. good morning, everyone. including joe and mika. blood moon. have you heard the term? we're going to have one later tonight. all it means is we get these lunar eclipses with pretty much

the full moon. we get the refraction of the light off the earth. because of the dust and the dirt. it looks ret oud there during the eclipse. this is going to happen tomorrow morning very early. if you're on the east coast, a lot of clouds. but around 5:15 to 8:15. the best viewing will be the west coast around 3:30 to 4:30 in the morning. the next one will happen in april. we get four of these in two years. that doesn't usually happen. e back to weather. i mentioned the clouds blocking the view of the lunar eclipse in the east. a large amount of clouds and rain to the east. heaviest rains are in h northern new england. a a batch over north carolina. and pretty good amount of showers and thunderstorms between memphis and cape gerardo on the mississippi river. that could clip the memphis area shortly. and in nashville, we have rain for you. and new york city, southern new

england, and coastal jersey a line of strong storms will go there. gusty winds could bring down trees and maybe an isolated tornado. very weird scenario for you. if you're west of the mississippi, you're looking rather nice today. the exception being arizona. we leave you with a shot. can you believe this? the rink is back. they're making the ice. getting ready for the holiday season. you're watching "morning joe." we'll be right back.

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it did not say that. >> holy cow. like a cashew. >> first time i've heard that expression. >> so we have -- we're reading -- >> no. >> stories from local -- >> time to take a look at the morning papers that you care about. the los angeles times. pope francis called a meeting of 200 cardinals and bishops in rome to consider controversial issues for the church. including divorce, contraception and homosexuality. and he has encouraged attendees to speak openly and freely. the group will discuss a survey of catholics worldwide, have found many feel the church is out of touch with their needs. >> "the new york times" historic warks aldorf-astoria hotel will

be sold to. it opened 83 years also. it will also undergo a big renovation. the wlean says they plan to return the building to the arjal art deco clothing style. >> h&m has come under fire for a khaki jumpsuit which many say resembles the uniforms worn by female members of the kurdish militia. >> i like khaki on women is this story? kbl would you wear that? i kind of like it. >> if you could, would you wear that? >> sure. >> oh, the one on the right, with the gun and the hat. >> well. reaction has been mixed with some saying it celebrates the

females fighting the islamic state in syria. others say it's insensitive. what? i just know the designer was not thinking kurdish militia. >> what's the next story? >> come on. moving on. that's stupid. anybody arguing that has no life. >> just about anything. i read the delaware news journal every morning. >> then you already have read this story. but i'll say it again. the delaware news journal. police have arrested the mother of a 4-year-old after the kid showed up to her day care with a backpack full of heroin. the little girl was caught handing out packets of the drugs to her classmates thinking they were candy. the mother has been charged with drug possession and endangering the welfare of her child. >> what in the world? >> it's heroin? >> i never ever send jack to school with heroin. with packets of heroin. >> what do you send him to

school with? >> coke. diet coke! he loves it. buzzing around you know. you. >> little jack. don't say that. >> okay. okay. gl the telegraph. no, stop it, willie. >> like a cashew. >> i don't know what that means. >> former new york city major michael bloomberg was give an an honorary knighthood by the queen of england. he was granted due to his entrepreneurial endeavors. but don't call him sir mike. bloomberg will not use the name sir because he's not a british citizen. >> thank you for clarifying that, mika. >> okay. >> and the new orleans times, a collision between a train and a big rig has left two rail workers injured. thankfully nobody killed. he began recording when he realized the truck hauling a crane was stuck on the tracks. moments later, here it comes.

oh. that's not good. the train comes through cutting the trailer in half. the driver escaped unharmed. >> i wish we could show that in slow motion. >> they suffered minor injuries. residents in the area have been evacuated due to concerns over a gas spill. >> my goodness. >> up next, the eyes of the nation continue to be on dallas where the first ebola patient to be diagnosed in the u.s. is in critical condition. the mayor of dallas. >> and we have a power house economic round table coming up this morning. >> yes, we do. powerful. >> money dudes, willie. wall street is riding high while middle america is struggling to find its footing. what's it like being an sbrerp neurotoday? much more "morning joe" straight ahead. ♪

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28 past the hour. the terror threat of isis is now at the doorstep of a top american ally in the middle east. the front page of the wall street journal shows islamic state militants planting their flag near syria's border with turkey. it follows fierce battles between kurdish and isis

fighters. it now appears they're poised to take control. meanwhile, an american teenager has been arrested after trying to board a connecting flight to turkey with the intent of sneaking into syria and fighting with isis. the 19-year-old left a handwritten three-page letter to his parents begging them not to alert the authorities, while saying, quote, we are all witness that the western societies are getting more immoral day by day. >> syria, obviously, still under siege by isis, and now turkey who sat back and done nothing. now they are having isis knock at their o doorstep. this is going to be a real wakeup call to our alliance with turkey and our relationship with turkey. isis is now on the turkish border. turkey is a member of nato. if the president and the turks need help, they have to go

through nato to get help. we'll see what happens there. it's a disgrace. it's just a disgrace. >> yeah. they are not a strong ally. we don't have a lot of strong allies. >> in other news this morning, the first person diagnoseded with the ebola virus in the united states remains in critical condition. thomas eric duncan is being treated with an experimental drug in dallas. it comes as texas republican governor rick perry is forming a 17-person task force to focus on the current ebola outbreak, and how the state responds to other infectious diseases. and president obama says his administration is now working on increased screening for ebola at airports here in the u.s. and overseas, but he is resisting calls to impose any travel restrictions. joining us now from dallas, the city's mayor, mike rawlings.

good to have you on the show. >> great to be here. i watch you all the time, so it's fun for me. >> thank you. that's great. >> tell us, mr. mayor. you've been talking about this quite some time about what happened. but tell us how the hospitals across dallas and across texas have changed since the mistake. >> well, i'll tell you, everybody was trained in august. we had this incident, which is a agreement hospital. my daughter was born there. i had a close friend that had a baby there this weekend. everybody has been retrained, doubled up, and they know everybody is overanalyzing the situation now. that's okay to make sure the hospitals don't miss anybody. and we've got all individuals that had contact with the patient, we're checking them twice a day.

and hopefully we'll find any symptoms before they get there. >> let me tell you about the the fear factor in dallas and the country. there's la lot of information out there about isis. how is that impacting or affecting the citizens of dallas? >> i assume you're talking about ebola, not isis. >> ebola, yeah. isis is scary, too. >> yeah, i was thinking about turkey. >> that's all right. i think we're calm. we're sitting on pins and needles. but we had an all-time hoping of our state fair over the last week. and 92,000 people showed up to the cowboys game. i went to a big oktoberfest. people are out and about. this is a great time to be in dallas. the weather is good.

i don't see any pulling back on that. folks are going to school. but we're serious. this is a very tough issue. but i think it's only the mean people creating some of this -- some of this fear. >> let's talk about the incubation period. this is the critical week, as you pointed out, where people who came in contact with thomas eric duncan could show any type of symptom ls. no one was showing any signs. but we had ten people who had contact with duncan who are considered high risk. so explain exactly what the monitoring process is for those ten people. well, basically each -- we've got a couple of dozen people tracking, around 48 people and we visit with them every day.

they look at the temperature. they ask how they're feeling. they look at them from a health standpoint and give them a little checkup. and so every morning i'll get a report. we have one today at noon. so it's turning over a big blackjack card when i get the report to make sure they're healthy. >> mayor mike rawlings, thank you for being on the show. thank you for watching. >> thank you, mr. mayor, we'll have to drop by in dallas next. >> please do. >> we're you're in new york, come on the show. >> i would love to. >> still ahead, barack obama says the economy is stronger than it ever has been during his presidency. we're going to fact check that with our powerhouse economic round table straight ahead. plus, why one of our panelists says crazy is a compliment. >> i'm with him.

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start building your confident retirement today. all right, here with us now for our business roundtable, cnbc's brian sullivan. it's good to see you. >> oh, stop being sarcastic. >> even if your enthusiasm is fake, it is appreciated. >> ceo and managing partner of q ball. i can't wait. >> least going to do my nails. apparently he's going to do a lot of nail ls. we're going to get that later. i'm not one of those people. oh, it's bad. it's bad. >> who has time? >> the author of crazy is a compliment, the problem with zigging while everyone else zags. >> i love that. >> you just complimented joe.

>> any time people come with an idea and say it's crazy -- >> exactly, if they're not calling you crazy, you're not thinking big enough. >> i'm reading the new google book. he said things move so quickly. if you're not being called crazy every week or month, tyou're going to be left behind. >> we can do nothing and hope our jobs are safe, or we can take risks. the riskier strategy is to do nothing. the reason i wrote crazy is a compliment is to bottle up my experience working with a thousand entrepreneurs to help people who have a dream but are feeling scared or stuck and create a road map for helping them go guard. >> so brian, we have, in the united states of america, a congress and a political structure that is just the

opposite of crazy in the good way. we're not doing anything to move this economy forward. >> no, we're not. >> and we'll have the pleasure of all kinds of great people, successful people. they have nothing in common, except for one thing. they all have this amazing ability to take risks and believe in yourself. congress is all about consensus. either it's red state or blue state. somebody is going to have to zag. >> and they're scared of their own shadow. >> yes, they are. >> that comes because we have a rough time in the economy. wanes haven't moved. jobs were very hard to come by. we're getting a little bit of a change in the overall economy. >> we got about a quarter million net jobs created. a lot of those didn't go where

we needed them. they didn't go to women. they didn't go to younger people. i think one of the things we're proud of. they have nearly 200 employees today. >> did you just use starbuck as a verb? >> he did, didn't he? you're starbucking a nail salon. >> trying to transform something mundane. the 65,000 nail salons in this country. $8 billion reported. it's probably closer to $14 billion. we need professional standards. >> right now it seems like a lot of people are intrigued. that's amongst the highest in the last decade. it's not going to things more mundane. the service economy. the service economy. the independent workers.

>> and what i think i love is it's not just technology where entrepreneurship is thriving. most people starting businesses are women and baby boomers over 55. we just don't hear their stories. and your point, entrepreneurship is not just entrepreneurs anymore. we haul need the skills of change making. >> and what you're talking about cannot be outsourced. you cannot amazon -- can i use that has a a verb? you cannot amazon nail care. you need people. and we hear from both parties. that's not true. new businesses are job creators. and so, yesterday i talked to a neighbor. and asked how is paul simon?ç but it's a guy that has a business. he's a small business owner.

mom and pop shop. runs it out of his house. and i ask him what i always ask with restaurants and businesses in the town. >> they all say the same thing? this month was good. last month was bad. the month before was so-so. the month before was terrible. the month before was agreement. i'm hearing this from all small business owners. they can't make plans because it's um and down. we have a schizophrenic consumer. >> and your neighbor will continue to say that until we have real wage gains. >> if it goels down. >> this is the next election. >> one of the issues around there is we're so focused on the demand side and not supply side. and what we need to do is focus

on them. be focused with the authentic crazy person was self care. only then can you get the predictability of revenue. the problem is trying to focus on the profit and performance. you need to start with product. >> so linda, how do you describe the the schizophrenic economy? you have unemployment below 6%. and that's because people have given up looking for jobs. and chaos favors the entrepreneur. but entrepreneurs are not about the farm. we imagine them going all in. entrepreneurs are risk minimizeers. so three facts i point out in crazy is a compliment. number one, you don't have to go all in. 50 pk 50% of the fastest growing companies start with under $5,000. the best innovators keep their

day jobs while they're starting their ideas. the founder of nike did taxes for ten years. you need to balance between taking risks and doing risk. deal with chaos. >> people are scarred, right? they're scared, too. i'm not going to leave my job where i feel secure after what just happened to start a company. >> that's why sho many are 20-year-olds. if they fail, they're okay. if you're 40 with a couple of kids and a mortgage, you're not starting a business. i've known tony two years now. i can't imagine him being a nail man. thank you so much. tony, greatly appreciate it. >> thank you so much for coming in. and the book is crazy is a

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it began as an act of defiance. a way to turn a tragedy into a symbol of hope. 26 playgrounds have been built to honor the 26 victims of the sandy hook elementary school shooting. each one uniquely celebrates the student or teacher who lost their lives. brian williams brings us that story from the site of 26th and final playground. >> reporter: on a startingly beautiful day, happy children swarmed all over the playground dedicated to the principal who died trying to protect her students at sandy hook elementary schooler inially two years ago now. after, there was raw emotion. a reading from a book that dawn loved to read to the children. it was led by one of her daughters. the young children don't understand why this playground

was built, but their faces remind us what it's meant for. >> it is amazing. all 26 of the memorial sandy hook playgrounds are now happy places. they're all scattered around the new york area in towns that also suffered damage from hurricane sandy. >> put my hands in. >> what is your favorite job to watch and favorite job to do yourself? >> my favorite job to do myself is probably the sidewalk. and my favorite job to watch is probably the panels they put on the playstand. >> reporter: and for the other families who lost someone at sandy hook, this project has held so much meaning. >> we became a family with all the firefighters.

>> our angels are looking down at us. looking wow. the final one. it's beautiful. >> the group blind this is a foundation called where angels play. they plan to coop doing this across the country in places where there's been tragedy. like boston, aurora, colorado, and moore, oklahoma. bill laven is the founder of the whole concept. he's a retired new jersey firefighter who told me on the job site last week it doesn't get more personal for him. >> if you close your eyes, can you see all 26? do they all have a special meaning to you? >> every single one has a miracle that has happened. they will work from dawn to dusk and then thank me for allowing them to do all that. but this is our blessing and privilege. >> this september will be two years since the sandy hook

shooting. two years since a disturbed individual was able to get his hands on three semiautomatic weapons. and nothing has been done in congress. and it's not done on the campaign trail with isis, ebola and stagnant wages in the headlines. it's easy for politicians to ignore it for some reason. polls show americans overwhelmingly support background checks on all gun sales. even gun owners support it by a wide margin. 89 to 9%. >> that's straight forward. you start talking about gun control and the numbers drop quickly. >> i'm not sure why gun control, though. it's just a background check. >> i don't know. george w. bush supported background checks. i don't know. mike? we talked about this before.

endlessly. the institutional indifference and lack of courage. it's so depressing. you look at the numbers as we just ind kalted. when you walk a street and talk to ordinary human beings, it's depressing our political institutions don't react. >> having said that, bill laven, the firefighter who came up with that idea. >> what a great idea. >> what a hopeful, beautiful person to find a way to celebrate as well as remember these people. and that was a great piece. that was really nice. >> it's a wonderful thing to do. >> up next, what if anything did we learn today?

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>> what? it's hot sf. >> oh, frazier is down. frazier is down. >> thomas, did you learn anything today? >> i will happily give up my time for this youtube video. >> mike, did you learn anything today? >> i learned unlike what i first thought -- they're notó[/mm as kangaroos. >> i was worried it wasn't real kangaroos. i learned crazy is a compliment. maybe there's hope for you. mike, what -- i also learned the founder of nike continued to work for a decade until -- while he was setting up his business. so what's on tap today in baseball? >> in disable you have two playoff games. the first game this afternoon. tryinging to old on as

cardinals. you think they may pull it off? >> i do. i think they'll win the series. the matchups favor them. and stick around right now. we have peter alexander with the daily rundown. a new ebola case. the first time a patient gets it outside of africa. his treatment continues for patients in omaha and dallas here in the u.s. and president obama considers more measures to screen travelers. plus a major milestone in the same-sex marriage debate. both the republican and democratic national committees with just four weeks left until election day. meantime on the midterm trail, bill clinton is heading home to arkansas. big debates for key races in