what we did see is he has a hard time translating that into, i don't know what you want to call it, charisma, star power, especially in the primaries, maybe the ideal candidate would be someone that can talk about the economy that mitt romney can, but has the charisma of sarah palin, and i do agree it's a bit too early to write her off. i think her decision to resign was a mistake and very badly communicated, but not only does she have a great deal of personal appeal, she could if she played it smart, tap into this sort of pop you list, anti-elitisist sentiment that i think will grow as this recession continues as and as the jobless numbers continue to grow. >> i think her husband was involved in getting an independent party going in alaska, wasn't he, joe? ron, what about mitt romney?

he looks like he's in for the long haul here. >> i hope he is. i informally advised him during his last campaign, i think he's the real deal and does have the ability to connect with a lot of americans. here's what we're looking at. in the last election i think people were tired of an administration in power for eight years and scared about the direction of afghanistan and iraq. i think that will swing. >> i don't disagree with that. earlier in the show i asked you folks for a view, will 90% of you said yes, 10% said no. what does that tell you? let's go, go, go, when it comes to an investigation. i'm all about it, and the democrats should pay a political price. that's "the ed show."

miller says alabama needs to be held down with guerrilla glue. let's play "hardball." good evening. i'm chris matthews in washington. leading off tonight, witnesses for the prosecution. late today came the moment that many were waiting for. frank ricci and other firefighters that sonia sotomayor ruled against in the new haven discrimination case testified at her confirmation hearing. they were great tv and made a compelling case that in dumping

those results, that the city of against minorities, the city of new haven discriminated against worthy firefighters like frank ricci who did well in the test. >> the lower court's belief that citizens should be reduced to racial statistics is flawed. it only divides people who don't wish to be divided along racial lines. >> in just a moment we'll join the debate over this case of affirmative action and alleged reverse discrimination. plus former governor zell miller is back at it. speaking in atlanta today, he reportedly said, quote, our globe-trotting president needs to take a break. gorilla glue? i suspect that's not the last we'll hear about that comment from the senator from georgia. plus, don't look now, but the campaign season is upon us.

we're talking off-year. president obama was in new jersey campaigning for troubled governor jon corzine, but in reality he's fighting for his own administration, pushing back against rejectionist democrats and stubborn republicans in the congress. and president obama is in new york to mark naacp's 100th anniversary. let's listen. >> thank you. thank you, everybody. thank you. please, everybody have a seat. thank you. thank you. thank you. what an extraordinary night, capping off an extraordinary week, capping off an extraordinary 100 years at the naacp.

to chairman bond, brother justice, i am so grateful to all of you for being here. it's just good to be among friends. it is an extraordinary honor to be here in the city where the naacp was formed, to mark its centennial. what we celebrate tonight is not simply the journey the naacp has traveled, but the journey that we as americans have traveled over the past 100 years. it's a journey that takes us back to a time before most of us

were born, long before the voting rights act and the civil rights act, and brown versus board of education, back to an america just a generation past slavery. it was a time when jim crow was a way of life, when lynchings were all too common, when race riots were shaking cities across a segregated land. it was in this america where an atlanta scholar named w.e.b. dubo dubois, a man of towering intellect and a fierce passion for justice sparked what became known as the niagara movement. where reformers united not by color, but by cause, where an association was born that would

as its charter says, promote equality and eradicate prejudice among citizens of the united states. from the beginning these founders understood how change would come, justi as king and al the civil rights leaders that came later understood. that legislation needed to be passed, and that president it is needed to be pressured into action. they knew that the stain of slavery and sin of segregation had to be lifted in the courtroom and in the legislature and in the hearts and minds of americans. they also knew that here in america change would have to come from the people.

it would come from people protesting lynchings, rallying against violence, all those women decided to walk instead of taking the bus, even though they were tired after a long day of doing somebody else's laundry, looking after somebody else's children. it would come from men and women of every age and faith and every race and region, taking greyhounds on freedom rides, sitting down at greensboro lunch counters, registering voters in rural mississippi, knowing they would be harassed, knowing they would be beaten, knowing that some of them might never return, because what thof what they did

we are a more perfect union. black ceos today run fortune 500 companies. because civil rights laws were passed, grab mayors, black governors, members of congress serve in place where is they might once have been unable not just to vote, but even to take a sip of water. because ordinary people did extraordinary things, because they made the civil rights movement their own, even their names might not be in the history books, because of their efforts, i made a little trip to springfield, illinois a couple years ago, where lincoln once lived and race riots once raged and began the journey that led me to be here tonight as the

44th president of the united states of america. because of them, i stand here tonight on the shoulders of giants, and i'm here to say thank you to those pioneers and thank you to the naacp. and yet, even as we celebrate the remarkable achievements of the past 100 years, even as we inherit extraordinary progress that cannot be denied, even as we marvel at the courage and determination of so many plain folk, we know that too many

barriers still remain. we know that even as our economic crisis batters americans of all races, african-americans are out of work more than just about anybody else. a gap that's widening here in new york city as a detailed report this week by comptroller bill thompson laid out. we know that even as spiraling health care costs crush families of all races, african-americans are more likely to suffer from a host of diseases, but less likely to own health insurance than just about anybody else. we know that even as we imprison more people of all races than any nation in the world, an african-american child is roughly five times as likely as a white child to see the inside of the prison. we know that even as the scourge

of hiv/aids definite states nations abroad, particularly in africa, it is devastating the african-american community here at home with disproportionate force. we know these things. these are some of the barriers of our time. they're very different from the barriers faced by earlier generations. they're very different from the ones faced when fire hoses and dogs were being turned on young marchers, which charles hamilton houston and a group of young howard lawyers were dismantling segregation, case by case, across the land. what's required today, what's required to overcome today's barriers is the same as what was needed then -- the same commitment, the same sense of urgency, the same sense of

sacrifice, the same sense of community, the same willingness to do our part for ourselves and one another that has always defined american at its best and the african-american experience at its best. and so the question is, where do we direct our -- what steps do we overtake to overcome these barriers? how do we move forward in the next 100 years? the first thing we need to do is to make real the words of the naacp charter, eradicate prejudice, bigotry and discrimination among the citizens of the united states. i understand there may be a temptation among some to think that discrimination is no longer a problem in 2009, and i believe

that overall there probably has never been less discrimination in america than there is today. i think we can say that, but make no mistake. the pain of discrimination is still felt in america. by african-american women paid less than colleagues. by latinos made to feel unwelcome in their own country, by muslim americans viewed with suspicion simply because they kneel down to pray to their god, by our gay brothers and sisters still taunted, still attacked, still denied their rights. on the 45th anniversary of the civil rights act, discrimination

cannot stand, not on account of color or gender, how you wore sh -- worship or who you love. prejudice has no place in the united states of america. that's what the naacp stands for. that's what the naacp will continue to fight for, as long as it takes. but we also know that prejudice and discrimination, at least the most blatant types of prejudice and discrimination, are not even the steepest barriers to opportunity today. the most different barriers include structural inequalities that our nation's legacy of discrimination has left behind. inequalitying still plaguing too many communities and too often

the object of national neglect. these are barriers we are beginning to tear down, one by one, by rewarding work with an expanded tax credit, by making housing more affordable, by giving ex-offenders a second chance. these are barriers we're targeting through our white house office on urban affairs, through programs like promised neighborhoods that built on jeffrey cannon's success with the harlem children's zone. that foster a comprehensive approach to ending poverty, by putting all children on a pathway to college, and giving them the after-school support that they need to get there. now, i think all of us understand that our task of reducing they these structural

inequalities has been made more difficult by the state and structure of our broader economy, an economy that for the last decade has been fueled by a cycle of boom and bust, an economy where the rich got really, really rich, but ordinary folks didn't see their incomes or wages go up, an economy built on credit cards, shady mortgage loans, an economy built not on a rock but on sand. that's why my administration is working so hard not only to create and save jobs in the short term, not only to extend unemployment insurance and help for people who have lost their health care in this crisis, not just to stem the immediate economic wreckage, but to lay a

new foundation for growth and prosperity that will put opportunity within the reach of not just african-americans, but all americans. all americans. of every race, of every creed, from every region of the country, we want everybody to participate in the american dream. that's what the naacp is all about. now, one pillar of this new foundation is health insurance for everybody, health insurance reform that cuts costs and makes quality health coverage affordable for all, and closes health care disparities in the process. another pillar is energy reform that makes clean energy profitable, freeing america from the grip of foreign oil, putting

young people to work, weatherizing homes, creating jobs that can't be outsourced. another pillar is financial reform, with consumer protections to crack down on mortgage fraud and stop predatory lenders from targeting black and latino communities all across the country. all these things will make america stronger and more competitive. they will drive invasion, create jobs, provide families with more security, and yet even if we do all that, the african-american community will still fall behind in the united states, and the united states will fall behind in the world, unless we do a far better job than we have been doing of educating our sons and

daughters. i hope you don't mind. i want to go into a little detail here about education. in the 21st century, when so many jobs will require a bachelor's degree or more, when countries that out-educate us today will outcompete us tomorrow, a world-class education is a prerequisite for success. there's no two ways about it, there's no way to avoid it. you know what i'm talking about. there's a reason the story of the civil rights movement was written in our schools. there's a reason thurgood marshall took up the cause of linda brown. there's the reason the little rock five defied a governor and a mob, it's because there's no

stronger weapon against inequality and no better path to opportunity than an education that can unlock a child's god-given potential. and yet more than half a century after brown versus board, the dream of a world-class education is still being deferred all across the country. african-american students are lagging behind white classmates in reading and math, an achievement gap that is growing in states that once led the way in the civil rights movement. over half of all african-american students are dropping out of school in some places. there are overcrowded classrooms, crumbling schools and corridors of shame in

america, filled with poor children, not just black children, brown and white children as well. the state of our schools is not an african-american, it is an american problem, because if black and brown children cannot compete, then america cannot compete. and let me say this. if al sharpton, mike bloomberg, and newt gingrich can agree that we need to solve the education problem, then that's something all of america can agree we can solve. those guys came into my office. they were sitting in the oval office, i kept on doing a double-take.

but that's a sign of progress and it is a sign of the urgency of the education problem. all of us can agree that we need to offer every child in this country, every child -- got an "amen" in the corner back there -- every child -- [ laughter ] -- every child in this country the best education the world has to offer. from cradle to a career. that's our responsibility as leaders. that's the responsibility of the united states of america. and we, all of us in government, have to work to do our part by not only offering more resources, but demanding more

reform, because when it comes to education, we've got to get past this old paradigm, this outdated notion that somehow it's just money, or somehow it's just reform, but no money, and embrace what dr. king called the "both and" philosophy. we need more money and we need more reform. when it comes to higher education, we're making college and advanced training more affordable, and strengthening community colleges that are the gateway to so many with an initiative that will prepare students not only to earn a degree, but to find a job when they graduate, an initiative to help us meet the goal that i have set of leading the world in college degrees by 2020. we used to rank number one in college graduates. now were the middle of the pack. and since we are seeing more and

more african-american and latino youth in our population, if we are leaving them behind, we cannot achieve our goal and america will fall further behind, and that's not a future i accept and that's not a future that the naacp is willing to accept. we're creating a race to the top that will reward states and public school districts that adopt 21st century standards and assessments. we're creating incentives for states to promote excellent teachers and replace bad ones, because the job of a teacher is too important for us to accept anything less than the best. we also have to explore innovative approaches, such as those being pursued here in new

york city, invasions like high schoolier college, the preparatory schools that are challenging students to complete high school and earn a free associate's degree or college credits in just four years. and we should raise the bar when it comes to early learning programs. it's not enough to have just a baby-sitter. we need our young people stimulated, engaged, involved, and we need our folks involved in child development to understand the latest science. today some early-learning programs are excellent, some are mediocre, and some are wasting what studies show are by far a child's more formative years. that's why i've issued a challenge to america's governors. if you match the success of states like pennsylvania, and develop an effect i have been model for early learning, and have standards and results, if you demonstrate how you will

prepare the lowest-income children to meet the highest standards of success, then you can compete for an early-learning challenge grant to help prepare all our children all ready to learn. so these are some of the laws we're passing. these are some of the policies we are enacting. we are busy in washington. folks in congress are getting a little tuckered out, but i'm telling them, we can't rest. we've got a lot of work to do. the american people are counting on us. these are some of the ways we're doing our part in government to overcome the inequities, the injustices, the barriers that still exist in our country. but all these innovative programs and expanded opportunities will not in and of

themselves make a difference if each of us, as parents and as community leaders, fail to do our part by encouraging excellence in our children. government programs alone won't get our children to the promised land. we need a new mindset, a new set of attitudes, because one of the most durable and destructive legacies of discrimination is the way we've internalized a sense of limitation, how so many in our community have come to expect so little from the world and from themselves. we've got to say to our children, yes, if you're african-american, the odds of growing up amid crime and gangs are higher. yes, if you live in a poor neighborhood, you will face

challenges that somebody in a wealthy suburb does not have to face, but that's not a reason to get bad grades. that's not a reason to cut class. that's not a reason to give up on your education and drop out of school. no one has written your destiny for you. your destiny is in your hands. you cannot forget that. that's what we have to teach all of our children. no excuses. no excuses. you get that education, all those hardships will just make you stronger, better able to compete. yes, we can. [ laughter ]

to parents, to parents, we can't tell our kids to do well in school and then fail to support them when they get home. you can't just contract out parent i parenting. for our kids to excel, we have to accept our responsibility to help them learn. that means putting away the xbox, putting our kids to bed at a reasonable hour, it means attending those parents/teacher conferences, and reading to our children and helping them with their homework. and, by the way, it means we need to be there for our neighbors' sons and daughters. we need to go back to the times -- back to the day when parents saw somebody -- saw some kid fooling around and, it wasn't your child, but they'll

whup you anyway. or at least they'll tell your parents. the parents will. you know. that's the meaning of "community." that's how we can re-claim the strength and the determination and the hopefulness that helped us come so far, helped us make a way out of no way. it also means pushing our children to set their sights a little bit higher. they might thing they've got a pretty good jump shot or a pretty good flow, but our kids can't all aspire to be lebron or

li'l wayne. i want them to be aspiring to be scientists, engineers, doctors, teachers, not just ballers and rappers. i want them aspiring to be a supreme court justice. i want them aspiring to be the president of the united states of america. [ cheers and applause ] i want their horizons to be limitless. don't tell them they can't do something. don't feed our children with the sense that somehow, because of their race, that they cannot achieve. yes, government must be a force

to opportunity. yes, government must be a force for equality, but ultimately if we are to be true to our past, and we also have to seize our own future, each and every day. that's what the naacp is all about. the naacp was not founded in search of a handout. the naacp was not founded in search of favors. the naacp was founded on a firm notion of justice, to cash the promissory note of america that says all of our children, all god's children deserve a fair chance in the race of life. it's a simple dream and yet one that all too often has been denied and is still being denied to so many americans. it's a painful thing, seeing that dream tonight.

i remember visiting a chicago school in a rough neighborhood when i was a community organizer, and some of the children gathered around me, and i remember thinking, how remarkable it was that these children seemed to full of hope, despite being born into poverty, despite being delivered in some cases into addiction, despite the obstacles that they were already facing, you could see that spark in their eyes. they were the equal of children anywhere. and i remember the principal of the school telling me that soon that sparkle would begin to dim, that things would begin to change, soon the laughter in their eyes would begin to fade, that soon something would shut off inside. as it sunk in, because kids are smarter than we give them credit for, as it sunk in that their hopes would not come to pass, not because they weren't smart

enough, not because they weren't talented enough, not because of anything about them inherently, but because by accident of birth, they had not received a fair chance in life. i know what can happen to a child who doesn't have that chance, but i also know what can happen to a child that does. i was raised by a single mom. i didn't come from a lot of wealth. i got into my share of trouble as a child. my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse. when i drive through harlem or the south side of chicago and i see young men on the corners, i say there but for the grace of god go i. they're no less gifted than me. they're no less talented than me, but i had some breaks. that mother of mine, she gave me

love, she pushed me, she cared about my education, she took no lip, she taught me right from wrong. because of her, i had a chance to make the most of my abilities. i had the chance to make the most of my opportunities. i had the chance to make the most of life. the same story holds true for michelle. the same story holds true for so many of you. i want all the other barack obamas out there, all the other michelle obamas out there, you have to the same chance, the chance that my mother gave me, that my education gave me, that the united states of america has given me. that's how our union will be perfected and our economy rebuilt. that's how american will move forward in the next 100 years, and we will move forward. this i know. for i know how far we have come. some of you saw last week in

ghana, michelle and i took malia and sasha and my mother-in-law to cape coast ghana. this is where captors were once imprisoned before being auctioned, where across an ocean so much of the african-american experience began. we went into the dungeons where the capittives were held. there was a church above one of the dungeons, which tells you something, about saying one thing and doing another. i was -- we walked through the door of no return. i was reminded of all the pain and all the hardships, all the

injustices and all the indignities on the voyage from slavery to freedom, but i was reminded of something else. i was reminded that no matter how bitter the ride, how stony the road, we have always persevered. we have not faltered, nor have we grown weary. as americans, we have demanded and strived for and shaped a better destiny, and that is what we are called on to do once more. naacp, it will not be easy. it will take time, doubts may rise and hopes may recede, but if john lewis could brave billy clubs to cross the bridge, then i know young people today can do their part to live up the community. if emmett till's uncle could summon the courage to testify against the man who killed his

nephew, i know we kg better mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters in our own family. if three civil rights workers in mississippi, black, white, christian and jew, city born and country bred, could lay down their lives and freedom's cause, i know we can come together to face down the challenges of our own time. we can fix our schools. we can heal our sick. we can rescue our youth from violence and despair, and 100 years from now, on the 200th anniversary of the naacp, let it be said that this generation did its part, that we too ran the race, full of faith, that our dark past has taught us to be full of hope that the present has brought us, we face in our lives and all across this nation the rising sun of a new day begun. thank you, god bless you. god bless the united states of america. well, that's president obama

addressing the naacp convention in new york city, as that organization marks its 100th anniversary. we're joined by political analyst michelle bernard and journalist stephen a. smith. great to have you both here, and i want your reactions. michelle? >> i loved the speech. listening to it early on, i was thinking it's safe, it's a little boring, and i just kept praying with bated breath we would hear about educate. the key question today is what is the civil rights issue of the 21st century. i along with many others believe it's education. he made the same points from the campaign but in a softer way. he didn't do the shoutout about what it is to be a man and you're not a man by producing a gazillion children and not supporting them. i loved the fact that he reiterated over and over and over again that education is the key, it is the great equalizer. he could have gone farther, but

i think overall it was an excellent speech. >> i didn't think he needed to go farther. i i was definitely impressed with the speech. we know he's a great or atore, but you think about people within the african-american community, one of the things they have continuously said, when he's talking about different ethnic groups, he's usually talking policy, and flof, but when he's talking to the african-american community, he's talking about behavior. he still touched on that this particular time, but talked about some of the things he wanted to do to implement change. he alluded to those things, and also he obviously talked about behavior, but in a point that was well needed. like michelle said, he focused on education. you can't avoid addressing that, especially as it pertains to our communities. so i was very impressed with our speech, but far from surprised. it's very predictable how inspirational he was tonight. >> i heard a bit myself from

our, stephen from our fellow philadelphiian, bill cosby. i want to ask you about that, because i caught it too, i think. we'll be back with michelle and stephen a. smith about the speech tonight. i think it will be something of a barnburner. a lot of noise, a lot of challenge. you're watching "hardball" only on msnbc. so, what's the problem? these are hot. we're shipping 'em everywhere. but we can't predict our shipping costs. dallas. detroit. different rates. well with us, it's the same flat rate. same flat rate. boston. boise? same flat rate. alabama. alaska? with priority mail flat rate boxes from the postal service. if it fits, it ships anywhere in the country for a low flat rate. dude's good. dude's real good. dudes. priority mail flat rate boxes only from the postal service. a simpler way to ship.

the african-american community will still fall behind in the united states, and the united states will fall behind in the world, unless we do a far better job than we have been doing of educating our sons and daughters. well, it's the first time in our lives that a man, an american, has addressed the naacp who is african-american

who is president of the united states. he has to speak for all of us, not just the national association for the advancement of colored people. i have both people here of color, and i want to know your feelings. i thought that speech had a turn in the road. it went from what you were saying, a standard democratic agenda, to something else. >> you know, when he went on with the can be i don't want to call it a diatribe, but health care, energy reform, that's not what we wanted to hear. it's not the naacp's mission, so he went to education, but he made a turn in the road and i think we'll hear a lot about it tomorrow. he basically said, look, the government is not your mother, the government is not your father, and as bill cosby says, the government doesn't love you. it is incumbent upon us to look upon ourselves, personal responsibility, what can we do as people to make things better. he did talk about the fact that basically you've heard people

say if white americans have a cold, african-americans have the flu. he talked about that in different areas. we've heard all of that before, but this was definitely not your standard democratic speech when he said, teachers, bad teachers have to be replaced, bad teachers have to be fired, i thought thank you. you know, there was an "amen" in the audience. >> he's in new york. the federation of teachers is a stronghold there. they hate that talk. they hate being called -- >> so what? nobody cares what they hate. if they're not getting the job done, they need to go and it was nice for him to say that. that's a fact of the matter and truth. you have a lot of teachers that are simply not getting the job done. we live in a world where a lot of people are looking to get paid, but not necessarily looking to earn their pay. some of those people unfortunately reside in the african-american community. sometimes when you are in a position of influence or power,

especially if you're. of the united states and happen to be of african-american descent, some people are looking for you to be an apologyist for themselves, when he's reminding the world that he's the president to everybody, but he's making it personal. he's saying, listen, i'm part of this community, i'm a black man, but the reality is i have to be able to call it as i see it, and that's something we should all support. there's no question about that. >> wow. let's hear one of the bites from the speech tonight. >> we've got to say to our children, yes, if you're african-american, the odds amid growing up among gangs and crime, they are higher. if you live in a poor neighborhood, you will face chezenings that somebody in a wealthy neighborhood will not have to face. but that's not a reason to get bad grades. that's not a reason to cut class. that's not a reason to give up on your education and drop out of school. no one has written your destiny

for you. your destiny is in your hands, you cannot forget that. that's what we have to teach all of our children. no excuses. >> you know, a white guy can't say that. i mean it. that's very hard for someone like me to make that speech. >> a white guy cannot say it -- they can't necessarily say it to an audience of black people, but what barack obama said applies to blacks, whites, hispanics, asians, the entire country. indulge me for just a sect. i love the fact he used the term "excuses." everybody has excuses. we've got a two-hour special coming up september 20th, this is exactly what we're going to be talking about. i was so glad to see barack obama say it. people will say, you know, i can't do well in school, because if i do, people will say that i act white. that's a lame-brained excuse. i can't do well in school because my school is falling apart, it's a sham ables, that's

a crime, and people should have good schools with equal conditions, but if frederick dougl douglass could educate hemselves -- the unions will be very, very angry, but the bottom line, people like me and others who question the unions and say, do you want black people to remain stupid? do you want blacks and hispanics and poor whites to remain uneducated? do you want to create this permanent underclass of poor blacks, poor whites, poor hispanics? something has to change and i'm glad about barack obama broached the subject today. there is no 21st century workforce if all of us can't read and write. >> i'm also pleased with it. i think when he talks about no excuses, again you know that they're going to come. what he's saying is we don't want to hear it, because the powers that be don't want to hear it.

you can't go with to an employer with a lot of excuses to why you're not getting the job done. if i'm a boss and somebody is not handling their business, they're gone, they're fired. and the reality is that you have a lot of people within our community, and we know this to be true, both michelle and myself, that do have an abundance of excuses. we pretty are the most persecuted by it, therefore we have to accept that reality and act accordingly as opposed to looking at excuses, which is exactly what bill cosby alluded to. he took a lot of heat for it, and he took a lot of heat for it and it was absolutely undeserved. >> amen. >> as a white person, in addition to that, and i'm thrilled to be in the company of you two, but the white prejudice is still there. not what it was 20 years ago, but it's still there, and everybody watching has to realize that, too. he wasn't talk to go white people, he was talk to go

african-americans, but go ahead, stephen. >> you're absolutely right about that, but it goes back to the point not that it's not prejudie out there, but remember prech diswhat's in somebody's heart and soul. certainly can you address it from a policy perspective and say there are certain things you can't do, it's unlawful, discriminatory we're not going to tolerate that. when there is no discrimination taking place that's blatant when you can't see it? you can't legislate somebody's heart and what's in their mind. if you focus on that it's a debt tra nont you, a hindrance and an excuse for you to continue to conduct yourself in a subpar fashion or lackadaisical fashion which kibts to you not getting the job, which nobody wants to hear. >> great credit. the kid 16, 17 years old, stugalling in a tough neighborhood, noise all around, perhaps violence down the hall and this young person is struggling to do their homework. they now have a president that's with them. anyway, thank you, michelle. thank you, stephen. up next, that stunning

speech, that stunning comment. well, let's go to another stunning comment. former governor, just to make the point i made a couple minutes along, georgia governor zell miller tat again. he said that this president, our president, should be held down by gorilla glue. interesting choice of words by the former governor and senator, who i once was threatened with a duel by's i think that's the right verb for him. anyway, this is "hardball" on msnbc. this is the new iphone... ...shooting video. this is the new iphone editing video. and this, is the new iphone sharing video. video. on the iphone 3gs... the most powerful iphone yet.

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we're back for the last part of the hour. jonathan martin joining us from politico and john walsh from salon. an amazing statement from zell miller. i'll read it from a sheet i have. it kims out of reporting from the "atlanta journal-constitution" in today's paper. late today, apparently. this is zell miller, former governor and senator from that state who spoke as the republican convention in '04 then got into that weird thing of challenging me to a duel or whatever. "our globe-trotting president needs to stop and take a break and quit gallivanting all around. i think rahm emanuel ought to get some gorilla glue and put it in that chair in the oval office and say, sit here a while." jonathan, you first. >> i think that the former senator is trying to be a little

bit colorful with his words there, but he may have walked ober that line. he has to be careful. when you're a southern white -- when you're a southern white -- >> it happen the not long ago. >> using those words, there's no reason to use that expression. >> your thoughts? elmer's glue is available as well? >> elmer's glue, crazy glue. i can't say it's a window on to his soul, chris, but zell mill hear moved so far oust mainstream of this country and its consorting with such conservative people that i don't know. maybe he has picked up on this, the frame of mind that refers to our president as a monkey, and we saw that monkey, the stuffed monkeys at the sarah palin rappy. there really is a core's racism in this country. maybe he's channeling or maybe it was unfortunate. especially after that stunning and stirring speech with all just lived to, to even have the chance that zell miller would

use such despicable language, it's really unfortunate. >> what is your sense? i've got twa caucasians here with me, i love that phrase. two african-americans just a minute ago. i'll ask you to respond to the speech as such. don't normally do that. you first, joan. the level of prejudice in this country, still, people aren't just stared at in restaurants or made to feel uncomfortable because they're the first to do something or be in a different circumstance or different neighborhood is there actual prejudice in american life from your perspective inners of hiring, promotion, opportunities? >> there absolutely is, chris. you can't look away from it. even as we look at this awful mortgage crisis we see all these ways that african-americans and latinos with the same income and you or me are being steered to, or the same income compared to comparable white people, leave it there, steered to subprime crabby loans that exploded and then lost equity and lost their homes. there's just a pattern in