>> we should not anticipate that every time countries come together we are doing some revolutionary thing. instead of hitting home runs, sometimes we are going to hit singles. but they are really important singles. >> let's make a deal. the president rejects reports that he is ready to cut a compromise on the bush tax cuts. this hour with his own plan, virginia senator mark warner. and "mad money's" jim cramer. joe miller falls behind in the vote count and enlists dirty campaigns from the past. mccain versus mccain. the senator leading the charge to keep don't ask, don't tell and the wife speaking out against the military's ban. moscow confirmed a doesn't agent blew the cover of ten russian spies. you won't believe who was giving former george w. bush a big

thumbs up for his new memoir. i'm andrea mitchell live in washington. president obama is in tokyo for a summit of pacific nations the final stop on his ten-day trip to asia. so far the trip has not produced the results the white house expected. the g-20 lined up with china against the u.s. on currency and deficit issues. the trip has been overshadowed by political problems at home like whether to extend the tax cuts. savannah guthrie is traveling with the president. >> reporter: the president has wrapped up his time here in seoul. the g-20 summit is over. the president held his concluding news conference today and got a lot of questions about the bush tax cuts, specifically whether he has already decided how to compromise. your senior adviser david axelrod comments that your compromise is to temporarily

extend the bush tax cuts. is that the wrong interpretation? >> that is the wrong interpretation because i haven't had a conversation with republican and democratic leaders. here is the right interpretation, i want to make sure that taxes don't go up for middle class families starting on january 1st. that is my number one priority, for those families and for our economy. i believe it would be fiscally irresponsible to permanently extend the high-income tax cuts. >> reporter: in a big setback the president leaves without a free trade agreement with south korea. world leaders did agree to do something about trade imbalances but put off specifics to another day. the president was asked whether he feels the drubing in the midterms weakened him on the world stage? >> i actually think my relationships have grown much stronger with the people i have worked with here.

this involves the interests of countries and not all of these are going to be resolved easily. and it is not just a function of personal charm. it is a function of countries' interests. >> reporter: the president left seoul. he is in japan for one last summit on this long trip with the asian pacific nations. he will return to washington on sunday. >> i'm joined by david gregory, moderator of "meet the press." you have covered a lot of presidential trips. i'm not sure there is a single. >> i think how much political pressure the president is under in the economy. to think about it abroad as well. these are set pieces, these trips, these summits. all this is supposed to be worked out in advance. it is interesting to watch something that is real, in this

case it is disagreement. whether it is free trade failing with south korea, this is an area the republicans and democrats could potentially work together. the larger point of how this administration is responding to a frozen kind of economic recovery and the difference between how european governments are dealing with their own debt. think about the politics of that. a lot of americans look up and say, wait a minute, europeans are willing to cut more of their spending than we are here. it doesn't help the president politically. >> we now have a global issue of aging populations and unfunded pension systems. this is not just a u.s. problem which gets to the point of the deficit commission and all that. first the tax cuts. you have david axelrod on meet the press on sunday. david axelrod seemed to be sending a message to the progressive wing of the party they have to observe the political realities. the election was lost and they

are going to have to negotiate on the tax cuts. the president taking it back farther. where do you think they stand on this bush tax cut? >> i think the only thing they are taking back is the president wants to do the negotiabling when he gets home. axelrod said it more plainly than they would like at that home. we will work that out i hope and i expect on "meet the press" on sunday. they do have to do it. i think the president will try to position himself as the fiscal conservative by saying if we do this, where are the corresponding spending cuts, republicans? that may be where he tries to score a point. >> here is what he had to say about the deficit commission. some have already broadly praised him for holding fire and not dumping the way nancy pelosi did. let's watch. >> the only way to make those tough choices historically is if both parties are willing to move forward together.

and so before anybody starts shooting down proposals, i think we need to listen, we need to gather up all the facts. i think we have to be straight with the american people. >> now as congress is returning they are other social issues such as don't ask, don't tell. and clearly in the next congress that is a nonstarter. john mccain leading the opposition against repealing the ban. here is cindy mccain joining in an advertisement supporting repeal. let's watch. >> our political and religious leaders tell lgbt youth they have no future, they can't serve our country openly. our government treat the lgbt community like second-class citizens. th >> that is a fascinating divide. >> she goes on to equate those issues with the ban in the military. the senator's view on this, he

is opposed to repeal the ban unless the military can oob sosh this. this is a political timing moment. if it can't be done in this lame duck session more republicans coming in, the votes may simply not be there as we move forward. >> what we know preliminarily from the draft report from the military, aside from strong objections from the marine and general amos, is the military is generally accepting, not eager, but willing to take it. >> i think that is right. military leaders i talk to privately and those i talked to publicly say that is right. this is a longer term issue. what the administration recognizes is there will be a real price to pay if somehow this ban is lifted and foisted on this military. a lot in his base is patient. if you are going to do this, you have to do it right. the way don't ask, don't tell is

set up, the congress has to rescind the ban. the deficit commission, the president needs these guys to get to 4 to send something to the congress. >> the bush book. we have been talking about it all week. you have covered him so intensely. we have a very unusual endorsement, a book review from bill clinton. he issued a statement saying of "decision points" is well written and interesting from start to finish. i think people of all political stripes should read it. >> it is great. this mutual admiration society, i have to tell one quick story, president-elect bush comes into the white house on the day of his inauguration he sees clinton and says, how did you like my whole thing about the shadow returns. because during the campaign, that is what bush would do in 2000. they had such a great laugh, of course, at al gore's expense.

and the presidential library for clinton, again, more love between the bushes and clinton. again, with al gore seemingly on the outside. these guys have respected each other. bush writes in book how much he admires clinton how the way he handled himself and deferential he was to his own father. it has been very interesting to watch. >> with the exception of jimmy carter, it really is an ex-pet's club. those who picked up your george w. bush -- >> i have done that before. >> a hint of imitation. the theatrical side of david gregory. watch. >> making political hay out of the wheatfield that is the nbc cable town merger? who wrote tht? the merger of nbc in cable town is bad for the consumer. i don't trust their executive leadership.

>> why is she still talking about the merger? >> not your fault. nobody watches "america's next top black guy." >> love the show. >> this is fun for me. i am looking for platforms to express my artistic side. but my bosses told me i should stick to my one day a week job. >> david talks with david axelrod and senator john mccain and a roundtable on the economy. >> with some fine guests. notable guests. >> this sunday on "meet the press." check your local listings. it looks like the alaska vote count will end up in the courts. take a listen. >> we have been asking for some time for not only precinct votes but tapes from the machines. one of the poll workers in

fairbanks has reflected inconsistencies. >> the miller campaign realizes they are not getting ahead in the absentees they had hoped, they are not getting ahead with the challenge ballots as they hoped. they are seeing they cannot get on top of this this is an act of desperation. >> nbc's kristin welker is live in juneau. how long is this going to take? >> reporter: andrea, it looks look it is going to take a little longer than expected. as you had predicted. they thought they would be finished counting on sunday. it looks like it will draw into next week. with half of the write-in ballots, lisa murkowski is getting 89% of the write-in ballots. 8% are going to her but being contested by the miller camp. for things like spelling problems, essentially.

a bit of a bombshell yesterday. a representative from joe miller's campaign said they are filing suit in juneau. they would like to look at the voter rolls to compare the voter rolls against the ballots being counted. he went on to say a number of phone calls about possible voter fraud and voter intimidation. we pushed that representative who is named floyd brown, on actual examples and he couldn't deliver any. at this point in time it is an allegation. day three of counting these write-in ballots. >> floyd brown is the same floyd brown who brought us the willie horton ad. to be continued. thanks so much kristen welker in juneau. coming up next, setbacks for the president in the g-20. we talk about the impact with

"mad money"'s jim cramer. why is louisiana's bobby jindal taking direct shots at president obama? you could switch for great gas mileage

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before leaving south korea president obama insisted a trade deal with seoul isn't dead, just delayed. the markets aren't buying that. joining me jim cramer host of "mad money." thanks for joining us. >> of course. >> let's talk about walking away without a deal. these are preset summits. they expected to finish this thing off. and now all the momentum is lost for it. how much of a problem is it for the administration? >> it is big. i have to tell you, there are two ways you can go about

stimulating world trade, you can make deals with countries or decide to have a trade war with countries. what we are going to be doing, bernanke has no choice now. we have to crush the dollar. we are not going to be competitive. this was shocking and very disspiriting, too. >> other countries lining up with china against us. it seems like the president was outgunned. >> yeah, the president -- well, my view is the president has to stick by his guns because we have long since supported these other countries. we do need help. our economy arguably is the weakest major economy on earth. people who want to use our markets au s ought to cut us a . we thought we had better trade relations than we do. >> what about this deficit commission and their recommendations it is clear the two leaders came out with this early shot because they don't have the support for anything

tough from their members. they wanted to get it out there in whatever window they've got. it does seem there is some k. the president is holding his fire. some of the republicans holding their fire. do you think there is any chance some of this tough medicine would go down? >> yes, i do. i think there is a growing consensus that the so-called out years, that our country would be -- i have heard this from many execs, that the imf will be near, not just greece if we don't start adopting tough medicine. that is something we would never think of a few years ago. i i think there is more than saber-rattling and fear. there is a reality we are going to be in some big trouble if we don't get our act together. i've never heard that before. >> jim cramer who definitely does have his act together. >> thank you. >> don't miss "mad money"

weekdays at 6:00 on cnbc. louisiana's governor accusing president obama of playing politics with the bp oil spill. is he considering a run for president? moscow and spies in the u.s. you are watching "andrea mitchell reports" only on msnbc. s causing you pain. it more than doubles your risk of a heart attack or stroke. i was going to tell you. if you have p.a.d., plavix can help protect you from a heart attack or stroke. plavix helps keep blood platelets from sticking together and forming clots, the cause of most heart attacks and strokes. call the doctor about plavix -- please? i will. [ male announcer ] certain genetic factors and some medicines such as prilosec reduce the effect of plavix leaving you at greater risk for heart attack and stroke. your doctor may use genetic tests to determine treatment. don't stop taking plavix without talking to your doctor as your risk of heart attack or stroke may increase. people with stomach ulcers or conditions that cause bleeding

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so, before you know it, work time becomes well-deserved downtime. apply now at marriott.com/freenightstay. you've got staying power. a new book from the governor of louisiana takes direct aim at president obama over his response to the bp oil spill. in "leadership and crisis" bobby jindal writes the president was more worried about public perception than problems. political posturing became more important than reality the human element seemed invisible to the white house. for more on this, let's bring in jonathan martin for politico. hey j-mart, what is going on here?

>> you have a governor of louisiana trying to carve a national profile for himself. he opens up his book talking about a couple of incidents with the president during the course of the oil spill. don't paint the president in the best light. he doesn't include all the facts. in one of the anecdotes he refers to the president arriving in new orleans for the first time and being angry over a request jindal made for food statues for some of the folks n unemployed because of the spill. a republican up-and-comer trying to make a name for himself. has some very strong things to say about president obama.

>> he gave the republican speech the state of the union when he was first elected. he didn't do very well. to put it kindly, he bombed. >> he did. he mentions that in his book. it is not a chapter, mind you, but a few paragraphs he mans up and admits to having sort of a sorry performance. that was february of 2009, as i recall. he said it wasn't a speech coach. it was my fault. i'm not good with teleprompters. he definitely addresses it head on though. >> i should point out you also had in this book rahm emanuel chewing out his staff. a whole lot of inside stuff. with rahm emanuel kicking off

his campaign. this is classic rahm? >> it is. the first sunday in may when president obama arrives in the gulf for the first time after the spill he gets off on the tarmac and confronts jindal and emanuel confronts jindal's chief of staff and uses the language he is best known for in washington and chicago, namely four-letter words. they are not tv friendly. >> i'm not going to lose our license or my job or yours. >> that's right. the supreme court, this breaking news just in, the supreme court has refused to stop enforcement of the military's don't ask, don't tell policy. on an appeal from the log cabin republicans. a judge ruled the policy violates the civil rights of gay

americans and ruled an injunction. the supreme court has refused to block continued enforcement of don't ask, don't tell. the battle over the bush tax cuts. senator mark warner has a compromise and senate republicans fighting mad over earmarks. [ male announcer ] humana and walmart are teaming up to bring you a low-price medicare prescription drug plan called the humana walmart-preferred prescription plan.

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but my allergies put me in a fog. so now, i'm claritin clear! claritin works great on all my allergies like dust, mold, pollen, or pets without making me drowsy, cause i want to be alert around this big guy. live claritin clear. indoors and out. topping the headlines right now, the head of the republican national committee has his first official challenger. prominent michigan challenger saul anuzis announced his candidacy. he said michael steele should step aside. he lost the national race for chairman two years ago. he will join tamron hall on "news nation." the united nations needs

$164 million to fight the cholera outbreak in haiti. those funds will be used to bring in doctors and water purification equipment. the burmese government is said to be releasing aung san suu kyi later today or when her house arrest officially expires tomorrow. aung san suu kyi has been detained on and off for more than two decades. there is a new player in the negotiations over extending the bush tax cuts. the white house is reviewing a proposal from virginia's democratic senator mark warner. it backs the president's call to end tax cuts to the wealthy and transfers the cuts to businesses in an effort to bring republicans on bother. senator warner joins us now. what reaction are you getting so

far? do you have any republican support for this proposal? >> i got some strong support from business leaders. it recognizes both sides have an argument. democrats have a point that a 2% will add $7 billion to the deficit. if you take money out of the economy it could slow the recovery. the problem with a tech rare mp extension is they become permanent. the cbo says giving a tax break to the top 2% may not be the most effective stimulus. if you can match that with business stimulus, spend money on targeted business tax cuts you could get $2 million of cash on balance sheets off the sidelines. it would be a great opportunity for the white house to reach out to the business community. we don't have all the answers. let's work with you on what the tax cuts should look like.

>> the white house is reading the plan. what is their reaction so far? >> we have run this by them for a while. i hope they will consider all options. i'm not wedded to the actual four square of this plan as the right solution. we ought to get past the it is either our way or the republican way. the compromise ought to be geared at how can we get reinvestment going in america and job creation going? the positive part of our economy that is not reported, large american companies are sitting better financially before the recession. how do we get $2 trillion in cash off the sidelines, reinvested in our economy. >> giving the lineup in the senate now and going forward, what is the impetus for republicans to negotiate. john boehner is saying it is all or nothing. >> here is what i would hope. the chairman's mark on the

deficit commission earlier in the week, we have some hard choices in front of us. if we are going to be true to the goal of ultimate deficit reduction, we have to be willing to have everybody give a little bit. my sense is we can accomplish longer term goals of adding $700 billion to the deficit but shouldn't take money out of the economy. if you want to do job creation what better way to say to the business community help us fashion getting that money off the sidelines into creating jobs. i believe there are a lot of members in both parties who are tired of let's both retreat to our corners. with a closer senate i hope we find an emergence of the bipartisan radical center stepping up. i hope to be part of that. >> senator mark warner trying to find middle ground. great to see you. thanks for joining us. the first post election test of the tea party is coming up

when there is a vote for the ban of earmarks. the proposed moratorium pits the establish republicans against tea party newcomers. let's talk about mitch mcconnell and his fellow kentuckian rand paul. >> and the freshman class and jim demint. >> it is a smaller freshman class had jim demint not endorsed certain candidates. in some ways it will be principally about earmarks but could be a proxy vote on jim demint's tactics. i have heard some people say that is part of the reason this might not prevail. >> the opening shot in this was last week with lindsay graham saying something about jim demint and how they would have been a lot better off if they

did not have those candidates. so you, in looking behind the scenes, are hearing more bubbling up? >> yes. he acknowledges this publicly. his tactics are very confrontational. within the republican conference. the earmark issue, let's address that. it is a nonbinding vote that would only apply to republicans. mitch mcconnell's argument is wait a minute, are we going to take all this power away from republicans, knowing democrats can earmark and authorize things if there is a trade deal with south korea or panama -- >> it is called unilateral disarmament. >> right. things you can put in trade bills sector specific for your state, do you want to give that up? >> given the election results how do you defend earmarks. >> pat toomey won a very tight race in pennsylvania.

he said i get those arguments. the public is ahead of the senators and washington think class. they want to see a demonstrable point. they have to end the process. to get rid of earmarks. if we have to be the party that goes first don't tell me democrats won't follow. that is their theory. >> being an appropriator used to be the best job. >> you used to fight your whole career get get on the appropriations committee. >> no longer. >> jim demint wants another rule changed, if you are in the elected republican leadership you can't serve on an appropriation committee. that will go nowhere. talk about symbolic changing.

>> major garrett. >> i apologize for my bad voice. >> hot tea and serious medicine. up next a reality check on what to expect from the new congress. monday night on msnbc you can expect a special two-hour event hosted by lawrence o'donnell and maria teresa kumar "beyond borderlines" examining the state of immigration in the u.s. live from san diego only on msnbc. i was young, i was in shape, and i had a heart attack.

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a new poll shows that the public has very little confidence this new congress will bridge the partisan divide. in the pew poll 28% expect relations to worsen, 48% say stay the same, 22% are optimi optimistoptimis optimistic it will improve.

two recovering politicians. martin frost and ben weber. both highly respected and you get along well? >> quite well. >> let's talk about nancy pelosi. the deficit commission comes out and right away off the bat she says it is off the table. you've had the president say let's hold fire and some republicans as well. is this a point perhaps an historic point where even those leading a liberal caucus should take a deep breath? >> i think you will see people doing that. nancy has to solidify her situation. she has a leadership election next wednesday. she is going to be re-elected. social security is a very, very difficult issue for democrats. now, we'll see what happens. everybody should step back. the commission doesn't report until december 1st. let's see what they come up with and there will be plenty of time to talk about it. >> what do you think the chances are republicans will consider

some of these tax changes? >> republicans by and large have responded pretty well to them. some have been tougher on the tax issue than i would like. they ought to focus on reduction on the top margin rate and corporate rate. there should be an open mind. i think we have a chance. i don't know whether the chance of success is 5% or 50%. but there is an opportunity to get something done. >> on the tax cuts, poor david axelrod goes out, sends a signal, the democrats started beating up on him because they thought he was showing his hand too soon. the president had to reel it back in. >> when all is said and done, i believe there is a one-year extension of all of the tax cuts. give people time to digest the deficit reduction report. let the new congress come in. there are people in the democratic caucus who don't want

the upper income tax cuts extended. i don't believe in a lame duck session, they ultimately will be able to do anything other than a one-year extension for everyone. >> nancy pelosi was on npr talking about the election results. >> let me say this, when you say more than it already has, the reason the election results are what they are is because we have 9.5% unemployment in our country. we didn't lose the election because of me. >> i believe that is right, andrea. i think she is a strong, tough leader. the republicans didn't dislike her because she was ineffective. they dislike her because she got things done. they made her in a polarizing figure. i think she is a terrific fund raise, she knows how to count votes. this will all pass. i don't think she will be the issue in the next election. >> the only thing i would argue with nancy is yes, the 9.5%

unemployment was the key problem. the beginning of this election cycle, the democrats were saying this next election was going to be 1934. >> i never believed that. >> you are smarter than they were. >> like roosevelt, his policies would be popular and even though things weren't better, they were working on it. people rejected these policies. >> i disagree. history is on the other side n. the last 100 years there have been three times the president's party gained seats in an off year election. one was '34. the second was 1998 when i was chair of the dccc. the third was 2002. >> you can lose seats and lose seats. >> i understand that. >> they had a higher number of seats to lose. 60 to 65.

>> that was tough. it wasn't just a congressional 700 legislative seats switched from democrats to republicans. it was a big republican win. >> what is going on is the public is very fickle. don't breathe too easily, this could swing back the other way in two years. >> michael steele being challenged. you knno know saul anuzis. >> he has a chance because he is an rnc insider. he is not allied with an incumbent. dislodging a chair is a difficult tachk. i would not count michael steele out. >> republicans are more cold blooded. they are perfectly willing to throw their leaders over the side. >> martin, as a friend, i would like to take that as a compliment.

>> it is a compliment. >> speaking about whether or not republicans are cold blooded looking at future presidential contenders. how do you figure sarah palin? she was hinting broadly in a speech. i'm not talking about mine. she is on the cover of "usa today" today. her tlc series is debuting. she is getting a lot of attention. >> she has improved her position in the course of the last two years. if she gets into the race she complicates everyone's plans particularly in iowa. it is hard for me to see how anyone could beat sarah palin in iowa. i don't know about beyond that. there are concerns about her as a national candidate. >> i went to a roast of ann richards and charlie riffles said he knew god was a democrat because he gave her the only two opponents she could beat.

>> be careful what you wish for. one other point, she is going to be starting her book tour in iowa and south carolina. >> she'll be very strong in both of those states. she is not going to go unchallenged. we will have a large field and the process will work itself out. >> it will be fun to watch. >> stay tuned. >> chris cillizza is up next. you are watching "andrea mitchell reports" only on msnbc. that can simulate head injuries and helps make people safer. then they shared this technology with researchers at wake forest to help reduce head injuries on the football field. so, you know, i can feel a bit better about my son playing football. [ male announcer ] how would you use toyota technology to make a better world? learn how to share your ideas at toyota.com/ideasforgood.

a russian reporter was badly beaten last week has now reportedly regain eed consciousness. he is out of a drug-induced coma but is now on a breathalyzer. he was attacked last saturday, suffered a broken jaw, fractures

in both legs and broken fingers. his attack and another attack on a moscow reporter this week causing watchdog groups to renew criticism that they're not doing enough to combat violence against reporters, in fact, could be contributing to violence against reporters. in fact, russian president medvedev confirming they blew the cover on the russian spies uncovered in the united states this summer. speaking of the g-20 meeting in seoul, medvedev called for an internal investigation into russian spy agency. and there are reports that the double agent is being targeted for assassination. >> he is credited with recruiting the bond woman of this tale, anna chapman and nine others to live under deep cover in the u.s., until they were

captured and sent home. now reportedly under fbi protection from a russian hit man, so named after the assassin from style and secret police who stabbed leon trotski with an ice pick in mexico in 1940. whenever an important fek tor comes to the united states of course he worries about his security. the cia is very good at resettling these people, giving them false identities and hiding them. >> prime minister vladimir putin once a spy himself sounded very serious about the double agent this summer, telling reporters russians were betrayed by a traitor. he added sellouts always end up in a ditch always drunk or drugged. o other day one such as traiter kicked the bucket exactly like that, abroad. but now the detector would be

give an new identity by the fbi and cia. for them a double agent is a huge prize. >> it means the head of counter spy operations for the russian intelligence service has defected to the united states, and if that's true, that's a big blow to the russians. >> making the most of her role in the cloak and dagger drama is chapman, now a celebrity back home, posing for russia's edition of "maximum" magazine and opening a russian boutique. she even has her own action figure. u.s. officials aren't commenting on any of this, but they're not denying pulling off what could be one of the biggest victories for u.s. sbejs since the end of the cold war. there are some who suggest this double agent could be a double-double agent and who would be able toe know. and what political story

will be making headlines in the next 24 hours? managing editor of post politics and author of the fiction blog, chris cillizza joins me now. >> man, andrea, it's hard to follow that. >> do you have any spy stories for us? >> i don't have any spy stories. chicago politics is about as close i can get. >> that's close. very close. >> in terms of intrigue, it's up there. rahm emanuel, former white house chief of staff left the white house last month to run for mayor. he makes it official tomorrow. he's been running essentially since he left the white house so a crowded field. i think he's certainly, if not the front-runner in the mix, danny davis is in there. james meeks, a popular pastor is in the race. by november 22nd we're going to know exactly who is in. and i believe we found out thanks to the great nbc sources,

i'm not taking credit of this. giannoulias is not going to run. there were talk he may run. he is out. so i think you're looking at rahm emanuel, danny davis, james meek. there's a few other people milling around. rahm has to feel pretty good about where he stands now. >> many pretty good shape. and i like your app much better than her app, so there you go. >> have a good weekend. >> have a great weekend. see you monday. that does it for us for this edition of "andrea mitchell reports." and monday joe scarborough joining us right here and joe looiber m leiberman. and follow the show online and on twitter. tamron hall has a look at what's coming up next on "news nation." >> i got my phone, i was looking for your app like the russian spy. >> not anywhere close. >> all right. thank you. i'm going to talk with the first person to officially announce

he's challenging michael steele to be the next chairman of the republican party. he says the rnc needs to change how it's doing business. how may he make the change? plus, we'll look at what president obama faces in washington as he returns from his trip to asia this weekend. what he is saying now about where he stands on the bush tax cuts. plus the nfl could be ready to make a move on brett favre. the woman who said she received inappropriate text messages and voicemails reportedly has turned over everything she has related to the sex scandal to the nfl. the "news nation" is moments away. [ female announcer ] humana and walmart are teaming up

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right now on "news nation." >> that is the wrong interpretation because i haven't had a conversation with republican democratic leaders. >> problems at home and abroad.