cain is speaking in alexandria, virginia, right now at an event. he could face more questions as we learn more about the accusers at the center of this firestorm. a "new york times" report is putting a price on one former female staff's silence, $35,000. nbc news has not independently confirmed "the times" report. but another accusers wanted to step forward to share her story and correct that claim that only one isolated incident occurred. however, last night, herman cain is refusing to back down this morning. >> they tried to destroy you. well, got a little of that this week. there are factions that are trying to destroy me personally as well as this campaign. >> "the washington post'" james

grimaldy broke the story. you've put up brand-new information on "the washington post" website about one of the accusers. what have you learned from her? >> well, what i have learned is that according to someone who is familiar with her thinking, there may be some cold feet going on here. there's a sense that there are still discussions among the family members about whether or not to go public. there's a question about whether the story will ever become public from this person. and i think this person is planning to meet with her lawyer probably sometime today, maybe have a decision sometime tomorrow, whether or not to go public. >> we just learned, james, that herman cain just wrapped up his event in expand alexandria, vir saying he's not taking questions.

one accuser in one report is saying she was given a severance package of $35,000 for a year. the other person we're talking about right now is the one you're saying may have second thoughts about wanting to go public with their name. >> that's right. this is the second person. this person we've reported is a federal employee in the washington, d.c. area who is not a political appointee and is subject to the hatch act. however, as we report right now on washingtonpost.com, she is married to a registered lobbyist who is a republican who has donated both to republicans and to democrats in the past. >> and, james, as we talk about this, as you said, the fact that these confidentiality agreements are in existence, is there talk, though, with herman cain having spoken so much, giving so many interviews so far, they could be

the person that has broken this wide open, now making these confidentiality agreements null and void? >> that's exactly what his lawyer told me yesterday. he said that because herman cain has made these statements, that the confidentiality agreement has been broken. but the same lawyer also said he has not reviewed this agreement in 12 years, that he needs to get a copy of it from his client, that he needs to find out exactly what it says. and i'm sure that the letters and the terms would determine whether or not herman cain was free and willing to speak about the contract or her previous employment. but i think their feeling is, if he's breached it, that they could go forward. >> james, we're going to let you get back to work. thanks for your time. we appreciate it this morning. while this story continues to grow, herman cain continues to purge in the polls. want to talk with our political panel this morning about that.

jamal simmons and susan del purrcio. it seems the campaign has been trying to play catch-up on this issue. as a strategist, wouldn't it be the best thing to talk to your candidate first and say, bring me all your mistakes, we'll have a prepared statement for a, b and c. meanwhile, things are going to come up on the trail that they have to face fires at the time. >> ideally, that would have happened several months ago. but the fact that they had a ten-day lead time on this story shows there's no excuse for the fact he's gotten caught in so many stories. no one knows where he stands on the disclosure agreement and he may have talked so much, that he may have violated it. that's a big problem for herman cain. right now, he's surging in the polls. i don't think that's going to

last for long. and this sexual harassment suit could be a big problem. if they show what that disclosure agreement was, that would be problematic. >> jamal, a super pack affiliated with cain said, quote, don't let the left lynch another black conservative. and they are engaging in a high-tech lynching by smearing his reputation and attacking his character. when we hear those types of statements, are those comments by cain and his staff making things worse? >> they absolutely are making things worse. they're trying to divert people from the fact that herman cain had a mistake in his past that i can't imagine anybody planted any of those women to make those claims against him. two, as susan just said, he had ten days to figure out how to answer this question. and one of the first rules of politics or crisis communications is, if you've got bad news, tell it yourself. get your story straight, get your facts together, put them out there in the way that you think best favors your position and then keep moving. and the third thing is stop talking about it.

find a venue where he can sit down, have one conversation in depth with somebody that he wants to discuss this with, get it all out there and move back on to his 9-9-9, whatever other topics herman cain thinks are important. >> susan, as bad as this does get for herman cain, the polls reflecting the fact that he's still continuing to surge, leading by a strong margin. in a new quinnipiac poll this morning, look at this head ho head match-up with governor romney. is this really about herman cain or just a total inability from social conservatives to support mitt romney? >> i think what you're seeing is that conservatives are not ready to back mitt romney yet. i don't think these numbers are going to hold. most likely you're going to see romney come ahead in the next two weeks, in the next poll that comes out because i think herman cain is going to take a beating on this issue. >> let's talk about what's taking place in the poll. there are better numbers out this morning for president obama. the president is moving the

needle in the right direction. what do you think is behind the trend and can he keep it moving in the positive way? >> here's what's behind this trend. democrats and independents, i think, have been looking for this president to really lay out his case about what it is that he's going to do about the economy, about jobs, about the things that americans about to see the president focus on. for the last few weeks, from his jobs plan to now talking about "we can't wait," he's had a very consistent message. not only did he have a consistent message, he's now started putting executive orders down that will do things to help real americans, student loans, home foreclosure, all these things he's been talking about for the last week or so. the more he does that, the better off he'll be. if you go back and look at where bill clinton was in 1995, you'll see a lot of people complaining about him for a lot of that year. but in the fall/winter, he got into a fight with the republicans about the budget and his values and people began to respond to him and he recovered pollwise. president obama's on the same trajectory.

he has to keep it up. >> he didn't have a 9% unemployment rate which is going to be problematic for the president. >> a programming note to everybody, we'll have the president's speech in a few minutes. president obama will be speaking from washington, d.c. where he's going to urge congress to pass a measure for new infrastructure spending under the american jobs act. this measure would provide $50 billion for roads, bridges, rail and airport projects. the president claims it would also put hundreds of thousands of construction workers and engineers back to work. a new report from transportation for america shows the battleground state of pennsylvania having the highest percentage of structurally deficient bridges in the nation. so this is a project that could help the number there is. nbc's mike viqueira is there to break it down for us. the republican party expected to show no support for the latest proposal. how can we expect the president to frame his speech to change the colleagues' minds in washington, d.c.? >> reporter: well, i'm not sure if you're going to hear the president change the rhetoric or

change the construction, no pun intended, of what he has to say before the key bridge that links arlington, virginia, and georgetown and washington, d.c. today. you're going to hear similar rhetoric to when he went to that bridge outside cincinnati, the brent spence bridge that happened to be in john boehner's back yard and mitch mcconnell over in kentucky, linking those two states. we have eleanor homes-norton, a democrat who represents washington and another democrat, jim moran, who represents arlington, virginia, there isn't that political symbolism there, that high tight fastball high and inside to his political opponents. but he is going to poin out that this bridge is an iconic bridge here in washington, it's called the francis scott key bridge that is in need of repair. it is one of the tens of thousands of bridges in this country that have been rated structurally deficient. the key bridge needing immediate

repair. it happens to be a mile from where i'm standing right now. it also has the virtue of being geographically convenient for the president. it's a beautiful day here in washington. expect him to go after the senators. and remember that bill hits the senate floor tomorrow. $60 billion in new infrastructure spending and it's expected to go nowhere. but this is part and parcel of the president's campaign ever since he made that post-labor day speech for jobs and the economy, the $60 billion part of his jobs and stimulus package of $447 billion, thomas. >> mike viqueira at the white house, thank you, sir. we'll bring you the president's remarks as i said just in a few minutes from now. u.s. stocks are on the rise a day after cash worries in greece sent them into a nosedive. xmpts are saying strong corporate earnings and a better jobs report is the reason for the turnaround. you see green arrows across the board. at 2:00 p.m., ben bernanke will hold a news conference. investors will be keeping a close eye on that one. and we'll be watching as well

and keep you posted. power problems remain a huge hassle for residents hit by the deadly snowstorm in the northeast, more than 1 million are still in the dark, mainly in new jersey and connecticut. those without power are staying with relatives and shelter until electricity is fully restored. some spots may be without lights or heat until early next week. thousands of protesters are expected to occupy oakland tonight for a general strike. it's the first of a kind there since 1946 and could be the biggest demonstration in the east bay since the vietnam war. new msnbc contributor meghan mccain spent time with the protesters on wall street. she'll join me to talk that and a lot of politics in a mu moments. that most women aren't getting enough calcium. with over 25 flavors, yoplait original gives you 50% of the daily value of calcium in every cup.

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as a good rule of thumb until things go past allegations to fact, i just try to leave them alone. >> this is the year when we can't settle. this is the year when we can't have any surprises with our candidate. we have to have a candidate that we can know when we put them into office, we can trust them with their record of what they have done and who they are. >> rick perry and michele bachmann throwing in their two cents on herman cain's sexual harassment scandal. one, the man himself continues to talk about despite the p.r. nightmare, he tops the latest gop poll. some insiders are openly expressing concern that president obama will ride the victory in november if republicans back the wrong horse. joining me in studio is newly appointed msnbc contributor meghan mccain, daughter of senator john mccain and a daily beast columnist. welcome, meghan.

>> i'm very excited to be joining you. >> we're excited to have you on board. you're coming at a very important time, as we talk about what's taking place with gop politics. herman cain continues to surge in the polls. what do you attribute to that? >> i think he continues -- this is an old poll. i want to see the polls that come out after the scandal even though i read it isn't apparently affecting anything this amt. i personally want to know the details of the scandal and what exactly happened. but i don't know if there's a gag order on the woman from ten years ago. but the way he's handling it shows what kind of green candidate he is. >> the national restaurant association says there is a silence agreement on all sides. should they lift the agreement and let these women come forward? >> i do. especially if this man is going to be our next republican nominee, i want to hear exactly what's happened.

i think i want to know what happened. >> you have not been secret about who you think is going to have the gop nomination, that is mitt romney. however, you have said that he is a little stiff, he lacks the gravitas and a lot of gopers feel the same way. is that cover for the excuse that people can't get over the fact that mitt romney is a mormon? >> no, i have never thought the mormon issue is an issue at all. i think he's not the rock star that president obama was in the last election. but it's going to help him because electing a rock star president has been detrimental. we need real leadership. >> no love lost between you and newt gingrich. you recently went to blows with him. >> can you believe that? former speaker of the house i'm getting in fights with, i can't believe it. >> you called his campaign a vanity project. he in return called you clueless and claimed he has the same

appeal on the gop candidate pecking order as your father. >> i think he's delusional. him calling me clueless i think is so sexist and disgusting and lame and a really offhanded remark that people make that he's making towards me. and i think it's ridiculous. any polls that he's reading, if you were seriously running for president, you wouldn't be taking vacations to greece during the middle of your campaign trail. i would bet my career he's not going to be our next nominee. >> for young republicans like yourself, do you find a voice like that appealing to you or do you think that voice appeals to the moderates? >> i don't. it's more that i think he's had old ideas. i know that this is not something people like to hear. but he was popular in the '90s and we're way beyond that. we need a fresh, new candidate with fresh, new ideas with not all the baggage this man has brought. >> jon huntsman's daughters are a major campaign force for their day.

they appeared on our air yesterday talking with chris jansing. do you think you were a trail blazer in some respects to getting the family daughters involved on the gop right? >> i'd rather let other people discuss what i have or have not done for other candidates. i know them. they're sweet girls. i'm happy to see women out there being feisty and kracreating a ruckus on the campaign trail. >> they make a yeunique stateme. >> i'm glad twitter wasn't around on the campaign trail. >> let's talk about occupy wall street. there's been big developments, especially on the national stage. a citywide strike is planned tonight in oakland, california, labor unions and veteran groups are joining up and planning to occupy the caucuses in iowa. do you think this has forward political legitimacy? >> yeah, i went down to occupy wall street in new york. and the very basis of this anger is very legitimate. the disconnect between the 99%

and the 1% of wealth in this country is a very legitimate argument and the anger is very valid. the problem that i have with it right now is it is getting sort of integrated into this weird hippie movement. when i went down there, it did smell of marijuana everywhere. some people couldn't tell me a distinct reason of why they were down there protesting. they really need a talking point and a message that can get out very quickly and easily which the tea party did quite well. >> do you think social issues have a place with the gop frontrunners, especially like romney who isn't backing federal marriage equality, same thing for rick perry? >> i would hope so. i would hope that the candidates would realize that gay marriage is a civil rights issue, not a political one. >> meghan, nice to have you here. >> thank you so much. it could be seen as a victory for the occupy wall street movement.

bank of america now backing down from a $5 debit card fee. is it a sign the people are finally winning the battle with the big banks? and the clock is ticking for the super committee. with just three weeks to reach a deal on cutting the deficit, can they do it? and is it time to stop the secrecy? i'm going to ask one of the members, congressman chris van holland joins me next. look, every day we're using more and more energy. the world needs more energy. where's it going to come from? ♪ that's why right here, in australia, chevron is building one of the biggest natural gas projects in the world. enough power for a city the size of singapore for 50 years. what's it going to do to the planet? natural gas is the cleanest conventional fuel there is. we've got to be smart about this. it's a smart way to go. ♪ helps defends against occasional constipation, diarrhea,

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but can also help heal acid related erosions in the lining of your esophagus. talk to your doctor about the risk for osteoporosis-related bone fractures and low magnesium levels with long-term use of nexium. possible side effects include headache, diarrhea and abdominal pain. other serious stomach conditions may still exist. let your doctor do her job, and you do yours. ask if nexium is right for you. if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. are you concerned about -- >> excuse me? excuse me? what part of no don't these people understand? >> that was herman cain just moments ago after an event in alexandria, virginia, where he was speaking. that's him leaving. you can see he's kind of losing his cool there around the contentious scrutiny he's getting from the media krnl sexual harassment claims from

two people years ago. the clock is ticking for the president. right now, he's speaking in washington, d.c. he's talking about the need for the american jobs act. let's listen. >> millions of construction workers have had to look for a job. so today i'm joining many of these workers to say that it makes absolutely no sense when there's so much work to be done that they're not doing the work. not when there are so many roads and bridges and runways waiting to be repaired and waiting to be rebuilt. one of these potential projects is behind me, just a few miles from the capitol building. it's the key bridge. one of the five major bridges that connect the commonwealth of virginia to washington, d.c. two of these five bridges are

rated structurally deficient. which is a fancy way of saying that you can drive on them but they need repair. nearly 120,000 vehicles cross these two bridges every single day, carrying hundreds of thousands of commuters and families and children. they are deficient roads and there are dis there are deficient bridges all across the countries. our highways are crowded with traffic. our railroads are no longer the most efficient in the world. our air traffic congestion is the worst in the world. and we've got to do something about this because our businesses and our entire economy are already paying for it. give you an example. i visited a bridge in cincinnati on one of the busiest trucking

routes in america. more than 150,000 vehicles cross it every single day. but it is so outdated that it's been labeled functionally obsolete. it worked fine when it opened 50 years ago. but today it handles twice the traffic it was designed for and it causes mile-long back-ups. that means that big shipping companies like u.p.s. or fedex are tempted to change routes but it turns out that would cost them even more to take the long way. so their trucks, their vans are just sitting there, bleeding money. bleeding time. smaller businesses, they don't have a choice. they have to go across these bridges. when a major bridge that connects kentucky and indiana was recently closed for safety reasons, one small business owner whose shop is nearby watched his sales fall 40% in just two weeks.

farmers, they can lose five cents a bushel when a rural bridge closes. so all told, our aging transportation infrastructure costs american businesses and families about $130 billion a year. that's a tax on our businesses, that's a tax on our consumers. it is coming out of your pocket. it's a drag on our overall economy. and if we don't act now, it could cost america hundreds of billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of jobs by the end of the decade. so you're paying already for these substandard bridges. you're paying for these substandard roads. you could be paying to make sure that workers were rebuilding these roads and you would save money in the long term if you did it. i'm speaking to all the american people right now.

building a world class transportation system is one of the reasons that america became an economic superpower in the first place. today as a share of our economy, europe invests more than twice what we do in infrastructure. china, more than four times as much. think about that. europe invests as a percentage of its overall economy twice as much in roads and bridges and airports and ports. china, four times as much. how do we sit back and watch china and europe build the best bridges and high-speed railroads and gleaming new airports and we're doing nothing? at a time when we've got more than 1 million unemployed construction workers who could build them right here in america right now? [ applause ] we're better than that. we are smarter than that.

we've just got to get folks in congress to share the same sense of national urgency that mayors and governors and the american people do all across the country. i've got to say, we've got some members of congress here who get it. amy from minnesota gets it. she's seen a bridge fall apart in her state. senator whitehouse from rhode island, he gets it. congressman larson from connecticut gets it. i know the mayor of washington, d.c. gets it. but we've got to have everybody on capitol hill get it. last month, republicans in the senate blocked a jobs bill that would have meant hundreds of thousands of private sector construction jobs repairing bridges like this one. it's the idea that in the past, at least, both parties have voted for, both parties have supported.

it was supported by the overwhelming majority of the american people. it was paid for. and yet they said no. the truth is, the only way we can attack our economic challenges on the scale that's needed is with bold action by congress. they hold the pursestrings. it's the only way we're going to put hundreds of thousands of people back to work right now, not five years from now, not ten years from now, but right now. it's the only way that we're going to rebuild an economy that's not based on financial bubbles but on hard work, on building and making things right here in the united states of america. [ applause ] that's the deal that every american is looking for. that we have an economy where everybody who works hard has the chance to get ahead.

where the middle class regains some sense of security that has been slipping away for over a decade now. so that's why i'm going to keep on pushing these senators and some members of the house of representatives to vote on commonsense, paid-for jobs proposals. in the meantime, while i'm waiting for them to act, we're going to go ahead and do what we can do to help the american people find jobs. we're not going to wait for them and do nothing. i've said that i'll do everything in my power to act on behalf of the american people, with or without congress. we can't wait for congress to do its job. if they won't act, i will. and that's why today i'm

announcing that we are actually going to expedite loans and competitive grants for new projects all across the country that will create thousands of new jobs for workers like these. if there's money already in the pipeline, we want to get it out faster. and this comes on the heels of our recent efforts to cut red tape and launch several existing projects faster and more efficie efficiently. see, construction workers, they want to do their jobs. we need congress to do theirs. but here's the good news. congress has another chance. they already voted once against this thing. they've got another chance. this week, they've got another chance to vote for a jobs bill that will help private sector companies put hundreds of thousands of construction workers back on the job rebuilding our roads, our airports, our bridges and our transit systems. and this bill, by the way, is

one that will begin to reform the way we do projects like this. no more earmarks. no more bridges to nowhere. we're going to stop the picking of projects based on political gain and start picking them based on two criteria -- how badly they're needed out there and how much good they'll do for our economy. and, by the way, that's an idea that came from the good work of a texas republican and a massachusetts democrat because infrastructure shouldn't be a partisan issue. my secretary of transportation who is here, ray lahood, great man from peoria -- [ applause ] he's the pride of peoria. he spent a long time in congress. he's a republican, a member of my cabinet. he knows how badly we need to act on this issue.

the other members of congress here, they understand that this is important to their states. i can't imagine that speaker boehner wants to represent a state where nearly one in four bridges is classified as substandard. i'm sure that the speaker of the house would want to have bridges and roads in his state that are up to par. when the senate republican leader, mitch mcconnell, visited that closed bridge in kentucky that i was talking about, he admitted, look, roads and bridges are not partisan in washington. that's a quote from him. paul ryan, the republican in charge of the budget process, recently said, you can't deny that infrastructure does create jobs. okay, so if the speaker of the house, the republican leader in the senate, all the democrats, all say that this is important to do, why aren't we doing it?

what's holding us back? let's get moving. and put america back to work. [ applause ] the ideas in this legislation are supported by the leading organizations of republican mayors, supported by mayor gray who is here, the idea would be a big boost for construction and is, therefore, supported by america's largest business organization and america's largest labor organization. the chamber of commerce and the aflcio think this is a good idea to move forward on. and they don't agree on a lot. and when 72% of the american people support the ideas in this bill, 72% of americans agree with this, republicans, democrats and independents,

there's no excuse for 100% of washington republicans to say no. that means that the republicans in washington are out of touch with republican voters. we've got to make this happen. now, if you don't want to take my word for it, take it from one of my predecessors. one of the previous presidents. he said, quote, the bridges and highways we fail to repair today will have to be rebuilt tomorrow at many times the cost. he went on to say that rebuilding our infrastructure is common sense, that's a quote. and, quote, an investment in tomorrow that we must make today. that president was ronald reagan. we just put up a statue of him at the airport. since when do we have republicans voting against ronald reagan's ideas?

there's no good reason to oppose this bill, not one. and members of congress who do, who vote no are going to have to explain why to their constituencies. the american people are with me with this. [ applause ] and it's time for folks running around spending all their time talking about what's wrong with america to spend some time rolling up their sleeves to help us make it right. there's nothing wrong in this country that we can't fix. there are no challenges that we can't meet. and especially when it comes to building things in america -- it was in the middle of the civil war that lincoln built the transcontinental railroad. it was during the great depression that we built the hoover dam that brought electricity to rural america. we have built things even in the

toughest of times, especially in the toughest of times because it helps us improve our economy. it gets us going. it taps into that can-do american spirit. it gives us pride about what we can accomplish. now it's our turn to forge the future. everybody here, we are americans, we're not people who sit back and watch things happening. and if congress tells you they don't have time, they've got time to do it. we've been in the house of representatives -- what have you guys been debating, john? you've been debating a commemorative coin for baseball? you have legislation reaffirming that "in god we trust" is our motto. that's not putting people back to work. i trust in god, but god wants to

see us help ourselves by putting people back to work. [ applause ] >> president obama talking this morning at the key bridge that is the connector between metro d.c. and northern virginia, talking about the fact that not only is the key bridge but many other structures, major structures across this country aging, needs to be rebolstered as it moves across this country putting roughly a million construction workers back to work. the president citing that europe spends more than two times on its infrastructure and that china spends four times the amount that america is spending on its infrastructure. all of this in a bold move to send a message to congress to pass the american jobs act now. also transportation secretary ray lahood was at that speech. he's going to be a guest in the next hour of msnbc. the great recession took a massive toll on american workers

and families. now a new study highlights how young americas feel about the economy right now. the state of young america takes a truly revealing look at what the next generation believes is in store for them and many see a rougher road ahead. the study finds that nearly half of people's ages 18 to 34 polled believe that their generation will be worse off than their parents. aaron smith is the executive director and co-founder of the young invincibles, his group worked with the democrats on this report. aaron, that isn't the only discouraging finding coming out of this study. average tuition is three times higher than it was for those in 1980. two out of three young adults are graduating with student loan debt that averages over $24,000. how much tougher is it for young people to come out with a resilient attitude knowing what they have to face ahead? >> well, i think the state of young america report illustrates

the fact that there are challenges and some of the challenges that young people face now are fundamentally different than what my parents faced 20, 30 years ago. when you mention student debt, you mentioned jobs, young people have a 17% unemployment rate, it's about twice the national average. absolutely, the challenges we're facing are unique. but statement, i think our report and our poll shows a resiliency and an optimism about the future that's remarkable and points to the possible greatness of this generation. we had 69% of young americans saying they believed in the american dream. they valued hard work and education as the two keys to getting ahead in this economy. and really it comes down to a question of political will. we just had the president talking about the american jobs act. the number one thing that young people said is a priority for congress was creating jobs. the number two thing was making college and higher education more affordable.

if we can find the political will to move frar and address some of these long-term challenges, we can move forward and prepare this generation to succeed. >> when we talk about the american dream, for a lot of people it was to own their own home, get married, start a family. as we look at the results that were found in this -- so many people are putting off the big life decisions, buying a home, getting married, moving on with the family, having children. that's just to name a few. what is the long-range impact of all of this, especially on the future generations when they have to put off these big, major life decisions? >> i think it's scary. i think for my generation, when you're faced with these challenges, you have to make decisions. whether you have a job and whether you have -- how much student debt you have and the fact that you feel like you need education to get ahead, that's going to impact what you do. and it's those decisions that young people make that are going to impact our country and the

economic success of our country. we also have to think about my little brother and our relatives who are in high school now and sort of the situation that they're going to have to face. so really addressing these challenges now, whether it's on jobs or whether it's on making higher education more affordable, is really critical, not just for young adults and my generation, but really for the future. >> aaron smith with the young invincibles, aaron, great to have you with us this morning. thank you. >> thanks for having me on. is the occupy wall street movement paying off in your wallet? a new victory against the banks. that's coming right up. my doctor told me calcium is best absorbed in small continuous amounts. only one calcium supplement does that in one daily dose. citracal slow release...

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[ male announcer ] write your story with the new citi simplicity card. no late fees. no penalty rate. no worries. get started at citisimplicity.com. so are the voices of angry americans actually getting through to big banks? after drawing intense backlash from consumers and politicians, bank of america is scrapping plans to charge customers $5 a month to use their debit cards. but there are lesser-known fees still being imposed by banks

like withdrawal fees on unemployment benefits extracting money from the most vulnerable of people. >> the bank of america likely other banks going forward in imposing these fees did not withdraw them because they were nice guys. they withdrew them because the american people said, enough is enough in terms of the greed of wall street. >> i'm joined now by author and freelance columnist nomi prins. how much of bank of america's abo abo aboutface has to do with the ok miswall street protesting? >> it was about the decision to retract the $5 debit fee which is ridiculous.

it's an eight-cent transaction and a $5 per month fee. it never made a lot of sense and annoyed a lot of americans on the streets in occupy wall street throughout the country and also people who weren't in the streets. part of that anger combined with the fact that bank of america is looking at its customer base leaving, to some extent. that is also a part of it. it used to be the largest bank in the country. it is now the second largest bank in the country. they said, wait a minute, we're going to retract this very visible fee for which we have a lot of public hostility. on the other side of that, as you mentioned in the lead-up, there are a lot of fees that still exist that don't have the same focus and public taengs attention and anger that they are continuing to levy. and i'm sure after having retracted this fee, they're thinking about where to nickel and dime their fees with their customer base. >> there's a new report from the western center on law and poverty saying this year that

welfare recipients will they $16 million in surcharges for accessing those benefits. what needs to change so that the most vulnerable among americans aren't targeted by this big banking institutions? >> well, the the major change i very much a legislative change which is you have to break up the banks and you have to reinvoke the glass/steagall act, because what's happening now is banks are looking at losing a lot of america. bank of america, a prime example. a ton of settlements going on with countrywide. a lot of faulty securities and loans, same thing with merrill lynch. why they moved the derivatives portfolio into the depositors side of the bank. they are looking to their captive must kers whethcutters welfare recipients, active service duty people or general population at large to figure out where they can make up for those losses and settlements they are facing in the other side of the book. if you split up their book, if you say, you know what, those losses in your securities portfolio, derivatives

portfolio, you know what? we cannot let you pay those with nickel and diming and feeing up your captive customer base, that would be a huge step to ensuring that this kind of thing doesn't happen and customers aren't pillaged for the losses and speculative bad decisions made on the other side of the bank. >> great to see you this morning, nomi. thanks for your time this morning. >> thank you. the primary calendar, all set. new hampshire keeps its status as the first in the nation presidential primary state. details coming your way in just three minutes. uh, i'm in a tit because apparently riding the dog like it's a small horse is frowned upon in this establishment! luckily though, ya know, i conceal this bad boy underneath my blanket just so i can get on e-trade. check my investment portfolio, research stocks... wait, why are you taking... oh, i see...solitary. just a man and his thoughts. and a smartphone... with an e-trade app. ♪ nobody knows...

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welcome back, everybody. let's take the political pulse across the nation. it is official now. new hampshire set their primary date earlier this hour, january the 10th. now, this helps settle the calendar after threats weeks ago from secretary of state bill gardner that the primary could be held in mid-december. now, whoever makes it through the republicans' presidential primary on topping might be smart to put florida senator

marco rubio on the ticket. a new suffolk university poll shows a generic gop candidate with rubio as a running mate would defeat president obama by five percentage points. get this, former secretary of state condoleezza rice making an appearance on "the daily show" and having a really interesting tale about former libyan leader, moammar gadhafi. take a listen. >> were you aware that he had a strange and -- and shall i say, creepy fixation on secretary of state condoleezza rice? did you know that? >> i was aware. several of my foreign minister colleagues had told me before i went to visit him back in 2008 that he had this fixation, and then all of a sudden he said i have this video for you, and i thought uh-oh. what is this? but it was actually just pictures of me with hu jintao, with vladamir putin of russia, set to a song that he had written called "black flower in the white house."

>> got her own song. rice said during the viewing she told herself to get through it to the official business, and everything would be fine. there you have it. that does it for me today. thanks for your time. see you pack here at 11:00 a.m. eastern every weekday morning. follow me on twitte twitter @thomasaroberts. more at the top of the hour. don't go anywhere. an ingredient that works more naturally with your colon than stimulant laxatives, for effective relief of constipation without cramps. thanks. good morning, students. today we're gonna continue... how about the beat of a healthy heart? campbell's healthy request soup is delicious, and earned this heart, for being heart healthy. ♪ feel the beat? it's amazing what soup can do.

good day. i'm craig melvin. another busy day for her mincain on capitol hill where he's due to meet members of congress this morning. the gop candidate also talked to a doctor's group but can't seem to escape the sexual harassment scandal, and the pressure seems to be getting to him. >> don't even bother asking me all of these other questions that you all are curious about, okay? don't even bother. >> it's a good question though. >> are you concerned about the fact that these women -- >> excuse me.