>> as the prince of darkness enters the race for 2012. >> if you were satan, who would you attack in this day andage? there is no one else to go after other than the united states. >> a dual in the desert. a defense from on high. >> i'll defend everything i'll say because it comes from here. >> or there. >> what's burning down here. >> ♪ ♪ the devil went down to georgia he was looking for a soul to steal ♪ ♪ he was in a bind because he was way behind and he was willing to make a deal ♪ ♪ he came across this young man ♪ >> with just five hours to go before a debate dry spell of 27 days comes to an end with a high stakes showdown in the desert of arizona. much has changed since the fearsome four last met in florida. gingrich into the gutter. romney on the rocks and santorum with a big surge. and tonight could be the shoot-out in the last chance saloon. the last time the candidates will share a stage before primaries in arizona and make or break michigan. indeed, it's the last face-off before super tuesday.

by the way, it's also ash wednesday and national margarita day. so there's a slim chance that front-runner and devout catholic rick santorum will show up drunk in the spirit and who could blame the former senator for celebrating with a little tequila? a quinnipiac national poll out this morning shows santorum leading romney by 9 points with republican voters. and while our new nbc/mayor rift poll shows romney with a commanding lead in arizona, it's a statistical tie up in michigan, one of romney's many home states and one he is desperate to win. but the question is, can rick santorum stay on message tonight in the or will he get hot under the sweater vest and start reprising some of his favorite speeches like the one that surfaced recently where he said that satan is not just temperaturing individuals but he's at war with the united states. >> the father of lies has his sights on what you would think the father of lies satan would

have his sights on, a good, decent, influential powerful country, the united states of in irk. >> santorum defended himself from charges against donald trump that he is so out there and that means something come interesting trump. as santorum said last night, it just means that he's authentic. >> the reason i think we're doing well in this campaign is because we are being available to the american public, no teleprompters, no written speeches, the opportunity to see what's in here. what's up here. and what's burning down here. >> goodness. we don't know what's burning down there. perhaps rick should seek urgent medical assistance. as for mitt romney, you do get the sense with arizona confidently in pocket, he's just really sad to have to take time-out from his beloved michigan. the white powder or the white sugar, powdered sugar, that's the word, powdered sugar on top of the punch key reminded me of

what's going on outside, how beautiful it is. michigan looks so beautiful when the snow comes with a fresh powdered sugar all over everything. >> i love this state. it seems right here. the trees are the right height. i like seeing -- i like seeing the lakes. i love the lakes. >> oh, beautiful for spacious skies, but no burning sensation. that's good to hear. let's bring in our panel now. with us from washington, msnbc political analyst and former dnc communications director karen finny, columnist for the hill and ken vogel, chief investigative reporter for politico. with us from nashville, judson phillips co-founder of the tea party nation. .karen, rick santorum is talking about satan, neonatal care and the fire down below. mitt romney is talking about finding his wife in kindergarten and his love of trees. i know i was off for two days but what on earth is going on? have they lost their minds? this this is what happens when

you go away. my god, it's like we're in the 1950s when people were criticizing elvis presley for those wiggling hips. i mean, it's crazy. clearly tonight it should be a very interesting conversation where rick santorum will as you said in the introtry to talk about the economy although i think he's going to have a lot to answer for. he seems to think he's got those answers so it will be interesting to see what he actually says. >> it will be an interesting defense of beal za bub. ken, given how well santorum is now doing in the polls, does this not prove that a return to 1980s disco and the culture issues is working well for him? >> it's certainly working well in the republican base but highlights the diver jens of priorities between the republican base voters and the general election voters and you know, americans more broadly who polls show time and again care about the economy and jobs. yet, in the republican base in a republican primary, there is room for these social issues and

that's what rick santorum is strongest on and what mitt romney is weakest on. it makes sense rick santorum, even as he talks about focusing on the economy continues to be pulled to the right and continues to train his focus on these social issues. >> we're watching rick santorum live in arizona at this very moment. judson, if i can come to you. you've been following the political discourse over recent days. i have to ask, what does the tea party think of invoking satan, pushing transvaginal probes in virginia, and mitt romney claiming to be severely conservative? >> well, is this segment three days? seriously. >> do you have as much time as you like, judson. go right ahead. >> well, the thing about the tea party, the tea party's not monolithic. the transvaginal probes that people are talking about, that's not registering with anybody. at least nobody i've talked to. the stuff that we've heard, the clips that rick santorum has talked about satan and the like, for a lot of folks in the tea

party, this is pretty consistent with what they hear in church every sunday from their priest or preacher. so it's not terribly shocking to them. santorum is a practicing catholic. what he said i'm not catholic but i understand it's pretty consistent with mainstream catholic theology. nobody on my side of the table is tearily shocked by what he is saying. >> he i think some might take issue with you. karen might like to. >> i think the issue of transvaginal probes is certainly registering with the women voters shall we say? >> who after all, make up the majority of the population in the united states. >> that's right. >> that's right. and voters. but a couple of other things that you know, there was a group today of prominent christian leaders from a number of different denomination who's actually put out a statement obviously as you mentioned, it is the beginning of the season of lent and basically they said cut it out. we should not be using faith as a weapon, a political weapon. and i this i they're right.

santorum is largely gotten a major pass on one of the things that he said which was that is obama's agenda is not based on the bible. it wasn't just his theology that he went after. but you know, i would think for tea party members as well as moderate republicans and independent voters, there is such a thing as the separation of church and state. i think he's gotten a pass on that. there are a lot of folks interested to hear more about what did he really mean by that. at the same time, i think romney has really clear little missed an opportunity to try to find his way into a conversation with independent voters because he's been so damaged, if you will, with the far right and some of those social issues. again, those are voter who are less comfortable with some of this religious talk. >> we should report that bob mcdonald has now, pardon the pun, reversed his view and withdrawn the idea of mandatorilitory transvaginal probing of women who are pregnant hog are seeking a termination and so on. but newt gingrich and his wife

callista were asked this morning about the start of lent, of course, today is ash wednesday. take a listen to this, karen. >> what are you giving up for lent? have you decided? >> i am going to give up desserts, all desserts. >> all right. >> and just quickly. >> i challenge you to ask what she's giving up. >> what are you giving up. >> i'm giving up my opinion. >> i'm assuming karen, she's joking. it does seem a bit like women's opinions have no place in the current republican environment. >> apparently not. apparently women are just supposed to be quiet and sit in the back. we're not allowed to show up at hearings about issues that affect us. we're not allowed to have opinions. we're just. >> in can the fa, i suspect darrell issa would be disgusted you're on this panel. >> i'm sure he will be. you'll just have to shut me up. >> okay. ken, mitt romney's comeback strategy. first, don't repeat anything that you only say at the yacht club. but what else? i mean, how does he take on

santorum's burning and passion and wherever that burning is, how does he do it, ken? >> i don't think he takes it on by focusing on those social issues although we have heard him speak a little bit more about his religion recently which is potential will i a useful thing for him. however, he think we're going to see him and have already seen him and his allies in the super pac that supports him take on santorum by highlighting his support for raising the debt ceiling, for ear marks. these are things, maybe they're not shocked to hear santorum talk about religious issues, satan, hear talk about transvaginal probes. but that's not where they want to see the focus. they want to see the focus on fiscal issues. ironically, mitt romney is kind of the enemy of the tea party. many tea partiers. that's where he is strongest and that's where he can come at santorum and really make some headway. i think we'll hear that tonight in this debate as we have for the last several days. >> judson, very, very quickly,

your feelings about how newt is going to do tonight. he's your man. >> i think he's going do really well because he's in the perfect position. romney has got to the take santorum out in this debate. santorum has got to defend himself. newt can do what he does best which is wait for the right moment, swoop in with his great point that leaves everybody on the stage nodding like bobbleheads and then go onto the next point. >> and spread poison everywhere. >> judson, karen, ken, thank you very much for joining us. next, one of the men who testified in front of congress on a woman's right to choose. stay with us. >> and the father of lies has his sights on what you would think the father of lies, satan, would have his sights on, a good, decent, powerful, influential country. the united states of america. [ rosa ] i'm rosa and i quit smoking with chantix.

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nancy pelosi is promising to uphold a woman's right to testify. yes, the house minority leader plans to hold a rebuttal hearing to last week's show trial about the white house compromise on birth control, a hearing that featured no women whatsoever during the first three hours of testimony. conservatives say they didn't need to be there because their focus was less about reproductive rights and much more about freedom of conscience. >> what i see here is a hollowing is out of what the concept of religious liberty is almost to the point where eventually it will be nonexistent. >> that was dr. craig mitchell, an associate professor of ethics at southwestern baptist theological seminary. we're delighted to say he joins us now. good afternoon is, sir.

>> hello, martin. >> thank you for being with us. >> good to be here. >> upon reflection, sir, do you not think now that it might have been more sensible, even reasonable for last week's main panel to have not been so one-sided and without a single woman? >> well, that is for congressman issa and his staff to comment on because -- >> i do understand that, sir. but i'm asking you personally. you were a participant. upon reflection, do you not think it might have been more sensible to have had women there for that first panel? i don't think it would have hurt, no. ing. >> thank you. because many women feel that they're owed an apology for a panel that took place which dealt with their reproductive rights. do you feel for example that georgetown university student who went there to of it about a

friend, that she deserves an apology for not being allowed to speak? no, i don't >> look, they called me to speak on religious liberty and that's what i did. and as for how that all played out, i have no part in that. i will say this. i think our country is in danger because unfortunately everyone seems to completely dismiss the real implications regarding our religious liberty. and so i think it's just a lot of political misbehavior unfortunately to not realize what we were there for. >> well, you willingly took part in that congressional hearing. so, you know, it's all very well criticizing the political process. you took part in it. you say this debate is about religious liberty. but the president. >> that's right.

>> but the president's opponents seem to think that it's also an opportunity for them to attack him about his own personal faith. may i ask you, sir, as a learned professor of theology yourself, what is your reaction to the endless attempts to imply that the president of the united states is somehow sub christian, not a christian? >> well, okay. realistically, you look at any president in u.s. history. this guy is not the first person who's been president who's had that charge leveled against him. he's no different from anyone else as far as that's concerned. but you know, people do have their concerns and it's not wrong for them to express those ideas. >> i'm interested to know which of the presidents you can remember who's been smeared in the way president obama has where people have questioned his place of birth, questioned his identity. suggested that he's a muslim and a practicing one as such. can you tell me another

president in history who has suffered that kind of barrage of attacks? >> well, this president has a unique set of circumstances so he's had those charges laid against him. >> sir, but you just said -- sorry, sir, you just said that this is nothing new and there are other presidents. >> martin, what i said was that presidents. >> who have been subjected to this. >> presidents have been -- have had their christianity questioned. that was the question you asked me and that's what i told you. >> i went on to explain what that means and what that means as far as this president's concerned is everything from where he was born top whether he's a muslim. that will relates to whether he's a christian. >> okay. >> can you tell me which other president in history, i'm offering you the opportunity, sir, which other president in history has been subjected to this kind of barrage. >>. >> martin. >> yes, sir. >> you asked me if he was a christian. you asked me which president has

been -- had charges against whether or notti izhe's a chris. whether or not he was born in america has nothing to doing with whether he's a christian. whether or not he -- where he comes from has nothing to do with blornt he's a christian. >> sir, do you believe he's a christian? >> what i know is that he says he's a christian. i have to take him at his word. >> you know sir that kind of response is damning someone with faint praise. this president has repeatedly in everything he's written, you've red his books, i've read his books, in every public meeting where he's been asked he's made a very clear statement he's a christian. he appears to be conversant with the scriptures, old and new testament. do you believe he's a christian. i'm not asking you if you take him as his word. do you believe he's a christian. >> i don't know if he's a christian or not. >> i really don't know the. >> i don't. i never met the man.

i've never talked with him. a lot of people say they are christians but just because they say they're a christian, that doesn't mean that they are. you know, just because you walk into a garage, that doesn't make you a car either. >> no, it doesn't. >> to be clear with the scripture -- being acquainted with the scripture does not make you a christian. >> we know by their fruits you will know them. that is also a text from scripture. so given fruits of this man's life, if you won't take what he says and if you look at his life, is his life not speak to the fact that he's a committed christian? is he an aadulterer in the way that newt gingrich is? is he a hypocrite about giving to charity in the way thought santorum is or is this president a christian? >> i don't know. i'm never met the man. i've never talked with him at length. one of the things that happens when i'm in church and i have to advise people about becoming a christian, i ask them a number of questions to find out if they

really are and if they really do believe that jesus christ is the only way. i have not had that opportunity with him so i can't say. all i know is is that he says that he's a christian and that's sufficient. >> that's sufficient. so now you're saying that you do accept that he's a christian. am i right to understand you? is that what you mean? what i'm saying is i accept the fact that he says that he's a christian. >> right. >> and until i actually talk with him, i won't know for sure. >> do you understand, sir, why i'm asking you these questions because this president appears to be fair game on issues that nobody else appears to be fair game on. we've seen disrespect for this president in ways that we've never seen before. just recently the governor of arizona pointing a finger in his face, other people smearing him. rick santorum suggesting that what we have in the white house is a mannequinton hitler where

he describes the social circumstances of 1939 and compares them with now. that's why i'm asking you, that's why this is important, sir. that's why you as an academic, a learned academic and a representative of the baptist church and that denomination have a certain power and sluns. if you were and influence. if you were to say this man is a christian, it would be influential. as you've repeatedly said, you simply take him at his word. >> that's right. >> dr. craig mitchell, thank you very much for joining us. >> okay, thank you. next, the president tries to level the playing field. stay with us. >> i get a kick out of the media saying -- and they complain so much about all of these strub strublg -- stuk toured candidates and how they're all sort of robotic and how they just sort of do things according to consult and thes. they say wow, he's really out there.

you got to worry about everything he says. no, you don't. because i'll defend everything. because i'll defend everything i say because it comes from here. my heart attack happened completely out of the blue... i was so young... you just don't think that that's something that can happen to you. i'm on a bayer aspirin regimen. [ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. first line of defense, right?

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culture. and the obama administration has a new mountain to climb pushing for a complete overhaul of the corporate tax system. the proposed plan slashes the top rate of tax to 28% down from 35%. the tax rate for manufacturers would top out at 25%. but the key to the new plan is the elimination of a lot of popular loopholes and deductions. for more let's go to nbc's mike viqueira live at the white house. mike, both parties agree that the business tax code must be revised. but in the president's plan, there are luxuries that some corporations would have to give up. how does the white house plan to sell this and willton work in this election cycle? >> it is certainly a tradeoff. legislatively, martin, frankly it's unlikely to work given the election year atmosphere. >> you surprise me, mike. all right, all right. and mitt romney and, of course, mitt romney came out with his own plan today. we can talk more about that

later. remember last summer when the president was citing down behind closes doors on the golf course was speaker john boehner talking about the grand bargain, the package when the country was about to hit the debt ceiling that would have reduced the deficit by $4 trillion. it came off the table because of revolt that the speaker faced within his own party. part of that was a simplification of the tax code. that was certainly on the table. what the white house has done is sort of steal a political march on republicans and presidential candidates like mitt romney. they talk about lowering the corporate tax rate. we've heard all about job creators and what an onus is is on them to have one of the highest rates in the industrialized world but nothing said here today about by the administration about the individual tax rate. to answer your question, unlikely to go anywhere in congress this year. >> before you go, i have to play a bit of sound for you. listen to this. ♪ come on, baby don't you want

to go ♪ >> now, that was the president again flexing his pipes. stealing a bit of thunder from the headliners. but he sounds like he was pretty well received last night. >> absolutely. a combination of jake and elwood blues there. it's too bad they already had the grammy ceremonies this year because the president would be eligible. yeah, that was a big ceremony honoring american blues in the east room of the white house you saw there. b.b. king handing him the microphone. mick jagger handing him the microphone, as well. the president picking up on his home two theme song of a sort "the sweet home chicago." >> mike will be performing saturday night at a club near you. stay with us. the day's top lines are coming up. female announcer ] feeling that flu all over your body?

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>> i'm not a manager. i'm not a visionary. >> he continues to defend earmarks. $500,000 earmark for a polar bear exhibit. >> governor romney is a reviewed guy and people get to know him more. >> commodityize candidates. they're all sort of robotic. >> ♪ baby you don't want to go >> newt gingrich called president obama the most dangerous president in u.s. history. >> then he said on the dance floor. >> oh, man, transvaginal ultrasound? i saw them at the beacon in '94. they were amazing. >> i like seeing the lakes. i love the lakes. >> always give the sign, you know, a secret sign. >> the snow comes with a fresh you know powdered sugar all over everything. >> there's a guy that's from outside of washington just never got elected. >> senator santorum hasn't been as carefully viewed by the american public as have the others. >> in the case of governor romney, he's run as a liberal, a

moderate and conservative. >> i am pro-life. >> i will preserve and protect a woman's right to choose. >> no teleprompters, no written speeches. >> any chance you can respond to this headline today about the speech you made in florida. >> rick santorum talking about good and evil isn't okay. >> he is going to have to have an answer for these things. >> see what's in here, what's up here. and what's burning down here. is this dude serious? >> if you were satan, there is no one else to go after other than the united states. >> yeah, satan. >> i command you in the name of lucifer. >> oh, my god. chicago kicks -- ♪ to be evil sometimes >> i'll defend everything i'll say. >> he sure will. let's get right to it this afternoon. joining us is msnbc political analyst professor michael dyson of georgetown university. with us from washington, professor dyson. rick santorum has suggested that 2012 is the equivalent of 1939

when hitler provoked is the second world war implying that the president even in a thinly veiled way is hitler. has mr. santorum lost complete control of his senses? >> he certainly has. he's deparred from every shred of decency, every bit of logic and every sin till la of human compassion to make a comparison and draw a parallel between barack obama and adolph hitler is not only reckless, it is itself dangerous and subversive of the very democratic principles upon which are predicated our abilities and freedoms to talk in public spaces. we have a right to say what we want to say, about you we also have a responsibility to make sure that we are just as balanced, fair, and judicious as possible even if we're making strong critiques. i think this is wildly irresponsible and shows that this man is off the deep end. >> so if satan is the father of lies, santorum must be the father of i guess mallev lant

fantasy and illusion. >> this is a bealzabub moment. in all of this discourse about god and satan and the devil and religion, it always has to do with my opponents. we never see it in ourselves. get behind me, satan is what we say when we look at the other person but we have to look into the mirror and see that we too bear, if you're a serious christian, some of the same things you're pointing to in others. jesus said you're straining at nets. that is little gnats you're acting like you can't swallow but you're swallowing camels whole. it seems they are engaging in some of the most misinterpreting contexts of the bible in public we've seen in so many years. >> it is impossible to predict what's going to happen at the debate tonight because some of will no doubt defy logic i guess. take a listen to rick santorum this afternoon. bear this in mind, he's talking about energy prices. >> it affects everybody in

america who the president says he cares about. he cares about them enough to get them addicted on government programs so he can get guaranteed their vote when election time comes. that's what he cares about. >> addicted to government programs. that's what the president's about. these are the words of rick santorum. >> i mean, this is the same theme first you got gingrich with him being a food stamp preds, now addicted to the government. both of them have thinly veiled racial interferences. black people have are never seen as worki hard, but look at "the new york times" sunday before last that carried above the fold story that the very conservatives who were attacking the safety net and the social guarantee of some kind of support were themselves taking advantage of it. here they are beating up on the safety net and yet, they're taking advantage of the tax

income earned income tax credit as well as free school lunches. this is the kind of hypocrisy that really funds our political discourse now. >> one of the things, professor, that troubles a lot of people is these individuals recentedly talk about their own christian faith. and yet the seems entirely absent in the way they conduct themselves. yet, it's the president who seems to embody the gospel, turning the other check each time they will offer another horrendous insult even as his approval ratings creep upwards. >> i've been an ordained minister for over 30 years. i've seen people come and go, can i've seen people take advantage of the god complex in american society. but never have i seen such bald and defenseless evocation of god's spirit in the use and the service of something so markedly problematic. franklin graham appears saying obama is not a christian but rick santorum and newt gingrich are? but barack obama can't be? i can't take him at his word? this is the repudiation of the fundamental principle of charity

that is the bedrock of christian faith. so i think these hypocrites should acknowledge that they're engaging in some of the worst examples of christian behavior and barack obama by his humility and by his refusal to throw stone at the others acknowledges his own humble disposition before god and i think that's the more authentic response as a christian. >> professor dyson, nobody can refine and explain it in the way that you do. thank you, sir. >> thank you my friend. next rick santorum and the hard right wing of the catholic church. stay with us. >> the reason i think we're doing well in this campaign is because we are being available to the american public. no teleprompters, no written speeches. the opportunity to see what's in here. what's up here. what's burning down here. [ coughs ]

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rick santorum is basking in the theological spotlight as he speaks of satan, targeting the nation, the near collapse of all protestant denominations and casting thinly veiled dispersions upon the president's only personal faith. republicans appear to be lapping it up if the polls are anything to go by. joining us now, the author of "sex mom and god," frankie schaefer. some of a historian when it comes to the politics of the culture wars. good afternoon. given the damage that was done during the culture wars of the 1980s, do you really believe that there are vast numbers it of americans just waiting to join the santorum crusade of 2012? >> no, but if i was paying someone to help sell a book i wrote a couple years ago called "crazy for god, a memoir why i got out of the religious right," i would be sending santorum doe figs this afternoon. i'm in the middle of a speaking

tour called theocracy or democracy aimed at christians like me, let me say i'm a christian from an evangelical background, no longer an evangelical but a christian who believe these guys have not just corrupted american politics, they have corrupted american religion. i've been watching the whole show so far. you've had fantastic interviews on all of which in sum total point to the fact there are a group of far right christians, evangelicals and roman catholics who in my view and i use this word carefully have literally conspired about two years ago starting with something called the manhattan declaration authored by a princeton professor who is of the very far right who was a glenn beck adviser by the way, along with charles cole son who used to be nixon's hatch yet man and a convicted watergate felon. these guys wrote this thing that said if the president brings down edicts about stem cell research, abortion, gay rights,

you name it, we're not going to obey them. 150 evangelical leaders sign on. since then about 50,000 grassroots right wingers have signed on. all that happened with this business of contraception and religious civil liberties, this whole issue is a trumped issue. it's not a grassroots issue that has been designed by robert george, charles cole son, franklin graham, and a number of other people. and now, the candidates, especially rick santorum, they're latching on to it. >> but frank, santorum doesn't seem out of touch with all church leaders. listen to franklin graham, son of the reverend billy graham on "morning joe" on monday. >> you do not believe he's a muslim. >> no. >> categorically not a muslim. >> i can't say categorically because islam has gotten a free pass under obama. >> does that shock you? >> hey, listen, i played with franklin in my front yard when my dad was an evangelist leader.

he was a nice kid then. he had his years of rebellion, went back. i guess he couldn't find other paying work so he's taken over his dad's ministry. the fact of the matter is he is a far right operative of the republican party. he lent his charity's plane to michele bachmann, rather sarah palin when she was doing her author tour. >> yes indeed. >> these people are republican operatives. they're not religious leaders. >> frank schaefer, i'm afraid we've run out of time. thanks so much for joining us. >> next, dylan ratigan takes his 30 million jobs tour to campus. stay with us. [ male announcer ] we know you don't wait until the end of the quarter to think about your money... ♪ ...that right now, you want to know where you are, and where you'd like to be. we know you'd like to see the same information your advisor does so you can get a deeper understanding of what's going on with your portfolio.

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even with some rays of sun emerging from the dark economic storm that's hovered over the nation, president obama's mantra copies to be we have more work ahead. specifically putting the nearly

13 million unemployed american men and women back to full-time employment. dylan ratigan joins us on his 30 million jobs tour. you're at the university of the kentucky on this college leg of the tour. why and what are you hearing from young people? >> first off, to answer your question in reverse order, the young people of america are the one group who fully understand the power of the network. they understand that modern problem solving is done through the incredible ability to identify unique assets inside of communities whether it's on the -- whether it's through the social network or the community networks that exist in our college systems and they know how to exploit that to solve problems. it's very difficult for them to do that in the context of the onerous student debt which reduces their ability to take risk and their options and their ability to conduct experiments if you will but there is no group of people in this country or around the world than the

young people of this country and really the young people of the world, who understand how powerful, how the new capital for all of us is the power of the actual community, the ability to harness that network. the reason we started here in kentucky is we wanted to get into a place that we saw as really sort of modeling, harnessing the spirit of what it means to be in college in america. we love the color blue. >> i can see behind you, dylan, that the university of mascot is behind you, the wildcats as they're known. he is just walking across. going to come and join you now. >> there's our man. you never know what he'll do. he is a wildcat. i can't control him. >> great. okay. well, look. i hope it goes well. great to talk to you. we'll look forward to hearing from you of course after this very broadcast. >> and welcome back to tv land. we missed you. >> thank you. >> we'll be right back.

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's time to clear the air. there is nothing worse to some republicans than having to wit a black man being president, then it is the idea that someone of another religious faith or no faith whatsoever might possibly be in the white house. and so having failed disastrously in that preposterous attempt to suggest that the president is not an american, they are now reviving their effort to imply that the president is not a christian. but how does anyone prove they are a christian beyond saying that they are? there is no birth certificate to produce but there are some very clear signs. 60 years ago almost to the day the great oxford academic c.s.

lewis published a book entitled "mere christianity." the book was based upon some bbc radio talks he gave during the second world war. this is what he said. if conversion to christianity makes no improvement in a man's outward actions, if he continues to be just as snobbish or spiteful or envious or ambitious as he was before, then i think we must suspect that his conversion was largely imaginary. fine feelings, new insights, greater interest in religion mean nothing unless they make our actual behavior better. so let's supply lewis's approach to three individuals all of whom claim to be men of faith, all of whom want to be president. first mitt romney. mitt romney earlier this month said this about the president. >> a newly elected president obama told america that if congress approved his plan to

borrow nearly a trillion dollars, he would hold unemployment below 8%. >> that is an outright lie. the president never, ever said such a thing. in fact, that was a speculative projection written by christina roemer and jared bernstein about the possible impact of a stimulus package and it was written before the president was inaugurated. so the devout mormon is apparently a liar. second, rick santorum. mr. santorum is selling himself as the most christian. all the candidates. he says satan is attacking the institutions of america and talks about the great women and men of faith who served this country through self-sacrifice and generosity but when it comes to his personal commitment to charity mr. santorum is remarkably quiet. that's because in 2010 mr.

santorum earned almost a million dollars and gave just over 1.7% to charity. during the same period, the president and the first lady gave over 14%. so the devout catholic is apparently a hypocrite. finally, newt gingrich, a man who believes that the christian sacrament of marriage, life long monogamy, actually means sleeping with one woman at a time. so there you have it. the liar, the hypocrite, and the adulter. and remember what c.s. lewis wrote. if conversion to christianity makes no improvement in a man's outward actions, then i think we must suspect that his conversion was largely imaginary. the president of the united states is a christian. but as for those three in the words of franklin graham, i don't think any of us can be categorically certain. thank you so much for watching. dylan ratigan is next.

college. you've made the grade, paid the price, and had some fun. but now what? 3.4 million college students will graduate in 2012 into an economy where we already need 30 million jobs. it doesn't take a math major to know the odds aren't good, but these students are their own best chance if they're willing to experiment. we're going back to school taking over college campuses in america's heart land to learn who's actually hiring, how to get a job, and what it will take to create new opportunities to put the class of 2012 to work. it's time to attack america's problems with a wildcat energy, yes, we are large at the university of kentucky as the 30 million jobs tour college edition kicks