good evening, americans, welcome to "the ed show" tonight from new york. mitt romney's spineless response to rush limbaugh's controversy caught the attention of the president and sarah palin is trying to play the victim again. keep it right here, it's "the ed show" let's get to work. everything is fine on the business side. everything's cool. there is not a thing to worry about. >> rush is spinning hard and republicans refuse to lead. >> the limbaugh thing was a test of leadership. and you know, mitt romney's failed those tests in the campaign. >> new reporting says mitt romney's ties to clearchannel could be the reason he's taking it easy on rush. the latest on the boycott with krystal ball and politics with ohio senator lena turner. >> i believe it will be impossible for a moderate to win the general election. >> push is coming to shove in the disasterous republican primary.

sam stein and bob shrum on the super tuesday aftermath. >> game change ii is starting to write itself. >> i wouldn't close that door, and my plan is to be at the convention. >> richard wolffe on the latest palin-sanity. >> the right wing con pir ra -- conspiracy get scooped. >> e.j. dionne joins us. republicans just can't bring themselves to criticize rush limbaugh in any way, shape or form. the gop candidates have been so critical of president obama but they will not condemn out rainous attacks by a commercial talk show host. mitt romney punted on his first chance to address rush limbaugh. he was given a second chance and ran away from it again. >> my campaign is about jobs and the economy and scaling back the

size of government and i'm not going to weigh in on that particular controversy. >> not going to weigh in on it. romney says he's not going to weigh in on rush limbaugh. because it's not what his campaign is about. really? mitt, it doesn't have anything to do with money? romney's former company bought rush limbaugh's syndicator, premiere radio in 2008, an article in the daily beast described the valuable relationship between clear channel communications and mitt romney. how about this, 14 clear channel directors have personally given more than $726,000 to mitt romney, most of it in the current presidential campaign. five of those directors from romney's former company, bain capital, mitt romney has a financial connection to limbaugh's boss, which means limbaugh is pretty well insulated from romney's criticism, don't you think? president obama's campaign strategist david axelrod says

romney is showing he will have a hard time standing up to anyone as president. >> these are tests, presidential campaigns can -- are tests. you're tested every single day in different ways. the limbaugh thing was a test of leadership. and you have them all the time and, you know, mitt romney's failed those tests in the campaign. >> romney just can't find a spine, can he? in the right wing noise machine is trying to pick up the slack. they are setting up a smoke screen to distract people from what rush actually said. >> i think the definition of hippo extra see is for rush limbaugh to have been called out, forced to apologize, and retract what it is that he said in exercising his first amendment rights and never is that -- the same applied to the leftist radicals who say horrible things about the handicapped, women, the defenseless. >> despite what sarah palin

says, rush limbaugh didn't retract his comments. he apologized, let's remember, for two words. not that nine hour verbal assault over a three-day period. you throw in the show prep, take a few hours off and you come back and do it again and again. another right wing group, set up a website, istandwithrush to encourage solidarity. the site founder? brent bozel, who has an agenda for defending rush. one of his right wing news sites posted the original article, mischaracterizing sandra fluke's testimony. rush also got some support from the christian coalition founder and scam artist ralph reed. he took it upon himself on twitter to say rush, apology accepted. let's move on and talk about the issues. we're with you. so nice of you to do that, ralph. here is a big important fact for you.

this was not your apology to accept. sandra fluke was victimized by rush limbaugh for three straight days and she did not accept the apology. isn't that important? many of rush's advertisers are also not accepting the apology. as of right now, limbaugh has lost 45 sponsors. republicans are trying everything they can to avoid criticizing the true leader of the republican party. some of them are even developing wild conspiracy they are res. >> this whole situation is about president obama's entitlement society and war on freedom of religion in the united states of america, his foot soldier, sandra fluke, a contraception activist, is at the center of the storm. >> president obama on the ropes with the economy, and specifically with women voters, gets mrs. luke a controversy and the puppets play along scripted. >> eric bolling, you are brilliant, dude. that theory is moronic. does darrell issa have anything

to do with this? he is the chairman of the committee that would not allow sandra fluke to testify. if he let her testify she would have been another american citizen going up on capitol hill, giving her take and insight and story of a friend had real problems, medical problems and needs the contraception medication. he's also ignoring one person who created a controversy out of the sandra fluke testimony, not just darrell issa, it's rush limbaugh. republicans, i tell you what, they have stepped in it day after day on this. number one, they don't have the character to call limbaugh out on it. in fact they don't want to wade into it. why? they'll need him in the general election. the secondtotally disregarding the feelings of sandra fluke. no where have they said anything about sandra fluke and what she has been through. the republican party has now ripped off the scab and let all americans to see and voters to see that they just don't know anything about women's health care and they refuse to learn about it.

republicans continue to defend limbaugh and run away from the opportunity to criticize him. you know what they will do? they will pay a real prize when it comes to the female vote in november, and president obama had nothing to do with it. he didn't start it in any way, shape or form. and breaking news tonight, carl levin from michigan the chairman of the senate armed services committee is calling for the removal of rush limbaugh from the armed forces radio network. get your cell phones out, tonight's question, would republicans rather lose the female vote than criticize rush limbaugh? text a for yes, b for no to 622639. go to our blog at ed. >> msnbc.com, we'll bring you results later in the show. i'm joined by krystal ball and i want to know how this is playing in the middle of the country. we're joined by ohio state senator nina turner, great to have both of you with us tonight. krystal, i want to ask you first, isn't this about mitt

romney, his leadership -- i think axelrod knocked it out of the park and the obama campaign made this an issue about leadership, what do you think? >> i think axelrod was too kind in his comments. to me, this is disqualifying. mitt romney has granddaughters and he can't even take the step of condemning calling a young woman a slut and prostitute and demanding her sex tapes. >> what about mrs. romney? is she concerned about this at all? when you have the president of the united states call sandra fluke, when you have questions from the media to the president at the press conference about this, we'll get to that in a moment how can the republicans say he's an entertainer. that what is they're saying. >> you know what this reminds me of, there was a moment in the campaign trail when a woman was spouting off about obama's a muslim and john mccain bumbled his response but he at least had

the courage to say you know what, ma'am, we disagree but he's a good man. what will happen when romney has the same chance when faced with the same moment, this is a similar moment and he failed the test. >> nina turner, how this is playing in ohio, big night last night, people paying attention to politics, will this run the female vote right in the democratic camp, what do you think? >> absolutely, ed, i have been hearing from women and also men across the state of ohio and actually the country who are absolutely outraged. everyone that has a mother should be outraged by these comments by the right. you can't give somebody that doesn't have a spine, a spine. mitt romney doesn't have a spine. anybody that would dare try to say this was okay or for entertainment purposes they are spineless. it's time-out for the war on women.

they are trying to take us back to the dark ages, ed, we're not going. >> the lilly ledbetter law, 98% of the republicans voted against it. equal pay, equal treatment in the work place. this is a cultural issue with the republicans, is it not? >> it absolutely is, and again, absolute war on women, and i want women to take notice of this but also men who love and respect women should take note of this. the last time i checked, women make up over 50% of this country. the last time i checked, women were intelligent, the last time i checked women contribute to the society as mothers, as wives, aunts, caregivers, teachers, police officers. this should not be tolerated in the 21st century, ed. it's outrageous and anyone who has a mother, anyone who has a woman who loves them, who has

cared for them, should be outraged. >> this is how the president responded at his press conference yesterday about a question about the limbaugh controversy. >> the reason i called ms. fluke is because i thought about malia and sasha and one of the things i want them to do when they get older is engage in issues they care about. i don't want them attacked or called horrible names because they are being good citizens. >> krystal, how does that play? >> here what is the president has, that mitt romney lax. the ability to put himself in someone else's shoot. the empathetic quality romney has failed to dismay and courage to stand up on behalf of people who don't necessarily have a voice. so to me, that was the response that absolutely resonates with

people him as a father thinking of his own girls. >> let's talk about the health care bill and contraception, i have taken a lot of phone calls on the radio show about viagra and cialis, and nina turner, you turn the tables in ohio, what is this bill all about, what are you doing? >> senate bill 307, simply all i'm trying to do is protect vulnerable men and make sure they understand the consequences of their actions if in fact they need to be treated for erectile dysfunction, that is most important they receive an affidavit that should be signed by their current or former partner to make sure that it is physical and not psychological and the doctor takes the steps and time to really explain to them their other options, including natural remedies or celebacy. the policy making men on the right have taken great care to insure that women are protected,

and i thought it only fair that we protect the greatest gender, men in, this country. >> do you have a website people can put comments on or support it? >> they can go to www.ninaturner.org and make comments there. also go to the ohio senate page and e-mail me there as well. >> it would seem to me other state legislators in other states would take your lead on this. i've gotten phone calls from all over the country. this is an issue of fairness, is it not? >> it is, and women should not need a permission slip from government to take care of their own reproductive health, they should not need a permission slip. women are intelligent and know how to take care of of their bodies, make decisions, and again, we want to equalize this here, ed. we want to equalize it. we have to take care of men. >> breaking news tonight, the chairman of the senate armed for forces committee, carl levin of michigan saying he thinks rush limbaugh's program should be

taken off armed forces radio network krystal ball and nina turner great to have you. >> share your thoughts on twitter at ed show. the romney campaign says only an act of god can stop mitt romney from winning the nomination. but the primary election is far from over, bob shrum and sam stein will weigh in. sarah palin still thinks she has a chance to be the nominee, i hope she is right, stay with us. we're right back. [ male announcer ] that. right there -- reminds you why you fell in love with her in the first place. and why you still feel the same. but your erectile dysfunction -- that could be a question of blood flow. cialis for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions

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coming up mitt romney was last night's big winner but is newt playing the spoiler for rick santorum bid for the nomination? bob shrum and sam stein coming up next. president obama goes on offense. taking on the gop's criticism of his foreign poll circumstances e.j. dee yaun will weigh in. members of the house judiciary committee calling for

a hearing about a judge who sent a racist e-mail about president obama, we'll have details on that. share thoughts on twitter using #edshow, we're right back. to find you a great deal, even if it's not with us. [ ding ] oh, that's helpful! well, our company does that, too. actually, we invented that. it's like a sauna in here. helping you save, even if it's not with us -- now, that's progressive! call or click today. no mas pantalones!

the republican party is having a tough time wrapping up the presidential nomination. looking good for mitt romney way ahead in the delegate count but can't close the deal. his campaign is pulling out all stops. team romney said it would take an act of god for mitt to lose. romney had a good super tuesday, winning six states.

but rick santorum is still fighting hard. here's his response to romney's act of god comment today. >> what won't they resort to? to try to bully their way through the race? if the governor thinks he's now ordained by god to win, then let's just have it out. >> santorum is ready for the god fight. and he has evangelical voters backing him up. they helped him win last night in oklahoma and tennessee, he also took north dakota by surprise. based on those results, santorum could perform very well in the rest of the races this month down south. a lot of southern states are coming up a region where santorum has been strong. but newt gingrich could give the former pennsylvania senator a run for his money down south after gingrich's win in georgia, he says he's not going anywhere. >> we're staying in the race, because i believe that it's going to be impossible for a moderate to win the general election. >> according to gingrich, even rick santorum is too moderate

for the republican party. he released a document attacking santorum as a big government, big labor ear mark lover. hold it for a minute on the big labor, will you? his last three years in the senate he had a zero rating of afl-cio and every union leader i talked to said he was a zero, a nothing when it came to trade issues. for more turn to bob shrum and huffington post reporting sam stein, great to have you with us tonight. >> thanks, ed. >> bob, who won overall last night? >> barack obama. this process is going to be extended, romney is being pushed more and more to the right in order to compete with santorum, as you pointed out earlier, he can't utter mild criticism of rush limbaugh. he's 28 favorable, 39 unfavorable in the nbc polling numbers. as all this happens to him, his rationale is disappearing, the economy is improving, and the sense we ought to hire an out of touch job destroying ex-ceo to

fix the economy is disappearing. so i think barack obama was the big winner and the other big winner was the democratic party in 2016. >> with the women vote? >> not just the women. what will happen, they will nominate romromney. when he loses there will be recrimination. a party which needs to redefine itself will open the way for president clinton hillary, president o'malley, president cuomo, they could thank mitt romney in 2016. >> sam stein, where does mitt romney go from here? talk about him spending time in illinois, is surrendering in the southern states? >> they are not good states for him. i thought last night was emblematic of the problems. he has a regional problem. i won't procrastinate out to

2016, he will win enough delegates to get majority but won't likely win enough to get the 1144 he needs to secure the nomination. so that invites people like santorum and gingrich to stay in not because they want to mess with romney, there is power to be gained from taking the delegates to the convention. romney will end up the nominee the question is how bloodied and how much money does he have to spend. >> big endorsements come after super tuesday. he got george pataki today. here it is. >> i think mitt showed last night he has the breath of support that warrants our supporting him rallying around and i'm endorsing him. mitt is not a perfect candidate, has a number of problems, it's hard for blue collar families like mine to identify with him, it's hard for economic conservatives to identify with him.

he needs to do more to reach out to the latinos, but i think he has to focus on that and defeating president obama as opposed winning the next primary in the next state. >> bob shrum, three negative comments and two pieces of advice. is that the kind of endorsement you're looking for? >> maybe a few more endorsements like that, he will be undone. what i can agree with most of what pataki said. he's getting one out of six latino votes. not connecting with blue collar people at all. conservatives don't trust him, which is why i look out to 2016 and say this party, which has been headed in an odd direction since 2009 when they melted down over the election of obama, sold themselves to the tea party, this party is going to end up pushed further to the right. that happened to romney. >> romney has been taking a lot of heat for his 20% tax cut that he will be giving everybody. here what is he said about the tax plan on cnbc today. >> when i put out is a series of principles that allow our economy to grow and at the same time maintain a neutral budget impact. and so i have laid out all the

details how we will deal wech one of the deductions and exemptions, so i think it's interesting for the groups to try to score it because frankly it can't be scored, because those kind of details will have to be worked out with congress, we have a wide array of options. >> sam stein, there is another dandy, an economic plan that can't be scored, how does that play? >> it's fairy dust. it's a set of broad goals that you want to achieve without any specifics, there is a reason he's not mentioning specifics, when he talks about the programs that he wants to cut the popular programs he wants to cut, people will recoil. it's odd the business guy, the numbers guy, is delving in the vague. defeats the rationaleidacy candidacy. he can offer you specific proposals but his plan can't be scored.

>> always a pleasure, great to have you with us. thanks, ed. >> does this look like a radical leftist to you, let's examine the tape. right wingers seem to think so. we'll show you the tape and talk with e.j. dionne next. fox news is in his steer ricks over gas prices. did they get this worked up when president bush was in office? well we have tape that you just won't want to miss. [ male announcer ] we put a week's worth of bad odors in a home.

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welcome back do "the ed show." the republican primary in ohio was the main event of all the tuesday super tuesday contests, but the big winner in the buckeye state wasn't mitt romney it was the president. this chart shows the results. the president got more votes in ohio in a non-contested primary than the guy who spent $4 million to win the dog gone thing on the republican side, mitt romney. it shows how seriously the obama campaign is taking this crucial swing state. next week, vice president joe biden will start stumping in ohio. the state is a must-win on the editorial map. the republicans are throwing the kitchen sink at the president hitting him on everything from gas prices to foreign policy. here is what the president had to say about the all out war from the gop, fearmongering on iran. >> what is said on the campaign trail, those folks don't have a lot of responsibilities.

they're not commander in chief. and when i see the casualness with which some of these folks talk about war, i'm reminded of the costs involved in war. i'm reminded the decision that i have to make in terms of sending our young men and women in to battle. and the impacts that has on their lives, the impact it has on our national security. the impact it has on our economy. this is not a game. there is nothing casual about it. >> let's turn to e.j. dionne, columnist for "the washington post." i don't think i've seen a presidential campaign this focused and this aggressive so on message this early. the president has a logical,

sensible, intelligent answer for everything the republicans are coming up with, what do you think? >> you know, i think that we have a habit of saying every four years this is the most important election in your lifetime. actually, this one really is an important election. i don't think we have seen the issues drawn this clearly since the goldwater election, goldwater-lbj election in 1964. the republicans are arguing taxes need to be cut and slash away at regulation. obama is saying wait a minute, government really has a lot to do, if you want the free market economy to work. and it's ironiy, by the way, the least popular thing he did the auto rescue may be the most politically consequential thing he did, put him way ahead in michigan and ohio. there are real stakes and obama is speaking to them. if i may on that clip about iran, i think he's right where the middle ground is in the united states right now. people are tired of war, they do want us to be tough with iran, but they want a president who says he doesn't go do war cas economy to work. and it's ironiy, by the way, the least popular thing he did the auto rescue may be the most politically consequential thing

he did, put him way ahead in michigan and ohio. there are real stakes and obama is speaking to them. if i may on that clip about iran, i think he's right where the middle ground is in the united states right now. people are tired of war, they do want us to be tough with iran, but they want a president who says he doesn't go do war casually right, and that is a good attitude it's how generals feel. >> lieberman and mccain talking about air strikes. i want to go to the buzz feed they scooped, and released the video of president obama back in 1991 at harvard when he was advocating for more minority hires on the staff at harvard. this was in 1990, i believe. let's look at this. >> one of the persons who spoke at that orientation was profession or bell, i remember

him sauntering up to the front and not giving us a lecture but engaging us in a conversation. and speaking the truth and telling us that i carried with me ever since. >> when i first saw that tape i said that is the president, that is the same guy. he had skills way back. >> amazing how similar he sounds, isn't it? >> it is. they are going to take this the right wing will take the tape and tie a connection to one of the professors he was talking about as being radical and president obama was sticking up for him at the time. is this desperation on the right? >> i don't know if it's desperation it's what they have done all the way through. first of all the premise is basically wrong because if they are trying to say that barack obama was some kind of radical back in those years, they forget he was elected president of the harvard law review because he got conservative votes. conservatives felt on the harvard law review he was the most reasonable liberal, the guy they could deal with. the premise is wrong.

i want somebody who in his youth and i hope to this day, actually cares about injustice and to see him in that circumstance i don't think it hurts him. the third thing is why are these so many of these things that they try to dredge up always have a racial tinge to them? they are trying to make barack obama look like out of the main stream black militant, if you will and everybody in the country, the vast majority of the country knows, looking at the last four years, that barack obama is a moderate, a moderate on a lot of things and especially moderate about race. so if this is the worst they've got, i think he can sleep well at night. >> let's look at the videotape closely. can we go back to president obama, where he's speaking there. i want to point out i didn't see the teleprompter, did you? always a pleasure to have you with us.

>> good to be with you ed, thank you. i wouldn't close that door, and my plan is to be at that convention. >> sarah is causing headaches for republicans again. richard wolffe on the latest game change. causing these prices to go up. >> you won't want to miss the tape. >> a federal judge sends a disgusting racist e-mail about president obama. democrats want a hearing in congress, i'll ask karen finney if the republicans have the guts to block the investigation.

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>> sarah palin wants another chance to step in the spotlight at the republican convention after voting in alaska, palin said she is leaving the door open to a presidential run of her own. >> if we wind up with an open convention and someone wants to place your name, throw your name in the hat, would you stop them, would you be open to that? >> anything is possible, and i don't -- i don't close any doors that perhaps would be open out there, so no, i wouldn't close that door. my plan is to be at that convention. >> oh, she can't resist the big lights on a tuesday night. palin refused to tell cnn who she voted for but when fox news asked her, she couldn't resist. >> it's tough for me to spin out of a question like that when it comes from a fox reporter, from another reporter i can spin out of it but since it came from you, i will tell you, my own personal opinion is the cheerful one is newt gingrich. i have appreciate what he has

stood for, stood boldly for. he has been the under dog in many of these primary races and caucuses and i respected what he has stood for. >> tell you what, she is there with the people, isn't she? last night showed her lack of influence, even among alaska republicans. newt gingrich, the guy she supported, came in dead last in her state. today, karl rove said palin's vote for gingrich "demonstrated that endorsements don't mean snot." on that note, let me bring in msnbc political analyst richard wolffe, the comedy being served up by karl rove. is she serious? she is going to be at the convention expecting the call, richard, what do you think? >> karl rove is a man whose boss called him turd blossom. she is happy, obviously, in her delusions that she thinks having decided to run half a term and not run for president, then an entire convention will be

knocking on her hotel room door begging her to save the party from utter, the abyss of failure. they are obviously smoking the same thing. >> she actually thinks the republicans will come to her as the savior on this. here she is again last night. >> i believe that those would want to stop the process as soon as possible they have their own agenda, obviously they have their own person whom they want to see as a front runner, perhaps he is the front-runner and want to see everything stop, no more debate, no more ideas discussed. i want to see the competition continue, truly it does strengthen all four of our candidates, allows the voter to understand we have a choice. >> well, the polls are showing that it's not strengthening the gop. what is your response? >> she had a strange relationship with reality, political judgment isn't her forte. she does speak for a sentiment, not she has a following, but a

sentiment they don't want to nominate mitt romney and some how, magic bean will be place and out will pop a winning candidate. it's a sign she believes in the hope and change thing. >> is she supporting newt gingrich and peeling from santorum and romney, that mixes things up and makes it maybe a better chance for a brokered convention where she wants to shine, what about her support for gingrich? >> it's hard to say she has thought this through to that level. [ reciprocation, why he's excluded from this party i don't know. i do think there is an ideological populist alliance going on there, whether she figured it out there is a narrow path, who on earth knows. >> would there be any chance she could be on the gop presidential

ticket this year, do you think anyone, gingrich, santorum or romney, would they pick sarah palin? >> i think color of snot has a better chance of being on the ticket. she is going to alienate so many people. who believes she will bring something to the table that other candidates are building up support and networks, that they won't bring themselves? that is what you don't get with sarah palin, she brings no delegates, and the worst kind of media attention, will be hard enough being mitt romney and trying to get to the magic number of delegates without having sarah palin around. >> richard, one more question about last night. who was the winner? barack obama, obviously, scored very well in ohio, uncontested, but as you see it, was it not a good night for mitt romney? >> i think we came out, mitt

romney came out of this the exactly where he went in, incrediby unconvincing, he doesn't actually have the support of his own party, that is going to continue on and on for the obama campaign, it is a godsend. the rush limbaugh issue won't go away for mitt romney and now of course the financial connection has been exposed, people will be talking about that. richard wolffe always a pleasure. >> thanks, ed. >> fox news says it's president obama fault gas prices are high. were they singing the same tune four years ago when president bush was in office? the videotape doesn't lie, we'll show it to you, next.

up next, fox news is saying rising gas prices are president obama's fault? you know back in 2008 they were kind of singing a different tune. the big finish tonight, montana judge richard cebull apologized to the president for

racist e-mail, now house democrats are calling for a hearing on his conduct. karen finney will join me on that. tweet us using #edshow, we're right back. [ male announcer ] what if an entire car insurance company was thought up and built and run to save people money? what if that company was born online, with tools and apps to make people feel like geniuses? and what if that company was now backed by the stability and reliability of allstate? well, what if that company was esurance

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the next time you hear some politician troting out some three point plan for $2 gas, you let him know we know better many. >> that was president obama in north carolina earlier today hitting the republicans on gas prices. the right wing is united in attacking the president on energy, as john boehner, this debate is a debate we want to have. really? of course it's much easier to have that when you have fox news on your side. take a look. >> gas goes up almost double under this president? did anyone see that coming? here is a guy who said no i'm good for the economy. no he has been nothing but bad. >> republicans will have to

explain why gas prices have gone up and unlike the white house which seems to suggest that these are just some random of fact, point to the president's role in causing the gas prices to go up. >> gas prices rise and fall under every president but president obama is the first to try and actively stop supply and production in the united states from increasing. >> why is nobody talking about this? i have been wondering. >> the headline on dredge right now. >> gas prices have been incredibly high the last couple years and seems like this is not front and center. >> now, for those folks who like to deal in facts, here are a few we should all pay attention to. since president obama took office the number of oil rigs operating in the united states has tripled, total domestic oil output is up 8%. after declining under president bush. rising oil prices are caused by a number of factors. from tensions in the middle east to wall street speculation, there is not much the president

or any president can do about that, but don't just take my word for it, listen to the words of the enlightened few over on fox news, back in 2008. >> the facts are behind them, the facts are as you suggested, no president has the power to increase or to lower gas prices, those are market forces. >> you got a booming global economy, china and india are slopping up all the oil faster than we can these days and that is not so sinister response to what is going on. >> at this point it's tough for the president i have to be honest with you, he doesn't have control what will happen with the markets and the economy and with oil prices and supply and demand and gasoline, it is out of this president's hands. dplfrmt the next time you hear a politician say he or she will bring down oil prices understanding it's complete bs. >> wow! no spin zone there, huh big guy? play the tape on your show tomorrow night i'll look for it.

coming up the federal judge who sent out a racist e-mail about president obama is under increased pressure to resign. karen finney joins me on the democratic response, stay with us.

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[ female announcer ] only flood insurance covers floods. for a free brochure, call the number on your screen. big finish tonight, the outcry grows over federal judge who sent a racist e-mail about president obama. richard cebull was back at work today as montana's chief federal judge. last week he forwarded an e-mail to friends featuring a racist sexist joke about president obama and his mixed race parents, comparing the unity to beastiality. the judge later asked the 9th circuit to review his own misconduct, and he wrote an apology to the president of the united states. but now the top democrat of the house judiciary is calling for a hearing. it may undermine the public's view of the personal credibility. lamar smith has not yet responded to the request. civil rights organizations filed complaints directly with the 9th circuit calling for the judge's resignation. they point to the judicial code

of conduct. a judge shall disqualify himself or herself in a proceeding in which the judge's i am parral tee might reasonably be questioned. kin cludding instances in which the judge has a personal bias or prejudice. joining me tonight, karen finney, msnbc political analyst and former communications director for the democratic national committee, would seem to me, karen, the judge needs a good communication director at this point. as the guidelines are set up, how can he wiggle out of it? >> well, he can't, ed. unless he's already said he recognized that it was racist, but that he only meant it as an anti-obama thing not a racist thing. clearly, he knew and he's old enough to know racist misogynist implication of that kind of email.

as the judiciary committee folks are making the point can you imagine if you were an african american who had to go up in front of this judge, would you trust him to be impartial at this point? >> well, i certainly wouldn't advise putting in an obama tee shirt on when you go in the courtroom, that is for sure. >> that is exactly right. >> i think that this judge is out there so far that sometimes an apology doesn't work professionally, is this one of those cases? >> i think so. gee, ed, how many times people are always sorry when they get caught, aren't they? getting a ring of familiarity coming from conservatives. this one hits close to home. i got to tell you. my mom is white and she read this and so basic -- this is the kind of crap we dealt with when i was a kid and the sexual taboos of segregated racist south, white women and men of color, there is a lot going on here in this e-mail, beyond just being anti-obama. it's sexist, it's racist, and what incredibly poor judgment to

pass something like this on and think it was funny. >> so john conyers, chairman of the house judiciary committee wants a hearing but not impeach him. is this the practical effort to put pressure on this judge to resign? >> well, sure, and remember also there could be other courses of action he could be censored, there are other things that could come in terms of outcomes of an investigation, and a hearing. i think the point that conyers is raidsing, this kind of conduct we can just let this go without taking a very big time-out and saying wait a second, this is not okay. it's a lot like, i got to tell you ed, the stuff we have been talking about with rush limbaugh. at some point we have to stop and say "this is not okay" a federal judge should know better than do something like this. >> karen finney, good to have

you with us tonight appreciate your time. big news about rush limbaugh tonight, of course is the chairman of the senate armed services committee carl levin wants to make a move to take rush limbaugh off armed services radio network, which is heard around the globe by our forces. we'll follow up on that story tomorrow. that is "the ed show," listen to me on channel 127 monday through friday, 12:00 to 3:00 and great progressive talk stations around the country. follow me on twitter and like the edshow on facebook. rachel, great to see you tonight. the "the rachel maddow show" show, there used to be a radio show in north dakota called "what's on your mind" after going through the coverage last night listening to the republicans i thought i would change the name of my show to "what's left of your mind". >> i will say i was a little fried at the end of the night. even if it had just been us there for an hour that