welcome back to "politics nation." i'm al sharpton. tonight's lead, republicans, it's on. a fiery speech today before ohio voters, vice president biden made the opening arguments for the obama re-election campaign. he boiled this election down to a simple choice. a choice between an obama white house that cares about restoring the middle class and a republican party that thinks americans should fend for themselves. the vice president called out republicans by name. >> mitt romney, rick santorum, and newt gingrich. these guys have a fundamentally different economic philosophy than we do. they started the mantra that said, we would make auto companies, quote, wards of the state, was their phrase. governor romney was more direct. let detroit go bankrupt. the president, he didn't flinch. this is a man with steel in his

spine. he made the tough call. and the verdict is in. president obama was right and they were dead wrong. >> they were dead wrong about the auto bailout, none more than willard, who somehow things the private sector would have saved detroit. >> no one was lining up to lend general motors or chrysler any money, or for that matter, to lend money to anybody. that includes bain capital. they weren't lining up to lend anybody any money, either. >> bain didn't save over 1 million jobs, president obama did. he bet on the middle class, and that's something that republicans that shown time and time again, that they will not do. >> i want to tell you what's real bankruptcy. the economic theories of

gingrich, santorum and romney. they are bankrupt. if you give any one of these guys the keys to the white house, they will bankrupt the middle class again. >> that's it, folks. that's the choice. this administration is fighting tooth and nail for the middle class, while the other side is spending their time alienating whole groups of americans. like rick santorum saying if puerto rico wants to be a state, it should learn english. >> they'd have to speak english. that would be a requirement. it's a requirement that we put on other states as a condition for entering the union. >> learn english? are you serious?! and while santorum is bashing latinos, willard's alienating women. >> of course you get rid of obama care. that's the easy one. but there are others. planned parenthood, we're going to get rid of that.

>> that's what republicans are offering. as vice president biden showed today, the choice could not be clearer. it's either a party that's going to fight for everyone in this country, or a party that's only got the interests of a few in mind. joining me now, former pennsylvania governor ed rendell, now an nbc news political analyst, and richard wolffe, nbc political analyst. he's author of "revival: the the struggle for survival inside the obama white house." governor rendell, let me start with you. vice president biden laid out the case for democrats today. the fight for fairness. what are the republicans running on? >> well, reverend, before i answer that question, i have to tell you, i am absolutely stunned mitt romney wants to get rid of planned parenthood. didn't we see a tape of him attending a planned parenthood fund-raiser several years ago? >> yeah, we did. we showed it right here on this show. >> i'm pretty stunned about that

gymnastic flip-flop. but, look, planned parenthood, people who are against abortion, who want to reduce the number of abortions in this country should be thankful for planned parenthood. their family planning, which is the bulk of what they do, prevents a ton of unwanted pregnancies. and to think of getting rid of planned parenthood is repugnant and makes no sense to anybody on either side of that issue. but to go back to your question, reverend, the republicans have a problem. because even when the economy was in the ditch, they had no answer. because the answer that they proposed has been tried and has failed. cutting taxes and doing nothing else, and assuming that the by cutting taxes, it will generate economic growth, that failed when president bush did it. it failed at virtually every time in the last century. our biggest periods of job growth, ironically, is when our tax marginal rates were at the highest. so it makes no sense. their philosophy doesn't work.

it's unfair, it penalizes ordinary working folks. but most importantly, it doesn't create jobs. >> richard, you know what is a little surprising to me, i get it that they have policies that many of us don't agree with. i get it that they want to push for some of the people that have held and bolstered their chances in terms of fund-raising and all. but when you even look at the fox news poll, the economy's a central issue in this campaign. even this fox poll showed the people think the economy's turning around. this is the fox poll. 58% say, yes, the economy's improving. 40% say, no, it isn't. so if i'm a republican, if the fox poll is telling me people think the economy's turning around, with then how am i in denial when my own base is saying they don't agree with the assessment that the economy's not turning around? i mean, are they tone deaf?

>> well, that's what we in politics call a problem. look, the main argument is that the president doesn't anything about jobs. well, you have the record when it comes to detroit and saving jobs there. they say that they understand something about supply and demand with the oil industry, and they think that they can introduce price controls or somehow manage to keep the price of oil lower in america than it would be around the rest of the world. and then you have their only line of attack on the economy here is trying to convince the american people that the economy's getting worse when, in fact, most of them think it's getting better. you end up having to sound pessimistic about the country, about the nature of the economy, about what america can do. and you never want to be in a situation, in a way, like some democrats found themselves, when things were turning around in iraq, for instance. and they had to suggest that things weren't going so well, when, in fact, conditions were improving on the ground. you really want your argument to stack up reality. and when it comes to the most

important issue wit, the econom right now, republicans have to talk things down. and that's not going to get them any votes. >> now, governor rendell, another thing that doesn't make political sense. i mean, we've seen the primaries the other night, everyone's looking at the politics of the time. does it make sense for santorum and others to offend latino voters? when you look at the fact that it is a growing part of the electorate. in 2005, 0.4% of the electorate was latino. it went up to 6% in 2004. went up to 7.4% in 2008. it's grown even more for 2012. what is the political sense of offending that kind of voting bloc? >> it makes no sense at all. again, it's just this obsession with feeding the base, who's going to be there for them regardless. and yet, they feed the base red

meat, and the red meat literally is going to kill them. people think latino votes are important in florida and new mexico and arizona, california, texas. but they forget. right now, reverend, 7% of the registered voters in pennsylvania are latino. and that is the fastest-growing group we have in our registration pool, and they can make the difference in a very close one or two-point election. so it makes absolutely no sense. it's not good policy. the dream act, i think, is abundantly fair, and i think it's something that most americans, the majority, agree with. their policy makes no sense, and i would like to ask rick santorum a question. he said puerto rico shouldn't become a state until they all can speak english. where in the constitution does he find that requirement? that we all have to speak english? >> well, absolutely. not only where in the constitution does he find that requirement, i thought that was the group that didn't want government intruding on people's lives. but now we're going to tell

people what language they have to have as a first language, just total contradictions. same with women, richard wolffe. 2000, 7.8 million more women, 2004, 8.8 million more women. 2008, 9.7 million more women in the electorate. so it's just like they have totally become oblivious based on some hard-right ideology, totally oblivious to the whole breakdown of the electorate and the growing numbers in certain areas, just offend them, doesn't matter. >> well, this is not a new cycle or progression in american politics, just as the growth of latino voters aren't. you know, women voters were decisive in a successive series of elections, going back to the '90s. they are disproportionately the swing votes, especially suburban women, and this kind of cultural wars at this moment, which is, by the way, completely off topic

for what voters want to hear right now, what women voters want to lehere right now is goi to threaten them. and if they carry on on this the track with latino voters, they're not going to be within reach in texas in 10 years, 15 years' time. a republican nominee will struggle to get anything like what they need in the electoral college on this track. >> now, the one thing, governor, that i know you've always stressed is, let's be positive. let me show you the contrast between the president and the gop. the president's been able to strike a positive tone while republicans are just gone purely negative. everything is down, down, down, while he's tried to stay positive. let me show you this kind of match between tones here. >> they know that america is great not just because we're powerful, but also because we have a set of values that the world admires. >> if barack obama gets

re-elected, iran will have a nuclear weapon and the world will change. >> with we can fight for an economy that's built to last. >> crippling our future generations. >> no one has a greater diversity of talent and ingenuity. >> on one side is a radical, secular, i think, much worse future. >> the contrast is very striking, governor. >> no question. but you know, the answer to that is pretty obvious, reverend sharpton. the answer is that they don't have as much to talk about. president obama, given all the circumstances he inherited, has a very fine record to talk about. a record of accomplishment. a record of progress. a record of sensitivity towards the basic corps of american values. their plans or nothing but negative. they're nothing but destructive. they say they want to repeal obama care. okay, what's their plan? have you heard it yet? have you heard their plan for health care for americans? >> no. >> of course not. because there isn't a plan. and that's the problem with their position. >> well, governor, you are right.

i am still awaiting to hear what you're going to do, other than just trying to stop this president. >> absolutely. >> governor ed rendell, richard wolffe, thanks for coming on the show tonight. >> our pleasure. >> thanks, reverend. coming up, president obama slams republicans for playing political games with gas prices and calls them out for being stuck in the past on energy. >> they must have been founding memories of the flat earth society. they would not have believed that the world was round. but first, even some of willard's supporters admit he's a bad candidate. which is why they're getting ready to play dirty in election. and we have the details. and a republican governor has some outrageous advice for women being forced to take ultrasounds. you're watching "politics nation" on msnbc. [ man ] hmm. a lot can happen in two hundred thousand miles...

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welcome back to "politics nation." the race goes on, and willard romney's here in new york, trying to convince big donors everything's just fine. meanwhile, the obama campaign is off and running. the early message, the president is cool under pressure. that's not what we've seen out of willard.

>> if i'm a weak front-runner, what does that make newt gingrich? oh, and by the way, last night i got more delegates than anybody else. >> people say, he can't relate -- he's so rich, he can't relate to the rest of us. why do you keep doing that? >> megan, guess what. i made a lot of money. i've been very successful. i'm not going to apologize for that. >> america's right and you're wrong! >> brett, your list is just not accurate. so one, we're going to have to be better informed about my views on issues. >> is there a misconception about you -- >> you know, you get to ask the questions you want, i get to give the answers i want. >> and the longer the race goes on, the happier the comedians will be. >> look at his energy policy! what is his energy policy? you can't drive a car with wand m mil on it. >> that's right! you can't drive a car with a windmill on it! because if you put a windmill on top of your car, then where does

the dog go? >> his money has had more foreign policy experience than he has. >> we've compiled a list of other things that he has never said. number four, we can't lay people off, it's christmas. number three, i think the dog would be more comfortable inside the car. >> he's talking about romney's now-infamous trip, when he strapped his dog to the roof of his car. and it's in the headlines again today. it all adds up to the fact that he has trouble connecting. today's campaign launched a contest to grab a bite with mitt. he's trying his hardest to connect, but let's be very clear here. this election will not be easy. they know they have a flawed front-runner, so they have a plan in place. the first place is divide it. karl rove and the koch brothers plan on raising over $440

million. the second part is the plan to suppress the vote with extreme voter i.d. laws in key states. in the wake of pennsylvania passing their voter i.d. bill yesterday, the brennan center released this map today. which shows that voter i.d. laws in key swing states could impact 189 electoral votes. that's 70% of the amount needed to win the presidency. they're in trouble, but they're willing to do anything to win. joining me now, erin mcpike, national political reporter for real clear politics, and joe madison, nationally syndicated host of "mornings with madison" on sirius xm radio. thanks for both of you for being here tonight. >> thank you, reverend. >> erin, you followed the romney campaign. how concerned -- let me start with that. how concerned are they about the negative press that they've been getting as this race goes on? >> they are very concerned about it, which is why they're

addressing it by putting mitt romney out in more interviews like he did yesterday with fox news. he'll be doing more of those. now, i would say to you that the republican party in washington, republican officials, republican operatives, and just big republican supporters here in d.c. are more concerned about it than the the romney campaign is, and they are talking a little bit more about how they would fix the romney message if given a chance. i've talked to some of those people within the last month or so, and they say that they'd like to see mitt romney talk more about his turnaround credentials, that he went in, turned around businesses, turned around the olympics. changed a deficit in massachusetts into a surplus when he was governor. as opposed to just saying he knows how the economy works and how to create jobs. because when he says things like that, it can turn around to bite him. because as you know, when he was in charge of bain, and they were turning around businesses, they often cut jobs. and so that's not really the best message for him.

>> now, joe, in light of they, themselves wishing he were projecting different things, in light of the fact the polls, even the polls that we have now, fox news has the president winning against both romney and santorum, head to head. president obama, 46, romney, 42. president obama, 51, rick santorum, 39. these are fox polls. is it any wonder that some of us feel that they are planning to do other things that are not quite, in our opinion, principled and fair, like come in with crazy money and using these pacs s in ways of using negative campaigning. and in ways as this brennan comes out today, affect the electoral vote by having some very strange and stringent voter i.d. laws in key swing states? >> yes, you're absolutely right.

when -- everybody must realize, any president running for a second term will always have a close second race. i've read a report the other day, north carolina, very important state, with once again. voter i.d. law. thank goodness the governor there had sense enough to do what she did. but here's the deal. they're saying that it could be a one-point swing. let's go to wisconsin. voter i.d. law. wisconsin, milwaukee. i was in milwaukee. you've been to milwaukee. the voter i.d. law in milwaukee may very well disenfranchise 75% of african-americans in that city, just milwaukee. pennsylvania, just passed it. governor is going to sign it immediately. not only will they have a voter i.d. law by the way former

governor, your contributor, will tell you, there's no voter fraud problem in that state. well, guess what they're also planning to do. if i'm not mistaken, and that is that they want to divide the electoral college votes. see, it used to be winner take all. they're planning legislation. and then to go to your point about these -- this money, these ads, you have sherrod brown, who has introduced a bill to say, at least, let's have transparency, so that the american people know who's paying for these ads. well, guess what, republicans in the senate are going to filibuster and block it. they don't even want transparency. >>? you see, erin, when joe talks about pennsylvania, with i.d. laws, let me show you how the race there is tight in pennsylvania. according to the polls, president obama's at 45, rick

santorum's at 44, romney at 40 to president obama's 46 against romney. so if you can cut off a lot of voters in pennsylvania, you could actually turn the vote and win those electoral votes, only because a lot of people that voted last night and have voted for years using their i.d., all of a sudden that i.d. is no longer enough. that's very, very, very, very bad in a democracy in my opinion, erin. >> yeah. and i think we'll be seeing a lot of efforts to block those pieces of legislation as the year goes forward. i mean, this has been in play for a couple of years now. and it's something that the democrats are always talking about as a problem. so it will be one of those heated issues in this election, that's for sure. >> now, joe, when you talk about, as i was referring to, the money on negative ads, one of the reasons that i think that that is something in the yair is look at president obama's

favorability rating, even on fox. again, i keep going to them. and fox as the favorability at 50%. mitt romney, 39%. so if you've got the republican front-runner at 39% on the fox poll favorability and the president, 50, you've got to try to muddy them up and muddy up all of those that you can, that may raise the questions, that won't help you. >> and it's not in the air. i'll just add one observation, that you said, it's in the air. it is on the ground. we are seeing a preview of what mitt romney is going to try to do to president obama because he's doing it to every opponent he has, and he's using again, this money, where we, the average voter out here, we don't even know where the money's coming from. >> have no idea. >> so, but i think the strategy should be just what the

president is doing, but most important of all, we who have voices need to expose this for what it is. but they better be careful, because again, someone once said, you expose a devil, and people will rise up and take care of that devil. so they can keep being evil, but you might just motivate us to go out and -- >> vote in big numbers. it may motivate a huge vote. erin mcpike and joe madison, thanks. >> thank you. ahead, a feisty and downright funny president obama handed those republicans promising low gas prices today. and pennsylvania governor tom corbett tells women forced to have an ultrasound to just close your eyes. what is he talking about?! stay with us. [ male announcer ] if you think any battery will do...

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robertson. but what's really funny is that robertson used to think global warming was a serious issue. in fact, he and i made a public service ad about it in 2008. >> al, let's face it. we're polar opposites. >> we couldn't be further apart. i'm on the left. >> and i'm usually right. and we strongly disagree. >> except on one issue. tell them what it is, reverend pat. >> that would be our planet. taking care of it is is extremely important. >> what is it with that couch and conservatives? they're always running away from wet they said there. >> we don't always see eye to eye, do we, newt? >> no. but we do agree, our country must take action to address climate change. >> but these days, newt's got a different attitude about his efforts to save the planet. >> the ad i did with nancy pelosi is the dumbest single thing i've done in the last five

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welcome back to "politics nation." we've been talking a lot about the war on women's health. mandatory ultrasound bills are on the books in eight states. pennsylvania's pushing a law that makes a woman watch the ultrasound. here's governor tom corbett on that. >> making them watch, does that go too far in your mind? >> i don't know how you can make anybody watch, okay? because you just have to close your eyes. >> close your eyes? just like you're closing your eyes to the injustice of these laws? that's outrageous. and this goes on in the states as this is happening in washington, the senate is taking

up the violence against women act. it's been law since 1994. it aids victims of violent crimes. for 18 years, it had overwhelming bipartisan support, until now. republicans are threatening to vote against the bill. why? because this latest version protects battered undocumented immigrants and people in same-sex relationships. and it provides free legal assistance to victims of domestic violence. democrats are calling, shame! >> is the violence any less real, is the danger any less real because you happen to be gay or lesbian? i don't think so. >> this is a bipartisan bill. we authorized this law last time here in the senate unanimously. i'm disappointed that these issues keep coming up. >> combatting domestic violence and sexual assault is an issue that we should all be able to

agree on. >> joining me now is terry o'neil, president of the national organization for women. terry, thanks for being here tonight. >> hi, reverend. thanks for having me. >> first, what is your take on governor corbett's comment about closing their eyes? >> you know, it is -- it reminds me of the legislator in alabama, who specifically said he wanted women to have a choice as to whether they would be humiliated with what duns berry calls that 10-inch shaming wand, that is the vaginal probe, or should they be humiliated with an external sonogram. the governor is clearly out of touch with what is important to women, clearly doesn't care about women's health care. it is, as you say, a shocking and outrageous comment. and this is a man who is governor of an entire state. he really should not be in that position at all. >> now, it's outrageous, but let's go to the senate debating this bill. and i notice there's some ray of

hope. some republicans are getting a little nervous. senator lisa murkowski on the senate floor today, even republican senator murkowski said she thinks her colleagues should vote for the violence act. listen to this. >> something else that we all care about is the violence, the assaults that women often endure, their sisters, their daughters, their neighbors, their friends. and the violence against women act is an important commitment to victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse, that they're not alone. >> and we see that senator collins and others are republicans, at least three, are coming out for this bill. is that encouraging to you? >> it is. we have six republicans that have sponsored the bill so far.

mike crapo is one of the co-authors and mark kirk from illinois. obviously, lisa murkowski. and you know, for her to go down to the senate floor today and make that speech in favor of the bill was very courageous. my understanding is that republican senators are experiencing enormous pressure to oppose the violence against women act. it's really astonishing. this is a bill, as you say, that has had near-unanimous, bipartisan support in the past. the law provides programs for battered women. who thinks it's okay to allow an immigrant woman to have to be stuck in a violent relationship? and you know, the new bill recognizes the special issues that immigrant women face. for example, sometimes if their husband or their intimate partner is their sponsor, that

person may have control of their documents. and so you need these special things. and yet the republicans are saying, oh, no, if it's immigrants, we don't want it. this is only unifying our side to really win these elections in 2012. >> no, you're right. but let me also say, i see you've got some other very good news knew. the afl-cio in their executive meeting in orlando came out with a resolution fighting for women. saying that, i'm quoting the resolution, "as a strong supporter of health care reform, the afl-cio believes all women should have universal access to quality health care at a reasonable cost that is not determined by political agendas." that's big help. >> that is a huge help. and, you know, and that statement also says that the attacks on workers' rights are having a disproportionate impact on women. the afl-cio recognizes it, and it's absolutely true, which is why we are really thrilled to be

working with the unions in this extremely important year. >> terry o'neill, president of n.o.w., thank you for your time. >> thank you, reverend. ahead, pumping the truth. president obama took on the republicans promising low gas prices. and it was pretty funny. [ male announcer ] let's level the playing field. take the privileged investing tools of wall street and make them simple, intuitive, and available to all. distill all that data. make information instinctual, visual.

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welcome back to "politics nation." republicans keep coming up with some funny numbers to push their views on the economy. remember herman cain's 9-9-9 plan? well, now one candidate has a new magic formula for gas prices. 2-5-0. >> as i went around both states talking about $2.50 gasoline, having all sorts of folks in the elite media saying, oh, that's not possible. trying to get gas down under $2.50 a gallon. i think i have to keep moving forward, return gasoline to under $2.50 a gallon. >> sorry, newt, but you can't drill your way back to $2.50 gasoline. president obama went on the road today to call out republicans for playing political games with gas prices. >> they start acting like we've got a magic wand and we will give you cheap gas forever if you just elect us.

i guess this year they decide we're going to make it $2.50. i don't know where, you know, why not $2.40? why not $2.10? >> president obama also outlined his plan to invest in new sources of energy and ridiculed republicans who are stuck in the past. >> if some of these folks were around when columbus set sail -- they must have been founding members of the flat earth society. they would not have believed that the world was round. >> joining me now is karen finney, msnbc political analyst and columnist for "the hill," and michael eric dyson, msnbc political analyst and georgetown university professor. thank you both for being here

tonight. >> thank you. >> hey, rev. >> karen, what did you think of that speech? >> i loved it. i love watching the president have a little fun at the gop's expense. because anybody that tells you that they can get gas prices down to a particular number is selling you something. and we know that newt gingrich is a big snake oil salesman. so it was great to see him have some fun with that. >> now, dr. dyson, you are a words man yourself. and is the strategy with 9-9-9, $2.50, is to try to have things simple, thinking it will stick in someone's mind and brain, that you've really come up with a formula they can remember, even though it absolutely has no connection to any sound policy? >> no sound policy at all, reverend sharpton. and as miss finney said, i'm glad to see the president indulge in some rhetorical luxury there, to really spurn the advances of the darned gop. what does that sound for? giving oil to people?

well, they don't have any to give. the only reality is that the only gas in the room is the gas they're leaking from the other end of their face, and it's not their mouth. the reality is, look, they're talking about the president, his policies blocking the domestic production of oil. well, what about bio fuels? what about solar power? that's the reality here that they don't want to deal with. and the president is right, they are anti-scientific. they've been well-known to be anti-civ anti-scientific, and as a result of that, they don't want to have to deal with gas prices being linked to energy policies that they don't want to indulge. they're like a bad rapper with a horrible hook. they keep repeating it, but it bears no mention of the real problems there and it doesn't have a good tune. >> continuing with that, karen, let me show you what they have on rotation. because they keep saying it over and over again. listen to this. >> his policy has been outrageously anti-american energy. the high price of gasoline is a

direct result of obama. >> if he's re-elected, he will continue to put the hold on natural gas and oil and coal. >> the president of the united states, when he ran for office, talked about, talked about how we need higher prices for gasoline. >> the administration's policies are actually designed on purpose to bring about higher gas prices. >> i mean! >> karen, what do you think about, is the plan, high rotation, keep saying it, everybody's saying and it becomes true because everybody's hearing it? >> yeah, you know, that is the way of the leaders of the republican party. they feel like if they just keep saying it enough times, that will make it so. but that doesn't mean that it's the truth. the other piece of this, following on to what dr. dyson was talking about, is that the truth is, under this president, he has approved more leases for drilling. he has approved -- we have actually increased our oil exports. and we've actually decreased consumption. what they won't give him credit

for, and all these false arguments they make. let's talk about the keystone pipeline. the reality is, a, it won't create as many jobs as they say it will. b, the oil from that pipeline would actually go on the world market. so it wouldn't be in this country. and three, the pipeline by the time it was yielding oil, we would have, you know, we're already past this problem. so they know that this is an easy, cheap shot to take at a president. i've got the same talking points that as democrats we used against george bush, that they're now using against the president. and certainly, all of these guys, particularly gingrich and santorum, they know better. they know that there is not much the president can do, unless he decided to open up the strategic oil reserve, to change gas prices. that's just reality. >> and we can have different opinions, but not different facts. you're laying out the facts. dr. dyson, it seems that the american people, though, are a little clearer than they thought, because when you look at the polls, 66% blame big oil companies and mideast nations.

only 23% blame president obama for rising gas prices. >> there's no doubt about it. you know, it's like ghandi said. let me catch up with my people so i can lead them. the people out here understand that the president doesn't regulate gas prices. that's why he scorned them today with that why not make it $2.40, why not make it $2.10? keep jabbing them, president obama. he proves himself to be apunlglouse of the rhetorical order. he's just jabbing them with his arguments and punturing them with holes. the american public already understands, this man has no more to do with the regulation of gas prices than the republicans have anything to do with high intelligence and a tremendous insight. i think that on this case, the american people are way ahead of the curve. >> and we can see, karen, if you're talking about the rhetorical order, we also must talk about who buys the ringside seats. because big oil companies donate big money. during this campaign in 2012,

this cycle, 88% of the big oil money, $20.5 million, is the exact figure so far, 88% went to republicans. only 12% went to democrats. >> well, that's exactly right. and that's the other point i wanted to raise. let's see the politics in this for what it is. part of the reason that you have mitch mcconnell and other republican members of congress attacking the president, they also know there's nothing the president can do to truly lower gas prices. but they go home and they get their butts can kicked by their constituents, who say, how come you haven't created jobs? how come my gas prices are so high? and the only answer, so far, they have is, well, you know, we voted against obama care, and we voted against this and that. they haven't done anything. and so they're trying to push the blame off on to the president, when really what they ought to be doing is joining into democrats in congress that are looking at this and the white house is looking at, what can we do to go after the the speculators. . >> that's where it came from, the speculators. got to leave it there.

you're absolutely right, though, karen. thank you, karen finney, dr. michael eric dyson, thank you both for your time tonight. >> thanks. we'll be right back. i'm freaking out man. why? i thought jill was your soul mate. no, no it's her dad. the general's your soul mate? dude what? no, no, no. he's, he's on my back about providing for his little girl. hey don't worry. e-trade's got a totally new investing dashboard. everything is on one page, your investments, quotes, research... it's like the buffet last night. whatever helps you understand man. i'm watching you. oh yeah? well i'm watching you, watching him.

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47 years ago this month, america was at a boiling point on civil rights. protesters and police had been clashing for weeks over a planned march from selma to montgomery, alabama, to highlight discrimination against african-americans at the polls. bloody images of the brutal crackdown at the selma's petis bridge flashed across tv screens, sparking international outrage. stunned americans watched in horror as protesters were beaten and tear gassed. others were murdered. some shot to death in the middle of the night, simply because they stood up for what's right. the pain of their sacrifice reached all the way to the oval office. president lyndon bane johnson

made a courageous decision to the stand up for justice. on march 16th, 1965, he gave a historic speech, introducing the voting rights act. it was one with week after the bloody sunday attack on the selma marches. and it forever changed this country. >> there can and should be no argume argument. every american citizen must have an equal right to vote. there is no reason which can excuse the denial of that right. there is no duty which weighs more heavily on us than the duty we have to ensure that right. what happened in selma is part of a far larger movement which reaches into every section and state of america. it is the effort of american negroes to secure for themselves

the full blessings of american life. it's not just negroes but really it's all of us who must overcome the crippling legacy of bigotry and injustice. and we shall overcome. >> the voting rights act of 1965 made voting a constitutional right for the first time. it blocked states from imposing barriers, like the literacy tests or poll taxes. and it barred states from blocking the vote based on race, color, or language. johnson called it his greatest achievement. now that achievement is under attack from so-called voter i.d. bills. and we're going to defend it. that's why we're speaking out. and it's why we were in selma last week, marching in the

footsteps of dr. king and congressman lewis and activists who died in the struggle. we didn't come this far to get tricked now! whatever scheme you play, we'll be ready to meet you and beat you! our fathers beat jim crow! we're going to beat james crow jr.! congressman lewis told me that as dr. king watched that speech, march 15th, 1965 with lyndon johnson, tears rolled down his eyes. i was a little boy then, but i'm grown now, going through ups and downs, made my mistakes, but i never stopped dreaming in dr. king's dream. i never stopped believing that lyndon johnson was right when he said, we shall overcome. thanks for watching. i'm al sharpton. "hardball" starts right now.