that you have not physically laid eyes on george zimmerman since a week before this incident and have not till this day. how can you claim you are a close friend of george zimmerman when none of that is true of you. you don't really know. >> george zimmerman's friend grilled on the last word on what he knows about the man who shot trayvon martin. again and again failing to answer key questions. will a good night's sleep provide joe oliver with more answers? joe oliver joins me live in studio this morning. hi, everybody, i'm thomas roberts, we have a lot on the agenda today rt starting with that jetblue pilot. taking passengers and crew completely by surprise. well, today those passengers are speaking out about their terrifying ordeal. and the captain who was subdued by at least five passengers after trying to break into the cockpit was doing so while shouting that iraq, iran, and afghanistan were going to take that plane down. the flight on its way from new york to las vegas but diverted

to texas for that emergency landing. >> just out of his mind. just screaming and saying to the passengers, say your prayers, say your prayers. >> it appears he was trying to open the side door. i wasn't going to let that happen. i said, you know what? i'm going to have to stop this from happening. >> i'm joined by aviation expert paul mccarthy. paul, that jetblue captain was taken to a medical facility to be treated. he has been a commercial pilot since 1989. what in your estimation would explain something like that? >> well, you know, i really think that you're probably going to have to ask a physician that question rather than me. i can say one thing. i'll bet that when he came to work in the morning, when he did his pre-flight, when he briefed his co-pilot, there were no symptoms. we're watching each other very carefully during that work-up.

and whatever happened apparently happened suddenly. so as far as why, we're going to have to wait for the physicians. >> paul, talk about that as you say that you look at your colleagues when you're doing that in-flight check through before taking off. what are you looking for red flags in your colleagues that are onboard that flight when you're taking in 200, 250 passengers and you have their lives in your hands? >> it's kind of funny. if you walk through an airport and you look at the pilots in uniform and you look at them and probably hold them to a different standard than everybody else in the airport. well, we do the same thing to each other. we hold each other to a very high standard all of the time. it's a code of behavior, a code of conduct that is enormous amongst airline pilots. and a defuativiation is a red f going to be noticed and commented on, and if it becomes persistent, somebody's going to do something about it.

so an incident like this is really right at the edge of our ability to imagine the situation. people snap, and it sounds very much like that may be what happened here. >> the reaction of passengers jumping up to restrain that pilot and getting everyone safely to the ground. aviation expert paul mccartney. thanks for joining me, i appreciate it. >> certainly. developing right now is the president's health care law headed for a supreme smackdown. as we speak, it is the third and final day in what has been a marathon week so far at the supreme court. today, the high court looks at two key questions. can the court throw out the individual mandate without striking down the entire law? and the medicaid expansion. is it too heavy of a burden for states? all of this following a day when the individual mandate came under heavy assault by the justices. protesters gave their side of the argument just moments ago. >> if you don't want your health insurance, you can go to some place else. >> they might not pick you up, that's the thing.

this is mandating that they save your life. i don't understand -- >> no, it's mandating that you buy insurance. >> robert shapiro is a law professor at emery university and he clerked for the now retire retired justice. kevin has argued in front of the supreme court six times, just coming out from listening to the third day of argument. so kevin, break down what is being heard inside the supreme court for the supreme court this morning. because we've been following the reports of the liberal justices going on the offense. what's your take? >> well, the question before the court this morning is assuming that the court strikes down the mandate, does it take down the entire statute with it? it was argued against the mandate yesterday and he argues once you strike down the mandate and everything that's tied to it, all you're left with is a hallow shell of a statute that congress never would've enacted and you should strike the whole thing down.

and there wasn't a lot of appetite for that in the court this morning. >> professor, many were surprised at how hard the solicitor general was grilled by some of the justices on tuesday. i want to remind everybody about that. take a listen. >> do you not have a heavy burden of justification to show authorization under the constitution? >> can the government require you to buy a cell phone because that would facilitate responding when you need emergency services? >> everybody has to buy food sooner or later, so you define the market as food therefore everybody's in the market, therefore you can make people buy broccoli. >> how much of a dark cloud did the statements from kennedy, roberts, and scalia cast on the law. >> it wasn't a good day for the government. seems to be a great deal of s l skepticism from the justices. whether the court was going to view this as regulations or health care generally or whether they were going to focus on the burden of the individual and they seem to be very concerned with the burden on the

individual. >> it's also hard to interpret the language some of the justices are using because we did hear from kennedy who was harsh and we did hear a different angle later on. take a listen to this. >> the young person who is uninsured is uniquely proximately very close to affecting the rates of insurance and the cost of providing medical care in a way that is not true in other industries. that's my concern in the case. >> kevin, how much do we read into the questioning? and also i want to ask you about the white house coming out with a statement of support from don? how much pressure is he under for day three? >> well, you can read a fair bit into the questioning, particularly justice kennedy who wears his heart on his sleeve. and i think his question revealed he was skeptical, troubled, but also thinks this is a very serious question and he's very troubled by the prospect of striking the statute down. i think he still has an open mind. with respect to the white house and the performance, you know, i

honestly think he's under some unfair criticism. i think he did a fine job yesterday and he just has a position that's not very popular at the court. >> professor, we're seeing some of the passions flaring outside the courthouse right now, the protesters there waiting for this third day to be over. and in your estimation, how aware of the justices of what is taking place outside the passions from both sides. >> i think the justices are aware of the significance they're hearing. it's rare for the supreme court to consider this comprehensive piece of national legislation. nothing really like it since the 1930s. with regard to protests, i think they're used to being in the center of conflict like that. but it's really the nature of this legislation that makes these set of hearings stand apart. >> kevin, do you think that the supreme court is going to come to some sort of compromise on holding portions of this law, upholding portions of it rather than striking it completely down? >> it sure seemed this morning

that they weren't likely to strike the whole thing down. the question is, of the big really important provisions, which ones will be placed and which ones will they strike down? and it's hard to say at this point. >> gentlemen, thanks for joining me at this point, i appreciate it. we are learning new details about the night of trayvon martin's shooting, it was classified as negligent homicide, but he was never charged. now it's been 32 days. i'm going to talk with the man who was trying to defend the shooter. newt gingrich cutting back on campaign events, laying off a third of his staff. his manager forced out. why doesn't he drop out of this race? i'm going to ask his chief of staff coming up next. hindering . it's time for some common sense -- people in congress who'll come together and put partisan politics aside. not with radical schemes that gamble with america's future. but with a plan that requires washington to balance the budget the right way -- protecting the priorities of america's families.

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welcome back, everybody. is this the last gasp for newt

gingrich's campaign? new reports the campaign is slashing staff, trimming travel and charging $50 for photos with the candidate. gingrich who replaced his campaign manager says he's putting the focus on the convention. >> i think you'll then have one of the most interesting open conventions in american history. and the question will be asked is who can best beat barack obama. and at that point, i think most republicans agree that i would probably do a better job debating obama than any other candidate. >> joining me this morning is chief of staff for the gingrich campaign. patrick, obviously you still have a job going for you this morning. but there's a new poll that shows a majority of gop voters, 60%, think that newt gingrich should bow out. and then i want to show everybody this. it's the front page of the huffington post. the headline, staring into the abyss. is that what newt gingrich is doing this morning? >> absolutely not. the other part of that poll that says 60% should drop out, there's about a 43% margin that say they would like to see this

to go into an open convention. so this is just a change of strategy. when you're in a contest like this and something isn't working or you get to a point where you need a change, it shows we're nimble and willing to make an adjustment. i mean, it's clear, look, the fact of the matter is that it's not possible for us to get 1,144 delegates before the convention. but looks like neither will romney or santorum. if that's the case, we'll go through the convention, the first vote, and then the nomination is a jump ball. in order to participate, you've got to be there. so this is simply a change in our strategy to get to the convention in tampa. and during the course of this continue debating obama on his failed policies in the country. >> i want to get to this because rival rick santorum had this to say about newt gingrich and the campaign yesterday.

>> obviously financially it's tough. i can certainly understand that. >> so overall fund raising numbers, they show that the debt, patrick is more than the campaign has onhand. sheldon adelson's checks, are they still coming in or drying up? >> i can't tell you what the future of the money coming into that comes in. in terms of our finances, obviously we -- we are -- that is something that we are dealing with like every small business in america. we made the cuts, we are looking at the ways of being more lean. and still accomplishing the goal. i mean, we can -- we'll go through this, we'll figure this

out. and be on to tampa and have the most interesting open convention of a generation. >> it's going to be an interesting -- i think that's a good word as you put it. but i want to say if it's a brokered convention or a broken convention, how does this help the party with the most important goal of beating president obama? >> that's an interesting point. let me, you know, the establishment keeps saying this is hurting the party. that's a very d.c. central view. we just got back from delaware and maryland yesterday. and this happened in mississippi and washington state. and what's happening in these states that have never participated in a presidential election before because by this point earlier, the candidate would decide it. the parties are so excited about being able to be part of this process, they're signing up new volunteers. we're raising money for the party. they're becoming more engaged. and what we saw with the obama and hillary and clinton campaign is this is exactly why the rnc changed the rules this year so that all of the country could be

engaged in the primary season and all of the country's vote can count. texas counts, california counts, delaware counts. so this is -- i disagree with the premise that this is hurting the party because at the end of the day, we're making stronger candidates, we're showing obama's weaknesses, and at the end of the day, obama's not going to change his stripes by november. we need to find the best person to go up against him and beat the man. >> patrick, thanks for your time this morning. >> thank you, thomas. appreciate it. >> everyone who is holding the legacy of trayvon and making sure that he did not, indeed, die in vain. i'd like to say thank you, and he's sadly missed, and we'll continue to fight for justice for him. >> trayvon martin's parents on capitol hill yesterday attending a hate crimes forum to explore ways that the federal law can be used to prevent a repeat of the

17-year-old's fatal shooting. and this morning, passions are still running high on the house floor. listen to congressman bobby rush moments ago. >> just because someone wears a hoodie does not make them a hoodlum. the violence teaches us, mr. speaker -- >> the member will suspend -- >> these words -- >> the member will suspend -- >> these words -- >> the member -- >> -- what is good -- >> meantime, a dramatic new twist in the case over the last 24 hours. the "miami herald" reporting the lead homicide investigator on that scene that february night wanted to charge george zimmerman with manslaughter and applied for a warrant, but the states attorney held off until further review. meanwhile, zimmerman's staunch defender has a story many think could be unraveling. >> judging by your last answer, you're really just an

acquaintan acquaintance. >> well, close was not ever my term. >> your role in this, joe, just doesn't make sense to me. >> well, it just doesn't make sense -- i'll agree with you. my role in this, i agree. just doesn't make sense. >> less than 24 hours on that grilling on "the last word," joe oliver, defender of george zimmerman joins me live in studio this morning. i've got to say, that was a rough interview last night with jonathan, lawrence o'donnell, charles blow. you were taken to task. i want to remind everybody just other parts of that interview. >> i've been trying to contact george since shortly after this happened and i've been trying to contact him in order to offer my help because of my experience with the media. >> joe, a lot of people wonder, why in the heck are you here continually taking media interviews after admitting last night that you really are just an acquaintance, you were work colleagues and you really don't know a lot about george zimmerman. why are you still doing this? >> because i know enough about

george to put myself in the cross-fire, because i'm an african-american male and i understand what the outrage is all about. i've gone on record also saying if i am wrong about this, i'll be at the front of the, you know, march. if i'm wrong about this, i'll put myself at the mercy of the court of public opinion. i don't understand what the point of that interview was. that has nothing to do with why we're having this discussion any i way. it had nothing to do with what happened between george and trayvon. and it is my belief in my heart in my soul, and the reason why i'm out here first and foremost, this was not a racial incident. this was a case of an individual who lived in that neighborhood who was concerned about his neighborhood security and he saw something suspicious and called it in. what happened after that was a horrible, horrible tragedy. no question about that. >> as you say, it's not a racial incident, but there is the racial -- heard by many on the tape.

to police. you yourself have said you heard the derogatory remark. the f'ing word on that tape. when they are suspicious of black and potentially call them a derogatory word on tape to police. how is this not a racial incident? >> your question to me is a perfect example of the misinformation and half information being put out there. because i also said i played it several times and i heard a hard "c" and a hard "g." and after speaking with george this morning and asking him is that what he said? he told me he never ever said that and heard the recording that was played to him by the police department and neither of those words was on the recording that he heard. now, and this is the first i've heard about that. so your question is a perfect example of how we have gone off

half cocked from the very beginning since it was first reported george was white when he's not. we're going off half-cocked. we're getting information about what happened out there. i understand the outrage, and if i didn't know george zimmerman i'd be out there, i'd have my hoodie on. >> one thing we want to play is charles blow talking to you last night -- >> again, that interview had nothing to doith george and trayvon. >> but it has everything to do about what you know about the man you're trying to defend because you weren't there at this shooting. >> and neither was anyone else, and that's the problem. >> and you're trying to defend a man that no one else is showing up to defend, not even his own parents have come out for an interview yet. take a listen to this. >> if you don't know where george zimmerman is and if you have not seen him in over a month and you have been going out saying that george cannot stop crying, which you cannot verify because you were not there.

you have been saying -- no, you have been saying that there are lacerations and his nose is broken and the only thing you know is what george may have told you because you were not there and you have not seen him for over a month. how do you know in your heart -- >> have you ever had a gut feeling? >> so this is a gut feeling? >> were you there? were you there? >> so you've talked to george this morning. >> i talked to george this morning. >> you talked to george on saturday. you've spoken to him twice -- >> and again, wrong. i've spoken to him saturday -- i spoke to him on sunday -- >> you wouldn't reveal what -- >> saturday and sunday. >> but you wouldn't reveal any of the information and that wasn't revealed last night in the information. it said you spoke to him on saturday and when lawrence asked what you discussed you said you wouldn't reveal that. >> because -- >> so it didn't lend itself to any of the credibility -- because you won't reveal any of the conversations. now overnight since that interview you have now spoken to george zimmerman again and he's given you permission to reveal

part of that conversation in reference to the police tape. is that what you're telling me today? >> no, look, that part of the conversation just happened this morning. because my conversations with george have been to reassure myself that i ham doing the right thing. because this horrible incident has sparked the tinder, the wood that has been piling up for years because of our racial tensions here. that's why i'm stepping into it. two reasons, this was not a racial incident and because i am a black american. >> why is no one else speaking out for george zimmerman? just you? >> because they're afraid. they're in hiding as much as george is, you know. >> you say you're a friend or acquaintance or colleague, his friends and colleagues are in hiding? >> his colleagues -- >> his acquaintances are hiding. >> his colleagues cannot speak out because that would risk their jobs. that interview last night may have cost me my job.

>> why would that interview cost you your job? you've done i don't know how many interviews. why would that -- >> because it has nothing to do with my employer. >> what does it have to do with then? >> my employer is concerned, as well, because they need to keep their clients. and because, thomas, this whole thing, all of this, the one common denominator, the common denominator because of why george called in that first night, of why trayvon and george met together, of why george's family and friends won't come out and speak, of why we can't about where we work is fear. it's become a denominator. there is security around my workplace right now. >> i thought you weren't working now. i thought you left work. that's something you said last night on lawrence o'donnell. you've taken time off from work. >> i have taken time off. >> i went to work monday morning and i've had conversations with my employers and it was agreed

that it would be best for the security of my co-workers that i take some time and i address this until i'm no longer a part of the story. >> are you -- are you worried for your own safety? >> yes. >> why? >> because of the threats out there. there would vail there have been veiled threats coming to my employer for me. i know we're seeing this that more and more and more facts about the case are coming out and they're going to be revealed and the motive and what happened is getting clearer. there's a reason why it's taken so long for the investigators to release their information because they know just how volatile it's going to be when they come to the original conclusion that george was acting in self-defense. >> we shall see how it all cracks out. joe oliver, thanks for taking time for us. we appreciate your insights in all of this.

again, you don't want to be clarified as a close friend, but an acquaintance. >> i have known george since he started dating his wife. i'm closer to his in-laws. i will clarify that. i will clarify that i know george well enough to put my own reputation and my own life on the line because i know george would do the same for me. >> joe oliver, thank you, appreciate it. vice president joe biden on the campaign trail for his third of four major speeches. will he defend the health care bill? we'll talk about that. and then the megamillions now $500 million, soaring to an unbelievable high. some people rushing out to get your tickets now. they have names like idle time books and smash records

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and ask for relief from obama care. isn't that fascinating? i mean, time after time, the same members of the same organizations that supported obama care come and say, look, we can't live with this provision. we can't -- it's impossible for us to comply with that provision. it's a fascinating commentary on trying to do the lord's work in the city of satan. >> tuesday's supreme court arguments turned conventional wisdom for this summer's ruling on its head and put the future of if president's signature policy achievement in defense. so, ben, the supreme court listening to the final day, day three of arguments, but it didn't go well yesterday. your campaign has been touting the law and the campaign documentary, even embracing the term obama care. what happens if some or all of that is struck down? >> well, you know, thomas, the hand wringing and breathlessness we've heard in the press over the past 24 hours reminds me of

the same hand wringing recent lip when the administration was defending the voting rights act before the supreme court. they faced tough questions and the justices ultimately upheld that law 8-1. the affordable care act has been through the lower court system, it's been considered by judges appointed by democratic presidents and republican presidents, including two prominent conservative jurists, they ask tough questions in the courtroom and it was upheld. we're confident that it is constitutional. >> so vice president joe biden is in iowa today making the third of four major campaign speeches. he's going to be focusing on manufacturing jobs. and while your campaign website is highlighting the jobs that mitt romney has shipped overseas, are we going to see the defense of the health care law from the vice president? are we going to hear him just stick to the economy? >> well, this is the third framing speech the vice president's given. last week in florida he talked about maintaining our compact with our seniors and preserving medicare and social security for future generations, keeping

prescription drug costs down for seniors and touched on the affordable care act then. today he's going to focus on the fact that manufacturing in this country after a decline beginning in 1997 is coming back, we've created more than 400,000 manufacturing jobs under this administration. and that's a very different result than you'd see under mitt romney who has made clear he's comfortable without sourcing. he vetoed legislation that would've banned outsourcing when he was governor of massachusetts. and he actively outsourced jobs to other countries when he was a corporate buyout specialist. >> with the obama campaign, i'm sure we're going to be talking to you a lot more as we ramp up into the fall. thank you, sir. >> i look forward to it. thanks, thomas. >> absolutely. we return now to the supreme court showdown with our panel, democratic strategist and republican strategist. it's great to have you both here, and debbie, i want to start with you because we know the most important thing for voters is the economy seeing the unemployment number move steadily closer to a percent.

but does the rejection of this law hurt the legitimacy of the policy decisions made by this white house and ultimately hurt the campaign come november? >> no, not at all. first of all, this administration believes it's constitutional. and as he just said, so did some conservative judges on both the six circuit and the court of appeal. the fact of the matter is, this law right now is providing 180 million people health care they didn't have that had lifetime caps or pre-existing conditions. it's giving 86 million people preventative care they didn't have, 2.5 million young people are now on their parents' insurance. and the donut hole for almost 50 million seniors being called slowly but almost completely. they're proud of what they did in that health care bill. those problems have to be addressed. he's not running away from it, he's standing and the democrats and this congress are standing proud of what they did. >> isn't the decision from a

high court a referendum on mitt romney's health care law in massachusetts since it was the inspiration, the godfather for the president's law? >> no, listen, mitt romney has made it clear he does not support federal mandates, he believes in states' rights. is it going to be an issue in the general election? sure. but again, he's made it very clear he does not support federal mandates, and that what you have here. there is a difference between identifying ways to make health care more affordable and accessible for americans and identifying ways to mandate purchasing decisions of american families. the latter is called socialism and the last time i checked, it didn't work out too well for folks around the world. >> thank you so much for joining me this morning. i appreciate it. >> thank you. >> so talk about some front-page headlines. take a look at this. this is your captain freaking. jet ready to die is another one. what the passengers are saying

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>> after an emergency landing in texas, the captain was taken to a local medical facility for evaluation. pope benedict is meeting with fidel castro today as he wraps up his three-day visit to cuba. he says he would only take "a few minutes" of his very busy time. his brother raul met with the pope on tuesday. thousands gathered for pope benedict's final mass before heading back to the vatican. andrea mitchell is reporting live from cuba with more on the pope's trip today right here at 1:00 p.m. eastern. you know, it might sound unbelievable, but it is true. no one in any state matched all the lucky numbers in tuesday's megamillions drawing. the jackpot is now a whopping, get this, $476 million, the largest in megamillions history. the last prize win was two months ago, the next drawing is coming up on friday. get your tickets now. basketball legend magic johnson and his group of investors will be the next owners of the los angeles dodgers all for a cool

$2 billion. johnson's group agreed to buy the dodgers. setting a record for the highest price of a u.s. professional sports team. $2 billion. amazing, right? up next, did one of the leading anti-marriage equality group in this nation use race to try to drive a wedge between race and gays. more on the story we first reported right here on msnbc. th. so how much do we owe you? that'll be $973.42. ya know, your rates and fees aren't exactly competitive. who do you think i am, quicken loans? [ spokesman ] when you refinance your mortgage with quicken loans, you'll find that our rates and fees are extremely competitive. because the last thing you want is to spend too much on your mortgage. one more way quicken loans is engineered to amaze. ♪

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seattle was supposed to hold maggie gallagher, former president and co-founder of the national organization for marriage, but as you can see, she is missing in action, although we did confirm an hour ago that she was supposed to be in that studio. i would say, hi, maggie, but you're not there. so wayne, i'm going to try to do this as fair as i can from both sides, you're going to get a lot more air time because you're the only one here to answer questions. is that okay? >> that sounds just fine with me. >> my first question was going to be to maggie about this board update labeled as dealing with president obama and some of the negatives being raised. in it it says we need to interrupt the attempt to equate gay with black and sexual orientation with race. we need to make traditional sexual morality intellectually respectful again in our elite culture. i was going to ask maggie how do you deny these documents as proving that the national organization for marriage is

trying to ensure bigotry and homophobia. isn't this truth that the national organization for marriage is trying to ensure bigotry and homophobia? >> yeah, this is a smoking gun. this is absolute evidence that they are race baiting. and the reason they're doing this is because they've lost the argument over marriage equality. they said if marriage passed, the sky would fall. now we have eight states in the district of columbia where marriage is the law of the land. the sky didn't fall, nothing happened as promised so they are resorting to dirty politics and divisive tactics. they don't have facts on their side so they're resorting to fear. i think that's what was revealed in these memos. >> they were all revealed because a main court made the documents public due to campaign finance disputes going on in that state. and it really does, wayne, reveal the devious underbelly to

the equality fight in this country right now. long suspected, not fully exposed like this. but not only is the national organization for marriage trying to divide the black and the gay communities, it also goes after latinos. and i want to show another part of this where it says we must interrupt this process of assimilation by making support for marriage a key badge of latino identity, a symbol of resistance to inappropriate assimilation. so as we look at this, wayne, how is this dividing minorities from coming together to something that they all can support, which is the freedom for all to marry equality. >> well, first of all, this is incredibly disrespectful of african-americans and downright contemptuous of latinos. instead of the great american melting pot, what they're trying to do is stir the pot of divisiveness, it's mean-spirited. and the thing that really needs to be pointed out. not only does this divide entire communities, but this divides

families. people are being rejected by their own parents because of such rhetoric. they're being thrown out of their homes, being bullied at schools. there's a real disconnect with the national organization for marriage and their political memos that are dreamed up in washington. and what happens on the ground to real people. and what they've done essentially is manufacturing malice between communities that didn't previously exist. and that's incredibly harmful to people. >> wayne, where does the organization stand right now as there are -- there is work to get referendums. there's offensive measures in certain states to get things already on the books. where does the battle go from here? >> well, i think the battle in some respects is much more favorable to our side. if you look, for example, at young people, 18 to 35, over 70% support marriage equality. the world is changing. we just saw some incredible victories in washington state,

maryland, new hampshire where 100 republicans rolled back in an attempt to take marriage equality out of new hampshire where it already existed. so i think we're going to continuously look in favorable states where people are more likely to support equality. and it's going to be a long slog unless this ends up in the supreme court as one case in california tried to do. >> wayne, in all fairness. >> i just wanted to say in all fairness because yesterday we talked about this on this hour. and the fact that these documents were unsealed. we did get a response at 12:04 yesterday from the national organization from marriage and brian brown in that statement. it said we proudly bring together people of different races, creeds and colors to fight for our most fundamental institutional marriage. however, once again maggie gallagher who was supposed to be here is not here, decided not to show up for this interview. wayne, thanks for joining me today, keeping your word, i appreciate it.

>> thank you. you think that the national unemployment rate is high, it's much higher for the nation's vets returning from war. well, think how challenging it is to find a job when you're missing an arm or leg or suffering a brain injury. hiring our heroes, what you can do next. with more? then don't get nickle and dimed by high cost investments and annoying account fees. at e-trade, our free easy-to-use online tools and experienced retirement specialists can help you build a personalized plan. and with our no annual fee iras and a wide range of low cost investments, you can execute the plan you want at a low cost. so meet with us, or go to etrade.com for a great retirement plan with low cost investments. ♪

all right. so this week, msnbc and nbc are joining forces with the u.s. chamber of commerce for a special series called "hiring our heroes," to help find war vets jobs. today on the "uss intrepid" that effort is in full swing with the day long jobs fair. nbc's charles hadlock is live in ft. hood, texas, where a jobs fair for vets and spouses is under way. chars, good morning. >> good morning, thomas. the unemployment rate among post 9/11 soldiers is 12.1%, about four points higher than

the national average. but the unemployment rate among military spouses is a staggering 26%. the u.s. chamber of commerce is working with the military to help change those numbers. the homecomings are less frequent now. fewer soldiers from ft. hood are deployed overseas and for many of them, another tough mission lies ahead, finding a job. here at ft. hood and all over the army, soldiers about to leave the service or retire are required take classes about finding a job. >> many of our soldiers come straight into the military directly from high school. the officers come directly in from college. and they may not have had a lot of experience in looking for work in the past. they don't have a resume. they don't know how to write one. >> at ft. hood alone, 600 soldiers a month enter into civilian life. from one of them has a meeting with i an counselor, most like linda stanley are former soldiers. >> i was ammunition. so i know what it's like to find

a job with the skill set that most employers don't use. >> sergeant nathanielrately has worn the uniform more than two decades. >> if you're not prepared to get out, it's scary out there. >> with new waves of troops withdrawing from afghanistan in the coming months, these soldiers might continue to you struggle to find work. after the army green is hung up for good. and this job fair here in ft. hood is a little different than the rest of them across the country today. this one focuses on military spouses and we're glad to report that some companies have already hired new prospective employees. >> charles hadlock reporting live from ft. hood, texas. thanks so much for that. we appreciate it. as we continue this for many soldiers the challenge of finding work is compounded by physical and mental trauma. imagine looking for a job with a missing leg, arm, or even a brain injury. captain dawn half acre is president of the wounded warrior

project and lost her arm in a grenade blast in 2004 and joins me now. a lot is being done as we're focusing on this week to help vets in general get mobile and get back to work. one example is a group called segs for vets giving vets a segue. describe the challenges for those heroes trying to find work. >> yeah, i think the main challenges are really not understanding kind of what your capabilities are, going from military service, it's hard enough to translate your skills into the civilian workforce but then come pounded with some type of disability or a new normal or adjustment makes it very, very difficult to know what will that's going to be like. and to understand what resources may be out there to provide assistance for us. so it's definitely a challenge. >> it really is a challenge. these are what's called the invisible wounds of war especially those that suffer from ptd, correct? >> correct. post trau anmatic stress affects

all veterans that have been over to iraq or afghanistan and deployed. coming back and trying to plug back into civilian life is difficult enough. those stressors can exacerbate a job search and the difficulties around that and also the difficulties in just kind of coping with daily life. so it's a lot. it's an uphill battle for a lot of our veterans. >> captain down hafaker, thank you so. that's going to wrap things up for me today. i'm going to see you back here tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. all week long, we are hiring our heroes and focusing on that. tune in tomorrow as we bring you more stories from our heroes, always you can follow me on twitter @ thomas a. roberts. now with alex wagner comes your way next. plus restoring rinse. it's the only listerine® that gets teeth two shades whiter and makes tooth enamel two times stronger. get dual-action listerine® whitening rinse. building whiter, stronger teeth.

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