good evening, i'm chris matthews. leading off tonight, who is going to win in november? we've got a brand new nbc news wall street journal poll just out tonight, the first since mitt romney effectively clinched the republican nomination. are they buying the fairness argument? who will do better the economy, and who is leading in the swing voters. here's one hint from our pollsters about november, this election is looking a lot like the 2000 and 2004 cliffhangers. how does either candidate break the log jam? mitt romney thinks obama is out of his head. mr. obama says mitt romney is out of touch. the winner of that debate could decide the winner in november. also the latest on the secret service scandal tonight

including hot new details on just what happened. the world's most exclusive fraternity. right now there's only five members, the five living presidents of the united states. so do you think these guys really root for each other, apparently so. if you're running for senator of massachusetts, there is one organization -- hint unfortunately for him, scott brown had that side support him. political director and chief white house correspondent, and msnbc political analyst. let's get the main facts on the table.

the overall approval rating stands at 49, just slightly down from last month. here is a bad one for the president. on his question of the handling of the economy, the president doesn't do as well, only 45% approve, 52, a real majority say they disapprove of the job he is doing, let's go right down to that. >> the magic number is 49. our pollsters say it's 49, there it is. good news and bad news for the president, it's 49, but he has double digit leads over romney in several years. >> why is 49 so powerful? >> it's right where bush was at

this time. he said it, 50 to 46. they converge, it's what it is >> what's it tell us about seven months from now? >> we're heading for a very close election. >> this is a dream, these numbers to me add up to a dream that neither the country or the president can wake up from yet. his overall horse race number is acceptable at this point, the in your opinions on the economy are still weak enough to drag him down, and i know pure independents are with the president, but the pure independents will vote on the economy and not on other side issues, and he still has to lock those people in. >> let's go down to some more interesting stuff.

the question of personal and policy choices, let's look at these matters right now. the president outperforms mitt romney on a number of qualities. asked at who is better being easy going and likable, the president wins three to one. they find him better at dealing with issues relating to women, looking out for the middle class, knowledgeable, experiences, being consistent, standing up for his beliefs, and by a small margin, better at setting the proper moral tone for the country. look where romney outperforms the president. who has better ideas for how to improve the economy, romney, and who will be better at changing business as usual in washington, romney. howard, you start here. new ideas. in a country that seems like we're stuck, we have no heat or exitment, working class whites are ticked off they're not getting their jobs back, and the

other thing about changing washington, romney, the outsider not in office always has a change. >> on the question of changing business as usual, i think the president has clearly not succeeded at that. that is something he promised to do that he didn't do. it wasn't his fault by any means. >> did he set too high of a bar for himself. >> he said we are the change we've been waiting for and all of that. he tempted the fates with the health care bill that was such a massive undertaking and left congress to his own devices for way too long and emphasizing the problems of the way washington worked rather than solving it. he gets a for effort but a c minus -- >> reagan said if you want to do something big, do it the first year, and clinton said don't go barging up -- >> yes, monday morning quarter backing is not fair, but the far

more important thing is the economy number. if you look at the other numbers, people still think the country is going in the wrong direction. another number says i think maybe 38% of the american people think the economy will get better. that's a better number than it was a while back but it's still only 38%, and you put that together with the fact that they think romney has better ideas. >> you know what's interesting about the unemployment numbers, we have gone through straight polls where economic optimism had been ticking up. outlook about the economy improved. this poll was flat lined. >> because we only had 125,000 jobs. >> so i talked to a couple strategist connected to both campaigns, they both agreed.

they are not going to confirm march and stagnation, or will march be a blip. >> this is evidence that this is the critical time in presidential elections as far as the economy is concerned. academic studies show that in the second quarter, real income growth are the two statistics that more than any other determine people's attitudes from now through june, before the summer starts, we make up our minds. this is a key period and a baseline poll for that period. >> i keep thinking that -- >> go ahead. >> we do consume information faster now. as a public. >> so what happens the last weekend right before we vote? suppose we're going into election and it's 49 to 49. i think romney will win a debate, obama will not blow him out.

what happens to that last economic we get in our heads the friday before the election. >> i think it matters, i'm trying to go back, i don't believe we will get. >> a whole weekend, friday to monday night, talking about the unemployment number coming in for october. >> the cliches, this really is one, all people care about is the economy and the jobs and it's all about the independent voter. >> so why is the president saying look over here? >> it's romney verses the economy. obama wants to make this a referendum on the republican party and tie all of your negative feelings to the republican party. the ratings for 12 straight poll that's we have conducted and the republican party is upside down. and romney says make it about the economy.

>> we asked if the economy will improve in the next 12 months, 38% said it would improve, 19% said it would get worse, and 42% said it would stay the same. when asked if reelected obama would help or hurt, 31% said it would help, for romney they said 32% romney would help. here is the sad part for obama. people say he is not getting things better, 42% say it's going to be the same, but nobody sees to be afraid of romney, that's a low number and it stands out there. >> another reason why i'm with the pollsters here that it feels like we're going -- we asked another question, if president obama ones a second term, will that make you optimistic, hopeful, or uncertain and

worried, 50% picked uncertain and worried, with romney, 56% picked uncertain and worried. it will be a polarized election, people will go into the both, voting for someone their not sure of, because they don't like the other guy. >> the obama strategy talking about -- that's easy to do right now because nobody likes mitt romney, he's not a likable person according to this poll and every poll. i think one of the big challenges here is to somehow, i don't know if he could do it, to make himself more acceptable, personally. >> if he could do that it will help the other numbers here. >> okay, we know there will probably be four and a half hours of debate between president obama and romney. four hours of prime time cable

exposure. all romney has to do is say something like reagan did, and say something like i won't use my opponents youth and inexperience against him. can't he have a couple things -- >> if you look at the recent history of challengers to sitting presidents, the challenger usually wins the first debate. kerry cleaned bush's clock that first debate. >> and the president, a sitting president forgets. they usually get to control everything. >> i'm betting on romney in the first debate. >> and also the ultra rich guy tax -- >> fairness is okay. >> i don't think people resent success. thank you both.

mitt romney says president obama is over his ahead, president obama says mitt romney is out of touch. [ ce llph one rings ] [ female announcer ] with secret outlast, conquer your busy day. burn! let's do it! ♪ hi. [ female announcer ] outlast your day, any day, with secret's 48-hour odor protection technology. new secret outlast. it's kind of a big deal.

chex has five flavors that are gluten-free. even a cinnamon one the kids love. the word "wow" comes to mind. [ male announcer ] chex cereal. five flavors. good and gluten free. well mitt romney is cozying up to christian conservatives. liberty was founded by the late jerry fallwell and is run by his son and compared romney's commencement address with reagan's speech. romney lost every state where evangelicals made up more than half of the voters.

this is going to be great, with mitt romney clinching the republican nomination, we're seeing a preview of what the summer and fall political debate will hinge on. it's not about disputing the

president's like able, but moving that he is not up to the job. he said the president is a nice guy, but we just can't afford him. and obama is saying he is out of touch. our "hardball" strategists are here to review the arguments. steve mcman and todd harris. likability is a nice thing. here is romney making the case against reelecting the president. >> even if you like him, we can't afford barack obama, it's time to get someone that will get the economy going and get the american people back to work. we're a trusting people, a hopeful people, but we're not dumb, and we're not going to fall from the same lines from the same person. >> i think he is being well scripted.

>> he is, he is trying to do that people like the president, they want him to succeed. >> are they conceding it. >> can you concede the likability issue? >> you can mitigate it, as long as people feel that they themselves, the economy may be improving, but if i don't feel it myself, whether you like the president on a personal level or not, think he is a good guy, husband, or not. if you don't think he is up to the task of turning the economy around, it doesn't matter. in the same polls that show this race basically tied, that romney's numbers are so bad, and yet some people are saying you

know what, i don't like -- >> what about the people that hate obama that snipe at him constantly and will be at every one of the rallies saying racist things about the president, terrible things, and others say he's a nice guy -- >> it will be -- with every time lawrence o'donnell comes on the network and bashes mormonism. >> it may be better to do this, it's not this, but it's that. todd got to a better argument because he is a better strategist than the romney campaign. >> yesterday, president obama was out there, and was going to decide again, takes this shot at romney telegraphing his line of attack for the whole campaign, a question if this worked or not. >> somebody gave me an education, i wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth,

michelle wasn't. but somebody gave us a chance. >> these are scholarship kids, he and his wife, and her brother into princeton. is that something to brag about or be careful about? >> it reeks of the class warfare that others were warning against. >> isn't it fair to say that some of these guys with old money are born on third and act like they hit a triple. it's a true. they act like they have entitlement when ann romney and them start talking about our turn, what does that mean? >> not the language i would have used. >> because that means we're entitled. >> let's get that other sound of that. go ahead. >> start packing.

that's what i would like to say. obviously we have a very different view. the president and i'm sure wants another four years, but the first years didn't go so well. >> you know, i got to know michelle, she's a lovely person, i never met barack obama, but i believe it's mitt's time. i believe that the country needs the kind of leadership that he is going to be able to offer, and i believe he is the person that can turn around this economy, so i think it's our turn now. >> what is this "goonies"? did you ever watch that movie. that's what happens in republican presidential times, whoever's turn it is gets to go next. can i make one point about the president, everybody assumed he's talking about mitt romney. he could have been talking about

anybody -- >> hold on a second. he didn't mention mitt romney. >> can i have a response for you on that. >> i just gave it. >> no, hold on, it's a rhetorical trick to talk about the have and the have nots in society. he said exactly what he meant. >> it's exactly what you would think. >> any potential hypothetical wealthy former mormon governor -- >> just because the shoe fits -- >> here is something that really bothers me, let's watch romney here on fox and friends. >> i'm not going to apologize for my dad and his success in life. he was born poor, he worked his way to become very successful despite the fact that he didn't have a college degree.

the president likes to attack americans, he's always looking for a scapegoat. this is a time for us to solve problems, not attacking people. >> here is a problem i have. this isn't just political stuff we're talking about. here is a serious assault. i know the president likes to attack fellow americans, what does that mean? the strangest -- nobody talks -- >> i give him credit for being born in america now, right? >> is that unpatriotic to attack fellow americans. >> when he says to voters is that you're not doing better because these people are doing too well -- that's the kind of mentality. >> your party and the vigt not really a american, some guy in a snuck in the country, really after -- >> what does that have to do -- >> he's a fellow american, they

have been attacking this guy for years now, and now they say he attacks fellow americans. >> look, the whole campaign -- all of the birthers out there, he is an american. >> what does it mean to say i know the president likes to attack, not that he is pugnacious, but he likes to attack fellow americans. >> this is going to be a campaign that divides america from mitt romney, he is trying to take a polarized country, make it a polarized race, and he figures he has a coin toss chance of winning it, but he also have a record to defend, and the obama campaign is exquisite -- >> how did the dallas cowboys get to be america's team? he says he is america's candidate. >> those people are doing too well. >> everybody should have the

same opportunity isn't a divisive message. is he over his ahead, or out of touch with people's needs? >> neither one, the better argument is the economy has not recovered as quickly as we hoped or he said, that's the best argument they have. >> it is a winning argument. he didn't do what he said he was going to do. >> did you just hit him? >> we don't do that here. no physical touching. >> he's heading in the wrong direction, and do you want four more years of exactly what we just had, but now on steroids, or do we need to change direction. >> on steroids? >> there's a scandal there now too. >> he's a drug user. >> yeah, that's what i said. >> coming up next, cookiegate.

they're really taking this personal up there. you're watching "hardball." [ female announcer ] women have made it the number one selling anti-aging cream undeniably. it creamed unbelievably a $500 cream and now women have made regenerist microsculpting cream also unscented. women love it. in original and also fragrance-free.

first up, if there's one thing that strikes a chord with massachusetts voters, we all know it's the red sox. scott brown has been going around courting the red sox nation recently with ads greeting fans at fenway. but has brown crossed over to the dark side to the hated new york yankees? apparently. the yankees president larry levine has shelled out money to the brown senator campaign. it doesn't give the incumbent a free pass for accepting it, either. that's right, the commander of evil empires having to pay for championing his support of the red sox. it's one thing to be bipartisan senator, but this is taking it a little too far.

there is no compromising in baseball. and now the yankees are playing for scott brown's team. a statement from brown's spokesman says the candidate views the contribution as, quote, their way of paying us back for babe ruth. well. also, how did mitt romney get on the wrong side of a small bakery in pittsburgh and a 7-eleven chain all in the same sentence? find out what happened when romney was at a picnic this tuesday. >> i don't know about these cookies. they don't look like you made them. no, no, they came from the local 7-eleven, bakery or whatever. >> the cookies in question were a very special addition from bethel bakery. the comments did not sit well with the owner who said this, we wanted him to be welcome with the best in the burg.

this guy has no idea how loved the institution is that supplied those cookies. romney left his mark on that town. the special in the bakery was called the cookiegate special. and allen west is still in drought for investing from '78 to '81, house democrats are communists. really, communists? he was asked to get specific in an interview with cnn's soledad o'brien this morning. >> no, no, we do. which are the members of congress that are -- >> you can go to -- >> keith ellison is a communist? >> soledad, i'm calling it this. communists, congressionalist, statist which is another term used. i'm looging at the idealogies,

i'm looking at things they believe in. we need to stay a constitutional republic. a lot of people need to study that and see what it is. >> this guy was either a no-show in history class or a demigod. up next, details on the secret service sex scandal and what happened that night at the hotel. we're going to talk to the reporter who interviewed the escort -- that's her title -- at the hotel. you're watching "hardball."

players gave president obama a helmet that he said he will probably need between now and november. welcome back to "hardball." new details are emerging from cardegena who tells her story about what transpired that night, a night that has so far cost three people their jobs. kristin walker at the white house, and david is also with us. let's start with kristin here.

let's make the point, what do we know about the latest developments from cardagena. >> you mentioned those three people ousted from the secret service, essentially. two supervisors, one non-supervisor. so that happened, and we should say right off the top we're expecting more people to leave potentially by the end of the week. in terms of what's happening in cardahega, investigators are moving quickly to unravel what happened there. they've interviewed the housekeepers, the staff at that hotel where this alleged incident happened, and now their big challenge is to find those women, those alleged prostitutes who are involved in this entire incident. we should say in terms of their investigation, they didn't find any drugs and they didn't find any evidence at this point in time that security was compromised. having said that, it is so crucial for them to get in touch with those women to try to figure out exactly what they know, were they able to confiscate any type of sensitive

information or papers. but as of right now, lawmakers on the hill who have been briefed on the investigation do not believe that there was any breach of security, chris. >> david, tell me what you can about the events that night. are we able to get a clear picture of what happened, how these men, all of our men, managed to find themselves in the company of sex workers that night? >> yes. what we've reported so far, chris, is that this night started as a party with heavy drinking. they've all reported on visits to a strip club, including one called the play club which is a typical kind of strip club, except prostitution is legal and regulated, so from what we understand, the men involved in this brought at least two of the women from the play club out of the club. i think you pay a fee for that. and then they took them back to the room, and overall, 21 women are suspected of checking into the hotel, the hotel caribe where the president's advanced staff was staying. they had to check their i.ds to prove they were not underage because of women being taken

advantage of. in the morning, that's when the hotel got suspicious and events escalated when there was a dispute over payment. >> let me get back to kristen over the political impacts in washington. i get the feeling this is turning partisan, isn't it? is absolutely is to some extent. lawmakers on the hill today expressing their outrage. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, nancy pelosi calling this disgusting, harry reid saying it is intolerable. but i think what stuck out was jeff sessions who actually questioned the president's ability to manage his own administration in the wake of this. and i can tell you i sat in the daily briefing today, almost all of the questions were about this scandal. white house press secretary jay carney addressed what sessions said directly and said that's pure politics. he's just turning this into a political incident and that's not what this is.

and i should also say, chris, that the white house continues to stand by director mark sullivan. but what's so problematic about this for the white house is that it has almost overshadowed the message that the president is trying to get out in terms of the economy, in terms of energy, and, of course, we are heading into the thick of the election year. so the timing of this is not ideal, certainly, for the white house. >> and that's true of the event itself. i was down there moderating and discussing among three presidents, including the president of the united states, and it was all about the great economic hopes for the latin american, how it's going to help us here. and that part of the message, what we can do for this hemisphere, which is so much more important, you can argue this kind of mess, yet it's not as exciting, i suppose, to talk about. david, did it all come down to the fact that this might have gone unnoticed, all this talk about, i'm outraged, out of casablanca, i can't believe this is going on, all this outrage would not have occurred if the

one guy had paid the prostitute? isn't that what is seems to be, leading down to that one incident at 7:00 in the morning? >> i think there was more than one incident in terms of misbehavior and misconduct. we've seen three people already dismissed. i think the key, yes, it may have started because one guy didn't want to pay and it certainly escalated. we understand that the columbian authorities were very upset as they reported it to the americans and then it got to the diplomats. was there culture, was there knowledge of it? we know the two senior managers were pretty high level. they're both based here in d.c., they have 20 years experience, roughly, in the agency, which suggests, did this happen before? if so, did people know about it? why were two senior managers partying with the younger guys and setting the example for the guys they were there to supervise. >> did anybody organize the evening and say, we're going to collect a couple hundred bucks

apiece, you're all going to get company for the night, and i'll supervise to make sure there's transportation taken care of, or was each one of these guys, maybe they drank too much -- i can see the scene, 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning going to a strip show, finding prostitutes around you, and getting involved with them. was it all spontaneous, like it sounded good at the time, or was there an orchestrated aspect from someone who put it all together? >> i get a sense there was a night out, and that was clear. this was a couple days before the president arrived. what we understand is these guys didn't have a whole lot of assignments at that point, they had some free time and there was no curfew on these guys. it's not clear if they picked the women all up at one place or different groups. that's what some of the investigators are trying to get to the bottom of and i think there's conflicting stories going on. >> so we don't know if it's an organized evening, let's have sex workers involved with women tonight. >> there's no reporting of that, and possibly the women came from different clubs.

not to say there wasn't some sort of communication ahead from the men going out, but we know the taxi drivers get some sort of royalties suggesting to foreigners to go to these clubs with money to be made, or was it premeditated? it's hard to say. >> we'll find out in the days ahead. thank you so much, great to have you reporting tonight, glad to meet you. up next, just five living members of the president of the united states. it's called the presidents' club. they actually get together. it's interesting how they do interact and we're going to get this story. what are they like when they get together, and what do they think of each other? do they help each other, do they like each other? these are all guys retired from politics, more or less. this is "hardball." uncer ] 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.

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fred he uh... fred what is your plan? do i look like i have a plan? not really. [ female announcer ] only flood insurance covers floods. for a free brochure, call the number on your screen. there's at least one northeastern state that slipped back up into the tossup category and that's new hampshire. let's check the "hardball" score board. mitt romney with a slight lead over president obama in the granite state. we knew this was a problem with the president. romney at 44, the president at 42. the electoral votes could be critical. we know that, and we'll be right back.

we are back, and the members, by the way, of the most exclusive club in the world have one thing in common. they all call 1600 pennsylvania their home. the former u.s. presidents have shared experiences that transcends party lines and their experiences in personal relationships is detailed finally in a book "the presidents' club." inside the most exclusive fraternity. it is co-authored by mike duffy. it's a fantastic story. everyone says, i wish i had written this. let's start off with the relationship between george sr. let's take a look here. they were all welcomed to the winners' circle in january of 2009, outgoing president bush offered a few words of support. let's watch these guys together. >> whether we're democrat or

republican, we care deeply about this country, and to the extent we can, we look forward to sharing our experiences with you. all of us who have served understand that the office itself transcends the individual. >> i wish we had a wide shot but there they are, all these guys together. his father was there, of course. here's the wide shot with bill clinton and both bushes president. >> and all these guys now have a relationship with bush sr. one is his son, one is his adopted son. barack obama never really knew his father. they all had a father-son relationship with them. he advises all of them, he's friends with one of them, he's father to one of them. the club is a really interesting place because of the role the old man plays. >> and there's jimmy carter. he's not clubbable, is he? >> he unites the club. he gives them something to talk about. >> they don't like him. let's take a look at the relationship. it was so close that one of

george bush sr.'s sons called him a brother from another mother. here's bill, what he had to say about his rapport that he's established with bush sr. is almost a daddy figure. let's watch. >> it got so ridiculous, our odd couple partnership, that barbara began to refer to me as her black sheep son, you know, the one that strays, there's one in every family, gets the politics wrong or makes some other mistake. >> it's good for clinton to have this relationship. it softens him a little bit. they have all been through the experience of this impossible job. they all come out with deep scars and really, no one else can understand what it's like to have done it, so despite their differences across age -- >> but bill clinton knocked bush out of the job. had to get over it. >> george bush had to get over it and he did it at a time when his son was president. it helped the family brand to be

doing it and clinton and bush junior have become almost like -- >> let's look at my favorite president, jack kennedy getting advice from dwight eisenhower. someone you want to get advice from at the brink of the cuban nuclear crisis. here's their phone conversation on the morning kennedy was about to announce a quarantine of cuba. let's listen. >> general, what about if the soviet union khruscnev announces tomorrow, thick he will, if we attack cuba, i think it will be a nuclear war? what's your judgment as to the chances they fire these things off if we invade cuba? >> i don't believe they will. >> you don't think they will. >> imagine how reassuring that was for kennedy to hear, the old master, general to say, don't worry, everything will turn out fine. >> he's wrong. because in his memoirs, he says he was going to fire on new york. he was going to kill two big

ones on new york so he was wrong. >> he was wrong but probably the advice kennedy needed to hear in his first life and death presidency. >> let's talk about president obama. that still matters. that election will need -- seems based on the numbers, real close election. >> obama will have to count on clinton to appear for him through the fall doing fund raisers next week. >> bill clinton. >> bill clinton with obama. they haven't always gotten along, fought over who's the real democrat and save liberalism. at election time clinton will do 40 or 50 events for obama. that will matter. >> if secretary of state clinton still wants to run for president, who knows? a lot of people think she will, i don't know. she's better off if obama gets re-elected? and she's better off if her husband helped obama get reelected. >> the famous 17 piece put out

by david googenheim, giving the president credit for taking out osama bin laden and risked his legacy. >> he took the harder and the more honorable path. when i saw what had happened, i thought to myself, i hope that's a call i would have made. >> he is so good. >> hear the music. >> that voice, when he does that i don't know what you call it -- >> croak. >> it's so authentic and historic. >> he confers it that moment on obama, oval office seal of approval on national security. that's an obama video. he will be doing that over and over again as we head into the fall. >> tell me your bottom line. it's a fat book, quite available. a heck of a book. it's my beach reading the whole summer. it's an amazing book because it's candy for people who like show likes this. >> these men individuals actually have relationships

among them that go back in some cases decades and much more complicated and interesting than you would have guessed. >> it reminds me the way boxers like each other, heavyweight boxers and knock their heads off. they're really close friends. max smelling and joe louis were friends. >> it's competition and consolation, a partnership. they actually help each other offstage all the time. >> what's your favorite story you dug up among the presidents. >> clinton goes to see reagan after he's inaugurated. reagan says to him, you have to learn how to salute, if you're going to play this role. >> teaches him how up and fast down. >> that's right. >> he learned it in hollywood. >> when he was an actor. >> i love this stuff. the book is called "the president's club." duffy did this, mike duffy. what a guy. when we return, let me finish with those stories how the former presidents got to be quite close. i am quite taken with these

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let me finish tonight with this. i love those stories of how the former presidents get to be so close, especially bill clinton getting to be like a son to the senior president bush. think about it, this is the guy he beat and now bill is speaking openly how he feels towards the old man. i totally get it for personal

reasons. bill clinton lost his father early in a car crash and never really had a father and a stepfather who beat up his mother and bill, big for his age had to stand up and threaten to beat the heck out of him if he ever touched him again. not hard to imagine how he feels about the senior george bush who loves his children and knows how to show affection and to be a father young bill clinton and yes, grownup bill clinton never had. i do think of dick nixon, maybe there was some guile there, i'll accept that. maybe nixon wanted to use the young democratic president to bring him back to public life the way a young president couldn't do it. i think of the hoover commission we re-organized to form the federal government. there was something human. nixon had two great daughters and didn't have a son.

maybe bill clinton was the kind of political star he imagined having for a son and maybe bill clinton who had his own imperfections didn't see him as a holier than how to that is judgmental. i love to see how they get along, at least after the day-to-day politics are over with. wouldn't it be great if they can show the same humanity playing the political game? wouldn't it be good for the country to let their human side show, showing the human compromises to get to that of the challenges facing this country like our growing debt and this chaotic immigration situation we have? wouldn't that be something? that's hardball for now. thanks for being with us. the ed show starts right now. >> good evening, americans. welcome to "the ed show" tonight from new york. republicans are waging a full-scale assault on millions of americans and nobody's talking about it.