i'm al sharpton. tonight's lead, willard mitt romney says he's mr. economy. he is hoping he will be judged as a businessman. be careful what you wish for. president obama's campaign released a two minute add in five key states killing his claims of being a job creator. by showing that he killed jobs at one kansas city steel mill while he was ceo. workers hit him for ruthlessness. >> they made as much money as they could, they closed it down, filed for bankruptcy, without concern for the families and community. >> we view machinery as a job destroyer. >> the workers attack him for being a hypocrite. >> to get on national tv and

brag about making jobs when he destroyed thousands of people's careers and lifetimes, just destroyed people. >> he is running for president, and if he is running it the way he ran our business, i would not want him there. >> no wonder he wouldn't want willard to be president, 750 jobs were lost at that plant, one plant alone. bain made $12 million and the government had to spend $44 million to bail out the worker's pension plan. this isn't the first time romney's record as a ruthless corporate raider has been called into question. remember this ad a few months back? >> mitt romney bane ceo of bain the first day opened. for tens and thousands of americans, the suffering began

when mitt romney came to town. >> that ad could have come from the president, but it didn't. it came from the super pac supporting newt gingrich. democrats and republicans found something they can agree on. no one thinks willard is a great job's creator, not even his friends in the gop. >> we need to have more venture capitalism and less vulture capitalism. the idea that you come in and destroy lives and come in for a quick profit. >> this company, bain capital, i'm sure he would worry he would run out of pink slips. >> they luted the company, and they left workers bankrupt and went off with millions, that's

not traditional capitalism. >> even willard can't remember how many jobs he supposedly created. he started off saying he created 100,000, but when the facts didn't back it up, he changed it to tens of thousands, and down to thousands. >> if you take -- we started a number of businesses, invested in many others, and overall created tens of thousands of jobs. >> later i help start companies and they began with an idea, and somehow they made it through the difficult times and were able to create a good return and thousands of jobs. >> willard, i know it gets confusing, i'll lay the facts out for you. 22% of the companies bought by bain capital filed for

bankruptcy or closed their doors, but investors were cashing in big as they raked in $2.5 billion in profits, and of course, we can't forget willard's wonderful work as a job creator as governor of massachusetts pm under his leadership, massachusetts ranked 47th out of 50 states in job creation. so willard, do you city think you're mr. economy? the president disagrees. >> he ran a large financial firm and a state. but i think he has drawn the wrong lessons from those experiences. he sincerely believe that's if ceos and wealthy investors make money the rest of us will prosper as well. >> bigger profits haven't led to better jobs. governor romney doesn't seem to

get that. he doesn't seem to understand that maximizing profits by whatever means necessary, whether through layoffs or outsources or tax avoidance, or union busting might not always be good for the average american, or for the american economy. i don't care how many ways you try to explain it, corporations aren't people, people are people. [ cheers and applause ] >> joining me now is a congressman, a democrat from pennsylvania, and joan walsh, editor at large for salon.com and a msnbc political analyst. thank you for being here tonight. >> thanks. >> thank you for having me. >> congressman, has mitt learned the wrong lessons? >> look, i drove here in a gm car, if it was up to him, rather

than gm being number one in the world, they would be out of business and more than a million auto workers would be out of their job. it's not just work at bane, now he is saying he's for the ryan budget that would gut so many of the needed programs that would help with job training and job placement. if you have a job today, it's because president obama and his team stabilized the economy. 26 months of private sector jobs added in our economy, over 4 million jobs because of the leadership of this administration, you don't want to take a risky bet on romney. he has this view that profits are somehow more important, that corporations are the peep, and workers are something less than that. and i think we have to really put this into focus. i'm glad you talked about what gingrich said. he said look at what he did in terms of downsizing these

companies. look what cover perry said and santorum. these are not democrats, these are people saying there's a lot of ways to do business, but when you put the future of people at the end of the bus, that's a problem. >> people are concerned about the economy, they're concerned about jobs, and mr. romney, people will say, why am i raising this about bain, he said that he has experience, and he uses bain as his experience. therefore, it is fair game to go to where he led us. not to just being governor of massachusetts. he emphasized he knows more than the president because of what he did at bain. we laid it out, is it not the only read we can go on? it's the only one we have been pointed to. >> the beauty is the other side everything about president obama that you could think to say, and the machine you say something about governor romney they cry foul. if you want to look at his

record you have to look at his record as governor and as a business leader. when it comes to employment and economic opportunity for working families, his record leaves you wanting. and i think working familys in our country, for those in the middle class, you have to wonder why you would turn over the reigns of power to governor romney when he was for the ryan budget, for detroit going bankrupt, and he ran bain, and 22% of the people went bankrupt and lost their jobs. >> governor romney says he is a great job's creator. this president has failed, are we going in the right direction to examine if his claims are what they say or not. >> absolutely. i love this ad. i think it's very important that governor romney said over and over that i want this election

to be fought on the terrain of jobs. he has a quote that "i know where the jobs come from and where they go" he clearly knows where they go because he has gotten rid of a lot of them. it's a terrific ad to talk to the white working class. we both know that president obama had a problem with them. all democrats have a problem with them, sadly, and have for quite a few years, president obama brought more of them back then john kerry did. he has a uphill battle. he will not carry that demographic, but this says look at this guy who pretends to care about you. this is his job experience, this is what he brings, this is the mind-set that he brings to "fixes the economy." he did not fix it for these steel workers that gave their lives to that steel mill. here they are talking in their own words about what governor romney did to them. >> very interesting, joan,

because the washington post had a poll on how candidates are doing with noncollege white voters. and mitt romney was ahead of the president 61 to 31. so you're saying these ads speak directly to that type of voter? >> yes, and in the voices of that type of voter. it's not you or me talking about what president or machinery has done, it's these voters telling them what happened in their own lives, i think it's a very, very powerful add for that reason. >> mitt romney released an ad claiming he created jobs at the steel plant, let me show you that. >> steel dynamics started with an empty feel and a big dream. but it almost never got started. mitt romney's private sector leadership team stepped in. >> what was interesting is

earlier this year, it was reported that they succeeded because of government help, that bain invested $18.2 million, and state and county blejed $37 million in subsidies and grants. this couldn't be the people that don't believe in government getting involved and being intricately involved in what's going on in the business of the affairs of the people of this country, could it, congressman? >> governor romney, when he was the head of massachusetts, fought for every federal grant he could get. he wanted money for the olympics for the support here and the games, and when he had this steel mill, he was very willing to accept government aid. it's only when it comes time to run in a republican primary, or become the republican nominee, that he wants to discount the

important role of government. capitalism works but only when you create the atmosphere for it to work. you need a lot of support so that private sector businesses can function and our economy -- hopefully when we focus on these kinds of contra dixes, you'll see why it's been so important that the president has been able to move forward. we would do better if romney could convince some of these republicans to move this transportation bill so we could fix up bridges and highways and create for jobs. >> joan, when you look at the fact, quoting a "washington post" poll, you're saying these ads are effective and needed because it goes right to the

issue that the president is trailing willard romney in. >> yes, exactly. because i think people don't know yet. we have tuned in a long time ago to this primary season. regular voters are just now tuning in. they're worried about the economy so they give governor romney the benefit of the doubt. i think the president has to do two things. obviously, he has to tout his own record, and he has a record of job creation, but he has to define governor romney on this point that romney says it's his most important attribute, his beggest asset, and make it clear what kind of economy the governor would want to create, and it's one that private capital -- rick perry called it vulture capitalism. it's not a capitalism that's very good for working people. i think this is a great ad to

help the president get out in front. >> thank you both for your time tonight. >> thank you. >> coming up, republicans running on paul ryan's budget, and running into trouble. call it the ryan effect. plus, new signs of strife in the gop. some fellow republicans were caught actually bullying mitt romney's son at a state convention. >> and i'll talk to a young lady making national headlines for what her opponents on the baseball diamond refused to do. look, every day we're using more and more energy. the world needs more energy. where's it going to come from? ♪ that's why right here, in australia,

chevron is building one of the biggest natural gas projects in the world. enough power for a city the size of singapore for 50 years. what's it going to do to the planet? natural gas is the cleanest conventional fuel there is. we've got to be smart about this. it's a smart way to go. ♪ that bringing you better technology helps make you a better investor. with our revolutionary new e-trade 360 dashboard you see exactly where your money is and what it's doing live. our e-trade pro platform offers powerful functionality that's still so usable you'll actually use it. and our mobile apps are the ultimate in wherever whenever investing. no matter what kind of investor you are, you'll find the technology to help you become a better one at e-trade.

. today, more than 230,000 unemployed americans woke up with nothing. no benefits, no help, nobody to take care of them. gop policy vs. real life consequences, that's next. [ male announcer ] can febreze set & refresh make even this place smell fresh? [ facilitator ] what do you smell? takes me outdoors. sort of a crisp, fresh feeling. [ facilitator ] go ahead and take your blindfold off. [ laughs ] [ male announcer ] the febreze set & refresh. breathe happy for 30 days, guaranteed. ♪

power surge, let it blow your mind. [ male announcer ] for fruits, veggies and natural green tea energy... new v8 v-fusion plus energy. could've had a v8. welcome back to "politicsnation." today, benefits have run out for more than 230,000 americans. they can thank the republicans in congress for that. back in february, the gop agreed to give a payroll tax break to millions of americans. but only if the unemployed

suffer. republicans slashed a the number of weeks they could collect benefits. now 230,000 americans are left to fend for themselves. families trying to keep food on the table. fellow citizens. yet republicans are kicking them while their down. last week the gop passed a bill that cut off food stamps for more than 2 million people. slashed school lunches for 280,000 children. those are kids that will go hungry. for republicans, those meals are fat that needed to be trimmed. >> we think that you have to have savings in some areas where you had a huge increase in spending. we think we need to fix the fact that some of these are growing at unsustainable rates. >> that's not how you empower the people, it's how you enslave people. >> that's how you enslave

people? by helping them when they're down? this is about making choices. this is what the party is and why they support the ryan budget. the budget that's nothing more than a war on the poor. these failed priorities will decide races all over the country this year. none more so than the presidency. >> we now come to this point, this election where the american people will have a choice, and this choice will be as important as any choice we have made in a very long time. what we have is a candidate who said he would rubber stamp a republican congress that wants us to go backwards, not forwards on a range of issues. >> we need to go forward, and hurting people when they're down is no way to do that. joining me now is jared

bernsteen, and joe madison. thank you both for being here tonight. >> thank you. >> joe, let me start with you. how can republicans win in 2012 with these kind of priorities. >> by people not voting their own interest in the interest of their elderly parents. you mentioned the food stamps. what should be in that figure also is that those are mostly children. not just the school lunch programs, but the food stamp rams. let's look at medicare. by 2022, people will be told they will probably have to take out of pocket $12,000 in order to have medical insurance, and we all know, and i think the good professor would probably agree with this, is that the cost of medical -- of medicare and health, and medicine, and hospitalization is not going

down, it's going up. now what will happen to people, let me take a friend, for example, that i have in atlanta. he just found out he had prostate cancer. well, medicare is what helped him get that treatment, that probably saved his live. so as the population gets older, people -- to answer your question directly, they have to think of their parents. they have to think of their grandparents, and young people have to think of their parents and grandparents because they may have to pick up the slack. >> jared, you have been inside in a lot of these negotiations back and forward. when you look at the unemployment benefits that expired this weekend, it happened in states that are already hurting. california where unemployment is 11%, north carolina where unemployment is 9.7%, florida, where unemployment is at 9%,

illinois where it is at 8.8%. so you're adding pain to people that are already hurt. how did we come out in negotiations and have ourselves in this predicament. it is almost unthinkable. >> it is, the idea is at some point when the economy is clearly in a much, much stronger recovery, you would absolutely want those benefits to fade. as those statistics shows, we're not near there yet. you're taking people off of the unemployment rolls, and replace 20-30% of their earnings. this is a program you absolutely need when labor demand is layed low as it has been for so long. let me hitchhike off of a couple of joe's points. i thought he was extremely articulate. here is a part that we have not

discussed yet. amidst all of these cuts, what we haven't yet pointed out is on the other side of those cuts is literally trillions of dollars of tax breaks aimed at those at the top of the income scale. $4.6 trillion from ryan. so that's about $9 trillion in taxes. if you figured out that low income people have too much money and too many jobs, and rich people don't have enough, and we will fix it. >> joe, that's the problem. you have all of in going on to poor people and working poor and working middle class people, while the rich are givend all of these cuts, and then not only the seniors and working adults, look at what they're doing to students. the gop has been especially harsh when it comes to student loans, listen to this. >> i tried to kill federal student loans for 18 years.

loans are something that can be done by the private sector. >> i have very little tolerance for people who tell me they graduate with $200,000 of debt or even $80,000 of debt because there is no reason for that. >> america has got the equivalent of the stage three cancer of socialism because the federal government is tampering in all kinds of stuff it has no business tampering in. >> though are gop feelings in light of this fact. the percentage of students borrowing to pay for college has skyrocketed. 45% took ot loans in 1993, now 94% of students do, joe. with this kind of attitude, we're talking about wiping out the opportunities for a generation of american young people to be students. >> and you're wiping out an opportunity for america to be at the top of it's game when it has

to compete with countries like china, and india, that, by the way, are sending students who can afford these colleges here to the united states to take seats from americans. let's take the state of wisconsin, what did the governor do? he cut billions from education. so if you cut from education, and the cost of a college education keeps going up, it goes back to what the professor said. the rich in essence don't have enough, the poor have too much. and so how do people, who have the brains, the intelligence, can contribute to our society, get good jobs by the way, then pay taxes, help this economy grow, how can they go to college? we know that college is the way out. all of us are sitting here as a product of that. and so here, you have

governor's, members of congress, who quite honestly are doing more to hurt this. i cannot imagine, i will say this in closing, i cannot imagine how a constituent of a congressperson could vote for anybody that would curtail the chance of any student going to college. >> jared, i have to go, but i want to emphasize something you said, the ryan plan has $4.6 trillion in tax cuts, that will benefit the wealthy, but it will take 14 million americans off of health insurance. >> that's right, so let me just tag on this. look, we have a problem with excessive income inequality in this country. if you want to make that worse, cut taxes for people the the top and educational opportunity for people at the bottom. that is a recipe for exacerbating the inequality problems we have. >> thank you for your time this

evening. >> thank you. >> still ahead, why some of his fellow republicans were booing mitt romney's son at a gop convention. ♪ [ male announcer ] american innovation. 29 years ago, it helped us invent the minivan. ♪ today dodge grand caravan is the most awarded minivan ever. ♪ who knows where innovation can take us next?

♪ directions to the moon. ♪

the teacher that comes to mind for me is my high school math teacher, dr. gilmore. i mean he could teach. he was there for us, even if we needed him in college. you could call him, you had his phone number. he was just focused on making sure we were gonna be successful. he would never give up on any of us.

are you still sleeping? just wanted to check and make sure that we were on schedule. the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers.

so i wasn't playing much of a role in my own life, but with advair, i'm breathing better so now i can take the lead on a science adventure. advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. unlike most copd medications, advair contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator, working together to help improve your lung function all day. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking advair. if you're still having difficulty breathing, take the lead. ask your doctor if including advair could help improve your lung function.

get your first full prescription free and save on refills at advaircopd.com. [ male announcer ] introducing new dentyne split to fit pack. it splits in to two smaller, sleeker packs that fit almost anywhere so you can take them everywhere. dentyne split to fit. practice safe breath.

welcome back to "politicsnation." mitt romney is rerealing deep divisions within the gop party. in fact, his son, josh, witnessed it firsthand this weekend. >> make sure that it says paid for romney, and that it's green. i appreciate your support, thank you. >> that's ron paul supporters booing the son of the party's nominee. that would have been inconceivable a few years ago. look how this tv station covered it at the state gop convention. >> this woman right here, has physically assaulted me. >> the video you are watching is being recorded by a woman who says she was just hit in the back. >> with a fist in my back. >> you most certainly did.

>> say they there was a lot of disagreement, but it settled down when the lights were turned off. >> the washington times says "if the oklahoma state convention is any indication main treatment republicans have plenty to worry about come this summer at their convention in november" ron paul says he will start actively am paining and will pursue dell dpats at these state conventions. meaning there may be more scenes like this to come. back in washington, tea party insurgents are looking for ways to make life miserable for mitch mcconnell. the tea party outsiders are focused on shaking up the party in the senate. the times says "they would seek to press an agenda that is generally to the right of the

minority leader senator mitch mcconnell. some say they have not decided whether they would support mr. mcconnell who, himself, finds himself contending with the type of rank and file that has vexed the house. joining me now is richard wolfe. also author of "revival" the struggle for survival in the white house, and michael steele, former rnc chairman and msnbc analyst. good for you to be here tonight. >> michael, let me start with you, will mitt romney be able to bring the party together? >> i think he will. i know this is a lot of the build up to tampa. you see the interparty fights particularly as a number of tea party activist vie for positions within the party whether it's chairman, national committee man or woman. they have been winning some of

those elections, so this is part of that process. i think the washington times is right. it will be an interesting dance there for sure. it will be more exciting than some people want it, but once you're past that point, the focus comes to the prize, which is winning the white house, and rallying behind romney to do that. i don't put too much into these right now because this is just part of the process, the ron paul people as you know, reverend, are strong, and they're very vocal, they're hard core activist. that's in some sense really good too because it does create a level of energy out there. >> richard, i notice you're smiling and have a smirk on your face. are you imagining the dance in tampa with the lights cut out? >> right, he said he had the great line just then, where he said it will be a bit more exciting than some people might want it to be. probably a lot more exciting than the romney campaign want

its to be. when you think back to the 2008 battle for the democratic nomination, there were plenty of clinton supporters at the democratic convention who were very upset. they were very vocal, and that was inspite of their own preferred candidate, hillary clinton going on on the floor, pledging her delegates and trying to bring people together for the nominee as well. we're not seeing that happen now. it may yet come, but it will be interesting so see if santorum, gingrich, or ron paul play it. you can bet we'll be all over it. >> let me -- maybe you missed it, richard. laura ingram had ron paul on her radio show, and she had him comparing romney to president obama. he made a resounding endorsement. listen to this.

>> would you disagree with joule giuliani and others when they say mitt romney will be a better president? >> yes, i think marginally so. >> that's a bumper sticker. >> he barely could get it out were marginally so. there are deep divisions here, richard. >> the bad thing is if the consolidation we have seen in the polls, there have been consolidation in the party. people have come back to romney, his numbers improved. the bad something if the process stopped right here and it doesn't go further, and we just don't know right now. >> a lot of it though is real deep divisions in terms of real firm beliefs, and i mean that sincerely. you see over the weekend, saturday, willard mitt romney was at liberty university, and he was trying to appeal to them

saying -- and this is a very conservative university, and he says that we share common purpose despite different faiths. like he is trying to assure them and give them some comfort, let me show you what he was saying. >> people of different faiths like yours and mine, sometimes wonder where we can meet in common purpose when there are so many differences in creed and theology. we can meet in service and conviction stemming from a common world view. >> right there at liberty, there is a course description of graduate class in liberty considers mormonism a consult. it says "the history, doctrines, and present state of major

consults such as mormonism." now, there are deep feelings here he will have to overcome in a real short period of time. >> i agree with that, and i think, you know, his going to liberty and making those comments really begin that's olive branch issue saying let's focus on the common purpose. we may come from different faith traditions, some of it views one way, others another, but at the end of the day, our goal and walk if you will is the same. and that is towards some common ideals and values that matter in america. and i think that is an important message for him to make. and i thought he made it very effectively and well by the way. . there will be a continuing building around him. but the question mark, people booing his sons, and the tension on the ground, whether that comes to a point where it stops

or slows, is going to be something to watch. i think it ultimately will. at the end, everybody is geared up to win this november. >> but if we get to the tampa and have a contentious convention, would it be close to impossible to get a party together. >> it's when people who tune in, frequent consumers of the kinding of things we have on msnbc every day, and they pay attention. so if they see ugly scenes and booing on the sidelines, that sends a message about what kind of party the republicans are. and if they don't, if romney is feeing the pressure, to prove that he is one of these social conservatives, a libertarian, or an evangelical, if he has to go out and prove that he something he has not convinced the party about, it make it's harder for

him to reach those swing voters. >>. >> if you go to tampa, and they cut the lights out, stay close to michael steele, they like him. >> thank you for coming on the show tonight. >> ahead, why governor scott's strict voting law might be working in the swing state of florida. and this 15-year-old high school baseball staff is at the center of controversy because she's a girl. a story getting a lot of buzz. she joins us live. stay with us. [ male announcer ] the inspiring story

of how a shipping giant can befriend a forest may seem like the stuff of fairy tales. but if you take away the faces on the trees... take away the pixie dust. take away the singing animals, and the storybook narrator... [ man ] you're left with more electric trucks. more recycled shipping materials... and a growing number of lower emissions planes... which still makes for a pretty enchanted tale.

♪ la la la [ man ] whoops, forgot one... [ male announcer ] sustainable solutions. fedex. solutions that matter. imagine getting the chance to play for the state baseball championship until the other team refuses to play the game because there is a girl on your team. it happened in arizona. we'll talk to that girl. at bank of america, we're lending an in communities across the country.

fro omrevi htalielzeping t a neigbrhbooklyn..or.ho financing industries that are creating jobs in boston... providing funding for the expansion of a local business serving a diverse seattle community... and lending to ensure a north texas hospital continues to deliver quality care. because the more we can do in local neighborhoods and communities, the more we can help make opportunity possible. and i thought "i can't do this,

it's just too hard." then there was a moment. when i decided to find a way to keep going. go for olympic gold and go to college too. [ male announcer ] every day we help students earn their bachelor's or master's degree for tomorrow's careers. this is your moment. let nothing stand in your way. devry university, proud to support the education of our u.s. olympic team. we're back with the effort to block the votes in the key swing states. in this case, florida. governor rick scott signed a new voting law that shortened the early voting period and made it harder for voters to update their information at the polls. the law also made big changes in

voter registration requirements and that's already having a big impact. they found 81,000 voters have been registered this year, compared to the same period four years ago. the national council is the largest national hispanic civil rights group in the country registered some 10,000 voters in the last two month website but the new law has made it much harder. >> the canvasser checks all the forms, then their captain checks all the forms, then our quality control manager checks all the forms, and before i turn them in, i check all of the forms. it's a long process and we have to squeed it in 48 hours. >> so they have just two days to turn around all of these forms or face fines. it forces groups to end their

registration work in florida. now is the time to get up and fight back in florida and in everywhere. voter suppression laws are now on the books. ahead, a high school baseball team in phoenix forfeits the championship game because they wouldn't play against a girl. the 15-year-old at the center of this story joins us live, next. wake up!

that's good morning, veggie style. hmmm. for half the calories plus veggie nutrition. could've had a v8. olaf's pizza palace gets the most rewards of any small business credit card! pizza!!!!! [ garth ] olaf's small business earns 2% cash back on every purchase, every day! put it on my spark card! [ high-pitched ] nice doin' business with you! [ garth ] why settle for less? great businesses deserve the most rewards! awesome!!! [ male announcer ] the spark business card from capital one. choose unlimited rewards with 2% cash back or double miles on every purchase, every day! what's in your wallet?

we're back with the story of justice on the playing field. meet paige, the 15-year-old plays second base for messa academy in phoenix. because they do not have a softball team, pretty cool,

right? with paige in the lineup, they made it to the state championships this year, eventually winning the intutitl. the other team forfeited because paige is a girl. her rivals from our lady of sorrows academy, said they would not play against a girl for religious reasons. joining me now is the girl at the center of this controversy. paige, and her mother pamela, and her coach, chris. thank you all for being here tonight. >> thank you. >> thank you for having us. >> what was your reaction when you heard your opponents quit or the opposing team quit? >> i was a little disappointed in it because i have put a lot of hard work this season into getting where i want to be, and

to find out that i wasn't able to play was disappointed to me and my team because they knew i wasn't able to play. >> what would you want to say to them if they were watching, what would you want to say to them. >> no one wants to win or lose by forfeit, especially for a state championship. i respect that you guys are so strong in your beliefs and in your religion, and i can't wrap my head around how strong willed you guys were, but i -- our team would have liked to play you one more time. it would have been nice to. >> now, let me ask you, pamela, as a mom, what was your reaction? >> we were upset. the team has worked really hard to get to where they're at. they were excited to make it to the state finals and they were ready to play.

so we were disappointed when it ended in or forfeit. >> chris, what did you say to the other coach when all of this was going on. >> i didn't have any contact with the other coach at all having seen or heard from him since it went down. >> they said she could bat but not play in the field, is that true? >> there was talks about that, she could bat and play in theout field, but for our team to be top tier, her playing second base, hitting, and running the bases is dynamic for us. >> why would they let mer bat and not play the field? >> they were okay with her playing the field, they were just concerned with her running the bases, and they chose an outfield position because ofless contact or communication she would have be the players. >> i have a statement here,

teaching our boys to treat ladies with a deference, we choose not to place them in an athletic competition where proper boundaries can only be respected with difficulty. our school aimed to instill profound respect for women and girls. did you ever think that page's playing would be a problem? >> not at all. >> paige, have you felt disrespected or in any way treated less than you would be respected as a young lady by fellow teammates or by other teams? >> my teammates have treated me well, as one of the guys on the team, and they didn't see a big issue with me being on the team. >> pamela, what would you say to the parents on the other team. >> well, i'm sure they're just as disappointed in losing by forfeit. so, you know, we apologize for that, and we empathize with

them. >> what have you learned from this experience, paige? >> just stay true to yourself. be who you want to be during any sport you're playing, and don't be afraid to do something that you really want to do. >> are you going to play baseball next year? >> i'm planning on it if we do have a high school girl's softball teamly be signing up. if we do not, i am 100% on the baseball team. >> chris, is she a good second base young lady? >> yeah, she is. we would love to have her next year. >> well, i think it's an interesting story. i think people have the right to their beliefs, but i think you have the right to your playing if you want to do that, page, and i think that you handled this with great dignity, no bitterness, i think that's very,

very admirable. that you have shown an example that you respect their will, but you're termed also to exercise your athletic abilities. thank you all for joining me tonight. >> thank you. >> well on this show, we raise all kinds of issues for all kinds of people. we are always watching to see where there is something that you need to know about. it could be immigrants, it could be african-americans, it could be whites, blacks, it could even be a little girl, just wanting to play baseball. thanks for watching, i'm al sharpton, "hardball" starts right now. going on offense, let's play "hardball".