did he not get the message of wisconsin? the american people did! it's time for us to cut back on government and help the american people! >> right. because teachers, firefighters, and police officers aren't part of the american people. they are just some socialist hanging on and taking taxpayers' money. even wisconsin governor scott walker had to scratch his head at romney's invocation of his own state. >> i know in my state we protect firefighters and police officers and teachers and not what i think when i think of big government. >> if fellow republicans were scratching their heads, the remark was enough to make senior obama adviser david axelrod question mitt romney's very status as an earthling. >> we don't need any more teachers. 250,000 teachers have lost their jobs in the last couple of years. what planet is he living on when wwhere he thinks we can take these kind of hits in our

education system and progress as a country? i would suggest he is living on a different planet if he thinks that is a prescription for a stronger economy. >> a very different planet, the romney tron perhaps? no he is coming from a place like massachusetts! where he saw fit to enact those very cuts he is talking about as illustrated in a new obama ad. >> local government was cut dramatically. we lost police, firefighter, teachers at rapid rates. people that directly impact the lives of every citizen. our cities were less safe, not as clean. larger class sizes. >> right. romney is the same guy who suggested that the impact of class size is a myth on a visit to a charter school in west philadelphia. since that excursion was marred by hecklers, we are suggesting that west philly is not on the map for romney's new announced bus tour. philly won't count in the every town counts tour as the romney

bus rolls through small towns in six swing states starting in new hampshire on friday. who knows, maybe sarah palin will show up. let's bring in our political panel in now. anna marie cox and karen finney who is now a columnist for "the hill." in philadelphia, professor james peterson, director of studies at lehigh university and a blogger for the huffington post. karen, we know that this election is being fought between those he believe government should be reduced and those who think the government does have a role. isn't mitt romney also revealing he has little understanding for schools and teachers because he has no experience of public education? he went to an elite private school where class sizes were small. i mean, that's what he knows. he knowsothing about public education. >> well, that's right. i think what we are also seeing is that mitt romney doesn't

really understand how the economy isn't working for the majority of americans and how government is supposed to work. right? but remember this is a guy who thinks self-deportation is an employment strategy, specifically with regard to education. i mean, think about it, martin. what are some of the things we know? our kids are falling farther and farther behind. they used to work in education in the new york city public schools. we also know that things like bullying are on the rise. in part, why some because class sizes are getting bigger because of cutbacks in our schools which means teachers don't have the capacity to take care of students the way they need to be, you know, taken care of based on their learning needs. so the idea that cutting more teachers, which means less of an investment in america's future is a good idea, i totally agree with david axelrod. i don't even want to go to that planet if that is what he thinks is a good idea. >> anna marie, in west philadelphia, romney cited mckenzie consulting studies from asia on the subject of class

sizes. i guess that's as close as he can get to public education. and, of course, he asks his wife ann to advise him on women. so that's how it works. he goes to mckenzie for education and his wife for women's issues? >> that's as close as he gets to this planet, i guess. although my theory has been he is an android and not an alien. i don't know exactly like what happened for him in this gaffe when he cited teachers and firefighters as being part of big government as a problem. it's lamb like wisconsin victory has been such a great thing for republicans that it's like a tic and mention it whenever they think they need an applause line. a lot of people don't know what the wisconsin victory is. you can't add it in a speech and hope you make sense what you said before. i think with saying this, you're right p.m. romney showed he is really out of touch with how most people view the government and how most people see it as a part of that were lives.

not an enemy but you need a relationship with to have a good life. >> the president has faced an onslaught after saying the private sector is doing fine. isn't it much more serious for this republican nominee to state as his policy that actually he thinks we should reduce these public service employees and everything will be fine. >> it is much more serious. first when we look historically how to recover from recessions, the government has got to spend some money. the way do you that is by hiring public workers. what we have seen because of the republican takeover in 2010 and republican legislature and governors they are balancinging the governments of their stack on the backs of workers. some estimates say our unemployment could be as low as 7% if we didn't lay off 700,000 public workers. that doesn't get to education and fighting crime and the way we prepare for more robust

society overall going forward. the bottom line is not only is romney sort of orbit with the planet but actually the republican party that is pushing an agenda that is trying to erode public services and that just doesn't make sense. does not make sense. >> karen, when you hear republicans rehearsing this view as professor peterson says, do you think the people welcome the idea of fewer teachers, of fewer police officers, of fewer firefighters? is that what we are really looking for? >> look. the republicans have for a very long time now, been at war with the idea of public sector employees which, to me, it's public service. >> yeah. >> even some of the people that work in the building behind me actually came to washington, actually worked for government because they are trying to do some good. so bashing public sector employees which, by the way, means fewer cops, you know, on your streets, fewer teachers in your kids's school. >> that's right. >> the one thing i want to take on in terms of what president obama said in the full context he is not wrong.

if you look at -- even moodys has suggested if you look at nonfinancial firm corporate profits are at -- up 15% and haven't been that high since the '60s. >> that's right. >> technically, we know they are sitting on over a trillion dollars while middle class wages are stagnating and people don't have more in their pockets and these companies aren't hiring. again, sort of blaming people who don't have jobs for what is going wrong in the economy when the people it at the top are doing better than ever in the corporate world and sitting on, you know, over a trillion dollars in cash. that's not an understanding, again, of how the economy is supposed to actually work. >> we have dealt with that issue. anna marie, we are hearing that romney is going on this magnificent bus tour. as you know, sarah palin did the same. what are your thoughts about the purpose of this? whether it will be as effective as sarah palin's, which seemed to me like a family holiday off the northeast coast of america.

>> as long as he doesn't tie a dog on the top of the roof of the bus, i guess it can't hurt him but i think what we are looking for here is really just to put him in front of people who might be friendly to him. a lot of polls in swing states as many as 25, 28% of people who say they don't know enough about mitt romney to have an opinion of him and that is actually kind of remarkable in a bad sign. considering like how much coverage the presidential election has gotten so far. i think that this is an attempt to put him in a friendly atmosphere, to let him show his human side or at least show the side that is programmed to be human and hope for the best. although, you know, his record in massachusetts sort of suggests the more you get to know him, the less you like him. but i guess that's a risk they have to take. >> indeed. professor peterson, there is also this issue out there of a vp pick. one name that is being floated still is jeb bush who had some harsh words for the republican

party and i'm quoting him. back to my dad's time or ronald reagan's time, they got a lot of stuff gone by a lot of the bipartisan support that right now would be difficult to imagine happening. >> that's right. >> do you see any sign of a pull-back from republicans, hearing such a kind of critique by someone as influential as jeb bush? >> well, jeb bush is right. he is not going to accept any invitation to be romney's vp. we may see him down the line in 2016 or 2020. i say this all the time. the republicans i grew up with, we could have conversations with them and talk through some of these issues and compromise was at least on the table. but what ma happened with the rise of the 1% and the ways in which money and special interests dominate politics, is that partisanship has become totally different. we are at war with ourselves around the legislative processes because special interests overdetermines and i mean that literally, it overdetermines the

ways in which politicians think and vote. so jeb bush is actually right here. he understands that. there is no space in this republican party for him, for his father, or for him in the future if they can't relieve that choke-hold that special interests and 1% have over the republican party. >> karen, do you agree with prefer peterson that actually it's the money that is now driven this partisanship to such extremes? >> absolutely. i mean, those are the voices that are having the most influence. again, i go back to, you know, shelley writing a check for newt gingrich which completely drowned out the will of republican primary voters who said we don't want this guy. yet, addleson kept him afloat an extra month or so. i also think what jeb is speaking to, we have heard privately a lot of republicans are more moderate voicing concerns about this idea that somehow compromise has become, you know, a dirty word and sort of the grip that the far right has taken in the republican party.

i hope that it means more moderate voices will actually though, stands up and speak out publicly. almost immediately jeb was attacked by none other grover norqist. >> everything is wrong with politics, mr. grover norquist. >> stay with us please. speaking of money, can dollars overcome republicans on ease with their wooden candidates? stay with us. >> some loopholes were understandable but in practice they made it possible for millionaires to make nothing and a bus driver was paying 10% of his salary and that is crazy. my cut hurt!

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if there is one thing mitt romney knows how to do is take advantage of a bad situation. as his new ad misconstruing the president and his comments last week with the private sector and then of course, his ability to gain the campaign of finance laws. how romney and his allies are often among the first to take advantage of every regulatory decision has allowed super pacs to spread. the results should shock but not surprise anyone. the a.p. reports in just the first week of june, romney allied organizations, including his super pac and karl rove's crossroads gps have spent 37 million dollars compared to $11 million by the president and his allies. back bus now is ana marie cox and karen finney and dr.

peterson. "the boston globe" begins its story with mitt speaking at a fund-raiser. this is not considered illegal coordination because romney was, i'm quoting a featured guest. a designation he was the first to take advantage of. it's scary how quickly they find these kind of loopholes, isn't it? >> absolutely. but i think we all expected that was the nature of what was going to happen in the aftermath of this decision, right? people will follow the law right up to the, quote/unquote, letter of the law when it comes to these kind of campaigns that they can and look for those loopholes. part of the problem is there shouldn't really be any loopholes. it's all this cute by half stuff that means millions and millions of dollars from sources we may never know, spent on -- you're only talking about that $37 million is on a lot of things we can see. a lot going on and money being spent to impact the election under the radar that we will never see and by that, i mean, all of the voters efforts and

mailings. >> ana marie the campaign is highly coordinated when it comes to appearing not at all coordinated. >> that's right. i think, you know, the fact that they have been on top of the these rulings, i mean, speaks to just how sharp they are as a campaign even though, they are not presenting him very well personally. maybe you don't need to present a candidate well in a way has makes people like him if have you that kind of money. and we have talked about this before, martin. this is unprecedented how much money is posteriuring into this campaign. >> to your point, though, they are shoring this man's inadequates up by throwing at him. >> that is correct. in the past, i think presidents have had some leeway to kind of take back some control from the people who have done fund-raising for them once they get into office. the president is the president. you know? much powerful office in the land.

you can kind of push back on the people that put you there. this kind of money coming in, i think it really raises the question of how beholden the president could be to the people who raise this money. again, it's just we have never seen anything ellike this and n way to predict what is going to happen once the election is over. >> professor peterson, romney's super pac ally karl rove is in some hot water as the story of the commerce secretary car crash was still developing. rove super pac tweeted this. how does the commerce secretary have three car crashes in five minutes and alcohol not be involved? then it's #skills. it turns out john bryson may have had a serious seizure. american crossroads tweeted a correction. but shouldn't rove apologize for this kind of a comment about secretary bryson? >> well, don't hold your breath, do you know what i mean? karl rove is not the one to apologize. this super pac issue is serious.

when you're talking about karl rove and mitt romney, they have so much experience. mitt romney from bain capital and karl rove with how to float the rules. having a blind trust and moving your money offshore is like practice for what you need to exploit citizens united which why at the end of the day we have a call for the revisitation and overturning of citizens united as soon as possible. it is destroying american politics and we are watching it unfold right now. >> ana marie cox and karen finney and dr. james peterson, brilliant even over those two segments. thank you to automatic. stay with us. much more ahead. the notion that my white house would purposely release classified and national security information is offensive. >> of course, the white house leaks it! and, of course, they did it to make obama look like he was tough on terror!

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the white house press briefing wrapped up just a short time ago with a large portion of today's questions focused on the health of commerce secretary john bryson. secretary bryson is resting back home in washington, d.c. after suffering seizures on a roadway in los angeles that appear to have led to two car crashes in a matter of minutes. nbc kristen welker is live at the white house. i believe you were at the briefing today. what are we learning about secretary bryson and do you know what actually happened? >> reporter: we are learning a little bit more. good afternoon to you. jay carney saying president obama has not yet spoken to secretary bryson but that the chief of staff jack lew has spoken to him. this appears to be an apparent

seizure as you mentioned. everyone in the administration quite concerned about his health. carney was pressed about whether bryson had some sort of condition that may have led to this. he couldn't answer those questions but those are certainly some of the things that investigators will be looking into in the coming days. just to recap quickly what happened. authorities out in l.a. say secretary bryson was driving his car. ofs personal time this saturday. he crashed into one car twice and then just five minutes later, crashed into a third car and he was found unconscious. at this point, he hasn't been charged with anything and he is back here in d.c. resting as you say. >> let's hope his condition improves. the president's day today is largely filled with closed door meetings, along with a round of interviews with local news affiliations around the country. what is the schedule the rest of the week? i think he is coming to new york, isn't he? >> reporter: he is coming to new york later in the week for a big fund-raiser at the home of sarah jessica parker, the actress, can which will be cohosted by a

tour, that is the head of vogue. the idea this week is pivot away from last week, which, of course, was filled with a lot of negative headlines for the president. this week will be filled with a lot of fund-raising events and a lot of outreach to swing states. you mentioned those interviews he is doing today. a lot of them are with swing states including colorado, nevada, virginia and heading to pennsylvania tomorrow which happens to be my hometown. i'll be there following him, of course. then later on this week, he'll be in ohio. he also has some official business at the end of the week. he is going to celebrate lgbt pride month. >> that's great. i know the president will be speaking tomorrow and we will have you with us again. thank you. >> thank you. stay with us. the day's top lines are coming up. ♪ [ male announcer ] what's in your energy drink?

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who is out of touch. here are today's top lines. oh, the places you'll go. >> none of you is special. >> he says we need more firemen, more policemen, more teachers. >> contrary to what your soccer trophy suggests you are nothing special. >> did he not get the message of wisconsin? >> what we need to do is have education reform not throw more money. >> out of touch we have lost 250,000 teachers. >> our reform has allowed us to protect firefighters, police officers, and teachers. >> none of you is special. >> private sector is doing fine. >> fine? because i am. huh? aren't you? aren't you? isn't he? who else is fine? >> is he really that out of touch? >> it is absolutely clear that the economy is not doing fine. i spent this past week, this past month and this past year talking about how we can make the economy strong. >> is it treeson to purposely block any help for the economy

so voters blame the president? it's one thing to root for failure an another thing to cause failure. >> governor romney has some great choices to pick from. i'm not one of them. >> zero tolerance for leaks and speculation. >> he was offend. that is like the president of the "titanic" saying he is offended by the iceberg! >> stop! >> been tougher on leaks than any administration in recent history. >> the president may not have done it himself but the president certainly is responsible. >> you called the president john wayne or george patton? >> ah! >> well, cool off, pilgrim. >> the administration is trying to give the president glory. >> the notion is offensive. it's wrong. >> climb the mountain so you can see the world, not so the world can see you. >> 'tis graduation season. that was a refreshingly honest commencement speech by david macculloch, jr. at a long time

english teacher in massachusetts with that wisdom, gates let's get to our panel. jonathan capehart joins us live from washington. ken vogel joins us live from nation's capital and we are pleased to have msnbc contributor crystal. one of the things about this particular scandal is i've learned something about republicans and that is that they do have a fundamental literacy problem because they don't seem to be reading what "the new york times" story actually said. particularly with regard to stocks net where it wasn't flattering of the president. they described him as fearful. so what is this kind of nonsense about? >> not only that, but it also has put the president in an awkward position with some of the further left parts of his base who have been critical of his approach on prforeign polic and national security. it's not clearly a win for the president these stories have come out and he has been very clear how angry he is about

these leaks. but, you know, for the republicans, i think many of them, including senator mccain, find it extremely gulling the president has been so successful on security and that the american people give him a great deal of credit. recent fox news poll, americans gave him a 13 -- >> please don't swear. >> i'm so sorry. on the other network that shall not be named. >> thank you. >> even thank you poll showed obama with a 13-point edge on romney over who americans trust to fight terrorism. >> right. there you go. here is representative peter king, another one of the gop's grand inquisitives. let's see how he gets the story so badly wrong. >> but also in the stories themselves, they compare him to, say, thomas moore and white house aids or top aides to the president describing him. >> first of all, mr. king gets the story wrong. no one is comparing the president to those philosophers. they are simply saying he has read them. secondly, mr. king refers to

thomas moore who was a lawyer in the 16th century as opposed to thomas aquinas who is a dominican priest in the 16th century. who cares about the facts. the reference to augustine that this president takes moral responsibility for military action very seriously as oppose to do bush and cheney who took the nation into war under the false pretense of weapons of mass destruction. >> certainly! and, you know, the president has made it very clear in many speeches and many press briefings that he takes his -- his responsibility as commander in chief and particularly sending in men and women into combat and into harm's way very, very seriously. this is someone who has gone to walter reed medical center many times and someone who has visited veterans and taken their issues when they come home very, very seriously. one of the hallmarks of his administration. not a bad thing when the

president of the united states takes it as, you know, a huge moral responsibility for what he is doing. you know, what congressman king and senator mccain and other republicans are doing, they are weaving in yet another thread in their narrative that says that the president is, quote, in over his head, or is incompetent, or doesn't know what he is doing. as crystal said, it does gull them that this is the one area where the president has been very, very successful, but once again, they are trying to take the president's strength and turn it into a weakness. unfortunately for them, though, i think the american people, you know, they can see very clearly that this president is doing everything he can to keep the country safe and is actually been very successful at it. >> ken, to that point, as john says, the president has done well on national security. but in following the karl rove political playbook, they are trying to turn a strength into a weak is. in addition to i guess, hoping

the unemployment continues to go up, i guess they are also hoping that the president doesn't score any more victories against al qaeda because that would be bad for them again. >> moocertainly. this is something the president hat upper hand. on the one hand i can understand where republicans and we should mention there are also democrats are upset about these leaks, are coming from, which is that at the same time as the president is taking a very hard line on leaks against leakers, prosec e prosecuting and bringing six cases more than any other president national leak cases, his administration is behind leaks that are designed to make him look politically good even if they don't have that actual effect in the president. that said we may fix here in washington what are inside issues about leaks and how leaks emanate, whether congress or the white house leaks more. i think for most people, most voters who are not paying that close attention to this, the one thing they are aware of is the president's successes in this

arena, namely getting osama bin laden and beginning the draw downs in iraq and afghanistan and ending those wars and making progress towards ending those wars. when compared to what is really sort of a technical argument over leaks, it doesn't really -- it doesn't work out in republicans' favor. this is an issue where the $democrats have the upper hand. >> crystal, do you think that john mccain has been commissioned by romney campaign to drive hard at this issue specifically? >> i think he certainly feels that he is doing something that is in service of the republican party for this election campaign. i don't know if he was directly contacted by the romney campaign. but i'm sure he still also sort of has his feelings hurt over 2008. as i said earlier find this gulling. the republicans were spinning this narrative early on that the president was leading from behind. on security. that was gaining some traction. and then we received the news of osama bin laden's death. that completely undermined their

narrative of the president being soft on twor. so now as ken is pointing out, they are trying to spin this navive he is in over his head. >> thank you. much more ahead. stay with us. ♪ ttd#: 1-800-345-2550 ttd#: 1-800-345-2550 let's talk about the cookie-cutter retirement advice ttd#: 1-800-345-2550 you get at some places.

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the private sector is doing fine. >> romney went after teachers and cops and firefighters which led to this response from the dnc. ♪ >> he says we need more firemen, more policemen, more teachers. did he not get the message of wisconsin? the american people did. it's time for us to cut back on government and help the american people! >> the executive director at the democratic national committee is here. >> thank you. >> the president corrected himself within minutes of making that comment on friday. romney has offered up plentiful gaffes. should we treat these as mistakes by both sides? or do they tell us something genuine about both candidates? >> well, i think that there's a clear distinction to be made

here, martin. the president, obviously, was laying out an argument for why republican leadership in congress needed to, right now, pass a jobs bill that will put construction workers back to work and repairing our infrastructure and put teachers in the classroom and educate our children and reduce the class size and more first responds back on the streets and in firehouses to keep the public safe. >> moody says that american jobs act would raise gdp by at least 1%, would create at least a million jobs. this is an assessment by an economic analytical firm. >> exactly right. martin, conversely, independent analysts said that mitt romney's economic policies would drive us ba back into a recession. let's make it really, really clear here for your viewers. mitt romney did not make a gaffe. he was doubling down on stated policy and he was actually echoing the work he had done in

massachusetts. martin, when mitt romney was governor of massachusetts, he slashed spending for teachers, for firefighters, for police officers, the very same public heroes that he was disparaging a few days in iowa. as a consequence of that, we had classrooms that were overcrowded in massachusetts, we had a spike in the homicide rate in the state, and his cuts to essential protective services for firefighters was so egregious that even republicans in the statehouse in massachusetts voted unanimously to override his cuts. >> it sounds like president clinton has him right that he is less a flip-flopper and more consistently and severely conservative. but, today, romney announced his every town bus tour in the press release, romney says, quote, for three and a half years president obama has paid little attention to the everyday concerns of the american people. how do you respond to that, when

romney is the candidate saying we should lay off even more teachers and police officers? >> yeah. it's not a surprising statement coming from a candidate who clearly has been living in an alternate reality if he wants to slash first responders and the teachers that are allowing our young people to outcompete and outinnovate their competitors overseas. when the president spoke from the podium a few days ago he was very clear in the last 27 months we have grown 3.3 million jobs. the private sector but lost about 450,000 jobs in the public sector in this country. which is exactly why we need republican leadership in congress to do the right thing and to pass that jobs bill and we need mitt romney to get off the bus and to actually communicate with boehner, ryan and all of the folks who he has been embrace to go get them to act like leaders in this make or break moment for the middle class in this country. >> good luck with that. i think you'll find that boehner and paul ryan are dictating what romney does and not the other

way around. this hasn't been the pre's best month in terms of message discipline. it's been tough because of some of the surrogates who have said certain things that have provoked corrections and so on. can the president turn it around and begin dictating this campaign, instead of the sense in which it looks as though he is having to react to what romney does? >> well, martin, campaigns are a human enterprise. surrogates on both sides from time to time will have to clarify and correct themselves. but at the end of the day, that's not what the american people ultimately care about. in terms of messaged discipline, this president has been consistent from day one that the recession that we found ourselves in, the hole we found ourselves in was not created overnight. it took a decade to get us there, and we will not come out and recover fully as a nation overnight. there are important pillars he has put in place to help us grow jobs and have really spurred the private sector economy, and in

the very near term, we need to do the kinds of things that will allow us to build our infrastructure. martin, it's shameful that right now, china is outpacing us at a ratio 4-1 in terms of investing in their infrastructure. europe 2-1. i don't believe that the american people be the republicans, democrats, or independents believe we are going to continue to dominate in the 21st century and be the beacon on this planet if we allow that to happen. and that is exactly what mitt romney's policies will take us to. this president has been consistent in his message is from day one that we can only get full growth by encouraging both the private and the public sector and that we have got a long ways to go, but the investments we have made in clean energy, the investments we have made in innovative technology will lead the way here. >> patrick, executive director of the dnc, thank you, sir, for joining us. >> thank you so much, martin. we want to recognize a colleague and friend robin roberts who earlier this morning shared she has been diagnosed

with a rare blood disorder known as mds or myelodysplastic syndrome. five years after beating breast cancer, robin faces a new battle. but she is facing it with the same attitude and tenacity that has already made her an inspiration to her friends, family, and millions of americans. she will be undergoing treatment later this year and the prognosis is positive. robin, you're in our thoughts and prayers and as your colleague sam champion said, all of the love is coming your way! ♪ could it be i'm falling in love with you baby ♪ ♪ could it be i'm falling in love could it be i'm falling in love ♪ wake up! that's good morning, veggie style.

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it's hard to reconcile the comments of speaker john boehner. on the one hand, he says the country is on the verge of collapse unless action is taken. on the other hand, he is off on his ninth congressional recess since the beginning of this year. but other members of congress are still determined to do something substantive, even as

the election draws near. congressman joe courtney is a democrat from connecticut who serves on the armed services committee. good afternoon, sir. >> hi, martin. >> i'm beginning to understand why speaker boehner's complexion is now darker than my own, since he spends so much time away from the house. but you're focused on on the issue of finding work for returning military veterans. now, what exactly are you doing to help these men and women? >> well, our office has been organizing job fairs and career fairs from one end of eastern connecticut to another. we have got a big one coming up the day after tomorrow, 33 companies, large and small, wide range of services, health care, hospitality, manufacturing. and what -- the good news is there is a great appetite for a lot of employers to hire folks coming out of the military. they have got obviously great skills they have been trained for in terms of team work, discipline, specialty skills. there's issues in terms of getting people certified for civilian workforce.

that's something that president obama has done, i think, really a good job of looking at with the department of defense, that again, somebody who drove an m rat in iraq and afghanistan can really move quickly to driving a truck or built things, you know, construction, logistics in iraq and afghanistan can get into construction trades. medics can get certificated as nurses or, you know, health care professionals. so again, the good news is employers really want to hire these folks. we have just got to make sure there's no artificial barriers that interfere or slow down that process. >> indeed. can i ask your reaction then when you hear someone like mitt romney saying that we don't need more teachers, more firefighters, more cops? aren't these the very careers that many returning military are best suited for? >> absolutely. and you know, there is really in my opinion, nothing better than getting a soldier, sailor, marine, in a classroom really, again, bringing great skills and

life experience into a classroom to inspire kids about the fact that team work and working together, hard sciences, which many of them have been trained up to, is something that can translate into a classroom just in a really powerful way. i'm co-sponsor of a troops-to-teachers measures, which was in this year's armed services bill to again try to help that transition. but the bottom line is, martin, if we don't have a larger support for the teacher workforce, which is really what the president was talking about and mr. romney clearly is clueless about, the fact is we are going to, again, as you point out, interfere with that opportunity that we have to get some great people in the classroom. >> congressman joe courtney, democrat from connecticut. thank you, sir, and thank you for what you're doing for military veterans. >> thanks, martin. appreciate it. >> we will be right back. persos more than 50 times a day? so brighten your smile a healthy way with listerine® whitening plus restoring rinse. it's the only rinse that makes your teeth two shades whiter and two times stronger. ♪

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others. now, he is trying to steal their personality. today's salvo from the romney campaign comprised of an ad which ended with fear-laden sound effects and these words. >> the private sector's doing fine. where we are seeing weaknesses in our economy have to do with state and local government. the private sector's doing fine. >> this is such a brilliant maneuver because romney knows that if anyone is out of touch with the middle class, it's him. a governor's son who grew up beyond comfortable, a man who went to an elite private school, a man who now earns $21 million a year for doing absolutely nothing because he says his investments are managed by a blind trust. a man who doesn't think twice before offering a wager like this. >> i will tell you what, 10,000 bucks -- $10,000 bet? >> now, compare that with the

president, a man who literally embodies the american dream, whose childhood was disturbed by family breakdown and relocation, who could not rely upon the power and influence of his parents, but who, through a combination of talent and effort, rose up from humble circumstances to the highest office in the land. so, who do you think is out of touch with the middle class? the plutocrat or the president? thank you so much for watching. dylan ratigan's here to take us forward into the next hour. dylan what is on the show today? >> i think we are going to do some supreme courtry. we will talk about a couple of things. i know there's some things to talk b. >> supreme court? what are you doing on the supreme court? >> we will get into -- you know what funny you should bring that up, the show starts right now. well, good monday afternoon to you, i'm dylan ratigan.

you may have heard some of the big sunday news. i did receive my ph.d. yesterday, not to mention some news about this program. but the big story today around here, the supreme desion, it is opinion day at the supreme court. but they have put off the fate of the health care law for at least another week with 15 cases also waiting decisions. our money is also on the end of this month for the health care ruling. remember, the court has a few options, throw out the entire law, overturn the individual mandate or keep it intact, three options. everyone from the insurance companies to the white house to congress, not to mention the 7 million young americans currently now insured under their parents' plan awaiting the decision from court. we received two decisions from the court on the terror front today. the justices took a pass on the rights of gitmo detainees, refusion the appeals of seven prisoners, which is odd considering that tomorrow is the fourth anniversary of the supreme court's landmark ruling in which she said they wanted to allow detainees to challenge their decision,