a grilled cheese from the billy goat. then had a light dinner of two italian beef sandwiches at al's and a midnight snack of flaming saganaki from greek island's and today i stayed in my room and ate 20 chocolate bars along with an eight piecemeal of fried chicken. >> chicago, chicago, you're my kind of town. >> it is tuesday, june 12 9/. we're live from chicago. welcome to "morning joe." with us on set we have along with us msnbc contributor mike barnicle and steve ratner is along for the ride. this morning we've taken the show to ground zero for obama's reelection campaign for an in-depth look at the president's strategy against mitt romney. our guests include chicago mayor

rahm emanuel and former white house chief of staff bill daly. and gommldman sachs is holding s graduation -- it's fantastic. >> the quality of the kids out hoar and the people involved -- >> connecting and reconnecting business owners with the economy. we'll look at how the program helps people thrive. warren buffett and lloyd blankstein will be here on set. both of these gentlemen, i was with them last night, i asked them for a job for you and me. i reminded them, especially mr.

blankfein, while everything was going down and the caca and everything was going down that willie geist kept his eye on the prize. i still want my job. >> we are the 1%. >> if you can get us through that door -- >> you have to be the .01% to work at goldman sachs. >> it was in our mission statement. >> here's what's it's going to be. >> to inform the people but also to get a job at goldman sachs. >> he really is -- i thought steve ratner's talk last night about the small businesses that they're partnering with was -- it was very revealing. he said, hey, listen, we came in with this idea that we were going to be patrons and sort of had a -- he didn't use the word condescending attitude but it was kind of like here, take our

money and look at us. he said at the end of this process and i've heard warren buffett and everybody else say it, too, you look at the small business owners and what they're doing on the ground and he said not only do you have more confidence in the program and more confidence in these individuals but you know america's going to be okay. the entrepreneurship on the ground just still unbelievable. >> it's exceptional. goldman sachs is in a great position to help them. then you heard rahm emanuel tell stories about kid he had known and how they had come from nothing and be able to get into college. america's still a great country. >> rob told a story, mike barnicle, of a young girl that came to america ten years ago from mexico, her parents were selling corn on the side of the road in mexico, she comes up here, her parents still sell corn on the side of the road

here now in chicago. she's graduating valedictorian and she's going to be going to northwestern, one of the finest institutions in the world, just right up the road, right up lake shore. and rahm, if he -- if rahm were a human being, he would have teared up at this point and started crying. >> he's never done that. >> but he just doesn't do that. rahm will be here as well. but we forget that. we forget that in manhattan, we forget that in washington, we forget that when we come out and start hearing these stories and they happen every day in every town across this great land. >> joe, as you know, i spent last week on a fact finding mission. >> in pubs all across ireland. >> no, i was in turkey and in

greece. i would tell you to the point of your story, no one is banging on the door to get into turkey or greece. they are banging on the door and will always be banging on the door to get into the united states of america. talk about lloyd blankfein, heads of the big bank, their stories are unique stories. lloyd blankfein was not born on third base. >> guy is from queens, right? >> yes, yes. >> father was a postman, went to harvard on scholarship. >> yeah. >> only here. only here. >> only in america and we believe it. >> well, we've got a lot of those stories coming u on the show today. we're profiling a couple. businesses in the program and we'll have our main guests as well. let's get to the news. president obama sat down for a series of interviews with local tv stations from critical battleground states yesterday will y includes colorado, florida and wisconsin. after his error last week when

he said the private sector is doing fine, he's looking to changes folk to us an area where mitt romney has come under fire from conservative voters. >> it's true the parties are divided right now but it's not because my administration hasn't constantly reached out to them. even my health care bill, which is something that has generated a lot of negative attention on the republican side was modeled on the health care bill passed by their current republican nominee. so obviously it wasn't too far out. it was something that in the past would have been considered a fairly mainstream, centrist bill. >> president obama's campaign for reelection also kept up the attack on romney's record as governor of massachusetts when this new ad. >> i'm barack obama and i approve this message. >> when mitt romney was governor, massachusetts was number one. number one in state debt. $18 billion in debt, more debt per person than any other state

in the country. at the same time massachusetts fell to 47th in job creation, one of the worst economic records in the country. first in debt, 47th in job creation. that's romney economics. it didn't work then. it won't work now. >> more about what you've been talking about. >> willie, that's what i'm talking about. don't tell me what he did with bain capital and for every failure can i give you 20 successes. that's actually applicable. number one in debt, number 47 in job growth. let the romney people explain what number 47 in job growth is. oh, well he was -- you know what? 47th place in my neighborhood is still 47th place. you play to win as governor and governor you failed. i mean, that is a good line of attack. >> we talked about this two weeks ago, the obama campaign clearly is on this path now.

heap has a resumé. mitt romney has a resumé -- >> of governing. >> and on that resumé is included his time as chief executive of the state, they were ranked 47th in job performance. the facts are the facts, that's what it is. if your whole brand is a fix it guy, a turn around guy, it's very easy for the obama campaign to say why didn't you fix it when you had a chance to fix the state of massachusetts. >> mike, if he's a fix it guy at bain capital, why didn't up use those skills and apply them to when you were governor? if he was a fix it guy at the olympics and saved the olympics in 2002, that's great because i love downhill skiing -- >> when they fly in the air like that, i love that. what was t-- >> what was the mass scott in 2002? the duffus i think, the hair

slicked around. when you're governor, i'm sure you're not going to end up number 47th in job creation and number one in debt. use that attack. stop the stupid anti-capitalism attack. americans get that, mike. >> that's an effective ad. americans do get that. unfortunately for the obama campaign, it's in the rear view mirror and today in present tense we have the story in the front page of the "new york times" about family income has slipped back to the level that it was in the early 1990s. and today people -- listen, most of the people i know, most of the people that we know before we go to work for goldman sachs, their leives, their investments are in their house and they've seen their homes lose values in the last five years. that's what they're thinking about, not whether mitt romney did or did not fail as governor of massachusetts. >> steve, how do we get for this

"new york times" stories we're talking about now, we've lost so much ground. families in 2012 making no more on average than we made 12, 20 years ago. the question is how do we move forward? who helps us turn this economy around? that's the question and i still say you show a guy that ranks 47th in job growth, ranks first in debt, that's a pretty strong negative argument for barack obama against mitt romney. >> it is. the romney people have their own spin on those numbers. they can cut those numbers a different way and get a slightly better performance. he governed at governor much the way he's criticizing obama and other democrats for governing. he was a big government governor. expanded the state bureaucracy, engaged in state venture capital, including a solar energy company that went bankrupt, he added to the debt, didn't create a lot of jobs. he basically is guilty of doing

exactly the same things he attacked president obama for. >> not basically actually. what he did when he became governor in order to ahere no new taxes, he raised fees on everything imaginable from getting a hair cut to going to the bathroom, everything. there was a fee attached to it. >> i think you're exaggerating. >> we're going to do the chart now. can we? do you mind? actually, steve had prepared for this front page article, which we'll get to another front page article on obesity. >> there was interesting data on the change in median net worth. what they found after having quite a robust period in the middle of the 2000s, the median net worth of a family dropped

lom 39% between 2007 and 2010. most of that is your home. that's what's really drove it. but here's another interesting chart. if you were at the top, up up 1.9%. if you were at the bottom, you lost 27.1%. but if you were in the middle you lost anywhere from 29% to 35% because the people in the middle are the ones who depend most heavily on their houses for their net wealth. and finally there's another survey that came out a little while ago i was saving up for a moment like this which looks at the household wealth across the races. i don't know if we have that chart. >> a little delay. it's coming. >> this is '05 to '09 program. if you're white your wealth when went 135,000 to 113,000. if you were hispanic, you lost two-thirds of your net worth and you didn't start with a lot. if you were black you lost half

your network and you didn't start with lot. and if you're asian, you lost half your net worth and you started with more. they live in places like florida, nevada, arizona, the places where home values fell the most. so it's been a brutal few years, particularly for people at the bottom end of the economic scale. so when you talk about the loss of the middle class, can you see the loss of the middle class in charts like these. >> that last chart, steve, the wealth gap, what is it attributable to? is it the home you own? >> it was some of the home and some is they were people spending more than they were earning because you're earning less -- >> you put it on your credit card. >> you put it on your credit card. >> savings for a few years

ticked back up and now that's fallen, too. >> another article in the "new york times," mayor bloomberg has the battle on soda, which i completely agree with him on. he's absolutely right. does anyone here want to challenge me? i didn't think so. you will not! >> one out of three people in the bronx right now according to the "new york times" are overweight, two third overweight, one out of three obese. >> morbidly obese. >> you love putting morbidly in. >> no, no, no! >> guy, we need to start using all these words, obese, fat and they can't be bad words. they've got to be part of our vocabulary, like cancer or diabetes. >> what the government has been trying to do in the bronx is they've been trying to encourage better eating --

>> zumba classes, coupons for healthy food. >> they've slowed down the elevators, put artwork um along the stairs to encourage -- smoking three packs until he comes down to number one. but they tried absolutely everything and this is a growing program, it's a cultural problem. not only is it the greatest health care problem facing america right now, it's the greatest fiscal crisis. this is our long-term fiscal crisis. >> so are you okay with what the mayor did? >> yes. >> no, i was asking joe. i know the rest of you are. >> joe. >> i'm struggling with it. i'm trying to figure out how to punish people for bad behavior. in a way -- i save punish people for bad behavior in a way that costs everybody else the way it

does. look at medicare and medicaid expenses, they're exploding and doctors will tell you half of that comes down to terrible decisions, not made in one day, not made over one month or even one year but terrible decisions made over 20, 30, 40 years. >> who do you think is being punished in here? >> we all are. >> we're all paying for it. >> they don't have to pay for it. >> one of the critical elements of that of obesity in america is if you take a look at bus stops and kids going to school in urban areas, many of them, too many of them stop at a variety store and get like a ring ding and big orange soda, that's their breakfast. as delicious as it is -- >> do they still call them variety stores? >> and ring dings? >> no seriously.

>> what's underlying all of this is exactly what steve is talking about. it's a socioeconomic problem. it's plain as day. if you're living in poverty, your obesity rate goes through the roof. doctors can show you charts of the island of manhattan where the obesity rate starts north of 96th street and shoots through the roof. it's very simple. >> the solution would be like cigarettes. tax it. >> tax the hell out of it. and just like children across this country should have access to good education, they should have access to good food. there's something wrong we cannot feed or children. >> i think you have to regulate it, too, what stores are allowed to put what where inside the city. if you're on the upper west

side, you have whole foods, the best fruit stands every two, three blocks. maybe put that somewhere in the bronx, they're going to rot, that's fine. but what kind of stores -- the city can determine who they're going to permit to put what stores where. and you cannot just feed crap and poison the people that are living in the bronx. >> who are you and what have you done with morning joe? >> if you go through certain sections of the bronx or south side of chicago or parts of boston, there are no supermarkets. there certainly are no whole foods but there are no really good supermarkets. maybe the answer is -- i mean, we live in this computer generated age, maybe to have sort of a card that you give to families, to mothers who are on public assistance and the card is used to buy food but you code it so you can't buy junk, you can't buy junk with it. >> yes, i love it. i think mayor bloomberg is on the cutting edge of the most important health crisis of our

generation. >> we're paying for it. >> i'll tell you what i can tell you this morning i am completely comfortable with, making sure for all the public lunches that we give at school that in the morning and in t'd even go late afternoon lunch that it is all very healthy food and we've got to. i know you always brush this off, we have got to go back to strenuous physical education. >> recess. >> i mean strenuous because i've said it all along. i promise you whatever kids in the bronx are eating right now, what i had was worse but i also promise you this, about two hours after i ran, all that sugar just was gone and i grew up very healthy. you know, i don't think i've ever been to the hospital for anything other than the heroin thing. but other than that. >> thank you, gentlemen, for

actually taking it somewhat seriously. >> it was a turkish hospital and it really wasn't a hospital, it was a jail. >> you were doing so well. >> up next, an exclusive first look at the political playbook. and a little later, warren buffett, goldman sachs ceo lloyd blankfein, mayor rahm emanuel joins us and illinois governor paut quinn. but first bill has our check on the forecast. >> you guys are welcome, too, by the way. beautiful, beautiful morning there. >> he did it. he takes the credit. >> we are watching some nasty storms this morning. if you're joining us from arkansas, louisiana or central mississippi, odds are you've been up through much of the night with these thunderstorms. thousands of lightning strikes from shreveport, in along interstate 20. we're watching light rain from

d.c. back into pennsylvania, the turnpike all the way through western new york, areas of light rain, a very cool morning with a lot of clouds out there today. you don't need the sunglasses but grab the umbrella, light showers this morning, they'll break during the middle of the day and light thunderstorms from d.c. to philly. boston, you should be dry today but tomorrow you'll be in the rain. you couldn't ask for a better day around chicago where joe and everyone is, 76 today and sunny. much of the northern plains is fine but around dallas and san antonio and houston, a chance of thunderstorms. this is probably one of the nicest days we're going to have in chicago, enjoy it.

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after president obama made this statement -- >> the private sector is doing fine. >> mitt romney quickly responded. >> he said the private sector is doing fine. is he really that out of touch? >> while speaking from the hot tub of his luxury yacht and another yacht next to a private island that's part of his chain of islands on his own planet. mitt romney, in touch with the common man. >> 26 past the hour. time to take a look at the morning papers as we take a beautiful shot of chicago this morning as the sun comes up. i love this city. >> it's a gorgeous city. >> don't you love the windy city? >> there's community spirit. you feel like everybody comes together, they do what's right for the kids, they do right for the small businesses. >> exactly. 10,000 small businesses. let's start with the ""chicago

tribune."" members of of the chicago's teachers union voted to support a strike in contract negotiations continue to flounder. the city and union remain far apart on compensation and the district's effort to link teacher pay to student performance. there is that small problem. >> "new york times," house republicans signal they'll take the first step towards citing attorney general eric holder with contempt unless he hands over documents related to the botched gun trafficking investigation known as operation fast and furious. chairman of the committee scheduled a contempt vote for next week. i wanted to talk about this because this is an issue that has bothered republicans for a very long time. eric holder has not wanted to cooperate with him and there may be good reasons but we don't know what they are right now. >> we just lost our last paper.

>> you can't really -- thanks, alex. >> juggling the ball -- >> no, it was alex. you have to blame the right person. he's standing right there. >> he let all the balls drop. fast and furious, i know this drives republicans craze each because they tweet about it all the time. obviously mistakes were made, even holder will admit that. but why this war over fast and furious. first of all, ten americans what the program was. >> this was a program that in retrospect was a huge mistake that made it possible -- that wound up with drug dealers getting guns out of the united states, something that you can't defend. republicans, though, have seized on it. it's really the only obama administration scandal that's gotten any traction, if you want to put aside solyndra. that's why it's the constant tweeting and it's the way for house republicans to show that they're doing something. they're in charge of a third of the government and what do they

have to show for it? >> haven't they admitted they made a mistake? it was a botched deal, right? >> the question is how much did attorney general holder know about it, was he briefed on it? he was briefed on it, he got e-mails on it. the question is did he process it or do anything about it. was this a low-level mistake or high-level mistake. it's important. >> why won't holder and the attorney general's office release the documents so the republicans can find out pretty quickly? >> governments hold back documents. that's what they do. >> what are we japan? >> block them out? >> is there something they're worried about or they're concerned about the president and don't want to give house republicans any more of a call to hit them. >> and darrell icis is out for blood, he's a determined guy. >> we would have thought darrell isa would have ten of these going. the house republicans have used

their subpoena investigative power very weakly. >> they have. he said early on that the obama administration would need more accountants than attorneys and i'm glad he stuck with that. but here's one example, willie, where i think he'll stay after eric holder unless they release the documents. >> when you have john boehner saying they're going to push it to contempt, they're serious about this. >> they think it's a much better issue of solyndra and fast or furious are the specific deals made behind the scenes on the health care bill. we've seen the e-mails coming from. they say we're going to hear a lot about that for the months ahead. we're are here because this is home to the obama reelection effort. paent a little picture of what kind of operation they have

right across the street here. >> it's just outside our shot and it's in a very corporate-like building but instied it looks very much like a dorm room. up to 600, 00 people, almost -- we used to rowdy, dirty campaign offices. this is totally silent, people clicking away on their apple with their ear buds in, people on the digital side raising money and on the organizing side reaching out to the states, looking for every last 2008 voter. one of the many problems, one of the things that has not gone as expected with the obama campaign is what they call ghost voters. there's a lots of voters they can't find, they've changed their e-mail address. so that's another place where --

they're targeting specific states on specific issues, nevada on foreclosures, folks. >> yeah. it's something that's reassuring about our system because this election really is about the 99%. the "new york times" had an interesting analysis the other day, showing almost all of the tv ad spending is in small markets. and that's also what these campaigns are covering, the mitt romney bus tour, six states, five days, their son joaning him for father's matt. it's places that don't get "morning joe." >> wow. >> the "morning joe" bus tour. sweet willie, big smile. >> dillan's not using his bus

anymore. we can take that one. >> we'll just slap our fixtures on it. >> you got an exclusive tour of a company with warren buffett, rahm emanuel, lloyd blankfein all going to be on the show this morning. went to a business called the this red authority -- >> this is such a great story. >> this is the father of the woman you were talking about earlier who is going to northwestern. ken williams, one of the scholars in the goldman sachs 10,000 small businesses program and what we're seeing here are former documents, former secret documents and the slogan we see there the slogan better shred than read. >> wait, wait, wait, wait, is eric holder -- >> he's trying to piece them back together. >> good luck, darrell. >> they were explaining that they moved the documents to different bundles so you can't reassemble them. but what i learned from this is

how jobs come about. we look at the big headlines. lots of jobs added, lots of jobs lost but ken williams at the shred authority has 13 employees. they were excited because they just added a 14th and all politics is local. while mayor emanuel was there, he lobbied him to get a city contract that would allow him to hire 20 more. and one of the bankers who was with him was telling me chicago is not going to add a ton of jobs all at once. the degree to which the jobs are going to come back here, it's going to be like the shred authority, 13, 14, 20 at a time. rahm's amazing, very detail oriented. heap has a little card, he carries a single card in his pocket every day where he writes down what he learned, what he's going to follow up on. he didn't have his pen. i offered him a pen. no, he needed a certain pen that he called his aide. >> i can see him needing a

certain pen. very specific needs. >> mika and i were talking last night at length -- >> he is troubled. >> he troubled. he starts talking and he is ari. >> and they're like confrontational at all times. >> but in a loving way. >> like they're trying to understand the world around them. >> they love each other. >> no, they do. >> they love friends of themselves. but rahm is so at peace in his job. >> yes. >> well, he loves it. he is the man. >> he is the man. and he can get things done, unlike being in the house, unlike being in the senate -- >> unlike being in the white house. >> unlike being in the white house -- he didn't say this but it's a very frustrating place to be right now. he can get things done. >> every governor, every mayor would tell you they'd rather be there than in the senate and house.

>> you told him he was like ari, he got very defensive "what do you mean," which is what ari is like. >> speaking of ari, we need to call ari up, he's in l.a. we're going to be a little more careful on this one. we're going to wake up ari and not bring up any horrid memories. don't you think we need to wake up ari? >> we should get him on with his brother. >> we can just leave and go to the airport. >> why would we want all three of them on? >> an all-emanuel flash mob. >> and a stanley cup championship. >> they're still playing hockey? ♪ it's bad, bad leroy brown, baddest man in the whole damn

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♪ ♪ welcome back to "morning joe" live this morning from chicago. some of the sports images of this great town have a tale of two baseball teams here. we got the chicago white sox leading the a.l. central by a half game over the cleveland indians and on the other end of the spectrum, it looks like this might be the year again for the clubs, last place, 20 wins, tied for the worst record -- >> but they got theo! wait, look what he left us with. >> 1908 i think is going to go another year, don't you, mike? >> i think maybe another couple years. >> but the white sox having a good year. >> you know who is also hot, the yankees. >> the yankees tied for first. >> you know who is not hot? >> red sox. >> yeah.

>> stop it. >> they're going to be okay. right? >> i don't think so. >> the cubs have two great owners and the rickets family, they'll spend money on the cubs. >> a little left-wing jab. >> the less propped up stories certain publications have to make up. >> someone has an idea, let's put it on the front page. >> a couple years ago the chicago blackhawks were celebrating a stanley cup championship. now at least some people are celebrating in los angeles. >> come on, nobody's celebrating. >> a few people went to the game to be seen at the game. >> give me a break. >> kings and devils, last night game six in what they're trying to call hockeywood. i don't think that's going to take. >> no, that's not going to work.

who? what! >> let's watch so baseball. >> scuderi plants him into the glass. leaves the team shorthanded. the kings scored three goals in the first period, the kings did. this game was pretty much over in the first period. they went on to win 6-1, hoisting the cup. it's a good story, joe. i know you're not a fan but an eighth seed, they barely got into the playoffs and then won the first three games of this series, lost the next two and sealed it last night. they're champs in hockeywood. >> worth watching just to listen to mike emrick announce the game. >> here's the celebration. hockey is a great sport. it's just tough to watch on tv. it's the oldest cliche in the book. >> you can't watch it on tv. good job, guys. >> the die hard fans in southern california who have waited 44 years. >> there's a ton of them, too,

i'll bet. >> just three hours, the city of angels. >> on the frozen pond, the city of angels. >> when we come together, there's a chance. >> what happened? anything baseball? >> we just told you it was the white sox are good, the cubs stink. >> you know what, lynn sweet is coming. >> the angels have the best player in the major leagues, mike trout, better than bryce harper. >> really? >> 19 and better. >> how is that pujols kid doing? >> the angels are coming on. lynn sweet of the "chicago sun times" up next on "morning joe." ♪

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♪ talking about a sweet season on my mind ♪ >> time now for the must read opinion pages. joining us for that, columnist and washington bureau chief of the chicago sun times, lynn sweet. jeb bush is in the news. i want to read you guys this first and then we'll read frank bruney in the "new york times." jeb bush, the former governor of florida spoke out yesterday at a breakfast with reporters saying that his father and ronald reagan would have had a difficult time with the climate in the gop today saying, quote, they would have a hard time if you define the republican party, and i don't, as having an orthodoxy that doesn't allow for disagreement, doesn't allow for finding some common ground. so he's been putting himself out there on that point. people are talking to him a

little bit or talking about him as a possible vice presidential choice. do you think that's a reality that could happen? >> i don't think so because there would be too much talk about a bush dynasty and romney doesn't need it. i'm kind of going with the bland is beautiful school of vice president picks. >> portman. >> portman and john kucinich is very, very good. he's not mentioned as much as portman. i just don't think he needs extra. >> you mean kasich. >> i didn't say kucinich. i said kasich. >> you did. >> the story line would be too much bush, not romney, if he went to jeb bush and he just doesn't need that. jeb bush i think is going to sit this one out as he says he is. >> what do you make of his comments, steve? >> i think he was saying i'm

sitting this out. i think he's obviously unhappy with the state of the republican party and the nominees. i was at that party and he was very forth right obviously and there was a buzz in the room over it. >> if you talk to some of the republicans who many wished had jumped into the race, they would all -- and i've heard some of them actually say it behind scenes -- be very, very sad about the state of the republican party. mike barnicle. >> given jeb bush's common sense and moderate ideology, there's no way he fits into the national picture of the republican party the way it's been structured the past ten months. look at the dialogue during the primaries. a guy like jeb bush doesn't fit in that picture. >> frank bruiny writes an election half empty. "both obama and romney are held back by budgetary and political dynamics that stand in the way of many sweeping initiatives and both understand that there are

real limits to america's agency in its own short-term economic fate, limits that jeb bush liberated. choose your phrase. it's definitely not a morning in america and no one should lie to us about that. we're in these dusky straits because we ignored hard truths but optimism isn't foolish, it sustains and rallies people. it's what a leader must find and persuasively project and there's a scary dearth of it in this campaign." we're looking at small businesses throughout the show and we were looking at the charts are some very, very deep chasms in the wealth situation and our nation. what he says does touch on a

reality. >> i think he really makes the point very elegantly, which is that we have these problems but we need candidate who is can rise above them, recognize them, not be polialianish and dismiss them. there's an enormous energy in this country and an enormous desire to succeed. we need people who will lead us there. >> the story with the shredding company here in chicago, where this family came from and what they did, that only happens here in america. >> one of of the points about chicago is that it has a multiple kind of business space. it's not dependent just on one industry. this is a multi-industry town. rahm know it is when he tries to talk about different jobs here. we go cross sectors, all kinds of institutions here. so when you talk about a

comeback, a city like chicago has a lot to do because we're not dependent on only one kind of business to bounce back, which is why chicago does a little bit better sometimes than some other cities. >> we'll take another look at that later. lynn sweet, thank you so much. also coming up later, warren buffett and goldman sachs ceo lloyd blankfein. keep it here on "morning joe." ♪ as soon as you are able and i am willing ♪ now you can apply sunblock

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man, what a day it is here in chicago, illinois. we got a big hour ahead. the former white house chief of staff and co-chair of president obama's reelection campaign, bill daley will join us. and the great mayor of chicago rahm emanuel. all that when "morning joe" comes back live from chicago. with the spark cash card from capital one, sven's home security gets the most rewards of any small business credit card! how does this thing work? oh, i like it! [ garth ] sven's small business earns 2% cash back on every purchase, every day! woo-hoo!!! so that's ten security gators, right? put them on my spark card! why settle for less? testing hot tar... great businesses deserve the most rewards!

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i'm going to name a famous chicago athlete. you have to tell me what their nickname would be if they were a mobster. >> okay. >> first one, michael jordan. >> mikey six rings. >> shoeless joe jackson. >> joey no shoes. >> dick butkus. >> richard hiney smoocher. >> william "the refrigerator perry." >> william "the refrigerator" perry. >> very good. welcome back to "morning joe." we're live in chicago. mike barnicle and steve ratner are still with us. joining us former white house

chief of staff bill daley who looks fresh and rested and just happy. >> and out of the white house. >> out of the white house. >> it's great. it's a tough life but this is a beautiful day in chicago and you should come back in january. it's just great. >> i think we'll do the show right here. >> no problem. >> so how is the president doing right now as we're five months away from the election? >> look it, i think this is -- it's a tough election. i think he's doing fine. i think if you go state by state, which is what the election will be about, he's in good shape. there's lots of people running around with all sorts of setting their hair on fire to say this is a close race. it is a close race and the one person who has known that from the beginning is the president. i don't know what all the big news is when people talk about polls and say this race has tightened. it's always going to tighten. >> what's the president's biggest challenge moving forward? >> i think obviously the economy and convincing the american

people that it will get better and there is a plan that's working, albeit very slow but that things are getting better bus he's got a plan if he can get a little cooperation from congress or a lot of cooperation from congress week really can change this thing. it's a situation. >> were you stunned how hard it was to get things done in washington? >> as you know, i was commerce secretary under bill clinton an

jobs plan. there's -- we're on a path to get an election done so the people can make a statement about the future. >> how are you going to get the bigger deal done and when? >> i don't think -- there was a story last week in politico that there are secret meetings going on in washington for a big deal. how secret is that? that tells you everything you need to know about washington. big secret meeting, you know, so

it's unrealistic. >> how does the president fight, though, to get the narrative coming out from the romney campaign and you see in the media the raw numbers, the jobs number. we saw in may obviously was terrible. just pure economic data that people may not have tuned into yet are going to be watching over the summer. how does he argue that things are getting better as that data continued to stream out? >> the american people are smart. they get the fact that when he came in, you were losing 750,000 jobs a month, the size of charlotte, north carolina a month. we're coming out of the hole, albeit much too slow. that's the nature of an almost of depression that we were in. i think the american people understand it. on the other hand what is going toe laid out over the next five months and governor romney has already begun to lay out some of his plan and the president for years has laid out

especially that the congress hasn't acted on that are indicators of what may happen in the next couple of years. i think the american people will seriously look at this election is about the future, it's not about the past, it's not about somebody's record 15 years ago or whatever. i think the president is laying out specific things to congress to do. you don't have a parliamentary system where the prime minister can just do things. the president has to go to congress to get their approval. the major things needed now have to be acted upon by congress that right now seems to be incapable of doing anything. >> you say this election isn't about somebody's record 15 years ago but here's president obama's ad on mitt romney's record. >> as governor of massachusetts. >> i'm barack obama and i approve this record. >> when mitt romney was governor, massachusetts was number one, number one in state debt. $18 billion in debt, more debt per person than any other state in the country. at the same time massachusetts

fell to 47th in job creation, one of the worst economic records in the country. first in debt, 47th in job creation. that's romney economics. it didn't work then, it won't work now. >> mike, it seems to me a great ad. >> it's a very effective ad. i'm sure the romney campaign, as we spoke earlier, will have a response to it. the 47th in terms of job creation, they'll probably come back and say the unemployment rate was 4.7% when mitt romney left office. >> great on the curve, they're 47th. that means 46 governors did better than mitt romney. >> and that's true. that's tough to combat actually. those are real numbers and i don't know how you stand up and say, hey, i was 46th in the nine-person lineup or something like that. the deal on mitt romney is i would imagine he would come back and encompass his career as governor of massachusetts saying

he got things done. he worked with the legislature that was 90% democratic and he did bend over backwards sometimes to get things done. he also raised an enormous amount of money not by taxes but by fees. he'll probably try to gloss over that. >> steve, what do you think about that ad? effective? >> i think it's very effective for the reasons mike said. when you sum up mitt romney's career as a governor, it was a mediocre, average kind of career. nothing earth shaking, nothing that would get him elected president except of course for having invented romneycare. >> there's that. >> mika, yesterday steve ratner, who hangs out with -- >> europeans. >> unnamed europeans one weekend. the next weekend -- >> in private places. >> in private places with a large crest and leather-bound

books. yesterday he hung out at another event at what? >> bloomberg view. >> and yesterday bloomberg spoke out yesterday saying his father and ronald reagan would have a difficult time with the climate of today's republican party. jeb bush said "ronald reagan would have based his record of finding accommodation, find some degree of common ground, as would my dad, they would have had a hard time if you define the republican party and i don't as having an orthodoxy that doesn't allow for disagreement, doesn't allow for finding some common ground." jeb bush also touted his father's 1990 deficit reduction deal. it was a model of responsible compromise. but his comments rankled some republicans. grover norquist, the president of americans for tax reform said

"there's a guy who watched his father throw away a presidency on a 2 to 1 ratio of spending cuts to tax increases promise and he thinks he's sophisticated by saying that he'd take a 10 to 1 promise, here doesn't understand. he walked down the same alley his dad did with the same gang. and he thinks he's smart. you walk down that alley, you don't come out. >> wow. >> don't just talk about hispanics and say immediately we have controlled borders. it's kind of insulting when you think about it. i'd say if an objective teacher was grading where we are right now, i'd say needs improvement." governor romney has used this as a means to connect with group of vote that's were quite angry and it was effective but now he's in

this somewhat of a box. but of course mine barnicle, the numbers, the hispanic votes are so skewed against republicans parties now, it one of the great threats in the republican election. >> that's a big hurdle in the romney campaign. he seems to be doing bit better with women than he was four, five weeks ago. hispanics and the republican party stands on immigration. it clearly hurting them quite badly. what jeb bush said yesterday -- i'd be interested in bill's take on it. he's quite moderate in terms of today's republican party, especially in terms of the rhetoric we heard during the primaries earlier in the year. what's the level of frustration when you're working within the white house, you're chief of staff, and you're not dealing with people as moderate as that, you're not dealing with people who would be listening to what you're saying? >> what jeb bush said is exactly the debate that's gone on in the republican party that causes nothing to happen in washington

and nothing that happened over the last year and a half just because of exactly what jeb bush is talking about. that's the reason we didn't get a jobs bill passed, exactly the debate he halaid out in that statement. nobody could sum it up better. it is very frustrating when you're in the white house, trying to reach out, trying to get something done. what stop it is exactly what jeb bush was talking about. >> it was an interesting meeting. there was not rancor, not anger, not bitterness. he was very calm. he was talking as a guy who is not going to be vice president, who may someday may do something else but he was stepping back and saying he does not like the republican party he belongs to. >> it's too bad you can only make those comments when you're out of the system. >> isn't that amazing how incredibly articulate people become when they're out of the bubble. >> let me ask you, joe, what do you make of jeb's success in the

party? is he on point? >> let's see, if i'm going on intrade and trying to figure out whether the future of the republican party belongs to grover norquist who i know and like or the jeb bushes of the world, i'm pretty confident jeb wins. i will tell you jeb bush's republican party is a party of the future. i don't compare myself to jeb. he is a great man, i am a mere servant of the jebular. >> jebular? >> but joe scarborough's republican party is the future of the republican party. i've had people come up to me yelling and screaming, i say put your hair out. i say we're going to take care

of long-term debt. our goal will be to have gdp 19% of how much we spend on government. we're going to try to keep taxes as low as possible but i'll tell what you we're not going to do, we're not going to cut infrastructure for the next 50 years, we're not going to cut r & d for the next 50 years not going to cut education for the next 50 years. we're going to hold government responsible, we're not going to let teachers unions wreck classes. mika will tell you we've been these speeches to the most conservative groups in america as well as the most liberal and they all agree. you can go online and act like a jack ass and say what you want to say. now everybody is calling jeb bush a rhino. just shut the hell up.

can you stay in your mother's basement, eat your cheetohs, type on your dinty laptop but you are not the future of the republican party so keep screaming at your walls downstairs, your day is done. jeb did something very important that i wish mitt romney would have done couple of years ago when glen beck was calling the president of the united states a racist and a bigot. jeb is speaking out. i think other republicans are starting to speak out. mitt romney doesn't have the courage to speak out against this type of hatred but our day is coming, mike. our day is coming. when that party reemerges, oh, my god, the following they will get from swing voters. and i'm sure you agree, bill, as well. >> one of the critical elements of what jeb said and how he said it is proof positive of the fact that their politics, especially coming out of washington, are

claustrophobic today. they all live in the same small room, republicans and democrats, and they're both equally guilty of leaning on ideology as opposed to common sense where this country lives in the middle. jeb bush's comments are aimed at the middle and that would be one reason why you would have so much difficulty in doing what you tried to do. >> it has only gotten worse. i would hope that we say this every couple years that the next cycle ends this bitterness, this rancor, this divisiveness and we can only hope that and hopefully people like jeb bush -- look, i don't agree with a lot with any one of the bush philosophies but they are good american public servant who is have dedicated their lives and president george bush '41, a 19-year-old fighter pilot in the second world war,

that's a family america should be proud of and listen to. they've done something. they're not just sitting in their basement or sitting on tv all day being annoyed at somebody. >> who are you talking about? >> or a business guy who sits in his office and made a lot of money and thinks because he made money thinks he knows something. >> i know you have to go but it's so important to remember the lead horse, who breaks out, that's who represents the party. if jeb bush was that guy, we'd be saying you know, what it's a conservative party. if chris christie would have won, he would have been out front. there is a market for people like jeb bush. i mean it. >> i don't think so. >> we'll see. >> former white house chief of staff bill daley, thank you so

much. good to see you. sta still ahead, rahm emanuel will join us. and warren buffett on what it it takes to make local economies grow. you're watching "morning joe" live from chicago! [ male announcer ] knowing your customers

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♪ ♪ total power, not the american way! all the damn time! come out here, i got to try to figure out how to vote for my people! how ashamed are you? you should be ashamed of yourselves! i'm sick of it!

every year we give power to one person! >> welcome back to "morning joe." that was republican state representative mike bost from the state legislature two weeks ago during his debate over state pensions. with us now, two men you wouldn't see screaming on the house floor, republican congressman from illinois, representative aaron schott. >> you've heard this all before from mike bost. >> four years ago i sat in the strous and mike bost sat right behind me for four years in a row. >> was he a screamer then? >> he was a very emotional guy. >> he's a nice guy, he was a united states marine. the bottom line is to solve problems, not just yell and scream. >> let's talk about solving problems. aaron, i have to ask you, you

endorse mitt romney, what you think of jeb bush's comments from the stand of the republican party, that you said you don't think his father would have survived in the climate we have right now in washington. >> i do think the republican party has changed over the years. i think the majority in the house of representatives is quite different from the majority four, five years ago. i know the entitlement reforms and infrastructure reforms to medicare that saved them probably wouldn't have passed under the old republican majority. >> is the republicans dysfunctional? >> absolutely not. we have a nominee in mitt romney who is neck and neck with the sitting president of the united states five months before the election. i think that's pretty good to be running against a sitting president and be neck and neck. my money is on his in election day. we have a majority in the house.

most political pundits expect our majority to grow because of redistricting. i hardly think we're in shambles or disarray. >> you heard it from bill daley and you've seen it in president obama's ads out of his campaign headquarters, which is that he's tried and it's republicans in congress standing in the way. this is actually a campaign strategy for them now to say they're trying to move the country forward, republicans don't want it to happen. how do you respond to that? >> a couple things. first of all, the president has tried. the president's own word were if i don't have this solved in three years, it's going to be a one term. he got literally every piece of legislation he wanted to turned around the economy. obviously the country did not like the direction we were headed in, hence the republican majority a year and a half ago. as a result we have passed a number of job bills of our own.

the difference is the 30 bills that the house has passed that are jobs bills have all passed with bipartisan vote because we've allowed for amendments to be brought forward by democrats and republicans and allowed the legislation to be improved and as a result all 30 of those bills have moved to the senate on a bipartisan vote and are waiting for action in the senate. the president's proposal he continues to talk about have not only not passed the house, they've not passed the democratic-controlled center either. we not going to be able to spend the kind of money the president wants. if it was adding more teachers and favors, we would be going gang busters in the first years of obama administration. >> the president of the united states barack obama saved the auto industry in our state of illinois and all over the midwest. we have three shifts at ford right now. when i started and the president

started, we had one shift. chrysler had 200 jobs in 2009. this summer they're going to have 4,500 jobs in our state. so the president knows what he's doing when it comes to reviving the economy. he's got to have some cooperation, aaron, from the house of representatives. all you've been is obstructing the president. you can't even pass a transportation bill, which we did in our own state of illinois and we're putting to work on projects repairing roads and we can't get it done at the federal level because even the house of representatives can't pass one bill. >> that's not true. i mentioned we passed 30 different bills. first when it comes to the automobile industry, i don't think the executives at forward would credit president obama with ford's success. i don't believe they were bailed out. and when it comes to the transportation bill, they did pass a highway bill. it the reason we're in conference. we passed a five-year bill and

converse that with my first two years in congress and we had no eye way bill. the reason we're in a highway bill extension mode is because the democrats when they controlled the higher profits could not get a bill done. i think passing a five-year bill is a step in the right direction. >> what do you need as a governor of the state of illinois for washington to do to get people back to work here? >> i'm very happy with the president. i think he has the right policies. he wants to invest in housing, small business, infrastructure, building roadings and fixing water systems. this is what we need to do them and we have a lot more to do. there's no question about it the

policies of mitt romney are not going to produce jobs in illinois, it going to have the opposite effect and we can't have that. >> go ahead, mike. >> one thing happened in one of the debate which i this i mystified your consistents and the people in illinois. it's when all of the candidates were on the stage and they were asked basically the following question, would you raise your hand if you'd agree to giving up -- you'd get $10 in savings and cuts for $1 in increase in fees. would you agree to a proposition like that? >> you know what the skepticism is, mike? every time in our recent history where republicans have gone along with that, the spending cuts have not gone into effect and the revenue has. both in the 80s under reagan, when george herbert walk are bush broke his pledge for new no new taxes. this is the first year since

wore wore 2 spends less they never actually reduced spending from one year to the next. >> do you think that showdown did anything to damage the economy? >> well, i think people are very uncertain about whether the american gcht -- whether our system of government has toll with the bret -- but you haven't answered the question. would you help $10 in savings for $1 in increase in fees, taxes, whatever you want to call them. would you accept it? >> no. >> the irony is. ronald reagan closed loopholes, he had to raise taxes from time to time and today he wouldn't be accepted in his own party. >> that's clal. if they need to close loopholes,

both in our budget and we want to lower the overall rate down to 25% by getting rid of all the loopholes and deep ducks. so that's actually a major part of our platform. it's been a a great debate for getting us. "morning joe" back in a moment. ♪ it's a wonder i can think at all ♪ ♪ though my lack of education hasn't hurt me none, i can read the writing on the wall ♪ [ jennifer ] i always knew my voice would take me places.

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♪ ♪ coming up next, we return to chicago live this morning on a special edition of "morning joe." how goldman sachs 10,000 small business program is helping to put back to work.

that's next when "morning joe" comes back live to chicago. i want healthy skin for life.

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wanted to provide better employee benefits while balancing the company's bottom line, their very first word was... [ to the tune of "lullaby and good night" ] ♪ af-lac ♪ aflac [ male announcer ] find out more at... [ duck ] aflac! [ male announcer ] ...forbusiness.com. [ yawning sound ] ♪ ♪ and welcome back to "morning joe" live in chicago. the goldman sachs 10,000 small businesses program holds its chicago graduation today. the program is designed to help

small business onners leawners grow and create jobs. president and ceo of the national urban league mark morial. good to have you on. >> joe, good to see you. >> and we have one of today's graduating scholar, the owner of deer rehabilitative services, dennis deer. dennis deer, congratulations. >> thank you so much. i'm happy. i'm excited. >> tell us your story. >> my name is dr. dennis deer, born and raised on chicago's west side in one of the toughest communities. i have a business called deer rehabilitation services and basically i'm a psychologist that provides substance abuse services, domestic violence services and training services to both law enforcement officers as well as offenders. >> so how did you get involved with this group? >> that's an interesting question. >> did lloyd blankfein come

knock on your door and hand out hundred dollar bills? did warren buffett come in with his plane and say let's fly to omaha? how did this happen? >> well, i actually had been a business owner for about 12 years. my business started in about 2000. at about ten years old i had a defining moment take place for me. you'll probably understand this because i understand your late father was a business owner as well. >> right, right. >> my mother, god bless her soul, she isn't with us anymore, but i needed clothing for school at 10 years old. my mother said, son, i can't afford it but what i can do is loan you 50 bucks. she loaned me 50 bucks and i opened up a candy store on my front porch. at 10 years old, that candy store began to make me $100 a day. today i stand as a proud owner of a business on the west side of the city with a social

mission with 22 employees. but just a tad bit more and that is because -- and this is very important, i had a defining moment take place in my life. at 10 i witnessed a murder take place right behind my house. and that defining moment gave me a social mission that i operate from even today. so i had sprinklings of entrepreneurship at 10 years old but i vowed i would go to college, come back to my community and do what i call is doing good in the hood. >> mr. mayor, you have so many opportunities in the position you're in. talk about why this group is so important not only for you but also for this community and for america. >> well, this program, 10,000 small businesses, works. some 700 businesses have had a chance to participate in it. a powerful success rate, growth by some 75%, adding employees by some 50%. i like it because it's a

substantive program, it works and it looks for entrepreneurs like dennis who are on the way up, who are well established already but who with some help, with some intervention can grow. so with warren buffett, lloyd blankfein and so many, we i think have added to what i call the ecosystem in this nation to support small businesses. and the urban league is an important part of this through our ten entrepreneurship centers throughout the nation. >> steve ratner, we're talking about trying to inject life into the economy, one of the points made earlier is that it is potentially small businesses instead of sweeping job growth bu step by step. >> it's a lot of building blocks. we talk a lot on the show about big macro statistics, the gdp went up this and the jobs went up that, and this is interesting to see how it happens in real life, how you build an economy one job at a time.

>> are you going to be at the graduation today? >> i am. if one out of every american small business did $5 million or less added one job, we'd be at full employment. so it's not just a lot of red rick to say that small business growth can help the economy and create jobs. >> dennis deer, congratulations. >> thank you so much. >> you're going to flourish. >> since being in the program, i've actually created four new jobs. so i'm very happy about that and my revenues are up 7% and the first quarter of 2012 from 2011, we learned app astonishing amount of information. in fact, i know how to read my financials now. can i ask my accountants questions. we got some great education. >> congratulations, dennis. mark, thank you very much. >> up next, susan axelrod joins us on her push to find a cure for epilepsy.

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this friday, the organization c.u.r.e., citizens united for research in epilepsy, will kick off a benefit here in chicago. and here with us now, chair and founding member of c.u.r.e., susan axelrod, our good friend. >> so good for you to be here. >> great to see you! >> great for you to come to this town and what a day. >> pretty perfect, isn't it? >> talk about the progress that c.u.r.e. is making recently. >> we made some great breakthroughs this year. we've got a grantee, basically about research in epilepsy, and we give out grants to people, and we've had some exciting progress going on, some exciting projects that's going to lead to better therapy for kids. it's really exciting. >> give us an example. something that gives you open as a mom who has struggled with this for so long. >> we have a project that just got published and got a lot of exposure, because there's a

really rigorous, awful diet, and i know because my daughter's been on it twice, which is a high-fat diet, which sometimes in some kids whose seizures can't be controlled actually helps to control it. and this was a project to look at what is the metabolism in the brain that is affected by that diet and could we mimic that with a medication, so that a kid would not have to be at school eating literally 90% of their diet is fat, and maybe take a bill that could actually do the same, have the same effect. so it's really going to help a lot of kids. it's just the beginning. >> and it's a slow process, but you have been relentless at this. and even through david's time in washington, he's back home, but he's now working on the re-election campaign, so it's not like the household is all back to normal. >> he's home, but he's not really home. >> he's really not home. >> he's one of those goobers that goes to sleep with a

blackberry on his chest. >> first thing in the morning. >> got the keyboard on his forehead. but you've got this big event with carol king. this is tonight or friday night? >> friday night in chicago, just down the street at navy pier. after this, i'm going to go over and start assigning seats to my 850 closest friends. >> oh, good! >> she's a little busy? >> but tickets are still available through today, so if anybody is interested, on our website, cureepilepsy.org, we can still get you in. it's going to be a great night. >> and mika, the most exciting part of that is going to be when mike barnicle gets up with his pan flute and does a duet with carol king. >> you doing that again, mike? >> "you've got a friend." >> you know, we could never do justice to what susan axelrod has done on behalf of this disease, but a huge part of it is the exposure about the

disease and education about the disease and the impact it has on children and thus their families. and that has led to fund-raising efforts that have been largely greatly successful and that will lead to increased research in epilepsy, which will help enormous number of numbers of cd families in the future. >> and this is a disease that people haven't wanted to be public about. so it's giving people a voice and the confidence to come out. >> and it's shrouded in mystery. i know, mike, you've had personal battles in your family, where a disease is shrouded in mystery, where you're just trying to figure out, what is impacting your child. >> well, you know, joe, juliet barnacicl barnicle, our youngest daughter, has epilepsy. and in certain socialization aspects, especially in early school years, the word "ep lil y "epilepsy" is frightening to teachers and students, kids in fourth and fifth grade don't

understand it, and seizure disorders that spin off from epilepsy have a profound effect on the child, as susan can bear witness to. and it leads to all sorts of tough issues. kids are cruel in fifth, sixth, and seventh grades and beyond. the lack of understanding about epilepsy, what happens when a student has a seizure disorder in school, it's a silent thing that occurs. it's just a blank stare that goes across the child's eyes and everything like that, and it can have a very debilitating effect on the child, but the family as well. >> the institute of medicine in washington just did a report based on epilepsy and there's a lot we need to understand about this and the prevalence and the devastation, but the one figure that they know, that they're very confident in us reporting is that 1 out of 26 americans will develop epilepsy in their

lifetime. so we do this the because of our children, but there's actually a really fast new onset in senior citizens and our veterans that are coming home and athletes with head injuries. so it's a problem that's going to affect 1 in 26 americans, which is really enormous. >> come back and keep telling us what you're doing, susan. >> i was just going to say, what are the possibilities for either treatment or cure? what do you think is realistically possible within a reasonable time period? >> within a short time, i think what we're beginning to understand, just because we're understanding the brain better, we can start to prevent -- i mean, we've really just switched the thinking to this is a disease, it's not -- epilepsy is not an isolated seizure, it really is something that is happening in the brain. we're starting to understand that. so hopefully that will lead to preventions in the not-too-distant future. >> all right. so the c.u.r.e. 2012 chicago

benefit will be held this friday with a special performance by carole king. for tickets or to make a donation, go to cureepilepsy.org. susan axelrod, great to see you. >> good luck with david. you've got crazy david for another five months or so. >> he's in new york, though. >> and then he's back. >> we're looking forward to it. >> still ahead, warren buffett will be here on set. also the ceo and chairman of goldman sachs, lloyd blankfein will join us. coming up next, chicago mayor rahm emanuel joins the conversation. "morning joe" live from chicago, back in a moment. [ thunk ]

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i'm going to name a famous chicago athlete. you have to tell me what their nickname would be if they were a mobster. >> okay. >> first one, michael jordan. >> mikey six rings. >> shoeless joe jackson. >> joey no shoes. >> dick butkiss. >> william "the refrigerator" perry. >> william "the refrigerator" perry. >> yes! very good! he did it! >> and here he is, with welcome back to the "morning joe" live

in chicago. joining us on set, we have the mayor of chicago -- >> this is big. >> mr. mayor, rahm emanuel. rahm. >> ari's brother, zek's brother. >> zeke, rahm, ari. >> who was the most difficult? ari? >> without a doubt. >> get in a lot of fights? >> ari always try to pick a fight with you guys? >> the reason ari is the way he is, we had cribs and we literally used to jump into the crib to watch the baby jump. >> so you beat him up a little -- >> no, it was not beating up, just watching him jump in the bed. >> he still sleeps in that bed, doesn't he? >> he doesn't sleep. it's a trained behavior.

>> when did you figure out he was crazy? >> that was an early diagnosis. three boys can do that, but you should see what it did to my mother. >> how is your mother? >> she's doing okay. fully med, but she's okay. >> it's really nice to have you. nice to see you last night, the 10,000 jobs initiative today. >> a series of graduations that are great for the city. there's a 10,000 small business that we're doing with our community colleges. we hit a record for our public schools. 60% of our kids now are graduating and more are going to college than ever before. and tour graduation rate in our community colleges overall are up. >> fantastic. and we'll be meeting some of the business -- look, he's the mayor. hello! please say hello to your people! >> hey, man! >> have a good run. >> wouldn't want to miss a chance. >> those are all city workers on the wellness plan. >> so let's talk about the economy. you've been known to say the economy's growing, but slowly.

would you consider progress has been accomplished here? >> well, every president gets measured by what they inherited versus, you know, what's happened. and if you take a look, president obama inherited an economy that was tailspining, worst recession since the great depression, a banking system that had frozen up, you couldn't get a car loan, a home loan, and an auto industry, in fact, steve rattner was in my office more times than i want to count. the auto industry, according to steve, was two weeks away from bankruptcy. that's what he inherited. auto industry is adding jobs, not at the base, but different from where it's been. the financial sector, much healthier than where europe is, because europe never took care of the problems like we did, fits and starts, but it's better. and the economy is slowly growing, instead of contracting at 8%, it's slowly growing at 2%. not healthy, but we are in different position because we actually took responsibility for our things.

and so in that sense, we are adding jobs, not at the pace that needs to be added, we are growing, not because of the strength we need to be, because of the actions that president obama took. >> and that's a message that's going to be difficult -- >> steve, is there anything that i said about the auto industry that you would disagree with? >> no, i wouldn't disagree with anything you said. in fact, i think you made the case incredibly well for what the president -- >> you're in jiillinois. >> okay, there's a chrysler plant at belvedere. when president obama came into office, it had 200 workers, today it has 4,000. south side of chicago, ford plant was down to two shifts. today it's added a third shift since i've been mayor, mainly because it's the largest exporter from ford, all its family, and another 700 jobs at its staffing plant. the auto industry, that's a far cry from two weeks away from bankruptcy that some were advocating. >> these are great stories, but how hard is it going to be in

the landscape -- >> true. >> i understand they're true, but how hard is it going to be politically when you have people not doing as well as their parents did and incomes on the downslope and long-term employment at a record high. >> that's a different question than the one you asked me. the question is, is it going to be hard? i've already said that. absolutely, it's going to be hard. this is going to be a very tough election, because these are tough issues, and it deserves to be a tough election, but those are the facts. >> i think, mr. mayor, mitt romney in some ways has granted you the auto bailout question, that that's been good for detroit. but he says president obama, good guy, means well, i know he's trying, but you look at the numbers, and it's simply not working. if you look at the may jobs numbers, just the last month, they continue to trend down. how do you argue against that outside of the auto industry. >> first, let me do one thing on the premise of the question. he didn't fwragrant the auto industry, he gave you his view. that's a different perspective.

and both these men can come from different backgrounds. mitt romney's view was, look at the numbers, let it go bankrupt. the president, who spent time on the south side dealing with steel workers who were losing their jobs and saw a community devastated had different voices, different concerns. when steve was in the office advocating one perspective ton the auto industry, a lot of people said, go bankrupt, let chrysler two to save fwm, he had a different perspective and had a different position because mitt romney's view was different. now, you're going to have a real struggle, because we have a major challenge to this country that's been going on for ten years. which is middle class families and their standard of living has come under immense economic pressure, both in the country and worldwide. and the question is, which policies are going to strengthen them, which policies are going to accentuate that decline. and that's what the battle of this election is about. and i happen to think, as i think you know, president obama will stand by the middle class stronger and firmer for them to hold on to their standard of living. >> and mitt romney said that

president obama has now had three years to make that change and it hasn't happened. how do you argue with that? >> because, what you have, basically, first of all, his policy have stopped exactly the erosion that he inherited. and it hasn't been fast enough turnaround, no doubt about it, but three years is not time you can take a ten-year cycle and just tn it around. >> you know, off of that last answer, you've got a 24-hour-a-day job, mayor of this city -- >> the 26. >> 26, that's right, i forgot it's you. it's rahm time. but you must, as you go around different neighborhoods, in this city of great neighborhoods, sense an anxiety that's out there. and this anxiety is part of the anxiety, people's concerns, the increasing cost of municipal pensions and the benefits that come with them. and does it add, do you think, to a certain amount of resentment that's there in the electorate? >> well, you're pointing

towards, look, i have a sligh y ly different take. there is -- you go around all our neighborhoods, jefferson park, washington park, humboldt park, all throughout the city, of different ethnicities, different backgrounds, we have 27 miles of lake, over 27 languages spoken in this city. it's the most american of american cities, in my view. you have literally families, mothers and fathers working full-time, and just by their fingernails trying to hold on to make sure their kids have an education, make sure they're saving for college, make sure they have a retirement for themselves, make sure they can have health care now, still own the home that has lost value, and that is all coming intensely down on the pressure in that kitchen table. and it's not -- it is -- there's a lot of resentment, i wouldn't just say towards public employees, i think there's resentment towards everybody at the top, all of us sitting here, who have done well while they have struggled. and if you can't hear those

voices and those concerns, you're callous to the economic stress that's coming intensely down in the kitchen and the family room of middle class families throughout the bungalows of our city. and that's true in boston. that's true in queens and in brooklyn. there's an immense -- i would have named another one of your cities, but i don't know them. an immense pressure on those middle class families and there's resentment that everybody else has done well, and that everybody else is a list of a number of us who have done well while those families are struggling to barely hold on and make sure that their kids do that much better than they did. >> so, rahm, the president has a vision. and as you said, he's going to articulate in this campaign, and let's assume he wins, and is not going to be an overwhelming mandate in congress, we know that. hopefully there'll at least be some movement in his direction. but you know how hard it is to get stuff done there, but how does he get this done. how does he get in implemented

in legislation that actually makes people's lives better. >> well, here's the thing. let me say this. i'm a product of my experiences as is, i point at joe, because he was in congress when i was in the white house. we had a slug fest in '96, presidential, we just came off the government shutdown, but it was a slug fest about the definition of medicare, medicaid, environment, and education. nine months after the election, a balanced budget agreement that doubled the national parks in the united states, created for the first time kids' health care for children, whose parents work full-time without health care, created a hope scholarship, so middle class families could send their kids to college, and a host of other progressive ideas while balancing the budget, nine months after election. i think, steve, elections matter. if we come out of this election with a clear definition, a clear message, you're going to get a resolution. if we come out of this election with muddle, you're going to get muddle after the words. that's why i think it's essential that this election does have a purpose, does have a

meaning, and i think the -- when that happens, you'll interpret it and then you'll pick a course to solve it. now, the most important thing i think we can do, and i've been a big advocate here in the city. we're putting 30,000 people to wo, building a new chicago and a better chicago, our full infrastructure. i'll just say this. the most important thing testimonies and republicans can do on getting the economy moving right now is pass an infrastructure bill that builds our roads, our airports, our water system, our schools, our sewer system, our broadband, our mass transit system. i'm trying to do it alone without either washington or springfield. when in the '50s and '60s, we invested 4% of our gdp in our infrastructure, our economy grew at 4%. in the '80s when we downshifted to 2%, our economy grew at 2%. it is time, after 2005, the last highway bill, to do a major infrastructure bill to get people working, building this country, so you have a 21st

century economy on a 21st century foundation. >> but you know at the moment, they can't even get the highway bill removed. >> nothing can get done. >> that's how dysfunctional washington is. >> totally, and i said -- i'm sorry, joe? >> it goes back to what you said before, in 1996, we -- >> we had a battle. >> we hear people talking today about how this is as tough as it's ever been as far as politics goes. it was a lot tougher throughout american history, but in the 1990s, the president didn't like republicans, republicans didn't like the president, but you're right. together we balanced the budget for the first time in a generation. we balanced it four year in a row for the first time since 1920s, we passed welfare reform. you talked about what happened with the national parks. we expanded the life of medicare. we did it together. we were able to do a lot of things, and even then somebody will say, shout out from the audience, whatever i say this,

yeah, but then you impeached him. yeah, but -- >> and that audience would be me. >> but here's the most remarkable thing. even during impeachment, do you know what was happening? john kasich was picking up the phone, calling people like erskine bowles and they were saying, listen, we've got a battle going on over here, but we've got to keep doing the country's business. and there was that mind-set, to make sure that the transportation bill is passed, to make sure that the economy kept running. we're missing that now. and i'm not exactly sure why. >> well, first of all, let me say -- well, first -- let me back up. one, after we passed -- the reason we passed that balanced budget is the voters had a clear mandate, we had to get going. and we did. and once the president was re-elected, i think your party settled in and said, okay, he's here for four years, let's get something done. and there was a productivity period of time. we did have the impeachment that

came. i don't it consider it as one of the more productive things for american politics. we continue to do the work of the people. now, that said, i think between now and the election, you're in a season, i don't think there's going to be much out of washington. after the election, i think the president wins. i think the republicans are going to sit down and say, okay, he's here for four years, let's get something done. >> pby the way, willie, we have sirens in the back. that can mean only one thing, another illinois governor going to jail. to we have somebody on the phone line? >> well, zeke. >> zeke, how you doing, buddy? >> i'm doing great. how you doing, joe? you show up for my brother, rahm, but never show up for me anymore. >> now, wait a minute, we're supposed to have all three of you here. >> so is it true that you and rahm used to jump out of your bunk beds terror rise little ari

every morning? >> wouldn't you?! how else do you keep the guy under control? >> oh, there you go. >> that is true. >> any long-term, any long-term impacts, middle impacts for ari that you care to diagnose on the air right now for us? >> he's the toughest guy there is, that's a long-term impact. >> oh, great. >> don't you think this is a little weird, to do family hour this way? >> i wish i had my brothers on. they do it all the time. >> it is a little weird. >> but you guys are a little weird. >> yeah. you're not right. you're not all right. it's good, though. >> is that a maternal kind of instinct or is that medical? >> i think it's pretty obvious. i think everybody feels this way. >> but you're all the same. >> oh, look, someone's -- oh, here's ari. >> you are kidding me. >> seriously, you're always light. are you negotiating a deal or something. >> last night i turned to mika

and said, my god, it's ari. >> do you want to know the true story? >> yeah. >> our spouses before they were spouses could not tell the difference between our voices, so whenever -- >> oh, no, this will not end well. >> i don't think that's good for family time. >> this does not end well. >> i would say, for the first ten seconds of any phone call, neither spouse could tell who was on the phone. so i don't think that's really -- and we'll just leave it there and you can let your mind wander. >> rahm is telling dirty family secrets. >> zeke, tell us how proud you are of your brother. >> what'd you say? i didn't hear you? >> or not. >> tell us how proud you are of your brother, the mayor. >> oh, absolutely, it's amazing how they succeeded in life. it's really fantastic. so, you know, and i'm always -- >> all right, so -- >> you're really making me work this morning! >> hey, joe, i've got ari, he says he's stronger, he's better

and he's better looking, good-bye. >> all right, very good. well, thanks so much for calling. >> rahm, thank. >> i can't believe my time's been squeezed by her brothers like this. >> we're going to let you stay. >> we'd like to talk about 10,000 small businesses. >> great, that's what i want to talk about. >> we've got a three-hour show. >> did ari say he was stronger and better looking? >> and then he cook up. >> in a few minutes, we'll have warren buffett and lloyd blankfein will be here on set. we're live in chicago. you're watching "morning joe," brewed by starbucks. ♪ ♪ lord, you got no reason ♪ you got no right

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22 past the hour. welcome back to "morning joe," live from chicago. as we've mentioned, the goldman sachs 10,000 small businesses program holds its chicago graduation today. the program is designed to help small business owners learn to grow and create jobs. and here with me now, one of today's graduating scholars, president and ceo of the shred authority, ken williams. and we should note that our show is sponsored in part by

grandkids grandkigoldman sachs today as well. ken, great to have you on the show. one of your better business owners in the city. tell us about the shred authority. >> the shred authority started in 2005. it's when i purchased it. i actually started with two trucks. we now have eight trucks. we have two on-site trucks and we actually have a facility, one of the larger facilities that can actually shred up to 20,000 pounds per hour. and we can actually even shred a bowling ball. >> oh, well, that's always useful, if you need to get rid of a bowling ball. >> or a bad anchor. >> what are you saying, rahm?! and he looked right at me. it was a little -- he couldn't help himself. >> he couldn't resist. >> oh, my god. >> it was a freebie. >> that was kind of low-hanging fruit. >> two easy. >> let's focus on this very important story at the factory yesterday. it's a great story. he's got 14 jobs there, started

with two trucks. tell them the story, though, ken, what you're doing there now. >> actually, we actually have through the goldman sachs program, we're able to develop a business plan or a product plan that will allow us to go. we're actually moving from the -- not really moving from the shredding business, but actually our core will be shredding, but we're actually expanding into the storage business. and that's going to be strong for us. >> you grow and grow and grow. you're going to be graduating a scholar today from the 10,000 small businesses program. you went to business school, but what gap the did this program through goldman sachs fill for you that you didn't get at business school? >> well, when you're at business school, you don't really have classes on entrepreneurialship and the little details. goldman sachs' 10,000 small businesses has allowed me to give a laser focus on our business and create a growth path for our business through development, and actually allowing us to improve our

culture, and our culture is ice. >> so, ken, exactly what did goldman sachs do for you? was it people who came in and told you how to do it or taught you things that you hadn't learned in business -- what did they do to get you on this trajectory? >> what they actually tdid for me, they go through a number of different classes and give you different things to study. one thing that was really big for me were the metrics and learning the ratios and things like that. i spent a lot of time in the numbers. i now do something which i call activity-based costing. i cost our business right down to the employee. i can actually see how productive they are. it's phenomenal. it's absolutely great. >> this is what i'm very -- no, what i'm very excited about, i asked goldman to bring this to our community colleges. we had the largest applicants. this small business, like all the other 36 other, 37 others in the class, they're the job engine of our economy and the

fact is, goldman sachs' advice is usually for the fortune 100. ken's been a recipient of the advice that people pay millions of dollars for through our community colleges, who are adding jobs, and we are not going to grow our economy in the city of economy if ken and the multiple kens that are in class don't get that type of device. he now has a whole new model of how to track economic growth, truck by truck, that he couldn't do before. >> right. >> so, mr. mayor, does this lead to the feeling that some hold in this country, that small businesses, like ken's, can't grow without the cooperation and the help and the assistance of big business? that it flows down. >> look, i'll let ken answer that and i'll go following behind him. >> absolutely. for large businesses, i have a number of larger businesses that i -- well, i have a number of larger businesses that i support, folks like blue

cross/blue shield, the national archive or the post office. they allow us to actually create jobs. last week i had 12 employees. this week i have 14 employees. we hired two employees in one week. that's strong. >> what i would say is, it's a false choice. ken's major clients are major fortune 100, fortune 500 companies here in the city of chicago, because they're doing well, they're hiring. ken's got two more employees. and the choice between small or big businesses is a wrong choice. and if both are growing or ken's doing well, his partners and his employees are going to be buying things, doing things. and so i don't think it's big business versus small business, it's making sure businesses are growing, creating jobs, and hiring, and i'm glad that goldman sachs is making sure that ken gets the advice that's usually reserved and paid for by the fortune 100, that ken gets that advice and expertise, and he can now add people, grow, and get more clients.

that's why we wanted this in chicago, before i was even mayor, sworn in, i went after x goldman sachs, and said, bring it to chicago. >> what about the relationship, ken, between small business and the city of chicago. have you gotten incentives to hire? have they helped you improve your business, from a government point of view? >> i can tell you that the city has been absolutely great with me. not that they could do anything special for us, other than support us, and they have been great with regards to that. >> if i could do a plug for -- we just last month passed an ordinance. we shrunk our city licenses. we had 147. we took it down to 47. we shrunk it by over 60%, and made sure that i asked ken this when i was talking yesterday. he has three licenses he has to get from the city, two inspectors come in. first aspect, we're going to condense the licenses so you don't have to purchase that many, and we're going to consolidate and modern our inspections, so you're focused

on your customer. >> can we ask rahm one thing? >> how's that going, rahm? >> you pick up the newspaper today, the banner headline in the "chicago tribune," if we can grab it here guys, is about your fight between the teachers and the teacher union. where does that stand this morning? >> let me say this, it's not my fight with the teachers with, because our teachers are great, it's make sugar our kids aren't caught up in that strike. we have the best graduation rate on record, our kids deserve -- like our teachers deserve a pay raise, our kids deserve a full school day. we have great teachers and great kids and they both need to be lifted up. >> shortest school day of a major city. >> shortest school day, shortest school year of any major city in the country, top ten cities. >> mayor rahm emanuel and ken williams, thank you so much. we have more coming up live from chicago. lloyd blankfein and warren buffett will join us. keep it right here on "morning joe." ♪

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politics is a

welcome pack. at 33 past the hour, it is a beautiful day in chicago, and we continue our discussion on goldman sachs' 10,000 small business program with two very special guests. here with me now, the ceo and chairman of goldman sachs, lloyd blankfein, and the co-chairman of the 10,000 small businesses advisory council and ceo of b k berkshire hathaway, warren buffett. they're swrojoined by the ownera company, gorilla gourmet. >> we actually have three extraordinary guests. >> and actually, i think she may be, gentleman, with all due respect, the most extraordinary guest. we'll get to your story in just a moment, because it the tdoes something terrific for children, which i love. but lloyd, there's this graduation today for the 10,000 small businesses program, and you'll have a lot of these

fabulous people there, becoming scholars, but tell the us why you started this program. what was the impetus behind it? >> well, it's -- you know, we operate at a very institutional level at goldman sachs, but we have a deep belief in the capital markets and what business can accomplish. and what we wanted to do, we wanted to direct, make a contribution that wasn't philanthropy, because philanthropy isn't really self-sustaining. we wanted to go and show that businesspeople, you can invest in businesspeople, and they would make money from what they would do, motivated by profit, and yet go out and paycheck huge contributions to their commun y communities and to their families and themselves and go out and hire more people and that cycle would keep accelerating. >> but talk about how this has impacted you. it sounds glib to say, you know, i tried to help somebody, but they ended up helping me. but you actually last night, when you were talking about -- >> it was very moving. >> the impact of this, you said, yeah, sure, we got involved in

it, we decided we were going to write a check and help some people out. but you actually have become inspired, not only by what they have done, but what they have re-taught you about what it means to be an american, to be an entrepreneur. >> oh, no, i went through several layers of this. and in hindsight, it was a little bit patronizing, look at what we were going to do for people. but i'm telling you, we just started a ball rolling downhill. the energy that people have, the wisdom, the smarts. i couldn't hear the program, but i know you have had some scholars on the show. they are spectacular by any standard, and they're motivated. >> they are. >> completely motivated. and i'll tell you, i just restores your complete confidence in what the future of this republic is. it's absolutely terrific. but i'll tell you, the people in this program can do anything. >> i want to get a shot of ratner with the boat coming behind him. do you see him on the phone over

there? you guys can try to grab that in a moment. he's still working it, speaking of the economy. but warren, you've worked closely with 10,000 small businesses. i want to get a sense of why, given how spread thin you are on so many levels, but also, what this economy needs in terms of making steps. we talked about the slow growth we've seen. the president says the economy's improving. obviously, not as fast as we'd like, but are there measures being taken through this program that do make a difference long-term? >> yeah, we were with fellow ken williams yesterday, who runs a shredding business. and he had hired an employee yesterday. it was on a base of 13, so when he went from 13 to 14, his unemployment rate up by 7% there, plus. but we've witnessed -- this is my third graduation that i've been to. we've witnessed really the reason america's become what it

is. these are people dreaming of a better tomorrow for themselves and their kids and their grandchildren and they're doing something about it now. they're adding people, their incomes go up. this is the secret sauce of america. >> warren, i've heard people describe speeches that you've given behind closed doors. and when the cameras are turned off, when nobody's looking, and of course, everybody that wants to get your insight on where the country's going. and they all say the same thing, that it's inspiring. that you say, look past what's happening right now. if you want to do what i'm doing, bet on america. >> absolutely. >> bet on the long-term. and they say they go away believing that the united states of america is better positioned for long-term gain than ever before in our history. explain. >> joe, i was born in 1930.

since then the real gdp per capita has gone up six for one. that's in one lifetime. just imagine that. and when i was born, the dow jones was at 252, and within two years, it went town to 42. i don't think there's any connection, but they closed thousands of banks. unemployment went to 25%. we got involved in a war which it looks like we were losing for a while. six for one in one person's lifetime. and that's -- since 1776, that's been the story. now we've had 20 recessions and all of that. but it always comes back for the. and i will tell you that the luckiest person that's been born in the history of mankind is the child being born in the united states today. >> and lloyd, we have been through 20 recessions. we've been through two world wars. we've been through a flu epidemic. what we've been able to do over the past century, you look forward to the next century. the country that excels is a country that's going to lead in technology, that's going to lead in the very thing -- we've got eight out of the top ten

research universities on the planet. how does the united states not succeed? >> joe, i was in china and i said, i said, look at you. you're so lucky. you get to draw on 1.3 billion people. and the business person i was talking to said, you know, we're pretty lucky, but you in america get to draw on 7 billion, because there isn't one of those 1.3 billion that wouldn't move to america and start their business if they had a chance. we're in a tremendously privileged position, as long as we keep open and as long as we can draw on and as long as everybody wants to be here and grow their businesses and raise their families here, we're in the most privileged position in the world. >> and mika, let's talk about that. let's talk about what's possible in america. let's talk about a small -- like my parents, like a lot of other paren parents, deciding they'll start a business in their garage. my parents started their business in an 8 x 8 guest room. >> amazing. >> it happens every day and it's happening here in chicago.

>> absolutely. and speaking of growing businesses, danielle herzic, now, i want to know about gourmet gorilla. i want to know the story, and i want, joe, for you to listen. because this is an innovation that's going to make the world better, literally, as well as grow a business. >> so we started the company almost four years ago, actually, joe, out of a 10 x 10 kitchen in chicago southwest. so we had a 1-year-old son who was just starting to participate in the school lunch program and we received one of those colorful menus home, but we decided to do a little bit of investigating the ingredients, and we found, well, that most -- some of the ingredients we couldn't even pronounce and some were even banned in other countries. and so we thought, at that point, we could make an impact. and this was before a lot of the attention started being directed to the rising childhood obesity and diabetes rates. but we knew that if we started at a young age, food has such a huge impact on brain and body development. so that's how we started the

company. we started on an $8,000 microloan and a $20,000 credit card and today we've grown to serving about 5,000 meals throughout northern illinois, working with about 90 schools. >> can you believe that? that's fantastic! >> and talk about how the group helps you, moving forward. how it makes you more efficient. >> 10,000 small businesses -- what did you not know? >> -- makes you a better small business person? >> absolutely. the program came at a really critical time in our business, when i felt like we were managing a completely different company. we had grown so rapidly and the tools that the program provided were understanding how to manage financial resources, how to motivate and inspire your employees, how to become an effective leader, and then just giving the opportunity to interact with other small business owners, so that you can share experiences in running your own business and take it back to your own company. >> warren, let me ask you just a

general question. i think we would all probably agree the secret to a successful business is finding something that you love and working around the clock. let's go on the other side of it. what is a common mistake that you think small business owners make over and over again that they need to try to avoid? >> well, i would say that really the key to running a successful business is to have happy customers. i mean, i have never met anybody in a business where they delighted their customers and they failed. i mean, i just challenge anybody to find that. and the focus on customers is, number one, two, and three in terms of priorities. you've got all these other programs going on in your life, finance, and maybe something with your family, but any business that has happy customers succeeds. i say take care of your customers and your customers will take care of you.

>> and lloyd? >> i think, i think staying also within your -- i mean, growing and not overleveraging yourself, frankly. in other words, getting that kind of support. in other words, kind of the information that comes out the course is not designed to make people more conservative, but designed to help them not make mistakes. >> know who you are, know what you do, stay focused. >> and at the same time, give people confidence, because the people that we have deserve to have confidence and they'll be quite heroic. we'll be taking them public and warren will be buying them in a few years. >> he's not kidding with wit, b. i'm tell the story to graduates. one started a business with $500 and i later paid her $16 million and the later started the business with $3,000 and i paid her $1 billion. so i'm trying to get closer to

the source. >> that's pretty good. >> let me ask both of you guys pretty quickly about the economy. every week, you've got -- we're following all of these different trend lines, unemployment goes down, but we find out that less people are in the workforce, unemployment goes up, more people are trying to get jobs. can you sort lu it for us? lloyd, over the next three, four, five months, what are we looking at? >> i think we're in off the position for the next three, four, five months. but we've been in a lot tougher position. the economy is not horrible, it's just not growing the way it should, and there's a lot of uncertainty, and people are looking at the election going forward, whatever side you're on, and saying, i don't know what i'm going to have, i don't know what my net will be after taxes, i don't know what regulations will be, i don't know what the result will be, except it's going to be very consequential, so i think i'll wait. i think there's a lot of that going on. >> warren, what do you think over the next three to six

months? >> it's tough in the short run, but we've been recovering at a slow rate since the fall of 2009. we have this enormous housing overhang. i mean, you have one big sector of the economy that has not yet come back. i see a few signs that it's coming back, but we had too many houses around. and fortunately, we have household formations in this country and it will eat it up. and it's been eating it up, but that's when things will speed up, is when we really get hoehold formation and housing units in balance. >> and we also hear all the time, people come on our show all the time say, there's $2 trillion, $3 trillion on the sidelines and people are waiting to invest it. they don't know whether to throw it in. is that the -- to you buy that? >> i don't buy that. at berkshire hathaway, we'll spend $8.5 billion on skm expenditures this year, and that's a record. and people that have the money, when they see things that make sense, they're going to go out and to them. >> gentleman, thank you.

danielle hrzic, good luck today, you'll be graduating from the 10,000 small businesses program from goldman sachs. and lloyd, we should mention -- >> thank you so much for what you guys have done and also, of course, warren, thank you for -- >> and goldman, by the way, a partial sponsor of today's show. we'll be right back with much more "morning joe." with the spark cash card from capital one,

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i don't believe there's any cloud that hangs over me. >> well, getting back to that -- >> i think there's nothing but sunshine hanging over me. >> i had a whole bunch of thoughts, of course my children and my wife. and then i thought about mandela, dr. king, ghandi and

tried to put some perspective in all of this. [ speaking foreign language ] what did i do in this case but provide health care for low-income families? you know, my hands are shaking, my knees are weak and i can't seem to stand on my own two feet and i'm praying and certainly hoping for the best. >> mike barnicle, i asked the question again this morning that the great governor asked on that cold january day, what did he do besides try to find health care for low-income families. >> well, he did very little throughout his entire public career, but there is no justice, really. here we are in this city, 14 years in federal prison. justice would have been sentence him to see the cubs. >> it's a particularly dark year at wrigley. by the way, four of the last nine governors of the state of illinois sent to jail. we'll be right back. washington.. ...more talk on social security... ...but washington isn't talking to the american people. [ female announcer ] when it comes to the future of medicare and social security, you've earned the right to know.

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welcome back to "morning joe" in the windy city. time to talk about what we learned today. steve, what did we learn? >> you know, i spend a lot of time looking at statistics and i actually learn that jobs are created one at a time like some of the ones we saw up there. >> what did you learn, mika? >> i love chicago and i love my tattoo artist, kate scarborough. thanks very much. >> keep the at the tats to you.

>> susan? >> i didn't learn much, because i know chicago is an absolutely amazing place. >> so excited, right down the street, navy pier. c.u.r.e. epilepsy. go to cureepilepsy.org. >> thank you very much, mika, for that. mike barnicle, in your glasses, what have you learned today? >> well, i learned the dinner is friday evening here. the c.u.r.e. dinner is friday evening and i learned that arguably america's greatest city, chicago, i much prefer to be here in june than january. no slight on chicago, but -- >> no doubt about it. willie, what did you learn? >> i learned that ari emanuel was quite literally tortured from birth by his brothers. now it makes sense. >> if it's way too early, what time is it? >> it's "morning joe." we'll see you back in new york tomorrow morning. stick around right now for chuck. going local, mitt romney prepares a bus tour in