the court's justification is actually a tax. the democrats are insisting it's a penalty and guess what? a sunday war of words broke out. >> what is in the laws of penalty? >> we have said it was a tax all along. >> this is a penalty on free riders. >> it's a tax. >> now republicans may be unhappy with the court's decision that the mandate is constitutional under congress's taxing power but senators are thrilled to be able to argue the obama adminiration is imposing a new tax. >> look at the hypocrisy. the president on your show said this was not a tax. if this was brought to the public as a tax, there is no way this law would have passed in the first place. >> democrats are arguing that the fines are only imposed on a small minority of people and businesses that decide not to buy into the system. >> that's a penalty. it's a penalty that comes under

the tax code for the 1% perhaps of the population who may decide that they are going to be free riders. >> it's a new tax on the american people? >>, no, no. it's a penalty for free riders. >> when it comes to political messaging, it was interesting to see republicans unified on this decision to go after health care again as a tax issue trying to -- as their way to shift the economic issues. this is not really a clear cut tax increase. it's a slippery slope of how we define taxes versus fees. it seems clear the republican base is itching. given mitt romney's complicated history. tomorrow the national republican

congressional committee is rolling out a series of ads. they are using smart phones as an inspiration. they will do other house democrats that they are targeting. it was clear the gop will make health care a defining issue in senate races. >> every democratic incumbent on the ballot this november was the deciding ovote to pass this bill. >> democrats have been only too eager to point out that romney promoted a nearly identical law in massachusetts. >> it's necessary and governor romney knows it because he did it in massachusetts. >> this was a plan that governor romney supported. >> these free riders thaz were identified by governor romney himself. >> he prescribed this. this was his bill. >> and that has put republicans on the defensive as they try to

defend mitt romney. >> that was in massachusetts. that is a one state. >> mardi gras is right for louisiana but may not work for other states. >> i think romney ought to speak for what was done in massachusetts. >> does romney really have a choice? already two republican super pacs are running ads on his behalf, targeting the president on the held care tax. >> president obama promised us his health care law. >> is not a tax increase. >> now we know that's not true. >> now it's official. obama increased taxes on struggling families. >> remember, it's one thing to do a punch line and use it as an applause line. it's another if we start seeing it in paid advertising. and with the president down at camp david, on vacation at his family hope, near the lake.

don't let this fact get lost in the supreme. the obama negative ads are working. 31% say experiences made them feel more positively about them in the blue states, it has a ten point net negative rating. romney's business experience is viewed most negatively in the swing states. now as a 15 point net negative rating. just 18% say romney's experiences made their view of romney more positive. it's not an accident. >> mitt romney the business man. take a look at his record. romney bought companies, drown them in debt.

>> it has take an toll on romney's image. feelings are down by 10 points. he now has an 11 point net negative rating. so in an acknowledgment that the attacks are working, the campaign quietly went up with this new add on friday, recycling a tax from the president's 2008 democratic rival. >> barack obama's attacks against mitt romney are not true. the washington post says on just about every level this add is misleading, unfair and untrue. but that's barack obama. he also attacked hillary clinton with vicious lies. >> he continues to spend millions of dollars perpetuating falsehood. so shame on your, barack obama. >> that was right before the ohio primary. we're going to talk to the romney campaign about that ad and some other stu.

12 years after being swept out of power, looks like mexico's old guard is back claiming victory. mark potter is live for us in mexico city. so mark, the pri, they're back with a vengeance. is this all a reputeuation of the drug war? >> it seems to be the drug war and the economy. they were kicked out 12 years ago. they were seen as autocratic, non-democratic. corrupt. they were thrown out and people thought they would never come back. the reason is twofold. the economy has been sluggish. it's not terrible chl the country is not moving fast but the drug war which you mentioned is very controversial here. it has cost an estimated 55,000

lives. polls show that people support that war but don't believe it's working. so given that, people were wanting a change. and the view here that we have heard expressed fairly regularly is we know who the pri are and that they have got their problems but they can get their job done. let's give them another chance. who crew huge crowds. women love him. he had a modern style campaign. >> here we are with the drug war. the united states has been subsidizing this and supporting them. does this mean that the war just

changes? what does this mean? >> there is a lot of concern about that. we are not going to see the same drug war. for mexicans that's good news. a lot of mexicans really do not like the way this is prosecuting. there is going to be a change of strategy. he has said there will be no deal, no break against organized crime. he is talking about attacking violence, extortion, kidnapping, homicide, as opposed to the attack. that means a softening and more drugs going the united states. it's interesting to see the outmatic. to watch it from the north looking south.

>> is that unfair? is that an inaccurate way to portray it? >> it's a fair way to portray the concern. we're not sure that's going to happen. he has indicated that that's not going happen but it did happen in the past. so that's why people are very concerned about it. what does this mean? does this mean more drugs coming to the united states? the retort to that is despite the drugs coming to the united states on the increase anyway. there is definitely going to be a change. we may have to rename it. it's going to be different. >> in mexico you can't succeed yourself. get to know him. the new mexican president. >> you can find out more about mexico's new president on our website.

nbc news is officially launching the hispanic news and lifestyle debate today. it has all the big stories of the day as we as perspectives and opinion pieces. be sure to check it out in english and spanish. up next, mitt romney is on the defensive now over health care. we will ask his senior advisor about the campaign's prescription for dealing with the rules. >> what was really going on behind the scenes at the supreme court. and charlie is headed to court. can he keep his jobs? thanks to provisional ball let's. camp david, the lid never lifted the way it works for you press pool geeks out there.

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>> mitt romney says the held care law is bad policy for the country, but is it good politics for him? and what's his plan to replace the law? he plans to repeal if elected. good morning. happy fourth of july week. >> thank you, chuck. let me start with this issue that we saw gobbled up a lot of time on the sunday shows which is is the mandate a tax or penalty? you work for governor romney in

massachusetts. what did you call it in massachusetts? was the mandate, was it a tax or penalty? what did you call it in massachusetts? >> first let me say that when the supreme court ruling came down last week within an hour or two, governor romney went before the cameras and said he disagreed with the findings of the ruling, he disagreed with the logic. he agreed with the dissent and the dissent clearly stated that the mandate was not a tax. i do think that president obama's position is contradictory and unsustainable. on the one hand the team is celebrating the majority opinion of the court. they accept the opinion of the court but they argue against the central premise. >> but what did you call knit i massachusetts? >> it because penalty.

the governor had all the authority he needed to put in place the reforms that he did put in place. look, aside from the question of obama care's constitutionality, it should be repealed for a whole host of reasons. it raises a series of taxes. it's bad for seniors because it cuts medicare. it's bad for our budget because it spends money we can't afford and bad for the middle class because it puts the government in between the relationship a patient has with the doctor. >> i don't want to drop this yet. i have to admit. i am a little confused. let me play mitt romney from 2008. >> if you can afford to buy insurance, then buy it. you don't have o. but then you have got to put enough money aside to pay your own way. we're not going to say --

>> you impose tax penalties. >> we said if people can afford to buy it, buy it or pay your own way. don't be free riders and pass on the cost of your health care to everybody else. >> i play that because it -- what is the difference between what he is saying and what the president and all of these democrats on sunday said and what governor romney said in 2009 when he said using tax penalties as we did or tax credits encourages free riders to take responsibility for themselves rather than pass it on to others. he was not making an argument simply for the massachusetts plan for the 2009 piece. >> the governor was clear since the passage of held care reforms. what we did in massachusetts works for massachusetts. it may not necessarily work in california, texas, or oklahoma. what we did works in

massachusetts. it was never meant to be a one size fits all. the governor has described the mandate as a penalty. let's take a step back and look at what the president has said about obama care. in order to get it past the congress, he insisted pubically and to the members of congress that the mandate was not a tax. after it passed, he sent his solicitor general up to court to argue that it was a tax. now he is back to arguing that it's not a tax. >> you guys called it a tax? >> the governor disagreed with the ruling of the court. clearly stated that the mandate was not a tax. >> okay. which -- so i guess -- we're -- i think we're talking around

each other. the governor does not believe the mandate is a tax? that is what you're saying? >>he governor believes what we put in place in massachusetts was a penalty and he disagrees with the court's ruling that it is not a tax. >> but he agrees with the president that it is not -- and he believes that you should not call the tax penalty a tax, you should call it a penalty or a fee or a fine? >> that's correct. but the president also needs to be held accountable for his contradictory statements. he has described it variously as a penalty and as a tax. he needs to reconcile those two very different statements. >> before i let you go, i want to ask you to respond to this tweet. i am sure you have seen it over the weekend. met mitt romney last week. will be hard to beat unless he

drops old friends from team and hires real pros. >> we're very happy with the team that we have. we're happy with the state of the race. i can't respond to every tweet that he sends out. but we like the way things are right now in the days after the obama care ruling, we have raised $6.7 million online. over 70,000 do nations. i think people are voting with their dollars and they want a person who will reverse the big government tax and spend policies that are being pursued by this president and get somebody in the white house who is going to focus on jobs and the economy. >> all right. i'm going leave it there. have a safe and happy fourth of july. have a good week. >> thank you. >> we're kicking off the holiday week on wall street. they are still working there. does the rally continue?

market run down is next. plus many americans are sweating it out without electricity in this heat wave. first today's trivia question. the speaker of the house administers the oath of office. who administers the oath to the speaker. first correct answer gets a monday from us. the president from interview: i talk to folks on rope lines and in coffee shops. people who have been out of work. you can tell it wears on them. narrator: he's fought to pull us out of economic crisis for three years. and he still is. president obama's plan keeps taxes down for the middle class, invests in education and asks the wealthy to pay their fair share. mitt romney and his billionaire allies can spend milions to distort the president's words. but they're not interested in rebuilding the middle class. he is. i'm barack obama and i

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temperatures expected to climb to the mid 90s and triple digits across much of the country. >> nearly a week after ballots were cast, it's not over, folks. the rangel lead is down to 802 votes and there are more than 2,000 absentee ballots casted that process of counting does not begin until thursday morning. there is an election lawyer hired to help. could be a few weeks before we no that one. >> after months of negotiating, congress has finally reached an agreement on student loanrates. they agreed to extend the student loan interest rate and pass the transportation bill that will save nearly 3 million highway jobs.

>> well the markets closed with a bang on friday and they posted the largest gains for the month of june in more than a decade? just minutes away from the opening bell. courtney is here with me. what have you got? is this all europe? >> we're seeing futures modestly higher. expectations were fairly low. today is the firstay of the third quarter. expect europe to dominate headlines. it will be a busy week of economic data. and because the jobs number is on a friday, more traders are expecting to be taking off today and tomorrow for the july fourth holiday and come back in time to

react to the jobs number so volume could be a little light. bristol is buying for cash. we have got another deal. so a lot of deals happening today. >> there you go. quietly rolli them out in july. it's jobs report week on friday. up next we're taking a deep dive into the heart land. could be the reason for romney's heartbreak or obama's heart ache. can romney win the white house without any states in the midwest. let's see what the battlegrnd map has to say about that. you are watching the daily run down. download the nbc politics app and play along with me. actually. neutrogena® ultra sheer

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>> guess what? it's map time. what does the belt mean for the republican party? that's the focus of our deep dive today. president obama knows fell wall the importance of the industrial midwest. stops in ohio and western pennsylvania. that's on top of a handful of trips that he has already made there. this morning romney's campaign made a statement. why all the fighting over this particular region? we will show you here. the president is leading in the electoral count.

the other two are labeled. but what does this mean? it's simple. if president obama can sweep the industrial midwest, he might be able to win reelection. let me show you and walk you through here. this can't get more important. let's say you get romney all of the swing states in every other region. this is how crucial the industrial midwest is. 271, 267. this is why the conversation that the obama campaign wants to have here is about romney's business background. they believe it doesn't play well with these voters in

wisconsin and ohio and eventually in michigan or pennsylvania. now you see why it is so crucial. he needs one other state somewhere. the only place to get it, it's not going to happen in new mexico. this assumes a lot about colorado and colorado. you're going to see these guys spend a lot of time here. if this ishere the battleground is. if this is where everybody is sending their time it shows you that the romney camp knows they are close and they have to pick up one whether it's in iowa or ohio. doesn't matter where it is. a big or small state. if the last two weeks of the campaign are being fought somewhere else down here or out west, it is probably advantage obama. just an interesting way to look

at the power of the intus y'all midwest. why i don't think we will hear a lot of health care talk. our political panel will be here next. we're talking about the political fireworks that await us as we reach more. what romney advisor told us minutes ago about what they called the health insurance mandate. don't forget you can follow the show on facebook. you are watching the dai run down on msnbc. with the spark miles card from capital one, thor's couture gets the most rewards

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thin coffee shops. people who i thave been out of work. you can tell it wears on them. narrator: he's fought to pull us out of economic crisis for three years. and he still is. president obama's plan keeps taxes down for the middle class, invests in education and asks the wealthy to pay their fair share. mitt romney and his billionaire allies can spend milions to distort the president's words. but they're not interested in rebuilding the middle class. he is. i'm barack obama and i

>> the millionaire futures trader turned adventurer has finally done it. he crossed the imaginary finish line. >> the daily flash back to this day in 2002 when steve completed his trip into the record books. ended up 'tis appearing in 2007 after taking off from an airstrip in nevada. his body was found a year later. >> part of the bet, that president obama will lose his reelection bid and mitt romney and perhaps in the senate is able to repeal the law.

covering part of politics for usa today. involving the chief correspondent and author of the take. you have seen this before when it comes to medicaid. a governor says we're not going to do this. and eventually when they realize there is money to be had and they want to be able to balance their budgets and they somehow find a way to take the money. or is this more serious? >> it may be more serious. every every time the national governor's association meets every summer and winter, the biggest issue is the cost of medicaid. the bargain between the federal government and the states. we see this going on and on. what the health care bill did was create an expansion of medicaid with the feds paying much more than they normally pay. but a lot are not certain as you

look down the road that the federal government is going to be there. that will be an area that congress will decide. it's a tough decision that they have got to make. >> it was the very point, actually, where your former boss yesterd yesterday. >> it's 10e 0% guarantee. you're getting fully funded for ten years but he did understand this argument that says maybe the feds will pull the rug out from under them. >> productivity will go up in the state. yes you're talking about a ten year horizon. as a governor, are you really going say to people in your state who are sick, hold on.

i will not expand medicaid. inste instead, wait. >> the politics of this is and this is where i am wondering, does it become harder for a republican governor to eventually take the money because the politics is so -- is this going to be the greatest test that a republican has to deal with? >> i think it depends on the state, the political dynamics in that state. if you're in a pretty red state the risk is not as high. >> florida is somewhat surprising. if the president wins re-election, you could see this becoming a big issue. >> absolutely. >> that certainly -- that certainly is possible at least in the short run.

>> it is give than medicaid is supposed to be a national program. >> and not blind to politics. >> the other aspect of this debate is what governor and republicans have proposed which is block grant medicaid. >> it sounds like the white house is not totally opposed to this. you hear in the rhetoric saying we will give the states more options. >> you don't care abten years, five years. i could have it right now you are saying? or maybe i would have to wait and see what happens with mitt romney? >> you know, they have had to deal with this issue of is the mandate a penalty or a tax? it was an issue that romney had to deal with.

here is what eric had to say. >> the governor believes that what we put in place in massachusetts was a penalty and he disagrees with the court's ruling that the mandate was a tax. >> he believes you shouldn't call the penalty a tax but a penalty or a fee or a fine? >> that's correct. >> i feel like i will be seeing that clip a lot of times. >> i understand they are in a tricky position. they argued, he had been attacked for raising fees in massachusetts. they were very careful never to call that stuff taxes. even today, look at how he said. he afwrees with the dissent. carefully worded. >> that's very much the romney campaign. they are like that on a lot of

issues. the rest of the party is throwing up confetti that the word tax is in there. >> what kind of problem tuz this cause? they were jumping for joy. >> there is two tracks going on right now. governor romney because of what he did in massachusetts has a much more difficult path to follow in order to argue this out. you have got the whole rest of the party down a different track saying hoar ray, the supreme court has declared it a tax. >> the republican party is going to run on taking away your health care and they are opposed to personal responsibility. >> you articulate this. here is what i hear from other democrats saying hey, the democrats don't ever fight back on these stories. do you think they should fight

back more? the obama campaign is not fighting hard enough? >> we fought pretty hard. democrats should put republicans on defense on this issue. there is no reason not to. >> that is like the obama campaign they are like let's punt on health care. let's move on. >> the focus seems to be elsewhere. it seems to be on different parts of his record at this point. i think they are worried about how this tax thing could backfire. look what happened in 2010. >> i get a sense that we're going to have one conversation. >> well, that may well be the case. webber said to me last week just before the ruling he said obviously this is going to be a very important ruling and week. but next week it will be more important because the economy is still the big issue and the bigger driver. >> we will talk more about this.

>> who administers the oath to the speaker? the answer it's the dean of the house. the title give on the the longest serving member of the house. that is john dingle of michigan. he has served over 56 years and sworn in every house speaker since newt gingrich. we will be right back. [ male announcer ] at scottrade, you won't just find us online, you'll also find us in person, with dedicated support teams at over 500 branches nationwide. so when you call or visit, you can ask for a name you know. because personal service starts with a real person. [ rodger ] at scottre,

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t"the washington post" said thi ad is misleading, unfair and untrue chlt he also attacked hillary clinton with vicious lies so shame on you, barack obama 53 r. >> i don't know that hillary clinton will be a big help given everything we know about bill clinton and everything else. i think you are right. the ads have taken a toll. the poll that you put out last week that you broke out the swing states and indicates he has taken on water in the battle ground states in the midwest. >> this seems to be the first for a long time that the romney folks have been ignore, stay on

target. this is the first time they felt we have to do work here. they are still not doing the define bain on their own terms. >> really quick with the clintons, when you put someone who is still alive and kicking in an ad like that, they can say something. seems like a really risky thing. you are absolutely right. they haven't come out. there is a little bit of trying to define bain, but they haven't got a good answer on it yet. it's fascinating. >> for every hillary attack on obama -- >> here's the difference. as we know from the polling, there is a lot of rule to define mitt romney and learn more and the bainads are devastating. they know when people see people who look like them talking about i built the stage that was my

coffin, that's powerful. versus if you don't like obama care, you were already voting against barack obama. >> so look. people will look at the bain record and i heard people say the obamas are distorting it. you are like welcome to american politics. that's going to happen. there plenty where it feels like they are on the line, but they are not making any attempt to try to define the positives out of there. that is a head scratcher. >> they tried that throughout the primaries. >> do you remember seeing an ad for staples? >> they have used it. i think their strategy continues to be disqualify the president on the economy as opposed to allowing the president to fight back to disqualify romney on bain. one of them will succeed.

>> one ad they put out because they described it. one ad they put out. it didn't say bain capital, but it was mitt romney and his private industry advisers. it didn't say bain. >> look at map. the reason i pointed out the midwest is it feels where do the ads have the most impact from pennsylvania to wisconsin. he has to win one of them. plus everything else to get there. that's the issue. >> that's right. people in those states are looking at the people in the ads saying that could be me and my neighbor or my friend. it really bonds with people. that is the experience they have been having. it taps into the fear people have been having. there is a whole other phase about how we went from the rational at bain to being governor of massachusetts. that will be the kickerful.

>> shameless plugs. you will go last because you have a cool one. we already know. that's what you get for previewing. >> i have the thing. susan paige's story about ann romney is good. everyone needs to read it. >> it's the newspaper i get at the hotel. >> bipartisan lives. we are going to launch one vote 2012 campaign talking about global poverty and why american investment is important. >> stop living in south caroline a. >> my shameless plug is for phil ruetkers. a wonderful read about the romney olympics and what the romney family does in the whole fourth of july. i'm sure they have their own word for it, but it's a series of events. >> pounding nails? >> that's one of them and mitt romney didn't do well so he

expanded the number of events so he would do better. >> that's it for this edition. my shameless plugs to you. thank you. i'm not making apologies for any other companies. i just say thank you. coming up next, chris jansing, bye-bye. as her family pulled out of the driveway, this isn't just a teddy bear. it's a step towards normal. it's why allstate catastrophe teams didn't just arrive at these fires with cold water and checks to help the grown-ups start the rebuilding... they also brought thousands of these teddy bears for kids. people come first. everything else is second. [ female announcer ] allstate customers affected by the recent wildfires call 1-800-547-8676. visit a mobile claims office, your agent or allstate.com

>> good morning, i'm chris jansing and it's not over yet. democrats want to move on after the decision to uphold the law. the political gain to keep the fight going. >> this has to be ripped out by its roots. this is government taking over the insurance industry. the americans want us to move on. >> is the fight over? >> as far as we are concerned the victory is there for the american people. >> it will be an issue. a big issue in the fall election. >> in congress, the house will

vote next week to repeal health care and republican governors are vowing not to implement the law. part of the message, the surest way to get rid of health care is to get rid of the president and elect mitt romney. let me bring in washington bureau chief and political analyst david corn. good morning. >> good morning, chris. >> for republicans what is the political calculation here? aren't they preaching to the converted? >> it is about getting the route up. you have this big split between the congressional republicans and this guy named mitt romney, their likely candidate. we saw moments ago, eric fern strom on chuck's show saying this whole issue of obama care being a tax is not true. it's a penalty. >> i will interrupt you right there. let's set it up again. this has been the mantra since the health care decision was handed down on thursday by the supreme court. they have been saying