right? >> so i decided there were too many people who through this, the term conservative around, who didn't understand what they were talking about. >> apparently, he admits he was one of them. now he says he was naive and is joining us tonight. and concluding that president obama is abandoning for independence day. we begin with health care and whether republicans could repeal it. michael steele was chairman of the republican party, maggie habberman writes for politico. welcome. republicans had vowed to repeal obama's health care law. to do that, mitt romney would have to win and republicans would need to retake the senate and even then, it could be complicated. mitch mcconnell conceded that yesterday when speak tog a group back home in kentucky. >> thought it was a good idea

for the federal government to go in in direction, i'd say the odds are still on your side because it's a lot harder to undo something than it is to stop it in the first place. >> maggie, is there a clare path for the gop to repeal obamacare? >> there is a clear path in the sense they don't need a cloture vote. as you said sh they have the to take the senate. it's not easy to undo an entitlement program. so when it gets to the issue of whether this would be hard, you would be going against something the supreme court ruled upon. i think this is something republicans are mindful of. it is a good rallying cry for the base, but the optics of undoing what the supreme court did are very serious. >> michael steele, a piecemeal approach or get rid of obamacare? >> i think you'll see in the house, one fail swoop next week. certainly, the novel of this is defunding it out right. that's the quickest way to try today it. once you get to the senate,

everything stops and there will be no action on this issue after having passed a budget yet, so i don't think they'll address this economic issue. so the reality for the republicans politically is to use it as a tool to get the base in the game, to keep them in the game, fired up supporting mitt romney, which of course has its own slippery slope on the issue of health care, but the reality is that this is not going to be easy to do because it is part of the government process already begun before you got to, before you get to next year, pieces that are already in place and undo that will be really sticky. >> let's go deeper on the politics. take a look at one of the findings from a new poll on health care. 56% say opponents of the law should stop trying to block it. steven law is a ceo of american cross roads and wrote this after the ruling, quote, while we would have preferred to see obamacare struck down, this will

drive voter intensity sky high. the last time obamacare was litigated, republicans picked up an historic number of seats in the u.s. house and made big gains in the u.s. senate. david frum disagrees and wrote that the idea of repealing obamacare is a fantasy. even if republicans win the white house and the senate this year, he questioned whether they will really havehe appetite for a fight, quote, suddenly, it will be their town halls filled with outraged senior citizens are threatened. their incumbencies already we're hearing some republicans wish to retain the more popular elements of the affordable care act. michael, if you were still running the rnc, how would you respond and advise members of the gop to approach this suggest? >> i think frum's approach is probably the more correct one. the idea is if you do a repeal and replace, the operative wd is replace. the people, whether they're seniors or young, are looking for or have an expectation that you are going to replace it with

something. we have identified those part of this bill that are in good favor with the american people. republicans were in support of those and proposed some of those like portability, et cetera. sohose pieces can be carved out and repackaged as part of a new model of health care, but i think an outward kind of repeal without fulfilling the expectation and replacing, what you repealed is going to be a problem. >> i'm equally interested to' the response on the democratic side of the aisle meaning will those members of the party who voted for health care campaign and trumpet that support? something that wasn't done in the last election. >> it's a good question. you saw last week when this decision decision came down, senate candidates in red or purple red states trade very carefully on it. i think you are going to see a lot of people in the on the

noncoastal states, in the senate who are going to have a problem selling this. even in places where obama's numbers are better, this law is still not necessarily a slam dunk. i think you've seen polls that show it's getting more popular than it was before. the the question remains how this is going to play out with independent voters. i think the bases of both parties are set on this. that's where you're going to have the big question mark. there's early indication that some independent voters are tilting more toward the obama end of the spectrum. i'm not sure how much of a driver this is going to be once we get to november. >> i wonder where mitt romney will be in all of this. according to the national journal quote mitt romney after giving a brief statement decrying the decision has been silent on criticizing the health care law. he's been on vacation. his campaign has been giving off clear signals it doesn't want to make health care a major part of the election for an issue that's potent against democrats,

romney's campaign is declaring a cease fire. is that reflective of him being at lake winnapisaki or being a mista mistake? >> i think more of the latter. it is not part of the narrative for the fall campaign. the fall narrative is all about the economy and jobs and looking at how the the numbers perform between now and september, october is going to be critical. health care has a part to play in that. particularly with respect to the tax revenue side of the equation and the spending, but it's a limited, small portion of it and i don't think you want to see or they want to see a great deal of emphasis on that which probably now, the obama team absolutely wants to talk about after rtually running away from this signatu signature legislation for the last two years. >> still a lot about the comments to chuck todd yesterday, is it a tax, a penalty. i don't think that fs a gaffe on his part. i think he was responding in the

only way the romney campaign could have responded given the massachusetts record. >> i'm not sure about that. i think there are people around romney land who say this was annan error. and framing this equation the way they want to. it sort of accepted the the charge. i think there is a feeling among some republicans there is a way to talk about obamacare without answering the questions on massachusetts. i think this is where they are getting sort of tangled up. one thing i would say, i don't think either principle wants to be talking about obamacare very much. i think it would be worse for the president had the law been overturned, even partially, but that said, i don't think this is something they want to trumpet. >> maybe i'm hung up on the fernstrom comment because i work this cable because one of governor romney's. >> i'm not disagrees with you.

conservatives are upset. >> one of romney's surrogates was asked about the comments i've just referred to and he said that romney essentially agreed with obama that the mandate is not a tax, it's a penalty. that position is in sharp contrast to what many republicans are arguing and here is how chris christie responded. >> listen, let's not focus on what spokesm people are saying. they get in and fill in space on the cable stations, i care about what the candidate says. governor romney's been clear about what this election is about. about reinvigorating our economy, releasing entrepreneurial spirit. those are the things this election's going to be decided on, not what a spokesperson says. >> take a look at how the chairman of the rnc bungled a response on cnn this morning.

>> president romney per fernstrom, what is the rnc's position on this? >> the same as mitt romney's position is, tit's a tax, that' the only way the supreme court came up with the decision it did. >> one of the ramifications i think is that americans are walking around saying the supreme court confirmed its attacks and people who won't be suggest to an increase are thinking i'm getting taxed to pay for obamacare. >> there is that element of confusion that exists out there you're talking about a small percentage of the people, those who not comply with the law. but the broader population believes it applies to them. which is why what was said yesterday on the program was kind of a gaffe because it then

flips the script and all of a sudden now you have romney saying it's a penalty, we agree with the president and that gives the president a wider swath to make the argument about his health care plan. >> thank you for being here. coming up, congressman joe walsh is is at it again. the man who told president obama to quote stop lying. now says his opponent who lost her legs in iraq isn't a true war hero because she talks too much about her military service. this is "hardball," the place for politics. an accident doesn't have to slow you down. with better car replacement available only with liberty mutual auto insurance, if your car's totaled, we give you the money for a car one model year newer. to learn more, visit us today. responsibility. what's your policy?

i knew it'd be tough on our retirement savings, especially in this economy. but with three kids, being home more really helped. man: so we went to fidelity. we talked about where we were and what we could do. we changed our plan and did something about our economy. now we know where to go for help if things change again. call or come in today to take control of your personal economy. get free one-on-one help from america's retirement leader. politico is out with its new list of senate races. number five, missouri, where claire mccaskill is in a tough fight against a yet to be determined republican. number four, nevada, where den heller faces shelley berkeley and number three, montana and senator jon tester's battle

against rehberg. virginia at number two. and the the most come pet ty senate race in the country, ma in the battle between scott brown and elizabeth warren. republicans only need to win a net of four seats to take control of the senate. we'll be right back. her way, she would help her child. no. no no no no no. mommy's here [ male announcer ] with everything. but instead she gives him capri sun super-v. with one combined serving of fruits and vegetables. new capri sun super-v. i was worried about 'em, you know? i mean for instance my mom went to bed tonigh before making my dinner. which is fine, i mean i, i know how to make dinner. it just starts to make you wonder.

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welcome back. illinois tea party congressman joe walsh best known for calling the president a lair finds himself under fire for comments he made sunday about his opponent, iraq war veteran tammy duckworth. he suggests she's not a true hero because she discusses her military service too much. she was a black hawk pilot who lost both legs after her helicopter was hit in 2004. hear walsh's comments caught on camera by think progress. he begins by talking about john mccain's campaign in 2008 and

moves to his opponent. let's watch. >> but understand something about john mccain. his political advisers, day after day, had to take him and almost throw him against the wall and hit him against the head and say, senator, you have to let people know you served. you have to talk about what you did. he wouldn't, didn't want to do it. wouldn't do it. day after day, they had to convince him. and finally, he talked a little bit about it, but it was very uncomfortable for him. that's what's so noble about our heroes. now, i'm running against a woman, i mean, my god, that's all she talks about. our true heroes, the men and women who served us, it's the last thing they talk about. that's why we are so in awe of what they have done. >> for more, let me bring in two

veterans o f the iraq war, patrick murphy and chairman of vote votes. how stoked are you about this? zpl i'm kind of hurt. if you look at the video, the worst part about it, the end, there was people in the audience like laughed. >> they chuckled. >> really? i mean, look, i served two tours in iraq. been home six to eight months. it's hurtful. we're not even asking this congressman to apologize. we've been in a battle with him for a long time. he first told a politico reporter that all tammy did was get shot out of a helicopter. later found out he challenged tammy duckworth to a debate at the same time she was at military duty and now this. i think he's had a long track record of sort of insulting her service. she actually doesn't oversell

her service. john mccain may have written two books about vietnam, but she has yet to talk about her service. we did it. we have an e-mailer out right now about this. it's raised 20 something thousand dollars. >> in an interview with politico in march of this year, walsh said this of duckworth. i have so much respect for what she did in the fact she sacrificed her body for this country. ehhh. let's move on. what else has she done? female, wounded veteran. ehhh. she's nothing mo than a hand picked washington bureaucrat. david axelrod, rahm emanuel, just picked her up and dropped her into this district. >> every day, there are 18 veterans, come home and try and commit suicide and for joe walsh to attack tammy duckworth, working for the veterans affairs office in illinois and in

washington for veterans all over our country, for him to attack her service, let me tell you something. joe walsh never served. he doesn't know what it's like to leave your friends, your family to go serve for months at a time in 130 degree heat that don't know if you're ever going to see the people who you love again. he doesn't have the right to attack tammy duckworth's service. he doesn't even have right to vote as a congressman on veterans issues because he has no idea what it's about cht he is a disgrace. an absolute disgrace. >> late this afternoon, duckworth appeared on martin bashir's program on msnbc and here was her response. >> i think that he's just irresponsible in his words and actions. he's trying to distract the constituents from the fact that he has time and again done nothing for the district. anyone who's worn the uniform of this great nation for a day has

done more than he's done. it's the fact i've lived an entire lifetime living up to my responsibilities. just like our military men and women and their families every single day. mr. walsh has never lived up to his responsibilities. certainly he hasn't done it in congress and for him to bring senator mccain into this, he is a great american. it's too bad he's trying to muddy the waters and keep people away from the fact he's done nothing for the people in the district. >> ia statement to nbc news, congressman walsh said quote, of cour tammy duckworth is a hero. i've called her a hero dozens of times in the past four months. her service demands our utmost respect. that's why i recognize our veterans at the beginning of every one of my public town halls, however unlike most i have had the the honor to meet

since my election to congress who rarely talk about their service or the combat they've seen. that is darn near all of what tammy duckworth talks about. patrick, question for you. you were the first iraq veteran to be elected to the congress. how do you balance, how do you know when you've spoken enough but not excessive about your war service because you've confronted that. >> sure. i know tammy duckworth. i know colonel duckworth as a friend and leader. >> that's her husband? i'm sorry -- >> he's a major, so she outranks her husband. seven and a half years ago, she went through a very traumatic experience. she's trying to use that horrible chapter in her life to make it better for veterans. the other 1% of our nation who have worn the cloth of our country. now, as a candidate, of course

she's going to have to talk about it a little bit. but i have seen her on the stump. i have seen her in front of crowds and she, she actually down plays her service to our country. her heroic service to our country. so for joe walsh to try and bring in people like john mccain and let me tell you something, the difference here is is that when people attack john mccain like myself, i have a facebook page, someone wrote a comment that attacked john mccain. john mccain's an american hero. no one ever questions his service. for people like joe walsh to question tammy duckworth or anyone who put their lives in harm's way, and he has attacked her service multiple times. it's a disgrace. that's why john and i and so many others across our country are calling for joe walsh to resign from congress. >> mr. soltz, it seems to me

that military service used to be one of those issues you wouldn't dare be critical. you look at john kerry and the whole swift-boat issue, max cleland and now mrs. duckworth and you wonder if there's a pattern. what do you see when you put it all together? >> we spend money all over the country helping veterans running for office. it moves voters. what these candidates like to do is tear it down. it hurts with tammy. it devastates me. patrick's right in a sense of who e she really is when you know her. she's one of my closest friends. her husband called me today, are you going to help her? of course. tammy's going to down play it. she's very calm, cool and collected on tv about it. i'm a jerk. i'll go after people. i'll defend tammy with anything and i think joe walsh is an absolute travesty to our country.

this is a woman, i went back to iraq last year. vote vets has thousands of members. we came down to one of those decisive moments in my life. there's a few people i talked to what whether or not i should go back to iraq. you talk to general clark. tammy duckworth. tammy's a hero for what she's done when she's come home. who am i not to go back to iraq when you have a woman with no legs willing to go back to iraq. she goes to drill one weekend a month for her country and this is a woman you know, who, my father died last year when i was in iraq and i went home and talked to tammy. i was feeling bad about myself. tammy came home from iraq, lost her legs and her husband had a heart attack visiting her and passed away. she's always a woman i look at, how do i become a better military office, find strength in my life. for him to attack this, it's so below anything that's within

reason. i don't know what he wants her to do to not talk about being a veteran. does he want her to reattach her le legs? she can't do that. >> thank you for your service. >> happy fourth, gentlemen. up next, mitt romney takes another hit for putting his dog on the roof of the car. that's next in the "sideshow" and you can follow me on twitter if you can spell smerconish. to a little girl who saw flames reach her home

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nod to the all seamus' out there. >> it's a beautiful day, so if you're headed out of town, it's time to get moving. >> hey, boys, last call for the bathroom. we're not stopping until we need gas. >> we'll double gas mileage and that means half the stops for gas. half the stops for gas. half the stops for gas. call the epa to support the proposed new standards. >> here, boy. >> subtle, not so much. the dad by the way even looks a bit like romney. next, wendy long in new york has been blasting democrats for legislation employers to provide contraception coverage for their employees, but long has gen it a new twist. the folks at the "huffington post" got their hands on the video. >> even those who have died in

afghanistan and iraq, i want to listen to their voices because i think they're saying something to us. they're asking us to fight for the things that they died for. and you know, they didn't die for what gillibrand is saying, the right to force employers to pay for contraception. >> earth to wendy. no one is saying that the troops are fighting for contraception coverage at home. really, nobody. finally, how to declare president obama unpatriotic in three easy steps courtesy of the right, it all started with a piece last week saying quote the continental branch of the obama fund raising effort will kick off next week in paris. so some wealthy donors plan to get together and raise money for obama. fine. cue the right, quote, apparently, tiring of u.s. soil as a source of campaign dollars,

the obama campaign is headed overseas with its celebrity friends in tow. the european obama campaign starts next week in paris on july fourth. now, that's a flag waving campaign. suddenly, this was the latest strategy from team obama. step two, the national review blasts out this headline with a piece quote final jeopardy. category is obama. the answer is fund raising in paris and then step three, karl rove tweets final jeopardy, how will obama be spending american independence day this week? now the president himself is going to paris for this bash. reality check. the president is actually spending tomorrow at a white house picnic with military families as planneded all along. andrew mccarthy corrected his error via twitter, sort of. quote, lol, lots of luck, okay, okay. i see story says obama campaign,

not necessarily obama will be fund raising in paris on july four. i didn't realize there was a difference. so it wasn't all a ruse to make the president seem unpatriotic leading into the fourth of july. i'm not buying it. up next, freak storms, wildfires, record high temperatures. how long will republicans keep calling global warming a hoax? you're watching "hardball," the place for politics. ttd#: 1-800-345-2550

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stocks ended a shortened trading session higher. the dow gained 72, s&p up 8 and nasdaq added 25. u.s. auto sales were stronger than expected in june. ford's rose 7%. chrysler soared 20%. factory orders came in ahead of

may, a welcome sign and gas prices are down for a 13th straight week to 30, 3 rather 64 a gallon. now back to "hardball." most of you don't need a thermometer to know temperatures with swelters, this past week, more than 2,000 recorded were met or exceeded. last month, more than 3200 records were broken. wildfires have ungulfed parts of colorado and debby dumping rain on the southeast broke a record for being a earliest ever fourth storm of the season. with weather patterns like this, it's hard to deny the science of global warming. can republicans continue to argue that it's a hoax? ron reagan is a author of my father at 100 as well as an

msnbc political analyst and erin pike, a reporter for real clear politics. tl a poll i want to show you. it's conducted by "the washington post" and stanford university and it showed a figure that might be surprising to some. the number of americans who say global warming or climate change is the top problem worldwide decreasing. the amount of people who say air and water pollution is on the rise. however, americans believe the government needs to curb the greenhouse gases american businesses put out. 77% say there should be government limits to just 20% who disagree. erin, what's goin on with this data because anybody with a window can see we're living in crazy times and yet, the data suggests it's not the concern level where it had been just a couple of years ago. >> that is surprising and it's surprising in light of what we

saw in 2009 when the house passed cap and trade legislation and then the senate didn't even take it up. harry reid said at the time i think it will be easier to pass health care than clilt change legislature even given though that so many americans believe that global warming is a problem and you've seen the numbers on health care recently. they're more divided about that. there were eight house republicans thatoted in favor of that climate change legislation, but faced a lot of trouble in their districts and within the republican party. you remember mike cassle running against christine o'donnell and his friends, the night of his loss to her in that prima thought his vote is what did a lot of damage. i took a road trip throughout the country in the fall of 2010 for the midterms and heard a lot from voters throughout the

midwest and rust belt, that they were very unhappy about cap and trade legislation. even more so than the push on health care. >> when i say anyone with a window can see what's going on, am i c-- with climate change because they're not one in the same. >> yes, you are a little bit, but it is true we areoing to likely see more of these heat waves emerging over the next years as global warming increases. any single weather event you can't pin on global warming. i'm not as surprised as you, michael and perhaps erin, that the public doesn't seem as concerned as they used to be about global warming. politicians don't want to do something about that because that would be very difficult and the people who sponsor them are often from the extraction

industries don't want them to do anything about it an the media itself is reluctant to cover this because it's science and because politicians aren't doing anything about that. the public says, gee, we're not seeing it on tv, i guess it's not as serious as we thought. this is a recipe for disaster. >> let's talk about the politics of it. in 2010, mitt romney wrote in his book, quote, i believe that climate change is occurring, the reduction in the size of global icecaps is hard to ilg noer. i also believe that human activity is a contributing factor. now, last fall, fall of last year, his position had appare apparently e violaed. he no longer knew, it seemed, what caused global warming. >> my view is that we don't know what's causing climate change on this planet. and the idea of spending trillions an trillions of dollars to reduce co 2 emissions

is not the right course for us. >> i don't see this being an issue particular ly in what's going on with the economy. how do you see the politics of it playing out in the next couple of months? >> a couple of thuings. look at what happened in this republican primary. mike huckabee was loong at a presidential race, who all changed their positions on this. tim pawlenty and mitt romney both as governor supported a regional system of cap and trade, then backed off of it. tim pawlenty apologized for it and mike huckabee said in 2007 he supported cap and trade legislation. in 2009, he changed that view, so there was a big shift within the republican party and if you look at the websites for both barack obama and mitt romney and look at the energy tabs for president obama, it says energy and the environment. for mitt romney, it just says energy and there's a very different pathway they both take

on this. >> ron, is it a cause in search of a champion with vice president al gore not the dominant player he had been on a national stage, it seems there's no one with heft to marshall this effort. >> that's certainly true in washington, yes. it's looking if r a champion in washington. there are champions of course, bill and various other people. jim hansen, outside of washington, who are pressing to do something about this. but no, the politicians don't see anything in it for them and when you see public interest begin to wane, then they're going to be even less interested and again, the problem will increase. you know, the atmosphere, the planet doesn't care whether we're interested or not. the atmosphere is going to warm one way or the other if we keep pumping heat trapping gases into it. it doesn't care about the politics of this. the laws of nature and physics don't care. >> thank you so ron reagan, erin as well. up next, remember th

13-year-old kid who wowed conservatives a couple of years ago? >> conservatism is not an idea of feelings, it is an ideology of protecting the people and the people's rights. >> he is 17 now and he's here to tell us why he's not a conservative anymore. this is "hardball." the place for politics. this is new york state. we built the first railway, the first trade route to the west, the greatest empires. then, some said, we lost our edge. well todaythere's a new new york state. one that's working to attract businesses and create jobs.

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president obama hits the road this week for a bus tour his campaign is calling betting on america. he will start thursday in ohio just outside of toledo and make two more stops in the buckeye state in sandusky and cleveland suburb of parma. on friday, he'll wrap up in pittsburgh. pennsylvania's a state the president must carry if he hopes to win re-election. we'll be right back. what's with you?

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by what's getting done. measure commitment the twenty billion dollars bp committed has helped fund economic and environmental recovery. long-term, bp's made a five hundred million dollar commitment to support scientists studying the environment. and the gulf is open for business - the beaches are beautiful, the seafood is delicious. last year, many areas even reported record tourism seasons. the progress continues... but that doesn't mean our job is done. we're still committed to seeing this through. define conservatism, as i believe it is fit, upon four category of principle. respect for the constitution.

respect for life. less government and personal responsibility. >> we're back. that was then 13-year-old right wing wonder kid, jonathan krohn at the 2009 conservative political action conference where he was glanted a speaking spot and standing occasion. he published a book the following year and party leaders like newt gingrich and bill bennett offered blurbs of praise for the jacket. but it's another year older, wiser, as the saying goes and krohn, now 17, says he's outgrown the conservative label. and he joins me now. what always impressed me about your speech was not so much the content as it was the delivery. and it seems to me you had such command and delivered those remarks without notes. am i right? >> that's correct. i have never written a speech before. all the speeches i've done have

been in imprompt u. it's funny because a lot of people seem to think they have these ideas that my parents wrote it for me, but i've never, ever had any notes. >> has there been some kind of life changing event in the last couple of years? any sequence of events that caused a change in your political thinking? >> i wouldn't say really any events. i think that it's a number of factors. not such events, i'd say. after i finished the second book, i wanted to talk a lot of time philosophy and reading a lot of philosophy which i said talked about this before. and i really think that it was getting into something else, to take a breather and try to -- stimulate my mind in other ways. let myself think about what it is i really believe and really think about what i wrote that led me to that. that's a large part of it. >> we live in interesting times.

run down a couple of them and give me the cliff notes version of where you stand today. >> well, i am in favor of obamacare -- i mean obamacare and gay marriage and i am pro-choice now. you know, it was social conservatism that's the first thing to go. because i did a lot of conferences, you know, like social conservative things and stuff like that. and i went to a lot of those and there were a lot of people that were in this restrictive bubble and social conservative its silver medal probably the most restricted part of that. because it is -- very much a very fundamentalist, strong i n evangelical core that you have there. and if you stray from that, those people -- lot of the people in that area of conservatism have -- have it -- have a problem with that. if you reach out a little bit and don't reach out, it is one of the most strongest and most angry, i guess you could say, ideological aspects. >> what kind of blowback have

you received from conservatives since -- coming forward? >> a lot. yeah. a lot. i was in the greenroom. i saw a wheat that said somebody -- talking about me on fox. so i switched to fox. and they had a whole panel of people on their fox 5 show talking about how i duped everybody. done really believe it. it was joke and i was trying to squeal. i wasn't trying to scheme everybody? i changed my mind! they started making fun of me. i think one of the guys said if it was up to him he would have left me in the woods as a baby. and i had -- on the daily caller, they have writt three articles about me all of which called me names i can't repeat on television in 5:00 in the afternoon. >> reality is most of us adopt the party initially and maybe the ideology as well of our parents. then the further you go in life, the more time you have to sort things out. were your politics a couple of years ago a reflection of what you were hearing at home? >> i don't think it was much

what i was hearing at home. my parents have never been politically active. it is what i heard on the radio. i live in georgia. media here especially like wsb, the best radio station in atlanta -- >> all conservative talk. >> and -- yes, all conservative talk radio. that's what i was inundated with. that's where i got a lot of that from. >> next for you, nyu, am i right? >> that's correct. i will study philosophy and i'm going to keep doing film writing. i'm doing my first screen play now, finishing that. i'm hoping that -- you know, that will go well. obviously it is very hard to get funding for that. >> if my math -- if my math is -- >> a lot of. >> if my math is correct you will not be 18 in time for the election. you will not get to cast ballot. >> i won't. >> sounds to me like -- >> i will still be 17. >> i think i know which way you would be voting if you could exercise the plan choice in this election. >> absolutely. yeah. i would be voting for president obama. especially over mitt romney.

i just don't think mitt romney is right for this country. >> sounds like me you still have politics coursing through your veins. >> i try to stay out of politics as much as possible. i had bad experiences. i don't want to try to label myself into either camp. i want to stay myself. >> thank you for being here, jonathon krohn. when we come back, let me finish with what makes america great and what doesn't. mid grade dark roast forest fresh full tank brain freeze cake donettes rolling hot dogs bag of ice anti-freeze wash and dry diesel self-serve fix a flat jumper cables 5% cashback signup for 5% cashback at gas stations through september. it pays to discover.

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let me finish tonight with this. tomorrow, of course, is the fourth of july. many of us will celebrate living in the greatest country on earth. we take that as a given. but is it? last night after guest hosting for chris i went home and i watched the latest episode of the new aaron sorkin television program called "the newsroom." it airs on hbo sunday nights. it is interesting to leave a cable newsroom and go watch this adeaptation of one. central character is will m kraivoy. anchor with attitude. in the first episode, he unloads in front of a college audience and is very critical of the united states. he says we are not the greatest in the world. he says we lead in just a couple of areas like our incarceration rate, religious beliefs, defense spending. he says we act like we are the only country with freedom but he says that there are 207

countries in and 180 of them have freedom. and then he rattles off statistics where we lag behind. and then finally in impassioned speech he says that we used to be great. listen. >> stood up for what was right. we fought for moral reasons and passed laws, struck down laws, for moral reasons. we sacrificed, we cared about our neighbors and put our money where our mouths were and never beat our chest. we built great big things made ungodly technological advances, exploring the university. cure diseases and we cultivated the world's greatest artists and the world's greatest economy. first step in solving a problem is recognizing there is one. america is not the greatest country in the world anymore. >> show is fiction but makes you think and i disagree with him. we have lots of room for improvement to be sure. but i argue the country is still

great and only exhibited weakness recently as a result of seeding leadership to its fringes which yielded partisan gridlock and malaise. america loses advantage when it is a dirty word. when reasonable pounds surrender the stage to stharl tons. when american focus on that which unites us, we are unstoppable. happy birthday, america. at's "hardball" for now. "politics nation" with al sharpton starts right now. >> welcome to "politics nation." i'm al sharpton. tonight's lead -- the gop wages war on the uninsured. and millions of americans are left hanging in the balance. it has been nearly one week since the supreme court issued its landmark ruling on health care. it marked a victory for this

country. a victory for the millions who have health insurance. this was a victory for democrats. some of whom fought for decades to pass this legislation. and it was a very personal victory for this president. but republicans, it was a major blow. even senator number one goal is to defeat obama, mcconnell thinks it is a long shot. >> if you thought it was good idea for the federal government to go in this direction, i would say odds are still on your side because it is a lot harder to undo something than it is to stop it. in the first place. >> senator mcconnell knows that repealing the affordable care act is against the odds. but don't believe for one second that the gop will end their tax. it is only getting started. republican governors are already pushing back at medicaid expansion in