birthd birthday, but she doesn't believe me anymore, so. now, unless you have been hiding out in the woods somewhere, you are aware of the fact that it's campaign season. >> we're fired up and ready to go! >> you're fired up! [ cheers and applause ] it's campaign season again. look, i understand it's not always pretty to watch. there has been more money flooding into the system than we've ever seen before. more negative ads, more cynicism. most of what you read about or hear about on the news has to do with who is up or down in the polls instead of what these issues actually mean for you and for america.

so, it can be frustrating. and i know sometimes it may be tempting to kind of turn away from all of it and just turn off the tv, tivo everything that you want to watch so you can skip over the commercials. it's easy sometimes, i think, t lose interest and lose heart when you hear what's going on in washington. and i'll be honest with you, i think there are some folks who are betting that you will lose interest, that are betting thatç somehow, you're going to lose hea heart. but here you are in the heat. i'm betting you're not going to lose interest. i'm betting you're not going to lose heart. i still believe in you. i'm betting to you, and the country is betting on you, ohio.

because you understand that even though politics may seem real small right now and may seem real petty, the choice in this election could not be clearer and it could not be bigger, the stakes could not be bigger. >> you can do it! >> i know, with you. [ cheers and applause ] >> what's going on in this election is bigger than just a choice between two candidates or between two parties. it's about two fundamentally different visions of where we go as a country. see, i believe in an america where no matter who you are, no matter what you look like, no matter where you come from, you can make it if you try. we've never been a country that -- we've never been a

country looking for handouts. we're a nation of strivers and risk-takers and çentrepreneurs worke workers. but what we ask for is that hard work pays off, that responsibility is rewarded. the idea is, if you take responsibility for your life, if you put in the effort, if you do the responsible thing, then you can find a job that pays a living wage, that you can look after your family, that you can buy a home, that you can retire with some dignity and some respect, that you won't go bankrupt when you get sick. [ cheers and applause ] that you have that core middle

class security that built this country and that you can pass that on to your kids so they can do things that you never even imagined. that's the essence of america. and i believe in that basic promise of america because i lived it. that's my biography. i had grandparents whose service in world war ii was rewarded by them having a chance to go to college and buying their first home. because i had a hard-working mom who raised me and my sister right but also had some help so that we could end up going to the best schools in the country, even though we didn't have a lot of money. i got involved inç politics. i ran for president in 2008, and some of you joined me in 2008 because we believed in that

basic bargain that built the largest middle class in history and the strongest economy in the world, and we felt like that basic bargain was slipping away, that hard work wasn't always rewarded, that being responsible didn't always get you ahead, that folks who acted irresponsibly sometimes were making out like bandits while ordinary folks were having a tougher and tougher time. so, we came together in that election, democrats, but also independents, and yes, some republicans, to restore that basic bargain that built this country, and we knew at the time it wouldn't be easy, we knew it would take more than one year or one term or maybe even one president, but what we didn't realize at the time was we were going to be hit by the worst economic crisis in our

lifetimes. and that's been tough on a lot of folks, including people here in ohio. it robbed millions of people of their jobs and their homes and their savings, and it pushed the american dream even further from reach for a lot of people. but you know what? this crisis has not changed the fundamental character of america. it hasn't changed the fundamental character of this town or thisç state or this pa of the country. we've still got people who are working hard, we've still got people who are acting responsibly. it hasn't diminished our belief in those ideals we were fighting for in 2008. and our mission right now isn't just to recover from this economic crisis, although that's job one, our mission's to give back to america, to americans all across the country what's

been lost, that sense of security. our goal isn't just to put people back to work tomorrow, it's also to build for the long haul an economy where hard work pays off, an economy where everybody, whether you're starting a business or punching a clock, has confidence that if you work hard, you will get ahead. that's what america's about. that's what ohio's about. [ cheers and applause ] now, i've got to tell you, what's holding us back is not -- where's michelle? you know, look, i know i'm second fiddle, but you know, i'll have michelle come back some time. i'm just the warm-up act. [ cheers and applause ] michelle says hi.

>> we love you! >> thank you so much. i appreciate it. now, now, letç me say this. what's holding us back from going ahead and meeting these challenges, what's holding us back -- >> four more years, four more years! [ chanting ] >> four more years! >> what's holding us back from meeting our challenges, it's not a lack of ideas, it's not a lack of solutions. what's holding us back is we've got a stalemate in washington between these two visions of where the country needs to go. and this election's all about breaking that stalemate. the outcome of this election will determine our economic

future not just for the next year or the next two years, but maybe for the next decade or the next two. and i want everybody to be clear about what this choice is. my opponent and his allies in congress, they believe prosperity comes from the top down. they believe if we eliminate most regulations and we cut taxes for the wealthy by trillions of dollars, that somehow, our whole economy will benefit, and all of you will benefit, and there's going to be more jobs and better security for everybody. that's their basic economic plan. now, i think they're wrong about their vision, and part of the reason i think they're wrong is because we tried it, remember just a while back,ç and it didt work. we're still paying for trillions of dollars in tax cuts that weren't paid for and didn't lead to better jobs or better wages

for the middle class. the lack of regulation on wall street, the kind of thing that they're prescribing, that's exactly what allowed people to game the system that caused this whole mess in the first place. so no, i don't think that mr. romney's plan to spend trillions of dollars more on tax cuts for folks who don't need them and aren't even asking for them is the right way to grow our economy, especially since they want to pay for it by cutting education spending and cutting job training programs and raising middle class taxes. and i sure don't agree with his plan to keep giving tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas! i don't think we're better off by rolling back regulations on banks or insurance companies or oil companies, regulations that are meant to protect workers and

consumers and families and our economy. so, we don't need more top-down economics. we've tried it, it did not work. what we need is somebody who's out there fighting for the middle class and wants to grow the middle class. when the american auto industry was on the brink of collapse and more than 1 million jobs were on the line, governor romney said we should justç let detroit go bankrupt. >> that's what he said. >> no! >> i refuse to turn my back on communities like this one. >> thank you! >> i was betting on the american worker and i was betting on american industry, and three years later, the american auto industry is coming roaring back. that chrysler plant up the road

bringing on another 1,100 employees to make the cars that the world wants to buy, the wrangler built right here in toledo just set an all-time sales record. what's happening in toledo can happen in cities like cleveland, it can happen in pittsburgh, it can happen in other industries, and that's why i'm running for a second term as president, because i'm going to make sure that it does. i want it happening all across this country. >> four more years! [ chanting ] >> just like ina said, i want goods shipped around the world stamped with "made in america." unlike my opponent, i want to stop giving tax breaks to companies that are shipping jobs

overseas, start rewarding companies that are investing right here in toledo, right here in ohio, right here in maumee. that's what i'mç looking for. you know, governor romney's experience has been in owning companies that were called pioneers of outsourcing. that's not my phrase. "pioneers of outsourcing." my experience has been in saving the american auto industry. and as long as i'm president, that's what i'm going to be doing, waking up every single day thinking about how we can create more jobs for your families and more security for your communities. that's why my administration brought trade cases against china at a faster pace than the previous administration, and we've won those cases. just this morning, my administration took a new action to hold china accountable for

unfair trade practices that harm american automakers. and let me tell you something, americans aren't afraid to compete. we believe in competition. i believe in trade. and i know this, americans and american workers build better products than anybody else. so as long as we're competing on a fair playing field instead of an unfair playing field, we'll do just fine, but we're going to make sure that competition is fair. that's what i believe. that's part of our vision for america. but that's not all that it takes to rebuild this economy. i'm running to make sure that america once again leads the world in educating our kids and trainingç our workers. our tuition tax credit has saved millions of families thousands of dollars each, and now i want to extend it. we won the fight in congress to stop congress from letting

student loans double. [ cheers and applause ] and now we're working with colleges and universities to start bringing tuition costs down. i want our schools to hire and reward the best teachers, especially in math and science. i want to give 2 million more americans the chance to go to community colleges and learn skills that local businesses are looking for right now. see, in the 21st century, a higher education is not a luxury, it is an economic necessity for every single one of our young people, and folks are retraining to get the jobs of the future, and our veterans who are coming home, and we need to take care of all of them and give them those opportunities to work their way into the middle cla class.

d bless you. thanks for your service. freedom is not free and you fought for it. i'm running to give more responsible homeowners the chance to refinance their mortgage and save $3,000 a year. we've got low interest rates right now, but a lotç of folks are having trouble refinancing with their banks. we've said to congress, let's go ahead and help them refinance, because that extra -- can you use an extra $3,000? and that means you're spending at restaurants and you're buying stuff at the store. you're buying some clothes, is that what you said? [ laughter ] but you're putting that money back into circulation. that's good for everybody. it's good for small businesses, it's good for large businesses. we've already givenhousands of families the chance to do this. my opponent, his plan for the

housing market is to let it hit bottom. that's not a plan, that's a problem. that's not a solution. i'm running because i believe that in america, nobody should go bankrupt because they get sick. i'll work with anybody who wants to work with me to continue to improve our health care system and our health care laws, but the law i passed is here to stay. [ cheers and applause ] and let me tell you something, maumee, it is going to make the vast majority of americans more secure. we will not go back to the days when insurance companies could discriminate against people just because they were sick. we're not going to tell 6

million young people who are now on their parents' health insurance plans that, suddenly, they don't have healthç insurance. we're not going to allow medicare to be turned into a voucher system. now is not the time to spend four more years refighting battles we fought two years ago. now is the time to move forward and make sure tat every american has affordable health insurance and that insurance companies are treating them fairly. that's what we fought for, that's what we're going to keep. we are moving forward. >> four more years! [ chanting ] >> and maumee, i'm running because after a decade of war, it's time to do some nation-building here at home. we ended the war in iraq.

we are transitioning out of afghanistan. my plan would take half the money that we've been spending on war, let's use it to put people back to work, rebuilding our roads, rebuilding our bridges, rebuilding our schools, getting those construction workers out and about, rebuilding america. that's how we build our future. we can't go backwards, we've got to move forward. i'm running to make sure that we can afford all this by paying down the debt in a balanced way, in a responsible way. keep in mind, we had a surplus last time there was a democratic preside president. they ran up the tab, put two wars onç the credit card, tax cuts not paid for, prescription drug plan not paid for, left us the tab. well, we're going to clean it up, but we're going to clean it up not on the backs of the

middle class, we're going to do it in a balanced and responsible way. i'll cut spending like we already have on things we can't afford and aren't helping people, but unlike my opponent, i'll ask the wealthiest americans, who enjoy the biggest tax cuts over the past decade, to do a little more. and by the way, just like we know what they did didn't work, we know what i'm talking about did work, because what i'm talking about is what bill clinton did as president. our economy created 23 million new jobs, the biggest budget surplus in history, and by the way, we made a whole bunch of millionaires as well. it wasn't like rich people were doing bad back in the '90s. they were doing just fine, right? and you know what? there are plenty of patriotic, successful americans who agree with us. they want to do the right thing because they care about this country, on jobs, on education,

on housing, on health care, on retirement, on all these things that are the pillars of a middle class life. we can't go backwards. we've got to go forwards, and that's the choice facing us this november. and the choice could not be more clear. now, i'm not here to tell you, ohio, that this is going to be easx0or it's going to be quick. changes that we're trying to bring about -- we're dealing with problems that happened over the course of decades. they're not going to be changed overnight. and i know sometimes people feel like, yeah, well, obama, he's done some good things, but boy, things are still tough out there, change hasn't happened fastenough. i understand that. i get frustrated, too. but what's required are long-term solutions, not slick promises, not quick fixes. and there are plenty of well-funded special interests in

washington and their powerful allies in congress, who want to keep things just the way they are. but don't ever buy the line that they're selling, that we can somehow accomplish more by doing less. that might benefit their interests, but it won't benefit yours. that's not how we became america. our parents, our grandparents, the founders of this country, they didn't set their sights lower, they didn't settle for something less, and neither do we, because we're americans. if we're going to be the country we know we can be, we've got to keep doing the hard work of building the future of this country for our kids, just like our parents and our grandparents did for us. and t me tell you something, from now until november, the other side's going to spend more money than we've ever seen before, and they will be raining ads down on your head, and

they'll tell you it's all my fault, i can'tç fix it because think government's the answer to everything or because i haven't made a lot of money in the private sector, or i think everything's doing just fine. that's what all the scary voices in the ads will tell you. that's what mitt romney will say, that's what republicans in congress will say. and you know, that's their plan for winning an election, but it's not a plan to create jobs. it's not a plan to provide you with greater security for you and your family. it's not a plan to restore the middle class or restore the american dream. and that's the kind of plan we need right now, is a plan to build the middle class and restore the american dream. and if you agree with me, if you believe that our economy works best when everybody gets a fair shot and everybody's doing their fair share and everybody's playing by the same set of rules, then i'm going to need you out there working.

and you know what? i need you to talk to your friends and your neighbors. don't just talk to democrats, talk to independents, talk to republicans. because i'll -- i want to work with anybody who believes that we're in this together. i want to work with anybody who believes we've got to invest in our future. i want to work with anybody who thinks we've got to give our kids a great education. i want to work with anybody who believes that we've got to make sure that we're building things here in america. i'm not a democrat first, i'm an american first.ç i believe we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. and i believe what's stopping us is not our capacity to meet our

challenges, what's stopping us is our polits, and that's something you have the power to solve. so, hit the doors, make some phone calls, register your friends, talk to those family members who sometimes don't v e vote. remind them where america's strength comes from. it comes from our people. remind them how america came this far. it came because of our people. you know, all this money that's being spent on negative ads in this campaign -- they spent money in 2008. they spent -- i got out-spent when i ran first time for senate. but you know what i've learned? when the american people, when ordinary folks start standing up for themselves, start making their voices heard, start coming together, start believing again, nothing can stop them. nothing can stop you.

nothing can stop you, maumee. nothing can stop you, ohio! nothing can stop us, america! let's remi the world just why it is we live in the greatest nation on earth! god bless you! god bless the united states of america.ç ♪ >> that was president obama just wrapping up remarks in ohio, hosting the first town hall on his "betting on america" bus tour. i'm ari melver in for alex wagner today. co-host of "the cycle" is steve core knackie, nbc political analyst richard wolffe, patricia murphy of citizen jane politics and contributor to "the daily beast" and radio host, kurt anderson. great to have you all with us today. richard wolffe, first, what did we hear from the president in those remarks and were you surprised that he seems to have moved well beyond his victory in health care?

>> well, look, first of all, wh we heard is a guy who is good at campaigning, who enjoys campaigning, who thrives in it. he's outside washington, he's got rid of the suit and he's feeding off the crowds and the crowd's energy there. you know, what we expected was that he would set up this contrast between his position on the auto industry and outsourcing. he did that. he's got one position. he's in the heart of the auto industry country there. romney's on a very different place when it comes to manufacturing policy, at least. but more surprisingly, by far, was his full-throated campaigning on health care. he said he continued to improve the health care system, work with anyone to make it better, but that's what he fought for, the law will stand, and that's what he's going to keep. and you know, there are a lot of people in washington in the sort of chattering classes who said he should back off, and the polls are mixed about it. i don't see someone shying away from his record there. >> see, i heard him speak to some of the details of the health care law but not necessarily anything about taxes and some of the gymnastics that

mitt romney has?x!een doing. i want to bring in jen saukee live from ohio. >> thanks for having me! >> you've been traveling with the president as the traveling press secretary. >> i am. >> what do you think of what we were just discussing, which was whether this speech today was moving really past health care, which obviously has been a big subject after the supreme court upheld large parts of the affordable care act, or was this really about the economy and a new chapter in the campaign? >> well, first i'll say this is such an excited crowd here. you know, they're screaming, they're yelling, they're so excited to see the president, so it's great to be back on the trail. in terms of how the president talked about health care, you heard it in his speech. to him, it's an issue of preserving the economic security for the middle class. he sees it just like he sees education, just like he sees tax cuts for middle class families, as a key issue that we need to continue to fight for. of course, he's going to talk about it in the way normal people understand, because the

debate that's going on right now, that's being pushed, ironically by the romney campaign, by a group of people who represent someone who has defended this as a penalty for years and years and years and now, clearly, he's been pressured by the right wing of his party to go back on that. but the president's out here, he wants to hear what's on people's minds, what they're struggling with, what's working, and health care and preserving that for the middle class is certainly a part of that. >> mm-hmm. and we can hear the music, so sounds like it's a fun time out there, jen. the other -- >> it is. it's a party! >> the other thing that, of course, is a huge story has been these reports about mitt romney's accounts, whereç he h put his money, whether he has put too much of it abroad or perhaps without the proper disclosure. that's been a subject in a "vanity fair" article that got a lot political attention as well as the "ap," and your campaign has been pushing pretty hard on that. of course, the real question there is -- we have a graphic that you may be able to see, or i'll describe to you -- is that

when you look at elected politicians in america, they are all much, much more wealthy than the average american. the senate, for example, people have an average net worth of about $13 million, compared to $77,000. so, while there may be a difference there between these two presidential candidates, i think the numbers show the bigger difference is between electeds and everybody else. is the problem from your campaign's view is that mitt romney's really rich? >> no, it has nothing to do with wealth. this is an issue of, you know, why has mitt romney, why does he have a cloud of secrecy hanging over his financials, you know, why doesn't he release his tax returns for more years? as you noted, in the "vanity fair" article there were a lot of questions raised in that. why does he have a swiss bank account, why did he? why has he invested in companies over in bermuda? why are these part of his financial background that we don't know more details on? you know, you always make decisions on the prism of what your experience has been, and the president, it shouldn't be

lost on anyone that the president is somebody who, you know, not only fought for steelworkers and workers when he was a young person, but he's still doing that today. and mitt romney's career has been much more about making profits for companies and doing whatever needed to happen in order to do that. so, there's a real difference between their backgrounds, and that impacts thq@) vision for the future, too. >> the other thing that the president really highlighted today that i just wanted to touch on, and i know you're only with us for another moment, is he talked about sort of a partisan lens for deficit politics in the country, and he singled out the administration of bill clinton for not only creating 23 million jobs, but also leaving office with a surplus. and then he said that when republicans were in the white house, they basically ran up the tab with tax cuts and wars that weren't paid for. is that something we're going to hear more about? why is that important now when everyone's looking at the future deficit picture? >> sure. this campaign is definitely about the future and who's

better to move the economy, move the country forward. but people want to know and need to know how we got here. and certainly, what's happened over the last couple of decades is part of the story. we didn't just -- this didn't just happen overnight, as we all know, and so that's why we're digging out of such a big hole and why it's so important not just to get the economy back on track, but to really rebuild the middle class in this country, and that's what the president's focused on, and that's what you'll hear him talking about on the campaign trail. >> jen, i know your time is short. thank you for spending some time with us here while you're traveling with the president. >> thank you! >> great. >> my pleasure! >> absolutely. we will be back with more from our panel now that we've heard from the president, from his campaign, and we'll also be talking about some of the news govern romney has made recently in talking about health care. stay with us. i'm a marathon runner,

in absolute perfect physical condition and i had a heart attack right out of the clear blue... i'm on an aspirin regimen... and i take bayer chewables. [ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. he's my success story. [ laughs ]

well, the supreme court has the final word, and their final word is that obama care is a

tax, so it's a tax. i said that i agreed with the dissent, and the dissent made it very clear that they felt it was unconstitutional, but the dissent lost. >> that was mitt romney yesterday, attempting to clarify his campaign's position on the individual mandate portion of president obama's affordable care act. it comes as the romney campaign he's trying to, for whatever reasons, speak to the fact that we do have rule of law in this country and the supreme court did say it's a tax. what's wrong with that? >> let's say it's a tax. let's let this semantic craziness end. it's a tax. it's a tax, by the way, that number one, mitt romney invented as governor of massachusetts,

and number two, it is a tax, a tax that has not gone into effect yet, that will be levied on people who decline, refuse to buy health insurance. so, fine. just as we tax people who buy cigarettes or do all kinds of socially unproductive things, we will tax the people, those, at tiny minority of people who don't buy health insurance. that doesn't seem to me, except for people for whom "tax" is to be avoided at all costs, a politically damaging proposition. >> we have a line from some of those people, kurt. if you look at what the "wall street journal" editorial board said -- and they really do set some of the strict lines in politics for conservatives -- they said, basically, that when mitt romney said the penalty's now a tax, he didn't offer elaction originally and the campaign looks confused in addition to being "politically dumb." this latest mistake "is of a this latest ith the campaign's

insular staff and strategy that are slowly squandering a historic opportunity." how about that? >> i totally agree politically dumb. what is going on? this is such a politically rich areaor mitt romney if he wanted to make it so, if he wanted to go into the details of the health care bill that a majority of americans do have a problem with. there is no rate authority. there is a big chance that rates could jump up after this goes into effect. so, a lot of the costs are hidden by subsidies. americans don't necessarily want the federal government telling them what to do, telling them what to buy, what not to buy. why aren't you focusing on that? why are you being so politically dumb -- first of all, totally crass messages with him and eric fehrnstrom. nobody thinks eric fehrnstrom is out there freelancing. everybody knows this is a message they had, it didn't work, and now conservatives, "wall street journal" editorial board, bill kristol, now conservatives are saying what's wrong with you? whose side are you on? not only are you messing up the health care message, we're worried you're going to mess up the entire campaign. this is such a softball.

why are you swinging at it? >> steve, was this dumb? >> well, they bungled the sort of rollout of getting his position straightened badly, i think. and i do agree, i doubt they'll get much mileage out of the tax argument, but i'll be charitable and kind of put out other side out there. it basically goes like this. what kurt just laid out there about the rationale for considering this a tax and not applying to a lot of people, very valid, and most people in isolation see it that way. but consider that as a microcosm for the debate and the health care law. when you take it piece by piece and explain the individual components to people, they always poll very well. the individual opponents of the law strikeç people as very reasonable. the concept of obama care doesn't. the concept of obama care, whatever that means to people, they sort of put their worst associations on it. so, the game here with taxes and republicans using that to go after this is people have a very negative association with taxes. >> right. >> very negative association with obama care, and it forces democrats to explain what kurt just explained, not a sound bite. >> let's look at those

associations, because court opinion can change that. overall when people were asked by pew what do they think of this opinion, 36% said they approved and 40% say they disapprove. and a quarter of the population admitted they don't know. but then things get interesting. if you look at what people actually knew, 55% knew the law was upheld and 45% basically had no clue. so, the last number you've got to look at, and this goes a little off from what patricia was saying, out of those who correctly understand that the law was upheld, 50% approve and 42% disapprove. >> but it doesn't matter if they know or don't know, it matters if they think they know. if they have a strong opinion, it doesn't matter if it's based in fact. that's how they feel very strongly. why isn't romney exploiting that? >> right. >> why isn't he going after that? >> patricia murphy, legal realist. >> american realist. >> reality-based abandoner. >> we have to go, but we're going to come back. we're tight on time from running the president's remarks. but after the break, we'll look at five fridays left in the race

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the perfect use of the 7th inning stretch. get that great taste anytime with kingsford match light charcoal. tomorrow's jobs report is the first of five big question marks for the obama campaign before election day. there was some good news for the president today with the labor department reporting weekly jobless claims are now at a six-week low, and also a new ç cnn/orc poll finds a 20% spike in positive expectations for the economy. richard, are they celebrating in chicago? >> well, that cnn poll confirms what we've seen in a number of different things, gallup as well, where people feeling better about the economy generally, maybe not about the global picture. they think that somewhere out there there are spooky things going on, but these trend lines are going in the right direction. what chicago'seen saying all along is the absolute number, we want it to be better, but the trend line is a much more

important thing to watch. and the president's in ohio, jobless rate is better than it was not just better than the national avage, but better than when he was inaugurated as president, so they're happy with that. >> patricia, do republicans have to promote our decline a little more? >> well, yeah, that's always what makes it so hard to be a republican these days, especially a republican governor in a state that is doing better. and we've seen if any republicans are having a hard time with this message, it's them saying, look, our economy's getting better, but it's not barack obama. barack obama doesn't get the credit for it, i get the credit for it, you get the credit for it. so, it's a very difficult message. if these numbers come out and they are positive for republicans, this is when they have the absolute toughest time messaging it. >> yeah, and that will be a big infection point tomorrow. now, coming up in congress, we're going to discuss this proxy battle with attorney general eric holder, next on "now."

attorney general eric holder blames politics for the unprecedented vote that held him in contempt of congress. in an interview with "washington post," holder says "i've become a symbol of what they don't like about the positions this justice department has taken. i am also a proxy for the president in an election year. you have to be exceedingly naive to think that vote was about documents." let's get rit to it. >> well, all of these executive privilege battles with congress are about both. they're about both law and politics. and in this case, it is hard to see that documents are the top priority, because the justice department made an offer to

brief issa's committee on the subjects that they were interested in. they've already turned over 7,600 pages of documents, but they were interested in other subjects, how the department changed its position after february 11th of 2011. and the attorney general said we'll tell you about that, we'll provide you an index of all the documents we're withholding. we can talk in a more specific way about your desire to see more specific documents. >> right. >> and so, they just, rather than respond in a kind of detailed way to that offer, they just went ahead with the contempt vote. >> right. i want to -- [ everyone talking at once ] >> during the last time there was a fight like this between congressional democrats in the bush white house, which didn't always have the warmest relations, they spent about 200 days trying to negotiate along the lines you're talking about before ever moving anything to the floor. here it was about eight days. what does that tell you? >> well, it tells me a couple of

things. jpt thing is, if you lo at the history of these kinds of disputes, there is typically a kind of lengthy dance between the two branches that leads up to some kind of mutually agreeable resolution short of a constitutional crisis. going kind of right to the nuclear option, if you want to think of it that way, is not necessarily the politically most astute thing to do for the house because there's now not much else that they can do. >> do you think congressman issa's committee then looks political because they rushed in? >> yes, but i think partly, they looked political because the chairman had said months and months ago that he was out to get the administration. >> right. peter, i want to bring in our panel here. kurt, what about that? did congressman issa go too far, and as the professor is saying, sort of show too much of his hand in pursuit of eric holder? >> precisely as he said, not unlike the fireworks in san

diego, congress issa has shot his wad already. the peculiar and most interesting thing about this contempt vote to me was that the nra has made it one of its checklist votes for congress people on the basis of this looney conspiracy theory that it was all part of the administration's plan to outlaw assault weapons. now, that to me -- and chairman issa is on board with that idea. >> i do want to say, the administration i don't think is completely without fault here. this is not a totally blind witch hunt. they did tell this committeeç that they were not involved in this and had no knowledge of it in february, and that since has turned out not to be the case. that was exactly the opposite of the truth. that raised this committee's tackles here. >> do you think that's grounds for the first contempt against -- >> i don't. that's where this committee gets into trouble. of everything that's ever happened in washington, this is the first cabinet member who's ever been held in contempt.

that is completely political, but it's not like the -- i mean, there are hundreds of thousands of documents that have not been turned over. i think this could have been negotiated better, but the end itself was extremely political. you just have to watch the debate to know that. >> in the time we have, this could go to the federal courts. it may not be resolved in time for the election, but what is the impact, if any, on the precedence for congressional oversight in the future? >> i think the precedent is going to be don't vote contempt too quickly. the chance is it's not just going to go unresolved until the election, it's going to go unresolved until this congress goes out of business at the end of the calendar year. and part of the problem is that the department has already turned over all of these documents that relate to the actual operation of "fast and furious." what they're fighting over now are the documents about how they decided after their initial letter that the initial letter was wrong, and i think most

people think -- most people are likely to think that that's not at the core of the oversight operation. >> well, peter, thank you for shedding some light on the law and history with us today. >> glad to be with you. >> great. and thanks to steve, richard,ç patricia and kurt. that is all for "now." i will see you back here tomorrow at noon eastern/9:00 a.m. pacific. until then, you can follow the program on twitte twitter @nowwithalexwagner and follow alex @alexwagner. "andrea mitchell reports" is next. good morning, andrea. >> good morning to you. coming up, tax or penalty? mitt romney's attempts to clear up the confusion. we'll talk to chuck todd and chris alyssa. david ignatius and israeli nasser are joining us with negotiations going next and pakistan. and 70-year-old dorothy flood. she's granted a wish of a lifetime. she'll be joining us along with olympian jeremy bloom, the man who made it all happen. that next and a lot more on "andrea mitchell reports." to a little girl who saw flames reach her home

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right now on "andrea mitchell reports," back on the bus. the president arrives in must-win ohio with a crowd-pleasing attack on china's trade practices. >> i refuse to turn my back on communities like this one. i was betting on the american worker. from penalty to tax. mittromney's evolving take on the health care ruling. >> the supreme court is the final word, right? the highest court in the land? they said it was a tax, didn't they? so, it's a tax, of course! and feeling the pinch. squeezed by sanctions, iran plays a shell game with its oil. and that's what happens when you set off an 18-minute fireworks show all at once. officials in san diego are now still trying to figure out just what happened. it's safe to assume it was a big disappointment for 50,000 people who turned out expecting to see

=i-mì(l% and good day. i'm andrea mitchell live in washington. in our "daily fix" today, the president is on the bus traveling through ohio and pennsylvania, attacking china for alleged unfair trade practices against american-made autos and suvs. meanwhile, the "wall street journal" and "the weekly standard" are both jumping on mitt romney, who is now calling the health care mandate a tax, not a personality, despite what eric fehrnstrom, his top adviser, told chuck todd the other day. chris alyssa is managing editor and nbc news' white house correspondent and political director chuck todd, host of "the daily rundown," and it's all your fault, chuck todd. why did you make eric fehrnstrom say that? let's go back to where we begin. if you want to hang on just a second, i want to ask chris where you think we stand to set the table here. you've got the president in ohio today, pennsylvania tomorrow. we know the jobs numbers are coming