plus drought. the big muddy is muddier. is drinking water for new orleans at risk? plus, chelsea clinton doesn't rule out joining the family business, politics. the "vogue" interview. will she follow in her parents' footsteps? and flexing his muscles. can paul ryan sway his boss to join his extreme workout regime? >> i have never tried that. i might have him show me how to do it some day. i get on the elliptical or the treadmill or stationary bike about 40 minutes and that's about it for me but that workout of his, he's in pretty darned good shape. good day. i'm andrea mitchell live in washington. in our daily fix today, just when we thought the 2012 campaign couldn't get any nafty nastier, it did. chris cillizza, take a deep breath or get into the shower but it's been pretty ugly the last couple days.

let's show mitt romney taking on joe biden, this was today on "cbs this morning." >> the president's campaign is all about division and attack and hatred. my campaign is about getting america back to work. these personal attacks i think are demeaning to the office of the white house and the comments yesterday by the vice president i think just diminish the white house that much more. >> so we have to roll back to what joe biden said. we dealt with this yesterday. we saw it defended by stephanie cutter but on background campaign officials were saying well, he misspoke, he didn't say exactly what he meant. later, he rolled it back. is the romney campaign legitimately outraged or is this an attempt to try to drag down the democrats and the sort of good feeling, the popularity of the democratic team? >> i think that mitt romney was actually legitimately outraged, andrea, about joe biden and i

think there's kind of the lingering in his mind, the idea that a democratic super pac staffed by former obama white house staffers ran something that he believed linked them to a woman's death from cancer. i think that's all in the mix here. the romney campaign, were they outraged, my guess is the answer to that is no. i think they understand that this is what happens in the course of campaigns, whether we like it or not. i would say, though, whether mitt romney did this strategically or not, and it's hard to know. i asked the campaign directly about this. they said it was not planned, it was not strategic. regardless, it impacts how he's looked at and perceived. what they have to do is try to take some of the shine off of barack obama in terms of likability. barack obama has these huge leads in character traits, more honest and trustworthy, who do you like more. presidential elections are not solely decided by issues. they are also decided by

personality and perception, who do you want as your leader, who do you think represents and understands you. mitt romney can't let barack obama still be the candidate of hope and change. there's just a huge likability gap. this could be the leading edge of an attempt to diminish that gap, whether or not mitt romney meant to do it initially. >> of course, we should point out as jonathan capehart and other democratic analysts have said earlier, jonathan of course an editorial writer but as other democrats have said today, this is not the first time that there have been suggestions of some sort of quiet racial connotations in things that have been said. the romney campaign has been accused of using the word foreign in a particular way and the whole birther issue, certainly. this is not the first time this has reared its head. >> no, it's not but let me just, one very quick thing. you mentioned this. i think it's important. look, if joe biden and the obama campaign didn't think this was an issue, joe biden would not have later in the day clarified

what he meant. whether or not these sorts of racial innuendo or whether this even fits that description, they clarified which means they thought that there was potential for a problem here that they wanted to address as quickly as they could. >> saying unchain you all and it was predominantly african-american audience in virginia. so clearly, they felt there was a problem there. ann romney on "rock center" with natalie morales asked the tax question. this is going to air tomorrow night in full. here's a clip. >> the more we release, the more we get attacked. the more we get questioned, the more we get pushed. and so we have done what's legally required and there's going to be no more tax releases. >> no more tax releases, period. will that put an end to it? >> you know, the thing that's so interesting about this is i really believe the reason they have not put out more tax returns is because the candidate and his wife are stubborn on

this. they do not want to do this. they think it's outside the bounds of what should be asked of a candidate. mitt romney has essentially said the same thing which is we've done everything that's legally required. there's no debate about that. there's no debate that mitt romney somehow broke laws with their tax returns but what is legally permissible and what is politically acceptable are two very different constructs. i think by continuing to emphasize that they've done everything legally required of them, it's a tin ear to the politics of this. i continue to believe they are going to have to release more tax returns but i would say there is clearly a stubbornness with the candidate and the candidate's wife about doing so. maybe they won't, even though it is in my mind politically smart for them to do some more release of tax returns. >> chris cillizza, see you later. thank you very much. utah congressman jason chaffetz is a member of the house budget committee chaired by paul ryan and joins me now. good friend of paul ryan's.

thanks for being with me, congressman. let's talk about your friend. have you talked to him, how is he reacting to this rollout and the excitement of first of all, the weekend bus tour and now being solo on the campaign? >> well, i traded some text messages the day it was announced and just so thrilled for him. he's the real guy, he's the real deal. i just couldn't be happier for him. he's the kind of person that i hope some day will first be vice president but then will also be the president of the united states. he's just that man of principle and quality and integrity and smarts that we need in the white house. >> i want to show you a little bit of paul ryan's interview with brit hume because some people are suggesting the paul ryan we all know who was mr. budget and had all the numbers at the top of his head is now in a different role and he sounds different. let's watch. >> i am on the romney ticket and what mitt romney is proposing is repeal all of obama care. in the house repeatedly i have

voted with that position. i support that position. i'm pleased to support the position of getting rid of every piece of obama care, including the cuts to medicare which are used to pay for obama care. >> the budget plan that you are now supporting would get to balance when? >> well, there are different -- the budget plan that mitt romney's supporting gets us down to 20% of gdp government spending by 2016. that means get the size of government back to where it historically has been, where president obama has brought the size of government to as high as it hasn't been since world war ii. we want to reduce the size of government so we can have more economic freedom. >> i get that but what about balance? >> i don't know exactly when it balances because we haven't -- i don't want to get wonky on you but we haven't run the numbers on that specific plan. >> what we love about paul ryan is that he's wonky. but it's a different paul ryan. i understand he's the number two, but the fact is that the ryan budget, the house budget,

cut the same amount from medicare that the president cut. >> i think the numbers, there are differences. what you also have to understand is the iteration that paul ryan did was done in a bipartisan way with senator wyden, a well-established democrat and to truly get this done and over the finish line, we're going to have to do this in a bipartisan way. paul ryan understands that. mitt romney understands that. >> but congressman, isn't it hypocritical to attack the obama medicare cuts which are slowing the rate of increase in medicare, which are exactly the same amount that the ryan budget proposed and was passed through the house? >> the first thing i would say is it's not exactly the same amount and it's done in a totally different way. the president has suggested democrats and those supportive of the president's re-election have routinely said that paul ryan was going to end medicare, that he was going to push grandma over the cliff. what we have said in response is

president obama is the one that has taken $700 billion plus out of medicare and then suggested that they're not going to do any sort of changes. what is crystal clear in paul ryan's position in the house, what mitt romney's position has been, what he's done with paul ryan is doing with senator wyden is that we're going to do this in such a way that if you're 55 years old and older, you're not going to have an effect but for the younger generations, we need some reform. we need to revitalize this and save medicare. >> congressman -- >> it goes both ways but yes -- >> we're both talking about $700 billion. the difference is whose oxe gets gored. the president's approach would take it out of providers. the ryan approach, your approach, would take it out of beneficiaries. that's the difference. and they both take the same amount out of medicare in terms of the proportion of the rate of growth. >> i would disagree with that. but what this country should be doing is having these types of in-depth discussions.

i would also suggest to you the president doesn't have a plan. four years in a row now, the president has presented a budget and if you look at every member of the house, the senate, republican or democrat, for four years, not a single member has ever voted in favor of president obama's budget. that's pretty stunning. so paul ryan comes with having a proposal, mitt romney has aggressive ideas on what he wants to do. the president has no plan. when he presented his budget in the united states senate in the house of representatives, it was defeated with not a single person voting for it. so you're four years as president, you don't have a single vote for your budget, that's pretty stunning. >> let me ask you a question about the drought. all of our programs on msnbc and on the networks of nbc and msnbc are focusing on the drought today, intensive coverage, and the house left without passing the farm bill. the senate at least passed something. the house was unable to pass anything and we understand from the speaker's office that it's unlikely anything will be

passed. how can the farm bill not be passed by the house of representatives? >> well, there was a bigger broader farm bill but there was a drought related bill that i voted in favor of and you have to look at other members and what they voted for. but look, the drought is very serious. you got a lot of people hurting. and we voted to pull hundreds of millions of dollars out of existing programs and putting them over into some of the drought relief. i thought that was a reasonable thing to do and that's why i voted for it. >> thank you very much. thanks a lot, congressman. should be an exciting campaign with your friend and fellow house member on the ticket. coming up next, drought disaster. how long and how low will the mississippi go? and still ahead, chelsea clinton like you have never seen her before. the all access "vogue" interview. plus, president obama and first lady michelle obama about to speak minutes from now in iowa. live coverage ahead. [ female announcer ] did you know the average person smiles

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the most brutal drought in a generation has already scorched thousands of acres of farmland across the country. during his visit to iowa, the president's motorcade raced through dusty fields that have become the most visible symbol of the disaster. but the effects of the drought are now spreading to nonfarm businesses as well. many of course rely on water, for example, those that make their living along the rapidly shrinking mississippi river. nbc's john yang is live for us in tunica, mississippi. john, already you're seeing the effects and they are beginning to look at the rise in salt levels in the water and concerns about the drinking water of new orleans. >> reporter: that's right. because the water flow has slowed down, it's allowed salt water to start creeping up in

new orleans, toward new orleans, and they're worried about the drinking water supply in new orleans. the army corps of engineers is going to start work hopefully today on an underwater barrier to stop that salt water but here today, we're seeing another effect of the low water. we're on the army corps of engineers dredge in the mississippi river. this is essentially a giant vacuum cleaner, sucking up sediment from the river bed and spewing it out into the center of the river, sort of letting it disperse with the river current. this is important because they're trying to keep the river channel open to navigation. at least nine feet deep, at least 300 feet wide. here at this spot in the mississippi, we're about 10 to 12 feet below normal water levels and given the floods of last year, we are 57 feet below where water was just a year ago. that's actually, that flood has actually complicated efforts to keep the river channel clear because what that flood water

did is when it rolled over the banks of the mississippi, it picked up all sorts of soil, debris, silt, sediment, and brought it into the river, settled on the river channel bottom as a barge company owner told me, when the ceiling rises in the river, the floor rises, too, and now the ceiling has gone way down in this drought. now, the effect of all this is that it slowed shipping. they have to lighten the loads in barges by about 25% so the barges ride higher in the water to keep them from running aground. so you're using more barges to ship the same amount of stuff you would ship in smaller barges. that is about millions of dollars in added shipping costs. you've got shipping delays because you've got to use more barges and that is all going to add to the cost of everything that's shipped on this river. and what is shipped on this river, everything, the building

blocks of all the things we touch in our daily lives. $180 billion of goods, 60% of u.s. grain, 22% of the oil and petroleum, 20% of the coal, all higher shipping costs because of the lower mississippi. andrea? >> we're talking about higher shipping costs, also for our exporters, because it's not only what we're using domestically so you're reducing the profit margins for all of those companies and farmers, of course, up and down the river and across the country. >> reporter: that's exactly right. so much of this material, especially the grain being shipped down river to new orleans for export around the world. it's having a big impact on companies across america and also having a big impact on food supplies around the world. >> boy, it's a huge problem, obviously, and you're right at the point. thank you very much, john, on the mississippi. now phil lebeau joining us

from lake travis in austin, texas. that is an amazing shot. just the sight of lake travis that dry. what are the impacts there? >> reporter: huge impact for the boating and tourism industry here. typically, middle of august, you would see dozens of boats at these docks here. there's carlos and charlie's restaurant, boaters go up there for lunch or dinner. they haven't been here for weeks. i'm on a dry lakebed. you have to go out at least 150 yards to see a few boats docked down there in what's left of lake travis. we say what's left. the water level is down 28 feet. when you look at the entire lake system here in central texas around austin, it's about 45% below where it typically is. so as the drought has progressed, that has limited the tourism industry, the boating industry in this area. we talked with one boat dealer yesterday who said that sales over the last for years, because they have been in a drought three of the last four years here, boat sales are down about 30%.

there are fewer people out there, fewer people going to the businesses on the dock, and it's a ripple effect that people don't think about when they think about the drought. they think it's the farmers and ranchers and they don't realize that it's also impacting boaters, tourism and other ancillary businesses connected with a huge lake system like this. by the way, this is not just a central texas issue. you look around the country, there are other businesses that are impacted by lower water levels like john yang was talking about. so it is much more widespread than just an issue for farmers and ranchers. >> and as i know, i have been reading a lot of your articles, there's also the whole high tech industry. the industries that rely so heavily on water for their processing of microchips. >> reporter: absolutely. there's a -- absolutely, andrea. at this point it hasn't impacted the water supply for that tech industry but the concern is you have to come up with a water plan that every industry can use this water and it's a finite

resource. people sometimes forget about that. >> phil, thanks very much. of course, the networks of nbc are following this historic drought of 2012 all day. coming up at 2:00 eastern, jay gray is live in missouri, where family farms are being hit hard. first lady michelle obama will be introducing her husband minutes from now. stay with us for live coverage. [ male announcer ] imagine facing the day with less chronic osteoarthritis pain. imagine living your life with less chronic low back pain. imagine you, with less pain. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one non-narcotic pill a day, every day,

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age of 15 to 31 to apply for temporary work permits if they are in school or have served in the military. the program does not create a path to citizenship but does defer deportation which has to be renewed every five years. a pennsylvania judge refused to stop a new voter i.d. law from taking effect. opponents of the law are expected to appeal to the state supreme court. democrats say the law will make it harder for the elderly, minorities and young adults to vote. republicans who control the state legislature and the governor's office say the measure is needed to prevent voter fraud. a u.n. report today says the assad regime has perpetrated war crimes and crimes against humanity against syrian civilians. the panel blames the government for the killing of more than 100 civilians in the village of houla last month. more than half the victims were children. the panel also found the anti-government groups committed war crimes but on a much lesser scale. finally, remember that big fireworks mishap in san diego on

the fourth of july when it all went up at once? it happened again. this time in spain during a town festival, minutes after the show started, a stray firework landed on a pack of mini rockets, igniting the fuses, causing the sky to light up near a church bell tower. three fireworks operators were hospitalized with serious burns. 25 others had to be treated for minor injuries. up next, what do women want in a president? pollster peter hart hit the campaign trail to find out. still ahead, could chelsea clinton get into politics? [ female announcer ] how do you define your moment? the blissful pause just before that rich sweetness touches your lips. the delightful discovery, the mid-sweetening realization that you have the house all to yourself. well, almost. the sweet reward, making a delicious choice that's also a smart choice. splenda no-calorie sweetener.

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my brother doesn't look like a heart attack patient. i'm on a bayer aspirin regimen. [ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. i'm a fighter and now i don't have that fear. there are more women voters than men and in recent polls, there is a widening gender gap that favors the democrats. what are women looking for in the candidates for president? a group of women in milwaukee sat down with peter hart for the annenberg public policy center for the university of pennsylvania to come up with a

better idea of just what women want from politics. >> give me a word or phrase to describe the way things are going in america today. >> partisan. >> okay. good. >> downhill. >> downhill. sandra? >> scary. >> scary. >> scary. joining me now, peter hart, nbc news/"wall street journal" pollster, chairman of hart research. you were looking for women who could be persuaded, who were not firmly gripped by either candidate, and what you found is that they're really worried about a number of things. i wanted to play a little bit of the qualities they would like to see in president obama. let's watch. >> conviction. >> i didn't really say because i think all of them that are still alive, powerful. >> okay. >> stronger conviction. >> leadership. >> whose?

>> i just think of bush jr. >> strength. >> clinton, his excitement and energy. >> i think clinton's ability to get along with people. >> they want to see these qualities in president obama and they find it lacking. >> they definitely do. the irony of this is scott walker was the person that they admired not as an individual, they don't like a lot about his positions, but they found him a strong leader, a person who was willing to stand up and take the heat. the fascinating element of this is the two people that emerged out of this were scott walker and paul ryan and they showed the deficiencies in each of the candidates. obama on the leadership qualities and paul ryan, they liked his personal qualities and they thought all of those qualities were lacking in mitt romney. >> let's show what happened when you asked them what qualities would you like to see that you don't see in mitt romney. >> his relatability to the average american.

>> being personable. >> sureness of convictions. >> being more personable. >> ease with people. >> of course, this gets us to the whole question of the ryan pick, because what we saw was a little bit of magic there this weekend, and presumably they will be back together again, even though they went out solo. together, they added up to more than the whole. >> well, the biggest problem is that the strength of ryan magnifies the deficiency of romney and the problem is they seem as a next door neighbor being romney, as being distant. if they had to be in an hov lane, who would they pick, they would all pick obama. it is this sense that there's something about romney that doesn't come across as human, warm, all of those qualities that we always look for. but on the other side, the challenge is the bad economy and these people are hurting out there. you talk to these women and they're scared, they're upset, they're uncertain and so they're

working through an awful lot and there's only 90 days to go. >> with the gender gap, what about the women's issues? you asked them also about the women's issues and how are they responding? let's watch. >> i get so tired of hearing about abortion rights. i mean, this was settled roe v wade a long time ago. it's got nothing to do with politics or religion. it's a human right of women. >> i think it was important for religious institutions to include women's reproductive health. >> okay. good. >> that family planning, i think that's an important thing and i know certain politicians are looking to cut that. so i guess it affects a lot of women. >> your bottom line here as to what women really care about. >> they care about their own lives and they're hurting, they're stressed, and it comes back around to who has the

sensitivity and who understands what i'm going through, both economically and in my personal life. >> peter hart, fascinating stuff. michelle obama joining her husband for the first time on the bus tour at the wrapup stop, the final stop in iowa. let's watch. >> thank you, guys. oh, my goodness. oh, my goodness. this is so sweet. we love you guys, too. let me start by -- four more! but i want to start by thanking jennifer.

we are so proud of her and we are so grateful for her sacrifice and her service and for andrew's service and sacrifice as well. so i just want to thank her for that wonderful introduction and for all she's doing for our country. and yeah, it sounds like you all are pretty fired up. and very ready to go. and i'm really glad to hear that. first of all, it's good to see my husband. because i haven't seen him in a good week. >> five days. >> five days? >> five days. >> seemed like a week, it was so long. >> i missed you. >> just take care of him. but i am just as happy to be back in the great state of iowa, where it all began.

so you guys are getting me all fired up just being here. it is so beautiful here. it is so beautiful. good to be back. our family has so many wonderful memories of our time here in iowa. you know, in pella, i remember that an entire neighborhood sang happy birthday to malia on the fourth of july. that was so sweet. she was a little bitty something, too. and on the day of the big jefferson jackson dinner, i remember how we danced down the stre street. a few thousand folks across the state as well were there, too, so that was fun. >> that was fun. >> and our girls, malia and sasha still talk about our visit to the state fair.

we had a ball. we rode the bumper cars, we slid down the big slide where barack almost lost sasha. she flew up. it wasn't pretty. wasn't happy about that. and yes, we experienced the magic of our first fried twinkie. yes, we did. even though you say i don't let you eat them, you eat what you want. but we were surrounded by the press so barack left and the girls looked at me and they said oh, i'm so glad dad is gone. now we can have fun. so after he left, we stayed, we cut loose, we stayed until the fair shut down. it was a ball. and i have to say that we're all very jealous that barack got to go back to the fair without us last week. did you have a fried twinkie? >> pork chop and beer.

>> he's so pleased with himself. >> it was tasty. >> in all seriousness, though, because of those wonderful memories and so many more, i want to start by saying thank you, truly. thank you for the kindness, generosity and love that you have shown our family. i mean, throughout the state consistently. iowa was our very first experience with a national campaign, truly, and it is because of all of you that malia and sasha still think campaigning is fun. they do. now, they never really want to go but they're like that was fun. but more importantly, because of you, barack and i will always

remember what this process can be at its very best. every election, you all remind us what democracy is all about. it's about people getting to know the issues and discussing them with their neighbors. it's about meeting your candidates and getting to know them and their families up close and personal. i will never forget the very first visit that i made here back in 2007, and i think it was the very first campaign event that i did, so of course i was nervous, and it was in the backyard of someone's home, and i have to admit, you know, i really didn't know, you know, what it would be like. i hadn't done much campaigning and back then, people barely even knew who barack was, let alone who i was. but the folks in that backyard welcomed me like an old friend and within minutes, i was so comfortable that i remember

kicking off my heels and i was standing barefoot in the grass just talking and laughing and listening to people's stories, and i heard about what was going on in folks' lives, the jobs they were juggling, the businesses they were trying to keep afloat, the kids they hoped to send to college if they could just find a way to afford it. and the more we talked, the more at home i felt, because what i learned was that in all of those stories, i saw my story, you know. i saw barack's story. you all know that story by now. my father worked at the city water plant his entire life and neither of my parents had a college degree, but they saved and sacrificed so that my brother and i could have the kind of education they only dreamed of. and while -- whitney young? oh, my goodness, that's my high school. go, dolphins!

and while pretty much all of our college tuition came from student loans and grants, my dad still had to pay a small portion of that tuition himself and every semester, my dad was determined to pay his little portion of our tuition bill and to pay it on time, because he was so proud to be able to pay even just a little in sending his kids to college. he couldn't bear the thought that me or my brother would miss a registration deadline because his check was late. and really, more than anything else, what i remind people is that's what's at stake in this election. that's why we're all here. that's what we're working for, is that fundamental promise that no matter who you are or where you started out, in america, if you work hard, you can build a decent life for yourself and an even better life for your kids. that's why we're here. and whether it's equal pay for

women or health care for our families, whether it's supporting our veterans or saving our auto industry, that's what this man, my husband, has been fighting for every single day as president. and the one thing i share with people is that over the last three and a half years as first lady, i have had the chance to see up close and personal what being president really looks like. >> michelle obama and the president in iowa today on the bus tour campaigning. speaking of campaigning, since the moment that she was born, chelsea clinton has been a public figure, and though her parents have done their best as she has as well to keep her life personal and her life private, she now says she wants to lead quote, a purposefully public life. she's telling her story in the upcoming issue of "vogue" magazine, complete with a photo

spread. that issue hits national newsstands august 21st. jonathan van meter is contributing editor of "vogue" and spent three months following chelsea clinton around, extraordinary access. michael feldman, democratic strategist, who spent eight years in the clinton white house. we welcome both. jonathan, it's a beautiful story. you learn a lot about the private, the academic, the fun-loving chelsea, but you also got her to open up about the possibility of joining the family business. talk about that. >> yeah. well, you know, her chief of staff told me that was the most candid she had ever been when asked that question. i don't think it's a given by any means that she's going to run for office. one has to keep in mind that she spent the last ten years of her life kind of clawing back her privacy that she was denied as a kid. i'm not so sure that she's ready to give all that up yet. i think maybe this piece is a bit of a test to see how it feels. >> michael, you watched chelsea as i did all those years growing

up from the first time, the first bus tour coming out of madison square garden when she was very protected and it was an unwritten and then a written rule that nobody would even approach her. but the fact is that she really has grown into her own and as we should point out, is a contributing correspondent to nbc news. >> yeah, look, she's a very impressive woman and of course, the country really got to know her as a preteen and watched her grow up, but what's really impressive is what she's decided to do with her career and the fact is, i'm sure jonathan knows this very well, having spent so much time with her, she could be doing anything right now. she's very smart, she's got a great background, got an incredible network, and the fact that she's decided to leverage her public profile more strategically on behalf of the causes that she cares about, principally the foundation and the other philanthropic work, i give her credit for that. she could easily decide to go off and do something privately but she recognizes the fact that

she's been given this gift and she's leveraging that gift to the greater good. i think that's an extraordinary thing. >> jonathan, one of the things you noted in traveling with her and being with her in public and private is the way she interacts with people. talk about that. because something i have noticed as well about her. >> she's so good at it. she's so gracious and graceful, to every single person that approached her. she found a way to sort of hear what they were saying and sometimes would spend like 45 minutes talking to somebody and sometimes the stories that they would share were harrowing or touching or just funny and she had this ability to sort of switch from one subject to the next. with such ease. of course, it just makes you -- reminds you of both of her parents, the empathy and the genuine curiosity about other people. >> of course, growing up in the white house, first of all in the governor's mansion in arkansas in little rock but then in the white house, her parents, she wrote, she told you or rather,

you wrote, always managed one or the other to be home for her, to be there for family dinners, but the greatest influence of all and i think you noted this as well, michael, i'm sure you noticed this, is dorothy rodham, whom i got to know a little bit and was an extraordinary woman and it was her influence on chelsea. of course, she died last november and she is still mourned almost every day by chelsea. but it was she who really influenced her to become more public. jonathan? >> yeah. you know, she had an exceptionally close relationship to her grandmother, who got diagnosed with cancer right after chelsea graduated from stanford and chelsea moved into the hospital with her grandmother to just make her less afraid and take care of her, and that's when as chelsea said, they spoke about everything, and i think there are these two women that are on either side of hillary, this very powerful figure in the world and i think they are probably the only two women that could ever really understand each other in some ways. so when dorothy said you're not

doing enough with your life, which is incredible that somebody would say that to chelsea clinton, what she thought was i need to inherit -- i need to step up to the plate and embrace my family's legacy. >> the work ethic among the clintons and particularly the clinton women, michael, you have watched this up close. i can't even fathom having all of these multiple careers but what is it about hillary, about chelsea, that makes them click? >> well, look, obviously there is a sense of responsibility on both of their parts. they've spent, you know, secretary clinton obviously has spent the bulk of her career now in public service. she continues to do it in one of the most back-breaking jobs there is, as you know better than most people, as secretary of state. and i think this is a transition that chelsea is making right now, this idea of again leveraging her public profile, being purposefully public as she put it in jonathan's piece. i think that's a very self-aware thing to say and i think it's a

really generous thing for her to do when she could easily just live her life in private and not devote so much time as she is doing to the causes that she's most interested in. i think it's to her credit. it's actually admirable. >> michael, do you see, you have worked with politicians and al gore. do you see her in a political role? we have watched her campaigning at least in 2008 for her mom, and she was very good, solo and tandem. >> i think she's capable of anything. i think what you saw in this piece is obviously what we're paying most attention to, was an honest answer to a question. i don't blame her for not ruling it out. but that's a far cry from making a decision to seek public office. but she's young and capable of a lot of things, and i think at some point as she put it herself, if she feels that calling and thinks that's the best way to leverage the gifts that she has, i don't think she's ready to rule that out at the tender age of 32. >> jonathan, finally, she's very aware of the legacy as an only

child of such extraordinary parents. she would have to be aware of what she can contribute in carrying it on. >> you know, it's interesting, one of the things that people around her say is that they could very easily see her also running the clinton foundation because that's the work i think that she does with her father that is in some ways most like -- it's the one thing that isn't running for office that also gets -- allows her to accomplish some of the things she really cares about. you know, i could actually really see her stepping into her father's shoes in that way. she often says that she's most proud of the work that he does, that he's done post-presidency. >> it's all very extraordinary. it's a wonderful piece. >> thank you. >> thank you very much. mike feldman, good to see you. thanks for joining the conversation. what political story will make headlines in the next 24 hours? that's next. my cut hurt!

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and you're looking at live pictures from iowa, the president speaking. it's the last stop on the bus

trip, due buick. >> that made us the most prosperous economy in the world. it's bargain that says if we work hard, we should be rewarded. it's a deal that says if you put in enough effort, you can find a job that pays the bills. you can afford a home you can call your own. you won't go broke whether he you get sick. you can retire with dignity and respect. >> and the next spot will be davenport as they wrap up the bus tour. which political story will make headlines in the next 24 hours? contributor and managing editor of post politics.com chris sali za is back with us. joe biden is back on the trail in virginia. here's what he had to say about what happened yesterday. >> i know i am sometimes criticizing for saying exactly what i mean.

it's not going to change. >> it's not going to change, but still, they may be a little more careful in team biden. chris? >> yeah, absolutely. look, this is what you do if you're joe biden because you don't have a lot of great choices. you have to kind of embrace your bodienness for lack of a better word. he is someone who speaks his mind. for people who say this gaffe, he's going to be replaced by hillary clinton. that's not happening. barack obama when he picked joe biden, this tendency to speak his mind, some people call it gafz, some people call it honesty, this is not new to joe biden. barack obama knew what he was getting when he picked joe biden as his vp. there's good with it. biden can be a great communicator in certain places. there's that is as we saw yesterday that comes with it. but joe biden, he embraces his

bidenness in a way that very few politicians do. >> try to sort through the bidenness in this. because out on the stump today, he was again talking about the romney/ryan team and here's what he had to say. >> in a sense, folks, it's almost like running against another incumbent. by that i mean we know for certain, we know for certain what the republican congress has been proposing the last four years. this is not a mystery anymore. this is not a mystery. and the ability to take out that etch a sketch pad that governor romney's advisers said the etch a sketch is gone. >> chris, the etch a sketch is gone and we've got to go, too. we're out of time. we'll talk to you tomorrow as the bus tour continues and both campaigns. that does it for this edition of andrea mitchell reports. jose diaz-balart has a look what's up next.

>> today marks what some call a huge milestone for hundreds of thousands of undocumented young people living in the u.s. who are getting the chance to work for their dreams by applying for temporary legal status. i'll talk to a student who is preparing to fill out one of those applications. plus, in the world of international drug cartels, is mexico 2012 the colombia of the 1990s? i'll talk to a dea special agent who helped take down colombian kingpin pablo escobar. ke a big difference. like how a little oil from here can be such a big thing in an old friend's life. we discovered that by blending enhanced botanical oils into our food, we can help brighten an old dog's mind so he's up to his old tricks. it's just one way purina one is making the world a better place... one pet at a time. discover vibrant maturity and more at purinaone.com.

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