and there he is, the great rick santorum, carrying on the values voter summit, as we speak. sadly, we don't have enough time to run his speech, so we won't bother. thank you for watching this afternoon. of course, my friend and colleague, ed schultz, is next with "the ed show." good evening, americans, and is welcome to "the ed show" live from minneapolis. let's get to work. ♪ you've got me where you want me ♪ ♪ i ain't nothing but your fool ♪ >> so this afternoon, president obama has invited the senate republicans to the white house. >> i am headed to the white house. and does anybody have a message that i can carry to the president? >> stay strong, democrats. >> i will make a request. if i'm never seen again, please send a search and rescue team. ♪ >> better to be thought an idiot than to open your mouth and

remove all doubt. >> i did not obama care with a fox in a box or in a house with a mouse. >> is this the new normal? >> by simply reopening the government. >> democrats are in a real position of strength here. they just have to realize it. >> the greatest trick the left has ever played is to convince conservatives, we cannot win. >> by this point, i hoped someone had heckled me so i could sip some water. ♪ chain of fools >> good to have you with us tonight, folks. thanks for watching. the republican party, by the numbers. they are in deep trouble. the results of the latest nbc news "wall street journal" poll shows americans overwhelmingly blame republicans for the government shutdown. you may be wondering tonight, okay, what's in a number. there isn't a politician on the face of the earth that doesn't love to look at a trend or feel good about a number or take something positive out of a poll

and build on it. there's a lot to build on here for the republicans, because this is total rejection of their agenda. the american people basically are saying, they reject john boehner. they reject his agenda. his methods, his messaging, his strategy. they reject the fact that the republican party is obstructing operational government. the poll also reveals that americans reject the fringe ideology of the american-day republican party. this tells it all. boehner is famous for saying he knows where the american people are, and what they want. >> the american people want us to build the keystone pipeline. the american people want us to cut spending. >> this law is driving up the cost of health care and making it harder for small business to hire people. this is not what the american people want. >> the american people want this bill. they want it repealed.

the american people want us to get our fiscal house in order. >> the american people want for us to work together to remove government barriers getting in the way of job creation. the american people want us to stop all the looming tax hikes and cut spending. our job is to listen to the american people and follow the will of the american people. >> listen to the american people. now, when you see that collection of sound bites, you wonder, how can a guy like that be such an expert on all of these different subjects about where the american people are, but when it comes to the government functioning and actually running normal, well, he misses that one. the new poll shows that 53% of americans blame republicans for this shoutdown. 31% blame president obama. those are tea party numbers, you've got to expect that. but it is a big whopping 22-point margin. how can they deny it? only 27% think republicans are showing strong leadership on the shutdown. that's a staggering.

here is a staggering number. 70% think republicans are putting politics first. the american people know exactly what's going on here and boehner knows too. it's very clear. whatever strategy boehner has followed, it has totally failed. it's time for him to get off the dime. just 24% of the people in this country have a favorable opinion of the republican party. and 21% have a favorable opinion of the tea party. these are below bush numbers. remember those years? these numbers underscore the fact that tea partiers are a select fringe group, and the american people don't want any part of this. now, american voters prefer a democratic-controlled congress, by the numbers. eight percentage points. 47% to 39%. only 17% of americans have a positive view of john boehner. i'd say that it's probably a pretty good day for boehner to go have a real good cry. that gavel looks like it's coming out of his hands pretty

soon. meanwhile, this poll is great for democrats, but it's also great for the country. because americans are speaking to a dysfunctional congress. democrats in congress -- their approval rating dropped by only three points during the shutdown, and they're sitting now at 39%. and president obama's approval rating actually increased two points. he's sitting at 47%. and considering the overall number of congress, the president is in a very strong position. but here is the kicker. i have been saying on this program for months, as soon as obama care is implemented, people are going to get on board, they're going to start checking this thing out. they're going to start getting more information. they're going to start signing up for the exchanges. it turns out i was absolutely right. but you had to see it coming if you're a liberal. you had to see it coming. if you really listen to the people, health care is the issue. i've been all over this country to at least a dozen health care clinics, free health care clinics, and i have heard stories of americans.

the pulse of the people is change. 38% of americans think obama care is a good idea. that is up 7% from last month alone. let me tell you something. there isn't a politician in washington that wouldn't take that kind of a turn-around. that kind of an increase. those kind of numbers. 50% oppose defunding the law. now, as americans continue to sign up for obama care, those numbers -- you know what they're going to do? they're only going to get better. meanwhile, canadian senator ted kennedy -- ted cruz of texas -- isn't paying -- you know, i have to stop here. that's a freudian slip. i have thought so much about ted kennedy in the last few days. because this is all about a big negotiation and homey and i and the team have been talking about what would ted kennedy say? ted kennedy would be the liberal lion right now. so i was -- i've been thinking about kennedy a lot. not ted cruz. but anyway. the american -- look, the

american people are paying attention to obama care, and the american people know that this is good. this guy, ted cruz, he appeared at the values voter summit today. and continued slamming obama care. >> we've seen an explosion of federal government power, none more important or significant or dangerous than obama care. the country is engaged in a national debate about the enormous harms obama care is causing, all of the millions of americans who are losing their jobs, being pushed into part-time work, losing their health insurance. >> i wish ted kennedy was still here on stage to straighten that guy out. we should point out that only 14% of americans have a positive opinion of senator cruz. although cruz sees the world differently. he is attacking the nbc news "wall street journal" poll. take a look at this. >> if you seek out liberal obama supporters and ask them their

views, they're going to tell you their liberal obama supporters. that's not reflective of where the country is. >> you know, these poll numbers should erase all doubts about where republicans think the american people are. this is a total rejection of everything republicans stand for. it is also a rejection of john boehner and his methods. people want their government open. they want people back to work that's what this is about. this should force boehner's hand to reopen the government without any strings attached. this should really strengthen the position of the democrats. now, last night on this program, i said the democrats were in a very strong position. one hour later, this poll came out. this poll was released at 6:30 eastern time. it is a total rejection of the republicans. it puts the democrats and especially the president in a strength of position. what is there to negotiate? what is there to negotiate? you know, there's a thing in business called confiscatory rates. sometimes you control the market

so good, you strangle the competition, you can charge whatever you want. right now, the president is in a position to demand anything he wants from the republicans. because the republicans are in the severe minority. mr. president, don't give any ground to them. what boehner needs to do is to go back and show some character, like he really does listen to the american people. and go back to the house floor and bring the continuing resolution up for a clean vote, no strings attached, open up the government, and then let's get back to work when it comes to addressing whatever they want to do in the conversation that they claim that the democrats haven't been having. this is a big moment for the democrats and the progressive movement in this country. if the democrats back off any of this and show any signs of weakness and give ground to a party that doesn't deserve it, give ground to a collection of clowns that have done nothing but play with people's lives, they deserve to go down.

and the president needs to stand strong. get your cell phones out, tonight's question. do republicans have any idea what the american people really want? text a for yes, text b for no to 67622, go to our blog at ed.msnbc.com. we'll bring the results later in the show. if ted kennedy was still here i think he would be saying exactly what i'm saying. i think he would be saying hold the line. this is the way we have to run this country. we won the election. for more, let's bring in congressman james clyburn of south carolina. congressman, great to have you with us tonight. i appreciate your time. >> thank you so much for having me, ed. >> what could you make of these most recent 24 hours? you have boehner come out and thrown out of a lame proposal, actually, about keeping the debt ceiling -- open for another six weeks to allow some negotiations, but doing nothing

about what the american people are concerned about, and that is opening back up the government. i mean, it's clear that the americans blame republicans for oh this shutdown. where are we at this hour, in your opinion? >> well, i don't exactly know. i do know this. they are talking, and that's good. but i do believe, as you do, that we ought to give relief to oh the american people over this weekend. we're going to be here in the morning. and i would hope that we will go to the floor at 9:00 in the morning and that we would put the continuing resolution on the floor, let's reopen government, and let's pass that resolution so that people can have a relaxing weekend, a holiday on monday, and be ready to go to work on tuesday. we ought not keep people in limbo during this long weekend and the desire in these households is absolutely unfortunate. we ought to pass this continuing

resolution. and i don't care if it's six weeks. i don't care if it is at the current 986 level that the republicans want. and we'll take that six weeks to work out a budget. so my advice to mr. boehner, bring the cr to the floor. make it a six-week cr. let it stay at your own 986 level. and attach that cr a debate or a conference on the budget. >> congressman, you know, 47% of americans say they want a democratically controlled congress. i know that's not really what this is all about right now. i mean, that is a number, but that -- you know, that's going to play out a year from now. this is -- i think that the democrats are in the now business right now. i mean, you're in the now -- something has to be done now. and if the democrats give any ground to these zealots, and

that's exactly what they are, anybody that wants to keep the government shut down. anybody that wants to not pay the bills of the american people is clearly a zelot. if if the democrats give ground, what does that do? your thoughts on that. i mean, aren't you all in a real severe position of strength right now? >> oh, sure. it's no question about that. but i don't think it's a question of giving ground. it's a year and three weeks from the next election. now, if we were only three weeks from the next election, i would have one suggestion. but i do believe that since we've got a year and three weeks, the american people cannot wait on the next election for us to do something about this. now, i just said, i think the democrats gave all the ground that we should give when we accepted the 986 number. that's all we ought to be giving. what we ought to be doing now is passing the continuing resolution and go to a conference on the budget.

the senate has a budget. and i think their budget number is 1058. the house passed a budget at 986. let's go to conference on that budget. let's let our conferees and the senate conferees negotiate something from between 986 and 1058. let's get with -- get rid of this sequester. i think that both of us ought to want to do that. and let's get the american people back to work, get this anxiety out of the households. and then we have until next thursday to deal with the debt ceiling. >> well, they're losing on all fronts. president obama is going up in it favorability. obama care is getting more popular with the american people. the republicans have never had numbers like this. do you think this latest survey is going to move them at all, or do you think they're stuck in their ideology and they're all about taking down the president? >> well, there's a certain

portion of them that will never move. about 42 to 50 people on the other side won't move. but i can tell you, i've talked to enough republicans today. i've interacted with them. i can tell you, a majority of the republicans in the republican conference want to move off the dime on this issue. but the speaker has to bring the issue to the floor. we've got enough votes on our side to join with 40 or 50 of his people if he can't get anymore than that. i think he'll get much more than that, to get this thing moved. so i don't believe this is an issue that the speaker ought to be sweating over. what the speaker ought to be doing, i think, is making sure that the american people are responded to over 70% of the american people do not want us to be putting politics in front

of the country. and 22% -- that's what the republicans are doing. so get rid of the politics, forget about the tea party republicans. let's bring this issue to the floor. let's bring some real happiness to families all across this country. >> congressman james clyburn, great to have you with us on the "the ed show" tonight. i appreciate your time. one thing john boehner could do is demonstrate some character. that's what it's going to take. what boehner ought to do is step up to the american people and say we have miscalculated. we have miscalculated where the american people are. it's very clear they want their government open. our strategy didn't work. we thought it was the right thing to do. that's all he's got to do. but you see, that would take character. and he would actually have to care about the middle class to do that. and i just don't think he's got it in him. remember to answer tonight's question there at the bottom of the screen. share your thoughts on twitter at ed show and on facebook. we love it when you do that. coming up, fox and friends ice queen, elizabesabeth hasselbeck

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time now for the trenders. "the ed show" social media nation has decided and we are reporting. here are today's top trenders, voted on by you. the number three trender. chilly reception. >> do these folks really need to be on welfare? >> do you have air conditioning? >> yes. >> exposing the ugly side of entitlements. >> fox and friends crew discuss welfare whoa. >> is welfare creating more victims? >> government should create jobs. >> create jobs. yeah, create more jobs. >> 35 states, though, the minimum wage there is less than what you can make being on welfare. >> it used to be a stigma to

take a handout. once upon a time, there was some shame to it. >> now you start to feel like you're a sucker if you don't. >> the number two trender. mean t. >> . ♪ you're a mean one mr. grinch ♪ >> republicans in congress chose to shut down the federal government. this shutdown did not have to happen. >> man, that's just mean. that's mean, man! >> tea partiers think obama is being a bully. >> he is, unfortunately, the most dangerous president that this country has ever seen. >> you lie! >> he is an enemy of humanity. >> you are a mean girl! >> and today's top trender. getting trucked. >> 3,000 truckers plan to slow down the d.c. beltway, the right wing is now trying to encourage these truckers. the very people that they've done nothing for! a big rig protest gets a big push from the right. >> a story here that i would really like to get behind.

>> the big rig protest by hundreds, perhaps thousands of truckers. >> this is going to go coast to coast. >> what we hope to accomplish, megan, is to get the attention of our unrepresenting representatives in washington, d.c. >> we want the president of the united states removed. from office. >> but this is an egypt moment for the entire country to say we have had enough. >> i love that shirt. >> 10-4. ♪ >> i don't think these people have a clue what they want. joining me is keith ellison of minnesota. congressman, good to have you with us tonight. i find it so ironic that these truckers are coming into the beltway and in washington, d.c. now are these the ones that want to see the bridges fixed across america and some infrastructure spending? are these the truckers that like going over very nice roads with federal dollars? i mean, the very people that the

republicans have done nothing for are going to washington to disrupt. i want your take on all of this. >> my take on it is that, you know, there's a lot of folks out there who don't know who their friends are, they don't know who is hurting them, they don't know who is helping them. they just get angry on some superficial stuff or something they heard on the radio and they go to sometimes extreme measures. but what they tried to do didn't work, so that's a good thing. but, you know, it's part of the struggle, ed. part of the struggle is, helping people to understand that you need to be on your own side. you need to help yourself out. now, they don't like -- these folks like, as you said, federal highway spending. they like roads that are smooth and don't wreck the axles of their trucks. they like being able to take care of their business based on american infrastructure and not having to worry about a bridge caving in. and yet it is the republicans who don't want to invest in anything in the area of infrastructure. it's our struggle to try to get american working people all on

their own side. not on the democrats' side. on their own side. >> yeah. the head of the protest says that she wants to remove the president from office. is he really the person that they're targeting here? i mean, is this really just an anti obama truck rally? >> well, you know, there might be some things about obama that obama can't change they don't like. but at the end of the day, i think there's a lot of anger, frustration among working people. and some of them, not all, don't know what to do with the federati frustration, and they point it in the wrong direction. at the end of the day, we've got to do a lot more education, we've got to do a lot more engagement. and, you know, i'm thinking about reaching out to people who represent, you know, over the road truckers to say hey look, guys, you know the deal. let's talk about what we can really do to help your people out. let's start out with making sure we open up the government and

that the highway folks and the folks who run the department of transportation are on the job to make sure there's health, safety and other sort of things being looked after. i can tell you this. you know, we've got a lot more organizing to do. >> well, there's three-and-a-half million truckers in this country. and i think they wanted to get 3,000 there. okay? i find it very interesting that this was a flop. i guess this is something glenn beck said he was behind, but it just didn't seem to work out very well. it's interesting, because all these guys listen to when they're driving is right wing radio across america. you would think this would have been a big success. the truckers, they want to cause the biggest traffic jam. but they also are calling on americans not to buy anything over the weekend, to stand in solidarity with them. if -- i mean, if you look at the recent poll numbers, this is going to be a flop.

they're going to embarrass themselves. >> well, you know, that's fine. let them do that. i mean, the fact is that the republican message is being rejected by the american people. i mean, democrats aren't doing this to them. they're doing this to themselves. and if these particular -- this tiny slice of right wing truckers who listen to rush limbaugh all day, if they want to go out there and embarrass themselves, they can do that. but what i would rather do is enter into a conversation with them about hey, look, man, let's figure out a way to make sure your life is better. let's make sure how you can get some health care, how you can get decent pay, how you can have safe working conditions and safe roads to drive on instead of how you hate obama so much. it's crazy. here's the deal. look, most americans have to deal with putting food on the table every day. trying to figure out how to hate obama doesn't do them any good. they need to come to the table. i would be happy to talk to them. >> congressman keith ellison, good to have you on, brother.

thank you. i appreciate your time tonight. >> you know it. >> all right. still to come. kenny goes acourtin. cuccinelli tries to woo women voters with the help of elisabeth hasselbeck. this will be interesting. plus, a new installment of the golden rule-breakers, featuring michelle, marco and ted. >> two things i have unabiding faith in. one is a benevolent god, who loves each and every one of us. >> one thing i can't stand, it's people groveling. >> thank you and god bless you. but next, i'm taking your questions. ask ed live is just ahead. stay with us. we're right back on "the ed show" on msnbc.

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me? who are they? well, taxed enough already, is their banner. that's what's on the front door. they believe that the american wealthy pays way too much in taxes. that's where it all started. they are well-seated in hate, in jealousy. they are all about holding power and doing anything to get it. they will say anything and do anything, despite the consequences to get power. such in case, the shutdown. they don't care. they'll disrupt. and it's all to get a political position. these people started out in the republican party, and now they have infected, i believe, our political system. they don't compromise. they don't believe in compromise. they see it their way or the highway. and they lie an awful lot. our next question is from julie. why is it that republicans seem to lack the empathy towards their fellow man?

i don't know. it's one of the strange things in america. their selfishness has absolutely no boundaries. some of them want less government. a lot of them want no government. and a lot of them want no responsibility. and i think the republican party in the last ten years has changed a great deal. they have become very callous, very self-centered. and very determined to make sure they get their way. it's not the bob dole grand 'ole party. those guys are all gone. stick around. rapid response panel is next. stay with us. i'm sue herrera with your cnbc market wrap. optimism on wall street over the washington budget talks and the dow jumped 111 points. the s&p added 10. and the nasdaq was up 31. consumer sentiment fell in october to its lowest level in nine months. and oil also taking a hit down

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welcome back to "the ed show." the same republicans who shut down the government to strip health care away from millions of americans, who put hundreds of thousands out of work, who want to cut billions from food stamps, took the stage at the 2013 values voters summit today in washington, d.c. these folks practically broke their arms patting themselves on the back for being good christians. >> they're endowed by their creator, not their government.

>> ourin ale ellenable rights come from our creator, from god with the big g. >> my mama wanted a preacher, she got a politician. >> each of you is called to be here. much like esther, you were called for a time such as this. >> i too am a values voter. i to believe what makes us different, which sets us apart is our beliefs. the way i see is it, our problem is to preserve our values. we need to apply our principles to the challenges of today. that means we can never give up on repealing and replacing obama care. >> today i want to talk about a war that the mean stream media is ignoring. from boston to zanzibar, there is a worldwide war on christianity. >> our society is breaking down. and our families are falling

apart. and as a result, our country is paying a terrible, terrible price. >> this egregious system, that will be ultimately known as death care, must be defeated. i thank god that we finally have the will to stand up, take on this oppressive president! and stand for what is good and righteous and true. >> so moral values, politics and faith and religion all mixed into one. you know, we're all sinners. we all make mistakes. sin is sin. but as a christian, i think it is my obligation as a broad caster to expose their hypocrisy and call them out on being flat-out wrong. jesus spent his life helping the poor, sick and needy. he spent his life embracing the lowest rungs of society and teaching compassion and forgiveness. the religious right spent the

summer bearing false witness against obama care. they have forsaken the golden rule and turned their backs on the needy, the poor and the sick. they have gone after food stamps. they do not have a health care plan on the table when it comes to preexisting conditions or helping the less fortunate out in america. they do not have a plan on the table that will not give the power to the insurance companies over christians. you can view the insurance industry as a big government that says no to people who need help. so voter values summit or whatever they call it. joining me now for our rapid response panel, john fugelsang and ken cue cloud ski from the family research council. great to have both of you with us. ken, i want to ask you first. what is the mission of this summit? is it to find candidates, is it to redefine, you know, what your

values or what your beliefs are? what is the mission of this summit? >> well, ed, thanks for having me. what the value voters summit is about, or vvs, is about providing a forum, where the american people can have a discussion about the issues important to us, about faith and family, about values and about how that impacts every area of policy, not just social policy. but also national security policy and economic policy. and to bring our nation's leaders forward to have a discussion. to present on that, to debate it and hear the voice of the people. >> okay. john, your response to that in the realm that they -- all of the people that you just saw on that montage of tape and speakers, they all want to get rid of the affordable care act. which helps the poor, which helps the down trodden, which takes away conditions of sick people in this country that they can't get dropped. that to me seems to be a contradiction of what they're

saying and what they're believing. >> ed, it's a lot more important to boast about how much you worship jesus as a god than follow his inconveniently liberal teachings. i have no problem with america being a christian nation. but if we were a christian nation, we would be voting to help the poor and the sick and let private charities bail out wall street. this isn't a summit. this is an audition for president for 2016. it's tea party idol and you're going to iowa, dawg. these guys are so in the bubble, they could be glinda the good witch. >> ken, is that true? >> oh, absolutely not. i think what we're looking at is a discussion about, for example, if you want to help the poor. the question is, how do you create a free market economy so that people can have jobs, provide for their families, have their own home and be self-sufficient. instead of depending on government. for example -- >> that is how you help the poor, right? >> absolutely. because as you cut capital gains, you're able to invest. >> ken, do you hear what you're saying? all of these guys at your summit are arguing that jesus wants us to help the poor by cutting any

programs that could possibly help the poor. this is -- >> absolutely not. see, you're coming from the premise that you think a government solution is the best solution. we're saying if you get more money out -- in the private sector, you can generate jobs, which will better take care of people than government ever can. >> hey, ken, i hate to tell you, but look around. 30 oh years of what you've been talking hasn't worked yet. >> well, 40 years of the great society and the poverty level is the same as it was 40 years ago. absolutely. >> bring some jobs back here. >> well, that becomes the issue. go ahead, ed, i'm sorry. >> ken, let me ask. no, i enjoy the discussion. it's fine. you guys going at it. here's the bottom line. we have a system in this country before the affordable care act that gave all the power to corporations to decide what was going to happen to consumers. and the republicans, the people that spoke at this values conference, have nothing to address that. and now that the law is passed,

they want to take it away and give the power back to the insurance industry. i mean, is that a value that you -- that conservatives embrace? >> oh, ed, i think everyone who has spoken today, and i would be added to that, we're big supporters of health care finance reform. we just don't think obama care takes us in the right direction with the right kind of reforms to provide better quality health care to more americans. >> i agree with that. we should have single-payer like all of our cap lift allies enjoy. >> and you have every right -- literally, that is socialism. it's a government-run system that provides to every member of society. >> ken, name one of our capitalist allies that has tried to give up single-payer to adopt a system like we have now? as a christian, ken, don't you think it's creepy that insurance companies can get rich off disease? >> your question is contradict itself. every single-payer system is by definition a socialist system. it is a government-run publicly financed national entitlement.

i am saying that's not capitalist, that's socialist. >> what's wrong with having a socialistic health care system? what's wrong with -- >> well, that's a -- that's a great -- >> it helps more people. >> that's a great debate to have. but we have to start by saying that's not a capitalist system. >> i didn't say it was -- >> who says -- >> i believe private market reform, such as insurance pools for small businesses, being be able to purchase across state lines, tort reform for medical malpractice, reforming to allow doctors to exercise their own judgment. >> before we go. >> in the emergency room. >> you're on your own, poor people. >> those are the things. >> before we go, i want to ask this question. let me ask this. if jesus were on earth today, would he be a fan of republicans taking america hostage in the order to get their way through the governmental process, as so many people are hurt? ken? >> i don't think jesus belongs to a political party. i think we see the teachings of jesus in the bible, which i

accept as the word of god. and i reject the premise that people standing on the principles for which they are elected somehow means they're holding someone hostage. i think that kind of over the top rhetoric which the president is using is not helping us reach a settlement. >> john, your response. >> jesus wasn't a homophobe. being gay is natural, hating gay is a lifestyle choice. and if jesus showed up ken -- i know iyer a nice guy, but if jesus showed up, you know exactly what would happen, he would be a brown-skinned homeless guy who spoke no english and those guys would ship him off to juarez. >> i fundamentally disagree with that. >> it's only if you believe what's in the book. >> thank you, gentlemen. still to come, the new developments in the shutdown as the debt ceiling deadlines loom. keep it here. we're right back on "the ed show."

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welcome back to "the ed show." progressives, let's get back to work. got to pay attention, stay vocal. let's look at the top three stories ahead next week in fast forward. coming in at number three, middle ground b.

>> fundamental to our democracy is our middle class. middle class, the backbone of our democracy. >> we're going to rebuild the middle class in america. >> on tuesday, a new nbc news poll will give a louder voice to middle class values. >> we can't just balance our budget on the backs of middle class families. >> get out of here! what are you waiting for? >> let me out of here, will you? come on. i got to make a living. >> fast forward to number two. special election. ♪ they call it that jersey bout ♪ ♪ the one that really counts >> my opponent is going to get everything wrong in washington worse. >> on wednesday voters in new jersey will choose the next united states senator. >> what new jersey needs is a leader not a tweeter. >> that's a lovely accent you have. new jersey? >> and our number one story to watch, debt denial. ♪ like the ceiling can't hold us ♪ >> never before in our history

has the federal government failed to honor its financial obligations. to fail to do so now would be an outrage. the congress must understand this and bear full responsibility. >> all we ask is the speaker to be reasonable. open the government, raise the debt ceiling, and we'll talk about anything you want to talk about. >> the long and short of it is there's going to be a negotiation here. we can't raise the debt ceiling without doing something about what's driving us to borrow more money and to live beyond our means. >> treasury secretary jack lew says the debt limit will be reached. >> we are not going to default on the public debt. but that doesn't mean that we have to pay every bill the day it comes in 100%. >> so you think jack lew is lying when he says he can't prioritize? >> i'm not going to say anybody is lying. i'm saying he's playing politics when he says that. >> and a number of democrats obviously want this brought to the floor. one of them is congressman

gregory meeks. joins us tonight on "the ed show." congressman, good to have you with us. you know, there's a lot of talk about the middle class, but what the republicans fail to point out is that the affordable care act is all about helping the middle class. so it's been one domino after another that's been knocked down. so where are we right now? is a short-term spending bill to reopen the government going to be enough? >> you know what, ed? we got to get there. i'm not even sure we're there right now. what i'm hearing is they may be adding something on. the first thing we've got to get to is a clean bill are reference to the continuing resolution and a clean bill with reference to raising the debt ceiling. without that, we're nowhere. and there's nothing to negotiate there. what we're simply asking for is to put the american people back to work. and this is not a democratic issue, a republican issue. of those 800,000 are democrats,

but many are republicans. they are middle class. we've got to put them back to work. and that's what we are -- and the republicans got to come to that reality. >> well, this most recent survey that nbc news and the wall street journal did, i think puts the democrats in a strong position. do your colleagues recognize that? does that help you draw a stronger line? i mean, it's a clear voice. 70% of the american people think the republicans are putting themselves and their political agenda ahead of the people. >> i think that the line is very clear. that you see a few individuals who are putting their personal issues in front of the country's issues. that's why the numbers are so great. and i think that it is time, ed, for those so-called moderates in the republican party to stand up and let their voices be heard. >> so what's going to move speaker boehr? what's going to move speaker boehner? >> the people will have to move speaker boehner, because the people need to come out into those areas of those so-called moderate republicans and say,

look, your job is on the line. you better go talk to that speaker in the same manner the tea party is talking to the speaker. why they are allowing that party to rule the whole party, i don't know. and surely the president is not going to get into it. and democrats are not going to give into it. they need to have a clean resolution on the floor, clean bill with the continuing resolution and a clean bill to raise the debt ceiling. and then we could move forward. and that has to happen, ed. and they're running out of time. >> they are running out of time. do you think we'll default? i mean, i believe we will. i believe the republicans are that stupid and that determined to hang it on president obama. what do you think? >> if you had asked me three months ago or four months ago, i would have said absolutely no. right now i say it's a 50/50 chance. you're right about one thing, ed. number one, they do not like anything president obama does. they want to do the opposite. you've pointed it out previously, if you say