>> production assistance for "inside washington" was provided by allbritton communications and politico, reporting on the legislative, executive, and political arena. >> we are really -- [unintelligible] >> this week on "inside washington," the fate of chen guangcheng. >> the world is watching. the administration must be bold. >> the president's surprise trip to afghanistan. what is our exit strategy? >> as you stand up, we will not stand alone. >> mitt romney tries to go on the offensive. >> who would have guessed we will look back on the carter years as the good old days?

>> newt gingrich gives new meaning to the phrase "lukewarm endorsement." >> is mitt romney conservative enough? my answer is simple -- compared to barack obama? >> no crying in baseball, no lying to congress. order clemmons on file for perjury -- roger clemens on trial for perjury. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- secretary of state hillary clinton, long an advocate of human rights, rights in china for an economic summit only to find herself caught up in human rights crisis. a blind chinese dissident under house arrest slips past guards under cover for his and seeks refuge at the u.s. embassy in beijing. then at the pleading of his life, chen guangcheng believes the embassy and goes to a hospital.

after talking to family and friends, he is begging to leave the country and he wants clinton to take him with her on a her airplane. in politics, a crisis is a terrible thing to waste. >> if these reports are true, this is a dark day for freedom and a shame for the obama administration. >> there looked like there had been a breakthrough. >> we are also encouraged by the official statement issued today by the chinese government confirming that he can apply to travel abroad for this purpose. >> chen has a fellowship at american university and expects china to clear the way to leave the country. beijing demanded the united states apologize for keeping chen at the embassy for six days did hillary clinton has said it was an extraordinary set of stats and we don't expect it to be repeated to "wolfe street journal closed -- "the wall

street journal" -- what is your take, evan? >> funny crisis. all you have to keep your eye on his u.s.-chinese relations. this guy is not the main event. the main event is just getting along with the chinese. that does not mean we have to kowtow to them, but we have to get along with them. to see romney try to make hay out of this thing -- longer interest is with u.s.-chinese relations. >> nina? >> having a political candidate not nikkei out of it would be like a water spaniel not go in the water. we as a free society, we want to do everything, and it is and absolut concept often with our national interests -- an absolute concept often with our

national interests. darman and a battle with china among different factions, with the military have and what position and reform people having another. i just think these things happen. >> charles? >> it is not complicated. dissident makes his way to the u.s. embassy, at the risk of his life, we protect him. we don't accept non-assurances or phony assurances amoss they are ironclad. we don't leave him alone in a hospital. reagan was a guy who cared about our relations with others. he was also unafraid to defend human rights, and did not say, "i have to get along with the russians and i don't care about dissidents." sharansky is alive today because

of reagan, and we won the cold war, and away when his but i quickly defending human rights. >> mark? >> i have always resisted the blame america first reactions. this is an extraordinarily brave person who stood up to not only the central power but to the abuse and tyranny of the local authorities in his hometown, where he has paid dearly for 19 months, 24 hours a day, his home surrounded by thugs. he had spotlights on his house and he couldn't even sleep. we are finding out where jim wright's does fit in -- where human rights does fit in. i hope he makes it to the ad states with his family. the soviets were never our banker, and that is a major difference. >> interesting point. >> it is an interesting point,

but i think the evidence indicates that he really did change his mind. i heard in an interview with an assistant secretary of state who had been and on the meetings, when we thought he had been released, and it was very clear that he is going to have a rough time. he does not want to leave china. this cannot be easy. >> evan, did the embassy people watched this thing to clear the decks for the summit? >> maybe. it is easy to get sympathetic about this guy. he is a very sympathetic figure, and to be noble about human rights, but without really knowing the facts, my interest is what is the impact, the actual impact, on u.s.-chinese relations, regardless of whatever the specific facts are?

we get emotional about defending this guy. >> if you want to be unemotional and very realpolitik, in the long run, the only way we will have a safe world and good relations with china is if it liberalizes, the same way we have much more relaxed relations with russia today than we did at the height of the cold war. for liberalization, one thing matters above all, to know that there is a place in the world, a power in the world, will defend you and stand up to it if you speak to sharansky and others in the gulag, they will tell you that reagan's "evil empire" speech cheered them and gave them hope. if we abandon this one guy because he is a little guy and care about the bankers, it will be known that the u.s. isn't out

there, and it will restrain an oppressed people around the world who want to liberalize society is like china. that in the long run is the worst thing we can do. >> have we abandoned them? apparently we have not. >> as of this moment we have not. it is good for him. don't forget, commando mitt romney, one of the toughest guys who never wore a uniform, says we should defend freedom whenever i kissed under attack, and now when it was, -- whenever it is attack, and when it was, mitt romney was missing. >> others will ask, why don't we leave immediately? that answer is also clear. we must give afghanistan the opportunity to stabilize. otherwise, our gains could be lost, and al qaeda could establish itself once more. >> when you to the day after the killing of osama bin laden,

president obama made a surprise visit to afghanistan, where he signed a strategic partnership with karzai. the agreement outlines the terms of the relationship between the countries after 2014. the president said he recognizes that americans are tired of the war, but says we have to finish the job we started in afghanistan and end the war responsibly. "the new york times" says that the president squandered the chance to explain a strategy to war the american is desperate to see brought to an end. do you agree, mark? >> with "the new york times"? that he squandered the opportunity? i would not go that far. this was a convenient statement, a political imperative statement. it served the purpose of karzai would win by 2 kabul -- we went

to kabul. the united states, no more nighttime raids in homes by nato troops. no question that public opinion on this war has swung totally and four years. keeping troops there, now 2/3 of americans are getting out immediately. >> what about the osama bin laden issue? he talks about that frequently. people say he is speaking of football i should not be so gleeful. >> this from a party that reveled in talking about 9/11? this is what political candidates do. you don't take one of your signature, and hide it under a bush -- signature accomplishment and hide it under a bush.

>> romney says that jimmy carter would have push that button. >> that probably is unfair. >> jimmy carter pushed a harder one to t tried a rescue operation -- he tried a rescue operation to yes, of course he would have. he showed in the rescue mission that unfortunately did not succeed. >> look, the secretary of defense was recommending against this mission, the vice president was not in favor. you cannot say i guess clear -- say it is clear. >> is the gloating over this thing? >> of course he is. it is the most successful thing he has done. on the afghanistan thing he is muddling through. he does not have any choice here. he is going to get out eventually. he tries to find middle ground. i wish romney -- i know it has to be this way, but he is always

a chirping from the sidelines. he always has to take a strong position, whether it is the chinese dissident or -- why doesn't he just shot up? [laughter] >> he is running for president! >> does not do any good to be running from the sidelines. >> i hate to criticize the host of producers - -- and producers -- the issue here is that the democratic national committee put out an internet ad where bill clinton is doing the narration, and in it he says that if the mission had gone bad and some of the seals had been killed or captured, it would have been really bad for obama. he says that in the ad. >> what about the seals? >> that is exactly the point. some veterans have issued a counter-ad saying that this is

astonishing that they would do that, that he would think of himself, or that clinton would think of political interests of the president over the lives of the soldiers d. >> you are shocked? >> the second point is in that ad, it is not just say that obama did it, which is ok, he should get the credit it says that romney should not have. that is a huge tactical error. it is a cheap shot. they used a second and quotation from wolf blitzer and not romney himself. >> i agree it was a cheap shot, but i don't think they are unusual in campaigns. >> frankly, my heart was in my mouth. i work for a lot of these guys, and this was one of the most courageous decisions and president made -- robert gates. "not everybody does it," vice

chairman of the chief of staff. b-2a's general wanted bombers dropped cluster bombs. obama, with 40% intelligence saying that there was a chance that osama was there said it to go ahead with the drought was a cheap shot to put romney in the peace? yes, it was counterproductive. >> over 20 million people out of work or stop looking for work or can only get part-time jobs. households cannot be formed, people bought it and would be retiring and they cannot. -- people thought they would be retiring and they cannot treat people are tired of being tired, and they want a real change. >> mitt romney in chantilly, virginia. key battleground state. 115,000 jobs added. the administration will talk

about 26 straight months of job growth. romney awlaki that the growth is too slow, too small -- romney will argue that the growth is too slow, too small. he was overshadowed by the president's trip to afghanistan. tougher competition. >> it is, but he should not a gratuitous fights. why he has to leave his hands every time something happens -- he would do much better if he took a low-key approach and congratulate the president when it works. >> pretty good presentation -- >> that kind of thing he ought to protect the administration on, the economy, because he has a real -- to attack the administration on, the economy, because he has a real argument there. >> any campaign for the opposition, the challenger for president, feels they after brick into the news every day. >> that is false guide.

that is what the consultants say but it is nonsense. >> that is fair, but mark knows more about this than i do it on the other hand, you have to be visible. >> one thing in governor romney's favre -- did get an endorsement, lukewarm as it might have been, from newt gingrich. lost somehow were the words that newt gingrich spoke two months ago, "we will not beat barack obama with a guy with swiss island accounts and is a stockholder in fannie mae and freddie mac while he tries to think that the rest of us are too stupid to put together the dots to understand what this is about." this will be a negative campaign, and a lot of it is coming from republicans. the unemployment figure is bad for the administration. at the smallest percentage of americans either working or looking for work in 31 years.

this is disappointing and discouraging news. >> how does -- better be a winner in terms of his argument. >> glad to know that mark always comes prepared great quotation. the numbers are terrible, and mark is exactly right. the only reason it went down to 8.1 is because so many people left the work force. a perverse way to measure things. the numbers of new employment, 115,000, it is but that it. you need about -- t.s. but that it could need about a quarter of a million to stand still. the reason i.t. is a threat to obama is one of the reasons is recovered in the polls is because in january, february, march, we were in a sustainable recovery, but it might have been a false dawn because of the good

weather early in the year that was stealing jobs out of the spring of jobs you normally get. you got them in winter instead. if that is so, this will be the third consecutive summer of recovery that is not summer recovery. it could really hurt obama. >> who else endorsed obama this week? michele bachmann, the same michele bachmann who said romney cannot win the general election. >> you've come prepared as well. >> we will see more than one. >> they all got to get in line. i think michele bachmann also told a reporter that romney could not beat obama and that is what people are going to remember. but gingrich is not wrong. compared to obama, yes. they will, romney's way, at they all do.

>> romney was lucky that the whole afghanistan thing was happening when one of his gay spokespeople quit because they did not want to talk, because some conservative groups whined about it. that would have been front-page news for a couple of days. >> good point. the two types of the parties, the democrats are party of the rabble, uneducated -- >> like tea party people. >> so they nominate people who are wellborn, franklin roosevelt, adlai stevenson. republicans are well off and they nominate people for humble, ronald reagan, herbert hoover. ronny reinforces the stereotype of the republicans as a party that is well-off and a little out of touch. >> romney does not help fat cat

image, talking about the cars. don't, and look, i understand why they keep stumbling into that. that is his weakness. i am surprised he is so careless with that. one point that mark brought up about the stereotype people have of democrats being uneducated rubble could that shifted over to the tea party if you years ago, -- a few ago, considered uneducated gravel, and it turned out to be an extremely important force in politics that raise the level of discourse by making people look at the constitution. let me say one thing about romney and newt. newt's endorsement is not important, but santorum's will have some effect. santorum gained some influence

with social conservatives, who are still not enthusiastic. it would be hard for him to do it, but if he did something for romney that is half a sincere, it would help to shore up the base and let romney appeal to the middle. >> it is problem that romney is seen as cold and out of touch, but obama has the same problem. he is a pretty chilly guy. and that the people know that about him. i.t. has a weird -- it is a whipping and this election, in this age of populism, you have these chilly technocrats who graduated from harvard law school could they don't want anybody to know that, -- >> david maraniss has a book about that -- >> talks about old girlfriends to make that point about how chilly he is. >> mrs. romney, according to my

friend on the right, was wearing a $1,000 blouse. >> meshaal makes trips to spain and elsewhere -- michelle makes chips to spain and elsewhere -- trips to spain and elsewhere [laughter] . >> my point is that that is easy to do. >> that is something they have to be aware of. point about the candidates, that is an inside- the-beltway perception obama. it is generally seen as more likable -- obama is generally seen as more like a bolt than romney. -- likable than romney. >> which is why he is bringing ann romney into the discussion. >> with the blouse or $40

sweatshirt. the key to me is george w. bush. he would not want to have a beer with either one of them. -- you would not want to have a beer with the the one of them. maybe joe biden. >> shockingly, i think you are right. obama is chilly, but he also is a charming, and that negates the chilliness. romney is stolid and dependable. if you marry him, maybe you will have a stable life, maybe with a dog on the roof. [laughter] in terms of personality, obama has a huge edge in this election, and it could be decisive. >> going to put taht in -- that in your next column. >> security is not a small thing. romney will say, "i am security,

safety." >> richard nixon -- >> richard nixon and hubert humphrey. >> that is what romney would like this election to be. >> roger clemens on trial for perjury again. >> i am saying the statements about me are wrong. i have never taken steroids or hdh. >> roger clemens testifying before congress in 2008. in his 20-year major-league career, he won seven cy youngs, but is now on trial for perjury. nina, you were there. >> files or dramas that change and the pace of them changes. the prosecution's star witness was supposed to be any pen i -- andy pettite.

he was not the icing on the cake. he basically recanted when the defense lawyer cross-examination said, "is it possible you are wrong? what are the odds that this was 50/50 you were wrong?" he said, "that is about right." >> there is a show trial aspect to this. the feeling of the edwards' case -- by making some greater point that will deter others? i don't know what the facts show on that. >> i don't know the merits of the trial. i defer to nina. but i commend tom davis and henry waxman for holding hearings and forcing baseball to confront the drug epidemic. these guys have blown up like

the incredible hulk, and they and all looked the other white. >> who cares about the trial? go out to the ballpark and see the washington nationals leading the league, and they have a and 19-year-old -- willie mays in 1951, rookie of the year. you have a second chance. he is a phenom unlike anything i've seen. he could end up in the hall of fame. get your tickets now. >> you get the last word to take me out to the ballpark. .