this is not what the white house expected. the president's speech will focus on keeping kids in school, a subject he's promoted before. >> unfortunately nearly 30% of u.s. high school students aren't making it to graduation. >> reporter: but the core complaint seems to be with supplementary teaching materials from the department of education. originally they called for students to write, quote, what they can do to help the president. the white house has since changed that, suggesting the children now write about their own educational goals. furthermore, the text of the president's speech will now be put online monday so any teacher, parent or politician can preview what's going to be said. plenty seemed fine with that, including the national president of the pta. >> we have an opportunity here in the united states for parents, teachers and students to take part in a tremendous civics lesson. >> reporter: still, just like the crowds at all those town hall meetings, others are far from satisfied. >> my rights as a parent are bein

poison to minority neighborhoods. >> the white folks and the white environmentalists are 1250ering poison into the color people's homes. -- steering poison. glenn: white people steering poison into people's homes of people of color. hello! the white house got mad because van jones called republicans a rude name. here is what did it. >> how are republicans able to push things through? when they have less than 60 senators but somehow, we cannot ? >> well, the answer to that is they're [bleep]. glenn: that was the clip that they showed over and over again. showed this. you have him earlier saying that white people are intentionally poisoning communities of color. what the hell is that? they didn't even take the time to listen to the rest of that quote. this is the part -- if you're going to take that quote, that moment, it's not the republicans -- i call the republicans names myself. many americans have. left and right. this is the part that makes him dangerous in many ways. he is no longer restricted on what he can say or do and listen to how he describes himself. >> now, i will admit it, i

>> the people at the white house were pretty pleased. for them it was more about unifying the base, the democrats. as howard said they've pretty much given up on the republicans. they'll say it's bipartisan because it has elements of the republicans' idea in it. on certain levels, like malpractice, for instance, they've made a few bows to republican concerns, but it was much more for the white house to make sure he's got the democrats -- >> lightly sprinkled with republicans. >> nosha -- norah: wasn't part of it that the president needed to take back that mantle as the leader? >> i think he's trying to be operationaly bold while at the same time trying to reassure to everybody you're not going to lose your insurance if you have it. what we're trying to do is regulate an industry that has never been regulated at the federal evil -- level. it's a change message and a reassuring one at the same time. norah: there are some people who are scared about what's going on. people being scared is being fueled by this fear mongering. did joe wilson's

video of his speech was streamed live by the white house on facebook. his speech comes with the news that the white house is now saving user information from social networking sites including facebook and twitter and doing so without notifying users or asking their permission. >> reporter: the obama administration has been a pioneer in using the internet to get messages out to supporters and interact with them. recently it solicited bids from private contractors to archive comments, videos, and tweets left on white house social networking sites like facebook and youtube, part of an effort to comply with the presidential records act. user messages like "great job obama" or "this president is full of it" could be digitally ar kifd. the national legal and policy center, a group that favors small government, is worried the government may use information for purposes other than archiving. >> we believe this is the blueprint for a massive data mining operation by the white house which would allow it to collect personal information on millions of americans with

they haven't been at the white house lately. i think the bottom line is while the president tomorrow night will continue to say he wants a bipartisan deal, it's clear the democrat leaders were saying the republicans didn't need a seat at the table today at the white house schthe republicans are not the leader's problem right now. the problem is they cannot get consensus on the democratic side. that's been the problem throughout the debate. until they sort that out, they're not going to get a deal. >> ed henry, thank you very much from the white house. >> the so-called gang of six leading democrats and republicans who have led bipartisan efforts in the senate also were meeting today. dana bash was outside the meeting on capitol hill, and dana, after what has been a summer with no agreement and plenty of discontent, senators are now racing to make a deal before the speech tomorrow, is that right? >> they are trying. ed talked about the sense of urgency at the white house after the meeting. noplace did we see more of a place of urge

does that reflect the white house. are trying to better reach those who are not happy with the way he cease doing his job. >> they are trying to switch gears and show the urgency. they need to gain control now. they saw it get out of their hands in august. . this is crucial. if they are going to get it done, they need to in the next few weeks. we don't have much time left on this lenl slaytive docket. have a great weekend. >> thanks. >>> the search for a missing papa boy, coming to a tragic end. >>> a look at our top stories now a. week after 22-year-old guy heinze alerted police to the brutal family slaughter, he was charged with eight counts of murder. seven of the victims are being buried today. >>> the search of a 4-year-old boy missing in pennsylvania. they found his body in the neighbor's septic tank. police thought he wondered away from home and got lost. a suspect is in custody, but charges have not been filed. >>> rising death toll in indonesia. an earthquake shook the island of java. people are trapped in the

bring them to the white house. sit them down and talk to them like a man and ask them if that's the kind of american they want to be. do it, mr. president. >>> up next, in the main event, max baucus put out his bogus health care plan today. anthony weiner says bipartisanship is the equivalent of a child looking for a unicorn. he's right. the nation's katrina vanden heuvel will be here in just a moment. as washington continues the debate over health care reform, aarp has chosen a side-- yours. we're fighting to guarantee that you'll never be denied coverage because of your health or age. to prevent anyone from coming between you and your doctor. and to make sure patients don't take a backseat to insurance companies. because at aarp, we believe your health is worth fighting for. learn more at aarp.org. getting an early flu shot is the best thing you can do... to protect you and your loved ones from the flu. it's also one of the easiest things you can do... because walgreens is now offering seasonal flu shots... every

they are just uncomfortable with a black man in the white house. candy crowley has our report. >> reporter: race and politics is a combustible combo. and it explodes into headlines awhen an ex-president lights the fuse as jimmy carter did on nbc. >> an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward president barack obama is based on the fact that he is a black man. >> reporter: it's the sort of thing that tenses to raise people's defenses. in particular, it tends to turn off independents who by nature hate the heart aches of politics. that makes the conversation a political loser for a president with an ambitious agenda. the white house wants no part of this. >> the president does not believe that criticism comes based on the color of his skin. >> reporter: as a candidate, barack obama understood the political danger in letting his race become a major topic. he avoided it when he could, but race was always a subtext as it is in his presidency. >> i have a feeling that barack obama to be president. with respect. >> reporter: fram

house says it is. >> the white house -- well, the white house says it is. certainly respect them for promoting their position, but we have to remember the lesson plans that came out five days ago, which was an end run by the white house to try to get around parents. it was going to ask teachers to lead students in a direction that would deal with how do we help the president with his new ideas? what is barack obama done in the last nine months that you admire? this is an issue that never dealt with the president talking to schoolchildren. that was never the issue. every president, as you said, john, should have that opportunity if it's not public policy discussion, i believe, based on the lesson plans, based on the fact that the white house wasn't going to release the text and then on friday they did, that there was another agenda, another plan. >> let's get an independent perspective on this from john avalon. at one point in his presidency, ronald reagan brought a bunch of students into the white house and did have a public policy discussion with them. >> g

people in the white house are saying keep it quiet this is not helping us? i think probably administrations on both sides realized you can't control jimmy carter. he has been out there, necessary his 80. he is going to say what he wants. he said some things on the israeli/palestinian conflict five or six years ago that inflamed every not be bush administration. he is going to say what's going to say. it is coming at an inopportune time but something that has been out there. people have been talking about this columnist maureen dowd writing about this gene robinson for the "washington post" it is out there. strange bed fellows, i want to talk about this listen to what representative joe wilson had to sign the room we've got a clip of that. let's play it. >> that is such a distraction and a diversion from the issues that we should be discussing and that's why i really want to take the requested advice of president obama and that is that we should be addressing the issue. >> do you think that is enough to address to former president obama? you have both sides of

she worked in the white house under president george w. sh for media affairs, mercedes schlapp is back with us and she's a successful businesswoman devoted wife, mother of three, stars in bravo's "the real housewives of new jersey." caroline manzo is here. did i say that right? >> it's ok. sean: beck ell is freaking out because of the montage, the anointed one does every show but fox and regurgitates the same answers and didn't have a teleprompter but memorized his lines. >> this is from the same guy that mentioned remped wright 2,433 times in one year and billionaires another 43,000. you know what happens, it's interesting, maybe the people that edit this should learn it when you do several shows at one time you tend to talk about what you want to get across and he got his points across. you no he what is driving you crazy he is on a lot of television and he's the best speaker we've had as a president ever and the guy is making great headway and what he's got is got you worried and i'm glad to see it. >> i call it obama burnout, it's way t

the white house unveiling a new secret weapon. first lady michelle obama jumping into the health care media blitz. haven't we seen this before? and congressman joe wilson saying, enough is enough. he's done with all the "you lie" and racism talk. are his critics ready? and it turns out some children have been left behind. way behind. only one in four kids in oklahoma know that george washington was the first president of the united states. what in the world is going on here? >>> good evening, everybody. the hard sell. president barack obama set to blanket the television airwaves promoting a massive overhaul of our health care system. it is a change that a majority of americans have yet to embrace. the media blitz is a highly unusual move for a president, now scheduled to appear on five sunday talk shows and monday "david letterman." the strategy highlighting just how much work the white house believes it could take to move public opinion in its favor. and that may be why michelle obama has been brought into the debate. the first la

i think in part the white house team is tired. they had a couple of rough, hard challenging years for a kam pin and had to go into the most energetic presidency we've seen in a long time. i think in part they didn't realize how tired the country was of all the initiatives and how the country was really getting very concerned about the growth -- potential growth of government. i must say, i think now, and joe hicks may have a view on this, is that the conservative blogosphe blogosphere, the conservative talk show hosts have shown a power since george bush left power that wasn't fully anticipated by the white house. that is, the republican in the white house they had to be more careful. now they've just unleashed on this white house. there are times i think joe hicks is right, they've gone overboard, as on this school speech. other issues they are digging into and they are causing ka nipgss for this white house. there are whole conversations in the blogosphere that the mainstream media misses and doesn't see the van jones eruption co

the white house is endorsing the public option, but not demanding it.tz, the host of "the ed show" says the white house should demand it. >> well, mr. president, make some news. demand a public option, because in the five bills, four of them call for a public option, plus the health care providers are with you and 75% of the doctors. plus, the american people are with you. enough with the speeches. you've done all you can do. the president said it himself. now is the time for action. >> ed schultz is with us in the studio. ed, you're not the only person saying this to the president, whether it's on tv, in print, and i'm sure in his quiet circles, but why aren't we seeing the president demand this public option? >> i don't think it's in his personality. i think it goes back to david axelrod early on. axelrod wrote him a note saying, you may be too nice a guy. there is a stark contrast when president obama speaks to the joint session, when he goes to the town halls and then when he gets in front of one-of-one interviews, there's a different approach in al

the meeting occurs here at the white house tomorrow. he just wrapped up his speech in washington saying there is no guarantee for nato and the u.s. for success in afghanistan and said the mission cannot continue as it is now, that more resources are fleeded from nato country to train the afghan police and army but says the nato forces in afghanistan need to be more flexible with their rules of engagement to get more of them in combat missions. that's not exactly something that many nato countries are prepared to do right now. bret: just days before sitting down with the u.s. and its allies at the negotiating table, iran made a statement in the skies, launching upgraded missiles capable of delivering payloads against american and nato sites as well as israel. white house correspond efnts wendell goler reports on reaction from are the latest iran aggression. >> the white house called the missile tests provocative even as iran boasted that they can target any place that threatens iran. the aides say that president obama will go with a diffe

>> i am on the north lawn at the white house. the first thing we looked for here in light of what happened is whether there is unusual activity out here, police or secret service presence, people on the roof and that sort of thing. we don't see that as we speak. i did try to call the national security office here. the president is out of town. he is in florida. we are told he has been informed of this. i can tell you the white house national security staff that remains here is in a senior-level meeting. we hope to hear them as soon as possible. the reaction here to the pictures you are seeing and the initial pictures in what has come up, in the lower press office here at the white house was one of shock. people are just standing around, television monitors looking at this. when i say people, i don't mean just the reporters. i mean the people that are actually in the office who work here at the white house. >> so very little information is coming out of the white house at this juncture. needless to say, if the speculation is true a

that's where the white house has gotten bogged down. thing? now, i think you'll hear the president talk about security and stability, which is what president clinton was selling in '94 when they got in trouble. i think you're right. the public option is a relatively small piece of it. two big pieces, how many people will you cover who don't now have health insurance and are you ultimately going to drive cost downs in the health care system. it doesn't look like it if the health care system is out of control and now you have more people in it with insurance that's a fundamental problem. the president can't get bogged down in all that. he has to find something he can deliver, he can sell and deliver. >> mike, may i just jump in? the irony, on those two points david mentioned there's substantial consensus how to proceed. in terms of expanding coverage, have a mandate on individuals to buy insurance with government subsidies to help them afford it. in return, the industry has to understood take reform denying coverage based on pre-existing c

you know the people inside the white house. is there a sense of stumbling, of slipping, when you talk about his inner circle, say, obviously a couple of people in dealing with the race issue? >> they never describe it that way, no. in dealing with the race issue, because basically, every day, robert gibbs says this is not an issue in the sense that the president understands who he is, understands that the issues on his table are far larger -- >> you say that every time he comes to the table. that cannot be the case. >> that's what they say, but i think they had a great learning experience with the gates situation. that comment that he made i think drove the conversation to them being so careful now. >> let me take a break. we'll continue our sdofrgs right after this. >>> the president got asked a question on the spot and he reacted like a lot of black men in this country. well, of course, it was race. of course the police officer acted wrong. well, of course. of course, the president can't do that. we start with a fresh grade-a

the white house says it's going to fight back. we'll see. >>> finally, after serving seven years in prison, former congressman jim traffic cant managed to compare himself to nelson mandela. that's where it belongs to the "hardball" sideshow. >>> we begin with president obama's big moment. chuck todd is nbc news chief white house correspondent and political director. jonathan martin is politico's senior political writer. gentlemen, let's start with you, chuck, as you know better than most, chuck. i've been around a long time. i've got to tell you, this furor over the president's school speech to students, the continuing jam over which democrats are with him on health care, which aren't, and the continuing prognostications about all the different polls out there as the obama presidency at an end? what is going on here? >> reporter: well, i think, you know, i talked to one outside democratic adviser to this white house and it was put to me this way, that, look, they are aware in many ways this fall, and how -- and frankly, it starts t

the white house press secretary says mr. obama is prepared to be more specific. >> bill, with that speech knowing exactly where the president stands and exactly what he thinks we have to do to get health care done. health care reform done this year. >> and what he won't accept as well? >> well, we prefer to outline the positive rather than the negative, but i'm sure he will draw some lines in the sand on that. >> joe trippy, robert gibbs said he will draw some lines in the sand, but as you know, many people want the president to referee the debate over the public option. in the senate, moderate democrats say the votes simply aren't there. in the house, more members say it has to be there. is it time for him to come out i'm sorry, i'm with you, but we don't have the votes? >> i think what gibbs said there is really important. as i said before, the president has got to lay out what he wants in the bill and what he won't accept. again, when he gave it over to congress to write this thing, that's the place where i can agree with

the white house said the idea that the u.s. government let 9/11 happen is not what the president thinks. jones put out a press release saying it's not what he thinks either. but conservatives on blogs and the airwaves stepped it up. jones resigned shortly after midnight saturday. the white house clearly not interested in fighting this one. >> i think from a policy perspective it's damaging for the president to go to the mat for one individual when there's so much at stake. >> reporter: health care, afghanistan, the environment, the economy. there is no time in the schedule, no room on the agenda, to get distracted. >> you don't want, if you're president, going into what next week will be his big week on health care, to have two embarrassments going into it. both the jones matter and the brouhaha regarding the education speech. >> reporter: it's been an unsettling summer for the white house. ipped steadily to a low 50% average. nearly three-quarters of democrats are opposed to the war in afghanistan that the president has said i

some put the count in this white house about 30. ised both republican and democratic presidents says the number is still high. >> we've never seen anything like that before. we have seen powerful white house administrations, we haven't seen as many powerful white house aide. >> reporter: but he says there's merits to having czars. >> the president needs one to bang heads together to coordinate a very complicated executive branch. >> reporter: expect republicans to push the czar issue, some say. >> it's a great argument for a party that's trying to portray a president as pushing too far too fast on too many advanced topics. >> and the university of virginia's larry savato says this administration is dealing with challenges the country hasn't faced in decades. >> and you make an important distinction between czars and those who get senate confirmation. >>> one member of the kennedy clan is taking his name out of consideration for the now massachusetts senate seat. that is joe kennedy. he is deciding not to run. the former democratic co

how has the white house turned this into perhaps a good for them in the end? >> well,, you know, the point is it shows their critics are, i think, speaking before they looked at the speech. criticized the speech once you read it. there is nothing in there. you have pointed out, we've all been pointing out it should not get any parent alarmed. everybody is for every kid staying in school and as far as i know that's not big policy dispute here. white house could just use that most effectively by saying our critics are out of hand so let us calm the temperature. it's going to be a lot harder to do that on health care which is the big speech coming up wednesday. much, much harder on. on this one, though, i think the white house could say we have more of a high ground because the speech speaks for itself. >> interesting if you can't get traction with the high ground you wonder what will happen tomorrow with something more at stake with something more important. thank you both. watch the president's address to the nation's schoolchildren on msnbc less than an hour f

we briefed the white house...-es actually... was, again, traveling, so i wasn't with the president when he talked to president obama but i've had a chance to ef broofly talk to the president about it and i've talked to the people in the administration and in the white house about my observations and i think the president has shared his insights with him. and, you know, beyond that i think it's up to the government to take the next steps and ambassador bosworth is over in japan and the republic of korea and in china coordinating with our allies in the six party talks. we clearly surged the north koreans and chairman kim to get back to the six party talks. they want a bilateral relationship with the united states and i think that while there's room for bilateral discussions with the north koreans, clearly we ought to be doing this in the context in which our key allies in the region are participating. but i think the thing we tried to emphasize the most was that the north koreans have made a commitment to a denuclearized korean pen

>>> and president obama's green jobs adviser exits the white house door. did controversial comments about 9/11 and republicans cost him his job? >>> and hello, jaws. close encounters of the shark kind off the new england coast are shutting down beaches and have experts playing tag. you're watching hln news and views. i hope you're enjoying this labor day weekend. i'm sues an hendricks. we're just a few days away from president obama's eagerly awaited address on health care. it is beginning to look like the president is willing to compromise on a government-run health insurance option. while making the round on the sunday talk shows, the white house adviser david axelrod said it isn't an issue in health care reform. >> all the ideas are on the table, david. the president set forth principles at the beginning of this discussion, at the beginning of the year, can and now all the ideas are on the table. and the president will say we agree on 80% of this. let's do the final 20%. let's get the job done. here's how it is we should do it. >> in his speech, the pres

it's easy to get isolated in the white house. we all know that. yet, there are elements of that debate where the president was going to say, wash your hands, respect your teachers, do your homework, respect yourself, and for that message to be so misconstrued out there, are they aware of how incendiary this stuff is? >> well, i tell you, you know, in many ways, it's my understanding, you know, yesterday the president went to cincinnati, afl-cio picnic. everybody came away and went, whoa, where did that guy come from? all of a sudden candidate obama was standing in for president obama. he was fiery, he was -- looked in a good mood but sort of stern and seemed to just want to -- want to light the supporters, you know, on fire. get them fired up. get them behind him rallying him almost in campaign mode. i'm told in many ways because he, himself, was frustrated by how this school speech was treated. the white house had this attitude, look, they were blowing it off. last week robert gibbs referred to it as this is the silly season trying to be dismissiv

suzanne malveaux for us at the white house. thanks so much. >>> and we want to know what you think about the president's back to school speech. we posted the full text on our blog at cnn.com/am fix. have a read through and let us know what you think. >>> also, former first law laura bush reveals what she thinks about the controversy surrounding president obama's speech to to school kids today. here's what she told us. >> reporter: president obama is giving a back to school speech and there's so much controversy over that. do you think it's a good idea? >> i think that there is a place for the president of the united states to talk to schoolchildren and encourage schoolchildren. i think there are a lot of people that should do the same and that is encourage their own children to stay in school and study hard and to try achieve the dreams that they have. >> the issue that's been raised by many conservatives that are critical of this, they say that this is a dangerous social list plot, indoctrinating schoolchildren. some parents sa

the taliban. not so black and white. and don't like the destabilization elements, they also understand the piety and the purity of their religious feelings. how do you convince them it makes more sense to side with the coalition than the taliban? >> i think you're exactly right. there's a deep ambivalence on part of the pashtun. and we have this idea that people are either taliban or anti-taliban. most pashtuns are somewhere in between. they are nervous about the taliban argument that the americans are there not as liberators but as infidel who's want to occupy afganistan. the heavier military footprint we have there, the more it maze the taliban argument and tends to increase support for the taliban, which is exactly counterproductive. >> but on the other side, where do you go then? we're eight years into the situation, more u.s. troops killed. this was the deadliest month since we've entered the country and what is the endgame? what are we hoping to achieve, if not to provide some stability that clearly the afghan army

that contradicts not only the white house but the american medical association.lso, 71% of doctors surveyed say they do not believe the government can cover 47 million more people at a lower cost while providing better healthcare. tuesday mornings, senate majority leader harry reid criticized his colleagues for moving too slowly on spending bills but "the washington times" reports the democratic leader said that they would not be voabtsing because specter was returning home. specter was joined by president obama and took in $2.5 million. reid said "it's a basic courtesy we extend to republicans all the time. " the times says reid was accused of doublespeak, and rick santorum said, quote, "i had many a fund-raiser where i had to bake away and was not covered by my leadership." specter's opponent also criticized the move, saying the washington stab establishment favors the powerful and well connected who are too often rewarded at the cost of those at the bottom." those who criticize immigration raids often say illegals do the jobs in this country that americans wil

people or the white culture, i don't know what it is. this guy, i believe, is a racist. chris: and rush limbaugh was back at it with this? >> it's obama's america, is it not? obama's america, white kids getting beat up on school buses now. you put your kids on a school bus, you expect safety but in obama's america, the white kids now get beat up with the black kids cheering, right on, right on, right on. chris: jimmy carter is talking. let's listen. >> i think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward president barack obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he's african-american. chris: this public thought there was a racial element in the obama protest conflicts with president obama's own position. he doesn't like to dwell on it. >> there are some people who ill think through the prism of race when it comes to evaluating me and my candidacy, absolutely. sometimes they vote for me for that reason, sometimes they vote against me for that reason. i'm sure it was

one reason the white house is trying to avoid antagonizing iran now. nother, possible cracks in the regime. >> a lot of different positions there and ahmadinejad is not necessarily getting a lot of suort within the regime at this point. or within the parollyment. >> reporter: officials say the talks have to produce results by the end of the year or iran will face tougher sanctions. andrea mitchell, nbc news, washington. >>> another programnote, ann curry's entire interview will air sunday at 1:00 eastern time on msnbc. when "nightly news" continues on a friday night, tracking the spread of swine flu. how college campuses are coping these days. >>> later, a making a difference report on giving anonymously. it got a huge response. tonight a flub. (announcer) there are side mirrors... and then there are the indicator-light warning, radar-sensor-linking, blind-spot-penetrating side mirrors of the all-new ford taurus. so what doesn't show up in your mirror, can still show up on your mirror. we speak car. we speak innovation. introducing the all-new taurus fr

the white house will say, hey, that in itself is a victory. the fact that we force the photo-op. at least it's a beginning, but i tell you, not much to hang your hat on. we'll see. i think the next two or three months what the follow-up is going to be. you don't have -- didn't seem like an optimistic george mitchell the united states/middle east special honor. he came back empty handed and they're trying to make a big deal by just having the meeting and the israelis they'll take this strong stance until they know abbas speaks for all palestinians. they don't trust abbas could speak for the territories that are controlled by hamas. >> a lot more of the complete "wall street journal" plan and health care. >> big study on afghanistan and health care, of course. very important numbers that this white house, they think health care was difficult, wait till they tackle afghanistan. >> perfect segue. thank you, chuck. >> you got it. >>> right now we have karen young who has described a major strategy shift that could take place in the afghan war, the top u.s. commander there has been tol

but i have to say that the white house is still focused on the democrats. there's snowe a part of it. but i think at this point seeing the white house hoping for is they'll get a democratic coalition without losing people in the house. even saw the president yesterday reiterating his determination to support the public option if no other alternative is arrived at so i think, yes, they would like to see that but not counting on it. >> what do you think in terms of predictions? will we have a health care bill before the end of the year or as the vice president says thanksgiving? >> i actually don't do predictions because if i do, whatever i say the opposite will occur. i think i can say that the white house certainly i think even beyond just the spin they're giving us because the spin is to get it done by thanksgiving, they seem increasingly confident. they seem more confident today than they did last tuesday. so i think they think so but as we have seen with the debate before it can turn on a dime. >> absolutely. okay. anne, thanks so much. >> thank you. >>>

nbc's mike viqueira is live at the white house. lancing act i suppose for the president when he is in front of this crowd today. are we expect to go hear details how the president is going to finesse things today? >> you're right, david. afl and cio and the rest of labor very strong supporters of president obama and the afl-cio insisting on that public option you described it being included in any final package that were to ultimately reach the president's desk. that is still very much up in the air, and we might add the president supports that public option and expected to do that again today when he speaks to the annual picnic in cincinnati of the afl-cio and again on wednesday night when he takes the biggest stage of all, a joint session of congress and a prime time audience around the nation. but the question is will he insist on it? is it a make or break piece of legislation, a provision within that legislation? indications are now, if you listen to what the white house aides have been saying and again on yesterday on the sunda

the white house, top democrats hoping this will be what they call a game changer, one they desperately need. we'll have new details of what the president is planning to say, planning to propose. also the most divisive part of the debate on health care so far, should the president's proposals include a government-run health care option. we'll have the answers, at least some of the answers in our face-off debate tonight. and the dramatic end to the hijacking of a boeing 737 from cancun, mexico. more than 100 passengers and crew set free after the hijackers threatened to blow up the aircraft. >>> this is lou dobbs tonight, news, debate and analysis for wednesday, september 9, live from new york, mr. independent, lou dobbs. >> good evening, and welcome, everybody. president obama's leadership skills about to be put to a critical test, in search of a game changer for this administration. >>> the president about to leave the white house, headed for capitol hill where he will make what this administration hopes will be a pivotal speech on health care to a joint session of congress. president

he co-authored a piece today about how the white house is rethinking the way forward in afghanistan and i'm especially pleased to have him on this show. here is the "washington post" with a picture of general mcchrystal and the headline "more forces or mission failure, top u.s. commander from afghan war calls the next 12 month december iceive." written by bob woodward. here is "changes have obama rethinking war strategy." paragraph of bob woodward's story. "top u.s. and nato commander in afghanistan warns in an urgent confidential assess. of the war that he needs more forces within the next year and bluntly states that without them the eight-year conflict will likely result in failure" according to a copy of the 66-page document obtained by the "washington post." so rajiv, thank you for coming, first of all. >> good evening, charlie. >> rose: tell me what's going on with the obama administration in afghanistan. >> well what the administration is now doing is it's evaluating mcchrystal's assessment, but it's just one of many inputs that they are using to figure out the way forward, accor

did the white house not think it through initially? so how would you answer that question if i was asking you? join the live blog. log on at ac360.com. up next james carville will answer the question. >>> breaking news, his family murdered, his voice heard on a 911 question across the country. that same man went from victim to defendant charged with eight counts of first degree murder. what do you think? hey, why don't we use our points from chase sapphire and take a break? we can't. sure, we can. the points don't expire... ♪ there is nothing for me... ♪ there's no travel restrictions... we could leave tomorrow. we can't use them for a vacation. you can use the points for just about anything. i know... ♪ the way you look tonight ♪ chase what matters. get your new chase sapphire card at chase.com/sapphire. ( siren blaring ) special interest groups are trying to block progress on health care reform, derailing the debate with myths and scare tactics. desperately trying to stop you from discovering that reform won't ration care. you and you

anne kornblut from the white house. rogramming note, on "meet the press," do watch david gregory's interview with president obama this sunday. check your local listings for times. >>> and that does it for me this hour, this edition of "andrea mitchell reports" this week. i'm andrea mitchell live in washington. we will be in new york next week for the u.n. general assembly meeting. and john harwood will be pick up our coverage next, only here on msnbc. how to get rich, by america's health insurance companies. raise health insurance premiums 4 times faster than wages. pay your ceo twenty four million dollars a year. deny payment for 1 out of every 5 treatments doctors prescribe. if the insurance companies win, you lose. tell congress to rewrite the story. we want good health care we can afford with the choice of a public health insurance option. it wctors recommend most for headaches.

the bubble. it happens in all white houses. d in this one. >>> american federation of teachers, randy winegarden. sbnchts after the break, our own savannah guthrie. you're watching morning joe brewed by starbucks. bicycle, i've missed you. gathering dust, as pollen floats through the air. but with the strength of zyrtec ® , the fastest, 24-hour allergy relief, i promise not to wait as long to go for our ride. with zyrtec ® i can love the air ™ . some people like to pretend... a flood could never happen to them... and that their homeowners insurance... protects them. it doesn't. stop pretending. it can happen to you. protect your home with flood insurance. call the number on your screen... for your free brochure. >>> when you ask students to write a letter to the president, that is asking students to push the president's agenda. now that the white house got their hand in the cookie jar caught, they changed everything, redid the lesson plans, released the text and tomorrow he's going to give a speech that every president should ha

is the white house involved? s investigating its own ties to the group. >> students who can't prove they are citizens being booted from skls. luci: i'm luci romberg. i'm a free runner... ...national champion gymnast... ...martial artist... and a stuntwoman. if you want to be incredible, eat incredible. announcer: eggs. incredible energy for body and mind. (guitar music) in a long line of amazing performance machines. this is the new e-coupe. this is mercedes-benz. steve: in the wake of the tapes you saw last week on fox news channel and big government.com. it looks like acorn's troubles have just started. the department of justice inspector general is now planning an investigation. brian: those are the words from glenn fine the inspector general. do you agree with the president this is not a major issue facing the country? >> the best thing ever with president obama who you know follows this story minute by minute is i didn't know -- they got all that money? wow. millions of dollars, huh? that leads me to ask this

cnn's suzanne malveaux is at the white house. after days of bitter criticism, the president will finally be speaking with school kids, but is his message still in tact? and josh levs will be looking at some of that criticism. we'll be talking about how schools and the classrooms are going to be handling it today. and also, our dr. sanjay gupta in one of the most dangerous places on earth. he's in afghanistan and takes us inside a combat hospital. >>> let's begin, though, this morning, with the president's speech. as you know, it's just a few hours from now. the white house posted those remarks on its website to mixed reaction. a lot of people are still critical of the speech. others say they're now comfortable that the message is not political. among the main talking points are these. the president will stress the importance of education and encourage kids to stay in school. he'll also tell students, don't let failures define you. there is a lot of ground to cover. let's go ahead and get straight to the white house now and cnn's s

i've not been to the white house since late april, early may. there's been no bipartisan conversation on capitol hill about health care. at some point when these big-government plans fail, and they will, the congress will not pass this. it's really time for the president to hit the reset button and stop all of this and let's sit down and start over in a bipartisan way to build a plan that americans will support. >> so you think the plan is dead? >> i think it is. >> senator graham, the plan that's moving through the senate, the baucus bill and the senate finance committee includes a provision about controlling costs, right, and that's been the big thrust. republicans and democrats and the president as well. ron brownstein writes this about the baucus bill. the congressional budget office concluded that the baucus bill could move close to universal coverage, reaching 94% of eligible americans, with a funding stream that not only met the cost of expanding coverage but also reduced the deficit in that second decade. >> right. isn't that something yo

mike emanuel is live at the white house for us. what is the deal with the health choices commissioner? >> he or she would oversee a brand new bureaucracy that would run health care reform, if it is passed. they would set the standards of what is required to participate in government health care reform. if you are insured, you want to be involved in an exchange of sorts. if this person would have to set the standards. there would be a lot of power, considering that it is 1/6th of the american economy. megyn: how much power would have? people worry about rationing in the hands of the federal government. >> this person would have the ability to find health care insurance companies -- fine health care insurance companies. they would have the ability to kick them out of a health care exchange. some of it is still a bit vague, but this person would have tremendous power. a controversial option, this individual or agency would with the government squarely in the health-care business. there is a lot of concern for people that do not like th

the white house thinks it's a message problem. republicans and people around the country who are opposed to the program or at least skeptical of it see it as a substance issue. bret: here now, from the house floor, president obama. >> thank you. [cheers and applause] thank you thank you. thank you. [gavel] >> members of congress, i have the high privilege and distinct honor to present to you the president of the united states. [cheers and applause] >> thank you, thank you so much thank you very much. thank you. thank you, please please, nbe seated. madam speaker, vice president biden, members of congress, and the american people, when i spoke here last winter, this nation was facing the worst economic crisis since the great depression. we were losing an average of 700,000 jobs per month. credit was frozen and our financial system was on the verge of collapse. as any american who is still looking for work or a way to pay their bills will tell you, we are by no means out of the woods. a full and vibrant recovery is still many months

specifically we are talking about something the white house is doing. of toe big buzz words of the obama administration has been transparency, especially transparency on-line which is why our web story of the day is so surprising. look at this. the washington times reported the white house is collecting and storing comments and videos on the social networking sites, here's the catch, without ever notifying or asking the consent of the site's viewedder -- users. this is a big deal because it affects a lot of people. right now the white house has more than 350,000 fans on facebook and gets hundreds of thousands of comments every day. on twitter the white house has a million followers, and on youtube they have 87,000 subscribers to the white house youtube channel. so what's happening is the white house has tired a contractor to archive every comment you would see here on the white house's facebook page, every comment, every tag, every picture, every video that's on the white house's social networking sites. all the sites i just mentioned. according to this

the heart of something. northern and southern white prejudice. i thought the northern white prejudice was we don't want the guy living next door. a man working for barack obama said his biggest fear not obama would be elected president but in looking for a house. down south it is status. it is about the black guy running the country. >> i don't know. >> i'm asking. you said something like that. >> i'm going to be very cautious. it is too easy to smear the south. there are certainly racist still in the south. there are racists ever where. >> is there a particular animosity in the south toward the idea of a black guy being president? >> i don't know. >> hire is what president carter said about that. >> i think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward president barack obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he's african-american. i live in the south. i have seen the south come a long way. and i have seen the rest of the country that shared the south's attitude toward minority groups particularly african-a

i'm not sure the white house knows the answer to the question at this point.certainly, yeah, the white house has made a clear decision to put the spotlight on this and they are hoping, i think, that they will see results in geneva when the talks commence later this week. >> michael, thank you for making time for us this sunday. >> thank you. >>> for all of the latest on iran including today's short range missile test log on to msnbc.com. >> a story about nature, nurture and the nation. a fitting tribute from the one and only ken burn. we'll talk to him next. [ male announcer ] the oral-b pulsar looks like an ordinary manual brush until you turn it on. its deep cleaning vibrating bristles break up plaque between teeth for an enhanced deep clean. manual control plus deep cleaning power. the oral-b pulsar. hey thanks for the window seat. oh please. you got the presentation? oh yeah right here. let me stow that for you, sir. thank you. you know, just to be safe i used fedex office print online. oh you did? yeah -- they printed and bound 20 copies of the presentati