obama ad. >> you know what, i put out as much as we're going to put out. >> i'm joined tonight by howard finemandirector of the huffington post media group. howard, great to have you with us. what are you hearing from republicans because the dam seems to have already broken with conservatives calling on him to release more returns. this is just a continual drip. >> i was laughing when you introduced me because i was talking to your producer, and you and i and he all had the same idea at the same time earlier today. which is, is there any conceivable way that the republicans looking at this situation would say, you know what, we don't really want mitt romney anyway. why not put him out on the ice floe. i talked to some key people in the party, including a campaign manager from one of the other campaigns in this race in the republican side earlier this year. and i said, is there any way that the republicans would just say, you know what, let's get rid of this guy? the reason i said that and asked that is because you have had an amazing murderer's row of conservatives and republicans demanding or s

i'll ask howard fineman. and bain capital is about to outsource 170 jobs from a company in freepert, illinois. but the town and the workers are fighting back. they're asking mitt romney to help save their jobs. >> if i had anything to say to mitt romney, i would ask him to please save my job. >> tonight, the woman who started the grassroots appeal makes her case live on "the ed show." >> when i found out that it was owned by bain capital and mitt romney helped start bain capital and still profits heavily from bain capital, i got really upset with this. >> good to have you with us. thanks for watching. the romney campaign was in search of a narrative yet again today. but they were stopped at every turn by mitt romney's mysterious finances. the day began with a brand new ad from the obama campaign. >> romney admits that over the last two years he's paid less than 15% in taxes on $43 million in income. makes you wonder if some years he paid any taxes at all. we don't know because he has released just one full ye

howard fineman has the latest on the republican revolt. share your thoughts on twitter with us, on facebook, and on twitter using the #edshow. we're coming right back. an accident doesn't have to slow you down. with better car replacement available only with liberty mutual auto insurance, if your car's totaled, we give you the money for a car one model year newer. to learn more, visit us today. responsibility. what's your policy? cleaning better, doesn't have to take longer. i'm done. i'm going to... drink this... on the porch! ♪ give me just a little more time ♪ [ female announcer ] mops can be a hassle, but swiffer wetjet's spray cleaner and absorbent pads can clean better in half the time so you don't miss a thing. swiffer. better clean in half the time. or your money back. and for dry messes big and small try swiffer sweeper vac. >>> my name is joann humston. i'm 35 years old and i'm a single mother of two girls. i work six years at sensada technologies and i recently found out that my job was going overseas. i'm worried that i won't b

. >> howard fineman on the fallout from mcconnell's epic gaffe. the romney campaign destroys a weekend's worth of talking points in 20 seconds. >> what you just said is that governor romney agrees it's not a tax. >> he agreed with the dissent from justice scalia that said that the mandate was not a tax. >> the death of a republican lie. rick scott tells floridians without health insurance to suck it up. >> we're not going to implement obamacare in florida because we're going to do the right thing. >> e.j.dionne has the latest. and they're burning obama in effigy. the growing resistance movement on the far right. >> look out. look out progressives. this is what america is at her best, and you'll never see us coming because you don't understand us. >> good to have you with us. thanks for watching. top republican leaders are finally revealing what the health care debate in the country is all about. for republicans, health care is a privilege. and if you can't afford it, well, you're just out of luck. senate republican leader mitch mcconnell was asked

let's bring in howard fineman, editorial director of the huffington post. welcome to the show. >> good evening, professor. >> sir, romney seems to have found some traction in taking the president's remarks on small business out of context. here's the president's push back in an ad. >> those ads taking my words about small business out of context, they're flat out wrong. of course, americans build their own businesses. every day, hard working people sacrifice to meet a pay roll, create jobs, and make our economy run. and what i said was we need to stand behind them as america always has. >> to you, mr. fineman, is this proof that romney's attack on the president is working, that he has to make an ad responding to that particular criticism? >> i think so. i think that however out of context the ad might have been in terms of segmenting the one quote, i think the idea of attacking small business and the idea that the president doesn't understand or have high regard for small business is a tricky and dangerous one for the president. that's why they responded. t

and we heard nothing. >> howard fineman, what was team romney trying to accomplish there today?first, i want to say that i haven't heard mitt romney discuss any nodes in moments of his life, and that's partly because his whole strategy in this campaign is to disappear. sometimes i think he would do best by depositing himself in a swiss bank account and disappearing. at least that's their strategy. their strategy is to make mitt romney all but disappear and try to put all the focus on president obama. so in that sense, this is of a piece with everything else he's done in the campaign. he hasn't talked about his faith, he doesn't really want to do that. he doesn't really want to talk about his feelings. that's not something he does. he has not spelled out, in many details, most of what his policy positions are. it's as though he's invisible and wants to keep the focus on the president. but i agree he missed an opportunity here. i think what the romney campaign wanted and what they thought they'd get was a triple play out of this. by showing up, by going to the naacp, he might get

howard fineman has today's romney shambles fallout. plus, olympic legend carl lewis said mitt romney should stay home if he doesn't know what to say. mr. lewis joins me live from london tonight. >> it's another conservative lie that just won't die. you won't believe the new numbers about president obama and islam. and you won't believe how the romney campaign reedited his naacp speech to make it look like he was a big hit. all that, plus director peter bogdanovic on gun violence in movies. ellen burstyn on obama versus romney, and jay roach on art imitating life in his new movie. >> after cam brady's punching incident, he's jumped 11 points in the polls. >> mitt romney's splash across the pond may be engolfed by the games in the pond, but by the scathing estimation of the brits and the head shaking wonder of romney's usual allies here in america, the candidate himself continued his mile-long walk back and in fact, mitt romney hasn't talked this much about the olympics since 1988 when he took a break from outsourcing american jobs to sa

>>> coming up, more fallout from mitt romney's euro trip with howard fineman of the huffington post.> mitt romney's naacp speech didn't go over so well, but you wouldn't know it from his latest ad. >> and jay roach is here to talk about his newest film, the campaign. >> and don't forget, the whole world will be watching mitt romney's dressage horse rafalca in this olympics. head to our facebook page and tell us if you want his fancy dancing horse to take home the gold. shouldn't we all be pulling for america's fancy dancing horse regardless of who the owner is? go for the gold, rafalca. we'll be right back. now get an incredible offer on the powerful, efficient c250 sport sedan with an agility control sport-tuned suspension. but hurry before this opportunity...disappears. ♪ the mercedes-benz summer event ends july 31st. ♪ >>> i hear there's a guy called mitt romney who wants to know whether we're ready. he wants to know whether we're ready. are we ready? are we ready? yes, we are. >> ah, what a blissful diss. we have seen how mitt romney's olympics comments were seen in london, but w

let's ask howard fineman tonight. howard, great to have you with us tonight. what are we going to see in the next 120 days here, the next four months, what's it going to deliver to the people when it comes to the debate on health care? >> i'm tempted to say in the court where you don't have the facts on urside, you pound on the table. the republicans are going to pound on the table. what chris wallace exposed there in his very good interview on fox on sunday is the fact that mitch mcconnell did not want to say directly that he doesn't believe in the idea of universal health care because chris's question kind of implied it was a given that you should be for universal health care. if you recall the sound bites you just showed, but mitch mcconnell wouldn't cop to that. and i think that's very revealing and i think the basic republican philosophy here is in not so many words, but the ideological thrust is going to be we don't agree with the fundamental idea of president obama's legislation, which is essentially to create the idea inand to afirm the idea that every

we're going to hear from howard fineman, political director of "the huffington post" meeting group. and david corn with mother jones. i have to tell you, it is funny because it's so ridiculous. mitt romney caused a stir today speaking at a fund raiser in tel aviv that the reason the per capita gdp is higher than the palestinians, it had to do with according to the associated press, romney said quote, as i come here and look out over this country and consider the accomplishments of the people of this nation i recognize the power of at least culture and a few other things. romney said the gdp was 1/3 of that of israel. it's actually 1/10. what do you make of that howard? you can't call it statesmanship. >> my first thought upon reading that and talking to people around here, he seemed in over his head. first of all, he terribly insulted the palestinians in the fact that the true difference in gdp is more than ten to one shows that he insulted them. most of them are poor. they live in a country in a territory that isn't recognized as a nation by most of the world. that is landlocked in

howard fineman, from washington. let me return with what we can do in the midst of tragedies like the massacre in colorado. you're watching "hardball," the place for politics. >>> let he finish tonight with this crime in colorado. i like you love living in this free country of ours. while i know we will continue to look for clues of how this happens and how to stop it from happening again, i wonder if some avent are not just beyond our control but well beyond. even if we could outlaw the sale of guns, we have outlawed murder for centuries and that hasn't stopped. there are millions of people facing it, people who live in their own private grief and confusion and pain, but don't wreak havoc and horror on others. besides, this is big country. millions of us live in our own worlds that have little to do with others. we have no right to go checking on people with all kinds of problems. mental, emotional, or simply social. they don't want us doing that and i'm with them. we push on, face the tragedy and hope for the best

with us today michael duffy, nbc's andrea mitchell, casey hunt and howard fineman. first up here we find ourselves in the midst of a presidential election. and thanks to our panelists we're learning about the men who have been american presidents. this was a sleepover at the white house complete with jamies i suppose that bill clinton held for the club. ford, look at him, ford, bush, carter. they all camped out there. and when they don't have sleepovers, they use this clubhouse at lafayette square as their meeting ground. this is a great scoop. we've known there have been friendships in and out of these relationship bus you've got a real club that's functioning and affects history. >> it's amazing. it starts in 1953 when herbert hoover goes up to harry truman on the di ass and said we ought to be the club. i'll be the president. you be the treasurer. truman says let's do it. 60 years later it has its own rules and rivalries. chris: why is it important to history and why did you write this amazing book of the importance of how it helps? i keep thinking it's one of th

howard fineman. >>> a new ad hits romney where it hurts. the sideshow is next. this is "hardball," the place for politics. [ heart beating, monitor beeping ] woman: what do you mean, homeowners insurance doesn't cover floods? [ heart rate increases ] man: a few inches of water caused all this? [ heart rate increases ] woman #2: but i don't even live near the water. what you don't know about flood insurance may shock you -- including the fact that a preferred risk policy starts as low as $129 a year. for an agent, call the number that appears on your screen. >>> back to "hardball." now for the sideshow. first up, hit them where they're strong. a pro-obama super pac is out with a new ad giving mitt romney a gold medal. it's not one he'd want to have. take a look. >> welcome to the olympics. there's mitt romney who ran the salt lake city games waving to china, home to a billion people. thousands owe their jobs to mitt romney's companies. india, which also gained jobs thanks to romney and outsourcing pioneer. and burma where romney had the uniforms made for the 2002

howard fineman. >>> a new ad hits romney where it hurts. the sideshow is next.his is "hardball," the place for politics. i'm barack oba ma and i approve this message. [romney singing]: oh beautiful, for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain, for purple mountains majesty, above the fruited plain, america, america, god shed his grace on thee, and crowned thy good, with brotherhood... chase scene netflix coming soon extra butter tickets swoon penguin journey junior mints movie phone evil prince bollywood 3d shark attack ned the head 5% cashback signup for 5% cashback on movies through september. it pays to discover. those little things still get you. for you, life's about her. but your erectile dysfunction - that could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and

howard fineman has answers. democrats are tearing into mitt romney's offshore accounting. >> he is the first and only candidate for president of the united states with a swiss bank account with tax shelters, with tax avoidance schemes that involve so many foreign countries. >> senator dick durbin is here tonight. the big panel takes on the ridiculous details coming out of mitt romney's koch brother fund-raiser. and a day after this terrifying picture was taken, the beaches were back open in cape cod. >> equwe will be open for busin. >> we'll ask a shark expert if there's anything to worry about. >> you're going to need a bigger boat >> he good to have you with us tonight. thanks for watching. president obama has put the issue of tax fairness front and center in this election. speaking in the east room of the white house, the president asked congress to immediately extend the bush tax cuts for those making less than $250,000 a year. >> the republicans say they don't want to raise taxes on the middle class, i don'

howard fineman is the editorial director of the huffington post media group. michael steele was chairman of the republican party. both are msnbc political analysts. gentlemen, want to show you something that vice president biden, he spoke to one of the largest latino political organizations today. what he had to say. take a look. >> when his father was a candidate important president in 1968, his pear released 12 years of tax returns because he said, and i quote, one year could be a fluke. perhaps done for show, end of quote. that was his father. his son has released only one year of his tax returns. making alive the old adage, like father, like son. he wants you to show your paper, but he won't show us his. >> and of course yesterday, the president also hit romney. he told the local new hampshire station that romney should be more open about his finances. >> is it your belief that it's unpatriotic for someone to have a swiss bank account? >> you know, i think what's important if you are running for president is that the american people know who you are, what

howard fineman, from washington. tragedies like the massacre in colorado. you're watching "hardball," the place for politics. and i thought "i can't do this, it's just too hard." then there was a moment. when i decided to find a way to keep going. go for olympic gold and go to college too. [ male announcer ] every day we help students earn their bachelor's or master's degree for tomorrow's careers. this is your moment. let nothing stand in your way. devry university, proud to support the education of our u.s. olympic team. your mouth has giggled, snuggled, bubbled ...and yellowed. because if you're not whitening, you're yellowing. crest whitestrips remove over ten years of stains and whiten 25 times better than a leading whitening toothpaste. crest 3d white whitestrips. with less chronic osteoarthritis pain. imagine living your life with less chronic low back pain. imagine you, with less pain. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one non-narcotic pill a day, every day, c

i'm joined tonight by howard fineman. great to have you with us tonight, howard. >> hi, ed. >> you know, the president has to win the middle class to get re-elected. let's operate on that premise. does this issue win the middle class? >> i think the republicans and democrats inhabit different universes. mitt romney's really being run by that 10% that you showed in the poll, the 10% who think the taxes on the rich are too high. those are the people running his show. and from the republican strategist point of view and i talked to one today, they think anytime they yell tax at barack obama, they have a winner. he's a tax raiser, a tax raiser. >> the white house answer to that is going to be mitt romney is republicans are out to screw the middle class and they're not using the tax code in the best possible way to create jobs. because if you talk to economists and i have, fair minded ones, not raging liberals, fair minded ones, they will tell you that cutting taxes on the wealthiest americans while it might create some jobs, i

howard fineman is editorial director for the "huffington post." joan walsh is editor of salon. both are msnbc political analysts. allow me to show you what came out today. today the romney campaign is out with a new ad accusing obama of lying about romney's role at bain. >> when a president doesn't tell the truth, how can we trust him to lead? the obama outsourcing attacks. misleading, unfair and untrue. there was no evidence that mitt romney shipped jobs overseas. candidate obama lied about hillary clinton. >> so shame on you, barack obama. >> but america expects more from a president ch obama's dishonest campaign. another reason america has lost confidence in barack obama. >> howard, i'm tempted to say that would have been an effective ad a week ago. >> i think you're right, michael. i think the romney campaign which was so good on offense during the primary season hasn't shown itself to be quick off the mark in terms of defense. the obama campaign attacked. there are questions about exactly what definitions you want to use of offshoring and outsourcing. there are definitions

. >> howard fineman on the issue of the tax runs, congress debbie wasserman shulgts -- >> mitt romney has only released one year and an estimate of another year. he needs to come clean and release multiple years so we can see why he invested in a bermuda corporation and transferred to it to his wife's name, accounts in the cayman island. most folks that i know, they make their investments in a bank in america. most american businessmen invest here and if you're running for president, certainly should be your commitment. >> and yesterday, haley barbour was asked about mitt romney's tax returns. >> tax returns, should he release the tax returns? >> i would, but should it be an issue in the campaign? >> finally, a different take from jason chaffits. he said that. >> i think he has released a tax returns. >>> with four months before election, we've got new poll numbers. let's check the the scoreboard. according to a new "washington post" abc news poll, the race is tied 47-47. an a new reuters poll has obama up six, 49-43. we'll have new poll numbers from some key battleground states later

joining me now, howard fineman, also with us is msnbc's political analyst, david corn. also the author of a great book. let's talk about this show down right now. howard, it's good to be back with you. it seems now this campaign on the surface is about romney having something to hide at the same time this wolfpack on the right continues relentlessly to declare the president of the united states somehow not one of us. not an american. someone indoctrine nated in anti-americanism and going after hillary's people saying her closest aide is somehow secretly working as a mole for the muslim brotherhood. this is really looney country. your thoughts. >> i agree with you, chris and i think it's gotten nastier and more personal sooner than i've seen it in other presidential elections. as yes, we've had that before everything from the day of the ad to the willie horton ad to the swift-boating of 2004, but here, i get the sense it's personal involving the personalities and personal life and times of the two candidates. the obama campaign is focusing relentlessly and without apology