we'll talk to the bill's co-sponsors, senator patrick leahy. countdown to the conclave, last-minute preparations under way in rome. how long will it take to see the white smoke? >>> plus, this isn't your typical political fight. new york congressman peter king gets in the ring literally with a champion kick boxer. >>> and justin timberlake joins an exclusive club on "snl." >> candace bergen? the first female member of the five-timers club. >> and i would like to say something, i, too, wish we had a second bathroom. but while we're all sharing, could you please try to remember to leave the toilet seat down. >> don't look at me. >> i didn't do it. >> i go in the sink. >> this place is the best, i love being a five-timer. >> best "snl" ever? perhaps good day, i'm andrea mitchell in washington and two american families today are mourning terrible losses in afghanistan after another apparent insider attack. led to the death of two u.s. troops. this after president hamid karzai this weekend disrupted defense secretary chuck hagel's first trip there a

leahy: -- what we're seeing in -- in her record.new york city police commissioner ray kelly wrote in strong support of caitlin halligan and again this week. i ask that his march 5 letter be included in the record at the conclusion of my statement. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. leahy: he talked about her work on antiterrorism case, how she's helped bring terrorists to justice. after all, she was literally blocks away from the twin towers on september 11. you know, it only takes a handful of sensible republicans to do the right thing. this is not a time to victimize her for some sort of political payback or to -- to help out narrow special interests. end this filibuster. let -- let us have a vote. vote for or vote against her. but do what republican senators who signed that 2005 memorandum of understanding said. if they follow what they said back then, they'll vote to -- to end this. i'd put the rest of my statement in the record, madam president, but don't tell the american people that this extraordinarily well qualif

leahy: mr. president, i send a bill to the desk. the presiding officer: the bill will be received and appropriately referred. mr. leahy: i thank the distinguished presiding officer. let me just tell you what i've done. i have introduced modified legislation to combat the practice of straw purchasing in illegal trafficking in firearms. since the initial introduction of the stop illegal trafficking firearms act at the very beginning of the 113th congress, on january 22, i have had productive conversations, several senators of both parties, and my goal of reducing the destructive criminal conduct i'm proud to be joined by the -- especially by the distinguished senior senator from maine, senator collins, but also senator durbin, senator kirk, senator gillibrand, senator blumenthal. i mention senator collins because she has shown real leadership in this matter. she has shown willingness to work across the aisle to make real progress. she helped unite us to get this done. i can honestly say without her, we would not have made the progress

leahy: of course. mr. reid: i ask the chairman of the judiciary committee to explain to everyone within the sound of your voice how important the d.c. circuit is to our country. the presiding officer: the senator from vermont. mr. leahy: mr. president, it would be hard to state any better than the senator from vernevada has. but so many of the issues that we grapple with every single day on this floor -- policy issues, issues that affect the various departments of government -- when there are appeals of those issues, when there are questions of what the departments do, they invariably go to the d.c. circuit. they don't go to the u.s. supreme court. the u.s. supreme court is, as the distinguished presiding officer knows and the distinguished majority leader knows, takes only a tiny, tiny percentage of cases that are appealed. but every one of these major policy issues that are appealed are heard by the d.c. circuit. and it is frustrating to know that there is a concerted effort on the other side to try to s

leahy understands that we're going to do this in several stages.hat we can get right now, but this issue and this is the central point, does not go away once it passes the senate and once something passes the house. vice president biden realizes that if hillary clinton doesn't run in 2016, i actually am a big hillary clinton supporter, i hope she does, but if she doesn't run, he is out there in front like no one else on this issue and he understands exactly where the public is and he understands that politicians are going to get political dividends if they're with the american people on this, not if they're against the american people, and so the smart politicians have figured it out. the guys who are either in the pocket -- the hip pocket of the nra there, the gop who is being run by the nra rather than being run by what are the best interests of our children. you know, we have 33 gun deaths a year -- a day, martin. that's the equivalent of a jumbo jet airliner, more than the equivalent of a jumbo jet airliner going down every week of the year. if

a substitute we find the provisions with the text of the leahy-collins bill. i reach out to the senators, those discussions bore fruit. the substitute incorporates a pending bills provision, and its creation of a specific crime for straw purchasing designed to prevent criminals from using straw purchasers who can pass a background check and then hand those firearms to the criminals. straw purchasers circumvent the purpose of the background check system, and we have found many -- everything from drug gangs to others who have used guns that the gang members could not have bought but the straw purchaser has. straw purchasing is done only to get a gun in the hands of somebody who is prohibited from having one. i think we need a meaningful solution to this problem. as substitute we include suggestions, senator gillibrand, to require those that traffic in firearms by wrongfully obtaining two or more firearms, and we'll give law enforcement more effective tools. the substitute also incorporates a number of changes, the result of suggestions from senator grassley and

right now one of the amendments that present some problems for us is the leahy amendment. as we have to bet the units to make sure that there are no human rights violations, and we are absolute in favor and we understand the value and importance of making sure we could claim human rights. unfortunately, at a time sometimes when those units need of our partnership and our relationship so they understand what right looks like, that the time in which we find ourselves more constrained than ever, if there's a human rights violation, frankly i would offer them more than ever we need to get engaged and make sure that they do what is right. so that's an area that we are exploring, both with the cjc us and with the osd. >> and you discussed that with the regional commanders i would assume? >> i have. >> and their reaction? >> i think they'll have similar issues. the special operation forces that i provide them find themselves constrained it and circumstances, not all circumstances but in certain circumstances and units were dealing with. so yes, ma'am. it's a concern and again i t

senator leahy has been in front keying this up for debate. the government has been testifying making its case. it has not been resistant to change. it is recognizing that this is an old statute and technology has changed and we need to change with times. the one message i have -- be careful and make sure we make changes in a calibrated way. the ability to get stored e- mails in the national security is a vital tool. we have to make sure that you do not make the process overly difficult by requiring everything to stop, get probable cause, and go to a judge first. >> thank you, ken. talk about the third-party doctrine. it is the idea that -- is e-mail the same as regular mail? isp's access our e-mails. this is used for advertising purposes to target advertising to particular users. does the fact that's happening somehow make e-mail different from regular mail? what is the difference between a private party accessing our e- mail and a private party accessing our e-mail? >> go back to something that ken said about the comparison to environmental

a lot to say a special thanks to pat leahy and mike crapo. thank you, guys, for your leadership. [applause] and i want to give much love to gwen moore who worked so hard on this. [applause] and i also want to take a minute before i begin to thank the senators who just a few hours ago took another big step toward sensible gun safety reforms by advancing the federal gun trafficking bill. [applause] that's real progress. the senate judiciary committee sent legislation to the senate floor that would crack down on folks who buy guns only to turn around and funnel them to dangerous criminals. it is a bill in honor of hidea pendleton, who was murdered in chicago earlier this year. she marched in the inauguration parade and a few weeks later was gunned down about a mile away from my house. i urge the senate to get that bill a vote. i urge the house to follow suit, and i urge congress to move on other areas that have support of the american people, because we need to stop the flow of illegal guns to criminals, and hidea's and many other families really do deserve a vote. finally, i want t

senator patrick leahy is the chairman.he hearing is to 0.5 hours. -- 2.5 5 hours. >> the attorney general is here. the session will be in order. mr. attorney general, if you would join us, please. because the session has begun, nobody will stand and what people behind them with placards or otherwise. this is a meeting of the united states senate judiciary committee. everybody here is a guest of the senate and we expect you to be aware of all your fellow guests. i realize some have differing views. everybody has an opportunity to be here. i would hope that nobody would be so arrogant that they would feel that the should have the ability to block the view of others. this week is the anniversary of bloody sunday. when voting rights marchers including congressman john lewis were beaten by state troopers as they attempted to cross the bridge in selma. attorney general holder spoke this weekend about living up to founding ideals and the power of our legal system. laz protect rights of all americans. that is what this attorney ge

leahy, president pro tempore. mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: the majority leader. mr. reid: before the chaplain leaves the chamber, i want to say something on behalf of all of the senators. the new senators probably don't know him as well as those who have been here more than the beginning of this year, but we have -- we are so fortunate to have this good man leading the senate in our spiritual activities. he leads us in prayer every morning. we have a prayer breakfast every wednesday. and during that period of time that we don't see hirnlings he , he's ow counseling individual people who work here. my wife has been will and ha ila bad accident, and he has been so in tune with her, making sure that we all are aware of how well she's doing. she's had a great recovery. so i, on behalf of the whole senate, extend my appreciation this good man, a man who was born with very little except a very, very good mother, who taught him early on that he had a very, very keen intellect and with his mind he could accomplish a good deal. as far as mammogramry, there is only -- as f

the bill is sponsored by the committee chairman, patrick leahy. it would create penalties up to 25 years in prison people who buy guns for others use them in a crime. the vote in the committee was 11-7. senator chuck grassley of iowa, the only republican to support it. the panel debated other bills. one requiring federal background checks for nearly all purchases, banning high capacity and magazines and boosting aid for school safety programs. again, the committee has recessed subject to the call of the chair. >> senator dianne feinstein speaking to reporters as she leaves the committee room. again, the judiciary committee not finished their work. meanwhile, the discussion is on the budget and the deficit at the white house. president obama is inviting the top house budget writers to the white house for lunch today. the lunch date with budget committee chairman paul ryan and the ranking democrat chris van hollen follows his dinner last night with a dozen of republican senators. trying to build support among rank and file republicans for starting t

please give your opening statement. >> chairman leahy, ranking member grassley, distinguished members of the committee, i really appreciate this opportunity to provide an overview of the zwrussties department's recent achievements and the accomplishments that my colleagues, the 116,000 dedicated men and women who serve in offices around the world have made possible. i look forward to working with you all to take our critical efforts to a new level. but before we begin this discussion, i must acknowledge the debt our nation owes to three correctional workers, employed by the federal bureau of prisons who over the last week and a half have made the ultimate sacrifice. officer eric williams, officer gregory vineski, and lieutenant balarossi. i'm determined to ensure that those responsible for the acts that led to the deaths of these three brave individuals are brought to justice. my colleagues and i are committed to honoring the service of these and other fallen officers by doing everything in our power to keep the women and men in law enforcement safe and to continue the work that becam

. >> good morning, chairman leahy and members of the committee. my name is benjamin miller, the aircraft manager with the sheriff's office and representative at dearborn law-enforcement association. thank you for inviting me to speak to you about the use of unmanned aircraft a small colorado community where he lives. the mesa county sheriff's office is a middle sized of a 200 people at the patrol chamber 65 deputies. this are approximately 175,000 citizens to the infiniti 3300 square-mile county. we see a wide range for petty offenses to major crime including drug trafficking and homicide. in four years with lumbar operational hours than anyone else in the country with 185 and over 40 missions. the two small battery operated aircraft systems that's a lot considering this one on the table here is a backpack size helicopter that can fly for 15 minutes and weighs two pounds. our smaller plane can fly for an hour and weighs just about eight pounds. both systems are used to carry canvas which are commercially available. in fact coming committee same ca

the gang of 8 trying to hammer out that agreement and he wrote to judiciary committee chairman pat leahy urging that the vote should go through a rigorous procepr process of public hearings. he says, you said delay for 38's sake would be a mistake, i agree, but haste is even more dangerous possibly. two members of the gang of 8, chuck schumer and jeff flake, expressed optimism this morning. listen. >> so this is a majojor major obstacle overcome. as senator rubio says, we said we wouldn't come to final agreement until we look at all of the language. he's correctly point outing that language has been fully drafted. >> we're much closer with labor and business agreeing on this guest worker plan. that doesn't mean we've crossed every "i" or dotted every "t." we're closer certainly. >> the white house is also optimistic, a spokesman saying the president continues to be encouraged by progress being made by the senators. we look forward to seeing language once it's introduced and expect it to move forward. the agreement assures workers would be paid no less than minimum wage. the bill could be

at least that's what chairman leahy had said. he's going to bring it up immediately, apparently.ody's seen it. we don't know what's in it except the group that's been meeting. he's going to bring it through committee and in the shortest possible time. senator reid said last week he'd like to see it next week, apparently because he wants to pass it in the three-week period that we have. this is too quick. there are a host of incredibly complex issue, this being one of them. what economic benefits will people get who came here illegally? what impact will it have on the wages and jobs of american citizens? what about the entry-exit visa system supposed to be completed 17, 20 years ago, still hasn't been completed? there are so many big-- what about the future flow? what kind of people do we need to focus on? shouldn't we be looking for people as the basic law is now, that will not be a charge on the state? that will not be demanding to be taken care of, but look for immigrants who can be independent, those who are going to be most successful in america, and need the least support. t

starting with my old buddy pat leahy who chairs the committee. thank you very, very much.nd mike crapo. this wouldn't have happened had you not stepped up. and lisa murkowski is not here but my friend who i don't want to -- i don't want to get her in trouble but i know she really likes me because i like hear lot, senator collins. you know? seriously. it was -- you know, it was republicans coming and standing up and saying this has to be done. in the senate. so we owe you. we owe you big. [ applause ] and by the way, if you ever want a partner to get anything important done, call nancy pelosi. call nancy pelosi. [ applause ] and steny hoyer and congressman moore and my old buddy -- i hope i'm not leaving anybody out here. but, you know, you know, my old buddy john conyers. [ applause ] i'm sure i'm leaving someone out for which i apologize. we all know we have a lot more to do but we'll continue to make progress and one of the reasons to continue to make progress is we're going to have for at least three more years the president of the united states, my friend, barack obama

is that something you support -- senator lady -- leahy introduced a bill dealing with straw purchases in trafficking. is that something you support? >> i would be willing to look at what they have. if senator grassley and senator leahy agree, it is pretty sure that this can happen. >> the three of you are new at this issue. i am curious as to where you are on the various bills that are out there? >> i am not on the judiciary committee. i will not have a chance to vote until they get through that process. i think we should enforce the laws we have on the books. you take that general approach and you start getting into areas like straw purchases and cleaning of databases and things that are already there, but may not be working well. i am like senator graham. i look forward to seeing with the the shia committee comes up with. i would hope it would be by a constant -- the judiciary committee comes up with. i would hope it would be bipartisan. i am against senator feinstein posting -- feinstein's bill. it is still early in the process. they have a process they will go through in committee

pat leahy gets a lot of credit for voting against john brennan on the grounds that he had been asking the office of legal counsel an opinion from the justice department and got stiffed. having said that, if it was a stunt, it was a brilliant one. >> but how much it daylight to you want on the grounds? > -- on drones? >> this is where we get into a murky area. senator paul was right to frame the issue the way he did to get a clarification we needed. and not having a scattershot approach, but just to clear, focused argument. now they are getting into another area with senator feinstein's committee where they talk about the current policy itself. -- drone policy itself. for example, "the washington post" editorial-page is calling for congressional approval for drone attacks. you're getting into questions of military tactics, and i am not sure you want to go that far. >> you are with rand paul on this one, aren't you, charles? >> i am grateful he raised the issue because we are at a point where people sick and tired of the administration blowing people the kingdom come well they are sitti

>> senator leahy said he was disappointed. why does any issue a subpoena? >> the president wants more transparency. who is it about the president keeping a small mouse from the committees that are supposed to do oversight. >> they approved the pressure works and not pressure doesn't work. for more than a year they asked for these. the ministration didn't get that. then when they said they were going to hold that brennan's confirmation, the administration handed over the madness. senator leahy want the memos, he has to issue a subpoena. >> the public needs this madness. i want to know why this administration is going to be the most transparent of illustration i say give them the information they need. we the public want to see these madness. we want to see how they are justified, the fact they can kill americans, but non-americans. will we acknowledge those mistakes? will someone be held accountable for those mistakes? as will continue and especially we want to know why the cai has the right to use strauss. the military or cassation, shouldn't have the autho

senator leahy has agreed to have extensive markup and debate on the bill in april, and then we go to the floor, god willing, in may. i hi we're on track. >> you were quoted as saying the deal is near, the deal is at hand, and all of that coverage got senator rubio, the republican, part of this gang of eight to say, whoa, whoa, whoa, no deal yet. that we're closer. so is there disagreement between the two of you on how close you are to a deal? >> no, it's semantics. business and labor have an agreement on the future flow which has been the issue that has undone imfwrags reform in the past. this is a major, major obstacle that's overcome. each of us has to look at the language and approve it. i don't think on the business/labor side there's any disagreement. there's lots of but as and he's correctly pointing out that language hasn't been fully drafted. i don't think any of us expect there to be problems. >> if you lost senator rubio in thigang of eight, if he walked away from the negotiations, would that put the entire immigration bill in jeopardy? >> well, first of all, i don't think

so that's why you'll see chairman leahy try to move this part forward.l see others trying to move the other pieces like background checks and assault weapons ban which is a bit tougher as well. >> now, moving on to the president's approval ratings. a recent gallup poll shows the president's approval rating is at 46%, down from a high of 58%. is he suffering now because of the sequester? >> it's likely that it is. i think there was always the expectation that frankly at some point voters are just angry at washington and not distinguishing between parties. that being said, you know, support for the president's ideas remain high. it will be interesting to see as this continues to play out, we know from our own nbc news poll from last week that americans have said they will blame republicans. so we'll see if that continues, how that plays itself out. >> karen finney, thanks so much for getting up early with us. >> take care. >>> here's your "first look" at some other news going on around america. we begin in iowa with the dramatic car theft caught on tape. t

democrat patrick leahy is one of five senators proposing a bill that would mandate tough penalties for anyone who buys a firearm with the intent of transferring it to someone else. republican susan collins is another sponsor. the bill also makes it a crime to smuggle firearms over the border. >>> and later this morning, the united nations security council will take up a resolution that would punish north korea for its latest nuclear test. late yesterday, the u.s. and china agreed on a new round of sanctions. north korea carried out its third nuclear weapons test last month. the security council imposed sanctions after north korea's first two nuclear tests and after a rocket launch last year. >>> vice president joe biden says the u.s. will not back down from its pledge to use military force to stop iran's nuclear program if need be. biden was spoking to a pro-israel lobby in washington yesterday. he warned that neither israel nor the u.s. should act before all diplomatic options are exhausted, but he said the president will keep his word. >> presidents of the united states cannot and do

and on february 2013 by senator patrick leahy with bipartisan support. the bills call for simply amending existing u.s. immigration law by adding three words, "or permanent partner" wherever the word "spouse" appears in the law. we are urging congress and the president obama to ensure when we pass comprehensive reform it includes every family. this allows for the san francisco board of supervisors to express he its support of including same-sex couples and we ask that our country finally, you know, do right by the lgbt citizens and their loved ones who are impacted by this level of discrimination. the rest i submit. >> thank you, supervisor campos. supervisor chiu. >> thank you, madam clerk. colleagues, as your board representative on both the planning -- capital planning committee and the committee on information technology, i'm introducing today two items with mayor lee, two plans that reflect the work of these bodies in recent months. both of these plans will guide us as we work to improve our city and our city operations in the years ahead. first, re

leahy: thank you. the presiding officer: postcloture. mr. leahy: mr. president, i couldn't help but think, watching the debate, it's been almost -- it's been more than two weeks, all-too-familiar stalemate in congress that prevented the passage of commonsense legislation that triggered the across-the-board budget cuts better known as sequestration. these automatic budget cuts when they first went into -- became a possibility, everybody said no congress will be irresponsible enough to just allow them to go into -- into place. well, in the weeks leading up to sequestration, we were almost -- heard almost daily from federal agencies, defense contractors, members from both sides of the aisle just about how harmful these cuts would be. now -- notwithstanding the talk about how ridiculous it would be to go forward, the deadline for prevention has come and gone. now much of the focus appears to be not upon the wide swath of harm that's beginning to descend on communities across the nation, but instead on the closure of white house tours and whether we're goin

-reduce the wireless consumer choice act with senator leahy and senator blumenthal, and we are taking this very system. we think this is a great opportunity to open us up for competition. i think you know that there's been a lot of outrage over the recent decision by the library of congress, not a, for for people but that is if it creates uncertainty for consumers who want to unlock their phones from one network to switch to another. and again i see this as an opportunity and i wondered, i guess thank you if you would commit to work with us on this to addressing concerns and to take action and do you agree unlocking is an impediment for consumers choosing to switch carriers and, therefore, is a barrier to competition? >> i do. i think that decision from the library of congress raise real competition and innovation concerns. i was happy see the legislation introduced, and thank you for your leadership. it appears to be bipartisan issue. we need to address it because right now there are criminal penalties for someone to get a new phone and unlocks it. doesn't make sense. >> no, it doesn

>> senator leahy said he was disappointed. why does me issue a subpoena? >> and attorney general said -- [inaudible] who is keeping these memos from the committees that are supposed to do oversight? is the cia more important than the president? >> they prove that pressure works and not pressure doesn't work. for more than a year they asked for these memos to the administration didn't give them. then when they said they're going to hold off brennan's confirmation the administration handed over the memo. senator leahy once the memo, he has to issue a subpoena. >> we need the memos now. >> we the public need to see these military our want to know why after four years this administration has said it's going to be the most transparent administration has been given -- [inaudible] the information they need. and we the public, we want to see these memos. and it's more than just the memos. we want to see how they are justified by the fact they can kill not only americans, but non-americans. what happened to the children when they're killed by the drone strikes? wer

i wanted to highlight a statement that chairman leahy made to general holder yesterday regarding the possibility that this committee subpoena the documents. i want everybody, both republican and democrat, to know i fully support the chairman in this effort and would urge that absence a response from the president that we move forward with a vote on subpoena for these memoranda in the near future. then i'll go to my statement. i'm not asking you to comment, but at least you know how i feel about it. but i think you feel strongly about it or you wouldn't have brought it up. >> i also spoke again with the attorney general now going into private conversation, i think that he's -- he would like us to be able to see that and i think the decision we remains within the white house. i'm sorry they haven't even responded to our letter, but if need be we will subpoena because it is a matter, and we are going to have, for those of you who weren't there at the hearing when we talked about this, we are going to have a hearing on domestic use of drones in this committee. it would be helpful to have

leahy: mr. president, i will not engage the senator from arizona in questions because i don't want to delay his reading time, but i -- i appreciate the work the distinguished chair of the appropriations committee has done and the distinguished ranking member, the senior senator from bam. i have worked with both of them for decades on the appropriations committee and i know they -- i know they are diligent in their work, they are hard working. in fact, i recall a discussion with the distinguished senior senator from maryland when she agreed to take this assignment. i told her i didn't think of anybody better on our side of the aisle to be chair of this committee because i know how hard she works and how well she worked and i talked also to my distinguished friend from alabama at the time. again, somebody who knows how to work on appropriations. he and i have negotiated things over the years. we have always kept our word to each other just as the senator from maryland has. but you can't negotiate

go ahead. >> good morning, chairman leahy, ranking member grassley. i want to thank you and the rest of the members of the judiciary committee for inviting me to testify here today. my organization, the association of unmanned vehicle systems international, is the world's largest nonprofit organization devoted exclusively to advancing the unmanned systems and robotic community. we have more than 7,500 members, including more than 6,300 members in the united states. the industry is at the forefront of a technology that will not only benefit society but also the u.s. economy. earlier this month my organization released a study which found that the unmanned aircraft industry is poised to create 70,000 new jobs and $13.6 billion of economic impact within the first three years of following integration of unmanned aircraft into the national airspace. however, the industry understands that this technology is new to most americans, and they are pained being informed by what they see in the news. this hearing is an opportunity to address the misconceptions abo

very disturbed young leahy. she pled guilty, not guilty by reason of insanity. a federal court ordered her into treatment. she went to a pretty laborious process, found incompetent to stand trial. rendered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity. court-ordered mental health treatment in a confined environment. she was eventually released. she went to south carolina in favor of this year and was able to buy a gun. she passed a background check. the system did not record the fact that she'd been adjudicated mentally incompetent and dangerous to herself and others. she bought a .22 caliber pistol, a semiautomatic pistol. went to ashley hall private school, went into the administrators office, pulled a gun out and it did not fire. thank god. she's been arrested and she needs a lot of help. but there's an effort in a bipartisan way to make sure that adjudications like i get into the background system. there are over 14,000 i've been told that adjudications south carolina of people of danger to themselves and others through court process that are not entered into t

democratic senator pat leahy is pushing for a quick reform bill and vote.ore like a quick mess. >> if is it happening in broad daylight with a u.s. senator watching watching and an abc camera crew getting it on tape, what is the rush for doing this all wrong? >> exactly. we'll see a repeat of history. go right back to 1986 where good men like newt gingrich were for it and ronald reagan sign a law giving two million people citizenship. >> neil: the idea was that we would have a strict border control with that. and of course, reagan was hood winked, and many others, because that part never happened. >> that's the second part of the deal. so the lesson learned is we can't repeat that because now the consequences are far greater. we're talking 11 to 20 million people they're now saying, golly, gee, we're not being good americans, reflecting on the proud history of a nation of immigrantsles -- immigrants unless we do this and we'll repeat this. if they have an 1 foot fence and they're scaling it in front of the senators. what do you think happens a night in ariz

. >> hopeful leahy said he smells like freedom. >> he smells awesome. >> i hate it when people use the word awesome. >> i don't mind the word awesome as long as you hear a dictator described that way. if we want to make a statement about north korea, stop giving the money to curtail their nuclear program? how about we stop doing that to make a statement. >> we can guff the money we barrow from china. maybe we should live there. >> maybe we should send lisa ling's sister there. >> how much did that cost us? >> do you know how much that cost us? bill clinton's dignity. >> it is a family show. >> well, it is not a family show unless it is a man son family. >> are you a chicago bulls fan and both of your dads are genocidal dictators. >> the important thing to understand when you come to a wizzard like rodman it is not what was said, but what wasn't said like prepositions. complete sentences. anybody who wears money does not have any of their own. the reason he went there is because he is broke. >> it was a free ticket. >> it was a free ticket. the guy owes a lot of money to a lot of bookie

there is a bit of progress to report from that committee chairman pat strike leahy said bipartisan senators will support legislation. we'll watch how robert me menendez is handleing the mess, conservative website the daily caller started this whole mess back in november when it posted this video of two women making the claims. daily caller standing by his reporting saying the posts have alleged prostitutes all mixed up. senator menendez said he's the victim of a smear campaign but his problems don't stop there. this is all connected to the senator's dealing with dr. solomon melgen. senator me then menendez denies that he was part of the patronage. david schuster joins us from new york. hi david. >> great to be with you again. >> michael: tell us what you're learning about the menendez controversy. >> the menendez camp is overjoyed that the "washington post" put out this story suggesting that the daily caller got it completely wrong even though the daily caller is suggesting that the washington post has the wrong caller. and menendez said he was victimize and right wings are out to get him a

could, as he sort of did in fits and starts in the exchange's this morning with takers and patrick leahythers say, well, this is such a hypothetical. you know, but no, we're not going to do that. he has not chosen to do that. he did it this morning and sort of a roundabout way after five or six attempts to not answer the question, he basically said, no, or not going to do this. but it is a serious question. i think the fact that they want to now give the president a preserve for the president to stand of executive authority given everything that this president nd eric holder have said in the past is a truly stunning turnabout for barack obama. lou: i am struck by the insistence on the part of the various republicans. they'reoing to have an accounting. they're going to have answers. senator ipo g, mccain, senator paul. starting another one answers on benghazi. those answers have not been forthcoming. and when this filibuster in this, as it surely will, the burning confirmation will move ahead images like that of senator kerry, and there will be confirmation because the republican party wi

sea co-sponsor with a bill by senator leahy, he in essence decriminalized possession of drugs. last year he led an effort, a rather lonely effort to stop a ban on synthetic drugs. he held up the bill eventually passed by a 96 to 1 vote in the senate. so there are some things that he is not in -- >> bill: why did he do that? most people don't know what that is all about. he was the only voice against. >> actually, he ended up not voting on it. the only vote cast against it. >> bill: why? >> i assume that he didn't believe that we ought to ban the synthetic drugs. and bernie sanders was the only member of the congress to actually vote against it. rand paul and two others failed to vote. but he had -- he held up the legislation when it was a stand alone bill sponsored by senator -- democrat of minnesota. a war on drugs is not the only war that he has got some problems with the war on terror. he jumped to the imagination of the american people by taking advantage of a really stupid mistake by eric holder who could not answer the question does the president of the united states have

senator leahy who is chair of the judiciary committee have expressed concerns about what the rules arewhy can't we know what the rules are for this vast killing program. >> it's important to note those aren't just younger senators. all the senators, rubio, paul, lee, toomey. they all came in representing the establishment. >> but i also think what's important that happened this past week, not to put a completely positive spin on it, but there was something important about democracy at work. whether you think the actors were genuine within themselves. there say civil war going on in the republican party. and that's kind of what you're referring to. and i think it was showing up this past week. in very important ways not just generational. but also about these fundamental issues of who are awe. and what's the real base and who do we speak to. >> that is the question. you set a new guard. you noted that the people that stood with rams to invoke the hash tag were largely tea party of recently elected. and you're saying there's a certain civil war in the republican party. i would like to di

senator leahy had said sometimes the law gets too broad to be effective. i'm focused on protecting our child advocacy centers and those abuse centers. >> congresswoman marsha blackburn, thank you. coming up, unemployment dropped to 7.7%. we'll get reaction from the white house. plus seeing red. divided reaction to rand paul's filibuster. our friday jobs day gaggle will be here. you're watching "the daily rundown" only on msnbc. cold feels nice on sore muscles, huh? you know you could just use bengay zero degrees. medicated pain relief you store in the freezer. brrr...see ya boys. [ male announcer ] bengay zero degrees. freeze and move on. a talking car. but i'll tell you what impresses me. a talking train. this ge locomotive can tell you exactly where it is, what it's carrying, while using less fuel. delivering whatever the world needs, when it needs it. ♪ after all, what's the point of talking if you don't have something important to say? ♪ >>> developing now, we're just about an hour away from the start of the funeral for venezuelan president hugo chavez

senator leahy is leading us. kirsten and myself from the northeast also involved as the leading cosponsors. so i think we are on the cusp of a major breakthrough if we can move this bill out of committee and through the united states senate. >> it is amazing it has not been a federal crime before. and i know first hand you've been passionate about this. not only are you a senator from the state where newtown happened, but where you've been on this concern a long time since a prosecutor. and as a senator. in fact, i've been in black churches with you in your state where you addressed this question of violence. but the question also is background checks. when we look now, the progress is being made of trafficking but aimed at universal background checks might be in peril. senator tom coburn and chuck schumer have been negotiating on background checks but coburn says they have failed a reach an agreement on his top concern. and that is that no permanent recordkeeping on gun purchases be made a result of background c

we have democrats like myself and senator leahy was leading that the chairman of the committee is leadinghe trafficking effort. i think we can muster support. there is a spectrum of political acceptability so to speak and bipartisan support and maybe the assault weapon ban is the toughest most uphill climb for any of the measures. they all have legs and especially if the nra is counting on the connecticut effect, dissipating or fading i, i think thigh are sadly mistaken. >> we will talk more as this moves ahead. mourners fill the streets of venezuela. his death leaves questions about what's next from the region. we will get a live report. but first, there is a lot going on today. here are things we thought you should know. the los angeles mayoral race is headed for a run off as eric garcetti and city comptroller were able to capture a majority. tea party republican texas congressman is responding to the cancellation of public white house tours by proposing an amendment to the continuing resolution that prevents the government to pay for the president's golf trips. citing supports by the m

senators patrick leahy chair of the judiciary committee asking them to slow down the process on immigrationorm. it's such a big issue that the public really needed to debate it. six of the eight are fully familiar with the issues including senator orrin hatch, who has been in the senate, worked closely with ted kennedy knows these issues backwards and forward. mike lee from utah has been in the senate for two years maybe he doesn't know that much, ted cruz but-- >> michael: we've been debating it now for ten years. it reminds me of brown versus board of education and the deliberate speed. now is the time for speed on this issue. >> absolutely. >> michael: do you think there is a parallel between those two? >> i absolutely do. i was so astounded at the notion that there needs to be more time. it's been more than ten years. i'm very glad to see some republicans including senator rand paul are talking about a path to citizenship. >> michael: that is important but senator paul did not use the word "citizenship" in his speech. nor did he use the term "pathway to citizenship" because of the polar

of the gang of eight senators trying it hammer out an agreement and he wrote judiciary chairman pat leahy urging him to make sure the bill goes through rigorous public hearings once it's introduced. and you said that delays for delay's sake, but the pursuant of a last solution would be the goal even more dangerous than the goals many of us share. >> a final agreement until we look alt the legislative language and correctly pointing out that that language hasn't been fully drafted. >> we're much closer with labor and business agreeing on this guest worker plan. that doesn't mean we've crossed every i or dotted every t. >> and one said we have a deal. and the white house is hopeful, a spokesman saying the president continues to be encouraged by the progress of the bipartisan group of senators. we look forward to seeing the language once it's introduced and moving forward as soon as possible. guest workers would be paid no less than the median wage in their industry. in washington, steve centanni, fox news. >> harris: right now, a manhunt in texas after a district attorney and his wife were

senator patrick leahy said: cenk: now, understand that what he's saying is that the administration has secret law. in a democracy that should be abhorrent, unacceptable. lay he is saying you can't have secret law used to execute u.s. citizens and we can't even check in on that law. the question rand paul focused on was can you kill u.s. citizens on u.s. so i am without a trial and guess what? attorney general eric holder came in and said you know what, it seemed we were saying you could, but all of a sudden, not so much. he says: cenk: that was not an additional question, that was the core question. he put in a couple of qualifiers there to have wiggle room as an attorney, of course be so they probably can kill u.s. citizens on u.s. soil under different circumstances. rand paul when asking about it seem somewhat satisfied with the answer. >> are you satisfied? >> i'm quite happy with the answer. i'm disappointed it took a month and a half and root canal to get it. that's what i've been asking all along. cenk: let's bring in a couple of experts, andrew kirell and colonel morris davis wa

i wanted to highlight a statement that chairman leahy made to general holder yesterday regarding theossibility that this committee subpoena the documents. i want everybody, both republican and democrat, to know i fully support the chairman in this effort and would urge that absence a response from the president that we move forward with a vote on subpoena for these memoranda in the near future. then i'll go to my statement. i'm not asking you to comment, but at least you know how i feel about it. but i think you feel strongly about it or you wouldn't have brought it up. >> i also spoke again with the attorney general now going into private conversation, i think that he's -- he would like us to be able to see that and i think the decision we remains within the white house. i'm sorry they haven't even responded to our letter, but if need be we will subpoena because it is a matter, and we are going to have, for those of you who weren't there at the hearing when we talked about this, we are going to have a hearing on domestic use of drones in this committee. it would be helpful to have t