joining me now, alex wagner, nbc analyst and reporter for the huffington post. you're the only last word guest who could follow moby dick airlines. >> it's quite a lead-in, lawrence. >> just go with it. when i say we talked to the owner of moby dick airlines, of course, i mean the staff of the last word today, and we find out he bought the company in 2006, has no idea why it was named moby dick airlines. he should maybe tonight be thinking something more jet-like. >> yeah, there are a lot of question marks over the gingrich campaign at this point, and moby dick airlines, i think, is high up there if not in the top five. i think overall if we're talking about programs and found raysing prowess, one of the most telling things is that only one in five of the top republican donors who gave to the mccain campaign in 2008 gave to this current cycle of gop fundraising. we've said it before, i'm sure it will be settled again, it's a hugely unsettled field. for someone like mitt romney, predicated on the notion that he can make it rain, the fact his numbers are not even c

. >> joining me now, "huffington post" reporter and msnbc contributor alex wagner. have you made your contribution yet to the colbert super pac? >> in a donation under $50 so that he does not have to disclose it. >> so the question of the day is, is this a joke? >> no. the fec ruled in his favor, and the fec is a very serious body. my favorite part of that whole sort of scene in washington today was that they panned out from the rest of the room, and you could see the faces of all of the fec folks on the board, and they were just beaming like we're finally getting our 15 minutes. but it is very serious. and this sets a precedent. now other folks on other channels who have political leanings such as sarah palin will be free to fund raise and advocate and, you know -- >> well, she order -- palin already has a pac. all they said today is if you discuss the pac on your show, that will not be considered a contribution from viacom or comedy central. it was a very minor point. it doesn't really change the landscape much. let's listen to colbert's answer to the question of,

. >>> okay, jonathan martin, top reporter in this city, and alex wagner, both of you, let me start with alex, because she's here. this twitter-natn thing and the president at least receives tweets, you know, a couple years ago this would be considered bizarre, but tell me why he has to do it. when his staff went to him and said you should do this, what do you think they said? >> this is a huge push towards the youth vote. this is something that the president has long held close to his heart. he did "the daily show with jon stewart" bakley he has mark zuckerberg on call. twitter is another reiteration, and obama knows that the youth live there. for 2012, the youth were a critical vote in the last election. >> the 2008 election. they were not so helpful last time. jonathan, look at this, 2008, 18% of voters were between 18 and 29. that hefty portion helped get this guy elected. they voted for president obama 66-32%. gaby giffords was on that twitter, and e-mail. that's how they communicate now, and now how they get news but get information from friends and relatives and everything else. h

joining mess is huffington post alex wagner, also an msnbc analyst.nk for you joining us. >> thanks for having me. >> what are you seeing? >> a couple things. i think the republicans in large part have seen this as an interesting political exercise. as you want, there are real consequences to this. there are 22,000 people in minnesota wo don't have jobs right now. the first people that will get cut and the first people to feel these shutdown? services are the elderly, the blind, the poor, the people struggling to hang on and people facing foreclosures. the idea they can go about this as a theoretical practice ignores the fact there's a human elements to all of this. >> a poll says 63% favor a mix. why aren't republicans just listening to the constituency? >> i think there's always a dismissal of the democrats, you know, and their platform. i think, to your point, there is a widespread feeling in this country that it's going to hurt. everything nose we'll have to do some belt tightening. to me it's illogical that the republicans are being so hardline o

joining me is huffington post report and is msnbc analyst alex wagner. can she run in a bubble?e it. >> i ran for president, and they didn't let me run in a bubble. >> no, you can't. living in the bubble works when you're trying to build grass-roots support, but when you're on the national stage, you do have to answer these tough questions. this is hugely controversial, so are a number of other things. this is someone who has railed against, quote/unquote, government handouts, and it turns out they have received subsidy foss their clinic, for their farm. she received a federally backed home loan. there's something to be said for standing behind your decision, and if you can't, someone will answer the tough questions for you. if that's the opposition, i don't think it's a good play. >> i don't think it's as much the particulars as the inconsistency. you've taken a policy decision, but you seem to have done otherwise in your own business. >> the idea you won't have to answer questions like that when you're on the national stage i think is ludicrous. you can't almost see the light

thank you clarence page and alex wagner. appreciate you being here. >> thank you. >>> up next, how can an al qaeda terrorist in afghanistan, a triple agent, if you will, manage to infiltrate the cia and kill seven operatives? we're going to talk to the author of a hit new book that takes us inside the 2009 attack. that's next, and this is "hardball" only on msnbc. >>> the u.s. government's remaining shares in the company meaning the government's $12.5 billion bailout ended up costing taxpayers $1.3 billion. >>> we'll be right back. 8gg@ú >>> welcome back to "hardball." it's been more than two months since u.s. special forces shot and killed osama bin laden. in the wake of that success, it's easy to forget the long, hard road to get there. back in debt of 2009, the cia thought he had the ultimate double agent who would lead them to the top echelon of al qaeda but turn out to be a triple agent, buried so deeply into the cia when he detonated the bomb he was wearing he killed seven cia agents as well as himself. "washington pos

thank you clarence page and alex wagner.ppreciate you being here. >> thank you. >>> up next, how can an al qaeda terrorist in afghanistan, a triple agent, if you will, manage to infiltrate the cia and kill seven operatives? we're going to talk to the author of a hit new book that takes us inside the 2009 attack. that's next, and this is "hardball" only on msnbc. fiat bought the remain is u.s. shares in the company. >>> the u.s. government's remaining shares in the company meaning the government's $12.5 billion bailout ended up costing taxpayers $1.3 billion. >>> we'll be right back. this past year alone there was a 93% increase in cyber attacks. in financial transactions... on devices... in social interactions... and applications in the cloud. some companies are worried. some, not so much. thanks to a network that secures it all and knows what to keep in, and what to keep out. outsmart the threats. see how at cisco.com cisco. years ago, my mother taught me. and over the years, i've taught my family. we've created so much her

and also alex wagner, huffington post reporter are and msnbc contributor. thank you both for joining us. chuck first. the way i see it, the senate acts tonight on the house bill after the house bill passes if it does, and we head into a weekend effort to reconcile the two approaches. the president should have on his desk by monday some kind of dealmaker? your thoughts? >> reporter: that's an if somehow harry reid and mitch mcconnell could tum to an agreement how the boehner bill, assuming it makes it over and all folks are planning on the assumption that it will, that assuming they can come together and agreement on amendments. one giant sticking point. this idea for the second round of the deficit reduction, if somehow this joint committee fails to find the deficit reduction numbers in it automatically before another debt ceiling vote happens you've got to find another $1.8 trillion in cuts, putting us right back to where we are now. the white house says it's a non-starter. harry reid says it's a non-starter. the question is politically, how much hardball

they sat down with pat buchanan and "the huffington post's" alex wagner to dissect the 2012 republicansation. >> chris christie, you know kris christie better than anybody else. you've hugged him longer than anybody on the set. >> very huggable. >> mika, knowing chris krchrist the way you do, do you think there's any way he gets dragged into this republican race? >> yes, i do, and i hope it doesn't happen. >> you think it does, you think it doesn't happen? when he's hugging you, is he whispering in your ear saying, if they just ask me nice? >> no, they're begging him. they're already begging him. and we could have a turning point in history where things are really bads and he is really put on the spot and kind of forced. and i hope that doesn't happen for his sake. >> i will tell you -- >> and for his family's sake. >> you look at barack obama's weaknesses, alex, and even his own base will say, his weaknesses, he's a professor. as pat buchanan said four years ago, this guy is all faculty lounge. he's a professor, he's not -- he doesn't seem to be decisive at times. he's not for gay mar