bush. >> so much bitterness in washington. time to have a fresh start. >> one of the reasons i was successful as the governor of texas is because i didn't try to be all things to all people. >> the only way to convince voters to vote for al gore was to not ask them for a third clinton term. >> we are entering a new time. we are electing a new president and i stand here tonight as my own man and i want you to know me for who i really am. >> well, about a week and a half before the election, karl rove suggested that george bush could actually win by as many as nine points across the country. >> bret. >> the bush campaign is asking me to wait 20 minutes on the story to get they're ducks in a row. >> we can't do that. >> revealations about governor george w. bush. >> there is a report out tonight that 24 years ago i was apprehended in maine for a d.u.i. that is an accurate story. >> karl rove still blames me and fox for breaking the dwi story. he to this day believes that george w. bush's elect

bush. let's start with just a general at the end of m4 as toys that come>> and i think on things that is i see is even if he doesn't want to play politics, he's also missing the political game that's being played around him. and that was one of the things that did come through in the book as i was reading it. >> and lara brown is the author of jockeying for the american presidency, the political opportunism of aspirants. dr. brown if you wrote president bush of his book what would be your study. >> i talk about his election campaign in 2000. and i basically see similar problems with him that i see with most of the modern presidents. and that is, quite frankly, their experience in politics is rather limited. and as a result, they may be sort of good at giving us speeches or making all the right moves or being in the right places for the photo ops but as i said, they seem to miss the politics around them either for their advisors, consultants, foreign leaders and what have you. >> and tevy is

you are so interested in blaming bush than now. the unemployment under bush was a low number. massive amount of people employed. >> i can't believe you're defending eight years of bush. >> i mean, the fact that you have guys prefer to ignore it and ignore obama's record as well. >> i can't -- it's breathtaking. we live on two different planets. >> james, the 2012 election, though, does it then become a referendum on health care reform and on tax cuts? i mean, is that -- are those the two central issues? >> you knows. a lot can happen. i don't think -- i really think the election is about economic growth. i don't think it's about tax cuts people making over $250,000 a year. the tax on estate over $5 million a year. it may be that but i beg to differ. i do not think it's going to be about that. the republicans argue we need incremental small changes in health care that we have the best health -- deepest, best health care in the world. democrats think otherwise. i think that's something that we're going to have to slug it out on. it -- sometimes elections have to be about somethi

bush and laura bush.u for their shared commitment to our country and to the tenants -- tenets of democracy. we pray that this center will be an inspiration to those who choose public service. we pray that those who study and learn in the context of this great institution will have a deeper appreciation for the history and the future of the united states of america. dodd plus us now -- god bless us now and blessed the fabric of this center. in your holy name we pray, amen. >> please welcome the chair of the george w. bush foundation board of director, secretary donald evans. [applause] >> thank you for the blessing and inspiration of your words. what a wonderful crowd for an incredibly joyous occasion. good morning to all of you. welcome to the ground breaking celebration of the george w. bush presidential center on the beautiful campus of southern methodist university of dallas texas. [applause] what a thrill to be here on this historic day joined by more than 3000 friends and supporters and the bush fami

not close. >> what's interesting is you're talking clinton/bush and not bush/obama. >> obama, the stockis much better under obama than bush, much better. >> here is what is really clear is that under clinton, you did have a peace and prosperity that was broader to more americans. right now under george bush -- sorry, but under george bush you've got prosperity that was fairly concentrated on a very few individuals and this was part of the problem with the country right now. the middle class -- you're in a class warfare. you just don't know it yet. you better start shooting. >> i appreciate the two against one but the bush record speaks for itself. you are so interested in blaming bush as opposed to looking at it now. the unemployment under bush was a low number. you had massive amount of people employed. >> i can't believe you're defending eight years of bush. i'm shocked. >> i mean, the fact that you guys prefer to ignore it and ignore obama's record as well. >> i can't -- it's breathtaking. we live on two different planets. >> james, the 2012 election, though, does it then become a re

bush often does not. but tonight we bring you the story of a bipartisan effort, a battle to make a difference. >> it started prior to my run for president. i was caulking to conde about -- talking to conde about foreign policy and said would you be course of the team? in the course of the discussion she said i expect you to focus on africa. once you make the decision to focus on africa, then you have to focus on aids. it's by far the biggest problem on the continent of africa. >> bret: after that conversation, governor bush who would become president bush, lifted fighting global aids epidemic on a focus on sub -- africa. >> we hold beliefs beyond ourselves. >> you have to belief in one thing. >> bret: bono, lead singer of u# and long-time is up is porter of after -- supporter africa told me eight to ten years ago the situation was grave. >> i remember seeing, going to a shoddy hospital in mulawi where there is four to a bed. so you have -- people are queuing up to die. there is no cure for the disease. th

bush and barbara. hear his comments about president obama and her candid message for a prominent republican. a moving, revealing hour with a few special guests, too. >> i poured vodka in the fishbowl and killed my little sister, darla's, goldfish. >> larry: next on "larry king live." >> larry: what a great pleasure to welcome to "larry king live" for the umpteenth time the bushes. we are at the astonia hotel, in houston, texas. president george h.w. bush, the 41st president of the united states, and barbara, the former first lady who didn't wear her suspenders. >> oh, darn it. >> larry: you should have, right? it would have been in keeping. first of all, let's start with you. how are you feeling? >> very well. >> larry: what was wrong? >> i don't know. but may i give you some advice? never ask anyone over 70 how they feel. they'll tell you. >> larry: but you were taken to the hospital. was it an emergency? >> mm-hmm. but i feel great. that's it. >> larry: you're not going to tell me what was the matter

bush campaigned on giving some of that money back to the people. >> the younger bush went around tellingople, "look, i'm more like ronald reagan than my father." and at the time the budget was in surplus, so the tax cut didn't seem like such a bad idea. >> the people of america have been overcharged. and on their behalf, i'm here asking for a refund. >> the democrats were calling it an abomination. they were calling it unfair. >> couric: unfair because, they argued, the cuts favored the rich. >> if you're a millionaire under the bush tax cut, you get a $46,000 tax cut, more than enough to pay for this lexus. but if you're a typical working person, you get $227, and that's enough to buy this muffler. >> there were about a dozen democrats who in the end voted for the president's tax cut plan, there was a lot of pressure. >> couric: in a rare memorial day session, the senate passed bush's $1.3 trillion tax cut plan, lowering tax rates 3% to 5% in all income brackets, phasing out the estate tax, reducing the marriage penalty, and doubling the per-child credit to $1,000. >> the first broad ta

bush. but during the presidency, his eight years, the wealthiest 400 americans, those are pretty high up guy. no matter how broadly you deploi that, they're in no more than doubles.il but that's whether incomee tax thr inco rate, their income tax rates the dropped less than half.rn on the wealthiest 400 americans oni fverage 300 for 5 billion figuro and pay an effective tax rate of t.6% on average. that's the lowest tax rate for . working individuals on record.ls the point is, senator landrieung is talking about aren't talkingr about the people out in the in r the real world are working longer hours for low wages, median family income has declined. people are scared for the first time in our moderr history, their kids are going to have a lower standard of living than they do. you hear that,e louisiana? >> i am. the >> people on top are doing well. senator landrieu is ask in a simple question. and if people are asking the same question. the wealthy people are becoming much a richer. middle c

bush and then handed george w. bush the largest surplus in history, and then george w. bush nearly doubled the national debt and also handed barack obama the largest deficit in history. and, of course, my friends controlled the congress for most of those bush years. now, today we're talking about thousand get our economy going and keep deficits down at the same time. whilwhat we're discussing rightw is whether to restore the clinton marginal tax rate on the very wealthiest of americans. now, i remember when we -- when he raised the tax rate on the top 2%. republicans said that would kill the economy. newt gingrich, remember him? on august 5, 1993, he said, "i believe this will lead to a recession next year. this is the democrat machine's recession, and each one of them will be held personally accountable." senator phil gram, remember him? he said, "the clinton plan is a one-way ticket to recession. this plan does not reduce the deficit, but it raises it and puts people out of work." now governor-elect john kasich said "this plan will not work. if it was to work, then i'

bush. so in the reagan/bush era, the military has gone undercover in the world that we see though not in the world that sees us. for if it is absent from our everyday culture, its influence is omnipresent in corporate america. that world beyond our politics and out of our control. the world which, nonetheless, plans our high-tech future of work and consumption. there the militarization of the economy and the corporatization of the military is a process so far gone that it seems reasonable to ask whether the united states can even be said to have a civilian economy. that was me in 1989, and it was an exaggerated statement. you know, that was then, this is now. today it seems our country is triumphant in producing only things that go boom in the night. we have a near monopoly on the global weapons market and on the global movie market where, in the dark, we're experts in explosions of every sort. when i wrote in 989 that the -- 1989 that the process was so far gone, i had no idea how far we s

let the bush tax cuts expire, go into january, keep fighting. they know they can reinstate them retroactively, but most senate democrats realize their position won't get any better in january when republicans take over the house and gain more seats in the senate. they're basically looking at this and saying "this is the best we can get." >> schieffer: but it does appear that they are going to get this, as far as the unemployment benefits. that's very important to millions of americans, with christmas coming up. >> there's other priorities, other tax credits that the obama administration wants. they'll say, listen, as part of this compromise we got a lot of things that democrats care about. but on the big issue, they're taking the republican position. that's why democrats on capitol hill are privately livid, because they feel that the white house basically telegraphed a compromise several weeks ago when david axelrod had made some comments. they've done so in private meetings ever since. this is sort of inevitable. you had that feeling with the s

house of representatives has just voted to extend the bush tax cuts. for families making below $250,000 a year. stay tuned.

of bush. how do we survive as a strong industrial power if our manufacturing jobs disappear? today, mr. president, there are fewer manufacturing jobs in this country than there were in april of 1941, about eight months before the attack on pearl harbor. fewer manufacturing jobs today than in april of 1941. and those manufacturing jobs that are left -- that are left in many cases pay lower wages, with fewer benefits, than they did a generation ago. in other words, we are moving not only in the decline in our manufacturing jobs, but in the wages that our workers earn and the benefits that they receive. and i raise all of these issues to put this agreement between the president and the republican leadership in a broader, broader context. today -- and this is just an incredible fact, and it is just absolutely frightening for the future of the middle class in this country. today, entry level automobile workers at general motors and chrysler now earn half as much, half as much as their peers made ju

bush. this was a huge concession. let's go a little bit further. how did it happen? now, the president and his negotiators for his treaty have insisted there is no connection between their negotiation and missile defense. we have not conceded a thing on missile defense. it's a win for us on missile defense. senator kerry said it would not lessen our ability to do a missile defense program. so i would just go a little further about it. the new start negotiations with the russians concluded on march of 2010, but they have again on march -- but they begin on march of 2009, before the president canceled the polish site. so what happened was as part of the negotiations over this treaty, the russians made absolutely clear they were not happy and did not want and would not accept a missile defense system in europe, the same thing they told president bush. but president bush didn't acquiesce. they said we don't have to have the treaty. we don't want to reduce our weapon systems anyway. we'll just r

it was with bush, it is under obama. fundamentally obama has done a lot for america's -- >> sean: dictators apologizes for america, saying america is arrogant? >> he's popular outside of america. >> sean: not america. your leaders are upset at his economic policies, which are failing. it's hurting the rest of the world's economy. america needs a recovery, and that will help europe, that will help the entire world. >> well, fundamentally the american economy is doing pretty well. >> sean: fundamentally it's in -- >> it's been up. >> sean: can i give you one copy of the "wall street journal"? i disagree. >> if we stipulate her argument that president obama is popular in europe and elsewhere in the world, the reason that he is popular is he's because perceived as weak and these countries can run circles around him. it comes in different forms, right? it comes in the forms of being dissed for the olympics or the world cup soccer match 12 years from now, but comes in more dangerous forms like aggression. weakness begets aggre

i got a suggestion for them stop acting like bush and we won't compare you to bush i'm totally with you on that let us down professional lefties thanks so much for joining us. thank you. it's nice fireside with your. earlier this week we look back at experiments that the cia performed on soldiers and civilians during the one nine hundred fifty s. and sixty's everything from giving them l.s.d. trying to cure homosexuality or even placing devices in their brains well those are horrible revelations but at least that was all the past right well not so much we've already learned that during the bush administration this country tortured individuals to get mo who knows where else today we have a new piece of information an investigation done by the seton hall university school of law shows that the u.s. military routinely administered high doses of a malaria drug which poses severe psychological side effects to detainees at guantanamo bay there's a drug that even in standard doses can cause severe side effects like hallucinations convulsions psychotic behavior memory impairment a drug that

bush to the white house.ext, from the abc news vault. ballots and the decision that finally sent george w. bush to the white house. next, from the abc news vault. >>> it is hard to imagine, but back on this day ten years ago, the 2000 presidential election was finally decided. >> that was when the supreme court ruled in favor of then-governor george w. bush, making him president of the united states. we go back in the abc news vault, from december 13th, 2000. >> so, the country prepares to begin again. mr. gore will tell the country in person tonight that the election is over. governor bush will speak afterwards, as the soon-to-be 43rd president-elect. by the narrowest margin in the electoral college since 1876. and in the supreme court, by one vote. we're going to begin our coverage with abc's terry moran. terry? >> reporter: peter, tonight, al gore's aides describe him as calm, at peace with himself and his decision. confident in his belief that he fought the good fight in this election. and very focused on

not over the bush tax cuts but their tax cuts. the ones included in the president's stimulus last year that are now set to expire this year. the president's team wants to extend them into future years and roll extending jobless benefits into that while they are at it. the cost is $150 billion a year, $1.5 trillion over 10 years. twice what it would cost to, for example, extend the bush tax cuts on the rich over the same 10 years. but here is where it is getting weird. the white house reportedly doesn't have a way to pay for the cuts, something that it has demanded of extending the top bush cuts. carl, man, great job narrating us through the process. talking about throwing a monkey wrench in this. >>reporter: some of the democrats and the republicans in the house of representatives have talked if it is smart to extend the recovery act tax cuts. the stimulus which is controversial and a lot have argued it has not been effective, does expire at the end of the year so the tax cuts would also go away. the president's expression of supp

bush and president george w. bush tried and sometimes came within two or three votes of getting the acquired legislative support. i hope it never happens. and over a period of time i think more and more americans and alaskans are realizing that we need to prefer the special area. >> host: what about offshore drilling? i believe that shell wants to drill off of the arctic refuge up there. would you agree on offshore or -- >> guest: i don't think so. i think we need it. that's where some of the islands are on the peninsula in that region. when we passed the alaska lands bill in late 1980, we opened up 95% of all the coastal areas of alaska for oil drilling. we only preserved 5% which is a special area we are talking about. where we prohibited oil drilling, and i think the 5% is not -- is not too much to save because it's just like god made it and i hope it will be there for my grandchildren to in july. >> host: why do you feel sarah palin and alaska is becoming so much of a public discourses of her personality, and

bush was first.visionists like george will will soon be claiming bush won the popular vote. >>> the new republican chairman of the house financial services committee. when it comes to the money changers, he has a mainstream for you. the banks are going to be regula regulated. and my view is that washington and regulators are there to serve the banks. don't get on that ship. the government serves the banks? it's a cookbook, and we're the banks lunch. spencer main street, if all the banks are locates on main strake, bacchus. today's worst person in the world. [ female announcer ] will women switch to new caltrate soft chews because they have 20% more calcium per chew than viactiv or for the delicious flavors like chocolate truffle and vanilla creme? mmm. -mmm. -mmm. [ female announcer ] hard to say really. new caltrate soft chews, we put the yum in calcium. princess of the powerpoint. your core competency... is competency. and you rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the

bush powers in. bush had 95 of the team's 251-yards rushing. 21-3 oakland at the half. the chargers strike back you knew they would in the fourth, rivers to gates. san diego cuts the lead to eight. raiders trying to hang on. third and one. watch the play fake from campbell. san diego thinks they stopped michael bush, but instead it's campbell long to murphy. gain of 37 yards. sets up darrin mcfadden. his 97 yards. raiders stay two back of the chiefs in the 28-13 win, improving to 6-6. sometime 49ers in green bay. wearing their throwback unis. packers, a free play on the penalty. aaron rodgers to jennings, 7-6 packers. later, smith, great catch and better move. davis, a career high 126 yards receiving. 14-13 packers at the half. third quarter, big play biting the niners. driver woke up with food poisoning and this is a seminar how not to tackle could someone please bring this man down. 61-yard on the score. more from rodgers, perfect strike to jennings, six catches, 122-yards. third and goal, rodgers to jennings again, aaron threw for 298 yards and three scores. niners l

bush and president george w.bush tried and sometimes came within two or three votes of getting the required legislative support. i hope it never happens. over time more and more americans and more and more alaskans are realizing we need to preserve the special area. >> host: what about offshore drilling? and believe shell wants to drill up there. off shore up there? >> guest: i don't think so. i think we need it. that is where some of the islands are. the peninsula went out in the region. when we passed the alaska land built in late 1980 we opened up 95 percent of all the coastal areas of alaska for oil drilling. we only preserve 5% which is a special area were talking about. we prohibited the oil drilling. i think the 5% is not too much to say because it's just like god made it. i hope it will be there for my grandchildren to enjoy. >> host: why do you feel sarah palin and alaska is becoming so much a part of our public discourse? is it her personality? have you ever met her or do you have any views about what s

>> at least. >> bill: the bush so-called tax deal. >> at least two years. look for russ feingold as lindsey graham said on my radio show today. look for russ feingold to start making moves for a possible challenge to obama in 2012 from the left. >> bill: laura ingraham everybody. thank you. next on the run down, andy give fifth getting pounded. apparently pro obama commercial doesn't tell the whole truth. later, congressman charles rangel didn't pay all of his taxes so why isn't he going to jail like wesley snipes? megyn kelly will tell us upcoming. [ man ] if it was simply about money, every bank loan would be a guarantee of success. at ge capital, loaning money is the start of the relationship, not the end. work with polaris every day. at ge capital, we succeed only when they do. whoo! awesome! yes! we've got to get you out of the office more often. ♪ my turn to drive. ♪ can a trading site help make you a sharper trader? my turn to drive. mine can. td ameritrade can. they've got trading specialists i can call for help. and paper trading. free practice tra

the bankers ever be rained down yesterday president obama announced a deal with republicans on the bush tax cuts that extended tax breaks for the wealthy just like obama promised not to do so is this the ultimate capitulation from president obama and what are the consequences for the u.s. economy then cities all over the united states are cutting essential services like police and fire departments as revenues are drying up cities like camden new jersey which is the second most dangerous city in the united states so one poverty rates and unemployment are on the rise is making cuts to essential services really the right answer next for the first time in history a private company has successfully launched a spacecraft into orbit and then guided it back to earth. so what does that mean for nasa and the future of commercial space travel and discuss that with jeffrey manber commercial space pioneer that's going to be at the end of the show but now let's move on to our top story. earlier this week obama announced a deal on the tax cuts that has led democrats and progressives reeling with anger

bush himself. the man who got us into two endless war the man who brought us to the brink of national bankruptcy. the man who gave us $4 a gallon gasoline. george w. bush makes a cull $4.2 million a year, according to "newsweek." that means that extending the bush tax cuts for george bush means an extra $187,000 in his pockets every single year. i have a better idea. instead of placating these people and letting them spew out onto the airwaves their lies about the bush tax cut ever revealing the fact that they stand to gain millions, millions of dollars each year from their selfish desire to take advantage of the rest of america, let's do this. let's take that money and create jobs. all that money that the bush tax cuts are charging us that can create jobs for three million americans a year. $30,000 job a fair wage for fair work, a dig fied wage for dig fied work and a way to -- a dignified wage for dignified work and a way to help our economy, a better idea than putting money in the pocks of the r

san diego thinks they have bush stopped, but instead it's lewis going long to murphy.sets up mcfadden. raiderred stay two back of the chiefs after the win, improving to 6-6. >>> well, the 49ers spent the day in green bay, and they have to score when they're in the red zone as they're not good enough to beat teams with field goals. packers wearing 1929 throw-back unis. sect -- rodgers heaves it to jennings, 6-7 packers. in the certification 14-6 green bay. troy smith to davis, gone. 66 yards. davis, career high 126 yards. 14-13 packers at the half. third quarter, driver woke up with food poisoning, and this is a seminar how not to tackle. someone bring him down! later in the third, more from rodgers, the quarterback that got away from the niners, a perfect strike to jennings, jennings, again, 298 yards, three scores, 34-16 the final. >>> tiger woods has never lost a tournament when leading by at least three shots going into the final round until today, at his own event. tiger blew a four stroke lead. he and graeme mcdowell on 18. woods looked like he would win for the f

bush sued first.our days in which the republicans barbed the democrats for talking about legal action, mr. bush tried to stop the manual recount. that was on november 11th of 2000. bush was first. trust me. these historical revisionists will be claiming bush won the popular vote. our winner, congressman spencer bacchus from alabama celebrated as the house financial services committee by saying if it comes to the money changers, he has a main street view, not a wall street view. now is the time to get government out of the way so businesses can create jobs and grow the economy. in washington the view is that the banks are to be regulated and my view is that washington and the regulators are there to serve the banks. to serve the banks? mr. and mrs. america, don't get on that ship. to serve the rest of it to serve the banks? it's a cookbook, and we're the bank's lunch. spencer main street, if all the banks are located on main street, he's today's worst person in the world. naturally colorful vegetables

thank you to governor bush. he has provided an extraordinary example, not just for me, but for governors all across the country, current governors, and most importantly, i think, governors to be who will be taking office in january. understanding because of his example, not only what is possible, but what is still to be done, and his continued leadership through this foundation and this effort provides not only enormous intellectual resources to governors who need that support to fight this fight, but also can point to a model of success from his eight years as governor of florida. i was honored when this invitation came in to accept it. thank you, governor. [applause] >> all of you in this room know that you're the ones who are helping us chart a course for reform. state by state across the entire country. and we know that this issue is far from easy. it is not easy at all. but i really believe that if there was ever a time where we can transform the system of subeducation in this country, that the time is righ

bush important said he liked bush's of person he like his family but he said they differed on their ways of solving problems about latest book apparently put found some some inaccurate says in his accounts there he didn't specify the details but said bush might have forgotten some things but promised he would remind him of those when they meet in person so that's all the serious stuff and anything come up to lighten the mood. well sure absolutely the conversation was definitely not all heart talk for sure they joked around a little bit larry asked him about his english you know at one point but it's an even delivered his speech in english we remember that one puts instead he's learning and is actually having a lot of fun doing that he said what they're doing now with his teacher is learning some songs in english imagine how disappointed i was when larry didn't ask him to sing something anyway prime minister didn't miss the opportunity to invite larry king to moscow everyone knows who's quitting and puts and actually gave sort of a tribute to larry at some point he said long live the king

this takes us to where bush was, privatize social security. you know what would have happened if we privatized social security? anybody pay attention to what happened to the market in late 2008 and early 2009? if romney gets his way, and if he can get a portion of your paycheck that would go to wall street, go to some fund that could go belly up at any time, then the government wouldn't be on the hook for anything. that's just what they want. if you think republicans are cruel about unemployment benefits now, wait until you see what the corporate suits are going to do if this goes through. on the 13 senators were brave enough to vote against the scandal monday. i hope more of them see the light tonight before they sign on to this package. the republicans are on a mission to destroy the new deal, and i guess you have to be an old goat to know what the new deal is. it takes us to fdr, takes us to social security, medicare, medicaid. all the '40s, '50'60s generational changes we made. the republicans want to get rid of that. that's what this is.

the bush -- was of the bush administration? >> david, i was on the opposite side on that. [laughter] >> that is right. but that was an interesting case. you defended it but in a very kind of a tepid way. [laughter] >> just because i was unsuccessful. [laughter] >> because during the debates, the congressional debates over whether to pass, the president sent in his spokesperson, who said it would be unconstitutional to have the statue. then they passed the statute that the president said would be unconstitutional. so it was not a real hard case for us to argue afterwards. senate counsel and house counsel came in and defended it. >> that makes david's point very neatly. the office of legal counsel, through attorney general assistant, who is set to become the attorney general of the u.s., testified before both houses of congress that even if congress did all of the things that was being guided to do by the professor and others, the law would still be unconstitutional, unless the supreme court changed its mind. congress worked its will, so this poses a problem. except it does

potential step on the road to recovery. >> reporter: the deal includes a two-year extension of the bush tax cuts for everyone, including the wealthiest taxpayers in exchange far 13-month extension of unemployment benefits for long-term out-of-work americans. the estate tax returns at 35% on estates worth over $35 million and there is a one-year 2% cut in payroll taxes for all workers. the compromise was all but

bush's second term.office was dominated by broad dissatisfaction with him as a president and who would lead the republican party in his wake. that process characterized by all of the major candidates running away from him like winnie the pooh sprinting from a swarm of bees. what was the big issue na made everybody hate george bush in the second term, even republicans? pick your poison. the foundational issue with george w. bush in his second term was iraq. from 2006 to 2009, 60% of the country said the iraq war was not worth fighting. when you talk with bush administration veterans now, and some of them do talk to me, although never on tv, the public's hatred of the war in iraq is what they describe as the overall limiting factor, the constraint that made it impossible for george bush to break through in his second term, to rescue his popularity. 60% of the country said the iraq war was not worth fighting. right now 60% of the country say the afghanistan war is not worth fighting. will this war become as

george bush has won.en them. >> he made the argument implicitly that tax cuts are the answer. >> no, no. but he's absolutely right. they have allowed the narrative to become a completely republican narrative. the debate has shrunk down to what's happening around main street, what's happening to middle americans, what's happening to work people. whether they will continue, that's the question. are they going to fight, or are they going to surrender? >> progressives have been obviously furious about this. what outcome would they have liked to have seen? let them all expire even for the middle class? >> first of all, i totally agree with john. remember john boehner believed -- remember one of the sunday shows he said i'm willing to basically let the tax cuts expire. >> they fought it. >> they could have fought it then. they didn't. >> still ahead this hour -- >> it's confusing being a democrat. >> no, actually, it's confusing being a republican, especially a fiscal conservative. they'll pay for that in two y

>> i'm not going to get in an argument with president bush. that's not how i remember the conversation. getting in an argument with him over the book is not productive thing to be doing. the facts are -- >> bret: wait, wait. >> no. the facts are i supported the effort to increase funding and my bill got funding for the surge. i have stand by my record of supporting his effort to win the war in iraq and it worked out pretty well. >> bret: because september 5, you said the democratic leadership finally agrees on something. unformerly it's retreat. people look at the quote in george w. bush's book and what you said that month and would see concerns about whether you support it publicly and privately. >> what i did is support the surge. it was my amendment when we were in the minority to achieve funds to implement the surge. i stand by my record. i don't think getting in argument with president bush over private conversations i don't rememberbe the way he does is productive. i stand on the record with iraq. it was my amendment. they have the funds

some of you know jeb bush. i don't know jeb bush permly, but governor bush, governor of florida twice is mentioned as a possible presidential candidate. jeb bush said this, i think politicians, those of us who serve in public office, should be supporting the dream act said governor bush, i think it's a good policy. the military is the most ip press i have and most important institution in this country. those who are willing to serve should be given the opportunity, again not speaking of wrongdoers. michael said in another point in that article, it would be difficult and i hope my colleagues hear this and all who are listening, president bush speech writer, it would be difficult to define a more sympathetic group of potential americans and the choice is not between the immigrants and their absence, no one is proposing the massive deportation of this particular group. children who have done nothing wrong, which would be the last on the target list of even the most enthusiastic immigration restrictionists, the wor

bush administration. to go back to francis biddle, ken starr told you that francis biddle counseled against the japanese internment. he lost. he said of f.d.r., i don't think the constitutional difficulty greatly troubled him. i don't think the constitutional difficulty has ever troubled a wartime president. that's the rest of biddle's memoir. truman was unrepen tant about the steel seizure. the court struck down truman's seizure of the steel mills to avert a stoppage of the production of steel that was necessary going to troops in battle in korea. the supreme court struck down that act saying it exceeded executive authority, it lacked legislative authority and they did so at a time when his approval ratings were hovering around 22%. it may have been perceived the court can stand up to a president that is less powerful. when the court smacked lincoln for suspending the writ of habeas corpus, it did so after the war. the court may only stand up to the president at a time when the president is weak. truman

salute governor bush.nd champion the principle that gore says he's been fighting for since the election. the right to vote and the right to have every vote counted. but gore will not acknowledge defeat. he does not feel he lost. the process was brought to an end by a security ruling, he will abide by, even if he does not agree with it. outside of the vice president's resident, a lone protester, stood on a corner for weeks, where the passion had played out with raucous crowds. the tone of gore's remarks will be upbeat, even patriotic. as a man who served the army in vietnam. and a quarter-century of public service, al gore has a strong sense of duty, that he'll have to call on tonight. peter? >> terry, nonetheless, one has the feeling that despite the public statements, inside the inner circle, they must be furious. >> reporter: right through the gore ranks. the anger, resentment and bitterness is just boiling. it's not too much to say that inside that inner circle, they believe that the presidency was stol

president bush had the right tax policies, but we spent too much money during the bush years. that democrats ran against that. i mean, that was mild compared to what we've had for the last couple of years. but when are we going to get serious about this, you know, spending cuts? everybody talks about it, in generic terms. but when we actually get specific with spending cut proposals, i have been offering amendment after amendment for the last couple of years, and we get, you know, maybe 20, 25 votes. i don't care whether it's republicans or whether it's democrats. the debt is an american problem, and we need to look at it as americans and not as republicans or democrats and who has the political advantage or not. we need to get serious about this because we are going to destroy the very country that has been so good to all of us. admiral mullen, the chairman of the joint chiefs, said the greatest threat to the united states is not from al qaeda. it's from our debt. because if we have too much debt in this country, we cannot project the kind of military force that we need to in

and the bush tax cuts. claire mccaskill of missouri. tester montana. bob casey in pennsylvania. they won because they weren't afraid to be democrats at the time. they stood up for the middle class and they went after the bush-war policies that were running this country in the ditch. those six senators are up for re-election in 2012. and now every single one of them are going to have to defend their vote to extend the tax cuts for the wealthy because that's the road they chose. they'll have president obama's support, which is good, but i think it's a serious question whether the base is going to be there for these senators and whether the vote will seriously weaken them when it comes to corps progressives with the money and the boots on the ground that it's going to take to win elections. joining us now is adam green, co-founder of the pccc. adam, good to you have here tonight. >> good to be here. >> those senators in 2006, and i think it's a question that needs to be asked, i'm a liberal, i believe in them,