the reason jim demint isn't in the majority today is because of jim demint. but jim demint says he's okay with that. >> i'd rather have 30 republicans in the senate who believe in the principles of freedom than 60 who don't believe in anything. [ applause ] well, let -- let me make myself even clearer. i would rather have 30 marco rubios in the senate than 60 arlen specters. >> arlen specter you might remember got driven out of the senate in part by folks like demint. he went to the democratic party and became the 60th vote on obama care. so that worked out well for demint. but demint does rather this being in the minority thing so much that he wants to seven out the rest of his term in the minority. when you're a senator and you even begin talking to another employer about leaving the senate, you have to file this paper with the senate office of public records. they do that so before a big vote on, say, an energy bill that will make oil companies really rich, you can't go to a big oil company and say, hey, don't you think i'd make a good executive vice presi

don't cry for demint. the out-going president of the heritage foundation made $1.1 million according to 2010 tax filings. demint will do just fine. it's not just about the money. the senator realizes he could be more effective for the conservative movement if he's not attached to the dysfunctional party known as the republican party. in a statement, demint said "i'm leaving the senate now but i'm not leaving the fight. i've decided to join the heritage foundation at a time when the conservative movement needs strong leadership in the battle of ideas." he was more to the point on cnn earlier today. >> this will give me the opportunity to help take our case to the american people and to translate our policies into real ideas. >> so you think you could be more influential within the conservative movement as the leader of the heritage foundation as opposed to a united states senator? >> there's no question about it. >> in case you need a little refresher course, jim demint has been one of the most prominent vo

jim demint's seat. in part, quote, i want to make two things clear from the outset. number one, i will not take the appointment myself. number two, i will appoint a person who has the same philosophy of government jim demint and i share. there you go. just out this morning. maggie, i'll let you take that first. well, that is good news if you are tim scott, i assume. >> i assume. >> she mentioned jim demint in the statement and nikki haley aligning herself with the new ceo of the conservative movement. >> which she has to do. look, nikki haley now has something that we have described as goldman, right, without being a scandal. tim scott's name has been tossed around by conservatives, as we know. i have word from some people the ag as a place holder, where this ends up going is going to be extremely interesting. i think that demint is going to have some say in what ends up happening here. >> and what's intriguing here is there are so many interesting moving parts and you may care about this in a couple of

he's demint's hand-picked successor. he's backed by conservatives like red state's erick eric son and would be the first conservative block gop since 1979. he was nowhere tea party. >> i don't want to speak for the man but seriously in the way that his tea party has moved to the right i don't think tim scott can do that. african-americans don't vote democratic because of pigmentation. it's about policy. they all want to say that it's because of the poor and they don't have those policies or else they would have tried them and we'd be in a different position. they've had power for a long time. >> i've got to leave it there. ed rendell and joan walsh, thank you for your time tonight. >> thanks, rev. >> coming up, it's all out war inside the republican party. wait until you hear what jim demint told rush limbaugh today about speaker boehner. >>> plus, michigan police pepper spray protesters after governor schneider calls for a right to work bill that strips union power. president obama just responded to this. we're live in

people like jim demint can't stand people like that.el the party has become to easy to capitulate. remember with the budget control act when democrats were screaming bloody murder and thought the president had capitulated? guess what? on the far right they thought john boehner and mitch mcconnell had capitulated and lost that negotiation. they want the party further and further to the right. what demint specializes in doing is finding candidates to primary other republicans and to try to push the party further and further to the outskirts. >> what do you think of that? >> i think there's some truth to that. what is interesting to me is that during the bush years, where were all these voices when all the spending was going on? >> he wasn't -- >> there's a certain level of disingenuousness there. you have to be careful in making these broad brush -- >> let me ask you a question. if you were back at your old job, rnc chair, you may be there again for all i know, how would you umpire this thing? would you go to demint and his crowd moving t

jim demint didn't do that.th was listed at something like $65,000, which has to make him one of the poorest people in the united states senate. 10 certainly he's better off. you know, he is an activist at heart. so going back into the movement purely is good. and you know what? for political junkies, this is good too, because nothing is more fun than south carolina politics. and now we're going to have two race, 2014 and 2016 to watch, whereas with jim demint it was a forgone conclusion. >> jim demint's record in congress is not all that great, which is to say actually pretty bad. he picked some winners. ted cruz, rand paul, marco rubio, jeff flake. >> right. >> but he is also the guy that gave his personal seal of approval to crazies like christine o'donnell and sharron angle and richard mourdock and todd akin. in the end, is this a net-net win for republicans who have some amount of their sanity, a shred of it left? >> not necessarily. when they did the count of his 35 major legislative proposals, none were e

people like jim demint can't stand people like that.hey feel the party has become too easy to change. remember they were screaming bloody murder, the democrats and thought the president had done that and they feel john boehner had lost that negotiations and want the party further and further to the right. what demint specializes is doing is trying to push the party further and further to the out-skirts. >> what do you think? >> i think there is some truth to that. what is interesting to me, during the bush years, where were these voices when the spending was going on. there's a certain level of disingenuous there. you have to be careful of making a broad brush. >> if you were back in your old job as rmy chair and may be back there again, what would you do? would you build a logger out there to fight the -- or say, the future of the republican party is dead center conservative. not fringe, not going over. >> we're a center right party much like the country. >> i don't agree with that. the country is center right. it just voted. it just v

they like jim demint. they are going to listen to jim demint. has positioned himself acutely here. the question for me, this is what byron was talking about. i'm surprised you would give up power with an elected seat in the senate. they don't come along often. the idea that mr. scott might get, a black republican, the only black person in senate, phenomenal step, too. we'll see how it plays out. it's a shock. i think to everybody. that jim demint would voluntarily leigh the senate of the united states. >> bret: judge? >> i was surprised as juan and byron were and you and people watching. i agree with eric and byron. jim demint is a classic, traditional, barry goldwater, ronald reagan conservative republican. not the george bush compassionate conservative. he believes the states have a role i government. that the individual is greater than the state. that the government should shrink. he is now the most powerful republican in town. he has an extraordinary opportunity. this is not inside the beltway story. this is a jim demint is the leader of the

this is jim demint. jim demint was re-elected senator for south carolina not this past election, 2012, but in 2010. you might remember he was the guy who had the good fortune in 2010 to be running against a young man named alvin green on the democratic side. it was not a hotly contested race. mr. demint won by 34 points. and that freed him up to spread a bunch of his own campaign cash and his own energy that year on other campaigns and other candidates that he favored. and that has been the way that jim demint has built his influence in politics. he has treated all of his time in the u.s. senate not as an opportunity to get anything passed. he has no legislative record at all. he spent his time in the senate trying to become a kingmaker, trying to make the republican party over in his own image. trying to shape other people's races. to have more conservative litmus tests for republican candidates. so jim demint was elected for the first time in '04. he was re-elected in 2010. they serve six-year terms. r

it becomes less of a think tank with jim demint.hey want to stay in their little bubble, reinforce their talking points, don't want to do any soul searching, don't want any new ideas and think that having jim demint at the helm helps them politically. someone very exciting jim demint is leaving and hoping he doesn't let the door hit him on the way out, he was going to be a one-term president, the president is getting ready to be inaugurated again and jim demint is packing up his office. this is a loss in many ways for him. they thinks he will be more powerful but he's going to be talking to a bunch of the same crazy wing nuts and having -- >> wait, joan. >> crazy wing nut wants to get in here. >> no. >> before you respond to that. >> please. >> let me ask you one question, though. >> yes. >> let's take a basic issue, immigration reform. do you think heritage is going to lead on imin i gration reform with jim demint at the hel snm. >> oh, i think that it has the potential to do that, but again, that leadership, that leadership you're

that's what jim demint has been trying to say.f you were back at your old job, rnc chair, you may be there again for all i know, how would you repair this thing? would you go to demint and his crowd moving to the outside to sort of build their sort of logger out there to fight the establishment or would you say, wait a minute, the future is dead center conservative. it's not fringy, it's not john birch, not going over -- >> i would remind them we're a center right party very much like the country -- >> i don't agree with that. >> the country is center right. >> they just voted for obama. >> center left. >> that's another show. we'll have that conversation. but the country is center right in large measure. >> we can't have another arithmetic system. >> this is not about the math. this is about the facts and the realities on the ground. >> the facts. the numbers. >> 51% of the people identify themselves as pro-life. that's center right. >> they don't support outlawing -- >> another show. >> they don't believe in outlawing abortion.

frankly i think jim demint couldn't agree more. he said, i'm leaving the senate now but i'm not leaving the fight. i've decided to join the heritage foundation at a time when the conservative movement needs strong leadership in the battle of ideas. chuck, to your point. kelly, i want to go to you. in the midst, and we'll talk about the fiscal cliff in a minute, about the midst of the fiscal cliff and who's doing what, this is a huge news story, dropped on capitol hill that seemed to take everybody by surprise. what's the reaction up there. >> reporter: the pieces that are less sprying look at the fact that republicans failed to reclaim majority, that always has an influence on how much power senators think they have if they're among the minority. jim demint said he would not seek another term. at some point there was a plan for him to forecast his future. the timing of doing it right now certainly caught people by surprise. but it also is a point where it tells you that he feels comfortable that the voice of objection on some thing

people like jim demint can't stand people like that.feel the party has become to easy to capitulate. remember with the budget control act when democrats were screaming bloody murder and thought the president had capitulated? on the far right they thought john boehner and mitch mcconnell had capitulated and lost that negotiation. they want the party further and further to the right. what demint specializes in doing is finding candidates to primary other republicans and to try to push the party further and further to the outskirts. >> what do you think of that? >> i think there's some truth to that. what is interesting to me is during the bush years, where were all these voices when all the spending was going on? >> he wasn't -- >> there's a certain level of disingenuousness there. you have to be careful in making these broad brush -- >> let me ask you a question. if you were back at your old job, rnc chair, you may be there again for all i know, how would you repair this thing? would you go to demint and his crowd moving to the outside t

i'm so thankful that we in south carolina, we don't lose jim demint, that we see jim demint go to a bigger, greater opportunity. there is no one else in south carolina than lindsay graham. senator graham has served his state incredibly well. he understands the foreign affairs are real like no other. i look forward to learning more about foreign affairs from senator graham. i will also say that over the last two years i've had the privilege of gaining a new family. some people don't think we look alike, but sometimes we do. [laughter] i'll tell you that everyone from joe wilson, who we have referred to as the scoutmaster, to nicholas mulvaney -- i'm not sure what it is, but this wonderful haircut, and jeff duncan, who's not here with us and the new addition, tom rice. i have been afforded one of the greatest opportunities in the world to serve in the house of representatives. but what has made it more meaningful is to have served with these four guys and our scoutmaster. and i look forward to continuing to build on the family known as south carolina. you know, i haven't won anything yet in

demint is out in the wilderness. it's true that the right-wing has gone into the wilderness after defeat wing has gone into the wilderness after defeat. but the ideas are so unpopular. surveys after sur vades say voters want fair taxes on the rich not these problems like social security medicare and medicaid cut. what's he going to be? it may be rush limbaugh's favorite foundation, but that's not going to do a lot at this moment with this discredited brand. >> well i am very fascinated by the underpinnings of the heritage foundation. we understanding demind is going to make a million dollarshalf a million dollars a year at heritage foundation but who gives heritage that money? what will they expect from demint in return? >> it's the same phalanx of people, these ideological billionaires who were sore losers in this election. they didn't get what they wanted. you have the koch brothers the olin foundation the bradley foundation. this is this network, this right-wing infrastructure that our money and politics 3 fuong w

>> jim demint is a movement guy. not a legislator like fritz hollings who represents the state for generations. he has been a movement by. you see the movement in primaries that republicans lost where they should of one the general election, whether it was delaware, or supporting marco rubio early against charlie crist. the other unwritten stories that you have two major conservative figures leaving this week. you had big armey leaving freedomworks, a very conservative outfit aligned with the tea party, and getting, get this, and $8 million buyout. jim demint has a net worth -- average of $41,000. he is going to institution that pays its chief executive more than $1 million. armey-demint -- if the congregationalist. they came to do good and they're doing very well. [laughter] >> with him leaving the senate and going to the heritage foundation, the intellectual level of both places lifts up. now -- you got it. >> yeah, i got it. >> remember, heritage was the originator of the mandate for health insurance. >> he said t

jim demint is leaving u.s.the president's tax hikes before he does? demint here, next. twins. i didn't see them coming. i have obligations. cute obligations, but obligatio. i need to rethink the core of my portfolio. what i really need is sleep. introducing the ishares core, building blocks for the heart of your portfolio. find out why 9 out of 10 large professional investors choose ishares for their etfs. ishares by blackrock. call 1-800-ishares for a prospectus which includes investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. read and consider it carefully before investing. risk includes possible loss of principal. i took my son fishing every year. e had a great spot, not easy to find, but worth it. but with copd making it hard to breathe, i thought those days might be over. so my doctor prescribed symbicort. it helps significantly improve my lung functi starting within five minutes. symbicort doesn't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. with symbicort, toda i'm breathing better. and that means...fi

jim demint is leaving u.s. senate, will he be able to prevent the president's tax hikes before he does? demint here, next. where's your? uh... whew. [ male announcer ] break from the holiday stress. ship fedex express by december 22nd for christmas delivery. you know how painful artburn can be. for fast, long lasting relief, use doctor recommended gaviscon®. only gaviscon® forms a protective barrier that helps block stomach acid from splashing up- relieving the pain quickly. try fas long lasting gaviscon®. neil: he is a very influential senator and a tea party rock star. one of the most infl influential figures of conservative movement, he is leaves u.s. senate to go to the heritage foundation, jim demint to tell us why, why? >> it was apparent we need to do more to convince the american people that conservative principles will make their life better. i can think of no better platform than heritage foundation, to take our message to the american people and connection research, policy ideas, with real people, an

gwen: demints surprise solution?o get out of the senate and set up shop at the conservative heritage foundation. is this about just jim demint, or something larger, amy? >> we can probably see a little bit of both. you're right, jim demint is the de facto leader of the tea party, but the tea party really isn't a movie -- movement either. it's a leaderless sort of entity. he's been a thorn in the side for leadership and for the establishment republicans for quite some time. whenever boehner is the control for what he see is has compromise or caving, he stands up. he's been involved in a lot of interparty fights. most successfully, marco rubio. he beat charlie crist in a primary and one of his biggest failures is christine o'donnell. he's not afraid to get into the mix and we -- he didn't want to be here much longer. he was going to be out in 2016 so he was ready to go. you're right, the question is what does he do with this new position? use it to positive agenda? tell america what we stand for or, as many republicans

i like jim demint.. >> reporter: now, wolf, remember jim demint is one of the most conservative senators who worked very, very hard to block many pieces of legislation that the democratic leader harry reid was trying to pass through the senate. and demint made a point of personally going to harry reid's office to tell him face-to-face that he decided to resign. i can tell you as an observer of the senate watching relationships deteriorate, this was surprising but a good surprise. >> leaving on a good note at least with the majority leader in the senate. dana, thanks very much. and i'm joined now by senator demint along with heritage foundation founding trustee, the current president, we see the outgoing president, ed feulner, thanks for coming in. we're going to talk a little about the state of the heritage foundation and the republican party. the senator's here, the newsmaker, you shocked all of us. why did you do this? >> wolf, after this last election it's apparent we need to do more as conservatives

>> you have a couple of -- on jim demint tweeting @bpshow, get riddance to jim demint. a.appoint herself and steven colbert is from south carolina. there is an online movement to get him in that seat. >> society so is peter ogburn from south carolina. senator ogburn. >> if asked, i will serve. >> bill: senator ogburn. i love it. >> this is bill press show. [ music ] when the last card is played what will be remembered? explore the lives of the famous and infamous who changed our world forever. experience the drama, back to back to back. of all the hours in all their days, the ones you'll never forget are the final 24. don't miss the final 24 mini-marathon this sunday on current tv. save the best for last. [ male announcer ] this is karen and jeremiah. they don't know it yet but they're gonna fall in love get married, have a couple of kids, [ children laughing ] move to the country, and live a long, happy life together where they almost never fight about money. [ dog barks ] because right after they get married they'll find some retirement people who are paid on salary not

. >> i demint to say that.he point is that, yeah, there is unintended parity with mr. demibt perhaps and there's intentional parity with mr. colbert. >> absolutely. thank you for the clarification, sir. ari, when asked why he wants to run a think tank, this is what jim demint told a "washington post" reporter. >> i'm a policy nerd. when you think of jim demint, do you think of policy nerd? what's nerdiest about him? women's rights, gay rights, union rights? >> i don't think him as a policy nerd and i don't think he was a policy leader. i do think to give him his due analytically, he was politically important, and did he something that both parties need because of gerrymandering and because of the partisanship in the system, he helped drive competitive primaries. at this point in our history we have high participation but low democracy because we have such undemocratic and uncompetitive general elections, and we have a lot of other problems in the system. he's a part of most of those problems. he infamously prom

jim demint has been a thorn in the side of republicans. so whoever he puts in there needs to roll-up their sleeves and get the job done. there are some statements floating around. we'll wait and see. >> a busy day. my power panel, thank you. appreciate it. >> thanks. >>> the united nations is putting up a serious front to warn syria not to use chemical weapons on their own people. what are the options on the table? [ woman ] ring. ring. progresso. i just finished a bowl of your new light chicken pot pie soup and it's so rich and creamy... is it really 100 calories? let me put you on webcan... ...lean roasted chicken... and a creamy broth mmm i can still see you. [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. go ahead, mark your calendars. mmm i can still see you. it's the last day you can switch your medicare part d plan. we're ready, and we can't wait to switch. what i wanted was simple: the most value for my dollar. so, now that it's time, we're making the move to a plan that really works for us. [ male announcer ] make the swi

i like jim demint.him well. >> keep in mind, demint is leaving with four years left in his senate term. earlier he had said he would retire in 2017 but gave no previous indication he might quit now. >>> as concerns are rising over activity at syria's chemical weapons site a new round of diplomacy today. hillary clinton meets with russia's foreign minister, a long-time friend of syria's. so what happens next? i'm brooke baldwin. the news is now. >>> when something brings you down, you got to get up. >> you okay, buddy? >> more than a month after superstorm sandy, a family living in a borrowed apartment is trying to put its life back together. >>> plus, back behind bars. john mcafee under arrest and get this. he's blogging from jail. >>> and could an online review of a business get you sued? a new case raises the question, just how far can you go when you sound off online? tonight our guest, thomas sargent. nobel laureate in economics, and one of the most cited economists in the world. professor sargent,

demint was one of the earliest backers of florida senator marco rubio. but demint has also angered party leaders by supporting far right candidates who lost their general elections. >> i'm not a witch. >> reporter: candidated like christine o'donnell of delaware, who in 2010, aired an ad assuring voters she was not a witch. demint says he can be a more effective communicator of conservative ideas by leading a think tank. he will also get a hefty race. the current president of the her tan foundation makes more than $1 million a year. a u.s. senator scott, makes $174,000. >> pelley: nancy, thank you. washington state's new marijuana law went into effect today, make together first state to legalize the drug for recreational use for people 21 or older. john blackstone tells us those that are supposed to enforce law are a little foggy on the details. >> reporter: at seattle police headquarters, jonah spangenthal lee was given the task of explaining the state state's new marijuana law on an online guide. >> what do you call it? mari-what? the guide to legal po

armey-demint --- they are like the congregationalist in hawaii.me to do good, and they're doing very well. [laughter] >> with him leaving the senate and going to the hetage foundation, i think the intellectual level both places lifts up. now -- you got it. >> yeah, i got it. >> remember, heritage was the originator of the idea of the federal mandate for health insurance. >> he said we spend too much time concentrating on o obama and not our positions. don't forget that it was jim demint in 2009 who said that if we stop him on health care, this will be his waterloo. we will break him. he faid to do that. he has been a very partisan guy his whole time in the senate. >> he was one of the senators to vote against the international treaty for disabilities, with bob worldwide on the floor of the senate i don't understand that. -- with bob dole might on th floor of the senate's. i don't understand that. >> it was a un thing.. >> nina is right. the totally fabricated specter of u.n. helicopters coming to home schooling parents and takiking their children

demint will be leading charge.on: he is the hero of the tea party which did so much damage to liberals in the 2010 election. >> done so much damage to themselves. harry reid would all agree would not be in the senate if not for the tea party nominating sharron angle, not not a strong candidate. delaware, todd aiken in missouri. tea party done a lot of damage to republican party. you would probably have senate republican leader mitch mcconnell if not for the tea party. to monica's point, jim demint will create problems from somebody like john boehner. >> as he should. >> wants to desperately cut a deal but probably won't be able to because his own caucus won't go along with it. >> if the republican party stuck to their core principles of limited government and fiscal restraint there would be no need for a tea party. thanks to jim demint, you named a couple of candidates that were weak, thanks to demint and strong tea party folks we have mike lee, jeff flake, marco rubio, we have rand paul, pat toomey. they would not