you got dick armey fired and you're on "meet the press" sunday with dick armey? ladies and gentlemen, here is rachel maddow. good evening. >> well, that's putting quite a blunt point on it. >> i'm dvring it already on three different televisions. >> it's a dramatic circumstance in which to make my "meet the press" debut i admit though i'm not going to claim any credit for getting anybody fired. >> well, separated? removed? distanced? >> thanks, keith. >> good evening, rachel. >> good evening, keith. thank you very much. thank aut home for staying with us for the next hour. we do begin tonight with a dramatic and unexpected development. in politics and in health reform. former republican house majority leader dick armey did resign today from the d.c. lobbying and legal services firm dla piper. we have talked about dick armey and dla piper a number of times on this show over the past few weeks including last night after we obtained a dla piper internal memo concerning our coverage of them recently. before today, mr. armey served as senior policy advisor for dla pip

as he has dick armey's problems on the republican side.ign that he is independent, doing a good job. i'm going to vote for him. i think he's a wonderful selection. >> thank you very much for joining us today. >> speaking of bernanke, when we come back we'll talk about the fed, the economy and markets, the chairman's nomination for a second term as fed chief. less than an hour away. you are looking at a live picture of the podium where the president will make his announcement in about 36 minutes. we'll have a live report from martha's vineyard in a couple of minute when "squawk" continues. i'm racing cross country in this small sidecar, but i've still got room for the internet. with my new netbook from at&t. with its built-in 3g network, it's fast and small, so it goes places other laptops can't. i'm bill kurtis, and wherever i go, i've got plenty of room for the internet. and the nation's fastest 3g network. gun it, mick. (announcer) sign up today and get a netbook for $199.99 after mail-in rebate. with built-in access to the nation's fast

there seems to be evidence that when you pay dick armey's firm, you get what dick armey's grassroots organization freedomworks does. take the american council of life insurers, for example. according to government records, they hired dla piper in february 2007. within six months, they paid the lobbying firm $100,000. what else happened in that six months? you guessed it! dick armey's group freedomworks, grassroots, remember, began lobbying congress to deregulate the life insurance industry. you know, that all just happened to happen within the same six months. and perhaps it is just mere coincidence that freedomworks happened to have a newfound, ideological, purist grassroots commitment to life insurance deregulation at the same time the american council of life insurers hired dick armey's lobbying firm. it could just be a coincidence. could be, right? want one more? in 2006, dla piper began lobbying for the senado de republicia, the mexican senate. purpose of the lobbying, quote, encouraging mexico relations. coincidentally arrange the same time, freedomworks began promoting itself

she did it on broadcast tv during her first appearance on "meet the press" to dick armey former houseajority leader currently louse minority leader running the group freedom works which has helped stir up the ugly displays at town halls around the country designed to kill health care reform. wait. there's more. armey just having stepped down from its law firm after its pharmaceutical clients complained about the heat he was drawing, heat from critics like rachel. yesterday she exposed just how far from the mainstream the opponents of reform really are. >> do you really think there's a major uprising of seniors wanting to get out of medicare? i know you're suing the government for your right personally to get out of medicare but do you really think that's the problem, that seniors hate medicare and want out? >> no. i didn't say that. most seniors, i was talking to my minister the other day. he says, dick, i'm so fortunate i'm in medicare. i said, bless you, my friend, that you get to be in it if you choose to be. but if you give a government program and let me choose to be in or choose

, in addition to fronting that group, dick armey is a senior policy adviser at a law firm called dla piper, that just happens to have received $830,000 this year so far from a giant pharmaceutical firm called medicines company. this after the $1.5. medicines company paid mr. armey's firm last year. the fact that dick armey and freedom works are standing alongside regular joes like rick scott to lead the charge against health care reform could be just a coincidence. or it could be a stark reminder of who we're dealing with here. who is actively organizing the campaign against health care reform? scaring real americans with increasingly paranoid and cook kooky lies about health care and providing a script ho to express that fear.kooky lies about heald providing a script ho to express that fear. these are the pros, very well compensated pros, they do it all the time. it's a p.r. industry, it's a lobbying industry and there is a clear vested financial interest in seeing that the health care industry not reformed. not now, not ever. but the prospect of health care reform is up against a b

." >>> up next on this show, what do dick armey, swine flu and video games have in common?ave a very special report next that explains it all. >>> first, one more thing about the republican miniverse when it comes to health care. in addition to opinions on death panels, abortion funding and government takeovers, the same research 2000 daily kos poll that found the disparity about who believes the myth about health care show something else that is maybe even more worrying about what republicans specifically believe today. the latest research 2000 poll that's just out finds that 14% of self-identified republicans think that medicare is definitely not a government program. who do they think does run medicare? presumably it's the same keebler elves that tidy up the national parks and deliver your mail. applebee's 2 for $20! real food at the right price! this is the primo stuff. one appetizer and two premium entrees. just twenty bucks-every day. genuine food. generous portions. genius price. 2 for $20! only at applebee's. if you're using other moisturizing body washes, you might

aaaaaaaaaaa >>> former house majority leader dick armey, head of the conservative organizationdom works, is warning that swine flu is a hoax. mr. armey tells the "financial times," in september or october, there will be a hyped-up outbreak of the swine flu, which they'll say is as bad as the bubonic plague to scare the bed wetters to vote for health care reform. i like health care reform and i haven't wet the bed in weeks. while dick armey is telling us not to worry about swine flu, there are real scientists and health officials who are trying to keep it from killing thousands and thousands and thousands of people. if you want to get a sense how hard their jobs are, you can do so from home. in the comfort of your cheetoh flicked pjs because dutch researchers have created a video game about it. oh, yes. a game about a worldwide pandemic which should not be awesome, but it is. >> the great flu. in 1918, the outbreak of an unknown influenza virus caused the loss of 40 million lives. later, this was called the spanish flu. now you are the leader of the world pandemic control and a

and dick armey, i'm gog to come straight you on the basis.you believthat there should be some fm of reform of health care, heal insurance, bu a more limited form than what the presint favors. >> yes, i do. go back to things i've argd for, rteform, as much as $100 bilon just sheer abject waste. >> woodruff: tort refor, for people whdon't know the legal term mean >> it cases doctors to oder up extra procures on behal of patnts that are not needed medically, but they need themin case they end up in a courtroom. i watch this process, the thinthat breaks your heart aut thats especially wi older folks to be subjted to extra predures that are no medically necessary, it's a ve difficult buen for them to rry when they are already tentimes quite fragi, and the procedures themsels can be quite a stressful experience for them. >>oodruff: so tort reform would be an importan change? >> that would be a good place to start. >> woodruff: would tat be enough, richard kirsch? >> that not the problem americans face, judy. silly what americans face is a probm is

and dick armey, i'm going to come straight to you on the basics.you believe that there should be some form of reform of health care, health insurance, but a more limited form than what the president favors. >> yes, i do. we go back to things i've argued for, tort reform, as much as $100 billion just sheer abject waste. >> woodruff: tort reform, for people who don't know the legal term means? >> it causes doctors to order up extra procedures on behalf of patients that are not needed medically, but they need them in case they end up in a courtroom. i watch this process, the thing that breaks your heart about that is especially with older folks to be subjected to extra procedures that are not medically necessary, it's a very difficult burden for them to carry when they are already oftentimes quite fragile, and the procedures themselves can be quite a stressful experience for them. >> woodruff: so tort reform would be an important change? >> that would be a good place to start. >> woodruff: would that be enough, richard kirsch? >> that's not the proble

dick armey was putting his finger on something.you can dress things up, but if you don't respond to people's real concerns, the language doesn't matter. people want health care reform. they just don't want what barack obama is doing. >> i think in a way obama may have misread the success he had with the stimulus package. there was an economic nose-dive and he was able to railroad that through, so in a way he got spoiled by it and he's spoiled by a genuflecting media that doesn't call him to account. so he says these people who oppose me, they just don't understand. sean: congressman, you've been through a controversial time in your career. do you think bay voiding town halls and being afraid to answer questions of constituents or lashing out at constituents, what do you think the fallout of that is going to be? >> i'm trying to watch this process. i'm fascinated by their leadership telling them these aren't real people. i say pity on the poor member of their junior caucus standing on fragile, thin ice who believes that because the

. >> before i was a journalist, i worked for dick armey back in 1993 when that health-care plan came out, and do you remember that the diagram that dick armey came up with all of the agencies, this huge, bureaucratic charge -- this reminds me of this system, too. this system that barack obama wants to set up is a labyrinth of agencies and bureaus that will be in charge of this or that, so there are a lot of similarities between obama care and hillary care. neil: i do want you to finish that thought, but we just wanted to assure you, what was that? bill clinton leading or writing? ok. that was bill clinton arriving at the white house -- bill clinton leaving or writing? -- or are arriving -- or arr iving? that was bill clinton arriving. >> this goes back to the eisenhower administration. he was so great to me even as a young punk of college, and i miss him already. we have something at the end of the show on his very sad passing. thank you, steve, very much a. all right, the public option, it is on, it is off, it is essential, is not essential -- it has changed. >> the president has sa

freedom works is shared by -- reformer republican house majority leader dick armey. h whom i will be appearing on "meet the press" this sunday. mr. armey is a senior policy adviser at dla piper which happens to represent a bunch of companies in the health care industry. after we discussed freedom works and mr. armey and dla pipe other the show a couple of days ago we will lucky enough to obtain this internal piper memo. which was sent out by the lobbying firm's joint chairman to all of the firm's employees. we have contacted news outlets to set the record straight and urge correction of the inaccurate reports. for the record, we have checked and no one from the lobbying firm dla piper has contacted me or anyone else on had show by e-mail or fax or telephone or carrier pigeon or smoke signal. if anyone from dla pipe wore like to talk to us and ex-main how the firm is encouraging responsible national debate and strongly opposing disrupting the national debate about health care reform while its senior policy adviser is also running freedom works which has been putting it

>> that was dick armey explaining he doesn't know anything about health care.here that would force anybody in. actually, what would happen is i couldn't buy in. most people couldn't get into it if they wanted to because they can't buy into the exchange. medicare, of course, generally speaking, there are private plans in medicare called the advantage program. you really are in a situation where people don't know what they're talking about. mickey's entirely right that if public opinion doesn't turn around on this, the administration is in real trouble. but what's interesting about public opinion right now, opinion on if you say president obama's health care plan, it's quite low, losing at the moment. but if you describe his bill, the plan underneath it, then it wins by 60%. >> what are some of the key characteristics -- ezra, what are the key characteristics in the description that get people more interested? >> you know, it's generally a description. they say, you know, going to take money either by taxing employer health benefits or taxing the rich, pay to giv

dick armey is a lobbyist. bill: do you think that these people that we just heard are plants?> what do you mean by plant? bill: what i mean by plants, what nancy pelosi said. crazy, fanatical, swastika-wearing. >> i think they all are fanatical. >> when you get up and interrupt. you're not having a real dialogue here. >> getting the point of view like i do vehemently. >> these are average americans. bill: how do you know, though? >> look at them. they are average americans showing up to the town halls, to hold their leaders accountable. we are talking about nationalizing 20% of the u.s. economy. health care, the most infamous -- bill: you don't think there is anybody in there driven by a website? >> you know what? i have no idea. all i know is that when i see average americans who can't have their questions answered by their leaders trying to hold them accountable. listen, i find it amazing when liberals complain about this when for years they destroyed president bush, called him a war criminal, hitler. >> that's not normal. >> out there deflecting congressional hearings. cind

guess who is on the "meet the press" panel with dick armey on sunday.hel is. >>> not legally a plumber. can't get a book contract. can't find anyone to run him for congress. gets laughed at a lot. joe the plumber is becoming joe the standup. worse? people are not listening. lou dobbs thinks everybody is mad at him for calling howard dean a leftist not for saying howard dean needed a stake through his heart. michelle bachman is praised for raising her son well so she lashes out at the newspaperman for writing what she called a hit job on her son. you're watching "countdown" on msnbc. ♪ (laughing through computer) good night, buddy. good morning, dad. (announcer) oreo. milk's favorite cookie. >>> rush limbaugh and karl rove on family guy. joe the plumber in a competition for d.c.'s funniest person. that's next. worst persons in the world, lou dobbs just keeps digging the hole deeper. apparently didn't get the idea when he called howard dean a blood-sucking leftist, i mean you got to put a stake through his heart to stop this guy, the public recoil was not

freedomworks is chaired by former house majority leader dick armey, which whom i will be appearing on "meet the press" this sunday. mr. army is also a senior policy adviser at a d.c. law firm called dla piper. well, after we discussed freedom works and mr. army and dla piper on this show a couple of days ago, we were lucky enough to obtain this internal dla piper memo, which was sent out by the lobbying firm's joint chairman to all of the firm's employees. it reads, quote, recently, several media commentators -- i think that might mean me -- have suggested that dla piper may be opposing health care reform. some of the reports have gone so far as to suggest that the firm itself or on behalf of its clients may be supporting activities to disrupt the national debate on health care reform. all of these suggestions are entirely false. the firm has not on its own behalf or on the behalf of any client directly or indirectly opposed any of the pending health care reform bills and the firm strongly opposes any activities designed to disrupt the national debate about health care reform or any o

joins us at the top of the hour, after she connected the dots between former house majority leader dick armeyhe fake spontaneous town hall protests mr. armey had to resign from his law firm. guess who is on the "meet the press" panel with dick armey on sunday? rachel is. ha, ha, ha. guys... the blue goes on the left. (announcer) getting ready for the big game? ohhhh... bring it. bounty extra soft-- the bounty with a little extra softness! it's super absorbent. and it works extra hard for your money. in this lab demo, one sheet of bounty extra soft out-scrubs two sheets of the bargain brand game on. bounty extra soft. look for new prints. >>> not legally a plumber. can't get a book contract. can't find anybody who wants to run for congress. gets laughed at a lot. joe the plumber is becoming joe the standup. worse? people are not listening. lou dobbs thinks everybody is mad at him for calling howard dean a leftist not for saying howard dean needed a stake through his heart. michelle bachman is praised for having raised her volunteering son well so naturally she lashes out at the newspaperman fo

chris: whether dick armey is behind them and that sort of thing. >> it creates more noise. barack obama has had a hard time fashioning a coherent positive message for health care throughout. >> remember, people's health care, they like it. basically. 80% of americans like their own health care. that's way more popular than barack obama. and the problem is now the economy and health care are butting up against each other. if iere the president, i would say my job, number one, is the economy, the economy, the economy. when you change message and you start to try to integrate melting care into this message, people get a little bit confused. and they haven't found the right language for it. chris: we were in a different recession period in the early 1990's. pennsylvania, being for health care was a way for saying you are solid with people with unemployment. >> that was presession and the fall of lehman brothers -- that was prerecession and the fall of lehman brothers. talking about the unsnoord -- chris: middle age people worried about their jobs and about portability, they won

. >> and this sunday, david gregory will tackle the health care issue with dick armey, tom coburn, tom daschle and rachel m maddow. you're watching "hardball" only on msnbc. these days, when you have to spend, shopping online can help save. doing it with bank of america can help save a lot more. up to 20% cash back from over 300 online retailers with our add it up program. just sign up and use your bank of america debit or credit card when you shop online. it's one of the many ways we make saving money in tough times a whole lot easier. that's why i use covergirl's simply ageless makeup with olay regenerist serum. a department store brand can glob up in lines and actually make you look older. simply ageless makes you look amazing. from olay and easy, breezy, beautiful covergirl. diarrhea, constipation, gas, bloating. that's me! can i tell you what aifference phillips' colon health has made? it's the probiotics. the good bacteria. that gets your colon back in balance. i'm good to go! phillips' colon health. how far can you see? at pnc, taking the long view is how we help you take the ri

among david gregory's guests, dick armey, tom daschle and rachel maddow. >>> we turn now to afghanistan where just days before national election, suicide car bomb has killed ten people and injured more than 90 in this capital city of kabul. richard engel joins us from kabul. good evening. >> we heard and melt felt that message. the bomb explode not far from here this morning and today the taliban said attacks could intensify leading up to elections in just five days. the taliban today carried out their threat to disrupt next week's election. at 8:30 this morning, a toyota packed with 1,000 pounds of explosives rammed into a military checkpoint. the blast broke windows several blocks away. this explosion happened in one of the most secure at the gate of the u.s. military and nato headquarters just a few hundred yards from the american embassy. an attack on kabul's relatively safe diplomatic you quarter. the american embassy wasn't damaged but aft least ten of a gaps were killed. more than 100 injured. many of them were employees at the ministry of transport waiting it go to work. "i don'

>> paul: it is true, say dick armey the former republican majority leader runs a group called freedom works. they have been sending people into these town halls and encouraging people to go. so in that sense it is organized. >> no question. but they people that are getting people out -- by the way to go to atomic antibiotic people at 250 people come. you get 10% of the voters showing up. those are organized by grassroots organizers in those districts. >> paul: what about the white house saying this is disinformation, it is staged and fabricated. will it pay off? t-mac idled at will pay off. i think they white house lost control of the message around this healthcare bill. i turned it over to the house democratic whip the house democrats the most liberal wing of the party. they convey the idea. over the years they've talked about a single-payer system. i think the public has it in its mind that where the democrats are going with this bill is in a very broad sense of direction and i don't think the white house is able to push people off of that idea. someone barbara boxer, the senator fr

dick armey promises that houses stimulus bill will create 170,000 jobs next year alone. total unemployment is at 7.7 million. the house package also wants $5.7 billion in tax rebates to 13 fortune 500 companies while congress earmarks at most 3 billion. what is the rush? as tom delay said on fox, the american people need to learn that these terrorists are going after specific people, people that are symbols. somebody in sugar land, texas, should not worry about anthrax. >> saii think what was botherine then and what was a real problem is that after 9/11 no one wanted to instill the idea of sacrifice. somehow the idea was everything would be ok. we would not have to spend money on buyouts terrorism. -- we would not have to spend money on bioterrorism. i am still not at all convinced that anyone in washington, including the president, wants to stand up to the public and say, if we want to reform health care and fight a war in afghanistan, someone is clinton have to sacrifice. -- someonme is going to ahve to sacrifice. there were presidents who said the american people have

. >>> on "meet the press" tomorrow, david gregory will talk with dick armey, senator cobu coburn, tomle, and our own rachel maddow. check the local listings for the time. >>> rainy weather did not keep the first family from enjoying some fun on friday. they >>> well, the late owes moves from mylie cyrus have created a firestorm of controversy. she won 11 awards for the teen's choice awards, but her dance number is what generated the headlines, was she dirty dancing or simply doing what she does best, entertain the fans that made her a global superstar. dawnian iayannic, good morning. did her performance cross the line? >> good question. it was a shimmy down the pole, at the very, very short, of course, taken out of context, if you just have that still photo, it does like racy, and let's not talk about the booty shorts as well. could chef made more choreography choices, sure. do parents want to have this conversation with their young children, but this is a good business move. >> she is 16 years old, made the hints she wants to move on from this branded disneyesque image, does this pro

dick armey promises that the houses stimulus bill will create 170,000 jobs next year alone. even as 415,000 americans lost jobs in october alone, bringing total unemployment to 7.7 million. the house package also lords $5.7 billion in tax rebates to 13 fortune 500 corporations what congress earmarks at most $3 billion for fighting by of terrorism at a time of the american hospital association estimates that $11 billion is needed just to a great hospitals. but hey, what's the rush? as tom delay said on fox, these terrorists are going after specific people, people that are symbols. somebody in sugar land, texas should worry about and blacks. -- anthrax. >> what was bothering me then was that no one wanted to instill this idea of sacrifice. the idea was somehow everything would be fine. we had a volunteer military fight this war and we would go to disneyland in the president literally said that. cut to now. i am not at all convinced that anyone in washington, including the president, wants to stand up to the public and say that if we want to reform health care and fight a war i

with us, former house majority leader, republican dick armey, republican senator tom coburn, tom daschlerachel maddow show" coming up on "meet the press." >> our thanks to becky quick and jim cantore. >>> coming up, are there embarrassing things about you and your kids online in we'll talk about that. ankts coffee makers we'll put them to the test next weekend. >> if it's sunday it's time for "q & a." lieutenant governor ant my any -- anthony brown is live in our studios to answer your questions. >> we're starting off sunday on a great note. we'll have the latest, plus the latest on

proponents of the current proposals will hold a rally in atlanta with former congressman dick armey. the president is in montana doing a bit of sightseeing. he urges americans to lower the volume in the health care fight and listen to one another. >> i know there is plenty of real concern and skepticism out there. i know that in a time of economic upheaval, the idea of change can be unsettling. i know there are some folks who believe that government should have no role at all in solving our problems. these are legitimate differences, worthy of the real discussion that america deserves. >> our senior white house correspondent, ed henry, is traveling with the president. first montana, later today, colorado. why these locations specifically? >> reporter: partially because these are not necessarily democratic areas friendly. president made a point to come to montana, colorado, in the mountain west. the democratic presidential candidates had abandoned thinking they couldn't win in previous elections. he won some of them. he is trying to translate the health reform debate. when you talk to

with us, former house majority leader, republican dick armey, republican senator tom coburn, tom daschlerachel maddow show" coming up on "meet the press." >> our thanks becky quick and jim cantore. >>> coming up, are there embarrassing things about you and your kids online in we'll talk about that. ankts coffee makers we'll put them to the test next n >>> mission accomplished. an american out of danger, thanks to the intervention of senator, jim webb. >>> gun fire erupts outside a metro station. teenagers are among the victims. >>> another sunday morning, but how long can we hold out before rain moves back into the picture? >>> good morning. welcome to the 9:00

opponents will hold a rally in atlanta with former republican congressman dick armey. send your comments to fredricka whitfield's fan page or go to cnn.com/fredricka and reach us that way as well. looking for more of what you've seen here on cnn television, go to cnn.com/health care and find out all about these town hall meetings and the ones happening closest to you. we'll introduce you to the key players in the debate, the different plans and, of course, the controversial sticking points to each plan. >>> some may call it voter intimidation of the most deadly kind. five days before afghanistan's presidential election, a suicide bomber self-detonates in front of head quarters in kabul. seven were killed in the blast, nearly 100 more injured and now the taliban is taking responsibility. tell us about where this happened because this area is supposed to be secure. >> reporter: it is supposed to be a secure area, the capital of kabul is supposed to be a secure area. it occurred right outside of the headquarters at the international security assistance force. these are co

dick armey, former majority leader is standing there talkingch altalk i ing. also other people going to the town halls, you have seen on television, youtube, what have you. voicing their concerns to congressmen and the president. they have been speaking here as well. lots of signs, freedom. not tyranny. there is a guy behind me wearing an nra hat. some one saying over here, no obama-care. joining me quickly here is the state secretary -- >> secretary of state. cary handle. >> i know your name. i forget your title. why are the folks out here? >> these are individuals speaking out about the health care plan moving through washington. people we want health care reform. we want a market-driven health care reform that protects the patient-doctor relationship. >> we will talk more with the secretary of state here on cnn. during my show coming up at 5:00, ali. a lot of people are out here, add manned about what they want. they want health care reform. what they want to make sure it is done right and not government-controlled. that's their word. ali? >> don, thank you

sponsored by the americans with prosperity foundation and hosted by former house majority leader dick armeynd several radio conservative hosts. >> when it comes to health care, there's so much out there and so much to cover and an hour simply isn't enough. make sure you check out cnn d h cnn.com/health care, we feature ongoing coverage of the health care debate, a list of town hall meetings across the country and how health care reform might affect you know matter where you live. >>> milwaukee's mayor tries to do the right thing and ends up in the hospital. >>> also, 40 years after woodstock, the baby boomers are having another flashback. >>> and twitter space boo space -- facebookand ireport.com is how you get on the air. a cl, low-dose tablet for erectile dysfunction you take every day so you can be ready anytime the moment is right. tell your doctor about your medical condition and all medications and ask if you're healthy enough for sexual activity. don't take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. don't drink alcohol in excess wi

lobbying firm run by former republican majority leader dick armey. corporate lobbyists are organizing far right hooligan tick ticks to disrupt civil meetings about health care reform. this is the organized use of intimidation as a political tool and i don't mean it euphemistically. i mean literal intimidation. new york new york congressman tim bishop who we showed you earlier ended up having to be escorted to his car by five police officers for his own safety after his town hall event was over. this type of harassment is not just reserved for elected officials. check out what happened at a syracuse, new york town hall meeting when a man who supports a single payor health care system stood up at one of these events to ask why his congressman wasn't supporting single payor. >> is it cheaper? it would cover everyone. we have 45 million people uninsured. we have all these people who have signed on in the united states. >> sit down. sit down. sit down. >> the single payor universal health care. >> this type of tactic and intimidation is a deliberate choic

that's an organization dick armey whose lobbying firm works for the health care industry. other side is organizing too. attendees at this reform event in los angeles were recruited by a local social service agency it? >> seems like the republicans have all these talking points that have been delivered through glenn beck, bill o'reilly, and sean hannity. bill: totally absurd. i have never received a republican talking point in my life. cbs should be ashamed to use a dishonest sound bite like that. the battle lines have been drawn as the nation is deeply involved in the most intense political debate in years. president obama has the power of his office and most of the peed i can't squarely behind him. the folks have, the folks, we will see who prevails. that's the memo. now for the top story tonight. the latest poll numbers. according to a just released opinion dynamics poll 49% of americans now oppose obama care. just 34% favor it. and when asked if they are satisfied with the way things are going in america. 61% of americans say they are not satisfied just 3% say they are.

we'll have dick armey, senator tom coburn, former senate leader tom daschle, and rachel maddow, she's there as well on "meet the press." check your local listings. >>> seven people are dead, 91 injured after a suicide bombing in afghanistan. it happened in kabul, in a heavily guarded neighborhood. this blast kitchens five days before afghanistan's presidential election. the taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack. militants have also warned afghans not to get out and vote. the blast was the first major attack in kabul since february. here's dramatic video from china. look at the effect literally washing homes away, the heavy rains have not only caused landslides, but also destroyed roads. according to cctv, china's state-owned news channels, up to 11 people are dead, two are injured. >>> right now in northern california, a fourth day of raging wildfires. today firefighters are starting to get control. so far eight square miles have burned in the santa cruz mountains, 15% of that fire is now contained, that is up from just 5% yesterday. there's also new fears that the strong

. >>> on "meet the press" tomorrow, david gregory will talk health care reform with dick armey, tom coburn, tom daschle, and rachel maddow. it is tomorrow on "meet the press." check your local listings. have , shopping online can help save. doing it with bank of america can help save a lot more. up to 20% cash back from over 300 online retailers with our add it up program. just sign up and use your bank of america debit or credit card when you shop online. it's one of the many ways we make saving money in tough times a whole lot easier. ♪ take me home ♪ take me home ♪ to my family ♪ ♪ i need to be surrounded by ♪ the ones who care for m [ female announcer ] clean you can see. softness you can feel. tide with a touch of downy. ♪ take me home >>> rainy weather in montana did that keep the first family from enjoying a little outdoor fun friday. michelle obama along with the girls went rafting. mom opted for the back sitting right behind a secret service agent. the president did not chicken out, he was actually busy at the health care reform town hall meeting. >>> it is creating a lot of buzz,

the americans for prosperity foundation, and hosted by former republican house majority leader dick armey and several conservative radio hosts. when it comes to health care, there's so much out there, so much to cover, an hour simply isn't enough. so make sure you check out cnn.com/health care. we feature ongoing coverage of the health care debate, lace of town hall meetings from across the country and how health care reform might affect you no matter where you live. cnn.com/health care. >>> president obama was all business at his town hall today but he's mixing work and pleasure with a visit to hold faithful. first family made a pit stop at yellowstone national park in wyoming to catch the geyser's famous show there. the president was apparently impressed. he was overheard telling first lady michelle obama and first daughter sasha and malia, quote, that was pretty cool. >>> is there a serial killer at work in rule north carolina? local police certainly think so, and we will take you there. >>> also, from trafficking drugs to trafficking humans. and worse. mexico's violent cartels are tar

freedom works run by lobbyist dick armey the former republican majority leader funded by the usual group of right wing billionaires. it is likely most voters in that congressman's district are in favor of significant health care reform, the texas 25th, and he is one of the most liberal in that state. it is even more likely more protestors in that audience did not even live in the congressman's district. patients united, a front group maintained by corporate funded americans for prosperity now busing people all over the country to town halls. probably including to this one in philadelphia yesterday. the speakers were hhs secretary sebelius and senator arlen specter. the protestor there is holding a bible. >> boss limbaugh today falsely describing that philadelphia town hall as senator specter and secretary sebelius getting hell from average americans who know they're full of it. minority leader boehner and michelle malkin also applauding the discussions, evoking the bloodshed of iraq in describing the scripted protests as, quote, counterinsurgency. >> i've been covering these counterinsur

of course, the head of freedom works, former republican house leader dick armey. renter, at least i don't think so at his 90-acre or so ranch in texas. those are your angry renters. big credit for the "wall street journal" exposing that astro turfing outrage last year. this is why angryrenter.com remains relevant and instructive. this is a template. this is what corporate pr designed not to look like corporate pr looks like. all the outward appearances of grassroots outrage but fueled by corporate pr. remember that group patients first which is americans for prosperity? same deal, same template, same grassrootsy look. because of the way that organizations like freedom works and americans for prosperity are structured, they don't have to disclose who gives money to them. if you are able to figure it out, there do appear to be some patterns. according to "the washington post," freedom works received major funding from the tobacco company philip morris. lo and behold on the freedom works website you'll find, "raising the cigarette tax is bad policy." according to the

with us -- former house majority leader republican dick armey, now the head of freedomwork, a major organizer of protesters of town hall meetings. republican senator tom coburn of oklahoma, a member on health, educati education, labor, and pension. former senate majority leader democrat tom daschl informal advisor to the white house, and author of "critical -- what we can do about the health care crisis". and rachael maddow, host of msnbc's "the rachael maddow show." plus, additional per specificives from around the country. bruce johnson, executive vice president of the chamber of commerce, and democratic governor bill ritter of colorado. >>> but first, making health care reform for the entire hour. welcome to our panel here. you know, the president wrote on the op-ed page is that this is a great debate for america right now. we want a civil and informative debate which is what i think we'll have this morning. i want to talk in a few minutes about three major areas of the health care debate. i want to talk about the anger, otion, fear that's out there. let me begin with you -- all of the tow

want to point out matt's group which again is founded by corporate lobbyists and the lobbyists for dick armeyrmer republican majority leader, they distributed a memo that instructed these so-called volunteers about how to disrupt the town halls, have a yell at your representative, yell these catch phrases. we're all about having a civil, democratic conversation about health care and health care reform and how we improve access and lower cos. this is about pushing a certain agenda that benefits certain corporate entities like from insurance companies, not a civil debate so let's not mistake the two. >> matt, freedomworks, your organization, have you encouraged people to show up at the town halls and be disruptive and if you have, is that behavior counterproductive to your ultimate message and goal? >> well, two points. first of all, the center for american progress has been pushing this myth that we wrote this memo, any 14-year-old with a computer could have looked up and seen that the memo was written by a gentleman with no affiliation to freedomworks whatsoever. it's not ours. >> you want to