the services here the emanuel house. they provide two meals a day, and up to two weeks of free living. volunteer workers have a guaranteed place to sleep at the shelter. >> we have families, women men from all walks of life coming through this place to eat lunch and dinner with us. >> reporter: they're on their way to the goal of earning $200,000. >>> advanced photography students got a chance to showcase their work on campus earlier this week. the image and idea event is held every semester. the artist used pins to create an image of the american flag. they are free to be as creative as they want to be with their theme. >> mine's about my friends, who got kicked out and what not. i decided to photograph his feelings you know. and there's other stories behind these other artists too. and it's just interesting to see how they're interpreted through photography and lightning and color. all the elements of art. >> the students will keep their artwork for their portfolios. >>> students found a shores to do christmas shopping

zeke emanuel responds tonight. >>> house republicans pass an immigration bill democrats say is divisive and inferior. today, congressman javier on why the latino community won't be fooled. >>> the nation's first fast food strike is a historic protest for workers' rights. tonight, what you need to know about the lowest paid workforce in the country. >>> good to have you with us tonight, folks. thanks for watching. president obama knows his opponent is on the ropes and he's not letting up. the president took his tax plan agenda on the road today. he went to a philadelphia, pennsylvania, toy factory just north of philadelphia to focus on the people who will be hurt if the tax rate extensions are not passed for presidethe 98% o americans. >> if congress does nothing, every family in america will see their income taxes automatically go up on january 1st. every family. everybody here, you'll see your taxes go up on january 1st. i'm assuming that doesn't sound too good to you. that's like the lump of coal you get for christmas. that's a scrooge christmas. >> president obama has been consistent

in terms of what it was about, i would point to a very early quote from rahm emanuel, then white house chief of staff. he said, talking about the 2008 financial crisis, we're not going to let a good crisis go to waste. i think dodd/frank was 90% about advancing a pre-existing political agenda, not solving real problems that existed in the 2008 crisis. >> yeah. i think you're not alone this that belief. senator, good to have you on the program. >> thanks, maria is there we'll be following your work. see you soon. >>> up next, general partner jeff jordan is sounding a warning to traditional retailers and all investors need to hear this one and outrage across the web about instagram's plan to sell your photos that you post. we'll get to the bottom of this. stay with us on it. ♪ [ male announcer ] how could a luminous protein in jellyfish, impact life expectancy in the u.s., real estate in hong kong, and the optics industry in germany? at t. rowe price, we understand the connections of a complex, global economy. it's just one reason over 75% of our mutual funds beat their 10-year lipper av

house and eventually he realized he couldn't get things done. >> what is or was valerie jarrett's relationship with the rahm emanuel in the white house? > not a good one. to this day rahm emanuel does not have good things to say about valerie jarrett. emanuel was opposed to the president -- and this is not only in my reporting but other people's reporting as well, the president going more broke on obamacare. he thought he should do incremental steps first, small steps, popular steps that could get republican backing for it. valerie jarrett and michelle obama were the two people who said listen mr. president, actually valerie calls and barack. the only person in the white house other than michelle who does. you were elected to be not just president but to be a special president, a transformational president, a person who is going to change the direction and the course of america. you can't just dupe this piecemeal. you have to take the whole thing, go for the health care bill to go down in history as the first president to pass a national health care bill. he listens to valerie and michelle and not to rahm emanuel. this was the beginnin

ed henry focuses on a tale of two white houses with messaging. but first, mike emanuel looks at where the republican goes from here and what speaker boehner had to say about it today. >> after last night's unexpected withdrawal of the speaker boehner's plan "b," many hope plan "c" develops quickly. >> how we get there, god only knows. >> candid moment with house speaker boehner as talks to address the fiscal cliff yet to produce a deal. the speaker acknowledged trying to bridge the differences with the president has been difficult. >> i told the president on monday, these were my bottom lines. the president told me that his numbers, $1.3 trillion in new revenues, $850 billion in spending cuts, was his bottom line. that he couldn't go any further. >> so boehner spent time and energy this week on trying to advance plan "b" designed to extend the current tax rate for all, but those earning $1 million or more. the g.o.p. leadership recognized it didn't have the votes last night it was pulled. speaker predicted it would pass. today explained went went wrong. >> there was a p

house will like it. but strong bipartisan support in the senate may help. >> bret: we'll head back for breaking details. mike emanuele hill. thanks. ed henry at the white house with the latest there. sned >> going. the president has been mostly watching and waiting but the republicans charge excesstive celebration from the commander-in-chief may spike the deal. >> if we are going to be serious about the deficit and debt reduction, then it's going to have to be a matter of shared sacrifice. at least as long as i'm president. i am going to be president for the next four years. >> president obama said a deal is in sight and appeared at a campaign style event to remind everyone he is winning and g.o.p. is not. >> last month, republicans in congress said they would never agree to raise tax rates on the wealthiest americans. the agreement currently discussed would raise those rates, raise them permanently. >> republicans suggest the event may backfire to accuse the republican of rubbing their nose in defeat. >> the president won. we know that. he won fair and square. isn't it now time to govern? >> the president was out o

house? >> guest: not a good one. to this day rahm emanuel does not have good things to say about valerie jerrod. he was opposed to the president, not only my reporting but other people's reporting as well, the president going for broke on obamacare. he thought he should do incremental steps first, small steps, popular steps that he could get republicans back and forth. valerie jarrett and michele obama were the two people who said listen, mr. president, valerie calls him barack, the only person in the white house other than michele who does, you were elected to be not just president but to be a special president, a transformational president, a person who is going to change the direction and course of america and you can't do this piecemeal, you have to take the whole thing, go for the health care bill to go down in history as the person, first president to pass a national health-care bill and he listened to valerie and michele, not to rahm emanuel. this bonet -- was the beginning of rahm emanuel's erosion of power and it was one of several

about the latest white house meeting with congressional leaders saying it was indeed constructive. we have live fox team coverage. mike emanuelcongress today. first, chief white house correspondent ed henry is in the briefing room where the president just spoke. >> you heard the president himself pleading with republicans and democrats on the hill, too, in his words to at least meet the one deadline, saying that the grand bargain, $4 trillion debt deal is far out o reach. but thinks they can at least do a modest package to prevent everyone's taxes going up at the end of the year. it note he made clear that this was only a possible agreement. they said he was only modestly optimistic, as the senate leaders right now, start work on just trying to scramble to put together some sort of a deal. >> timing, we are out of time. the next if hours will be important. >> with the nation on the vernal of the largest tax increase since world war ii, president obama called congressional leaders to white house for one last desperate shot at deal. max baucus says he sees a slim down agreement starting to gel, because the pressure on all sides

of representatives, he served on the local level, but since coming here to the house in 2004, emanuel cleaver has been a champion for the poor, the ainled, the infermed and for those struggling -- the aged, the infermed and those struggling to stay in the middle class. he's extended employment opportunities for those looking to build a better life for themselves and their families and to represent god. he has done so with dignity, grace and civility. as c.b.c. chair during the 112th congress, emanuel cleaver understood the importance of drawing attention to the economic crisis in the african-american community where the unemployment rates were more than double that of whites. and under his leadership, the c.b.c. launched the for the people jobs initiative, hosting town hall discussions and job fairs, one of which was in los angeles in my hometown, and four other urban areas hit hardest by the recession. the c.b.c. took the feedback and received -- the c.b.c. took the feedback that was received from those communities and its recommendations for creating jobs to the president who includ

. >>> with us, chicago mayor rahm emanuel, president obama's former white house chief of staff. good morning. >> good morning. >> this change of heart, how sustainable is it? will it lead to meaningful action, and is meaningful action a ban on assault weapons and more? >> yes. yes to all of those, but to break it down, there is no doubt i think right now, all of us, all of us are citizens and residents of newtown, connecticut. that's number one. i think there's a genuine outpouring in the country for action that this type of event is -- you know, the tectonic shift in attitudes, that's number one. you have to have when reauthorization of the assault weapon ban, when i worked for president clinton we fought to get it to pass the house by one vote. i remember there was an attempt to pull it out of the crime bill. we kept it in and finally got it done. it was bipartisan when it passed. second, you have to deal with the clips and the straw purchases, which is how guns bled into urban and other areas vie at brady bill that deals with stores and at regular kind of merchants. almost 40

house. jenna: mike emanuel is with us. certainly a challenge to find this ideal plan. what is holding it up. >> reporter: the chairman of the senate budget committee wants a large come proceed hence i have deal in the range of $5 trillion and says a grand bargain can get done if everybody kaoels cool and doesn't overreact to every valley over the net. he this is a camp david-style summit might help things move around. a senate republican told greta van susteren it's time to be honest about retirement benefits. >> you and i need to pay a little more into the system because we can afford it. that is the kind of entitlement reform we need. >> reporter: that gets older americans and their groups all worked up thinking you could be messing with their benefits. jenna: a hot toeupb hot topic, and taxes. it seems they need to have some sort of increase in taxes. how does that play out. >> reporter: the statement from the white house said until the republicans are willing to get serious about asking the wealthyist to pay slightly higher tax rates there won't be a significance b

emanuel, live on capitol hill. mike, thanks very much. let's talk a look at the floor of the housef representatives because they're in session right now. that is earl bloom men our from oregon. we don't have at chamber. we don't know how much are actually there. sometimes it is only, you know, the guy who is talking. but, nevertheless as mike pointed out they have passed several different measures, one way back in may to tackle ernestly the budget deficit and debt and then a more recent one that passes an extension of all the bush tax cuts. so the their position right now, at least speaker boehner's is, hey, it is time for the senate to act on some of our bills. we'll keep an eye what is happening there. heather: busy day for them. president obama taking his case to the american public. here is what he had to say about the situation playing out on capitol hill. >> what's been holding us back is the dysfunction here in washington and if, you know, people start to see that on january 1st this problem still hasn't been solved, that we haven't seen the deficit reduction we could have h

spending cuts and tax loopholes though not specifics in a plan the white house says simply would not raise enough cash. mike emanuelith the news in washington tonight. a top congressional democrat today said it is vital that lawmakers hammer out a deal and soon. >> shep, that's the great unknown in all of this fiscal cliff fighting. some argue the country won't be badly damaged if the country hits the fiscal cliff. republicans and democrats keep arguing into the new year. others are worried failure to strike a deal could send the nation back into a recession. >> i think people understand the failure to compromise and going over the cliff could really jeopardize this recovery. the good news today about more people back at work, the unemployment rate coming down, listen, that can be reversed if people lose confidence in our future. >> the number two senate ranked democrat mr. temperature bib argues next week will be critical in terms of president obama and speaker boehner finding a compromise. shep? >> shepard: democrats are still saying what they have said all along and what the president ran on this is about taxes.

emanuel on the hill. thanks. taxpayers may end up tore forebailout. housing says the federal housing administration is facing a deficit of $16 billion. fha insures all mortgages in the country. more and more homeowners are defaulting on those loans. the agency has planned to announce fees next year. the housing secretary says that probably won't be enough. taxpayers have already spent more than $135 billion. bailing out fannie mae and freddie mac. mortgage companies the government controls. by the way, the feds have now or now have a hand in almost 90% of home loans in the united states. peter barnes from fox business is in d.c. tonight. how much could this new bailout cost if it happens, pete? >> well, shep, the fha ensures more than a trillion dollars in riskier mortgages with low down payments. typically 3.5%. so many of its older loans are going bad that one critic, ed pinto of the american enterprise institute estimates that a full blown recappization could cost taxpayers $25 billion if combined with major reforms. that does not appear likely right now,

emanuel. >> the late word is there will be no vote in the house of representatives because there is nothingo vote on. so we are tumbling over the fiscal cliff for now. the question after the interview, president obama sitting down with one sunday talk show host yesterday and that host is capping flak if not asking the tough questions on taxes and spending and follow-up >> politics is always messy. people have asked me about the film "lincoln" and --. >> is this your lincoln moment? >> no, i never compare myself to lincoln. and, obviously the magnitude of the issues are quite different from the civil war and slavery. >> how accountable are you for the fact that washington is not getting anything done? >> if you look at my track record over the last two years, i cut spending by over $1 trillion in 2011. >> and now, what do you think of how the media is treating the president as we muddle through this fiscal mess? >> it is a consequential time, the president has to answer tough questions about the toughest questions of our time and he sits down with "meet the press" and the president and the w

when the house lawmakers return and when the leaders in the united states senate are hoping they will be able to offer a compromise plan. doug? >> doug: mike emanuel on the hill. mike will have much more on this with the panel tonight. as developments are happening fast and furiously late on this friday evening. stocks dropped 2 for week. the dow lost 158. the s&p 500 dropped 16. nasdaq ended 26 below. national association of realers say pending home sales increased in november for the third straight month to reach the highest level in two-and-a-half years. major port strike has been averted for now after mediators got the long shoreman's union to postpone it for month to work out time detail osafter new contract. correspondent phil keeting is following that story from miami. >> at least one end of the year cliff has been averted for now. container cliff. there will be no east and gulf coast port strike happening this weekend. but both sides still have much to work out. if they don't, five weeks from now will be right back to a sweeping strike with great consequences. >> a strike in long beach in los angeles a few weeks ago. that was close. if you

house speaker boehne sr right chw zeros did on of alllan. black planned mike emanuel joins us. this has been ahead be left with groups urging republicans to vote against pan "b" but less than two th weeks from the fiscal cliff leaders say they tried toax hikr avoid a massive tax hike for everybody. >> it will be a to the democrats in the white house. >> it would extend the bush tax cuts below $1 million also the house votes on a separate measure to cancel the pentagon cuts with sequestration that has upset house democrats. >> these are not a plan. it is a ploy. they are bills to know where. and a deeply cynical move, republicans decide toill o offer another bill to put off some of the sequester.oehner >> speaker boehner has notnd b given up on a grand bargain. >> and our respective rolesspecv we have ea responsibility tor work together to get results.pect it ll conti i expect we will continue to work together.he top >> he did not sound issound so optimistic. threpubl determined to lead off the cliff we will not take the enmiddle-class with him. >> 53 senate democrats voted for

emanuel on capitol hill. how much stock are lawmakers putting in the white house meeting? >> depends who you ask. some republicans expressed concern it may be for show, essentially going to the white house, having a big meeting that everybody's talking about for the appearances that they're doing something. other suggest it's critical because time is running out. >> the window may be ajar but it's not wide open. and unless it closes -- or opens entirely today and there's a deal, it's more likely to close than stay open. in other words, if we don't have a deal in the next 24 hours, the question is where do you buy a parachute. it looks like we'll be going over the cliff. the closer we get to the end, the less likely it is you're going to be able to compress an agreement into place to have enough votes to pass. >> while rebounds and democrats may not agree on a lot. we heard from republicans and democrats that time is becoming critical and they're feeling the pressure of the calendar. >> trace: as you talk to lawmakers, how worried do they seem to be about the threat of taxes going up? >> that's a

. >> mike emanuel, we'll bring you back as news warrants. >>> we want to go to the white house where president obama is keeping a eye on capitol hill. the president making his case and pressing lawmakers to reach a deal. when asked about the fiscal cliff in an interview today. ed henry is live from the white house. the president seemed to be aggressively pushing his message. >> he was. he's been briefed through the day by his staff. he's been at the white house behind closed doors, awaiting the latest. all those developments mike's talking about but he decided also to take an aggressive role in going on a sunday talk show for the first time in over three years, meet the press, and made his case by suggesting this is in republican hands now. if they do not move forward on a deal, the g.o.p. will get the blame for going off the cliff. >> one of the proposals we made was chain cpi which sounds technical but makes an adjustment in terms of how inflation a calculated on social security. high will highly unpopular among democrats but in pursuit of strengthening social security long term i'

house. this as new details are coming to light about a possible deal with negotiators reportedly finding common ground on both spending cuts and higher taxes as well. chief congressional correspondent mike emanuelive on capitol hill. mike? >> reporter: well, jon, we understand that that white house meeting between president obama and speaker boehner wrapped up just moments ago. it lasted 45 minutes, and aides are saying we will not get a readout, but there certainly has been a flurry of activity on the fiscal cliff front. aides to speaker boehner say in a friday phone call to the president the speaker offered to extend the bush tax cuts for those making up to a million dollars so, therefore, those above a million dollars would pay slightly higher taxes in exchange for spending cuts and entitlement reform. let's take a look at the framework of a possible fiscal cliff deal. it includes $1 trillion in cuts, $1 trillion in new revenue. that would include an immediate down payment and then lawmakers working out details in the new year. possibly including raising the nation's debt limit, something the white house has badly wanted, extending unemployment insurance, the medicare doc fix, payroll tax cu

house of representatives on that. we will soon find out. thank you, mike emanuel. that is a big story in washington, dc. story from the middle east goes to the heart of egypt. they are bracing for massive nation-wide protests tomorrow against the country's president as well as the newly drafted constitution. they are voting, remember, and demonstrators have rallied against president morsi recently who tried to grant himself absolute power. the protests grew when the allies draft add constitution that would give hard-line islamists more sway in the largely secular islamic country. remember, egypt often mediates feuds and peace treaties between israel and the enemy and they are critical to middle east peace. over the weekend the constitution passed a preliminary vote, 57 percent of the ballot, and that is said to be quite a bit less than the president expected but the vote was riddled with irregularities. back you negotiation you in now town where the governor malloy is holding a news conference in hartford. we expected this to begin a short time ago and he now is talking. we will drop in and hear what he

emanuel has that story. >> democrats won't agree to it. obama wouldn't sign a bill. >> they blast the houseublican plan it's not likely that president obama will get to sign his own fiscal cliff plan since the republicans and democrats don't like it. the measure was defeated 99-nothing. west virginia senator says that both sides aren't going far enough when it comes to cuts. >> they are lower than what everyone says we need. all economists say we need minimum of $4 trillion or greater swing. >> i don't know how we got off-track of what we need to fix this. >> it will be tough for the 20 senate democrats facing re-election. such as begoch and maryland land and mark pryor from conservative states. the top republicans say the president's span not serious. >> comes out with a proposal to raise taxes by $1.6 trillion. has unlimited authority to borrow more money. >> chuck schumer says he prefers to set the bar at $1 million. they have smart cuts to ask the millionaires to pay their fair shares. $60% of americans want millionaires to pay more. >> democrats hope this addres addresses the estate ta

. >> heritage action are hammering house republicans for negotiating with themselves in public about how high to increase taxes. >> mike emanuel on the hill. what about this sendipending is we keep hearing so much about. where are your tax dollars going. we take a look in part one of the series "the cost of spending." >> we can't spend ourselves rich. >> presidents have been talking about the federal government spending appetite for decades. president reagan. >> what ails usable be s -- us be simply put the president is growing too big. >> this government is too big and spends too much. >> president clinton. >> this is the largest deficit reduction plan in history. >> president george w. bush. >> american families have to balance their budgets so should their government. >> every day families sacrifice to live within their means. they deserve a government that does the same. >> in the recent talks to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff john boehner insists the president has been singing a different tune. >> it is clear the president is not serious cutting spending. but spend something the problem. >> you hear the talking heads ev

emanuel thank you very much. more coming up on the get-together tomorrow at the white house whether it will be or not to try to work out a solution. that is coming up at the bottom of the hour. >>> the stubborn winter storm sticking around across much of the nation's eastern half. the same weather system that slammed the south and dumped know snow on the midwest bringing misery to the northeast and new england. causing new trouble for post holiday travelers. an american airlines plane ended up stranded on a snow. >> tarmac in pittsburgh. just outside new york city a southwest jet got stuck in the mud after skidding off the runway. in some of the hardest hit area the roads are even worse. >> i lost count of number of cars in the ditch. a jackknifed tractor trailer and a horse trailer turned over. >> i have seen ten cars in an accident. i saw a lexus fly into the ditch. >> i wish people would slow down a little bit, you know. it is pretty slick. >> harris: the storm will go into the his tor the history br leaving behind a path of destruction from a tornado jut broke in the south to a record snowfall in arkansas that

emanuel. how is he dealing with this? >> he's very -- he comes out of the white house and congress.s a lot of experience in high-pressure politics. he used to be this kind of fly off the handle guy, threatening people, and he's calmed down enormously. he's very mayoral in his demeanor. but he has a problem. the city is in debt. and there's this culture of corruption in the chicago political system. apparently 51 convictions annually since 1976. every year 51 chicago politicians and local politicians go to jail. and so this is the system that he finds himself working in. and he's made it an international city, but only part of it is an international city. the rest of it, there's this enormous murder rate. there are a lot of schools in trouble. >> but has he gone on to a political reset? your article has rahm emanuel 2.0. >> i mean he's reset in the sense that he's in charge of a city now. he's not whipping congressmen into shape. he's not a chief of staff in the white house. so he's reset his demeanor. but i think if you talk to people who cover him all the time in chicago, he comes

republican party, and within the republican caucus of the house, and talk to seen your democrats and they will tell you, rank and file democrats, emanuelaver, who is the tom cole of the left, it will be hard for them at the end of the day to say you'll have to give on raising the eligibility age for medicare. that's not easy for democrats to swallow. >> the deals that were made, recently, have not been from the right and the left. the speaker lost his right, nancy pelosi lost her left, and they come together here. that's doable, yes? >> i think so. i think there has to be a lot of people, republicans, that wish they would have taken the deal seeing how the election came out that taking the deal in the summer of 2011 where president obama reluctantly indicated that he would be for changing the cost of living formula for social security, raising the retirement age very slowly for medicare, and because those things are going to be harder to get now for democrats, because the left has mobilized, liberal groups are very active. but i think the democrats recognize the entitlement spending has to be curved. >> they don't want to change it str

house shove america off the fiscal cliff. let's go to capitol hill fox news chief congressional correspondent mike emanuel live with the latest. >> we are heading into a critical weekend as a final push is made to keep the u.s. economy from going off the fiscal cliff. after a late afternoon meeting with the top four congressional leaders at the white house, president obama offered this assessment. >>> i'm modestly optimistic -- nobody is going to get 100% of what they want. but let's make sure that middle class families and the american economy and in fact the world economy aren't adversely impacted because people can't do their jobs. >> sources say house speaker are john boehner deferred to senate colleagues and told them house leaders would consider, accept or amend their plan. what s not expected to be included in any deal is increasing the debt limit, something democrats have wanted and republicans have resisted. >> we he haded a long meeting in the white house and it was constructive. we hope that it will bear fruit. but that is what we hoped a lot. i think that the next 24 hours will be very instructive as to what we ar

emanuel a minute ago. he was asked flat out is the white house ready to go over the fiscal cliff and boom he says, absolutely, as if that is a good thing. i mean there are defense contractors who are going to be laying off workers, there are all kinds of negative ramifications to all of this. but the white house apparently is ready to take the jump. >> well, they are certainly ready to say it. the republicans have a weaker hand than i thought they would originally have about a couple months ago, but the idea that president obama wants to start his second term by plunging the country into a recession, a huge sell off in the stock market, and by being perceived as generally sort of willing to play chicken with the economy doesn't sound like a brilliant political move to me. jon: you think that's all talk? >> i think it's a game of chicken, i really do. i think that the republicans would probably get a lot of blame in the beginning, and that's maybe what they are thinking of and they are trying to scare the republicans, but over the long term there is just no way this administration wants to go overt fisca over

emanuel's report. democrat leaders are hammering out deal they can pass and hopefully angela and mark, he see it get passed in the houseore the automatic tax increases and deep spending cuts actually go into effect on january 1st, 20113, which is now some 48 hours away. do they have enough time to get it done? >> yes. >> i certainly hope so, i mean, look, we shouldn't be debating this right now. the house of representatives should. unfortunately, they're still taking vacation while the senate and the house and the white house are working. >> they argue back to-- >> they'll be back tomorrow. >> they have 24 hours and they'll be able to-- look, i'm a democrat and wishing the best for senate republican leader mitch mcconnell where he's able to succeed where congressman boehner was not, able to unify the republican party so they can take a vote so the senate and white house negotiate and. >> kelly. >> and to the point and avoid the fiscal cliff. >> kelly: but to mark's point, angela, senator mitch mcconnell is known for having good brinksmanship and getting it deal done. >> we're on the brink. >> that's what i said earlier

the president and the speaker of the house meeting face to face in the oval office and we will see at some point if there is progress, harris. >> harris: mike emanuelpitol hill, thank you. congress also considering a 60 billion-dollar relief package for victims of super storm sandy. and now more than 125 leading ceos in new york urging lawmakers to approve this thing. among them, top executives from time warner, bloomberg, morgan stanley and the nba. joining governors from new york, new jersey, and connecticut asking congress to get it done before they break for the holidays. they say it's already taken congress too long to act in the aftermath in the disaster. president george h.w. bush should be able to celebrate christmas at home with his family. mr. bush, who is 88 years old, has spent nearly three weeks in the hospital in texas where doctors have been treating him for a cough related to bronchitis. a hospital spokesperson saying our nation's 41st president is improving and doctors do expect him to be able to it go home by the holiday. the syrian government's biggest ally now admitting the civil war raging there may well doom the regime. hear h

house not far behind. i'm he shannon bream in washington. mike emanuel us live from capitol hill with the latest on the debate. mike, we heard the president go after republicans in the televised interview this evening. how is that being received? >> some irritation. mitch mcconnell is actively trying to hammer out a deal to avoid the fiscal cliff, negotiating with harry reid. some question about the timing of the the president's interview. speaker boehner moments ago issued this statement ," americans elected president obama to lead, not cast blame. the president's comments are ironic as a recurring theme of our negotiations was his unwillingness to agree he to anything that would require him to stand up to his own party ." a retiring senator says it is time to get things globe there shouldn't be lines in the sand at the 12th hour now. we ought to be willing to sit down and reach an agreement based on the proposition we don't want to hurt the economy or small business people or retirees. >> some anxiety building here on capitol hill because very little h

houses of congress can accept. >> reporter: there you go. jon: mike emanuel there at the capitol building, thank you.: well, at this time last week we were just learning of the death and horror of that shooting rampage at the sandy hook elementary school in newtown, connecticut. the national rifle association has been silent on the issue of gun control. that changed today. the nra holding a news conference for the first time since the massacre in connecticut. james rosen is live in washington with more on this. james? >> reporter: jenna, this a remarkable moment to watch. the head of the nation's largest gun rights organization at once responding specifically to the massacre at sandy hook elementary school in newtown, connecticut, putting forward specific if not altogether surprising policy descriptions for the future and delivering both a sering indictment of hollywood, the news media, the gaming culture and corporate america while at the same time offering an impassioned defense of the gun culture and the historic role of the gun as he sees it in securing an advancing american history. wayne louisi

situation to navigate at this point because the senate and house are obviously quite divided at this point. gregg: they surely are. mike emanuel, live on capitol hill. mike, thank you very much. >> reporter: thank you, gregg. patti ann: what would it mean if lawmakers fail to strike a deal. according to the tax policy center, 90% of americans could see a tax hike in 2013. 21 million people will pay more in payroll taxes. families making between 40 and $65,000 a year will have to pay an extra two grand to the government. gregg: coming up we'll talk with republican nick mulvaney whose house budget committee is obviously on the forefront of the fiscal talk. so we'll try to get the latest from him in just a moment. patti ann: meanwhile, gregg, we have new warnings from the treasury department that if a fiscal deal isn't reached our government will have to turn to extraordinary measures when the debt limit hits its ceiling. $16.4 trillion probably on monday. fox business network's stuart varney joins us now. hi, stu. you say this is the big story people aren't talking about? >> it is a sleeper issue, patti ann. on monday the govern

house between president obama and congressional leaders on the fiscal crisis. the talks are a last-ditch effort to avoid spending cuts and tax hikes from 90% of american households. mike emanuel is live on capitol hill where all the action is taking place. is there a lot of action? there is a lot of buzz on capitol hill. mitch mcconnell, who will be attending a white house meeting told us a few moments ago that we are always the running out of time. chairman max baucus, the democrat says that he thinks this will fiscal cliff matter comes down as one white house meeting two hours from now. another top senate republican said a short time ago that he was calling on president obama to lead. >> the president is not a senator anymore. he's a president. just as president reagan worked to deal with tip o'neill and bill clinton and president eisenhower, we need leadership on not just taxing rich people, but we contact them and it wouldn't help the medicare fiscal cliff. greg: others are skeptical, noting that high-profile meetings are for show often times and all about tactics. we expect the president will try a stopgap measure extending middle-class tax rates, extending unemployment

house will come up with a deal to avoid the cliffs. one republic senator says he is more worried than ever. it's the top story at the bottom of the hour. mike emanuel it this evening. the idea was that these cuts would be so painful that this thing would be so horrible. that this would throw us into such a mess that there is no way these loons on capitol hill would let this happen. but lo and behold. >> exactly, shep. certainly 2012 campaign politics did not help congress and the white house find alternatives to these cuts. today a top republic senator told me time is running out. >> i'm more worried about the sequester now than ever because it seems to be overshadowed by discussions over going off the fiscal cliff which is a separate but related matter. a combination of those two things both huge tax increase and a $1.2 trillion in cuts will put us in a recession. defense and domestic cuts could be avoided if a grand bargain is struck to avoid the fiscal cliff. if not, it will get ugly, shep. >> shepard: yeah, it will. give us an idea what we are talking about in the way of cuts here if this happens. >> as you mentioned they are split between dome

manager of the obama campaign, david axelrod, robert emanuel and ascii none, how the next four years under an obama presidency given that the house composition before less the same. >> most certainly going to be similar. >> uniformly very unfair, and other verses as a talking point, with the fever will break, that the american people as they vote for president obama for another four years will basically be voting against obstructionism. republicans would get the message and walk in a fashion towards the center. >> i can't see that happening at all. >> that's their talking point. >> are you any more optimistic? governor romney is supposed to the president being reenacted that their son joe waiting for him after he gets into office? >> now, i'm not. i wrote a story for "the new york times" magazine on governor romney and specifically his time as governor day. about three weeks ago or so. the basic piece concludes is i interviewed a number of people and particularly the more conservative house republicans are their chops. they believe this to be a great moment if mitt romney wins. a moment for them to legislate very aggressively con

. >> and congressman emanuel cleaver, great to have you on set with us. >>> coming up, nbc chief white housee show, "the economist" crunched the numbers and came up with the best countries to be born in in 2013. and the united states does not top their list. we'll find out who does ahead on "morning joe." [ male announcer ] there are plenty of reasons to be jolly at the chevy year-end event because chevy's giving more. more efficiency with sonic and cruze... more function in equinox and traverse... more dependability with the legendary silverado... and more style in the all-new malibu. chevy's giving more at the year-end event because 'tis the season. chevy's giving more. this holiday season, get a 2013 cruze ls for around $169 per month or get $500 holiday bonus cash. >>> that's a new ad from the center for the next generation for their too small to fail movement. the group is trying to bring awareness to challenges that threaten children's well-being and, mark mckinnon, you are a part of this campaign. >> what a powerful commercial. >> red state/blue state i teamed up with jim margolies. a

emanuel is live on capitol hill. what where republican leaders saying about today's meeting? reporter: republicans in office do not control the white houseey need to cooperate and to actually support a final plan in the senate. so they are pushing to see what the president will offer at this meeting. a leading senate republican sounded pretty skeptical about this meeting. >> anytime you nonsedating public publicly in washington, it is usually for political theater purposes. my bet is that it's all political theater. jon: republicans have made the point that it is time for the senate to act. they are also anxious to see what the president has to offer. obviously, we are waiting to see whether there will be enough republican support for whatever is offered to get us a bill through the house and senate. harris: what is happening on the democratic side? reporter: they are frustrated. they wanted that house republicans to return a lot sooner to work on a fiscal cliff deal. we know that it will not return until sunday, the house, here is democrat chris van hollen from maryland. reporter: this is not a show. the last ditch effort to bring congr

house democrat there, jon. jon: optimism is in short supply these days. we'll take all of it that we can get i guess. mike emanuel, thanks. >> reporter: thank you, jon. jenna: we're following breaking developments in michigan where governor rick snyder signed two bills into law last night making michigan the 24th right-to-work state. the laws ban unions requiring workers to pay dues or when hired pay equivalent of the dues. here is governor snyder from a news conference last night. >> i view this as an opportunity to stand up for michigan's workers, to be pro-worker, to say here opportunity to give workers a choice, the freedom to choose who they associate with and whether they pay financial dollars to organizations they may not believe are serving their best interests. hopefully those organizations are, and they see value and sign up and pay those dollars. but if they don't, they're not forced into that position. jenna: joining me now, congressman sandy levin, democrat from michigan. also the ranking member of the house ways and means committee. nice to have you in studio with us. >> nice to be with you. jenna:

the obama campaign and david axelrod and rahm emanuel and stephanie cutter and asking them you know, how would the next years under obama, given that the house composition -- >> is almost certainly going to be similar. >> how will things be different and uniformly their answer, in other words the talking point, was that the fever will break, that the american people if they vote for president obama for another four years will basically be voting against obstructionist and the republicans will get the message and they will walk in a sultry fashion toward the center of. >> i can see that happening at all. >> no, no and if that is her talking point and they are siding with the. >> are you optimistic to say that governor romney would have one that there is and you waiting for him after he gets into office? >> no, no i'm not and i wrote a story for "the new york times magazine" on governor romney and specifically on his kind of governor that appeared three weeks ago or so. the way that the piece concludes is by, i interviewed a number of people and particularly the more conservative republicans and they were licking their chops and said this woul

are expecting that the white house and/or democrats on the hill will make a final offer of some sort at some point. but timing is not clear. not at this time. greg: mike emanuel live on capitol hill. thank you very much. just ahead, we will ask kyle harrington about what could happen if we do end up going over the fiscal cliff. weill discuss the extraordinary measures being taken by treasury secretary tim geithner to make sure the u.s. does not reach its parliament. and end up defaulting on its debt. at roughly the same time. heather: that's a one-two punch. new developments in the growing crisis in syria. u.n. envoy calling for a transitional government run the country in order to end the conflict. russia's foreign minister mixon grimmer marks of such a plan actually working, saying that it still necessary to reach a peaceful solution. leland vittert has more on this. reporter: the russian foreign minister said that he feared that syria could turn into a bloody chaos that there was not some kind of negotiated settlement. many looking at the video that we see every day now coming out of syria. syria is already in a bloody chaos. more than 40,000 people killed

emanuel live on capitol hill for us. three weeks from the end of the year, mike. any signs of progress? >> reporter: jon, it is hard to tell we know the president and the speaker of the house met privately yesterday and as we mentioned both sides say the lines of communication are open but they are not giving out any details of what was discussed or any readout of the meeting. that may be a good sign. the previous meeting was on camera. this one face-to-face privately at the white house and so perhaps they had a chance to roll up their sleeves and get into some of the tough details in terms of finding a deal on the fiscal cliff. this morning a leading republican said any deal should include the major drivers of our debt. >> the long-term indebtedness of this country is baby boomers retiring putting pressure on medicaid, medicare and social security. i hope my party will look out for the country and not just the party itself and pure this president to do something he has never done before, lead in a bipartisan way. >> reporter: a little swipe there at the end but republicans have been consistent that it is important to address entitlement reform, something they very much wa