anyway, eugene robinson, alex wagner. coming up, by the way, coming up, today's latest on the right's benghazi obsession. they know how to brag. first their committee subpoenas john kerry the secretary of state. then john boehner the speaker moves to select a new formal committee to investigate apparently the other four committees already investigating this nonscandal. weren't enough to do the job. also the news keeps getting worse for chris christie. today we learned that many of christie's wealthiest and best connected donors are preparing to jump ship if jeb bush gets into the presidential race. and i guess he's getting in. and president obama's sharp elbows at tomorrow's white house correspondents' dinner, look for the president to use his humor as a weapon. are you listening donald trump? >> no one is happier, no one is prouder, to put this birth certificate matter to rest than the donald. and that's because he can finally get back to focusing on the issues that matter. like did we fake the moon landing? what really

joining me now is washington post columnist eugene robinson and michael sherrer politico has an article. are we at that point? >> we are at the point where it has become a political debate and not really a debate over the situation at the v.a. the v.a. sees something like 230,000 people a day. it's an organization of 300,000 people. it's had its budget tripled over the last 13 years. there are problems there. the fact that there was fraud in the scheduling record is a total outrage and needs to be dealt with. but we move beyond that to the point where as long as we have knows the debate is no longer about actual issues and scheduling. it is about over how much political damage will be done. >> but this also is like a scandal ready made for the gop which has basically spent the last six years railing against government, the role of government, trying to trim government, down size, defund. here is a case study -- i'm not suggesting that we get rid of the v.a. health department. if you are a republican looking to make that argument it is all on the table for you. >> you know, this scandal

anyway, eugene robinson is a columnist for "the washington post." and alex wagner is the host of "now" on msnbc. two great people to join me. the oobs lute hilarity, when everything is turning up roses. reince preibus comes out and eric cantor -- maybe the unemployment wait doesn't get to their eroj nous zone the way it does to the democrats. but certainly the stock market through the roof. wouldn't they be saying good fine work by this man, good work. >> everything would be coming up roses, happy days would be here again, except that's a democratic sthougt. no, it would be morning again in america. >> right. a. >> why don't democrats tell the story, right? >> yes. this is a problem with the democratic party maybe for a while now. they don't know how to win. >> they don't know how to tell their accomplishments. chris, we got mugs with the president's birth certificate? where are the mugs showing the numbers out of the great recession. >> today before he began. the president took a moment to tout april's exciting job numbers. and repeat there's more

joining me now are eugene robinson, washington post columnist as well as msnbc and ezra klein, also an msnbc contributor. welcome, gentlemen. picking up on that fight in kentucky, i want to show you the democratic house there also has pushed something about 10.10 an hour. it was stalled in the republican state senate and there's a bluegrass poll there that shows that 61% of folks in that red state do want to raise the minimum wage to $10 an hour. walk us through the politics and the policy there. >> well, the politics, we see where public opinion is on this issue. and it's very clear that people nationwide and especially including kentucky would like to see an increase in the minimum wage. that's established by every poll. the question is -- and i think the republican calculation is that that might not be a voting issue come november and i think republicans are betting that it isn't and democrats are hoping that it is. >> that's it. there's always issues where you see support, background checks being an example and it doesn't necessarily become a political winner in terms of having tha

bob kerrey, eugene robinson. >>> up next, how the national rifle association twisted the real meaningf the second amendment. wait until you hear this, it's pretty good book. this is "hardball," place for politics. the name your price to! you tell them how much you want to pay, and they help you find a policy that fits your budget. i told you to wear something comfortable! this is a polyester blend! whoa! uh...little help? i got you! unh! it's so beautiful! man: should we call security? no, this is just getting good. the name your price tool, still only from progressive. >>> well, here's something you don't see every day, president obama walked back to the white house from the department of the interior, and on the way he stopped to chat with some very surprised tourists. there he is, take a listen. >> didn't expect this. >> no. >> it's for your birthday? happy birthday. >> thank you, sir. >> where are you from? >> israel. >> happy birthday. tell everybody back home i said hi. tel aviv, jerusalem? >> thank you, sir. >> the short walk for the president, the interior department is just a

and pulitzer winning columnist and msnbc columnist eugene robinson.ssissippi. the primary itself is being overshadowed by a growing investigation. this is a horrific story. a total of four men who support tea party candidate chris mcdaniel have been charged with their alleged role for photographing thad cochran's wife who lives in hospice care. blogger clayton kelly was arrested last week for taking pictures of rose cochran and posting them online. it's a video actually. then yesterday three more mississippi men were accused of conspireing with kelly. the jackson clairon-ledger reports that john mary hosted radio show with mcdaniel. and another has reportedly donated to mcdaniel's campaign, hosted a fund raiser, and helped campaign for him. but mayfield's attorney says the arrest is politically motivated. mcdaniel condemned the alleged breach of privacy. his campaign issued a statement reading this. as we have said since day one, the violation of the privacy of mrs. cochran is out of bounds for politics and is reprehensible. any individuals who were i

richard engel joins us now from moscow and eugene robinson with "the washington post" and an msnbc analyst. richard, i want to ask you, these are tough questions, but on the ground, can we estimate right now the comparative strength of the taliban, its cultural strength, its military strength, its popular support, against the government of karzai, whoever else succeeds him in kabul? who's going to win that fight in the long run? >> well, i think the comparative strength is probably 80/20. the taliban is not particularly popular. even in places like kandahar, it is not especially popular. a lot of afghans experience the taliban, they didn't enjoy it, they had a foreign invasion and then a years of painful occupation, girls didn't go to school. a lot of afghans don't want to roll back the clocks. the taliban remains strong in a lot of rural areas, a lot of places where the government simply can't project any power, but i don't think you have necessarily a situation where the taliban is going to come in, take over the government, but if it's 80/20, that still leaves 20% of the country, that m

certainly 2016 races are more favorable to those on the left side of the aisle but the inimmittable eugene robinson has a piece out in the "washington post" today and says "it is time for some happy talk from democrats." eugene i think rightly says democrats fixed the economy, they expanded access to health care oh, and they ended two wars. show a little happiness, it ee' contagious. are the democrats doing a good enough job in your opinion? >> they aren't. we ought to be celebrating, alex. americans now have access to health care. children cannot be denied coverage because of pre-existing conditions. young people can stay on their parents' health care plans. almost 20 million additional americans have insurance coverage through various means, the exchanges, through signup plans at the state level through the expansion of medicaid we ought to be celebrating this. it's great news for the people of ohio and it would be even better news for the people of texas if governor perry would expand medicate there -- medicaid there and florida and elsewhere. we ought to be celebrating. for decades, for decades

we've got donny deutsch, eugene robinson, nicole.f "the daily rundown," chuck todd. but donny, let me ask you about this sterling interview. this was supposed to be his apology. now it seems he has to make another apology about this because the commissioner of the nba has already said this is a malicious attack against magic johnson. >> sterling, step away from the motorcycle ro phone. the only thing this does in his bizarre favor, you can see what he says is repugnant i don't comprehension, he's not well. his wife has suggested early stages of dementia. you can watch as he talks, his his mind -- this man doesn't seem to be in control of his faculties. and we talked earlier, anderson did a great job of just letting it roll. and the irony and gene pointed this out, there is probably nobody that has done more for the african-american community than magic johnson. so this guy has just -- >> at the time johnson went public with having hiv, it was a huge deal. he's done a world of good for everybody. and so i think that to have negative t

mike barnicle, steve rattner, and eugene robinson still with us.berts. great to have you on this morning. >> good morning. nice to be with you. >> thank you very much. we'll begin this hour with a battle in the senate. voters will decide which candidates head to the general election in key battle ground states. mitch mcconnell looks secure against tea party challenger matt bevin, but it is his likely november opponent democrat alison lun alison lundergan grimes that poses more of a threat. >> i am a kentucky woman who my colleagues have referred to as an empty dress. that seeks to retire mitch mcconnell. mitch mcconnell fails to realize that it's labor that have lifted millions out of poverty as he says no to collective bargaining, as he says no to prevailing wage. you will have someone in the united states the saying right to work for less is just another saying for union busting and i will have none of it. >> for mcconnell, it's not just keeping his seat in the senate. he's got his eyes on majority leader if republicans take control. >> twlst onl

joining me now is msnbc.com executive editor, richard wolffe, and msnbc contributor, eugene robinson. welcome, gentleman. richard, how do they proceed here and claim this is not political? >> well, you've got to have some sympathy for them. they're frustrated because they cannot get to what they've already reached, which is, actually, the bottom of their story. so the frustration is they want this to continue. the frustration is, there's got to be some other explanation, because the explanation that everyone else has found just doesn't make any sense for their politics. at the same time, you've got the republican base losing the fire in its belly about obama care. obama care has come into force, and it hasn't wrecked their lives. even though they may pretend that it's wrecked other people's lives, they have gone on regardless. so they need something else. this story isn't giving enough. so why not launch another investigation. yes, there are fund-raising e-mails coming on the back of it, but even without that, there's a political need for it, which is that there is no other reason to

bob kerrey, eugene robinson. >>> up next, how the national rifle association twisted the real meaningait until you hear this, it's pretty good book. this is "hardball," place for politics. of complete darkness. i am totally blind. i've been blind since birth. i lost my sight to eye disease. i lost my sight in afghanistan. and it doesn't hold me back. but my blindness can affect my sleep patterns. i go through periods where it's hard to sleep at night, and stay awake during the day. but i learned that my struggle was with non-24. non-24 is a circadian rhythm disorder that affects up to 70% of people who are totally blind and can't perceive light. talk to your doctor about your symptoms, and learn about non-24 by calling 844-844-2424. that's 844-844-2424. or visit my24info.com. now i know that non-24 is real. and i'm not alone. it's time for a new day. you love this game... but does the game love you? who cares? look where you get to stay! booking.com booking.yeah! >>> well, here's something you don't see every day, president obama walked back to the white house from the department of t

nairks eugene robinson, alex wagner. by the way, today, the latest on benghazi. they subpoena john kerry, the secretary of state. then john boehner the speaker moves to select a new formal committee to investigate apparently the other four committees already investigating this nonscandal. also the news keeps getting worse for chris christie. today we learned that many of krischristi christie's donors are getting ready to jump ship and jeb bush is getting ready to get in. and the president's sharp elbows, look for his to use his humor as a weapon. are you listening, donald trump? >> no one is happier or prouder to put this birth certificate to rest than the donald and that's because he can finally get back to focusing on the issues that matter, like did we fake the moon landing, what really happened in roswell, and where are biggy and tupac. >>> finally let me finish with a great cause in my hometown in philadelphia. this is hardball, a place for politics. these fit nicely. [ female announcer ] crest 3d white whitestrips keep the whitening ingredient in place, gua

liberal columnist eugene robinson wrote that shinseki's got to go. and new york democratic congressman said the problem predates the obama administration. >> it was when the president was running in 08, there were problems with this. this should be a bipartisan solution to a problem that is going on for a while at the va hospitals. >> reporter: critics pointed out in your introduction, that the obama administration's transition team was warned that va wait times are unreliable and feel he is have addressed the problem earlier. >>> later this hour we'll be joined by the senator john thum. what the september is hoping to find out as the scandal widens. >>> new violence gripping eastern ukraine now. pro russian separatist exchanging heavy fire and badly damaging several homes just one day after russian president vladimar putin ordered the troops to pull back from the border. they are streaming back live and has more for us now. greg? >> that's right. the fighting continues and do everies to stop the unrest. the reason, they came out against the pro russ

mark halperin, eugene robinson, steve rattner with us. and now with us mr. remnick.we'll get to your great book in just a moment. can i just say feature writing, essays and criticism, columns and commentary, fiction. you kept coming up on stage. are you tired? >> it was nice to come see you. >> you seem completely uninterested, actually. >> we actually moved a chair just to sit right by the podium because you kept coming up. people said just sit here. >> congratulations. >> i've had the opposite happen. completely strike out with loads of nominations which was less fun. >> it was a good night. also joining us chief white house correspondent and political director and host of "the daily rundown," chuck todd. >> good morning. >> have you seen cranston at lbj? >> yes. he's brilliant. portrayal is great. i'm higher on his performance than the play itself. >> i've heard the play itself is a little scattered and sort of wanders in the second act, but he's good. >> he's worth the price of admission. >> steve, have you seen it? >> no. >> i want to talk to you about barack ob

greatly appreciate it. >> tom friedman, eugene robinson, not so nice but we love you anyway. >>> stills us information on some of the most talked about issues. find out which issue over the last ten years was his absolute favorite. >>> also in our next hour toni collette is here. you're watching "morning joe." we'll be right back. wondering what that is? that, my friends, is everything. and with the quicksilver card from capital one, you earn unlimited 1.5% cash back on everything you purchase. not just "everything at the hardware store." not "everything, until you hit your cash back limit." quicksilver can earn you unlimited 1.5% cash back on everything you could possibly imagine. say it with me -- everything. one more time, everything! and with that in mind... what's in your wallet? [ girl ] my mom, she makes underwater fans that are powered by the moon. ♪ she can print amazing things, right from her computer. [ whirring ] [ train whistle blows ] she makes trains that are friends with trees. ♪ my mom works at ge. ♪ i wasn't sure what to expect at the meetings. but i really love going

eugene robinson with "the washington post" and howard fineman is editorial director at "the huffington post" media group, both are msnbc political analysts. well, there are certain ways you have to speak in a tolerant society, of course, your words do matter, and one thing the donald sterling incident has shown us, is there isn't much that is truly private anymore. kathleen parker has a great column out today on what she calls the sobering message from the recent sterling fallout. she writes, "if you don't want your words broadcast in the public square, don't say them. such potential exposure forces us to carefully select our words and edit our thoughts. speaking one's mind isn't really all that it's cracked up to be." i love that line, i am what i am. >> you love that line? i don't know. >> it's a great line, because it's actually -- i was thinking back, talking about the 47% line. >> yeah, right. >> your paper is most famous for what? richard nixon's tape recordings. the days of the private cone of silence with your girlfriend are gone. >> no, there ain't no code of silence. >> let's

thank you, david corn and thank you eugene robinson. up next "saturday night live" finds that one person to vouch for donald sterming. i'll just press this, and you'll save on both. ding! ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, llllet's get ready to bundlllllle... [ holding final syllable ] oh, yeah, sorry! let's get ready to bundle and save. now, that's progressive. oh, i think i broke my spleen! home insurance provided and serviced by third party insurers. >> last night, john oliver pointed out a thing or two about the history of capital punishment in his native country over the years. >> we loved killing people so much, we kept coming up with new inventive techniques that looked like they were designed by azssad and made by willie wonka. >> penny winkies. >> that's right, penny winkies. a delightful cousin of the throaty tug tug and the tickly wickly seats. whether you're boiling people alive or putting them to sleep by a tiny injection, in the end, you are getting the same result. >> gallous mu nor there. john sterling may have been b

eugene robinson is a political analyst and pulitzer prize winning columnist with "the washington post." and brian pearlmudder is with the voter defender project. brian, i want to start with you on the ground. what was your reaction? how do you assess the results of the voter laws as they're affecting the finds of voters and -- minds of voters and the good people trying to vote? >> we had over 300 people on the ground in 36 counties in north carolina. what we noticed was that people were confused when they came to vote, especially in places like boone and in halifax county. voters who were showing up to vote at precincts and the state, you know, in specific counties have been changing and moving precinct locations. that the out of precinct voting regulations that wuld not allow people who are voting out of precinct for their votes to count. folks showing up at the wrong precinct were shuffled around and very confused about where they needed to vote. >> used to be if you showed up at the wrong precinct, because you went to what you thought was the closest place, they would still count y

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katty kay is with us, eugene robinson, julie all still here. you knew him -- what are you hearing there? >> plastic spoon. >> you knew him from kool-aid commercials and like kool-aid you love him as a kid, but you got to stop doing that. we're on the air. you can't do that crinkly thing. >> it's like in the cinema. >> it is. >> "morning joe" contributor mark halperin. we've got some questions for you in a few minutes, but first let's go to the news. >> the latest on jill abramson. there is more fallout today after the firing of executive editor jill abramson. "the times" is now waging a pr battle to save face after reports she was dismissed because she complained about receiving less pay than her male predecessor. yesterday they tried to reassure staffers that there was no foul play writing in a memo, quote, it is simply not true that jill's compensation was less than her predecessors. her pay is comparable than that to executive editors. in fact, in 2013 her last full year in the role, her total compensation package was more than 10% higher th

winning columnist and associate editor of "the washington post" and msnbc political analyst, eugene robinsononds about the sterling controversy. but, chuck todd, we had a lot of elections last night. a lot of races. a couple have stood out. what are your thoughts? >> well look, it's a generational change in nebraska. this is a couple of young guys taking over the nebraska republican party. pete ricketts tried to run for the senate a few years back now is a heavy favorite to be governor. and ben sass. i think what's unique about sass, a lot of groups are saying, hey, we want a race, we want a race. but the establishment is split in this race. >> now, sass went after mitch mcconnell a way back. >> he did. this is about mcconnell. but paul join was for sass. i had sass on my show yesterday. he said he'd vote for mcconnell as leader. she'd try to put an end to that. i think he's going to be a little moron johnson than he's going to be ted cruz. a lot of people are trying to figure out where is this guy going to fit on the senate. i'd put him more on the johnson side. >> he's now a big favorite t

and in washington, pulitzer prize winning columnist of "the washington post", eugene robinson. >> what are you going to do for your birthday? >> i'm going to go to sleep. hopefully nor a long time. >> that's a good present. >> i'm going sleep for a very long time. maybe more like a putting a dog down kind of way. >> 21st version of timothy leary. >> i like how your arianna and dr. brzezinski is the same. >> yes. one is a female voice. >> it's very zsa zsa gabor. >> your zsa zsa is very good. >> you are stunning. >> we had fun last night -- moving on away from the birthday -- at the national magazine awards. have you ever been to that? it's really a great event. so well organized. great crowd. i think they were all drunk. >> they were not drunk. >> i do, i think they were. our friend was there. >> it was a great night. national geographic took some home. >> bon appetit magazine cleaned up. >> the new yorker cleaned up. i mean, these guys, i almost -- there's steve. columbia. the school of journalist. >> cindy leavy, glamour. then in a huge category -- >> shocker for people. big win for