it's gop civil war. >> stephen: yes, gop civil war. of course, the first thing they'll have to fight over is which side gets the confederate flag. [laughter] so, as a conservative, i guess i have to choose sides. karl and i have had some good times, we buried that hooker. [laughter] but deep down, my heart is with the tea party. well, maybe not my heart. what organ produces bile. gall bladder, i guess. i don't know. i believe that republicans can not wuss out here. they need to charge ahead and take even more conservative positions. forget embracing latinos, we need a program to shoot them into space. [laughter] let's give them a pathway to low orbit. gays shouldn't be allowed to marry, or vote. i for one don't want sloppy seconds on their lever-yanking. and i believe all women should have mandatory transvaginal ultrasounds before they can get a driver's license. [laughter] hey, nobody's happy with their picture anyway. now are these extreme positions? maybe. can we really win the election by giving the voters more of what they didn't

tonight's lead, gop hack job. there are just four days until $85 billion of spending cuts are scheduled to kick in. these cuts would be disastrous. and may also throw millions of people out of work and hurt our economic recovery. the president wants to stop these cuts by closing the loopholes that favor millionaires but republicans just flat out refuse. but here's the problem -- outside of the republican caucus rooms and quiet gop rooms where the big money men make their deals, there are real live american families who will be unnecessarily hurt. >> thousands of teachers and educators will be laid off. tens of thousands of parents will have to deal with finding childcare for their children. hundreds of thousands of americans will lose access to primary care and preventative care like flu vaccinations and cancer screenings. and the longer these cuts are in place, the bigger the impact will become. >> the impact is clear. but republicans are putting their heads in the sand about how bad it's going to get. >> do you

. >> still, leaders m gop on sunday accuse the president of having ulterior motives, trying to kill any real immigration reform for political gain. >> does the president really want a result, or does he want another to beat up republicans so that he can get political advantage in the next election? >> leak this out does set things in the wrong direction. is the president looking for a partisan advantage, or is he looking for a bipartisan law? >> this is the president torpedoing his own plan, and it shows me he is not really serious. democrats bring up this idea as wedge issues. they don't really want ever to pass them because thel then they would no longer have the republicans to blame. >> joining us now to discuss is telemundo jose diaz. it is always a good day when you are on my screen. >> jose, there's been a lot of negative reaction from certain corners in the gop on this white house sort of floated proposal. to me -- i would love you to correct or build on this, but the machine here -- the numbers are eight years as the length of time we need to travel on path to citizenship. thus

the fight is within the gop itself. and this is most clear within the house where the speaker is trying to remain speaker and trying to keep control of his conference. until they become of one mind it's hard to know who we're negotiating with. >> i want to talk about that. the "washington post" matt miller has an article and the title is dumb and dumber on sequester. if you look at this, it says it's hard to know which is stupider, the coming sequester cuts or arguments being made to avoid them. if you talk about not having a good faith negotiating partner, is it more about 2014 and midterm elections than it is about doing the business that's at hand? and basically the business at hand that was put together and approved, most of the dna held by republicans on this sequester? >> it is more about politics than what the nation needs because they are dumb cuts. they are across the board. they are indiscriminate and cut good programs equally with bad programs and cut efficient programs with inefficient ones, it's the last wa

one thing that's a very strong pillar for house gop is this idea of guns and gun rights.e you talk about background checks and assault weapons bans and trafficking and everything out there, there is a significant fear amongst republicans that their pillars are eroding, and the gun one is the easiest one for them to hold on to to save them with their base all throughout the country. >> it is a -- this is a conversation really about the future of the republican party, i think, as much as it is about legislation. >> correct. >> luke russert, thank you, as always. we will work on the royalties for the next time. >> take care. >> coming up, the gop's efforts to decide elections by unpopular vote, and the tyranny of the minority. we will look at gerrmandering and the divide just ahead. this is $100,000. we asked total strangers to watch it for us. thank you so much. i appreciate it. i'll be right back. they didn't take a dime. how much in fees does your bank take to watch your money? if your bank takes more money than a stranger, you need an ally. ally bank. your money needs an

a new poll says 62% think the gop is out of touch with the american people. 52%, 52 now think is gopt. i want to put another point of comparison here. yes, the polls are striking. in a way, it's not surprising straight after they just won an election. might be more surprising to do a comparison between where president bush was at this point of his second term and where president obama is. president bush did not have a honeymoon. by the time he got inaugurated the second time, he was already having rebellions in his own party. his big signature thing in the start of his second term was reforming social security, privatizing social security. it failed. you are looking at the president, president obama with a shot of immigration reform where his party is holding together with him, not splitting away as republicans did with president bush. you know, democrats at that point of 2005 were on a track to a big win in 2006. looking at things now, i know it's early. republicans do not seem to be on that track for the next election, 2014. >> you know, when you look at the fact that the polls tha

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that was a gop idea. long series -- the president alluded to one of them in the state of union in terms of climate change, pointing to a john mccain idea. but what had been fairly mainstream in the gop now with the tea party is considered heresy. unfortunately it's holding the country hostage and holding our economy hostage. until the voters speak a little more clearly, which they'll have an opportunity to do again in another two years, we may be stuck with this kind of tea party quagmire we're in. >> adam schiff, good to see you as always. >>> let's get a check with craig on what he's got in the next three hours. that's awesome. >> thank you very much, alex. a jam-packed show for you. general wesley clark will be here to talking about the hague l haggling in washington. how that may be playing out overseas. and sonya song will talk about her efforts to empower young people away from guns and violation. and i'll go to a town this week where owning a gun in this town is the law. that's coming up. >> that s

we've all saw identified two stimulus lows in the gop brain.e opposes it while the other side takes credit for it back in their home districts. but our biggest discovery, we were able to confirm the existence of the gop's compromise gland. we've magnified it a thousand times for viewers at home. it's highly under-developed in the republican brain. it's a bit stunted. but it's there. joining me now to discuss our scientific findings are dana millbank and me rearia theresa cubar. >>> dana, let me show you what karl rove said on sunday about tea party republicans. >> the more people who participate, the better off we are. the more we examine these candidates from top to bottom, the more we're like more rand paul. >> karl rove wants more rand paul. i'm stumped. what is rove thinking? he wants more people. more candidates who think universal health care is slavery. that seat belt laws are nanny state paternalism who would repeal the americans with disabilities act. who says they want to disarm the food and drug administration and abolish the departm

is chris christie now a gop out cast? a democratic super pac in kentucky under fire for a tweet against mitch mcconnell's wife former secretary elaine chow. a meeting between president obama and congressional leaders on the same day those budget cuts are to take effect. is this too little too late? join our conversation on twitter. find out as tamron hall. a febreze experiment. to prove febreze can keep this car fresh, we loaded it with fast food, sweaty hockey gear, and a smelly dog cage. and parked it at a mall. in texas. for two days. then put a febreze car vent clip on the dash and let in real people. it smells good. like laundry fresh out of like the dryer. yeah. a man fresh out of the shower. nailed it. oh yeah. proof. febreze car vent clips keep your car fresh. another way febreze helps you breathe happy. you don't decide when vegetables reach the peak of perfection. the vegetables do. at green giant, we pick vegetables only when they're perfect. then freeze them fast so they're are as nutritious as fresh. [ green

tonight's lead, the gop losing it. we're just three days away from massive budget cuts designed to be so brutal that even far-right republicans would see the light in compromise. instead, it looks like the pressure is getting to speaker boehner. >> we have moved a bill in the house twice. we should not have to move a third bill before the senate gets off their ass and begins to do something. >> wow. talk about leading from behind. but boehner's potty mouth can't hide the incoherence of the gop position when it comes to these budget cuts. boehner himself says the cuts will hurt the economy and threaten thousands of jobs. but tom price says the cuts are needed to get this economy rolling again. on defense eric cantor warns these cuts will harm national security. but wait. tom cole says fiscal questions trump defense. and when it comes to compromise, lindsey graham says he's willing to raise revenue. but boehner already slammed that door shut. the revenue debate is now closed, he says. republicans can't get their stories

the gop finally had their chance to prove it. here comes senator marco rubio with the republican response. he's been called the gop savior. the new reagan and the antimitt romney. the antiromney? really? >> raising taxes won't create private sex tor jobs. people can risk their own money to open a business. >> the president invested taxpayer money, your money, in green companies, billions of taxpayer dollars. >> wasting more taxpayer money on so-called clean energy companies like solyndra. >> more government isn't going to help you get ahead. it's going to hold you back. >> good democrats love america just like good republicans love america. >> i know they love america. >> i'll give you that last part. but the rest, is that the idea of change? let's bring in abbey huntsman and joe madison. thank you both for coming on. abbey, let's start with rubio's speech. hofs it for new and improved? >> you know, the fairy tale of marco rubio did not happen ever after. he felt that pressure. he was clear in his delivery that he was nervous, as

the gop's image right now is at a historic low, 62% of americans saying the gop's out of touch. 56% notpen to change. 52%, too extreme. my question kind of is, can they read? but in a way in terms of cuts, they're getting what they want but people aren't really paying attention to the sequester. is this going to have a long-term impact on gop image or not is. >> it is not clear. part of the issue with the sequester fight is that there is a single moment of drama. the fiscal cliff fight had all of that. you had a moment in time when taxes were going to go up. this is much more of a fiscal slope if you will. that term that democrats started pushing the last time around. >> i believe steve kornacki started to push that term on this program. >> that's right. you heard it here first. right? so now finally maybe it will get the day in the sun. you should try again and see if that sticks this time. i was chatting with a colleague of mine about how sequester, that's not a catchy word. >> you know a democrat came up with sequester. republicans would have come up with something way better than th

sta captioning sponsored by com >> stephen: tonight, the gop tries to appeal to hispanics. first step, learning to speak his-spanish. [ laughter ] then, can president obama get the support of gun owners? yes, after a four-year waiting period. [ laughter ] and my guest, justice sonia sotomayor, is the first hispanic on the supreme court. i will ask her questions in hiss-spanish. [ laughter ] fidel castro made his first public appearance in three years. then he saw his shadow, so fifty more years of communism. [cheers and applause] this is "the colbert report." [cheers and applause] ["the colbert report" theme music playing] captioning sponsored by comedy central [eagle caw] [cheers and applause] welcome. thank you so much, everybody. [crowd chanting stephen] thank you have much. please, sit down, nation. [cheers and applause] welcome -- welcome to the broadcast presented tonight with limited commercial interruptions. good to have you with us. folks, i'm still coming down from last night's superbowl rager. i had the whole wrecking crew over and they brought it. and by it, i m

is immigration necessarily a wing issue for the gop do you think, ryan? >> it's a wing issue with regards to their base, but we've seen that just focusing on their base isn't going to make them a competitive national party. if you are satisfying them here, then you are alienating latinos who went 70% plus for democrats. >> is it a corrosive wedge issue that simply won't go away? >> the issue won't go away unless the republicans find a way to come to terms with it. they lost a huge portion, the republicans lost a huge portion of the minority communities in this last election, and these communities are growing at a rapid rate. and if the republicans don't come one an effective policy, they are going to be shut out of national politics for a long time. >> this is a huge step that cantor took, because he is a house republican. the senate republicans that you mentioned, mccain and lindsey graham and a couple of others, it's easier for them. but the house republicans are really united against any kind of serious immigration reform. >> it is going to start build

the gop circus is coming to town.servative political action congress which is always held here in washington, the cpac, is bringing back the clown show. their scheduled speakers, you're not going to believe this. sarah palin. i know, attractive to many, but only on the far right, apparently. rand paul, who i am amazed by that he exists. newt gingrich, there's a fresh face. alan rich, rick santorum. don't forget wayne lapierre, the kid on the block. and even a curtain call for mitt romney. it doesn't look like the far right's grip on the gop is fading after all. john is a senior adviser to the santorum presidential committee, at least for the last one and roger simon is a pro here at political comments for politico. john, why the same old song, the same old faces? >> well, you know, everybody is talking about this rebranding and they almost this is like money ball where we're supposed to get rid of all our players and bring new players in. the change in marketing terms is not rebranding, it's repositioning. what the re

we need you, gop.break from frank luntz, put the reagan quotes aside, forget about all the things that you must oppose at all

the legislation still facing an uphill climb committee gop-led house.etting representation for functionality and bipartisanship, republicans kept themselves busy securing defense secretary chuck hagel. it began when freshman senator proposed that maybe hagel was beloved by iran. okay, katty, what -- north korea is conduct oing -- >> there's no foundation to it. but you put it out there and you hope there's some traction to it. >> ted cruz doesn't have a bone to pick with chuck hagel. but this is mccain being angry -- >> about contain stood up at the end of that and said we shouldn't besmirch chuck hagel with what is happening. >> on that point, there is threatened a walkout on this committee vote. i'm told by folks, there are folks like mccain, the older guard saying to younger republicans do not do. that. >> mickey did not vote for hagel. it's complete insanity here. >> no one commenting on whether he would make a good secretary of defense or not. >> or asking relevant questions. >> i actually do think maybe a larger question, ted cruz and rand paul, y

is the gop's obstruction about policy? or is it just something personal about president obama. >> well, it's probably a little bit of both. it's about policy. it's about this president whose policies they vehemently disagreed with. harry reid had a chance to go for a more full-throated filibuster. but his reasoning was that when the democrats are in the majority -- in the minority and that could happen, this next election, that they want to have that same leverage that republicans have been using with this filibuster reform to block many of the president's actions. but this is a real surprise that hagel has essentially been filibusterd. it looks like ult mimately, he will be confirmed. they have been pretty successful in forcing the president's hand to release more information on that. but, ultimately, i think they are giving away some of their standing. they're supposed to be the party of national security, the party of defense in this way by blocking this very important post. i think they're doing some damage -- >> yeah,

three months ago the gop failed to win the white house with mitt romney as its candidate. the party also lost seats in the senate and in the house. one reason, the u.s. fiscal woes. debt and deficits. they were drums pounded hard by republicans during the 2012 election. on tuesday in an address at the american enterprise institute in washington, majority leader cantor declared that while these economic issues are crucial, republicans ought to have widened the lens beyond economics, finance, ports, et cetera. >> i would like to focus really on what lies beyond the fiscal debate. i mean, let's face it. it's gotten a lot tougher to raise a family in america. and our goal has got to be to eliminate this doubt gripping our nation's families, and to restore their hope and confidence. >> cantor cites gop proposals that will boost charter schools, expand visas highly skilled workers, create flextime for workers, and medical research. question. did the gop lose the presidential election because of its stance on fiscal issues, mort sirk man? >> no, i don't think that's why. they los

president obama has eric cantor rebranding the gop again. but he kind of sounds like someone else i know. >>> and one week from the state of the union we go inside the obama strategy to sell his agenda. >>> plus there are lots of ways to make change. actress and activist diane carroll is one of them. the first black woman to star in her own primetime tv series joins me live. big show coming from los angeles. stay with us. ♪ >>> have you joined the "politicsnation" conversation on facebook yet? we hope you will. today many shared their thoughts on trayvon martin. today would have been his 18th birthday. cynthia says happy birthday, trayvon. a life taken too early. bonnie says my heart goes out to his family on this day. tony says may he and this nation's many victims of gun violence rest in peace. may the rest of us fight for return to neighborliness and sanity in the usa. i agree, tony. we'd like to have you share your thoughts with us too. please head over to facebook and search "politicsnation" and like us to join the conversation that kee

it's full-on gop warfare. it's gop civil war. joining me now is michael steele and dana millbank. thank you both for coming on the show tonight. >> good to see you, rev. >> michael, karl rove to save the party from the tea party, do you buy it? >> no, i don't. and i don't think many of the not just tea parties, but grass roots conservatives will. instead of taking those dollars out of the states and hunkering them down here in a newly created super pac in washington, how about investing in the state party organizations around the country to help them build the farm team that is going to be required to win in the future. this is not an overnight success deal, reverend. you cannot come from the s shellacking of '06 and '12 and throw dollars at it. until they realize that, this is a waste of time and a waste of cash. focus on state party ground game organization. focus on building good candidates from the bottom up. running for local offices so the voters get to know who they are, the party gets to vet them in the process. you don't do this one-off craziness where you can just create

have has stepped out of the gop race but does he have has stepped out of the gop race but does he have we gotta sell the car. where would we even start? get the car. hi howard. get in. hi, good to see you. start with an actual written offer when selling your car, no strings attached. carmax. start here. >> good morning, washington. to get up and going. it's thursday, 5:10. degrees at reagan national. be a pretty decent day, tracking a coastal cloudsthat is bringing already.area meteorologist adam caskey is in rockville, maryland. >> clouds moving in. i cannot see in many stars .verhead because of that clouds outsidein right now. we are in downtown rockville courthouse in the historic district. let's look at the temperature at chaser 7. one thing you'll notice is it is a little colder than yesterday time.s looking at the display, there's nice.d, which is not been chill factor to speak of. degrees. you can feel the chill in the is a typical morning. 25 degrees in gaithersburg, 23 frederick, 24 in martinsburg. cumberland, low 20s at this time. right at the freezing mark at reagan national

is this the new gop?serve tef gay rights groups. >> they are cosmetic changes. but i have to admit, the one that doesn't fit in this whole puzzle is romney. >> they're so confused, internally, that that's going to stumble them going forward. >> jonathan, exclude the conservative gay groups while welcoming people like wayne lapierre, doesn't that send the signal that they're not going to be there? >> i would argue it's the same old republican party. so by them kicking out, go proud, it's sort of the standard m.o. but by keeping out gays and lesbians, by keeping out african americans, the republican party is sealing its fate as a second tear party. and they won't go there because the republican party just isn't welcomed. >> i hope he doesn't need a drink of water while he's speaking. victoria and jonathan, thank you for your time tonight. >> thanks, rev. >> ahead, a powerful story of giving back. a medical doctor who's fighting to hear the city where he grew up. and then, more of my interview today with pre

you remember during 2012 and the latter part of 2011, what did the gop say?bama is in campaign mode. he's in campaign mode. he's checked out. he's not trying to work with us. they're trying to drum this up again. and it remains to be seen how it works. it didn't work very effectively after the president got re-elected with an overwhelming majority. but you also saw this idea that the senate has to act first. we've done our job. in theory the house gop has not passed anything in this current congress. they did in the last one. there's actually nothing for the senate to take if they wanted to move forward with the house gop plan. so this sort of blame game, who comes out on top. >> we're going to go back to listening to the great speaker who is now unbelievably taking questions. >> -- a spending problem here in washington, there will be tens of millions of jobs in the future that won't happen because of the debt load that's being laid on the backs of our kids and grand kids. listen, i came here to save the american dream for my kids and yours. this debt problem

karl rove and the gop elites are trying to take down the tea party.nd the other side is fighting back. >> our object is not to be for the blirkment. it's to be for the most conservative candidate that can win. >> our biggest problem is barack obama. and we're being stabbed in the back. >> karl's filled the void. somebody's got to be, to some extent, a gate keeper keeping morons from running from office. >> so what the tea party people is now they've got two political forces gunning for them. obama and the democrats. and the republican establishment. >> yieks. these folks may say they follow the first ten commandments, but they're having some trouble with number 11. joining me now is perry baker, political editor for degrio and republican strategist. thank you both for coming on the show tonight. good to see you. >> thanks, reverend. >> hogan, let me start with you. what happened to reagan's 11th commandment? >> well, first of all, i love republicans that quote that. and it's a good commandment to have. the problem is, he was up about 60 points when he