. >> managing editor of post politics.com, mark halperin, senior analyst for msnbc and "time" and steve kornacki, host of "up" and steve i was fascinated by your description on "morning joe" how your first news job out of school was working and didn't know you were working for david wildstein because he was running a blog that had an anonymous handle. explain and tell me about your reactions to all of this? >> yeah, i don't even know how to describe my reaction watching that scene right there. david wildstein was my boss for three years from 2002 to 2005. he ran a anonymously owned political news site, nonpartisan political news site in new jersey. i was fresh out of college. i was sort of getting ignored for jobs everywhere. they gave me a shot. i was from massachusetts and knew nothing about new jersey. i covered the election in 2003. it's surreal to watch this. but to take that aside, yeah, i didn't know him personally for the three years i was there because he was anonymous. he had great sourcing from the insider sources from both sides of the aisle. you really couldn't detect much

they were both safe choices. , mark halperin. back in a moment. stay with us. >> people are very willing to pay for helpful information. lots of trade publications are doing incredibly well. subscriptions are absolutely real, and a big promising opportunity. i would suggest that there is a big enough market for advertising supported journalism. >> henry blodget is here. he is editor-in-chief and cofounder of business insider, the online publication created in 2007. it has grown into a top destination for millions of visitors each month in pursuit of the internet's most compelling content. business insider represents a second act for henry blodget. in 2003 he was fined by the fcc and given a lifetime suspension and working on wall street. he isrs later, considering an effort for reinstatement. i am pleased to have them at this table for the first time. be here,a privilege to charlie. >> go back on that history and talk about what happened to you and the lesson learned, and how does one go through that lifetime suspension and say, i'm going to take

tonight mark halperin or chris christie and the implications for the 2016 presidential campaign. >> in private conversations, and there is the dirty little secret your viewers aren't allowed zero know, i had a private conversation with any republican strategist or elected official when this became a big deal they said how dare you say they knew about it, quite the contrary, every one said, yeah, it wouldn't surprise me in the least, he better he wasn't involved. if he was involved they better hope it never comes out. >> rose: we conclude with blodgett ceo and cofounder of business insider. >> and now we have 35 million people a month that are reading the content, including lots of very, very loyal users who are coming every day. we have 150 people at the company, and about 65 people in the newsroom, so it really has evolved into a thriving, growing journalism business, which is wonderful to see in an era where a lot of news organizations have been under such pressure. >> rose: halperin and blodgett next. funding for charlie rose was provided by the following. additional funding provide

chuck todd is going to be down here along with mark halperin. much more on the investigations in new jersey coming up in this program. how far will all of this go as christie told big republican money men this weekend even he doesn't know when his troubles will end. that is probably the truest statement he has made. >>> plus, president obama says marijuana isn't any more dangerous than alcohol, or you could say it's as bad as alcohol. with more states moving to legalize it, we'll talk to two members of the kennedy family who know all about addiction. >>> and let me start with this, how this story out of hoboken promises to ignite a far wider investigation into the current politics of new jersey. and that is "hardball," the place for politics. >>> with just 18 days to go now until the winter olympics in sochi, russian police say they're on the lookout for as many as four black widows. they're female suspects that may be sent to the games to carry out terrorist attacks. police say one of the suspects may already be in the sochi area. police say sh

mark halperin is a msnbc political analyst.ene robinson is a political analyst and columnist for "the washington post." let's start with mark on this. you've done a lot of what you call biographic effort on this, because he was a player. knowing him, knowing his political character, how is he dealing with the fact he now faces potential witnesses against him if this thing goes to trial like the mayor who seems to be a pretty impressive witness from hoboken, or perhaps bridget kelly who he has called a liar and stupid. people have a incentive to be self-interested come trial time. >> this is a off to time. his numbers are still decent by the standards of a lot of governors around the country. but this is going to go on for a very long time. he has to get back to trying to govern the state. the difficulty is it's hard to know what is going on inside that inner circle. what you talked about the former deputy chief of staff changing lawyers, we don't know how much coordination there is in the christie camp right now. what we do kno

mark halperin. eugene robinson, msnbc political analyst and editorial columnist at the "washington post." first you, chris, you've been watching politics in virginia for a very long time. this does go beyond the pail, even though the laws are lax, what we've seen is surprising, correct? >> it's surprising to someone like me who has been following the story pretty closely. the reporter has really been driving a lot of the story. i was surprised at the extend, i guess, the extent to which the relationship between the mcdonnells and johnny williams, the donor went. it seems to me this is a case when you see it with politicians and congressman davis touched on it and i thought said it the right way, which is politicians spend a lot of time around very wealthy people. sometimes, in bob mcdonnell's face, they the politicians themselves are not wealthy. but there's a line between a relationship with a donor and crossing that line where you feel as though this relationship, the lifestyle that this person is

glen is going to respond to that but mark halperin joined us. >> thank you, sir. >> rose: before glenresponds your assessment on this speech. >> more engaged and energized than i thought he would be, sometimes he has trouble when it looks like things are tough to unstick, he size away for performance for performance steak but he shows he has done it so i thought his energy was really good and i thought his arguments were pretty clear. i don't always like to compare him to clinton but bill clinton was the master of explaining our economic predicament showing he understood it and adding prescriptions to it and i thought he dead as well as i have seen him do on that score and he reached out on some issues i thought was very strong on healthcare and confrontation and very strong on immigration. >> rose: doris kearns goodwin, can you hear me in boynton beach, florida? yes you can. >> most definitely. >> rose: your assessment of the speech? >> i thought the most important thing was that he did show vitality and animation and that he was still president. against the caricatures of people thi

mark halperin for msnbc and "time" and amy, happy new year to both of you.e ask you first, amy about the retirements, house retirements, cook is now saying six seats could be up for grabs. >> that's right, what you're looking at right now, we saw the latest retirement was tim ger lack from suburban philadelphia, we've seen really competitive races for the house in years past. number of moderates on the republican side have decided to retire in virginia the problem for democrats is these are happening in midterm years, not presidential years. usually turnout is going to be lower. that's going to help republicans. the second part is redistricting, that helps to make the seats a little safer than they were a few years ago. and finally, the real question is these are seats that the president barely won or barely lost. can the turnout be a big factor there to help these democrats? the question for republicans is, what kind of candidate are they going to get out of the primaries. what we've seen with tea party candidates coming in and succeeding, beating more esta

mark halperin, co-author of the best selling book, "doubledown." and from the brookings institute, the wonderful e.j. deon. >> i would like to go to you first. i know you're not a betting man but we encourage illicit behavior. as we look ahead to the calendar and the return of president obama to the white house, are you bullish or bearish with regard to his prospects in 2014? >> first of all, happy new year, no bad marijuana puns and nothing about how cold it is here. >> why are we doing this? >> the republican party is still divided and and on the defensive on the issues the president wants to drive, unless he proves he can simultaneously do -- hate to compare him to bill clinton, but what bill clinton did, beat opponents about the head and shoulders with winning issues for him while still making common cause with them on other things, i don't think he'll have a very good year. i'm not optimistic about the chances of getting things done because he still has the problem of republican house. >> right, and you know, i guess e.j. when we talk whether

mark halperin who wrote about the '28 campaign and "double down" and christie. democratic mayor of baltimore, stephanie rollins-blake, secretary of the democratic national committee, as well. and kim strassle from "the wall street journal." so here's the latest on what we know. this sunday morning about the bridge scandal. there's been no smoking gun found yet. no e-mails or correspondence that link governor christie directly to the scandal. the documents show knowledge of the closures by closest aides. the motive is a bit unclear. investigations continue at the federal and the state levels. let me bring you everybody. chuck todd, the questions still on sunday morning, how much did chris christie know? >> why didn't he know more? right? there isn't a good answer for him either way because the defense right now is i'm a hands off manager. i did a lot of delegation. well, then that raises the question of culture and then actually becomes the bigger impact on him as a potential presidential leader. you're testing him as a presidential candidate. so far, you read th

. >> shirley halperin is music editor of "the hollywood reporter." she's followed miley's career from the beginning. even when she's being mischee vous there's this little look in her eye i see. it's like, okay, miley, what are you doing next kind of thing. >> right. whenever the camera was on she was on. you could also see that from a very early age. i always got the sense that she was calculated. but, like, in a good way. >> calculated and destined for big things. not entirely surprising from a little girl originally named destiny hope cyrus. >> given her that name before she was born because i felt it was her destiny to bring hope to the world. i do think she -- this is her purpose. her path. you know, i think she's a natural born singer/songwriter/entertainer. >> it didn't hurt that her father was a hit maker. ♪ don't tell my heart, my achy breaky heart ♪ >> the fact that he had, you know, one big hit with "achy breaky heart" puts him in a level where he had access to, you know, musicians and producers and record company people that she probably

thank you, mark halperin. eugene robinson, thank you.hen we return, we'll hear from a rare christie defender. i'm going ask michael grimm of north why he is taking christie at his word. this is "hardball," the place for politics. plan but with less energy, moodiness, and a low sex drive, i had to do something. i saw my doctor. a blood test showed it was low testosterone, not age. we talked about axiron the only underarm low t treatment that can restore t levels to normal in about two weeks in most men. axiron is not for use in women or anyone younger than 18 or men with prostate or breast cancer. women, especially those who are or who may become pregnant, and children should avoid contact where axiron is applied as unexpected signs of puberty in children or changes in body hair or increased acne in women may occur. report these symptoms to your doctor. tell your doctor about all medical conditions and medications. serious side effects could include increased risk of prostate cancer, worsening prostate symptoms, decreased sperm count, ank

>> and shirley halperin is the "music editor's" report. >> he won. >> and he sang to l.a. sang "one time." >> and what was that audition like l.a. reid like? >> well, justin came into the conference room and danced on the table and sang on the table and just really blew a wway the label staff. he was unknown entity, but i think that l.a. reid being sharp and perceptive when it comes to new talent saw that spark, and signed him really quickly. >> usher became his mentor and introduced his protege to the world in this youtube video. >> new recording artist justin bieber is about to go down. >> and justin grier writes for "us" magazine. >> he was groomed by the best, and you watch the performance, and you will see usher in justin bieber. ♪ i thought you'd always be mine ♪ >> and he would break records just months after his first album. in 2010, his song "baby" became the most watched youtube video ever. ♪ i thought you'd always be mine ♪ >> and when justin released the single "one time" he became a super star and he had fans running after him. he had to increase the security,

. >> and shirley halperin has followed her career from the beginning. >> even though she is mischievous, there is a look in the eye, and it is like, okay, miley, what are you doing next? >> whenever the camera was on, she was on and you could see it from a early age. >> i always got the sense that she was calculated, but in a good way. calculated and destined for big things, and not entirely surprising for a little girl who was orniginally named destiny hope cyrus. >> i had given her that name before she was born, because i felt it was her destiny to bring hope to the world. i think that this is her purpose is her path, you know. i think that she is natural-born singer/songwriter/entertainer. >> and it did not hurt that her father was a hitmaker. ♪ don't tell my heart ♪ my achy-breaky heart >> and the fact that he had one hit with "achy-breaky heart" gave him access to musicians, and record producer people that she would not have met had it not been for her father. >> and what could have been bet better than having a famous father? having a godmother like dolly parton. and in fact, mile

mark halperin and david jones. both are msnbc political analysts. i'm looking at the numbers. we'll get to them for a minute, mark, and you study these numbers better than i do. in new jersey, they think where there is smoke, there is fire. they're used to new jersey politics, usually democrat, but this this case republican. and they do assume if a guy is running the show, he has something to do with designing the show. they just believe that. here we have these numbers that it's unlikely that that a number of voters in new jersey say he didn't know anything about this. so here we have this problem of the stink around this question. if he doesn't get indicted but there is still the stink because all this stuff went on, and other people are indicted and convicted, can he still run for president with some indictments floating around in new jersey, even if it's not indicting him? let me see where the bar lies. >> whether he is indied or not is a distant question. the u.s. attorney who is christie's successor in the job, paul fishman is by all accounts

thank you, mark halperin. eugene robinson, thank you. when we return, we'll hear from a rare christie defender. i'm going ask michael grimm of north why he is taking christie at his word. this is "hardball," the place for politics. st floor bedroom in tallinn, estonia and the southbound bus barreling down i-95. ♪ this magic moment it is the story of where every great idea begins. and of those who believed they had the power to do more. dell is honored to be part of some of the world's great stories. that began much the same way ours did. in a little dorm room -- 2713. ♪ this magic moment ♪ getting the right nutrition isn't always easy. first, i want a way to help minimize my blood sugar spikes. then, a way to support heart health. ♪ and let's not forget immune support. ♪ but now i have new glucerna advance with three benefits in one. including carbsteady ultra to help minimize blood sugar spikes. it's the best from glucerna. [ male announcer ] new glucerna advance. from the brand doctors recommend most. advancing nutrition for diabetes.

with our chief white house correspondent and political director chuck todd, "time" magazine's mark halperin, who wrote about the 2008 campaign and of course "double down," the 2012 campaign as well, writes about christie. democratic mayor of baltimore, stephanie rawlings-blake, is also here. she's the secretary of the democratic national committee as as well. and kim strassel, a columnist at "the wall street journal," and a member of their editorial board. so here is the latest on what we know this sunday morning about the bridge scandal. there's been no smoking gun. that's important. no smoking gun found yet. no e-mails or correspondence that link governor christie directly to the scandal. the documents released, however, do show knowledge of the closures by christie's closest aides. the motive for all of these lane closures, by the way, on the bridge remain a bit unclear. and investigations do continue both at the federal and the state levels. let me bring in everybody. chuck todd, the questions still on sunday morning. >> right. >> how much did chris christie know? >> well, or why didn't

mark halperin of time magazine will join us shortly. i am pleased to have all of them this evening. let me go around and in the remote locations and get an assessment. al. >> i would give it an a or a minus. i found the context was not a good one for him. he had a dreadful 2013. his job approval ratings are down, political polarization. and yet he weaved together some different messages. he roused the faithful with a minimum wage and with women, pay equity, but he did not cut off any opportunities and he held out some branches, to glenn hubbard, and the two things that really struck me were on immigration, one paragraph, that was all. he knows very chance to get that done. he did not want to antagonize republicans. on the economic populism, it was not as many had forecast, a red meat, you know, income inequality. it was much more measured than that. it was not what republicans would call class warfare. i thought it was -- and the extraordinary ending. i don't know if you did, i teared up. when i saw that sergeant up there. it is one of the most powerful stories i have ever seen. so

in doubledown mark halperin and john heilemann, there's things in christie's path that made him unacceptable to the romney campaign. inspector generals investigation of his spending patterns and worked as a lobbyist on behalf of the securities industry. there was the christie decision to steer hefty government contracts to donors, defamation lawsuit. all of these things that got buried in the whole sandy experience. do we now expect, bob, the new jersey press to go back and start to reexamine the things, even the things written about in your book? >> my book was everything you just talked about. people weren't paying that much attention to it. everything that he's been involved in, including automobile accidents is in my book. so are we going to go back? we're always examining, maybe we'll pay closer attention now. it was after all jersey publications that made this a national story and did a terrific job with it. i think we'll stay on top of it and people will maybe pay more attention now. >> after the break we'll go into more his troubles, they are spreading beyond the garden gate. skeptic

>> mike halperin and president of the national action network, reverend al sharpton. >> you stayed up song, right? >> very good. >> and i hear that was awesome. frampton on guitar. >> crowd loved him. >> that's a great song. >> beyonce at the begin ig. >> that i saw. hello. >> hard to miss. >> there's ringo. not beyonce. that's ringo singing "photograph." and, yeah, daft punk, playing in my house, in my house. won album and record of the year. what was it? >> this is the safe part. sort of the first couple minutes. >> yeah. i didn't love it. >> puts on a show. >> she's really talented. >> intentional wardrobe malfunction. >> it was just -- >> all right, i'm tired. >> luckily it's her husband -- >> if you want to have a wardrobe malfunction with your husband, do it in your room. not while mika's kids are watching. >> well, miley cyrus twerked, and she twerked the audience. i'm not sure what's worse. >> her husband -- >> no, the audience, trust me. >> you were watching that. >> she's so talented, why do you have to do that? >> i don't get it. >> daft punk? a huge night, though. >> they

. >> that gets you to the new book -- i think it's the halperin one where there's been the romney campaigne and romney said we did the vet of christie and could never put him on a national ticket. the national press is looking at that context probably, too. >> the point i wanted to make about michelle brown is very important, which was that a lot of people felt as though the fbi and the u.s. attorney's investigation during the height of the campaign, the jersey sting, so-called, with where more than 40 people were arrested, the number two person at the u.s. attorney's office was michelle brown who literally owed the republican candidate for governor money and people felt as though that investigation disrupted some key get out the vote people in democratic precincts. so that's a point, also. getting back to njn briefly, if i could, the haphazard manner in which wync, rudy giuliani, did a very success transfer where the employees were held harmless and transferred over to a nonprofit. a lot of people are saying, doing the transition a little more slowly, what's the rush? not only did it put

and now political analyst mark halperin is in with us, and he is author of "double down" and jonathan from washington, and he is a msnbc contributor, and mark, you are very good at this as you have a calculating way of coldly cutting through. was it a successful speech or not? >> totally successful, because he returned to 2008, 2012 obama, and congenial fighter, an engaged and showing the country that he is going to fight on what he believes in, and on the women stuff, brilliantly playing the cards that he has on the platform. >> and the women in the audience, and the chamber, and they were like the best show in town, because they were into it. >> yes. >> and that is the moment that most voters who were women were watching and this is the strong message for workplace equality, and saying that it is not going to be like a "mad men" episode. let's watch. >> and today, women make up about half of our workforce. but they still make 77 cents for every dollar that a man earns. that is wrong, and in 2014, it is an embarrassment. women deserve equal pay for equal work. it is time to do away w