just a moment ago you heard from representative jan schakowsky from illinois. joining us live on the phone from capitol hill, emily ethridge. she's following this story from cq. thanks very much for being with us. >> you're welcome. thanks for having me on. >> this is really the start of a message war we're going to be hearing from democrats and republicans. a week of events in which they're going to try to commemorate or criticize this legislation. what can we expect specifically? >> that's right. it's already started. there's not only been conference calls like the one you just played but a flurry of press releases. today republican senators were on the senate floor having a colloquy about the problems they see with the health care law and the damaging effects they think it will have. i've seen some democrats on the house floor beginning to give speeches. long. >> let's drill down one of the key issues that we're going to be hearing about from the republicans in the house, and that is this medicare spending board known as the ipab, which is the independent pa

after the break the real story about rising gas prices congresswoman jan schakowsky joins me in just a moment. we just put a picture of the need when i was like nine years old so she told the truth. i think i am going to get a highly fragmented and. he was kind of yesterday. i'm very little that i can see its place. you know how sometimes you see a story and it seems so. you think you understand it and then you glimpse something else and you hear or see some other part of it and realize that everything is ok. i'm trying hard welcome to the big picture. in a press conference today at the white house president obama was asked about rising gas prices here's what he had to say what i have also said about gas prices is that there is no silver bullet and the only way we're going to solve this problem. over the medium and long term is within all of the above strategy so we're going to look at a whole range of measures including by the way making sure that my attorney general is is paying attention to potential speculation in the oil markets we have asked him to reconstitute a task force tha

. >> this is jan schakowsky. let me add to that. the key feature that we're opposed to is the lack of the medicare guarantee. what the ryan budget initially and now that the ryan/wyden proposal does is create a voucher which they say the difference is, it can also be used for what they call traditional medicare. you can still use that to buy into medicare. the problem is the voucher does not keep up. and that's in the proposal, would not keep up with the rising cost of health care, would fall behind in its ability to cover the costs, and therefore would shift the cost as the original ryan plan did to the older person. it also could create an adverse selection opportunity for -- that would put the sicker people into medicare where the private insurance companies would select for those people that are healthier, and would end up really ruining medicare, the current system that has a guarantee for seniors. that's what the seniors want. they don't want to have to either go out into the private market and search around with their voucher

. >> today, illinois congresswoman jan schakowsky on the latest from rush limb ball. katrina vanden heuvel on the fight going on around the nation and also two lawmakers who are fighting anti-women legislation with laws targeting men's reproductive health. >>> it is game on for the obama campaign. do. >> we look at the day's headlines or do we remember what we as a country have been through? >> obama campaign press secretary ben labolt is here with a sneak preview on the new obama documentary. >>> and sean hannity thinks he has found the smoking hug. >> that hug in the president's association with a radical professor like bell is going to become a hot topic in coming days. right-wing conspiracy theorists fall flat on their face again. gene robinson is here with the latest. >>> good to have you with us tonight, folks. thanks for watching. today is international women's day. guess how the republicans in counsel operated the occasion. they debated a bill to restrict abortion rights for women. it's yet another bill criminalizing doctors who perform abortions. 129 female d

. >> this is jan schakowsky. we're not going to leave it to chance that the american people understand the importance of the legislation right now and the benefits that are about to come. there are public information campaigns that are going to be conducted by groups like the alliance for retired americans. we're going to be doing truth squads. and people are going to be invited to meetings. we're going to get -- maybe barbara can talk just a little bit about what, you know, her group alone is going to do to get the information out. i think the government is going to be explaining that better and doing a public information campaign about the affordable care act. it's about telling the truth. and -- and going after the lies that are being told about the impact of the affordable care act on people. and we feel convinced that telling people what's good for them is good for them probably is a lot cheaper than telling people who's good for them is bad for them, which is what the republicans and their funders are doing

joining us is jan schakowski of illinois, great to see you, thank you for being here. >> thank you, rachel. i have a great idea. i think every woman voter should be required to see these 13:00 of what you said before you vote. >> this is why i will never run for office i would be the kind ofity ran-- of tyrannical gover, i will make you watch, that is the law. in terms of what is happening with this in washington, do you think that at the federal level at least, and for state level republicans who have federal ambitions, do you think they are changing their mind about this, they're having second thoughts? >> well, i think they are certainly has been a backlash, i don't know if they're getting e-mails quite as clerer as some of the governors you read from wonderful women writing those clever things, but definitely think that women have been expressing themselves in no uncertain terms that they are not going to accept going back, they're not going to accept these ridiculous restrictions. imagine the idea of having to tell your boss that did you using birth control not to control birth, but f

big picture is coming up at the top of the hour it's night host tom hartman has congresswoman jan schakowsky of illinois on the show to get her take on the rising gas prices in the u.s. and later we'll tell you why wofford of capitalism save the u.s. economy and why you think you lead agree. and for more on the stories we've covered you can head on over to our dot com slash usa there you'll find my interview with rebecca ville comber sen with a jewish voice for peace she told me all about the battle going on between mitt romney newt gingrich and rick santorum and the four primary votes these men are duking it out over.

. >> joining me now is congresswoman jan schakowsky, democrat from illinois. she's one of the 75 house democrats who signed the letter to speaker boehner asking him to repudiate limbaugh. and on the set with me is melissa harris-perry, host of msnbc's "melissa harris-perry." thank you both for being here tonight. congresswoman, let me start with you. as a member of congress, let me just put it straight at you. do you think rush limbaugh should be on the air? >> rush limbaugh should be fired. but we're not helpless in the meantime. there are now all kinds of pressures on his advertisers, and i think everybody should go online, see if -- there is a list of all their advertisers and to his advertisers and make sure that they call for them to withdraw their support. this -- he has to be stopped because we can't create an atmosphere where there's permission for that kind of talk. it has gone way, way over the line. but i do have to say, reverend al, if his goal was to create a leader for this growing movement to put a face that sandra fluke on this growing outrage

now, i'd like to yield to the gentlelady from illinois, congressman jan schakowsky. ms. schakowsky: thank you for this opportuni to speak about a really good friend of mi, don payne. when i heard that his situation was grave, i gave a call to his brother, bill, who i have gotten to know on trips that he and don took, and had the privilege that of speaking with don. he was in hospice. this was just a couple days ago. and i was able to tell him how much i loved him and able to tell him that i ped that he found peace and comfort in the knowledge that he helped so many people in this world. don payne was a real citizen of the world. a quiet and dignified gentleman. he had a fierceommitment to justice and human rights everywhere. he was the de facto ambassador to africa. no one in this congress knew or cared more for the people of africa. he also personally knew the leaders and they knew and respected him. his knowledge and his relationships will leave a big hole here. he was the go-to person if you wanted to know anything about what was going on, the political situation or w

now, i'd like to yield to the gentlelady from illinois, congressman jan schakowsky. ms. schakowsky: thank you for this opportunity to speak about a really good friend of mine, don payne. when i heard that his situation was grave, i gave a call to his brother, bill, who i have gotten to know on trips that he and don took, and had the privilege that of speaking with don. he was in hospice. this was just a couple days ago. and i was able to tell him how much i loved him and able to tell him that i hoped that he found peace and comfort in the knowledge that he helped so many people in this world. don payne was a real citizen of the world. a quiet and dignified gentleman. he had a fierce commitment to justice and human rights everywhere. he was the de facto ambassador to africa. no one in this congress knew or cared more for the people of africa. he also personally knew the leaders and they knew and respected him. his knowledge and his relationships will leave a big hole here. he was the go-to person if you wanted to know anything about what was going on, the political situat