back. >> i must say, even though people are criticizing john mccain and others, i respect for the two sides of this argument. mccain is not looking for a pander. this is what he feels. i think you can still over -- respect the two arguments, but given the way the country has changed, the right decision was made. >> i can be respectful to john mccain but i can disagree with his position and say that he was wrong. >> grant him some sincerity. >> let me ask you about start, the treaty with the russians. why was their opposition to that? it looked like everyone was for it, including henry kissinger. >> the main reason was, they included in the preamble a sentence saying there was an interrelationship between offensive missiles and defense of weapons, meaning anti-missile defenses. in the decade preceding the bush administration had concluded the treaty of moscow eight years ago and there was not a syllable of any connection between them. this was a return to an era of the cold war where you would limit defenses because the russians are afraid it would degrade the value of their nuclear ar

now i know that john mccain threw some cold water on that, as did sort of john kyle. what exactly happened there? >> well, it was sort of an odd thing for him to do, frankly, i think some republicans just don't want to take this vote, they don't want to be seen voting on anything that has to do with gay rights and it's a difficult vote for some folks because they may support it, but they don't want to vote for it so they're going to have to vote against it. he and senator lindsay graham also both made the same argument which is that they feel like harry reid is trying to jam things down their throat like don't ask, don't tell and the dream act and other things and that has poisoned the sort of atmosphere with the s.t.a.r.t. treaty. it seems like it may be to create a reason to not vote for the don't ask, don't tell, but it doesn't appear at this point that it's working. >> them saying we don't want you to poison the well, poison the atmosphere with these, they're not making a specific procedural objection, they're just saying we don't want to vote on this, correct? >>

john mccain was rallying against earmarks.crats brought forward this 1,900-page bill you jumped on it, said it was an outrage. i want to be clear. there are loads and dozens and dozens of republican earmarks in there and my understanding of it is any of the republicans could have gone to the appropriations committee and said, look, we just promised not to have these earmarks so take mine out, yet they're still in there. is this a bipartisan plague? >> it is. and we have republican senators who may vote in favor of this atrocity. monstrosity and atrocity. by the way, i was speaking rhetorically when i said go pick up your pitchforks. let me make that clear, but, look, this is really a total contradiction, an abrogation of the commitment and the message of november the 2nd. and we republicans have got to understand we have a second chance because of our excesses of the bush administration and i'm not sure they will forgive us another time and you saw the approval rating of 13%. you can't get much lower. if we do this to them, i

ranking committee member john mccain said not so fast. it is the job of congress to figure out if changes should happen. >> not by the president, or the courts but by congress. it is a question that must be answered, carefully, and deliberately, and with proper consideration for the ccomplexity of the issue, and the possible consequences for the military and the wars in which we are engaged. . >> the chamber >> the chairman said that for the olshould be able to move on. >> if you look closely? you will find that the americans military is by and large ready to move on as well. some soldiers/marines would like separate shower facilities? perhaps different bonds? some may quit. we will deal with that. different-living areas. >> and the pentagon has been very carefully considering the question of gays in the military and is considering the statements by john mccain. >> and also>rangel was censhured for financial misconduct. he felt this was on fare in the year-old was fun to committed at the kokomo fundraising violations of the house rules--8

what it underscores is that here is john mccain pointing fingers at this guy, you're the senators pointing fingers. when mccain had taken a lot of money from competing indian casinos to do the very thing that abramoff was trying to do. the idea that these guys were not involved in that process. these guys were not taking enormous amounts of money and they're the work, pointing their fingers at him. that kind of scene illustrates the hypocrisy that is going on in that town and truly, if we're going to leave cleaning up either the campaign reform or the lobbying industry to the politicians, nothing will happen. tavis: if congress is not qualified to deal with this, if the white house is not qualified, how are we going to clean this up? >> i suggested something that people attacked before and said i was an idiot and did not understand. look at it from, i do not know the complexities. what is the reason that all this money is being raised? what is the single reason? it is television. you have to buy television ads. that is what it is all about. raising the money to buy the television ads. why

senator john mccain continues to insist it should be delayed. meghan mccain disagrees, she joins me in the spotlight. >>> and later, the woman who made a shocking decision during a standoff at a school board meeting. ♪ [ male announcer ] you know her. we know diamonds. together we'll make her holiday. that's why only zales is the diamond store. where you can get up to $1,000 off now through sunday. whoa! that achy cold needs alka-seltzer plus! it rushes multiple cold fighters, plus a powerful pain reliever, wherever you need it! [ both ] ♪ oh what a relief it is! >>> democratic senator tom harkin was one of 19 senators to vote against the obama tax kploms compromise. will he have a chance to vote on anything else? he joins me next. >>> and republicans using the fake war on christmas as a reason not to pass legislation. both cost the same, but only the pringles superstack can makes everything pop! ♪ ♪ whoa-oh-oh-oh ♪ yeah, yeah ♪ hey, hey [ male announcer ] the choice is yours... 100 of these or 100 pringles. same cost but a lot more fun. everythi

senator john mccain continues to insist it should be delayed. meghan mccain disagrees, she joins me in the spotlight. >>> and later, the woman who made a shocking decision during a standoff at a school board meeting. [ female announcer ] does your hair color feel as healthy as it looks? it will with natural instincts. it's clinically proven. 80% of women agreed that natural instincts made their hair feel softer. want feel good color? get 10 minute natural instincts. it's all good. get 10 minute natural instincts. naturally colorful vegetables are often a good source of vitamins, fiber, or minerals. and who brings you more natural colors than campbell's condensed soups? campbell's.® it's amazing what soup can do.™ >>> democratic senator tom harkin was one of 19 senators to vote against the obama tax kplo compromise. will he have a chance to vote on anything else? he joins me next. >>> and republicans using the fake war on christmas as a reason not to pass legislation. ♪ [ male announcer ] you know her. we know diamonds. together we'll make her hol

john mccain got 29%. to send the right signal to hispanics in this country. >> i want to take a quick break and talk about the problems that our country faces and how we'll respond. more strenuous.take up someg you have different needs and desires. - i'm reading a book. - what's a book? so we tailor plans for individuals, featuring a range of integrated solutions. - you at your usual restaurant? - son: maybe. see you tomorrow. - stairs? - elevator. to see how our multi-faceted approach... can benefit your multi-generational wealth, look ahead with us at northerntrust.com. i'm off to the post office... ok. uh, a little help... oh! you know shipping is a lot easier with priority mail flat rate boxes. if it fits, it ships anywhere in the country for a low flat rate. plus, you can print and pay for postage online. and i can pick them up for free with package pickup. perfect! cause i'm gonna need a lot of those. wow! i knew i should have brought my sleigh. priority mail flat rate shipping starts at $4.90 only

and john mccain who is worth watching in all of this. we have a little bit to listen from him on the floor this week in which he talks about this. >> so here we are about six weeks after an election that repudiated the agenda of the other side. we are jamming our trying to jam major issues through the senate of the united states because they know they can't get it done beginning next january 5. you can't do it next january 5 and the american people have spoken and you are acting indirect repudiation of the message of the american people. gwen: if you are john mccain or any of these incoming members of congress, people who didn't have anything to do with the lame duck session, aren't you carrying a couple of grudges you want to act on? >> i talked to senator alexander from tennessee and he said they got five to 10 votes they lost on the final vote on start, because they are mad about don't ask, don't tell, dream act. the mood was poisonned and people are going to remember that in the new year. gwen: there were a couple of things that were

moment and i'll talk with senator joe lieberman about whether or not he believes his friend, senator john mccain has been moving the goalpost on repeal. that it's happening here. happening today. girls being lured into forced labor. part two of our shocking series, "american slaves, hiding in plain sight." john walsh joins us to talk about that as well. we begin, though, as always, keeping them honest. after a historic day in the fight over ending don't ask don't tell, critics making that change have plenty of concerns about allowing gays and lesbians to openly serve in the military. we spent the week separating fact from physician fiction and ting new concerns when the old ones are addressed. tonight we want to show you how the top leadership today addressed critics point by point in their own words. joint chiefs chairman mullen and defense secretary gates along with authors of the pentagon study on gays in the military going before the senate armed services committee. mullen and gates arguing the time for ending don't ask don't tell is now. senator john mccain is obviously the ranking republic

john mccain has had many reasons for keeping don't ask don't tell.st he wanted to hear from the military leadership, then said the president, defense secretary and joint chiefs chairman weren't good enough, he wanted to wait for this study. then he wanted to hear from the service heads who expressed more nuanced concerns than perhaps senator mccain might have expected. in any case, he has a new reason to put off consideration. it's not just the war as he has said many times before, it is also the economy. >> i will not agree to have this bill go forward and neither will i believe that 41 of my colleagues will, either, because our economy is in the tank. >> so will a vote go forward during the lame duck session? that's a political question. for more on the policy, i spoke earlier with pentagon general counsel jay johnson who co-authored this week's report on gays in the military. mr. johnson, thank you so much for being with us. let me ask you, both the marine corps commandant and air force saying there is some risk to troops in the field if the ban i

senator john mccain is obviously the ranking republican on the committee and you'll recall he once said if the military leadership came to him with such a recommendation he said he would consider it. then when they did he said he was waiting for the results of the stoitd. then when the study leaked out he questioned the validity of the study and would be more inclined to take the opinions of the chief because the chairman doesn't command troops. today admiral mullen spoke directly to that criticism and to the senator in particular. >> one final word and with all due respect mr. chairman and senator mccain, if is true that as chairman i am not in charge of troops. but i've commanded three ships, a carrier battle group and two fleets and i was most recently a service chief myself. for more than 40 years i've made decisions that affected and even risked lives of young men and women. you do not have to agree with me on this issue, but don't think for one moment that i haven't carefully considered the impact of the advice i give on those who will have to live with the decisions that that adv

they said at least wait until 2012. >> you're as close a friend that john mccain has. why haven't you been able to convince him that he is wrong? >> well, because he's so stubborn, of course. look, we've had good conversations about this, john, and he is my dear friend. we just disagree. every evidence says that this change can occur without any negative effect. some of our closest allies in the world allow gay and lesbian soldiers to serve, the united kingdom, canada, australia, israel, just siting a few examples. also, the study done of 125,000 people, military answering questions, are they clear that more than two-thirds are supportive of this. even among some who felt worried that it would have an effect, more than 90% of those who have actually served with gay and lesbian colleagues in the military and in their own unit as opposed to those who haven't said it has no affect or a positive affect. >> if you search through the blog goss fear, you will see a lot of people questioning the president's and then things not going well, he brought in colin powell and did it

how john mccain has done a 180 of his own on taxes, too. chances the deal will go through after clearing a big hurdle today. >>> later the fallout from bernie madoff's ponzi scheme, a really tragic horrific development over the weekend. another life claimed, this time his son's. we asked people all over america where the best potatoes come from. the best potatoes? idaho. idaho! idaho. and how do you know you're getting idaho potatoes? well...uh... uhm... heh.. (sighs) not all potatoes come from idaho. so if you want the best, you have to do one important thing. always look for the grown in idaho seal. i knew that. i knew that. look for the grown in idaho seal. so i take one a day men's 50+ advantage. as a manager, my team counts on me to stay focused. it's the only complete multivitamin with ginkgo to support memory and concentration. plus it supports heart health. [ bat cracks ] that's a hit. one a day men's. [ male announcer ] breathe, socket. just breathe. we know it's intimidating. instant torque. top speed of 100 miles an hour. that's

guest: john mccain has been the leading force against this repeal. the push on this as well as the democratic leadership in the snachlt he sees this as pure theater. it is as if they are doing something to payoff their con stilt u one si. he has taken a tough approach. at the same time critics have come after him he has signalled that he would back a policy change. in the end, he went down swinging and thought it was a political exercise host: his long time friend and at one point considered a 2008 republican nominee leeberman. there was a moment when the two looked at each other, smiled and went about their business. guest: that's right. mccain and leeberman have a great relationship. he has said he would back him no matter what. this is an issue where they split. leiberman is more liberal. he issen line with mccain. this is one where they clearly split. read supported the repeal of the ban host: the dream act which would give children a pass to citizenship. pointing out that the future remains equally uncertain. what happened? it just doesn't seem

thanks so much. >>> coming up, i don't want the president to cave to john mccain and the republicans. they want another ten years in afghanistan? that's a good one. the base doesn't want this war and neither do the american people. >>> and the drugster, oh, yeah, well, he better ask for a santa or ask for a new gig. his racist rants may get him booted into the "zone" big time. the reverend al sharpton has been all over this story. he was got new developments coming up. >>> and it's not too late to let us know what you think. the number to dial is 1-877-ed-msnbc. tonight's telephone question is, do you want house democrats to keep fighting the tax compromise? this is beautiful. this is a pe o>]'4wwwwwu'tj >>> that we are moving toward a new phase in afghanistan, a transition twofold afghan-lead security that will begin early next year and conclude in 2014. >> and in my "playbook" tonight the obama administration rolled out their annual review of their afghan war strategy today. they came out with a handy five-page summary, but i could have saved them about four pages. you see, here it

today before the senate armed services committee, senator john mccain got a chance to underscore hisharge that while the top military and civilian leadership supports lifting the law, the military service chiefs do not. in fact, that's only partly true. as expected, the marine corps commandant, james amos take the toughest line. >> i cannot reconcile, nor turn my back on the negative perceptions held by our marines who are most engaged in the hard work of day-to-day operations in afghanistan. we asked for their opinions and they gave them to us. their message is that the potential exists for disruption to the successful execution of our current combat mission should repeal be implemented at this time. >> he concluded, though, that the marines could make it work and would make it work, but recommended repeal be delayed. so did air force chief norton schwartz who recommended delaying it until 2012. he like george casey taking exception to the conclusion of the pentagon study on gays in in the military, namely the risk to military effectiveness of repealing don't ask don't tell would be

. >> former navy pilot john mccain called this a sad day. >> i hope that when we pass this legislation, that we will understand that we are doing great damage. >> mr. conrad, aye. >> eight republicans joined democrats, a vote made easier because while some generals opposed repeal, the country's top military man and the defense secretary said it was time to end the policy. >> this can be done and it should be done without supposing a serious risk to military readiness. >> and as our poll showed just a week ago, 77% of americans believe homosexuals should be allowed to serve. discharged army lieutenant dan choi who with others chained himself to the white house fence in protest celebrated in a tweet. quote, today we stand taller, declaring, i am somebody. he told abc news he wants to re-enlist. so does mike. >> i look forward to wearing the uniform again of the united states air force. >> the white house says the president will sign the law next wiebe. that doesn't mean immediate repeal. all the law does is give the pentagon the ability to decide when it is ready to lift these restrictio

how john mccain has done a 180 of his own on taxes, too. and the chances the deal will go through after clearing a big hurdle today. >>> later the fallout from bernie madoff's ponzi scheme, a really tragic horrific development over the weekend. another life claimed, this time his son's. [ female announcer ] experience dual action power with listerine® whitening plus restoring rinse. it's the only listerine® that gets teeth two shades whiter. and makes tooth enamel two times stronger. get dual action listerine® whitening® rinse. building whiter, stronger teeth. ♪ [ male announcer ] open up a cadillac during our season's best sales event. and receive the gift of asphalt. experience the cadillac of crossovers, the striking srx. it's the one gift you can open up all year long. see your cadillac dealer for this attractive offer. backed by the peace of mind that only comes from cadillac premium care maintenance. the season's best sales event. from cadillac. >>> tomorrow we may see a major development in the senate on the tax deal president obama

he interrupted john mccain who was talking.nd sort of did an end zone dance, if you will, and that, despite all of the fighting here, is not typically seen. so here's a little bit of what went on. >> as the most jr. member, for those who are not understanding what just happened, did we just win? it seems that change has come to the senate tonight with the death of this $1.1 trillion plan. >> they want the american people to think that omnibus 2010, that all those pages sitting there, were done by democrats. they weren't done by democrats. those pages were done by democrats and republicans. >> and claire mchaskell of missouri was particularly bothered by this, because as a democrat, she has been one of those fighting against earmarks, so she sort of was riled by the fact that she thought there were some republicans who thought they were a little bit too gleeful about this bill dying. members like harry reid and a number of others have been talking to me over the last few days about the value of earmarks for some of the programs

john mccain was compared to lucy in peanuts, who continues to pull the football away.s far as this lame-duck session, there is debate going on and whether a vote should take place. again, your thoughts if you want to weigh in this morning. here are the phone lines. twittercspanwj. first caller, go ahead. caller: i am a former marine, vietnam, a disabled medevac from vietnam way back when did you have heard it say it does not matter who you share the foxhole with, so to speak, in wartime, we are fighting a common enemy whether we are heterosexual or homosexual. the fact is that very little time is spent in combat. most of the time is spent, for soldiers, in the rear, in the .arracks and so bike witnesse eyewitnessed gay behavior back in vietnam and as a young man, it was demoralizing. it did not happen very much but i just want to say for a young person to view that, it is demoralizing especially in a war environment. >host: when you hear top leaders from the military say a repeal will probably happen and top legislators say that repeal will probably happen, what do you

john mccain is doing everything he can to derail it.five minutes from now to talk about this topic and he's angry. >> we're not saying that everything in there is not absolutely necessary. what he's saying is can you stop jamming it in and make it transparent? if it isn't transparent, is there a reason? 8 minutes after the hour, more news is breaking. >> a white house review released one hour ago says the u.s. is making progress towards containing the taliban and al-qaida in afghanistan and pakistan. but it also found the afghan government is still too weak and pakistan is still too uncooperative. the review puts off key decisions about the pace of pulling out troops in afghanistan. president obama has already signalled he thinks things are going well enough to start bringing troops home next summer. >> another fox news alert. al-qaida planning terror attacks in the u.s. and europe this christmas season. that's according to top iraqi officials who say they obtained confessions from captured insurgents. authorities already on high alert

bill: senator john mccain sounding off on a trillion dollars spending bill with some $9 million in earmarks, debt clock, ticking away, 14 trillion almost. my next guest says washington still does not get it, senator john cornyn is on the senate budget committee, he's live on the hill. good morning to you. we were told yesterday this is a total mess and that, quote, all hell is breaking loose. is that true? >> well, yes. i think people are just so profoundly shocked that here we are, a year after we jammed through harry reid and the democratic majority, jammed through a $2.7 trillion health care bill and we know what's come of that, that they're dropping this 2000 page, $1.2 trillion omnibus spending bill that no one has had a chance to see until yesterday, and the more we see it the less there is to like about it, and it's just -- to me it is completely tone-deaf as john mccain said, after coming off this election when the american people said very clearly that this runaway washington spending and this unsustainable debt were unacceptable and they're sending new people in come january 5th t

funny to some, but not to senator john mccain. >> the american people said just 42 days ago, enough. are we, are we tone deaf? are we stricken with amnesia? what is going on here? >> i think that the people on the appropriation's committee work very hard. i think they have a good piece of legislation and we'll move forward at that. >> chris, outrage is aimed at both sides, but the bill has a million dollars for an environmental study and 400,000 for a research park that benefits state florida. lindsey graham on the other side of the aisle moposes the bill a says we don't want to go down this road. he has an earmark to study dredging. here are the top. mary landrieu wants $4.5 million roger wicker wants $3.7 billion. let me show you the next requests. top of the list right now, we take a look at a number of time folks are looking for things. 855 requests from bob menendez. look at those numbers, chris. but as politifacts notes, they don't increase spending. where budgeted monies should go. >> richard lui, we have a lot to talk about. let's bring in our company. hillary clinton support

we'll look at how john mccain's thoughts for the wealthy seem to have evolved. >>> a picture perfect honeymoon. a husband and wife scuba dive in australia but something terrible happened under water and only the husband returned alive. he served jail time in australia for manslaughter and is back home in alabama and often trial for murder. did he do it? you can judge the evidence for yourself in tonight's crime and punishment. >>> we begin as always with breaking news. the death of richard holbrooke, america's special representative for afghanistan and pakistan, architect of the dayton peace agreement that ended the bosnia war, all-around troubleshooter, president obama calling him one of the giants of american foreign policy. he became ill on friday in secretary of state clinton's office, died today. at nearby george washington university hospital of a tear in a major artery leading from his heart. surgery to fix it not enough to save him. he was 69 years old and the shock waves from his passing are traveling around the world as we speak. joining us sanjay gupta, david gergen and pa

thanks so much. >>> coming up, i don't want the president to cave to john mccain and the republicans.hey want another ten years in afghanistan? that's a good one. the base doesn't want this war and neither do the american people. >>> and the drugster, oh, yeah, well he better ask for a santa or ask for a new gig. his racist rants may get him booted into the "zone" big time. the reverend al sharpton has been all over this story. he was got new developments coming up. he's visited with the fcc. ♪ [ man ] i thought our family business would always be boots. until one day, my daughter showed me a designer handbag. and like that, we had a new side to our business. [ male announcer ] when businesses see an opportunity, the hartford is there. protecting their employees and property and helping them prepare for the future. nice boots. nice bag. [ male announcer ] see how the hartford helps businesses at achievewhatsahead.com. >>> and it's not too late to let us know what you think. the number to dial is 1-877-ed-msnbc. tonight's telephone question is, do you want house democrats to keep fight

how john mccain has done a 180 of his own on taxes, too. the chances the deal will go through after clearing a big hurdle today. >>> later the fallout from bernie madoff's ponzi scheme, a really tragic horrific development over the weekend. another life claimed, this time his son's. htness in my chest. so i went back to my doctor again. we chose symbicort to help control my asthma symptoms all day and night. [ man ] symbicort improves my lung function, starting within 15 minutes. symbicort will not replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. it is a combination of two medicines and should not be taken more often than prescribed. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol increase the risk of death from asthma problems, and children and adolescents may have an increased risk of being hospitalized for asthma problems. symbicort is not for people whose asthma is well controlled with a long-term asthma control medicine like inhaled corticosteroids. once your asthma is well controlled, your doctor will decide if you can stop symb

it included lindsey graham and john mccain. are you concerned about some of those votes? >> i'm not concerned about those votes so much as i understand the dynamics what is going on on the economic front and national security front. i think the american people can appreciate this you are talking about start treaty or any other aspect of our economy there's got to be a balancing act. all the members who represent diverse states and have different interests they have to consider in coming to some agreement and arrangement to move forward. i think that's what are going to see a little more of. both for democrats and republicans, the dynamics have changed as a result of the november elections. i appreciate what are saying about how the votes were cast. there's a lot more behind that vote than the casting of it. i think those are the things we need to wait to hear from those senators and leadership as to what else is involved on both subjects. >> sean: i noticed mr. chairman you do have some opponents and pretty much you have had them since the beginning of your term. left lea

you know, john mccain and george w. bush talks about this, he distances himself from the presidency. that's no surprise given where his approval rating was. i agree with julian, the tea party 15 response to many of the big government initiatives that did come out. whether it was no child left behind or it was the medicare prescription drug benefit. but i think that's being said. you are right. president bush has been more quiet. which leads me to believe that he sort of feels as though what he should be judged on is what he did, not necessarily what he's planning on doing. >> julian zelizer will you give us his writing of katrina and your assessment? >> he admits mistakes and not being aggressive enough and acknowledging the government failure to respond to that. he admits the photo op was a bad choice. there are limits though, you know, i think a lot of the critics said this really revealed how little policy concern there was for urban america. and it wasn't just katrina, it was the state of the cities that was just a

senate but has been filibustered by arizona senator's john mccain. a procedural vote could have broken the filibuster, but a short time ago, senate majority leader harry reid said democrats will continue to negotiate with the republicans in an attempt to move the bill forward. >> just as cancer was taking her own life, elizabeth edwards was trying to help others suffering from that very same disease. it was revealed today that edwards volunteered for clinical trials to help doctors better understand breast cancer. we have new information about her efforts and the final hours of her life. >> friends who shared elizabeth edward's final hours say the end was tranquil. >> it was very loving. it was very peaceful. we're very thankful that tlp wasn't a lot of pain. >> she suffered since 1996 when she lost her son wade. in 2004, she learned she had cancer. three years later, she found out it was back and incurable. she went public, pushing for a cancer cure. >> i hope i have important things to say, important support to give to other people who are going th

>> we have letters from john mccain. t supporters of our armed forces and we're carrying cards that he's personally signed to give to each and every one of the troops. >> that's very nice. >> how does gary factor into this? gary? >> well, i'm providing transportation across the united states as far as flying everybody domestically that's here and we're leaving to go over to iraq. >> tell him how we are designate the as we cross america. >> the faa was nice to give us a special call sign. we're called st. nick 1 wherever we go. >> yes. that's for you, santa. >> that's absolutely right. i'll tell you, old santa, when he doesn't have his reindeer, mrs. claus is getting the reindeers all pumped up for christmas eve and we will be back, children, in time to get around to see you on christmas eve. >> that's exactly what we want to hear. >> i'd like to say one thing, you know, our men and women are over there. they volunteer to risk and sadly, occasionally, give their lives and bodies. it's the holiday season and they'd like to

john mccain certainly thought so.ay. >> and i thought that the message was pretty clear. that the american people said enough with the spending. enough with the pork-barrel earmark mark spending. we have already identified approximately 6,488 earmarks totalling nearly $8.3 billion $ $8.3 billion. >> senate minority leader mitch mcconnell pledged early this year not to request earmarks and spoke out against the spending bill today. >> i am actively working to defeat it. there are many members who have provisions in their state actively working to defeat it. this bill should not go forward. >> notice he said members snaft who have provisions in it, senators including kentucky's mitch mcconnell. even though he's opposing the bill and even though he took a pledge not to take earmarks, he's got a bunch he put in before he took the pledge. $18 million to upgrade the rail head at ft. knox, 3 million to widen a road in ft. campbell, more than $100 million in all. earmarks he did not withdraw after taking the no earmark pledge

mitch mccontinental and jon kyl were out against us totally and john mccain as time standed there.t was quite an achievement but i think the fact that the president himself was involved made a major difference. >> brown: will you continue with the lessons learned for republicans. what should republicans take from the last week or so? >> there's a lot of debate among republicans on these issues. some people saying that they rolled over in this last period. they didn't really have much choice. the president on the tax bill in particular we're going to end up in the four years of the obama administration with tax rates the same as when it began. which republicans would not have predicted in this circumstance. and so they had to take a victory in a certain way. they couldn't refuse it just to hurt the president. this is a case where the president's interests in growing economy are the country's interests. i think republicans here were put in a position, particularly on those two votes, don't ask, don't till and start, those were more votes of conscience. i don't think that mcconnell an

but first in the 2008 presidential race by john mccain, who was just mentioned, along with the rise ofhe tea party and now president obama really wanting to curb the practice of earmarks, there is starting to be this sentiment in washington that earmarks are bad. and so all -- we see $8 billion in earmarks. the senate just passed $900 billion worth of tax cuts in that tax cut deal package. some appropriators, people who like these earmarks, are pointing out the inconsistency there. >> right. mark, what's on the list? these are the things -- this adds to the reason people raise an eyebrow when they hear about earmarks. you've got the beaver management in north carolina, n and virus-e wine grapes in washington state. maybe valuable to those states, but if you don't live there, you may not see the value. >> exactly. that's why in some respects, why the tables have turned on this issue. you can look individually at the earmarks and they look outrageous and pro poeposterous normal americans. certainly, a lot of these appropriations and these earmarks have been vetted. people think these are