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. >>> still ahead on "morning joe," former governor jon huntsman will be here, also robert gibbs.uzzfeed's ben smith and star of "psych," dule hill will be here. up next, jim vandehei has the top stories in the "politico playbook." first here's bill karins with a check on the forecast. bill. >> mika, stress. probably not one weather guy in the d.c. area that got any sleep last night. very difficult forecast. if you're traveling in the mid-atlantic into the northeast as we go throughout the next two to three days. currently the heaviest snow on i-81, hagerstown to charlottesville. we have been seeing snow in the d.c. area, but it's having trouble sticking because we're 34 to 36 degrees. later today this whole area of heavy snow will swing on through and head through baltimore and through the d.c. area. don't be surprised if you don't see any accumulations until at least 10:00 a.m. here's how it looks today. eventually the rain's going to push up through new jersey. you're not going to get snow during the daylight hours, philadelphia, new york city, southern new england. your best c

. >> jon huntsman never had a chance. it was his turn in the barrel. rest of them were -- >> john: jon huntsman who was never the front-runner at all. that campaign was so depressing, sara mclaughlin was doing late night infomercials for it. speaking of altered states, hippies were right. if everyone would spark up a don't doob everyone would be okay. nationwide legalization to bring $6en 4 billion in new tax revenue. do you think if we decriminalize cannabis, could we really make that much money and help our deficits? >> based on a very small biased selection of my friends which are mostly musicians and comedians, we will be rolling in dough. >> two things that will bring in big revenue to the states. dope and gambling. >> john: elaine, you're shaking your head. >> you're not going to get a penny because everyone is going to forget to pay their taxes. >> it will be in the price when you buy it. >> oh. >> john: the real reason you'll never see in our lifetime is it is such a big threat to pharma. >> and also to alcohol. people want to get high. people

with things in a flux there former republican presidential candidate and utah governor jon huntsman jrs time it's time to start flexing our pipeline muscle here. great to have you. >> great to be with you, neil. >> neil: how should we respond to his death? what type of overtures? i know we did the customary thing in the administration, you know. we were thinking of venezuelan people, et cetera, et cetera. what do we do? >> well, we have to do that, which isn't going to naturally give rise to another hugo chavez kind of character. so what created the environment for his rise? it was the collapse in oil prices. back in the late 1990s. and then what gave them sustaining power? it was the rebound of the marketplace and the money that he made through the 2000s ultimately nationalizing the oil industry. cutting off his relationship with the united states. he was able to use that money to buy a lot of populace support and to foment revolution and horrible behavior in the latin american region with bolivia and beyond. >> neil: his lieu tenants hardly seem to be of a different stripe what do we

that's -- we talk around this issue, jon huntsman, sure, supports gay marriage but jon huntsman can'ty this is important. do you need someone really high-profile? jeb bush, marco rubio, someone of that level, your presidential nominee? >> i think that leadership matters. and i think that somebody very, very high-profile taking a position can send a signal to the base. but, you know, i would -- i don't necessarily think that just because the base of the republican party is opposed to this it means that republican leaders aren't going to begin moving that way. >> carey, let's say a republican, big republican comes out and says i have to change my mind. does that switch the issue? and i'm not discounting rob portman but talking about a jeb bush or rubio, someone we expect to run for president. >> i think this is the direction the country is going by virtue of the polls. how direction the country is going by virtue of the polls how quickly it has changed. it is hard to see how you're not going to see more republicans and certainly more democrats of a higher profile, often come late to the

and presidential candidate jon huntsman.warzenegger. >> in world news-- he chose the name of a saint known for humility and helping the poor. now, pope francis seems to be leading by example -- continuing his reputation as a humble man in spite of his lofty new office. ben wedeman reports. >> reporter: from the moment he stepped out on the balcony as pope, his message was one of simplicity. >> brothers and sisters, good evening. gabe slate tech report >> reporter: -- (cheers & applause)as a cardinal in buenos aires, he rode the bus, and in his new job, pope francis >> all of a sudden, the pope left santa marta house, waiting for him, and get on the bus, asking if there is some place available for him. >> reporter: brazilian father antonio his eyes. >> we were shocked. we were clapping hands for the pope and at the same time we were shocked, and he said i think i am going to sit here next to raymondo. >> reporter: cardinal bargoglio took the name of francis after saint francis of assisi, who gave up a life of wealth and privi

jon huntsman, christine whitman -- there you see the pictures. seven of them.blican thinking? >> it's a shift in thinking. they took the position that states ought to decide, not just last year. >> arguably it's a tougher shift on the republican side and you're seeing a pretty big shift. >> it is. i think the whole country is shifting. if you look at the states that have had votes on same-sex marriage, according to the wo polling right now, there's a significant shift towards accepting this. the fact that there is same-sex marriage. i remember when i was in the house we had a vote to bar washington, d.c., from allowing civil unions, which at that time was the issue. >> yep. >> and i was one of only four republicans who oppose the ban and i think if that came up from the house, you would see a significant shift among republicans and overall in the vote. and i think again that reflects the public opinion. >> we've had this shift, governor, and supporters of same-sex marriage were asking the court to ban all marriage of same-sex. >> i think if the california law g

politicians like jon huntsman and dick cheney on the right.s the story, the culture wars are back with you there time the battlefield looks a lot different. editorial director howard fineman, welcome. >> hi. >> so let me get your take on something. even though i support gay marriage as a conservative, i also don't believe the federal government should be in the marriage business. if they have to be, then i want them to distribute rights equally. but my end goal would be the government, the state out of marriage altogether. let's say that the supreme court rules in favor of gay marriage. do you think that would solidify the role of government in marriage for the long term in or do you think that would help diminish it into the future? >> i think temporarily, it would put the federal government further into the game. because there will be some states where gay marriage would still be seen as anathema. where it would still be possible to mount a docounter attack and create a lot of controversy doing so. i think that's on the minds of the court ba

obama to president clinton to hillary clinton to rob portman to dick cheney, cleric mccaskill, jon huntsmane a tremendous number of federal officials, highly visible people in both parties. not only saying people should have this right, which is the moral position, but also saying something that i think creates an incredible opening for the public which is i changed my mind. people get in different ways. but that is also really different. in the civil rights era which is obviously the sort of historical precedent that people look to. the court was way out front. sometime in unanimous decisions like brown, in school busing, obviously in a lot of areas of extending rights to minorities. they were way ahead of both parties. you go back to the original civil rights raer and both parties were table because we lived in a completely racist, elite structure. and so the court was really one of the only elite institutions in the country that ran against that. while i understand the broader context, i think this is a supreme court that by that historical standard is late and that has fell behind as re

at my institute in chicago tonight jon huntsman i think said it best. he said it was a failure of strategy and vision, not tactics. tactics are secondary. i mean, it's interesting to here chairman priebus posit what he did there because my recollection is the most damaging -- one of the most damaging exchanges in all those debates came on a fox debate when they all said they wouldn't accept one dollar of new revenue even if it entailed -- brought with it $10 of cuts. the problem wasn't the format. it wasn't the venue. it wasn't the commentary after the debates. it's what the candidates said in the debates. and they were responding to the most strident voices in the party, who were in control of that party. so they talked about self-deportation, and they talked about this revenue issue in the way that they did. they talked about ending planned parenthood. they talked about their unified opposition to gay marriage. and they drove away large numbers of americans from their -- from their party. that is what their problem is. their problem is more fundamenta

jon huntsman supported civil unions back in 2012 and has signed the petition in favor of gay marriage. so, yeah, i think by 2016, there could be a republican presidential candidate who says vote for me. i support gay marriage. >> you know what i think would be the best thing strategeically, is if the supreme court has very broad decisions and really basically ends the discussion so the republican party isn't debating the issue in 2016. >> i think there is a lot of -- a lot of wisdom in that. i think if the court makes a broad decision and overreaches, we could have the same situation we have had with abortion where people say, look, i don't like the court dictating the outcome. i would rather leave it to the people and their representatives. >> social issues a problem, that make its much more difficult for the republican party? >> i'm a social conservative. i believe in traditional marriage. i don't think that's the case. i think it's how you handle t. george w. bush was a social conservative and got elected twice -- >> in a different time. 12 years ago. >> but have you to not be judg

at and what i believe in, and rob portman has changed his position, and i are respect him, and jon huntsmanid the same thing. >> and if one of your children were to be gay, you would not change your perspective? >> i would love them with all of my heart absolutely. >> you would not support marriage equality? >> i believe in traditional marriage, and that is what i believe in. i believe that somebody who is gay can still be very happy and thrive and nothing with but the best for them, and i don't want to discriminate against them, but i happen to believe in traditional marriage. >> okay. thank you is much, congressman, jason chaffetz taking a break from cpacment. thank you. let's listen to a portion of this interview. >> this is something that personally, i believe that people should be allowed to enjoy the stability of marriage that i have had for over 26 years. i want all of our three kids to have that including our son who is gay. >> and in the defense of the marriage act is on the horizon and with what has happened, do you believe that changes for what happens? >> well, i was touched for

officials, seven former republican governors, including tom ridge and christie todd whitman and jon huntsmansignatures from ten former republican members of congress, including chris shays. so seven former republican governors, ten former republican members of congress on the record in support of gay couples having a constitutional right to get married. but what about republicans who are holding office right now? not former office holders, but current office holders. how many, for example, sitting republican governors are signed on to this brief? zero. how about sitting republican senators? zero. again, no republican senator currently serving in the senate signed that brief. what about the house? well, there are a lot of members of the house from the republican party, right? there is 233 republican members of the house serving in this current congress. i think we have a list of all of their names. by necessity, it's in a very, very tiny font, because there are 233 of them. of the 233 republican members of the house, how many of them decided to go on the record in support of marriage equality

everybody from paul wolfowitz, my buddy, to jon huntsman, to clint eastwood, to the romney for president campaign manager, to the secretary of the new hampshire young republicans. more than 130 republican officials and former officials. but even with that brief, and even if you go beyond just that brief to consider pro gay rights republicans who didn't sign on to that, but we still know their position, even with all of that, it is still a stretch to even say that there is a split in the republican party on this issue. i mean, of the 232 republicans in the house, precisely two are on record as pro equal rights for gay people. two out of 232. that is less than 1% of elected republicans in the house. in the senate, there are 45 republicans, precisely one of them is on record as pro equal rights for gay people. and that's brand-new for him. that's rob portman who just came out with that position two weeks ago, after saying that his son is gay. so one senator out of 45 and two representatives out of more than 200. that's not a split in the party, that's like a sliver of the party. that's mayb

and presidential candidate jon huntsman do you think prominent republicans supporting same- sex marriagence the supreme court's decision when it rules on prop 8 and the defense of marriage act? yes - the justices are human beings and cannot ignore the wave of momentum no - the justices will follow the letter of the law and will not be swayed. we are always looking for your opinion. >> catherine: coming up. the obama administration is taking a the threat of nuclear attack by norththe new defenses now being activated.. then --- the vatican is scolding critics of the new pope. saying certain accusations against him - just aren't true. and -- the wall street winning streak finally comes to an end. where the dow ended - after ten record setting days. ahead. been waiting for the price of mattresses to fall? then hurry, sleep train's beautyrest and posturepedic closeout sale is ending soon. save up to 40% on closeout sets from beautyrest and posturepedic. save hundreds on floor samples and closeout inventory. these prices are falling fast, but these deals won't last. sleep train's beautyrest an

the top republican they found was jon huntsman. >> these are pretty high-profile -- i don't know if iagree with you on that. >> i totally disagree. >> the associated press had a report that the republicans who have come out for same-sex marriage, while in office, get kicked out of office. so, you know, if this is -- the republican grassroots do not support redefining marriage. >> but, it seems that overwhelmingly, even when you look at polling, i would have to say, that there are an increasing number of americans, including republicans, self-identified republicans, who support it. so i'm just wondering if you see, and obviously, i think that you would, brian, that there may be a bit of a shift here that we saw this week. >> brianna, first of all, there are two members of the house of representatives, republicans on that brief, currently serving members of the house of representatives who are strongly stepping up for marriage equality. so it is not the case that these are, you know, nobodies on a brief. 100 plus major republican leaders, who are respected in the party and have a voice,

and the voice of this will be tim miller, he too a spokesman of the rnc and vet ral than jon huntsmanpaign. what they will do is essentially offer up to candidates, campaigns, organizations on the right information on the left both either to response to democratic attacks or aggressively and offensively attack democrats for the things that they've made. it will take a small army. tim miller was here a short while ago. we'll have that interview later this afternoon. what he says is they'll sepbgs alley hire an army. there will be trackers with camera and video following democrat cad dates in the 2014 congressional election, house and senate then it will be turned into a 2016 exercise to follow those who are saoeblging the white house. the republicans seem very excited about it. you use an election and you go about reforming. this appears to be an answer to what the rnc asked for. jon: carl cameron more attack politics coming up. not sure everybody wants to hear that. jenna: extreme weather out there today. the calendar says it's spring but it looks like winter in many places across the

jon huntsman supported civil unions and came out for gay marriage. rob portman the senator from ohio wrote a personal essay about shifting his views on gay marriage given the fact that his son has declared to his parents that he's gay. i under there are different attitude for this. one of the key things for the republican party will be to maintain its equilibrium and not allow the issue to deeply divide and set the party at war against itself. jenna: do you think there is a chance of that happening regardless of how the supreme court rules. >> i don't think so. i think republicans on both side of this issue have a healthy respect for those who may not agree with them inside the party. at least that's been my experience thus far. jenna: nice to speak to you as always. >> you bet. jenna: thank you. >> thank yow in cyprus, preparations underway to reopen that nation's banks tomorrow. according to the "wall street journal" large depositors could lose as much as 40% of their money in a new bailout deal. banks there have been closed for nor lee two weeks a

along with several well known republicans, including jon huntsman, and clint eastwood. they believe the high court's decision will swing their way. >> what is the public purpose of marriage? marriage brings together men and women for the reproduction of the human race. >> reporter: both gay marriage cases go before the court march 26 with a ruling due by the end of june. john and diana. >> widespread ramifications. >> this is the kind of thing, if you question there are three different branches of government. and it's starting to feel like the one branch, the justice, is kind of being infringed upon by the other branches. this is an influence that you don't really see, you don't really hear outside influence when it comes to the supreme court. they kind of do what they want. >> and what ultimately will happen with this ruling, it could go way beyond california. seven states that recognize the rights of same-sex marriage but don't call it marriage. they would be forced in theory if the white house way went through the supreme court, they would have to recognize gay marri

now, if you were to run for president, in 2013, and were a republican, you would have to be a jon huntsmany will not be the nominee. but views on gay rights are changing so quickly in this country right now, it's easy to imagine by 2016, half of republicans could be for gay marriage, and they could have a viable candidate be for it. but right now, listen to marco rubio, rand paul, chris christie, the leading republicans, paul ryan. most of them still say, marriage is between a man and a woman. so that view has not changed yet, but i think it really could change. >> and if the view continues to change with the speed at which it has changed over the last five or six months, this is going to be a nonissue politically by early 2014 at the rate we're going. the do you think for gop presidential wannabes in 2016, that this is not going to be a disqualifier, as it would have been this time around? >> you know, dare i contradict the architect, but i shall dare. i think for a republican nominee to be sort of forthright and fully for same-sex marriage would be risky for the republican party. >> in a

washington post" this morning -- he is company with the former vice president and utah governor, jon huntsmanwe will go to peter in birmingham, alabama. you support the idea of the court recognizing same-sex marriage parade why is that? caller: the separation of church and state. ,e are a ceremonial country many of whom never attended church such as george washington during his first terms of president. i think the reason why we talk about racial -- and racial marriage versus the gay marriage are bothbecause they vulnerable minorities. they have been exploited. theexample, in my past and family, my grandmother lived in a reservation oklahoma. that is because my ancestors went through the trail of tears. in the state of alabama where i am, we still have prohibitions against gambling, even though it is irrational. are we going to allow this to be a policy, baseless opinions that have no reality, yet will tax them? taxation without revisitation. i thought our country was against such things. host: here is the patchwork of illegal laws in our country -- illegal laws in our country. in a green rec

on tomorrow's show, jon huntsman is going to be here. he's going to be running in 2016.ith more "morning joe." many cereals say they're good for your heart, but did you know there's a cereal that's recommended by doctors? it's post shredded wheat. recommended by nine out of ten doctors to help reduce the risk of heart disease. post shredded wheat is made with only one ingredient: one hundred percent whole grain wheat, with no added sugar or salt. try adding fruit for more health benefits and more taste in your bowl. it's the ideal way to start your heart healthy day. try post shredded wheat. this has been medifacts for post shredded wheat. try post shredded wheat. ♪ ♪ no two people have the same financial goals. pnc works with you to understand yours and help plan for your retirement. visit a branch or call now for your personal retirement review. transit fares! as in the 37 billion transit fares we help collect each year. no? oh, right. you're thinking of the 1.6 million daily customer care interactions xerox handles. or the 900 million health insurance claims we proces

. >> and it's comical because they know, they know -- jon huntsman especially, they know when you get cynical about this. >> i think there is a really cynical way of reading it. but i think there's also a way of saying heritage screwed up. they weren't right when they called it a conservative idea. this is the democratic party, they've allowed the change on gay marriage. >> that's a great pivot. let's talk about gay marriage. lines are forming at the supreme court. those lines started forming down in d.c. in front of the high court. they started forming on friday. if the decision in the case, if it's a positive decision for supporters of same-sex marriage, what is that going to mean for president obama's legacy on gay marriage? >> it's complicated, because the supreme court could rule any number of ways. it could be a very sweeping decision or a very narrow decision. i think the court likes to be with the times. and if the president of the united states is saying we should not be discriminating against people who want to marry somebody they love. and a majority of the country supports

some of the people who thought about running for president in 2012 including jon huntsman who did runressed conceskeptici. amazing after vietnam and the history of that country we tried to do so many of these things and leave the country, at best, in a very unstable situation with the taliban very strong and with ally in karzai who has been anything but in these latest comments are just the latest of things he has done that make him not a worthy partner. >> will say it again. one of the latest casualties in afghanistan, the united states marine, killed a few weeks ago raising the level of casualtied killed in action to 2,169. he was 22 years of age when he was killed. he was 10 when this war began. he was waiting for a school bus. the country, afghanistan, has proven over and over and over again, as hamid karzai has proven over again this past weekend, it is not worthy of our treasure, whether our blood tesh refresh, our sons and daughters, or our money. it's time to come home. it's not our country. >> congresswoman? >> yes. i can't say i won't say that what we did was in vain. surely