. >> keep merck, a central theme of the kkk in the 1920's a rallying cry for the group's intimidation against blacks, gays and jews, the progressive blog, america blog was the first to catch on to that. >> chris mathews came on later and said it was irresponsible and incendiary of us to do this and showed appalling lack of judgment. the question is how does something like that that kkk comparison make it to air at all. >> it's an interesting question and interesting what the discipline factor is. what steps will msnbc include in suspending or firing somebody. in the world of google if i say i believe in america, you can probably find some horrible person said that, too, if the candidates can can now get stung on fairly innocent phrases and, but for msnbc to immediately call it kkk and-- >> ron paul got quite a bit of time in the debate, but claims he is ignored by the media. is he? does he have a point? >> no, i don't think he's being ignored. i think he's getting a lot of coverage in the mainstream media and especially among people who share his libertarian views. i think his problem

then, bernie goldberg on msnbc apologizing for kkk remarks directed at mitt romney. we hope you stay tuned to those reports. >> newt gingrich caused some controversy when he said elected powers that be in washington should hold federal judges legally responsible if their rulings are inexplicable. the speaker was asked about that on cbs yesterday. >> one of the things you say is that if you don't like what a court has done that congress should subpoena the judge and bring him before congress and hold a congressional hearing. some people say that's unconstitutional but i will let that go for a minute. i just want to ask you from a practical standpoint how would you enforce that? would you send the capital police down to arrest him if had you to. you would instruct the justice department to send the u.s. marshall. let's take the case of judge beery, he should be asked to explain a position that radical. how key say he is going to jail the superintendent over the word benediction and invocation? >> bill: now, mr. gingrich referring to judge fred beery appointed by presid

. >> keep merck, a central theme of the kkk in the 1920's a rallying cry for the group's intimidationinst blacks, gays and jews, the progressive blog, america blog was the first to catch on to that. >> chris mathews came on later and said it was irresponsible and incendiary of us to do this and showed appalling lack of judgment. the question is how does something like that that kkk comparison make it to air at all. >> it's an interesting question and interesting what the discipline factor is. what steps will msnbc include in suspending or firing somebody. in the world of google if i say i believe in america, you can probably find some horrible person said that, too, if the candidates can can now get stung on fairly innocent phrases and, but for msnbc to immediately call it kkk and-- >> ron paul got quite a bit of time in the debate, but claims he is ignored by the media. is he? does he have a point? >> no, i don't think he's being ignored. i think he's getting a lot of coverage in the mainstream media and especially among people who share his libertarian views. i think his problem is

. >> keep america american anymore was a central theme of the kkk in the 1920s. >> that's right.ft-leaning network crediting the liberal left side america blog actually had the temerity to suggest those words implied some kind of link between the candidate and the notoriously racist organization. msnbc later expressed its regrets. >> during the 11:00 a.m. hour on msnbc today, we reported on a blog item that compared a phrase used by the romney campaign to one used by the kkk way back in the 1920s. it was irresponsible and incendiary of us to do this and it showed an appalling lack of judgment. we apologize, we really do, to the romney campaign. >> irresponsible, incendiary and an appalling lack of judgment. i couldn't agree more. how does something like that get on the air? meanwhile, the "washington post" also went with a romney kkk story online and later retracted it saying this posting contains multiple serious factual errors that undermine its premise. the post should have contacted the campaign for comment before publication. finally, we apologize the posting began by saying

they liken the tea party to the kkk.s eyes...a race needs no finish line. ♪ in her eyes... the world is never too big. in his...the weather should never keep you inside. ♪ because they see no limits, there's eukanuba nutrition designed to help their body go as far as their mind wants to. eukanuba. extraordinary nutrition for extraordinary beings. see the difference in 28 days or your money back. how about making it brighter. more colorful. ♪ and putting all our helpers to work? so we can build on our favorite traditions by adding a few new ones. we've all got garlands and budgets to stretch. and this year, we can keep them both evergreen. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. can you smell those savings? fresh cut christmas trees are arriving weekly. >> jon: tim tebow is drawing national attention for his unorthodox football skills but also outward displays of christian faith on the field. you will see him kneeling in prayer on the sidelines or pointing his finger in the air after scoring a touchdo

ignorant people like the kkk. yes, sir.ey got ahold of the flag even if you research it you will see the kkk when they begun they were using an american flag. and then when the civil rights movement era and efg was happening down south, they got their hands on the confederate flag. people want to call the flag racist, you use ke then flag because they social slavery with the american flag but what flag was slavery under the most, the american flag. they had a chance but they sglnt at some point we have to accept one flag. the confederate flag was a symbol of division for the most part and i think the american flag represents a symbol of togetherness. let me ask you this, what about as a symbol of pain, the pain the flag represents? ? i see where you are coming from if. from my point of view, why do i still have to carry those harsh feelings forward if i haven't been through -- what do i tell my kids when you see a confederate flag that person is racist. >> reporter: thomas says his parents do not support his support of the

. >>> and what mitt romney has in common with the kkk and rare romney blunders on the sidebar. ♪ thether outside is frightful ♪ ♪ but the fire is so delightful ♪ nothing melts away the cold like a hot, delicious bowl of chicken noodle soup from campbell's. ♪ let it snow, let it snow try bayer advanced aspirin. it has microparticles so it enters the bloodstream fast and rushes relief to the site of your tough pain. it's proven to relieve pain twice as fast as before. bayer advanced aspirin. selling fishcakes from the back of his truck, and in 1942, of course, they were sent away. after the war, as a japanese coming back from camp, he started a little store on main street in seattle. of course they needed some money, and bank of america was the only bank who would talk to my father. and we've stayed with bank of america. we have four stores now, three in the pacific northwest and one in oregon. my parents would not believe how popular it is now. . >> we come back, everybody. to day on the "today" show "time" magazine revealed the person of the year for 2011, and it is the protester. ti

> kim kardashian spent $65,000 on three bracelets at elizabeth taylor's jewelry auction and in true kkk style she made sure everyone knew about it. >>> and how quickly should someone change her twitter handle? demi moore tackled twitter critics who say, sorry it bothers so many of you. does it really matter? it really doesn't. let's focus on this coming to us from los angeles, california, where the world's third smallest baby since records have been kept is alive and well after beating semiglioinsurmountment odds. melissa came into the world weighing less than a soda can. born four months early she tipped the scales at a little over half a pound. the little peanut. she weighs more than 4 pounds and is thriving. her amazing survival story is about to begin a new chapter when doctors allow her to leave for her family's home on new year's day. >> i want the first interview. >> no kidding. >>> i'm lynn berry and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. >>> a company in southern china has given a whole new meaning to doing the robot. they created a ro

they liken the tea party to the kkk. did he go too far? answers next on news watch. ...'.. ...or big hair... i think we have our answer. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. >> jon: tim tebow is drawing national attention for his unorthodox football skills but also outward displays of christian faith on the field. you will see him kneeling in prayer on the sidelines or pointing his finger in the air after scoring a touchdown. his refusal to tone down his religious displays has made media critics uneasy. full disclosure, i'm a denver fan. [ laughter ] >> jon: what is it about him? he seems to be a lightning rod for criticism in the n.f.l. like two other players. >> and he is good guy. we don't want to see him in the slammer. >> to coin a phrase it's a double standard when it comes to religion. some of us are old enough to remember mohammad ali, he would bring up mohammad who the head of the splinter black muslim group in chicago. nobody dared ever questioned or say anything about him. they write negative things, the press is secul

not backing away from comments that have enraged gay rights activists comparing them to the kkk, cardinal francis george says changeover for cape rate would interfere with parishioners when asked to reconsider change of plans ignored cardinal francis george clarification. equality of the north responded by calling the comments a last-ditch effort to squash recent progress of gay rights. slimming down the annual taste of chicago along the lake front of the major changes also include moving the food festival away from the biggest holiday of the summer. action packed half the time state, a taste of chicago shorted this year from 10 days-pipe and not the fourth of july but it has been put the past 32 years 2012 taste of chicago july 11th-15th movement to mitchell by shortening of five days will that change anything? >> would not affect me at all >> not dealing with the crowds for me does not matter i will still be there >> mayor rahm emmanuel talks of changing admissions the festival will still be free instead organizers looking for other ways to keep the festival viable and not continue to l

we reported on a block item yesterday that compared a phrase used by the romney to one used by the kkkt was irresponsible and incendiary of us to do that. we apologize to the romney campaign. we're back after this. ♪ ♪ ♪ how did it fit down the chimney? [ male announcer ] get low prices on the gifts they love, like the latest connected technology by sony. and get free shipping to your store or home. save money. live better. walmart. and get free shipping to your store or home. everyone believes in keeping their promises once a year. but we believe in helping people take steps to keep them every single day. that's why every day we help people across the country get into their first homes. prepare for a comfortable retirement and protect the people and things that matter most. at genworth we believe every day is the right day to take a step toward tomorrow. >>> a prominent religious leader is slamming the rick perry ad. he wrote a "washington post" op-ed saying rick perry would be pathetic if he weren't so infuriating. it is breath taking and not in a good way when someone den greats the

today we reported on a blog item that compared a phrase used by the romney campaign to one used by the kkk way back in the 1920s. it was irresponsible and incendiary of us to do this, and it showed an appalling lack of judgment. we apologize. we really do, to the romney campaign. >>> welcome back to "hardball." there's no denying right now that newt gingrich has a solid lead in the republican primary field right now, winning in all the numbers games right now. look as the latest nbc/"wall street journal" poll. he almost doubles the support of his closest rival right now, mitt romney among republican voters. gingrich has benefit the, of course, from strong debate performances in a weak republican field, but can he sustain the lead into iowa and beyond, and if he were to win the presidency, what would a newt gingrich white house actually look like? there are many republicans who worked with him when he was speaker of the house in the 1990s who aren't eager to find out -- aren't eager to find out, but there are critics out there who worry about his tenure as leader. he found it troubled, erra

today we reported on a blog item that compared a phrase used by the romney campaign to one used by the kkk back in the 1920s. it was irresponsible and incendiary of us to do this, and it showed an appalling lack of judgment. we apologize. we really do, to the romney campaign. [ woman ] my boyfriend and i were going on vacation, so i used my citi thank you card to pick up some accessories. a new belt. some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? we talked about getting a diamond. but with all the thank you points i've been earning... ♪ ...i flew us to the rock i really had in mind. ♪ [ male announcer ] the citi thank you card. earn points you can use for travel on any airline, with no blackout dates. this was the gulf's best fortourism season in years. all because so many people wanted to visit us... in louisiana. they came to see us in florida... nice try, they came to hang out with us in alabama... once folks heard mississippi had the welcome sign out, they couldn't wait to get here. this year was great but next year's gonna be even better. and anyone who knows the gulf knows that

today we reported on a blog item that compared a phrase used by the romney campaign to one used by the kkk back in the 1920s. it was irresponsible and incendiary of us to do this, and it showed an appalling lack of judgment. we apologize. we really do, to the romney campaign. it's like having portable navigation. a bluetooth connection. a stolen vehicle locator. roadside assistance. and something that could help save your life - automatic help in a crash. it's the technology of five devices in one hard-working mirror. because life happens while you drive. this holiday, give someone you love an onstar fmv mirror for only 199. visit onstar.com for retailers. >>> the house has passed $660 billion defense spending bill that passed after the white house dropped the veto handling for terror suspects. the obama administration is considering a tax on millionaires but harry reid says it's dead at the arrival of the senate. the president has also threatened to veto. when it comes to marriages, compared with just 51% today, the data also shows more people are waiting longer to g hitched. veronica. no

. >>> also this half hour, a stunning jailhouse confession by a former member of the kkk, the impacthaving on the case of three men back in the '60s. remember the story told in the movie "mississippi burning." >> incredible movie, real-life crime there, we'll have more on that coming up in just a second. >>> later in this half hour, a woman's obsession with hippos. she is so taken with her favorite animal that she made her car look like a hippo. wait till you see how she has decorated her house. >> wow. >> everyone needs a hobby, i guess. >> that's right. >> good lord. >>> but first, it was an emotional night on the penn state campus as the new president promised a higher ethical standard at the school. >> this comes as yet another young man comes forward to say he too was abused by former coach jerry sandusky. abc's brad wheelis has more on this. >> reporter: it was a time for soul-searching at penn state. >> i feel shame. what do i do with these feelings? >> reporter: at a town hall meeting between students, faculty, administrators, the penn state community dealt with the possibili

the kkk? the big cross burning and she was going crazy with this racism they pushed her down but not the racism and bigotry then somebody said take this. it will help you forget it. that is the same thing that happen to all of those individuals that turned into drug fiends. because they are not what god intended for them to be but said they had a fetish to people of color. this is why john carlos took note to say there is no fire men on a fire department. i saw kids in my building the house was not on fire but just a mother nothing on the stove left it there and the smoke came some people the fire alarm. they went into the apartment four or five bedrooms in the back and they come through and they chop up every piece of furniture in the house and throughout every piece of close onto the main street. remember going in there why did they do that? my father said they do that when there is a fire. , outside. i will show you. show me the fire. nothing is burning. my father looked at me and he knew i

the kkk started beating people up and torching their homes. that is the reason why he did not get a big turnout in pennsylvania. obama will rule and get reelected. the american people are not stupid. we're able to access other alternative forms of media. we are capable of discerning the truth, the we from the chief -- the wheat from the chaff. we're able to understand how the republicans have stonewalled the president to the point that no one will call him president obama. the ones who voted for him last time plan to vote for him again this time. host: we will leave it there. guest: in summary, pa. was among the top three most visited states in 2008. of the money spent on advertising, we were in the top three. i think we will see a lot of candidates visit our state. we have the second-largest number of electoral votes among the swing states, second only to florida. i think it will be a close election. most analysts agree. i think it will be one of those elections that might tell americans where our country is likely to go in the future. our ne