primary. >> hi, i'm linda mcmahon. i'm linda mcmahon. >> great to see you. good to see you. great to see you here. >> couric: in the blue corner, richard blumenthal, who has been connecticut's attorney general for nearly 20 years. >> good to see you. >> couric: but in this antibusiness as usual environment, his experience could be a liability. >> i'm trying to move away from the, you know, status quo, and the good old boy network kind of thing in washington. >> couric: are you concerned that you'll be seen as sort of the career politician candidate? >> people in connecticut know me. they know that i stood up to big tobacco, the utilities, all of those big and powerful interests that right now have gridlocked and paralyzed washington. >> couric: we recently spent time with both candidates. with mcmahon in pranford, a quaint town in south central connecticut, and with blumenthal, campaigning in staniford. connecticut is traditionally a blue state but it's known for its independence. the number of unaffiliated voters outweighs registered members of either party. now these two s

now a race there, linda mcmahon she's loaded and she's a wrestling, she and her husband created wwe. so, what we have, pardon me in connecticut now is a smackdown. six points separate the two in the latest poll. this linda mcmahon has spent $21 million of her own considerable fortune and said she will spend $50 million. so, any visit by the president. $1,000 a plate in stanford is going to be welcomed by william blumenthal and the president will go to greenwich, connecticut. he will have a behind-the-scenes fund-raiser before returning to washington tonight, thomas. >> pricier than $30,000 a couple? >> pricier than $1,000 a plate. >> oh, gotcha. >> 30,400 is the limit. it's a quirky upper most limit that you see is the top price for most of these fund-raisers. >> i'm not going to go to any of those. mike, thanks so much.

linda mcmahon, formerly of the w.w.e., tries to take down attorney general richard blumenthal. and it's fashion week, and plus-size women have arrived. captioning sponsored by cbs from cbs news world headquarters in new york, this is the "cbs evening news" with katie couric. >> couric: good evening, everyone. devastating news about the economy tonight. a new report just out from the census bureau shows one out of seven people in this country is living in poverty.

>> and connecticut i'm happy to see linda mcmahon, though not my number one choice, she crushing blumenthal and she deserves to. >> sean: you are optimistic republicans will take over the house. what do you see in the senate? >> i never thought we could take the statement. -- the senate. by the way establishment republicans not whining about christine o'donnell. >> sean: who would have thought russ feingold would be down eight points? >> that's a good example. i hope this fantastic republican running against him, johnson, a businessman and he's running -- fabulous speaker. i heard about him when i spoke in milwaukee this year. >> sean: i'm surprised you didn't go to madison with the president yesterday. >> at lost i could be sure feingold wouldn't be there. >> sean: i don't know if you saw politico today. a number of republicans in the senate are attacking jim demint. >> he's our hero. >> sean: i agree.

megyn: what is linda mcmahon saying?> reporter: many experts believe this will come down on support of independents. with independents president obama is not nearly as popular. so there is a struggle underway. so linda mcmahon says bring him to town, this will make the point that i'm the outsider. he's the career politician. here is more from linda mcmahon. >> we have been on a pails of closing the gap -- on a pails on a pace of closing the gap. it's like being on a diet and that last 10 pound is the hardest to lose. i'm going to continue to do what i'm doing. >> reporter: she is closing the gap from what she said was 40 points in the initial days of the campaign to just 6. megyn: a new record for personal campaign spending coming in one of the country's most closely watched races. meg whitman, the republican candidate for governor of california contributing $119 million of her own personal for tune in the race against democrat attorney general jerry brown. whitman became a billionaire during her time as the ceo of e-bay

the interesting thing is that linda mcmahon has a 4 % unfavorable rating.'s hard to win an election and get 50% of the vote when nearly half of the electric rat thinks you're repugnant. if they look at dick blumenthal, taking on the tobacco companies, the insurance companies, the big health care companies and looking at linda mcmahon an what she has done, running a circus sideshow with a number of people with drug abuse problems and treated very badly, this became apart again. >> how does a guy with a record, an attorney general in connecticut, public service, be this close to someone who's made a living in professional wrestling? these are strange times. >> i have two thoughts. first of all, if a candidate with only 44% approval who's considered repugnant, harry reid -- >> 44% disapproval. >> okay. well, it still fits my point, which is harry reid in nevada. those about his disapproval numbers action and they think he's repugnant, so i guess it plays both way, but the real point action i think what we are seeing, is some really fascinating races that are s

linda mcmahon has already thrown $20 million at her campaign. she's got ads, she's got yard signs. and that fight is on. it's a smackdown, can we call it a smackdown in connecticut? >> look, we're trying to keep the wrestling metaphors to a minimum. >> no, more wrestling metaphors. >> elizabeth warren has a job, sort of. explain. >> another czar, dare we say. the white house is going to be loathe to call it that. elizabeth warren had this idea to create this consumer federal protection agency. of course it was passed as a part of the financial major all bill some months ago, earlier this year, and now the president perhaps dodging, he's certainly dodging a confirmation fight in the senate. he's going appoint her to a special advisory role to oversee the birth of her grandchild, this consumer protection agency. senators are going to be furious on both sides of the aisle. we have already heard chris dodd say some other favorable things about this maneuver. >>. >>> iran's president is shrugging off a -- nbc's chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell got a rare opportunity t

i say keep your eyes on linda mcmahon.vative favorite, but she's a force to be reckoned with, just because she has a huge money advantage. >> brian: and laura, on top of that is when the president goes in there, if he loses this one, he's really going to be in trouble. i would not, if i wanted him to mess up my baseball card and be 0-4. let's talk about what michelle obama is doing. lecturing restaurants. >> well, yeah. you and i, brian, have talked about this now for about a year. my old friend, bill o'reilly and i have gone around the block about this. well, it's michelle, does she have political ambitions? is she really going to be out there on policy? the answer to that is yes. i wrote about it in my book. it came true. in fact, she used the antiobesity initiative and the garden as a platform to inject herself into all sorts of things. i think most of us will say, do restaurants really today need one more condemning politician coming along and heaping more regulations on them? i don't think so. >> gretchen: you don't h

the blue state of connecticut where the republican senate candidate continues to close the gap linda mcmahon now trails connecticut attorney general richard blumenthal by only five points this is the closest that race has been since may when blumenthal's campaign was reeling from allegations that he lied about his service in vietnam. another race we are watching is in massachusetts. a stunning new poll has governor patrick leading his republican opponent charlie baker by only a single point. as we saw earlier this year with scott brown's come from behind victory, anything is possible even in the bluest of blue states. that includes california, where the longtime ultra liberal senator barbara boxer is in the fight for her political life. now the left leaning san francisco chronicle has announced for the first time it will not endorse boxer, saying she's responsible for "18 years of uninspired representation." not a ringing endorsement. here with us a author of 2010 take back america, dick morris. welcome back, good to see you. you are in pennsylvania toomey still up by eight points there. wis

now you have a candidate linda mcmahon who says that we need to go back and reviewing it. on people who are struggling financially. >> no it's not. the democrats have controlled congress in the last four years. the people in poverty in america it's gone to 1 in 7. here in the district on columbia it's higher than that. the last four years the democrats have had the levers of power here in washington. they've set the tone. >> what? >> and i think what linda mcmahon is saying as a responsible public steward we should look at the actions that the federal government take. >> please. >> let's take it out of the hides of the minimum wage people. >> i'm not saying that, ed. i'm not going to let you demagogue me here. what i said we should take a look at what that impact does on small business. i didn't say taking it out on anybody or in the small business. don't put words in my mouth. what i'm saying is the federal government for far too long has decided to pass laws and pass regulations without understanding their impact on families and small business. that's what we need to int

rich blumenthal had a lead over newcomer linda mcmahon. a new poll out today suggests it's too close to call and anger at the government is one reason why. >> gained fame and fortune in the form of wrestling. now lindamacman is going to give a blow to the democrats in the blue state. mcmahon has chipped away at what once was a wide lead held by democrat richard blumenthal, a popular attorney general seen by many as a shoe-in. a new quinnipiac poll shows blumenthal leading 49% to 46%. quinnipiac's polling director says independents are making the difference. >> an anti-government feeling that connecticut voters have a strong majority are dissatisfied with the way the federal government is working. a third say he's angry that they're winning those voters. >> mcmahon spent millions to portray herself as a washington outsider. she could wind up spending $50 million on the campaign. >> how can he fight the special interest ifs they're paying for his campaign. >> blumenthal has taken off the gloves. >> more false attacks from linda mcmahon's $50

and now linda mcmahon is inching closer to pinning her opponent. >>> plus a college freshman commits faces charges. why that roommate's webcam may have pushed the @ñteen to take his own life. those stories coming up tonight at 11:00. >>> jennifer cox wanted to do something. k# worried over her friend with breast cancer jen is doing what she can to celebrate those who have passed and those who are living. the road never ends siañas far jen cox is concerned. >> reporter: at the end of the dock with its back brushed up against bear creek sits a hard yacht cafe'. all is quiet today except for the flags o2kÑflapping in the breeze. we lost a dear friend last week, rhonda. >> the tests came back they found out it was worse so she had to jfdgo in for chemo. she had one treatment. >> reporter: feeling a trillion miles away from a cure jennifer knew this was her chance to do something for her friend. >> it's @¬ fair. i mean, she was too young a girl. she's going to miss a lot. >> reporter: so let the party begin. instead of feeling sad and sorry and helpless, jen did what she does party. >

blumenthal's adversary in the race is former professional wrestling executive linda mcmahon.ds. >> reporter: but these days having long-time friends in government is seen more as a handicap than an asset, with an anti-washington, anti-incumbent wave rolling across the country, high unemployment, and a sputtering economic recovery don't work well for the party in power, the democrats. >> we are facing challenges we haven't seen since the great depression. >> reporter: and on the stump the president often makes clear voters shouldn't hand the republicans the keys to running congress. >> have you ever noticed, by the way, that if you want to go forward in a car you put your car in d? and if you want to go backwards, you put it in r? >> reporter: to keep democrats driving forward the president will keep hitting the road this fall, stumping for democrats in several states between now and november. rob, vinita? >>> there's been a major step forward in sealing off the gulf oil well that caused that huge environmental disaster in the gulf back in april. a relief well has now intersec

i'm linda mcmahon. i approve this message because we need this lunch box and a lot more like it back at work. >> you noted linda mcmahon spent $20 million in the primary. how much so far in the general election, and how about her opponent? >> linda mcmahon says she is willing to spend up to $50 million on this race, a staggering figure that would put her only second to jon corzine, who spent $60 million i 2000 in new jersey. blumenthal so far has spent $1.7 million on television ads. he is certainly no slouch, comes from a wealthy background himself. his father-in-law is the owner of the empire state building. mcmahon is largely self funding her campaign and it is hard for him to compete in the money cagory. >> will these two square off in a debate? >> yes, october 4. a fox affiliate in hartford, both of wch are tribune properties, are holding a debate with the two. there are aeady some complaints that mcmahon supporters have bought up many of the tickets for that. baier will bet moderating the debate,

i'm linda mcmahon. i approve this message because we need this lunch box and a lot more like it back at work. >> you noted linda mcmahon spent $20 million in the primary. how much so far in the general election, and how about her opponent? >> linda mcmahon says she is willing to spend up to $50 million on this race, a staggering figure that would put her only second to jon corzine, who spent $60 million in 2000 in new jersey. blumenthal so far has spent $1.7 million on television ads. he is certainly no slouch, comes from a wealthy background himself. his father-in-law is the owner of the empire state building. mcmahon is largely self funding her campaign and it is hard for him to compete in the money category. >> will these two square off in a debate? >> yes, october 4. a fox affiliate in hartford, both of which are tribune properties, are holding a debate with the two. there are already some complaints that mcmahon supporters have bought up many of the tickets for that. baier will bet moderating the d

if linda mcmahon lives in the neighborhood, if you were her, wouldn't you drive by?e the top of the hour. with more news, new jersey judge has orderd the imam behind the ground zero mosque to clean up the union city apartments, the building he owns or face hefty fines. rauf has a hole in his roof. his lawyer claims the repair work is underway. but no one has seen it. lawsuit says rauf ignored mold problems and fire hazards, plus code violations, pointed out by city officials. they have to keep cops there just in case a fire breaks out that saves people. that's taxpayer money. >> peter: that's right. >> gretchen: that sounds outrageous. a six-year-old cheerleader gets kicked off her squad because her mom didn't want her to say this. >> my booty shakes from left to right. >> gretchen: my booty shakes from left to right. what six-year-old feels comfortable saying that? jennifer of michigan thought the cheer was too racy for her daughter, so the board that runs the team gave her the boot. they said it's best for everybody. >> it's not better for everybody involved at all

the more they attack linda mcmahon for being this -- part of this wrestling world, part of this, partat, the one thing -- it helps her in the view of some of these fed-up voters, she's certainly an outsider. >> yeah. how do i say this -- >> let's just stick on bill clinton. what about bill clinton? over the past six months bill clinton has emerged as the most popular politician in america. >> we tested everybody from sarah palin, newt gingrich, mitt romney on the republican side. nancy pelosi, barack obama, and it's bill clinton. it's bill clinton by a mile. what's interesting. >> you like that, willie? >> even tea party supporters, even 30% of tea party supporters have a positive view of bill clinton. part of this is, guess what, he's not really in the fray, number one. last week obviously was this huge bill clinton week in many ways. clinton global initiative. you saw him on the air a lot. that's when we were in the field. he probably got a little bump on that. these are his best numbers since he left office. >> chuck, a fascinating number i found was the tea party number. >> yes. >

another key race, where richard blumenthal is running against linda mcmahon. the visit comes in the wake of a visit from president obama ten days ago there. democrats are make invest in the the key races in new england. it will be interesting to see if they close the enthusiasm gap. >> thank you. >> this week, every republican in the senate voted against defense measure to repeal don't ask, don't tell. can the g.o.p. win over the gay community? is it even trying? joining us is the former communication director for governor corzine. joining us is the go-pac chairman donatelli. welcome to you both. frank, does the g.o.p. think it has a legitimate interest going after the segment of voters? >> the overwhelming of our time is end the disastrous economic policy of the administration. i'm in favor of reaching out to any group where there is a substantial number of voters that share that concern. there are a lot of gay americans who share that philosophy. you bet i'm trying to get their vote. >> shannon: gay marriage is a hot issue. and republicans uniformly stand ag

as you said, linda mcmahon, folks out there growing up watching wrestling and she is an excellent candidaten connecticut. she is running as a business woman for the senate. republican nomination. she was able to beat back the establishment candidate to win that nomination and now the general election candidate. a new poll out has he just down six points to the attorney general richard blumenthal in office for quite sometime so a very, very strong race going on in connecticut. republicans are hoping that linda mcmahon's deep pockets carry the day and then what would be a day without michael moore? he is always trying to make news and he did again yesterday on our own situation room with wolf blitzer. a lot of talk of rahm emanuel leaving, perhaps running for mayor of chicago. michael moore again said, look, i want to be chief of staff. why don't you elect me or why don't you pick me for the job? not the first time he said this, kyra. i don't think the obama administration is going to choose him. >> we'll follow up. that's for sure. mark, thanks. all right. your next political up dmat an hour

linda mcmahon says she can spend up to $50 million of her own money to win the seat.off the seat right now held by chris dodd, the democrat. john boehner is in the sights of the democratic national committee. the democratic national committee already has a television ad on air attacking john boehner and are going up with a second ad. let's listen to it. >> this november, john boehner wants to welcome you to boehner-land. get in the door for 37,000, jet across the country with lobbyists, pass out campaign checks from big tobacco on the house floor. >> reporter: there you are, tony. who is john boehner, a lot of people asking? he's the house republican leader. democrats are trying to villainize him and say he is too cozy with washington, and too cozy with lobbyists and doesn't care about working americans. democrats are trying to villainize him much like the republicans are trying to villainize nancy pelosi. this is your road map to the midterm elections. michelle bach man say she is the next sarah palin, a congresswoman from minnesota, raising lots of money, raising he

republican linda mcmahon is just six points shy of democrat richard blumenthal in the quinnipiac polle has money, she could get the woman vote. he has the problem with his war record. four in ten people support mcmahon mainly because they are against blumenthal. they don't trust him. if i were him i would straighten things out as fast as possible. say you didn't serve in vietnam and were wrong to suggest you did. just fix it mr. blumenthal. that is what i would do, just fix it. "hardball" returns after this. >>> we had a long discussion of whether i should run for the senate. we decided together i should. we will have a long discussion whether that was a good discussion or not. i would like to thank the republican party for its support. >> wow. that is mike castle conceding defeat to tea party candidate christine o'donnell in the state of delaware. now we have new numbers from new hampshire. 43% reporting. ovide lamontane holds the lead over kelly ayotte. tea party candidates considered far to the right, christine o'donnell, sharron angle, rand paul, joe buck and joe miller are seriou

connecticut for richard blumenthal the democratic candidate for senate and state democratic party and linda mcmahonows he's the career politician in the race. >> it's interesting for mr. blumenthal who, you know, wants to be an outsider to washington and yet, he's thoroughly embracing, you know, the president coming in and you know, it's a big bear hug and embrace. >> it's time to shake things up. >> mcmahon is self-funded and used wealth from wrestling corporation, to fund. and a poll shows blumenthal's lead eroded from 41 points in january to 6 point lead. >> i'm actually a little ahead of where i expected to be at this particular time, but again, it's a little like being in a diet and the last ten pounds a hardest to lose. >> blumenthal's campaign says he's unavailable for an interview, but mindy meyer says it's honor to have the president's support and quote, his support will make a difference in our campaign and helping against our opponent. despite mr. obama's ability to raise money from party faithful, there are potential hazards. >> it's a calculated risk because although all of our surveys

senate race has tightened the new poll puts democrat richard blumenthal's lead over republican linda mcmahon at three points, within the margin of error. in a different poll back in march. blumenthal was up 33 points. republicans are making gains in several other states, that's the indication from the latest fox battle ground polls. correspondent molly henneberg reports they come at a time when president obama begins a quick four state trip to try to pump up his party's chances in november. >> president obama heading to a rally for democrats in wisconsin tonight. in part to try to help one of the top democrats in the state. senator russ finegold who is expected to attend the event. the polls show finegoaled trailing johnson, and political analysts say that democrats thought this would be a safe seat. >> it was assumed that he would win reelection in a state that the president carried by 14 points and he had already won three reelections. >> according to our poll 47% of wisconsin voters think that finegold is too liberal and in the middle column half of the voters think that johnson is about

richard blumenthal running against linda mcmahon, a multi-millionaire, former ceo of world wrestlingpending tens of millions of her own fortune on that race and so it's a key battle. and after this afternoon, campaigning with frank he headed up to maine up for the governor's race there to stand up for the democrat running against the republican ahead in the polls. he's had a very, very busy time and what it boils down to is an enthusiasm gap. president bill clinton is trying to help gain the momentum and energy and give it back to democrats and give it to the polls in the fall. julie. >> molly line in massachusetts, thank you very much. wall street looking for a big finish to september trading and we're getting a look at a merger in the work and two companies behind some of the biggest names in household products. layer rossman is the newest member of the fox business network family and she joins us live here and it's so great to have you on and we'll be talking about your show in just a moment. welcome, first of all, to the fox family. >> a night with exciting news on the eve of a m

as for the president's visit, here's the reaction from republican linda mcmahon: >> interesting for mr. blumenthal, who, you know, wants to be an outsider to washington, yet he's thoroughly embracing the president coming in for two particular fund-raisers, one specifically for him and one for the democratic party, and so you know, it's a big bear hug and embrace. >> reporter: shy note that we reached out to mr. blumenthal for an interview, his campaign declined our q. so that's why you're only hearing from the republican side of the ticket, jon. jon: but i presume, you know, the blumenthal campaign thinks the president can help. the indications are the public is restless. what are the risks and rewards of bringing in the president? >> reporter: well, the big issue or the big dilemma for the blumenthal campaign is linda mcmahon is self-funded, the woman who held build -- helped build the world wrestling empire and can put her own money in the campaign, he's been on the road relentlessly. what blumenthal needs is for president obama to raise money and a sitting president can raise a grea

we'll start with the connecticut senate race, where dick blumenthal leads linda mcmahon by just three points. joe sestak is now within five points of toomey. in missouri, a poll by has robin carnahan within striking distance of republican roy blunt. but in new hampshire it's republican ayotte with a 14-point lead over democrat hodes. we'll continue to check the hardball scoreboard each night. >>> joining me is josh marshall, founder and editor of "talking points memo" and joan walsh of salon. let me start with you, josh. this new appeal by the president, the vice president, speaking of talking points, they seem to have them. buck up. >> you know, they're in a tough position. they have to get their base out. frankly myself, i think they're right. if the people -- every democrat who supports those positions, those people need to show up. the problem is that the white house keeps coming into this with -- a lot of this comes down to tone. it's really tough for them to get the message out about without seeming dismissive or condescending. they've got their work cut out for them. they alrea

no, the challenge didn't come from connecticut's linda mcmahon. mcmahon.we'll tell you who that is. ♪ one, two, three, four ♪ ♪ you say ♪ flip it over and replay ♪ we'll make everything okay ♪ walk together the right way ♪ do, do, do, do >> sean: longshot candidate mike spears isn't sure he could beat gop senator have it this november. instead he's hoping he can beat him somewhere else in a mixed marshal arts cage fight. spears has challenged vitter to the fight which he says will symbolize the epic battle between the american people and out of the control tehran cal federal government. something tells me -- vitter might prefer a boxing match, a ♪ we could've gone a more traditional route... ... but it wouldn't have been nearly as memorable. ♪ so i got my nephew to build a website. i hired someone to make my website... five months ago. we are building a website by ourselves. announcer: there's an easier way. create your own small-business site with intuit websites. just choose a style that fits your business and customize, publish and get found in three ea

media and republicans are so focused on christine o'donnell they're not focusing on sharron angle, linda mcmahon, all of these candidates breathing a sigh of relief. >> i think the o'donnell story compounds that narrative about sharron age skpl adds fuel to that fire. the reason there was conservative concern about her winning from magazines like "the weekly standard," "reason" called her a crack pot, they knew mike castle could win joe biden's seat and that would move them towards winning the senate. they knew this would be a disaster coming down the pike. >> we've got to take a break. appreciate you guys being on. thank you. >>> just ahead, the watchdog group christine o'do notal is n threatening to sue, that's ahead. >>> also ahead, her challenger, chris coons caught up in a controversy of his own, being a bearded marxist. >>> and sanjay gupta, this little girl battling an unknown killer. tonight kylie's parents continue their desperate search for a diagnosis. >> i feel like a bad parent. why can't i help my kid? >> can't really put it into words. just helpless. mpers, filters. it can get rea

but a poll came out yesterday that showed he's in a six-point race with linda mcmahon, the professionalting race to watch because dick blunen thal does not have the greatest record to be running right now. >> chris, we're out of time, but thanks so much for joining us. appreciate it. it's a jam packed showed today, of course. lots of big news in the primaries so we'll see you soon. tomorrow on the show, senator john kerry and my colleague, thomas robert is up next. thomas. >> hi, nora. coming up in our next hour, now that the tea party has scored major upsets in yesterday's primaries, what can the democrats and tea party expect come november? michael will weigh in on that one. >>> federal prosecutors arrest a man for unwittingly funding the plot to bomb new york's times squares. >>> and rory kennedy follows undocumented immigrants through their journey. she's going to be here with her very personal look joining me talking about illegal immigration. ust me. trust me. ya i like that. trust me. bankers are known to be a little bit in love with themselves. are we going up? we can get the ne

no, the challenge didn't come from connecticut's linda mcmahon. we'll tell you who that is.much more straight ahead. ñ@y >> sean: longshot candidate mike spears isn't sure he could beat gop senator have it this november. instead he's hoping he can beat him somewhere else in a mixed marshal arts cage fight. spears has challenged vitter to the fight which he says will symbolize the epic battle between the american people and out of the control tehran cal federal government. something tells me -- vitter might prefer a boxing match, a ballot boxing match. h ] [ enne rving ] [ drums playing ] [ male announcer ] 306 horsepower. race-inspired paddle shifters and f sport-tuned suspension. all available on t new 2011 lexus is. it isn't real performance, unless it's wielded with precision. seeour lexus dear. unless it's wielded with precision. she starts at dawn and so does her back pain.om. that's two pills for a four hour drive. the drive is done. so it's a day of games and two more pills. the games are over, her pain is back, that's two more pills. and when she's finally home, but

the president took a swipe at his republican opponent, former professional wrestling executive linda mcmahonook, there's no doubt i can see how somebody who has been in professional wrestling would think they're right at home in the united states senate. >> before leaving washington, the president thanked the senate for finally passing a $42 billion bill to help small business. the bill now goes to the house. >>> and win or lose, republican meg whitman's going into the record books, now spent $119 million of her own money on her campaign for california governor, breaking the all-time record set last year by new york mayor michael bloomberg. every single cycle the amount of money the spending goes up. >> how much money are you going to spend? >> about 15 cents. >> i'll vote for you. >> somebody who is going to need some money is christine o'donnell and she has raised since that tuesday stunning upset $850,000, plus that was as of a couple hours ago. we have to check in and get the latest. we have a lot to talk about. first i want to go back, we were in a break when she started speaking at the

. >>> candidate linda mcmahon is now six points, a half a dozen shy of the democratic. that is a first-rate poll, look at that, 51-45, getting real close. she has got the money. she may get the women vote. that's it this could be a real big surprise. and he had a problem with his war record. he got that wrong. let's get this, nour ten people support mcmahon say they are doing so mainly because they are against blumenthal and has to do with talking about his war record inaccurately. if i were him, i'd straighten things out as quickly as possible. say you didn't serve in vietnam and you were wrong to suggest you did. it was a dishonor to the people serving. "hardball" returns after this. the shipping industry in norway, and the rubber industry, in south america? at t. rowe price, we understand the connections of a complex global economy. it's just one reason 75% of our mutual funds beat their 10-year lipper average. t. rowe price. invest with confidence. request a prospectus or summary prospectus with investment objectives, risks, fees, expenses, and other information to

easy to ridicule, easy to make fun of, linda mcmahon in connecticut, the former wwe executive, a lotarty energy. you know, democrats like to make fun of them. the bottom line is, they represent a really strong impulse in the american public right now. a lot of anger, a lot of rage. and democrats would be best. obama and i think the obama administration really understands this, democrats would be best served by not ridiculing these folks but trying to capture some of this energy somehow. >> okay. couple more i want to get through. you can't avoid the issues of taxes. democrats say don't blink on the bush tax cuts, at least until the midterms are over. a key issue, right? >> reporter: yeah, i think this is going to be the big policy issue that defines the race right now. it's a good thing for the democrats. you know, obama has spoken out against extending these cut for the top 2% and 3%. he's got a good deficit-busting argument. it will cost $800 million over ten years. democrats acknowledge on the hill that there's enough resistance to cutting those off that he might -- obama might ul

this one of course is linda mcmahon, former executive, former head of the world wrestling entertainmentit's all seems to be redrawing the political landscape this year. >> joining us to talk about that, senator john cornyn. these are interesting times for you, i'm sure, sir. i have to ask you on the heels of what happened in delaware just looking at this primary season, what do you make of the fact that in seven or eight cases the candidate that you, the establishment, the republican senate senatorial committee supported was rejected by voters. >> savannah, i never considered myself part of the establishment but i guess i am for present purposes. certainly we've seen an influx of voters. i think four million more republican primary voters than we have democratic primary voters and a lot of enthusiasm and intensity. and i have to tell you that if people think that they have -- there's been a lot of turbulence in the republican primaries, which thankfully now are in the past, just wait until november the 2nd. i think this is just the tip of the iceberg, not to mix my metaphors too much. >

republicans are so focused on christine o'donnell they're not focusing on sharron angle or rand paul or linda mcmahon or any of these other candidates, all of whom are breathing a sigh of relief. >> i think the o'donnell story compounds that narrative about sharron angle and adds fuel to that fire. the reason there was conservative concern about her winning from magazines like "the weekly standard," "reason" which called her a crack pot of the first order before the primary was in part because they knew mike castle could win joe biden's seat and that would move them towards winning the senate. they knew this would be a disaster coming down the pike. >> we've got to take a break. appreciate you guys being on. thank you. >>> just ahead, the watchdog group christine o'donnell is threatening to sue, what do they have to say about her claims of libel. let us know what you think. live chat is happening. ac360.com. >>> also ahead, her challenger, chris coons caught up in a controversy of his own, words he wrote a quarter century ago about being a bearded marxist. those two words are being used against him.

it shows this, republican candidate, linda mcmahon closing the gap on democrat dick blumenthal.e percentage points, within the margin. >> mika, you've known richard blumenthal for 20 years. this is a surprise, isn't it? >> it is. i would say he is popular in connecticut and known in connecticut as solid and trustworthy and having taken on everything from health care to other issues of consumers getting screwed on certain issues, this guy has been on the front lines of it, for decades. well-known, not fabulous on television. in connecticut, i could see how he could totally take this raceway. >> it's slipping away. in connecticut. do you remember about a month ago, a friend telling me about linda mcmahon, went to an appearance and he was shocked in that she didn't come off as a wild eye'd zeal lot. dick blumenthablumenthal's prob biggest problem might be he happens to be in office. this is a year where the rage of the elector raate is aimed at anyone on the ballot. >> bill clinton being called in, at a hool in new haven over the weekend stumping for dick blumenthal, a sign this el

blumenthal is facing former pro wrestling executive linda mcmahon. >>> and the president admits thatne for working families in this country. and now new census figures found a record number of americans now living in poverty. david muir takes a look behind those astonishing numbers. >> reporter: it is the largest number of americans living in poverty since they began keeping track 50 years ago. an increase of 4 million in just one year. >> people who used to be solidly middle class, who are now looking over that cliff into the abyss. >> reporter: the government puts the poverty line at just under $22,000 a year for a family of four. with the recession stealing jobs, the number of americans without health insurance now has climbed to nearly 51 million, 4.4 million more in just a year. the rescue mission in los angeles told us they're seeing it. tents set up for families in the back of their chapel. the number of tents has multiplied from a half dozen a year ago to nearly 60. and something else in the report. more than a third of those in poverty are children. we could not forget that