mark pryor, if mark pryor can survive, defensemmocrats can lo every other race this year in these statesen 2016a very good cycle for them. >> they have so much tea party senators in wblue states coming up. you're almost certain to use in a presidential year. >> the ron johnsons in wisconsin. >> tell us a little bit about the evolution of politics in arkansas. it's bill clinton's home state. you know, it is a state with a -- like every southern state, has a democratic tradition. slower than other democratic states, moving to the republican column. but really, that seems to have accelerated in the obama era. can you tell us about what's going on in arkansas? >> all you have to do is go back to 2009, when five of the six federally elected office holders were democrats and of course, now that's flipped, where you have five of the six who are republicans. obviously, 2010 was a very brutal year for democrats across the country and arkansas was no exception. but the unique thing about arkansas, in my view is, they look at personality over politics in my regards. governor mike beebe is a perfect

mark pryor was praising the rhetoric, but didn't like some of the things he heard. mark begich said he was unhappy about the energy programs that the president was talking about. one of the candidates in montana, the leading candidate there, the democrat, said the president didn't talk enough about the nsa and pulling back the nsa here. natalie tenet, the democratic candidate in west virginia, says she was unhappy with the president on energy regulation. is this a sign that red state democrats feel they have to run away from the president? because all of these releases collectively taken together, pryor, begich, tenet, it looks that way to me. >> this is not a news flash. in every election cycle, democrats and republicans from more conservative or more liberal venues are going to see the president's speech from a different perspective, and they're going to really reflect the people that they represent or want to represent. so there's always going to be this disdance, but by and large, this message, of making sure that people that go to work have a fighting chance, is

had as recently as two weeks ago that he was resisting pressure from schumer and reid to defend mark pryoro attack him on the gun issue, that he was really single issue focused on guns. at the risk of jeopardizing senate for the democrats, has that changed? >> even as you reported in the new york times and i've confirmed, they resisted in treaty from president clinton to layoff mark pryor. that one may be a special case because mayor bloomberg does care a lot about the issue. contribution, a couple million dollars to the committee to help democrats in the senate races is part of a larger play on the democratic side, yes they have a lot of dangered incumbents but doing fine raising money and this is a group of incumbents under no illusion how tough things will be. obama care tightened their races up. there's not one of them anything like a goner. most of them face b and c level candidates. none of them have big scandals. it's very hard, unless there's a big national tide to beat an incumbent senator and the contribution from bloomberg again representative of the fact that democrats continue

it wasn't just senator mark pryor and his challenger munching on raccoon. pounds and lots of politicos tried it for the first time. >> someone's going to kill it and eat it. >> it's not just eating coon, it was barbecued. >> how was the brisket? how was the raccoon? it was on the plate. >> we're here for the dinner, what else? it's delicious, i came 1,000 miles. actually, we're here to support our friend mark pryor. >> looking forward to our first taste of raccoon. heard about it, must be an arkansas delicacy. >> can't just go down to walmart and pick up some coon. >> now you'll be able to see michelle obama's stunning red dress from the second inaugural in person. it goes on display at the smithsonian tomorrow. it is traditional for all first lady's dresses from the first inaugurations to be part of an exhibit, but this is the first time a second inaugural gown has been put on display, so take that fact to your dinner party tonight. >>> that's going to wrap up this hour of "jansing and co." richard luiy will be up next. see you tomorrow. ♪ we're gonna be l

cotton. >> you remember mark pryor stated to elections.ppened is he has been nationalized in arkansas. obama is so unpopular in that state he now looks like a national democrat. what he is trying to do is say this guy is no arkansas republican, he's a national republican associated with the extreme agenda. that's what this will be about. what can nationalize this person more effectively. >> fighting for their lives. mitch mcconnell is facing a primary and a general election candidate at the same time. >> this can be the most watched race in the country. basically we saw it a few years ago. harry reid fighting for his life. now we see the minority leader doing the same thing. this battle is ideological and demographic. old man versus a younger woman. it's demographic, generational and they both will be well-funded. it's going to come down to the better candidate. there is no disparity of resources. >> does he hold on to that seat? >> unless she turns out to be the best candidate, he will probably win. the numbers are still bad. >> i don't s

. >> louisiana, senator mary landrieu and in arkansas, senator mark pryor, three key democratic seats. the outside conservative groups have been on the air for weeks and months hitting these onocratic senators hard obamacare but its moving beyond that. talking -- a few days ago we saw ads in iowa and michigan and those aren't the top tier democratic senate races so across the -- throughout the senate, any democrat who was up is now worried about obamacare. i talked to one this week who i can't say who it was but i talked to one democratic candidate who said i can beat my opponent, i don't know if i can beat all this stuff on obamacare. at him.ing so hard gwen: what do the ads say? >> the ads are saying basically, insurance, your can keep your insurance. and it's in those voices and they have someone specifically that state saying, i lost my insurance plan. it'st necessarily, basically -- a reprise of what we've heard but they're very localized, very personalized for those states. gwen: rand paul today talking about privacy said, i think the like yoursaid if you privacy, you can keep y

mark pryor type survive in arkansas, a golden last name.body a cultural good fit for that state in an environment where his background, his last name, his profile, might not mean as much. >> could it actually hurt him this year where people are so mad at politicians, the golden last names may be hurt more than they help? >> yes, represents have age across the board to your point. mitch mcconnell in kentucky. that state should favor a republican. but his numbers are terrible. he's completely associated with washington. and he's running against a pretty good candidate profile-wise. again they have the advantage across the board. so many senate races always come down to like little kinds of quirks. iowa, so many republicans in that field. if no candidate gets over 35% in a republican primary it goes to a convention. guess what. republicans can nominate an unelectable conservative against bruce bailey. look at virginia. mark warner is -- to maybe republicans' favor, mark warner has really good poll numbers. but i happen to think that will be a

. >> we've seen it, as you say, from mark pryor and kay hagan, mark begich also is on that list of people who haven't really wanted to spend a lot of time with the president, but what i want to ask you, karl, is you've been in this position before in the white house, because there was a period when president bush was not somebody that a lot of candidates wanted to be campaigning with. and you know what was his attitude about that? because it seems like presidents say, you know what, i get it. i do care about my party and i want them to win and i'm willing to hang back because i'm going to be bringing baggage with me along on the campaign trail. >> yeah. some of them wanted president bush to come in and do fundi fund-raising and he did so, but you're right. that's why president obama's likely to be making campaign appearances this fall, but they're more likely to be in places like massachusetts and hawaii and washington state and not in places like florida and north carolina and louisiana and arkansas, and even places like michigan and new hampshire. he's likely to be in places that are so

mary landrieu has been elected many times in louisiana and mark pryor in arkansas. formidable democratic challenger. and georgia. democrats are pinning hopes on michelle nunn. john harmon it looks to me, the way i'm doing this i'm focusing on people that i think a lot of the viewers will be watching and caring about. people care about michelle nunn. they want to knock off mcconnell. a lot of people do. i think kay hagan in north carolina looks to me like a very attractive incumbent who should get reelected if there wasn't the weird swing to the right that might be looming out there. >> i think all of that is true. the republicans have to basically -- the electoral map running in their favor they have to pick up six seats. as you point out there are some vulnerable republicans, as well. if you have the elections today given the bad fall that the administration had, the president's approval ratings, the national tide against obamacare right now, republicans would have a decent chance of picking up the senate. we have a long way to play. >> what can change? >> he has a

mark pryor in arkansas is trying to defend his vote on obamacare. he's not the only one. it partly goes to tell you, washington is an ecosystem. everything is connected. like in the jungle. maybe it gives you an idea as to what republicans are eager to get something passed on immigration. they did poorly with latino voters. we can focus on this one issue that will help us the most, the affordable care act. host: we will leave it there. our guest has been todd zwillich. thank you for being with us this morning. guest: my pleasure. >> billy house is joining us. he is with "national journal." radel.as news about trey what has been the response to what is the trusses to replace him? and what is the process to replace him? is been pretty quiet. the governor has set up a special election. there are only two or three candidates including connie mack. it is increasingly -- is unexpected. before the state of the unit, get the bad news out. >> you mentioned president obama's state of the union address before congress. you wrote about a memo that republican leaders in the house sent

you can't get much stronger than people like kay hagen and mark pryor.those races. on the house side, again, when you look at these issues and talk about the gridlock, we're simply trying to move this economy forward and get more jobs in the country and focus on those issues instead of things that divide us. i'm hopeful that that will carry the weight with the american people as they see the positive things that we have done and the positive things we want to do. >> senator, we will leave it there, amy klobuchar from minnesota minnesota. >> it was great to be on. >> lawmakers are beginning to file in for the special session to deal with the chris christie investigation. a live look there in the chamber. coming up, i'll talk to long time mayor of elizabeth new jersey. welcome back. how is everything? there's nothing like being your own boss! and my customers are really liking your flat rate shipping. fedex one rate. really makes my life easier. maybe a promotion is in order. good news. i got a new title. and a raise? management couldn't make that happen.

. >> closer in arkansas, mark pryor running neck and neck with the republican tom cotton. that's not a clearcut victory for the republicans. >> but they're in the 40s cotton represents one district. with that close at this point, if it were held today, those undecided would goo against -- go against in the incumbent. >> tell me about the race in wisconsin. the democrat trailing scott walker by six full points. is that anything to do witch obamacare or just scott walker reside record. >> that's the state record, and walker has been very controversy, but the fact the democratic gubernatorial candidate wants nothing to do with obama and tells you it ain't such a good thing there either. >> ., thank you very joining us. we'll be speaking with governor scott walker of wisconsin shortly on this program today. >> from obamacare to amnesty? texas senator ted cruz making this statement, and i'm quoting directly: republicans are poised for an historic election this fall, a conserve tidal with a like 2010. the biggest thing to mess that up would be if the house passed an amnesty bill

meanwhile, people are looking at saying i'm going to put my money into tom cotton beating mark pryor to go up to alaska and be with mead treadwell to take out mark begich. so whereas democrats wish they could poll what they did in 2012, which was clever and divisive for our side, i don't see it happening. i think the stakes are too high and the destructive impact of obamacare and, by the way, our foreign policy. we are going to have a mess in iran. syria's over 130,000 dead. hezbollah is close to getting the kind of weapons that forces israel over the line. it's a serious election cycle. rhetor rhetoric's not going to beat the republicans like it did in 2012. >> i think you're right. but who knows? some of these primaries may be divisive. that's an issue. it may not be insuperable and it is not going to be about the war against women. nice try, though. really nice try. i've got to go. you can hang around with me if you want to continue this discussion. richard, mark, hugh, stick around because most americans agree that we need some tax and immigration reform. pro growth. and we could

. >> mark pryor and kay hagan from north carolina?'s interesting one of the first people that pryor had come to california was bill clinton. >> bill clinton is from arkansas. >> barack obama is a good person to campaign for anybody. >> reid told us he's meeting with the president next week to discuss campaign plans. he also revealed he'll try to help endangered democrats by holding senate votes on changes they're proposing to obamacare which is hurting most of them politically. >> what do you think the most likely change is that you will put up for a vote? >> i don't know. because right now, there's probably five or six substantive proposals. >> reid predicts republicans could block those obamacare changes. gop obstruction is why reid tells us senate democrats encourage the president to do the kind of thing he's announcing tonight, use his executive power for a limited wage increase. >> name another issue where you encourage the president to use an executive order. >> there are some things with the environment. the republicans are obs

but as mark pryor fights for a third term, keeping the democratic dynasty alive won't be easy.es here. the party needs only six seats to win control of the senate. >> i don't want to be cocky. i have a hard race. i completely understand what i'm up against. >> reporter: he's up against tom cotton who republicans see as a rising conservative star. >> i'm good. good to see you. >> reporter: after seven months as a congressman, you announced you were running for the senate. some said you're in a hurry, are you? >> i would say i am in a hurry. i have been in washington for a year now and see a lot of problems that need to be fixed. >> reporter: you have been called one of the new faces of the "hell no" caucus. >> i would like to say yes. but if the president continues to propose higher taxes and more spending then i will be saying no. >> reporter: cotton grew up on a farm in central arkansas. it seems as if he's been preparing for this moment all his life. two harvard degrees and two tours of duty in iraq and afghanistan. and loalong the way, he grew up watching another kid from ru

what do you think is the most effective strategy for some of your colleagues like mark pryor and otherslenges? >> they have to run their own race like i did in 2012. and focus on a lot of things the president talked about empowering the middle class, education, make sure we get our troops home from afghanistan, those kind of things i think is is a message that those kind of things can be included in the message. it works well for reelection or re-election. but the bottom line for all of these candidates, you know, montana's different from every other state, alaska and arkansas and louisiana and north carolina, they need to run their own race. if they run their own race, get out there, visit with the people, they'll be fine. the clinker in all of this is the amount of dark money that flows into these races. there's already incredible amounts flowing in as there was in 2012. you just got to roll up your sleeves and not let it impact you and work hard. i think democrats will be in good shape come november. >> from mark beg ich in alaska and others, does that mean running away from the pres

mark pryor put the position i'm against raising the federal minimum wage.his is a washington power grab. within the state of arkansas, i'm for doing this. it meets the interest of the constituency but also allows him to distance himself from the national democratic party and there is that -- i don't know how to explain the attitude that's prevalent in a lot of states. >> like people in kentucky being all for connect but aiding obamacare. same thing. coming up, colorado redefines the meaning of rocky mountain high. we will discuss the mile-high state's legal recreational pot. you're comfortable here. it's where you email, shop, even bank. but are you too comfortable? these days crime can happen in a few keystrokes. american express can help protect you. with intelligent security that learns your spending patterns, and can alert you to an unusual charge instantly. so you can be a member of a more secure world. this is what membership is. this is what membership does. humans -- we are beautifully imperfect creatures, living in an imperfect world. that's why li

president obama going to louisiana, where landrieu faces a tough re-election fight or arkansas, where mark pryor is in a tough spot, or maybe even alaska. it's nice in the summer, i guess, where the senator is facing a tough fight. neither side is above reproach here. for the last several election cycles, neither side has run on what they want to do. remember in 2008, the hope and change campaign, president obama, then senator-obama ran more negative ads against john mccain than any other campaign in history. negative campaigning running against the other guy is really the way our modern politics runs these days. >> we're watching the president's motorcade as he is going to be making his way to north carolina. so while this economic debate is going on, perry, you have no deal to extend unemployment benefits. senate republicans tried to make this about unfairness. they say harry reid is a tyrant. is that going to work, or will people remember they didn't get a deal? >> at the end of the day, people will remember they didn't get a deal. the key factor here, there's a real policy debate going on he

in arkansas, mark pryor's trailing tom cotton.lls, and senator carl levin is retiring in mission. both of those races are rated as toss-ups. imagine michigan being a toss-up. and democrats are holding on to tenuous leads in four states. mark begich which is red, kay hague begin in red north carolina, and then iowa where tom harkin is retiring. all these races are listed as leaning democrat. that's scanty. on the other side of the legislature, democrats have their eyes on two republican seats. of course, the biggie up in kentucky. mitch mcconnell facing a formidable democratic challenger in alison lundergan grimes, and michelle nun has emerged as a strong contender to pick off a seat there. where republicans -- task saxby cam police is leaving. now as much as democrats are relying on president obama tonight to help level the playing field, they're also pinning much of their hopes on the vision of this guy, senator chuck schumer of new york. he is the top leader in party and considered by in me the party as the top political guru. i

the mary landrieus, mark pryors, mar begich, let them come forward and say we have to change obamacarend try to go beyond what they want. if republicans handle this correctly they want the democrats to put the pressure on the president. the question tonight is, the main thing is watch the 43. 43% approval. if he can get that to 48, 49, democrats will suddenly be more friendly. if it stays down in the low 40s they're going to walk away. >> in terms of messaging tonight, in terms of what he has to say, does he do something to try to help those candidates even those who don't want him out there campaigning for him, john? >> i think issues like the minimum wage are so broadly popular in the public. they poll very high. i think the democrats will back them. >> and the democratic base. >> but also red state democrats who -- it's a very popular issue is the minimum wage. many americans want that to happen. >> i think the most interesting thing will be what he does or does not say about health care reform. people are mad. they're not being able to keep their plan that they liked. north being a

you see mark pryor who's up for re-election in arkansas, the senator facing a tough re-election bid. kirstin. >> yeah, to your question about foreign policy, the president won't have much to say about that. also, this is a speech that's going to be focused on one thing, and that's the economy. how to get the economy moving, how to address the fact that there are americans who are still out of work. and as he has in the past talked about income inequality, that will be something he continues to touch on, moves the ball down a little bit more, and moves away from the income inequality and talks about really specific ways to help people who are suffering. really, realistically, how much of this agenda can he push through this congress? you know, you've got the big ticket items like immigration reform, that seem to this week getting a second look from house republicans? >> from speaking to republicans, they've actually made it clear to him, if he can give them something on a deal to increase the debt ceiling on which they don't want to have a big fight. but something that doesn't look li

mark pryor in arkansas is trying to defend his vote on obamacare. he's not the only one. it probably goes to tell you, washington is an ecosystem. everything is connected. just like in the jungle when things feed, it helps other animals. maybe it's gives you an idea as to what republicans are eager to get something passed on immigration. they did poorly with latino voters. if they can get something done with the white house we can , focus on this one issue that will help us the most, the affordable care act. host: we will leave it there. our guest has been todd zwillich. thank you for being with us this morning. guest: my pleasure. >> and house members back on capitol hill today in at 5:30 p.m. eastern time for legislative business. three bills on the calendar today dealing with natural resources legislation. let it -- later this week, we could see the federal ban on funding abortions come up. for strategicter and international studies, discussing nato will be senators john mccain and senator murphy live right here on c-span at 4:15 p.m. today. how many young people are s

gingrey, jackil kingston, tom cotton, who is running against senator mark pryor, and steve daines. three democrats voted no -- raul holt.va, rush president obama will speak tomorrow at the justice department about reforms that he would like to see to the nsa. "the washington post" has the story this morning. that he wants congress to a more on the fate of this program. isy note the president giving the speech at the justice department, a symbolic choice to signal that the administration is committed to the rule of law even in the secret world of surveillance. that is in "the washington post" this morning. more retirement to tell you about. we told you about bill owens yesterday. "the wall street journal" has a story -- "lawmaker retirements to hit centrist ranks." mckeonte that buck announced yesterday, along with virginia, democrat of that they would not seek another term. on healthcare, here is "the wall street journal." "federal court upheld subsidies at the core of the healthcare law. the decision hands a victory to the obama administration, which has been fighting in court to

democrats are under real pressure, three southernç democrats, okay hagen, mark pryor and mary landaupublicans see though as big pickup opportunities. they'll make a lot of money and effort into demonizing those democrats. on the republican side of the aisle, the tea party wave has crest. even though republicans have a built-in advantage because of the rigged system of redistricting that allowed them to build up their lead in the house, democrats can't really pick up swing seats. the republicans will be looking to hold on to their lead, 17-seat margin. it's a longer haul. >> sometimes your fringe groups are just the first ring in a storm. think about occupy, the tea party. we are in 2014 but there was a lot of violence at the end of 2013 that hurt both parties. it makes me wonder, did they use that ammo too soon? and they can't go into straight obstruction mode again because it cost both already. >> that's a great, important point. the republicans definitely feel the scars of that shutdown strategy. they were dragged into by the activist groups pumping basically a fool's gold saying w

you look at the seats -- there are an awful lot of vulnerable democrats, arkansas, for example, mark pryor i think is in big trouble. republicans could pick up the senate in november. host: how do you think it will roll in 2014? problematic. a lot of democrats because of obamacare have distanced themselves from him. now that things are getting better, perhaps that will change. i am not sure i will -- we will see him out on the campaign trail as much as he has in the past. we have approval ratings, 42%, 43%, people are not exactly knocking on the door inviting you to come campaign. host: hamden, connecticut, bob, republican line. hi. caller: it is kind of obvious that obama lied to everybody about the health care bill to get this thing passed. why is the press so reluctant to use that term? they use the term misspoke. i would like to hear your opinion on that. thank you. guest: i call it a lie. it was a huge lie. in fact, nonpartisan organizations and dubbed it "the lie of the year." a some people call it misstatement, other people call it a falsehood, i think you have to call it what it is

pryor was the very first to receive it. which to me, was very appropriate because what mark twain was doing at the turn-of- the-century, talking about life on the frontier, talking about life in the inner city. they were doing the same thing. as a comedian, the language doesn't bother me at all. i know all the words, they were directed at me very often. but i would feel cheated, describing life in the inner city, gosh darn it is not life in the inner city. i never found it offensive. i think my bone is just a piece of genius. i gave him the comedy award and he turned to me, in a wheelchair at the time and we went to commercial and came back. i handed him the lifetime achievement award, and he looks up at me and says, i stole your album. i stole your album and you're into. i walked into a record store and put it in my jacket. i said, richard, i will quote you for an album. he said, give me a quote. he was just brilliant. he was above comedy. tavis: take me back to the days where comedy albums actually work. tell me what was happening in the country that allowed you to put this stuff on vinyl and after all these years, still the