mike barnicle, that justice department may put forward. morning, mike, saying that is unlikely. also, pete williams last night on "nightly" said it's unlikely. you look at the fact that in the courtroom we never even got to stand your ground laws. we were talking about self-defense in the courtroom. well, the bar is even higher here if the justice department is moving forward with hate crimes. they're not going to reach that threshold if they're ever in a court of law and i would be stunned if the justice department brings a case. so you'll have people still wondering how it could be that zimmerman got away with what a lot of -- a lot of americans, millions of americans, still think was murder. >> yeah. i would think, joe, the justice department in the end would be reluctant to bring any charges against zimmerman on that basis. if a jury was unable to convict him, with all the evidence the jury heard of either murder or manslaughter, i don't know what the justice department does. an interesting dynamic here in listening to the discussion,

go. >> this is mike barnicle's area of expertise.hen two gangsters come face to face in a courtroom expect things to get heated. yesterday kevin weeks, former partner of james whitey bulger took the stand and testified against his former mentor. weeks accused by the defense of cutting a deal with prosecutors so he would serve just five years in prison. he was then asked if he felt any remorse for his role in the five killings. mike will be mr. weeks. i will be mr. bulger. >> this is the tale incidentally of a loser versus a sociopath. weeks is the loser, jim whitey bulger the sociopath. >> which one you? >> he's the loser, i'm the sociopath. >> let's hear it. >> want me to start. >> this is from the transcript yesterday in court. >> it's fun when joe and mika aren't here. >> we do role playing. why not? why not. >> okay. >> you're first. >> yeah, five people are dead. yeah, it bothers me, we killed people who were rats and i had the two biggest rats right next to me. >> you suck. >> f you okay. >> f you too. >> what do you want to do

mike barnicle next. you're watching "morning joe" brewed by starbucks.ibouti, africa. 2004. vietnam in 1972. [ all ] fort benning, georgia in 1999. [ male announcer ] usaa auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation. because it offers a superior level of protection and because usaa's commitment to serve military members, veterans, and their families is without equal. begin your legacy, get an auto insurance quote. usaa. we know what it means to serve. wi drive a ford fusion. who is healthier, you or your car? i would say my car. probably the car. cause as you get older you start breaking down. i love my car. i want to take care of it. i have a bad wheel - i must say. my car is running quite well. keep your car healthy with the works. $29.95 or less after $10 mail-in rebate at your participating ford dealer. so you gotta take care of yourself? yes you do. you gotta take care of your baby? oh yeah! >>> there's an investigation under way this morning in boston after a man expected to testify against whitey bulger was found dead on the

i want your insight, mike barnicle and meacham, on snowden. we'll get to that in a moment.'m wondering since we try to jam a lot of the big stories in the first block, is it okay if we don't mention the words harry reid, mitch mcconnell and nuclear option. >> absolutely. >> can we just -- >> that would be a thrilling start to the day, to any day. >> we'll leave it. we'll leave it. >> a trinity to avoid. >> there are a lot of layers to the george zimmerman verdict. so we'll begin there. the trial of george zimmerman came to a close saturday's not guilty verdict has renewed the nation's debate on race relations among many other things. yesterday thousands of americans expressed their disappointment in the jury's decision. protesting the acquittal of the volunteer neighborhood watchman from new york to los angeles demonstrators took to the streets at times block traffic chanting no justice, no peace. back in florida the prosecution and defense spoke about the verdict and the impact race had on the case. >> i think that the things would have been different if george zimmerman w

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back with us on set, we have mike barnicle, nicolle wallace and ben stein.world. and the person who leads this city will wield global power. so could that person be and should that person even be considered to be the mayor anthony weiner? on monday, he was the front-runner to become mayor of the big apple. one more sexting scandal later he has apparently blown his lead. christine quinn now leads. he's dropped 9 points from last month. weiner has forfeited his lead among women voters. his favorable ratings which surged early plummeted 22 points. one number that is growing for weiner, the amount of women with whom he admits to exchanging these messages with. that includes those he messaged after he resigned from congress. >> it's not dozens -- just like i told "the post" and they made a big headline out of it. it is not dozens. it is 6 to 10 i suppose but i can't tell you absolutely what someone else is going to consider inappropriate or not. >> were they sexual? how many conversations did you have with women after you resigned that were sexual in nature? >> i

back with me on set, mike barnicle, nicolle wallace and steve rattner.congressman king stands by his comments comparing immigrants to drug mules. despite being under withering attack from all sides. trayvon martin's father on capitol hill yesterday. and edward snowden still playing tom harng hanks stuck in a russ airport. the last injured victim from the april bombing is going home. you asked for it, we got it. sweden's answer to the anthony weiner scandal. plus, more difficult polling for obama care. as the administration keeps talking about fake scandals. willie geist, that is a great place to start. because the president went out yesterday on a speech that was -- i'll tell you what, it was more like a campaign speech than an economic reset. as dana millbanks said, he's given this speech before. >> president obama will head to florida to continue selling his economic policy, to the public. yesterday, the president in illinois and missouri urging the public to avoid the rhetoric of the right. saying they should focus instead on improving the lives of mi

but mike barnicle is here and he's going to tell you what's next. >> it's time for "the daily rundown." take it away. >> thanks for watching. >>> thanks, guys. president obama takes his budget bargain hopes to capitol hill trying to unify democrats behind his plan before congress clears out for the august recess. meanwhile, the republican two top party players won't quit. the philosophical fight for 2016 is playing out earlier than expe expected. also this morning, sentencing gets under way for bradley manning. what implications could his fate have for moscow's most famous airport resident edward snowden? very good morning from washington. it's wednesday, july 31st, 2013, and this is the "daily rundown." i'm kristin welker in for my friend chuck todd. this00 the president heads to capitol hill to huddle with house and senate democrats. on the agenda, selling his redefined grand bargain. in chattanooga, tennessee, on tuesday, the president promised to cut corporate taxes in return for investments in infrastructure, education and job training. republicans rushed to respond. no deal. >>

mike barnicle is here. >> yes. >> wow, that's enthusiastic. >> are you happy to be here, mike? >> oh, yeah. >> it would appear so. >> wouldn't you love staring across the table at me? >> i do. >> out to politico, joining us for a look at the playbook, the executive editor jim vandehei. >> good morning. >> we're talking about republican governor of virginia bob mcdonnell under the scrutiny of virginia voters and the press. governor mcdonnell has apologized and said he will pay back $120,000 in loans he received. for people who haven't been following us closely, bring us up to speed, jim. >> he's had a relationship with a ceo who's a big donor to his campaign over the years. he got a series of loans that got up to $120,000. his wife got him a rolex that was paid for by this gentleman and payments by this guy to the family. it's been a huge problem for governor mcdonnell. you saw his numbers go way down. he used to be on the short list of someone thought to be the next presidential candidate for republicans, and now he's been really roughed up by this scandal in virginia. there's

i'm going to pass the plate and take your dollar with me, mike barnicle. >> i'll give you two. >> $2.g. >> absolutely. >> absolutely. >> campbell brown, thanks very much. >> thanks for having me on. good to see you. >> thank you. >> is up next, a look at the lives of the 19 men who paid the ultimate sacrifice to help save others from the wildfires in arizona. rett galloway. he's serving his guests walmart choice premium steaks. but they don't know it yet. they will. it's a steak-over. steak was excellent. very tender. melts in your mouth. it was delicious. tonight you are eating walmart steak. what???!! good steak. two thumbs up? look, i ate all of mine. it matches any good steakhouse if not better. walmart choice premium steak in the black package. it's 100% money back guaranteed. try it for your next backyard barbecue. >>> i told him through our text messages that our daughter had been saying when she was watching the thunderstorms, she said mommy, daddy really needs to see this. i let him know via text message she had said this and he said i really wish i could see it. we could use

for instance, the panama canal, you may not know, mike barnicle -- >> i helped build it. >> you wouldssion which is a huge opportunity for various ports across the american south. unfortunately these ports in places like charleston and other places across the south, aren't equipped to take up the traffic and the opportunity that this closing of the panama canal zone would represent. various republican senators who have an appetite for investing in infrastructure. barack obama also has an appetite for investing in infrastructure, economic stimulus, so this is one place where there's a possibility for some creative dealmaking. >> so you -- sorry. >> go ahead. >> you also say one of your tips is embrace the irs scandal. what do you mean by that exactly? >> so, the irs scandal has created this sense -- even though it's a scandal that's dissipating by the day, it produced this wave of populace outrage at the irs. now, you could just let that wave of populous outrage wash over you or try to leverage it to reform the tax code which is something that republicans deeply want to do and it's som