to be murdered and how many more communities have to be up ended by the violence so the national rifle association and the koch brothers funded american legislative exchange council to make sure the gun manufacturers and retailers like wal-mart can sell more of their products alec represents the corporatocracy in the us is not interested in the public good but rather corporate profit whatever maximizes profits and any nice's them from lawsuits and matter how many trayvon martin's are murdered in the process so what they want from the founders wrote we the people is the first three words of our constitution they did not mean we the corporations that matter what john roberts clarence thomas and antonin scalia say this is no way to run a country and one of the many reasons why the right wing take over this country that started with reagan needs to be reversed and we need to come back to our senses. that's it for the big picture of the night turning to morrow night for a talk with david rothkopf c.e.o. and editor at large of foreign policy magazine and our conversations with great minds and don't forg

the law passed in florida in 2005, under pressure from the national rifle association, and was later adopted by 19 other states. it took a citizen's right to self-defense and twisted it into a license to kill in many respects. the effects of this law have been building since 2005 and it took the death of a 17-year-old, trayvon martin, to shine a light on it. what we are witnessing here, i think we are witnessing the perfect storm of injustice in america. what we have here is a very poorly written law. we are living in a time when law enforcement is getting slashed to fit state budgets. it's not happening in a vacuum. this is what these budget cuts are all about. we have vigilantes out on the streets when we should have more cops on the street. cops are on the beat and under attack across this station and departments are understaffed. overtime, we will have a new atmosphere being created in this country. you know what it's going to be? every man for himself. is that what we want in america? we are truly becoming because of all these budget cutbacks across america, acting as if none of

the national rifle association was in alaska lobbying for stand your ground law similar in other states. have the coverage contributed to the stalling of these laws in your opinion? >> i would think so. at least i would hope so it would allow folks to reconsider what they're doing. not necessarily stop doing a stand your ground law. the florida law is on the far extreme basically granting immunity from people. i think it would be incumbent upon legislatures to take a look at what's happening in florida and figure out how if they decide to go ahead and do something as insane as implementing a stand your ground law to not do it as insanely as as happened in florida. >> this is the scary thing about this. when you get a law like this passed and another state starts getting lobbying saying you got to toughen these laws up in your state. you have to do what they did down in florida. this is what happened. the next thing you know they start cash whipping the legislatures and the next thing is bill is introduced to strengthen the laws and who know where is it will end up. natalie, the new york

she's also the record setting winner in the 2010 national rifle association national championship. imagine if she was able to apply her skills in a combat military occupational specialty. i would call that a force multiplier. when we look at other examples of our military, the success of women, we see the potential impossibilities that full inclusion of women into our military can bring. the promotion of general ann dunwoody, the first female four star general in our history, soob to be followed by the recent nomination of len lou ten naent janet wolf en burger to air force comment and rear admiral sandy stokes selected to become the superintendent of the u.s. coast guard academy, by the way, the first woman to lead a service academy. these are all perfect examples. these women have obviously risen to the top. but there are still lingering disparate at the higher echelons. in the three components of the army, for example, although the ratio of female soldiers is 17%, for general officers, 10% of us are female. that's in part due to the restrictions that remain in place. so as we lo

in fact, governor jeb bush signed the bill with the national rifle association's lobbyist, marianne hammer at his si "people shouldn't have to depend on law enforcement for protection in every situation." calling criticism of the measure "silly." bush, the governor then, supported that sentiment. >> it's common sense to allow people to defend themselves. and to have to, when you're in a position where you're being threatened, when there's a life-threatening situation, to have to retreat and put yourself in a very precarious position, you know, it defies common sense. >> former democratic state senator walter campbell, who supported and co-sponsored the bill in florida now says the measure was sold to lawmakers as a way to expand self-defense rights. campbell now admits the law is being abused. along those lines, state representative dennis baxley, another co-sponsor of the measure, also known as a castle doctrine law, says he stands by it, but believes it is not being applied properly. >> there's nothing in the castle doctrine statute that provides authority for you to pursue or confront o

now the national rifle association backed that law, and now the brady campaign, which is pushing for laws says that is the national rifle association's vision for america. it's important to point out that gun sales in this country have never been higher, and the crime rate, says the f.b.i., is very low. the doj is investigating this and will send people to central florida this week to look into this case, martha. martha: awful story. trace, thank you for that. >> reporter: okay. martha: and there are new developments today in the fast and furious scandal. now lawmakers are asking if the justice department's independent investigator was really all that independent. an update from the house oversight committee ahead. and a rising star busted for not so model behavior you might say. just ahead how swimsuit model simone farrow got a new pair of bracelets, and what it may mean for her future. polls today showing that the president's healthcare law is turning into a bigger headache for his re-election campaign, but the bad news doesn't end there. this. right after the break. >> it's going t

gwen: you talk about the role of the national rifle association. how do we know that one thing is connected to the other? i guess that's the key part of what this investigation is about. >> first of all, people wanted to make sure that we have a right to bear arms. you see a lot of arms about conceal and carry. and then out of that, there goes this notion of stand your ground, protect yourself. now we're seeing the ramification in some cases where these laws aren't as precise as people maybe intended them to be. now you have a situation is where this man is accused of being a vigilante and killing this boy cold blood. gwen: who handles this situation. we say that the feds stepped in. >> in this case it's going to be the f.b.i. really, you saw new the 1950's and 1960 's where the f.b.i. is asked to step in where in some cases the local community can't or won't. gwen: we'll be watching it very closely. the local community have forced the police chief toe step aside. they're beginning to revisit all of this and i have a feeling it will boil. now we mo

here's the national rifle association's hood area, complete with a packet for your concealed weapon. >> it's own structured casual design appears incable of concealing a heavy firearm but it does so with ease. >> day two with the supreme court, the justices pounce. >> assume for the moment that this is unprecedented. can the government require you to buy a cell phone because that would facilitate responding when you need emergency services? >> you can make people buy broccoli. >> he would run with him. >> look, i would do in this race as i always say this is the most important race in our countries history. i'm going to do everything i can. >> and murdoch gate phase three. >> he delivered the actual software with instructions that it should go to the widest possible community. >> now on "countdown." >> good evening. this is tuesday march 27, 225 days until the 2012 presidential election. trayvon martin's family fighting back against the city drip drip drip of leaks supporting the man who shot and killed him neighborhood watch captain george zimmerman against the backdrop of clueless

this was written by the national rifle association and wal-mart the lobbyist for the weapons manufacturers and the largest gun seller in the united states wal-mart is and and it was pushed by the american legislative exchange council into the states we have over a dozen states now with absolute pinnacle language all of this came through our alec is funded by the koch brothers why are corporate lobbying groups funded by eccentric billionaires writing our laws isn't this you know are particularly laws that that lead to things like the police literally saying the state's attorney says we can't prosecute this guy for murdering trayvon williams or martin rather isn't this a persian of democracy we get into the weeds with the word the law came but i do think i don't get the weeds i think it's a good wall needs some it needs some it's need some fine tuning clearly when you have this kind of answer you need some specific language saying why cross through stand your ground it's may not be chasing after somebody or whatever happened we don't know what happened in this case i think it's a little pres

far and wide and after the break we'll look more closely with their partnership with the national rifle associationplus the rights problems with the president are pretty well documented, but how does the left feel about him these days. we'll be right back. you're about to watch an ad message created by a current tv viewer for hershey's air delight. >>mommy, you're so smart, i feel like you know everything. >>you can ask me anything, anytime honey. >>mom, how do you say "hello" in spanish? >>hola. >>hey mommy, how many miles are there to the moon? >>238,854. >>hey mom, are ninjas still a big problem? >>no, honey. >>ha! >>hey mom, how do they get the bubbles into the hershey's air delight? >>i don't know, but it's delicious. >>[both laugh] >>hershey's air delight milk chocolate. a lighter, airier, meltier hershey's happiness. in 2012 alone. go to our website, current.com. up next it's out to the campaign trail. a surprising new poll, and that's next right here inside "the war room." ♪ it ain't no secret ♪ ♪ it ain't no secret ♪ ♪ the secret my friend can get you living the american scam ♪ [ cheers an

far and wide and after the break we'll look more closely with their partnership with the national rifle associationplus the rights problems with the president are pretty well documented, but how does the left feel about him these days. we'll be right back. in 2012 alone. go to our website, current.com. up next it's out to the campaign trail. a surprising new poll, and that's next right here inside "the war room." >>this is outrageous! we've have no choice, we've lost our democracy here. ♪ it ain't no secret ♪ ♪ it ain't no secret ♪ ♪ the secret my friend can get you living the american scam ♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> music can be a powerful thing,est specialingly when it's in that man's hand. that is bruce springsteen singing a tribute to trayvon martin. 41 shots, of course brought a lot of controversy to the boss when he released it in 2000 in response to the shooting in new york. and sadly the words still ring true now in the case of 17-year-old trayvon martin. trayvon's death has sparked nationwide outcia. there were people who protested outside of the headquarters of alec. those laws have pro

and media matters reported today that the head of the national rifle association actually admitted that draft this law, not really a surprise to me as governor because i know the nra is very active in state legislators. do you think people will be surprised with that admission? >> no the nra is one of the most powerful organizations in the country. and in states they have been trying to institute these stand your ground laws and they have continued to try to institute them even as this case has proceeded in other states. and to basically create a vigilante society. and that's sad. >> they have tried to use president obama to scare their members to drum up membership to perhaps get even more of these laws passed et cetera. i think they have wanted to raise money off of the scare tactic of saying that atf goes into mexico and thereafter they are going to take your guns away and be able to raise money off of that. is that sort of the strategy you understand to be? >> yeah the nra has reported a specific strategy that barack obama wants to take your guns away. they have exaggerated this gun

tlp are laws being passed around the country, this outfit called alec and the national rifle association, they are bankrolling all of these legislative decisions to jam laws like stand your ground down your throats when the citizens aren't crying for it. there's a lot of different pieces to this puzzle. it's easy to broad brush and say the media is out there picking and choosing and race bating. you can call me a bater until the cows come home. i know for sure there's no question that there have been some real failures here that need to be discussed. every night i might add let's turn to dr. james peterson. first of all, i'm curious before we get to this, what are your students saying? >> students are feeling compassion. they're feeling vulnerable especially young students of color are wondering what society we live in. >> it's a story that has a real impact on young people. >> it has. it makes them feel there's an absence of justice. there's a serious challenge for a young person if school trying to be an upstanding citizen? america. >> what do you make of the analysis? >> i'm glad you

the national rifle association lobbied for those laws. law enforcement in general lobbied against them. beth karas, you have been studying this law. was george zimmerman in imminent danger by trayvon martin. how do you prove or disprove this in light of stand your ground law. >> three things have to occur if you're going to get immunity from prosecution. you have to be engaged in something lawful or the statute says you can't be engaged in lawful activity. zimmerman better be carrying that gun lawfully because if not, stand your ground doesn't apply. you have to be somewhere where you have a right to be. he is in a public place. he has a right to be there. so did trayvon martin have a right to be where he was as well. there may be a sticking point because the dispatcher says you really don't need to go out. just stay. wait for the police. you don't need to be there. my question is whether or not factor two element number two, right to be where he is somehow challenged because of that. the third thing is the language that john just read. y

responsibility to go to these governors and these lawmakers who follow alec and follow the national rifle association like puppets on a string and ask them why did you sign it if there's no clamoring in the public for this. we're passing laws because some industry wants it to be passed. in the meantime they are contributing to the thaugt process of someone that that a firearm in the middle of a confrontation and in this case, i think you could make the case that zimmer man thought he was doing what the law was going to allow him to do, to chase this kid down. >> this was really, listen, about 20 of us, i was in the state house at the time and 20 of us really voted against it but we said this is crazy. the fellow that was promoting the bill was the same legislature who protoed the terry schiavo and said this real devalues life. it says lethal force is your first resort if you want it to be. it doesn't have to be your last resort. because of this outcry people are looking at it. had there not been this intention, there's no question that this case would have been long over. it would have been declined

law enforcement officials overwhelmingly opposed the law but the national rifle association helped get it passed. former nra president is identified as the primary lobbyist behind the stand your ground bill in florida. florida law enforcement virtually has its hands died when it comes to prosecuting the cases. a spokesman told the new york time t if we arrest, we open ourselves to a lawsuit. joining us tonight is dan gross, president of the brady campaign to prevent gun violence. good to have you with us tonight. did this law set the table for george zimmerman to go hunting for trayvon martin? >> i think that's exactly what it did. it's a bad law if it lets murders walk away uncharged. as bad as it is a law, it's just as dangerous as a state of mind and it's a state of mind that permits things like this, encourages things like this to happen. when you combine that state of mind with florida's incredibly weak gun laws in general, it's a recipe for tragedies like this to happen. >> you've said in this case that the nra -- this is the nra's vision for america. what did you mean by that? >

why the national rifle association advertise them with pockets for concealed guns. george bush endorses mitt romney. >> here are a couple of sick puppies? >> did you say puppies? seamus. >> did you ever think we would be talking about porn, with all the other things in this election. >> i didn't know we were talking about porn. >> mitt romney has changed positions more often than a pornographic movie queen. >> amputate or euthanized, the supreme court on severity, ending the insurance mandates, keeping the rest of the reform. >> my approach would say if you take the heart out of the statute, the statute is gone . >> the analysis of day three of three from jonathan turley. this is your captain speaking. as he is charged we're joined by one of the passengers, tony antolino. >> the co-pilot really is the his or her hire for being able to recognize early on that something was going horribly wrong. >> and fox to launch cable sports network to try to rival espn. why does that sound so familiar? at fox sports news we cover your team so closely. >> i am not a role model. bu

the national rifle association was still lobbying hard for minnesota to adopt a law like the florida stand your ground law that prevented the trayvon martin shooter from being arrested. the democratic governor vetoed it. after jeb bush signed the first stand your ground bill into law in florida with nra lobbyist beaming down over his shoulder as he signed it, nearly two dozen states have followed with their own laws. the nra wants this to be a federal regulation that would force this on states that don't want it. all the changes in law go in the same direction. all the laws go to more guns in more places. once one state stakes out radical ground, as soon as one state clears that ground like florida did in 2005, all the other states rush toward that newly cleared law. i thought after tucson we could have one tiny little tick toward regulates just the size of the magazines for ammunition in handguns. as a tiny correction for a nation that was shocked by the horror. i was wrong. gun law changes go in one direction. now even in the midst of the national uproar over the trayvon martin sho

> now the legislation, now i see has not come up yet, it's stuck in the senate, but the national rifle associationis the state of play out there? is it going to get passed? we have a overwhelming number of students, faculty and law enforcement that are opposed to this bill, people have poll method area and found an -- polled this area and found an overwhelming -- the vast majority of people are opposed to this idea but there's a small percentage of people that represent the gun industry, people who sell and profit from selling firearms that want to see this bill come through, but i'm here to join the vast majority of arizona residents to keep it from happening. >> thank you for joining and being with us today. being with us today. we will be right back.with arth. a load of new listings... and two pills. after a morning of walk-ups, it's back to more pain, back to more pills. the evening showings bring more pain and more pills. sealing the deal... when, hang on... her doctor recommended aleve. it can relieve pain all day with fewer pills than tylenol. this is lois... who chose two aleve and fewer p

the national rifle association put out an alert, asking to support him. the animal rights activists and dozens of members called for richards to resign. >>> and republican lawmakers stepping up their calls for the use of fire power in sir. but the obama administration says that u.s. interfering is not the answer. >> no such situation currently exists with regard to syria, for us to act this way would be a mistake. >> assad needs to know that he will not win, and unfortunately that is not the case now. >>> senator john mccain today said america must provide arms and air support. to stop the killing of civilians in syria, and forces the dick ruler to step down eoh -- dictator. >> and to communicate more clearly, have a message to all of their syrian counter parts who are not yet convinced that it is in their interest for assd to go. >> the pentagon also said a military battle in syria would be much tougher than the one fought by the u.s. and the allies in libya. defense secretary leon panetta says that libya has a stock pile of weapons. the secretary said t