ohio has not been frozen in amber since 2008. in 2010, it was the republicanspt to power in ohio in that great red tide election of 2010. after that election the republicans controlled the statehouse, the state senate and the governorship. republicans controlled ohio. once they found themselves in charge, ohio republicans got very ambitious very quickly. they passed a law to strip union rights in the state which led to protests in the streets. ohio republicans said they would take union rights away from police and teachers and firefighters and snow plow drivers and they did not care about the anger it generated. they had that majority from the 2010 election and they were going to use it to do what they wanted. three months after republican governor john kasich had to give his state of the state address over the shouted cat calls of protesters in the capitol, this truck rolled up at the secretary of state's office in ohio bearing 1,502 boxes of petitions. 1.3 million ohio residents had signed petitions calling for the reveal of the republicans' new union strippi

in presidential politics ohio is a must-win. for republicans, winning ohio, it doesn't guarantee you will win the white house, it's not enough just to win ohio, obviously, but it is necessary to win ohio. if you lose that state, you will lose the presidency. it is the hinge, it is the glue for every republican presidential campaign in modern american history. losing ohio has meant losing the white house. in 2004 the democratic candidate john kerry -- you might remember this -- he did not concede on election night. john kerry and john edwards were waiting on results from ohio. when ohio went to president bush, the next day, the day after election night, that is when that race was over but not a minute before. ohio is that important in modern presidential politics. look at this, both the romney and obama campaigns are out stumping now, tonight in ohio. governor romney and president obama have 50 possible states to fight over, at least theoretically. they have nine or so swing states that seem to actually be in play. tonight mitt romney and barack

ohio republicans first tried to cut early voting in half. when they failed at half, the same three days when african-american churches like to car pool down to the polling place. the sunday before the election. nearly 100,000 people voted in those days. a new study just published today shows that african-americans in the cleveland area were 26 times more likely to cast an early in person ballot than white voters. that's not a typo. 26 times more likely. it was with that very recent history in mind that two elections officials voted to open the polls on the weekend right through the election day. on the weekend before. at the time the state had approved expanded weekend voting in republican counties, but not in the counties that lean democratic. but these two officials decided that weekend voting would be good for their county, for their democratic-leaning county too. for that ohio's republican secretary of state fired them effective immediately. he kicked them off the county board of elections. as of last week, he had kicked the question he

republicanism is all about. hi, we're from alabama and we're here to help. hey, ohiowhen you're thinking about voting for mitt romney, think alabama republicans. on the day of his inauguration, alabama's current republican governor said quote, anybody here today who has not accepted jesus christ as your savor, i'm telling you you're not my brother, and you're not my sister. the last time we had a senator who wrote and did a speech about how slavery was not only justified by the bible, he said the under appreciated thing about slavery in the united states was how good slavery was for black people. this was in 1996, not 1896. and the reaction by alabama republicans, well, they just kept him around. he stayed in the state senate for two more years after the slavery was good for black people thing. why not? why get rid of him? what's the problem? last year when demonstrators came to alabama to protest its immigrant law, the party chairman told the press quote this is recommend necessary event of others coming into our state to cause trouble. remind you of that, huh? the m

ohio. no republican has ever won the white house without winning ohio. and that's why romney is going all in. romney is intensifying his advertising, deploying more troops, and will be spent are more time in the states. according to "new york times," romney even moved staff out of pennsylvania to concentrate on ohio. he knows he has a ton of ground to make up. but that's not all there's a darker side to the republican plan to win ohio -- voter suppression. ohio's republican secretary of state john ustilled said today he will ask the u.s. supreme court to appeal the federal court decision allowing early voting in the three days before the election. he called the ruling, quote, an unprecedented intrusion into how states run elections. imagine that. ahead of an election, who wants fewer days for early voting. ohio expanded these voting days after the election of 2004 when voting was a mess, with long lines, people getting shut out. in 2008 things went much more smoothly with the new, longer hours in place. in this close election, john hue stead has been pul

not go forward and yesterday the supreme court even weighed in rejecting another attempt by ohio republicans to go ahead with limiting early voting state that's not enough for hostile we still determine to go ahead with limiting early voting posted is in the various rulings and limiting early voting in ohio to just sixteen hours over the course of three days so why is huston so intent on limiting early voting in his state and typically those who participate early voting are more likely to vote for democrats lost it is now openly defying the orders of three separate judicial bodies including the supreme court and his drive to silence the votes of thousands of ohioans and rig the election in the buckeye state for mitt romney and that is very very ugly. after the break what would be one of the best tools in the american people's arsenal for taking on corporate america i'll tell you it's about stealing to. you know sometimes you see a story and it seems so for lengthly you think you understand it and then you glimpse something else and you hear or see some other part of it and realize everything

ohio republicans can still file another appeal sending it to the supreme court. of now, there's no word of that appeal. it is big. president obama needs ohio to win the election. in most scenarios played out. for more on this, i'm joined by ohio state senator nina turner with us here in studio in new york. senator, great to have you with us tonight. this is really proof, isn't it? that there was targeting of the african-american communities. >> there's no doubt about it. the republicans seem to have a conflict with the truth. now that the lawyers group has conducted a study, the only type of voting that they are trying to suppress is early in person voting. vote by mail, they have expanded with glee. but the voting with the most detrimental impact they have cut. >> what's going to happen with the supreme court? do you think the republicans will keep pushing this or is this the way it's going to be? explain how they can shut it down in some counties. >> it's a good decision and i'm glad the courts upheld the ruling. what it does is restore us to prehouse bill. tha

we will also hear from republican of ohio state representative, jay hottinger. then a look at the role of the young ohio voters, from the osu college republicans. ♪ host: good morning, it is monday, october 8, 2012. while columbus day is celebrated across the country today, president of candidates and not taking a holiday from the campaign trail. president obama will be making stops a day in san francisco. later today, mitt romney will make what is being billed as a major foreign-policy speech at the virginia military institute

ohio. trailing mitt romney by six points nationally lagging by 13. republican argue though that ohio's economy will be better with a republican in the white house. john kasich is the governor. >> if romney wins i believe we're going to see a significantly improved economy, that's why i'm for him. >> reporter: more than 800,000 people have voted early in ohio so far, allowing both parties to separate those who cast ballots from those who may need a bit more coaxing. the ones now getting analyzed with microscopic intensity. bob bennett is chairman of ohio's republican party. >> i think that if most people knew the type of information that we had in our database, that they would be shocked, and probably not too happy with it. >> reporter: and it does seem a bit intrusive as both campaigns draw conclusions about who to pursue based on things like what churches they attend, what cars they drive. an jeff, even what magazines they read. >> glor: dean reynolds, thank you. later a running club that offers a new path for the homeless. floods in venice leaving tourists wi

ohio. no republican ever became president who hasn't won ohio. the unemployment level is down below the national average. if you say there's a new version on the horizon why obama doesn't get credit to this why it would go towards president obama over governor romney. >> the first thing is every person who goes and fills up their tank with gas they pay $2 a gallon extra for every single gallon because of obama's policies. think of that as the obama attacks and working americans $2 a gallon every time you fill your tank. they are aware the environmental protection agency will close down and stop the very processes that are going to create those jobs in ohio. so if you want those jobs in ohio you have to defeat barack obama to stop his bureaucrats from strangling the state of ohio. it's that simple. as that message sinks in my impression is ohio has always been a competitive state has a strong republican party. it is basically conservative. you go down along the ohio river valley the war on coal has alienated county by county. you look at places li

ohio. no republican has won the white house without it. president obama carried it last time, and ohio itself has supplied us with eight american presidents over the years. both men running for the job were in ohio today along with nbc's peter alexander, traveling with the romney campaign, and starts off our coverage in cuyahoga falls, ohio. peter, good evening. >> reporter: brian, good evening to you. we're seeing real evidence that this race is tightening, not just nationally, but in crucial battlegrounds like here in ohio. with both candidates descending on the buckeye state, the o in ohio could easily stand for offense. a poll released late this afternoon shows president obama's lead has shrunk to just four points. touching down on akron on the last day ohioans will vote. mitt romney will campaign here four of the last five days. the president just wrapped up his 17th rally here, more than any other state. >> do not delay, go vote today. what do you think? all right, buckeyes, we need you. >> reporter: why all the attention on ohio? no

ohio. republican presidential candidate for the guys -- criticized obama for what he says, a misguided focus on big bird. this comes after the president slammed romney for wanting to pull federal funding from pbs. >> the income of the families in america has gone down. in times like this, what is he talking about? saving big bird. what i am president, i will help save the american family and get good jobs for every american. >> the obama campaign has said romney's efforts disrupt pbs and federal funding will do little to help the deficit problem. >>> president obama take a break from the campaign trail. in his address, he talked about the rebounding auto industry. and that has been a topic to run his campaign. he says a few years ago, the industry was struggling. and now auto sales are at four year highs. >> this is something the american people should be proud of. it is a reminder that when the american people put their minds to something, there is nothing we cannot do. >> after the address, the president took off for virginia to prepare for the town hall style debate coming up this week. t

the president argues his decision to bail out the auto industry saved jobs, but in ohio republican candidate mitt romney criticized the white house for not holding china accountable for unfair trade practices that cost americans jobs. >> i want to make sure that when people cheat, well, they don't follow the rules in trade, we finally hold them accountable, it's time for us to stand up to china for their cheating it's got to stop. >> i bet on american workers and american ingenuity and three years later, that bet is paying off in a big way. >> mitt romney also plans to spend tomorrow preparing to square off with president obama on tuesday night. >>> and you can watch that highly anticipated debate right here on cbs 5. coverage from hofstra university begins at 6:00. the second of three presidential debates will be conducted in a town hall format allowing people to ask questions about foreign and domestic policy. >>> actor and former television host gary collins has died. he was taken to the hospital in mississippi late last night where doctors say he died of natural causes. collins appeared

ohio's republican donor john kasik says his policies, including bringing more businesses and manufacturingmade the difference. the obama and romney campaigns have all but suffocated ohio airwaves with more than $75 million in ads. since june the candidates, their running mates and wives have campaigned in the state 65 times. that's an average of about four visits per week. before mitt romney's well reviewed debate performances, an nbc-wall street journal poll found obama leading romney 51% to 43% among likely ohio voters. can a debate change ohio's democratic drift? the state's attorney general mike dewine and former governor ted strickland are next. there's big news. presenting androgel 1.62%. both are used to treat men with low testosterone. androgel 1.62% is from the makers of the number one prescribed testosterone replacement therapy. it raises your testosterone levels, and... is concentrated, so you could use less gel. and with androgel 1.62%, you can save on your monthly prescription. [ male announcer ] dosing and application sites between these products differ. women and children sh

ohio's republican governor john kasik says his policies, including bringing more businesses and manufacturinge made the difference. the obama and romney campaigns have all but suffocated ohio airwaves with more than $75 million in ads. since june the candidates, their running mates and wives have campaigned in the state 65 times. that's an average of about four visits per week. before mitt romney's well reviewed debate performance, an nbc-wall street journal poll found obama leading romney 51% to 43% among likely ohio voters. can a debate change ohio's democratic drift? the state's attorney general mike dewine and former governor ted strickland are next. 50 let's talk about low-cost investing. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 at schwab, we're committed to offering you tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 low-cost investment options-- tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 like our exchange traded funds, or etfs tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 which now have the lowest tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 operating expenses tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 in their respective tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 lipper categories. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 lower than spdr tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 tdd#

ohio. republicans have to win ohio >> but the race is close. >> the "washington post" at al the article whereere is said gm plant references that with the street signs it looks like it is leaning towards the romney. even an ohio there is doubt to beginning to creep been of the car company itself. >> final thoughts? >> it has been obama's strongest issue it is starting to soften. >> if he comes back for that bailout of gm he would be president of the united states. he would carry ohio. neil: we are done. we have covered them all. market reaction. insight. tweets. your money. your broke. all on the line until the big finish. two weeks. 0t[h7 music is a universal language. but when i was in an accident... i was worried the health care system spoke a language all its own with unitedhealthce, i go. information on my phone. connection to doctors who get where i'm from. and tools to estimate what my care may cost. so i never missed a beat. we're more than n 78,000 peop lookingut for that's health in numbers. miunitedhealthcare. you see us, at the start of the day. on the company phoneist that's a f