rachele haverlock. and she's here on a conference. also, she spent a lot of time in the area and she's written a wonderful book called "river jordan." it talks about how the jordan river has been used geographically as a boundary line in the region. welcome. >> thank you. >> so, the book, what is it about? >> well, the jordan river plays a prominent role in jewish life and imagination. it's an important symbol to christians and islam. highway wanted to look at why it's so important in the flee religions and how it came to persist as a really important boundary, location and symbol in jewish life from antiquity. >> just for some who may not be familiar with all of the ways in which the geography of the region is layed out and putting aside what some may call the political issues around the state boundaries between, say jordan and israel, egypt and the region, can we let folks know where does the river jordan actually situate itself? >> it's the lowest river on earth. it flows down from northern mountains in israel and syria. it cuts th

. >> reporter: rachel wheeler may look like a typical adolescent, giggling with girlfriends, going to school dances. >> still makes a very big impact. >> reporter: but she does something most 12-year-olds don't. she worries about kids who live hundreds of miles and yet a world away from her in haiti. rachel was 9 when she met this man who runs florida's biggest charity, food for the poor, and gave a presentation about haitian children who don't have enough to eat, don't have a place to call home. rachel believed that was just plain wrong and vowed to help him build homes for haiti's unsheltered. she ran bake sales, passed a can at homecoming games, appealed to local businesses. >> $2600 for rachel tonight. >> reporter: thousands of small contributions added up to now over a quarter of a million dollars. >> i love you. >> reporter: rachel never travels to haiti empty-handed. delivering care packages to needy children who lost their school and five of their classmates in the 2010 earthquake. in the small fishing village here, too, the shy young girl is a hero. >> is it overwhelming? >>

"the rachel maddow show" starts right now. good evening, rachel. >> good evening, ed. welcome back. i missed you, my friend. >> i put on a few pounds. we slimmed up the camera tonight. the turkey did it to me again. what can i say? >> i'm going to be sucking it in for the entire hour. i know exactly how you feel. thanks, man. >> you bet. >>> thanks to you at home for staying with us the next hour. it's good to be back. the herman cain campaign is in damage control after a local fox station in atlanta aired an exclusive interview with a woman who says she had had an adulterous affair with herman cain for the past 13 years. >> he made it very intriguing. it was fun. it was something that took me away from my sort of humdrum life at the time and it was exciting. >> she says the physical relationship ended about eight months ago. right before cain announced he was running for president. but the communication did not. when we asked for corroborating evidence, she pointed us to her cell phone. one name, herman cain. she showed us some of her cell phone bills that included 61 phone calls o

rachel, how do you call it? some pretty interesting stuff happening out there tonight. >> it is for liberals and for democratic-minded americans and for progressive americans and for people i think who would put themselves more to the center of politics rather than to the right where the republican party has really staked a flag this year. this is going to be a night of good cheer. the mississippi personhood amendment, it should also be noted, was defeated. a lot of people thought that anything that could be branded even remotely anti-abortion in mississippi would pass in a walk. mississippi voters voted that down. and it should be noted that this is the thing that would have not just banned abortion outright, it would have also banned birth control and ivf fertility treatments. mitt romney, the republican front-runner for president, said he was in favor of that thing, and mississippi voters vote td down. as you said, russell pearson arizona, the sponsor of sb 1070 having a rough night. looks like he may be on h

thanks for being with us. >> thank you, rachel. that was very moving and very generous of you. >> well, i am invested in your legacy because i feel like it's a big part of the legacy of what liberal americans think is possible in congress. when you think about ending 30 years in congress, what are you -- what do you want to be appreciated about what you do? >> well, there are a couple of things. i had the opportunity, it will be 25 years ago this coming may, to be the first member of congress to volunteer that i'm gay. and, you know, that was an easy one, because when you have prejudice based on ignorance, there's an easy way to combat it. you just be real. you just be who you are. contrast between who you are and how you live and the vicious myths that are being used against people, and they erode. i'm proud of the role i played in helping derail the impeachment of bill clinton, being led by that exemplar of conventional morality and defender of the family, newt gingrich, who was impeaching bill clinton. i am proud of the financia

rachel, i think you will enjoy the barbecue. it's the sauce. i guarantee you're going to enjoy it. >> i already made it through half the barbecue, ed. i hate to break it to you. i was going to take it home and be a civilized person. i sat at my desk like a caveman shoveling it in. >> they would not let me leave unless i had a batch of the stuff. you got to give that to rachel. i said, i'll do it. >> it's in good hands. thanks, ed, i appreciate it. >> you bet. >>> thanks to you at home for staying with us. it's not barbecue from ed day at the rachel maddow show, it's not just halloween. today is also a day unexpectedly packed with political news. there's a ton to talk about with what happened to republican front-runner herman cain today. we'll be getting to that in just a moment. there was actually something to talk about even with newt gingrich's campaign today and it's not just about newt gingrich trying to get his hands on your money this time. oh, wait, actually the newt story is just about him trying to get his hands on your money again. th

let's turn to my colleague rachel maddow, host of "the rachel maddow show" on msnbc. rachel, your impressions of what's happened tonight across the country? we have seen the governor, a democrat in kentucky, win by 21 points. we see the state of maine tonight has voted to restore same-day registration. and i think it also should be pointed out that in the state of arizona, russell pearson, who wrote the anti-immigration law, is trailing in his rachel, how do you call it? interesting stuff happening out there tonight. >> it is for liberals and democratic minded americans and progressive americans and people i think who would put themselves more toward the center of american politics than rather to the right where republican party has really staked a flag this year. this is going to be a night of good cheer. the mississippi personhood amendment, it should also be noted, was defeated. a lot of people thought that anything that could be branded, even remotely antiabortion in mississippi, would pass in a walk. mississippi voters voted that down. it should be noted that thi

. >> thanks, rachel. >>> all right. republicans oppose president obama's proposal for extending tax cuts. he's for the tax cuts. they're against the tax cuts. that's next with my guest, bob herbert. please stay with us. [ female announcer ] we were flattered when regenerist beat a $100 cream. flabbergasted when we creamed a $500 cream. for about $30 regenerist micro-sculpting cream hydrates better than over 20 of america's most expensive luxury creams. fantastic. phenomenal. regenerist. [ male announcer ] indulge all you want. now there's no need to hold back. ♪ new revolutionary scope with dualblast technology obliterates strong food odors and kills bad breath germs leaving your breath minty fresh. hey. sorry i'm late, baby. i bet you're starving. [ male announcer ] so there's no trace of evidence... hey, i thought i did the dishes. [ male announcer ] blast away strong food odors and bad breath germs with new scope dualblast. also, try crest complete extra white with scope dualblast. so i get claritin clear for strong,

. >> thanks, rachel. >>> all right. republicans oppose president obama's proposal for extending tax cuts. he's for the tax cuts. they're against the tax cuts. that's next with my guest, bob herbert. please stay with us. especially my finances. that's why i have slate, with blueprint. i can make a plan to pay off big stuff faster... or avoid interest on everyday things. that saves me money. with slate from chase, i'm always in control. financially, anyway. get slate with blueprint and save money. call 855-get-slate today. ♪ [ engine revs ] ♪ [ male announcer ] oh what fun it is to ride. get the mercedes-benz on your wish list at the winter event going on now -- but hurry, the offer ends soon. [ santa ] ho, ho, ho, ho! [ male announcer ] you never know when a moment might turn into something more. and when it does men with erectile dysfunction can be more confident in their ability to be ready with cialis for daily use. cialis for daily use is a clinically proven low-dose tablet you take every day, so you can be ready any

rachel maddow is next. here on msnbc. >> good evening, rachel. >>> good evening, ed. honorary firefighter from the great city of columbus, ohio. you know, whoever came up with that stupid rule about don't put anything on your head on television, they were wrong. i'm just saying. it's been a great show, ed. looking forward to seeing you later, my friend. so awesome. get me one of those. all right. thanks to you at home for staying with us for the next hour. it's a very exciting day in political news. because it's election day. happy election day. all right. let's get right into it. you ready? in kentucky, polls closed just over two hours ago. incumbent democratic kentucky governor steve bashir was challenged by republican senate president david williams. kentucky voters rejected the republican challenge and re-elected their incumbent democratic governor. in the kentucky governor's race with 80% of precincts reporting, we're looking at 57% of the vote for the democrat steve bashir and and 34% for williams. in kentucky, democrat jack conway faced his own republican chall

and also rachel maddow, host of "the rachel maddow show" here on msnbc. rachel, let me go to you first, if i may. what message, in your opinion, does it send to other states and governors if the defeat is as big as it appears to be at this point. with early voting, i know. but what message, rachel, do you think this sends to other republican governors and maybe all the way to the white house? >> again, ed, we don't want to extrapolate too much from this small proportion of the vote, and there's, you know, there's worries that polling on issues like this can overstate what the results are going to be, particularly when one side, in this case the no on issue 2 side, is really, really depe depending on turnout. it's a lot easier to tell a pollster who calls you at home that you're going to get out and vote against this thing. it's another thing to actually get out there and vote. we'll have to see how this turns out. if the numbers tonight do follow the polling and as john nichols just said, there does turn out to be a really strong vote against sb-5, a no v

those days are long gone, rachel. i mean, the primary process and the electoral process has changed dramatically. and the ability of parties at the local level or the national level to keep someone in or to take someone out is very, very difficult to do. i mean, the old days of that kind of happening where you kind of pushed some guy or gal up front and said it's your turn has really kind of been turned on its head. so there's very little that you can do to keep someone out of the race who really wants to get in. the filing fee that, you know, you make the filing fee, you're on the ballot. so then it's a matter of getting the percentages at the national level to be in the debates and the like. but the parties don't have that kind of control anymore. >> do you think it is substantively important that herman cain never bothered to build a traditional campaign structure or really a campaign structure at all? i've really seen him sort of plugging into this existing political structure that's the americans for prosperity,

the rachel maddow show starts right now. rachel, they love you in columbus. > i love them back, man. amazing show. amazing show. i'm so glad you're there. hello, columbus. thanks so you at home as well for staying with us for the next hour. there is so much going on. the long running grossout genius performance arts satire radio spectacle that is the "howard stern show" which is now just on satellite radio, they're apparently promoting a singer. i don't know if it's somebody howard stern enjoys or if this is a paid arrangement or something. today, republican presidential politics in america were briefly taken over by this. >> this is not what you think it is. just calm down. no, it's not what you think it is. just calm down. this is about alisa jordana. this is not about me. this is about alisa jordana. j-o-r-d-a. alisa jordana. the name of one of her songs is [ bleep ]. and "young love" is a good song to listen to. >> benjy, you're on live mike. seriously. >> i won't say the bad word. it's f-u i'm fine. >> he's right. that'

rachel maddow starts right now tonight. good evening, rachel. >> good evening, ed. spectacular show tonight. i love you that got her on the air tonight. when i saw her in that video, i could not believe how cool under pressure she was. that was great. >> thank you. >> thanks, man. all right. and thanks to you at home for joining us for the next hour. are you ready for the worst analogy that's ever been acted out on television? all right. here's the scene. where are we? we are on a street. here, wait. what was i doing? i was driving a car. what's that? person i just ran over in a crosswalk. now, what is the herman cain argument in this situation? listen, officer, listen, i know -- i know. but look at all these other people walking around safely, safe and sound in this street scene. i drove right past them, and they're all fine. i mean, yeah. but the vast majority of people in the street who i drove by have not been hit by my car. officer. that's the herman cain argument. >> for every one person that comes forward with a false accusation there are probably -- there ar

>> well, i think there's two things, rachel.t on the one hand we have to do a better job of helping them seamlessly transition from the d.o.d. to their civilian status. that is they need faster, better access to their health care. they need faster, better access to their g.i. bill so they can go right into those training programs, the vocational rehabilitation programs. on the other hand, we have to educate our employers and show them that these veterans are going to be very very best employees. give you an example. you know, when i flew my helicopter, my soldiers guaranteed the quality of their work with their lives. my crew chief when he handed me the keys to the helicopter and said, i checked the oil and made sure every safety wire was twisted properly, he didn't hand me the keys and walk away. he climbed in the back of the helicopter and went out on a mission with me. he guaranteed the quality of his work with his life every single day. our employers need to learn that is what our veterans are capable of doing. >> you are ru

rachel, her show starts right now. i'm not going to miss it. >> thanks to you at home for staying with us for the next hour. at the university of california's campus at berkeley, which everyone calls cal. outside the administration office there's an empty space. a short run of stairs from the administration area down the plaza, there's a plaque embedded in the steps and it names the steps the mario savio steps. this is mario savio. you're about to hear him in a moment, i'll tell you for context, the president kerr you hear him mention was president of the university of california at the time that mario was speaking here. the context here is that the students were trying to overturn a ban on political activity on campus. they wanted free speech rights to advocate for political causes on campus. and they're protesting against the university president and the university's board of regions. check this out. >> we were told the following. if president kerr actually tried to get something more liberal out of the regents, why