roger simon, politico and charles first on this one.ddress the congress in joint session. the vice president put out the word he's going to be detailed, clear, it's not enough to unite the democrats. >> i'm not sure that it is. i think that the president has waited a little too long in the debate and not given a clear direction and not actually explained things in ways that people can understand. the great thing about, gop, they speak in bumper stickers. the president does not do that. oratory, it's great for the history books but it's not great when you're trying to win a political battle and so it never sticks. they turn him into the party of no, no, i'm not going to take away your health insurance. he's on the defensive. i think it probably has gone on a bit too long for him to salvage the original plan. he has to give up much more than he wants to give up. basic lay to move the goal post to claim a victory. >> i agree. a lot of people are seeming worried they won't get the liver transplant, the protocol, stuck in a huge bureaucratic

we'll bring in syndicated columnist kathleen parker and roger simon of politico to round out the discussion. and then i'll have a final word on what this debate is telling us about us. but first white house advisor david axelrod on "face the nation." captioning sponsored by cbs "face the nation" with cbs news chief washington correspondent bob schieffer. and now from cbs news in washington, bob schieffer. >> schieffer: good morning again. senior white house advisor david axelrod is in syracuse this morning. republican senator olympia snow is here in the studio. the demonstrators who poured on to the industries of washington yesterday capped off an angry summer. it saw the president's popularity go down as tempers went up. even on the floor of congress where a back bencher congressman called the president a liar. as the president was calling for unity. i want to go first to david axelrod this morning. mr. axelrod, what do you make of this demonstration yesterday on the streets of washington? do you think it's indicative of the nation's mood and what message do you have this morning for those

. >> we are going to talk about this with david gregory and others later, roger simon. in "the fix." with you two, politically this president who i voted for and was thrilled with his campaign. he seems to decide he doesn't like this topic. he doesn't like that we are talking about this. he doesn't like this conversation. >> it is the third wheel for him. he absolutely cannot talk about race. >> does he want us talking about it? >> i don't think it matters. he can't stop us. >> does it bug him we are talking about it? >> i think he would rather we just talk about health care. he would rather not see the racial track. >> it makes everyone tribalistic. you are demuring here. >> i don't know what barack obama wants us to talk about but it is -- >> does this hurt the chance of getting beyond race. >> i don't think there is anything wrong with talking about race. that is part of the growth process. we can overemphasize the anecdotal and make it more than it is. let's go back to january when barack obama's approval rating was 70%. somehow all those people didn't become racist

and don't you think that the republicans don't know it. >> back with roger simon and ceci connelly. a democratic fund-raiser. could he help president obama sell health care reform? there's that question and lumped into it is this question in the very few minutes we have left. let's start with you, ceci. i get the sense he may have moved the meter, the president, president obama publicly last night. do you get the sense that he moved the meter at all in terms of to votes in the house and the senate? >> you know, that's very hard to say today, mike. i can tell you that just released senator mccain, who of course obama made a big deal out of embracing a mccain idea around high-risk pools last night, senator mccain has put out a very harsh letter asking people to sign a petition against an obama-type health care plan. so, that was really an unexpected slap from somebody who at times has tried to have sort of cordial relations between those two rivals. you also still have a lot of division on exactly what president obama might don

. >> insight from "washington post" columnist gene robinson and politico columnist, roger simon. >>> but first, the president of the united states. friday afternoon i sat down with president obama in the roosevelt room at the white house. >> mr. president, welcome back to "meet the press." >> great to see you. >> this is a critical moment in the health care debate. and you've been able to assess the landscape. you've got a bill now that's working its way through the senate. you've spoken to congress. as you assess the situation, i wonder whether you approach this with a minimum threshold of what you'll accept for reform, or at this point have you said, i've laid out my plan, take it all or nothing? >> you know, i think that my focus is on some core principles. i have to have a plan that is good for middle class families who we know last year ended up seeing a 5.5% increase in their premiums, even though inflation was actually negative on everything else. that have seen a doubling of their premiums over the last decade. that are less secure than ever in terms of the insurance they can

fix" dead serious tonight with david gregory, moderator of nbc's "meet the press" and politico's roger simon the bombings of 9/11. we are at war still, longest war in history probably now. is this a call for an escalation by the admiral? >> i don't think there is any question that it is. the admiral has been clear. military leaders have been clear. there's got to be parody between the mission and the resources. if they're going to do a counterinsurgency, a nation-building effort in afghanistan, the u.s. needs more troops and they're going to be there for a while. the president has an important choice to make. >> roger, that choice is politically packed but it's real. it's not a public relations issue, it's not about campaigning or getting votes, it's about whether this country stays at war at full strength or whether we begin to pull back out of that war. >> it is real. we have gone from a mission creep in afghanistan to a mission gallop. you heard the admiral say one of the goals there now is to improve life there in afghanistan. we could be there 100 years. the mission used to be is what w

for more let me bring in roger simon, chief political columnist for politico. roger, scorecard, one to ten tonight. how did the president do on his media tour yesterday? >> i thought he did very well. i don't know if i can give it a number score. it's somewhere around eight i suppose. you know, he wanted to go on and put health care on the front burner once again. he got a lot of other questions and a lot of other subjects, but he, you know, he put that in the spotlight. did he get closer to narrowing it down to what bill he would sign and what bill he would veto? no. so that is why i think you can't give him any higher score than he got. >> well, the president refuses to be demanding at this point. after there's a declaration that they've got to hit the reset button, after republicans have put a line in the sand. i mean, when does the president get demanding on his own party? i find this very interesting. from this standpoint, roger. i want your take on this. here's the president telling the governor of new york not to run. >> right. >> okay. here's the preside

. >> we are going to talk about this with david gregory and others later, roger simon. later in our "fix." we go to the political depth of this. let's deal with you two. politically this president who i voted for and was thrilled by his campaign and the fact we could elect an african-american after all these years, great. he seems to decide he doesn't like this topic. he doesn't like the fact we're talking like this now. what do you think? >> it is the third wheel for him. he absolutely cannot talk about race. look what happened -- >> does he want us talking about it? >> i don't think it matters. he can't stop us from talking about it. >> doesn't it bug him that we're talking about it? >> i think he would rather we just talk about health care. i think he'd rather not see the racial element rear its head because it gets everybody off track. it's inflammatory. >> it makes the voters think more white or black. what do you think? you're demuring here. >> i don't know what barack obama wants us to talk about, but it is -- >> does this conversation hurt the chance of getting

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. >> thank you david gregory, roger simon. "meet the press" sunday, the president will be on. join us again tomorrow night at 5:00 and 7:00 eastern for more "hardball." right now it's time for "the ed show" with ed schultz. >>> good evening, americans. welcome to "the ed show." big story tonight. bipartisanship is dead. died about noon today eastern time. september 16th, 2009. the baucus plan is a flop. it isn't going to work. three republicans, all these meetings, 20 to be exact, not a sung l republican vote. senator jay rockefeller gout out of a meeting with the president of the united states. he will join me in a minute as will kent conrad, one of the gang of six. progressives have been pushed to the side of the road and forced to put up to the stall game, delays for months on end. all the trash talking from grassley and enzi all in the name of let's get along bipartisanship. what do we have to show for it? nothing. not as of now we don't. so just keep in mind, as i've said all along, this is now a watered down bill stripped of a public option and who told us that? a whistl

thank you david gregory, thank you roger simon. "meet the press" this sunday. join us tomorrow for more "hardball." "countdown" with keith olbermann starts right now. >>> which of these stories will you be talking about tomorrow? the max tax. the baucus compromise. insurance premiums for middle class families to be deducted directly from their paychecks. 13% off the top right to the insurance companies. the republicans rejected the democrats can't possibly survive by supporting it. the insurance companies, they love it. their stocks all rose 2% to 3% today. this is the compromise? this is insane. >> it is balanced, a common sense bill that can pass the senate. >> pass the senate? senator baucus, after this turkey you'll be lucky if they let you keep your senate parking spot. >>> carter and courage, the former president elaborates on his comments about racism being at the core of some of the rage about the president. >> there's a feeling among many that an african-american -- >> and he gets the reactionary blowback from the racists he's talking about. >> the nat

. >> on politico, roger simon is writing in terms of the president speaking that this is not a time forto get specific on wednesday. do you agree and does he need to get specific about the public option? >> yeah. i think he does need to get specific. i think he will get specific. with all of the respect to the commentators this president is pretty good at making speeches and understanding how to communicate with the american public. i have a lot of faith that he will deliver a very persuasive and coherent message. >> i want to play for you a bit of the president yesterday talking to the health care critics. >> i've got a question for all of these folks who say, you know, we're going to pull the plug on grandma and this is all about illegal immigrants and you've heard all of the lies. i've got a question for all of those folks. what are you going to do? what is your answer? what is your solution? you know what? they don't have one! >> have you spoken to any of your colleagues who are on the other side of the aisle? have you had any good conversations on what ideas they my have here going

wilson had strep throat last night and never said what he said, and we're going to ask the politicos roger simonrom "the washington post" what they think the story would have been -- what would we be talking about tonight? what would we be reading in print and electronic about the speech last night, c.c., if joe wilson had strep throat? >> well, i think we would be spending much more time trying to figure out if the speech actually moved the public or moved those members of congress. because as you certainly recall, mike, it was a pretty rough august season for obama and health care reform, and the whole idea behind that joint address to congress last night was to try to change the dynamic and shift the agenda. the other thing that, frankly, i've been doing all day today is trying to ask more about what exactly is this $900 billion obama plan that he now is calling his plan? >> roger, what do you think we'd be doing? >> i think ceci's exactly right. i think the first question he would have gotten after that cabinet meeting -- in fact it's the only question he got -- is how are you really going t

. >> roger simon, thanks very much. join us tomorrow night at 5:00 and 7:00 eastern for more "hardball." "countdown with keith olebermann" starts right now. >>> which of these stories will you be talking about tomorrow? the three-ring deather, birther shouter circus comes to the biggest tent of them all. >> you lie! >> congressman wilson, the chief clown of the circus, apologizes but not formally and for the wrong thing. >> he apologized quickly and without equivocation, and i'm appreciative of that. >> i wish he had not. >> i want to tell you this, that it was spontaneous. >> so is most flatulence. the outburst may have been spontaneous but being wrong on the facts of section 246 was not, the enabling of, the celebration of the republican culture of being wrong at the top of your voice. tonight, a special comment. with opposition to reform now reduced to deather birther shouters, can the president now get the reform he outlined passed? he meets with democratic senators on the fringe and with nurses in the trenches. >>

roger simon writes for politico. gentleman, let's take a look at the first thing.ere's president obama with david letterman last night. let's see what we can learn. it's sort of his scorecard he's doing right now. let's listen. >> in terms of the health care, what is it i don't understand about this? >> well, why don't you help me through, dave, where -- what's been puzzling you, lately. >> if i'm not feeling well -- >> right. >> i go to the cbs nurse. >> yeah. everybody should have a cbs nurse. and i'm sure the nurse is a wonderful person. >> well, there you go. let's take a look right now with chuck and with roger. here's the latest nbc poll on this question. has the president been doing the right amount of media exposure? i'm not sure people are that sophisticated, but they have an answer. 54%. a majority says, yes, he's got it right. too much, only 34%. only a third. and 9% say too little. well, that's not too many. chuck, can we go by the public's estimate of the president's "q" rating and how well he's doing in terms of media saturation. because it sounds lik

chuck todd and politico's roger simon are here to answer that big question. >>> plus, the war in afghanistanma give general mcchrystal the troops he wants? what would victory look like in afghanistan? do we even have a strategy? and what would be the consequences of getting out? all tough questions and we'll ask ron reagan jr. and frank gaffney. >>> and let's take a look, let's get a good inside look at the president, there they are, and the first lady, michelle obama. tonight we examine the power marriage of barack and michelle obama, with noted author christopher anderson. >>> also, bill clinton says jimmy carter is wrong, that race is not what animates president obama's opponents. let's look at why he would say that in the politics fix. >>> and finally, marathon man. former house majority leader, the hammer, tom delay, made his debut on "dancing with the stars." here he is. here's tommy. ♪ ♪

. >> roger simon, c.c. conley, thank you very much. join us again tomorrow night at 5:00 and 7:00 eastern for more "hardball." right now, what you've been waiting for, it's time for "the ed show" with ed schultz. >>> good evening, america. this is "the ed show" live from new york. tonight, the president's speech. yes! i loved it! it was about challenges. he showed some two-fisted leadership last night. he goes out there and he challenges us as a nation to do this. he challenged members of his own party, he challenged the republicans. but most importantly, president obama, you know what he did? he drew a line in the sand. nobody is talking about it. of course he drew a line in the sand. you know what he told the insurance industry? you're going to have to get it together on a couple of major issues, like this one about denying coverage. >> under this plan, it would be against the law for insurance companies to deny your coverage because of a preexisting condition. as soon as i sign this bill, it will be against the law for insurance com

roger simon, chief political columnist for politico with us tonight here on "the ed show." great to have you with us. you bro a great piece today. i think you drew it in the wine. it's not the wacky left that wants the public option. it is the democratic party. >> absolutely. as you heard from both conniers a and walters, they think they've compromised. they want single payer. that's what the left wing of the democratic party wants. the main string, the democratic wing of the democratic party wants the public option. they think they're never going to get single payer. you have this group of powerful democrats who say, you want us to compromise more? look, the public option is a compromise. that's our line in the sand. without it, health care doesn't work. by can't pay for it. we can't keep costs down. what are we really arguing about? the second factor is, you know, obama can't trade away -- president obama can't trade away people like conyers and waters, nor to get republicans votes he's never going to get. the fact, two senators from maine, he's not going to get any repub

. >> insights fr "the washington post" colum nim gene robinson and politico columnist roger simon. >>nt of the united states. friday afternoon i sat down with president obama in the roosevelt room at the white house. mr. president, welcome back to "meet the press." >> great to sea you. >> this is a critical moment in the health care debate, and you've been able to assess the landscape. you've got a bill working its way through the senate. you've spoken to congress. as you assess the situation, i wonder whether you approach this with a minimum threshold of what you'll accept for reform or at this point have you said i've laid out my plan, take it all or nothing? >> you know, i think that my focus is on some core principles. i have to have a plan that is good for middle class families who we know last year ended up seeing a 5.5% increase in their premiums, even though inflation was negative on everything else, that have seen a doubling of their premiums over the last deca decade, that are less secure in terms of the insurance that they can actually count on, and more of more of them can