world, i've heard this, romney say, hey, guess what, president obama mocked romney when he said that russia was you know, the number -- it's a sore point for romney and may be the motivator for this. just to refresh, here's the back and forth. president obama during that debate in 2012 when he mocked mitt romney for that xwhent. . >> governor romney, a few months ago when you asked what's the biggest -- you said russia, not al-qaeda in the 1980s or not, call and ask for their foreign policy back because the cold war's been over for 20 years. >> do you think mitt romney, obviously, that bugs mitt romney. that's where this op-ed is coming from. does romney have a point? >> up to a point, he has a point. you could argue this russia was turning into more of a rival than the president acknowledged. however, what's the biggest geo political threat, iran. you wouldn't say it's russia and so, he's still wrong on that specific point. >> can i add something? iran is one of those issues which we're working with russia to try and control. >> we hope the russians are still going to work with us.

you know, he didn't like mitt romney. he thought mitt romney was too wishy washy.ink these guys know that. but he has not made a choice on who his favorite is. he doesn't know these guys as well as he knew some of the folks, especially newt gingrich as you know. i do think that he is going to be predisposed to someone outside of washington, to a governor as opposed to a senator or a congressman. >> john rolston, nia malik-henderson. thank you. coming up, the argument about contraception in the supreme court today. and later, the rest of the show is going to be sports night. paying college athletes, that's the big question that i will answer in the rewrite. and then also, the nfl team in washington, d.c. made an announcement about its name. ups is a global company, but most of our employees live in the same communities that we serve. people here know that our operations have an impact locally. we're using more natural gas vehicles than ever before. the trucks are reliable, that's good for business. but they also reduce emissions, and that's good for everyone. it mak

let's help you out, governor romney. when you compare pew's global polls between 2007 and 2013, countries with more favorable views include allies like france, poland, canada, israel, argenti argentina, south korea, and even that adversary russia. whether you think those global polls matter or not, the fact is that even with tons of spare time, mr. romney can't be bothered to get the basics right. that may be why president obama got the better of him in their last real foreign policy debate. >> the challenge we have -- i know you haven't been in a position to actually execute foreign policy, but every time you've offered an opinion, you've been wrong. >> joining me now are steve schmidt, from the 2008 mccain campai campaign, as well as david corn, the washington bureau chief for mother jones and political analyst. welcome, gentlemen. >> good evening. >> good evening. >> good to be with you. >> steve, let me start with you. if you have any responses to a coup of those holes i tried to poke in the op-ed, i welcome them. an

president obama responding with his disagreement with mitt romney. and the russia being the top geofoe. >> with respect to mr. romney's assertion that russia is our number one geopolitical foe. the truth of the matter is, america has a lot of challenges. russia is a regional power that is threatening some of its immediate neighbors, not out of strength, but out of weakness. >> the president said the world is a miscellaneousy place. and this issue stems from the election of 2012 and more on this in a matter of moments and lou dobbs standing by also. >>> harry reid renowsing calls to extend the sign up date on obama care with that dead line only six days away. i am bill hemmer. >> and the senate majority leader ignoring the demands for more americans to have time to enroll as they are facing fines. >> mike, hello to you. >> bill and elizabeth, good afternoon to you. senate democrats are facing a lot of heat and expected to continue throughout this election year. ads like this one against obama care and targeted mary landrieu, in louisiana. >> no longer

did governor romney think we wouldn't notice it's romney shambles all over again when he tries to giveresident obama foreign policy advice? but let me give this a try. let's look into the "politicsnation" crystal ball to see what the future holds for governor romney. wait a minute, i think i see something. yes, i have it. in the near future, i see a nice try. why? take a look. because we got you. so that was our first task, was getting him to wellness. without angie's list, i don't know if we could have found all the services we needed for our riley. from contractors and doctors to dog sitters and landscapers, you can find it all on angie's list. we found riley at the shelter, and found everything he needed at angie's list. join today at angieslist.com don't worry! the united states postal service will get it there on time with priority mail flat rate shipping. ♪ whoo-hoo! ♪ [ male announcer ] our priority has always been saving the day. because our priority... amazing! [ male announcer ] ...is you! the amazing spider-man 2 delivered by the united states postal service. the amazing spi

romney's assertion, russia's actions are a problem.

that's the massachusetts health care law known as romney care. discuss what lessons can be learned from that precedent and where we go moving forward based on that, our former democratic massachusetts congressman barney frank and roy, a former health care adviser to the romney presidential campaign. congressman, i want to start with you. you served in massachusetts during governor romney's statewide health care mandate. what do you think we should learn from that experience? >> well, i apologize, i'm not very good person to ask that. it is true i was serving in the congress during that time. i was not in legislature and wasn't directly involved. the one thing i can tell you is that i would hear from constituents about this or that problem during the time since it was signed and whatever 2000 -- 2006, i haven't heard any complaints about it at the state it worked well. in terms of lessons, i must tell you i do not sufficiently familiar with it to do that. and voted on and was supportive in general of the affordable health care act although parts i

romney's

now two years later he is revisiting if mitt romney was right.he most shocking response. >> you saw it there during the last election president obama and his team insisting in the debate america's top political foe is russia. despite the diplomatic headache russia is causing the united states and his friends president obama not changing its tune. >> in the light of recent developments do you think mitt romney had a point when he said russia was america's biggest geopolitical foe? >> russian actions are a problem. they don't pose the number one national security threat to the united states. i continue to be core concerned when it comes to our security when the prospect of a nuclear weapon going off in manhattan. >> he thinks a nuclear blast in new york city than he thinks russia is. the facts favor his view. >> reality i would v not have given russia the gifts secretary clinton and president obama gave russia. smiling pressing a button. are you kidding me? doesn don't you understand put tin has different interests than america. they will pursue th

in the 2012 presidential debate, president obama just hammered mitt romney for supporting that. >> a major difference in this campaign is that governor romney feels comfortable having politicians in washington decide the health care choices that women are making. i think that's a mistake. in my health care bill, i said insurance companies need to provide contraceptive coverage to everybody who's insured. governor romney not only opposed it, he suggested that, in fact, employers should be able to make the decision as to whether or not a woman gets contraception through her insurance coverage. >> mitt romney, this is very interesting, he initially denied that that was his position. he said, "i don't believe employers should tell someone whether they can have contraceptive care or not. every woman in america should have access to contraceptives." but, in fact, he did actually support the blunt amendment and the blunt amendment really did say that women can't get access to contraception through their health insurance if their boss says so. kind of does sound terrible when you put it that

>> i said to romney, he doesn't know much, but he's talking about -- >> the interesting thing about romney talk about what needs to be done now. all he says is obama got us into this mess. >> we were lucky to survive the cold war, who wants it back? >> john mccain. >> david korn, thank you so much. we think alike. i try to think as well as you. we'll be right back, i'm just a trained ape. i guess that's the phrase. what does that mean, we'll be right back after this. t. other things, you don't. [ female announcer ] charmin ultra soft is so soft you don't even have to squeeze it to believe it. you can actually see the softness with our comfort cushions. plus charmin ultra soft is so much softer and more absorbent you can use up to four times less. but what if you can't help but squeeze it? that's been happening to people for years. [ female announcer ] used by more plumbers than any other brand. try charmin. it's clog-free or it's free. your all-access pass to full seasons of tv's hottest shows for free with xfinity on demand. it's the perfect week to work from home. so replace your doorbel

does mitt romney deserve a presidential apology? >> no, he's not going to apologize, eric. what i will say ihe balance of power and of the influence america should have and that we should be respected. instead, we have a president completely confused about foreign policy and weakened our position internationally. putin doesn't respect him. red line, please. he's going to cross whatever line he wants, unfortunately. >> well done kg. we report, you decide. we're going to say thanks to michelle fields, kimberly and >> what have you got? >> it's a company that does photo compaction and for high definition systems and cameras. it sold off a little last week so i think it's bargain. >> where's the other guy? >> well, we got rid of him. he'll be back next week. he'll be back next week. thanks, wayne. great week. that's it. thanks for joining us. before we go, we want to thank you our loyal viewers, you made this show america's top rated cable muse show last weekend and the most viewed of any of the last five weekends. we promise to continue to defend our constitution and our repub

and even after romney lost, romney's top adviser, stewart stevens begged the post to reconsider thoseour pinocchios. in response, the fact checker reaffirmed them. and today, over a year later, we learned that ohio jeep plant is thriving. the toledo blade says it's hiring a thousand new workers. and bloomberg business news reports, quote, it's going gangbusters. demand for jeeps is so high, the workers are clocking 60 hours a week and still can't keep up. so the plant that romney claimed was being sent to china under president obama is a great american success story. did governor romney think we wouldn't notice? nice try, but we got you again. [ crickets chirping ] but did you know that the lack of saliva can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath? [ exhales deeply ] [ male announcer ] well there is biotene. specially formulated with moisturizers and lubricants, biotene can provide soothing relief and it helps keep your mouth healthy, too. [ applause ] biotene -- for people who suffer from dry mouth. hi boys! i've made you campbell's chunky new england clam chowder. wow! this is incr

>> i said to romney, he doesn't know much, but he's talking about -- >> the interesting thing about romney he won't talk about what needs to be done now. all he says is obama got us into this mess. >> we were lucky to survive the cold war, who wants it back? >> john mccain. >> david korn, thank you so much. we think alike. i try to think as well as you. we'll be right back, i'm just a trained ape. i guess that's the phrase. what does that mean, we'll be right back after this. is earned with sweat, sacrifice, courage. which is why usaa is honored to help our members with everything from investing for retirement to saving for college. our commitment to current and former military members and their families is without equal. they're about 10 times softer and may have surface pores where bacteria can multiply. polident kills 99.99% of odor causing bacteria and helps dissolve stains. that's why i recommend polident. [ male announcer ] cleaner, fresher, brighter every day. with the quicksilver cash back card from capital one, it means unlimited 1.5% cash back on everything you purchase, every da

you go back to mccain, to romney, even before that. do republicans need to reach to the middle or at least sound more like they are reaching to the middle, have a softer tone, or go more to the right? how is that argument playing out? >> after mitt romney was defe defeated in 2012, all the party leaders got together, gave many interviews about the need to move to the center to broaden the party's appeal. when i was at cpac, i saw reince priebus embracing the conservative base from the stage. every republican leader such as mitch mcconnell coming out and playing to the base right. they are not trying to push it toward the center in the mid-terms. >> jim demint was a conservative force in the united states senate. he leaves to go to the heritage foundation. we know his view is push right, push right, push right. does he think he's going to win in november? >> well, i don't know. he didn't go that far but i think what's been interesting is when you hear republicans try and paper over these tensions, they say this is really more about tact

gwen: romney won. >> that romney won. that are clearly republican states at the presidential level and increasingly down the ballot. some of these have incumbent democrats running. some are open seats. it's harder to defeat an incumbent than it is to pick up an open seat. but nonetheless, these are tough races. and beyond that, you have the state of the obama presidency. and the unhappiness that a lot of people have. his approval ratings nationally are in the low 40's. 41%, 42%, 43%. in these red states they are much lower than that. and so he is a drag on these democratic candidates in these races. so it's a tough situation. gwen: the republicans are worried, too and their choices between 2014 and 2016. and whether the focus on policy or the politics of those two years. >> right. and it really depends on what type of republican you ask. if you ask congressional republican who's interested in maximizing their control of the house, and seize the senate, tantalizingly in reach, they would say, you know, keep focusing on 201

that means romney got 0.8% of his total vote from african-americans. you look at that and say we really need to improve with african-americans but the challenge to that clearly is -- i don't know if you guys know this, but he's african-american. toon't know that it's going be a very easy bond to break. i think it's going to be very difficult. to 0.8%.wn 12.1% that is two point seven percent and obama got 7.1% of the total came from hispanics. suddenly we are down 19.2% for obama. you see the obama cumulative to 3.5%.then down when you factor all minorities, we are down and we are talking about 28% of the electorate. it's like a basketball game where your team starts out partially into the second quarter and you're losing by 17.5 points. let me tell you it's a heart water -- it's a lot harder to come back and politics than it is in basketball. hopefully american with the big game tomorrow does not drop down by 17 points. it means hopefully there is something on the screen. votersmney won white 51-39. the vote even% of when you got minorities, he needed

and do you think mitt romney had a point when he said that russia is america's biggest geopolitical foe? if not russia, who? and mr. prime minister do you think these sanctions will change vladimir putin's calculation, will cause him to back down? and where do you see a russian red line, where if they go any further where options beyond sanctions have to be considered? thank you. >> well, jonathan, i think if the premise of the question is that whenever the united states objects to an action and other countries don't immediately do exactly what we want, that that's been the norm, that would pretty much erase most of 20th century history. i think that there's a distinction between us being very clear about what we think is an appropriate action, what we stand for, what principles we believe in, versus what is, i guess implied in the question, that we should engage in some sort of military action to prevent something. the world has always been messy, and what the united states has consistently been able to do, and we continue to be able to do is to mobilize the international community aro

now he was asked if governor romney was actually right. >> do you think mitt romney had a point when he said that russia is america's biggest geo political foe. >> with respect to mr. romney's assertion that russia is our number one geo political foe, the truth of the matter is, america's got a whole lot of challenges. russia is a regional power that is threatening some of its immediate neighbors. russia's actions are a problem. they don't pose the number one national security threat to the united states. i continue to be much more concerned when it comes to our security with the prospect of a nuclear weapon going off in manhattan. >> regional power? here to respond, the man himself, former presidential candidate, governor mitt romney. good to see you, how are you? >> great, sean. >> you look healthy, rested. >> thank you, i feel good. >> what's your reaction to that, a regional power? >> russia plays a part in many regions in the world, not only eastern europe, but the middle east now, the caribbean, they have a destroyer in cuba. i'm not sure where the president's going, but i thin

adelson did not like romney. romney is not his kind of guy.going to be different this time. i think he wants a guy outside of washington, a governor like a scott walker, maybe christie, john bolton as you know is going to be there too. i would guess that adelson is going to load up on one of those guys. >> it's one thing about delusions of grandeur, but it may be true. adelson's support of hawkish israeli politicians and a two-tone solution. says a major focus for him politically, according to one friend, at the core of everything he does. he has expressed hawkish views on iran, not surprisingly. he was caught on tape at an event last october giving this suggestion how we the united states, we the united states should deal with the iranian nuclear program. let's watch this man with power. >> what are we going to negotiate about? what i would say is listen, you see that out is there? i want to show you something. you pick up your cell phone and you call somewhere in nebraska and you say okay, let it go. so there is an atomic weapon goes over ba

and president romney. look, those are good men. they're decent men, but when you don't stand and draw a clear distinction, when you don't stand for principle, democrats celebrate. you win elections by standing for principle and inspiring people that there is a better tomorrow. [ applause ] these solutions will not come from washington, but i'll tell you where they will come from which is the american people. >> that was rick perry and rand paul and ted cruz who made the big splash at cpac this year. they made the headlines. while chris christie, well, he made a nice speech, i guess. and that might tell us as much about governor christie's personal political standing as it does about the state of republican politics. joining us now, perry bacon jr., veteran political journalist and political editor for the grio.com. thanks for being here tonight. >> thanks, steve. >> i know you've been at cpac obviously so you have a front-row seat for all this. i guess, you know, we sort of set this up by talking about chris christie and i can sort

and mitt romney's claims during the presidential campaign that america's number one geopolitical foe that russia is behaving so abominably, was mitt romney right. >> in right of recent developments, do you think mitt romney had a point when he said that russia is america's biggest geopolitical foe, if not russia, who? >> with respect to mr. romney's assertion that russia is our number one geopolitical foe, the truth of the matter is that america has got a whole lot of challenges. russia is a regional power that is threatening some of its immediate neighbors, not out of strength but out of weakness. ukraine has been a country in which russia had enormous influence for decades since the breakup of the soviet union. and, you know, we have considerable influence on our neighbors. we generally don't need to invade them in order to have a strong cooperative relationship with them. the fact that russia felt compelled to go in militarily and lay bear these violations of international law indicatesless influence, not more. >> president obama yesterday in the netherlands explaining that russia

and take the romney example. he is a worse fit with this party than romney was because he is less willing to put up with some of the lip service of the people who make up the core of the party. and people in the republican party pointed to an example of romney and mccain and said we went with a candidate you told us had the best chance of winning. they lost. let's go with someone who appeals more to our hearts. >> what is the second best thing for if he runs an loses? is there a win for him and he runs a good race and comes in the 207 three or four? >> sure. he could be on somebody's ticket. he could become the leader of the party. and depending where the bridge thing, he could rehabilitate himself by getting back to more of what made him popular in the first place. >>> up next, ted cruz does a bad imitation of winston crucial, my hero. not cruz, churchill. he has done a very good imitation of joseph r. mccarthy. this is "hardball" the place for politics. >>> senator ted cruz was speaking at a recent event when h

let me say this in defense of what mitt romney did and sarah palin. we have been so consumed with islamic terrorists that we have not looked at potential -- the big geopolitical picture which is russia and china. so if the obama administration missed it, a lot of people missed it. while we're focusing on these terrorists that i think we're overfocused on, we have left alone some of the bigger players in the world. >> to be fair, i think you're right. i still think terror is number one. but i always thought russia was a second-tier issue. i felt that way because i wanted to believe it. i wanted to believe that the russians were so much in love with the west, but i conflated russia with putin. >> russians have been helpful to the united states when it came to fighting radical islamic terrorism. >> because it's in their own self interest. >> putin is the president of a sovereign nation. he should not be allowed to invade other sovereign nations. when you're fighting an idealogical war, you have to work with people like putin. >> can i point out the diffe

. >> people didn't like mitt romney that much.ruz. >> let's come out of this conference ree sovlted to win elections. >> every poll you end

does ted cruz really think he would have any more success than mitt romney? >> yeah, i think they actually believe the rhetoric. and they believe it because they talk to each other. they don't get out and talk to ordinary americans all over the country. they just talk at tea party rallies and right wing affairs. they don't talk to ordinary folks. i mean, the things that ted cruz has propose ready absolutely absurd. does he think that any americans want to see a tax system where we have a flat tax and the richest americans pay the same percentage as the smallest, as the poorest americans? of course not. does anybody think that, you know, we want to have no regulations for banks and wall street? of course not. the more they talk like this, the more they're signing their death warrant. >> but susan, it's not only ted cruz that is talking this way. there are other republicans that think that the more conservative they get, the more they can win elections. listen to this. >> it isn't good enough to pick the lesser of two evils. we must elect men. we must elect men

no one seems more eager to take a vow than mitt romney because the president embarrassed romney in hisin his 2012 debate. >> when asked what the biggest geopolitical threat facing america is russia, not al qaeda, you said russia. in the 1980s, they're calling to ask for their foreign policy back because the cold war has been over for 20 years. >> before mitt romney, vladimir putin's move on crimea was vindication. he was the candidate who knew the enemy. he was the candidate who saw putin's soul clearly. foreign policy isn't about who talks the toughest. what matters is what you actually do. so what would president romney have done to keep putin out of ukraine? >> we certainly could have taken action early on. we would have had far more options to try and shape events to keep rush is a from mosia fr. for instance, wokking with allies around the world to develop sanctions. communicating those to russia very, very clearly. at the same time saying, look, we're got going to interfere with your base in sevastopol or influence in kiev. >> mitt romney would have told putin there would have be

elliott accident better with women in virginia then mitt romney did. i think there is some slicing and dicing going on. committee level, we are trying to do our best and improve our position with women under 35. it will take work. it won't happen overnight. i think you'll see some success with obamacare being on the table. they bode well for the republican party. there are a bunch of people in the room who would like to hear your updates on convention cities. this friday, denver, las -- dallas,cincinnati will be at the rnc because of the snow we had. we had eight cities that bid on the convention. four years ago, we had three. there is a lot of interest in the convention. i don't know what the increase is all about. i think hosting is very difficult. we are very excited about where we are going. we are going to make the announcement in august. that might be something new the you have not heard of. my guess is we are going to probablye cities down 23 some time in may or june. then we will narrow it down to two. booming fee announcement in august. inthen

you were attacked harshly by governor romney last time you ran for president. has that changed your view? >> it has not. i think governor romney made some statements that were harmful to him, to the republican party, to americans who have come here, gone through the process, they have become american citizens, but they still relate to the individuals who have come here who may not be legally -- >> and he paid a price for that. do you think republicans are getting back more? >> i think republicans are wisely going to address the issue of immigration. the first thing that has to happen is you have to secure the border. this administration has sent signal after signal that they are not interested in securing the border. up until that border -- listen, i am a border governor. i understand that. the president of the united states is not interested in securing the border. if he were, the troops would be on the border. the technology would be in place. the focus would be there. it is not there. >> after that, would you consider a pathway to citizenship? >> there is on

and we debate romney's strong words. we begin the program with former deputy secretary of state and president of the brookings institution and one of america's foremost experts on russia, strobe talbott. you know putin. what do you think his appetite is? is he going to go into eastern ukraine? >> his appetite is unstated. we should not kid ourselves into thinking that now that he has grabbed ukraine and made it part of the russian federation -- that is it. he gave a speech to parliament in moscow several days ago. it was full of lies. perhaps the single most important and ominous lie was where he said, "i have no desire whatsoever to destabilize ukraine." he has every desire to do that unless the time comes when ukraine is a state of russia once again. >> how effective is the response of the u.s. and the eu? what more can we do? >> i would say it is too soon to see how effective it has been. that hasn't changed russian behavior and is not going to change putin's own determination to have his way. he is in a mood of bring