you just lived through a steve kornacki moment. he remembers more about your life than you do. >> thanks for having me. >>> mitt is behind. let the blame game again! our cyclists have their fingers ready for some finger pointing on friday, september 28th. [ male announcer ] this is anna, her long day teaching the perfect swing begins with back pain and a choice. take advil, and maybe have to take up to four in a day. or take aleve, which can relieve pain all day with just two pills. good eye. something this delicious could only come from nature. now from the maker of splenda sweeteners, discover nectresse. the only 100% natural, no-calorie sweetener made from the goodness of fruit. the rich, sweet taste of sugar. nothing artificial. ♪ it's all that sweet ever needs to be. new nectresse. sweetness naturally. >>> when a campaign begins to show signs of falling apart, everybody looks for somebody to blame. just today politico blamed mitt romney. steve kornacki disagrees with that conclusion. >> i know that guy. >> krystal ball blames

we start with steve kornacki in charlotte with an adoring crowd behind him. as much in love with steve as we are. how about that, you're a rock star, brother. >> it's not just me. it's you too. i feel like lee corso on game day with this giant crowd behind me. i need head gear to put on later or something, but you can tell, i think, from the reaction of the crowd behind me, there is, i'm picking up walking around here today and talking to people, a lot of optimism among the democrats here. i think it comes from what you just mentioned, toure, the polling right now coming off the republican convention last week suggests a minimal at best bounce for mitt romney so i think there's a sense from democrats things didn't go the way republicans hoped they would and therefore there's an opportunity for obama to have a strong convention and build a more substantial lead in the polls. i would throw in a cautionary note, the alternate interpretation is that this is really the modern reality of polarization in politics, there are fewer undecided voters, public opinion's mu

joining us now from the site of the dnc, steve kornacki, the host of msnbc's 3:00 p.m. cycle." he's also a senior writer for salon.com. thanks for being here. >> happy to do it. >> how much does union support matter to the democrats in terms of their ground game, their get out the vote efforts, everything they need to do to convey that political messaging into votes? >> i think it matters maybe even more than it did in the past. you started to outline the reasons in the last segment. what it gets down to is the ground game because i think we're at the point in the campaign where we can say, look, if you combine the money that the campaigns have with the outside money, with the super pac money, it's clear that obama is going to be outspent by romney and the republicans, but the bigger implication, the bigger problem the democrats have is that's going to trickle down the ballot as well. you start talking about senate races, house races, you talk about gubernatorial races on the ballot this year and state legislative races and you have seen since 2010 when republicans won

steve kornacki wrote that aforementioned salon.com article. he's co-host of "the cycle" that comes on at 3:00 on msnbc. tell me, where should republicans be pointing the finger if governor romney coming up short first fuse in november? >> i would say at themselves. there are obvious deficiencies with mitt romney as a candidate. i wouldn't deny that. >> the party itself is to blame? >> with the party -- romney is the representative of what this party has decided it wants to be. what the republican party basically decided in the obama era fingerprints to be is an anti-obama party. they've existed on, you know, the economy is bad. you're the average voter. you don't like where it is. just blame obama and use as the protest vehicle. to the extent they've decided to stand for anything, they move forward and farther to the right than they were under george w. bush and the republican congress in the 1990s. it left romney with this choice to run on their ideology, which is toxic to general election voters, or he can just run as -- if you don't like ob

michelle cottle and steve kornacki, thank you for your time tonight. >> you're welcome. >> and catch steve on "the cycle" week days at 3:00 p.m. eastern right here on msnbc. >>> last week republicans didn't really want to talk about mitt romney. but so far democrats have no such problem. >> mitt romney talks a lot about all the things he's fixed. i can tell you massachusetts was not one of them. >> if mitt was santa claus, he would fire the reindeer and outsource the elves. >>> and tonight there will be a fresh new focus on his record at bain capital. >>> plus big news today for the obama campaign. taking a firm stance for voting rights in a key battle ground state. and we'll talk to the woman who has single handedly stood up to extremism in north carolina. the host of this great convention, governor bev perdue. you're watching a special edition of "politicsnation" here on msnbc. hey. hey eddie. i brought your stuff. you don't have to do this. yes i do. i want you to keep this. it'd be weird. take care. you too. [ sighs ] so how did it go? he's upset. [ male announcer ] spend less tim

steve kornacki, mudcat saunders, and i know mudcat is working on his campaign. we have to talk about that at sam point, mudcat. thank you for your time. >> we need to talk about taking that crook out and we can do it. aircraft can tore can be beaten. in fact -- thank you. >> all right. and thank you. hi to let you get your plug in. also let me plug steve on "the cycle" weekdays at 3 p.m. eastern right here on msnbc. thank you, both. >>> governor romney's 47% problems just got worse. wait until you hear what bill clinton said today. and senator scott brown's staffers caught on tape, doing an offensive tomahawk chop at elizabeth warren supporters. i want to know where his apology is. >>> and scott walker is siding with unions. yes, you heard me right. we're throwing the penalty flag on him tonight. all that, plus 42 days to go and the obamas are having some fun in new york. you're watching "politicsnation" on msnbc. >> we're very happy you came on with us, mrs. obama, and brought your date. >> i brought him with me. he had a few minutes in his schedule. >> you kno

>> i'm steve kornacki here in charlotte where the skies just opened up on us. forget healthcare and the budget. tonight we are getting to the real issue, which candidate is the best looking? >> that is my thoughts on sally fields and clint eastwood. it is september 4th and you're in the cycle. >>> dnc kicks off tonight in charlotte and the crowds are starting it file in. 35,000 delegates media and fans are expected to be there no rub elbows and give speeches. tonight, mayor villaraigosa, rahm emmanuel, harry reid, jimmy carter and lilly ledbetter. all leading up to keynote speaker julian castro and headliner michelle obama. more on them coming up. vice president biden is expected to be there thursday and the president later in the week. >> whatever i say here today, it's going to be at best, a distant second to the speech you will hear tonight from the star of the obama family, michelle obama. on thursday night, i will offer what i believe is a better path forward. a path that will create good jobs. and strengthen our middle class. and grow our economy. and the

. >> i'm steve kornacki. i'm from massachusetts so i'm pumped about the senate race between elizabeth warren and scott brown. >> i'm krystal ball. barack obama and mitt romney wants you to like them, poke them, tweet them, vote for them, too. now the man behind david letterman is getting in on the action. >> don't make your weekend plans just yet. i'll tell bu the best movie of 2012 so far. that should keep you around for the entire cycle on this friday, september 21. >>> there's only seven days until early votes begins in iowa, 12 days until the first presidential debate, and 46 days until america goes into the booth and decides who will occupy the oval office the next four years. according to the latest poll, the election is still air-tight. history may one day recall romney as mr. 47% and spoke of his moment the day the music died. people on both sides admit the race could still change. there's always an october surprise. steve can name them all off the top of his head. trust me. both candidates are on the

we are joined by steve kornacki, company host of "the cycle." msnbc poli karen finney. cities. tampa and charlotte. would political conventions. but could their stories be any more different than they are today? >> we have been saying all along the contrast you are going to see in this election is very dramatic, very different and i think democrats did an excellent job last night starting to make that case and lay this out, very proud. >> steve, do you agree? >> yes. you know, what struck me watching that last night, i heard a theory about this race that it is sort of the mirror image of with our that barack obama and democrats are basically sort of enjoying some of the same advantages and funking the same way in this race that george w. bush and republicans were in 2004. and you know, the -- setup for the convention this week is the republicans are coming off of what at least in terms of the polling was a disappointing convention for them and that kind of reminded me of 2004 with the democrats. john kerry and democrats in boston did not get much of a bounce in 2004. bu

>> i'm steve kornacki here in charlotte where everyone is still talking about bubba's big night. oh, yeah, and that other prime-time speech. >> who are the democrats playing to this week, their base or the middle? is there even a middle anymore? howard fineman makes his debut in "the cycle" this hour. >> every convention has a party, but what do each convention's musical choices say? >> all that, plus what i want to hear from the president tonight. it's september 6th. the grand finale of the dnc, and you're in "the cycle." >>> good thursday afternoon to you. as all you cycle fans know, that means the intersection of presidential politics and, of course, baseball. so as we are in the bottom of the sixth in the election cycle, the game is tight. last night the democrats sent in their premier setup man, a left-hander named clinton, and set up he did. >> i want to nominate a man who's cool on the outside. but who burns for america on the inside. >> i could have watched that speech all night. like all good setup men, he left no doubt where he stands in relation to the closer, presiden

steve kornacki, cohost of "the cycle" week days at 3:00 on msnb krrb. thanks a lot. >> one of the most notable speakers at the democratic national convention is here tonight. she's going to speak with us about the fresh news about the 2012 campaign and of course the lady parts. that's the interview tonight. we'll be right back. [ dog ] we found it together. on a walk, walk, walk. love to walk. yeah, we found that wonderful thing. and you smiled. and threw it. and i decided i would never, ever leave it anywhere. because that wonderful, bouncy, roll-around thing... had made you play. and that... had made you smile. [ announcer ] beneful. play. it's good for you. out! your kind is not welcome here! nor your odd predilections! miracle whip is tangy and sweet, not odd. [ villager 1 ] it's evil! if you'd try it, you'd know. she speaketh the truth! [ villagers gasping ] reverend? ♪ can i have some? ♪ [ chuckles ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ honk! ] ♪ [ male announcer ] now you'll know when to stop. [ honk! ] the all-new nissan altima with easy fill tire alert.

steve kornacki, cohost of "the cycle" week days at 3:00 on msnbc. thanks a lot. appreciate it. >> one of the most notable speakers at the democratic national convention is here tonight. she's nancy keenan is going to be talking to us about the fresh news about the 2012 campaign and, of course, the lady parts. that's the interview tonight. we'll be right back. [ music playing, children laughing ] [ slap! slap! slap! ] [ music, laughter stop ] [ male announcer ] when your favorite foods fight you, fight back fast with tums smoothies. so fast and smooth, you'll forget you had heartburn. ♪ tum tum tum tum tums [ male announcer ] tums smoothies. there's natural gas under my town. it's a game changer. ♪ it means cleaner, cheaper american-made energy. but we've got to be careful how we get it. design the wells to be safe. thousands of jobs. use the most advanced technology to protect our water. billions in the economy. at chevron, if we can't do it right, we won't do it at all. we've got to think long term. we've got to think long term. ♪ >>> al jazeera blish just made

joining me now in charlotte is steve kornacki, co-host of "the cycle" on msnbc. jonathan capehart, opinion writer for "the washington post" and an msnbc contributor. first, thanks to both of you for being here. >> thank you. >> thank you. >> steve, let me start with you. this is a very close election. what do the democrats need to do in charlotte tonight and this week? >> you know, the word i keep coming back to is context. you know, what obama is up against, what democrats are up against. powerful tendency of swing voters when the economy, when economic anxiety is high, unemployment is stalled at a really high level. there's just this sort of tendency to want to take it out on the incouple went and that really is -- i look to that republican convention last week and to me that was sort of -- the overriding theme. especially of romney's acceptance speech. it was a very generic acceptance speech. we talk about how there weren't that many details in there. i that's intentional and by design. romney strategy here, you know, is not -- say as little as possible that is

. >> steve kornacki, thank you so much. good afternoon. it's wednesday, september 26th.numbers sink to new lows. >> the polls are not favoring mitt romney. >> there's no time off. it's around the clock kind of work. >> i don't pay a lot of attention to the day-to-day polls. >> now the bri ph ople >> we trust our internal polls. >> i'll go up or down. >> one goes one way, one dog goes the other way. >> yes, mitt's dream is going another way, too. >> that's quite a guy, isn't it, paul ryan! listen, ro/r h, sweet jesus. >> sweet jesus, indeed. >> romney/ryan, there we go, that's great. >> stop it. this is hard. you want to try it? did i -- was i a little strong? >>

with the tv debates to come, we go with yogi, but steve kornacki warns the debates don't always move runners. it's getting late early in this race. so the question is, which yogiism will we go with here? obviously, there's still more to come, et cetera, et cetera. i have to go if the romney campaign is going to change what's going on in this race, which is the president winning, not by a landslide but winning, they have to figure out one message and stick with it. i couldn't believe my ears yesterday about what he's saying about health care now. let's take a listen. >> i have experience in health care reform. now and then the president says i'm the grandfather of obama care. i don't think he meant it as a compliment, but i'll take it. there was during my primary. we thought it might not be help. >> now he's embracing being the grandfather of obama care. it seems like not just in this week but weeks past, romney is on one page on monday, a different page on tuesday, paul ryan is over here, john sununu and his surrogates are over here. they have to figure out what to say and stick with

lot of 2016 buzz based on a phenomenal speech was governor deval patrick from massachusetts and steve kornackik to him about his future recently. >> you have said you're not going to run for re-election income 2014. you want to return to the private sector. >> i miss the private sector on payday. i can tell you that. you can stay involved from the private secretarieser, as well. there may be another time in life when i feel i have some contribution to make in public life, but that won't be at the tail end of my time as governor. >> so what do you think, steve? >> something interesting happened that the convention last night because when you talked about 2016 and the speakers, the one everyone was talking about going into last night was martin o'malley, the governor of maryland. deval patrick came before that. when everybody left last night, they said the o'malley speech was a dud. deval patrick, there's something to watch there. i have a hard time believing he's not running for re-election in 2014. i have a hard time believing we've seen the last of him. the 2016 thing gets complicated because

i'm steve kornacki. for all of you asking, can we get the bill, he's on the way.ing center stage tonight. what's he going to say? a lot of democrats aren't sure. >> i'm krystal ball we're are with the former head of the rnc, michael steele joins us ahead. >> michelle obama was incredible last night. you know what else was incredible? the way the democrats owned marriage equality. >> i'm s.e. cupp. we're so forward looking we're already thinking 2016. can you say castro rubio? >> all that, plus i'll try to contain my excitement about bill clinton tonight. who are we kidding? i can't wait. fortunately, you don't have to wait for the cycle". it starts right now. be

the queen bee of the grio.com joy reid and host o cycle, steve kornacki. president obama is minutes away obitveddressing tnt bn ausy morning for both filled with speeches and media appearances in and around new york city. mitt romney spoke to the clinton global itiative and sat down with education nation. president obama spoke to the u.n. general assembly, follow thatirere d the first lady taped for "the view." the meeting of the united nations general assembly has put foreign policy front and center. president obama used the ait tack on the u.s. consulate in libya and the death on ambassador stevens to make the case for a broaderhilophy regardinthtu of the relations between the middle east and the west. >> the events of the last two wes also speaks to the need for all of us to honestly address the tensions between the west and the arab world that is moving towards demoacy. >> while he mad car tt the videtrkheioe s no reflective of american values the president defended the u.s. response and underscored that free speech is essential to prosperity and to pe

steve kornacki.a that the obama campaign and frankly bill clinton would be off message on wednesday night with each other seems to be really naive. it's in both of their best interests to get this right. >> no. it absolutely is. especially now. compared to four years ago coming off that heated primary. maybe hurt feelings and everything, but clinton, that the republicans made him a central player in her attacks. holding up clinton as the good democrat, comparing obama against. clinton looks at the welfare attacks using now and wants to defend that record and the other thing, soon as this election is over talking 2016, and hillary clinton is a prospect. >> you brought up 2016. what i get to do. live pictures we're going to show you. this will be a trivia question some day. who was the first potential 2016 candidate to address the iowa delegation breakfast, of course that happens every day this week? the answer is newark mayor cory booker, michael shear, heard it here first, booker, wins a senate seat,

msnbc contributor jonathan capehart of the "washington post" and co-host of msnbc's "the cycle" steve kornacki of salon.com. catastrophic events changed the nation. this morning, president obama visited the memorial at the pentagon to speak about the legacy of september 11th. >> 11 years ago memorial services were held for americans of different races and creeds, backgrounds and beliefs, and yet, instead of turning us against each other, tragedy has brought us together. i've always said that our fight is with al qaeda and its affiliates, not with islam or any other religion. this country was built as a beacon of freedom and tolerance. that's what's made us strong. now, and forever. when the history books are written, the true legacy of 9/11 will not be one of fear or hate or division. it will be a safer world, a stronger nation, and a people more united than ever before. >> today, yards away from where the trade cen once stood the freedom tower is nearly complete. its importance has far less to do with architecture than symbolism. proof that a city and country can rebuild and return to the hei

. >> steve kornacki, thank you so much. good afternoon. it's wednesday, september 26th.oll numbers sink to new lows. >> the polls are not favoring mitt romney. >> there's no time off. it's around the clock kind of work. >> i don't pay a lot of attention to the day-to-day polls. >> now the british now polish people. >> we trust our internal polls. >> i'll go up or down. >> one goes one way, one dog goes the other way. >> yes, mitt's dream is going another way, too. >> that's quite a guy, isn't it, paul ryan! listen, romney/ryan, romney/ryan. >> oh, sweet jesus. >> sweet jesus, indeed. >> romney/ryan, there we go, that's great. >> stop it. this is hard. you want to try it? did i -- was i a little strong? >> romney/ryan. >> not sure precisely what i said but i stand by what i said, whatever it was. ♪ cleveland rocks jumping jean james dean ♪ ♪ cleveland rocks >> we begin with the president and mitt romney in a fever-pitch to gain the american heartland with candidates holding dueling events in ohio this afternoon, speaking at exactly the same time, to somewhat different kro

i'll talk to steve kornacki who said romney is not the one to blame for his campaign struggles.s tieing with ale consulting firm over allegations of major voter fraud in florida. bob... oh, hey alex. just picking up some, brochures, posters copies of my acceptance speech. great! it's always good to have a backup plan, in case i get hit by a meteor. wow, your hair looks great. didn't realize they did photoshop here. hey, good call on those mugs. can't let 'em see what you're drinking. you know, i'm glad we're both running a nice, clean race. no need to get nasty. here's your "honk if you had an affair with taylor" yard sign. looks good. [ male announcer ] fedex office. now save 50% on banners. you won't just find us online, you'll also find us in person, with dedicated support teams at over 500 branches nationwide. so when you call or visit, you can ask for a name you know. because personal service starts with a real person. [ rodger ] at scottrade, seven dollar trades are just the start. our support teams are nearby, ready to help. it's no wonder so many investors are saying...

in new york, i'm joined by steve kornacki, co-host of "the cycle" jonathan capeht and ari melba.urn around a lifetime of flip-flopping, six years of lackluster campaigning in a 90-minute televised debate with the president? >> he almost has to. this is such a fascinating election to me because it's simultaneously one-sided and close. if you look at the real clear politics average of all the polls, it's basically a three or four-point lead in obama's favor. it's not huge, but it's a stubborn and persistent three or four points. it's been that way the entire race and it seemed basically immovable from either side. stuck at that three to four-point level. the hope that romney can take coming into this debate is john kerry in 2004 was being written off sort of like romney was. kerry was perceived to do much better than bush in the debate. closed the gap substantially. there were a lot of soft democratic vote worries strayed from his side. his debate performance brought them back into the fold. that's not the case now. it's more of a mishmash of democrats and republicans and casual vo