i wanted to ask senator toomey.ings that we have to overcome to get this, in fact, made law. how do you see those hurdles being negotiated and what should the public do to help? because i think this is something that you two have proven all americans can unite around. >> well, i would really want to echo senator manchin's to urge people to read the bill. then if you support it. if you support the idea of keeping guns out of the hands of criminals and mentally dangerous people and not infringing the rights of law abiding senators then call your representative in the congress and senate and we have to reach 60 votes several times in the process in order for this to go all the way. so it needs to be bipartisan. there needs to be a significant number on both sides obviously and that is going to take some public support. >> senator toomey, senator manchin just mentioned a few moments ago that part of the job that you two guys are involved in right now is selling it. selling meese proposals. >> right. >> pretend i'm john

senator toomey what, brought you to this place where you are now? >> bob, i have been in this place since 1999, my first term in the house. i voted to expand background checks because i think it's common sense to try to make it more difficult forcrim al schedules truly mentally ill op obtain weapons. and i acknowledge, there is no single bill that is a panacea for this, but we can make it more difficult. we can reduce the chances that they'll be successful. and that would be some progress without infringing on the rights of law-abiding citizens. >> let me just say-- and i think even marco just said it and i know pat met with the families. i met with the families of newtown. these families-- i've never met people with the strengths and convictions they have. first of all, they'll come in and say we don't want anybody's guns to be taken away. we don't want any infringements of the second amendment to be infringed upon. when they come to you and they're saying, honestly, we know the bill you're working on right now would not have prevented what happene

senator manchin and senator toomey. both come from states where there are avid and dedicated and legitimate gun rights advocates. it would have been easy for both senator manchin and senator toomey to ignore this situation and not reach across the aisle to each other to see if we could come up with what i think most americans -- in fact, i've seen polls that 80% of the american people support reasonable background checks that do not infringe on the constitutional rights of our citizens. so i want to congratulate both senator manchin and senator toomey for taking this position. you may not win today, i say to my two colleagues, but i will say that you did the right thing. you did the right thing and it's been my experience as a senator in this body for some years who has not always done the right thing, but doing the right thing is always a reward in itself. and sooner or later, this country will take up this issue and it will take up the mentally ill issue and it will take up i hope hollywood violence and i hope it will

toomey and mr.chin felt, this is where we could make one step forward, where we can say what everyone i know, right and left, thinks is, we should with able to keep guns out of the hands of people who have been convicted of felonies, and in order to do that, you need to have a stronger background check. >> does heritage have a gun bill? do you have an alternative to this? >> we have a lot of ideas about what you can do on cool safety. we have a lot of ideas on what you can do about mental illness issues. but you look at tucson, that's somebody who passed a federal background check. you look at what happened at virginia tech, that's somebody who should have been in the system. we have separate problems, which are about school safety, about mental illness that we need to address. this is a bill that's fundamentally about giving politicians political cover to be dealing with a problem while they're not actually solving it. >> that's going to be one of the arguments from conservatives. a lot of liberals

the same thing with the mansion/toomey bill. so let's talk about guns, 68 votes on the motion to proceed so they can begin debate. it gets 68 votes yesterday. there's still many hurdles to clear, right? >> so many, so many. >> we're looking at weeks of debate on the various amendments, tell us about what to expect next? >> the surprise of getting more republicans than expected and a bigger vote is worthy of noting, it is in fact a big deal. it shouldn't be confused with meaning that some gun restrictions or changes to gun sales is going to sail through. not at all. i describe it as many four-way stops. we'll proceed down the road a little bit and then everybody stops and it's a little bit of that lunching, move forward. >> you, me, you! right. >> what's so powerful about the toomey/mansion opportunity, they have such standing in the nra, they have standing with their colleagues, pat toomey, republican of pennsylvania has been talking to house republicans. he was a house republicans. so there's been some of that going on with the

i saw toomey come out. i wasn't hopeful he would. he's joining the posse as i'm putting it, one of the good guys now. i think you're reaching these people in human terms, those who are reachable that way. you've just got to keep calling. i would actually work the phone all night and keep calling. >> i'm not stopping. >> always call after 6:00. all important people, big shots after 6:00. they don't have five or six secretaries between you and them. you know what i mean? they get a little available all of a sudden at the end of the day. bother them at five after 6:00. you'll probably get a few of them. thank you, erica lafrty. you're doing the right thing for the country, too, not just for your mom. >> thank you. >>> coming up, president obama tells republicans, let's make a deal. he says he's already cut the deficit and has more than met the republicans halfway. he's doing his job. the question for republicans, how do they agree to higher taxes and a grand bargain? it's a tough one for them but they got to do it or nothing's going to

senator toomey. >> mr. president,. >> thank you, mr. president. >> i would like to begin by actually taking a moment to inform the members of this body and people who may be listen, of you weren't aware, it appears that a tragedy has struck at the boston marathon. and bombs have gone off, and there are injuries that we know of, casualties, the severity of which we too not yet -- do not yet know. we hope and pray there are no fatilities. it's too soon to know that with certainty. i know my good friend from west virginia joins me in having our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families. very, very disturbing news we have just learned this afternoon. >>> i can't tell you how much i appreciate senator from west virginia, the work we have done together. it has been challenging and constructive, and i think we have dom a very sensible legislative product. something that i can be proud of. i want to thank senator kirk for the work he did in this, from way back. and senator schumer's contribution to this process as well. i'd

manchin-toomey would impose new obstacles on law-abiding gun owners.even though expanding gun background checks would have done nothing to stop newtown or other mass killing. it would do so even though expanding background checks would do nothing to prevent these killings in the future. i often quote the deputy director of the national institute of justice, and it was recently -- that institute and that person recently wrote that background checks could work only if they were universal and were accompanied by gun registration. and, of course, most members of the senate oppose gun registration. they know what has happened historically with gun registration. it has led in other countries to confiscation, and members of the senate, but more importantly, lots of people appearing at our town meetings fear that and don't want to go down that road. the background check amendment claims to strengthen the rights of gun owners, but in fact it does not. the fact is, the opposite is true. so opposition to the amendment does not come from fringe elements of society

but joining me now is senator manchin and senator toomey of pennsylvania.ou all have put together this bill which includes among other things a way to expand background checks to gun shows. when does it go on the floor? and do you have the votes? >> well, we expect a vote this week. it's not certain as to exactly when. i think wednesday's probably the most likely day for a vote for the manchin/toomey, i think it's an open question as to whether or not we have the votes. >> we're asking, candy, just for our colleagues to read it. we've sent it to all of them. we've give an outline of it, but it's a bill that basically looks at how we treat our veterans and make sure they're treated the way they should be treated with respect and dignity. how we basically look at violence and commission on mass violence, expertise in mental illness and why we don't do more. this bill basically if you're a criminal and if you've been mentally adjudicated, you might not like it. that's all we're saying. at gun shows, internet sales, commercial transactions is that you should no

and all the ads against toomey blocking the legislation went off the air, which to toomey me tells to was really worried about this in pennsylvania. >> is there any thing unconstitutional in this as the nra claims? >> yet, and that is not really the issue. this is about not just background checks, limiting ammunition, magazines. the significant thing this time is the grassroots movement for some kind of gun control. not about of newtown, but all over the country. while there may not be enough to defeat the nra, the nra does not have the skill to alter itself anymore. >> i will call your attention to the behind the current -- curtain column from "politico" on friday. the newtown family several against staff only meetings. they will not do them. they insisted on sitting down with the senators themselves. they are mostly nonpolitical, but quite accomplished in their own fields. they are a unique moral authority to prod senate action. you saw joe machin's -- joe manchin's reaction. >> i did. but that is no way to legislate. the idea is we have to do something. no, that is not how you legi

toomey: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from pennsylvania. mr. toomey: thank you, mr. president. i would like to begin by actually taking a moment to inform the members of this body and people who may be listening, if you weren't aware, it appears that a tragedy has struck at the boston marathon and bombs have gone off, and there are injuries that we know of, casualities, the severity of which we do not yet know. we hope and pray that there are no fatalities. it apparently, according to the news reports i've seen, it's too soon to know that with certainty. so i know my good friend from west virginia joins me in having our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families of very, very disturbing news we've just learned this afternoon. i can't tell you how much i appreciate the senator from west virginia, the work that we've done together has challenging and constructive, and i think we've come to a very sensible legislative product, something that i can be proud of.

call senator toomey. tell him it's time to take pennsylvania solutions to washington. >> haers the interesting thing. first, mostly, i guess it's interesting, but this is herbally a positive ad in favor of a republican senator findinging a way to support reform in a way that will resognate with his home state. can we just put up on the screen the end of it, the last frame, kind of the call to action? so, lots of political issue adds end with kind of a call to action like this. demand action. call this number. you're supposed to call the number and it either connects you to the interest group running the add or donating the money. sometimes, in a negative ad where they're targeting somebody, the call to action phone number at the end will be the office phone number of the person who has targeted in the ad as the bad guy. people moved by the ad will call that person's office and complain. but in this case, again, this is kind of a positive ad. at least an encouraging ad for senator toomey in pennsylvania to

the manchin/toomey proposal is a good faith but unworkable plan. the proposal will kbroez new taxes and unreasonable burdens on law-abiding citizens. remember, tom coburn was the first target of chuck schumer to try to get him on board the background check compromise. here's the thing. as our new poll shows is, a wide divide remains between the two parties. 55% of all americans want stricter gun laws. but while 82% of democrats favor stricter laws, just 25% of republicans do. you can pretty much use those same percentages to decide what are the chances of a gun bill passing in the senate versus the house. a lot of gun control advocates belief the manchin/toomey compromise is not enough tough. but we've got more prove yesterday that the president will be happy to sign anything. he released a statement saying this, "this is not my bill and there are aspects of the agreement that i might prefer to be stronger. but the agreement does respect welcome and significant bipartisan progress." in an interview with "morning joe," vice president biden chose to

toomey. the senate will vote on whether to move forward with gun legislation later today. this is 18 minutes. >> good morning. i'm going to be covering up some people's phones here. i hope i don't -- let me just say good morning to all of you. i'm very, very proud to be here with my good friend, pat toomey, from my sister state of pennsylvania and west virginia we're side by side. we come from states that have deep-rooted cultures, as you know, and we believe very strongly in that. i also want to give special thanks to two people who weren't here today who have been invaluable to this process and have worked from the beginning trying to find common ground and that is senator chuck schumer, my good friend, mark kirk. mark has never left. chuck and his staff and all of them that worked so hard, i thank everybody. the staffs do yeomen's job. i also want to thank tom coburn. tom has been invaluable to the process. also coming from the culture we come from and have great input all the way through

of pat toomey.he type of candidate i keep talking about on this show. a guy who's conservative fiscally, moderate temperamentally. but let's just say, this is very good for pat toomey. he needs to get there. tom coburn, though, to do this coming from oklahoma, that is a guy that says, you know what? i'm good here. i'm going to do what may not be politically popular. >> what i liked about it, you didn't need a gang of 40 to get it done. >> it's not done. >> yes. >> we're on the doorstep. it could still fall apart. >> it could still fall apart. you know, hope springs eternal. joe will silently scream if that happens. but you didn't need a gang of 40 to get it done. you had two guys from the right side of the aisle and the left side of the aisle and they got together and they figured out the common sense core of this thing and they crafted something, we'll see, as you said, how it all plays out. but i think hopefully it opens up a new door to how we get stuff done in this town. >> still ahead on "morni

the manchin/toomey deal would expand background checks online and eliminate the gun show

pat toomey. asked whether or not he was worried about the political repercussions of being an republican out in front on gun safety. >> in 1999, i supported expanding background checks. i think it makes g common sense. i will let the political chips fall where they may. >> the people will decide whether or not they want me to stay there or not rather than just being -- just following the public opinion polls, and finally, just one more clip here from francine wheeler, the mother of little ben, six years old, mowed down at sandy hook elementary school last december 14th. she and the other parents t they are going to -- they are never going to forget what happened of course and they are determined that they are going to make a difference and francine wheeler was asked to give the weekly radio address for president obama and she says the media may say everybody is forgetting about newtown what happened there. we never will. >> i have heard people say that the tidal wave of anguish that our country f

where majority leader harry reid is expected to speak any minute and we may hear remarks from pat toomey and joe manchin who are on the floor talking to colleagues. even taking questions, according to our reporters there and working to secure the need background check. just within the last 48 hours, senators who were undecided on how they would vote have been standing their ground, if you will, this morning. north carolina kay haguan, a red state democrat who had been on the fence said they will be a yes. saying, as a mother, there is nothing more important to me than protecting our children. but republican senator lindsey graham came out as a no saying it is not a solution to illegal gun violence. instead of expanding a broken back ground check system, let's fix it. and susan collins became the latest to back the bill and heidi is now refuting a new york time story that claims she will be a no. saying that she is right now undecided. that leaves seven senators, four democrats and three republicans who are still on the fence. and by the latest nbc count, it is six votes shy of passage to

i would have gone the way of mccain and toomey on this. eal black mail and you have to do it with the children and not if there is no logic in this and that's what is wrong with the demagoguary. >> that's it for the panel. steve hays will be in the helm and stay tuned for a case was mistaken identity. on schedule. . the first technology of its kind... mom and dad, i have great news. is now providing answers families need. siemens. answers. plays a key role throughout our lives. one a day women's 50+ is a complete multivitamin designed for women's health concerns as we age. it has 7 antioxidants to support cell health. one a day 50+. i honestly loved smoking, and i honestly didn't think i would ever quit. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. it reduces the urge to smoke. it put me at ease that you could smoke on the first week. [ male announcer ] some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depresd mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while takin

he's a democrat, republican senator pat toomey of pennsylvania also has a virtually perfect record ass concerned. they have now, though, come together and have come up with a compromise proposal to expand background checks for gun purchases in the united states. they spoke together just moments ago. >> let me just say good morning to all of you and i'm very, very proud to be here with my good friend pat toomey from my sister state of pennsylvania, west virginia, we're side-by-side and we come from states that have deep rooted cultures, as you know. and we've been very strong. and i also want to give special thanks to two people who aren't here today who have been invaluable to this process and have worked from the beginning trying to find common ground. and that is senator chuck schumer, my good friend, and my dear friend mark kirk. mark has been with me from the beginning. and has never left and chuck and his staff and all of them who have worked so hard, i thank everybody. pat will tell you. i also want to thank tom coburn. tom has been invaluable to the process also coming from the

the manchin-toomey proposal is a good faith but unworkable plan. the proposal will impose new taxes and unreasonable burdens on law-abiding citizens. in the house, speaker john boehner said it's nowhere near a done deal. >> any bill that passes the senate we will review it. it's one thing for two members to come to some agreement. it doesn't substitute the will for the other 98 members. >> meanwhile, the families of the newtown victims continue to push forward with new legislation. they said it's not a partisan issue. >> we're not sitting across from these people and these meetings in a divisive spirit. there's a spirit of listening, unity, respect. and i'm so grateful that my daughter taught me that and that i can do this in her name now, and for my son. >> now they get the idea we are some sort of lobbyist. we have no intention of infringing on anyone's legal ability to own a firearm. we don't go there. we don't talk about that. we're trying to bring sanity back to the table where 90% of americans say, you know what, that just makes common sense.

what's pat toomey going to do? if he's worried about the philadelphia suburbs for his re-election, he ought to vote to end the filibuster. and there are republicans, congressmen, senators, all over the country who have to worry about that. and how can you tell the people of newtown or any other tragedy that they're not even going to get a vote? that's despicable. >> i get the feeling he's involved in a same-sex political marriage with wayne lapierre. political marriage. i don't think he's going to -- i mean, i'm sorry, tick off wayne lapierre. your thoughts, congressman, because i really worry now. i look at this 60 vote thing, this ultimatum for people like ted cruz down in texas. it's not going to hurt him. he could be mr. gunman down there. it's not going to hurt him at all. he could be jesse james in texas is fine with him down there. 60 votes. you have to get all the democrats, five republicans and not lose any of the guys from out west in the democratic party. >> chris, i do think it's going to be difficult,

right now manchin-toomey is nowhere close to that number. if the bill dies in the house, gun control advocates will have to figure out how to turn the gun issue, which historically has been the achilles heel for democrats, into a 2014 advantage. with that in mind, keep an eye on a couple of states, particularly here's washington state. a gun control advocacy group is preparing to announce a 2014 ballot initiative campaign centered on expanded background checks. it would be washington state's first gun-related measure since a high profile failure 15 years ago. you can see where this is going. you can see that is a new path. if washington doesn't go, that states that allow referendums to do this and it will be where the bloombergs and mark kellys of the world end up potentially going. >>> watching the pictures coming out of north korea today you'd have no idea the country is at the center of a nuclear standoff. crowds of north koreans were out in the streets celebrating the 101st birthday of the country's founder. leaders in pyongyang rejected

look at toomey right now, why is he doing this?e faces reelection in three years in a swing state, pennsylvania. he's got to be making some calculations when it comes to the political capital he's expending. >> i think you said the key word, swing state. pennsylvania is not one of those hard-nosed republican states. it can go either way. he might be trying to appeal to the suburban voters. >> what is your thought here? does he lose his a rating from the nra? >> well, you know, the nra has been playing quite an interesting game. its reaction to this latest proposal is kind of mild. president obama probably said exactly the right thing. he said in his statement, this is not my bill. of course he's considered say it an by so many hard-nosed republicans. what there seems to be in this behind the scenes effort to get as little damage as possible. >> that vote in the senate today. thank you so much, bob franken. >>> other news going on around american. chicago store owner brought a bat to a gun fight and won it. he repeatedly swung even

>> we heard that from congressman ryan who said he has great respect for toomey and will listen to whatever he has to say. >> wonderful. thank you for joining us, everyone. i'm going to wake up joe who's face down in his office right now not feeling very well. if it's way too early, it's time for "morning joe." but now it's time for "the daily rundown" with chuck. have a great day. >>> done deal. here we go. key senators set to speak shortly as momentum has suddenly shifted in the president's favor for changing the country's gun laws. and the bluster fueling a republican filibuster quiets down. >>> also this morning, a deep dive into what's really going on in north korea. we'll talk with a veteran u.s. diplomat who's one of the few americans who have actually sat at the negotiating table with the combative country. >>> and could wiener be a winner again? find out what the former congressman has to say about the tawdry twitter tale that forced him out of office and the possibility that he might seek a city hall comeback. >>> wow. thank you so steve and ted miller of denville, new jersey, for

senator manchin and senator toomey's agreement, not everything i would like to see. but i do believe that it is a major step forward. i think that the type of vote that we had yesterday went beyond the simple 60 to beat the filibuster, 68. that speaks volumes that there is a greater desire at least to move ahead on this element of common sense gun control. of course many of us like myself have stronger views about, you know, large capacity magazines and assault weapons. those would be much, much tougher. i got to believe this element of common sense gun control can be broadly supported. >> let me switch gears a little bit because you're chairman of the foreign relations committee. there's a lot of north korea about what's happening in north korea and fear over those reports and they may have a nuclear device small enough for a missile although the administration has pushed back some on that. how worried are you about the situation there on the korean peninsula? >> north korea has added dramatically to the tensions of the core jean peninsula and the entire region. we

i can't say enough about my friend, pat toomey. and i just appreciate you so much for working as hard and the staff willing to take on, after all of us come together today. i would like to introduce my dear friend of pat toomey from the great state -- >> thank you very much. i, too, want to commend senator manchin for the great work that he has put in. our staffs have worked very hard as well. and i appreciate. it's been a pleasure working with you. will continue working together i hope on many things. i also want to mention the terrific work that senator kirk has done on mr. t. has really been an invaluable asset and its gushing a very, very important voice in this discussion to let me say, pennsylvania has a long bipartisan tradition of supporting gun rights. i've been proud to be a part of the commission and i continue to be. i'm a gun owner, and the rights that are enshrined in the second amendment are very, very important to me personally. as i know there are two so me people across pennsylvania. my record shows this. i've got

the senate voted down the toomey/m toomey/manchin background check amendment. 64-46. a hard breaker. four republicans voted for the measure. pat toomey who put it together with joe manchin. john mccain heroically here. mark kirk of illinois. and another moderate republican, susan collins of maine. now, on the democratic sides, those votes no were no surprises here. mark bagitch of rural alaska. mark pryor of another red state. majority leader harry reid voted no. that's procedural so he can vote to reverse the vote. it's a senate technique. president obama will be making remarks in the rose garden right there at 5:30 eastern, a few minutes from now. casey hunt and howard fineman. casey, you and i have been -- you've been helping me on the phone the last couple of days. it looks to me a pretty dreary result in that it looked like it was moving up before the horror in boston a week or two. i'm not sure, did it ever look to you like it was going to reach 60 and then fell back? or was it never really close enough to 60 to make it? >> the point at which we -- the mood up h

call senator toomey. tell him it's time to take the solutions to washington. >> i love this ad. it's like hug him so close. giving so much love he can't get away. >> it's one of those rare instances when you tell somebody your state, in some respects, it goes farther. as a result, pennsylvania's crime stats have dropped in comparison to the states that have closed that loophole. >> do you think there's an interesting lesson here about the strategy? more than any other domestic political priority, the president and the democrats have been out front on this. they've been applying intense political pressure as opposed to the way they're dealing with immigration right now, which is let people come to an agreement behind closed doors. it's been a really interesting thing to watch this play out. >> watching the president usher those folks off the plane, you go in. some of these ads are quite quite intense. there's also this new $235 million for some kind of mental health program nationally. senators look at that stuff, too. there's the money that's going to be for school safety and 44

saying she would vote for toomey/man shinn. but there are a hand full of folks, let's show some of their names. i want you to talk about the politics that go on here. on the democratic side, mary lan droou undecided. max baucus undecided. heidi heitkamp undecided. deanç helder of nevada, jeff flake and retiring georgia senator saxby chambliss. i want to focus on the democrats here, kelly, because this is something that president obama has made a big priority. mary landrieu, heidi heitkamp, up for re-election in 2014. >> not heidi heitkamp. >> yes, baucus and landrieu. >> for baucus, his fellow state senator was just re-elected, a democrat as well. but montana is gun country there are many people strong advocates for the strongest gun protections for gun owners there. so he is one to watch. max baucus. will he be a no, will he be a yes? he surprised us a bit by voting yes to begin the debate. that's a very different calculus than voting on the measure itself. heidi heitkamp is from north dakota, similar circumstances there. and

no one can question pat toomey's conservative as bona fide. they'll be able to formulate a bipartisan agreement around this. if they can't then they were never going to be able to any way. >> michael: that's a great point. there are just some people you're not going to get through. background checks got 86% on a poll from yesterday. 86% support. that's astonishing. then you move to the nra. the nra is reacting to this by saying they are a not going to grade this vote. that's a huge burden on the back of you republican senators who will not have a good grade. that will be obsolete one day. and quote noah, i know you disagree with me. i'll let you do it. >> well, yeah that's true. all those murders were committed. i'm not sure about jared but they got their guns legally. they will criminals by stealing those guns. that's not something that you can stop. but if this bill pass the senate and make it in the house it does save republicans and the nra will let this save republicans and also democrats. it will save democrats who maybe wavered, and who

take the big bipartisan gun deal announced today by senators joe manchin and pat toomey.t's simply designed to expand background checks to cover gun shows and internet sales. the cost of the deal, apparently, private person-to-person sales, which will still be exempt from background checks. the nra was a, quote, near constant presence in the room as manchin and toomey worked out the details and toomey would prefer you not even refer to it as gun control. >> i don't consider criminal background checks to be background checks, it's just kmons. >> see that, that is the power of the center. the center gets to be common sense, which is good. everything else is defined as politics, which is bad. now, narrow as this background check may be when put up against a staggering problem of gun violence in this country, it's still a remarkable think. even just six months ago, a bipartisan gun safety bill of any kind would have been unthinkable. there has not been a major piece of gun safety legislation debated in the senate since 1994. that was the last time we saw anything like what's

checks deal. >> senator toomey understands how important that change is. >> i'm in favor of making changes to a background system. >> in pennsylvania, almost 90% of us support comprehensive background checks. call senator toomey, tell him it's time to take pennsylvania's solutions to washington. >>> newtown families will be on capitol hill today lobbying lawmakers. they flew to d.c. aboard air force one with the president after he delivered a speech in connecticut. he said congress should put politics aside and do what's right. >> connecticut, this is not about me. this is not about politics. this is about doing the right thing for all the families who are here that have been torn apart by gun violence. it's about them, and all the families going forward, so we can prevent this from happening again. >> but resistance to even having a vote is growing. now mitch mcconnell will join 13 other senators who have pledged to filibuster. i want to bring in nbc news politics producer casey hunt and perry bacon, political editor for the grio.com and msnbc contributor as well. casey, start with you. b

toomey thought having him there would hurt their cause.umer and others had been working with manchin for weeks, but coburn wouldn't agree with a paper trail of gun sales. once he was gone the group added toomey instead and the new coalition was able to come up with a moderate plan that pleased everyone. and that seems to be enough for the 14 republican senator who just yesterday had been sheiking about filibustering any gun bill that came to the floor. ted cruz actually cancelled a press conference this morning on the filibuster that he had scheduleded. but he didn't let reporters know. so when they showed up there was an empty podium with a handwritten note. cruz's spokesperson says he still plans to filibuster but that doesn't matter. the families of newtown were on capitol hill today meeting with the senators. >> i'm a parent . . . and a grandparent . . . >> let's all share. [ laughter ] >> i can't imagine. if i could do something. i can do something. >> michael: it's just so incredibly moving each time we see that. at the same time, fi

now getting a big boost on news that pennsylvania republican pat toomey may be joining democrat joe manchin in cracking a deal on background checks. according to the "washington post," they are developing a american that you are would require background checks on all purchases but there are some exceptions. for sales between close family members and some hunters. now, this news could not have come for a better time from the white house which is making big push this week. they awful this on their schedules this week beginning by the president in hartford, connecticut. while in connecticut, the president will meet privately with families of the newtown tragedy. the families share their stories on "60 minutes" last night. >> it is going to happen again. it is going to happen again. and every time, you know, it is somebody else's school. it is somebody else's town. it is somebody else's community. until one day, you wake up and it's not. >> we don't get to move on. we don't have to benefit of turning the page to another piece of legislation and having another debate and playing politics the sam

and manchin and toomey deserve a lot of credit.t as we -- all of us -- you know justly give shame and condemnation to the senators who were cowards yesterday you know people like manchin and toomey who we certainly did not agree with deserve a tremendous amount of praise. >> bill: they raise the bar because they were a-rated senators so they had a lot of credibility on this issue. we know the fight doesn't end here john. as you point out the brady campaign, you've been there for a long, long time. more allies than ever before. so thank you for checking in this morning. keep up the good fight. come back in studio and tell us how we can all help next time you have a chance. >> definitely. thank you bill. >> bill: thanks. john lowey is the director of the legal action project at the brady center to prevent gun violence. it is bradycampaign.org. they do great work. a lot of leadership on this issue for a long time. bradycampaign.org. >> announcer: this is the "bill press show." i think the number one thing that viewers like about the y

following the announcement toomey was asked if it could gain the support of his gop colleagues. >> i've had conversations with several of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, but i can't speak for them. i'm looking forward to the debate. i'm hopeful, but i think this is a fluid situation and hard to predict. >> the announcement of the 2k50e8 comes as democrats appear to have support of enough republicans to break a threatened filibuster when the debate begins tomorrow. joining me today eugene robinson, r.e. shapiro is a white house correspond for npr, and former white house press secretary and current contributor robert gibbs. also joining us from washington, the sage of capitol hill action mr. luke russert, my friend, yew boat shoes are going to clock a lot of mileage in the has of congress today. >> yeah. yeah. >> let's talk about what a deal means if there's no deal. a, can expanded background checks pass the upper chamber? is it going to happen? >> that is the million dollar question, ms. alex wagner. we simply do not know. this certainly gives a lot of republican senators who

toomey -- thathin- is an amendment, correct? that ithere was a hope could get out ahead of the bill as a stand-alone bill. at this point, the the only way to do it is as an amendment. harry reid says it will be the first amendment, amendment number one. the amendment that makes all the other amendments possible, because this is seen as a breakthrough that will allow enough republicans to see that there is some room for compromise, that they are comfortable voting this morning to allow debate to proceed. , if theygory korte don't get to 60 votes, if the democrats do not file cloture or are able to get cloture, what happens? harry reid says he will continue to hammer away at this issue and seek further cloture votes down the line, essentially forced the republicans into a filibuster. the reason why in minor senate history filibusters are usually just a second and never happened big -- is because threat of a filibuster can stop consideration of a bill. harry reid will call that bluff and will push consideration of the bill and if r