>> don't worry. donations are still accepted. we begin with bromance in the air for the gop's new darling of the month, mr. newt gingrich. a short time ago the king of bling arrived at trump tower to kiss the ring of the donald. just down the road in newt's favorite jewel store, tiffany. gingrich arrived in new york as the first candidate to sign on for trump's debate on december 27th. there's some concern about whether the venue will have enough space for just these two egos. >> it's amazing how well he's doing and how it's really resonated with so many people. >> tondonald trump is a great showman and dpraet businea grea. he's a genuine american icon in his own right. why wouldn't you want to come and hank out with mihm? >> in dween the love fest they found time to work on a self-promoting effort to help new york city's poorest children. from the knld of child labor, a new program. ten lucky children could find themselves tapped to join the young janitors of america mentored by mr. trump. >> we call it apprenticeship, and we know about the apresence adverti apprentice. we pick ten young children and we are going to do it. >> the selective shoulder running through the parents on new york city may have been measurable on the richter scale, but newt left the meeting looking self-satisfied and so he should be. there he is, the big man up top on nbc's new poll from the hawkeye state. newt 8 points up on mitt romney virtually tied with ron paul. once more, take the now derailed cain train off the page, and newt does even better. he's up to 28%. indeed, there have been conflicting reports all day about whether gingrich will get r herman cain's endorsement now that he's been forced to quit, following allegations of adultery that cain denies. iowa for christian government released two ads one entitled newt gingrich judis and serial adulterer. let's go to to our panelists. good afternoon to both of you. >> hello. >> hi. >> jonathan, who would have thought it. newt gingrich a man whose comments on poor families you described and i'm kweeting you as disgusting now out in front meeting with your friends and acquaintance donald trump. can you if i can this out? >> sure, i can figure this out. no one can corral the new york media better than donald trump, and no one has an ego as large as donald trump than, say, newt gingrich. look, newt gingrich got himself a ton of free publicity. will get it all through today and maybe through tomorrow. so you've got these two minds, these two egos coming together. it's a -- as you call it a bromance made in heaven. >> to quote gingrich i helped defeat the effort for communism in the congress and explained the bellian education system in the congo. is there anything this man cannot do? >> first, i'm disproportionately excited for the debate. newt gingrich has an impressive resume and a i will lose russ career, and that's not a joke. as familiar as we are with his resume, we're family with his character. ask anyone who knows him from the 1990s, and you he's very temperamental and can be arrogant and difficult to work with. people even who were recently on his campaign would say that. i think he's been very well-behaved so far on the campaign trail and the rumblings around the hill are there's a matter of time before the real newt shows its -- rears its ugly head again. >> john, you were chuckling. did you want to comment on the fact that she's suggesting he's relatively well-behaved? >> no. >> you don't think he has been? >> no. please. what he said about really poor children in really poor neighborhoods as you accurately quoted me was disgusting and is reminiscent of old, arrogant, i know more and i am, you know, above it all newt gingrich. so i think we're seeing sort of the cracks coming in the facade of a more -- of the more disciplined newt gingrich we'd seen before. the higher he goes in the polls and the add lags gets, it's tougher for him to hold that ego in check. >> indeed. >> assuming he's doing that. >> essie was saying she's excited by the forthcoming debate to be chaired by the donald. already jon hunts man sxron paul say they will skip the debate. gingrich says he won't miss it for the world. how do the rest of the candidates respond? does it matter this moderator, your friend, donald trump, continues to press the birther issue as he did so this morning? >> donald trump believes and he and i have come to agree to disagree, to not even talk about that subject anymore. my feelings on what he did with the birther issue with well-known and out there. i don't walk away from them. and donald trump doesn't walk away from his belief the president was not born in the united states or at least he thinks it's questionable. i think what we're going to see is newt gingrich is going, rick santorum says he's going. i'd be surprised if michele bachmann didn't show up in des moines on december 27th. the one question is whether mitt romney will go. you had him in your graphic as not sure. i think he can get a pass. i think he can afford not to go, primarily because he's met with the donald. he met with the donald a couple of days before i met with him back in september, and they had a nice, private conversation. remember, mitt romney snuck in and snuck out before the press was told he had shown up. >> absolutely. >> also, he can say that he can -- mitt romney can say he needs to focus his attention so close to the iowa caucuses on january 3rd on the ground game, which is much more important than the free media, free press game that you get by showing up at a donald trump moderated event. >> essie, would you be disappointed if mitt rom my didn't sfwend? >> i'd like to see what i'm sure to be something of a circus. i know the mitt romney campaign pretty well. they're very disciplined. i'd be shocked if they attended the debate, and i think jonathan is right. he can take a pass and move on to other things. he's a very serious guy. i wouldn't expect him to he show up. >> essie, i wanted to mention something else to you. gingrich was asked today about a remark by former speaker nancy pelosi, that she would relish a rehashing the ethics charges he previously faced. listen to what he said. >> i want to thank speaker pelosi for what i regard as an early christmas gift. if she's going to use that, that's a fundamental violation of the rules of the house and i hope members of the media would file charges against her the second she did it. >> he did face eight ethics complaints with 84 charges therein, so he should know the rules. could this launch a war of the ex-speakers? >> what's bizarre and i am not one to defend newt. i think i've been on the record by saying he's made mistakes both in the personal column and the political column, and i'm actually shocked that conservatives are now defending him on those two issues. but i think it's most surprising that his record is there for everyone to see, these ethics violations included. this is not a guy who came out of the woodwork that we have to sort of investigate, like someone like herman cain. we know newt gingrich. so i'm sure, you know, democrats including nancy pelosi and many gop candidates have a field day rehashing, unearthing all of the sort of history that conservatives seem to have forgotten about about newt gingrich. >> it is surprise. jonathan, do you think, as we head towards iowa, that there's going a kind of experienced replete with repetition of mr. gingrich's great and not so great deeds? >> absolutely. he is the front-runner. he'll probably be the front-runner rolling right into iowa. people will want to know. people who haven't paid attention to politics this fall, this year, ever, will start focusing in on who this man is who could potentially challenge the sitting president barack obama, and they might not like what they see. not everyone is as steep in all of stuff as we are, and they might be surprised and a little uncomfortable by what they find out. >> indeed. essie and jonathan, thanks so much for joining us this afternoon. much more on the 2012 thee tricks coming up, but first a critical cross roads in egypt. what it means for democracy in one of the most volatile regions of the world. stay with us. just one phillips' colon health probiotic cap a day helps defends against occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas and bloating. with three strains of good bacteria to help balance your colon. you had me at "probiotic." 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[ male announcer ] inside every box of cheerios are those great-tasting little o's made from carefully selected oats that can help lower cholesterol. is it a superhero? kinda. ♪ if early results are an indication of what's to come, egyptians appear to be voting for a party that was banned during three decade of rule under president mubarak. although turnout is low so far, egyptians are back at the polls today voting in runoff leaks following the first round of parliamentary votes last week. it seems that the muslim brotherhood's freedom and justice party has taken a decisive lead. for more on this i'm joined by amin in cairo. we know these elections have been divided into three parts. in the voting last week how well did the muslim brotherhood's freedom and justice party do? >> reporter: they've done exceptionally well. there was no doubt that the freedom and justice part, the political wing of the muslim brotherhood was expected to have a strong showing. they won 40% of the first round, but the biggest sfrurprise in t first round of voting is the selefist. they had a strong showing, so between the two dominant forces you have a party shaping up to be leaning towards political islam in nature and more importantly this is just the first round. it's going into the second and third round in more rural areas outside of cairo and alexandria expected to be more conservative. >> isn't this a worrying development, a strong islam party dominating the vote? >> reporter: it's still very premature, because although the parliament will be predominantly made up of islamic leaning parties, the question surrounds what role will this parliament have? very important point. this parliament will not be tasked with writing the constitution. they will be tasked with selecting the members that ultimately write it. this 100-member body will be have different political backgrounds. more importantly, this is a -- egypt is not a parliamentary system, so the parliament does not have a lot of weight in the current constitutional framework. it's all in the hands of the president. >> nbc in kcairo. thank you very much. for more on the elections in egypt and the implications for the region, i'm joined by robin wright. robin, are are you surprised that the muslim brotherhood's freedom and justice party has secured 37% of the vote, whereas the secular egyptian bloc has come in third with just over 13%? >> not surprised at all. i think that this reflects a general trend throughout the region. this has been true in tunisiia where they won 40% of the vote, where the islamist party is strong in libya and if president assad in syria goes they will do well, too. this reflects a broader trend in the region where you find conservative religious values taking hold. people are nervous about what comes next, and they look at their faith, their culture for guidance and it reflects the kin of general tendency among particularly egyptians themselves. >> our correspondent was talking about the salafist party and they came in second with 25% of the vote. this is an ultra conservative party which opposes interest bearing loans and xhol and there's a prohibition of christian or womb in leadership rolls. do you see a potential coalition between this extreme party producing what i think would appear to be a highly tradition al islam ic government? >> this is a concern. what may happen elsewhere is there's a split among the muslim islamist. the muslim brotherhood didn't intend to form a political coalition with ultra conservatives. they fall on different places and have different visions about what the future of egypt will look like. so the big question is where does the muslim brotherhood lean? does it in the end, because of whatever happens in the next two phases of the election, end up with the salafis despite what it says you now or does it turn to the liberal secular parties because it wants to reassure egyptians and the outside world about what direction it's headed in? this plays out in the writing of the constitution, which is the most critical element in establishing the new order not just in egypt, but because egypt accounts for one-quarter of the arab world's population sfred in 22 states. egypt is a political trend-setter. what the muslim brotherhood decides will be critical for the whole region. >> given egypt's historic peace accord with israel, one imagines that this development will cause enormous anxiety in the region. >> absolutely. israel is probably very nervous right now, and maybe even wistful about the days of a secular dictatorship where you dealt one on one between heads of state. that's no longer possible. dealing with democracies is messier and especially with democracies that are just trying to address the extraordinary challenges that egypt now faces, whether it's economically or politically. in foreign policy it's likely to take a position that's not quite as friendly to israel. >> i think the anxiety i'm talking about here is whether this is comparable to what happened in gaza with democracy allowing hamas to take control. >> that's very -- it's a very important question, because hamas is actually the offshoot of the muslim brotherhood in egypt. the palestinians have a different stake in this than the egyptians do in terms of the two state solution still making peace. i think the egyptian population generally and they're not all alike, do not want to see another war in the middle east. frankly, they can't afford it. they have much greater priorities just in finding employment and addressing the needs of their people because people are going into free and fair elections. so that will be the top priority. but relations just as with hamas and the israelis are likely not to be nearly as friendly. >> robin wright, we're grateful for your expertise. thanks for joining us. >> thank you. coming up, iran and pakistan keep the white house busy all weekend. later, if he is america, well, then, america, we might have a problem. sam: i'm sam chernin. owner of sammy's fish box. i opened the first sammy's back in 1966. my employees are like family. and, i want people that work for me to feel that they're sharing in my success. we purchase as much as we can on the american express open gold card. so we can accumulate as many points as possible. i pass on these points to my employees to go on trips with their families. when my employees are happy, my customers are happy. vo: earn points for the things you're already buying. call 1-800-now-open to find out how the gold card can serve your business. try bayer advanced aspirin. it has microparticles so it enters the bloodstream fast and rushes relief to the site of your tough pain. it's proven to relieve pain twice as fast as before. bayer advanced aspirin. it doesn't cover everything. and what it doesn't cover can cost you some money. that's why you should consider an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. all medicare supplement plans can help pay some of what medicare doesn't, so you could save up to thousands of dollars in out of pocket expenses. call now for this free information kit and medicare guide. if you're turning 65 or you're already on medicare... you should know about the only medicare supplement plans endorsed by aarp; see if one's right for you. all medicare supplement plans let you choose any doctor or hospital, that accepts medicare patients... and could help you save up to thousands of dollars in out of pocket expenses. plus, there are no networks... no referrals needed to see a specialist... and virtually no claim forms to fill out. how's that for convenience? 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>> the technology is great whether it works, but it doesn't always work, martin. in fact, over the history of these so-called drone wars, a number of predator drones and other kinds of drones have actually just been lost in the operations. they somehow lose or disconnect between the ground controllers and the aircrafts themselves, and that appears to be what happened in this case. now, the u.s. military officials tell us that this drone, once it crossed into iran, eventually ran out of fuel and crashed. so it's not clear what kind of shape it is in or what kind of intelligence can be recovered. there are high-tech cameras and high thif tech sensors on board and the stealth technology itself. but experts say even with all that, it would be difficult for the iranians and take some time, actually, for them to actually exploit it and reverse engineer it to their benefit, martin. >> jim, you know that the iranians had been claiming they shot the drone down. can we confirm that that did not happen? >> you know, this drone went missing and quite frankly u.s. officials say it went missing when they lost control of it last thursday morning. yet, it wasn't until yesterday morning, three days later, that the iranians even acknowledged that they had found the wreckage. and there's no indication whatsoever because the u.s. military does have sensors in the air to indicate that there were any kind of anti-aircraft rockets, missiles, artillery fired in that area over that three-day period. >> just changing the subject and briefly if i can, jim. the pakistani president took a phone call from president obama this weekend about the nato attack that killed 24 pakistani soldiers. in an interview the prime ministers and i'm quoting him it won't take long it to repair relations with the u.s. so does that mean things are on the mend? >> well, one would hope. here at the pentagon, of course, officials are hoping this won't take too long because, of course, the pakistanis have cut off vital shipments of fuel and supplies across pakistan into afghanistan for the forces there. but i can tell you, i talked to officials here this morning, and there's no indication that the pakistanis are yet ready to lift that ban on the transportation of those goods across pakistan, which is absolutely vital to u.s. operations in afghanistan. so while that may be wishful thinks on the pakistani government's part, they haven't made any direct overtures to the u.s. to get all of this behind us quickly. >> nbc's jim miklaszewski at the pentagon. thanks for joining us. >> absolutely. coming up, from the sur veal so the sublime, it's our top lines. the weekend recap. how do you like this music behind us right now? >> i like music of almost kind including this. >> well, i'm sure our town will remember you when election time comes. 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[ female announcer ] phillips' colon health. ♪ imagine me and you, i do ♪ i think about you day and night ♪ ♪ it's only right ♪ to think about the girl you love ♪ ♪ and hold her tight ♪ so happy together [ male announcer ] when life changes, so can your insurances needs. use travelers free guide to better coverage to stay prepared. is your auto and home insurance keeping up with you? contact your local travelers agent, or call 800-my-coverage. a pokemon good-bye? newt anything but fire, and mitt romney hot tub time machine. here are the top lines, your weekend recap. >> i am at peace with my god. i am at peace with my wife. and she is at peace with me. >> i'm innocent until proven guilty. that's what this country is all about. if i can't have that, i may as well move to libya. >> how could you turn down the donald? i want want to go just for the entertainment. >> i don't understand the marching to his office. i didn't know that he had an ability to lay on hands. >> i think those two candidates have zero chance of being elected. they're joke candidates. you're fired. >> i'm not inclined to be a supporter of newt gingrich having served under his for four years. >> good evening, mr. president, mrs. obama, distinguished honor heees, unregistered lobbyists. >> he's as establishment as you get. his address is locatesed on the rodeo drive of washington, which is k street. >> i intend to run as the paycheck candidate. >> a new direction in time, welfare, taxation, it's time for a change. >> he's got some good points there. >> i am suspending my presidential campaign. >> sorry i can't vote, but you'd be one of the top choices definitely. >> i believe these words came from the pokemon movie. life can be a challenge. life can seem impossible. >> let's get right to our panel now. experts in pokemon and politics with us from washington ken vogel and political analyst, former dnc communications director karen finney. karen, i know you miss herman cain already. is it safe to assume that he's going to endorse newt gingrich? >> can i say it, martin? can i say i told you so? >> yes, and you said it many times. >> i suppose that's a decent assumption, but the question is whether or not it will matter that much. the trend is these candidates go up, but then when they come down, they come down quite low. so 6% or so is not a huge amount of heft to put behind a recommendation for another candidate. but we'll see. >> ken, to mitt romney in our latest polls showing newt gingrich has surged to the lead it particularly in iowa. he's climbed 20 percentage points in new hampshire. how worried do you think mitt romney is? >> well, he's definitely worried. he's worried most of all because his polling numbers have never quite gotten up there where they could be be -- he could that really presumptive front-runner in the race. as to gingrich specifically, he's worried and he thinks as do the democrats that most of the dirt that could be out there on begin rich is already out there. that said, there's a lot of dirt out there. he's a lot of vulnerability and baggage and he's fairly undisciplined. he has a rather haphazard organization. the romney people think if they're in a long, drawn-out primary battle with someone, he's not a bad guy to do it with. >> karen, romney, like his hairstyle is incredibly disciplined. do you think he can carry on doing that, or approximate if this becomes a pro tracted battle, do you think he'll have to personalize his attacks on nut gewt gingrich, really go fo him? >> what ken said invite. there's a lot of stuff already out there about gingrich, but it's not talked about in the same way that romney has really been talked about. i think there is plenty of time for mitt romney to stay focused and keep on his disciplined message and let his campaign go after gingrich. you don't even have to talk about the infidelities with newt gingrich to get to the point that -- i mean, his own people felt that he became a distraction and a threat to what they were trying to accomplish and kicked him out of congress basically. zo >> absolutely. ken, ron paul said this weekend he'd like to be known as the flavor of decade. today he released this ad titled big dog. watch this. >> what's up with these sorry politicians? lots of bark, but when it's show time whimpering. you want big calls? ron paul has been screaming it for years. >> ken, what role is ron pau playing in this race? can you explain it to me? >> i wouldn't say he's the flavor of the decade, because let's not forget. >> that's what he'd like to be. >> i think he's the flavor of the last few years. i think that he probably deserves a fair amount of credit for spurring the tea party and certainly the laser-like focus we've seen over the last couple years in the gop and conservative politics on fiscal issues. that said now, we're starting to see a little bit more of a focus on foreign affair issues where he's out of step with the conservative orthodoxy and a return to the social issues. while he had an effect early on in the presidential race,ening it's fading a little bit. >> ken, four weeks out. your call. who walks away with iowa? karen, what's your prediction. >> i think gingrich looks strong in iowa. he doesn't have a whole lot of organization, but let's not forget four years ago mike huckabee was a surging dark horse without a whole lot of organization and he went away with it. the question for gingrich will be approximate if he wins iowa, what happens after that when the organization really gets put to the test in places like new hampshire and south carolina? i don't think that he has that type of infrastructure necessary to carry out a long, prolonged primary battle with mitt romney. >> karen, i know this is almost impossible for you to spit out and cope with, but who do you think is going to win in iowa? >> martin, i think it's going to be ron paul. i have to tell you -- >> you think ron paul? >> i do. i'm a new fan of ron paul's, because he told donald trump where to you know what it with his response to that debate invitation. you got to love that. ron paul, here's the thing. we've kind of miscalculated ron paul all along. he's been raising money and is doing well in the polls and has ground game and organization on. the other thing that ron paul has been able to do that none of the candidates have been able to do is to get the younger voters, young republican voters, some of whom -- if he can get them to turn out in the primaries because it's who stands out there in the iowa caucus and defend him, if he can get those young people, which would expand that electorate, i think he could have a decent shot. >> unlike rick perry, ron paul wants to abolish the whole of government. karen finney and ken vogel, thanks so much for joining us. a programming note. throughout the week on "politics nation" withal sha al sharpton, into the series called "block the vote." that's at 6:00 p.m. eastern time. the holidays are right around the corner. is congress ready to strike a deal? plus, the herman cain campaign suspended, but donations? well, they're accepted. 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no. but because of them no one else can either. they're like hotel california. my legislation checks in, but it can never leave. >> congressman sandy levin is a democrat from michigan and the ranking member of the house ways and means committee and joins us live from capitol hill. good afternoon, sir. >> good afternoon. >> that's a funny skit, but do you think the average working american finds the utter lack of urgency on the part of congress to be amusing? >> not at all. i've been talking to a lot of unemployed people. for them it's a matter of survival. they're out looking for jobs. they can't find them. they need unemployment insurance. they think they worked for it. they're working hard to find a job. darn it all, we better get busy here. >> allow me to play what president obama said just moments ago, and i'd like to get your reaction. >> i know many republicans have sworn an oath never to raise taxes as long as they live. how can you fight tooth and nail to protect high-end tax breaks for the wealthiest americans and yet barely lift a finger to prevent taxes going up for 160 million americans that really need the help? it doesn't make sense. >> the president has a point, doesn't he? many of these republicans have made their pledge to grover norquist. can't they keep that pledge in extending the payroll tax cut? >> yes. i think they need to act on the payroll tax cut, but let me say this. all of us who come here have a pledge to the american people and to our constituents, and the pledge is to look after their needs, the legitimate needs. unemployment insurance must be extended, and the payroll tax cut. we're talking about 150 million people whose taxes will go up. so i don't care what grover norquist says. i know what the american people say. and that is, get busy here in washington and to the republicans get off of your ideological whatever it is. it's kind of a dinosaur's approach to things. it's outmoded. we need to look at the needs of people who are looking for work and who have to pay taxes. >> how do you convince republicans that a compromise is possible? >> i think the american people will. you know, we've been talking to a lot of people. >> does that mean we have to wait until the election? >> no. no. we can't leave here at holiday time without aktsing. a lot of us won't leave. we will just not leave here until our colleagues, the republicans, agree to sit down and act. we're not going to leave here. >> you're saying, sir, that you're going to maintain everyone stay in washington until this matter is resolved? >> absolutely. i have no intention of leaving h here and a lot of my colleagues do and the president doesn't until the republicans sit down and work this out. get off of their ideological i think outmoded stubborn resistance to having people who benefitted the most. over one-half of the neck growth in the last decade went to the 1% -- the upper 1% in this country. they need to get real, the republicans here, and not simply wrap their arms around the very wealthy, many of whom say themselves, we're willing to participate. so the republicans need to participate and get off of the ideological bent that has essentially tied up this place. >> congressman sandy levin from michigan, thanks so much for joining us. >> thank you so much. coming up next, the rise and fall of herman cain. what it means, but first, amanda drury has the cnbc martin wrap. >> stocks are well and truly off their highs of the day, and one of the reasons is that we have the prospect looming over us that germany might lose its aaa rating along with another several of the european nations. that is it from cnbc. we're currently only 57 points higher for the dow and the s&p is 10 points higher at this stage. we're first in business worldwide. back over to you. approach to food is to keep it whole for better nutrition. that's what they do with great grains cereal. they steam and bake the actual whole grain while the other guy's flake is more processed. mmm. great grains. the whole whole grain cereal. with scottrader streaming quotes, any way you want. fully customize it for your trading process -- from thought to trade, on every screen. and all in real time. which makes it just like having your own trading floor, right at your fingertips. 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[ female announcer ] phillips' colon health. i came here to declare my candidate he see declare my candidacy for the republican nomination for president of the united states of america! >> would you be comfortable appointing a muslim either in your cabinet or as a federal judge? >> no. >> okay, libya. nope, that's a different one. >> if you don't have a job and you're not rich, blame yourself! >> i'm not familiar with the neoconservative movement. >> i have never acted inappropriately with anyone. ♪ amazing grace will always be my song of praise ♪ i sit in the easy chair and she prepares dinner! >> i am at peace with my god. i am at peace with my wife. she is at peace with me! i am suspending my presidential campaign. >> it was certainly one of the most unorthodox campaigns in modern political history. but after being exposed as ill equipped for high office and repeatedly accused of sexual harassment, herman cain has thrown in the towel. and one commentator who's been predicting this from the very outset of his campaign is goldie taylor, ceo of the goldie taylor project and i'm delighted to say she joins us now. goldie, given the fact that herman cain rolled from one sexual harassment to another, from one sadly inadequate foreign policy to another, why do you think he chose to walk this weekend? why this weekend? >> i think there was no other choice this weekend. i mean, after you had your face-to-face talk with your wife, after you've had a face-to-face talk with the donors who really fuel your campaign. you know, if you think there is a pathway forward and suddenly the rode closes in on you, there really is no other choice. and he really needed to save whatever bit of political capital he had left so he could spend it on his own future, and there's precious little left. >> he kept saying he was at peace with his wife. did he mean by that that she would have been carried if he carried on, or do you think he was at peace with his wife because he suspended his campaign? >> well, you know, there's -- you can't say one way or the other within the cain marriage. i'm certainly not the kind to judge a marriage by the headlines. at the end of the day, they've been married 43 years, and it would be a surprise to me if they were married another 43 years or as long as they live. they seem to be a happy couple in doing what they're doing. but at the end of the day, this really wasn't about his marriage. this was about whether or not he had a pathway to victory, and he did not. i mean, for the last 90 days or so, i've been saying just that. that there was just no way, and i think i said to you, i would bet my life on the very idea that herman cain could not win the gop nomination. >> and that was one of the milder things you said. >> and that was one of the milder -- that was one of the milder things i said, yes. >> but many have said that this was ant political campaign, but really a book tour. but do you think he really believed -- >> it was a book tour. >> do you think he really believed that no one would scrutinize his record, his history if he really wanted to be president? >> i do believe that he believed that. but that is nothing short of delusional, to think that you could run for president, these united states, and that a 13-year affair or accusations or allegations and settlements for sexual harassment would not come up in this campaign. i mean, we really have seen this movie before. we've heard the song before. so it was unfortunate of herman cain to believe that he can run a national campaign and not see those issues come up on him again. >> goldie, what is cain's achievement? what's his legacy to this race? >> i think he spent his legacy, frankly. i mean, to be honest about it, herman cain is an accomplished business man. he was able to, over the course of the years, you know, build around this conservative ideology, his own brand platform, both here in georgia and nationally. i mean, he has been able to really own a conversation on a national stage for some time. and so he does have a number of accomplishments. but how much of that will live forward is truly questionable. i mean, really, what does he have if he decides to endorse, say, a gingrich or a bachmann? what does he have to give them? his supporters have already dissipated, he's down to 8% in iowa, his volunteers have moved on. what can he do for them that they can't do for themselves? >> he can put alligators in a moat on the border. >> or he can sing, "i'll fly away." >> thanks so much, goldie. we'll be right back to clear the air. when you have tough pain, do you want fast relief? try bayer advanced aspirin. it has microparticles so it enters the bloodstream fast and rushes relief to the site of your tough pain. it's proven to relieve pain twice as fast as before. bayer advanced aspirin. have given way to sleeping. where sleepless nights yield to restful sleep. and lunesta can help you get there, like it has for so many people before. when taking lunesta, don't drive or operate machinery until you feel fully awake. walking, eating, driving, or engaging in other activities while asleep, without remembering it the next day, have been reported. abnormal behaviors may include aggressiveness, agitation, hallucinations or confusion. in depressed patients, worsening of depression, including risk of suicide, may occur. alcohol may increase these risks. allergic reactions, such as tongue or throat swelling, occur rarely and may be fatal. side effects may include unpleasant taste, headache, dizziness and morning drowsiness. ask your doctor if lunesta is right for you. then get lunesta for $0 at lunesta.com. there's a land of restful sleep. we can help you go there on the wings of lunesta. i'd like a decaf 360 calories please. i'll have a triple iced 410 calories please. you know what... i'll have this instead. [ female announcer ] swap one thing a day for a yoplait light at around 100 calories. it will add up to amazing. so i used my citi thank you card to pick up some accessories. a new belt. some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? we talked about getting a diamond. but with all the thank you points i've been earning... ♪ ...i flew us to the rock i really had in mind. ♪ [ male announcer ] the citi thank you card. earn points you can use for travel on any airline, with no blackout dates. it's time now to clear the air. and so it's farewell, mr. cain, hello, mr. gingrich, the latest leader of the republican pack. one of the interesting differences between herman cain and newt gingrich is how they view the current president, president obama. in july, herman cain gave an interview in which he cast aspersions on the president's ethnic identity. he said, "president obama is not a strong black man because a real black man is not timid about making the right decisions." what's even more remarkable about this statement is that mr. cain was speaking fully two months after american special forces, authorized by the president, captured, killed, and disposed of the body of osama bin laden. but i guess that wasn't enough for mr. cain. but newt gingrich, he takes the opposite view. he believes that the president is too conscious of his own cultural identity. taking his lead from an ill-considered book entitled "the roots of obama's rage," gingrich suggested that when barack obama became president, he began channeling the ghost of his kenyan father. according to gingrich, the president is infused with an anti-colonial hatred of the western world. it is a bizarre theory. first, because barack obama had virtually nothing to do with his father. and second, because barack obama has spent most of his life in america as opposed to africa. but just as herman cain chose to ignore the president's role in the death of bin laden, so newt gingrich is never going to allow the truth to get in the way of wild speculation. so what are we to make of all of this? soon after gingrich made those ludicrous comments, secretary of state colin powell appeared on meet t "meet the press" and offered some wise words. >> i would just tell my fellow americans, think carefully about what was just said. think carefully