Transcripts For MSNBC Morning Joe 20110119

mika, you need to buck up. i know you think this story has no purpose other than keeping sarah palin's names in the headlines for another news cycle. i know you think she has nothing to offer the national dialogue and her speeches are coated talking points mixed in with words picked up at random from a thesauras. i know you think her reality show was pathetically unstatesman like and at the same time i know you believe it represents the pinnacle of her potential. and that her transparent desperation to be a celebrity so completely eclipsed her interest in public service so long ago, that there would be no journalistic integrity on reporting on one of the lesser kardashian's ass implants. i know when you arrive at the office each day you say a silent prayer that maybe, just maybe, sarah palin will at long last shut up for ten [ bleep ] minutes. you slap on a smile, get out there on tv and repeat what sarah palin said on "hannity" last night right into the lens. you know, news. >> wow. that was -- >> wow. >> do you think that? >> i -- i have to say -- >> no. >> he crystallizes some of my emotions, just a few. wow. >> just one. >> hey, good morning. >> it's wednesday, january 19th. with us on set msnbc contributor mike barnicle, president of the council on foreign relations richard hoff. >> we're so glad to have richard so we can talk more about sarah palin. >> no no. >> mike barnicle, let's talk about sarge shriver. >> a great man. >> he passed away at 95. there's a story of one of his kids getting knocked down at a football game and he started crying. bobby kennedy came up to him and said kennedys don't cry, get up. sarge came along, bent down to his son, he said but shrivers do, son, don't worry about it. >> it's interesting, because the shriver children, they're no longer children, obviously, were, although part of the kennedy family raised in a distinctly different manner than were a lot of the kennedys. sarge was a very dominant figure as a father. he was very religious, extremely catholic. one of the more generous people in terms of spirit that you'd ever meet. >> he was, of course, the founder of the peace corps. >> he was the first head of the peace corps. >> first head of the peace corps. >> at the same time he was head of the office of economic opportunity which began i think about 1964, 1965. president johnson appointed him to that. he was the head of both departments at the same time. some elements of vista, the oeo, office of economic opportunity, is still around in this country. they've been enormously helpful to a lot of people. the peace corps, i think you can make a case that the peace corps is the most substantive and long-lasting element of the kennedy administration. it's been 50 years tomorrow since john f. kennedy was inaugurated, january 20th, 1961. the peace corps is still functioning. it brought the word and the spirit of the united states of america around the world in a way that few things have done in a positive manner. and a lot of it, most of it, is directly attributable to sarge shriver. >> sarge shriver the ambassador to france in 1968, at a very difficult time in our relationship. did he a great job there, richard. of course, he went on to run in 1972 with mcgovern. but he had put by that time, his political career was probably over. he put his ambitions on hold so many times, in 1960, again in '64, again in '68 for the kennedys. he was a loyal son-in-law. >> mike made an interesting point. people talk about so-called soft power, the ability of the united states to project its values, its ideas around the world rather than sort of military force, economic might, even diplomacy. the peace corps is important. the peace corps stands in many ways for what's best, for volunteerism, for actually helping people at a grass roots level. i thought that was an interesting point. >> we're looking at pictures of sarge shriver now with his son-in-law, governor schwarzenegger and maria shiver. he was such an elegant guy. when he ran for vice president in 1972, his elegance was sometimes a source of great humor among the press corps. there was a time in pittsburgh, he's off the plane, he's campaigning and he's campaigning in a steelworkers bar in pittsburgh about two weeks before the election in 1972. sarge goes into the bar, followed by the press corps. it's filled with guys who are there at the end of the shift and he orders a round for the entire bar. buy a round for the earn tire bar. he says what will you have? sarge says quevasie. the shrivers were the only couple, they both got presidential medals of freedom. of course, for their work not only with the peace corps but also with special olympics. >> their kids are actively involved in special olympics and other endeavors. tim was on "meet the press" on sunday, i believe. >> yes. >> it was really good. >> yes. >> they've got -- he has a tremendous legacy. >> a tremendous -- >> just in his children alone. >> i was going to say, just with his children alone, really impressive children. let's move on to the news of the day. china. >> a lot going on. >> a lot going on regarding china. >> i look forward to talking about this finally. president obama is expected to welcome chinese president hu jintao for an oval arrival ceremony later this morning. the president will host a formal state dinner this evening. it's part of a day that will include bilateral talks, a giant news conference and meeting with business leaders to discuss the u.s. economic relationship with china. last time, obama and hu shared a rare private dinner underscoring the desire for candor. the white house said there were no official note takers and offered no readout of the discussions. both national security adviser tom done lynn and hillary clinton, secretary of state, were present. this is under pressure to show resolve on issues including china's currency and the country ace much criticized trade and human rights policies. so we pause there. richard maybe you could comment on how they strike that balance. going into this meeting they haven't been sideline the about some of the issues they are concerned about, human rights, trade, currency. >> they have to be careful. they're not going to get immediate results. the chinese are not going to walk out of the white house and give us great concessions on their currency or any kegss on human rights, they're not going to necessarily start being more helpful on north korea or iran or anything else. this is not a summit. you're not going to get specific agreements. what you have to hope is over time china begins to play a more responsible role in asia and the world. that's what's important about this. >> what could come out of it? what do we hope for? >> the chinese go home and they understand what they have to do if they want this to be a productive relationship. for example, over the last six, seven months their currency has gone up 3% or 4%. we need it to go up many more times than that. north korea, the chinese have got to do more lift be. they have far more influence over north korea than they let on. >> richard, try to name, over the past decade, a time over the past 15 years, where the chinese have acted like they were in a partnership with us. we put demands out and they ignore those demands. summarily. they do. you know, human rights. i was there in '59 when we said we'll give you most favored trade stat fuss you do three things. of course, they didn't do it. >> you have to take a longer view of things. china is not nearly as closed compared to what it was like under mao or dung chieping. >> what can we expect china to give in we've given them no incentive to give us anything. i'm not saying that we engage in trade wars. i'm just saying, china always gets what china wants when they deal with the united states. >> at the point of view of u.s. foreign policy has to be to effect chinese thinking. china has to essentially start acting more responsibly, not as a favor to us but as a favor to itself. >> how do we do that? >> they have to come to see that using influence over north korea's nuclear program to keep north korea from acting recklessly towards the south is in their interest. they don't want to see a war in that part of the world. they need us to cap their labor force employed, in order to export. this has to be a two-way relationship. think about it this way, during the cold war, the united states and china had something in common, we were both against the soviet union. it's 20 years later. we're trying to figure out what this relationship is about. what the administration is hoping that gradually china becomes our partner. >> we're trying to figure that out. i don't think the chinese are, because they don't have to. >> well, that's the interesting point to me. like most americans know very little about china. i know what i read in the papers but that's about it. it would seem to me, just on the face of it, a country with more than a billion people, manufacture them, the vast majority of them, extraordinarily poor and we're in an age when information is going to flow, even to the furthest provinces in china. don't they have their own int n internal problems that are going to perhaps potentially help us deal with them? >> for sure, though i would say, china's been one of the great poverty reduction experiments in human history, hundreds of millions of people who 20, 30 years ago were below the poverty level no longer are. but you're right, we should not assume that simply because china's been growing at 9%, 10%, 11% a year for the last decade or two it's going to continue to. tremendous problems internally. the role of the communist party is still a question mark. the resentment of poor people for the newly wealthy. hundreds of millions of people as you suggest still living in rural poverty. china has enormous challenges. >> what's the average age in china. >> china is getting older because of the single child policy. it will be the ironic result of their own attempts to keep their population down. >> another question is, what position does president obama hold today in making any demands given the fact that china holds so much of our debt, how do we pound the table and say, give us this or else? >> they hold a lot of our debt. on the other hand when someone holds that much of your debt, they're also vulnerable. plus china needs the -- >> it's like donald trump. hey, i'm $9 billion in debt, take my hotels. i don't care. >> any of you ever been 9 billion in debt? >> i can't tell a donald trump story. >> please don't. what are you doing? >> one of the great moments. just cockyness. he holds a press conference, he goes in there, everybody is killing him. he's like $9 billion in debt. everybody is an expert in here. has anybody in this room ever been $9 billion in debt? if not, keep your mouth shut. then he got out of it. >> interesting take. >> that is an interesting take. we are basically in donald trump's position right now. >> i don't think we take that approach. >> china needs to export to us. in part because it's got to keep people employed. >> do they need to export to us? >> for sure, for sure. >> this regime's legitimacy is based upon economic performance. economic performance in china depends upon keeping people employed. keeping people employed means keeping exports high. china needs the openness of the american market. >> they need us on you also talk about tremendous problems internally, that's clear. there is a shift in the dynamic between these two countries in terms of how they're seen on the world stage in terms of power, is there not? >> in part because we took a real hit because of what happened over the last few years with our financial crisis. the american model is not as appealing. china's feeling its oats after growing 10% a year. >> and getting a lot of attention. >> they've become much more aserltive. chinese foreign policy has become not just assertive but at times heavy-handed and belligerent. the good news is the united states is started pushing back in asia. what we're seeing is the beginning in some ways of the historical competition between the united states, the great power of the day, china, the rising power and the diplomatic challenge as to whether we can manage this process. we do not want to end up in 10 or 20 years talking thonn or any other set about a u.s./china cold war. that would be a diplomatic disaster for both countries. the challenge is to make this relationship work, get china to be more productive. >> i haven't seen it on curre y currency. i haven't seen it in 15 years on humen rights. we're not going to see it on the issue of protectionism. i don't care if you're doing a contract, you know, with your boss or whether it's foreign policy. it's leverage. and, mike, china right now has all the leverage. they've had it for 15 years because american companies have been lusting after their growing market. we have had no leverage whatsoever and we've taught china over the past 15 years, republicans and democrats alike, whatever you want, you get. >> except protectionism. joe mentioned protectionism. if we raise the tariff on incoming stuff, what happens to the cost of the ipod i want to buy when i go into walmart? >> that's both for both sides. once you start the process of protecti protectionism, you can't stop it. >> the chinese are engaging in protectionism right now. >> and subsidies. >> in a big way. >> patents are not respektd. >> why are they doing that. >> that's their short cut to economic -- >> it's going to help their economy. >> for sure. >> it helps china, it doesn't help us. >> u.s. exports to china have been growing tremendously. one of the fastest growing export markets we have. >> you have to give and take. we'll be talking about this much more. we have a big show this morning. tim kaine is going to join us, as well as maureen orth even george clooney. up next, why is president obama disappointed with his economic team? political has a sneak peek at an upcoming "new york times" article. and regis philbin announces his retirement. what names are being floated around to take his place? let's go to bill for the morning weather forecast. today will be a little bit better. we have light freezing drizzle from hartford to albany. as far as the radar, the white is the snow. we still have a little left over from scranton heading up to the capital district. as i mention that, pink is where we get to a little more ice. the rain is pretty much done from new york to philly today. new england will have to deal with light stuff. it will be a cold day in the northern plains and a mini stow snowstorm will head across the country, starting today in kansas city, st. louis tonight, ohio valley tomorrow and that will arrive from d.c. to philly, new york city and boston, thursday night into friday morning. not a blockbuster storm, many areas getting 3 to 6 inches of snow. you're watching "morning joe," brewed by starbucks. winter can be beautiful. 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if it can't, why are you trading there? number one in online equity trades: td ameritrade. trade commission-free for 30 days, plus get up to $500 when you open an account. it has to go to her nurse, sean hannity. >> i don't think a lot of people on the left have been very difficult towards you over the years and i really don't hear you complaining a lot about it. >> you don't? you should maybe watch her when she appears on the sean hannity show. it's hard to see through all the plumes of ass smoke you're blowing, but is it hard to hear, too? because watching the two of you insisting on her easy going nature reminds me of taking my grandmother out to eat. you know me, i'm easy. i'm not a complainer. is it cold in here? you would think at these prices they'd shut a window. >> oh, my gosh, that was funny. >> let's take a look at the morning papers. >> let's do that at 21 past the hour. goldman sachs is facing angry american clients after forcing them to buy shares in facebook. the facebook offering will apply only to foreign investors. >> governor rick perry is sworn in for the fourth time. criticizing what he called washington's irresponsibility and announcing "texas will lead the way out of this." >> quite a picture. >> san francisco chronicle, researchers at the university of san francisco, says a simple blood test could predict alzheimer's. >> and when is it too cold for school children to go outside for recess? >> i live in upstate new york. we liked it. >> where's ed rendell? >> the department of education says there's no national temperature standard. >> how nice. and those decisions can be made at a local level. >> okay. >> good for kids. >> come on. >> did someone get frostbite. >> upstate new york, seriously, sometimes you'd be out at the bus stop and it would be like 30 below wind chill. you know what you did? you sat there and waited for the bus to show up. >> and you liked it. >> and you liked it. >> and you liked it. >> to write a passage to get your tongue stuck to the flag pole, have a snow ball fight. >> you know what's worse, it's 20 below zero and you finished playing basketball and you go out in the car. >> quick way to pneumonia. >> yeah, yeah. >> let's turn the page. >> can we please? >> you don't want to hear anymore? >> it's good. >> the chief white house correspondent from politico, mike galen. going behind the scenes at the white house. the president expressing his frustrations with his own economic team about their approach to job creation. what did peter find? >> willie, that's right. this has the memorable title, the white house looks for a job. and it chronicles the effort by the president to find something new about jobs. we know it's the number one issue on the minds of americans. it's clear the president needs to say something convincing about it. there's the daunting figure that the federal reserve says that unemployment could be 8% next year when the president is seeking re-election. yet, the white house has had real trouble finding something that's credible and convincing. peter opens with this scene, three days before christmas in which the president is having a meeting with advisers and they're throwing out ideas and he says, guys, there's nothing here that excites me. i want something new. and they just weren't finding it. since then, the president who has not consulted many outsiders on anything, including the wars, has been bringing in economists leaders, corporate leaders, union leaders of all stripes to look for ideas, one republican who was in there said he seemed a little defensive. i wonder why. >> you read the excerpts of this piece, it doesn't exactly inspire confidence. peter baker describes the president "casting about for ideas, frustrate thaad doesn't have good ones." talking to outside economists, liberals and conservatives. it sounds a little desperate, frankly, in peter baker's telling. >> it's a tough problem. it's ironic, the economic team started to breathe a sigh of relief when they got the country -- kept the country from going into depression. now there's this bigger problem and peter baker says it could wind up defining the president's presidency. >> let's talk about the senate, mike. you describe it as dark clouds for democrats at politico. the democrat ken conrad announcing he would be stepping aside. he announced that yesterday. expect to hear the same from joe lieberman. an independent that caucuses frequently with democrats. this has raised the specter, already, that the democrats could lose control of the senate going into 2012. what do you think? >> absolutely, willie. every indication is that the movement the democrats saw in the house in 2010 is what they'll see in the senate in 2012. the brutal math is, 21 democrats have to defend their senate seats in 2012, only 10 republicans that really puts the party on the spot. with this retirement yesterday of kent conrad of north dakota, that was a preview of coming attractions. not only did he have a brutal re-election race coming but even if the president is doing well, he's not going to be able to do much to help him in north dakota. john carls put together a list of seven more senators who could announce their retirement, almost all democrat. they'll start to see what's coming and it points to real change. every indication is that mitch -- >> of course we can remember back to just two years ago, in fact two years ago at this time, mike, when there were articles being written about how republicans were going to face a savage senatorial election in 2010. the numbers don't look good for democrats, i agree with you completely. but you never know what's going to develop. >> that's a great point. >> and which way things are going to go. who would ever believe with all the republican seats that had to be challenged. look at the ratings two years ago, it looked like this year would be another democratic year. >> right. >> they didn't quite get the majority but you're right, there's nothing like the losses they expected. and to bolster your point, it's very possible if the president is running extremely strong in 2012, that will pull along a lot of these candidates. >> it's just too early. >> republicans don't need much to take control of the senate, just four seats. >> mitch mcconnell can see the majority leader's job. thank you. new doping allegations against lance armstrong. what else is new? we'll tell you who's accusing him this time. plus, a massive deadly gas line explosion in philadelphia. we'll tell you what's happening in this picture. keep it right here on "morning joe." ooh, a brainteaser. how can expedia now save me even more on my hotel? well, hotels know they can't fill every room every day. like this one. and this one. and oops, my bad. so, they give expedia ginormous discounts with these: unpublished rates. which means i get an even more rockin' hotel, for less. my brain didn't even break a sweat. where you book matters. expedia. how are those flat rate boxes working out? fabulous! they gave me this great idea. yea? we mail documents all over the country, so, what if there were priority mail flat rate... envelopes? yes! you could ship to any state... for a low flat rate? yes! a really low flat rate. like $4.95? yes! and it could look like a flat rate box... only flatter? like this? you...me...genius. genius. priority mail flat rate envelopes. just $4.95. only from the postal service. a simpler way to ship. nah. we have something else. but if you're hurt and miss work does it pay cash like aflac does? 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[ male announcer ] there's aflac and there's everything else. visit aflac.com for an agent or quote. aflac! live shot at capitol hill this morning. this morning's "wall street journal" reports that american manufacturing has begun picking up for the first time in more than a decade, creating more jobs than it eliminates. according to new government data, manufacturing jobs in the u.s. grew last year by 1.2%. analysts expect that number to grow again this year. >> you know, mika, a lot of people always blame outsourcing to india or china, to wherever, for america losing jobs. the fact is, richard, a lot of it comes down to productivity. i saw a statistic that if the united states was as productive as it was in 1993, 15 million people would have jobs here. we are so productive that unfortunately sometimes we're, you know, people are losing jobs because of it. >> the biggest job turner is not foreign competition, it's technological advance and productivity changes. we're competing globally. that's why we have to, monger things, educate people and create new jobs. this administration is desperate to find jobs. the government can't do it. we have to create an environment in which this happens. >> ford is announcing 7,000 jobs. caterpillar building $120 million plant, dow chemical building an 8,000 square foot plant near its headquarters. >> why aren't we as productive as we were in '93? >> joe? >> we are so much more productive now in 2011 that we're a lot more efficient. so we don't need ten people to do "x" job, we need five people. we've lost some of those jobs. i have to say, though, we've had people since the 1970s seem like the decline of the united states manufacturing base was inevitable. and then you talk to bob riley. governor of alabama who tells you that mercedes has moved not only their suvs all over to tuscaloosa county, alabama but their c-class, their entire c-class. it's the first time mercedes has outsourced the building of an entire class. the c-class to alabama. you know what mercedes says? it's their most productive plant on the planet. and also their cheapest. american decline in manufacturing is not inevitable. >> also it's an argument for dealing with things of health care cost. it's an argument for improving education so we can have the human capital. in order to stay competitive there, we have really got to get going in lots of separate areas. it's more than simply investing in the plan the. one more story. officials in philadelphia are trying to figure out what caused a gas line to explode. >> we weren't in that neighborhood. >> now, stop. it's serious. sparking a three-alarm fire that killed a city employee and wounded five others. the blast was caught on video. >> oh, man. >> as firefighters and utility employees tried to patch a high pressure main that ruptured in a residential neighborhood. firefighters were called to the scene 15 minutes before the explosion. >> that's terrible. >> up to 40 people were also evacuated from the area. they'll look into that. >> a leak, what do they think, natural gas leak? >> they're looking into it. >> one more real quick. two teenage girls in florida facing criminal charges after allegedly creating a fake facebook profile in the name of a classmate they were no longer friends with. little girls out there, listen, parents listen, officials say the girls added doctored photos to the site to make it look like the victim was engaged in sexually explicit acts. the fake account racked up nearly 200 friends subjecting the victim to numerous incidents of teasing and ridicule. >> happens a lot. >> i know. they don't get it. little kids and teenagers don't get the veil of the internet. they think it's safe and they can do nasty things. it's becoming a huge problem. >> it really is. >> it's not. >> old days you whispered to a couple people she was kissing bobby on the playground and now they put it up on the web. >> doctored photos. just cruel. let's start with sports now. new doping allegations against seven-time tour de france winner lance armstrong. "sports illustrated" reporting in its new issue that armstrong is being investigated by u.s. federal agents allegedly for leading an organized doping operation, a member of the u.s. postal cycling team. armstrong has been at the center of doping controversy for years, most recently admitted doper floyd landis accused armstrong of taking performance-enhancing drugs, though he provide nod material evidence of that. another admitted user and teammate, stephen schwartz said it was his words that pushed us towards doing it. also in the article, allegations that armstrong and the team used private jets to avoid customs checks. >> wait a second. private jets you can slip things past -- >> so i've heard. >> you still have to go through customs but they're more lenient, apparently and if you're lance armstrong. >> keep quiet. >> if you get a private jet you can take people across the border. >> lance armstrong has denied that he's ever taken performa e performance-enhancing drugs. >> what do you think, willie? >> i can't speculate. i haven't seen the evidence. i think you should provide proof if you're going to cast dispersions like this. >> what else is going on? let the story -- >> i don't know, obviously. but there's an awful lot of talk over a very long period of time from a number of people. >> can i help you all out here? >> where's the evidence. >> there isn't any right now. >> the question was do you think? the answer is yes. move on. >> it's journalists that resent americans stole their sport. >> stop that. >> do you want to bet right now? >> i'm not a bicycle riding fan. >> do you want to place a bet on whether lance armstrong is doping or not. >> no. >> what's wrong with you, willie? looking like a doper? >> there are physical things that happen when you take steroids. >> like that baseball player. >> barry bonds grew twice the size in four years. his feet were breaking through his cleats. >> like the incredible hulk. >> willie, you don't think he doped? >> he may have but i would like to see evidence of it. i'm not a fan. i never watched a bicycle race in my life. >> he's a journalist. >> let's go to ncc basketball. >> game tied at 57 in athens, georgia. watch the play, though, just reaching over the back, tearing the man to the floor. >> you're kidding me. a buzzer-beater for the vols. let's take another look. >> man. >> ripping the ball away, throwing it up as the horn blows. >> they'll make the tournament, they'll be a seventh seed. >> coming up next, new polls. >> speaking of random thoughts. >> oh, no, not another. >> remember when tulane -- you were probably too young -- when tulane had the scandal and they got picked out of basketball? it's a shame. because next year they were going to be 18-17. what were they. >> they're throwing the games, right? >> it happens. you have a couple bucks on the game, throw an errant pass here, an air ball there. >> what's coming up next, willie? let's talk about something serious. what's coming up next? >> new polls, new problems. numbers are out on sarah palin. >> stop that. >> we're not talking about that. >> go away. >> take her pictures down. >> seriously. >> also, we'll have mika's must read. >> "morning joe." >> new poll's out on john boehner. >> that's interesting. at northern trust, we understand... that while you may come from the same family... you know, son, you should take up something more strenuous. you have different needs and desires. - i'm reading a book. - what's a book? so we tailor plans for individuals, featuring a range of integrated solutions. you at your usual restaurant? son: maybe. see you tomorrow. stairs? elevator. to see how our multi-faceted approach... can benefit your multi-generational wealth, look ahead with us at northerntrust.com. and more. if you replace 3 tablespoons of sugar a day with splenda® you'll save 100 calories a day. that could help you lose up to 10 pounds in a year. that's how splenda® is sweet...and more. premier of the packed bag. you know when to hold 'em... and how to fold 'em. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle...and go. you can even take a full-size or above and still pay the mid-size price. here we are... [ male announcer ] and there you go, business pro. there you go. go national. go like a pro. ♪ you can't always get what you want ♪ ♪ you can't always get what you want ♪ >> obama care is still wrong, it's still wrong. what it does, it expands the dependency state in america for political reasons and it takes away the liberty of the american people and it's unconstitutional. that alone, all of those, are reasons why it needs to be repealed. after all is said and done with health care policy and economics, the loss of liberty is the biggest component in my view. >> i would share the belief of many, including i think enunciated by those who will vote for repeal tomorrow that this isn't a serious legislative effort. i think first and foremost they've largely acknowledge tad. >> all right. 44 past the hour. of course, the effort to repeal health care reform happening with new poll numbers out, pertaining to speaker of the house john boehner. "usa today"/gallup poll, favorability rating, boehner, 42%, nancy pelosi, 33% and harry reid, 25%. >> what do you make of john boehner saying no to the state dinner invitation. >> for the life of me i have no idea why he would not go, both symbolically and substantively. it's not a foreign policy question. this is a domestic policy question, how this relationship works out. to be straight with you, no idea why he wouldn't go. >> mike barnicle? >> i also have no idea. he's speaker of the house of representatives. third in line to the presidency of the united states. >> yes. >> i mean, what's wrong with going to a state dinner even though you're republican. >> boehner's office says he has a private meeting with hu later in the week. >> they have a meeting during the tucson memorial service. seriously. i don't know. >> is he going to meet with him. >> he did so well, he did so well -- >> he's doing well. >> especially following phoenix. in terms of his ability to pull the house together, behind the consolidated effort to grieve over congresswoman giffords. he does things like this. this smacks of a stunt, not going to the state dinner. >> i don't know if it's an act of stunt, it may be an omission. i don't understand. how you say no to a state din wirt chinese. >> there's nothing about a state dinner that's partisan. it's the united states as a country, it's not president obama as a democrat. >> bipartisan. >> he should there be. also you know what, state dinners are not that bad in terms of all the painful things you have to do in politics, this is far down on the list. they're not bad. interesting people. >> you get to meet -- >> the entire delegation is there. >> you get to meet foreign policy experts who you could talk to and learn a few things from on the democratic side and republican side your dad will be there, right? >> yes. >> he doesn't like going to events, really but he wants to go to this one. this is important. >> the leadership of this country welcoming the leader of, again, the most important country. >> in our must-read op-ed, mr. obama, speak up for human rights in china. peretzing the leaders of china's government to move along a democratic path is not just in the best interest of u.s. and china, given the size and importance of the chinese population, it is in the interest of all humanity. the more humanitarian the chinese regime becomes, the lower the cost to chinese men and women to standing up to a arbitrary pretension, harassment, unfair wages, media censorship and the one-child policy. this writer, a harvard fellow, among other things, would know a thing or two. >> do we have leverage with china on human rights? >> virtually none. if you look at china today, it is gradually moving in the right direction. i would bet you, joe, in 10 or 20 years it will be more open. we should quietly talk about it, not picking fights with them or backing them into a corner. we ought to stand up for what is right and we need to demonstrate here at home how successful we are. that takes in our economy works, our society is seens aworking. that sends a message to china. when we have major economic problems it makes it easier for the chinese government to defend their practices. another reason to make the american model successful. still ahead this morning, dillylan ratigan will be here. and what do you have coming up. >> regis philbin, the block buster announcement yesterday. who could poblgly fill those shoes? >> nobody. >> we'll throw out some names. >> lou holtz. nly try... and try...and try. 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[ male announcer ] don't be left behind. at&t. the nation's fastest mobile broadband network is getting faster with 4g. the nation's fastest mobile broadband network ♪rog borders with ease ♪ ♪ clearing customs' a breeze ♪ ♪ that's logistics ♪ ♪ a-di-os, cheerio, au revoir ♪ ♪ off it goes, that's logistics ♪ ♪ over seas, over land, on the web, on demand ♪ ♪ that's logistics ♪ ♪ operations worldwide, ups on your side ♪ ♪ that's logistics ♪ oh, yes, it's time, isn't it? >> big news in the world of television. regis, yesterday. >> this will be my last year on this show. no, i know, it's been a long time, 28 years since i've been here. it was the biggest thrill of my life to come back to new york where i grew up as a kid, watching tv in the early days. you know, never even dreaming that i would one day have whatever the ability or whatever it takes to get in front of a camera and talk to it. it is a time when everything must come to an end for certain people on camera, especially certain old people. >> my god. >> after 25 years hosting the show live with kathy lee giff k gifford and now for almost te years with kelly ripa. he turns 80 on the 25th. >> a great guy. >> one of the greatest guys ever. >> i love him. i love him. >> next year he'll start his own network like oprah's own network. >> the regis network. >> you can't find anybody to say a bad word about regis. >> you think our farewell speech might be different when we quit the show. >> distinctly different. >> two words, the second one being off. >> thank you for saying it. >> did you just say that? you are rude. >> here are some of the names being fleeted out there. >> just idiots. did you just say that? >> mike did. thanks, mike. >> mark consuelos, the husband of kelly ripa, he feels in quite often. mike probst, neil patrick harris. >> dylan ratigan. >> yes, dylan, of course. >> anderson. >> is he a notre dame guy? >> yes. >> to succeed regis? >> joe theismann. >> joe montana. >> you could do it. >> i went to catholic high school. does that couldn't the? >> close enough. >> larry king, old friend, regis was on with joy behar last night pep sang a little serenade. >> no, no. >> you going to be singing to regis on his last show and what song will you sing? ♪ someday when awfully low ♪ when the world is cold i will feel a glow just thinking of you ♪ ♪ and the way you look tonight >> look at you two. >> i love her. i love her. am i allowed to love her. >> regis came on larry's show and tried to initiate a duet. larry didn't pick up on that. kathie lee gifford will be on this show. kathie lee, long-time co-host with regis. they'll be with us this morning on "morning joe." >> that's trouble. that's trouble. >> i'm nervous. >> we talked about john boehner being at the state dinner. guess who will be there? jackie chang. an invited guest, he will be there and the speaker of the house will not. how's that for perspective. >> betty white, last night on "david letterman" having some fun. kind of mika style, bottoms up. >> what do you like to do in your free time? >> i like to do most anything, play with animals mostly and vodka's kind of a hobby. >> that's show business. >> vodka. >> there's nothing wrong with that. i mean, seriously. >> dylan ratigan making his triumphant return. we'll go inside dylan's wheels of steel tour. >> come here. how are you? 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>> oh, yeah. she said it -- we've talked about it probably, you know, ten times. >> all right. top of the hour. welcome back to "morning joe." mike barnicle is with us, joining us, the host of msnbc's "dylan ratigan show," dylan ratigan. that was gabby giffords husband, continuing conversation with diane sawyer, which is an amazing interview on a number of levels, especially her talking about what you've always talked about with the families of members of congress go through, but the fear that something could happen. >> it's much worse. it's much worse for the families than the members. because when you're out there, you just don't think about it, but the families are always worried. people are crazy out there. they're crazy. >> no, let's not talk about it. this is -- >> i am. i'm going to say it. >> we put ourselves up for it because we said the words sarah palin yesterday. >> i went on my twitter feed yesterday. >> whenever we do that, crazy comes out. >> i saw the comments. i'm telling you, there's some unhappy people out there. >> they have a lot of pent up -- >> you can't overinterpret the twitter, though. >> e-mails. >> all of that, you know when people are nice to each other, then they get in the car, they're screaming at each other. >> there are some things that don't need overinterpreting, i'm just going to say. >> a lot of people are crazy. >> 100%. >> mark kelly, the husband said he thought his wife was dead because he was watching the coverage and the erroneous news reports that came out, saying she had passed away. for a while he thought his wife had died. >> which really, come on. a lot of the networks made the mistake, not once but twice. >> yes. >> they kept going back to it. >> "washington post," "new york times" both declared her death in their online edition. >> npr did as well. a lot of bad information. >> that's chilling. >> i hope they wait next time. so dylan, i have to show you this. we've been hearing about the decline of -- >> get "the wall street journal." >> i've been saying, come on, don't even -- the words -- >> don't even think it. >> in the words of an '80s song, don't even dream it. here's "the wall street journal" u.s. factories buck decline, united states manufacturing up. as i love to say all the time, you know, germany's exporting its jobs. >> yes. >> to tuscaloosa, alabama. cat piller is growing in indiana. ford back. >> 7,000 new jobs. >> 7,000 new jobs in michigan. >> i want to take a closer look. take a look at the chart you're referring to. >> what about it? >> what's the trend on that chart? >> downward. >> yes. in other words, what we're seeing is we have watched an injection of trillions of dollars of printed money from the federal reserve over the past three years that have had a clear impact in stemming what has been going on in this country. but at the end of the day, i don't want to throw too much water on that, i'm not suggesting that the american spirit is not as strong or stronger than ever. >> right. but what i am saying is the strength and effort to rebound is being driven largely by the american spirit that you refer to and the benefit of the money printing at the federal reserve, imagine how much more momentum we could add to that if we actually saw increased fairness in our trade, tax and banking system. you're doing great against a head wind. manage if i had a little bit less of a head wind. it's like running with ankle weights. you take the ankle weights off. >> the steels on wheels. let's talk about the steel industry in the united states. it has been absolutely devastated by dumping from china. >> yes. >> that's a reality, "the new york times" talked about it today. clearly they're dumping. clearly they're behaving illegally in this country. guess what? they get away with it because our leaders keep dreaming of the big chinese markets. >> next week you're going to minnesota, nebraska and colorado. >> next week's tour is -- >> dilin', that's over the top. >> a bus? how did you get a bus? >> no. come on. that's a little cheesy. >> you can ride my bus anytime, joe. >> i love that. >> dylan, dylan. >> what goes on in the bus? >> that's my kiss good-bye right there. >> you don't need a big bus, okay? >> late night on the bus. yeah. >> you know what, i just got a little sick. >> come on now. what do you have against a little bus? >> it's not a little bus. it's a big bus. you know what they say. >> listen, the question is why does the government -- why does the american government not do a more aggressive job, not in terms of steel dumping but lack of reciprocity in china relative to american access to our markets? there are core things where we get a lot of rhetoric around so-called free trade. it's a fraud. it's not free trade. it's not a free market. it's a free market fraud where in effect we use the rhetoric of the free market. if you looked at the practices whether they're stealing our intellectual property, not allowing us access. we have aer it figure 2.5% on what china ships to our country. chinese tariff on american goods, 25%. why is it more for to us push product into china than to bring product out? the answer, i think, the government in this country is too willing to accommodate american special interests that are profiting by virtue of their investments in china. i hate to say that. it's going on. >> it's about that, the dream of a big investment. n. china. >> you get the dollar signs. >> last hour we had richard haass here saying what i say all the time. >> nobody wins when you engage in a trade war. >> that's fine but the chinese engage in trade wars against us. i asked richard, if nobody wins in a trade war, why are the chinese engaging in a trade war. >> they're winning the trade war. >> he says because they want to build up their economy. guess what? somebody's winning in the trade war. we always go, nobody wins in a trade war. we're not going to engage it. boom, nobody wins, boom, nobody wins. boom, nobody wins. how many times will we continue to get hit in the face? we've been hearing this for 25 years. nobody wins in a trade war. oh, that's great. why are they winning the trade war against us? >> and why is their unemployment 4%. >> it's the equivalent of the patriots and the jets in december, 45-3. >> it's economic nationalism. >> the problem lies, i think, within us. your numbers, krocorrect me if wrong. >> it goes to lack of reciprocity, whether it's in tariffs, intellectual property, currency, you pick it. >> you're say taking your sin-filled bus. >> yes, my bus of sin. >> what do you think the reaction would be if the 2.5%, we manage to get it up to 15%. that would mean i go into walmart to buy an ipod, i'm going to pay more for the ipod, right? >> absolutely. >> what do you think the reaction will be among the american consumers if we do that? >> it all comes down to leadership. >> any one thing, if i just do the tariff and nothing else, much the same as if i do banking reform. i could pick any issue that you would get a disruptive response. however, with proper leadership, if you explain to people that we have the lurchage with china, there's a false presepgs in this country that china has the leverage. the truth of the matter is, china's trade surplus is entirely a function of their trade relationship with the united states. to the extent to which we diminish their ability to dump into our market, immediately china's trade surplus goes to a trade deficit. china's greatest risk has nothing to do with america or trade war or anything else. their greatest risk is they have 43% of their population under the age of 29. the vast majority of those people are young men because of their birth policies. and they don't want unrest. >> and they have no money. >> they have no money. you have huge inequality, a bunch of young people, mostly guys. they don't want an uprising. you do what you can to keep those people employed. if you're hurting america by exporting your unemployment to this country, they will do it. if you were to do what you're talking about, in addition to pushing on the currency, look at what happened with japan in 1985. when we did the currency. >> don't turn him off. >> all that capital flow that was in asia comes back to america and all of a sudden you're getting all that chinese capital that's in asia right now being invested in america, creating jobs in america. >> you're cleared for landing. >> it's a worthwhile price for more better jobs and investments. >> breathing. >> he's overshooting the runway. >> willie geist, the next question. >> what do you do better than anyone on the planet? simplify it and explain it to us. big sticking point in meeting. >> i like purple by the way. >> the devaluing of the chinese currency, what does that mean and what does if mean for us? >> do you want a quick history lesson? >> no. >> be honest with yourself. >> yesterday, carl said, can i ask you a question? no, no, you can't, carl. >> i love carl. >> 60 sections. >> what does it mean, why is it bad? >> at any price, as long as they rig their currency, keep their currency is the a lower value than ours, that money leaves our country and goes to their country. think about your household. if more money is leaving your household than is coming into your household, what are the prospects of your household. >> divorce. >> yes, exactly. we don't want divorce. there's a lot of kids in this case. it's messy. china is saying we want the money flowing into our country because we want jobs in our country. in the process, we're losing jobs in our country. >> china has no incentive to change that. >> they have no incentive to change that. the only incentive to change it would be if we manned up and said we are no longer going to allow you to do that, which is the same thing ronald reagan did with japan in 1985. he said your currency rigging relative to the u.s. market will no longer be tolerated. they had a meeting and changed the value of the yen by 50%. instead of american money going to japan as it was in the early '80, after the accord of 1958, all of this japanese money was coming to america. that's the sort of thing -- this has been done before. the dutch did it, the germans have done it. this has been done. >> they bought pebble beach. >> and this building. >> everybody is so short-sighted. in politics they're short-sighted, in economics they're short-sighted. we heard, i said this time and again, the japanese are taking over america. >> they bought pebble beach. they bought rockefeller center. >> we want to get money from japan coming into america. >> we're talking in stereo right now. >> no. hold on. i need the silence. i'm good. >> let her breathe. >> could i have a moment. >> i don't want to hear your voice. >> palms up, meditate for a second. there you go. >> that's nice. >> i like this. >> that was good. that is real nice. >> can we do that for the next hour? >> please. that's great stuff. >> we should do that everyday. >> did you get aaron shock's christmas card? >> i just did. >> you open up. >> it's a cute card. >> look. oh. hold on a second. wait a minute. i'm not done. hello. >> busy year. >> is that two-sided. >> yes, two-sided. there's one that's even more impressive than this one. >> you have to be talking about evan bayh's christmas card. it goes a mile. >> it's twice the width at least. i think it folds out six times. we'll have to talk to him. >> i haven't done my christmas card yet. >> did you ever do this when you're in congress? >> no. >> i promise. >> pictures of your family, you in the war zone. >> was that campaign cash for a 17-page christmas card. >> paid for aaron shock for congress. >> we like this guy. >> isfully a picture for each month of the year? july 4th. labor day barbecue. >> that's more information. >> can i ask a quick question? what happens? we haven't done a christmas card yet. >> you just got mine, right? >> valentine's day is coming up. >> do i do valentine's day, st. patrick's day? >> make it not like a six -- >> wait until next year. >> you can't return a present a year, am i past that? >> yes, let it go. let it go. >> i almost did miller philmore's -- >> i love this tour on wheels. >> thank you. >> i'll send the two of you out by yourself. >> i like the tour. the bus a little much. >> oh, come on. >> i like it. >> enough. i need some silence. coming up, chuck todd takes us inside the preparations for tonight's state dinner with chinese president hu jintao. >> he put a rainbow. >> there's a rainbow over afghanistan. >> we have to call him. >> he's talking in a church. >> he's in a flat jacket. >> look at this, he's in a school here. there's a big old school board i should have done this. more to cover coming up. enough. later, a look back at the life of sergeant shriver. here's bill karins with a check of the forecast. bill? good morning, mika. ice storm yesterday is over with in new england. we have light freezing drizzle this morning along with snow and rain showers. nothing compared to the misery new england went through yesterday. to enjoy today, it will be the warmest day we'll see for a while up and down the east coast. there's the storm from the berkshires up into areas of massachusetts. still icy conditions, hartford northward on the map. wednesday's forecast for today, temperatures should get up to 40 in the big city. 36 in boston, look at tomorrow. highs only 26 to 32. much colder. if you haven't gone out and shoveled yet, make sure you do so. the next storm already on the way. it will hit kansas city and st. louis today. northeast, thursday night into friday. you're watching "morning joe" brewed by starbucks. ♪ i can't drive 55 >> woman: good night, gluttony-- a farewell long awaited. good night, stuffy. >> ( yawning ) >> good night, outdated. >> ( click ) >> good night, old luxury and all of your wares. good night, bygones everywhere. >> ( engine revs ) >> good morning, illumination. good morning, innovation. good morning, unequaled inspiration. >> ( heartbeats ) (jennifer garner) there's a lot of beautiful makeup out there to cover up flaws and make skin look pretty but there's one that's so clever, it makes your skin look better even after you take it off. neutrogena healthy skin liquid makeup. 98% of women saw improvement in their skin's natural texture, tone, or clarity. does your makeup do that? neutrogena® cosmetics recommended most by dermatologists. on the news leaked out that regis was retiring, cbs, this network put together a farewell tribute to regis philbin. take a look. >> after a long storied career in broadcasting, regis philbin is saying farewell. with that in mind, a member of the cbs family has a similar announcement he'd like to make. [ laughter ] so long, old pal. from your friends at cbs. >> that was funny. 20 past the hour. joining us now from the white house, nbc news chief white house correspondent and political director and co-host of the daily rundown, chuck todd. nothing going on there today, right? >> nothing at all. i'm sure the more important question to ask. maybe you've heard some talk in the background about john boehner. why isn't john boehner showing up at the state dinner? >> you know, it's a good question. they did invite him. he declined. nancy pelosi who is a pretty outspoken critic of this chinese government and their human rights record, she was invited and she is coming. frankly, it is somewhat surprising. >> is mitch mcconnell going to be there, other republican leaders going to be there? >> we haven't seen the full list. there will be some republican leaders that are coming to this. this really is, this feels like a state dinner that's being put on for the american business community. i mean when you look at today's meeting and i'll be anxious to look at the actual guest list for the state dinner. when you look at the fact that among the major events of this basically two-day summit, however you want to describe it, it's a state visit, we should call it that, this two-day state visit is this ceo hosted meeting with the president basically doing a get to know you a little bit between american ceos and the chinese president. and that's what -- when you go back at the end of the day, as much as this administration is trying to have a better foreign policy relationship in terms of north korea, iran, trying to get the chinese government to be more open about their military -- >> right. >> at the end of the day this feels like a state dinner being put on for the american business community. >> so, chuck, as nbc news' political director, give us your opinion. it strikes me as a great political opportunity for a president that is trying to reconnect with the business community that he lost over the past two years. >> well, i think this is one of those occasions, look, it's state visit. there will be the join the press conference, there will be questions about the chinese human rights record, all of those foreign policy questions. but you will hear a lot of talk about the economy. and a lot of trying to convince the american public. one thing fascinating that we've seen in our own polling, we've seen on the campaign trail, the demonizing of china that take place in both parties. you know, you don't want to be seen as somehow pro-business to china, right, if you're in a democratic primary or in a republican primary. you saw both -- you saw nominees of both parties in 2010 use the fear of china, the rise of china in a way to strike fear in voters to try and say, hey, the other guy is cutting too many deals that will help move jobs to china. and it's crossing ideological lines. it's a classic get -- this is a case where you have the head of the afl/cio and pat buchanan probably on the same page. >> what is the white house strategy leading up to the symbolic portion of this trip which, of course, is the state dinner tonight, chuck? because you have the secretary of state and other administration officials speaking out in the week leading up to this visit about some of the problems with china, human rights, trade, currency, laying the ground work for some of the issues that are going to be at some point potentially deal breakers moving forward? what's the strategy sort of laying that out before this visit? >> i think it's so they can say they talked about it and they don't bring it up while hu is here to be totally cynical about it. the other part of this that we've all found fascinating and maybe they have something up their sleeve, is how they've gone out of their way to tamp down expectations. there won't be any major deal or any major this. so basically the state dinner itself is the gift to the chinese government. we're giving you this platform. you know, you hosted president obama for a state dinner back in beijing in china a year ago. so this is the return gift. other than that you're not hearing about any major breakthroughs, they deliverables, that word that you hear thrown around during diplomatic meetings. you're not hearing talk of any of that. they're trying to say this is just a continuation of the dialogue, the eighth meeting between president obama and president hu. and it's just keeping this constant conversation going with the chinese government, rather than trying to raise expectations for something big. >> yes. >> one problem that both leaders share, chuck, whether it's president hu or president obama, is in america, concern not only with poverty but widespread and increasing unemployment, some would point to trade policies as having created that in this country and in china, concern about poverty and lack of mobility as well. as opposed to demonizing each other and saying, well, it's china's fault that america has unemployment or it's none of america's business how china deals with poverty. is there any bridge to be built between these two men collectively to sort of begin a collaboration to solve the poverty problem in both countries? >> well, look, there is a -- one of the problems that american officials have shared with us that they say in dealing with the chinese and in dealing with the chinese government is that first of all, president hu isn't -- the way a president of the united states is clearly the commander in chief, leader of the economy, speaker for the american government in dealing in international fare. that is not the case with president hu in china. and there seems to be some distrust that the american government and american business communities having to deal with in china who, where there's some chinese leaders who believe, cutting any sort of deal on the economic front is somehow some sort of secret american conspiracy to undermine the chinese economy. that's not to say -- that is not the view of president hu. that's not the view of sort of the main diplomat but it's certainly people within the chinese government. that sort of fear inside the chinese is another barrier that the american officials are talking about having to deal with here. i think that is in part why you're going to see these ceos, this meet and greet essentially for a president -- american ceos say, look, this will help you. >> right. >> this is going to help all of the chinese people in the long run here. whether it's conversations about currency, conversations about the inflation that's taking place in china by the way. it is trying to convince them, hey, we're not out to get you. we're not trying to undermine you. >> willie? >> chuck, one quick thing before we let you go, nonchina related. house republicans going to vote to repeal president obama's health care law. some house republicans yesterday said they think there's a shot this could get through the senate to a repeal. do yew want to put that to rest or is that a real possibility. >> harry reid would have to bring it up. he's the senate majority leader. house republicans are seeing if they can guilt harry reid, guilt democrats to tell reid, give me this vote, i have to put up this vote. >> not going to happen? >> that's not going to happen. right now harry reid has to worry about a mini exodus from his caucus. two retirements in two days. one seat they feel they can hold. the other will be tougher in north dakota and he has three or four others that he's nervous about that may choose retirement instead of re-election. >> you can catch chuck and savannah on "the daily rundown." >> steelers versus jets, who are you taking, chuck? >> i don't want two weeks of a media circus with rex ryan. >> you hate new york. i know you hate new york. you're cheering for the steelers. >> no, it's about rex ryan and two-week media circus. as a packer fan, i want the jets to beat the stealers. . >> you think the packers beat the bear? >> i think so. man, i'm nervous. i don't like being a road favorite. >> yes. >> that's tough to do. by the way, nbc/"wall street journal" poll comes out tonight, tomorrow morning. i'll be up there. >> oh, good. >> it is say big poll. this isn't an incremental poll. this is a big poll, lots of interesting news in it. >> looking forward to that tomorrow then. >> that is great. >> chuck, thank you. >> looks like chuck's taking the packers and the steelers in the super bowl. >> old school, baby. >> that would be old school. >> team of the '60s, team of the '70s. >> he hates new york. don't forget to tune in tomorrow, arianna huffington, representative ron paul and representative andy cohen will all be on the show. that's trouble. we'll be right back. like this one. and this one. and oops, my bad. so, they give expedia ginormous discounts with these: unpublished rates. which means i get an even more rockin' hotel, for less. my brain didn't even break a sweat. where you book matters. expedia. 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[ male announcer ] and there you go, business pro. there you go. go national. go like a pro. you know how china treats its own countrymen, its women, it's children. do you think they'll treat us any different because we're america when we become a dead beat borrower? it's like going to a bank in sicily. when we go bankrupt, the bank of sicily will come for their money. it's about the family, you know what i mean? they don't care about you. they'll take your assets and we will owe them unless we like to dishonor themselves. >> willie at one point he said you know what i mean? i have no idea what he means. could you -- because a lot of times media experts when they're trying to decipher what glenn beck says they call one person. willie geist. willie, what was he saying there? >> strong marks for the character voices, the ugly american voices. >> hold on a second. >> i like that. i like that. >> it makes me want to take an italian vacation. >> nine for the voice. >> okay. >> i think what he's suggesting is that the chinese government is like the mob and they're going to come eventually and kick down our doors, take our possessions and perhaps even our families. >> we better protect ourselves. >> do you have money in the bank of sicily? do they have low atm fees? i never heard of the bank of sicily. >> i'm going to move on now. >> you know what i mean. >> don't engage dylan, please. >> there's a myth that china owns all of america's debt. it is say myth. the vast majority, it's like 7%. the vast majority of america's debt, the deficit, all we talk about, is held by social security. you want to worry about something -- >> i'm done. >> china doesn't own it. >> that's it. gentlemen. >> i was hoping you would say the canadians owned the majority of our debt. we could just invade them. they have vast oil -- >> joe, right here. in less than three hours, president obama holds a bilateral meeting with his chinese counterpart and the country's trade and human rights policies. nbc's meredith vieira sat down with secretary of state hillary clinton to talk about the high stakes meetings and the accusations that the kye naez h -- chinese has bullied america in the past. >> i've read commentarieies tha said we're too hard, we're tsao fast. in part it reflects how we should stand up for our interests and yet look for common ground wherever we can find it with china. this will be one of the most consequential relationships of the 21st century. i think on so many of the strategic and economic issues, the last two years, really are a good news story. can you imagine how we would have navigated through the economic crisis if president obama had not been very forward leaning in working with the chinese both bilaterally and through the g-20 to try to chart a very steady course. we are recovering. we're making progress. we have a ways to go but the world economy, thankfully, did not fall into the deep -- deeper recession and even depression that so many people were worried about. >> two things, what needs to be accomplished, needs to be accomplished over the next couple of days? if we don't get it right in terms of our policy vis-a-vis china, could we be headed towards another cold war, which is what some people are predicting could happen. >> we hope to avoid that. we don't think that's in america's interests. we want to have around open trading system. we want to have a lot of interchanges between our two countries. we'll be announcing additional people-to-people measures because it's not just between governments. we want to see more corporation on the economic front. we want to see more corporation dealing with the very thorny problem of north korea, its nuclear ambitions, its provocative behavior that's destabilizing northeast asia. and we want to continue to build those ties of understanding and trust. i think we have to chart a steady course and stay on it and never forget that we stand for american interests and american values. they stand for chinese interests and chinese values. we don't want a zero sum relationship. we want to look for as many win/win opportunities as we can. because this relationship is going to, in many ways, determine the peace and stability and prosperity of the 21st century. >> i want to move on to something that former vice president cheney said on our program yesterday in an interview. he was asked about president obama, obama's political future. this is say little bit of what he had to say. >> his overall approach to expanding the size of government, expanding the deficit, those are all weaknesses. as i look at barack obama. and i think he'll be a one-term president. >> what's your response to that? beyond the laughter, what is your response to that? >> well, i am pleased that former vice president cheney is healthy and resuming public activities but i could not disagree with him more. i don't think that will surprise anyone who is watching your program, meredith. i think president obama has been playing the hands that he was dealt by the bush/cheney administration very well indeed. rescuing not just the american economy but the global economy, beginning to deal with a lot of our long-term competitive challenges. so clearly, it's a die mametric ly opposed view. >> will you be a one-term secretary of state. >> i'm looking forward to returning to private life, something i haven't had the experience of for a long time now. and i'm proud to serve this president. i think we've made a real difference in restoring american leadership and credibility around the world. but i do look forward to having a little more spare time and a few more hours just to take a deep breath, which seems kind of hard to have in this job. >> she is so great. up next, "vanity fair's" maureen orth and dnc chair tim kaine joins us on set. keep it right here on "morning joe." 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>> wood stock. >> woodstock. >> joining us now the chairman of the democratic national committee. and former governor tim kaine. >> how about virginia, can i talk about virginia? >> it's a fine state. >> and in washington, special correspondent for "vanity fair" maureen orth who has a blog on vf.com about sarge shriver. tell bus sarge. >> he was the guy that when president said ask not what your country can do for you, he the instrument by which all these thousands of young americans joined the paets corps and went to different parts of the world and fulfilled that promise. for them to learn about other places and to be taught a few things by us, we learned a lot more from him. he was this cool guy that had so much enthusiasm and love of life. he was a hero in world war ii. he was an ambassador to france. he ran the war on poverty. the great thing, this year it's the 50th anniversary of its founding was the peace corps. i was a peace corps volunteer in columbia. i still go down there and work there. i just got back monday. i owe it all to sarge. he really was responsible for some of the richest parts of many of our lives. >> hey, maureen, talk a bit, if you would, i know you can, about sarge shriver, the man, the individual, a man of faith. >> right. >> a family man. a man -- >> he was -- >> go ahead. >> even when -- sarge died when he was 95 years old. in the last years he had bad alzheimer's and he didn't recognize his own children but there were two things he never forgot. his prayers and his good manners. and he could still say the our father and the hale mary. i remember my son, luke russert. he went up to luke once and said you're a good-looking guy, are you one of my sons? >> adorable. >> he was so -- he was just the most warm and lovely guy. he was also, because he was so enthusiastic and so good looking, people didn't realize he was also a great intellect, very deeply grounded. early civil rights leader in chicago. and he took all of the sort of intellectual preparation he had and he put it into action. and so for us, he's like george washington for all the peace corps volunteers around the world. we're going to miss him. i can't believe he's not going to be with us. >> and tim kaine, mike barnicle was saying earlier that perhaps the peace corps may be almost 50 years to the day after jfk's inauguration, may be his longest lasting legacy. >> in some ways. it shows government can do good. i was a missionary in honduras for a year in the 1980s. everywhere i would go in honduras, far up in the mountains there would be a peace corps volunteer living by themselves, doing wonderful things and showing the great face of america to the world. sets a great example and still does. >> no doubt about it. >> what do we need tonight and throughout this week for the president to get out of china? >> well, that's a challenging one. i think just -- i was watching chuck todd earlier on your show talking about, it is, it has a domestic component as well as the foreign component. dealing with china on currency issues and some of it may be policy of china but some of it -- there may be a currency reset to some degree because of inflation that china's experiencing. we want to make sure that we're the two nations that, as secretary clinton said, the relationship between us is probably going to determine as much about the future of the 21st century as any relationship in the world. we have to have that be strong. >> the toughest question i'll ask you all day today, can you pronounce the name of the new chairman of the republican committee? >> reince priebus. i talked to reince yesterday. >> did you give reince a warning two years ago people were talking about what a horrible year 2010 would be for republican senate candidates just like today people are talking about what a terrible year it's going to be for democrats? way too early t. is too early. these things go up and down. we're feeling good on our side about the drift of things at the end of the year and at the beginning of the year for the president, how people are perceiving his leadership. that will translate well with thinking in 2012. we all know a year from now, six months from now, we have to keep at it every day. >> maureen, there will be a new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll out, i have not heard be i have no information from chuck todd on it, i know there is going to be a huge jump in the polls for barack obama. what a political resurrection over the past month or so? what do you think's happening? >> i watched his speech in arizona on the other network. down in columbia. i was absolutely fascinated. i think the american people are decent and good people and i want to be healed. they want to feel good about their government. i think they want the best things to prevail. he's trying to reach out and touch the best parts of us so we can come together. i don't think we want to hear screaming and yelling and attacks all the time. >> it may be a softball question to you, but try to analyze it. how is the president moved from a position after the november elections where people were talking about him being a one-term president to a position now where he's over 50% in most polls? >> two things. there's a great historic parallel, if you read david mccollough's wonderful in the m, people didn't want to campaign with him and he lost both houses and then his popularity was over 60 by april, just four months later. so this happens. you know, sometimes we have short attention spans. i think the end of the year strong achievements with the s.t.a.r.t. ratification, the tax compromise and don't ask, don't tell repeal, his strong performance in tucson, people are taking the measure of him under tough consequences. look, as he said, it was a shellacking in november. people really watch you after an experience of adversity to see if you get back up off the mat, keep a smile on your face, keep plugging and he's done a good job on it. >> we got a report from cnbc that real unemployment was at 19%. if the president of the united states, i don't care who it is, is sitting at 50% plus in the polls with 19% real unemployment, wait till those numbers start going down. >> yep. >> maureen, thank you for being with us. >> thank you. >> we'd love to get you in here to talk about what you keep doing in colombia, because it is an inspiring story. tim, thank you. >> how do you pronounce his name again? >> reince priebus. >> i'm just glad he's asking you and not me. still ahead, george clooney. up next, regis steps down, but who's taking his spot? we'll be right back. for three hours a week, i'm a coach. but when i was diagnosed with prostate cancer... i needed a coach. our doctor was great, but with so many tough decisions i felt lost. unitedhealthcare offered us a specially trained rn who helped us weigh and understand all our options. for me cancer was as scary as a fastball is to some of these kids. but my coach had hit that pitch before. turning data into useful answers. we're 78,000 people looking out for 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare. somewhere in america... there's a home by the sea powered by the wind on the plains. there's a hospital where technology has a healing touch. there's a factory giving old industries new life. and there's a train that got a whole city moving again. somewhere in america, the toughest questions are answered every day. because somewhere in america, more than sixty thousand people spend every day answering them. siemens. answers. i'm friend, secret-keeper and playmate. do you think i'd let osteoporosis slow me down? 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[ male announcer ] you should not take reclast if you're on zometa, have low blood calcium, kidney problems. or you're pregnant, plan to become pregnant or nursing. take calcium and vitamin d daily. tell your doctor if you develop severe muscle, bone or joint pain, of if you have dental problems, as rarely jaw problems have been reported. the most common side effects include flu like symptoms, fever, muscle or joint pain and headache. share the world with the ones you love! and ask your doctor about reclast. or call 1-866-51-reclast. year-long protection for on-the-go women. welcome back to "morning joe." the arrival in washington yesterday of chinese president hu jintao was overshadowed by a major, major announcement by this country's de facto leader. >> this will be my last year on this show. no, i know, it's been a long time. it's been 28 years since i've been here and it was the biggest thrill of my life to come back to new york where i grew up as a kid watching tv in the early days. you know, never even dreaming that i would one day have whatever, the ability or whatever it takes to get in front of a camera and talk to it. there is a time, you know, that everything must come to an end for certain people on camera, especially certain old people. >> regis is going to be 80 years old later this year. he says it's just time to move on. we wish regis the best of luck. dylan, you got an out in your contract? >> they have been calling and calling but i just don't like the morning. it doesn't have a boss and it's the wrong time slot. i prefer to work later in the day. >> last night on letterman, long friendship with regis, dave called regis on the air. >> on the phone here, this better be regis philbin. hello? >> hello. >> regis, is that you? >> yes. who is this? >> i'm just calling to see if you got the menu that i slipped under your door. >> dave, this is one of the busiest days of my life. i got reporters here, barbara walters is at my door, katie couric is down in the lobby crying. i mean there's only so much i can do. what do you want? >> dave and regis. dylan, good luck getting on the show. >> thank you very much. >> and thanks for making all this make sense to us. >> you want money coming in? >> right. >> you don't want money going out. reagan did it with the japanese in '85. this is not rocket science. >> who does he remind you of? denzel washington in "philadelphia." george clooney is next. with 4 doses a year, after 2 starter doses. in a medical study, 7 out of 10 stelara® patients saw at least 75% clearer skin at 12 weeks. and 6 out of 10 patients had their plaque psoriasis rated as cleared or minimal at 12 weeks. stelara® may lower your ability to fight infections and increase your risk of infections. some serious infections require hospitalization. before starting stelara®, your doctor should test for tuberculosis. stelara® may increase your risk of cancer. always tell your doctor if you have any sign of infection, or have had cancer. alert your doctor of new or worsening problems including headaches, seizures, confusion and vision problems. these may be signs of a rare, potentially fatal brain condition. serious allergic reactions can occur. tell your doctor if you or anyone in your house needs or has recently received a vaccine. with 4 doses a year, after 2 starter doses, it's stelara®. [ indistinct shouting ] ♪ another day ♪ another dollar ♪ daylight comes [ dogs barking ] ♪ i'm on my way ♪ another day ♪ another dollar ♪ working my whole life away ♪ another day ♪ another dollar i'm going to play her talking about president obama's speech because chris wants me to, not because i really want to. i mean okay, he ran for vice president. it was a huge failure. at what point do you not become news? >> clearly mika is experiencing what psychologists call palin fatigue. it looks like her cup of morning joe needs an extra shot of midnight me spresso. mika, you need to buck up. i know you think this story has no purpose other than keeping sarah palin's name in the headlines. i know you think that she has nothing to offer and her speeches are coded talking points mixed in with words picked at random from a they saur us. i know you think sarah palin is a self-promoting ignoramus and a media troll who will abuse any platform. i know you think her reality show was pathetically unstatesman like and that it also represents her pinnacle of potential. and that her transparent desperation to be a celebrity so completely eclipsed her interest in public service so long ago that there would be more journalistic integrity on reporting on one of the less kardashian's ass implants. and i know, i know when you arrive at the office you say a silent prayer that maybe, just maybe, sarah palin will shut up for ten [ bleep ] minutes. i know, because i can see it in your eyes. well, guess what, mika, that's the gig. and it's only january of 2011, kiddo. and you have a minimum of two more years of this ahead of you. you want to stay in this game? you dig deep. you find another gear. you show up to work every day. get your hair and makeup done, slop on a smile, get out there on tv and repeat what sarah palin said on hannity last night right into the lens. you know, news. i have faith in you, kid, you can do it. i'll see you in new hampshire, i'll buy. >> my goodness. >> well then. >> welcome back to "morning joe." we are actually going to talk about china. big event. we have george clooney lined up at 8:15. >> we're going to talk about sudan. >> jerry gave us an e-mail, sent me an e-mail to give george a big hug, but, you know, we can't finish the rest -- >> let's figure right now a man who -- actually the head of the council on foreign relations just said an hour or two ago was using his star power to bring about change in sudan, actor george clooney. he's with us from detroit. jerry says hi. >> jerry white. >> hello, joe. hello, mika. hello, mike. i love ya. >> did i tell you about the time that i took sinatra to sudan in '67, blew the roof off the place. >> i took elvis to katum, we had a great time, we solved the world's problems and we met a couple of ladies. >> there we go. >> the first time, and we didn't know -- we had not met jerry. >> i love jerry. >> we love jerry. the first time we have jerry on, we ask him some question about monetary policy. we're talking monetary policy and jerry breaks in with, i swear to god, a ten-minute story about sinatra taking him to houston. >> we heard it twice. >> and getting him drunk. >> no, it was on health care reform. so anyway -- >> either one, you'll find a way to get the sinatra story. >> it's always a sinatra story. so let's talk about, we're going to make a transition from jerry -- >> oh, no. i want to hear more. >> it might be a good move. to sudan. >> sure. >> and you've been working on this issue for some time. it's stunning to me that back in the 1990s we were talking about two million people killed in a sudanese civil war and then darfur over the past decade, it seems like the horrors there never end. you just got back and you're working like hell to effect change there. give us an update. >> it's actually been one of the brighter spots in the history of sudan in the last week or so. they had their first election. they voted for independence since 1956. they stood in line it looks like overwhelmingly they're going to get their independence. it's going to be a long, hard slog to actually work it through and make it a successful country, but it's got a real shot. it's a lot better than being under the rule of the leaders in kartum who over the last 20 years have been in charge of some pretty heinous acts. >> so there's a real chance. explain to our viewers what's going to happen here. the war between the north and the south, it's been religious, it's been ethnic. they're going to try to divide the country in half, aren't they? >> they're basically going to try to put it back the way it was. as a lot of us who have colonized over the years, it doesn't necessarily work when you draw something and say let's make a nice country out of these two groups who actually got along okay for a long period of time but didn't particularly love each other and now they're one country. it's less religious. people like to call it a christian and muslim fight. it's more in some ways racial but it's also very much about territories. the south are farmers and the north are nomads. and so basically they fought a war ending in 2005, killed about two and a half million people in that war, and there was an agreement that said five years from this date when they agreed, if things aren't working out for you guys as one country, then you have the right to vote for your independence, which they have decided to do overwhelmingly. and i was on the ground there during the election and i have to say it's not often you get to stand next to miles and miles of people voting for their independence for the first time. so that was exciting to do. >> it's unbelievable. mika, again, i've been saying two million, george just talked about two and a half million people killed. and you just wonder why the world hasn't awakened to this horror. of course if it happened in europe, then it would have been -- they wouldn't have gotten past 200,000 people killed. but it seems like the world has been ignoring sudan for too long. >> well, one of the reasons is because no one can see it. one of the projects you're working on is the satellite sentinel program and i take it the sudanese government doesn't like it too much. >> they didn't seem to be too happy with my long lens. a big issue -- i spoke to the security council at the u.n. on darfur a few years ago. one of the issues you always run into, one of the problems is you have more peacekeepers in sudan than anywhere in the world, but their mandate is so watered down with their ability to protect people because someone on the security council, one of the rotating members or sometimes china, for instance, who has a lot of business there, one of them says, well, this is just rebel infighting. and you never really have the cameras to prove it. we get shots and pictures of things afterwards and hear the tales but you don't have a view of it. so i thought let's get pictures of tanks and helicopters lined up on borders like they say they aren't beforehand, as opposed to triaging it afterwards. the government wasn't all that thrilled with that. we do things that governments don't because we're individuals. >> how dangerous was that? i remember back in the '90s a lot of members of congress would have to sneak into sudan and they would talk about -- frank wolf told me you fly the cessna in low, you can get into some of these refugee camps but it's very dangerous. how dangerous was it for you guys to do that? >> the only time it's dangerous -- look, there's so many ways -- you know, we're dipping our toe in this, obviously. but there's so many ways you can get killed there, the people who live there on a day-to-day basis. the average age is something around 36 years old for a male, i think in, chad and the neighboring nations. but it's a hard life. i was up north in the disputed border region and that's a very, very dangerous place to be. while we were there, a couple of miles from where we were, about nine people were shot and killed. it's a -- that part is tricky. and you get a little -- you know, you're not -- you don't know the neighborhood all that well so you're always a little bit off your game some, but you just keep moving. >> rebel infighting with a casualty count of two and a half million. more tribute to u.n. effectiveness around the world, i guess, george. but could you speak a bit about the degree of difficulty in getting the focus on the sudan, world focus on the sudan giving the level of self absorption about economic collapses that have hit nearly every industrial country in the world. how hard is it? >> well, as you know, it's hard to keep an oil spill in the news after they claim it's finished or it's hard to keep katrina in the news after they decide it's time to move on. the trick is, it's sort of like anything you do in my business, which is you have to sustain it but you have to let it go. you have to do it and let it go. you have to keep hitting it. you have to find things that make it newsworthy and then try to trumpet those as often as possible but you can't do it all the time because you can't sustain it. people can't keep their eye on it. this was a fairly big news story coming out with the -- with this referendum and it will go away fairly quickly and we'll have to find other reasons to keep talking about it. the truth is we have a lot of people there. we spend a billion dollars there a year already. so the argument is why don't you do it beforehand. why don't we do it where you don't have to spend money and you don't have to cost any american lives by trying to prevent the war as opposed to fixes it afterwards. >> george, willie geist here. i think a lot of people would be interested to know how you picked the sudan way back when. i'm sure you had people coming at you from all directions wanting you to be spokesman for their causes. i was interested to read that your group came up with brad pitt and matt damon and jerry weintrob. >> susie! >> that's how we picked the sudan. jerry just goes "i go sudan" and then we picked it. >> pointed to a map. >> a globe. >> was it some of the genesis of some of the ocean's 11 movies? >> all those guys are good friends of mine and they're socially involved in many things. for me it was reading articles in the "times" about darfur, which i was woefully late to. and i started to understand -- my father is a newsman, and, you know, he used to always talk about how he would do a story and then he'd get bumped for -- he'd do a big news story and get bumped for an entertainment piece and that was in the '70s. and not much has changed. so i said, well, let's go over there and i'll be the entertainment piece and you be the newsman and we'll sort of try to keep it in the headlights that way. you know, we've had some success at keeping it -- keeping a name on it. i have to say, you know, it's pretty frustrating. you would think once people know about something that it wouldn't happen. we always say never again. >> right. >> but the truth is that doesn't make much of a difference. >> let's bring into the conversation the cofounder of the enough. >> john, good to see you again. what should the obama administration do and the state department do? i remember back in the '90s i tried to get a resolution passed through the house condemning the civil war and the two million killed. i had opposition from the white house, from the state department, from every diplomat saying, oh, this is the worst thing in the world to do. you're going to turn over the tables. don't go there. does this state department get it? does this president get it? >> yeah, what's happened, i think, is the politicizization that constituencies have been built due to people like george who have brought a lot of attention to the matter, built these constituencies, particularly within faith-based communities and the student movements and now everyone from president bush to president obama takes this constituency seriously and it becomes a political issue, not just some backwater policy issue decided in the bowels of the state department. >> john, what do we have to do to make sure that we're not talking about sudan ten years from now? that we're not talking about the killing ten years from now? >> well, in six months, a new state is going to be born officially, southern sudan. that state will potentially be stillborn. if the institutions of democracy, if development initiatives are not supported right up front, it is also leaving behind a state in the north that has a history of supporting terrorism and all kinds of other negative things. that state also has to be engaged very deeply to see a depp contract transformation there. so i think the next level of effort we have to expend besides preventing new conflict between the two is laying the groundwork for real democratic transformation in both of these entities or else indeed we will be talking about these two places ten years from now as the horror movie continues. >> george, as you've been working on sudan for some time, do you get a sense that the united states government gets it? do you get a sense that our european allies get it? do you have a sense that this southern sudanese state won't be allowed to be stillborn six months from now? >> they get it. there's a lot of people that get it. the question is whether you do something about it. europe has been sort of behind this one as well. the united states, i think we dropped the ball for a period of time. i think we picked it back up and got a very, very robust diplomacy going. i think they understand now that -- believe me, we were in the sudan, i just got back, but we were there three months ago and there wasn't a person on the security council who was also there then that thought that that referendum could have taken place. it was a great sign of some real structural progress in the southern government. that means there's a chance. the fact that there was a peaceful vote and that there wasn't an all-out war, i think he was hoping the rebels would infight and i think that they avoided that, so that's a big step. they're proving to the european union, they're proving to the united states that there's a chance for success and gives hope to try and back them. >> hey, john, it's willie. i've got to ask you about a pretty vicious statement put out by the sudanese embassy that mentions you by name, essentially calls you an opportunist. says you have an ulterior motive that has nothing to do with peace, accusing you of parading celebrities through the country and then discarding them when you have no use left for them. this is an official statement from the embassy. pretty harsh. how do you respond? >> this clooney character is not easily manipulated. >> poor george, he doesn't know he's being set up. >> what would your ulterior motive be? i'm not even sure what that statement means. >> you know, the motive here i think is one that is shared by a lot of americans across this country and that is we want to see an end to the suffering of people in southern sudan and in darfur. this is the second deadliest war in the world since world war ii. and all we do every year as taxpayers is spend literally billions of dollars cleaning up the mess every year. and i think it's time that we invested in some solutions. so working with george, we identified how you actually address the root causes, and of course that means we're going to have to address some of the status quo, the business as usual, that these guys who wrote that press release are enjoying every day as they exploit the oil and exploit human lives. so you touched the hornets nest and it's going to start buzzing. they have said worse things about george than they have about me, so i think -- >> i was hurt. >> he was devastated. >> i've got to tell you that seriously anybody will tell you you think new york is bad, the sudanese tabloids -- >> oh, look out. >> oh, my god, they are just terrible. >> george, how would you rate the effectiveness of the united states nations on the ground in the sudan? >> well, first of all, incredibly effective in particular with this election. the election couldn't have happened if it weren't for all the hard work that the u.n. did just in getting the registration done and getting the ballots, helping them get the ballots done. they have a difficult time. people always think of the u.n. as this one, big entity and of course it's hundreds of nations or a hundred and a half of nations and they all have very different motives and reasons for what they want to do. china certainly was enjoying oil all on their own without having to compete. so they weren't in a great rush to solve all the problems and certainly you guys have been talking about china today, they don't have the greatest history of human rights, so they're not really all that worried about darfur or the sudan, but they changed their tune. they made a huge difference, china did, in this last move. they sent envoys to south sudan and said they would acknowledge sort of this referendum. but the u.n., it's a very difficult place to be. the peacekeepers have a very tough time. for the most part, their mandate is to stand by while people are killed and not do anything, only unless they are fired on and that's a very tough thing to do. >> would it help or hurt if weintraub addressed the u.n.? >> first of all, china, you're going to have to get your act together: but i love your food. >> oh, my god. >> susie, susie, turn on the tv. >> there's an invention, china, that we came up with called the fork. try it. you get a lot more food in. >> i've got to go. i've got matt damon coming. >> i don't have time. i know, i know. >> i love you. >> george and john, thank you guys so much. >> great work. >> you're doing god's work over there. so much suffering for such a long time. we thank you for being with us and thank you for sharing your story. >> okay, thanks. >> take care. americans really need to engage on this. it's a wonderful opportunity. >> this is it. >> we have a great breakthrough moment in sudan right now and those guys have done a great job. again -- >> follow their lead. >> a lot of times you hear people, celebrities getting involved in stuff like this and you wonder if they make a big difference. the president of the cfr is saying george clooney is making a huge difference on this issue. we've got a great opportunity. >> john kerry said the same thing. >> all right. well, that was great. hopefully they'll come back and talk about the project ongoing. still ahead, a check on business before the bell with cnbc's erin burnett. and later -- >> look at this. >> oh, my god. >> this is going to be a train wreck. later we're going to bring in kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb. i'm already tongue-tied. first let's get a check on the forecast. >> that means they're bringing the booze. let's chat about this forecast. we have 30-minute delays in philadelphia. kind of a gloomy, cloudy day. we have reports of freezing drizzle in ohio and indiana so be careful from that. the forecast today, just some snow showers running through northern new england mostly, maybe boston and hartford. overall it's dry. the headline turns to the next snowstorm this afternoon for kansas city that will head to st. louis tonight and eventually through the ohio valley to the east coast. snowfall totals, kansas city could get half a foot. area in the ohio valley looking at 2 to 4 inches. memphis, little rock and oklahoma city will get a wintry mix with up to 1 inch of snow. more details coming up in the days ahead. you're watching "morning joe" brewed by starbucks. 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[ male announcer ] in the event of a collision, the smartest thing you could do is cut the fuel supply... ♪ ...unlock the doors, and turn on the hazard lights. or better yet, get a car that automatically does it for you. ♪ ♪ it's time now to get a check on business before the bell with cnbc's erin burnett live at the new york stock exchange. >> reporter: good morning. >> good morning. what have you got? >> reporter: we've got goldman sachs. shares are down a little bit but goldman sachs came out with their earnings and they were down 52%. sounds terrible, but that's about what was expected and with banks you get incredibly lumpy quarters because it's all driven by trading so i would characterize it as a solid quarter. they sometime come in and hit it out of the park relative to expectations so because this was sort of in line, stock will be down a little bit. compensation the headline i'd say. it was down 5% from last year to a meager $15.4 billion. that's pretty incredible these banks, but it was down. i would contrast that with jpmorgan where their overall number was higher. wells fargo out with numbers and their stock is down a little bit this morning. all of that about in line. where is lloyd blankfein going to be today? he is going down to washington. there he is. who gets access to hu is the question of the day. there's this big lunch for business people. our former, guys, former boss, jeff emmel, right, he's going to be there along with steve from microsoft, jim mcnierney of boeing. i thought it was interesting, of the two bankers, one is lloyd blankfein and the other is john thornton. so golden -- goldman left, goldman right, goldman center. so sales for apple, you guys talked about that. apple is the big story and ibm, the two big tech companies out and told a story that businesses are spending again. 71% increase for apple. 80 of the world's top 100 companies are using the ipad. the alumni magazine game yesterday and i wanted you to see -- >> it's the williams alumni. >> mika looking adorable. joe, is that your attempt at a george clooney pose? i heard george clooney did not wear makeup and doesn't need it. >> he does not. >> reporter: sick. it's sick. >> no doubt about it. >> williams? >> that was the williams alum. >> we're surrounded by eves here. >> cnbc's erin burnett. thanks very much. coming up next, oh, god. >> oh, my god. oh, my lord. >> i'm -- i'm -- wow. >> the lord is my shepherd, i shall not want. he maketh me lie down in green pastures. no, you just stand right there. nobody puts baby in a seat. and all my investments, but it's not something that i want to do completely on my own -- i like to discuss my ideas with someone. that's what i like about fidelity. they talked with me one on one, so we could come up with a plan that's right for me, and they worked with me to help me stay on track -- or sometimes, help me get on an even better one. woman: there you go, brian. thanks, guys. man: see ya. fidelity investments. turn here. we get double miles on every purchase. so we earned a trip to vegas twice as fast! 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[ clang ] it's easy to get the calcium you need with two soft chews each day give you plus with a great taste you'll enjoy, try viactiv today. all right. we've got a lot to talk about. >> oh, my gosh. >> welcome back. joining us now, the co-anchors of the fourth hour of "today," kathie lee gifford and hoda. >> uh-huh. >> right here. >> what was that? . scary. >> uh-huh. >> no, you can learn to go hey. >> i think we've learned enough this morning. we'd like to thank both of you for being here. willie, let's talk about china. >> so regis, your cohort in crime for so many years, hanging it up. did you know this? >> i didn't know he was going to anunounce it yesterday. i think probably only joy knew that. every couple of months we try to have dinner. all these years, it's been ten and a half years since i left the show. and i didn't leave the show for any other reason except that i had personal and professional reasons. you have to know when it's enough, you know. >> why don't you go ahead and explain right now. >> i think it's obvious that i adored him, i just didn't adore doing the show anymore and you get to that point. so anyway we remained friends all these years. >> what makes him so special on tv? >> he is every man. he is the guy that can't stop pinching himself that he's been so blessed in this life. he never -- he would be with robert deniro and all the time be going, oh, my gosh, i am with robert deniro. he never started to feel like he's one of them. >> and unlike so many people in tv, he can make fun of himself. >> yeah. >> he doesn't take himself seriously. in fact he sets himself up as the butt of so many jokes and it makes people just love him more. >> an even his goodbye, he said there's a time for everyone to say goodbye, especially old people. he was making fun of himself i think to the end. it's going to be sad, though, don't you think, without him? >> i think it's sad for the public, the viewing audience that loves him like crazy and is so used to him, but it's really exciting for him and for joy. i'm thrilled for them. because at a certain point you want to own your own life. you want to own your schedule. you guys know what it's like on a weekend when you don't have to get up. imagine if your life was like that. yeah, sounds pretty good, right? >> i heard you say yesterday, kathie lee, that they should don't try to find another regis, just blow up the show and start over a little bit. >> start over. >> where does that begin? who do you think? mark consuelos. >> i think you have to revamp the whole show. he was always our common denominator. and as he was leaving the show more and more as the years went on, you know, it affected the performance of the show because people -- it's not that they don't love kelly, they love seeing regis and kelly together. and it's -- i mean willie comes and takes over for me, it's just not the same. >> i told her earlier, i do enjoy trying on her dressers because you get to use her dressing room. >> and there's some rips i want to talk to you. >> there was a gift from your show that i will never get over. >> was it a used pair of spanx? those would be hoda's. >> it was a lady device. >> let's just stop right there. >> no, no. what are you talking about. >> you know, we were having an interesting talk beforehand about the golden globes. >> yes. >> and you guys think the host that everybody is talking about went overboard. >> we were talking about this. i think he was unnecessarily cruel. and the thing that struck us too when we were watching him is he would tee up a joke that was biting, but what bugged me wasn't so much the biting joke, it was the presenter who the joke was being made about stepped out of the stage almost into the lion's den and had to react. >> like an ambush. >> and the beauty, when you watch jimmy fallon, you realize you can be funny and kind. you don't have to be -- >> and regis. that's what regis did all these years as well. >> but ricky gervais has never been funny and kind. they knew exactly what they were getting. in fact last year he said i'm going to be worse this year. >> well, worse or just caustic. >> last year i thought he was a breath of fresh air. >> i didn't see the whole thing. >> you know, i do think -- >> you've got to watch the thing in entirety, morning joe. >> i do think they knew what they were getting into. >> morning joe wakes up at like 2:00 in the morning. >> here's the funny thing, though. the ratings were up. because bad behavior is condoned, i think, when the ratings go up. it's that way with like "jersey shore" with that show about the pregnant teens. it's okay -- >> across the board. >> as long as the numbers bounce. >> but you talk about "jersey shore." think about the message that it sends our kids. >> it's horrendous. >> there is yet another story about one of these facebook postings, these girls pick on a girl, make up a facebook site and they doctor pictures to make it look like she's having sex with all these different people. >> and they might be in trouble with the law now as a result of it. >> and where do our kids decide that type of behavior is okay? the reality show world. >> that's the thing, it's not real. it's not reality at all. it's setup situations. >> have you ever met a bully or a mean kid who had a really nice set of parents? like to me every time i'veen in contact with someone who was cruel and mean, you see that in one of their parents. so i think it starts there. the thing about the criminal charges, i'm not sure. what do you guys think about? >> yeah? >> mika, what do you think? >> i've had ongoing problems with sort of where the internet plays in our house, the kids chatting and being mean and lewd things coming across and facebook. and i know a lot of kids who are mean to each other whose parents are really nice and have no clue. and we, as parents, are trying to figure out because these kids get online. we're actually talking. i just had a conversation with a parent last week about my kid and her kid and two other kids. just talking to them openly about how the internet and when you chat, they feel safer. >> they are powerful too. powerful. >> and they don't understand they have a moral compass. >> they can say terrible things in their room online that they would never say in personal space and it hurts. >> we've cut it all out. >> but that's good parenting. >> i'm not even convinced kids are more mean now, i just think they have a platform to project it. there were always kids that who whisper on the playground she's sleeping with him and that's where it's stopped. now you can get hundreds and sometimes thousands of people and sometimes it ends tragically. >> what's the crime, though -- >> well when, they doctor those pictures, that's damaging to a person's reputation. >> remember the case of phoebe prince and she committed suicide and they charged those kids with a crime. and that, i think, is clear. >> what about the poor guy from rutgers, threw himself off the george washington bridge. >> i think when you see something -- i wondered because i think meredith interviewed the young lady who was the target of this a while ago and you just wonder what would be the crime because the kids have to have some kind of intent, i think, right? something. >> i wondered if it attaches to the parents. i don't know. >> scary. >> let's talk really quickly about willie and i have been talking with mike through the year about football. and hard hits. and frank gifford took one of the most punishing hits in nfl history. >> you're not going to show it again, are you? because he sees it about ten times a day. >> and he was out for two years. >> no, no, one year. one year. and was comeback player of the year and went to the pro bowl three more times. hello. >> but you look at how fast these players are now and how strong they are and it's helmet to helmet. does he believe it's getting out of control? >> you know what, he's very careful about it because football has been incredible part of his life and he's very close to the people at the nfl. but he's also much closer to many of the players, like don meredith, who just passed away a month ago, dandy don, who had problems afterwards because of a lot of the hits he took. our own son had three concussions in high school. >> the greatest sportscasting team without a doubting, monday night football with frank, dandy don and howard cosell. >> that's a good thing to bring up, thank you about that. see when frank left "monday night football" it was never the same again because he was the anchor of it. it's sort of the same thing with regis, the anchor leaves. >> do you guys and i open it up to you, willie, there's a "daily beast" piece that says that's what america wants. >> it doesn't need violent but it is inherently violent. it's going to be violent when these people clash. >> it's physics. >> the players are not going to get smaller or slower so we have to put rules in place to protect helmet-to-helmet hits, which they're doing. there's only so much you can do. when these two men collide, people will get hurt. >> i see so many helmet-to-helmet hits every week. >> has it gotten worse? >> a lot of it is the dirty play. you know what i wish they'd show, i wish they'd show more on the telecasts the guys on the opposing team that go down and pull up the guy. the guys -- do you know that there's a prayer after every game between the players? the teams that just beat the crud out of each other have a prayer meeting. they never show that to show that there's sportsmanship so they're heighting in the way that they do hockey and boxing. so i think there's something there. we've got to look at the way it's portrayed. >> over the weekend i thought those games were especially violent? >> there's a lot at stake, hoda. >> but every year there's a lot at stake. >> hoda, let me ask you this as you prep for your show. >> that's funny, prep for our show. that's a good one. >> this is how we prep for our show. >> how much alcohol will you consume today during the fourth hour today? >> first of all, i just want to clear this up, i'm not a big drinker and my poor mother says it's weird, my all friends are sayi they're watching you drinking and i know you don't and it's weird because it's part of the fun that we have. >> it's called schtick. >> i don't get a shot of vodka? >> of course you do. a lot of people bring them on. who came on, joel mchale, he brought his open. here's what happened. >> man: diving to 4,000 meters. >> boy: go down, down, down. down. straight. go straight. no, to the right. to the right. >> go to the right, go to the right. >> whoa! >> whoa! >> what is that? >> man: well, that's a, uh... i don't know. >> whoa. >> can we call him blinky? >> woman: expert teaching. deeper learning. together, we are the human network. cisco. i started my first real job as a part time sales associate with walmart. when william came in i knew he had everything he needed to be a leader in this company. [ william ] after a couple of months, i was promoted to department manager. like, wow, really? me? a year later, i was promoted again. walmart even gave me a grant for my education. recently, he told me he turned down a job at one of the biggest banks in the country. this is where i want to be. i fully expect william will be my boss one day. my name is william and i work at walmart. ♪ tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 if you could use any atm, at any bank, tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 anywhere in the world... tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 without having to pay to access your own money. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 it'd be like every atm in the world was your atm. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 the schwab bank high yield investor checking® account. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 zero atm fees. a great interest rate. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 no minimums. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 and it's fdic-insured. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 the schwab bank high yield investor checking® account. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 the biggest thing in checking since checks. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 open an account at 1-800-4schwab or schwab.com. oprah brought her entire audience to australia. say what you want about the woman, she knows how to make an entrance. >> as the viewers were partying on the beach, i was hovering nearby in our chopper, waiting to make a surprise entrance. >> here we go. here we go. this is called making an entrance. that's how you want to arrive at a party. >> that is right. mtv debuted their new show "skins" and it was declared the most dangerous show for teens by the parents television council. mtv is not deterred. in fact they're working on another new show that would also answer the parents television council. take a look. >> one house, five babies, no parents. from the creators of "skins" mtv presents "dipes" next month on mtv. >> wow. >> that is hysterical. >> i don't think that's going to happen. when we come back -- >> did we learn anything? >> we're going to talk wiabout what we learned today. here's your business travel forecast on this wednesday. another murky morning. areas of the northeast, some light rain and snow showers heading through so areas like boston and new york, some minor airport delays once again are possible but not as bad as yesterday. d.c. looks fine, atlanta looks good, detroit and chicago no problems. kansas city could see some snow. have a great day. every week. so i get a great deal, no matter how long i wait. yeah... i'm not very good at waiting... then we must train you to wait. [ bird squawks ] ♪ [ both scream ] it is time to book, grasshopper. [ male announcer ] now, it's ok to wait. get great deals. even at the last minute. hotels.com. be smart. book smart. to finish what you started today. for the aches and sleeplessness in between, there's motrin pm. no other medicine, not even advil pm, is more effective for pain and sleeplessness. motrin pm. a man can only try... and try...and try. [ male announcer ] honey nut cheerios tastes great and can help lower cholesterol. bee happy. bee healthy. ♪ [ male announcer ] in the event of a collision, the smartest thing you could do is cut the fuel supply... ♪ ...unlock the doors, and turn on the hazard lights. or better yet, get a car that automatically does it for you. ♪ ♪ let's actually learn something. so when did this drinking start? >> when i just joined the show with hoda, we were still doing the program out on the plaza, one of our first guests was chelsea handler. she had just written a book called "hello vodka, it's me, chel sea." so the producers prepared some cocktails just to be friendly. >> and it just never stopped. >> it set the party atmosphere. once we moved indoors, because we got kicked off the plaza for making too much noise, the party continued. >> what else are you going to do? she loves it. she's a little embarrassed by it. a little embarrassed. >> my mother's used to it. >> at least you're not drinking alone. well, thank you guys for

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