Republican in this body it is our obligation to our constituents to do everything we can to prevent the majority leader from funding obama care. And then in almost the same breath, cruz had had the gall to accuse democrats of pushing the country to the brink. There is a tendency in this town towards brinksmanship. I wished the majority leader had not said he continues to use the threat of a default to engage in brinksmanship. Its a blatant attempt to stop democrats from funding the government and funding obama care at the same time. It wont work, and even some other republicans admit it. I cant imagine filibustering the bill i like from the house. The answer now in the senate by those who propose this strategy is to filibuster the very bill they said they wanted. Its not just other republicans attacking the tea partys radical agenda. 59 of americans say they oppose a plan to shut down the government and stop paying the nations bills in order to defund the new health care law. Just 19 support the idea. President obama knows it, and hes ready to fight for it. This is an interesting thing to ponder. That your top agenda is making sure 20 Million People dont have Health Insurance. And youd be willing to shut down the government and potentially default for the first time in United States history because it bothers you so much that were actually going to make sure that everybody has Affordable Health care. Well, let me say as clearly as i can, it is not going to happen. We have come too far. Weve overcome far darker threats than those. We will not negotiate over whether or not america should keep its word and meet its obligations. Were not going to allow anyone to inflict economic pain on millions of our own people just to make an ideological point. And those folks are going to get some health care in this country. Weve been waiting 50 years for it. The clock is ticking. The government shuts down in seven days. The senate will take a crucial vote to avoid that on wednesday. But tea Party Lawmakers are playing games in washington. In order to attack this president and take away joining me now is congressman mcdermott from washington and joan walsh. Thank you both for coming on the show. Thanks. Good to be here. Congressman, let me go to you first. The house has passed a bill defunding obama care. What will the senate do now . Throw it in the waste basket. Theyre not going to respond to that kind of thing. They are going to pass a budget resolution to continue the funding of the government, send it back to us without that on it. And it is going to be voted on in the house. The house will have to make their decision some time later this week as to whether they want to shut down the government or not. Im afraid theyre going to do it. Joan, that is my fear. And i was struck by the president s statement that we played. That you really to make an ideological point and a partisan point, youre willing to for the first time in the history of this country, default the country to stop people 20 million americans from getting health care. I mean, are we really at that point where we are so political and so ideological in this country and hate this president so that they will default the government . I think we are at that point. I dont know if theyll get away with it, but were at that point. There was a gq profile of senator cruz today. Something talked about was that some of us sit around, were reasonable people and say what is their agenda . What do they want to accomplish . What do they want to get done . And ted cruz is quite clear. This is what he wants to get done. Obstruction is not an accident or a byproduct. Obstruction is the point. Repealing is the point. They want to repeal obama care. They want to repeal the 21st century. They want to go back and repeal the 20th century. Theyre gunning for Social Security and medicare and new deal protections of workers. They really want to send us back to a day when women were in the kitchen, where workers didnt have protection, where there were no wage protections. And of course there was no guaranteed Health Insurance. Now, they want to eradicate the great society, the new deal, all of that. And theyre digging in and they dont care if they ruin the country to do it. You know, congressman mcdermott, former republican senator judd greg is slamming his own party for his extremism in this shutdown fight. Let me show you this. He says most americans these days are simply ignoring republicans and they should. The selfpromotional babble of a few has become the mainstream of the republican political thought. It has marginalized the influence of the party to an appalling degree. This ask a former republican senator stating that about his own party. But the real threat is that that group may be able to be enough to shut the government down if we can pressure them or convince them whatever way becomes available in the congress to really stop this that would inflict so much pain on so many americans. Reverend, i think what weve got here is a situation where they are going to run the string out. They already started it by trying to reduce food stamps. 20 billion in cuts on food stamps wasnt enough. They went to 40 billion. Right. Now theyre going to try and take away the health care for people who are already beginning to get it from the president s plan, and they are going to push it to the point where theyre going to have to have the public come back three or four days later and say are you people crazy . You go back there and get this country back on its feet. They simply believe that they can convince the people if they keep pushing hard enough and the people are not dumb. The people see through this as judd gregg has already said. The people have already rejected this bunch. I think, joan, as much as one wants to see them politically hurt themselves, the pain that it will cause veterans and others that would suffer with a Government Shutdown as well as the denial of life insurance, none of us even those of us that want to see their political demise since theyre so narrow minded, want to see that at the expense of American People. We dont. Although it may be where were headed. I feel like its bizarreo day where ted cruz is depicting this as its harry reids fault or Barack Obamas fault if we default or shut the government down. Because they wont give up obama care. He also does this neat rhetorical thing where he calls it a bill as though it is not the law of the land passed by congress, upheld by the Supreme Court. Right. And then ratified again in a way in the 2012 election where the guy who wanted to end it was defeated soundly. And so to think the American People are stupid enough that theyre going to think, oh, yeah, it is Barack Obamas fault he wont give up funding obama care, thats why the government is shutting down. The public sees through that. Its clear who theyre going to blame. Congressman, i think thats the most insulting to me to the intellect of the American Public for them to really hold this country hostage, in effect, to say in political hostage to say you either do what i want despite the fact i lost in the house, lost in the senate on the bill, lost in the Supreme Court, and lost in general election. And by the way, its not me, its him doing it. Like were stupid on top of everything else. You know, they voted on this 42 times in the last three years. And you would think somewhere in there they would have got a glimmer of understanding, but i really do believe , rev, they cant read polls. The polls say the president has been supported. Both in the election and one done yesterday by one of the big newspapers. There is no question that the people are behind the president of the United States. And yet they keep running their head into the wall. It really is a crazy situation. Congressman Jim Mcdermott and joan walsh, thank you for your time tonight. Thanks for having me. Coming up, the epic republican misstatements about obama care. Well investigate the toxic group of right wing extremism and big money coming together to distort the truth. Plus here comes sarah palin. Shes hammering john mccain and talking about cannibal elephants. Huh . Well have to explain that one. And an american crisis president obama is fighting to fix. The Justice System targeting minorities. Our special series, criminal injustice, begins tonight. Also friend or foe, i want to know. Email me. Reply al is ahead. [ man ] this isnt my first career. But it might just be my favorite. [ female announcer ] welcome to the new aarp. Were ready to help you rediscover purpose and passion with programs like life reimagined to inspire you and connect you, resources to help turn your goals and dreams into real possibilities. Aarp, an ally for real possibilities. Find new tools and ideas for work, money, health and fun at aarp. Org possibilities. All your important legal matters in just minutes. Protect your family. And launch your dreams. At legalzoom. Com we put the law on your side. And launch your dreams. Pcentury link provides reliable yit Services Like multilayered Security Solution to keep your Information Safe secure. Century link. Your link with whats next. Have you joined the politicsnation conversation on facebook yet . Today we gave our facebook fans a sneak preview of our criminal injustice series that kicks off tonight. And everyone was talking about the fact that there are more africanamericans living under correctional control today than were slaves in 1850. Dominique says thats outrageous. Now, why is that . Well talk about it later in this show in our new series, criminal injustice. You can find more information about the issue on our facebook page. Just head over to facebook and search politicsnation and like us to join the conversation that keeps going long after the show ends. [ male announcer ] this is claira. To prove to you that aleve is the better choice for her, shes agreed to give it up. Thats today . [ male announcer ] well be with her all day to see how it goes. [ claira ] after the deliveries, i was okay. Now the ciabatta is done and the pain is starting again. More pills . Seriously . Seriously. [ groans ] all these stops to take more pills can be a pain. Can i get my aleve back . For my pain, i want my aleve. [ male announcer ] look for the easyopen red arthritis cap. Over the last four years, billions of dollars have been spent misinforming people about what this laws about. All the Horror Stories have not come true. No, the Horror Stories have not come true. After four years of fear mongering, four years of republican scare tactics like this. We were obama care will be a big job killer. It is killing jobs. It is causing more and more people not to be hired. This could destroy the 40hour work week. The obama care death panels are in fact alive and well. Of course there are death panels. Your Health Care Decision should be decided in your doctors office. Not a washington office. No one has the right to step between you and your doctor. Puts bureaucrats in charge of medical decisions. We dont want to put the government and bureaucrats between a doctor and a patient. Thats a job killer, theyre getting between you and your doctor. None of it is true. None of it. But only eight days before open enrollment begins, the gop big money is flooding in to try and scare americans. Joining me now is wendell potter, a former Health Insurance executive who knows the industry from the inside. Hes the author of deadly spin. Wendell, thank you for joining me. Thank you, reverend al. Now, you recently wrote, wendell, about scare tactics in an effort to stop obama care. And im quoting you. You said quote, having played a role in similar campaigns designed to mislead the government in hopes of defeating legislation, i know how frantic the antiobama care folks must be right about now. Now, a lot of people are confused about the law. How are the opponents trying to mislead the public, wendell . Well, theyre trying to mislead the public because they still have a very short window of time to mislead us until the law becomes more of a reality than it already is. Already about 100 million americans have benefitted from the Affordable Care act. About how many . About 100 million. Have already benefitted . How have they benefitted . Absolutely. For one thing, people who are on medicare are getting help with their prescription drugs and Preventive Care for many cases. Young people are able to stay on their parents policies until theyre 26 years old. That happens to be a benefit to my household. My daughter was able to go back on our policies. When you look at the population, people who are young and elderly, many of us have been able to benefit. And many more of us will in just a few days. Now, wendell, lets look at some of these myths. Because were eight days away from open enrollment starting. And people really need to know. And theyre not all policy wonks. So when they say its a job killer, thats wrong. Many experts have pointed out there will be little or no impact on jobs. They claim government will come between you and your doctor. Theyre wrong again. The Affordable Care act doesnt set up a governmentrun system. In fact, the law comes between you and your Insurance Company charging you more money. And their favorite claim, the death panels that will decide when you die. That couldnt be farther from the truth. The socalled death panel is a committee to congressional oversight and approval to reign in soaring cost of medicare. Nothing to do with your life. But these are the kinds of things they are using all kinds of money as the president said billions to try to pr propagandize. These are the same tactics used to develop and implement during my years in the insurance industry. Theyre intended to try to change peoples opinion and make people afraid of the Affordable Care act. So that they will agree with the Insurance Companies and their benefactors who those who are wanting to have fewer regulations. They want us to think this is overreach by the government. Its all about politics. And its protecting their profits. You said that. But let me show you something that really bothered me. And ive been very passionate about this issue. And i did an interview on the show last week with the Tea Party Congressman. And i think this says it all. Watch this. What people dont understand, congressman, is how we pass laws the Supreme Court upholds and you guys come in and say were not going to fund it and even worse, if money goes there well shut the whole government down. We thought we lived in a democracy. Come on, congressman, thats not what this countrys supposed to be about. Al, just a reminder. This isnt a democracy. Its a republic. Now, anyone knows this is a democratically elected republic. A democracy. Thats how we choose who represents us. For him to say that and just totally put aside the principles of democracy is about as blatant as you can get on live television. Youre exactly right. And it also kind of gives you a hint at what some of these people are really wanting. Theyre wanting to really establish an ol gar ki in the country where big money interests get to call the shots. And they have in many cases. Thats why it taken us a hundred years to get this reform were about to get. Wendell potter, thanks for joining us. Thank you, reverend al. Appreciate it. Coming up, shes back sarah palin calls the gop gutless and attacks fox news. And she thinks this is good for her party. Meantime, president obama continues hammering the gop and refusing to give into their bully tactics. Go anywhere in the world, but you had to leave right now, would you go . Man oh i cant go tonight woman i cant. hero thats what expedia asked me. Host book the flight but you have to go right now. Hero laughs and i just go . This is for real right . This is for real . I always said one day id go to china, just never thought itd be today. Anncr were giving away a trip every day. Download the expedia app and your next trip could be on us. Expedia, find yours. Maestro of project management. Baron of the buildout. You need a permit. To be this awesome. And you. Rent from national. Because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle. And go. You can even take a fullsize or above, and still pay the midsize price. aaron purrrfect. vo meeeow, business pro. Meeeow. Go national. Go like a pro. Sarah palin unloads on her own party sticking up for ted cruz, going after fox news, slamming the maverick, and something about cannibal elephants and moose season. Oh, yeah. Thats next. I had pain in my abdomen. It just wouldnt go away. I was spotting, but i had already gone through menopause. These symptoms may be nothing. But they could be Early Warning signs of a gynecologic cancer, such as cervical, ovarian, or uterine cancer. Feeling bloated for no reason. Thats what i remember. Seeing my doctor probably saved my life. Warning signs are not the same for everyone. If you think somethings wrong. See your doctor. Ask about gynecologic cancer. And get the inside knowledge. With an ultrathin coating and fast absorbing advil ion core™ technology, it stops pain before it gets worse. Nothing works faster. New fast acting advil. 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Serious side effects include worsening of an enlarged prostate, possible increased risk of prostate cancer, lower sperm count, swelling of ankles, feet, or body, enlarged or painful breasts, problems breathing during sleep, and blood clots in the legs. Tell your doctor about your medical conditions and medications, especially insulin, corticosteroids, or medicines to decrease blood clotting. In a clinical study, over 80 of treated men had their t levels restored to normal. Talk to your doctor about all your symptoms. Get the blood tests. Change your number. Turn it up. Androgel 1. 62 . Unh [ male announcer ] you can choose to blend in. Or you can choose to blend out. The allnew 2014 lexus is. Its your move. Were back with some developing news. The senate has just scheduled a vote for this wednesday on the republican plan to defund obama care. Democrats are expected to smack it down. A major defeat against ted cruzs crusade against the law. Cruzs obsession has led the Republican Party to the brink of its own civil war. Can the problem get any bigger for this party . You bet ya. Oh, yes. Sarah palins back. Shes defending senator cruz and demolishing Republican Leaders with a blistering editorial calling the permanent Political Class in d. C. Quote, nothing but nothing if not gutless and rudderless. Welcome to our world, ted. The same people have been denouncing conservatives like me for years. But team palin cruz is facing a backlash from republicans. This has been one of the strangest weeks ive ever had in washington. I say that because as soon as we listed ted cruz as our featured guest this week, i got Unsolicited Research and questions, not from democrats, but from Top Republicans who to hammer cruz. Republicans trying to hammer cruz. That has governor palin seeing red. She fired off a tweet to her fox colleagues. Keep it truly fair and balanced. Release the gop names encouraging you to trash senator cruz. No more anonymous sources. Calling out her fox news colleagues . And later in the day she took to the air. My dad who was a Science Teacher and Natural History teacher dad, if youre watching this morning and youre out of moose camp and home, you are a teacher and you never told me that elephants were cannibalistic. I wish i would have known and then we would have a different tactic in the way we do campaigning. Moose camp . Cannibalistic elephants . Just what the gop needed. Sarah palin back in the headlines. Time to grab the popcorn. This is a reality show like no other. Joining me now are krystal ball and cynthia tucker. Thank you both for being here. Good to be here. Thanks. Palin says democrats are acting like cannibal elephants. But shes one of the elephants attacking. Now with palin involved, how messy could this get in the Republican Party . Oh, it is getting worse and worse by the hour, reverend. You know, this civil war which has been getting worse and worse by the hour anyway, is now much worse with sarah palin involved in it. Out there leading the charge from ones side. This is a war between those republicans who are merely conservative and the crazy republicans. And i dont think i have to say which camp sarah palin is in. You know, for those republicans who were hoping that they could pull back the party from the brink, that they wouldnt go over the edge like lemmings and take the whole republican brand with them, this has to be a nightmare. Because sarah palin loves publicity now that shes been acknowledged again, she is not going to go away. And to show you that shes right, krystal, palin was asked how shed respond to republicans like her former running mate john mccain who are against cruzs plan. Listen to how she responded. Senator mccain, your former running mate says to think we can defund obama care in this way is quote, not rational. How do you respond to those who say this is a fools errand. We ask they dont wave a white flag and give into those who want this socialized program of Health Care Coverage in our nation. I mean, john mccain shouldnt wave a white flag and give into liberals . I mean, is this going to antagonize mainstream republicans even more . What i love about what she said, too, is shes got the American People behind her. We just had an election on this issue, and i dont think that her side won. But whats incredible here, too, is she and ted cruz are a match made in heaven. Because they both are motivated by their own selfish interests in publicity and in fame. Neither one of them is any more conservative than the people that are denouncing them, but they both are more selfish and less interested in governance. All they want is for all the Media Attention to go to them. And sadly for ted cruz, this has worked. It has made him this quote, unquote rising star and contender for 2016. That really is what hes after here. Are we looking at megalo mania and narcissism or true ideology here . I dont see any ideology in this, reverend. There was certainly no ideology i could detect in sarah palin. If you look throughout they are political career, she has only been interested in advancing the interest of sarah palin. And i think absolutely the same is true of ted cruz. Do their instincts tend to run more to the right . That is true. Theyre on the right side of the ideological spectrum. But i think it is absolutely true that theyre most interested in advancing themselves. If they were more interested in advancing the conservative cause, they wouldnt be destroying the Republican Party. Now, youre right. Because when we saw sarah palin wouldnt even rule out running for the senate. Watch this. Ted cruz and more of those good guys need some reenforcements in these reelections. They need help to undo so much of what the democrats are doing. I dont know if itll necessarily be me. I dont know if itll necessarily be me. But let me bring this to you, krystal. In her breitbart oped, she warns republicans who are against the shutdown and it got a little weird. Let me read it. Quote, oh and a little reminder to republican senators up for reelection in 2014, moose season ends soon. Allowing more time on ones hands. So well be watching your votes very carefully this week. Moose season aside, she does have a good record with endorsements. Ted cruz, kelly ayotte, nikki haley. Will republicans be afraid to get on her bad side, krystal . Well, she has those. I believe she has a few like Christine Odonnell and sharon angle also shes backed. Sarah palins star has waned very far. Now its not just People Like Us who call her out, but her own side who are willing to denounce her when she makes crazy statements like she is now. She doesnt have the fund raising pool she once had. She is not going to be a force to be reckoned with in 2014 despite her illusions here. Cynthia, on the other side when all this is going on, president obama while theyre squabbling, hes been staying very tough. Look at this. The idea of reversing that progress because of an unwillingness to compromise or because of some ideological agenda is the height of irresponsibility. You have never seen in the history of the United States the debt ceiling or the threat of not raising the debt ceiling being used to extort a president or a governing party. This is the United States of america. Were not some banana republic. This is a not a dead beat nation. We dont run out on our tab. Let me say as clearly as i can, it is not going to happen. We have come too far. I mean, hes really hitting them hard. I mean, how does this make the republicans look, cynthia . Well, it makes them look like what they are. A bunch of terrorists who will have taken the country hostage or who have at least threatened to take the country hostage if they dont get their way. And there is a reason that the u. S. Government says we dont negotiate with hostages. Youll remember, the president negotiated with them the last time. He was trying to do the reasonable thing because he thought he had reasonable people on the other side. Right. All he ended up with was them coming back, being even morery li ridiculous. Thats right. We are not going to pay the nations bills unless you give up obama care. So the president has finally figured out he has to stand up to these extremists. And by the way, the president rallies democrats behind him when he does this. You know, democrats have been feeling a little forsaken as if the president has been giving up too much in negotiating with republicans. Hes rallying them now. Because, krystal, at the congressional black caucus, i was there. The president is dealing with real issues. Listen to this. We cant rest until every american knows the security of quality Affordable Health care. We cant rust until all of our children can go to school or walk down the street free from the fear that they will be struck down by a stray bullet. Weve got to raise the minimum wage. Nobody who works fulltime in the wealthiest nation on earth should have to raise their children in poverty. We have to make this a country where anybody who works hard can earn their way into the middle class. I mean, with him fighting like this with this fervor, will Republican Division help him with his agenda . I think it will at least in the shortterm with these fights. I think well get through the shutdown hopefully with democrats united and the debt ceiling debate as well. Because democrats are united and the American People are united behind the priorities the president laid out there. On the other hand you have republican who is are trying to deny americans Health Insurance. I dont know why they dont just give the law a shot and see if it actually could help people in this country. What a novel idea. But, i mean, 20 million americans. Theyre willing to sacrifice young people up to age 26, people with preexisting conditions just to make an egotist kal point. It is frightening. But i think they may be that crazy. Krystal ball and cynthia tucker, thank you both for your time tonight. Thanks, reverend. Thank you. Dont forget to catch krystal on the cycle here on msnbc. Coming up, republicans cut food stamps by 39 billion. Tonight im serving up some of their own hypocrisy. But first, the stunning investigation of our criminal Justice System. More africanamericans under the prison system now than were slaves in 1850. Our special series criminal injustice starts next. Meeting took forever. Oh, my parents will be here any minute. Canned soup . No way. Mmm this is delicious katie. Its not bad for canned soup, right . Pfft [ laughs ] you nearly had us there. Canned soup. [ laughter ] [ male announcer ] so good, theyll think its homemade. Try campbells homestyle soup. Mm mm good. Always go the extra mile. E soup. To treat my low testosterone, i did my research. My doctor and i went with axiron, the only underarm low t treatment. Axiron can restore t levels to normal in about 2 weeks in most men. Axiron is not for use in women or anyone younger than 18 or men with prostate or Breast Cancer. Women, especially those who are or who may become pregnant and children should avoid contact where axiron is applied as unexpected signs of puberty in children or changes in body hair or increased acne in women may occur. Report these symptoms to your doctor. Tell your doctor about all medical conditions and medications. Serious side effects could include increased risk of prostate cancer; worsening prostate symptoms; decreased sperm count; ankle, feet or body swelling; enlarged or painful breasts; problems breathing while sleeping; and blood clots in the legs. Common side effects include skin redness or irritation where applied, increased red blood cell count, headache, diarrhea, vomiting, and increase in psa. Ask your doctor about the only underarm low t treatment, axiron. But, dad, youve got. [ voice of dennis ] allstate. With accident forgiveness, they guarantee your rates wont go up just because of an accident. Smart kid. [ voice of dennis ] indeed. Are you in good hands . Ensuring that the scales of justice work equally for all in the criminal Justice System is not simply a pipeline from underfunded schools to overcrowded jails. It requires vigilance. The vigilance the president is talking about is desperately needed. Because there is a crisis in our Justice System, a crisis we all must address. In 1971 president nixon launched a war against drugs. At the time there were 300,000 americans in prison. 300,000. That number then exploded to more than 2 million. Thats a 700 increase. And that increase comes primarily from the minority population. Its been 150 years since the emancipation proclamation, yet today there are more africanamericans living under correctional control in prison, in jail, on probation or parole than were slaves in 1850. Just think about that for a moment. In some states blacks comprise 80 to 90 of all drug offenders sent to prison. 1 in every 106 white men go to prison. But for black men, that number is 1 in every 15. This disparity flies in any face of all the facts of drug use. A study by the institution of drug abuse found white students use cocaine at seven times the rate of black students. Crack at eight times the rate of black students. And heroin at seven times the rate of black students. Joining me now, michelle alexander. Shes author of the book the new Jim Crow Last incarceration in the age of color blindness. And film maker eugene jeraki. Thank you both for coming on the show. Thanks. Thank you. Michelle, let me start with you. You were a civil rights attorney, and when you found out this data, i read it changed you. And thats what led to you crystallizing it in the book the new jim crow. After years of representing victims of racial profiling and Police Brutality and trying to help people who are released from face one barrier, one legal road block after another to getting a job, getting access to housing, getting even food stamps. I had an awakening that our criminal Justice System now functions much more like a system of racial and social control than a system of Crime Prevention or control. Eugene, in your film you really had a part where you talked about once people finish serving time, they still face huge barriers. Listen to this clip and explain it to us. Sure. When he gets out of the prison, he cant get a job in most places because of his record. If you have a felony charge, you need to be working. You need to be trying to move yourself forward. If he wants to go back to school to go to college, he is uneligible by law for grants. He cant live in certain neighborhoods. His family that was the center piece of his life, if theyre living in public housing, they cant take him in. One of the things we learned when we went to prisons all over this country was that corrections people, people who were wardens, jailers, prison guards, they all told us often the same thing. And it was a complaint about the system. I thought they were all going to be tough on crime, lock them up and throw away the keys. They said, look, we try to do the best we can by these people. But the laws are so tough out there and Congress People are profiting politically by sounding tough on crime so much that all they do is flood us with human beings by having tougher laws. We lived for a very long time with the idea crack is a black drug and powder is a white drug. The facts i discovered when i made the film is crack was never a black drug. The majority of crack users in the United States of america are and always have been white. Once you know that fact, it reminds you how much propaganda has hood winked us for 40 years about these drugs. My message is we need a proper, educated, scientific, smart Public Health approach to addiction to replace the nowfailed drug war. One of the reasons our drug policy has been so insane in practice is because the motivation for the drug war was never at bottom about ending drug abuse and drug addiction. If that had been the motivation, then we would have poured billions of dollars into drug treatment. But we didnt do that. Instead, we slashed drug funding for treatment and billions of dollars into prisons and jails and filling them with black and brown youth. This is because of the racial politics that animated the war on drugs. We were experiencing the economic collapse of inner city communities at the same time. There was a backlash brewing against the civil rights movement. So in the 70s and early 80s, former segregationists were saying law and order. Yeah. And get tough. Yeah. Instead of segregation forever. You say, eugene, in the film that this nation has a history of weve criminalized drugs to target certain ethnic groups. Yes. Look at this. Of course, you cant throw people in jail simply because theyre chinese. But you can throw them in jail because they smoke opium. The same way we saw things going on with cocaine. Again, it was middle aged successful people in this country, business executives, physicians, housewives. All perfectly legal. Then around the turn of the century, cocaine began being associated with blacks. They can work hard all day, all night long and all day long again threatening the jobs of white workers and so laws began to be passed against cocaine. Cocaine, evil among negroes i saw in the last headline. That wasnt recent, but it might as well be because we havent left those stereotypes. I think its important to make the progress we need to make socially on this issue. The president and the attorney general have actually done something in washington where nothing gets done. They have made a very serious move against the drug war for the first time in its history. But the problem, michelle, is that unless we have this message out and translate that into legislators, it will expire with the term of the president. And i think thats whats frightening. Much more can be done, and its going to take an awakening within our community and a Movement Must be built. And we must make sure theres not a regression after this administration. Michelle alexander and eugene jerecki, such an important issue. Thank you so much for both of your times. Thank you. Ahead, republicans voted to slash food stamps by nearly 40 billion. But im about to spoon feed them some of their own hypocrisy. Next. [ male announcer ] legalzoom has helped start over 1 million businesses. If you have a business idea, we have a personalized legal solution thats right for you. With easy stepbystep guidance, were here to help you turn your dream into a reality. Start your Business Today with legalzoom. Its a corner stone in the republican playbook. Attack people who receive government assistance. Last week House Republicans voted to slash nearly 40 billion from the food stamp program. In kansas, Tea Party Congressman tim yoouls camp was practically gushing about how it will punish free loaders. Go pick up trash in a road ditch. Im not saying its part of that bill, but we got to do something. Theres three and a half to four million american adult who is are ablebodied, have no dependent, and what do we require them to do to get a free check for food . Nothing. Nothing. What an outrage. Just giving people checks to feed their families. Lets remember, 76 of the households that get food stamps include children, seniors, or disabled people. In households where an adult is able to work, 58 do. And 82 worked the year before or the year after they received food stamps. But its interesting that governor huelskamp is so against people getting government money. Because his family is raking it in. Tthe Huffington Post found congressman huelskamps parents have received over 1 million in farm subsidies since 1995. His Brothers Farm got 1. 6 million. But hes not alone. This is becoming a new tradition on the right. Steven fincher also voted for the food stamps cut. Heres what he says about the program. The role of citizens, of christians, of humanity is to take care of each other. But not for washington to steal money from those in the country and give it to others in the country. Yeah. Washington shouldnt steal money from some to pay for food stamps. It should only do that for farm subsidies. Congressman finchers farm has received 3. 5 million in federal funding since 1999. And buzz feed found three other House Republicans who voted for food stamps cuts but got hundreds of thousands in farm subsidies. If these guys are so worried about government handouts, maybe they shouldnt be feasting on them. Did they think we wouldnt point out their stuffing their faces with hypocrisy . Nice try, but we got you. [ male announcer ] ah. Retirement. Sit back, relax, pull out the paper and what . Another article that says investors could lose tens of thousands of dollars in hidden fees on their 401 k s . seriously . Seriously. You dont believe it . Search it. 401 k hidden fees. Then go to etrade and roll over your old 401 k s to a new etrade retirement account. 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Its time for reply al. Remember friend or foe, i want to know. Kelvin wants to know if the government is to shut down, Congress Gets a paycheck and the military gets an iou. Lets swap that around. The military is more deserving because theyre doing their job. Kelvin, i couldnt agree with you more. If the congressmen that are voting for this shutdown really believe in what theyre doing, they ought to put their check up for an iou and pay the military. If you believe in something, you stand behind it. You dont try to have it both ways. I never called the demonstration i didnt lead. Dont call for a shutdown but keep your stuff