Transcripts For MSNBC The Ed Show 20121219

Mccarthy reacts to the president s statement. Social security is officially on the table in fiscal cliff negotiations. David cay johnston tells me if there is any way that makes any sense. And senator Bernie Sanders on how progressives intend to fight. Plus, bob shrum and joan walsh on plan b. And a real scare in syria turns into a real happy ending. Tonight well tell you how Nbcs Richard Engel escaped from his kidnappers. Im very happy that were able this morning. Thanks for watching. It may be a rare moment in gun history, but the nation is focused on gun control following the massacre in connecticut. The National Rifle association finally broke its silence on the newtown shooting. A Statement Released today by the organization said, in part, the nra is prepared to offer meaningful contributions to help make sure this never happens again. The language is similar to president obamas call for meaningful action, but contribution from the nra remains to be seen. But several republican politicians are already headed in the direction of change. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder saw republicans in his state Legislature Pass a bill to allow guns in schools and day care centers. The bill was passed one day before the tragedy in newtown, connecticut. Today the republican governor vetoed the bill. According to the detroit news, snyder vetoed the bill because it wouldnt allow schools and other public locations to opt out of its provisions. In the past 24 hours, republican members of Congress Said that some gun restrictions are worth looking into. Senator Susan Collins of maine, congressman charlie dent of pennsylvania and Lindsey Graham of south carolina, they are all progun. They are all open to looking at gun control solutions. There is also congressman Jack Kingston of georgia. In the past, this gentleman has voted to cut down the waiting period, the number of days for gun purchases. He vetoed or should i say he voted for broader concealed to carry weapons laws. The nra gave kingston an a rating for his voting record today. Today this staunch advocate opened the door for change. We see a huge problem like this, and its a problem that is happening in other countries as well we look for something that, okay, what can prevent it . And i think thats where we need to go with this discussion is, yes, put gun control, more gun control on the table. On the surface, the comments are very encouraging. But when things get specific, we can understand why this country has so much difficulty arriving at common sense gun safety. Connecticut has the fifth toughest gun control laws in the country, including an assault weapon ban that bans 35 different weapons. The weapon used was not an assault weapon, therefore it wasnt banned. The definition of assault weapons has been gamed by the gun lobby in the service of the gunmakers, no doubt. If the bushmaster rifle with 30 rounds per clip doesnt qualify as an assault weapon, the term assault weapon in my opinion is absolutely meaningless. I wanted to get some answers from congressman kingston. So i had an opportunity to visit with him earlier today. Congressman, good to have you on the ed show tonight. I appreciate your time. Well, thank you, ed. Sad times. Were having quite a debate in this country about gun control, obviously. And there is questions of bans coming up in the senate. Senator feinstein says she is going to reintroduce the assault weapons ban. As it stands, could you go along with that . Well, i would have to see what she has in mind. And as you know, the ar15 that was used in this unfortunate tragedy was not considered an assault weapon. And i dont know if she would put that in there. It only shoots one round at a time, which is the definition of assault weapons. But i think put it on the table to discuss it and thoroughly vet this. I think its a good process, and im not afraid of it. Well, thats exactly where i think the country is looking for definition right now on what exactly is an assault weapon. And in the state of connecticut, the definition of assault weapon is that its got to have a folding or telescoping stock. Its got to have a pistol grip, a bayonet mount, a grenade launcher, and a flash supporter. Now, the gun that was used, the. 223 bushmaster doesnt have any of those things. Yes. But Many Americans would consider that to be a assault weapon because they had 30round clips in there. I mean, where do you draw the line . Well, i think a lot of the things that you mention are actually cosmetic parts of a gun. They might make it look ugly and mean. But the real question in my mind is can you pull the trigger one time and have multiple rounds fired. Because thats what would make an assault weapon. And connecticut does have an assault weapon ban. It has 30 rifles that are considered banned. But this one does not fall under that definition. So in my opinion, rather than focus on the looks of the gun, we should focus on the action. What does it actually do when you squeeze the trigger. And to me, thats where the gun is more lethal. But, you know, ed, i am a Second Amendment guy. But i do think having this discussion is a very important part of the process that we must go through as americans. Well, there is no question about that. And i appreciate that. We need a discussion. But americans would look at what happened in newtown, connecticut, and say thats an assault weapon. I mean, there was rapidfire that took the lives of 28 26 people 28 people. 20 of them children. And that is the main focus on all of this. Yes. So we get into the definition of what is a assault weapon. 30 rounds in a clip in the minds of Many Americans is too many to have, whether its a single shot, rapidfire, or if its an automatic fire. So how far are you willing to go . Are you really willing to go right down to the definition of pulling the trigger as to whether its an assault weapon or not, or just how much damage the weapon can do . Well, you know, theyre almost one and the same. It really does get down to the action of the gun, the pulling of the trigger, what happens when you pull the trigger. And it doesnt really matter if its an uglylooking mean militarytype gun or not. It really matters what happens when you pull the trigger. So i think the discussion is a good one. And as you know, ive also said you cannot leave out the Mental Health situation of this. Okay. And i agree with that. I agree. Were going get to the Mental Health part of it in just a minute. But youre satisfied with this gun that was used being legal, that there should be no ban on the bush the. 223 bushmaster. I think, again, it is not an assault weapon. By definition its not. And as i understand it, what senator feinstein wants to do is expand the definition to some 900 guns. And i was here during president clintons assault weapon ban. And i know there was a huge debate as to what actually was one and what wasnt one. And i think we all got to get educated as to what is an assault weapon and what is it capable of doing. Thats the key. What is the capability. And if you have firearms that are capable within seconds of putting 30 rounds off, Many Americans are going to view that as an assault weapon. And so we get down to the definition. Not the nra a definition, but t definition of what firearms can do. Youre comfortable with this firearm, the bushmaster being legal in connecticut. I will take your answer on that. The other thing, Mental Health you have been against obama care. Obama care of course would bring 30 million more people into coverage, which of course would cover Mental Health examinations. And of course, we could set up some kind of database that would help the sharing of information. And you can do that you can do that, of course, ed, without obama care. And part of what i think we should do is more local grants so that the police stations and the people as you know in connecticut, you need to register you need to have classes for certain handguns. You have to be under 21 years old over 21 years old. So to me, putting on the Mental Health where you do have some local grants that the Law Enforcement and the mayors, the political people, if you will in a city can say okay, where are the red flags . And what can we do when we spot the red flags. This morning you said on msnbc a 1800 number. We need more than that. Now youd be saying to put federal grant money to help out Mental Health so we could have better gun control in this country . Yes. And thats part of the National Institutes of health. Thats one of the things theyre talking about there is a 1800 number out there right now. And let me say that should not be the endall. But i think a piece of it where you have somebody who is acting peculiar and doing something, and you want to find out, okay, is this, you know, we got to be very sensitive of course to privacy issues and so forth. But i think to get more information, just as you would do on Substance Abuse and addiction, i think thats a reasonable step. Congressman Jack Kingston of georgia with me earlier today. I certainly appreciate him taking the time to speak with us. Congressman kingstons willingness to put federal money into federal Health Initiatives is a very good thing. But we are at an impasse. If the conversation of assault weapons in this country come downs to whether were pulling the trigger or not 100 times. A federal assault weapons ban can be effective. Mass shootings in the last ten years of the 1994 assault weapons ban were way down compared to the eight years since the ban expired. This is why president obama is actively pursuing a reinstatement of the assault weapons ban. Democratic congressional members Carolyn Mccarthy and Diana Degette want to vote on legislation to ban high capacity magazines before the end of the year. Senator Frank Lautenberg of new jersey has a similar bill in the senate. House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi says congress can take action on high capacity clips right now. Right away we could pass, right away today, this week we could pass the ban on the assault magazine. This issue is not taking away the Second Amendment rights. No question about it. Its about responsible access and ownership of firearms. But the bigger issue is the capacity of these firearms. And thats where the debate and the conversation has to be. Can we let the gun lobby tell us what a semiautomatic and an automatic rifle actually is when within seconds 30 rounds can go out and take multiple lives . Is that what we want out there . Its time for common sense to win out. Get your cell phones out. I want to know what you think. Do you consider the bushmaster. 223 an assault weapon . Text a for yes and b for now. You can always go to our blog. Well bring you the results later on in the show. I want to bring in Robert Menendez of new jersey. This senator is calling for congress to ban high capacity clips. Senator, good to have you with us tonight. Good to be with you, ed. Do you think that assault weapons ban would pass the congress, given the mood of the country and in the wake of the massacre in newtown . Well, if it cant now, i dont know when it ever can. Look, you know, the bush master to me is an assault weapon. If it can fire like an assault weapon, if it can be used like an assault weapon, if it can multiple people quickly, then its an assault weapon. Thats why i voted for the assault weapons ban when i was in the house of representatives. Thats why i support it now. And i simply dont know how many more lives have to be lost for us to get to action right away. Senator, what is your definition of an assault weapon . Well, for me, obviously, its common sense. You know, if you have a high capacity clip, 30 rounds, or even more, thats not about hunting. Thats about killing the maximum number of people you can at a given clip. Thats why we call it an assault weapon, because you can use it multiple times against an individual or a group of individuals. So the bottom line is to me, the high capacity clip, the ability to shoot off quickly, that number of rounds with the high capacity clip clearly makes it in my mind an assault weapon. Well, do you think republicans will go along with banning these clips . Well, i hope so. Look, no responsible hunter needs 30 clips, or even some of these clips that have up to 100 clips, like i think the colorado shooter had. No hunter needs 30 clips to hunt down a deer. My god, by the time theyd be finished shooting that deer, they wouldnt be worthy of bringing it back to the kitchen table. The reality is you simply dont need that. And thats really just about being able to shoot off as many people as you can. That is not about hunting. So i believe that a high capacity clip, you know, prohibition should be one of the main things on the table. And should be able to pass. Senator, what about access to Mental Health care through more funding . I mean, will congress agree to Mental Health funding in a way congressman kingston described . What do you think . Thing is where a lot of my friends on the other side of this question will try to head on the Mental Health funding. And of course we welcome them to that. But i listened to your interview before. Unfortunately, one of the first things that the House Republicans did in hr1 is cut 26 million in Community Health bloc grants. Thats exactly the type of work you want to see happening in our communities. Thats why i voted for the Mental Health parity act, to create Mental Health parity with all the other types of insurance we have. And thats why the Affordable Care act expands that and makes it responsible for in the exchange, in the Health Care Exchange that are going to offer insurance to include Mental Health as a core element of that coverage. Thats what we need in this country. And finally, senator, the nra. What role do they play when it comes time to this debate . Do you think that they can offer something . They have never been in favor of any kind of regulations. Well, you know, the nra i think is out of step with their members. You see nraregistered members, 74 i think say they are in support of criminal background checks nationally. They represent, in my mind, the gun manufacturers. Sure. And the gun shows. And the dealers. But they dont really represent the average rank and file. It seems to me, i hope theyll join us. But it seems to me that the teachers and, you know, School Principal were willing to take on the gunman. It seems to me the congress of the United States should take on these guns as well. Congressman menendez, great to have you with us. Share your thoughts on twitter at ed show. Americans pay into Social Security, and they expect it to be there when they retire. Tonight Social Security is on the negotiating table. Well have the latest on the fiscal cliff when we come back. Stay with us. [ woman ] ring. Ring. Progresso. In what world do potatoes, bacon and cheese add up to 100 calories . Your world. [ whispers ] real bacon. Creamy cheese. 100 calories. [ chef ] maam [ male announcer ] progresso. You gotta taste this soup. Coming up, Social Security on the table . The real calls the way president obamas changes are calculated. And senator Bernie Sanders will talk about fairness. And later, speaker John Boehners plan b. Leader pelosi calls it befuddled. Joan walsh and bob shrummer are here tonight. Share your thoughts on facebook and on twitter using the the edshow. Were copping right back. The t. Were copping right back. I gave birth to my daughter on may 18th, five days later, i had a massive heart attack. Bayer aspirin was the first thing the emts gave me. Now, im on a bayer aspirin regimen. [ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. [ woman ] learn from my story. Thanks for stay with us on the ed show tonight. There is big news to report tonight on the fiscal cliff talks. Today Social Security got sucked into the negotiations. Here is the latest offer from the white house. The president of the United States campaigned on letting taxes go up on anyone making 250,000 a year. Now he is offering to almost double it to 400,000 a year. Democrats are also offering 8 billion in cuts. They want to raise the debt ceiling for the next two years. And now the white house is offering costofliving adjustments on Social Security. These are not your average costofliving adjustments. The white house says we can recalculate how much money people get as they age. The technical changes could save some money, but it could cost seniors dearly. This is what the poverty rate for seniors would look like without Social Security. Almost half the seniors would fall below the poverty line. Now look at this. Social security dramatically reduces poverty among seniors. Cutting Social Security would be cruel. The white house is defending the proposal. The president has always said as a part of this process when were talking about the spending cuts side of this that it would require tough choices by both sides. And that is certainly the case if you want to reach an agreement. Secondly, this is a technical adjustment that supporters of it and economists, outside economists say it is meant to make the governments estimates of inflation more accurate. We could save money and bring down the debt by adjusting Social Security benefits. But many analysts dont trust the republicans to take care of seniors in the process. Joining me tonight, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author of the fine print how Big Companies use plain english to rob you blind, david cay johnston. Technical adjustment. What does that mean . In the interest of fairness, is there any scenario in which chained cpi does not hurt seniors . No. Chained cpi is a good measure for the whole economy, but not for seniors who have Rising Health care costs. And looking at average Health Care Costs doesnt work for older people because theyre big consumers of health care. Who is going to get hurt . I mean, if the if we cut Social Security this way . If this is done the way the white house is proposing it, who is going to get hurt . Well, if youre 45 years old today, or 35 years old today, when youre 85, you will really feel this pain. The change over time will be significant. And the idea of chained cpi is that youll institute things. So you may be eating hamburger today. Youll be eating chicken later because of chained cpi. And you may end up on cat food your last days. Could it be that bad . Is this a drastic move by the white house to propose this . Its a tiny move in terms of the economy. In the year 2050, the cbo estimates that were talking about 2 10 of 1 of the entire economy. Thats how much we would reduce spending on Social Security. 2 10 of 1 . Thats today about 30 billion. But we would be talking about an enormous amount of money in the monthly incomes of seniors who are not as a class living it up, as the charts you just put up show. As you see it, in the next, say, ten years, would this affect benefits to americans . Well, it affects it would affect them right away. But its a little bit. Basically, chained cpi is if inflation is running 3 , it would be about 2. 7 . So instead of getting a raise on a thousand dollars Social Security check of 30, you would get 27. But this would continue year after year after year, slowly eroding your benefits. And if you live 20 years, were now talking 6 percentage points. What kind of money are we talking about saving . Well, the average Social Security check right now is 1229. So i calculate that if we go to the cpi system, chained cpi, in 20 years, you would get 126 a month less than you would under the current system. That doesnt sound like a lot of money. 1500 a year. But if youre making less than 30,000 a year, thats a big cut. Its a 5. 7 cut. I think, ed, we should go the other direction there is another measure of inflation called cpie, for elderly. And when you do that, 3 inflation raise the elderlys check by about 3. 3 . After 20 years, they would be getting 133 a month more than under the current system. And the swing between what the petersons want, to take money away from old people, and what im proposing is about 259 a month. Thats over 3,000 a year. Thats real money to people, no doubt. David cay johnston, thanks for your time tonight in clarifying all of this. Progressives arent happy with the key part of president obamas counteroffer on the fiscal cliff. Bernie sanders will join me on that. He says its real money to folks. Then House Speaker john boehner decides to go with plan b in the fiscal cliff talks. What is that all about . Well explain boehners latest political tactic, find out what it could cost you in taxes when we come back. Stay with us. [ male announcer ] this is karen and jeremiah. They dont know it yet, but theyre gonna fall in love, get married, have a couple of kids, [ children laughing ] move to the country, and live a long, happy life together where they almost never fight about money. [ dog barks ] because right after they get married, theyll find some retirement people who are paid on salary, not commission. Theyll get straightforward guidance and be able to focus on other things, like each other, which isnt rocket science. Its just common sense. From td ameritrade. Share not even close. Share you owe me. Share just right. The share everything plan. Shareable data across 10 devices with unlimited talk and text. Hurry in for a droid razr m by motorola for 49. 99. Progressive direct and other Car Insurance companies . Yes. But youre progressive, and theyre them. Yes. But theyre here. Yes. Are you. . There . Yes. No. Are you them . Im me. But those rates are for. Them. So them are here. Yes you want to run through it again . No, im good. You got it . Yes. Rates for us and them now thats progressive. Call or click today. And we are back. Progressives are lining up against any change in Social Security, including the way cost of living increases are calculated. The congressional progressive caucus opposes it, as do other progressive groups. Today senator dick durbin said we ought to deal with Social Security in a separate conversation. This is not part of deficit reduction. To do it at this stage is the wrong way to go. That counters certainly what were seeing coming out of the white house. Lets turn to senator Bernie Sanders tonight from vermont. Senator, good to have you with us. Does this come out of right field, so to speak . Is this the wrong way to go on Social Security . Well, it certainly is the wrong way to go on Social Security, as durbin just pointed out, Social Security has a huge surplus. It has nothing to do with deficit reduction. We have ways to make sure that its solvent for the next 75 years. You do not have to cut benefits for seniors and for disabled veterans. Ed, what is not widely pointed out, and tomorrow ill be holding a press conference with all of the veterans organizations, the dav, the american legion, the chained cpi would make major cuts for people who have lost their arms and legs in iraq and afghanistan, widows, and orphans. Furthermore, what i would say if you saw the poll today in the washington post, the people of this country are very clear. Overwhelmingly say they do not cut Social Security. Do not cut medicare. Do not cut medicaid. And yes, to the tune of 74 of the people responding in that poll, ask people making more than 250,000 a year to pay more in taxes. The president has got to listen to the American People and stand firm against the bullies in the republican house. Here is house Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi today. Listen to this. Yes, the democrats will stick with the president. Maybe not every single one of them. But on the cpi, since you bring it up, the chained cpi, the president the details of this are not all ironed out. But they all mitigate for helping the poorest and neediest in our society, whether theyre ssi recipients, whether theyre 80 and older, or whether theyre truly needy in between. Senator, she says other factors mitigate the impact of the cpi change, and she would have the votes. Any circumstances under which that you could support it . No. I have a lot of respect for nancy pelosi. I think she is dead wrong on this issue. Listen, the aarp, the National Committee to preserve medicare, the aflcio, the veterans organizations, the vast majority of the American People are saying you do not balance the budget on the elderly, people who are making 15, 16,000 a year, who are struggling to keep themselves alive should not be taking cuts when we have growing wealth and income inequality in america. Yes, the wealthiest people and the large corporations who are doing phenomenally well are going to have to start paying their fair share of taxes. President obamas plan would bring in 1. 2 trillion in revenue and extend unemployment benefits, which is pretty important. Are these and other aspects of the president s counteroffer agreeable with you . Certainly the unemployed are going to need some help. And we still have millions of people who are out of work in this country. What about that . There are some good things to this, but is it worth the gamble . Obviously we want to do everything we can to protect the unemployed. But what we also have to understand, ed, and also what is not talked about enough is a result of i think the weak negotiating on the part of the white house in 2010 and 2011. We have already cut 1. 5 trillion in programs. And up to this point, the wealthy havent paid a nickel more in taxes. So i dont think its a question of, you know, a little here and a little there. People on top doing phenomenally well. Middle class disappearing. Millions of People Living in poverty. I think the president will have the support of the American People if he stands tall, if he stands strong and demands justice and fairness in terms of how we do deficit reduction. What about boehners plan to pass an extension of the bush tax cuts for everyone below the 1 million mark. No. Is that something you could possibly support . Of course, the president wants to move to it 400,000. No. Thats wrong. It simply does not bring in enough revenue. And it would necessitate even more cuts. 250,000 is the number for you . You want the bush tax cuts gone . Absolutely. Okay. Senator, good to have you with us tonight. I appreciate your time there is a lot more coming up in the next half hour of the ed show. Stay with us. At the same time were going to continue to talk with the president , were going to also move to plan b. Boehner buckles on the rates and floats plan b. Bob shrum and salons joan walsh will break down the sideshow. Congresswoman Carol Mccarthy said she would embarrass the president to get common sense gun laws. Tonight ill ask her if she is happy with the endorsement of the assault weapons ban. And Nbcs Richard Engel is safe and sound after being kidnapped in syria. It is good to be here. Weve got the harrowing details next. You know how painful heartburn can be. For fast, long lasting relief, use doctor recommended gaviscon®. Only gaviscon® forms a protective barrier that helps block stomach acid from splashing up relieving the pain quickly. Try fast, long lasting gaviscon®. Can i still ship a gift in time for christmas . Yeah, sure you can. Great. Wheres your gift . Uh. Whew. [ male announcer ] break from the holiday stress. Ship Fedex Express by december 22nd for christmas delivery. 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Try the 1 gastroenterologist recommended probiotic. Align. Welcome back to ed show. House Speaker John Boehner doesnt like the way the fiscal cliff negotiations are going, so today he announced he is activating what he is calling plan b. As early as thursday, boehner plans to offer two amendments. One would extend the bushera tax cuts for people who make up to 250,000 a year. The other would extend the tax cuts for everyone who makes up to 1 million a year. Plan b would protect american taxpayers who make a Million Dollars or less and have all of their current rates extended. Boehner is basically offering to end the fiscal cliff talks for the holidays. He would take up the spending cuts and debt ceiling debate next year. Joining me tonight editor at large for salon, joan walsh. And democratic strategist bob shrum with us tonight. Great to have both of you with us. Thanks, ed. Joan, what is boehner trying to prove here with this strategy . That he is so concerned with Small Business . What is happening here. Exactly. I mean, look. He knows plan b is doa, ed. It doesnt do anything. It doesnt solve any problems. You know, it protects people who make between 250 and 1 million who are still quite wealthy. It doesnt make a dent in the deficit. And it also doesnt solve any of the sequestration problems. So, you know, im not a big fan of some of the issues, some of the concessions that i hear might be on the table. Im withholding judgment until i hear everything that may be on the table, ed. But, you know, there is an argument for a deal. If you can get some unemployment insurance, if you get some infrastructure funding, and if you can get the debt court of appealing to good away for a long time, those sorts of things are worth talking about. This takes all the leverage away from democrats, if democrats were to support it. They know democrats wont support it. And you know what . John boehner is also boasting that he thinks hes got the votes. He said that the republican votes. He said that before, and poor nancy pelosi has to go out and whip democrats. She will not do that this time. Even if it passes the house, it will lose in the senate. And theyre just doing this to cover their behinds. Bob, it seems to me that Speaker Boehner wants to go to president obama and say see that . You cant raise taxes at any level on the country. What do you make of that . Well, he is just flatly wrong. Plan b is bs. Its never going to pass. Joan is right. Its a wonderful republican idea. Lets protect the people who make say, 98,000 a year. The first reality is by every pole, if we go off the fiscal cliff, theyre going to be blamed. The second is the top rate tax rates are going up, whether its 250,000 or 400,000. Maybe people in the Republican Caucus dont get that. Maybe we have to have a communication, earth to the Republican Caucus. But its going to happen. Its either going to happen before or after we go off the fiscal cliff. So why bob, why is boehner just ignoring the rest of the president s offer here . Because boehner isnt so much worried about the fiscal cliff right now as he is worried about his speakership being on the cliff. Hes got a very restive caucus. They dont understand that they lost the election. I agree with joan, by the way. The president , even though he won the election, isnt going to win every point here in this negotiation. But republicans seem to think they can have it mostly their way. They made one concession, which is higher tax rates for some rich people. Now they want it to be for a very small number of rich people, wont raise the revenue that is needed. So i dont think they have any chance here. But maybe what this whole thing is about is letting these republicans get up and vent, and then he can go back to the bargaining table. Sure. But ill tell you one thing. He has to be a little careful, because that bill that extends the tax cuts for everybody up to 250,000, i think the democrats might vote for that. And then if a number of republicans say wait a minute, im not going to vote to let taxes go up on people under 250,000, it might pass. The senate i think would then pass that, and the president would probably sign it. Im not quite sure, joan, how john boehner is going the change Public Opinion with this posturing, these two votes. Well, he is not. But we should acknowledge that it is at least some recognition that tax hikes on the rich at some level are extremely popular with the American People, ed. So thats a little bit of a victory. I think there was a quote today after a meeting on this from senator jeff flake. And he came out and said this will show that were not in the pocket of the top 2 , which in fact it protects a whole lot of the top 2 here. Lets just say that but its showing that they are afraid of being known as the absolute lap dogs of the super rich, and they are trying to win some sort of pr victory so that they can go out and say we voted for some tax hikes. It will be interesting to see what kind of revolt there will be, though, from their Tea Party Caucus and the people who said no tax hikes for any reason. They want to go home for the holidays and tell their constituents we voted for tax cuts. Thats where it is. Right. Thats where i think it is. Joan walsh, bob shrum, great to have you with us tonight. Coming up, Nbcs Richard Engel is safe after five days of captivity in syria. Well have the details. Stay with us. Rd to breathe, but with advair, im breathing better. So now i can be in the scene. Advair is clinically proven to help significantly improve lung function. Unlike most copd medications, advair contains both an antiinflammatory and a longacting bronchodilator working together to help improve your lung function all day. Advair wont replace fastacting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. People with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. Advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. Tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high Blood Pressure before taking advair. If youre still having difficulty breathing, ask your doctor if including advair could help improve your lung function. Get your first full prescription free and save on refills at advaircopd. Com. I always love to hear from our viewers on twitter and our facebook page. Many of you are responding to the president s offer to change the way Social Security cost of living increases are calculated. Schweitzer tweets most of the Social Security recipients are barely making it. All this to help the rich, question mark . He points out that even president reagan understood Social Security did not affect the deficit. And asked why is obama capitulating . And rickie tweets, hands off Social Security. Democrats, get a backbone. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us on facebook and on twitter using the the ed show. Richard engels incredible ordeal, next. Were coming right back. Bayer aspirin was the first thing the emts gave me. Richard engels incredible ordeal, next. Were coming right back. Show. Richard engels incredible ordeal, next. Were coming right back. An aspirin regimen. [ woman ] learn from my story. Progresso. In what world do potatoes, bacon and cheese add up to 100 calories . Your world. [ whispers ] real bacon. Creamy cheese. 100 calories. [ chef ] maam [ male announcer ] progresso. You gotta taste this soup. And we here at msnbc are relieved and happy to report that nbc news chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel and his crew were freed late last night after five days in captivity in syria. Engel described the ordeal on the today show this morning. We were driving in syria, about five days ago, in what we thought was a rebelcontrolled area. We were with some of the rebels. And as we were moving down the road, a group of gunmen just literally jumped out of the trees and bushes on the side of the road. There were probably 15 gunmen. They were wearing ski masks. They were heavily armed. They dragged us out of the car. They had a container truck positioned, waiting by the side of the road. They put us into that container truck. We were with some gunmen, some rebels who were escorting us. They executed one of them on the spot. Then they took us to a series of safe houses and interrogation places. We werent physically beaten or tortured. It was a lot of psychological torture, threats of being killed. While nbc could not confirm the identities of the kidnapper, engel noted that they talked openly about their loyalties to the government and to syrian president bashar al assad. The crew was freed after five days when the captors drove them into a checkpoint manned by a syrian rebel group. The kidnappers saw this checkpoint, started a gunfight with it. Two of the kidnappers were killed. We climbed out of the vehicle and the rebels took us. The crew then crossed the border into turkey this morning. All of us here at the ed show are glad richard and his crew are safe and sound. Tonight in our survey, i asked do you consider the bushmaster. 223 an assault weapon . 87 of you say yes. 13 of you say no. Coming up, a Major Investment Firm says that it will sell its stake in the company that makes the rifle used to kill 26 people at sandy hook elementary. Congresswoman Carolyn Mccarthy will weigh in on that and much more. 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If we in this country as americans cannot get the people who represent us to do something about firearms, we are a sad, sad society. Syracuse basketball coach jimmy boeheim, marking his 900th win by speaking out about gun control. The coach added, if one person in this world, the nra president , anybody can tell me why we need assault weapons with 30 shots in the thing, this is our fault. Today the white house spokesperson jay carney said the president supports an assault weapons ban renewal. And now were starting to see a shift in thinking. And its happening in, of all places, corporate america. The Investment Firm Cerberus Capital management will sell its stake in the countrys largest gunmaker after one of the companys guns, the bushmaster semiautomatic rifle was used to kill 26 people at sandy hook elementary. As the New York Times reports, cerberus said that it was putting the Company Freedom group up for sell just hours after one of its largest investors, the california Teachers Pension Fund said it was reviewing its relationship with the firm. The Investment Firm issuing this statement. It is apparent that the sandy hook tragedy was a watershed event that has raised the National Debate on gun control to an unprecedented level. Cerberus also says that as a firm, we are investors, not statesmen or policymakers. But as the daily beast points out, cerberuss small Leadership Team includes statesmen and former policymakers like dan quayle, and john snow, former treasury secretary. The firm is owned by billionaire financier steven a. Feinberg. Feinberg is reportedly an avid hunter and sportsman, a major republican donor. And his father happens to live in newtown, connecticut. Martin feinberg declined to comment on his sons firms sell, but told Bloomberg News the shooting was devastating and truly horrendous. Joining me tonight congresswoman Carolyn Mccarthy of new york. Congresswoman, thank you for your time tonight. Thank you. This is really an unprecedented move. What do you make of this, this firm making a move like this, and of course being, in a sense, pressured by the Teachers Pension Fund in california . Well, i can certainly understand it, because some statements have come out saying that teachers should be armed. Talking to certainly an awful lot of the teachers in the last two days. Thats the last thing that they want to do. So i can understand that. And youre looking at a lot of these Pension Funds that are being invested in this company. And they dont want any part of this. So im very happy, because, you know, we have Investment Funds that only do social issues. And im glad to see them doing that. Maybe that sends even a stronger message to the National Rifle association that their grip is losing. Work with us. Lets get an assault weapons bill passed lets make sure we can make this country faster. Do you think theyre losing their grip . I do. I actually do. Talking to a number of my republican friends, i asked them. I said, you know, were reading about this press conference on friday. And theyre going to come out with something positive. Now, i dont know what that means. But with that being said, i would love them to see them working with us. Were not taking away the rights of anybody to own a gun. But even they hopefully will see that assault weapons and the large magazines, they are not meant for the average citizen. And they are not. Do you think well see more move in commerce because of this . I do. I actually do. You know, there has been a shift. Youve seen this. Youve been talking about it. You talked about it last night. And i have to say that even from, again, talking to some nra members, they have said, you know, listen. Im a hunter. And im more than willing to give up my assault weapons. Ive never used it for hunting. I dont even use it for the security of my home. I like it for target shooting at the range and things like that. He said but enough is enough. We cannot take this slaughter anymore. Congresswoman, you warned the white house the gloves are off if the president fails to act on gun control. Today jay carney said the president supports an assault weapons ban. Are you confident that the president is ready to act . Are we at that point . Well, you know, number one, i was very thrilled to be honest with you, to see him come out not only on the assault weapons ban, on one of the things he is planning on doing. Closing the gun show loophole, making sure the background checks are going to be able to be there for everybody that would have to go through a background check before they could buy a gun. Those are all my bills that have actually been introduced here in congress for many years. I also know he is going to be working on the educational side and the health side as far as mental illness. Well, what about that . Weve had quite a discussion about Mental Health assets and resources going to this. That is a monumental lift. Thats a huge lift, and its going to take a ton of money. You think republicans will go along with that . Well, ed, to be very honest with you, the reason its going to take a ton of money is because last year and the year before the amount of cuts that have already done, and a lot of people dont realize this in the United States, we made large cuts last year. Yeah. We made large cuts the year before. Thats shutting down my Mental Health clinics in my community. Yeah. Its shutting down the afterschool programs where we work with these children that need a little bit of extra help. So when you say youre going to cut, you got to be very careful on what will be the end effect. I think when we look at it, its got to be a whole comprehensive package. Im a nurse. I look at things holistically. We got to do things above to make this country safer. Congressman kingston said he doesnt consider the gun used in the newtown shooting an assault weapon. Your response to that. Listen, you know, we can take these shootings any way you want to. And i dont particularly care what kind of gun that they used. But to be very honest with you, the large assault clips are the ones that do the most killing. He had 30 rounds in each of the guns that he had. Two rounds went off. He shot over 100 bullets. And i think thats probably what shocks the nation. You know, when they read that a 6yearold was shot from 6 to 11 times. You know what a 6yearold looks like. I know what a 6yearold looks like. I know what gunshots look like. That has tipped the country to say wait a minute. Well protect those hunters