before he left his apartment, he uploaded a youtube and sent a manifesto to his parents and others. seeing the video, his parents rushed to stop him and on the way heard of the shooting spree. he drove to a sorority house. no one answered the door, but he shot three on the lawn, killing two of them. veronica wise and katie cooper. then went to a deli, killed another student, christopher michael martinez. then he fired on bystanders, struck two cyclists with his car before crashing. at the time deputies reached him, he was dead of a self inflicted gunshot wound. the latest mass killing has precipitated yet another wrenching national conversation about gun violence and mental illness, spurred on in part by public conversation started by richard martinez, the father of christopher michaels martinez who was killed friday night. >> why did chris die? chris died because of crave en, irresponsible politicians and the nra. they talk about gun rights. what about chris' right to live? when will this insanity stop. when will enough people say stop this madness! we don't have to live like this! too many have died! we should say to ourselves not one more! >> even beyond the tragedy of mass gun violence, it unveiled another whole set of questions, the world of darkness that elliot rodger lived in as he planned a violent attack. >> so who was elliot rodger and what led him to snap? investigators didn't have to look far for a motive. the answer was a click away. >> the shooter in isla vista left behind several youtube videos and a grisly 141 page manifesto, explaining his motives. they reveal a deeply disturbed young man. i will punish all females that deprive me of sex. they have deprived me and gave it to other men. i cannot kill every single female on earth but i can deliver a devastating blow that will shake all of them to the core of their wicked hearts. his rantings would be at home in the far reaching internet sub culture widely described as the men's rights movement. a toxic distillation of the worst aspects of american sexism. a universal message board, red pill and return of kings, where men get together to express their hatred toward women. where people argue the elimination of traditional gender roles and promotion of unlimit mating choice in women unleashes their prom is cute. and that we have a problem with hyper inflating rape statistics. he reportedly posted on a website where they vent about rage at the pick up artist community allowing them to pick up and seduce women. it doesn't stick to the confines of message boards and websites. people associated with the movement routinely harass, threaten, stalk women. for many female writers and public figures, the day to day harassment is their life. earlier this year, writer amanda hess wrote about it. >> the threats were distressing, anonymous person threatening to come to my house, to rape me, cut off my head. on one hand it is a ludicrous thing to say and probably not going to happen. but on the other hand, it is so confusing when you receive threats like that because people are telling you don't worry about it, it is just the internet, it is not going to happen. >> in the wake of this weekend's shooting, lots of women have had enough. thousands flooded to social media to share their own stories of intimidation with #yesallwomen. girls grow up knowing it is safer to give a guy a fake phone number than turn a guy down, tweeted one woman. yes, all women. i had to explain to my friend was rape, not a drunken mistake. and to those that think the misogyny in the shooter's mind is disconnected from the culture at ours, the story replicated its worst features. for some, the woman is always to blame. joining me, column nest from guardian u.s. i was reading your reaction over the weekend. i want to start with the new york post. we will get into the morass that was the shooter. this is the choice of rupert murdock's publication. to put a picture of a random woman who figured in some point in the deranged fantasies that she was somehow responsible. >> women are always responsible for males' violent behavior. i am glad you mention the websites in the beginning. we're seeing responses to the tragedy saying if only women had slept with him, the whole tragedy could have been avoided. >> these websites, this world of men's rights movement is something i have been hearing about from you and other feminist writers i am friends with and followed a long time. you think the internet is full of crazies and weird sub cultures. what's different about this. how has this factored in your life? >> it factored in my life more ways than i would care to say or get into because of the fear that's there and threats that i still get. i can say that when i read this intense 140 page manifesto and watched these videos from the shooter, the language felt very familiar to me. this is language i've heard before, and i don't think i am alone in that, and i don't think that public feminists and writers are alone in that. i think this is language women hear every day and american women get almost every day. that's why you have seen this incredible response online to it. that's what's most disturbance to me about this language is that it is not sort of crazy by american standards, the sexism, it is quite commonplace, what he is saying. >> what do you mean by that. >> i mean what he is saying that men are entitled to sex with women, that women are sluts and whores. it is not unusual for young men to say these things and -- >> i want to cordon off -- it manifests in a violence, this very charged violence rhetoric which i have seen when friends of mine showed me their inboxes. people are getting day in, day out. as the price of being a woman in public space, that's what people get. the dam kind of burst this weekend? >> i think it did. i hope people are paying attention and understand how dangerous this language is, and yes, you can't directly say anyone is responsible for something as horrible as this. but even individual people, every time you call a woman a slut and tell a rape joke, you're contributing to a culture that tells people like the shooter that what he thinks is okay and reasonable. >> i want to bring in shannon watts. i want to talk to you, we covered a bit on the show what you and other people moms in action want in response to your action. it has seemed to me like there's this ugly gender component. there are a lot of self described or self macho dudes that called you and the women you organize with every vile aggressive name in the book. >> yeah, that's absolutely true, whether online or offline. there seems to be an idea somehow women will take their guns or rights away. all we're talk about is something as simple as background checks. the hatred that has engendered has been bizarre, whether tweets or showing up with armed carry around women and mothers. there seems to be no distinction between what is acceptable behavior and what's not. >> seems to me that when we're looking at this horrible thing that happened this weekend and the influence, there is this kind of awful diagram of two subcultures that can be ugly indeed, this gun culture, ugliest parts of gun culture, i want to be specific, and the ugliest parts of the online misogyny. there's an obsession. he says in one line i will be the ultimate alpha male. explain the currency of that term. >> the alpha male is, as you said, he is the head macho guy, and everyone else is beta male. he gets all the ladies, looks a certain way. they even have if your jaw is a certain sharpness, it is very bizarre. >> there's a whole universe. a universe with language and abbreviations, acronyms, people are trading back and forth how to get women and why women are terrible in the same sentence. >> this is really a combination of mental health, gun culture, racism, misogyny, also most importantly, toxic masculinity that says manhood is aggression and violence, especially towards women. >> shannon, do you think that's part of the reaction about guns and men and guns? >> i do. women have not had a seat at the table to discuss this issue. we are 54% of electorate. the nra has run rough shod over members of congress and state legislators and american businesses and women haven't had a voice. we are speaking up after sandy hook and 20 innocent kids were gunned down in the sanctity of a classroom. then we find out eight children are shot and killed every day. our voices can't be silenced any more. our votes can't be silenced. we are going to speak out. i think that in tim dates certain members of the gun extremist culture, not to mention leadership of the nra. >> i got to say, i am amazed at the kind of obsessions in the world of the kind of reactionary trolls with this kind of gun stuff and alpha male stuff, constant pathological insecurity, fear, obsession with their status as men or in society that seems like a prison frankly. seems like a horrible way to live. this kind of anger at women in a society in a place they feel dislocated from? >> i used to be sad, have empathy, what a miserable way to think about yourself and women and gender relations. now it is really scary because they're providing this narrative to young people who are unwell who want a place to put their resentment and saying put it on women. >> and they're doing real damage, in the case of folks, women trying to live in public space who are writing on the internet, shannon, people who are being activists, trying to organize a mom to action at a strip mall. there's a cost, you can come to the meeting but there might be dudes that show up with assault rifles to stare you down. >> you know, i think this has been seen in america over and over when there's an issue that hits close to a nerve, and we're seeing it now. in my opinion, that means we're winning. we're going to win this war against gun extremists who set the policies in this country. and if that's the price we pay, so be it. we are no longer going to be silenced. as a mother, i have a right to use my voice and my vote to show what direction this country should go in. and i won't be silenced by gun bullies. >> bullies which is the key theme. are feminists winning? is that part of this world, this dark world that this shooter had some relation to and involvement with and was reading, is that part of the looking for a silver lining in this horrible, horrible news. >> i think in a way, yes, i think feminists are winning sort of the national cultural conversation, the fact that these, you know, hash tags and tumblers take off, shows people are ready for feminists to win. but the back lash that's still happening, you can have this 141 page manifesto and people saying sexism didn't have anything to do with it, shows how far we have to go. >> if that was anti-semitic manifesto, white supremist, jihadi, every would see that, no question. >> we don't see sexism as an ideology. >> thank you both. appreciate it. coming up, primary night in texas where dirty politics are nothing new. we have a story for you that's beyond the beyond. next. coming up, president obama goes to a science fair. >> as you see here, this is what a polymer looks like. then when you add water, it straightens out and expands like this. you want to try? >> i do. >> you would think something like that would be noncontroversial. but in grade school science, that's not true. i will explain ahead. i'm on fire for liberty. i'm sick and tired of watching our country go down the drain. i'm sick and tired of watching my children's futures be sold up the river and i want to get in there and fight this liberal agenda that's being shoved down our throat. >> the gentleman in the middle between the ones wearing sunglasses, was on the ballot in a runoff to represent the good people of district 10. you probably have a good idea what he is about. he does like guns and walking his dog as seen in this campaign ad. another thing he is not big on, the fact that his primary opponent accepted a donation from a muslim. not a donation associated with a terrorist group or extreme form of islam or al qaeda, just a muslim, full stop. >> he can say that he is a peaceful muslim all that he wants to. the fact is he has declared war here with the money he's giving to people. >> and comedian dean obeidallah saw that, decided to square things up, giving his own money to tj fabby, making him an acceptor of muslim money, too. how did this get on your radar screen. >> someone posted it. i am like this isn't true. i read the article like you, has to be some -- >> some connection to some group on a watch list. >> he was in an organization, unindicted coconspirator. i applaud this kind of bigotry. tj doesn't care. if you're a muslim, you're suspicious, even though the man they're talking about is chamber of commerce man of the year, giving money to christian charities, to rick perry. part of the republican establishment. because he didn't give money to him and gave to his opponent. >> in this primary race, talking about a republican primary runoff in texas, he made it like his campaign issue. >> apparently he made it an issue. he dropped it the last week, the primary was in march. it is a runoff, so tonight, he very well, i was e-mailing a reporter in texas. he is probably going to win and be the house of representatives ultimately in november. >> we have backing not a little but a lot. something that people need to be made aware of. you gave money to him. >> i e-mailed tj first, his personal e-mail is on his website. even the phone number. i thought i will e-mail. hey, i am a big fan, fan of small government, i would like to give you money, that's all. e-mailed, four, five hours from him, here is how you make a donation, thanks very much. i sent $100. then i said i have a lot of muslim friends that want to give you money, levels from federal to state to local, would like to make a web page muslims for tjfabby. no answer, i think he is on board. he has my money. >> obviously this is a little relatively small contained situation, but this gets to something bigger. you're shaking your head. >> not at all contained. >> not contained. pops up again and again and again in conservative politics, the stuff about sharia law. fights over sharia law and the implication that muslims -- >> how when florida passed, watered down but passed, north carolina six months ago, there's 1% of the nation is muslim. we are going to impose islamic law? we don't want islamic law people living in america. >> let's be clear. this is the crassest most demagogueic. >> even in florida, don't see instances of muslims doing it. >> sharia immunization. >> that's what allen hayes said, immunization, in -- innoculation of being -- they're losing gay marriage, looking for another enemy. muslims are an easy target. we're out there alone a lot of times. we're navigating a precarious situation. >> you would have predicted it would have faded further from 9/11. >> i would have, and we did see a big -- i think a lull in it. 2010, ground zero moscow. you see a spike in anti-muslim hate crimes, 200% increase. now it is a staple of the tea party, and i really don't want to see it become part of the republican party. leave it on the extremes. coming up, what happens when you pick a fight with the paralyzed veterans of america. i'll tell you next. not every day in american politics a republican senator essentially declares open war on veterans groups, certainly not the day before memorial day weekend, but that's basically what senator richard burr did friday, penning a letter, slamming them for not calling for resignation of eric shinseki. he is using that to push for a degree of privatization, something that veterans are opposed to. he said they're more interested in their livelihood and washington connections than they are the needs of their members. disabled american veterans saying he shows no interest in pursuing serious policy solutions. veterans of foreign wars writing your allegations are ugly and mean spirited, profoundly wrong logically and morally. quite frankly, senator, you should be ashamed. the most brutal take down from paralyzed veterans of america. perhaps you should have shared with all vet ranls in your open letter that you care so much about their health care that you were not present during the testimony that the veteran organization representatives provided and did not ask a single question to gauge our recommendations about how to fix the problems the va health care system is facing. the problem for republicans at the heart of the va story are two basic truths. one, health care and wait times, not that great. two, the extent of the mismatch between the capacity of the va and demand for care has a lot to do with 14 years of open ended war. the president announced a new chapter in that war, possibly the final one, suggesting there may be an end in sight too elusive to end it. we will talk about that next. da(???? i think americans have learned it is harder to end wars than it is to begin them. this is how wars end in the 20th century, transitions to elected governments, security forces who are trained to take the lead and ultimately full responsibility. >> huge news today about the longest war in our nation's history. after a memorial day weekend in which president obama made an unannounced trip to afghanistan, first visit in two years, met with troops. today he went to the rose garden, outlined a game plan for what will be this war's end, kind of. the plan announced would reduce u.s. presence to 9800 noncombat troops by 2015, from august 2010 to 2011, there were 100,000 troops in afghanistan. there are currently 32,000 troops there now. the president wants to draw it down to 9800 by 2015. the plan is to reduce that by half by the end of 2015. this negotiated plan, the bilateral security agreement must be approved by the afghanistan government. president obama and afghanistan's current president karzai notably didn't meet during this weekend's visit. but both candidates now vying for karzai's job indicated they would probably sign that agreement. with regard to noncombat troops starting in 2015, the taliban and others decide whether a troop is a combat troop, depending whether they're shooting at those troops. we can call them noncombat troops. we will have nearly 10,000 in 2015, in a war the american public has largely given up on. joining me, fellow of the american foundation, author of "no good men among the living." the book i just read parts of it, it is exceptional. you spent four years living there. the project of the book is to see the war through afghan eyes. first question, i saw reaction about people saying well, afghans want us to stay. they're scared for us to leave. how do you assess that. >> many don't realize there's not one afghanistan, there's many afghanistans, and the war fought is only in part of the country, that is the south and east where the war is being fought. afghans i spoke to don't want troops there, it is crossfire between the americans and taliban. >> they think it will lead to more stability? >> one side is better than two sides if caught in the middle of a war. >> do you think when you hear the president talk about what this war was about, one of the confusions of the 14 year war, was the war against al qaeda or the taliban. taliban was harboring al qaeda. decisive blows to the enemy, that's probably true of al qaeda, but not true of taliban that have big swathes of the country. >> the taliban have not been defeated, they're entrenched in the countryside. doesn't mean they're going to march into the cities and take over when the troops leave. what we are looking at is the status quo, meaning two sides fighting each other basically in perpetuity. >> i feel like i don't even have my hands around that. >> imagine the afghan government and the u.s. advisers concentrated in the cities, and large swathes of the countryside, particularly along the afghan pakistani border controlled by taliban or by warlords paid by us, pro-american warlords, who are the real authorities here. there's no real state to speak of in afghanistan. >> so then what happens. what are the 10,000 noncombat troops, what do their lives look like, and what do the lives of afghans in provinces look like five, ten years from now. >> some troops will be training afghan army to fight the taliban. >> is that a mission that will work? >> they're not going to defeat the taliban. they won't be defeated either. they will be entrenched in the cities. >> is that the goal to create the recipe for prolonged stalemate? >> that's what we have, that's what obama's policy essentially is. you have three sides, the taliban, pro-american warlords and government. >> this is a country at war 30 years or 20 years prior to 9/11, right? then does our -- i guess does our removal of troops or keeping troops make any appreciable difference? >> no difference. >> that's a crazy statement. >> we're paying for the afghan government to exist f we didn't pay, the government would collapse tomorrow. >> our money is much more important. >> that money, is the idea, does the taliban see it as a waiting game, you hear all the time, they've known forever. this is a statement by mccain, ayotte, the date for full withdrawal, monumental mistake, that's how these go. it is nothing new. is there any sense in which that's true, we will be out by then, the taliban will circle that and say we launch the offensive the day after? >> certainly that's what they're going to plan to do. remains whether they will succeed. >> a dyingistic of strategy, you think is true? >> they are waiting, absolutely. >> when the date is set, they will launch an offensive as soon as we leave? >> they're launching offensive now, they'll up the ante. >> what's it going to look like? >> more war. a country at war 35 years now. it will continue. there's no plan for end to the war. no negotiated settlement. >> is that the only way? >> negotiated settlement and figure a way for the afghan state to be sustainable. we are paying for it. if we don't pay for it, it is finished tomorrow. >> this book, "no good men among the living." hope you check it out. thank you. lawmakers found a new thing to ban from textbooks, the new evolution next. i always say be the man with the plan but with less energy, moodiness, and a low sex drive, i had to do something. i saw my doctor. a blood test showed it was low testosterone, not age. we talked about axiron the only underarm low t treatment that can restore t levels to normal in about two 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 axiron. but the savings continue all month long! so, if you're looking to buy a car, now is the time and truecar is the way. just go to truecar.com to lock in guaranteed savings without negotiation. thank you! visit truecar.com! [ shutter clicks ] hi there! [ laughs ] i'm flo! i know! i'm going to get you your rental car. this is so ridiculous. we're going to manage your entire repair process from paperwork to pickup, okay, little tiny baby? your car is ready, and your repairs are guaranteed for as long as you own it. the progressive service center -- a real place, where we really manage your claim from start to finish. really. ♪ easy as easy can be bye! if i were to ask to you guess the most controversial aspect of the new next generation science standards designed to guide the curriculum in schools. evolution. that would put you in the right neighborhood, not quite the correct fake controversy. >> chairman ron michael, he concluded saying science education should be based on our economy, natural resources, if it seems backwards, so be it. >> science education should be based on our economy which is natural resources. wyoming lawmakers blocked that, they reject that fossil fuels are warming the planet. the chairman said he does not accept climate change as fact. that's a board of education -- teaching global warming as fact would wreck the economy in a state that produces 40% of the nation's coal. 11 states adopted the next generation science, but face strong opposition like in oklahoma where a house committee rejected the standards, representative mark mccullough wondering whether the hyperbole could be used to get into impressionable minds. some were there in washington which proved what they can do when you let them use it as inspiration instead of knowledge of prior generation zbls this is what a polymer looks like. then you add water, it straight end out and expands. you want to try? >> i do. i actually have one of these. they're very cool. i love them. sometimes i stare at them in space. where do i buy stock in you. let's invest in this guy. >> director of underwater dreams, a film about undocumented immigrants learning to build underwater robots. and michael man from penn state university, author of the hockey stick and climate wars. michael, i will start with you. having gone through the -- your rebellion is percolating against the next generation science standards. >> it is scary, chris. what makes this country great, why we have been a great country is we always embraced education and science and technology and we have these science standards to make sure that the students that we are training today, that our children are positioned in the best possible way to compete in this global marketplace, where science and technology will determine how competitive we are. >> these are standards being updated, right? the idea is if you use old standards before many of the climate models got better and better, the temperature data, this is a pretty central salient scientific fact about the world that is a little ridiculous. it is crazy not to teach this in schools. >> that's right. the first standards were developed in 1996. i was still a graduate student. in the time since the standards were developed, we have learned how to clone animals. we have completely sequenced the human genome. we found planets outside our solar system. it is a completely different world. and if we do not accept that, if we do not accept the vast developments that have been made in science and technology and make sure that we're teaching that to our students, they're not going to be competitive, and the rest of the world, asian countries in particular, are moving ahead of us now in terms of where they stand in science and technology. >> mary, you were at the white house today. lord knows i love a good science fair. i really do actually. when i heard about white house science fair, i had an image of him next to a baking soda volcano, i thought would be awesome if he was participating. >> it was like that. >> classic science fair, someone stayed up glue sticking bar charts onto poster board. you made this movie about some kids who discovered science in an unexpected way. what's the story? >> underwater dreams is about four undocumented boys actually from the middle of the desert. they build an underwater robot out of sticks and chewing gum and bits and parts from home depot. >> that is cool. >> they end up going against very sophisticated engineering colleges. long story short, they go up against mit. it is an epic david and goliath story. but at the end of the day, it comes back to the power of intellectual and science. their path forward can look different when exposed to science and math and stem and engineering. >> i was reading guy, amazing scientist, dr. carl hart who has been on the program, grew up in an area of miami, folks didn't have money, struggled in school at times. he talked about finding math and finding science as this thing he was good at all of a sudden, that he -- it was like a lock and key moment for him, struggled at school, wasn't interested in school, finding math and science unlocked something in him about what he was capable of doing. i imagine thousands of people for whom that's true all over the place. >> i think there's a raging debate, of course, about teaching kids science and then keeping them steeped in liberal arts. i am a liberal arts kind of girl, but i will say that particularly for kids from the poor communities, we have so many companies that cannot fill positions that require science and engineering and technology and math that it is a remarkable pathway forward, and the real issue is how do you get these kids excited about it, and that circles back to your issue around how do you educate children, how do you teach them about science, yet you have this overarching political challenge where some of these senators and congressmen cannot publicly advocate certain aspects of climate change. >> you see a reverse engineer logic about the fact we saw from wyoming lawmakers where basically the results of stuff would be bad for the fossil fuel industry, coal industry in wyoming, so we can't accept it. it is refreshing to see it articulated, but it is worrying that that's the way you come up with curriculum for your kids. >> yeah, science isn't a buffet. you don't select from the world of science those findings which you're going to accept and those that you're not. neil grass titan put it well. the great thing about science, it is right whether you believe it or not. we can't pick and choose which science we are going to teach our students today or we are not going to be equipping them to compete, again, in this new world where science and technology are going to determine whether we can compete in the world marketplace. >> the world ruled by underwater robots. thank you so much. i will be joined by a scientist, physicist, also a member of congress. she keeps you on your toes. you wouldn't have it any other way. but your erectile dysfunction - it could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medicines, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as it may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury, get medical help right away for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or any allergic reactions like rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about experiencing cialis for daily use and a free 30-tablet trial. some news you may have missed. the house approved amendment to the defense authorization bill that prevents them using funding to address threats of climate change as laid out in recent scientific reports. the move prompted democrats to say the flat verse society is at it again. joining me congressman holt. >> great to be with you. >> didn't get the news, a little amendment they passed the bill, in some ways symbolic. i can't imagine no other context you would direct a federal agency, certainly not department of defense, essentially by order of congress cover its eyes and make sure not to study something that is happening in the world. >> it is not the first time it's happened. it happened with regard to climate change in a number of areas. it is happening in the epidemiology of the scourge killing millions or thousands of americans every year, guns. it is happening with regard to women's biology. happening with regard to evolution. >> legislative language usually doesn't get that far. >> it is part of a broader -- >> speeches on the floor, in the chamber, that sort of thing, that don't reach law. this won't either probably. but it might. >> it will get stricter. >> i expect. funding, federal funding for research and development is half what it was in the 1960s. >> in real dollars? >> as a fraction of gdp. >> as a fraction of the economy. >> as a fraction of the economy, of all dollars created in this economy, the percentage we are investing, federal government, in science, is half what it was in 1960. >> and this no nothingism if you want to call it that was represented in a vote a few weeks ago when i introduced a bill to put funding back into the office of technology assessment, which was abolished under gingrich leadership, the office of technology assessment is to look at the technological implications of a huge range of legislative issues. it zeroed out, couldn't revive it. >> why did they kill it? >> some years ago a member of congress said when this was defunded, it was congress' self imposed la bot me. that's sort of what's happening with climate change. of course there's scientific debate on any subject, around the edges. >> modeling, projection. all of that. >> but there's such uniform agreement, it is crazy not to be taking steps we can take to curtail this very expensive development, which is the change to our very climate. >> i saw polling i thought was interesting. this is polling on abortion. do you favor legal abortion, fairly straightforward language. democrats 61% yes, republicans, 35% no. do you believe in man-made climate change. democrats, 83%, yes. republicans, 36% question. it is more divisive than abortion. >> it in recent years has become ideology and partisan. science is the best antidote to ideology. the best antidote to narrow thinking. >> has that effected how you conduct yourself as a member of congress? >> all scientists develop, if they don't have it from early years, develop a reverence for evidence. evidence based thinking is what is sorely lacking in congress. everybody talks about partisanship. if we could agree on the facts that start arguments, we would be further along. scientist develop a reverence for evidence, they develop an ability to think statistically, they think, you know, they develop protections against the tricks, mental tricks that humans play. >> cognitive -- that's one of the things of scientists, there's a deep intellectual humility. >> it is provisional. >> cable newspaper columnists, you have the world reaching out, saying you're wrong. >> you know, the evidence has a way of overcoming authorities and authoritarianism. a way of overcoming ideology. >> and members of congress. congressman rush holt, thank you. that's all in. "the rachel maddow show" starts now. >> good evening. thanks to you at home for joining us this hour. before he was elected to the united states senate, this man, richard burr worked in the sales of lawn mowers. used to distribute cool things like the yazoo kees walk behind mower. that was his expertise before coming to the united states senate. now that mr. burr is in the united states senate, he is the top ranked republican on the senate veterans committee, even though senator burr never served in the military, is not a veteran. he represents north cana