Transcripts For MSNBCW Up WSteve Kornacki 20140803

Ground in gaza nor the latest in just a bit. But first, we want to start this hour with muchneeded good Economic News this week. On wednesday, the Commerce Department announced the u. S. Economy grew at a 4 rate in the spring. Thats a big turnaround from what had been a winter slump. On friday president obama touted the jobs numbers. Were now in a sixmonth streak with at least 200,000 new jobs each month. Thats the first time that has happened since 1997. Things are getting better. Our engines are revving a little bit louder. Of course, thats not the whole story for all americans. Wages are barely bundling. Workers arent getting more hours and longterm unemployment repains high. What xlit cocalled the meh economy. Obama outlined the economic challenges the country still faces. Im glad gdp has grown. Im glad that corporate profits are high and the stock market is booming. But what really i want to see is a guy working a nine to five and then some over time, i want him making more than minimum wage. That average working guy is still struggling. New research from the Russell Sage Foundation reveals the average American House hold has been getting dramatically poorer. The network of the typical household has fallen by a startling 340,000 between 2003 and 2013. Theres lots of talk about inequality, about the poor getting poorer while the rich get richer. Average americans are taking a big hit, too. Whats behind this huge shift and what can change it, were here to discuss with susie kim, National Policy reporter for msnbc. Com and msnbc policy analyst ezra klein, editor and chief with fox. We have this data with a 30,000 drop in net worth going back ten years and the president touting good jobs numbers this week. It occurs to me were sort of at this moment, maybe the economy is turning around, get together a place where were feeling good about it. Has there ever been a recovery like this . Well, no, not quite like this one. There have been worse and there have been better. This is a bit of an odd, grueling saga. These were not very good job numbers. They were better than weve got recently. But this talking point thats going around, six months of 200,000plus job growth since 97. In a sixmonth period we had better than in 06, total jobs created were more in 2006. The bigger point is in 1997 when we had that sixmonth period of intense job growth were in a very good economy. That heated the economy up more. That is why you saw workers in the 90s getting raises. Were seeing 200,000 jobs plus a month and thats great. But its coming after a very bad economy, workers had very, very little power. The thing we did not see after this recession, what we needed to seend did not see is called catchup growth. In order to get back where we were, we needed month and months and months of 300, 400, even 500,000 jobs. The thing thats happened is weve settled in a normally good economy, but in the context of a very bad economy. What is the expectation . You know the stuff better than i do obviously. Is there a reasonable expectation that that kind of growth, 300,000 jobs a month, is that realistically on the horizon . I dont think well accelerate into catchup growth in the horizon. One thing that should be said, something president obama said at his press conference on friday, he talked a lot about, that we could be investing in infrastructure, cutting taxes. Theres a lot we could be doing, particularly the fastball making money so cheap that theyre not doing. Congress has gotten the government out of the game at a time when there would be big returns for the government to create jobs. Suzie, i want to talk about the politics. We think of you talk about the economy and politics, its the economy stupid, james carlin. In 1982 ross perot, texas billionaire, somewhat crazy guy i guess, ran as an independent that year. One of his messages is how every generation is supposed to do better. I want to play a clip and ask you about it. Lets listen to ross perot. When i was a boy it took two generations to the standard of living. Today it will take 12. It resonated, this idea that, wow, things are always supposed to keep getting better. That was 20 years ago. I look at where we are now, the data were putting out, has the whole psyche of the country changed . I definitely think theres an overall sense of american declinism, that things wont ever go back to the way things used to be, that were all headed in the wrong direction. I think democrats are trying to seize on this moment, as you heard president obama saying we need to improve the everyday lives of americans. The way that the sense of the economy translates to voters, its a general sense of where things are heading. Are you happy with the direction that the country is heading. Republicans are trying to turn that into a referendum on the status quo, president obama and his office. I think theres a sense we need to remember as bad as the recession was is a lot of major problems with the economy in terms of why we have these jobs that dont urn people enough money are structural problems that are deep seeded in the american economy, going on for decades before we had this recession, the death of manufacturing, the fact that we have new manufacturing jobs that pay pretty well but there arent enough of them. Thats where you get into more fundamental changes. From a democrats point of view, thats going to take major investment in Government Intervention in the economy. Thats a bigger point that can get lost in the discussion over things like the minimum wage. We were putting the polling numbers on the screen. Recent data asking voters what is the top issue to you. The economy still easily comes in as number one. Education, deficit is still up there. The other one that just jumped out of me, compared to your parents, people think their children will be better off or worse off. You see it there, 63 say worse off. 34 say better off. Ezra, in terms of the policy side, we always look at washington and we see since 2011 since we had divided government, gridlock. This is obamas agenda, republicans say no, we cant get this through the senate. Nothing is happening. At the state level where one party will have control of an entire state. Weve seen states do radical things, whatever you think of them. At the state level things were happening to get the economy moving in a way it isnt nationally. Some have been very bad. North carolina has run a fascinating experiment in not giving Unemployment Insurance to people and that has not been good. The the other thing, to be honest, there are things states can do, states can raise the minimum wage, states can invest in infrastructure. A lot of their infrastructure money comes from the feds. The big tools are mack coeconomic policy, and the big money is at the federal level. Theres two reasons for that. One is the Federal Reserve is overseen congress. Its a National Employment process. Janet yellen is doing a fair amount of what can be done to help the unemployed and help the economy get moving. If there had been a much more aggressive fastball back in 2010, i think that would have made a big difference. The other thing is that states really cant borrow effectively. 49 of 50 constitutionally have to balance their budget every year. There are things they can do around bonds and so forth. But their ability to respond to a bad economy is pretty weak. Thats where the federal government can come in. The federal government can borrow at almost nothing and if you account for inflation, literally nothing. They can do big things. They could use it to create a huge tax cut for working americans. You think you could get bipartisan agreement on the tax cut and yet the payroll tax holiday expired a year ago. The real fire power is at the federal level, thats where the money is and the macroeconomic policy is. On the margin states can do a fair amount but cant be game changers. You make the case there for the federal government being in a great position to borrow. We had the poll showing deficits still up there. I think there was one thing i wanted to go back to which you flashed earlier, statistic about Household Net Worth and how its gone down. A lot of that was tied up in home ownership. One thing the federal government has not done a great job of, we actually devoted at a Point Congress decided it was okay to spend money, a good chunk of the bank bailout to helping homeowners make their mortgage payments. Another report from the Government Accountability office, weve only spent 33 of that money that was dedicated five years ago, six years ago. Its been very, very slow out the door. The onus is on the federal government to ensure it was effective. People didnt experience the benefits from that. The money still going out. The federal government decided to extend the tarp housing programs for longer. As the report pointed out, over 200,000 people are waiting to get decisions from their private lenders that are tasked with actually handing out this money. Theres been a lot of problems in the private sector as well. But you dont hear about that from the obama administration. Thats true. The housing has so much to do with this, the Housing Market and the housing bubble. My thanks to suzy kim and ezra klein. We will see you later in the show, ezra. Still ahead well go to Richard Engel for the latest on the fighting in gaza. Stay with us for that. Coming up, well find out whats in a name in the race for governor in georgia when that name is carter. In new york state, were changing the way we do business, with startup ny. Weve created tax free zones throughout the state. And startup ny companies will be investing hundreds of millions of dollars in jobs and infrastructure. Thanks to startup ny, businesses can operate tax free for 10 years. No property tax. No business tax. And no sales tax. Which means more growth for your business, and more jobs. Its not just business as usual. See how new york can help your business grow, at startup. Ny. Gov weits not justt wed be fabuilding jobs here,. Its helping our community. Siemens location here has just received a major order of wind turbines. It puts a huge smile on my face. Cause im like, this is what we do. the fact that iowa is leading the way in wind energy, im so proud, like, its just amazing. Are those made with allbeef, karen . Yeah, theyre hebrew national. But unlike yours, theyre also kosher. Only certain cuts of kosher beef meet their strict standards. Theyre all ruined. Help yourself oh no, we couldn. Okay thanks, hebrew national. A hot dog you can trust. Female announcer youreduring sleep trains triple choice sale. For a limited time, you can choose to save hundreds on beautyrest and posturepedic mattress sets. Or choose 300 in free gifts with sleep trains most popular tempurpedic mattresses. You can even choose 48 months interestfree financing on the new tempurchoice, with headtotoe customization. The triple choice sale ends soon at sleep train. Sleep train your ticket to a better nights sleep the Israeli Military says this morning the missing soldier it believed to have been captured by hamas is considered to have been killed in battle, this as intense shelling continued overnight. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to keep heavy pressure on hamas and warned that hamas will pay a heavy price if attacks continue. There are sign it is ground war in gaza could be ramping down. For more on that well go to nbc chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel in gaza. Reporter first on the soldier, israel say it is soldier who went missing in the gaza strip on friday was in fact killed. Its unclear if the soldier died in the initial assault in which militants killed two soldiers and apparently tried to capture a third, or if he was killed when israel responded heavily military li to the incident, to the attack. Now also overnight just in the last few hours, once again palestinians trying to take refuge in a school came under attack. U. N. Officials say israel targeted a suspected militant at the gate of a school used as a shelter. There were multiple casualties, dead and injured. The round exploded as people and staff were coming in and out of the u. N. Run school. Israeli tanks pulled back from parts of the gaza strip and signals more withdraws could be coming. The Israeli Military said its nearly finished with its primary mission to destroy an Extensive Networks of hamas tunnels into israel. Hamas rocket fire into israel has slowed, but not stopped. Hamas again mistakenly believe has the people of israel do not have the will and determination to fight them and hamas again will learn the hard way that israel will do whatever it must do to protect its people. For most gazans this war has given them nothing but funerals, wounded and grief. During lull ms. The fighting, palestinians have been trying to salvage their belongings and search for remains. Relatives were divide over how to respond to the strike that turned this house into a tomb. Nabil, an uncle, wants vengeance. You want us to surrender . We wont, he said. Either we live in this country with peace and dignity or we will die with pride. His brotherinlaw told us he wants a deal with israel. Weve had war after war he said. Our people want nothing more than to live in peace and dignity. Israel wants quiet and says it will stop fighting when that happens. Gazans want far more, a deal that will give them a better life. So far theyre not getting it. Steve, today the Israeli Military dropped these leaflets over gaza. They say to the people of gaza you should deliver this message to your leaders who are hiding under ground. The campaign is on going and every liter of hamas and other terrorist groups are not safe. Its signed the israeli army. Richard, you hold up that flier and play the video of the people whose house has been ruined. Part of the idea for what industrial is doing from israels standpoint is to take people from gaza and say this is essentially what happens when hamas runs your territory. Talking to the people there, is it having that effect at all or having the opposite effect . You heard from the one guy saying he wants vengeance. Well, i think in the short term it is having the opposite effect. There have been more than 1700, according to medical officials in gaza, People Killed so far in this campaign, thats more killed in the last two wars in the last six years. This has been a very bloody, very deadly campaign. Right now as gaza is still under attack and gazans are firing rockets into israel, people are wanting to see some sort of achievement. The question is once this settles down, will the people decide that three wars in six years is too much and they need to have another form of government. But its not that easy. There are not elections here, not elections scheduled. Hamas was elected. But the period in which new elections were supposed to be held has come and gone. Its unclear even if, after the tellers here cool down and the people of gaza wanted to change their government, that they could. Richard engel live in gaza. Thank you for that. Stay safe over there. Still ahead, the rock em sock em latest from the biggest and most hotly contested race in america. Insults flying at a church picnic. Jimmy carter is looming large over a key race. Well tell you about that next. Creates Something Else as well jobs all over america. Engineering and innovation jobs. Advanced Safety Systems technology. Shipping and manufacturing. Across the United States, bp supports more than a quarter million jobs. When we set up operation in one part of the country, people in other parts go to work. Thats not a coincidence. Its one more part of our commitment to america. 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And shes facing off against republican david purdue, the cousin of the states former republican governor sunny perdue. Republican nathan diehl is facing a democrat named jason carter. His grandfather is former president jimmy carter. Those two are reported to have a special personal bond. Jason is the first carter grandchild. He was only 15 months old when carter was elected in 1976. He interned at the Carter Center after graduating from college. He later are traveled to Nelson Mandelas home with his grandfather. The state senator distanced himself from his grandfather on several issues. Jason talks about his, quote, powerful connection to israel, says he supports the deaths penalty despite his fathers call for a ban on capital punishment. Republicans hold ef he statewide office there, mitt romney won the state by eight points two years ago. If you look at the average of some of the recent polls, youll see carter and diehl are locked in a virtual tie. This may have to do with a Campaign Investigation of the Governors Office and schiffing demographics in georgia. 59 are white, in 2000 it was 72 . Jimmy carter ears home state voted for bill clinton when he first ran for president in 1992. Could the demographic changes and could some of that old carter magic push it back into the democratic column . Joining me is Doug Richards from wxia tv in atlanta. Doug, thanks for taking time this morning. Im curious looking at this from afar, we all know nationally the story of jimmy carter, the peanut farmer. Made him a hero in the state. Here we are 40 years later, american politics and southern politics have changed so much. I know the name jimmy carter is a curse word in the National Republican party. Is he still a revered figure in georgia or has that assessment changed . People here really dont talk about jimmy carter that much except except for an exalted statesman who has a Carter Center and library in atlanta and pops up on national and International Issues occasionally. I would say he is not revered in georgia. As you said, republicans statewide just as they do nationwide love to hate jimmy carter still. On the other hand, an Atlanta Journal constitution poll taken in about the last month or so, right after the nominations were ratified in a runoff showed that jimmy carter had a popularity rating of about 60 in georgia. That exceeded that certainly exceeded the popularity rating of the incumbent governor nathan diehl who, by the way, is a democrat turned republican, turned republican many the early 90s before the Newt Gingrich republican revolution. I questioned diehl earlier this year and asked if he remembered voting for jimmy carter as a democrat, and he said yes, i sure did, all my friends did, too. Thats the story of southern party. I want to play a cut, jimmy carter last week talking about the role or minimal role hell play in his grandsons campaign. He needs the show the Georgia People accurately that hes his own man. Hes going to make the decisions during the campaign and make the decisions as governor, and im not. He should be the focal point. It is striking the me, doug, when i look at the platform that jason carter is running on. We managed the death penalty, his support for israel. You contrast him with his grandfather, it seems like hes trying to create distance in terms of im a different kind of democrat than you might think of my grandfather as. He would prefer that you really not think of his grandfather at all unless youre a dem krakt donor and want to go to a fundraiser that jimmy carter is helping to produce for jason carter. Jimmy carter has helped jason carter raise lots and lots of money and jason carter is on par with governor diehl. Hes outraised governor diehl. Its not likely the democrats will spend more on this race than republicans will. I have not seen jason carter and jimmy carter together at all. There were photographs put on jason carters Facebook Page about six weeks ago where jimmy and Rosalyn Carter showed up unannounced certainly to people like me at the campaign headquarters, had some photos made and went on their merry way. Only if youre raising money will you see jimmy carter with jason carter. If youre just seeing jason carter campaign, hes going to be out there on his own selling himself as a new democratic candidate who the republicans are very mindful of, of not its not just his name theyre mindful of. Hes not a bad candidate. The republicans respect that about him. Its interesting because the impression i certainly get and correct me if im wrong, behind the scenes theres this very close bond between jimmy and jason carter. Jimmy carter would love for his grandson to continue the race. In terms of the fall, carter versus diehl. Nathan diehl, theres ethics issues there, the changing demographics of georgia. How realistic is that jason carter and the democrats could win in georgia this year . Every democrat ive talked with thinks that the odds are against him just because, not only the demographics, but the recent history. As you said, every statewide office is now held by a republican in georgia and the demographics have changed but they havent changed that much. A lot of people think that georgia will not truly turn into a purple state for perhaps another decade or more. So carter, if he is going to succeed, is going to have to beat the odds demographically and politically in georgia. And the fact that hes running against deal is a plus for him because diehl has had some flaws in the last four years, particularly in terms of the ethics issues that have dogged him. The thing about diehl is, dont underestimate diehl either. When he ran for governor four years ago, he was never ahead in the polls until election day. He kind of came out of nowhere in a crowded field full of other republicans that thought nathan diehl was somebody they would easily sleep aside. Deal had ethics issues in his background four years ago, also. Georgia voters resoundingly elected him over a guy named roy barnes who was a popular governor on the democratic side. Deal has to be the favorite this november. Nathan deal, andrew cuomo, chris christie, governors ethics, thats the theme of the show. Thank you doug richard with wxia tv in atlanta. Appreciate that. Still ahead, well find out whether paul ryans plan to fix poverty. A rowdy church picnic, engineering crowds and National Political implications. Well put it altogether for you next. Yoplait. It is so good for everyones midnight cravings. If your denture moves, it can irritate your gums. Try fixodent plus gum care. It helps stop denture movement and prevents gum irritation. 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By any standard, barack obama has been a disaster to our country. To liberals she whispers coal makes you sick. In kentucky she claims coal makes us tick. Here in kentucky we need leadership that understands that the doughnut burger isnt a reason to ruin our health care system. Senator mcdonnell with all this great barbecue, trust me, theres no way im going to leave here today an empty dress. That was just some of the scene yesterday in rural western kentucky at the 134th annual fancy farm picnic. It wasnt just the politicians who werent holding back. If you ever wished you could heck al politician, tell them what you really think of them without worried about being shushed or booed or carted off, this fancy farm picnic is rowdy, rambunctio rambunctious, sometimes down right rude. Yesterday it just so happened to feature the two contenders in this years most closely watched senate race going headtohead on the same stage. But ive got good news for the folks in clove erlich, if Mitch Mcdonnell doesnt know where your town is, it just makes it harder for you to ship your job overseas. We cant afford a leader who thinks the west bank is a hollywood fundraiser. While senator rand paul isnt up for reelection until 2016, he took advantage of a home state crowd with National Press attention to attack Alison Grimes with a poem. There once was a woman from kentucky who thought in politics shed be lucky. So she flew to l. A. For a hollywood bash. She came home in a flash with buckets of cash. Joining us from louisville, kentucky, kentucky native, nbc news senior political reporter peter bacon who was there yesterday. Try to do this justice for people who werent there. Set the scene for us. Every state has a tradition where the candidates come and speak. This is so much more free wheeling in terms of what they say and in terms of how the crowd reacts. Set the scene for what it was like to be there yesterday. This was totally different. Youre in the small town. The town is called fancy farms, kentucky. It has 500 people, 5,000 came to this event yesterday. The two unique things about it, everybody is packed into this open air barn, all the democrats on one side, all the republicans on the other side. Throughout the speeches, mcdonnell and the other speakers get a certain time limit. The governor gets eight minutes. The others get six. Youre encouraged to boo and his. There are moments where if youre there, you literally could not hear what they were saying. Two minutes in grimes speech i totally missed because the crowd was shouting and booing so loudly. The level of insults was pretty personal and strong. At times you could see grimes have a good zinger, turn her head and look at mcdonnell while she said it. So unusual to have this kind of confrontation. I love watching it. Im not sure if you didnt hear all of grimes speech. Maybe you heard this. Maybe you didnt. Lets play a clip and talk about it. This is Alison Grimes yesterday at fancy farm. If Mitch Mcconnell were a tv show he would be mad men treating women unfairly, stuck in 1968 and ending this season. How greatest that they did that split screen there where youve got mcconnell watching as she hurls these insults at him. What were the reviews yesterday . How did Alison Grimes do well . She did well, she really did hammer him a lot. This was her big debut in front of a national audience. In fact, a lot of ken tuckians hadnt seen her a lot yet. She did a good job repeating her main themes which were basically Mitch Mcconnell is old, out of touch and needs to be put out of office. She really made that message clear. The thing about this event, its kind of the kickoff for the political season in kentucky. She was speaking to people for the first time. She did a good job articulating those themes. Lets take a look at Mitch Mcconnell. He got up and got to talk. Lets play a clip of that and talk about the it. For obama and his liberal friends, coming to kentucky is like foreign travel. These guys cant tell the difference between a coal miner and a european male model. Here is the thing about mcdonnell. The big knock on him, hes too washington, to o potomac. Did mcconnell pull that ouf or did he sound like a washington guy trying to read kentucky oneliners. Thats not his view of the race. His view of the race is being from washington is fine. He talks about how much power he has because hes the Senate Republican leader. He didnt use the words alison or grimes ever. It was my opponent, obama, harry reid, obama, harry reid, my opponent. Thats kind of the way theres an interesting thing going on. The mcconnells theory is kentucky is a red state. If i say obama enough times, i will win, period. The grimes group, they think if Hillary Clinton runs in 2016, she can win kentucky. Their view is kentucky is not a red state, but really an antiobama state, grimes view. They think if they can make sure grimes is not viewed as an obamalike candidate, thats the key and theres enough democratic voters here, they can pull opponents for the democrats together as long as people view her as a certain kind of democrat, not the barack obama kind. Quickly, how do you think Mitch Mcconnell did in that speech . It was a good speech for him. Hes not known as a great speaker. He had a few funny lines. He had this big funny refrain, does this sound familiar . He kept comparing grimes to b m obama in a clever way. He spoke loud over the crowd. The fact that he was able to be heard was good. Theres also a moment when elaine his wife was introduced as a sig tear, the former secondary of labor is here. The boos were huge throughout the crowd from the grimes people. Not even the spouses are safe in kentucky. He did carry kentucky twice in the 90s. Thank you, nbcs perry bacon, junior. Im jealous. That looked like a lot of fun. The torture report that doesnt mention the word torture. Coming up, are republicans changing their tune . Well talk about the party lead who are has people talking and talking about him next. Crowd cheers can you fix it, dad . Yeah, i can fix that. dad i wanted a car that could handle anything. I fixed it dad thats why i got a subaru legacy. vo symmetrical allwheel drive plus 36 mpg. I gotta break more toys. vo introducing the allnew subaru legacy. Its not just a sedan. Its a subaru. Knows her way can run in high heels. Must be a supermodel, right . You dont know aarp. Because aarp is making finding the career you love, no matter what your age, a real possibility. Go to aarp. Org possibilities to check out life reimagined for tools, support, and connections. If you dont think ive still got it when you think aarp, then you dont know aarp. Find more surprising possibilities and get to know us at aarp. Org possibilities say hi rudy. 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There also were critics that the plan does offer ideas democrats could work with, expanding the earned tax credit. Theres also undeniable awkwardness to all of it, something ryan himself kuchd on with Cnbcs John Harwood this week. I didnt want to get into a debate about proper funding levels of the status quo because we would spend all this time talking about budget numbers. I wanted to start a debate about how to reform the status quo. The issue here is ryan before unveiling his poverty plan was the Republican Partys most vocal champion of austerity, moving aggressively by slashing spending. Its been called the path to prosperity, drastic reductions in the food stamp and medicaid programs. Now with his new proposal, hes not talking about making those cuts. Ezra klein writes ryans budget plan is contradictory, cant be implemented in the same universe at the same time. Will the real paul ryan stand up . Trying to reconcile his old as stairity with his new plan according to jonathan shake who wrote, quote, until ryan actually abandons his commitment to what was known until last week as the ryan plan hell find himself in the same position as in 2012. So what in this plan is actually workable . Is ryan just looking for a few headlines that say hes fighting poverty, trying to help the gop change his tone or is he actually a changed man . Ezra klein, msnbc policy analyst and editor and chief of fox. Com is back with us. Ezra, paul ryan isnt the only one to embark on this listening tour. Is the paul ryan youre seeing now and the proposal you look ear looking at right now, does it say hes changed in a meaningful way . Not particularly. It doesnt mean he hasnt either. What lurks in the heart of politicians cannot quite be known. There are a couple of big things to take away from the plan. The first is what you brought up earlier. There is a heavy conduction between paul ryons budget. Paul ryons budget works by putting up three major promises. Its going to cut the deficit, it wont raise taxes and make near term changes to entitlement programs. Because it prioritizes those three things, theres one option left to it, which is cutting programs for the poor dramatically. Could also cut defense spending, but it doesnt do that. Paul ryans budget is a plan to cut spending on programs for the poor. That is what it is. This poverty plan doesnt do any of that. The thing thats important to say here is if he did both, if both happened simultaneously, this policy plan would be a disast disaster. If his argument is this poverty plan isnt worrying about the budget levels then he can still cut it, thats a complete disaster. That said, there are important and good ideas in the poverty plan. Theres ideas to reform sentencing laws so you dont have such incredible Racial Disparities with who goes to prison. Theres a tax credit similar to what obama put forward to childless adults. Theres occupational licensing laws so its easier for people to move into new lines of work. There are big things here that could make a real difference for the poor. Is there any message in here, any lesson in here about maybe changing priorities within the Republican Party among conservatives . As you said, the as stairity emphasis in the past. Its not just paul ryan introducing these things. The Republican House was passing these things every year as he was drawing them up. Is the fact that hes maybe at least in terms of his poverty plan moving away from that, does that say anything about a broader shift with the deficit being the absolute bottom line issue . Absolutely. I think its really important. The problem is i just dont know if its true. Paul ryan comes into the plan and says this is not a budget cutting exercise. Its worth saying that in his career he has not been a deficit hawk. If you go back to his bush era voting record, he votes for program after program that would explode the deficit, unfunded tax cuts, Social Security privatization idea that is so costly the Bush Administration says its irresponsible and they cant get behind it. His theme has been trying to reform the way the federal Government Works along more conservative lines, when the deficit became the big issue, he used the budget plans as a way of putting up these reforms, blocking medicaid and food stamps. Now that the deficit is not such a big deal, hes using poverty to put forth reforms. Its true ryan cares much more about reforming these programs than just cutting them. The question is where is the Republican Party on this . We just dont know because he has not come out and said, look, the deficit is not that big of a deal, so the budget next year will look very different. One thing worth noting, ryan wont be the budget chairman, hell be moving, the expectation is, to ways and means after the election. Hell get away from this without having to reconcile the collision between his poverty plan and his budget plan. Youre right, too, these things are fluid. His mentor in politics was jack kemp. Jack kemp didnt care about the deficit one lick. Ezra klein, thank you. Still ahead, why Many Democrats running for office are taking a page out of Michelle Obamas playbook. Stay with us. Theyre about 10 times softer and may have surface pores where bacteria can multiply. Polident is designed to clean dentures daily. Its unique microclean formula kills 99. 99 of odor causing bacteria and helps dissolve stains, cleaning in a better way than brushing with toothpaste. Thats why i recommend using polident. [ male announcer ] polident. Cleaner, fresher, brighter every day. Were changing the way we do t. Business, with startup ny. 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With just a few dabs, its clinically proven to seal out more food particles so youre more comfortable and confident while you eat. So its not about keeping my dentures in, its about keeping the food particles out. [ charlie ] try zinc free super poligrip. Well have more on the prospects of peace in gaza after a month of violence there in a little bit. First we want to begin with hour with what is possibly the most anticipated event of the summer in washington, the Senate Select Intelligence Committee is expected to release its report on cias detention and interrogation program, shorthanded as the torture report. The release should have happened today but senator Dianne Feinstein of california says the cia made so many, quote, significant redactions that the committee needs more time to understand if those redactions are justified. Until the rest of us get our hands on the report, there is this to chew over. The white house accidentally emailed its talking points for how to respond to the report to the associated press, sending its how to on how to spin what is expected to be a harshly critical assessment directly to a report. This report tells a story of which no american is proud, but it is also of another story of which we can be proud, americas democratic system worked just as it was designed to work, bringing an end to actions inconsistent with our democratic values. Some who have seen the report says it does not accuse the cia outright of torture. That is the word president obama used on friday. Even before i came into office, i was very clear that in the immediate aftermath of 9 11 we did some things that were wrong. We did a whole lot of things that were right, but we tortured some folks. We did some things that were contrary to our values. In that same press conference president obama defended his cia chief for Something Else. An internal investigation this week that showed the agency tapped into the computers of the Senate Select Intelligence Committee that it was using to prepare the torture report. In other words, the cia was spying on the very lawmakers who were charged with providing oversight of the agency. Democrats mark udall and martin heinrich, members of the Intelligence Community are demanding John Brennans resignation as the head of the cia. Republican rand paul has joined them in doing so. The president is sticking by brennan for now. I have full confidence in john brennan. I think he has acknowledged and directly apologized to senator feinstein that cia personnel did not properly handle an investigation as to how certain documents that were not authorized to be released to the senate staff got somehow into the hands of the senate staff, and its clear from the ig report that some very poor judgment was shown in terms of how that was handled. Keep in mind that john brennan was the person who called for the ig report. Here is democratic senator Sheldon White house who helped prepare the report. I want to start on this question of john brennan because some of your colleagues now are calling for his resignation. I know you voted for his confirmation last year. But mark udall from colorado says he has, quote, no choice but to call for the resignation of cia director john brennan because the cia unconstitutionally spied on congress by hacking into Intelligence Committee computers. Do you share that view that john brennan should resign . I think he should view his position as in real jeopardy. Its more than just that the cia hacked into senate staff. Its also that a false criminal charge was allowed to be levied against senate staff by a subject of the report, and when put on the spot about these activities director brennan repeatedly said things proven not to be true. He has a lot of explaining to do i think hes in a very, very deep hole. You think hes in a deep hole. Would you like to see him resign . Do you think he should do that . I want to talk more with chairman feinstein before i make that call. Its certainly well within the realm of possibility. Theres nothing inappropriate about what senator heinrich and senator udall have asked for. In terms of this report, the president using the word torture on friday, were also hearing now about apparently a significant number of redactions in this report, apparently the cia going to have an opportunity to respond to this report. You also have ezra talking about the revelations of the spying in the preparation of this report. Are you concerned about how much of this the American People are actually going to get to see . Well, well wait and take a look and see what the redactions are. The chairman has i think wisely asked for more time to get an understanding of why things are being redacted. Its a very, very thorough report. I think the American People will get a good idea. I think chairman feinstein will insist on making sure that the report provides that very thorough idea to the American People about exactly what was done and what was said about what was done and what was said about what the torture produced. Theres several levels to this story. Its not just the reprehensible treatment these people received, its also the fact cia appears to have misled people, all the way up to the president of the United States, about what the program was producing. Do you expect this is a report thats going to actually produce some meaningful change long term. We talked about the president using the word torture. It seems like a significant thing, the president being willing to use the word torture, is this the kind of report that will make headlines and then start collecting dust or do you think real significant long lasting changes will come from this . I think its effect will be significant and long lasting. America has not been a country engaged in torture. The last time the American Military engaged in torture was during the philippine occupation about 100 years ago. We tried and executed Japanese Military officers for the types of treatment that we imposed on some of our detainees. A fifth Circuit United States Court of appeals decision back under Ronald Reagan upheld a conviction of a texas sheriff even deputy for waterboarding folks and over and over again called it torture. Its pretty clear that we stepped outside of the bounds of our values, and i think a harsh reminder of that will be a good preventive measure again. I hope we never go down this path again. My thanks to Sheldon Whitehouse. Three people who know the halls of capitol hill, kasie hunt with nbc news, sigh el ka pure from talking points memo and frank porter with nbc news. You heard sheldons response when i asked about john brennan. Doesnt sound like a guy who has any confidence in the cia director. Rand paul coming out, a couple democrats coming out, those calls for resignation, are they going to start cascading, frank . I think so. On the house side you havent seen these calls for resignation. I asked house intel chairman rogers whether he felt brennan should resign. He said theyre not ready to call on that yet. But i think once this report comes out, i think that members are going to look at these programs and theyre going to see that there are questions about whether or not brennan was associated with these programs when they were being implemented. This goes back to the bush ear rarks but brennan was there. Exactly. I think those calls could start cascading. I think that those who are outraged by these programs, while its a good first step for president obama to start admitting the United States mistakes, at the same time they want to see people held accountable. The first person theyre going to look for is john brennan. Did the president vouching for him at the press conference, did that sgettal the waters in washington . Senators take it so personally when its spying on them. Right. Those two things being twined up together, this report wufrz already going to be a huge bach shell. Its going to be something thats long lasting. Everyone i talked to on capitol hill who talks about the report says even when its heavily sensored, heavily redacted, people are going to be shocked to see on a piece of paper exactly what we did. To have the cia in the course of trying to make that accounting actually spy on the senate Intelligence Committee and essentially senators on both sides of the aisle have called this a huge breach of frankly our constitution, saying this is the executive branch getting in the way of the congressional responsibility to actually investigate the cia. I think thats made it worse. There is something a little bit ironic about president obama defending john brennan in this way considering one of the first actions he took as president was to ban these kind of techniques. John brennan was deeply involved in what the cia was doing throughout the war on terror and is very personally invested. One of the most significant things senator whitehouse raised this, the fact that somebody at the cia who is the subject, used false information to try to make a criminal complaint against a staff member on the committee. You saw senator Saxby Chambliss come out of a long meeting on capitol hill thursday. Senators went behind closed doors and they came out. It got worse and worse the more they heard. Senator chambliss who had been a pretty staunch defender and raised questions about feinstein in march, he came out and said, the people who are involved with this need to be dealt with harshly. How stead fast do you think the white house support is for brennan . Obama comes out and gives the endorsement on friday . Is that going to be long lasting or subject to change . I think its subject to change depending on the politics on capitol hill. The reaction from members is going to determine the white house response. Theyre going to stand by him i believe to the extent they possibly can. Hes been with the president a long time. The president clearly trusts him. Its personal for the senators and the staff. Its extraordinary in the sense that not only is cia forbidden from spying on americans generally, here its a breach of the separations of power because theyre spying on overseers. I agree with frank there will be calls from the rank and file members for him to resign. The real question is whether the intel chairs and leadership of the parties join in on those calls. Party leaders may disagree on everything including the color of the sky. But theyre very united and a deep reverence for members of the Intelligence Community. Thats going to be the question, whether boehner and mcconnell and reid and pelosi. You see senator chambliss is already raising questions about this report. Theyre already trying to draw some kind of concerns about whether or not this is an ideological report or not. There are u. S. Officials that are worried that this report could spawn some kind of antiamerican sentiment overseas, something in the likes of what happened with abu ghraib, whether it was retaliation after the reports came out. The world knew or knows these kinds of things were happening in the past the expectation really is this is going to be shocking and this is going to break new ground that we have nod previously yes. Republicans on the committee sort of withdrew from this investigative process a while ago. They are being very forceful in saying this report was ideologically motivated trying to show that were told one of the significant things, theres going to be a minority section of the report prepared by the Intelligence Committee. One of the armths theyll make in that is we did glean useful intelligence from using these techniques. There are already republicans who are saying, listen, while we dont want to attack the intelligence agencies, we dont actually want to be associated with this idea that we gained anything from torture. I spoke to john mccain at some length on the hill on friday. He was personally tortured. For him this is a really personal thing. His argument is when youre in that kind of pain youll say anything to make it stop. Maybe you say true things. Maybe you say untrue things. He and senator graham wanted to be very forceful in distancing themselves from that claim. So what is the timetable here . Were hearing about the redactions that feinstein wants to review to make sure theyre legit. Whats the timetable . Its up to senator feinstein. Its entirely possible that now that there is a declassified version, the white house approved a document that could be declassified. We could see details leak out over time. But senator feinstein says this isnt good enough. She wants to go back for another round to the white house. It could take days, it could take weeks. Its unclear. The president s use, going out of his way on friday in an intentional way to say the word tortured. Apparently this report apparently not quite using the term torture to describe it. What did you make of the president doing that . I think hes trying to preview this is a huge thing thats happened. He doesnt want to dull it down. He wants to preview it in the sense that the country did something that was bad, contrary to our values. But weve learned from our mistakes and moved on. He wants that to be out there before it comes out. I think its important to consider the fact that this could really elevate or advance the debate on torture. I think the expectation in this report is were going to find out the people who were tortured did not provide useful information. Thats been a subject of debate for a long time. When you have a report this comprehensive that settles that question, its going to be important. For the president to stand up at the press conference and say we tortured people but on the other hand have his cia trying to interfere with the investigation thats designed to lay out what exactly was done it sounds like theres potentially a fight after the release of the report between the white house and the cia. The cia will have something to say about this. I agree. This is kind of a trial balloon for not only the National Debate over torture, but the interNational Debate over torture and kind of talking about whether or not this is going to be a security concern for americans abroad or even the broader debate about whether or not we give hundreds of millions in aid to countries like ethiopia that have a lot of allegations of torture for people talking out against their government. The idea is that a lot of people who are outraged by these kind of techniques are really hoping this debate widens. It sounds like theres a good chance thats going to happen. Well be watching out for that this week. My thanks to the panel. We will see you later in the show. Still ahead this hour, she is the democrat with the highest Approval Ratings going. Can she, will she help her party in november. Up next, congress may have skipped town, but can they skip the ramifications of an inactive session. We will release brand new poll numbers right after this. 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In both cases thats a difference of two points and is well inside the margin of error. Also in the poll 74 of voters say congress has been unproductive this year, while only 22 believe its gotten things done. An eye toward the continuing fighting in the middle east, the poll finds 43 of americans sympathize more with israel in the crept fighting, 43 brs say they are not sure. But when faced with the choice between israel and hamas, a majority, 54 side with israel and just 7 sympathize with hamas. For more on these numbers and whats they tell us, joined by lee marryingoff, the director of the maris institute. Thank you for taking time to talk with us. Let lets talk. In terms of, look, democrats need to gain 17 if they want to win the house, rgs have to pick up six if they want to take the senate. What do these numbers tell us about that . I think as you identify, theres a huge division, polarization in the nation. Its reflected in these polling numbers. When you drill down, democrats are solidly democratic. Republicans are solidly voting or tending to vote for the republicans, but democrats, about one in ten are unsure. So you have unlike republicans who are much more solid behind the gop candidates. That becomes somewhat problematic for the democrats in terms of a national perspective. They need to rally their base more at this point. Its interesting. Theres an issue in terms of democrats motivating their base that does not exist for republicans. Thats correct. Thats not unusual in the sixterm incumbent administration. In fact, the incumbent, only bill clinton picked up seats in his sixth year election and only that was five in the house. As you say democrats need to pick up 17 and the senate is also very problematic for the democrats because theyre having seats in seven states they have to defend that mitt romney carried last time and, as you say, the republicans are picking up six. Theres other states that obama carried. Theres a whole lot of things going on. Look, i think theres a lot going on in the world right now that is diverting attention understandably from whats going on in some of these elections. Congress goes on recess. Now well start stirring up the partisan pot a little bit. I want to ask you about those middle east numbers. One more on the congressional numbers. In terms of past mefrm elections. 2010 big republican wave, 2006 big democratic wave. These numbers in terms of which party youd like to control the house, how do they look in those elections . Do they look different now . Yes. Were not seeing the potential for the wave election right now. Theres strong arguments on both sides fueling the base. Democrats are saying the republicans cant govern and all the impeachment talk and suing the president , that rallies democrats. Of course, the republicans are talking about obama and balk kaer and this world situation thats gotten very hot. Theres one thing in the numbers unifying people across party lines. That is this congress has been unproductive. 50 say its been very productive. Only 3 say its been very productive. That goes across party lines. Democrats, republicans do share something. That very or somewhat productive number higher at 22 than expected. Thats a surprise to me. Moving on, i want to ask you about the middle east here. We have the who do you sympathize with between the palestinians and israelis. 43 for unsure. Theres talk about has the coverage in the media been different . Has it affected Public Opinion where you see these numbers and look at that question of has american Public Opinion changed at all, what do you see . I see interesting things here. Israel is seen more sympathetically than the palestinians or hamas. A large number of americans are undecided. Again, not to get a partisan split here, its the democrats who are more on the fence on this. Republicans are much more committed to the israeli side of the equation. Were seeing a different in age in these numbers. Older americans are more on the israeli side. If youre under 30, youre either unsure or you might be split between the palestinians and the israelis. Hamas clearly less popular than either. This is a very are very vol time situation. I think a lot of americans are taking a waitandsee. Although, if given the choice, they would be more on the israeli side than the palestinian side. Well mention quickly one other piece of data, prospects for peace in the middle east, will it happen. 62 say it will not happen, 23 say it will. My thanks to you. Appreciate you coming on. Fascinating numbers. Hope to have you back plenty of times before this fall. Democrats make a cry for help to Michelle Obama. Up next, look back at president nixon with someone who had a front row seat for his final days in office and for long after that. Stay with us. 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And he is going to speak to us now from the oval office in the white house in washington. President richard m. Nixon. Good evening. That was nbc news anchor John Chancellor with live coverage of the resignation of the president of the United States. Amazingly that happened 40 years ago this coming friday, august 8th. Richard Milhous Nixon because the first and only person to resign from the presidency effective the next day. He did it after two years after a scandal known as watergate. A scandal which originally denied involvement in, but was confirmed by taperecordings that he made where he and White House Council john dean discussed paying off the watergate burglars for their silence. The president then went on National Television to announce his departure. I have never been acquitter. To leave office before my term is completed is abhorrent to every instinct in my body, but as president i must put the interests of america first. Joining me now is ed cox, chairman of the new york republican state committee, also president nixons soninlaw. He was there in the white house the morning he resigned. I think we have the picture as the president bid farewell to his staff and cabinet on august 9th 40 years ago this saturday. There is ed on the right. A lot of emotions this week probably for you as we have the 40th anniversary of Something Like this that you had a front row seat for. One thing to start with, there was the speech to the nation, the speech to the staff ha the president delivered on his way out the doorks we remember him leaving in the helicopter and the victory salute at the end. What happened after that . What happened the next day . Steve, you have to first understand the context. I knew this man intimately for 30 years, from 63 when i first met him until he died in 94. He was a great man, a truly great man who drove a Great Administration with a mission of peace abroad. The tragedy of this was, over this small incident, people have forgotten about those great accomplishments. As we were left that picture, that speech to the staff at the white house, i was holding the book from which he read about teddy roosevelt. When the light went out in his life, his wife died, his mother died the same day. His wife died in childbirth. He thought it was over but came back and made great accomplishments. President nixon also came back after that and was consulted by every president for 20 years until he died because he stayed in the game, he kept focusing on the important things that mattered to the American People and every president wanted to consult him and to get his views on it. I understand your sensitivity to the legacy. Theres a lot of people who would disagree for the scandal. From a personal standpoint. From a personal standpoint, we left through the south portico and got on army one. I was seated across from him as we went by the washington monument. I said, mr. President , ten years from now youll be back. I knew him. I knew he would be. It was in 1986 by order of katherine graham, on the cover of newsweek hes back because she recognized how important he was as an ongoing the sage of saddle river he was called, where he lived, where people were coming the seek his advice and counsel. Being there for all of this, looking back on it, i didnt live through it. Im one of millions of americans fascinated by the history of watergate. Its fascinating you went from an election in 1972 where nixon racked up 60, 61 of the vote in almost every state except for my state of massachusetts. You go from that in that moment, less than two years later, its all over and hes forced to resign. In that span of 20 months, when did you realize its all over . Never really did. We were more concerned about him and as a member of his family and what his spirits were and how he could keep going and continue to accomplish. Eight weeks before he made a tour through the middle east. Millions greeted him in egypt, nixon, nixon. He went to israel, similarly greeted there, saudi arabia, syria, jordan. Eight weeks later after that he resigned. Thats the way politics is. Sometimes youre up, sometimes youre down. The advice to young people that comes out of this, when youre down and those inevitable setbacks, you can always come back if you stick with it. Have determination and if youre trying to do the right thing. He talked about you, talked about his family in describing his decision to leave, i want to play a clip from that and ask you about it. I would have preferred to carry through to the finish whatever the personal agony it would have involved and my family unanimously urged me to do so. But the interests of the nation must always come before any personal considerations. My family unanimously urged you to do so. Is that what you were telling him . What were those conversations like . Very complicated. You want to support him. You want to be sure hes right in what hes doing. You know this is driven by bigger events. Could the president be effective on an ongoing basis and yet you want to say we support you. It was a way of saying we support you, mr. President. Hes a fascinating character. Richard nixon is such a fascinating character because in a raw sense, it really comes through in everything written, he to me was one of our most human president s. The emotions come across so clearly. The prejudices in many cases, all across the spectrum. America sort of has an ongoing fascination with him. Like all great men and he was a very complicated man. But he was dedicated to what was right for the country and right for the world. He always made that decision based on that, his decision in the 73 war, cant let israel go down the tubes. Despite the advice of kissinger and schlesinger, he said lets get as much as we can, material to israel. That saved israel. That laid the basis for the camp david accords, as low one and oslo two in even december of 2000 by decisions he made, support israel but save face for sadat. That laid the basis. Did he ever look back and say anything to you, just looking back atwater gate and say why did i do that . No. It was clearly mistakes were made. If theres any moral that comes out of it, make sure you have next to you a good counsel, a wise counsel, not the first discussion on the tapes there. His counsel wasnt helping him there. His counsel is the person to say, mr. President , you cant do this and make that opinion stick. Thats what he didnt have. If he had that good counsel next to him, it would have been a different outcome. Ed cox, the soninlaw of former president richard nixon, thank you for being here. What sets Michelle Obama apart from Hillary Clinton . Well have the answer straight ahead. We never thought wed be farming wind out here. Its not just building jobs here, its helping our community. 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Israeli tanks and other vehicles are withdrawing from a territory as intense shelling continued overnight. Israeli Prime Minister suggested last night his military is weighing all options after the tunnels out of gaza are completely destroyed. He warned hamas would pay a terrible price if it continues to fire rockets into israel which means a permanent end to the violence does not appear to be in sight after a month of conflict. Peace talks intended to take place in cairo weekend have been a nonstarter. Israel declined to send a delegation as planned. vo friday night has always been all fun and games, here at the harrison household. But one dark, stormy evening. She needed a good meal and a good family. So we gave her purina cat chow complete. Its great because it has the four cornerstones of nutrition. Everything a cat needs for the first step to a healthy, happy life. Purina cat chow complete. Share your rescue story and join us in building better lives. One rescue at a time. Does your mouth often feel dry . A dry mouth can be a side effect of many medications but it can also lead to tooth decay and bad breath. Thats why theres biotene. Available as an oral rinse, toothpaste, spray or gel, biotene can provide soothing relief, and it helps keep your mouth healthy, too. Remember, while your medication is doing you good, a dry mouth isnt. Biotene for people who suffer from dry mouth. In West Virginia this week Democratic Senate nominee Natalie Tennant put out this new ad. Ill make sure president obama gets the message. Last month we asked tennant on this show if she would have president obama to come to West Virginia to campaign for her this year. She didnt exactly say, but i think we may have gotten our answer in that add. Barack obama is not the most popular democrat in america not even the most popular member of the obama family. First lady Michelle Obama gets a favorable rating from twothirds of americans, a rating that has been consistent throughout her husbands presidency. On average these are better Approval Ratings than the last democratic first lady Hillary Clinton when she was in the white house back in 1990s. Like Hillary Clinton in the 1998 Midterm Elections democrats now want the first lady, not the president , out there stumping for them on the campaign trail. She was reluctant to campaign in previous Midterm Elections, this time around michelle has plunged right into fundraising early and often for the National Democratic party appearing last week in her hometown of chicago. There she told a small group of donors the best way to influence politics is to, quote, write a big, fat check. I kid you not. Im going to be honest with you, we need you to write the biggest, fattest check you possibly can write. I bet a lot of them did, too. Michelle is going for the grassroots, too. This week she released a video for 1 million votes, an effort to turn out the partys base. When it comes to the Midterm Elections this november, we need you to be as passionate and as hungry as you were back in 2008 and 2012. In fact, you need to be on more passionate and more hungry to get democrats elected to congress because these elections will be even harder and even closer than those president ial elections. So with the election less than 100 days away, what should we expect in her next . What is she willing to do . Has he warmed up to politics at all or is she just counting the days until this is all over and she gets out of politics in 2017. Kasie hunt back at the table with us and political analyst michelle bernard. Michelle, im curious what your read is on the first lady. We say i remember at the end of the Clinton Presidency and bill had the scandal, it was hillary in 98 who was out there. She got the bug. The next thing you know shes running for the senate and that whole second career starts. Any chance that could happen with Michelle Obama . I dont think so. I think all this is so exciting. I love seeing her out doing what shes doing, particularly the image we see of Michelle Obama today is so vastly different than the people on the right tried to paint of her in 2008 as the angry black woman. Shes youthful. Shes a loving mother. By the way, have they gotten that people like her and it just didnt take. Theyre less focused on Hillary Clinton right now and will probably let her alone unless we see shes successful in raising a lot of money and the old Michelle Obama things we heard Michelle Obama say in 2008 will emerge. I think shes wired differently than Hillary Clinton. I think no one can doubt her dedication to working families, and i think she realizes that these midterms in 2014 are absolutely critical. Africanamericans need to vote. Latinos need to vote. We know in midterms historically these demographic groups dont show up. You were there in 08, you were there in 12. We need you in 14. In terms of actually going out and campaigning from candidates, can we expect that . I think there are some places where youll see candidates want Michelle Obama to come in for them. In some ways, there are a lot of states the democrats need if theyll hang on to the senate, places like georgia, luis nah, very high africanamerican turno turnout. She helps bring out the base without stirring up the backlash. Potentially. On the other hand, one of her initial for rays, she did a fundraiser for the women running for senate. Natalie tennant attended the fundraiserment they took a bit of backlash for it. She made a reference to the background check gun bill at that fundraiser, the audio got out. Natalie tennants campaign had to come out and say this is not an endorsement. We swear. Michelle obama hasnt endorsed us. Now Natalie Tennant is turning off the power at the white house in her new ad. We had her on the show. She wouldnt answer that question. Michelle, in terms of what youve seen over the last more than amazingly six years now, Michelle Obama as a public figure, how has she kind of changed . Shes obviously married to a politics. It was such a quick rise for him and she suddenly finds herself first lady. How do you think shes adjusted. Loves her. When show first started running, she seemed tepid. She seems to have found her place. Shes out and about with her daughter, talking to people. The Childhood Obesity campaign that i mentioned earlier, the lets move campaign, when she spoke at the Democratic Convention during the last election, her speech was just rousing. She had the i think most of the shes a really good speaker. Shes a good speaker. She women on the right and left at that convention who really were applauding every single thing she said. I think that we have seen her grow tremendously over the last few years. I really do not think she want to be a politician. I think she means it when she says shes happy being mominchief and wifeinchief and doing everything she can to support democrat across the country. Do you get the sense, casey, on, 2017 comes, and she has a quiet life . No. There are people floating Michelle Obama for senate. I see why. No. I think as you were discussing, shes shown kind of a clear reluctance in a lot of these campaign events, the fundraising, known she doesnt necessarily love that part of her husband being president. So i mean, i think hed be surprised if he saw her step out as aggressively as a, say, Hillary Clinton did when she was leaving the white house. Speaking of as far as surrogates go, i think it will be particularly interesting to see how Hillary Clinton presents herself on the campaign trail. Weve seen Elizabeth Warren doing fundraising on the campaign trail for democratic candidates. So far Hillary Clintons been on a book tour. At what point does she decide or does the pressure her to actually help out in this a little ramp up . Or my thing is, im wondering if anyones going to ask her to speak on their behalf. Not in a negative sense, but if she now is being looked at as the forerunner in 2016 for the presidency, there are people who might be scared of the republican backlash and might not want her campaigning on their behalf. Theres that, then there are the democrats who dream of their names being under her on signs in 2016. Lets get in with hillary, ill be the Vice President after this. Anyway, what should we know for the week ahead . [ male announcere kid texts 20 words per minute. And zero words per manwich. Hold on. Its manwich. Doctors have been prescribingdecade, hold on. Nexium to patients just like you. For many, prescription nexium helps heal acidrelated erosions in the lining of the esophagus. There is risk of bone fracture and low magnesium levels. 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Bulldog mattress discounters 197 mattress Sale Television announcer that means sunday is your last chance to get a serta mattress any size, for just 197 each piece when you buy the complete set. Bulldog any size mattress twin, full, queen, or king for one low price and theyll deliver it free. Television announcer the 197 mattress sale. Bulldog oh boy Television Announcer . Ends sunday. Mattress discounters time to find out what we think our our guests think we should know for the week ahead. You should know that we have a really explosive battle over immigration coming up in the next month or so. Legislation is dead in congress, but the president is going to unveil an executive action that would shield millions here illegally from deportation. And conservatives cast a strong rebuke to that by first ending his program that affects young people brought here. But also precluding him from doing that for any more people here illegally. Its not going to become law, but its sort it signifies the battle were headed for. The fallout from the two house votes friday. Case . Iowa, iowa, iowa. The state is filled with republican contenders this week. And youve got senator rand paul spending several days there. Texas governor rick perry. Rubio senator rubio, senator cruz are both there. And also the senate race is one to watch. Democrats are getting increasingly nervous that they how much do republican president ial candidates love that theres a Competitive Senate race in iowa . An excuse to go there im not running for president , im here to help the family. Turning down dates left and right. Michelle so president jacob zumzuma, president of south africa, speaking at the National Press club in washington, d. C. I think people need to know he will be there and listen as we learn more about south africa going back and forth between pop li populism and liberalism and the fight to end corruption and be liberal democracy fleas. Frank . The u. S. African leadership summit is happening, and there with abe house Foreign Relations subcommittee hearing on the ebola virus. So the debate about ebola is coming to d. C. Its going to be a big discussion in d. C. Ebola, all over the news. More later today on more than. My thanks to all of our guests today for getting up. Thank you for tuning in. Up returns next weekend. And you can catch me all week on the Rachel Maddow show. Next is melissa harrisperry, with the economy humming along, are we seeing a dangerous return of sub prime lending . Well see you next week here on up. E. Every time you use dawn, youre using a brand that supports Wildlife Rescue efforts. Experts trust dawn. Because its tough on grease yet gentle. You by my side makes the Little Things so good be a part of the bigger picture. And your kindness makes the Little Things that you do for me go to facebook. Com dawnsaveswildlife. This morning, my question what do we make of labors supersized win . Plus, attorney general eric holders urgent call for change. And the little pink house that is still standing. First, predatory lending at the car lot. Good morning, im melissa harrisperry