guidelines require agents to pursue evidence by the least obtrusive means possible. sending armed agents to his door in the middle of the night is not the least obtrusive means possible. weissmann honed his hardball strategy in one of the most far-reaching, aggressive and controversial prosecutions in modern american law, the enron investigation. that probe was high stakes because president george w. bush had deep ties to that texas energy company. so his doj tried to show there would be no favoritism. so they appointed a special task force run by the fbi director at the time bob mueller. that was bush s proof this was going to be a tough probe. and then mueller needed a point man to show it was going to be a tough probe, and he chose weissmann to lead a, quote, elite team of fbi agents and federal prosecutors to investigate and prosecute any crimes related to enron. now what was true then is very relevant now in the mueller probe. picking weissmann meant you would get very tough pro
worked much better than 2011. the president back then negotiated in earnest. this time with house republicans. this time he really sidelined them and ultimately at least in the polls he fared better. so i think part of the message you were hearing from him today is this kind of hardball strategy is here to stay. of course there s this question of does that tone really mean that there s going to be bipartisanship here? i think white house officials feel like they re external factors at play. some republicans may be tempted to try the strategy again. you heard dana talk about ted cruz. but i think they re banking on some of the other republicans concerned about the national brand for republicans and certainly the toll that that may take with independent voters. and in terms of the president s agenda, i mean, he s called today for immigration reform. do they really think they can get something like that done? reporter: not just immigration reform, a farm bill and also a budget deal. t
the anger that he s feeling here by his fellow senators because what he s hearing from the constituency that elected him is atta boy. interesting. dana bash, appreciate it. thanks very much. senior white house correspondent brianna keilar also joining us now. brianna, the president saying there are no winners here. but behind the scenes does the white house feel this was a victory for them? reporter: anderson, i think white house officials certainly feel like the strategy this time around worked much better than what we saw in 2011. the president back then negotiated in earnest. this time with house republicans. this time he really sidelined them and ultimately at least in the polls he fared better. so i think part of the message you were hearing from him today is this kind of hardball strategy is here to stay. of course there s this question of does that tone really mean that there s going to be bipartisanship here? i think white house officials feel like there are external factor
the strategy this time around worked much better than 2011. the president back then negotiated in earnest. this time with house republicans. this time he really sidelined them and ultimately at least in the polls he fared better. so i think part of the message you were hearing from him today is this kind of hardball strategy is here to stay. of course there s this question of does that tone really mean that there s going to be bipartisanship here? i think white house officials feel like they re external factors at play. some republicans may be tempted to try the strategy again. you heard dana talk about ted cruz. but i think they re banking on some of the other republicans concerned about the national brand for republicans and certainly the toll that that may take with independent voters. and in terms of the president s agenda, i mean, he s called today for immigration reform. do they really think they can get something like that done? reporter: not just immigration reform, a farm
no reason for the nation to lurch from crisis to crisis. he s warning republicans and the american people are fed up right now. let s go to our senior correspondent brianna keilar. what are you seeing, brianna? reporter: wolf, the president s message is his hardball strategy is here to say, unlike in 2011, he did not negotiate with house republicans. he sidelined them instead and fared better because of it. after besting impossible default, president obama lectured them. all of us knee to stop focusing on the lobbyists, the bloggers and talking heads on radio, and the professional activists who profit from conflict and focus on what the majority of americans sent us here to do. he outlined a three-part agenda he plans to pursue, a farm bill, immigration, and a budget agreement that will determine how the government is