Across the board budget cuts if no deal can be made. Are republicans letting cuts to fall on our kids schools and Mental Health care to protect corporate loopholes. Are they willing to slash military health care and Border Patrol because they refuse to eliminate tax breaks for big oil companies. Are they seriously prepared to inflict more pain on the middle class because they refuse to ask anything more of those at the very top . Republicans are putting the blame squarely on president obama. This weeks republican address. Republicans in congress right now will provide the flexibility to make the necessary spending reductions and address our deficit and debt instead of going through the sequester. In fact, House Republicans have already passed two bills to replace the president s sequester. So the question is, why wont he work with us . The answer quite simply is because he wants higher taxes. Joining me now, White House Correspondent for the hill, amie parnes and ed okeefe. Good mornin
Resignation intensify. At a speech for coalition of Homeless Veterans, the secretary vowed to enact sweeping changes to counter the growing scandal over wait times in va facilities. They will eliminate performance bonuses in 2014 for Senior Executives and removing patient wait times from va employee performance reviews. The secretary said he was mislead about the scope of the problems. I was too trusting of some and i accept it as accurate reports that i now know to have been misleading with regard to patient wait times. I cant explain the lack of integrity among some of the leaders of our health care facilities. This is something i rarely encounter during 38 years in uniform. And so i will not defend it because it is indefensible. But i can take responsibility for it. And i do. The secretary and the president as we said are meeting right now in the oval office in that speech we just showed you this morning. The va secretary laid out his plans to fix what he called systemic problems in
audit with ron nabors. we re paying attention to it and public is paying attention to it and that s what changed. i hope that the policy makers and the lawmakers in the public now embracing this story and paying attention to it don t think it s over because of shinseki s resignation. this is a problem going on at the va for years. it s a deep seeded systemic problem as shinseki himself noted in this audit. it s a problem where people and managers and people in charge of va hospitals are paid and rewarded for clean performance reviews that don t necessarily bear any resemblance to reality and have very little to do with providing healthcare to those who volunteered or were drafted to serve this nation. the washington drama part of this played out predictably.
he does not have lip balm on. mike barnicle. also nicole wallace. and sam stein. and in d.c., the washington anchor for bbc world news america, katty kay. so mika is of course in the south of france as she always is. it is that season. it is. on her way over, she stopped in florida. she was in miami last night. her mother had a great book event for her book, and it was a packed house. we went to one of these and it is remarkable having ms. brzezinski talking about her artwork. does she bring the chain saw with her? only if i m there. and we re all going to be there. if you want to see her use her chain saw as she chases me through a bookstore, we ll be at politics and pros monday. that s always a great place to do book events. and willie, you re going to be in wellesley. yes. lip balm country. where all the men wear lip balm. coming up with my dad. okay. very good. let s keep this lip balm theme going through the show. it s not odd enough already. sure.