by gallup which said that 72% of all americans believe we should have public infrastructure spending. meaning our roads and our bridges and our transit lines, even a majority of republicans think so. yet we re in full-on austerity mode in washington. yeah. the public thinks we ought to raise the minimum wage. well, you know, in washington we re arguing, you know, whether minimum wage actually causes unemployment. which is ridiculous and untrue. but, i mean, the people are way ahead of washington. and the people really do deserve to have their will be reflected in their government. now, you know, one thing i observed in light of what you just said is the president keeps fighting, keeps going forward despite the opposition. and it s resonating with the american people. i suppose that the opposition for whatever reasons are not connected and understanding that what they re saying is just not working among the public when
pain of the unemployed temporarily. some will put people back to work. but they do not make for a complete solution. yet it s a start. as long as congress passes the bill. while the politicians bicker, many americans have no place to live. as many as 1 million people may have become homeless during the recent recession. with some living in tent cities like this one near st. petersburg, florida. these are people who used to have solid, middle-class jobs. what s more, almost half of america s unemployed have been out of work for six months or longer. they are in danger of becoming a lost generation. losing the skills and motivation to ever reach their potential. but we need more than temporary tax cuts and extensions of unemployment. we need a plan to grow industries and with them, jobs. in this hour, we ll shine a light on solutions. immediate and long-term. but our focus is on stuff that can actually happen. plans, not dreams. we ll look at promising industries and ideas. and
been flooded by this storm. there are hundreds of thousands across the state of knowledge there are without power and five million across 12 states because of all of this runoff from hurricane irene. there are levees breaking including one near trenton. there are transit lines shut down in new jersey and elsewhere because of tracks under water. we have damages estimated from $7 billion to $10 billion. we talked a lot about the coastal flooding and the beaches that are in trouble. now a lot of states are saying our beaches are open. come back for labor day weekend and apparently there are a lot of deals to be had. bill: that damage figure. $7 billion to $10 billion in new jersey alone? that s across 11, 12 states. the damage in new jersey is
setting new records, transit lines setting down operations statewide about an hour ago. state officials in pennsylvania are blocking highway entrance ramps and the national guard is stocking humvees with food and blankets. amtrack says despite the know it will continue to operate trains along the northeast corridor. and so far airports in the new york area are operating with only limited delays but airlines are taking the initiatives and canceling flights in and out of the region. former congressman for texas charlie wilson died today at age 76. now back to hardball. welcome back to hardball. the headline in the washington post /abc poll. good news for republicans.