The pain of mccain, lets play hardball. From washington, let me start with this, why is john mccain so angry . 40 years after the vietnam p. O. W. S came home the most famous of them is angrier than ever. We are we fighting vietnam again in the u. S. Senate. The tickedoff hagel, is it just for show . The basic unfairness of vietnam itself that some went and some didnt . Is it about Lyndon Johnsons inability to win the war or end it . What is it about john mccain that seems to excite those who know nothing about vietnam. Well tonight we dig into the deep well of resentment burning in john mccains patriotic heart. A resentment not against the north vietnamese who imprisoned and tortured him, not against george w. Bush and his political henchmen who tried to stain mccains reputation. But just like he did, in the same army of americas long nightmare in vietnam. Im joined by david corn with mother jones and joy reed with the grio. I have to tell you im convinced were watching a flashback. Watch this, heres senator john mccain, he did a long, angry windup before he launched into his first socalled question. It was really an indictment for former Senate Colleague and former friend and fellow vietnam veteran, chuck hagel. It included putdowns, as well as reference does vietnam. Lets listen. In january of 2007, in a rather Bizarre Exchange with secretary rice in the Foreign Relations committee after some nonsense about syria and crossing the border into iran and syria, because of the surge, then reference to cambodia in 1970, you said quote, when you set in motion the kind of policy the president is talking about here, its very, very dangerous. Quote as a matter of fact, i have to say madam secretary, i think the speech given last night by the president represents the most dangerous Foreign Policy blunder in this country since vietnam if its carried out. He will resist it. In march of 2008 you said, quote here the term quagmire could apply. What are these, the fullbright hearings . I lived through them and this guy is going back into some last year at marion bad, weird 1970s movie, where you go back into a past that never happened. Why is he fighting hagel over vietnam . Its interesting because hes ostensibly fighting with him over iraq. But it immediately becomes about vietnam. Its as how theyre talking about. He seems to be mad that hagel took issue with him about iraq and compared it to vietnam being the big blunder which of course mccain and hagel both served in. When mccain talks about iraq, he only wants to talk about it from the surge on, its as if everything before that didnt happen and didnt count. And we can still debate whether the surge worked or not. The bigger issue is whether iraq was as bad as vietnam and he doesnt want to have that argument. Here he is, joy, why dont you respond to mccain sinking his teeth into hagels ankle. He wouldnt let go of the question of the surge. Back again to the old war. Will you correct or incorrect when you said that the surge would be the most dangerous Foreign Policy blunder in this country since vietnam . Were you correct or incorrect . Yes or no . My reference to the surge being the most dangerous senator hagel, the question is, were you right or wrong . Thats a pretty straightforward question. I would like you to answer whether you are right or wrong and then you were free to elaborate. Im not going to give awe yes or no i think its far more complicated. My answer is, ill defer that judgment to history. As to the comment i made about the most dangerous Foreign Policy decision since vietnam, was about not just the surge, but the overall war of choice going into iraq. Well there you have it, joy, your thoughts . Youre younger, youve been through it, you studied it in school, i lived through it, but its the weirdest thing, it looks like a flashback. Is it really about the surge . Im still trying to figure out the anger here. These guys both served, as you said, chris, they were actually good friends, brothers in arms in the senate. John mccain seems to be a man who is tormented. Hes tormented by these demons that have to do with the things that he was denied. He was denied the presidency. So he couldnt stand george w. Bush. He was denied it again, so he couldnt stand barack obama and cant stand anyone that barack obama nominates. And the surge was something that was his. I think that almost in a way john mccain made the surge into the war as john mccain would have fought it as commanderinchief. And anyone who questions it gets the wrath of mccain. And i watched that hearing, that part of the hearing with colonel jack jacobs and pat murphy, the governor of pennsylvania who served in iraq. And both of those guys were at the bottom of the pile. And you view war differently. But the lesson that these two men took from vietnam seems to have been so different. Hagel took the questioning, the same thing Patrick Murphy feels, being lied to and feeling anger for knowing you friends died for what you believe to be a lie. Heres Lindsay Graham, badgering defense nominee hagel. About his whether the Iranian Revolutionary guard should be designated terrorist organization. I think this is aimed at south carolinas right wing. Lets listen. If there was a vote on the floor of the senate this afternoon, to label the Iranian Revolutionary guard, the people who have killed our soldiers in iraq, some of the most vicious people to the people of iran themselves, if there were a vote tomorrow or this afternoon or after lunch, would you still vote no . Well i would want to know from the president , what they were doing. But again i mean you read the paper, you watch tv, you got any doubt what theyre doing . If you had a chance tomorrow, today, after lunch, to vote to say that the Iranian Revolutionary guard was a terrorist organization, would you still vote no . Well the reason i voted no to start with well you told me that. My question is would you reconsider and would you vote yes this time . Or would you still vote no . Times change, i recognize that, and yes, i would reconsider, but the whole theory. Thank you, thats encouraging, my time is up. You want to know what the mccarthy period is like a little bit. You want to know what the inquisition was like a little bit, the star chamber . That. He didnt give him a chance to answer the question. It wasnt about the issueself. It was about Lindsay Graham grandstanding for the five minutes he gets. Theres a whole another story we can talk about some of the time about congressional hearings have really gone down downhill over the last 10, 20 years. Fiveminute questions, you dont get to develop a train of thought. You dont take in the answer and have a real discussion. You saw yesterday, far more talk about what hagel might have said about israel a couple of years ago. Than about afghanistan. He wanted recantation. They wanted him to recant like, excuse me thats not for you, joy. The eclees yasticcal proceeding. They feel like he turned on them, he turned on their war, he turned on the neocons and they want him to cry uncle. I think the neoconserves, who are led in the senate by john mccain and Lindsay Graham, they see chuck hagel as the human road block, the symbol that barack obama, that president obama is not going to let them have their war in iran and that is their problem with chuck hagel. I think our brains are connected, i say that again joy, youre so smart. Because i agree with your words as you speak them, theyre brilliant. Im serious. Im patronizing, i think youre unbelievable. I keep hearing my brain talk. Thank you, joy reed. Thank you david cornyn. Coming up, its hoils last d Hillary Clintons last day in the state department. The first day of the rest of her life, it may well include a run for president in 2016. There are plenty of democrats waiting for her to say i do. Also, men behaving badly. We showed you john mccain and Lindsay Grahams rude behavior. And theyre hardly alone. The lesson that many of the gop seem to have learned from 2012 is, if you want to stop losing elections, just keep doing exactly what youve been doing. The documentary the gatekeepers a fascinating look at the members of israels security agency. The interesting job of dealing with palestinians in the occupied territories. Theyre a lot more like barack obama than like benjamin netanyahu. Let me finish with a chance of a fabulous massachusetts delegation in the United States senate. Elizabeth warren and edward marquee. This is hardball. Cmax has a nice little trait, you see, cmax helps you load your freight, with its footactivated lift gate. But thats not all youll see, cause cmax also beats prius v, with better mpg. Say hi to the allnew 47 combined mpg cmax hybrid. This is so so soft. Hey hun, remember you only need a few sheets. Hmph [ female announcer ] charmin ultra soft is so soft youll have to remind your family they can use less. Charmin ultra soft is made with extra cushions that are soft and more absorbent. Plus you can use four times less. Hope you saved some for me. Mhmm you and the kids. We all go. Why not enjoy the go with charmin ultra soft. I knew there was something really special about this place. And that having the honor to lead the state department and usaid unique and singular and challenging and exciting. Welcome back to hardball, that was secretary of state Hillary Clinton saying goodbye to the men and women of the state department today. Now let the campaign begin. Already the world of democratic operatives and donors are is itching for the big drive of 2016. Take a look at cover of newsweek, the most powerball woman in u. S. History. With me is former pennsylvania governor, ed rendell and political condominiumist, sin th thea tucker. Where would you rank letter with cleopat cleopatra. Cleopatra immediately came to mind for me, too. I think Hillary Clinton still has some history in front of her to make. But she can be declared the most powerful woman in history. Weve settled that. Ed marquee, im thinking of ed marquee, let me ask you, governor rendell. Let me try to bother awe little bit. Back in 1979, you were convinced that ted kennedy could not be beat for president of the United States. Were you out there with billy green. Im trying to hold on to my speechrunning job at the white house, youre trying to take it away from me. Times change, it conceivable in your hillary heart that times could change over the next three years, and she would not be hot to trot to run. Doug macarthur im told by the people who lived back there in 51 and remembered it, that he was unbeatable for president when he was fired by truman. A year later, he was nothing. I took it away. Is it true that hillary has the staying power, so that for years from now, she could be president . Yeah, i think she does. Ted kennedy, remember, was a fairly young senator and hadnt really proven himself. Douglas macarthur was a general, and no one knew how he would react to public service. Hillary clinton has been on the scene for 20 years, two decades, and has been a fairly dominant player already in american politics for those 20 years. Chris, it is unbelievable, i cant walk a block in philadelphia without being stopped by someone thrusting a card in my hand saying when hillary runs, i want to give money. I have never seen anything like it in my political experience of 34 years ever. Not anywhere close. Not even the obama phenomenon matches the enthusiasm level thats here. Could something change in three years . Of course. Three years is a long time. But, remember, its not really three years. If she wants to make a decision, she has to make a decision by next spring, spring of 14. If she makes that decision, she by and large preempts the democratic field. What do you tell joe biden that he should do between now and then to prepare to run if she doesnt run but prepare to hit the parachute if she does run . How does he prepare both . Well, he does everything hes been doing. He goes at it like hes going to be a candidate because i think theres still a decent chance that hillary will decide not to run. I wouldnt bet on it, but i think theres a decent chance, and then joe becomes the frontrunner. Joe should continue to make contact, talk to givers. The problem for joe is, and people do love and respect joe, and im in that category, but the givers, the people who will decide who really is the most powerful candidate, theyre all they all like joe, but theyre all for hillary right now. Thats his biggest problem. And thats men and women both, right . Men and women both. Let me go to cynthia. Lets look at this poll, most admired woman of 2012. Lets look at this number here. Hillary clinton, its not even close anymore, the most admired woman category here. 21 for her. The first lady at 5 , which is okay i guess but not great here. And oprah winfrey, who is like the most powerful woman in the history of the media you might say, televised media, and look at her down there at 4 . Its stunning the domination, if you will, of this one public figure. I think thats welldeserved, chris. I really do. I think she has not only done a phenomenal job as secretary of state, but she also she ran an Excellent Campaign in the primaries, and when she lost, she threw her support behind barack obama and worked very hard for him and, of course, she worked she was his loyal secretary of state. And i think that goes a long way with many people. Their campaign was pretty bitter. Their rivalry was pretty bitter, and i remember all of the questions in 2008. Will hillary really join forces with barack obama . Not only did she join forces, she worked hard for him, and she was his very loyal secretary of state. And i think for people all over the world, that goes a long way in building up their admiration for her. This was a woman who lost the campaign, but when she was called on, she gave it her all. Let me ask you, governor, youre as good a pol as i know. My question is what did she learn . Somebody said just recently the secretary herself said the lessons she learned looking back was she had to be a better communicator. Well, that covers a lot of territory. I think what hurt her most was her vote at least for the iraq war. In the democratic confines within the caucus voters, the real zealous people in the party, that war was the issue, the opposition to it, and the fact that she had voted for it i think really gave an issue to barack obama who as a state senator was out there in chicago in probably a liberal district and he voted against the war without worrying about it. She hedged her bets and voted for the war, and i think that was her biggest impediment to winning. I dont think she has that kind of impediment this time around. No, and she learned how to communicate with working class folks. If you remember, chris, four or five years ago, Hillary Clintons biggest problem was working class women, blue collar women. Yet by the end of that campaign, she was racking up huge majorities in West Virginia and kentucky and pennsylvania and places like that, and she attracted those working class women. She was like a rock star in the parades we went to in scranton and pittsburgh and places like that. So she learned to communicate as a populist, as a real populist. That will hold her in good stead. I think she learned to save some money for contingencies. Remember, if they had any money after super tuesday, i think they would have been the nominee, but they spent all their money, and it was down the chute, and she got bad advice. Bad advice. If you run it next time, it will be better. I got some of those working class women. I know what that looks like. Youre against hillary. If you were against hillary, you were in big trouble. No matter what your motive, you were in big trouble. Cynthia, you cant wait, can you . You know, i think that by 2014 the prospect of becoming the very first female president of the United States will be too powerful for Hillary Clinton to say no. Shes also a person who could hold together what has become known as the obama coalition. Up next the side show, and this is hardball. The place for politics. And now is when the gulf gets even better. The beaches and waters couldnt be more beautiful. Take a boat ride or just lay in the sun. Enjoy the wildlife and natural beauty. And dont forget our amazing seafood. So come to the gulf, youll have a great time. Especially in alabama. You mean mississippi. Thats florida. Say louisiana or theres no dessert. Brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. Lets see if walmarts low price guarantee can make you the mvp of savings. Look at that price. Wow walmart lowers thousands of prices every week. If you find a lower advertised price, theyll match it at the register. No way yeah touchdown ready . 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Eucerin professional repair moisturizes while actually repairing very dry skin. The end of trial and error has arrived. Try a free sample at eucerinus. Com. I just served my motherinlaw your chicken noodle soup but she loved it so much. I told her it was homemade. Everyone tells a little white lie now and then. But now she wants my recipe [ clears his throat ] [ softly ] shes right behind me isnt she . [ male announcer ] progresso. You gotta taste this soup. Back to hardball now. The sideshow. State of shock. Aaron schock. Lets say youre a u. S. Congressman in a state thats expected to tak