Out there and i would say, i really doubt that walker will tray to do something constructive now. The plan on the ground in the states, and you have really shown this. This is where the policy was. Attack women, attack workers, and well see if thats a winning politics nationwide. The truth of the matter is he and mary pretty much split women. But mary only had 54 of the women and he had 46 . Too much for him. State senator, great to have you with us. Well fate for another day. No doubt. Thats the ed show. Good evening, revv. Thanks for tuning in. Tonights lead, republicans say they want to compromise. Do they mean it . Last night voter gave gop control of the senate and today, both president obama and senator mcconnell talked about finding Common Ground together. Im eager to work with the new congress to make the next
two years as productive as possible. To start with the view that maybe there are some thing we can agree on to make progress. Push hard to close some of these divisions, break through some of the grid lock and get stuff done. There there be no Government Shutdown. For all the cynic has say otherwise, i continue to believe were simply more than a check of red and blue states. We are the United States. Now, you could be forgiven for getting whip lash from that if you know mcconnell as the guy had a wanted to make president obama a oneterm president. But it was the right note for a lead we are a new responsibility to govern. December participate todays optimism, it was obvious major disagreements remain. First up could be Immigration Reform. With the president pledging to take affirmative action despite warning from senator mcconnell. Before the end of the year, were going to take whatever lawful actions i can take, that i believe will improve the functioning of our immigration system. Lets figure out what we can do awfully through executive actions to ill approve the functioning of the existing system. The president choosing to do a lot of things unilaterally would be a big mistake. Like waving a re flag in front of a bull. I hope he wont do that. I think it poisons the well. The president making it clear, he is not nervous about the gop rhetoric. And he is taking the long view when it come to the midterm elections. Every single president who has been reelected in modern history has lost senate seats in the sixyear mid terms. He have one of them. The exception was president clinton who benefited from the gops overreach with
impeachment. So whale president obama is looking for Common Ground, he is also committed to fighting for his beliefs. Obviously republicans had a good night and they deserve credit for running good campaigns. The principles that were fighting for, the thing that motivate me he single day and motivate my staff every day, those things wont change. I think there are some concrete things we can do to make sure that wages and incomes doing up. More than anything, what i want to community over these next few fish, the promise and possibility of america. There is a lot on the line and a lot to get done in the next two years. Joining me now, governor ed rendell and abby huntsman. Thank you both for being here. Governor rendell, do you think republican theres work
with president obama now that they have control of the senate . I think they have to, rev. I think the American People have said, you guys have the entire congress. Let see you do something. And i dont think they can just pass bills that they know the president will veto. They have to work and reach out to the president. So if they want the key stone pipeline, they have to make sure that there are a lot of thing in there for energy like extending the production tax credit. Something the president can give a little bit on and they give a little bit on. And it comes together. If they dont govern and it cant be just trade and it cant be just tax reform. Even within the framework of tax reform, well lower the rates. Which of those loophole will go. And then the money we save from removing the loophole, does that go into infrastructure and growth . When you say it cant be just those things, what things can they do tangibly to show that
theyre willing to move and govern and meet the president halfway . Well, no question. They can put together a comprehensive infrastructure bill. We need it. We know it is important for Economic Growth of the country. We know it will create well paying jobs. They have a lead on that and not say, we cant fund it. We have to find a way to fund it. If that means a modest raise in the gas tax, it has to be done. Youre a republican. Will the republicans, now that they are in charge of the senate, and can govern, will they meet halfway on Something Like infrastructure to provide jobs, even if it means a lower gas snax is that something thats viable . Viable is one thing. Will they do it is another thing. Ed rendell makes a good point. The main message from last night the American People are totally fed up. Theyre not happy with where we are right now. Theyre not happy with where
were headed. It they took their anger out last night on democrats. The republicans should not be skipping you this the hall because people are frustrated. Nothing is getting done. The one word we keep hearing, well work together. We need but its a word. We want to see compromise, a word we never hear. You think about the next two years. The governor mention ad few things. The Corporate Tax reform is one trade. Infrastructure. Nothing big. We have to look at this in a proper perspective. The president does move for on immigration, wove seen what happens before when he did with it the health care bill. Responds dont respond well to that. Lets talk about that. I was in a meeting with president obama this afternoon. He met with six or seven of us civil rights leaders. Talked about immigration and voting rights. Immigration is something he is saying he is Going Forward on. Look at this. It has been 496 days since the Senate PassedImmigration Reform last year with 14 republicans joining the democrats to support. Mcconnell says president obama should wait. The problem was the republican house. So whats changed . Why shouldnt the president act . Well, i think the sples act. I think what the sples do is announce what he is going to do by executive action and say, im going to do these executive actions and do them for the next nine months. It is may hope that the congress will act and legislate in all of these and send a good legislation reform bill. If they do so, i will with draw the executive order. If they dont, well keep it in place and go forward. I think there hes saying, im acting but im giving you the chance to do it legislatively. You say you can do it legislatively. Call him on it. Give him a time limit. Say, okay, by august 1st, i want a bill on my desk. But act now and say, if you pass a bill and send to it me and it is a bill i can sign, ill withdraw the executive order. Let to go something else. It is clear the will be a big fight over the Affordable Care act. Listen to what president obama and senator mcconnell said about that. Efforts that would take away health care from the 10 Million People who now have it. And the millions more who are eligible to get it. Were not going to support. Is the individual mandate one of those lines you cant cross . The individual mandate is a line i cant cross. Everyone of my members think that obamacare was a huge legislative mistake. The individual mandate, people hate it. So i think we will be addressing that issue. Will the republicans offer
any changes to the Affordable Care act or obamacare that the president can accept . Thats a good question. We say this question is more divided. You hear both statements on the Affordable Care act. You realize, this country is more divided than it has ever been. We heard from president obama, we flared Mitch Mcconnell. Theyre saying we want to find Common Ground. I think the republican theres find a piecemeal approach. . We also heard from the noise caucus from Rush Limbaugh and the National Review and others that are already rattling the chains, so to speak. Last night was a big win for the establishment wing for the republican party. Compared to twhen there was the tea party sweeping through. Last night was a lot of establishment candidates that would have been. It were going to have to see, real dogs being had. The president says i want to get a little bit. To sit in the same room with the caucus. If were looking to have
compromise, they have to have conversations them cant just speak to the tv screens. On that note, nbcs exit polling showed even though voters gave senate to republicans, they support democratic views on key issues. 63 stay Economic System favors the wealthy. 58 say climb change is a serious healthy. 57 say immigrants deserve a legal path to citizen ship. Last night we also saw five states pass an increase in the minimum wage, including in red states like arkansas and nebraska. Slow republicans act on those states now that theyve taken control in the senate . I think the senate will act on a lot of those ideas. Youre riot to focus on the house. Who knows what the house will do . I thought one part of senator mcconnells press conference that was very important. He sent a message to the far right when he said there will be no Government Shutdown and no defaulting on the debt. He laid down a marker. He didnt even pope for consideration. That to me was the best part of what he did. It we can remain hopeful. Will they pass a bill getting rid of the individual mandate . Yes, they will. Will the president vaet over it . Yes, he will veto it. That is a political dance theyll play. While theyre dancing over there, we have a chance to go forward on things important to the country like Immigration Reform. I got a little uncomfortable when he started slow waltzing saying they would mess with don frank and yes, there will be hearings in irs. He had to throw a little red meat. As the governor is saying, he is making it clear that he wont deal with the bull crap that he dealt with in years past. Go ahead. And remember, you know, what
he said. He said no to them to a number of different issues. And he open the door for real cooperation. So look. Will it work out . You and i dont know. Abby doesnt know. Are we hopeful as americans that theyll do something . Yes. President clinton, president reagan, president eisenhower. They all did it in their last two years. And they all passed significance legislation. Lets hope the president i hope and i really hope that we can do that. And i always did. Time, im dealing with the practical underground demagoguery that happens on all sides. I hope we can it cant be worse than the last two years. The one comfort we have, i said that today at the white house, it cant be any worse. So i hope it can be better. People are suffering. Thank you both for your time tonight. And make sure you catch abby on the cycle, weekdays at 3 00 p. M. Eastern right here on msnbc. Still ahead, the gops cruz missile into the senate. Will ted cruz and right wing extremists plunk them into the senate wall . I think on the president s policies but also a referendum on Hillary Clinton. Let the games begin how 2014 affect 2016 . And the gops plans for hill. Plus, did democrats make a mistake by running away from president obama . Lots of secondguessing tonight. About what could have been their fatal move. A big show tonight. Stay with us. My number one goal is just to deliver as much as i can for theAmerican People in these last two years. The democrat who counts is the president of the United States. Wethey were a littlehorizons to mbit skeptical. Ss, what they do actually is rocket science. But at ge capital we also bring expertise from across ge, like lean process engineers we asked who does what, when, where, and why that step first . Ideas for improvement started pouring out. With a little help from us, they actually doubled their output speed. If you just need a loan, just call a bank. 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It might have been a friendly conversation but im not sure thats going to last. With headlines like this, quote, meet the real next Senate Majority leader, ted cruz. Just last night, cruz wouldnt commit to supporting senator mcconnell as leader. Will you support Mitch Mcconnell as your leader in the United States senate . That will be a decision to make. Tonight was a terrific night for republicans. Nice dodge. Today mcconnell at least paid lip service to the idea of working with the president. But just days ago, senator cruz said the senates first item of business should be Holding Hearing on president obamas, quote, abuse of power and lawlessness. Some of the new republicans of the senate like joni ernst and tom cotton seem eager for this brachbd obstructionist. So senator mcconnell may or may not want to work with the president. But first hes got to figure out how to deal with members of his own party. Joining me now, dana milbank and josh. Senator mcconnell talks a big talk about working with the president. Will the ted cruz caucus let him . I dont think theres very much of a ted cruz caucus in the senate. It is in the house. What we saw is making a lot of trouble in conjunction with his allies in the house. Really, there are very few arch conservative senators like ted cruz. Theyre generally lined up behind Mitch Mcconnell. He is the most hated man on capitol hill among establish many republicans. So i think ted cruz will tray to push republicans in both chambers of congress toward a more obstructionist agenda. Of course, mcconnell has his own
brand of obstruction. So theyll be able to find that. The guy committed to a oneterm president obama. I think you know, i think ted cruz doesnt have that much influence within the senate caucus. His knew is much stronger. There is a general branding problem. You wrote last night that things are about to get hard for republicans. I want to read a part of your column. Quote. I like always doing dana to dane. A republicans didnt run on an agenda, other than antipathy toward all things obama. They created a policy vacuum. It is about to be filled by a swirl of competing and contradictory proposals. Republicans have set themselves up for chaos, if not outright fratricide. What kind of chaos . Well, look. Mitch mcconnell himself said that he was asked just last week about the agenda. He said this is not the time to be laying out an agenda. The problem when you run on an agenda, were not that guy in the white house. Means that do you create this sort of a vacuum. And i agree to, it is not ted cruz per se. It is that everybody feels they can be freelancers here, pursuing their own agenda. A lot of this huge incoming class of freshmen republicans in the senate, may have all kinds of ideas about getting votes on abolishing the irs and the department of education and the epa. Other things that wont be a reality but can sort of make the new Senate Leadership unstable and look a little bit crazy. So thats what Mitch Mcconnell is up against. Harnessing the crazier instincts hear. If he trays to cut some deals, he will get pressure both ways. You know, the conservativeNational Review had a piece today calling for the gop to approve they can govern. Let me read to you the quoeflt quote, approve you can govern strategy will inevitably divide the party on the same Tea Party Versus establishment lines that republicans have just succeed in the overcoming. Which brings us to the characters building the case for republican governance after 2016. So let me get this right. They shouldnt do anything. The way to win governing in 2016, dont govern now. Just take whatever shot you want. Does that make sense . It thats saying something interesting. Theyre saying dont tray to make