x mcconnell

KRON (MyNetworkTV) 1
English 95

Set Clip Length:

was modestly optimistic about a deal on taxes. speaking in the white house briefing room, president obama condemned congress for failing to resolve its differences in in normal way. he held firm to middle-class tax cuts to families making $250,000 per year. joining me now from the white house is nbc's kristen welker. kristen, let's take a look at what the president said about what he expects from the senate. >> i just had a good discussion from house leadership about how to prevent this on the middle class. i believe we can reach an agreement. if an agreement isn't reached in time between senator reid and sno senator mccollum, i will reach to him. i believe such a proposal could pass both houses with bipartisan majorities as long as the leaders allow it to actually come to a vote. if members of the house or the senate want to vote no, they can. but we should let everybody vote. >> kristen, this up or down vote seems to be the big news of the day. isn't this what the white house wanted all along? >> well, it is and it's president obama's way of saying, look, vote on his basic proposal, the

in the white house briefing room, president obama condemned congress for failing to resolve its differences in any normal way. >> christin, let's take a listen to what the president said about the up or down vote about what he expects to emerge from the senate. >> i just had a good and constructive discussion here at the white house with senate and house leadership about how to prevent this tax hike on the middle class. i'm optimistic. if an agreement isn't reached in time, between senate store reid and senator mcconnell, then i will urge senator reid to bring to the floor a basic package for an up or down vote. i believe such a proposal could pass with bipartisan majorities. >> this up or down vote seems to be the big news of the day. isn't this what the white house wanted all along? >> well, it is. it's president's obama's way of saying vote on his basic proposal. it would extend in employment insurance benefit and deal with unemployment insurance cuts. >> so the question is, could they actually get that many republicans to vote for this package that the president is calling for? >> but p

. breaking news, president obama urges congress to make a deal to overt the fiscal cliff. he announces no deal, but progress may be in sight. >> and that would be the wrong thing to do for our e con mu. it would be bad for middle class families and bad for businesses that depend on family spending. fortunately, congress can prevent it from happening if they act right now. i just had a good and constructive discussion here at the white house about how to prevent this tax hike on the middle class. and i'm optimistic we may still be able to reach an agreement that can pass both houses in time. senators reid and mcconnell are working on such an agreement as we speak. >> it comes after speaker boehner left the white house. he didn't say anything to reporters and neither did anyone else who was seen leaving the meeting. here's what we do know. in just four days, taxes will go up on millions. and millions more will have their vital unemployment benefits run out. that's why president obama organized the meeting with vice president biden, speaker boehner, nancy pelosi and senators reid and mcco


that's the case and also what you see is washington, including president obama and congress, they are like kids playing soccer, they go to whichever ball is next and don't look at the bigger picture. there was a gun-- a terrible shooting, now they want to do gun control. they have some-- it's from one thing to the next and rather than a bigger picture and dealing with things. >> and mark this the beginning of the end of the n.r.a. as a big tougher-- >> their approval. >> like the unions. >> and no, no, a lot higher than that. >> i repeat, still ahead on "the five." >> so, these are chicken wings. >> wow, minnesota or wisconsin, one or the other. >> music, ♪ i'm singing forever. >> i'm so glad i could introduce this. one of the great things about "the five" is all the fun they have at this table. we'll look at some of the wildest moments. you don't want to miss this. we'll be right back. ♪ let's twist again like we did last year ♪ ♪ ♪ in new york city, dancing in the street ♪ >> yes, sir, hello, excuse me. welcome back to "the five." my personal five, that's five


obama they may give new meaning of the term do nothing congress. >>> and senator mike crapo has decided not to fight the charges of his dui arrest which tests showed his blood alcohol was nearly twice the legal limit. >>> congressman chris van hallen said congress needed to reach a deal on the fiscal cliff by christmas. less than 48 hours until that cliff what does he think now? you are watching msnbc, the place for politics. when you have diabetes... your doctor will say get smart about your weight. that's why there's glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. [ male announcer ] glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes. >>> the self-imposed 3:00 p.m. deadline the senate came up with for a deal has come and gone which means without a last minute deal starting january 1st tax hikes and massive spending cuts will be in effect. extended unemployment benefits have ended. we will be live on capitol hill with the latest developments coming up in just a moment. before we take you over to c

? >> the republicans have gone after the president that he has deferred to congress on this is that he was unable to strike a deal between -- with speaker boehner and now it is to reid and mcconnell. on one hand, obama is criticizing the congress but also giving them the responsibility to come up with a deal. this is on his watch. obama does not want this going into next year. he wants to move quickly on immigration and energy and maybe gun control. so, but he has not been able to strike a deal with the speaker and that is -- you know, takes two to tango, both have to compromise. both have failed repeatedly on getting a debt deal both in the summer of 2011 and now. how to it is up to the senate which up until recently has been shoved to the side. can they come to the rescue. >> thank you so much. we will see what happens. 48 hours to go. bob cusack, thank you. >> thanks, heather. >> how are the talks progressing and what about reduction in government spending? we still have the looming 16 trillion plus budget deficit. remember that? and the politicians they are taking their time on that as well.


's not forget last year's debt ceiling debacle, which president obama has vowed never to repeat. >> if congress in any way suggests that they're going to tie negotiations to debt ceiling votes and take us to the brink of default once again as part of a budget negotiation, which, by the way, we have never done in our history, until we did it last year, i will not play that game. >> won't play that game. never done in history. will the president stick to that and not allow another debacle, a debacle, if we want to be british or american, of the debt ceiling vote to be tied to budget cuts like it was last time around? >> whether it's a debacle or a debacle. we'll find out very, very quickly. the president is standing his ground so far, he is saying that he is not going to compromise on what was essentially a very central issue in the campaign. that is, are we going to see bush tax cuts continue for people who are richer than $250,000 and, you know, the republicans in congress, as you recall, last week, they said that they will not vote a tax increase, even on millionaires. house republicans have b


like that, obama, the deal maker, obama the praying mattist, to use democrats in the congress in that way, or not? >> i don't see their incentives as being that much different. i do think that president obama, the leader of the democratic party, really has the leverage. i don't -- i expect that if there is a deal, that democrats don't like, you'll hear grumbling from the democrats, but i would be very surprised if you hear outright revolt. what democrats in congress want is more money. that's what president obama is facing. a full second term of under very constrained circumstances. he wants more rev new. i think he also wants, as much as he feels like he has that sword over republicans, the fact is if the economy goes into recession, that is going to affect the prospects for a successful second term for him and n a profound way. >> congressman cummings, if i still have you, i'm interested in your take on this. i think some friction between even a democratic controlled white house and a democratic controlled house or a democratic controlled congress, there is some friction bui

accomplished. congress is the most unproductive session since the late 1940s. president obama has signed 290 bills passed by congress this year. this compares to 383 bills passed last year. his approval rating currently stands at a nice round that 18% according to politics average. from the youth list to the downright e'en, a survey from airfare revealed that flyers found -- nearly 25% of the vote. united airlines coming in second with 21% and followed by alta and u.s. airways. the social network suspending its new year's eve messaging tool. it allowed them to read the messages of private users. diane, a big raise. >> that is right. we are watching netflix shares very closely. this comes out after they cut his take last year. the stock is up almost 32% since the start of 2012. reed hastings is doubling his outlook. trading is light as expected. the dow is up 11. the nasdaq is up about 22. the s&p is up about five points. dagen: thousands of small businesses around the country are waiting for the outcome around washington. the results could have a serious impact when it comes to withholding t

. president obama has been trying to turn the heat on congress this weekend, applying new pressure on this interview with david gregory on "meet the press." nbc's kristen welker has more on that angle from the white house. good evening. >> reporter: kate you good evening. the president has repeatedly blamed republicans for the fiscal cliff stalemate and now, he is doubling down on that criticism. on "meet the press," president obama continued his public campaign to pressure congress. >> if congress doesn't act, then everybody's taxes go up. and for the average family that could mean a loss of $2,000 in income and the whole economy could slow down at a time went economy's actually starting to pick up. >> reporter: he, again, called on lawmakers to strike a deal or hold a vote on his plan, which would raise tax rates on wealthy americans, a major sticking point for republicans. >> the way they're behaving is that their only priority is making sure that tax breaks for the wealthiest americans are protected. that seems to be their only overriding, unifying theme. >> reporter: after the

for the tax code in a continuing series on what president obama and congress should tackle in the next four years today. the "new york times" lead editorial is why the economy needs tax reform. that editorial today in the "new york times" if you want to check it out. we'll go now to linda from indiana this morning on the independent line. caller: good morning. afe couple points to make. i can't understand why a handful of bureaucrats are able to control all the american citizens. i think there ought to be term limits. and if they don't do their job, instead of electing people why don't we throw them all out and appoint somebody and when they don't do their job they're the ones who get the pink slip. i just don't understand the way this economy is going. the e.p.a. is regulating and pushing through cutting down on energy, the poor coal miners, because they want that clean energy. we've got a plant right here not just a few miles from me. they burn clean coal. if i was in there, they would probably have me assassinated in a week because i would have a line item veto every bit of pork barrel s

into effect. today president obama called on congress to agree on a compromise plan to protect the middle class. >>> the woman who went to prison for murdering the scarsdale diet doctor in 1990 has herself died. jean harris was 89. she was the doctor's longtime lover. he developed the famous fad, the diet in the 1980s, and harris said she found him treated on her and tried to commit suicide in front of him. they wrestled over a gun and he was shot. >>> former president george h.w. bush is getting better. he is reportedly singing with doctors and nurses in the houston hospital where he is at, although he is still in the intensive care unit. the senior bush has been in the hospital now for more than a month, but his family says that they are confident that he'll be out or released soon. >>> a cancer diagnosis didn't stop one man. in fact, at 79, it is spurring him on to achieve new goal as a marathon runner. >>> plus, no more nudity in san francisco. at least not in public. it is one of the most outrageous lawsuits of the year. and of course our legal guy will weigh in. announcer ] what if

from 35% to 39.6%. that's only on the amount earned above that threshold. obama has told congress either they come up with something better or put his proposal to a vote. he's betting even those who hate the idea of a tax increase on the rich will hate causing america to go over the fiscal cliff even more. okay. option three. that's the red box. that's one where america goes over the fiscal cliff. jessica yellin is cnn's chief white house correspondent. peer into the crystal ball for us, jessica. which of these scenarios is most likely? >> well, ali, i think that after yesterday it's slightly more likely that there will be some sort of agreement. that doesn't mean that there are a whole bunch of optimists running around d.c. saying it's going to get resolved. but what you describe sod well as a moment of spiritual clarity yesterday really did lead some to think that senators reid and mcconnell have done this before. they are two experts at getting together and crafting something that resolves things at the 11th hour. and if any two men with can do it, it is these two men. right no

because of obama's re-election. the "new york times" made the front page with "clout diminished, tea party turns to narrower issues." and "the washington post" reports tea party stays on the sidelines as obamas, republicans in congress tackle fiscal cliff. the most visible former elected official in the tea party and, of course, chairman of freedom works tried to oust several freedom works officials this fall. in fact, according to the post, army thieves control momentarily of the group. and he brought a gun carrying aide to remove rivals within the organization. but within a week, army was out. freedom works arranged an $8 million pay page for him. $8 million. that is more than the organization's entire annual budget in some years. over in the house, several tea party allies were recently stripped of their committee assignments by speaker boehner. so there are some problems there at the top. an influential conservative is lashing out. >> the tea party is going of to look at itself. it's been so helpful to the republican party in the past. it saved i by not going third party in 2010, helpi


we heard from president obama who expressed frustration that congress has yet to come to an agreement. >> i have to say that ever since i took office, throughout the campaign, and over the last couple of months, my preference would have been to solve all these problems in the context of a larger agreement, a bigger deal, a grand bargain, whatever you want to call it that solves our deficit problems in a balanced and responsible way, but with this congress this was obviously a little too much to hope for at this time. it may be we can do it in stages. we're going to solve this problem, instead, in several steps. one thing we can count on with respect to this congress is that if there's even one second left before you have to do what you're supposed to do, they will use that last second. >> well, when all the dust settles, and as we know it is not settled yet, will we be able to say that one side or the other got more of what it wanted? with me now is ezra klein from "the washington post" and "huffington post's" sam stein. a lot of republicans didn't like what they heard from the presid

and a plan for an economic growth and deficit reduction. >> that was president obama talking with four days left in that fiscal cliff deadline saying he's hoping congress will reach a deal on this. if not, he's asking them to bring a package to the floor that will protect middle class mrns. >>> coming up all brand-new at 6:00, american families are now banned from adopting russian children. we'll hear from one local family who calls it a death sentence for thousands of small children. >> before you get to work on your next home repair project, we're warning you about the dangers of trying to do it yourself. now a preview of what's ahead on world news at 6:30. >> the 11th our deal or no -- hour deal or no deal. tonight the track of the storm and where it will hit. >>> the nation is mourning the loss of the man who led allied forces in the gulf war. norman schwarzkopf was credited with winning the war and the public's imagination. >> reporter: in 1990, norman schwarzkopf was a little known general looking ahead to requirement -- retirement. then he led into the face of the u.s. counterattack,

the feeling that congress' approval rating among president obama is in the neighborhood of negative 75,000 percent. and yes, numbers geeks, not a real number. but he seems really tired of working with these people. but there is a way in which congress, and particularly congressional republicans may actually be helping president obama out right now. everybody's always known two things about the cliff. you're almost certainly going to get more taxes in a deal after you go over than in a deal before you go over it. that's because after you go over the cliff, taxes already go up for everybody. so anything you do, any reasonable deal congress reaches, it will be a big tax cut. but the other thing about the fiscal cliff is you don't want to be blamed for going over it. it is going to be bad for the economy. it's bad for the country. what speaker boehner's done is create a situation in which we're going to go over the fiscal cliff. but the people who want higher taxes, the democrats, they're not going to be blamed for it. after all, it was john boehner who walked away from negotiations to try

that milestone, the current congress needs to send nearly 100 bills to president obama's desk in the next few days. >> that lack of productivity isn't hurting paychecks on capitol hill. even as tax hikes and an unend to unemployment benefits for 2 million people could be on the way because of the fiscal cliff. congress, it's about to get a raise. it's part of an executive order that president obama issued which ends a pay freeze for federal workers. so salaries will go up by .5% after march 27th. that's an extra $900 before taxes. currently members of congress make $174,000 a year except for leaders who make a little more. the last time lawmakers got a pay raise was in 2009. >>> this morning, i want to tell you about the fact that we know the name of a man pushed to his death at a new york city subway station now. he's identified as 46-year-old dusend. a sketch of the suspect. she's described as a heavy set woman in her 20s who was wearing a ski jacket and sneakers. poppy harlow has more on the investigation for us. >> it was horrible. >> reporter: this man says he heard the final scream of t

about that quite yet. president obama today, and what i thought was interesting is using the power of the bully pulpit to put pressure on congress to get this basic deal done that he is calling for, and richard, one of the things that he said at the end of the remarks is that essentially this is not how the american people do business and just to remind you that ordinary folks meet their deadlines and sort out disagreements and the fact that the lawmakers can't do it is boggling to many of them. the president really trying to ramp up public pressure, and this is something that we have seen him do in the past, a tactic that he has taken in the past to try to get the public on his side to put the pressure on the house republicans. richard? >> kristen welker, thank you so much for all of your work at the white house. joined by the grio's joy reid and chicago tribute's clarence page. let's talk about what kristen was just talking about, because i felt that the president was getting impatient. roll the tape. >> outside of washington, nobody seems to understand why this is a repeat patte

in ten year's time. >> both houses of congress have passed tax relief that will protect the middle class. >> when it came time for the cuts to expire, the u.s. was emerging from the worst recession since the great depression. so president obama agreed to extend the tax cuts for two more years in exchange for congress extending federal emergency unemployment benefits. those cuts are expensive. if they are extended by 2020, the bush era tax cuts will be responsible for more than half the total national debt. democrats insist that taxes go up for the wealthy but stay in place permanently for those earning less than $250,000 a year. >> we need to stop the job killing tax hikes and we need to start cutting spending now. >> republicans refuse to play ball. they say no higher rates on the rich, no tax hikes on anyone. based on an ideology that calls on government to be as small as possible. its roots are as old as american politics, but the philosophies main spokesman is this man, grover norquist, president of americans for tax reform. his pledge signed by almost all republicans in congress for

is already fan. >> reporter: press the barack obama needs is- president barack obama is saying that the congress need to take immediate action. the meeting today was good, and constructive but there's no agreement there should be a vote on his proposal to extend unemployment benefits and also help with tax cuts on the middle-class. justin waldman, kron 4. >> reporter: the city of richmond has been issuing a permit to pg&e. this san bruno explosion.. for chevron is hoping that this will be completely repaired by the end of next year. >> reporter: senator cherry hill well propose a bill to install an interlock device on their vehicles. >> for one year and comply with the calibration every other month. before fully getting their driving privileges back this will make it clear that repeat offenders to not complete the interlock program there will never get their license back. >> reporter: haazig madyun redwood city, kron 4 >> reporter: just a couple of days away from a to year's eve and if you might want to consider- public transportation. they have extended transportation or even

to use the money? >> senator, we heard president obama say in an interview that if congress can't get anything done and we go over the fiscal cliff, that plan "d" essentially is to have another vote on january 4th when the new congress comes in, and that would just be a straight up or down vote on extending tax cuts for middle class families making up to $250,000 a year. do you think that's what happens? >> i'm hoping that we resolve this today to give the american people some certainty. the president doesn't seem too eager to actually get involved and find solutions to deal with the number one problem facing our country. if you do what the president just proposed and raise taxes on those folks, it helps fund the government for seven days. it doesn't deal with our fundamental spending problem in this country. bottom line is the president is the only one with a pen who can sign into law something and he ought to be very involved with making sure that he gets something that he will sign that will pass both a republican controlled house and a democrat controlled

of the attack that killed four americans. >>> also in an interview, president obama discussed who he thinks is to blame for last minute negotiations ahead of the looming fiscal cliff. >> so far, at least, congress has not been able to get this stuff done. not because democrats in congress don't want to go ahead and cocooperate, i think it's bn hard for speaker boehner and leader mcconnell to accept the fact taxes on wealthiest americans should go up. we have put forward not only a sensible deal, but one that has the support of the majority of the american people, including close to half of republicans. >> let's get to the strategy talk. a pleasure to welcome these two gentlemen. joe sestak and former republican congressman and chairman tom davis, thank you both for being here. >> i was talking to you all during the commercial break. you said if it was up to you two, what would you do. what would your solution be right now? not the deal, the politics of a deal. >> we have to set politics aside. both parties need to look in the mirror and say what do we do for the good of america? set aside t

. i like the way he looked at obama care and handed it off to congress and the stimulus bill that he handed off to congress. this is the one person doesn't have to bowe to the god of reelection. everybody else is subject to the things you have already talked about, their home. what would lbj have done, blake? not this. >> i would just be frank with you. i think it's an odd gamut. because look, as i just said i'm skeptical about the ability of these two senate leaders to hammer out a deal that would satisfy both of their very competing, completely opposing imperatives and the next step the president said if you guys don't get a deal i'll ask harry reid to put a bill on the floor and we both know in order for that to happen mitch mcconnell will gra have to agree not to filibuster that and the president is daring mitch mcconnell not to engage in a filibuster and it would seem so embarrassing to the public that mcconnell was filibustering a deal for middle-class tax reform. i think that's a risky gamble. i guess the way he, the president, is thinking of it is either he gets that bill on

. america's seniors are on the verge of losing access to health care. how? if congress and president obama don't act by january 1, tomorrow, medicare payments to physicians will be reduced, will be cut by nearly 27%. you see, mr. speaker, the fiscal cliff is more than just the tax increases that president obama so dearly wants. the effect of the s.g.r. formula means that physicians who treat medicare patients will be forced to limit the number of seniors that they see, fewer patients being seen, doctors forced not to see patients because of foolish washington policy. this jeopardizes health care for millions of folks. the sustainable growth rate, the formula used by medicare to determine physician reimbursement, needs to be repealed. it doesn't work for patients and it doesn't work for doctors. and it's destructive to the very principles that we hold dear about health care. it violates accessibility. it violates quality, and it limits choices, it harms real people. now, there are positive solutions that we're working on so we may responseably reform this broken system, but while we work to


, but that's not stopping president obama from giving every member of congress a pay raise from as much as $6,000. joining us now is peter swietzer a research fellow at stanford university, hoover institution. good to see you, peter. >> hey, it's great to be out with me, thanks for having me. >> dave: is this a bit hypocritical talking about raising taxes for all americans if they don't get a deal done, yet, how do you go ahead and give congress a raise? >> that's a great question. you know, it beats me. there's been a pay freeze in effect since 2010 and obviously, they've done such a fantastic job between then and now that they deserve this pay increase, right? it makes no sense, it makes no sense in terms of the merits and the performance in washington has been terrible and it makes no sense in terms of the politics and the atmospherics, they're getting a pay raise before they fix the fiscal cliff? who gets a pay raise before they get the job done? it's a ridiculous notion and shows me how out of touch washington d.c. is with the rest of the country. >> dave: it's certainly not about merit.

obama say he's modestly optimistic that a last-minute deal can be reached with members of congress before america goes over the fiscal cliff four days from now. he's warning that no one will get everything they want, but he says that shouldn't stand in the way of reaching an agreement. >> we're now at the last minute. the american people are not going to have any patience for a politically self-inflicted wound to our economy, not right now. >> we are joined by former labor secretary robert reich, the author of "beyond outrage." i wish we had more time. i'd ask you all about how to fix it. but let's focus on this one part, secretary reich. you listened to the president. what did you hear? >> candy, i heard basically washington boilerplate, keep our fingers crossed, this is going to be a hail mary, but i have no idea how this is going to come out. >> when you hear him say, i've asked for an up-or-down vote, do you hear, there's a possibility or do you hear, uh-oh, this is a guy looking to position himself for after we go over the fiscal cliff? >> well, undoubtedly the president wants

. and of course, president obama sort of continuing his public campaign to pressure congress, not only republicans, but also, democrats who have expressed skepticism about this deal and not getting enough in new revenues. the president saying, look, this is not a perfect deal, not grand bargain, the big deal they had initially hoping for and working on but it is a deal nonetheless and will prevent at least part of the fiscal cliff set to go in to effect in a matter of hours now. >> mike, we talk a lot here about the sequester, the income tax rates for the wealthy and other issues that need to be resolved or one on the table. one that's not on the table, the payroll tax extension is just gone. unemployment insurance extension looks like it's part of this. and medicare dock fix. you have any sense of two other things that obama's been looking for here? one is an extension of the expansion of the refundable tax credits of stimulus in 2009. these are things pushing for. if that's part of it and obama looking for at least some infrastructure, some stimulus spending. are any of those components in this

in the next 24/48 hours. >> this is a typical pattern of the president. outsourced obama care, outsourced the stimulus bill. left this to congress, to do all the major works he wanted, left it to them. now he's handing it over. he's the only western this afternoon who doesn't have to bow to the god of re-election, he, if anyone, could compromise, he doesn't have to worry about getting re-elected again. that's driving decision making on both sides when it comes to congress, yet, he doesn't lead. he hands it over to a man who hasn't passed a budget in years. >> at 3:00, we'll meet. and i'll tell congressional leaders, you come up with the package, tyler. >> the real tragedy, what it says about the quality of leadership in this country. they can't lead, seem unwilling to lead. that's what's distressing to individual voters and to the markets. >> thank you, joining us, and thank you, out there. we'll join "mad money" right after this break. and we'll see michelle right after that on a special "kudlow report." let's give thanks - for an idea. a grand idea called america. the idea that if you w

argument, placing the blame squarely on congress, specifically, house republicans, mr. obama is cautiously opt mifertic that lawmakers will reach a watered-down deal, but no mention of debt, tax reform or entitlements. i'm shannon bream. the senate will convene in an hour. we have team coverage on capitol hill and at the white house. we start with mike, live on capitol hill. what's the latest on republicans? and how are they reacting to the comments we heard from the president? >> reporter: good afternoon. the critical comments from president obama in a critical stage in these negotiations, certainly seem to hit a nerve. a spokesman for senator mitch mcconnell says while the president was tapingly those remark, senator mcconnell was trying to bring republicans and democrats together on a solution. the spokesman notes, discussions continue. if senator mcconnell and harry reid can reach a deal in the next couple of hours, leading senate republican notes there is no guarantee it will pass both the house and the senate. >> if mcconnell can't get 60% of us to vote for this deal, it will be hard

the dreaded fiscal cliff when the clock strikes midnight. today president obama took one more opportunity to tell congress not to let that happen. >> part of the reason that i wanted to speak to all of you here today is to make sure that we emphasize to have congress and that members of both parties understand that all across america this is a pressing concern on people's minds. >> jared bernstein is an msnbc contributor and former chief economic adviser to vice president joe biden. jared, thank you for being here. >> thank you for inviting me, jonathan. >> take us through what happens if we do, indeed, go over the cliff tonight. >> well, if we go over the cliff and there isn't a new plan in the offing that could pass very quickly, and that's actually quite an if right now because they have been making some progress, then, you know, some bad stuff could happen when financial markets reopen. they would take a spike down because they have largely priced in a solution. a very serious problem, millions of people would face what's called a hard cutoff of their unemployment benefits. if you're

, president obama sign the executive order that gives executive worker as a pay raise. won wonders whether congress has earned their raise. grover and i have never agreed on anything rat all except the fact that congressmen shouldn't have had a raise on thursday. good morning, goo to see again. >> good morning. >> you continue to engage in the conversation which i always appreciate. let me ask you this, you don't want taxes going up on anyone. but when things looked like they were aat an impasse and house speaker john boehner, the highest elected in the country. put forward his plan b about a week ago, you read it through, and you said you would be okay with people who had signed this anti tax pledge of yours voting for that bill. voting for an increase of taxes. and you will phrase it differently. voting for something that will allow taxes to go up for those that make more than $1 million a year. that seems like a sea change. why did you agree to that? >> it wasn't a sea change. this is a written commitment by many congressmen and senators, governors, state legislators, that they'll oppos



congress impressional leaders left the white house after a last-ditch fiscal k cliff meeting with president obama. the closed door meeting was an attempt to avoid the automatic tax headaches and spending cuts set to king at the start of the new year. with just three days to go republicans and democrats are still blaming each other. >> i want to thank all of you for being here to call upon the republicans not to drop the ball on the middle class. >> reporter: there was a new year's eve style rally saying the fiscal cliff ball is in the republicans court. >> it's republicans who are holding hostage the middle class in america so that the wealthy don't have to pay their fair share. >> we need two words. presidential leadership, while not just taxing rich people. >> reporter: tennessee republicans lamar alexander and bob corker said the president has to take the lead. corker was not optimistic about the white house meeting. >> we're going end one a small kick the can down the road bill that creates another fiscal cliff to deal with this fiscal cliff. >> reporter: today's meeting at the white ho



people have been struggling and suffering and generational theft is going on what did we see obama is ordering pay raises for biden and members of congress and federal workers and nobody is talking about our healthcare taxes going up, billy cunningham. how in good conscience do they do this at this time? >> sean hannity, the people are taking this in the shorts now are going to be the butchers, the bakers, the candlestickmakers and carpenters and elec electricia. we haven't talked about the huge tax increases on average americans. take billions and ship it off to a black hole in washington and call it a victory. boehner will be elected speaker. the republicans won't be primary #-d. the media will declare obama the winner and the only person getting hurt is the middle class that allegedly obama supports which is a bunch of baloney. that s go is going to happen. >> i will throw this to joe trippi. the people that will really be hurt are the children and grand children that we are stealing from. we are robbing these kids blind. we are taking their inheritance away. and i have a questi

, no problem. obama won the election. he'll hand them a plan. he'll make some small changes. that's how congress works, of course. pass it and we'll be done. we'll go home for christmas. not so much. president obama did hand them a plan as treasury secretary tim geithner made a special trip all the way to john boehner's office on capitol hill. he delivered the plan to speaker boehner, a plan pretty much identical to the one president obama just won the election on. you might have thought that would have been leading, the problem would have been solved. not so much. >> flabbergasted. i looked at him, you can't be serious. i've just never seen anything like it. >> so when you said you wanted to be led, you just wanted a plan, that was a joke? so the white house agreed, then, no more leading, that was not what their partners in the house of representatives wanted. instead, white house and boehner entered into intense lengthy negotiations. and by the end of them they seemed really close to a deal. the white house had agreed to cut their tax ask by about 400 billion, to increase their spendi

in the nation's capitol. let's get to danielle nottingham with details. >> reporter: top congress impressional leaders left the white house after a last-ditch fiscal cliff meeting with president obama. the closed-door meeting was an attempt to avoid the automatic tax hikes and spending cuts set to king at the start of the new year. >> we had a constructive meeting today. senator reid and senator mcconnell are discussing a potential agreement where we could get a bipartisan bill out. >> reporter: at the present time reminded lawmakers thers


congress since recordkeeping began. in the course of nearly two years, the 112th congress has passed 219 bills that have actually been signed into law by president obama. but a lot of these laws were insignificant, things like the names of post offices. and a slew of bills passed by the house had no chance of passing the senate or getting the president's signature, like repeated attempts to repeal the affordable care act. the influence of the tea party lawmakers have been a clear factor. >> the tea party, which is not even on the screen about a year ago at this time, is a very domineering force. >> one story will be with us, the rise of the tea party. >> regardless of what those elites think, the tea party movement is authentic, grassroots movement. >> i wouldn't sell short these candidates. >> tea party americans, you're winning. >> it's a big mistake not to take it seriously. >> you think the tea party is here to stay? >> absolutely. >> this book was just named the best book of the year. good evening and congratulations. >> thank you, chris. happy to be with you. >> this fiscal cliff w

or eight months. >> okay. so we've got the latest here including president obama doing an interview for "meet the press." the senate is scheduled to reconvene at 11:00 this morning. any deal today would have to be rushed through both chambers of congress before midnight. as talks in the senate stalled yesterday, minority leader mitch mcconnell reached out to someone he believed he could help jump start the negotiations and perhaps deliver an 11th hour compromise, and that would be vice president joe biden. mcconnell and biden reportedly spoke several times by phone throughout the night after talks with harry reid came to a halt. >> there's no single issue that remains an impossible sticking point. the sticking point appears to be a willingness, an interest, or frankly the courage to close the deal. i want everyone to know i'm willing to get this done. but i need a dance partner. >> before i continue to set the scene, anyone here think biden can make a difference? dan? >> not before the end of the day. i just think that even if the senate -- even if they work out a deal that's accept

: they know it will pass and they don't have to be responsible by defaulting on the debt. president obama's move to say let's take this out of congress and let me have sole authority to lift the borrowing authority whenever one won't fly. >> there have been a lot of shenanigans around this in the past. the conversation is when we are doing spending. when we are passing appropriations is the time to say should we spend this money or not? they are deciding to spend the money and don't want to pay the bill and that is not the right time to have this conversation. shibani: is not in the household or the government. thank you very much, have a happy new year. it is a quarter till. every 15 minutes stocks, lauren simonetti looking at the s&p 500's biggest loser. >> advanced microdevices are selling off by 4.5% and if you take a look at the stock for the week it is pretty ugly, into the double digits, the reason is a 25 year veteran of the company to rival samsung, that is weighing on the stock and that is a pretty bad week. shibani: a bad week for overall stock. we are trading at tight range, a

Excerpts 0 to 64 of about 95 results.

Click for
next 30 results
(Some duplicates have been removed)

Terms of Use (10 Mar 2001)