Guests: Virg Bernero, Jeffrey Breit, David Yates, Bob Ceska, Heidi Harris,
Sam Stein, Katrina Vanden Heuvel, Lizz Winstead
ED SCHULTZ, HOST: Good evening, Americans, and welcome to THE ED SHOW tonight from Minneapolis.
These stories are hitting “My Hot Buttons” this hour.
President Obama just hammered Republicans on jobs today, and they deserved it. But you know what? I‘m getting kind of sick and tired of all the talk. I‘ve got a message for Harry Reid tonight and a call to action for the long-term unemployed in this country.
While Congress takes a break, the rest of us have to step up and carry the load for these desperate Americans. My commentary on that in just a moment and what we should do.
I don‘t know how Republicans like John Boehner and Jim DeMint—how they sleep at night. This week alone, they have done irreparable damage to the middle class in this country, and American heroes standing together and voting as part of the “Party of No.”
Katrina vanden Heuvel will really let hem have it in the “Playbook” tonight.
In one fell swoop, conservative “Psycho Talker” Phyllis Schlafly has attacked welfare recipients and unmarried women with children. It doesn‘t get any better than this when it comes to “Psycho Talk.”
I‘ve got some choice words for the wicked witch of the Midwest tonight. And that‘s what she is.
This is the story that has me fired up tonight. It is time for the Democrats to wake up, get in the driver‘s seat, put it to the floorboard, and just run over the Republicans. If they don‘t, it could be lights out.
Washington has, in my opinion, ignored four million unemployed wage earners for long enough. And I think it‘s time for the 99ers to get tough and return the favor. They need action.
If Harry Reid doesn‘t find a way to get help to these people, he doesn‘t deserve to be re-elected. That‘s right. No Democrat, no Republican does. This is a crisis.
The Senate has one week before they go home to try to save their own rear ends when it comes to being jobless. The House has already scattered like a bunch of cockroaches.
I think Harry Reid needs to keep the Senate in session until they get something done for the most needy in this country, the 99ers. And if they can‘t do it, I think those four million people in this country should let the Democrats know that they‘re not showing up in November, there‘s going to be ramifications to this.
President Obama has zero chance of re-election if he can‘t win the manufacturing states like Ohio, Indiana, or Michigan, which has a 13 percent unemployment rate. The president didn‘t mince words in Detroit, Michigan today. He hammered Republicans who didn‘t want the government to get involved in the auto industry as it nearly fell apart.
Here‘s what he had to say in a Chrysler plant today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Don‘t bet against the American worker. Don‘t bet against the American people.
We‘ve got more work to do. It‘s going to take some time to get back to where we need to be. But I have confidence in the American worker. I have confidence in you. I have confidence in this economy.
We are coming back.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: He‘s right on the money. There‘s no question about that. But the key phrase—key sentence in that was “It‘s going to take some time.”
How much time? It‘s all about the American worker. I got it.
Remember how hard the Republicans fought against loaning the auto industry some money? That‘s right, it wasn‘t a bailout. They tried to scare you with the big government motors and everything else with the bailout. It was a loan, and it‘s going to be paid back.
President Obama and the Democrats saved up to a million jobs by running the Republicans over and helping those companies out in 2009. Now they need to do the same thing for the 99ers in 2010.
When it comes to the unemployed folks in this country, all Democrats should be showing the same passion the president did today. This is a generational fight, and it‘s time for Congress to get on the battlefield. There is no way in hell that anyone should be out campaigning to save their cushy jobs in Washington when Americans are suffering the way they are across the heartland.
Now, tonight, this is bold. And I think it‘s going to happen. But tonight I‘m asking the 99ers to form an unemployment coalition in this country and send a message to the Democrats, and tell them if they don‘t deliver, they‘re not going to vote for them in November. They‘re not going to be there.
Does it sound radical? Well, yes, it does kind of sound radical. But damn it, this is about life and death.
Senator Reid, do your job. Keep the Senate in session until you get this thing done for the 99ers. It is the moral and the correct thing to do.
You know, when I was growing up in the ‘60s, I was 8, 9, 10, 11 years old, and my dad, who went through the depression and went through World War II and served, he used to sit at the dinner table and tell us that we won‘t have a depression in this country because we have got some safety nets put in place now, and we won‘t have the kind of economic problems that we had when the crash of ‘29 took place. But maybe we should start looking at old film like this when people were sleeping in the streets and people were muzzling through garbage cans trying to get something to eat, people were standing in bread lines, people standing, getting some soup, the soup lines in big cities in America.
If we continue to follow the Republicans, I says we‘re about two years away from videotape like that, because if you‘ve got four million people out there, and it‘s 50,000 a day that are joining the ranks, that are losing all of their benefits, people are losing their homes, they‘re losing their credit, they‘re losing everything—and a lot of Americans can‘t move in with their relatives. I mean, I don‘t think that the Congress understands what‘s happening to people in this country. I really don‘t.
I think they‘re disconnected. And I do believe that unless we take drastic measures to help people out, we‘re going to see lines like that.
Where are these people going to go?
The moral thing to do in this country right now is to make sure that these four million people are helped out endlessly until we turn this economy around. That‘s right. There shouldn‘t be any sunset on any kind of unemployment, because that will motivate our lawmakers to make sure they get something done.
I get e-mails day after day about more outsourcing that‘s taken place. Big companies are shipping jobs over to India, and here comes more unemployment down the pike.
In the meantime, we‘ve got a stimulus package that is kind of turning the tide, but it‘s not enough. It needs to be bold. It needs to be more. We need to do more as a country. And if you look back at what has happened this week—and we‘ll talk more about it later on in the show tonight—about what the Republicans have done just this week, you have to think that pictures that I just showed you are not too far away.
We now have the Republican Party against giving loans to small business. This is unprecedented in this country.
We now have the Republican Party on record saying that the top two percent, if they can keep their tax cuts, it will create jobs, which is absolutely a fallacy. We now have the Republican party saying we‘ve got to the protect .3 of one percent of people with the estate tax.
The Republican Party—and no one will debate me on this in the Senate on the Republican side, because they know I‘m correct. I‘ll go face to face with any one of you.
You are setting up a country of the concentration of wealth. It‘s the rich and the poor.
The middle class is getting wiped out in this country. And we stand here and do nothing.
Harry Reid, you have to be unselfish. You‘re acting like one of them when you don‘t have the guts to stand up and say we‘re staying in session until we address the 99ers and we address the jobs bill. It takes drastic action and leadership to get it done for this country.
Get your cell phones out, folks. I want to know what you think about this whole subject tonight.
Text survey: Do you believe the Democrats are truly committed to helping the long-term unemployed in America?
Text “A” for yes, text “B” for no to 622639. We‘ll bring you the results later on in the show.
And a reminder that the Democrats ran on the platform of being the party of the people. And if they leave four million people behind, there‘s going to be hell to pay.
It doesn‘t matter if the Democrats have the majority if this is the way they‘re going to act. It doesn‘t matter who has the majority if this is the kind of country we‘re going to be. We are better than this.
Joining me now is a man running for the Democratic nomination for governor in Michigan, Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero.
Virg, on the heels of what we are seeing right now, the way the Republicans have acted this week, tight with the dollar, tax cuts for the top two percent, where are we? What has to be done? Because if we don‘t give help to the 99ers, it‘s going to come down to the state level, and that‘s a job you‘re running for.
What do we do?
MAYOR VIRG BERNERO (D), LANSING, MICHIGAN: Well, Ed, as usual, you‘re right on top. Right with it. And thank you for being the conscience of the country, really, on these issues.
It‘s incredible to me that they would even think about going on vacation without addressing this issue. People are hurting, people are desperate. It‘s exactly as you said—they‘re losing their jobs, they‘re losing their credit, they‘re losing their homes, and they‘re losing their hope.
We had President Obama in Detroit today, and we were delighted to see him, to welcome him. And you know, we‘ve had success here.
The federal government came in, saved the auto industry from all of the terrible effects of the economy that Wall Street has brought on. And look, the proof of the pudding is in the products that we make.
We‘re back on top. The Detroit three, according to J.D. Power, is back among the top quality in the world.
We know that we can compete. You and I have discussed it. We can compete with the best anywhere. But we need a level playing field.
And I agree with you 150 percent on the need for the unemployment benefits extension. People are hurting, they need it now. But you and I know what they want most of all, and that‘s a good job.
SCHULTZ: Yes.
BERNERO: They want a job.
SCHULTZ: All right. They want a job, and they‘ve got to have access to capital.
What would be your plan in the state of Michigan—and I know that you‘ve got a lot of money from the state of Michigan invested in Wall Street—what would you do if you were governor to turn that around? What would your plan be?
BERNERO: Well, my long-term plan is to get a state bank like in North Dakota. It works there, it can work here. Let‘s invest in ourselves.
Wall Street ain‘t investing in us. They‘ve left us for dead. They‘ve red-lined Michigan. They don‘t feel we‘re creditworthy.
They don‘t believe in manufacturing. They don‘t believe in Michigan.
Even though we‘re proving them wrong.
We need to invest in ourselves. And yet, still, we‘re investing over $1 billion in Wall Street banks, in JPMorgan Chase, when they‘ve written us off.
They‘re closing up shop. They‘re calling in loans. It‘s Robin Hood in reverse, exactly as you suggested, rob from the poor and give to the rich.
They‘re taking our money and investing in other states and even overseas. One of the first things I‘m going to do as governor is get that money back and invest it in community banks and community credit unions who will loan to businesses so that we can get job growth and create jobs again in Michigan.
They‘ve written us off. They don‘t believe in us. We‘ve got to act on our own. If we‘re waiting for Wall Street, we‘re waiting on a train that might never come.
SCHULTZ: Virg Bernero, keep up the fight. Keep going. All the best to you.
BERNERO: Thank you so much, Ed.
SCHULTZ: I hope you get it done next week, my man. Good luck to you.
BERNERO: Check us out at VoteVirg.com.
SCHULTZ: Absolutely.
Joining me now is Michigan Congressman Gary Peters. He‘s just come off the House floor where they were holding votes on the Small Business Relief Act, among other things. He‘s got to get back and vote in just a minute.
Where are we on the unemployed in this country? What should the Senate do, as you view it, from the House, Congressman?
REP. GARY PETERS (D), MICHIGAN: Well, one thing, and you mentioned it, Ed, at the beginning of your comments there, that the Senate needs to pass this small business lending bill. It‘s the one thing we‘re hearing, is that our small businesses, which are the engine of growth—that‘s where most of the jobs are created, are from our small businesses. And right now they simply can‘t get the loans that they need in order to do business. If they‘re ready to hire somebody, you can‘t do that unless you get a loan.
We passed that bill in the House, which is something that small businesses have been asking for, our small local community banks, so they can make those loans on Main Street. And yet, you‘ve got the Republicans standing in the way of probably one of the most important things that we can do in Congress right now, is to put liquidity in the system so small business owners can get a loan at a price that they can afford so they can run their business, hire people and expand.
And until we do that, we‘re not going to see the kind of sustainable growth that‘s necessary that can only come from having a very healthy and dynamic small business sector.
SCHULTZ: Congressman, what do you see for Michigan when you look at the long-term forecast? There‘s going to be eight, nine percent of the American people unemployed well into 2011. I mean, if we don‘t come up with a long-term relief package, there‘s going to be some real struggles in this country.
PETERS: Well, there are. And we‘re certainly still struggling in Michigan, although it is certainly gratifying to start seeing car sales going up. We‘re starting to see employment back.
And as mentioned, President Obama was in Michigan today to talk about the success of the investment in the American auto industry. Had that not happened, we would have lost up to a million jobs in this country. We were able to save those jobs.
And actually, there‘s been an increase in employment this year of about 55,000 jobs in the auto sector. That shows what happens when you are smart about investing a critical industry that is strategic not only to Michigan, but to the entire country, that now we have the opportunity to keep those jobs and to grow. And that‘s going to spill over, of course. Those manufacturing jobs are good-paying jobs, middle class jobs that spill over to the entire economy.
SCHULTZ: Congressman Peters, good to have you with us tonight.
Thanks so much. Appreciate your time.
PETERS: Great to be with you, Ed.
SCHULTZ: Coming up, disgraced BP CEO Tony Hayward just can‘t shut his trap. In a priceless exit interview, he says he‘s become a villain for doing the right thing? How is feeling sorry for yourself and stiffing fishermen from their paychecks doing the right thing?
We‘ve got to talk about that.
And hey, Tony, I want to introduce to you this man, Captain David Yates. He wants to get his life back. That‘s next up.
And I hope someone alerts the authorities that “Caribou Barbie” making a run for the border. We‘ll get “Rapid Fire Response” on that, and to the cheap shot that she took at President Obama today.
Bill Richardson, governor of New Mexico, brings new meaning to the Wild Wild West.
And this just in: Snooki is now behind bars. “Daily Show” co-creator Lizz Winstead will give us the update and the police report when she headlines “Club Ed.”
You‘re watching THE ED SHOW MSNBC. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW, and thanks for watching tonight.
Well, British Petroleum‘s CEO Tony Hayward thinks he‘s being wrongly vilified for the role he played in the biggest environmental disaster in the United States history.
In his first interview since BP announced he was being shipped off to Siberia, he told “The Wall Street Journal,” “I‘ve become a villain for doing the right thing. But I understand that people find it easier to vilify an individual more than a company.”
Well, Tony, don‘t feel too bad. Remember, you still have that $18 billion severance package and a lot of space to spend it in.
Meanwhile, the vast majority of fishing grounds in the northern Gulf, they‘re closed. People are hurting down there in the Gulf, and they certainly aren‘t sitting on any severance packages from BP right now.
For more, let me bring in Jeffrey Breit, a lawyer representing more than 500 fishermen in the Gulf region, and one of his clients who has got a story to tell, Captain David Yates, a long-time Gulf Coast fisherman whose life has been seriously impacted by the spill.
Mr. Breit, first to you tonight.
What is the latest on making good restitution on all of your clients?
What have you heard this week from BP? Where are we?
JEFFREY BREIT, ATTORNEY REPRESENTING FISHERMEN IN GULF REGION: Well, it‘s a little bit slow. They sent $1,000 checks out to these folks.
The Feinberg plan we hope is going to come out next week. We met with his team this Tuesday for four hours and talked about what they were going to do. But there‘s no money in the pipeline yet.
We‘ve been asking for it, and BP is still spinning the fact that the oil is disappearing. And I‘m sure you‘re going to hear from Captain Yates that that just isn‘t the case. There‘s oil everywhere.
SCHULTZ: Well, there is. Let‘s talk to Captain Yates, long-time Gulf Coast fisherman.
Captain, what‘s your life been like in the last 100 days?
CAPT. DAVID YATES, GULF COAT FISHERMAN: Well, the past five weeks or so, it‘s been terrible. We‘re doing nothing as far as catching fish.
We were looking at a really good season this year by the numbers of fish we were seeing, and now we‘re seeing no fish at all. So it‘s just not looking very good.
SCHULTZ: What are you going to do? Well, it‘s not looking very good.
How are you financially right now? Do you need help? Are you surviving?
YATES: I‘m surviving, but we certainly need help. BP was paying us when this began. They were paying us pretty well for two months. And then, you know, the next thing we know, they cut it a lot. And what they‘ve cut it to, we can‘t make it on that. And they‘re wanting us—go ahead.
SCHULTZ: Jeffrey Breit, I want to ask you, did they give you any reason why they‘ve cut these payments to captains like Mr. Yates?
BREIT: Well, they said they were going to change the plan, but I think they‘re just trying to delay until the Feinberg $20 billion takes place. There‘s no money in the plan yet.
BP claims office can‘t give us money because BP won‘t let them. And we‘ve asked for explanations. Next week we‘re going to get a judge, we hope. And then I think is going to ride herd on this and make sure these people get money in their pockets.
SCHULTZ: Captain Yates, how stressful has all of this been on you and your family?
YATES: It‘s terribly stressful. I mean, we have seven months—six-and-a-half months to make a living, and I‘ve lost five weeks right now because—just because of no fish. And before, when we had a lot of fish this spring, they moved the boats from the east end into our traditional fishing areas.
I don‘t blame them for coming over our way, but it put, like, 50 boats in an area where we usually had 10, and just caught up a lot of fish, busted up a lot of fish. And then when this oil starts showing up, the fish just plain disappeared.
SCHULTZ: Mr. Breit, is it true that BP is scaling back their cleanup operations? What can you tell us about that?
BREIT: Well, the last two days they‘ve announced that they can‘t find any oil, so they‘re cutting back on their workers. And over the last two days, my clients have gone out into the Gulf with cameras, and we‘ve got photographs showing oil sheer all over the Gulf, from Texas all the way to Mississippi.
And their claims and their spin machine just isn‘t going to work. Once the public finds out that the oil is still there, those workers hopefully will get back in there and try to save this Gulf.
SCHULTZ: Mr. Breit, Captain Yates, keep up the fight, and thanks for helping us keep this story alive in front of the American people. The truth has to get out weekly. Thanks so much.
BREIT: Thanks, Ed. I appreciate it.
YATES: Thank you.
SCHULTZ: I appreciate your time tonight. You bet.
Coming up, “Mr. Tan Man” and Snooki have something in common besides their Oompa-Loompa skin tone. They‘re both landing in the “Zone” next.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: And in “Psycho Talk tonight,” are we in the gutter this time? “Jersey Shore” parties it way back into the TV screen last night. And in between all the drinking, the fighting, the smoking and the swearing, Snooki found time to talk politics. Not surprisingly, the most sun-kissed girl in America is not happy about the tanning tax in the health care bill.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SNOOKI, “JERSEY SHORE”: I don‘t go tanning anymore because Obama put a 10 percent tax on tanning. And I feel like he did that intentionally for us. McCain would never have put a 10 percent tax on tanning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: You know, I‘ve got to give Snooki some credit here. She‘s right that McCain wouldn‘t have taxed tanning. McCain wouldn‘t have done anything at all about health care.
This is what McCain would have done --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN ®, ARIZONA: That old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran?
You know, bomb, bomb, bomb—anyway.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: But back to Snooki for a moment.
She clearly didn‘t listen to what the president said about the tanning tax at the White House Correspondents Dinner earlier this year.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: The following individuals shall be excluded from the indoor tanning tax within this bill: Snooki, JWoww, “The Situation” and House Minority Leader John Boehner.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: And people say President Obama doesn‘t reach out to Republicans? Some of those UV rays seem to have seeped through into Snooki‘s brain. Saying that the tanning tax was specifically aimed at the “Jersey Shore” kids is overbaked “Psycho Talk.”
Coming up, speaking of “Psycho Talkers,” wicked witch of the Midwest, Phyllis Schlafly got off her broomstick long enough to take a shot at unmarried women of America. We‘ll get “Rapid Fire Response” on that.
The Republican plot to screw the economy and the middle class has Americans working harder and bringing home less. My commentary on the men and women who shower after work is coming up.
All that, plus we‘ve got Bill Richardson looking to pardon a true outlaw.
And Sarah “Barracuda” is going rogue on the border.
You‘re watching THE ED SHOW on MSNBC.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. Thanks for watching. The Battleground story tonight, the middle class is fighting for its life in this country while republicans are fighting more tax breaks for the rich in this country. Over the past 30 years, the income of the wealthiest Americans has really gone sky high, while the middle class and lower class wage earners in this country really flat lined. The top one percent of earners have seen their incomes rise more than 300 percent over the last 30 years. The bottom 40 percent have barely seen a 20 percent increase. And if republicans get their way on the Bush tax cuts to get them extended, you can bet that the gap will continue to grow.
Joining me now is hosts Bob Ceska, host of “The Bob and Elvis Show” and “Huffington Post” contributor. Bob, good to have you with us tonight. I know that you have researched this subject quite a bit. We talked about a little bit earlier this week on the program. And one of the studies out there shows that just people living paycheck to paycheck, the number of Americans doing that back in 2007 was 43 percent, 2008, 49 percent, and now six in ten of Americans who‘s bring home a paycheck are living always or usually paycheck to paycheck. This trend is disturbing. What do we have to do?
BOB CESKA, “THE BOB AND ELVIS SHOW” HOST: Well, I mean, it‘s remarkable for the last 30 years, the middle class has been under attack in this country by mainly republican policies and also by conservative democratic policies. And that‘s got to end. But what‘s astonishing at this point is the number of middle class American who are being tricked into supporting the republicans this coming November. You know, it‘s staggering to imagine that middle class Americans are actually going to vote against their own economic best interests once again. It‘s happened before and it looks like it‘s going to happen again where the republicans want to.
SCHULTZ: What do you think is the number one trick out there that‘s being used right now?
CESKA: I think the biggest trick is that we need to focus on the deficit right now. We clearly cannot be focusing on the deficit. On top of that, the republicans actually want to continue to balloon the deficit which they‘ve been doing for the last ten years. They want to continue trickle down economics which has failed for the last ten years based solely upon where we are right now.
SCHULTZ: The numbers when you look at retirement, that has really dropped off. People aren‘t saving for the future. And yet, the republican ideologues out there are pushing hard to wipe out the entitlements. How big a battle is this? And I think I see even a greater separation between the two parties on this issue. What do you think?
CESKA: Well, yes, I know Paul Ryan, for example, wants to privatize Social Security and make massive cuts in Medicare. I mean, there‘s a lot of republican subterfuge right now where they‘re trying to get away with not saying what they really want to do, which is to slice the hell out of entitlements. And again, the middle class is going to somehow support this in November. I find that absolutely astonishing.
SCHULTZ: Bob Ceska, great to have you with us tonight. I appreciate your time here on THE ED SHOW and keep up the fight.
Now, let‘s get some rapid fire response from our panel on these stories tonight.
Conservative icon, is she an icon? Phyllis Schlafly takes us back into time. It‘s almost like the time machine on THE ED SHOW with some old-fashioned anti-feminist hate. She says single women voted for President Obama because they need big government to take the place of a husband.
Half-term Governor Sarah Palin has a problem with President Obama going on “The View.” She thinks he should be down on the border doing the fight, with Mexico instead.
And more trouble for Harry Reid. After a rough week in Washington, a new poll shows his lead against challenger Sharron Angle has all but vanished.
With us tonight, Sam Stein, political reporter for the “Huffington Post” and Heidi Harris, radio talk show host out of Las Vegas. Great to have both of you back with us tonight. Let‘s talk about Phyllis Schlafly first. Heidi, where—this is like a tornado coming through the conservative camp, isn‘t it?
HEIDI HARRIS, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: I love Phyllis Schlafly. Are you kidding? She‘s exactly right. When women don‘t have men in the homes, then of course, they‘re going to become dependent on government in most cases.
SCHULTZ: What?
HARRIS: One of the biggest results of all these government programs that have been put into effect for generations now is to get the man out of the home. You get certain benefits if you don‘t have a man in the house. So, women have said, hey, I don‘t need men and then they going to need somebody else to pick up the slack. And you know what, Ed, nobody can argue with the fact that the number one cause of poverty is not a lack of education, it‘s illegitimacy. That is a fact that‘s indisputable. So, she‘s right about that. That‘s an issue. Someone‘s got to take care of you if you have a kid when you can‘t support it. So, I love Phyllis Schlafly. I‘m proud of her.
SCHULTZ: All right. You love her. Sam Stein, it looks liking this hard righty is saying that the president of the United States almost enjoys this because he had 70 percent of them vote for him in the last election. And he‘s catering to them right now. That‘s basically where she‘s at.
What do you think?
SAM STEIN, “HUFFINGTON POST” POLITICAL REPORTER: I mean, I‘m at a loss for words that this theory. I don‘t quite get how illegitimacy and single for women is any way related. Obviously, it‘s an antiquated viewpoint. There are obviously single women who aren‘t dependent on the government who actually hold jobs and make income that way. I don‘t understand why they‘re all of a sudden being dismissed. And you know, this whole notion goes back to the idea of welfare queens. There‘s racial elements to this. It‘s just sick viewpoint. I don‘t understand why we‘re actually debating it as if it‘s a serious thought regardless of how Heidi feels about Phyllis, sorry.
SCHULTZ: Well, there are 75 republicans who are running for office that have taken money from her organization.
STEIN: Fine.
SCHULTZ: And endorsed by her. It really is amazing. And, of course, the democrats want them to disavow themselves or separate themselves from Phyllis Schlafly.
STEIN: I don‘t understand that. The democrats should let them keep the endorsement and use it against them. I think, that would be much more potent than having a disavowal. I mean, these viewpoints are a little bit extreme, don‘t you think?
HARRIS: No.
SCHULTZ: Heidi, don‘t you view this as somewhat of an attack on unmarried women in this country like they‘re not living the lifestyle that Phyllis Schlafly thinks they ought to be living?
(CROSSTALK)
HARRIS: I think that people who think that women shouldn‘t be mothers before they‘re married, it‘s not a question of morals as much as it is a question of economics. The reality is it‘s very difficult. Many of the times, these women have to make it on their own. And it makes their life much, much, much more difficult. I would like to see every women.
SCHULTZ: What about single men?
HARRIS: Well, what about single—I know some guys who are great single parents. Certainly, that‘s very tough on them, too. I would like to see women way to have children.
SCHULTZ: So are, they dependent on Obama for government handouts?
HARRIS: No, I want to see women be able to make it on their own, get as much education as possible and be incredibly successful in America, regardless of background. But if you have a kid when you‘re 16, 17-years-old, your life is going to be much tougher. Your ability to get an education and work which is what I did, which is what you guys did is much more difficult when you‘re trying to raise a kid alone. That‘s just reality. It‘s not judgmental, it‘s not bashing single mothers. I would just like to see them make other choices. It‘s easier in your life if you don‘t do what some of these women do.
STEIN: Of course, but it doesn‘t mean you‘re depending on the government.
SCHULTZ: Heidi, you don‘t think Phyllis Schlafly is judgmental in her comments?
HARRIS: No, I don‘t think so at all because she‘s talking about the fact that the majority of women who voted for him were single women. I don‘t know about the single mothers. I know that a huge majority were single women, young single women. And there are people who think that the government is supposed to take care of them. Remember that woman in Florida last year, who said, oh, I won‘t have to pay my mortgage anymore, I won‘t have to make my car payment anymore if Obama becomes president. This is the mentality that some people have.
STEIN: Yes. One woman‘s quote is generalized for the entire.
HARRIS: No, Sam, I said some people have that attitude. Not everybody but that‘s how some people feel.
STEIN: Sure, but you know, Bristol Palin is a single mother. I don‘t think she feels that way, you know.
SCHULTZ: All right. Let‘s talk about Sarah Palin. The half governor says that the president of the United States should go down on the border in the wake of what‘s going on and should not have gone on “The View.” Sam, she never misses an opportunity. What do you think?
STEIN: No, I mean, good for Sarah Palin. She‘s trying to get an interview for her own station FOX News. That‘s what she wants, obviously. It‘s very, you know, I think it‘s a little chutzpah for the former governor who left her job to accuse Obama of not attending to governmental needs. And obviously, you know, I‘m not going to defend the decision to sit down with “The View.” But if we‘re going, you know, be fair about it, President Bush obviously did an interview like this with Dr. Phil. It‘s part of the White House communication strategy. It‘s not the, you know, the heaviest and weightiest of sit downs but he can do what he wants if he wants to reach the public. I‘m not going to level this criticism at him that Sarah Palin has.
SCHULTZ: Heidi, what did Harry Reid do this week to go down in the polls other than let the republicans run all over him?
HARRIS: Well, anytime he opens his mouth, you know, he buries himself. That‘s how it is, he got to keep his head low. And more and more people are realizing because Sharon is now running ads and talking a little bit more about her particular points of view. People are starting to hear more about her. He‘s having less opportunity to define her as a whacko. Although, I know you‘re still doing it. That‘s all right, you‘re allowed to. But ultimately, she‘s getting her message out more and more. She‘s got the money. And as it progresses, she‘ll do better and better. Consider the fact that Harry is supposed to be so powerful. He still isn‘t that well like in the state and that‘s a huge deal.
STEIN: Exactly. The problem is not Harry Reid, the problem is Nevada is really in a bad economic state and he‘s getting blamed for a lot of it. You know, Harry Reid was down 11 points seven weeks ago. He made it up. So, the fact that he‘s still leading is probably good news for him. But, you know, as long as that economic situation in the state and Ohio know that‘s being from there, that is just an anchor over his neck right now.
HARRIS: It is.
SCHULTZ: Sam Stein, Heidi Harris, great to have you with us tonight.
Thanks so much.
Coming up, it‘s been a great week if you‘re a republican. The heartless party of no ideas blocked campaign reform, small business loans, and even helped a 9/11 responders if you can believe it. The Nation‘s Katrina Vanden Heuvel is here to survey the damage and tell us how they can be stopped. Next on the Playbook. Stay with us.
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SCHULTZ: It‘s not too late to let us know what you think. Tonight‘s text survey question is, do you believe the democrats are truly committed to helping the long-term unemployed in America? Text A for yes, text B for no to 622639. Results coming up. Stay with us.
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SCHULTZ: And in my Playbook tonight, well, it was a great week for the republicans. I mean, you got to tell it like it is. They accomplished their obstructionist agenda with flying colors. Here‘s the ledger, on Tuesday, the senate republicans blocked the disclose act. Thursday afternoon, they blocked the small business bill. House republicans got into the act last night blocking the 9/11 health and compensation act. Also on Thursday, a house panel filed 13 ethics charges against New York democratic Congressman Charlie Rangel and finally today, we find out that the gross domestic product growth rate slowed to 2.4 percent last quarter. Republicans love that.
Moments ago, moments ago, the House of Representatives passed the biggest overhaul of the oil industry in decades. This is good news. The bill cracks down on companies like BP and removes the $75 million cap on their liability for oil spills. Republicans they, of course, opposed the bill calling it a federal power grab but Speaker Pelosi got enough democrats on board to get it through, 209 to 193.
For more on this, I want to turn now to the editor of “The Nation,” Katrina Vanden Heuvel. Katrina, great to have you with us tonight.
KATRINA VANDEN HEUVEL, “THE NATION” EDITOR: Thank you.
SCHULTZ: If you could comment first on this vote. Nancy Pelosi just seems to get it done when the chips are down. This is the first big move against the oil companies legislatively since the big spill. What‘s your take?
VANDEN HEUVEL: It‘s an important move. I mean, these oil companies should be sued for criminal negligence. Don‘t let them get away, don‘t let BP get away with tax deductions on what they owe this country, what they owe the victims of the gulf. But I think, you also see structurally, Ed, the difference between the House and the senate. The senate has been the place where legislation goes to die. If you look at the House record, that is in essence the democratic record. But too often because of the arcane and anachronistic filibuster in the senate, legislation goes there and it confronts the republican strategy. It‘s been the strategy from the get go since President Obama came to office which is to be the grand old obstructionist party to ensure that legislation gets killed in ways whatever they can do, the Senator Mitch McConnell, the minority leader, has worked the senate that way.
And you know, I want to take a moment. This is the 45th anniversary of the passage of Medicare. It‘s worth noting that Obama‘s health care bill for the first time in modern memory passed without a single republican vote. President Lyndon Johnson had a tough Republican Party but half of the House in his time supported Medicare. I think we‘re seeing the difference between what the republicans used to be and a party that is relying on obstruction to make Americans believe that democrats are responsible for the dysfunction in our government. We must expose that.
SCHULTZ: Has there ever been a more productive week for an obstructionist party? They blocked a lot of stuff this week. If the democrats can‘t go home and tell this story, I mean, the fact that they blocked $30 billion to community banks with less than $10 billion of assets to get small business loans going, it‘s unconscionable what they‘re doing.
VANDEN HEUVEL: And health benefits, Ed, for 9/11 responders. The heroes who were working in the aftermath of 9/11. I think this is a week they overplayed their hand. I don‘t like to predict but I do think this is a week they overplayed their hand. And I think that the democrats and we‘ve talked about this, I think that the legislation, the achievements that we‘ve seen in this last year health care bill, financial reform, the recovery which a transpartisan group of economists say averted a depression in this country, their flaws, but these are achievements especially with the GOP obstruction. If the democrats can‘t campaign on those and expose the republican strategy for what it is, I think there‘s a chance not just for the two parties but for some movement on legislation to improve the condition of people‘s lives in this country.
SCHULTZ: I am on this mission Katrina, as you well know, for the 99ers that the senate stay in and do something. If they don‘t, I think there‘s going to be a political backlash on the democrats. I really believe that Harry Reid has got to muscle up and say, we‘re staying another week to get something done. Your thoughts on that?
VANDEN HEUVEL: I think they should.
SCHULTZ: Is that over playing a political ad?
VANDEN HEUVEL: No. I think they should. I think there are senators like Bernie Sanders and others who have said we must stay. Just to broaden out for a second, Ed, listen, the leading official of the fed, the Federal Reserve in St. Louis the other day, he‘s kind of a deficit hawk. He told us something we must know. It‘s deflation, not the deficits that are the greatest threat to this economy. And I think people that the senate should stay in, the House should stay in. And have all night sessions educating the American people that businesses aren‘t investing, consumers are fearful (video gap) at this moment and we need to help those who are in pain. Lives are in the balance.
SCHULTZ: No doubt. Katrina Vanden Heuvel. Always great to have you with us.
VANDEN HEUVEL: Thank you.
SCHULTZ: Thanks so much for joining us tonight.
A couple of final pages in the Playbook tonight, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is considering pardoning Billy the kid. He‘s been dead for 129 years. Richardson asked a local columnist to check with historians to see if they would agree with him issuing a pardon for the infamous outlaw. Billy the kid was shot down by Sheriff Pat Garrett in 1881. Garrett‘s family is outraged by the governor‘s consideration of the pardon. They sent Governor Richardson a letter asking him not to pardon the kid saying such an act would represent an inexcusable defamation of Garrett.
Finally, I‘m proud that we are taking THE ED SHOW on the road to help some hard-working Americans in need. On Wednesday, August 4th, next week, I‘ll be broadcasting from a free health care clinic in Washington, D.C. You can register for care or donate your time by going to freeclinics.us. Also, we‘re heading down to New Orleans for a free clinic at the Convention Center next month. Your donations and all kinds of volunteers definitely are needed. Please help us out.
Up next, Snooki is behind bars. Now, Daily Show co-creator Lizz Winstead may not have a spray tan or be sporting a six-pack, but she can fist pump like a champ. I know, she‘s up next in Club Ed. Stay with us.
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SCHULTZ: Welcome back. If it‘s Friday, it‘s time for Club Ed with Lizz Winstead, co-creator of “The Daily Show.” Lizz is fantastic. I got to tell you, she knocked it out of the park in Las Vegas. Our team was absolutely in stitches at the Netroots Nation Convention. I got to tell everybody how great you are, and you got a performance coming up at Comics in New York City on August 5th, 6th and 7th and I think people got to go see that. Lizz, great to have you with us tonight.
LIZZ WINSTEAD, “THE DAILY SHOW” CO-CREATOR: Thanks, Ed. Ed.
SCHULTZ: Yes.
WINSTEAD: What just happened with Heidi Harris. Seriously, if you were going to book on that tea bagging Carol Brady, then have you got to slam her down when she is absolutely wrong. To defend Phyllis Schlafly, seriously, does Heidi Harris not realize that if Phyllis Schlafly had her way, Heidi Harris wouldn‘t have her job because she would be chained to her stove and just lay there when her husband had sex with her and that would be her role in life. I don‘t think Heidi understands that. I mean, if Phyllis Schlafly is like 93-years-old at this point and she has made a career of her one-party trick. Which is basically, she can empty her bowels through her mouth and just exhaust horrifying crap onto the universe. That is what Phyllis Schlafly has added to the American conversation. It is appalling that Heidi Harris would sit there and defend her. It‘s appalling. And I wish that Heidi is here too, so I could just say, Heidi, what are you thinking? What are you thinking? What are you thinking? Enough.
SCHULTZ: Now, well, not enough. That‘s great stuff. The democrats ought to be jumping all over this. I mean, this is a big part of their party, the hard conservative right in this country. That is a voting bloc that does show up for them. What do you think?
WINSTEAD: Well, and she is iconic to conservative women. And this is the kind of stuff she spewed all the time. I remember in college, she fought tirelessly to make sure the equal rights amendment didn‘t get passed and that she just believes in those weird covenant marriages and that women have their place and their place is standing behind their man and no matter what their man does. She is trapped in the home with him because he knows better. I mean, really? This is where we‘re taking the party? They should be so proud.
SCHULTZ: I do remember back during that debate in the 1970s, the equal rights amendment. It was Phyllis who said that women would be mandated to unisex bathrooms.
WINSTEAD: Yes. The mandate of unisex bathrooms and the torture and that single women are somehow welfare queens? And that‘s what they get when they let their husbands go. You know what they get when they let their husbands go? A vibrator. That‘s what they get. They don‘t go on welfare. They go to babes in Toyland.
SCHULTZ: All right. The president on “The View,” he says, he doesn‘t know who Snooki is. What do you make of it?
WINSTEAD: You know, I got a lot of flack on Twitter actually about this. And I feel like the president needs to know what the media is doing and how the media prioritizes itself. And for him to not know who Snooki is worries me because he needs to be righteously angry that the media is focusing more on Snooki than on deaths in Afghanistan or his policies. I mean, I think that‘s important.
SCHULTZ: Yes.
WINSTEAD: That‘s how the Breitbart thing happened because there was too many people who were like.
SCHULTZ: Lizz.
WINSTEAD: Oh, you got to go. All right.
SCHULTZ: All right. Always a pleasure on Friday.
WINSTEAD: Thank you.
SCHULTZ: You can be see Lizz do standup at Comics it New York City, August 7th, 6th and 7th, go to comicsnewyork.com for tickets.
Tonight on the telephone survey, text survey, I asked, do you believe democrats are truly committed to helping the long-term unemployment? Forty nine percent of you said yes, 51 percent said no.
That‘s THE ED SHOW. I‘m Ed Schultz. For more information, go to ed.msnbc.com or the radio website at wegoted.com. “HARDBALL” with Chris Matthews starts right now. Have a great weekend. We‘ll see you Monday back in New York.
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