The Ed Show for Monday, October 3rd, 2011

Guests: Joe Watkins, Jim Moore, James Peterson, Steve Kornacki, Joe Madison, Mike
Papantonio, Leo Gerard

ED SCHULTZ, HOST: Good evening, Americans. And welcome to THE ED SHOW
tonight from New York.

Limbaugh and Hannity -- they just can`t stand it. But Republicans
are eating their own when it comes to Rick Perry`s past. I guess you could
say that no stone is being left unturned?

This is THE ED SHOW -- let`s get to work.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think it`s offensive. I
think most people recognize it`s offensive.

SCHULTZ (voice-over): It`s open season on the racist name of Rick
Perry`s hunting lodge.

Tonight, Jim Moore, Dr. James Peterson, and Republican strategist Joe
Watkins weigh in.

Right wing hate was on full display on FOX News this morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That would be like Hitler playing golf with
Netanyahu. They`re the enemy.

SCHULTZ: Tonight, late breaking news on the future of Hank Williams
Jr. on Monday night football. We`ll play you the full remarks and get
reaction from "Ring of Fire" radio host Mike Papantonio.

And the "Occupy Wall Street" protesters are getting a major shot in
the arm from big labor. An exclusive announcement on THE ED SHOW tonight.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCHULTZ: Good to have you with us tonight, folks. Thanks for
watching.

Rick Perry is doing major damage control one day after "The
Washington Post" reported on an ugly racial slur painted on a rock at his
west Texas hunting ranch.

This headline sent shockwaves through the Perry campaign early Sunday
morning. "The Post" reported, "In the early days of his political career,
Rick Perry began hosting fellow lawmakers, friends and supporters at his
family`s secluded west Texas hunting camp. A place known by the name
painted in block letters across a large flat rock standing upright at its
gated entrance. "N" word head, it read."

Herman Cain took the first shot at Rick Perry on "FOX News Sunday."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That isn`t a more vile,
negative word than the "N" word, and for him to leave it there for as long
as he did before I hear they finally painted over it, it`s just plain
insensitive to a lot of black people in this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Herman Cain was spot-on, but his statement didn`t sit well
with the Texas governor. Perry communications director jumped all over
Herman Cain`s statement with a press release right after the show.

Today, here we go, the Drugster also attacking Herman Cain for
calling Perry insensitive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RUSH LIMBAUGH, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: They`re trying to say that
Perry is a racist and Herman Cain has jumped in and basically joined that
chorus. And this is absurd. It is absurd.

They painted over it. They tried to -- when they leased it, they
tried to paint over it and cover it up. Then they eventually turned it
over so that people wouldn`t see it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Rush Limbaugh attacks Herman Cain. Herman Cain does a 180.

Look at how the pizza man buckled to Perry right after Limbaugh took
him to task.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAIN: I really don`t care about that word. They painted over it.
End of story. I think it happened way -- I accept Governor Perry`s
response on that and I`m ready to talk about what`s really important to the
American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Just a different tune all of a sudden. Herman Cain isn`t
the only Republican trying to sweep this story under the rug. Rick
Santorum and Ron Paul want to change the subject.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I don`t believe Rick
Perry`s a racist. I think, you know, he -- I don`t know all the details.
There seems to be some arguments as to what the details are. But to me
that`s -- I think it`s a side issue.

REP. RON PAUL (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have no idea what
the circumstances were. But in this day and age, to try to turn something
around and make him say that he endorsed using that word --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So, you think it`s unfair?

PAUL: I think we should worry about the wars and assassinations, the
economy, not trying to find out some way you`re going to blame Perry.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

SCHULTZ: Well, Rick Santorum and Ron Paul, would you hunt at a ranch
that was named like that? Fair question?

Here`s the deal, folks. The entire Republican field spent months
attacking candidate Barack Obama for his ties to Reverend Wright. The
conservative echo chamber called the relationship "troubling" and called
Reverend Wright a reversed racist. Now, right wing talkers are attacking
the "Washington Post" and anyone else who questions Perry on having the "N"
word painted on a huge rock at his hunting ranch.

Perry needs to quit hiding behind press releases and right wing talk
show hosts. There is no such thing as a side issue in a 21st century
presidential campaign. Perry needs to face the cameras and explain why he
didn`t immediately remove the rock or cover the sign. Perry needs to
explain why the sign was still visible when he took state legislators and
campaign donors out to the ranch to just enjoy some hunting.

I`m not calling Perry a racist. I don`t have to. But it`s more than
troubling that he hunted at a ranch associated with a racist title, don`t
you think?

Perry needs to come clean and disavow this type of racial rhetoric.
Racism is still the dirty little secret of the Republican Party and they
always just push it right under the rug. And stories like this underscore
how deep it all runs.

You know, I do remember when this story came up of a different sort
when President Obama was running. He had to give a speech on race.

I`d like to see somebody in the Republican Party give a speech on
race and disavow themselves from garbage like this.

Get your cell phones out. I want to know what you think.

Tonight`s question: does the Republican Party have a problem with
race? Text "A" for yes, text "B" for no to 622639. And you can go to our
blog at Ed.MSNBC.com. We`ll bring you the results later on in the show.

Let`s bring in Jim Moore of MoorerThink.com and the author of the
upcoming book, "Adios Mofo: Why Rick Perry Will Make America Miss George W.
Bush."

Mr. Moore, good to have you with us tonight.

Now, Rick Perry has said it`s an offensive name that has no place in
the modern world.

JIM MOORE, AUTHOR, "ADIOS, MOFO": Right.

SCHULTZ: What does the Rick Perry you know and the one you
researched and covered all these years? Is it the guy on the rock or is it
the guy that`s now trying to mop this up?

MOORE: He is not a racist, Ed, I will give him that. He certainly
has appointed the most African-Americans to statewide agencies of any
governor in this state`s history, appointed a chief justice to the Supreme
Court who is the great-great-grandson of a slave.

But the governor`s professed naivety about this ranch is a little bit
difficult to accept. It`s very disingenuous. He`s told stories about
going down there and camping on the Clear Fork of the Brazos River, near
this location.

This isn`t a name that popped up in the 1980s. It`s probably been
there since the 1800s. So, he knew the name of it.

The fact during his tenure as a state legislature, that he brought
his colleagues to go out there to go hunting and he knew the name of the
place sort of indicates a level of sensitivity that the guy did not acquire
growing up in a region predominantly white.

His large political problem at the moment, Ed, as you know, is that
this story connects him to the old narrative of the South, and it`s a
troubling one that the Republicans don`t want to be reminded about. That`s
why everybody you`ve just had on the air is stepping back and saying, let`s
let this go because they don`t want to hear about it anymore.

SCHULTZ: Well, does this help or hurt Rick Perry with the Republican
base?

MOORE: Well, that`s a good question. I think the ugly little secret
is that there`s probably some very conservative members in the Republican
Party in the South, that this isn`t really an issue for him. And, in fact,
helps him with some of them.

The more progressive thinkers in the Republican Party obviously will
find this offensive as do most other people in this country. But there`s a
part of the party that`s not going to harm him greatly.

SCHULTZ: How well is this story known in Texas? Is this folklore?
Has this been around a long time? Goes back several decades? How well is
it known?

MOORE: It`s not known at all. What I will say about Texas is that
even though the author of the civil rights bill, Lyndon Baines Johnson,
came from our state, we took to integration rather slowly. University of
Texas football team was the last major university in the country to
integrate. But there are parts of west Texas, there are parts of east
Texas where integration went very, very slowly. And these kinds of names
and these signs that hung on the edge of counties that looked to be
municipally painted, offering warnings to African Americans about not being
in the town when the sun went down on them.

This sort of stuff has been around, but it hasn`t been attached to a
particular public servant at this point like it has Rick.

SCHULTZ: I mean, to knowingly take donors and lawmakers there with
that name there I think speaks volumes. And in fairness to it all,
President Obama at the time when he was a candidate -- I mean, it just kept
coming at him from the right wing about Reverend Wright and, of course, his
association with the Black Panthers which was absolutely nothing.

So has Perry in one day or two days weathered this storm because the
right wing talkers are just -- they just want to just get this out of the
way and clear him and every -- do you see a comparison in any way here?

MOORE: I think it`s fair to make that analogy because the president
did get beaten up pretty hard. What the Perry campaign has done is
completely bungled this. His message team, his communications team, should
have said upfront that the governor saw it, they covered it up, they made
it go away, they took ownership of it and moved on.

But, instead, they started parsing this business about it was 2004,
it was 2008. We used the east entrance. And they really have not been
able to separate themselves from it. And they, in fact, they can`t.

SCHULTZ: Yes.

MOORE: They knew it was there and he didn`t manage this well.

SCHULTZ: Well, his silence is deafening. He`s hiding behind press
releases and looking for help from right wing talkers.

Jim Moore, always a pleasure. Thanks for your time.

MOORE: Thank you, Ed.

SCHULTZ: Now let`s turn to Dr. James Peterson, director of Africana
studies at Lehigh University and blogs for "The Huffington Post"; and
Republican strategist Joe Watkins.

Gentlemen, good to have you with us tonight.

I want to play this sound cut from Hannity`s radio show today. This
is Mitt Romney. This is how one of the candidates responded to the term.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

ROMNEY: I think it`s offensive. I think most people recognize it`s
offensive. And with regards to what involvement the Perry folks had with
this, with this situation, that`s something to address to Governor Perry,
obviously.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Is that enough, Joe Watkins? Your thoughts.

JOE WATKINS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: I think Mitt Romney`s right. I
think he makes a good point because the word is offensive. It`s a hurtful
word. And whoever wrote that word offended a lot of people and hurt a lot
of people.

The good news is that Governor Perry wasn`t the one that wrote it.
So, it`s not a sin of commission on his part there because he didn`t like
the word. But it`s maybe a sin of omission because he didn`t move quick
enough to make a comment about how awful and offensive that word is and
that it should have had no place on the campground to begin with.

SCHULTZ: Then, James Peterson, why doesn`t he come out and say what
Joe Watkins is saying?

DR. JAMES PETERSON, LEHIGH UNIVERSITY: He`s afraid he`s going to
alienate certain areas of his base and afraid that folk will feel that he`s
embracing the issue of race and the Republican Party obviously does not
want to do that.

WATKINS: I don`t think so.

PETERSON: Politically, it`s not a good idea for Perry to do it, but
in terms of civility, he should do it.

WATKINS: You have to consider, here`s a guy who named the first
black chief justice of the Texas Supreme Court, a black chief of staff for
his own staff, named more blacks to a position in the state of Texas.
Stand on your record. Just tell the people what you`ve done and what your
record shows you`ve done so that people know you`re not an insensitive
person.

I think it`s a good message. It`s a message that brings us together.

PETERSON: Joe, you`re right. But I think the reason he`s not doing
that right now and the reason they`re going through this political calculus
is because he`s more interested in damage control than the sort of civil
nature of this kind of issue. The problem with this is, it has much less
to do with Rick Perry and whether or not he`s a racist and much more to do
with the ways in which racial residue still exists in our society.

I mean, this is -- when we`re talking about the enthusiastic gap on
the other side of this political equation, here`s something to get
enthusiastic about. Here`s someone who entered into the national stage and
obviously has sensitivity issues around issues of race. He may not be a
racist.

But the bottom line is when he invited folk to the ranch and
purchased it to not come out publicly then and to denounce this name and
talk about a new vision for the private property they bought, that`s where
he made the first mistake and now, it`s coming back to haunt him.

WATKINS: And it`s a fixable mistake because the way you fix it in
this country is you admit it and you say, "I`m sorry. I`m sorry it
happened."

SCHULTZ: Well, he hasn`t done that.

WATKINS: Let my record speak for myself, I`m sorry it happened. You
should know who I am and what I`m about and the people around me and my
record speak for themselves. That`s what he should say.

SCHULTZ: Joe Watkins, Joe Watkins --

PETERSON: It`s crickets over there.

SCHULTZ: -- shouldn`t this be an opportunity for Rick Perry to give
a speech on race?

WATKINS: Well, I don`t think the door hasn`t quite closed on him.
He can have that opportunity if he wants to grab it. I think he wants to
talk about the other things impacting the economy right now, putting
Americans back to work and what he would do to be president of the United
States.

Maybe he needs to address this. Maybe this is a teachable moment.

PETERSON: But at the same time, Joe, he has to address the death
penalty and racist policies in the state of Texas. He`s got to address the
ways in which black and brown folk are limited to menial labor across that
state. He`s got to address the ways in which education is adversely
affected, black and brown folk in his states.

If he`s going to address the issue of race, it`s going to open up a
whole can of worms and I`m telling you, the folk around him are imploring
him not to do so.

SCHULTZ: And I think it would be good to ask all the Republican
candidates if they would go hunting at a facility like that with that kind
of name, or is that not fair?

WATKINS: That`s a fair thing to ask and I`m sure they wouldn`t go
there. They wouldn`t --

SCHULTZ: Yes, they`re slow to condemn it, though, Joe. I mean, they
didn`t touch this for a while.

WATKINS: I applaud Mitt Romney. He came out and said he was
probably the first candidate to come out and say the word is offensive. I
think he`s --

PETERSON: Ironically, Herman Cain was the first person to come out.
He had to back track over that. I don`t think Mitt Romney was strong
enough --

SCHULTZ: Well, what do you make of Herman Cain`s 180 after Limbaugh
took him to task on the radio show, Joe?

WATKINS: I think Herman Cain is being consistent with his ministry
because he`s also a minister. And he knows that you forgive people --

SCHULTZ: So, he listens to Limbaugh and has a change of heart on
ministry?

WATKINS: What it is that he heard from Governor Perry and was
satisfied with Governor Perry`s answer.

PETERSON: I`m not satisfied. I would like for Mr. Cain to now
address this issue within the context of him talking about black folk being
brainwashed.

WATKINS: Herman Cain -- Herman Cain is a brilliant candidate. The
reason why he`s in the top tier of candidates coming from the bottom tier
is because he is so, so good on the issues and he has a plan to put
Americans --

SCHULTZ: Joe -- I think you can make the case here that Herman Cain,
on one hand, he says black folks are brainwashed by the Democratic Party
but maybe that rock might have had something to do with it.

PETERSON: Hello, thank you, Ed. This will connect the dots here.

SCHULTZ: Gentlemen, great to have you with us tonight. It`s always
great to have both of you, Dr. James Peterson and Joe Watkins, here on THE
ED SHOW tonight.

Remember to answer the question there on the bottom of the screen.
Share your thoughts on Twitter @EdShow. We want to know what you think.

The frenzy to get New Jersey Governor Chris Christie into the
presidential race proves one thing. The Republican Party doesn`t like its
current crop of candidates. But would Christie stand a chance with the new
brand of Republican voter? I`m not so sure.

And Hank Williams Jr. did not ask me if I was ready for some football
tonight. He visits the kids on "FOX and Friends" and compares President
Obama to Hitler. ESPN responds by pulling Hank`s Monday night football
theme song. We`ll bring it to you.

We`ll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: On top of his hunting lodge mess, it turns out Rick Perry
also had his hands in the financial collapse of 2008. Governor Perry lured
some prime mortgage lenders to Texas with millions of dollars in taxpayer
money. The "Associated Press" reports, "Within four years the banks were
out of business and homeowners across Texas faced foreclosure in the state.
In the end, the state had to pay $35 million to subsidize it."

Perry approved $20 million in grant money to Countrywide, and another
$15 million to Washington Mutual -- two major players in the collapse.
While he took tens of thousands in campaign contributions from both
companies, Perry downplayed warnings of a mortgage crisis.

This is yet another reason why some Republicans are having second
thoughts about a Perry presidency.

But would Chris Christie be any better? More on that next.

Hank William Jr.`s hateful rant against the president has cost him a
suspension from Monday night football. We`ll play you the tape.

And big labor is joining the "Occupy Wall Street" movement. You
won`t want to miss this. Tonight an exclusive announcement from a major
union only on THE ED SHOW.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW.

The "will he or won`t he" talk about Chris Christie tells you
everything you need to know about the current state of the Republican
presidential hopefuls. No one in the party can get excited about Mitt
Romney who hasn`t cracked 25 percent in the polls.

Donald Trump was the front runner in April before his phony campaign
was exposed.

Michele Bachmann was the hot candidate to beat after winning the Iowa
straw poll.

She`s now polling in single digits and her campaign lost two more top
aides today. Not good.

Rick Perry shot to the top when he announced his candidacy. Now he`s
-- well, not fairing too well, is he? He`s now in third place in Florida.

Which brings us to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie who still says
he`s not running despite Republicans begging him to get into the race.
According to "Politico," three sources close to Christie say it`s a family
decision between Christie and his wife, Mary Pat, and he could still decide
to run.

But with opinions like this one, Christie could be just another GOP
flavor of the month.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: This Sharia law business is
crap. It`s just crazy. And I`m tired of dealing with the crazies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Christie is not conservative enough for a lot of the
Republican Party, including some of the current candidates.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAIN: Some people would infuse Sharia law in our court system if we
allow it. I honestly believe that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: By the way, Herman Cain is up 19 points in a new Florida
poll. Good enough for second place.

Joining me tonight is Steve Kornacki, political columnist for
Salon.com, and also Joe Madison, Sirius XM Radio talk show host.

Gentlemen, great to have you with us.

Steve -- to you, first, Steve. Christie says no in public but then
the story just won`t go away. What`s happening here?

STEVE KORNACKI, SALON.COM: Well, I think there`s sort of a very high
threshold here that has to be met to get him into this race. And I think
the fact that he even has been considering it for the last week is really
remarkable, given all those denials.

But I think something kind of fundamental happened here. I used to
cover him and used to cover New Jersey. I`m a little familiar I think with
what`s going on.

I think about a week ago, the story was Republicans were trying to
get Chris Christie into the race. They`re trying to talk him into. Then
he said he would consider it.

And I think what happened in the last few days is, it`s been
Republicans telling Chris Christie the 646 reasons why it`s too late, it
will never look, it`s not logistically feasible. And I think at that point
looks at it and say, I got a good enough deal in New Jersey.

SCHULTZ: Joe, is it too late for him to get in? I mean, does he
have a team on the ground in Iowa? Can he get this thing done?

JOE MADISON, SIRIUS XM RADIO HOST: No, he doesn`t. And I think
that`s exactly what your guest is pointing out. And remember now, some of
the primaries are upping their date. So, you`re absolutely right.

This is a matter of the Republican Party being in a flux. And it`s
about arithmetic. Who can win in the South? Well, Romney is in trouble,
maybe because of his religion. People want to deny it, but there`s a
factor there in the Bible belt.

The Northeast, Republicans have never been very strong in the
Northeast. So maybe they`re looking at Chris Christie because there`s a
way of getting him.

But you`ve hit it on the head. When you look at his record, he`s not
going to appeal to the Tea Partiers.

SCHULTZ: Well, I want to ask you about that. Has Herman Cain hit on
something here nobody else is willing to say, that maybe Christie`s kind of
a lefty in the righty party?

MADISON: Well, that`s what`s going to happen. As soon as he gets
in, you know, it`s like the Muppets show. They`re all going to start
screaming and yelling and attacking whoever they think is the leader.

But you know what`s interesting about Herman Cain, you mention he`s
going up in the polls but what I don`t hear people talking about is where
he is the financial support? Is he going -- is he catching on with the big
contributors? And no one`s talking about that. You would think that they
would be throwing money at him.

SCHULTZ: Steve, is he a surging candidate?

KORNACKI: You know, I think his surge reflects a lot more about the
failure of Rick Perry to live up to the potential that was there for him
when he got into this race to run away with this thing, to be the candidate
of the conservatives.

But I wanted to get back to a point about Christie and the idea,
Herman Cain saying he`s too far to the left and he`s vulnerable if he gets
in. On paper, I agree with that. But if Christie doesn`t run, I think
he`s making a mistake and I`d say it comes down to this -- realistically,
if Christie gets in, the Republicans have three options for their nominee:
Rick Perry, Mitt Romney, Chris Christie.

If you look at them on paper, that means the Republicans are going to
have to compromise on conservative values some way or another, whether it`s
Romney with immigration -- you know, excuse me, Romney with health care,
Perry with immigration. The difference with Christie is this, if you watch
him in action, there`s this authenticity.

And I think what he does, he has the effect on Republicans. He makes
them want to like him. And then they work backwards and they rationalize a
way to like him.

SCHULTZ: I think that brazen personality could come back to really
be a detriment. Joe, what do you think?

MADISON: I agree. And that`s style over substance. I mean, and
see, that`s why the Democrat -- President Obama is really sitting back. He
doesn`t have to say a word because they -- it`s a circular firing squad.
They`ll start shooting at each other and by the time you look up, whoever`s
left, you can talk about moving to the center or the establishment, but it
will be one hell of a Republican convention because the Tea Party folks are
not going to stand for it.

SCHULTZ: And one quick answer from both of you. Joe, does Rick
Perry get past this latest controversy of his hunting ranch?

MADISON: I think this -- you know, to answer, my feeling is, no,
because I don`t think he has the consciousness that it would take. You
know, Lady Byrd Johnson knew some of these names existed in the `60s.
Guess what she did? She fought. She used her position to change it.

Question would be asked to Perry, when did you use your position as
governor to change these things? He didn`t.

SCHULTZ: Steve, does he get past it?

KORNACKI: Within the Republican primary, I think yes, because
there`s no other option.

SCHULTZ: But in the general?

KORNACKI: He`s a flawed candidate in the general.

SCHULTZ: Steve Kornacki, Joe Madison, always great to have you with
us.

MADISON: Thank you.

SCHULTZ: Dick Cheney wants President Obama to apologize for killing
another terrorist? Shooter is in the zone, next.

And if Republicans paid more attention to what Ronald Reagan said
about taxes, they wouldn`t be accusing President Obama of class warfare.
You won`t want to miss this one.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: And in Psycho Talk tonight, we got a pair here, Dick Cheney
and his daughter, Liz. They want an apology from President Obama. Take a
look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DICK CHENEY, FMR. VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The thing I`m
waiting for is for the administration to go back and correct something they
said two years ago, when they criticized us for, quote, overreacting to the
events of 9/11.

LIZ CHENEY, DAUGHTER OF DICK CHENEY: I think he did tremendous
damage. I think he slandered the nation. And I think he owes an apology
to the American people. Those are the policies that kept us safe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Did you ever notice that family is always asking for
apologies? It takes a lot of nerve for Cheney -- the Cheneys to ask for an
apology from any American, in my opinion. Let`s take a quick look at what
former vice president owes America when it comes to an apology.

Cheney owes the country an apology for maybe ignoring the August 6th,
2001, presidential daily briefing saying that "bin Laden was determined to
attack the United States." How about for letting bin Laden escape from
Tora Bora? For pressuring the CIA to come up with intelligence of WMDs in
Iraq.

The former Halliburton CEO should apologize for no bid contracts that
went to his company and for waste, fraud and abuse. What do you think?
Halliburton, what do they do? They overcharged. They did shoddy work.
Soldiers died. They fed our soldiers crap.

Dick Cheney should apologize for Blackwater, too, don`t you think, the
mercenaries who killed innocent Iraqis? Should he apologize for farming
out jobs that our military should have been doing? Anybody make any money
on that?

The former vice president should apologize to John Kerry for saying
his presidency would make America more vulnerable to a terrorist attack,
especially after ignoring evidence that might have stopped the worst attack
on U.S. soil.

How about for Valerie Plame? Can we get an apology for that? "The
last throes," you know that comment. He should apologize to the dead, the
wounded and everybody else who served, to all of the families of our brave
military who sacrificed for his war of choice, based on lies.

He should apologize for torture, Gitmo, warrantless wiretapping and
spying on Americans. In less than three years, may I point out, that
President Obama wiped out more terrorists than Bush and Cheney did in eight
years. President Obama got bin Laden, helped oust Gadhafi, and has wiped
out major terrorists in the Arabian Peninsula.

Cheney, I think you and your daughter should take a page from
President Bush when it comes to President Obama`s record on national
security, and just shut the hell up. For you to ask anyone for an apology
is unbelievably outrageous Psycho Talk.

Coming up, the voice of Monday Night Football gets sidelined after
comparing President Obama to Hitler. Finally, one of these Tea Party and
righties has to face some consequences.

And later, as the Wall Street protests spread beyond Manhattan, the
movement is gaining some strong allies. Stay tuned. We`ll tell you about
it. You`re watching THE ED SHOW on MSNBC.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: Hank Williams Jr. has been pumping up NFL fans with his
Monday Night Football theme song for 20 years, until tonight. ESPN pulled
the song from their broadcast after Hank went on "Fox and Friends" and said
this about President Obama.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HANK WILLIAMS JR. SINGER: Do you remember the golf game they had,
ladies and gentlemen?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You mean when John Boehner played golf with
President Obama?

WILLIAMS: Oh, yeah. Yeah. And Biden and Kasich, yeah. Uh-huh.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What did you not like about it? It seems to be
a really pivotal moment for you.

WILLIAMS: Come on, come on. It would be like Hitler playing golf
with Netanyahu. OK?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Comparing President Obama to Hitler was even too much for
the kids on "Fox and Friends." And they challenged hank On it. But he
just doubled down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don`t understand that analogy, actually.

WILLIAMS: Well, I`m glad you don`t, brother, because a lot of people
do. You know, they`re the enemy. They`re the enemy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who`s the enemy?

WILLIAMS: Obama and Biden. Are you kidding, the Three Stooges.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That`s only two.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You used the name of one of the most hated
people in all of the world to describe the -- I think the president --

WILLIAMS: That is true. But I`m telling you like it is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Telling it like it is. Gretchen Carlson went on to disavow
Hank`s analogy. But these guys should have known what they were getting
into. You see, Hank Williams Jr. is no stranger to offensive right wing
politics. He performed as Sarah Palin`s campaign events in 2008, playing
along with her "palling around with terrorists" line.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAMS: John and Sarah tell you just what they think. And they`re
not going to blink. And they don`t have terrorist friends to whom their
careers are linked

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: I applaud ESPN for yanking Hank`s theme song from Monday
Night Football. Tea Partiers have been carrying Hitler signs for years.
And Republicans have done nothing but make excuses for them.

Finally, one of these guys has to face some consequences for this
unacceptable behavior and approach.

I`m joined tonight by Mike Papantonio, host of "The Ring of Fire"
radio show. Couple of hours ago, Hank Williams Jr. responded with this
statement, Mike: "some of us have strong opinions and are often
misunderstood. My analogy was extreme, but it was to make a point. Every
time the media brings up the Tea Party, it`s painted as a racist and
extremist. There`s never a backlash. No outrage to those comparisons.
Working class people are hurting and it doesn`t seem like anybody cares.
When both sides are high fiving it on the ninth hole, when everybody else
is without a job, it makes a whole lot of us angry."

"Something has to change," he says. "The politics have to change."

Well, it would seem to me, based on that statement right there, Mike,
that this guy ought to be supporting President Obama`s jobs plan. What do
you think?

MIKE PAPANTONIO, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Ed, it used to be when a
washed up, has been celebrity stops selling music or making movies, or when
they became completely irrelevant, they had a place to go. They could show
up for "Hollywood Squares" or maybe they could show up for Pat Robertson`s
"700 Club."

Nowadays, they show up on Fox or they become part of this neo-nut
personality. And they give speeches at places like these koo-koo
gatherings at G-PAC or Tea Party conventions.

When you haven`t written a song anybody can hum or even remember for
two decades, like Hank Williams, you do what Hank Williams does. He tries
to find the small crazy niche, where people still might remember his name.
Hank saw Ted Nugent do that. He saw Ted Nugent do that with the NRA.

He saw John Voigt and Dennis Miller struggle to get some relevance
when they tried to latch on to oddball conservative groups. Look, Hank has
always understood that he`s never going to nearly as talented or as famous
as his father. And he`s never going to be remembered as that timeless
talent.

So what`d one is he`s latched on. He`s tried to kick the drugs. He`s
tried to kick the alcohol. If you just watch that interview, you`re pretty
sure he hasn`t done it.

Look, the old boy is really so lonesome, he could cry because the Tea
Party is the last crowd. It`s the last bunch of people paying attention to
him. It`s a sad story. Now they`ve jerked his song off from Monday Night
Football, for God`s sake.

SCHULTZ: For a week. I don`t know how long it`s going to go. Here`s
ESPN`s statement: "while Frank Williams Jr. is not an ESPN employee, we
recognize that he is closely linked to our company through the open of
Monday Night Football. We are extremely disappointed with his comments.
And as a result, we have decided to pull the open from tonight`s telecast."

What about future telecasts? I mean, a lot of times when people make
comments like this, it will deep six their career. I can show you a list
of those folks. Why has it taken so long for someone to face consequences
for this kind of rhetoric? What do you make of it?

PAPANTONIO: Ed, you see, that interview, as you watched him, even the
crowd at "Fox and Friends," as kooky as they are, they saw a nut job who
now represents -- honest to God represents the Republican party. So when
you have the "Fox and Friends" saying they`re stepping back from a guy like
this, the reason they`re stepping back is they understand that the Hank
Williams Jr. type nuts are in charge of the Republican Tea Party.

SCHULTZ: But he says President Obama -- he attacked President Obama,
saying that he is the enemy and compared him to probably the world`s worst
human being ever, who tried to wipe out a race of people.

PAPANTONIO: Ed, he was selling to the same people who held up
pictures of Obama as Hitler, who held up pictures as Obama as little black
Sambo. This is the crowd that he`s appealing to. What I`m trying to say
here, Ed, when "Fox and Friends" understands that Hank Williams is a risk
to the Republican party -- that`s why they started backing away, not
because they didn`t, you know -- a couple of them, I can promise you,
agreed with him.

But they started backing away because they understand that Republican
party is imploding because of the Hank Williams Jr. characters that are in
charge of what`s going on in those politics. He is a washed up, a has been
celebrity. Really this is his last big stand, Ed. That`s what`s so sad
and pathetic about this story.

SCHULTZ: Is this a turning point for the Tea Partiers at all, when it
comes to ripping into President Obama and making these outrageous
comparisons? Or will it just be more of the same?

PAPANTONIO: Well, they have to stay on this route, Ed. They have to
stay on the route because when you take a look at the polls, you look at
the people who have really tried to understand who the Tea Party is.
Racism is one of the key issues that drives that party.

Look, it`s not me talking. It`s virtually every poll that they`ve
taken. That underlying current of racism is there. So they can`t get away
from it. It`s the last chance the Republicans have to stay alive. It`s a
pathetic state of affairs for the Republican party, because Tea Party and
Republican party are synonymous these days.

SCHULTZ: Mike Papantonio, great to have you with us tonight. Always
look forward to your take. Thank you.

The party of Reagan has been hammering President Obama lately, calling
his tax plans class warfare. But President Reagan`s own speeches land on
the side of President Obama. And we`ll play you the tape. It`s a dandy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. In my Playbook tonight,
Republicans should be looking at their all-time hero before they accuse
President Obama of class warfare. Watch this comparison of President Obama
and President Ronald Reagan put together by Think Progress.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That`s why this plan
eliminates tax loopholes that primarily go to the wealthiest taxpayers and
biggest corporations.

RONALD REAGAN, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We`re going to
close the unproductive tax loopholes that have allowed some of the truly
wealthy to avoid paying their fair share. In theory, some of those
loopholes were understandable. But in practice, they sometimes made it
possible for millionaires to pay nothing, while a bus driver was paying 10
percent of his salary. And that`s crazy.

OBAMA: Middle class families shouldn`t pay higher taxes than
millionaires and billionaires.

REAGAN: You think the millionaire ought to pay more in taxes than the
bus driver or less?

CROWD: More.

OBAMA: Warren Buffett`s secretary shouldn`t pay a higher tax rate
than Warren Buffett.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: What do you think? Pretty close? That`s not all. In
another speech later in the same year, in Chicago, Illinois, Ronald Reagan
dared to compare the tax rate of workers in big corporations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REAGAN: The result is that workers sometimes find themselves paying
higher taxes than the giant corporations they work for. And hard working
families have to struggle under a growing tax burden, while the special
interests get a free ride.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: You a Reagan fan? Taken down the picture yet? In the same
speech, Reagan described a letter he had received.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REAGAN: An executive who is earning in six figures, well above
100,000 dollars a year. He wrote me in support of the tax plan, because he
said, "I am legally able to take advantage of the present tax code --
nothing dishonest -- doing what the law prescribes, and wind up paying a
smaller salary than my secretary gets. Or, I mean, paying a smaller --
sorry, paying a smaller tax than my secretary pays.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Well, Reagan messed up that line a little bit, but the
message is clear. He didn`t think a secretary should be paying a higher
tax rate than her boss who makes a much higher income. Until now, we`ve
been calling it the Buffett Rule. But we should be calling it the Reagan
Rule. And we will.

Coming up, the Wall Street protests have reached a new level and are
literally spreading across the country. The president of the United
Steelworkers of America, Leo Gerard, joins me to talk about why this
movement is so important.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. Finally tonight, the Wall
Street protests are hitting a critical mass. More than 700 protesters were
arrested Saturday after they shut down half of the Brooklyn Bridge. It is
growing. The Occupy Wall Street movement has been growing in New York
City, and now protests are spreading into the rest of the country, like
Boston, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco, with protests
planned in other parts of the country.

Did anybody really think the American people were going to stand
silent in the face of bottomless corporate greed? We have been talking
about the middle class since I started this show on MSNBC, and of course,
how it`s been squeezed into oblivion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: I mean, I cannot believe this is happen happen happening in
my lifetime. I never thought I`d ever see America like this. You have
Wall Street going through the roof and you got Main Street paying all the
bills. It`s getting harder for them on education. It`s getting harder for
them on health care. The bills keep going up.

In the meantime, all the money is flowing to the top. All the control
is flowing to the top. All the tax breaks are flowing to the top. And
they want to know why America is upset. I need two shows.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Let`s bring in Leo Gerard, president of the United
Steelworkers of America, who supports the Wall Street protests. Mr.
Gerard, good to have you with us tonight. You know, look, I`ve been
talking about it for a long time on this program. But I have to say, I
didn`t think it was going to be evolve into these kinds of protests across
the country, where 700 people were going to be arrested.

What do you make of all of this? Where is this going to lead?

LEO GERARD, UNITED STEELWORKERS OF AMERICA PRESIDENT: I think it`s
going to lead to a grassroots movement that`s going to show that, as you
said and you said it eloquently, that middle class families aren`t going to
take it anymore. Middle class families are going to fight back.

Students aren`t going to take it anymore. The people that worked in
the manufacturing base that have seen that destroyed aren`t going to take
it anymore.

Ed, I saw a young man being interviewed that I think said it all.
They said to him, why are you here? He said, because I`ve got two master`s
degrees, college debts where I can`t even afford to pay the interest, and
I`ve got no job and I know those guys are to blame.

I think you`re going to see that in Pittsburgh and Chicago and San
Francisco and L.A. and Albuquerque, because I think people know who`s to
blame for the economic mess we`re in. These guys are still living like
pigs at a trough. They`re giving themselves huge bonuses. They`re holding
back, not putting anything into the economy, when we know we have to
rebuild the industrial base to get people back to work.

It`s about jobs. It`s about fairness.

SCHULTZ: So what are the politicians in Washington supposed to get
out of this? Does this mean that 2012, we`re going to just wipe a bunch of
them out and bring in new people to run the government? What`s the message
here?

GERARD: I think the message ought to be very clear, that we`re
supporting the president`s jobs plan, but we also have to hold Republicans
accountable who have been making sure that -- doing everything they can do
to make sure there would be no progress.

SCHULTZ: Are these Obama supporters, Mr. Gerard?

GERARD: I think some of them are probably Obama supporters. Some of
them are independents. Some of them just young people that are fed up that
they see that the economy is going. They`re industrial workers. I`ve had
probably ten e-mails, Ed, today from our members, who are saying, are we
going there? Where can we go?

People are fed up and they want something done. These Republicans are
the ones going to be held liable, I think. I saw a bumper sticker that
said "millions of people are out of work because Republicans want one man`s
job."

SCHULTZ: Is this about the Republicans or about our government in
general?

GERARD: I think it`s about our government in general. I think for a
long time, rotten trade deals, the de-industrialization of the country, the
pushing down of the middle class, a stagnant and declining standard of
living, more inequality than we`ve ever seen before, kids that can`t go to
college because their parents lost their jobs, Kids that are living in cars
because their parents lost their home. And people are just saying, enough.

We know who`s responsible. And politicians are going to have to step
up and do something. And they`re going to have to put America back to
work. As I said a thousand times, we can`t do it unless we rebuild the
industrial base of America. We have to get to it.

SCHULTZ: Some say this has not been very well defined. Is it going
to be more defined as it moves forward?

GERARD: Look it, I think that you have a lot of people with a lot of
complaints. And I`m not sure you need to be defined. When you see a
spontaneous grassroots movement, it`s a spontaneous grassroots movement
that`s spreading across the country because people are fed up. Some of it
is about jobs. Some of it`s about the war. Some of it`s about people that
aren`t being treated fairly.

Some of it`s about voter suppression. All of these things that the
rich and the powerful have been trained to use the Republican party to jam
down our throats. People are saying enough is enough. And they`re taking
to the streets.

We`re going to support them. The Steelworkers are going to support
them. Some of those people on the streets are going to be us and our
members. I intend to join them in Pittsburgh.

SCHULTZ: OK. And of course, it will be interesting to see who the
first politician will be to step up and say, I`m with these protesters. So
far, they`ve been silent. Mr. Gerard, good to have you with us tonight.
Leo Gerard --

GERARD: My pleasure. You called it right, Ed. You called it right,
buddy.

SCHULTZ: Thank you. I appreciate that. That`s THE ED SHOW. I`m Ed
Schultz. "THE LAST WORD" with Lawrence O`Donnell starts right now. We`ll
See you back here tomorrow night.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY
BE UPDATED.
END

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