The Ed Show for Tuesday, October 2nd, 2012

THE ED SHOW with ED SCHULTZ
October 2, 2012

Guests: Robert Gibbs, Sherrod Brown, E.J. Dionne, Rick Palacio


ED SCHULTZ, HOST: Good evening, Americans. And welcome to THE ED
SHOW, live from Denver.

Twenty-five hours before the first presidential debate and 35 days
until the 2012 election. Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, they are scrambling.
Robert Gibbs is here tonight to respond.

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

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: You can use your charitable
deduction or home mortgage deduction or others -- your health care
deduction, and you can fill that bucket, if you will, that $17,000 bucket
that way.

SCHULTZ (voice-over): Mitt Romney breaks out the golden bucket to
save his budget.

Tonight, Obama campaign`s senior adviser Robert Gibbs on Mitt Romney`s
fuzzy math.

Devastating new poll numbers show Mitt Romney`s secret video is
crushing his campaign.

ROMNEY: I`ll never convince them they should take personal
responsibility and care for their lives.

SCHULTZ: Richard Wolffe and Alex Wagner on just how aggressive the
president needs to be on the 47 percent tape.

Mitt Romney`s billionaire base is starting to lose their cool.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need leadership, not criticism. We need
encouragement, not discouragement.

SCHULTZ: E.J. Dionne, on why billionaires who do so well under Obama
can`t stand the president.

And Democrats with a victory for voters in Pennsylvania, but
Republican voter fraud is getting swept under the rug here in Colorado.
Tonight, the latest on the RNC`s voter fraud scandal.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCHULTZ: Good to have you with us tonight, folks. Thanks for
watching. We`re coming to you from Denver, Colorado.

The first presidential debate is just one day away. So, I guess we
could call this the Romney pre-game show. Will Mitt Romney be held
accountable for months of lies and distortions about President Obama`s
record?

We got a sneak preview today of what happens when Mitt Romney is
forced to tell the truth. A FOX affiliate here in Denver asked Romney to
explain what Paul Ryan could not, how he plans to pay for $5 trillion tax
cut by only eliminating deductions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMNEY: There`s an option. You could say everybody is going to get
up to a $17,000 deduction. And you can use your charitable deduction, and
your home mortgage deduction or others -- health care deduction, and you
can fill that bucket, if you will, the $17,000 bucket that way and higher
income people might have a lower number.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Now, you got to get him credit. At least Romney`s plan now
has a name. It`s the bucket plan.

Mitt Romney will cap, did you get this? He will cap deductions at
$17,000 for all Americans. Is that good for the middle class? Do the
math.

For rich Americans, the cap might -- it just might be lower than that.
He was very vague on that point as well.

The big problem with Romney`s bucket plan besides being I think
hilarious is that it would only cover about $1 trillion to $2 trillion of
Romney`s $5 trillion tax cut. You do the math.

Well, that`s all according to the Tax Policy Center. They figured it
out. Even when Romney gives some specifics, he doesn`t answer the
questions. We still don`t know how he plans to pay for these tax cuts
without hurting the middle class.

Paul Ryan is sticking to his reason for not giving any specifics to
Chris Wallace on FOX News. He said he had no time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

INTERVIEWER: I`m going to give you that time now to answer that
question.

REP. PAUL RYAN (R-WI), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Look, I think
ratings go like this when I start getting the numbers stuff.

INTERVIEWER: This is Bloomberg. We`re into --

RYAN: That`s right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Ryan was given the time by Bloomberg television. He had a
new excuse for not being specific. He says Mitt Romney can`t show Congress
all of his cards before he gets elected.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN: You don`t say to Congress, to Democrats you want to work with -
- take it or leave it. It`s everything. It`s all my way or the highway.

You say, here`s my framework. Obviously, the numbers add up. We have
shown that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: All right. Hang on a second. Ryan says they have shown
these numbers and shown how they work. Fact of the matter is, folks, they
have not. It`s impossible to show how numbers work when you refuse to
provide the numbers.

This is what President Obama, debate moderator Jim Lehrer, and the
American people need to watch out for tomorrow night to be on guard
against. The Romney campaign shows time and time again that they are
willing to flat out lie whenever it just suits the evening, when it suits
them just fine, they`ll just throw it out there and hope it sticks to the
wall.

Most of the Keystones to Romney`s campaign are based on lies and
distortions. Let`s go through them all.

Romney says President Obama stole billions from Medicare. The truth
is the president cut wasteful spending and push the savings to consumers.

Romney`s camp created an entire ad campaign about President Obama
revoking the work requirement from welfare? These ads were totally
debunked but Romney kept airing them any way and stands by them today.
Good debate talk tomorrow night, don`t you think?

Mitt Romney says he`s going to repeal Obamacare and replace it with
something to keep people from being uninsured. But an analysis from the
commonwealth fund shows Mitt Romney would leave 72 million more people
uninsured, 12 million higher than before Obamacare.

Recently, Mitt Romney said his campaign never ran any intentionally
false advertising. "We have been absolutely spot-on," he said. "And any
time there`s anything that`s been amiss, we correct it or we remove it."
You know, I kind of talk like Romney, don`t I?

This is coming from a guy whose first campaign ad against Barack Obama
presented a quote about John McCain and pretended that President Obama was
saying the quote about himself. Romney`s camp defended the ad as honest.

Romney is running on his business record. He says he created how
many? A hundred thousand private sector jobs as the CEO of Bain, a number
that fact-checkers called untenable.

Romney claimed that he had no involvement with managing Bain after
1999. But wait a minute, but SEC filings show him as the CEO and sole
stakeholder in the company for three additional years.

Now during those years, what happened? Thousands of people were laid
off in the Bain companies while Mitt Romney profited.

Speaking of Bain, Romney says he`s going to get tough on China as
president if he`s elected. Even though his recent tax returns show that he
was making investment money all from a Chinese Internet company accused of
stealing American content.

Romney says President Obama apologizes for America overseas -- even
though not a single transcript ever shows the president ever apologizing
about America, at home or abroad.

When Mitt Romney had a chance to weigh in on the international
incident, what did he do? He accused President Obama of sympathizing with
American enemies.

Back here at home, Romney says the stimulus did not create a single
job even though the Congressional Budget Office says it created as 3.3
million jobs.

We got more.

Romney also said that President Obama raised taxes on the middle
class, until last week when he slipped up and said President Obama never
raised taxes but will raise them soon.

It was Mitt Romney who said, "Let Detroit go bankrupt." Then he saw
what happened after the automobile loan from the federal government saved
1.5 million American jobs and Ohio`s economy. And all of a sudden, Mitt
Romney says the auto loan -- well, that was just a good idea.

And Mitt Romney says he will be the president for all Americans.
Don`t forget that. Even though he was caught on tape saying that he can
never convince 47 percent of Americans to take responsibility for
themselves.

This is why Mitt Romney can`t be let off the hook in the debate
tomorrow night. But it`s hard to press him on these issues when he doesn`t
even answer the questions. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KING, CNN: What is the biggest misconception about you in the
public debate right now?

ROMNEY: We`ll have to create more jobs, have less debt and shrink the
size of government. I`m the only person in this race --

KING: Misconceptions about you? The question is a misconception.

ROMNEY: Lack -- you know, you get to ask the questions you want and I
get to give the answers I want.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Well, there you have it. I hope there`s a moment like that
tomorrow night. It`s not going to be easy for moderator Jim Lehrer. This
is why President Obama, I think needs to confront Mitt Romney on these
distortions when they come up.

Even if Romney won`t answer for them, it needs to be spelled out loud
and clear to the American people who have been lied to. Mitt Romney has
not been straight with Americans on where he stands and where he wants to
take the country and there`s no better platform than the president to take
him to the house.

How can you expect him to be straight with you as president when he
can`t even run his own campaign? And there are so many discrepancies.

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

Tonight`s question: will Mitt Romney continue his campaign of lies at
tomorrow`s debate? Text A for yes, text B for no, to 622639. You can
always go to our blog at Ed.MSNBC.com. We`ll bring you the results later
on in the show.

Joining me tonight is Robert Gibbs, senior Obama campaign adviser.

Robert, great to have you with us tonight. There`s just so much meat
on the bone here. We have laid out all of the things, all of the
discrepancies, all of the distortions, all of the lies that we have seen
from the Romney campaign. There`s a lot of, I guess you can say, it`s
target-rich environment for President Obama.

What about this tax plan? Is President Obama almost obligated to
supporters to point out to them that this is flawed? What do you think?

ROBERT GIBBS, OBAMA CAMPAIGN SENIOR ADVISOR: Well, look, I think the
moderators are going to ask or the moderators are going to ask Governor
Romney about a lot of the things that, Ed, that you just talked about. I
hope the moderator gives Governor Romney a chance to do what Paul Ryan said
he didn`t have time to do, and that is explain how they pay for a $5
trillion tax cut.

As you pointed out, Ed, it is a time problem that is vexing in this
budget. It`s a math problem. They can`t pay for it. If they can`t pay
for it, to provide the tax cut for the rich, then they`re going to raise
taxes on the middle class. That`s what all the economic studies have
shown.

And, look, I don`t know anybody who thinks we`re another tax cut for a
millionaire away from a stronger middle class. That`s just not how we have
built our economy before and it`s not how we`re going to continue to make
our country strong now.

SCHULTZ: Will President Obama confront Romney on these issues or will
he rely on the debate moderator to do it? How aggressive will the
president be?

GIBBS: Well, look, I think -- again, I think the debate moderator
will get into this. I think the president will push back particularly on
some of these budget and tax issues. I have no doubt they are going to get
a chance to talk about the auto bailout that you were discussing and Mitt
Romney is wanting to let Detroit go bankrupt.

And, look, I think the president looks towards tomorrow as a great
opportunity to have a long conversation with the American people about
where we have been, about the troubled tough times that we have been
through, the progress we`re making, and most importantly what we want to do
over the next four years to strengthen manufacturing, create jobs here at
home, make sure that we have the best education system in the world and
give, as I said before, some real strength and security to middle-class
families.

SCHULTZ: Is the 47 percent comment the game changer so far? Does the
Obama campaign feel this really has put the wind at your back? I mean,
this is a clear distinction about who cares about the 100 percent and the
47 percent.

In fact, there`s new tape from Paul Ryan that has surfaced. He
doesn`t sound too different from Mitt Romney in this hidden fundraiser
video.

Here`s Ryan talking about people who rely on government assistance.
Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN: Before too long, we would become a society we were never
intended to be. We could become a society where the majority Americans are
takers and not makers. Seventy percent of Americans want the American
dream. They believe in the American idea. Only 30 percent want the
welfare state.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Doesn`t had this show the American people what Romney and
Ryan think about struggling Americans?

GIBBS: Well, absolutely, it does. I mean, look, my favorite thing is
Mitt Romney said it was inelegantly stated when he said about the 47
percent. Look, I hope that -- I hope Mitt Romney gets a chance to
elegantly state what he said about the 47 percent of the American people
not caring enough to take responsibility for their own situations in life.

And, look, I think, you know, what that crystallized for people, Ed,
is what they suspected about Governor Romney and Paul Ryan all along. And
that is they don`t really care about the middle class in this country.
They are not really concerned about and they certainly don`t understand
what it`s like to work hard and try to get ahead in the country. To play
by the rules, but have a different set of rules for people like Wall
Street.

SCHULTZ: Yes.

GIBBS: And I think that`s what that tape did. It crystallized for
people that this is not a group that believes in a middle-out economic
recovery. It`s all about top-down.

SCHULTZ: All right. Robert Gibbs, great to have you with us tonight
on THE ED SHOW. Appreciate it so much.

GIBBS: Ed, thanks for having me.

SCHULTZ: Remember to answer tonight`s question there at the bottom of
the screen, and share your thoughts on Twitter @EdShow, and on Facebook.
We always want to know what you think.

Coming up, the Romney camp says their candidate is prepared to address
his comments on the 47 percent at tomorrow`s debate. Can he reverse the
damage? Richard Wolffe and Alex Wagner will join me next for the
discussion. Stay tuned. We`re coming right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: Coming up, new poll numbers show Mitt Romney`s 47 percent
comments have taken a toll. Can tomorrow`s debate be a game-changer?
Richard Wolffe and Alex Wagner will join me for a debate preview, next.

The Obama campaign launches a new ad targeting Mitt Romney`s
investment in China with Bain Capital. We`ll have the campaign response
and talk with Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown.

And a big day for swing state voters. Early voting begins in Ohio and
a Pennsylvania court blocks a voter ID law. We`ll have all the details.
Big story there.

Share your thoughts with us on Facebook and on Twitter using #EdShow.

We are coming right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: Thanks for watching THE ED SHOW tonight.

Mitt Romney is running behind in the polls. He needs to bring his A-
game tomorrow night in the first game. Does he have an A-game? I`ve got
to watch. We all do.

But Romney has an uphill climb on his hands. No doubt about it. The
former governor`s comments about the 47 percent has done some real damage
to the campaign.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMNEY: There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the
president no matter what. All right? There are 47 percent who are with
him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims,
who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who
believe they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you name
it.

And so, my job is not to worry about those people. I`d never convince
them that they should take personal responsibility and care for their
lives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: So, that infamous piece of tape is now being given analysis
by the American people. The latest NBC News/"Wall Street Journal" poll
shows just 23 percent of likely voters say Romney`s comments made them
think more positively about the candidate, 45 percent said it made them
feel more negatively about Mitt Romney.

Romney senior adviser Ed Gillespie says the Republican nominee is
expecting the 47 percent remark to come up in tomorrow`s debate and is
prepared to answer it and to address it. We believe the voters will see
and appreciate the fact that what Governor Romney`s talking about would
improve the quality of life for 100 percent of Americans.

Joining me tonight, MSNBC political analyst Richard Wolffe and host of
"NOW WITH ALEX WAGNER", Alex Wagner.

Great to have both of you with us tonight. Congratulations, Alex, on
your show. It`s really taken off.

ALEX WAGNER, MSNBC HOST: Thank you, Ed.

SCHULTZ: You know, there`s damage here. I mean, the polls show it.
You can almost feel it.

Richard, how does he reverse this damage tomorrow night?

RICHARD WOLFFE, MSNBC POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, if he`s smart, he
tries to see the debate as a chance to reintroduce himself to the American
people. He blew that opportunity in the conventions, but this isn`t a
moment for zingers. This is not a moment about landing the punch. No
matter how badly you think you want it, or your staff ands your supporters
want you to do that, you have to take a much more measured approach that
this is a conversation, this is a case where he really hasn`t communicated
who he is and what he stands for.

The problem is that in this context of the 47 percent, where that has
become the explaining narrative for everything you don`t like about Mitt
Romney, he has to get beyond that and say this is who I really am. So,
he`s not just saying who he is, but he`s also saying the guy I think I am,
I`m not that guy. And that`s hard to do in a two-minute response, which is
only the time for in these debates.

SCHULTZ: Alex, how aggressive do you think President Obama should be
with all of the distortions that have come from the Romney campaign? Where
does it take the president tomorrow night? What do you think?

WAGNER: Look, I think, you`re going to -- there`s no way the
president is not going to mention the 47 percent thing. But to Richard`s
point, this is something that team Romney is prepared for. And when you
think about it, there are so many other things the president can take
Romney to task for. I mean, his campaign has been a hall of mirrors.

And I think everything from his recent comments about amnesty for the
children of undocumented workers, which is a reversal from what he said
earlier in the campaign about illegals and magnets, to his tax policy,
which is literally the most confusing thing ever, so confusing in fact that
there`s no amount of time in which Paul Ryan or Mitt Romney can explain any
of the specifics.

So, if I were Obama, you know, the 47 percent might be sort of an
organizing principle, but at the end of the day, I think the American
public wants specifics and there are a number of policy items where the
president is in really strong position.

SCHULTZ: Well, Richard, I find it so amazing that just a couple days
before the debate, which is a big platform for Mitt Romney because of what
the polls are doing, he just happens to come up with this $17,000 deduction
in this tax plan that he fully can`t explain. I mean, this is such a dark
board mentality. How important is it for the president to draw distinction
between the candidates?

WOLFFE: Well, is it really $17,000? I mean, the problem for the
president is that he`s debating a piece of jell-o.

So every time he tries to close on it, it wobbles into some other
shape. Is it $17,000? Is it not? Is this deduction? Is that deduction?
Is it his position on abortion? Is it his position being pro-life?

And that actually makes him a very difficult debate opponent if you
think it`s about engagement and everything we`ve heard from the Romney side
is they think it`s about engagement. That`s what they want to do.

I think the president is going to take a different tact, which is
essentially ignore the other side. Speak directly to camera, directly to
people in the living room about yourself, because you may like him, you may
not like him, but you know who the president is. You can`t say the other
thing is true about the other guy.

SCHULTZ: And earlier, Joe Biden made remarks about the middle class
being buried. Here it is. Paul Ryan jumped on these comments just a few
hours later. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: Vice President Biden just today said that the middle class over
the last four years has been, quote, "buried". We agree. Of course, the
middle class has been buried. They are being buried by regulation
regulations. They are buried by taxes. They are buried by borrowing.
They are being buried by the Obama administration`s economic failures.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Once again, the Romney campaign is taking remarks out of
context. Alex, will it work or is it just desperation?

WAGNER: You know, I think it`s a real mistake whenever the Romney
campaign tries to play on the same field as the president and Joe Biden. I
mean, nobody is a better surrogate, speaks more to the pain of the working
and middle class than Joe Biden. Don`t even go there, Paul Ryan.

And the same is true for Mitt Romney. As Richard said, you know, that
sort of straight to camera shot, we saw both campaigns come out with ads
last week. President Obama is a much better speaker. He`s more direct.
He communicates warmth, integrity and honesty.

From Mitt Romney, it seems hollow. If I were the Romney campaign, I
would stay with the fix-it thing. Do everything short of coming out with
mops and brooms and talk about the economy.

But whenever they try to play the genuine American attack, it never
works for them. They always fall flat and it always rings hollow.

SCHUTLZ: Alex Wagner, Richard Wolffe, great to have you with us on
THE ED SHOW. Appreciate it so much.

Coming up, the Obama campaign released a new ad hammering Mitt Romney
for outsourcing jobs to a Chinese company with sweat shop conditions during
his time at Bain Capital. Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio is going to be
joining me on that and other issues.

And billionaires -- they are getting antsy about the possibility of
President Obama`s reelection. And they are starting to whine big time.
E.J. Dionne joins me on that.

Stay tuned. You`re watching THE ED SHOW on MSNBC. We`re right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. Thanks for watching.

Last week, documents obtained by the "Boston Globe" revealed that Bain
Capital affiliate Brookside Capital Partners Fund had invested in global
tech -- this is a Chinese-based company -- less than two weeks after the
company promoted its inexpensive labor and low tax rate.

Mitt Romney was listed as president and CEO of the Brookside Fund at
the time. Now just ahead of the first presidential debate, the Obama
campaign has released this hard-hitting ad in several manufacturing and
swing states. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NARRATOR: These appliances could have been made here in America, but
a company called Global Tech maximized profits by paying employees next to
nothing, under sweatshop conditions in China. When Mitt Romney led Bain,
they saw Global Tech as a good investment, even knowing that the firm
promoted its practice of exploiting low-wage labor to its investors.

Mitt Romney, tough on China? Since when?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: A Romney spokeswoman responded, "This is another overboard
ad from a president trying to distract from his failure to stand up to
China." The statement goes on, but not once -- not once -- does it
actually deny any of the charges against Mitt Romney.

Let`s turn to Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown.

Senator, good to have you with us tonight.

You know, I think this latest Obama ad plays right to the workers of
Ohio. Mitt Romney and Bain Capital were at the forefront of outsourcing
jobs to places like China. What has outsourcing done to the state of Ohio
and other manufacturing states? How damaging is this?

SEN. SHERROD BROWN (D), OHIO: It`s been very damaging. We have seen
a trade deficit with China explode. Take auto parts. Ohio is a major auto
parts making state. Ten years ago, the trade deficit was one billion
dollars bilateral with China on auto parts. Today it`s 10 billion.

That`s why the president -- at the urging of a number of us, the
president has have taken China to the World Trade Organization to show that
China is cheating and to ask for some kinds of tariffs to protect American
companies, manufacturers especially, and to protect American workers. And
that`s -- we`re seeing a pattern of the government finally on the side of
workers, finally on the side of American manufacturing, standing up for
American workers against China.

We have a new steel mill in Youngstown. We`re seeing jobs actually
come to this country or stay in this country because we`re standing up and
enforcing trade rules.

SCHULTZ: Romney and the Republicans keep talking about another tax
cut for the job creators. Don`t we just see them increasing their profits
by outsourcing this way? I mean, the model that Romney wants to lay on the
country, how could it be good for workers in Ohio?

BROWN: Well, it`s not. We tried these tax cuts for the rich the last
10 years, tax cuts for the rich, hoping it trickles down to the middle
class. It doesn`t work.

What works are things like when you build the economy from the middle
class out. The auto rescue clearly has worked in Ohio. Our unemployment
rate -- we`re not where we need to be, but it`s three -- more than three
percentage points lower than it was in 2010.

Enforcing trade laws -- we have more tire jobs in Fenly, more steel
jobs in Cleveland and Loraine, more aluminum jobs in Heath and Sydney,
Ohio, because we`re staying on trade. I want the president to take one
more step and that is -- and Romney could help us with this. The governor
could send a letter to John Boehner to pass my legislation in the House.
We have passed it in the Senate, to level the playing field on Chinese
currency, the largest bipartisan jobs bill to pass the Senate.

We`re asking --

(CROSS TALK)

SCHULTZ: Well, he hasn`t. And the Romney camp keeps coming back,
hitting President Obama on currency -- manipulation of currency in China.
It`s passed in the Senate and Boehner won`t bring it up in the House.

I want to get to this. The Obama campaign is out today with a new ad
about a campaign stop Mitt Romney made in Ohio. I want to get your
reaction to it. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: See the coal miners in these ads? Turns out they
were told that attendance at Mitt Romney`s rally was, quote, "mandatory."
Their mine was closed, lost the pay they needed, all to be props in
Romney`s commercial.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Employees feel they were forced to go. They had
to take the day off without pay. They took a roll call. They had a list
of who was there and who wasn`t and felt they wouldn`t have a job if they
did not attend.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: I mean, this is shear arrogance On one hand, the business
model is to outsource the jobs. But when you have a chance to use the
workers in a commercial -- senator, what do you think of this? Your
thoughts on this?

BROWN: No surprise, the same stuff. But I go back, Ed, if Governor
Romney would pick up the phone and call John Boehner, join our grassroots
effort -- we`re putting pressure on Boehner to pass this. Twenty senators
have signed a letter. My grassroots effort, SherrodBrown.com, come to
that, put pressure on Boehner, ask Governor Romney. We`ll help with that--
to schedule this trade enforcement legislation for China. That will make a
real difference in jobs, not some of the stuff Romney is talking about or
my opponent is talking about.

SCHULTZ: You`re not going to get a letter from Mitt Romney. I think
you have a great idea, senator, but any candidate that would use forced
workers to be props in a campaign, I wouldn`t count on him for anything.
Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown with us tonight here on THE ED SHOW. Senator,
good to have you with us.

Lots more coming up in the next half hour of THE ED SHOW. Stay right
here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Voter I.D., which is going to allow Governor
Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania, done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Republican voter suppression in Pennsylvania is dealt a
death blow in the courts. But the cheating goes on in Colorado. Tonight
an update on the RNC voter fraud scandal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHELLE OBAMA, FIRST LADY: Early voting starts today. Today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: The First Lady is firing up supporters as voters swarm the
polls. We`ll bring you the latest on Ohio early voting.

And Mitt Romney`s billionaire supporters are complaining about the
president louder than ever.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need leadership, not criticism. We need
encouragement, not discouragement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Tonight E.J. Dionne on the Obama billionaire hate club.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: This is a story that really grates on me. For at least a
few years now, we have been told how President Obama is just alienating
Wall Street. Billionaires have got it so rough. They are going to turn
against him to donate to the other guy and to make sure that President
Obama is not reelected. They`re going to have a stake in this game.

Now that the election is just 35 days away and President Obama, you
got to admit, looks pretty strong right now in the polls, some of these
billionaires are beginning to whine a little bit. They don`t like the
environment of what`s happening. Here`s billionaire Sam Zell, CEO of
Equity Group Investments. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAM ZELL, CEO, EQUITY GROUP INVESTMENTS: How the, quote, one
percenters or the 10 percenters, whatever these top earners moved ahead of
everybody. I wonder if there`s any correlation between while they were
moving ahead, the rest of the government was subsidizing -- subsidizing
more and more people and disincentivizing them.

I think that they are disincentivised by, in effect, if you don`t have
to pay for your health care, that`s another thing you don`t have to worry
about.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: He sounds like he could have been sitting right there at the
Mitt Romney fundraiser, don`t you think? His disdain of the 47 percent is
the same as Mitt Romney`s. Zell is not the only oligarch complaining about
President Obama. Leon Cooperman -- this billionaire hedge fund manager and
former Obama supporter said this, "you know, the largest and greatest
country in the free world would put a 47-year-old guy that never worked a
day in his life and made him in charge of the free world. Not totally
different from taking Adolph Hitler in Germany and making him in charge of
Germany, because people were economically dissatisfied."

You know, this is absolutely repulsive. What are these billionaires
upset about? The stock market is up over 100 percent since 2009.
Corporate profits are at an 18-year high. Personal taxes, the lowest rate
in 50 years. These guys have never had it any better. But they hate
Obama. They hate President Obama because we might be going down the road
to make sure more Americans get health insurance.

By the way, a new study says Mitt Romney`s health care plan wouldn`t
just take us back to the levels of uninsured Americans that existed before
Obama care was enacted; it would actually make things worse. According to
the Commonwealth Fund, Romney`s plan would increase the number of uninsured
Americans to 72 million.

I guess Sam Zell thinks that that would give those 72 million people
an incentive to succeed? When you`re a billionaire, you really don`t have
to worry about anything, do you?

Let`s turn to E.J. Dionne, MSNBC contributor, "Washington Post"
columnist, and author of the book "Our Divided Political Heart." E.J.,
great to have you with us tonight.

It would seem to me that if there was one portion of our society that
would be quiet about the way things are going in our economy, it would be
the wealthiest Americans. How does this play out?

E.J. DIONNE, "THE WASHINGTON POST": You know, this is a very, very
strange and disturbing thing, as you said. I mean, the piece, in a way,
that`s inspiring a lot of conversations about this is Chrystia Freeland`s
really wonderful piece in "the New Yorker," which I think is a real
document for our time.

One of the things she says -- she reports on is what she calls a sense
of victimization among so many of America`s wealthiest people. If they
feel like victims, then I guess all of the country ought to feel like
victims. What`s amazing here is the anti-Obama venom. You talked about it
in your production there.

Let`s go back to March of 2009. The economy, the whole system was on
the verge of collapse. The stock market was down in the 6,000s, less than
half of where it was at its peak. And Obama made two decisions. One was
to prop the thing up and keep it going in alliance with other countries
around the world. And he literally saved the fortunes of a lot of these
people.

But he made a second decision. There were a lot of progressives who
thought that we should have had more accountability from Wall Street, that
we should have asked more questions about how did we get into this mess in
the first place. And President Obama did not go there. And he didn`t go
there because his advisers were worried that if you push the system too
hard, it might collapse.

And so here are folks whose fortunes were saved, in significant part,
by the president`s policies. And they are complaining because he doesn`t
say thank you to them. It`s very strange.

SCHULTZ: These guys got exactly what they wanted, and they just won`t
admit it. Let`s play a little more sound from Sam Zell.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ZELL: We need leadership, not criticism. We need encouragement, not
discouragement. And until that scenario changes, I think the United States
is, quote, unquote -- and I hate to use this word -- in a malaise.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: What the hell is he talking about? Zell says he`s being
criticized and President Obama hasn`t provided leadership. Your thoughts
on this.

DIONNE: In that "New Yorker" piece, she notes that 93 percent of the
gains in the recovery of 2009/2010 -- 93 percent went to the top one
percent. Were we supposed to give them 96 percent of the gains? Isn`t
that encouragement enough?

And what about encouragement to the unemployed or the uninsured?
Couldn`t they use a little bucking up? It`s very weird to have very rich
people feel like victims.

And being very rich isn`t enough. They want us to look at the world
exactly the way they do. And I don`t know how any group of people can
expect that. For people like us who would say, look, maybe we`re given a
little too much to finance, maybe we should give a little more to
manufacturing or give a little more to working people, somehow this makes
us people who hate the rich. That`s just not true.

So this is a remarkable point we have come to.

SCHULTZ: It really is a remarkable point. The people that have
gotten all the breaks, that have gotten the deregulation, that have gotten
the tax breaks, that have got the best tax rates they have had in years,
they are complaining about a president who is not saying the right things
to them. I find it amazing.

E.J. Dionne, always great to have you with us here on THE ED SHOW.
Thanks so much.

Coming up, early voting kicked off in the key swing state of Ohio
today. Things are looking good for President Obama. We`ll bring you all
of the latest from the Buckeye State next. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who are we?

CROWD: Ohio.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fired up.

CROWD: Ready to vote.

Five, four, three, two, one.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: We are back. Early voting kicked off in the battleground
state of Ohio today. And as you can tell, those folks are fired up voters.
The Buckeye State looking pretty good for the president right now as far as
the polls go. But attempts to kill off early voting by Ohio Republicans
simply have failed.

Obama supporters camped out at polling stations around Ohio last night
as part of the Sleep Out the Vote Effort. Polls officially opened at 8:00
a.m. this morning and thousands of Ohio voters have already cast their
ballots. This is good news for President Obama, as early voters tend to
favor Democrats.

In Lucas County alone, first day voter turnover in almost doubled that
from 2008. Of the 928 voters, there were 696 Democrats, 40 Republicans,
198 had no party affiliation. Meanwhile, First Lady Michelle Obama fired
up voters in Cincinnati today. She warned supporters the fight for Ohio is
not over.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

M. OBAMA: Early voting starts today.

(APPLAUSE)

M. OBAMA: Today. We need you to sign up to make phone calls, to
knock on doors, to help get the vote out. But more importantly, we need
you to talk to everybody you know, remind them what`s at stake in this
election.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Shortly after the event, the Obama campaign tweeted out this
photo of a marching band rallying voters in Cincinnati. President Obama`s
campaign is simply outworking the Romney camp in Ohio. Obama for America
has 96 field offices in the state compared to only 36 for Romney. In 2008,
30 percent of the Ohio vote was cast early before the election. And this
year it could reach 40 percent.

Republicans have done everything in their power to block the vote in
Ohio. But thanks to solid work from the Obama campaign, their efforts
simply are failing early on. The latest Quinnipiac poll shows President
Obama with a 10-point lead over Romney in Ohio.

But beware. Michael Dukakis had the lead back in 1988. This is a
long haul, but it`s a great start. Tonight in our survey, I asked will
Mitt Romney continue his campaign of lies at tomorrow`s debate? Ninety
eight percent of you said yes; two percent of you said no.

Coming up, the good news and bad news for voters. The Republicans
lose a key court case and get caught in voter registration scandal. The
details when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SCHULTZ: In the Big Finish tonight, the Republicans suffered a
setback in court this morning. Republicans in Pennsylvania tried to
suppress the vote by enacting a tough -- a tough photo I.D. law in the
state of Pennsylvania. It could have kept at least 758,000 people from
voting. But today the judge blocked a key part of the law. His ruling
means voters will be asked for an I.D., but they can go ahead and vote
without one.

The ruling only covers this election. The decision is bad news for
the Republicans in Pennsylvania. Earlier this year, one of the state`s
party leaders boasted the law would help Mitt Romney win the election.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Voter I.D., which is going to allow Governor
Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania, done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: Pennsylvania is just one of 41 states to pass restrictive
new voting laws since President Obama won in 2008. So far, 17 states have
successfully passed restrictive voting laws just since President Obama won
the White House.

Remember, Republicans in Ohio tried to squash early voting. The GOP
tried to purge the voter rolls in Florida. The Republicans have claimed
all along that they are just trying to stop voter fraud. It`s such a big
problem.

But look what happens. It turns out that they are the ones who were
cheating. A get out the vote scandal is rocking the Republican party right
now. Party leaders in five states hired this outfit called Strategic
Allied Consulting to help register voters. Now they are firing the firm.

Florida has turned up more than 100 -- 100 suspicious voter forms.
And in Colorado, one worker was caught on tape claiming that she worked for
the county?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you work for Romney or Obama?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought you were registering voters a minute
ago.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who are you registering? All voters?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m actually trying to register people for a
particular party because we`re out here in support of Romney actually.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who is paying you for this?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let me see, we`re working for the county clerk`s
office.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHULTZ: That, of course, went viral. Strategic Allied Consulting
fired that girl in the video. And it denies any wrong doing whatsoever.
Here`s the bottom line. The Republicans talk about preventing voter fraud
but they get real quiet when they get caught doing the cheating.

Joining me tonight is Rick Palacio. He is the chairman of the
Colorado Democratic Party. Rick, great to have you with us tonight. There
is this operation going on here in the state of Colorado.

Why isn`t voter registration, this scandal, getting more attention in
this state?

RICK PALACIO, COLORADO DEMOCRATIC PARTY: Well, it should be getting a
lot more attention. It`s outrageous that the Colorado Republican Party
decided to hire a firm with such a long and sordid history of committing
fraud. It`s happened right here and in other states. And it`s unfortunate
that more media outlets have not been picking this story up.

SCHULTZ: I mean, this videotape is damaging and it`s very telling. I
feel sorry for the teenage girl. She`s caught up in something that she`s
probably not aware of. What are you doing to counter this Republican
ground game that`s out there?

PALACIO: Well, it`s a good point. I do feel badly for this woman
because it sounds to me like she was under very strict orders to not
divulge who she was working for. What we`re trying to do and what we`re
going to continue to do is out-registering for the next week, and then for
the next several weeks until the election, we`re going to make sure that we
turn them out the way that our plan already -- the same way that our plan
was in place.

SCHULTZ: All right, Colorado has been pretty evenly split for almost
a generation. How can you help President Obama win this election, to keep
this state blue? And how crucial do you think this state is?

PALACIO: Well, it`s no doubt that Colorado is the battleground of
battleground states. We only have nine electoral votes, but we`re pretty
confident that if we continue to work the way that we have been working,
those nine electoral votes are going to go for the president. We have an
incredible ground operation. We have 59 field offices open across the
state, in all four corners of the state. This is a neighbor to neighbor
campaign. That`s how we`re going to win.

SCHULTZ: Are you concerned about the Hispanic voter suppression
effort that the Republicans are doing? And how important is that Hispanic
vote to President Obama in this state?

PALACIO: The Hispanic vote is incredibly important. It`s important
to Colorado and it`s important across the country. What we want to make
sure first is to make sure that people understand it`s easy to vote. But
second, you have to take responsibility and ensure that you are registered
to vote. If you think you are, go online and make sure that you are
registered. Because it is going to come down to perhaps just several
thousand votes.

SCHULTZ: It`s going to be that tight?

PALACIO: Well, it could be. We had an election in 2010 with Senator
Michael Bennett and his Republican opponent. I think that election came
down to roughly 15,000 votes. You never know. You can never predict
what`s going to happen on election day.

SCHULTZ: Yes. Rick Palacio, Colorado Democratic Party, great to have
you with us tonight. Thanks so much.

I want to thank everyone at the Governor`s Park Tavern in Denver who
were there for the MSNBC presidential debate eve watch party. We`re
heading over there right now. We`re looking forward to it.

That`s THE ED SHOW. I`m Ed Schultz. "THE RACHEL MADDOW SHOW" starts
right now. Good evening, Rachel.

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

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