Guests: Howard Fineman, Joe Biden, Maxine Waters, Terry O`Neill, Daryl Parks, Ruth Conniff,
Catherine Crier
ED SCHULTZ, HOST: Good evening, Americans. And welcome to THE ED
SHOW tonight from Boston.
My exclusive interview with Vice President Joe Biden will have you
talking tomorrow. This is a big F-ing deal.
This is THE ED SHOW -- let`s get to work.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOSEPH BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Governor Romney
calls the president out of touch. Hey, how many of y`all have a Swiss bank
account?
(LAUGHTER)
SCHULTZ (voice-over): The vice president was stumping for fairness
today in New Hampshire. And then he sat down for a wide-ranging interview.
(on camera): What`s your position on stand your ground? So the war
on women is real?
A Democratic operative said that Mitt Romney`s wife, Ann Romney,
hasn`t worked a day in her life. We know the story. She raised five boys
at home. What`s your response to that?
(voice-over): Tonight, Vice President Joe Biden in his own words and
its an ED SHOW exclusive.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Zimmerman, you`re appearing here for your
first appearance at this time for a charge of murder in the second degree.
SCHULTZ: George Zimmerman shows his face in court. There are big
developments in his case. Martin family attorney Daryl Parks has the
latest.
And Scott Walker is so scared of getting fired, he`s running ads
against two opponents.
NARRATOR: For eight years, Tom Barrett has led Milwaukee backwards.
Kathleen Falk raised property taxes every single year.
SCHULTZ: We`ll have all of the major developments out of Wisconsin
and the vice president weighs in on the recall.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHULTZ: Good evening, folks. Thanks for watching. Good to have you
with us.
Breaking news off the top tonight, the White House has confirmed North
Korea fired a long-range missile this morning, around 7:38 a.m. The rocket
launch failed. However, breaking up shortly after launch, according to the
U.S. officials.
We are awaiting a formal statement from the White House. But the
Obama administration had already canceled food aid when North Korea
announced the missile test.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said today that the United States
would be going to the U.N. Security Council seeking action and we will keep
you up-to-date on the latest developments on this story as the hour moves
on here on "THE ED SHOW." the Obama campaign is ready to go head to head
with Mitt Romney. The battle lines have been drawn and there`s no doubt
where team Obama stands.
Vice President Biden was on the campaign trail in New Hampshire today,
preaching economic fairness. He called Mitt Romney out by name. The vice
president said Romney will give additional tax cuts to the rich at the
expense of middle class families.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: To put it bluntly, we think it`s out of step with basic
American values. And I`m calling these guys un-American. They are sound,
patriotic Americans. I don`t want to hear anybody play that game with me.
But it is out of step at least with the American values, of middle-
class values that most of us were raised with. And Governor Romney calls
the president out of touch and anti-women, by the way. But -- out of
touch. Hey, how many of y`all have a Swiss bank account?
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: I sat down with the vice president after his speech today. We
talked about the tax burden on the middle class.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHULTZ: Mr. Vice President, thanks for your time.
BIDEN: Yes, it`s great to be here with you. I`m a fan.
SCHULTZ: Thank you.
My head explodes when I hear, you can`t raise taxes on the job
creators. What goes through your mind when you hear that?
BIDEN: What goes through my mind is where in the heck have these guys
been? That was the same argument sitting on the Senate floor listening to
George Bush make when he put that God-awful tax cut through for the super-
wealthy without paying it. They were going to create jobs. What happened?
A slower job growth than any time in 50 years once that passed.
SCHULTZ: Do you think this is an instant replay?
BIDEN: This is an instant replay, man. And I don`t know -- I mean,
they talk about out of touch. Haven`t they seen this movie? I mean, what
makes anybody think -- look, all this does, these God-awful additional tax
cuts that Romney wants to put in there, another $250,000 a year tax cut for
the average person making over 1 million bucks on top of the Bush tax cuts,
$800 billion over the next 10 years?
SCHULTZ: He can`t do it.
BIDEN: He can`t do it. We can`t afford if.
SCHULTZ: It won`t work.
BIDEN: By the way, it doesn`t work. If we want to incentivize
businesses, we should be giving tax breaks to the innovators, we should be
giving tax breaks, making the R&D tax cut permanent, investing in new high-
tech manufacturing capabilities, alternative energy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHULTZ: The middle class understands the unfairness of our current
tax system, according to the vice president. Millionaires and billionaires
understand it, too.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: A White House campaign staff member told me yesterday that
67 percent of the American people want the wealthy to pay more. Do you
believe that number and do you think that people are with you on that?
BIDEN: I absolutely -- I believe -- the wealthy -- look, I come from
a wealthy state of Delaware. And I got elected seven times as United
States senator being a progressive, and I never once engaged in the so-
called class warfare. But because I found out and you know as well as I
do, wealthy people are just as patriotic as poor people. They are just as
patriotic as middle class people.
SCHULTZ: You said today they are ready to do more.
BIDEN: They are ready to do more. I remember taking a look at a poll
when we were trying to get the jobs bill passed. And we said, in order to
put 400,000 teachers and teacher aides back to work in about 15,000 to
20,000 firefighters and cops, all you had to do was raise five tenths of
one percent the tax on the first dollar millionaire made after the first
million, and I remember the polls showing millionaires, a majority of
millionaires supported that.
So I just think these guys -- I just -- I think the American public is
ready to step up and do their fair share, including millionaires.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: I also spoke to the vice president today about the
challenges of a presidential election in a post-Citizens United world.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Citizens United, there`s a very good chance that the Obama
campaign won`t match the money that`s going to be raised by the super PACs.
And the template may be being played out in Wisconsin about boots on the
ground, social networking. How important is that recall for the confidence
of the country that people want their government and want to have a voice?
BIDEN: In a sense, I think, it`s already been accomplished. It`s
already given confidence when here you had an overwhelming percentage of
the people of Wisconsin to say we should have a recall vote. It almost at
this point doesn`t matter who wins the vote. It matters.
SCHULTZ: Yes.
BIDEN: But the point has been made, it wasn`t just Democrats. It
wasn`t just union members who voted for that. In order to get to the
numbers they had, if my recollection is correct, as many people who voted
in that voted for the governor, the previous election, saying there should
be a recall election. And that is people standing up.
SCHULTZ: Is this the template?
BIDEN: This is the template.
SCHULTZ: It is?
BIDEN: I just got finished talking to our volunteers. There is only
one real anecdote to what is expected to be the hundreds and millions of
dollars spent carpet bombing the president -- primarily me, too -- but I
mean, the president is the guy they are probably going to go after because
he`s the leader. He`s the boss.
And I said, there`s only one anecdote. It`s your next door neighbor
knocking on your door saying, I know these guys. Let me tell you, Ed, they
are good men. This is -- that`s not true what you just heard. That`s why
we need more people.
Barack Obama in his last campaign had the best organized campaign in
the history of modern presidential politics, put more troops on the ground.
The anecdote to their millions of dollars in negative advertising is people
-- people on the ground. And so I think and I believe we will have the
best ground game in the history of American presidential politics. That`s
--
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: The Obama campaign appears to be laser focused on the middle
class. They want to draw a clear distinction between where President Obama
wants to go and where the Romney camp wants to go. The Obama team is
leaning on this message of economic fairness. The question is, will it
play? They think it`s going to be a home run.
Vice President Biden says the American people do get it. Will Mitt
Romney get it and get with the middle class before November? That`s the
big question. We`ll have a lot more.
Get your cell phones out. I want to know what you think. Tonight`s
question: are the American people with the Obama team on tax policy?
Text A for yes, text B for no to 622639. And you can go to our blog
at Ed.MSNBC.com and leave a comment. And, of course, we`ll bring you
results later on in the show.
I`m joined tonight by Howard Fineman, NBC News political analyst and
editorial director of the "Huffington Post" Media Group.
Howard, great to have you with us tonight. It was --
HOWARD FINEMAN, HUFFINGTON POST MEDIA GROUP: Hi, Ed.
SCHULTZ: It was interesting being with the Biden team today and
following them.
There is an air of confidence about them that they are on message,
that this economic fairness, this is a horse that they`re going to be able
to ride all the way to November. Your thoughts?
FINEMAN: Well, Ed, first of all, it`s significant that you`re doing
the interview -- the great interview there in New Hampshire. New Hampshire
is a swing state. It`s a state that President Obama won in 2008. It`s
going to be up for grabs again this time.
And the White House is convinced that in that state, we`re talking
about taxes is tricky, you know, that`s the live free or die state, anti-
tax state, no income state, no state sales tax, et cetera. The White House
is confident they can make this case because they`re not just talking about
taxes per se, they`re talking about fairness. They`re talking about being
fair and playing by the rules in American society and values.
Now, most of the American people think that the current tax tables are
unfair. They think they are skewed towards the rich. They think they are
onerous and unfair. So, the White House is pushing on an open door there.
And I think it`s smart.
They are also taking the tax issue and putting it in a larger context.
And, frankly, changing the subject a little bit merely from the current
sort of mediocre state of the economy and saying, look, we`ve made
improvements here but if we go back to the Republican theory of things,
which is symbolized by the tax code, we`re going to go right back into the
recession that we had under George W. Bush.
(CROSSTALK)
FINEMAN: I think it`s been very, very clever on their part.
SCHULTZ: They are confident that they have the blueprint to keep this
economy going and by the time the election comes around, they can have 32
months of private sector job growth.
FINEMAN: Yes.
SCHULTZ: They also believe that, you know, their plan, the Buffett
Rule is going to make it better for the middle class and what the Romney
plan is, is going to make it worse for the middle class.
FINEMAN: Right. They want to set -- yes, they want to set this up,
Ed, and they are setting this up -- the White House is -- as a contrast.
It`s not just a referendum on the president. Although I think they`re
going to be able to willing to take that referendum as you say because the
economy is improving.
But they want to present the starkest possible choice between the
Romney plan, which is sort of the Ryan plan plus versus what the president
wants to do. And that`s to distribute the tax burdens more fairly, that`s
to target tax credits to exactly where they can do the most good as Joe
Biden said in terms of innovation. And they believe if they set up that
contrast between an improving present and the presidential plan that
creates more fairness and what Romney would do to take us back to the days
of George W. Bush, that they`ll win that battle.
SCHULTZ: Yes.
FINEMAN: That`s how they want to frame the entire election. And
they`re starting in the right place, which is New Hampshire.
SCHULTZ: And, Howard, within the last hour, we have gotten word that
the North Koreans have attempted yet another launch, three-stage rocket
failed in its first stage, and we are waiting word from the White House on
this. But U.S. officials have confirmed that this rocket launch was a
failure.
You were with the secretary of state today, Hillary Clinton, as this
was all setting up.
FINEMAN: Yes.
SCHULTZ: What`s the next move for the United States?
FINEMAN: Well, according to Secretary Clinton who was very, very firm
on this earlier today at her briefing over at the State Department, she
read word by word a United Nation`s Security Council resolution flatly
stating that the North Koreans were barred from not only nuclear
development but from testing ballistic missile technology which is
precisely what the North Koreans did today, even if the thing ended up on
the sea. That`s beside the point.
So, the secretary made it clear they were going to go forcefully to
the United Nations, to the Security Council, citing that resolution, and
seek some kind of sanctions or condemnation of the United Nations. You can
expect Ambassador Susan Rice, who`s been working on this even as we speak,
to be very forceful about it tomorrow and you`ll see a lot of activity, a
lot of tough talk at the United Nations tomorrow.
SCHULTZ: And we will bring you the latest developments on North Korea
as this broadcast continues.
Howard Fineman, thanks for your time tonight. Appreciate it.
Remember to answer tonight`s question there at the bottom of the
screen and share your thoughts on Twitter @EdShow. We want to know what
you think.
Coming up, more of my exclusive interview with Vice President Joe
Biden. He weighs in on the GOP`s war on women, as well as those
controversial remarks by a Democratic strategist made about Ann Romney.
You won`t want to miss this.
And George Zimmerman made his first court appearance today, charged
with second degree murder of Trayvon martin. Zimmerman`s lawyer did not
request bail.
Stay tuned. We`re right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Coming up, Vice President Joe Biden reacts to Hilary Rosen`s
comments about Ann Romney and shares his thoughts on the Republican`s war
on women. I also got the vice president`s thoughts on stand your ground
laws across America, as George Zimmerman makes his first appearance in
court. Attorney Daryl Parks and Catherine Crier join me for that
discussions.
And Vice President Biden says Wisconsin is a template for Democrats.
We`ll bring you the latest from the Badger State.
Share your thoughts on Twitter using the #EdShow.
We`re right back. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILARY ROSEN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: What you have is Mitt Romney
running around saying, well, you know, my wife tells me that what women
really care about are economic issues and when I listen to my wife, that`s
what I`m hearing.
Guess what? His wife has actually never worked a day in her life.
She`s never really dealt with the kinds of economic issues that a majority
of the women in this country are facing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: That was Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen really stepping
on it last night. The righties pounced on Rosen`s remarks and tried to
paint her as an Obama adviser, even though she does not work with the White
House, the Obama campaign or the DNC.
Both the Obama campaign and the DNC swiftly repudiated Rosen`s
comments. First lady Michelle Obama offered this strong message, "Every
mother works hard and every women deserves to be respected."
Ann Romney responded to Rosen on FOX.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANN ROMNEY, MITT ROMNEY`S WIFE: My career choice was to be a mother.
And I think all of us need to know that we need to respect choices that
women make.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: This afternoon, Rosen apologized for her comments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROSEN: Mrs. Romney, I applaud your decision to stay home and raise
what are obviously five wonderful boys. This is not about stay-at-home
moms versus working moms. I think your husband needs to stand up for
women`s economic struggles and so far, we have not seen how he`s going to
do that on the campaign trail.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Earlier, I sat down with Vice President Joe Biden to talk
about these comments by Hillary Rosen, Mitt Romney`s fuzzy math and the
GOP`s war on women.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCHULTZ: The Romney camp is saying that 92 percent of the jobs that
were lost during recession were with women. What`s your response to that?
BIDEN: You know what that reminds me of? I used to practice law when
I was kid and it`s an old joke about the kid who kills both his parents and
then pleads for mercy because he`s an orphan. Who caused these jobs to be
lost? All of them, men and women.
Before we came into office, the six months before, 3.5 million jobs
lost. Before I lowered my right hand on that magnificent day on January
20th, when a million people watching, 750,000 some lost that. Another 4
million before the first job bill we could get passed begin to rectify
this.
SCHULTZ: But he`s trying to make the case that women have been
inordinately hit in this recession. Is that true?
BIDEN: Well, women have been hit but men also have been hit. The
point is, every -- look at all the number of people who have been kicked
out of the middle class, dropped out because they can`t stay there anymore.
And this guy talking about women, these guys talking about women?
These guys have a social policy on contraception that takes you back
to the `50s and they have a policy tour -- I mean, when asked the question,
do you think the legislation passed mandating that your son and daughter
doing the same work will have to get the exact same pay, the Lilly
Ledbetter law, they couldn`t answer of -
SCHULTZ: So the war on women is real?
BIDEN: Oh, I think the war on women is real. And, look, I`ll tell
you, it`s going to intensify. The next president of the United States is
going to name one and possibly two or more members of the Supreme Court.
SCHULTZ: A Democratic operative said that Mitt Romney`s wife, Ann
Romney, hasn`t worked a day in her life. We know the story. She raised
five boys at home. What`s your response to that?
BIDEN: My response to that is an outrageous assertion. Look, I have
fought my whole career -- I`m no hero. I don`t want to make it like --
whether it`s Violence Against Women Act or Equal Pay, my entire career as a
senator and as vice president is to get to one point, where my daughter is
able to make whatever choice she wants and no one question it. My daughter
happens to have her Masters degree, she`s a social worker, she`s getting
married. If my daughter wants to be able to say, I`m staying home and
raising my kids, no one should question it.
SCHULTZ: So the right wing is trying to make the case that Democrats
aren`t sympathetic or respect stay-at-home moms.
BIDEN: Well, let me tell you something -- they don`t know the
Democrats that I know. When my wife was killed and I was raising two young
boys myself and then Jill and I got married, we`ve been married now over 35
years, the boys were young, she`s a professional. She has her doctorate,
she has two master`s, she`s a teacher.
She decided -- she decided, not me -- she said, Joe, I`m going to stay
home to learn school. That`s her decision. And that generation, starting
with my wife, was able to make those decisions. It`s either she`s going to
-- and I just think this is just look at the record of who has promoted
women`s health, who`s promoted women opportunity, who`s promoted the
opportunity to have people on the Supreme Court that recognize that women
are absolutely, thoroughly, totally equal in every way with men.
SCHULTZ: And are women going to be with you with this election? I
mean, the polls show that there`s a gender gap and it favors the Democrats.
BIDEN: Ed, I -- you know, I`m a little probably unusual in this
regard. I never predict what people are going to do.
All I`m saying is I think the case that we can make, Barack`s
policies, our past, our expectations, our dreams for women contrasted with
the Republican agenda as it has been and continues to be relative to women.
I don`t think it`s a close call.
SCHULTZ: OK.
BIDEN: And I think women will make that judgment.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHULTZ: Coming up, Congresswoman Maxine Waters and the president of
the National Organization for Women, Terry O`Neill, weigh in on my
interview with Vice President Joe Biden.
And the president also weighed in on the stand your ground laws.
Catherine Crier will discuss with that case of stand your ground, and the
case against George Zimmerman.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Here`s what I know,
that there`s no tougher job than being a mom. And, you know, when I think
about what Michelle`s had to do, when I think about my own mom, a single
mother raising me and my sister, that`s work. So anybody who would argue
otherwise, I think, probably needs to rethink their statement.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW.
That was President Obama earlier reacting to the controversial remarks
made by Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen.
I am joined tonight by Congresswoman Maxine Waters of California, and
Terry O`Neill, president of the National Organization for Women.
Great to have you with us.
You know, the Republicans are playing this now as the Democrats are
anti-family and the Democrats are not family-friendly.
Congresswoman, your response to this. Is this going to be over
tonight or is this conversation going to continue?
REP. MAXINE WATERS (D), CALIFORNIA: Well, the debate about women is
going to continue. It is an issue in this campaign.
The Republicans and Mitt Romney have shown that they don`t care about
women`s issues. They didn`t try to do anything to make sure that women
were protected in this Ryan budget, and then they scared us to death
because they talked about not caring whether or not we had contraception.
Do you realize that contraception has changed the lives of women? It
has given us choices. We can chose to have children and not have them,
have as many as we want, and that gives us the opportunity to stay home, to
work.
And when they brought this issue up, many of us thought we`d never
have to revisit an issue like this again, that those of us who fought in
the women`s movement have gotten this country way past that.
No, this is a debate that is going to be ongoing in this campaign
because women now understand that we`re being threatened, that all of a
sudden we`re being put in a position where we`re going to have things taken
away from us that we thought we had gained. So, no, the debate shall go
on. There is a war on women.
SCHULTZ: And -- well, that`s what the vice president said. We`ll get
to that in a moment as well.
Terry O`Neill, there is some blog traffic out there supporting Hilary
Rosen`s comments saying that what she really meant was that these are
financial issues and that Ann Romney just hasn`t been out there, having to
be a breadwinner and -- for her family. Do you think that there`s a real
division here in the public`s eyes on this?
O`NEILL: No. I think it`s really manufactured by the political
spinmeisters, frankly, on the Romney side. Look, what would we be saying
if Hillary Clinton had said this, that Ann Romney has never -- has not
worked for pay outside the home a day in her life? That`s -- I understand
that that`s an accurate statement.
And that raises the exact issue that Hillary Rosen was trying to get
to, which is do Mr. and Mrs. Romney have the kind of life experience, and
if not the imagination to really understand what most American families are
going through right now.
I think that that was what Hilary was getting at. And -- and so she
left out the words for pay outside the home. I`ll tell you, my mom was an
at-home mother all her life. She used to say about herself, I don`t work.
It`s not accurate. She was one of the most -- she was one of the hardest
working women I`ve ever met. That`s what she said.
SCHULTZ: I think the president was outstanding in his interview
tonight. I mean, President Obama could not have handled it in a more
respectful and serious manner. And earlier we heard from the vice
president. He believes that there is a Republican war on women. Here it
is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: I think the war on women is real. And look, I tell you where
it`s going to intensify. The next president of the United States is going
to get to name one and possibly two or more members of the Supreme Court.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Maxine Waters, the Romney campaign and the RNC are already
raising money off of this. So I think the vice president was correct when
he said the war on women is going to intensify. How much more intense can
it get? Especially with the fact that the Republicans are losing big time
in the polls on this issue?
WATERS: You`re absolutely right. You can see that gender gap. And
it`s growing. And it`s not going to stop. Because, again, a lot of the
younger women in our society never thought they`d have to deal with some of
these issues. They thought that the women`s movement some years ago had
equaled the playing field.
And then we see that it has not been equal. It has not been talked
about. The president understood it. And one of the first things that
President Obama did was to make sure that he passed the Ledbetter
legislation to equalize the pay for women.
So he came into office understanding that still work had to be done.
And so as the president has shown that he not only supports women, he
supports women`s equality, the Republicans have now raised this issue in
this campaign in ways that young women now understand, oh, my goodness, we
are at risk. We have taken two steps forward, and this administration
under Mitt Romney would take us backwards.
SCHULTZ: Well, Terry O`Neill, the Ledbetter Law, which was signed --
it was the first piece of legislation that the president signed, was really
so far behind the times. We were just catching up. And in a conference
call, the Romney team could -- didn`t even acknowledge that they knew what
it was. Doesn`t that speak volumes about how far behind they are?
O`NEILL: It absolutely does. They evidently didn`t know what it was.
How can he claim that he cares about women`s economic security or economic
well-being when he doesn`t even know what the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.
Let`s be clear, the Lilly Ledbetter Act only brought us back to square one.
It was a legislative fix after the Supreme Court misinterpreted Title 7.
So that just brought us back to where we had been before. What we
really need to do it pass the Paycheck Fairness Act. I would love to hear
Mitt Romney explain whether he supports that and, if not, why not?
SCHULTZ: That is an answer he should give, no doubt. Congresswoman
Maxine Waters and Terry O`Neill, thanks for your time tonight here on THE
ED SHOW. We appreciate it.
WATERS: You`re certainly welcome. >
SCHULTZ: There`s a lot more coming up in the next half hour of THE ED
SHOW.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Zimmerman, you`re appearing here for your
first appearances -- first appearance at this time for charge of murder in
the second degree.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Ahead, a surprise in the courtroom today as George Zimmerman
showed his face for the first time.
And the vice president weighs in on Stand Your Ground.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: What`s your position on Stand Your Ground? Is that a good
law? Is it necessary? >
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: And Scott Walker is lecturing two Democrats on how to create
jobs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Under Barrett, Milwaukee has had one of the worst
job creation records of any big city in the U.S.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Coming up, we`ll set Wisconsin`s governor straight.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. George Zimmerman made his
first court appearance today for the killing of Trayvon Martin on a charge
of second-degree murder.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Zimmerman, you`re appearing here for your
first appearances -- first appearance at this time for a charge of murder
in the second degree. And you are represented by Mr. O`Mara. Is that
true?
GEORGE ZIMMERMAN, ACCUSED KILLER OF TRAYVON MARTIN: Yes, sir.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Remember your right to remain silent. All the
other rights that he has told you about -- you have to say nothing. And
we`ll go forward here on some procedural matters only at this time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Zimmerman`s attorney, Mark O`Mara, did not ask for a bond.
He said he would request a bond within a couple of weeks, after the fever
surrounding -- the fervor surrounding the case settled down. Zimmerman is
in protective custody in the Seminole County Jail. His arraignment is set
for May 29th.
And he`s expected to enter a former plea of not guilty. The
magistrate today ordered all future documents be sealed. Zimmerman`s case
has not been assigned to a trial judge.
But the two-page probable cause affidavit gives an indication of the
prosecution`s cases. It said Zimmerman followed Trayvon Martin,
disregarding the police dispatcher. Trayvon Martin had been talking to a
friend prior to the confrontation. And he was scared.
It said, Zimmerman confronted Martin. The cries for help were Trayvon
Martin, according to Trayvon`s mother. According to the prosecution, while
Zimmerman was on a 911 call, he said "punks," not a racial slur.
Let`s turn Daryl Parks, attorney for the family of Trayvon Martin.
Mr. Parks, good to have you with us tonight. What is your response to some
of what I just read that is in the affidavit?
DARYL PARKS, ATTORNEY FOR THE MARTIN FAMILY: Well, a lot of the facts
are things that we already heard before, Ed. And I think that, you know,
we knew that the evidence that was found in the 911 tapes were things that
would lead the prosecutor to definitely file charges in this case. And
that`s why we had the confidence that we had.
You know, we`re glad we`re at this point. Right now, it`s not a
probably happy moment for anyone. But it`s good to see the wheels of
justice turning. And this family`s glad to finally be in a courtroom
situation.
SCHULTZ: The probable cause affidavit also says Zimmerman profiled
Trayvon Martin. You know, I guess terms of definition, profile Trayvon
Martin -- how would you describe that? What do you think George Zimmerman
did?
PARKS: Well, it was rather clear from the 911 tapes that when George
Zimmerman saw Trayvon Walking just down the street, he said words like,
he`s suspicious; these guys always get away with it. So it was clear at
that time that he had some preconceived notion about Trayvon and people
like Trayvon in his mind.
That`s the only thing it could be. So from the very beginning, the
tapes say it all in this case. You need not go very far.
SCHULTZ: Here`s Trayvon`s mother, Sybrina Fulton, this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SYBRINA FULTON, MOTHER OF TRAYVON MARTIN: We are happy that he was
arrested, so that he can give his side of the story. One of the things
that I still believe in, a person should apologize when they are actually
remorseful for what they have done. I believe it was an accident. I
believe that it just got out of control, and he couldn`t turn the clock
back.
I would ask him, did he know that that was a minor, that that was a
teenager and that he did not have a weapon?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: She later said she didn`t really mean it was an accident.
Explain this.
PARKS: Well, clearly -- let me put it in the context. I was actually
there in the studio there in D.C. when she made that statement on "The
Today Show." First of all, she was rather clear that Tracy had made some
comments about Mr. Zimmerman getting out of the vehicle early in that
conversation.
She was piggybacking on that. So when she made that -- she was
talking about he should not have gotten out of the car -- the truck, excuse
me -- and he did. So that part was -- the encounter itself was an
accident. Not the shooting. It`s rather clear and uncontroverted that
George Zimmerman meant to shoot Trayvon. He has not denied that.
SCHULTZ: Defense Attorney Mark O`Mara is saying that his client,
George Zimmerman, may apologize to the Martin family. How would that be
received?
PARKS: Well, these are Christian people. And we all -- everyone who
are Christians know that forgiveness is a big part of what we do. But you
have to understand that sometimes even forgiveness is a little bit harder
when you`ve lost your child.
So I think she would hear him out, and she would do her best within
her power. But she`s dealt with an awful lot. And certainly she has, you
know -- the system has let her down some.
SCHULTZ: Well, it would certainly put George Zimmerman in somewhat of
a light, showing some sympathy, which would be a good move by the defense
team, don`t you think? He`s been portrayed by some as a very harsh
character. And now if he comes out and apologize, wouldn`t that be pretty
much the standard move by the defense team?
PARKS: It would be great, Ed. But you know what? Up until this
point, even last night, as his brother gave the very lengthy interview to
someone, they were not contrite at all about what they had done. And you
know, some remorse probably would go a long way in this case. But we
haven`t seen any of that yet.
SCHULTZ: Daryl Parks, thank you for your time tonight. Thank you,
sir.
Vice President Joe Biden speaks out about Stand Your Ground laws.
Attorney Katherine Crier joins me for the conversation next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. The Stand Your Ground Laws
have been a hot topic of conversation around the country. Vice President
Joe Biden talked about it today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: What`s your position on Stand Your Ground? Is that a good
law? Is it necessary?
BIDEN: Well, look, I think it`s -- I think it just leads to nothing
but ambiguity. You know, there has been, from English common law all the
way through the history of the laws in this country, is that you can -- you
can stand your ground if you`re being attacked. But what you can`t do is
pursue, when you`re no longer in danger pursue and use lethal force against
an individual who is fleeing.
And so one of the reasons why I thought it was so necessary, and the
president called for it, the attorney general, even the governor of Florida
called for it, to set up a special prosecutor, to go take a look at facts,
is that that had to be determined.
The special prosecutor concluded there is evidence to try this man.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: I am joined tonight by Catherine Crier, attorney and author
of "Patriot Acts, What Americans Must Do to Save the Republic."
Catherine, great to have you with us tonight. What is your response
to Vice President Biden`s comments on Stand Your Ground?
CATHERINE CRIER, ATTORNEY: I think he made an important point, but he
didn`t go far enough. Because the biggest problem I have with Stand Your
Ground is it is so broad as a statute that it doesn`t clarify that not only
do you not pursue someone when you`re no longer fearing imminent bodily
harm, but you don`t instigate the fight. Someone might then begin to
defend themselves. And you have a legitimate reason to shoot.
So if, in fact, there was an altercation provoked by George Zimmerman,
his pursuit of Trayvon Martin, and if, in fact, evidence shows that Trayvon
may have at some point turned to defend himself or confront the man
following him, that that doesn`t, in and of itself, allow you to stand your
ground and use deadly force because someone has turned on you and you now
fear for your life.
So there`s a lot more to the statute than the vice president
reiterated.
SCHULTZ: And the Stand Your Ground Laws obviously getting a great
deal of scrutiny around the country because they passed in numerous states.
The second-degree murder, is it going to be hard to get a conviction
with this law on the books, from what you know on about the case?
CRIER: Well, it`s going to be interesting, because I certainly think
that the special prosecutor has made a gutsy call. She could have gone for
manslaughter. We all would have accepted it. But I think she was
satisfied reviewing the evidence that not only did Neighborhood Watch say
you don`t carry a gun; the 911 operator said stay in your car. There were
only about five minutes from the time he ended that call until Trayvon
Martin was dead on the ground.
In that five-minute period, part of the time Trayvon is talking to his
girlfriend. Part of the time, people are hearing his cries for help. And
that certainly -- the evidence will come out in court. That may be
contradicted. But thus far, there seems to be a consensus it was his cries
we heard.
All of these things go to counter the affirmative defense that, in
fact, George was the fearful one. He felt victimized, he felt threatened.
And the special prosecutor seemed satisfied in bringing the second degree
murder charge.
SCHULTZ: Is this going to make it easier on the defense team to make
a case for their client with this law on the books?
CRIER: It`s going to be an interesting argument that I think Mark
O`Mara is going to make, the counsel for Zimmerman. He has said on air
that Stand Your Ground is, for many people, a license to kill. And I think
he`s going to make the argument to the jury, is we may not like this law,
but it`s the law. And my client has the right to avail himself of those
very broad, much too broad provisions.
But I do think that rational, reasonable people will listen to the
argument and say, wait a minute, you have to truly be in fear of your life
and the victim in a circumstance to apply this.
SCHULTZ: Catherine Crier, thank you for joining us on THE ED SHOW
tonight.
CRIER: You bet.
SCHULTZ: Coming up, several developments in the recall of Wisconsin
Governor Scott Walker. Stay with us. We`re right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Here you had an overwhelming percentage of the people of
Wisconsin say we should have a recall vote.
And it almost at this point doesn`t matter who wins the vote. It
matters.
SCHULTZ: Yeah.
BIDEN: But the point has been made.
SCHULTZ: Is this the template.
BIDEN: It is the template.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Today, Vice President Joe Biden telling me that the
Wisconsin recall election is the template for overcoming the cash advantage
Republicans have as a result of the Citizens United ruling. We`re already
seeing the effects of the unlimited Republican fundraising in the Badger
State of Wisconsin.
Governor Scott Walker is already out with attack ads against two of
his potential Democratic opponents.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For eight years, Tom Barrett has led Milwaukee
backwards. Under Barrett, Milwaukee has had one of the worst job creation
records of any big city in the U.S.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Kathleen Falk says she wants to take Wisconsin
back. But back be to what? As Dane County executive, Kathleen Falk raised
property taxes every single year. The unemployment rate tripled.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Walker wants to pick a fight on jobs. Is that right? Well,
in 2010, Scott Walker promised he would create 250,000 jobs. Instead,
during his first 13 months in office, well, he racked up the worst jobs
record in the country. There were 7,500 fewer jobs in Wisconsin than there
were the month before Walker took office.
Let`s bring in Ruth Conniff, political editor for "The Progressive
Magazine."
Ruth, this is rather unusual. He must be really nervous. He has got
everybody in his sight who may be a potential opponent. What do you make
of it?
RUTH CONNIFF, "THE PROGRESSIVE MAGAZINE": We knew it was coming, Ed.
This is going to be the negative TV ad campaign, financed by the largest
amount of spending our state has ever seen in its history. And right out
of the gate, Walker is attacking his potential opponents on his own biggest
weakness.
So this is right from the Karl Rove playbook. He wants to talk about
job creation. As governor, as you pointed out, he racked up the worst job
creation record in the United States of America, the first time in
Wisconsin history we`ve been anywhere near that.
And now he wants to blame a mayor and a county exec who have very
little to do with job creation, when you come right down to it. The
governor, the president, Fed chair, they have something to do with job
creation. So for him to blame them is kind of like a cook making a
horrible meal and then trying to pawn it off on the wait staff.
SCHULTZ: You heard Vice President Joe Biden say Wisconsin is a
template for Democrats across the country. How aware do you think
Wisconsinites are about the national implications of this recall, and how
they really, whether they like it or not, are setting up a template on how
to fight back against all the special interest money and Citizens United
money that`s fallen from the sky over the Badger State?
CONNIFF: I think we know it. We know it. We feel it. We have felt
it from the beginning with these huge historic rallies in Wisconsin. But
this is really ground zero for the Republican agenda, a corporate takeover
of democracy.
And it`s right here. It`s playing out. It`s -- Paul Ryan said it
best. He said Wisconsin was the birth place of progressivism. And that
battle between the right wing and the corporations and progressives is
coming to a crescendo here our home state right now.
SCHULTZ: What about the story that developed today that there may be
an opponent in a Republican primary against Governor Walker, a guy named
Arthur Coal Rigs (ph), who calls himself a progressive Republican. What do
you know about this guy?
CONNIFF: I know Arthur very well, as anybody who has been downtown at
the capital does, because he was at the capital every single day during the
protests. He`s a 23-year-old guy who was energized by the protest movement
here. And really what he`s doing is taking us back, giving us a little bit
of Wisconsin history.
The Republican party started here in the state of Wisconsin. It was
an abolitionist party. And the Republican staffers around the capital
nicknamed him Abe Lincoln, because of his looks.
(CROSS TALK)
SCHULTZ: So are Democrats going to vote for this kid to get Walker
out before the recall?
CONNIFF: No. You know who is going to vote for him, Ed? Republicans
who have had it with Walker, but can`t bring themselves to vote for a
Democrat. He gives them an option.
SCHULTZ: All right. Ruth Conniff, we`ll follow the story. Thanks so
much for joining us tonight.
You can watch my full interview with Vice President Joe Biden on our
website, Ed.MSNBC.Com. By the way, vice president of the United States
says he`s a fan of this broadcast.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: You like THE ED SHOW?
BIDEN: I like THE ED SHOW a lot, man. I watch it. I tell you what,
we come from, figuratively speaking, the same neighborhood.
SCHULTZ: Yes, we do.
BIDEN: We had the same aspirations. You ended up being an all-
American. I ended up being all muffin when I --
SCHULTZ: I don`t think so.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: He`s stretching the truth there, folks. 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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The Ed Show for Thursday, April 12, 2012
Read the transcript to the Thursday show