THE ED SHOW with ED SCHULTZ
September 25, 2012
Guests: Howard Dean, Kasim Reed, William Rhoden, Joan Walsh, Maria Teresa Kumar, Joe Donnelly
ED SCHULTZ, HOST: Good evening, Americans. And welcome to THE ED
SHOW from New York.
Forty-two days until the 2012 election, and eight days until the first
presidential debate. President Obama and millions of Americans are calling
on billionaire owners to get rid of scab refs and bring back the union
workers. Tonight, I`m calling out multimillionaire Mitt Romney for
attacking some other working professionals.
This is THE ED SHOW -- let`s get to work.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think Governor Romney
and a number of folks try to politicize the issue and do a lot of teacher
bashing.
SCHULTZ (voice-over): The president goes after Mitt Romney on
education. And right on cue, Mitt Romney goes after the teachers.
MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I know that the teachers
union has a responsibility to care for the interests of the teachers.
SCHULTZ: Former Governor Howard Dean and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed
react to Mitt Romney`s educated mess.
Scott Walker and Paul Ryan come out against union busting. Eugene
Robinson of "The Washington Post" and Bill Rhoden of "The New York Times"
on why the NFL gets what it paid for.
And on National Voter Registration Day, 10 million Latino voters are
in danger of being disenfranchised. We`ll bring you the shocking details
of a new report that could swing the election to Mitt Romney.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCHULTZ: Good to have you with us tonight, folks. Thanks for
watching.
Americans are up in arms after a blown call in a football game. It`s
amazing what gets the country`s attention. The NFL is mired in a labor
mess because millionaires and billionaires are trying to save a little bit
of money by busting the referee`s union. I`ll have a lot more to say about
this in a few moments.
But today -- today -- we learned what kind of labor issue we will have
on our hands if Mitt Romney is president. It will affect the future of
education in this country. Mitt Romney participated in NBC`s Education
Nation Summit today. The candidate had so few specifics about future plans
for education. He sounded more like a low-information voter than a
candidate for president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: Education is about teachers, great leadership and parents.
And the union has a different objective. I understand. It`s fine for them
to promote it. It`s not fine for us just to go along with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Romney went back to this point many times in the interview.
Teachers unions are to blame for the educational system. President Obama
offered a counterpoint to Romney`s way of thinking during an interview
taped for "The Today" show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: I think Governor Romney and a number of folks try to
politicize the issue and do a lot of teacher bashing. When I meet teachers
across the country, they are so devoted and so dedicated to their kids.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Devoted, devotion, loving their profession. That`s what
teachers are about, but Romney, of course, didn`t say anything like that.
They are the problem.
Many of Romney`s answers throughout the forum were superficial. One
of his big solutions for education reform is a new one that we have been
talking about for 70 years -- parental involvement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: I`d love to see parents very much evolved in evaluating the
success of schools. You know, if parents show up at parent/teacher night,
the kids are going to do fine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Who can argue with this? Romney says that parents are the
key. But when an actual parent stepped up with a question, Romney wasn`t
too happy with the parent`s involvement.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: New York City the parents here support the union
to protect our kids three to one over the mayor and the chancellor. This
is not me. This is coming from a poll of parents.
ROMNEY: I don`t believe it for a minute. I know something about
polls, and I know you can ask questions to get any answer you want. And I
do know this. That having looked at schools, I know the teachers union has
a responsibility to care for the interests of the teachers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: So much for parents being involved.
Mitt Romney said he didn`t believe the man for a second? Folks, the
poll does exist. It`s a February poll from Quinnipiac University, highly
respected polling out, was cited numerous times by the Romney campaign when
the numbers are in their favor.
Romney says polls can ask any question to get any kind of answer they
want. So, we got curious here and said, well, what the heck kind of
questions did they ask on this poll?
Here it is: who do you trust more to protect the interest of school
students -- Mayor Bloomberg or the teachers union? Pretty straight
forward, isn`t it? Here are the results: 31 percent said the mayor, 56
percent said the teachers union.
When the question was asked only to people in the city who have kids
in the public schools, the gap was wider: 22 percent said Mayor Bloomberg,
69 percent said the union. More than three to one.
This underscores how off base Mitt Romney is when it comes to the
perception of teachers unions in America. Polls also that public support
for the teachers strike in Chicago earlier this month. Mitt Romney is so
confused on this issue he actually made the case for the teachers in
Chicago today in the interview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: Education is down at the state level. The federal government
provides funding for special needs students and for low-income students.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: It`s just that easy, right? One of the main reasons the
Chicago teachers went on strike for the first time in 25 years was because
of resources and the lack of resources in the classroom. It`s different
throughout the city.
They can`t afford to cut to federal and state funding. They can`t
afford those cuts.
That`s exactly what would happen if a Mitt Romney became president of
the United States. The Romney/Ryan plan for education -- here`s the list,
folks. Get out your pen and paper. Cut Pell Grants for more than 9
million students. It would eliminate Head Start programs for more than 2
million children, and it would cut nearly $5 billion in Title 1 funding for
low-income and special needs students.
Good plan? Republicans want to cut funding for public education
because, you see, they have a different plan. It`s called for-profit
education. Charter schools are a huge profit center and they are very
attractive to vulture capitalist like Mitt Romney.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: The great thing about charter schools is if they fail, you
close them. You invoke their charter.
I believe that difference is one of the reasons charter schools has
been able to improve the quality of education of those students who beat
their path to the door.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Really? Improve? A study showed charter schools by
Stanford University showed charter schools are twice as likely to
underperform rather than over-perform. But who cares when you can make a
buck? We want to -- we don`t want to pay attention to Stanford.
Speaking of money, this is the other reason Ryan and Romney, see I
always put Ryan`s name first because that`s really what the conservatives
want. They really want Ryan on top of the ticket, and I kind of bought
into that a little bit.
The reason why Romney and Ryan want to slash public education, here it
is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: The teachers unions are able to continue tens of millions of
dollars to the campaigns of politics and then those politicians when
elected stand across from them at the bargaining table, supposedly to
represent the interests of the kids. I think it`s a mistake. I think
we`ve got to get the money out of teachers unions going into campaigns.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: So that`s what it`s all about. It`s about the Democratic
political base because, heck, a worker might have an opinion in the
workplace that might want to contribute in the democracy that this country
offers -- some people, not everybody.
Mitt Romney is just like Scott Walker in Wisconsin. He`s just like
John Kasich in Ohio. He`s just like every union-busting governor in
America. They think everything can be solved by one thing and that`s
privatization.
Cut budgets to a billion dollars. Don`t worry about it. We`ll
privatize it and charter schools will come in and they`ll get it done. And
they don`t care what happens to the workers and the workers are the ones
who are getting the shaft.
But wait a minute. What about the kids? Romney -- it`s not just
Romney, seriously. But I think Romney is very flawed on this issue. This
country needs to come to grips that you can`t go into poor neighborhoods
and raise property taxes and expect that all the education problems are
going to be fixed in America. We have to federally fund public education,
No Child Left Behind, the money never showed up to the districts around the
country.
The fact is that conservatives don`t want to fund it. And the other
fact is the Democrats don`t have the political power to make sure that it
gets done. So that`s why we have failing schools in this country.
For the first time in 25 years, the teachers in Chicago went on
strike. They didn`t go on strike because they thought they were getting
screwed when it came to a paycheck. They went on strike because they
wanted to make sure that every classroom was properly resourced and every
kid from every neighborhood had a fighting chance to make it in America.
Mitt Romney, if you want to draw the line here, really made the case
for the 47 percent in education today, don`t you think? He`s willing to
admit that some kids are just going to fail and we`ll just blame it on the
damn unions and the teachers that want to make more money. How repulsive
it is.
Get your cell phones out, I want to know what you think. Tonight`s
question: Who do you trust to protect students` best interests? Text A for
President Obama, text B for Mitt Romney, to 622639. You can always go to
our blog at Ed.MSNBC.com. We`ll bring you results later on in the show.
Two gentlemen I really respect, I`m joined tonight by former Vermont
governor and former DNC chairman, Howard Dean, and also, Kasim Reed, mayor
of Atlanta, Georgia.
Gentlemen, great to have you tonight.
Governor Dean --
MAYOR KASIM REED (D), ATLANTA, GEORGIA: Good evening, Ed.
SCHULTZ: You bet.
Governor Dean, you first.
What is the Republican view of public education? If I`m wrong in my
assessment, please correct me.
Are charter schools the answer?
HOWARD DEAN, FORMER DNC CHAIRMAN: I like charter schools but not-for-
profit charter schools. But I think charter schools have created some
opportunities in the classroom.
But I think this business about bashing teachers unions is insane. I
mean, you know, the people who say that they are innovators of education go
in and trash the teachers, I don`t know of anybody who has run a company
successfully that trashes the workforce the first thing they do when they
get there. This is politics.
The Republicans really don`t give a damn about education. I don`t
think they give a damn about much except themselves. You know, I`d like to
know if Mitt Romney ever attended a public school.
SCHULTZ: Mayor, would cuts in education spending affect your city?
And I raise the question this way. You have some poor neighborhoods --
every major metropolitan city in this country has some poor neighborhoods.
How should we fund those school districts?
REED: Well, we need to send resources where schools are having
challenges and the federal government is playing a part under President
Obama.
But let`s be clear on why Mitt Romney is taking the position he`s
taking, because he wants to provide his friends a $5 trillion tax cut and
he knows that he can`t pay for that without cutting public education.
That`s the bottom line.
He wants to keep all of George Bush`s tax cuts for everyone and then
he wants to add a $5 trillion tax cut as the central plank of his policy.
And in order to do that, he won`t hesitate to disparage hard-working
teachers, because after all, they are a part of the 47 percent that he
believes jeopardize the performance of the country. That`s why Mitt Romney
is willing to cut education.
SCHULTZ: Governor, didn`t Mitt Romney admit today it`s about going
after a voting bloc in this country?
DEAN: That was a disgrace what he said there. I mean, here, he`s
been financed by the Koch brothers that just write fat checks from their
booty they take in from all over the place. So, he`s going to be
responsible for two people. I sure wouldn`t mind being responsive to the
millions of teachers all over America, at least they are real Americans,
opposed to these two guys that made gazillion dollars and are using their
money to influence the election system.
I don`t -- I mean, that is really -- that was maybe the worst thing he
said. He said a lot of awful things, but that was really pretty rank.
SCHULTZ: Mayor, what would you do if your state were to cut education
again? How would you fund it? What would you do? Where do mayors in big
cities go now?
REED: Well, fortunately, every time we have any referendum related to
education, our folks decide to invest. So, we would find a way to move
forward. But that`s not the way forward for a healthy system in America.
Folks are criticizing teachers unions need to step back in and realize that
90 percent of all our kids are in public schools.
I was a public school kid. They are the only system in our public
school where teachers say, bring us all of your children. We can`t forget
that.
And that`s why Mitt Romney is losing. That`s why he`s losing
nationally, and that`s why he`s losing in every swing state with the
exception of perhaps North Carolina. Because he doesn`t identify with what
middle-class people need and that`s the ability to have an excellent school
in their neighborhood with a competent, capable teacher with experience
that the community knows and trusts.
SCHULTZ: Mayor Kasim Reed and Howard Dean, great to have you with us
tonight on the program. Thanks so much.
Remember to answer tonight`s questions. Share your thoughts on
Twitter @EdShow and on Facebook. We always want to know what you think.
Coming up, Republicans don`t mind inexperienced low-cost teachers
teaching your kids, but when it comes to NFL referees, they demand the
union officials to get back to work. We`ll have the latest on this
unbelievable sports story that`s captured the attention of the country and
really focused on how we treat workers in America.
Stay with us. We`re right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Coming up, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker shows support for
a union after a blown call cost the Green Bay Packers a win? We`ll look at
the NFL`s labor fight, next.
Senator Scott Brown continues to attack his challenger over her
heritage. Even as he apologized for his campaign staffers` racist chants
caught on tape.
And after Tea Partiers ousted Senator Dick Lugar in the primaries,
Indiana Republicans are struggling to keep his Senate seat. I`ll talk with
the Democratic candidate challenger, Congressman Joe Donnelly later in the
program.
Share your thoughts with us on Facebook and on Twitter using the
#EdShow. We`re coming right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. Thanks for watching tonight.
It`s the blown football call the entire country is talking about.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SPORTS ANCHOR: Takes the long receiver to the left, the Packers play
it at the goal line. Wilson scrambles to keep it alive. The game`s final
play is a loft to the end zone, which is fought for by Tate with Jennings
simultaneous. Who will they give it to? Touchdown!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Clearly a mistake by the replacement officials. The final
Hail Mary play on the game should have been ruled an interception by the
Packers, resulting in a Green Bay win.
The NFL released a statement today standing by the ruling on the
field. NFL players are more than outraged over this bad call.
Packers quarterback Aaron Rogers told his radio audience today, "The
game is being tarnished by an NFL that obviously cares more about saving
some money than having the integrity of the game diminished a little bit."
This story has blown up so much, politicians are getting in the act
and taking jabs. Paul Ryan was so outraged he`s ready to change his
position on organized labor. How about that?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. PAUL RYAN (R-WI), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Did you guys
watch that Packer game last night? I mean, give me a break. It is time to
get the real refs. And you know what? It reminds me of President Obama
and the economy. If you can`t get it right, it`s time to get out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Mitt Romney also touched on the issue earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: I sure would like to see some experienced referees with NFL
experience come back to the NFL playing fields.
REPORTER: Paul Ryan called those refs out today. Are you glad he did
that?
ROMNEY: That`s just fine. Paul was angry that the Packers, he
believes won, and the refs took it away from them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Push this button and I`ll laugh. He has no clue.
Ryan isn`t the only angry Wisconsin politician.
How about this one? Union-busting Governor Scott Walker tweeted out,
"After catching a few hours of sleep, the Packer game is still just as
painful. Return the real refs."
Walker and Ryan, all of a sudden, aren`t they for busting-unions until
it affects the outcome of their football team? This is truly unbelievable
their reversal on this.
Meanwhile, President Obama tweeted today. "NFL fans on both sides of
the aisle hope the refs lockout is settled soon."
I have to be fair about this. It would have been nice to see that
tweet about the Chicago public school teachers.
The story is about more than just a blown call. It`s about labor.
This is an issue that strikes at the very core of what we do with
workers in this country. The broad Republican philosophy is to do what?
Eliminate the unions to get inexperienced, cheap workers, go right to the
bottom line.
This is what the NFL is doing right now. And they are getting what
they paid for.
Even after last night`s blown call, the NFL is holding firm against
the refs. The main sticking point is job security. NFL owners want to be
able to fire these refs whenever they want to.
The same thing is playing out where? With the Chicago public school
teachers. If you`re not good, we`re going to get rid of you.
We don`t need football. In the scheme of things, as far as other
workers are concerned who are far more important, it`s pretty important
when it comes to educating your kid.
How about the teachers that you trust your children to every day? Do
you want replacement workers there? Or how about the firefighters you
trust in emergencies? First responders, do you want a replacement team
showing up that doesn`t know what the hell is going on?
Look, I think that the NFL owners love this. This is their power trip
and they`re not going to be backing down any time soon. They probably made
a calculated decision early on in the process that, yes, we`re going to
take some heat, but we`re all going to make a lot of money. Let`s just
stick together on this and live through it.
That`s why you`re not seeing a lot of people who do NFL games speak up
and give their opinion. The NFL has got a pretty good hold on them.
That`s if they want to be around the league anymore. They are that strong.
Let`s turn to William Rhoden, sports columnist for "The New York
Times", and Eugene Robinson, MSNBC political analyst and associate editor
and Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for "The Washington Post".
Gentlemen, great to have you with us tonight.
WILLIAM RHODEN, NEW YORK TIMES: Hey. Always a pleasure.
Hey, Gene.
EUGENE ROBINSON, WASHINGTON POST: How are you doing, Bill?
SCHULTZ: Eugene, you first. The NFL has an image problem on its
hands and even politicians are weighing in on this. I remember Al Davis
before he passed away. He always believed the NFL is part of our culture
in America.
I guess we`re finding that out. What do you make of the reaction?
ROBINSON: The reaction is incredible. Maybe this is a teachable
moment, Ed, as you`ve been using it tonight, about unions and about
experience on the job and about getting what you pay for.
But you know, this -- I mean, last night was a travesty. They blew
that last call twice actually. There was an offensive interference that
they didn`t make the league acknowledges.
But it`s going to get worse than this. These inexperienced refs on
the field who cannot control the game, the violence is just going to
increase. I saw head to head hits that didn`t get called and that`s just
going to increase. It`s going to get out of hand and people are going to
get hurt.
SCHULTZ: Bill, let me ask you about this story. Is this an image
problem for the league in the way they are handling it right now?
RHODEN: Yes, in a way, but I think you hit the nail head so many
times of what you`re saying about unions. They know that we are as a
country -- we`re addicted to professional football. In fact, they were
emboldened last night.
For all the emotion or outpouring of what they see, they are saying,
we have these people right where they want. I mean, are we going to watch
the WNBA playoffs? We`re going to be watching -- Sunday, we`re going to
come back. We`re going to come back.
This is going to blow over because we have no choice. But I think you
hit something I think we have to be focused on this. I`m in a union at
"The Times." And we`re in a battle. So just as a matter of principle, I
don`t like people who are scabs.
Just as a matter -- I don`t care what profession it is. I don`t like
people who will take advantage of someone being locked out to take their
place. That`s wrong. And that`s you got these billionaire owners and
you`re absolutely right, that`s largely where we`re getting ready to be
headed. You`re talking about this election.
You`ve got these billionaire owners who locked out the players and
won, who were locking out the regular refs and winning. Why? Because the
American people are addicted to this sport. They are addicted to betting
and they`re going to come back.
SCHULTZ: Well, the hypocrisy, Gene, I find just amazing. All of a
sudden, Scott Walker and Paul Ryan -- it`s shocking, they are willing to go
along with union referees. What about that?
ROBINSON: It`s amazing. It`s absolutely amazing, Ed, the kind of
change of color we have seen from the Republicans on this.
But you know, it`s going to have to be the owners that decide to do
the right thing. You can`t have a lot of faith they are going to because
they basically already got their money. Their big money comes from
television.
SCHULTZ: They care about two things and that`s asses in seats and
eyes on the television screen. That`s really all they care about. They
want to sell tickets and they want a TV audience. And the question now is,
Bill, do you think this is going to affect how people view the NFL saying,
you know, I`m going to stake a break from this stuff.
RHODEN: No, the ratings are higher than they have ever been. In
fact, this makes more people want to be watching.
SCHULTZ: So they are going to tune in to see if the refs are going to
screw up this week?
RHODEN: It`s like a tremendous reality show. They are going to come
back in bigger numbers Thursday and in bigger numbers Saturday. The refs -
- I mean, the NFL say we can lock these guys up all year.
SCHULTZ: Well, I admire Aaron Rogers and some of the other players
for speaking their piece and speaking their mind on this. A real injustice
was done.
And if you`re a Seattle Seahawks fan, I got nothing against you. But
you know what? There`s probably going to come a time during the year where
it`s going to happen to your team, too. I think it`s a cheaper product. I
just think that -- come on, we`re talking about billionaires who don`t want
to do a little bit of pinching for some referees that want a little job
security after they have contributed so much to the league in building it
up where it is right now over the years. I think they deserve a heck of a
lot better and I think they are getting shafted and the fans are getting
shafted.
William Rhoden, Eugene Robinson, great to have you gentlemen with us
tonight. Thanks so much.
Coming up, a Republican crown crosses the line. A Senate candidate
pin his hopes on a racial attack. See how the strategy is backfiring,
next.
And later, President Obama holds a strong lead over Mitt Romney with
Latino voters. But a new study finds that voter suppression laws could
disenfranchise at least 10 million Latino citizens. Did I say 10 million?
I sure did.
Maria Teresa Kumar of Voto Latino will join me. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Welcome back to THE ED SHOW. The Republicans have picked a
weird and offensive strategy to win the most expensive Senate race in the
country. Massachusetts Republican Senator Scott Brown is doubling down on
his claim that Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren lied about being
Native American. But things got ugly this weekend when Brown`s campaign
staff started taunting Warren`s supporters with racist chants.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CROSS TALK)
(SINGING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: A Boston television station says four of the people in the
video are members of Scott Brown`s campaign staff. One reportedly works in
Brown`s United States Senate office. What are the grounds for firing in
his office any way? Brown says the chanting is "certainly something that I
don`t condone." But he doesn`t stop there. He actually repeats the attack
which inspired his staffers in the first place.
He says "the real offense is that Warren said she was white and then
checked the box saying that she was Native American. Then she changed her
profile in her law directory once she made her tenure."
So Brown doesn`t want to talk about Massachusetts` economy, education
or health care. He`s fixated on Elizabeth Warren`s racial heritage. In
fact, Brown`s launching this new attack ad. And race was the first thing
Brown talked about the in debate.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. SCOTT BROWN (R), MASSACHUSETTS: Professor Warren claimed that
she was a Native American, a person of color. And as you can see, she`s
not.
I don`t know, and neither do the viewers know, whether in fact she got
ahead as a result of that checking of the box.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Senator Brown is either tied or trailing in the latest
polls. But he seems convinced this race issue will get him reelected.
Joining me tonight, Joan Walsh, editor at large Salon.com, author of
the book "What`s the Matter with White People?" Joan, great to have you
with us tonight. I`m rather stunned at Senator Brown`s office, Senator
Brown himself and his reaction to those chants. Your thoughts on this?
JOAN WALSH, SALON.COM: It`s just another outbreak of frat boy
conservatism. I mean, to go and mock someone`s racial heritage like that
and think it`s OK -- I mean, at first, when I heard about the story, Ed, I
thought, you know, they are just some volunteers or some overzealous
Republicans. And then to find out that at least four of them are on his
staff, it`s outrageous.
But, you know, I have to say, I was watching the debate and when he
brought up this claim and he said, clearly she`s not Cherokee, look at her,
I was like, what planet does this man live on, where as a white man he gets
to say what her racial heritage and what her racial classification is?
It`s so ignorant.
The title of my book "What`s the Matter With White People?" I love
white people. The book is not anti-white. But what`s the matter with
certain white people? Scott Brown demonstrate it. It is arrogance. He`s
obviously from a white world where you don`t understand that people have
varying kinds of ethnicity and they may not look the way you expect them to
look and they may not be what they look like.
You don`t go around putting yourself in charge of deciding what they
are. It`s outrageous.
SCHULTZ: For a sitting United States senator, or anybody for that
matter, to not distance themselves from something like this I find utterly
amazing. Does he think that this is an upside, that this is going to help
him in the election?
WALSH: He clearly does. When I watched the debate and I saw him do
this, I Tweeted in real time that it reminded me of Jesse Helms` infamous
white hands ad. Because when he says we don`t know if she got ahead, he`s
really trying to channel white male anxiety and even resentment about
minorities and women getting ahead because of affirmative action.
You remember had that ad, and it just showed white male hands
crumpling a job rejection letter and you deserved that job and you didn`t
get it because his opponent supported affirmative action. It was just, you
know, the 21st century version of the white hands ad.
But this is Massachusetts, Ed. It`s not Jesse Helms` North Carolina.
North Carolina is not Jesse Helms` North Carolina anymore. It`s a swing
state. I don`t think it will work. I think it will backfire. But he`s
obviously really desperate.
SCHULTZ: Warren says she is appalled by the video but wouldn`t go any
further than that. The other thing is that it`s very clear that Senator
Brown is trying to set her up for being a liar, a character flaw, that she
lied about her heritage on an application and then when she got her tenure,
that she changed that in the law directory. Isn`t that a little bit deep
for voters to comprehend here?
WALSH: It is. So far -- this became -- this was an issue. "The
Boston Globe" and the Herald did a lot of reporting about it in the spring.
SCHULTZ: So he`s scrambling? This is a guy in trouble.
WALSH: It hasn`t registered so far. She`s got a really effective ad
right now, where she says, you know, Scott Brown wants to attack my family
but I`m going to keep fighting for your family. That`s what he`s doing.
Her brothers and sisters come out and say, we were told that we were part
Cherokee, and we were told the story of discrimination and tension within
our own family about those Cherokee roots.
And cousins of hers corroborated too. So the idea that she`s lying
about what she is really quite outrageous and a sign of desperation.
SCHULTZ: I think he could have retrieved himself if he had fired some
of those people on that video and made a very clear statement here. If
it`s about a candidate lying or if it`s about heritage, but now he`s gone
along with the mocking of heritage.
WALSH: With the mocking.
SCHULTZ: I find it amazing. Joan Walsh, great to have you with us
tonight. Thank you.
Lots more coming in the next half hour of THE ED SHOW. Stay with us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you don`t deport them, how do you send them
home?
ROMNEY: Well, the answer is self-deportation, which is people decide
that they can do better by going home because they can`t find work here,
because they don`t have legal documentation to allow them to work here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Republicans are attempting to disenfranchise up to 10
million Latino voters this fall. You`ll never believe how they are trying
to do it. Maria Teresa Kumar of Voto Latino joins us next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: That`s quite a guy, isn`t it? Paul Ryan. Is that something?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: And Mitt Romney shows how jealous he is of his running mate
in Ohio. You won`t believe this priceless video. Stick around.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: Every now and then I`m known to make a mistake. I did not
make a mistake with this guy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: This is a big story. It`s about voter suppression. Welcome
back to THE ED SHOW. Today was National Voter Registration Day, a day of
coordinated efforts to educate and register eligible voters before
registration deadlines for November 6th. And a new study finds that these
efforts are needed now more than ever, particularly for Latino citizens in
America.
The study released by the Achieve Advancement Project finds voter
suppression laws could disenfranchise an estimated 10 million Latino voters
in 2012. The influence of Latino voters have grown in the past few years.
According to the 2010 Census, America`s 21 million Latino citizens
represent 10 percent of eligible voters.
And it`s projected this year the number could top 25 million voters,
or just over 12 percent of the nation`s eligible voters. Basically, the
Latino vote could play a decisive and major role in this presidential
election. And a recent poll of registered Latino voters finds President
Obama leading Mitt Romney 69 to 24 percent.
But that voting power has been under attack with the flood of new
Republican-led state level voting restrictions. The study finds voter
purges and I.D. requirements being enacted in 23 states could
disproportionately affect voter registration and participation by Latino
citizens. In fact, in many states the number exceeds the margin of victory
-- exceeds the margin of victory in the last election, 2008.
That number could grow. It could grow if these laws aren`t blocked.
Colorado and Florida, the two states to watch, they are cited as
identifying voters for possible purging by comparing their voter
registrations with driver`s license databases.
Here`s how it works. Naturalized citizens typically receive their
licenses when they were legal immigrants, before they became naturalized
citizens, which means this use of outdated information specifically targets
naturalized citizens. These laws are an assault on voting rights. And
they are turning eligible Latino voters into second class citizens.
Let`s bring in Maria Teresa Kumar, MSNBC contributor and the president
of Voto Latino. This is a big deal. What`s the game plan?
MARIA TERESA KUMAR, VOTO LATINO: It`s a huge deal, because we`re
talking about Americans who happen to be Latino that are going to get
disenfranchised from the political process. When you`re talking about
elections when they are only won by less than one or two percent, to give
you an example, Ed, in North Carolina -- North Carolina, Obama won the
presidency with 14,000 votes. That was five votes per precinct.
This is a close election. We`re talking about the rise of the Latino
voter in North Carolina, in Florida, in Texas, Pennsylvania, who is having
these outrageous voter I.D. laws, where one in six Latinos will be
disenfranchised. Not only should Latinos be outraged, Americans should be
outraged.
SCHULTZ: Well, how many can you register between now and the next 40
days? That`s really what it comes down to.
KUMAR: Absolutely. So today is National Voter Registration Day.
It`s the very first one. It`s historic. We had 50 secretary of states,
both Republican and Democratic, coming together and saying we need this
action today. We have been able to register just today alone close to
100,000 individuals. So we`re super excited.
We do see a ground swell, but it`s not enough. We need to make sure
that Americans talk to each other about voter I.D. laws, make sure that
they`re prepared to go to the polls, and make sure that people realize that
at the ballot box, it`s about the American voter.
SCHULTZ: I`m going to go to Florida and do this story. For instance,
Florida has set near impossible deadlines to prove citizenship. How does
President Obama win? How do the democrats get their voice out, get their
vote out when they have these road blocks in front of them? The general
election is right around the corner.
KUMAR: It`s around the corner, but I think -- one is that folks have
to get informed of what kind of I.D. they need. One of the biggest
problems right now, for example, in Florida is that they have done voter
purges that actually have been stopped. They went after American citizens
with Latino surnames, veterans, basically saying that they weren`t sure if
they were citizens or not.
We have to make sure that we`re communicating to our communities,
understanding what those voter I.D. laws are and how to make sure that
we`re actually getting those I.D.s
SCHULTZ: The numbers add up that this it could be the election. Fair
enough?
KUMAR: It`s absolutely -- this is a game plan. The biggest problem
is that you can`t change the rules in the middle of the game because you`re
afraid of the outcome. You can`t steal the vote. You should be actually
be going after individuals and trying to sway them, to make sure that they
are participating.
SCHULTZ: What do you make of what`s going on in Pennsylvania? I
mean, the study finds that Pennsylvania voter I.D. could prevent nearly one
out of six Latinos from voting.
KUMAR: Absolutely. That`s close to 250,000 Americans that are going
to disenfranchised at the polls. What`s beautiful about it, at the same
time, is that you see organizations coming together and trying to get the
I.D.s in the same process. The problem is that because of these onerous
I.D. laws, the state itself cannot -- they can`t create the I.D.s fast
enough for the folks that need it.
This is an American issue. The fact that you want to prevent an
American from participating at the polls, our democratic bedrock, is
something that should not be only prevented, but that we should be talking
about every single day.
SCHULTZ: Maria Teresa Kumar, great to have you with us tonight. Keep
up the great work.
Coming up, Mitt Romney tries to lead a chant, but the crowd has other
ideas. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: Well, you don`t see this very often. Crowd reaction that we
can play for entertainment. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney
and his running mate Paul Ryan headlined a rally today in the state of
Ohio. They are doing this three-day bus tour because they think they can
win the state.
When Romney got the crowd excited about Ryan, here`s what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: That`s quite a guy, isn`t it? Paul Ryan, that`s something.
Wait a second, Romney/Ryan, Romney/Ryan, Romney/Ryan. There we go.
All right, that`s great. Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Kind of sums it up. The crowd goes wild for Ryan even
beginning a chant, so then Romney has to get ahold of this thing, get back
in the picture. Can I see that one more time? Can we see it one more
time?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROMNEY: That`s quite a guy, isn`t it? Paul Ryan, that`s something.
Wait a second, Romney/Ryan, Romney/Ryan, Romney/Ryan. There we go.
All right, that`s great. Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Don`t forget, I`m on top of the ticket. It`s me, Mitt.
Guy`s got an ego bigger than Asia.
Tonight in our survey, I asked you who do you trust to protect
students` best interests? Ninety eight percent of you said President
Obama; two percent of you said Mitt Romney.
Coming up, Tea Party candidate Richard Mourdock might actually be
defeated in Indiana`s Senate race by our next guest, Congressman Joe
Donnelly. Stay tuned. It`s a heck of a race.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCHULTZ: And in the Big Finish tonight, another good indication of
why Republicans should be worried. The Indiana Senate race is in play for
a seat held by Republican Senator Richard Lugar since 1977. The Democratic
candidate for the Senate seat is Congressman Joe Donnelly. He leads State
Treasurer Richard Mourdock by three points in the Donnelly campaign`s
internal poll conducted by Global Strategy Group.
Now Mourdock is the Tea Party candidate who defeated Senator Richard
Lugar in a Republican primary. And he made very clear that he had no
interest in negotiating with Democrats or anybody.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD MOURDOCK (R), CANDIDATE FOR SENATE: To me the highlight of
politics, frankly, is to inflict my opinion on someone else from a
microphone or in front of a camera, to win them over to my point of view.
I have a mindset that says that bipartisanship ought of consist of
Democrats coming to the Republican point of view.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: The Donnelly campaign is going after Mourdock on both style
and substance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. JOE DONNELLY (D), CANDIDATE FOR SENATE: Richard Mourdock fights
for tax breaks for companies that drive jobs to China.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey Donnelly, it`s my way or the highway.
DONNELLY: We need less reckless partisanship and more Hoosier common
sense.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: Pretty good. President Obama won Indiana by just one point
four years ago, but is not expected to win the state this time around.
Mourdock`s strategy is to tie Donnelly to President Obama.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This fall, Hoosiers have a choice, continue down
the Washington path of Donnelly and Obama, more government spending, more
Obamacare and more taxes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHULTZ: And joining me tonight is Joe Donnelly, the congressman from
Indiana who is challenging the Tea Party candidate. Congressman, good to
have you with us tonight. You`re going up against the candidate who really
underscores what Washington has been for the last couple years. Does that
play in your favor?
DONNELLY: Yeah, he has been incredibly reckless, Ed, one statement
after another. And Hoosiers are not buying his extreme agenda. If you
want to see the extremes to where he`s gone, this is even after the
primary, he said that Richard Lugar betrayed conservatives. Richard Lugar
is an Indiana hero. He worked nonstop to try and make the world safer by
reducing nuclear weapons.
And we have seen just the comments that you said about bipartisanship.
Richard Mourdock has said that Medicare is unconstitutional, that Social
Security is unconstitutional. He has said that employer health cares don`t
have to cover cancer coverage covers.
You can`t make this stuff up, Ed. And it`s been one after another.
So we have seen actually, in the last few weeks, Richard Mourdock has kind
of disappeared. And they are hoping to, through the super PACs, buy the
Senate seat.
SCHULTZ: OK. Do you mind being tied to President Obama in a campaign
ad that he`s putting out? Or do you wear that as a badge of honor, because
of the accomplishments on health care?
DONNELLY: You know what? I have been one of the most independent
members of Congress my entire time there. And so I have always said, I
respect President Bush, I respect President Obama. And when President
Obama is right, I`ll vote with him, and when he`s not, I won`t. I vote on
behalf of the people.
SCHULTZ: So you`re an Evan Bayh Democrat? Is that fair to say?
DONNELLY: I think it`s fair to say that in Indiana both Democrats and
Republicans -- the most important thing we can do is just stand up and do
what`s right for our country.
SCHULTZ: Why are Republicans not coming to bat for Richard Mourdock?
This is -- they want the Senate seat so bad, but I don`t see the fever
pitch attitude supporting him that I see in other races.
DONNELLY: Because he insulted Mr. Republican, and to me an American
hero, Richard Lugar, repeatedly before the primary and then even after the
primary. You know what, Hoosier Republicans, Hoosier Democrats, Hoosiers
of all stripes don`t believe that Medicare is unconstitutional like Richard
Mourdock has said, don`t believe that Social Security is unconstitutional,
like Richard Mourdock has said, and don`t believe that employer health care
shouldn`t cover cancer care.
SCHULTZ: What about the outside money? Is that a player?
DONNELLY: It is breathtaking. Karl Rove just dropped a million
dollars in the past few days for one week of television. And in Indiana,
that`s like buying every commercial for the entire week.
SCHULTZ: How does the automobile loan -- I know there`s a lot of
small markets in Indiana. A million dollars goes a long way. No question
about it. How about the automobile loan, does that play in your state?
DONNELLY: Yeah, particularly for the fact that Richard Mourdock was
the person who filed suit to try to force the liquidation of Chrysler,
which builds all the transmissions in the congressional district that I
represent. He spent three million dollars on New York law firm fees while
at the same time -- that`s of Indiana taxpayer money, while at the same
time trying to destroy Indiana auto jobs.
And let me tell you, from one end of this state to the other, workers
across the state have said enough. We`re proud to work in these jobs, both
tier one, tier two, tier three, across the board. And they know that it`s
not about Republican or Democrat. It`s who stood with them at crunch time.
And I was with them.
SCHULTZ: Congressman Joe Donnelly, good to have you with us tonight
on THE ED SHOW.
DONNELLY: Hey, thank you so much.
SCHULTZ: You bet. 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 Tuesday, September 25th, 2012
Read the transcript to the Tuesday show