that's what we learned in iraq. let me give you one data point. the history of successful reconstruction efforts throughout the last 50 or 60 years, the average ratio of forces to u.s. local occupation, there are 50 local civilians. in baghdad in 2003, the ratio was 700 to 1. we were invisible. ultimately with the surge strategy in iraq, the reason it was successful, we decided we would protect the civilians and we would have the forces to do it. we don't have the forces to protect the civilians and get them onboard and working with us, we don't have the forces. >> but to the western border of ira iran, this is iraq over there. can you still look at the map and see as we have all the iran conversations, and we are not having one right now, they find themselves between afghanistan and iraq and a lot of u.s. forces. how is it that you institute that surge, and you have the situation in iraq and don't have that entire region. again, israel just west of iraq for that matter desolve in total responsibility being borne by u.s. military forces -- >> well

troops from iraq. he even said he might, quote, accelerate the drawdown by early next year, if the iraqis have successful elections in january and if tensions, roughly speaking, are reduced. the general cautioned lawmakers to have strategic patience and to not expect a complete withdrawal before the december 2011 deadline. but progress is progress and now our military families are wondering if the troops really do get to come home or if they just get moved to america's other war in afghanistan, a war that's about to start it's ninth year. progressive. call or click today. today's stay six of the finance committee's mountain moving toil to consider the 500 amendments to the health insurance bill. warren hatch put in an amendment that was meant to doubly restrict abortion coverage in the bill. olympia snowe joined the opposition to defeat senator hatch's amendment. it would have required women to buy extra insurance for abortion services. you know that women plan ahead of time to have lots of abortions,

al qaeda didn't have a presence in iraq until we went into iraq and now we're there and look at the mess we're in. we need to get out of iraq and afghanistan and take care of things at home and work with the world community to stabilize that broader region. we cannot go it alone because we don't have the troops, we don't have the resources. we can't keep spending trillions on war and forget health care and job creation and retirement security and education here at home. >> are you convinced that we can protect this country without having a presence in afghanistan? >> absolutely. as a matter of fact, i'm convinced we'll be safer once we get out of areas where we'll starting to inspire insurgencies. the more we're there, the more civilians get killed. do you think if someone loses a member of their family that they are going to be a friend to the united states? we're creating enemies. the way you create friends is work with the wider region on matters of security. we can't police the world but we can be part of an effort to secure the world. >> what kind of reaction do you think president

right now, i think, you've got mcchrystal learning from the mistakes the generals made during iraq and also during vietnam. so he's speaking up. >> i'm going to switch gear, and go to the nobel peace prize. the president himself saying he was surprised. your reaction when you heard? >> i've got to be honest. i was, you know, i did a show early in the morning. so the news breaks overnight. i get an e-mail from my executive producer who said, hey, the president won the nobel peace prize and i e-mailed back, for what? i laughed when i first heard the news. my legitimate response. i'm sorry. just like the olympics the week before. i wanted america to get the olympics. i was gladded president was in copenhagen. it wasn't ideological, my gut reaction. now, that said, i think most people realize this award was premature. even people in the white house would have preferred the president won it a couple of years from now instead of right now. that being said, let's hope as americans the president can leverage a nobel peace prize in some part of the world to help himself politically and to help

restoring peace in the whole community of iraq. once we restored peace all around that country then we were able to move forward with having success. we saw stability in the government all of a sudden. we saw the people of iraq getting on board with us. right now in afghanistan, we have the same scenario. the theater is different, the contrasts are different. still, we've got to have sufficient troops under general mcchrystal's control to establish peace in that country. if we don't do that, then we'll never achieve success. >> do you believe, same question i asked before. do you believe the pakistan government, zardari's government, is really on our side against the taliban in afghanistan? they're against to their own taliban to some extent. are they really on our side? because historically that government has supported the taliban in afghanistan. >> well, i mean, obviously you've hit kind of the heart of this thing, chris, because you can't de-couple pakistan from afghanistan. we have got to have a commitment from the packs to pr

i said we would be out of iraq. are we? not the last time i checked. i said i would make improvements in the war in afghanistan. is it better? no, i think it's actually worse. how about health care reform? hell, no. >> well, some are asking, does "saturday night live" open the door for other comedians to poke fun of the president, or for republicans to take advantage? keith boinkin is editor for the daily chief. thank you for joining us. we can go through a list of things the president has accomplished, so let's talk about what's out there. did "saturday night live" hit a nerve, because they say it's funny because it's true? >> well, yes and no. i think it's funny. i agree with you on that. but at the same time, i think that it's a little bit unfair, because there's only been nine months of this administration. i worked in the clinton administration, and in the first nine months, he was not able to accomplish half of what i think president obama has been able to accomplish. he tried to put together a stimulus package for $19 billion. he wasn't able to

they see what president bush did in iraq, a surge was done after many years of difficulties and that turned things around and they would like to see the same thing done in afghanistan. i think there are questions as to whether that analogy they use about iraq is applicable to afghanistan, 'cause the problem there is this has been going on for eight long years, we have been in afghanistan, and maybe we can turn it around, and i certainly hope so, and personally, i probably support it but it is a much, much tougher problem created in large part by the bush administration's failure to give the resources, the time, the energy and the focus the obama team has to reset the clock for the country so we stop talking about this as the eighth and the ninth and the tenth year, because that's when the public and the congress get weary. >> no doubt. jamie ruben, as always, great to have you. thanks for joining us. >> thank you. >>> also want to point out we are keeping a close eye on wall street with several key economic figures out today. new u.s. jobless claims climbed more than expected last we

all i know is we ended up going to war with iraq after all the sanctions. sanctions didn't stop two wars with iran -- with iraq rather. we went to war with afghanistan. we go to war. it seems like in the end that's what everybody's talking. >> chris -- >> would you go to war with iran? i'm asking both of you, would you ever support an american strike on iran? congressman rogers first, would you ever support one? >> don't ever say ever. you should never take it off the table. i think there are a lot of great things we can do before that's an option, but you can't take it off the table or you stop them from coming to the negotiations. >> so you're using war as a threat? >> i'm using sanctions as a threat. you're using war as a threat. >> i'm asking you. >> i'm saying leave it on the table. i'm just saying, there's a whole panoply of things you have put on the table. a military strike has to be one you would consider. doesn't mean what you're advocating for. i don't think ms. sanchez or myself would say that. >> i think this two weeks is a stupid thing to argu

yeah. >> and we are getting out of iraq. and, you know, i wrote and i've said that i did think the olympics thing was a -- was a bad gamble, and i didn't think they were ever going to get it. >> you knew more than daly knew. let me ask -- let me go back to chuck, because i think it's a great question. when you covered the white house these days, do you get a sense that they feel the pressure from -- well, "saturday night live." because it is, in fact, not only the indicator, but a good example of sort of the zeitgeist, sense of the times that this will work as a cult open. >> well, let me say this. they know -- they believe that if they sign a health care reform bill, in the next couple of months, that that will be -- that will be one of these big accomplishments that will serve as a morale booster to the base. this is as much about democrats feeling like, geez, we're trying to do all these things, let's get something done. let's put something in the done box. the to do list is very long. but you've got to get something big

all i know is we ended up going to war with iraq over all of the sanctions. sanctions didn't stop two wars with iran -- with iraq rather. we went to war with afghanistan. we go to war. it seems like in the end that's what everybody's talking. >> chris -- >> would you go to war with iran? i'm asking both of you, would you ever support an american strike on iran? congressman rogers first, would you ever support one? >> don't ever say ever. you should never take it off the table. i think there are a lot of great things we can do before that's an option, but you can't take it off the table or you stop them from coming to the negotiations. >> so you're using war as a threat? >> i'm using sanctions as a threat. you're using war as a threat. >> i'm asking you. >> i'm saying leave it on the table. i'm just saying, there's a whole panoply of things you have put on the table. a military strike has to be one you would consider. i don't think ms. sanchez or myself would say that. >> i think this two weeks is a stupid thing to argue about. let me ask you, if the president

troops from iraq. he said he might, quote, accelerate the drawdown by early next year if the iraqis have successful elections in january and if tensions broadly speaking are reduced. general odernero cautioned lawmakers to have a patience and not to expect a complete withdraw before the deadline. progress is progress. the military families are left to wonder if the troops do come home or if they get moved to america's other war in afghanistan, the war that's about to start the ninth year. >>> today is day six of the senate finance committee's mountain moving toil. to consider 500 minutes of health reform bill, the finance committee considered an orrin hatch amendment that was meant to doubly triply restrict abortion coverage in the bill. olympia snowe joined the opposition to defeat senator hatch's amendment. it will require women to buy extra insurances for abortion services. you know how everyone plans really long time in advance to have lots of abortions? senator stabenow put it distinctly. >> with

should we be sending the troops from iraq to afghanistan? >> i sent a letter to the president several days ago, giving him the benefit of my thought and analysis on afghanistan, and i'm of the opinion that at the end of the day he should heed the request of the commander who's there on the ground. i've never heard of a war where you withhold your troops from doing the best they can if you have the ability to do it, and we have the ability to do it. >> that's one take. congressman, pat buchanan. >> if the president does not heed the advice of general mcchrystal and does not send troops and follows more of the biden plan, what do you think happens in afghanistan? >> according to general mcchrystal, there's the possibility of failure. failure means the taliban eventually creates another safe haven for al qaeda, which, of course, that whole area is the epicenter of terrorism in the world. it could spell some pretty unpleasant things for our country and our allies. >> congressman skelton, thank you very much for being on the show this morning. th

i said we'd be out of iraq. are we? not the last time i checked. i even went personally to try to bring the olympics to chicago in 2016. it didn't work out. but in this case, there's some good news with the bad. for every person who buys an american car in the next six months, you're going to get one of these. >> he's so funny. and musical guest lady gaga turned a more a few heads with her outfit and movements there. here's one of the performances. % ♪ play a love game >> you know like i said earlier, you just complaint take your eyes off her. for those of you unfamiliar, will boards honored her with its rising star 2009 award. for some of you that probably be stowes legitimacy, for others maybe thought. but there you have it. carol! denise! you've lost weight! it's just all these giant things make me look small. i eat this fiber one yogurt. (mr. mehta) it has five grams of fiber, zero fat, and fifty calories. please, this is too creamy and delicious. it's true, only fifty calories. (announcer) fiber one yogurt. call or click today. >>> and i had

as we head into a fall with an incredibly busy schedule, afghanistan, health care, climate change, iraq and the jobless numbers that just came out yesterday all on the president agenda, alex. >> okay. mike, as always, thank you so much. >> reporter: certainly. >>> just ahead, the new fear factor. a new poll on fighting the vaccine. what do people think about giving it a shot? >> alarm is on. >> a weird sound. >> it's a scare factor at the movies. a little flick providing big chills. you'll see why this movie is being compared to one of the greatest of its kind. you're watching "msnbc saturday." >>> the swine flus va set to be available in a few days. more than half of u.s. adults say they will get the vaccine for themselves. the survey by the harvard school of public health also shows 7a% of adults plan to guess their children vaccinated but the numbers conflict with a study from earlier in the week showing only 35% of americans would definitely have their children vaccinated. a look now at election day '0, fast approaching. two big governor races providing enough drama for the whole co

we had that same situation in iraq. is the government going to be stable before you leave. the dynamics here are so fluid and so complicated that you you just can't sum this up in a sound bite. so they'll make the right decision, though. >> joe biden was the surge on iraq and so many different things. he might have been on the foreign relations committee for a long time, but he's been wrong an awful lot. >> that will have to be the last word. peter, john, thank you. >>> let's go now to the very latest on the aftermath of the deadly tsunami that struck the samoan islands. today is nag at prayer service is scheduled. and more aid is arriving. teams of national workers continue to distribute aid to storm survivors. the american samoan governor is calling on people staying in shelters to stay there for a few more days as authorities head out to survey the full september of the damage. american samoa and samoa were hit by a tsunami after an earthquake killing at least 176 people. >>> still ahead, a sports reporter's accused stalker goes to court. for the ones we love with a flu

i said we'd be out of iraq. are we? not the last time i checked. i said i'd make improvements in the war in afghanistan. is it better? no, i think it's actually worse. how about health care reform? hell no. >> margaret coughlin is a columnist for bloomberg news and joins us now from washington. margaret, thanks so much. robert gibbs has just said at the white house that one of the options for afghanistan that they are not considering is leaving. so, clearly, maybe they are treading toward a middle option but not withdrawing from afghanistan. what else do you see as the sort of aftereffect of this very public and somewhat disturbing debate with the military over what to do? >> well, i -- i take what robert gibbs said and say there were different ways to leave. you can characterize it as doing less. you can characterize it as moving off the counterinsurgency into counterterrorism. i suspect that using various reasons, one being the -- president karzai's election and the narco trade continuing and all of that as a way of saying we are not going to do

candidate and as president, as a candidate, of course, he promised to take troops, transfer troops from iraq and refocus on the effort in afghanistan. he says this is where the al qaeda fighters and terrorist who is came here on 9/11 came from. he is since calling that since he's been president afghanistan a war of necessity. and now comes some rethinking apparently at the white house here and some disagreement frankly in the upper echelons at the highest levels of u.s. government. the commanding general in afghanistan with whom president obama met making that trip to copenhagen for the olympic announcement. he has this proposal well-known by now said to include a request for more -- for 30,000 to 40,000 more troops in afghanistan but vice president biden and others in the administration say, no, we have to start rethinking this. is this a counter insurgency operation that we are undergoing here or a counter terrorism operation here? are we fighting al qaeda or nation building in afghanistan? the afghan government under very intense criticism here in the united states' government here on the

and the surge in iraq did well so therefore surge in afghanistan. and i think people lost track of the progress in iraq, and it's just fallen off the popular radar screen. >> it's a good question, john. i think there are two clear lessons to me. the first is, i think the surge was crucial as much psychologically as in the number of troops. people in iraq became convinced the united states was going to bail out. they were making arrangements to fight the civil war and beat each other up over who was going to control the country, and president bush said we are not out and we are sending new troops. and that had an affect second to sending the troops. and then what petraeus was good at was working with the tribes and understanding the structure of strib you will ptribal power both issues are really important now for afghanistan. there is a growing feeling in that part of the world that we are on the way out. somehow i think that has got to be stemmed or, in fact, if we are going to pull the plug, let's get it done. that's the first thing. the second th

he said in iraq when he first went energy the number was about 700:1. is it just that the american people have no will, no stamina for that kind of massive force in afghanistan? >> well, the american people and i'm not sure that the army has -- the u.s. army has that kind of force available and can sustain it. remember, we have been at war for eight years now and that put a lot of strain on people, a lot of strains on sergeants and captains and majors who have gone back for multiple -- multiple tours at this point. >> also, as a final negotiate the president is getting a lot of criticism for dithering on this, not making a swift, decisive plan on, on a strategy they can move forward on. why the delay? >> i think once you commit to a large-scale population focus counter insurgency campaign, you are stuck with it for a while and it is going to cost a lot of people it is going to cost a lot of lives. and i can understand the desire to make sure that, you know, you are not wasting lives in vein, that what is really what you want and what you are committed t

the iranian side was less than forth coming about helping the security situation in iraq. so think what's useful here is to have a little bit of skepticism about the -- how much the negotiations can actually accomplish. iran is clearly interested in engaging with the united states, but their fundamental strategy, i don't think, is going to change very much. what they would like is to play for time, add permanence to their nuclear project and i think that's very much in effect today. there has been a concession on the iranian side, certainly significant, but i don't think we are anywhere within striking distance of assuming that the nuclear project itself is negotiable. >> what about the significance of the proposal to farm out the development and enrichment of their uranium, working in conjunction with u.s., france and russia working to have that happen? i mean, that in effect, would allow a lot of this angst to be racheted down, would it not? be in control of partners here with france, potentially russia to help do that returning that enriched uranium just to a level that

developed enough expertise for practical robots to vacuum your floor and practical robots to go to iraq and afghanistan and help our soldiers. what we did was bring one of the business opportunities, created a little pnl around it. so we tracked carefully what money was coming in, what money was going out. what that led to was a company that could explore a lot of things. certainly as we had ever made an all or nothing bet in the first 15 years of existence, the company wouldn't exist today innovation can come from anywhere within the organization and the challenge for an organization to create hurdles high enough that you don't pursue everything but low enough that good ideas are not crushed. the irobot roomba was an employee idea. we were able to grow this idea from just i've got an idea to something which is a $150 million line of business for the company today. >> nbc universal and american express have joined together to shine a light on america's small businesses. we received thousands of nominations for the most inspirational small business and now it is down to just three finali

when he came back from a trip to iraq last year, the bill for his calls from iraq to aunt judy was almost $1,000. he ended up paying the bill in cash. the main charge of the times expose is that ensign may be facing not only ethics enquiries but also criminal inquiries because it seems his efforts to pay off the mistress's family included a job for her husband. we'll look at the other senator who he may be driving down with him. how far can you see? at pnc, taking the long view is how we help you take the right path. even to change it when conditions demand. keeping you on the road to achieving your goals. it's something we've been doing for over 150 years. let our strength and stability be the basis for yours. pnc. leading the way. >>> i really don't have any observations to make about the ensign matter. senator ensign continues to serve, he's a member of the finance committee, been active in the discussions. i don't think today is a day to make any observations about the matter. it just appeared in the newspaper today. i don't have any observations to make about the party. at the risk o

we went to war in iraq, ignored afghanistan for six years. general mccrystal's own report is very candid. if you want to do counterinsurgency right, you need good governance. he talks about all the problems with governance and corruption and unresponsiveness in afghanistan. the president's original commitment back in march was to disrupt and defeat al qaeda. and that's part of our interest in afghanistan. >> that's a terrible change. first of all, the taliban would take over which would be a moral atrocity. and secondly, what we're really fighting here is pakistan. >> pakistan is going better now -- >> the pashtun movement is affecting -- we redefine victory so we control al qaeda -- >> if we're trying to present some sort of solution that invites us supplanting the taliban, the taliban would otherwise take over so we're not there. what sort of solution is that for afghanistan? ultimately we can't win a counterinsurgency for the afghan people. what they say is good luck if you're a third party country in if you're doing this. afghanistan need

marines, which had such a difficult time and such great success in anbar over the last few years in iraq are now out of that country and out of that province. >> thank you very much, geoff, very good to see you. >> good to see you, take care. >>> we'll talk to jane harmin and ambassador wendy shurmman. when i first saw the new outback it looked so different to me. but when i got back from my first trip... ...the look was unmistakable. more room for adventure. the all-new subaru outback. >>> welcome back to "andrea mitchell reports." now to capitol hill and congresswoman jane harmin. a big day here with at least the start of talks and iran saying it will now cooperate with iran nuclear inspectors and permit them back in after talks have been suspended and they have not had substenative inspections. >> i agree with ambassador albright who was just on your show when he says that we need full access to every facility. it's a small facility and it could be a decoy to focus all our attention on that and take our eye off the ball, which is full transparency in iran so we understand not just the

why the united states, why people should believe the intelligence this time after what happened with iraq. this was his response, an interesting response, les let's watch. >> ying the what happened as far as iraq is concerned, including general powell's presentation to the national security council as hurt america's credibility. just a fact. so, there is understandable cynicism and i understand that, but i also believe that it's pretty clear that the iranians are bent on the development of nuclear weapons and all of this, as you know, is complicated by the fact that the israelis do not have unlimited patience. >> now, of course, the president himself, david, said i do not have unlimited patience. but, now, there's talk of military strikes is really much set aside, as well as talk of sanks for the next month, at least, while we see why the iranians deliver on these promises. >> this is a test of engagement. if you sit down with the iranians, what does the u.s. have to show for it? so far the potential for an agreement where the iranians, as you've been reporting would export some of their

he didn't look at the individual countries and say, here is what we have to do in iraq today, here is what we have to do in afghanistan. he realized it's all tied together and it's all related and i think he'll get through all this information and hopefully come up with a plan that does protect the troops that are there, as well as bring some more stability to the afghani people. >> thanks for your time. obviously, this conversation continues. we appreciate it. >> thank you. >>> can the one, two, three punch of oprah, michelle obama and president obama turn chicago's olympic dreams into a reality? we've got team coverage from copenhagen to the windy city next here on msnbc, the place for politics. clean so deep... it's like your old mop's worst nightmare. ♪ [ thunder crashes ] [ man ] love stinks. ♪ love stinks! ♪ yeah! yeah! [ female announcer ] swiffer wet cloths clean better than a mop with new cleansers that attract dirt deep into the cloth and lock it away. new swiffer wet cloths clean better, or your money back. ♪ love stinks! when we spend a billion dollars a day buying

i said we'd be out of iraq. are we? not the last time i checked. i even went personally to try to bring the olympics to chicago in 2016. it didn't work out. but in this case, there's some good news with the bad. for every person who buys an american car in the next six months, you are going to get one of these. ♪ because you know that baby >> you see there lady gaga. turned more than a few heads with her outfit. here's one of her performances. ♪ play a love game ♪ are you in the game ♪ let's play a love game ♪ play a love game >> hmm. okay. we are going to switch gears. i don't have anything to say about that. >>> swine flu, still ahead. the flu vaccine comes out this week. who will get it first and how to go about getting a shot if you want one. hmm? oh, pressure on. careful!! [ glass clatters ] what are you two doing? he's trying to beat my record. 61 dishes, and a garlic press. oh, that's too full! those will never get clean. they got clean when i broke the record. a fork. really? never gonna happen! [ chuckles ] sorry, buddy. so close

>> what worked, what didn't work in iraq in 2003 and 2004 when i was there, our strategy was enemy centric. going to the safe houses, trying to do search and destroy. and training iraqi security forces. we had nothing to do with the civilians. we told the iraqis we're not here to protect you. what changed in 2007 and 2008 was we shifted our strategy to actually focusing more on protecting the civilian population with the theory that if we demonstrate to the iraqis that we're serious about helping to protect them and secure their neighborhood, they will step up and cooperate with us along the lines. we've been making the same mistakes in afghanistan, it was all enemy centric, it wasn't focused on protecting the civilian population and when brave afghanis want to cooperate they and families get killed and we have been demonstrating that we'll be there, that we'll be more reliable than al qaeda and the taliban. >> i tell you i got your back and you step forward and i'm nowhere to be found. >> and you lose the confidence in the families and the village. >> gordon goldstine also here. i want to

isn't that how we got in iraq. the third story, it's what nasa is doing now. the purposeful collision, set for 7:30 in the morning with the impact streaming live on the internet. they tried to encourage student astronomy and curiosity. why are we trying to bomb the moon? it was two weeks ago, nasa wants to know how much water is there. previously scheduled lunar crater observation is approaching the moon at 2600-mile-an-hour. one part of the spacecraft will create plumes of debris. it's expected to reach six miles high. it will take readings from the debris to check for water and relay that data to the earth before the rest plows into the moon. a twofer. >>> 150 middle school students joined by astronauts and the president who wants to encourage study and the wonder of science. >> all you need is a passion for science. from the moment humans first walked on this earth, we have been endlessly fascinated by the stars. we need you to study, do well in school, explore everything from space to the at tom. we need you to think bigger and dig deeper and reach higher.

carter, they didn't give it for camp david, but the trigger was because of his opposition to the war in iraq. al gore, why did he get it? because he was not george w. bush when it came to the environment. that transformation is real. but it also shows that the world is looking for american leadership. the world still wants a different kind of american leadership, it's not that they hate america, they just didn't like the leadership under president bush. >> richard, someday you're going to have to explain to me how henry kissinger got it while the vietnam war was still raging. but still staying with the present winner, to what extent might the committee have been going for big-time relevance, obama's coattails, going with the biggest, hottest political star in the world? >> i think there is some of that sort of fame hunting there. on the other side, though, look, this is a tremendous amount of, to be blunt, free publicity to the united states. one of the problems the bush administration had so long was called public diplomacy which we used to call propaganda. how do you get the passage across

i said weed be out of iraq. are we? not the last time i checked. i said i'd make improvements in the war in afghanistan. is it better? no, i think it's actually worse. how about health care reform? hell no. >> does the biting rachel maddow, the change of promise? >> does the idea of the war that bush and cheney haven't been able to wrap up until less than a year, that's true. >> but a lot of people on the left have been critical about the wars in particular and. >> sure. >> other things that have not been accomplished. >> i've been among the most critical but i would not expect it to be done by now. >> the reason it's funny is because it's true. the honeymoon is over. they have tremendous expectations. that's the hang over of any campaign promise and now domestic policy with economy, health care, afghanistan and everywhere else, the wheel is turning. >> the government is hard. a lot of what they are doing, they can promise to close guantanamo but it's actually hard to close t they can promise to employ sanctions on iran but the second push and chen

"countdown" for this the 2,245th day since the previous president declared mission accomplished in iraq. i'm keith ownerman, good night and good luck. what you might call senator john ensign spent way too much time in the hamptons. ladies and gentlemen here is rachel maddow. >> now i'm never going to be able to get that out of my head, but thank you, keith. >> we already had the michelle bachman image from before. >> thanks for the nightmare. thanks, keith, and thank you at home for staying with us for the next hour, during which i can honestly tell you it is going from big to weird to big to weird again. senator brad is going to visit a foreign country in order to tell that country to resist the united states, then he has that trip canceled against his will at the 11th hour. the national republican congressional committee decides to call me names. and the unexpected resource of some of the bold faced names from the bush era's republican scandal. and they're resurfacing in today's highest possible stakes, republican politics. there is a ton of news going on in the world and it's all com

"countdown" for this the 2,245th day since the previous president declared mission accomplished in iraq. i'm keith ownerman, good night and good luck. now with the latest in the scandal we might call john ensign spent way too much time in the hamptons, ladies and gentlemen, here's rachel maddow. >> now i'm never going to be able to get that out of my head, but thank you, keith. >> we already had the michelle bachman image from before. >> thanks for the nightmare. thanks, keith, and thank you at home for staying with us for the next hour, during which i can honestly tell you it is going from big to weird to big to weird again. senator brad is going to visit a foreign country in order to tell that country to resist the united states, then he has that trip canceled against his will at the 11th hour. the national republican congressional committee decides to call me names. and the unexpected resource of some of the bold faced names from the bush era's republican scandal. and they're resurfacing in today's highest possible stakes, republican politics. there is a ton of news going on in the w

carter, they didn't give it for camp david, but the trigger was because of his opposition to the war in iraq. al gore, why did he get it? because he was not george w. bush when it came to the environment. that transformation is real. but it also proves that the world is looking for american leadership. the world still wants a different kind of american leadership, it's not that they hate america, they just didn't like the leadership under president bush. >> richard, someday you're going to have to explain to me how henry kissinger got it while the war was still raging. so what extent might the committee have been going for big-time relevance, obama's coat tails, going with the biggest, hottest political star in the world. >> i think there is some of that sort of fame hunting there. on the other side, though, look, this is a tremendous amount of, to be blunt, free publicity to the united states. used to call propaganda, how do you get the passage across, you can give it a speech and he's done that speech of the most of the worth, but what actually reaches people here? in this sense, you've go

that is more than 10 times the number of americans who died in the war in iraq. it's more than ten times the number of americans who died in 9/11. i apologize to the dead and their families that we haven't voted sooner to end this holocaust in america. >> when you throw facts to conservatives, they don't know how to handle it. i want to thank the congressman from florida for reminding us that this debate is not about cost curves and projections, it's about life or death. that's what it is. it's life or death. if you're the person who just got a pink slip and a cancer diagnosis, that was the story told to minority leader eric kanter for which he had no answer. the republicans have jumped on this because they really don't want to talk about health care reform. they want to talk about how the democrats are so mean all the time. frankly, i think it's mean spirited for the republican lead tore say to a person who has cancer go beg for charity. the congressman spoke from his heart. this wasn't some outburst. this wasn't flippant. he took it to them by the rules and he

foreign relations richard haass, who is the author of "war of necessity, war of choice, a memoir of two iraq wars." a great book. richard, tagging right off of andrea's reporting there, the headlines, haven't we seen this movie before? how do we make it a different movie when it comes to dealing with iran and how they've sort of handled the troops? >> obviously, they've lied. they stalled. yesterday, though, was all things being equal, a good day as these things go. as andrea correctly se, it's one thing for the iranians to make commitments. it's another thing to implement the commitments. let's see how that goes. secondly, one of the first rules in this business is you never know what you don't know. we just learned about a secret installation. i find it almost impossible to believe there aren't other secret installations. >> that was my next question. great, we'll get access to this one. we might even control how it operates or lack thereof, but they've lied. >> what people may not understand who are watching this is the entire world arrangement to deal with questions of nuclear proliferat

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"countdown" for this the 2,245th day since the previous president declared mission accomplished in iraq. i'm keith olbermann, good night and good luck. now with the latest in the scandal we might call john ensign spent way too much time in the hamptons, ladies and gentlemen, here's rachel maddow. i want to give you some important free advice. let's say you have osteoporosis. i do. and you haven't done anything about it. i haven't. well, now's a great time to do something. call 1-800-716-1699 for a free information kit and trial offer of once-a-month actonel. and ask your doctor how to help treat osteoporosis. actonel is clinically proven to help reverse bone loss and can help increase bone strength to help prevent fractures. do not take actonel if you have low blood calcium, severe kidney disease, or cannot sit or stand for 30 minutes. follow all dosing instructions. stop taking actonel and tell your doctor if you experience difficult or painful swallowing, chest pain, or severe or continuing heartburn. these may be signs of serious upper-digestive problems. promptly tell your doctor if