romney. >> skeptics say newt gingrich has issues. including its lobbying fees from a controversial clients. >> many experts think mitt romney remains the one to be at. some republicans are already tweeting "it's over for herman cain." making great only has $300,000 on hand, not much staff. this is newt gingrich's week to be in the spotlight and he is going up in the polls. >> we will go back to the herman cain story as soon as we hear more details from his latest accuser. >>> d.c. police are looking for clues into the shootings and stabbings of six people at a dupont circle restaurant police are searching surveillance camera video for the suspect in the incident sunday morning. one person was killed, five others were injured. we are learning of previous incidents that raised concerns by police. sam ford is live in northwest washington. >> we have learned that five months ago, at the same club, and event promoted by the same promoter, there was an incident in which there was a fight and was pushed out into the street. people were beat

>> newt gingrich, according to newt gingrich, told a freddie mac while he was being paid $25,000 to $30,000 a month, that their business model was insane. nobody at freddie mac ever heard him say this, and at least five people say he never did say it. but this is newt gingrich, and going back to what charles' point was, this is a man who has shown incredible intellectual flexibility. he is somebody who has been on both sides of an awful lot of issues. i think that is what is going to be his undoing. >> here's a question from friday's "wall street journal." "how to politicians who are rife in washington, d.c. as a minimum of modest means the as millionairess?" -- leave as millionaires?" question posed by sarah palin. >> while the rest of the country has been hurting, the washington area has been doing great, and a big part of that is lobbying money. congress is bought and sold legally. that is the problem. if you don't think that these congressmen are bought and sold, you are dreaming. >> taking advantage of inside information that would send somebody on wall street to prison. >> the supreme

newt gingrich is at the top of his neck and neck with mitt romney i think the president is a nice guy. i just don't think he understands how the economy works. >> michael franks says with newt gingrich's rise also comes scrutiny like a revelation that he got more than $1 million in a deal with freddie mac pierre >> as you rise, there is a premium place to expose or discuss what the perceived liabilities are for each canada. but gingrich is going to that face of the cycle. >> for three days he sat out of practice because of a toe injury, will ray lewis take the field against the bengals? >> the greatest concept has been 52 lining up in the middle. ray lewis suffered a few injuries along the way. as they gear up for two games in five days, his availability is listed as questionable. it does feel premature to say ray lewis will not play sunday, much less next week given his history of embracing pain. the leader for the franchise is not 100%. >> you cannot count ray lewis out. there could be reports out there that you could put over some rocks and think you have something and you might ha

newt gingrich is talking about, of course, the occupy protesters. after the pepper spray at uc- davis, public opinion may have shifted in the other direction. >> there is nobody at two more for a definition and sort of update on the moral system -- nobody i look to more it for a definition and sort update on the moral system and fabric of this country than in the former speaker of the house. >> [laughter] >> if you play three minutes of newt gingrich, the pomposity is so self congratulatory that his candidacy would implode. that said, the occupy movement was given a lift by the excess, and no question, the abuse at ucal-davis, but they have got to come up with different formats, they have got to come up with something other than occupying public property and disrupting transportation. >> i agree with mark, but newt in that thing, which i at least partly agree with, the t -- betrayed his generation. he is trying to make a vietnam war-era cultural statement about this movement. yes, there are people like that there, people who need a bath, but also a

i suspect something similar at will happen to newt gingrich. as happened to michele bachmann and others. the reason president obama is creeping up in the eight polls is this is what people are seeing on a weekly basis. >> with which of these candidates would you be most comfortable? >> probably everyone except ron paul, who was living in the 1920's, who thinks we can have a moat around the united states and if we ignore the world, the world what it ignore us. i don't think there is a lot of the division. jon huntsman is slightly in moderate on afghanistan, but romney made a good point in the debate -- since the plan is to leave in two years anyway, and everybody agrees that you keep a residual force, even huntsman and obama i presume, the argument over a few months one way or the other in the end is a very small division. even though clinton wants to be the want to say we build a nation -- even though-it must be the guy to say we build a nation at home and abroad, he is not for immediate withdrawal. >> he has had experience abroad, he knows his

i suspect something s similar will happen to newt gingrich. it has happened to michele bachmann and others. i think the reason obama is creeping up in the polls is this is what people are seeing on a weekly basasis. >> when it comes to foign policycy and natiol security, the subject of this debate, with which of these candidates would you be most comfortable? >> probably everyone except ron paul who is living in the 1920's and things we can have a moat around the unit states and we nore the world, the wod will ignore us. i n't think there's a lot of the division. jon huntsman is slightly moderate on afghanistan, but romney me a good point in the debate -- since the plan today is to leave in two yrs anyway, and everybody agrees that you keep residual force, even huntsman and obama, i presume it is an argument over a f few months one way or the other. in the end, there is a ve small division, even though huntsman wants to be the one to say that we need to build a nation at home rather than abroad. he says he's not for immediaiate withdrawal. >>

and proposals that pour forth from newt gingrich. if you are a democrat and look being at newt gingrich as a likelyy opponent to barack obama. it is like the balloons that float down central park. any moment any one of those trees could poke it and the balloon explodes and that is what is going on with newt gingrich. i forgot about that baggage and insurance problem. it is too much and you just have to wonder and so it is not about mitt romney. i think it is about mitt romney. it is not about newt. why is it everybody comes and challenge mitt and he can't get above the limit of 23 or 25 percent. >> chris: let me go back brit to go back to newt. as bill points out. there is a lot to like about newt. he was if you are a conservative republican. he was the guy the republican revolution in 1994 . brought them back from the wilderness for the first 40 years. >> exactly. and welfare reform and balanced budget and a lot of things. and even his record as speaker is checkered. >> i don't dispute a word about the things that happened. presiden

of course, newt gingrich did not say anything like that. about the immigration hawks tonight. he talked about being humane to what would presumably be a small subset of people who came here illegally who have been here quite a long time, with ties to communities, contributing members of society and belong to churches and who have families. that was, it seems to me, that might limit any damage that would be done to him by an argument that might have sounded to some like an argument near a certain kind of amnesty. >> one of the them, jon huntsman, whose argument in recent weeks for staying in this race where he is very low in the polls, is that he will be a surprise performer in new hampshire. clearly, this was in his bailiwick. and it seemed that he was trying to flex the muscle of that several times, in terms of showing the depth of am he has in pakistan and china. how do you think he did? >> i think -- well, he had a lot to say. he can't complain he didn't get his ups tonight. his positions are out of the mainstream for a lot of republicans. i am not sure that jon huntsman's

we start with the apparent gop front-runner right now, newt gingrich. david gregory is the moderator of nbc's "meet the press." and howard fineman is an msnbc political analyst and "the huffington post" media group editorial director. david gregory, great to have you on. we'll talk about "meet the press" coming up this weekend. but let me ask you about this whole thing. don't you think just in a psychological way, what do you think it does to mitt romney, who's been running for president since the last time to realize that newt gingrich is now the preferred candidate of the republican party, with all newt's baggage. i mean, totally, objectively, he's carrying so much baggage, serial marriages, moved out by his own caucus for the speakership. and here he is back as if none of that happened. >> i think it's troubling for romney. at the same time, i think there's a level of resignation in the romney campaign, that their campaign was not predicated on setting the electorate on fire. by being this charming historical figure. this was going to be a different

no ground rules. >> herman cain and newt gingrich. together togetting economic plans on medicare. >> if we are stupid, we will end like a breeze. >> and social security. i am a social need a strong of an idea that george bush produced. >> any candidate not prepared to about getting younger choosens the right to serious solution on social security. topic off limits in debate was the sexual harassment charges herman cain. but he changed his story on the allegations. of the alleged victims did down. k >> mr. kane and knows the that wasincident alleged. if he chooses not to remember or is hisedge those, that issue. >> so far the allegations have heard his campaign. abc poll say most republicans is not a serious matter. his rivals are steering clear of controversy. not mentioned with the candidates address to the reagan the dinner in iowa. bachmann criticized cain saying people are adult in then room. topic should come up when they're is a debate next week we debate next week. the top eight republican indidates will be featured detroit. >>

. >> any questions of newt gingrich? >> my question is that you spent a lot of years in congress. you have a distinguished career. then you left congress. that gave you an opportunity to start of their ventures and to think. you have been studying and thinking about things rather than being in sign that washington bauble. quarter the three biggest things that you have come to realize being outside the bubble? >> first iraq, it is it -- first of all, it is an interesting reversal. you got drawn into public life by the pressure. i left the public sector and opened a number of small businesses. the first thing i learned which is the opposite of how government works, if you do not get up every morning trying to find a customer, please a customer, renew a relationship, you don't get to stay in business. this is part of why and so intrigued with strong american now, and applying it to the american government. if you have not burned your pay today, "you think we will pay you? -- why do you think we will pay you? [applause] the second thing shaped my career in congress. now that i have be

newt gingrich 13%. and herman cain 17%. the field is still wide open. only 30% of republicans and independents are committed to their candidates. >>> it was a dreary friday but the rain is starting to push out. weekend, drying conditions on tap. >>> coming up, after the forecast a thousand dollars in bits and pieces. find out what happened and the length one couple went to get their cash back. >>> new tonight, bank bail outs have been a source of anchor for the "occupy wall street" protesters. now according to two whistle blowers there is a new outrage. some of the nation's biggest banks defrauded veterans. martin savage reports. >> he spent three years in the army. he was shocked by a bank loan document. >> it was really apparent. >> reporter: it was clear the bank was ripping off a veteran who was trying to refinance his home. >> the veteran didn't see it, it was really slick how they did it. >> reporter: they began going through other loan paper work. >> everyone of the lenders were doing the same thing. >> reporter: this shows how it was done. the b

barney frank said newt gingrich is capable of imploding. given the fact as you said earlier they happened in the not so distant past, do you think newt gingrich may have learned? >> he has learned some things, but he is fundamentally undisciplined and politics be successful at the highest levels. you have to have a great sense of discipline. the issue is not going to be what happened to him in the past. we know that the republican primary voters are willing to overlook a lot of that. it's whether he will be able to hold up to the swings and errors of the current campaign or melt down as barney frank indicated. he is -- which newt will show up? the policy or the scholar or the snappish undisciplined self defeating candidate. they probably will before time. >> anything but mitt romney. they show gingrich leading or in a tie. blowing him away in south carolina. will voters forget about newt's adultery and the poison onnous behavior of the past and be able to pull it off or are ow john's side of the pages where you think that newt will probably

are overwhelmed by the ideas and proposals that pour forth from newt gingrich. but the fact is in just hard political terms if you are democrat and looking at newt gingrich as a likely opponent to barack obama maybe the analogy is like those balloons that will float down central park for thanksgiving. any moment any one of those trees along the way to poke it and the balloon explodes and that is what is going on with newt gingrich. any moment you say oh, my gosh, i foregot about that baggage. i foregot about the insurance problem, you know. it is just too much at some point. you have to wonder. it is not about mitt romney. i think it is about mitt romney. it is not about newt. it is about mitt romney. why is it that everybody comes along and challenges mitt. he can't get above that limit of 23 to 25%. >> chris: let me go back and we omaha bank have a couple of minutes to go back to newt. because as bill points out, i mean there is a lot to like about newt. he was if you are a conservative republican, he was the guy who -- the republican revolution in 1994. he br

but this is newt gingrich. oing back to what charles' point was, this man has shown incredible intellectual flexibility. he is somebody who has been on both sides of an awful lot of issues. that is going to be his undoing. >> here is a question from friday's "wall street journal." "how to politicians who arrive in washington, d.c. what with modest means leave as millionaires?" question posed by sarah palin. >> so much money i washington. while the rest of the country has been hurting, the washington area has been great, and the big part of that is lobbying money. politicians are bought and sold legally. that is the problem. if you don't think these congressmen are not bought and sold, you are dreaming. >> inside information sending somebody to present -- >> the supreme court may say there is no corruption that justifies restrictions on campaign money, but there are going to be billions and billions of dollars spent this year. we will not know who sped them, who they benefitted, and the kinds of scandals you mig

>> that's newt gingrich's great advantage. he's been dealing with these issues for quarter of a century or more, he's been the speaker of the house, he has thought a lot about these issues, he's got a lot of ideas. you heard him flesh them out tonight. he was even mentioning places to go to look for ideas that he had already read. he's impressive in this kind of a setting. if newt gingrich is to get into trouble, it won't be the kind of trouble herman cain got into exactly with bad debate answers or rick perry, although he did pretty well tonight. it's likely to be things outside the realm of debate which is the former speaker's strong suit and you saw that again tonight. he talks very well. >> it is interesting the person seen as the front runner and who has had a challenge most recently by newt gingrich, mit romney is who we come to next of a talking about all the others who seem to be in some ways more animated characters on the stage. but there's mit romney. how did he do tonight? >> mit romney did fine. mit romney always

why is newt gingrich suddenly surging to the top? rush limbaugh says he knows. >> take a step back and understand why republican voters are responding to newt now as opposed to a month ago, six weeks ago, two months ago. i mean newt has been in the race since it began. why now? why now is newt gingrich at the top of the heap in iowa, and in some national polls, as well? why? we are three years into barack obama's war on prosperity. now i think americans are coming to grips with the up side, if not the necessity of a limited government. and now that people understand or are beginning to understand the deceit that is liberalism, including it's standard bearer, barack obama, they are looking for somebody to clearly articulate a way out and they want to hear it said with strength and passion and power and intelligence. what newt is doing is no secret. newt is tapping into the american mind-set. he has the ability to do it. he also has the ability to blow it. which is what gives people pause. but at this point they are looking past that.

mitt romney and newt gingrich. plus or minus 4, that's a tie across the board. gingrich, surging in most pol polls. steve you spent time with the speaker. your take? >> interesting to listen to him talk about his personal baggage. i interviewed three dozen people in south carolina. i was stunned how many people are willing to look past that and say what he has done, he has done. he said he asked for forgiveness. he has moved on and we shall, too. in the course of talking to the people in south carolina, i would say 90% of them said in the first sentence, he is intelligent. maybe the smartest person in the field. excellent debater. he is using it in the stump speech extensively. >> the herman cain campaign trying to get past the sexual harassment allegations. he had another bit of a hiccup we showed you last night about answering a question in an editorial board about libya. he talked about that today. >> the pause was to gather my thoughts. people want to make a big deal about it. if you were asked seven or eight questions, somebody switches to libya and they ar

. >> the one person who stands to gain from this fall is newt gingrich. >> he has to do what he thinks is best in the situation he finds himself in. >> on its web site, -- on his website -- >> denied speech was supposed to be about a foreign-policy. -- tonight's speech was supposed to be about foreign policy. will he drop out of their race? he will be making a decision soon. >>> coverage of the herman cain controversy continues online. you can always get the latest information on wjla.com. we also have the updates from our twitter handle. you can let us know what you think of the controversy on our facebook page. >>> more good numbers for nuking great. -- for newt gingrich. a poll indicates that he is in the lead by a large margin. a lot of people are still undecided, though. iowa is first in line in the nomination process, of course. >>> the suspected east coast rapist returns to our region to face his fate. aaron thomas arrived in manassas this afternoon the day before he will go before a prince william county judge. thomas has been in custody in connecticut since his arrest in march

newt gingrich has gone from 8% up to 22%. herman cain, he's dropped off 11 percentage points. the kane controversy is -- cain controversy is continue. it was the former boyfriend of one of the accusers. >> she said that something had happened and mr. cain had touched her in an inappropriate manner. she said she handled it and didn't want to talk about it any further. >> reporter: so another person is coming to herman cain's defense. that's his wife. i'll play a quick preview that's airing tonight on fox news. >> to hear such graphic allegations and know that that would have been something that was totally disrespectful of her as a woman, and i know that's not the person he is. he totally respects women. >> reporter: so kelly, that's the first time we're hearing from his wife on all of this. >> reporting live from washington, d.c. thanks for joining us. >>> former first daughter chelsea clinton, not really political but has spined a special correspondence provision with nbc news. clinton will be working as a reporter for rock center. she will do stories for the network's making

and newt gingrich up to now has had the advantage of low expectations. the media hasn't gone and looked at the 17 organizations he's running -- he's run. one good example, the other night at the debate, on cnbc, they asked about $300,000 he was paid by, what was it, freddie or fannie. and you know, when they were trying to get political influence in washington to keep the regulators off their back. he said that they turned to him because he was a historian and he would give them historical lectures. i spoke to someone at fannie mae about that, and they were laughing about this. he wasn't telling the truth. no one's dug into a lot of these things, in 30 years of political controversies. so he may come up for a while, but he's going to fall down like everybody else, like we say see herman cain now. you may be left with mitt romney because there's nobody else in the barrel of apples. >> david, i agree with you. but i would just add one little component, a twist on what you said. i think the candidate has to be trustworthy. people have to trust them, in that

this will also be the first debate where former house speaker newt gingrich can claim front punnnr status -- at least according to recent surveys. they show him deadlocked with mitt romney for the top spot -- with herman cain close behind.i'm tommy andres reportinn. 3p tonight's debate will be th last one to focus on foreign policy before the iowa caucus in january. the debate will air on c-n-n at 8 p-m eastern. c-n-n, the heritage foundaaion and the american enterprise institute are hosting. the nation is facing automatic bipartisan congressional suppr committee failed to reach an agreement monnay.tte group of 6 republicans and 66ddmocrats were trying to agree on a debt reduction package... of at least 1-point-2 trillion automatic cuts don't kick in - obaaa says he willlveto any - measure to work around them. students at the university of california davis are demanding action... about police officers pepper-sprayed a group of students last week. week.this is video from last friday.students were taaing part in a sit-in protest over high tuition costs... when officers came up tt them and &

critics say herman cain is not smart enough,h, newt gingrich being accucused of beieing too wealthy. >>what is your take on any o of those three awkwarard moment? >> it was interesting and one of the debates when herman cain was asked if would be a good ceo given thhistory of sexual haharassmement. that really is what this is out. he i is applying to be the ceo of the bigiggestompany in thee world. it is pretty azing to look at all threree. who hahas not had b brain freeze is in tir life? >> for the debates, ey rehearse and they prepare. if you say you are going to get rid of three agencies, you t think it through. apppareny, he e has not. he reminds me of some pretended th brotherers who w would crammed the night before. >> herman cain is starting to look too much like 2 2007 ss carolina. she s saidamericans do not own maps and maybe that is the problem. i agree wit you. there are some ings you d do nott have to know to be president and then tre are. you had d some fighting words for football programs across th country, and even the university of maryland needs to realize what is mo

we start with the apparent gop front-runner right now, newt gingrich. david gregory is the moderator of nbc's "meet the press." and howard fineman is an msnbc political analyst and "the huffington post" media group editorial director. david gregory, great to have you on. we'll talk about "meet the press" coming up this weekend. but let me ask you about this whole thing. don't you think just in a psychological way, what do you think it can does to mitt romney, who's been running for president since the last time to realize that newt gingrich is now the preferred candidate of the republican party, with all newt's baggage. i mean, totally, objectively, he's carrying so much baggage, serial marriages, reprimanded from the house of representativess, basically moved out from his own party caucus from the speakership. and here he is back as if none of that happened. >> i think it's troubling for romney. at the same time, i think there's a level of resignation in the romney campaign, that their campaign was not predicated on setting the electorate on fire. by b

gwen: newt gingrich coming on strong. the 2012 candidates and foreign policy. the supreme court tackles health care and a supercommittee lurches towards the deadline. tonight on washington week -- newt gingrich is soaring in the polls. you know what that means. new scrutiny. >> the 1.6 million. >> i don't know. we'll check. gwen: plus, what affects might the election might have on u.s. foreign policy? >> one thing you'll know and that is if we re-elect barack obama, iraq will be a nuclear weapon. >> i am making it clear that the united states is stepping up its commitment to the entire asia-pacific. gwen: those choices get more clear and in congress the superacademy's choices become less clear. >> i'm still optimistic but i'm realistic as well. >> they're well aware of what we're willing to do. you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. gwen: and the supreme court agrees to an election-year review of the national health care law. covering the week, jeanne cummings of bloomberg news. major garrett of "national journal." lori montgomery to have "

>> to newt gingrich, i think. i think right now that anti-romney vote has coalesced arm around the former speaker. >> jon: voters leaf cain because they don't like he had an affair and go to the guy who had two of them! i guess newt gingrich becomes the candidate for people who like herman cain but think he was too monogamous. jason jones is sanding by. jason, where are you? >> i'm at rick santorum's campaign headquarters. >> jonquick note, if you're looking to directions for his headquarters do not-- and i cannot stress this enough-- search google ma maps. >> jon: i'm sorry, i'm just waiting for people do that and come back to the program. what's going on at santorum headquarters? >> he's what i can only describe as frothing mad. (laughter) about cain voters going to gingrich. >> jon: what why is he mad? >> what does he have to do to get respect? his credentials are unmatched. he's pro-life, anti-immigrant, strict creationist, he equates same-sex marriage with get to gt (bleep)ing. he blamed the catholic church's

newt gingrich is selling loads of books and dvds. is the republican race better understood as a book tour? >> i'd better think about this. may be should i run for president for my next book. >> i'm telling you, you'll get some sales. i don't want to be absurd claiming their only reason that these noble servants would get into the race is to promote themselves. but at the same time, it takes a great degree of hubris and self-assertion and confidence to run for the president anyhow. so to say that you're going to run for the president or promote your own book is six of one, half dozen of the other. what is interesting is that all of these noble claims to service are really subordinated to their ego send trick narcissist tick preoccupations on the one hand and their way of easily dismissing human beings on the other. especially for herman cain. i think all three of these candidates have to take another look at what public service is about. it is not about self-promotion. it is about the promotion of the public good. not about signing yo

i'm going to predict a newt gingrich boomlet. i think newt gingrich will be a beneficiary of herman cain's scandal. >> you don't really see the president of harvard lobbying in washington, pounding the pavement. she was here the other day with other university presidents who are extremely worried about teaching hospitals and that there's no super committee deal, healthcare research and especially the post graduate training of doctors in university hospitals is going to be absolutely decimated. university hospitals around the country are frightened about how to survive. chris: when we return, our big question this week. 75% of americans in their 20's think this country is not the greatest country. is that pessimism? chris: a pugh research poll asked americans if this is still the world's greatest country. 75% of our kids, college aged ones and those under 30, do not think so. they say this is one of several great countries which brings us to our big question this week. is that passimism or realism? >> china has money. that's what

but look at this -- >> if anyone's dirty, it's newt gingrich. a man whose personal morality has been drawn from the sewer. >> what explains the lever of vitriol toward newt on the airwaves including from some on the right? the media clearly expected super things from the super committee which turned into a debacle. did news agencies hype the consequences if the panel failed to decrease the debit. >>> he's one of most popular bloggers in cyber-space. can he still call himself a conservative? our conversation with andrew sullivan. >> especially during the iraq war to have made such a massive blunder and be forced to hold myself to account for it and have my readers do so and stick with me, that was a very maturing experience. >> plus, the "huffington post" expands to canada. so what's up with the canadian woman who's running it, eh? we'll meet her. i'm howard kurtz, and this is "reliable sources." >>> in an increasingly shrill media environment, running for president means being attacked, assailed, mocked, ridiculed, bashed, and otherwise denigrat

but newt gingrich is different. newt gingrich is different from all the rest of these pachinko ball candidates for five minutes. newt gingrich is fun to cover in his moment in the sun here. he's been around politics in one incarnation or another basically forever. to trace the origins of the eyebrow raising stuff that newt gingrich is promoting now that he's the presidential front-runner, go back to newt gingrich's old cassette tapes. remember cassette tapes? for all viewers younger than me, this is a cassette tape. used to have boom boxes and machines in our cars that would play these things and sometimes your car would mess it up and the tape could get tied like this. one of the things newt gingrich did when he was on his way to becoming speaker of the house newt gingrich -- look, i broke it. there it goes. he took over a republican organization called go-pac and he would send republican coaching cassette tapes to republican candidates for office all around the country. people running for dogcatcher. if you were a