senator sheldon whitehouse on other side of the break. >>> we know the donald has toyed with the idea of running for president. now there's a report that he's recruited for another top job in plik politics. our priority is, was and always will be serving you, the american people. so we improved priority mail flat rate to give you a more reliable way to ship. now with tracking up to eleven scans, specified delivery dates, and free insurance up to $50 all for the same low rate. [ woman ] we are the united states postal service. [ man ] we are the united states postal service. [ male announcer ] and our priority is you. go to usps.com® and try it today. he was a matted messiley in a small cage. ng day. you. so that was our first task, was getting him to wellness. without angie's list, i don't know if we could have found all the services we needed for our riley. from contractors and doctors to dog sitters and landscapers, you can find it all on angie's list. we found riley at the shelter, and found everything he needed at angie's list. join today at angieslist.com >>> we continue to foll

joining us now is senator sheldon whitehouse of rhode island, a member of the senate budget committee. senator whitehouse, thank you so much for being with us. >> very happy to be with you. >> growing up, my dad always told me close only counts in horseshoes and hend grenades. >> this is the hand grenade version of that. >> oh, i was going to ask, does close also count in debt ceilings? are we already in dangerous territory? >> yeah, it absolutely does. there are two consequences of a default from not raising the debt ceiling. one is if you actually don't do it, and then markets and interest rates adjust in probably unimaginably bad ways. but even when you get close, other countries, bankers, people buying treasury securities look around and think this security doesn't seem quite as secure as it used to. i think i'm going to have to charge a little bit more in order to come in and be a buyer. and because we pay the interest, that comes right out of the taxpayers' pocket. so, it's very irresponsible to drive too close to the debt limit and to force all those costs on the taxpayers and

senator sheldon whitehouse and ted cruz will be on "crossfire." erin burnett starts right now. >> let's make a deal. we'll do everything we can to get this solved. >> is president obama only talking about the royal we? and a woman vanishes from a hospital. she is found dead weeks later. it turns out now she may never have left. >> what happened

joining us now is senator sheldon whitehouse of rhode island, a member of the senate budget committee. senator whitehouse, thank you so much for being with us. >> very happy to be with you. >> growing up, my dad always told me close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. >> this is the hand grenade version of that. >> oh, i was going to ask, does close also count in debt ceilings? are we already in dangerous territory? >> yeah, it absolutely does. there are two consequences of a default from not raising the debt ceiling. one is if you actually don't do it, and then markets and interest rates adjust in probably unimaginably bad ways. but even when you get close, other countries, bankers, people buying treasury securities look around and think this security doesn't seem quite as secure as it used to. i think i'm going to have to charge a little bit more in order to come in and be a buyer. and because we pay the interest, that comes right out of the taxpayers' pocket. so, it's very irresponsible to drive too close to the debt limit and to force all those costs on the taxpayers and

whitehouse. i have one specific question for you. brand-new poll out today that reflects the gradual penetration of obama care's challenges. it indicates that when asked should government mandate americans to buy health insurance, it is 28% yes and 68% no. now, do you think that maybe some reason to at least revisit and rethink some of this? >> i think revisiting and rethinking this in the ordinary procedures is always a sensible thing to do. we have to get away from the hostage dramas and we have to get back to regular order. and when we do, any of those topics can be raised. i would point out one thing. i would bet you any amount of money that if you said we've got to get everybody into the system in order to be able to solve the pre-existing condition problem so that families aren't shut out on they own when they hit their limits or have a pre-existing condition those numbers would change a lot. that was the balance of obama care. we can always relitigate it. but don't forget the families who

senator sheldon whitehouse and ted cruz will be on "crossfire." erin burnett starts right now. >> let's make a deal. we'll do everything we can to get this solved. >> is president obama only talking about the royal we? and a woman vanishes from a hospital. she is found dead weeks later. it turns out now she may never have left. >> what happened >> good evening, everyone. we begin "outfront" with news. a democratic lawmaker who just left a private meeting with the president at the white house tells cnn, the president signals a more, quote, give on the idea of a temporary six-week deal to lift the debt ceiling. that could be significant, obviously. dana bash is on capitol hill. i want to get straight to you. what have you learned? so many questions. is the shutdown involved? will we be in the same place we are now in six weeks? what happened? >> unclear about the first question, probably about the second question. we've been reporting since yesterday, and really even earlier, that this could be the makings of a potential deal. when i say this, this

senator sheldon whitehouse and ted cruz will be in the "crossfire." >>> welcome to our viewers. the showdown shutdown day 9. how long will this go on for and will we reach a deal before the deadline? i spoke with a democratic and a republican, we'll meet with him tomorrow. we begin with a powerful number. 26 died when the shutdown began. because of the shutdown, there is a terrible loss to the families they leave behind, the loss of benefits at the worst possible time. this country owes them a huge debt. the president made his inaugural address with charity for all, let us care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and for his orphan. they made a deal with a private charity to reimburse the families until the shutdown is over. as far as a deal to end the shutdown itself and avoid the looming debt deadline, both sides seem as far apart as possible. i want to bring in two on either sides of the aisle. democrat jim heinz of the fshl services committee. gentlemen, welcome to you. let me start with you, if we may, james lang. we've spoken a few times through this

. >> i want to play a clip for you of sheldon whitehouse saying why he's untroubled by a temporary continuing resolution and a temporary raising of the debt ceiling for only four months because he thinks republicans have learned a political lesson from this. listen. >> the republicans, and particularly the tea party republicans, really burned their hands on this hot stove, and the idea that in january they're going to want to grab it again and burn themselves all over again doesn't seem very likely. i think they learned a lesson from the damage that they did to our country with this latest stunt. >> do you think he's right? >> partially. i think republicans privately look at the poll numbers and they see 74% of americans are dissatisfied with the way they're operating. they're aware of that. they're aware of the constituent calls coming in. but because of the way the conservative movement operates today and the way it influences the republican party, if speaker boehner does embrace the senate deal, you're still going to see many, many house republicans oppose it because it does not include pr

senator sheldon whitehouse and ted cruz will be in the "crossfire." >>> welcome to our viewers. the showdown shutdown day 9. how long will this go on for and will we reach a deal before the deadline? i spoke with a democratic and a republican, we'll meet with him tomorrow. we begin with a powerful number. 26 died when the shutdown began. because of the shutdown, there is a terrible loss to the families they leave behind, the loss of benefits at the worst possible time. this country owes them a huge debt. the president made his inaugural address

but delivery system reform in our health care system is another place that sheldon whitehouse has taken leadership. and so i want to thank him for his kind words and just say, right back at ya, babe. i yield the floor. mr. blumenthal: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from connecticut. mr. blumenthal: i'd like to just thank both of my colleagues. i'm not sure that i can match their eloquence in describing their gifts and their contributions on this issue and so many others, but i hope that they and others will join me in seeking to meet with the present sandy task force and seeking to remedy or correct perhaps some of the logjams and red tape and deficiencies in process that led the people of our states to wait for so long before they saw relief in practical terms. and so i want to thank them for their eloquence today, for their truly formidable contribution on the issue of climate change and global warming and to thank them also for the very powerful contribution they have made on the response to storm sandy that affected so many people in connecticut. thank you, mr. pr

senator ted cruz of texas in "crossfire" tonight, along with sheldon whitehouse of rhode island. we are delighted to have both of you with us. >> glad to be here. >> welcome to "crossfire." we're going to start with you. well, you know, you kind of got us into this whole situation. you're the guy, you had this great plan, you're going to take obama care out. this plan seems to have come up short. now the conversation seems to have moved on, left you behind. paul ryan puts out this "wall street journal" op-ed, doesn't include oobama care. now we're going to lift the debt cele. would you support paul ryan moving forward to get this debt ceiling resolved without -- >> well, look, van, you're trying hard. i've got to give you credit for that. an awful lot of washington would like to change the subject. an awful lot of washington would like to stop focusing on obama care. but you know who hasn't stopped focusing on it? the american people. the reason the house of representatives has stood strong on obama cash is millions of americans said this't

speaking of, senators ted cruz and sheldon whitehouse on. >> coming up, the dade of the 9-year-old boy who hops a flight to vegas. his plea for help. how can parents find assistance in situations like this that are so tough for moms and dads? wendy walsh will weigh in next. >>> we were struck by this plea for help from the father of that 9-year-old boy who snuck onto a plane in minneapolis and then flew to las vegas. the dad, as you'll see in the pictures, he clearly doesn't want to be identified. he's hiding under this hat and black hoodie in the video we're about to show you, but he's clearly upset as he describes his inability to control his son whose other past actions allegedly include stealing this big truck, he's 9, and smashing it into a police car. >> i don't know how my 9-year-old son's brain acts. okay, i've been asking for help. no one stepped up to help. wasn't listening, doing what he wants to do. it's just -- it's so much. we asked for help. that's all we need, the help. we need the resources. i'm tired of people saying he's a minor. there's nothing we can do. there's so