, especially hillary clinton, in bad things. maybe even criminal bad things. >> now on tape, phone calls from prison. >> we're on a recorded phone. >> did he say anything damaging about his friends, the clintons? >> in one tape, the issue is protecting the first lady. hubbell's wife says he can't sue his old law firm over a billing dispute because that might expose hillary, his former law partner. >> makes it look like you really don't give a [ bleep ] and that it's wrong that you're opening hillary up to all of this. >> i would not do that. i won't raise those allegations that might open it up to hillary, and you know that. >> congressional investigators, specifically the chair of the house government reform and oversight committee, dan burton, had acquired 54 tapes of web hubbell's phone calls from prison and from the very carefully edited portions of those conversations, it really did seem like something fishy was going on. that hubbell was maybe secretly trying to protect hillary clinton from getting in trouble for some thin

, especially hillary clinton, in bad things. maybe even criminal bad things. >> now on tape, phone calls from prison. >> we're on a recorded phone. >> did he say anything damaging about his friends, the clintons? >> in one tape, the issue is protecting the first lady. hubbell's wife says he can't sue his old law firm over a billing dispute because that might expose hillary, his former law partner. >> makes it look like you really don't give a [ bleep ] and that it's wrong that you're opening hillary up to all of this. >> i would not do that. it might open it up to hillary and you know that. >> congressional investigators, specifically the chair of the house government reform and oversight committee, dan burton, had acquired 54 tapes of web hubbell's phone calls from prison and from the very carefully edited portions of those conversations, it really did seem like something fishy was going on. that hubbell was maybe secretly trying to protect hillary clinton from getting in trouble for some thing. some bad seeming maybe even crim

hillary clinton. maybe john kerry and bill richardson can be 3 and 4 in the sent subsequent -- >> does that give her heat from benghazi, richard? the other people still feel good about benghazi and what happened that night. seem to be some lingering sense that there were major screwups over at the he state department. forget the cia but at the state department with security. a lot of red flags and people didn't do what they should have. does this "new york times" thing give her a blanket cover? >> look, it helps. there is nobody, i suspect not a single voter in the democratic primary process who aattaches significance to benghazi and thinks that hillary was under oath before rand paul and people who really wanted to stick it to her and we all know what came of that we all know bob gates the secretary of state the relief was cartoonish. i don't think benghazi, the "new york times" story helps but that's all. >> democrats going to hit her in the primaries over benghazi. >> if she even in a challenger fr

hillary clinton. hillary he says and he has a prescription how she can fix her image if she wants to and help the democrats hold onto the white house in 2016. >>> also how did an epa employee so-called convince the agency the reason he wasn't showing up for work two and a half years was because he was away on a cia mission? this is unbelievable. and how did he wind up living in the guest room of another epa official. this does not build confidence in government. >>> finally, the "duck dynasty" star who got a bit too graphic about why he's against homosexuality. well, this is "hardball," the place for politics. [ mom ] with my little girl, every food is finger food. so i can't afford to have germy surfaces. but a fresh sheet of bounty duratowel leaves this surface cleaner than a germy dishcloth. it's durable. and it's 3 times cleaner. so ditch your dishcloth and switch to bounty duratowel. [knock] no one was at home, but on the kitchen table sat three insurance policies. the first had lots of coverage.

versus hillary clinton. bill clinton talks about a potential white house rivalry that would pit his wife against his old friend and ally. >>> plus, details of a shameful robbery. real life grinchs targeting salvation army, stealing christmas from needy families. every day we're working to be an even better company - and to keep our commitments. and we've made a big commitment to america. bp supports nearly 250,000 jobs here. through all of our energy operations, we invest more in the u.s. than any other place in the world. in fact, we've invested over $55 billion here in the last five years - making bp america's largest energy investor. our commitment has never been stronger. yep. got all the cozies. [ grandma ] with new fedex one rate, i could fill a box and ship it for one flat rate. so i knit until it was full. you'd be crazy not to. is that nana? [ male announcer ] fedex one rate. simple, flat rate shipping with the reliability of fedex. >>> three, two, one. look at that. good job. ♪ >> really beautifu

should hillary clinton be the democratic nominee? >> it won't in the primary. it won't even be an issue. i think the status she enjoys among democrats is semidivine. it's not going to be a coronation. it's going to be a worship service. and it will go on for about six or eight months. i don't think there is any serious challenger there might be noise, but i don't even think that the left that we have talked about is that the significant. it's a noisy left. but, i don't see any impediment on the way to her nomination. but i think she is going to be rather weak if she decides to run, which i think she likely is, she will be a relatively weak opponent. and republicans, i think, are going to have a really good shot at the white house. >> well, let's' talk about that because obviously the polling is much tighter on the republican side. brand new fox news poll. again, these are 2016 g.o.p. presidential nominee preferences from polling done among self-identified republicans. chris christie at the top of the list at 16%. certainly not a comm

the republicans have a big primary in front of them and number of candidates, hillary clinton won't have much of a primary in front of her and that makes a big difference. >> i agree. >> she is still the winner on the -- on the gallop pole and she is at 15%. so that is -- >> did you see that oprah winfrey edged out michelle obama. >> i saw that. she is not happy about that. >> she's burning in the white house. she's very upset. >> the president will be sleeping on the couch. with all of the that love and affection, you have edged me out. >> and one more thing to talk about that you might watch this other station, and you might have seen the "today" show did a ranking of prit cal -- political events of 2013. take a look at this sound of matt lauer. >> number ten, the event that everybody said should make the list is wendy davis defending abortion rights. >> people felt if we had more leaders like wendy davis willing to stand up for what is right, we would get somewhere. >> and number five, the government shutdown. >> i called it the gop shutdown. it is false to say it was a failure of gov

if hillary clinton doesn't run, who do you see? >> if hillary clinton doesn't run, i think we have a strong finish. there has been talk about right here in maryland, the governor of maryland -- joe, you know what, joe biden, i will say this, joe biden won over a lot of democrats in the debate where he did to congressman ryan what many were hoping that the president was going to do to mitt romney. so don't underestimate joe biden in the democratic primary if hillary clinton is not -- >> let me point out, that was a spot-on report by john king but here's an irony. at the end of 2006 when people thought hillary clinton might be a lock for the democratic nomination, they weren't thinking about barack obama, hillary clinton went out and ran to the left of obama on health care. she was the queen of the individual mandate. barack obama was not for that as a candidate. of course, we all know that she was the first one who spearheaded her husband's efforts to create a universal health care plan in his presidency. hillary this time around is

clinton. >> i was just going to say i think hillary clinton is pour popular in '14 an thisthan in '. they wanted obama, not clinton. >> her biggest problem is a guy named john kerry, with secretary of state. somehow if hillary and biden didn't run, you know, everything that's old is new again. this is terrific, michael sto , steele, amy wallace, dan, thank you. just 662 have served in both chambers, we know you got that answer. we'll be right back with my 2014 takeaway. this is george. the day building a play set begins with a surprise twinge of back pain... and a choice. take up to 4 advil in a day or 2 aleve for all day relief. [ male announcer ] that's handy. ♪ is sweatier and messier than my family on the field. so like the nfl i use tide... ...because i'm the equipment manager in this house. that's my tide. what's yours? >>> time for my final takeaway of 2013. if we were writing a book about politics, here we would borrow a phrase entitled "the chapter for 2013 is simply embrace the suck" used by nancy pelosi during this month's budget deal, special sums up this year in politi

we talk about hillary clinton in 2016. how does this impact the white house president obama heading into 2014. they spent a fair amount of the first part of the year dealing with the fallout from benghazi. >> i don't think that there will be a conclusive answer on this. the accountability issue and there is a great piece in politico about why we will never stop arguing about benghazi. a lot of this has political aspects and a disagreement within both parties about whether things are accurate and which are accurate. he was also saying that there links in the intelligence from certain al qaeda aspects. obviously there is some disagreement overall about what the conclusions to be drawn out of this. it will continue to play out. >> that's right. people looking at this said it has implications for other conflicts. i will head the articles. it shows the loyalty and the difficulty discerning friend from allies of convenience and decades of western sentiment. both hanging over syria's civil conflict. >> it means we face a differen

hillary clinton. hillary he says and he has a prescription how she can fix her image if she wants to and help the democrats hold onto the white house in 2016. >>> also how did an epa employee so-called convince the agency the reason he wasn't showing up for work two and a half years was because he was away on a cia mission? this is unbelievable. and how did he wind up living in the guest room of another epa official. this does not build confidence in government. >>> finally, the "duck dynasty" star who got a bit too graphic about why he's against homosexuality. well, this is "hardball," the place for politics. clients are always learning more to make their money do more. (ann) to help me plan my next move, i take scottrade's free, in-branch seminars... plus, their live webinars. i use daily market commentary to improve my strategy. and my local scottrade office guides my learning every step of the way. because they know i don't trade like everybody. i trade like me. i'm with scottrade. (announcer) ran

hillary clinton is, also. he was the first black president, she may be the first woman president. >> most reporters in the so called >> she's running for president they're going to try to find out what happened with benghazi and to what extent she did something wrong? i don't think so. there is another factor. when barack obama ran, the media slobbered all over him. the title of my last book. they had a slobbering love affair with him. that in no small way helped him get nomination over hillary clinton. i think this is -- >> pay back. >> right. they're going to show they love her and her liberal politics. >> it's going to be the woman that gender factor is going to be huge. >> accusation that's the party may be too mean and then, a factor give away that you might like. blp hi, i'm terry and i have diabetic nerve pain. it's hard to describe, because you have a numbness, but yet you have the pain like thousands of needles sticking in your foot. it was progressively getting worse, and at that point i knew i had t

let's face it hillary clinton has got a big edge there. because all of the big -- othe big democratic super superr pacs and outside organizations are already pretty much aligned with her. >> rick, when you look at the republicans and as you have reported on and you read the stories all about republican infighting, how much of an impact do you think that has early on in a race like this? >> it opens up the field to a lot of different folks. i think there is going to be a couple different brackets in the republican primary. you have some tea party favorites who battle it out. you will have more pragmatic kind of governors battling it out o. chris christie a huge 2014 and scott walker poised for a 2014. you have battle out for constituencies to try to beat the viability threshold and plussability threshold. there is room for a lot of them. you you mention the money. i think there is a enough money out there particularly with the rise of super pacs and potential for any outside group to come in and basically prop up a candidacy. i think you co

hillary clinton, as you and all of our viewers know is the overwhelming democti favorite president in2016ingor what does the former president say about his wife and 2016? >> he is saying he doesn't know if she's going to run or not. >> is mrs. clinton running for president? >> i don't know. and i think and she believes that the country should spend at least another year working very hard on the problems we have. we w haveery serious challenges in america. and we have responsibilities around the world. i think it's a big mistake, you know, this constanten four-year campaign is not good for america. we nee to deal with the business we have before us. >> wolf, i did ask him ask the former president what he thought of vice president biden as a possible president in 20716. he says he likes him a lot. >> i guess we shouldn't be surprised about that. we'll see if he likes him a lot if in fact, bide is challenging hillary clinton for that democratic nomination or if he decides if she runs, he's not going to run or what's going on. lots of unanswered questions out there. juan carlos lopez, as usual, th

if 2008, you had hillary clinton finish 3rd in the caucuses. a lot had to do with the vote if 2002 the vote that brian sweitzer brought up in iowa this week. now you are saying, this is sort of happened nationally, too. democrats are looking at hillary clinton different than if 2008. what exactly has changed, the image of hillary clinton in iowa. is it now a lot more friendly turf for her than it was headed into 2008? >> i think it is a lot more friendly turf. in part, because of her experience as secretary of state. this is a job that she got, you know, in addition to being a senator, this is an executive experience besides being first lady, which, of course, brought its own issues. this is something that people respected the job that she did. i think also the idea of a woman for president has only grown over the years. hillary clinton kind of complained about iowa in 2008 because iowa had not and still has not ever sent a woman to congress or to the u.s. senate or to the governor's office. and that is still true. although, perhaps that will c

hillary clinton is seeing she has a left flank problem if she's going to be the nominee. tomorrow there's going to be 13 states that on a state level are increasing minimum wage. and i think that's important to know that states are taking matters into their own hands. it's more expensive to live in a place like new york than it is to live in a place like alabama. and they're trying to make things more even in the different states. but we saw this week where it was revealed that the minimum wage issue is going to be used as a political wedge issue. that's what democrats are preparing to do. when that happens i get worried because oftentimes when you want to use an issue for political purposes, what is best for political purposes is not to pass anything, not to have a solution so that then you have an ea an issue to hit the other party over the head w and i would tell my democrat friends, be very careful you don't overplay your hand because people are watching and they will know whether what you're trying to do is realistic or blatantly political. >> happy new year. >>> a m

she genuinelilikes hillary clinton. she chose her friend and someone she wants to be president in 2016. if i had the career she did, i might pick my buddy too. >> did you watch it last night? >> i. >> what she did say in the interview. she said it might not be the last one. well you know if it's really popular, we may come back and do it again. >> can i ask you something. if she does run, she had her own version of obamacare before obamacare and it was called hillary care. see what happens when you leave her to her own devices. it's more colossal. >> this makes you put the obama bashing last couple of months as a cover for hillary. they've already moved on to starting her campaign. it must be great to have the media as your own propaganda arm. you don't have to work. >> you think barbara said that, i thought he was the messiah, no, wait, here she is. >> the interesting thing she will outline the problems facing the country today in some detail. jobs, small business, economy, on and on. that was her own way of separating

and hillary clinton, you know, we've seen this before. you know, if you want to be a political writer and keep yourself humble go whack and read your old stories. i was riding mine from september of 2507 about how her lead was double digits and insur mountable. >> you think this is a big warning sign for the democrats and for hillary clinton. why do you think that? >> you tell me who the front-runner is in 2013, that's the person with the biggest target on their back in 2014, 2015 and 2016. i wrote those same stories eight years ago but right now is that she is so prohibitively the front-runner somebody has to emerge as the anti-hillary clinton. it means she will take a lot of incoming -- you're starting to see warning shots. they don't have the person yet. that person, though, will exist. that person isn't probably on the poll, hasn't been asked about, isn't known now but a year from now we'll have a much better sense of that. >> we'll put it in a greta time vault and see what emerges. cameron, i wanted to ask you about the republicans.

next, hillary clinton's record breaking results. we'll ask our guests if she's deserving. >>> who do you blame for the widening income gap? tweet democrats or republicans. we'll have the results after the break. if yand you're talking toevere rheuyour rheumatologistike me, about trying or adding a biologic. this is humira, adalimumab. this is humira working to help relieve my pain. this is humira helping me through the twists and turns. this is humira helping to protect my joints from further damage. doctors have been prescribing humira for over ten years. humira works by targeting and helping to block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to ra symptoms. for many adults, humira is proven to help relieve pain and stop further joint damage. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal events, such as infections, lymphoma, or other types of cancer, have happened. blood, liver and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure h

correlating hillary clinton as if presumptive nominee. where have we seen this story before? in 2008 when she was supposed to be the nominee and you had an unknown state legislator from chicago who spent 32 seconds in the united states senate who beat hillary clinton. i don't think she is -- her own party at nominee loan front runner. charles: mike huckabee decided not to run for president. i spoke to him in the halls of few times and it seemed the primary process is so mean spirited these days whoever comes out is limping, a wounded candidate and maybe there's something to be said for coordinating if you can have a coronation for the candidate without going to that or tainting the candidate of possible. >> that won't happen. politicians are vying for that spot and hillary clinton has been running for president since she was first lady. charles: scotty is on the set. i don't think you are a fan of chris christie. these are all silly things. you think he is the rhino. you don't think he can win. republican in name only. >> he is immoderate

hillary clinton also earned the top spot as first lady back in 18993. there she is -- 1993. that was the year barbara walters started that segment, so she is bookending with hillary clinton. during the interview last night, walters repeatedly asked her one key question. here's what it was. >> i haven't made up my mind, i really have not. i will look carefully at what i think i can do and make that decision sometime next year. >> does your husband want you to run? >> he is very respectful. he knows that this is -- >> he does want you to run. >> well, he wants me to do what i think is right. >> if you ran and you became president, what would they call your husband, first spouse. [laughter] >> first mate, i have no idea. martha: tucker carlson is the co-host of "fox & friends" weekend. tucker, hello. >> oh, good morning, martha. martha: is hillary the most fascinating person of 2013? >> i would say she's distinctly sub-fascinating. i'm not attacking hillary clinton, she's impressive in a lot of ways, but her husband is fascinating, she is not. i have to say, though, the real qu

we have brand-new poll numbers matching hillary clinton against all the reps who may have their eyes on the white house. find out who is the only one ahead of her. 6 there's no secondhand smoke in here... ...and no cigarette advertising around here. there's a reason we know this is really bad... ...and this is really good. there's a reason 2 in 3 people are surviving cancer. and we cannot be silent until it's 3 out of 3. this shout-out is for everything the american cancer society has done in the last 100 years. make your tax-deductible donation by december 31st and help finish the fight. across the country has brought me to the lovely city of boston. cheers. and seeing as it's such a historic city, i'm sure they'll appreciate that geico's been saving people money for over 75 years. oh... dear, i've dropped my tea into the boston harbor. huhh... i guess this party's over. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. the energy in one gallon of gas is also enough to keep your smartphone running for how long? 30 days? 300 days? 3,000 days? the answer

hillary clinton consider the chris christie threat? and we have winners, two lucky ticket holders are now mega rich. we're going to go live to where one of those winning mega millions tickets was sold next. ya know, with new fedex one rate you can fill that box and pay one flat rate. i didn't know the coal thing was real. it's very real... david rivera. rivera, david. [ male announcer ] fedex one rate. simple, flat rate shipping with the reliability of fedex. [ male announcer ] fedex one rate. peoi go to angie's listt for all kinds of reasons. to gauge whether or not the projects will be done in a timely fashion and within budget. angie's list members can tell you which provider is the best in town. you'll find reviews on everything from home repair to healthcare. now that we're expecting, i like the fact i can go onto angie's list and look for pediatricians. the service providers that i've found on angie's list actually have blown me away. find out why more than two million members count on angie's list. angie's list -- reviews you ca

hillary clinton may face the most as the democratic front-runner now. she in 2008 ran to the right of mr. obama. a president who is now seep as not liberal enough by the party base. brett? >> carl, thank you. >>> a relationship that's seep it all is entering a new phase. fox news media analyst and host of fox's media buzz howard curts on president obama and former secretary of state hillary clinton. >> they begin as bitter rivals for the presidency. >> shame on you, barack obama. >> you're likable enough. >> thank you so much. >> by the time hillary clinton stepped down as secretary of state, the president was arranging a mutual love fest on "60 minutes." >> how would you characterize your relationship right now? >> i consider hillary a strong friend. >> very warm, close. >> but that very warm relationship has entered a new and trickier phase. he needs her to provide cover on issues such as the obama care mess, even if that means occasional potshots from her husband, who insisted this week he is clueless about her intentions. >> is she running or do you

clinton. >> i was going to to say, i think hillary clinton is more popular in '014 than '06. >> secretary of state -- being secretary of state changed her, i think, among -- >> she can go anywhere. >> her biggest problem of secretary of state resume is john ker w. i'll believe that. if hillary didn't run, biden didn't run, you know? everything that's old is new. this is terrific. michael, amy, thank you very much. trivia of 12,000 individuals who served in congress, 662 have served in both chambers. we know you got that answer. we'll be right back. [ male announcer ] this is george. the day building a play set begins with a surprise twinge of back pain... and a choice. take up to 4 advil in a day or 2 aleve for all day relief. [ male announcer ] that's handy. ♪ female announcer: female announcer: get beautyrest, posturepedic, even tempur-pedic mattress sets, at low clearance prices. save even more on floor samples, demonstrators and closeout inventory. the year end clearance sale is on now at sleep train. ♪ your ticket to a better night's sleep ♪ >> my minele takeaway 2013. writing

and obviously hillary clinton has been pretty far out there, as well. so i would expect that this is about what you would expect and both of them also saw a smaller share that they've gotten in the past, which would track with president obama's poll numbers. >> jonathan, when you look at this, the people down just slightly below, at least on the man's list, was george w. bush. do you think that surprised the democrats at all? >> it is a little bit surprising. if you had told george w. bush back in 2008 that by 2013, he would be number two on this list, i think he would be ecstatic. >> believe me. >> bush came out and showed his personal side and he got his paintings, he went on the late shows. it reminded people that this might be a guy that i would enjoy having a beer with. we're a few years out from his presidency, and people are remembering him more fondly. >> julie, do you think -- is hillary clinton being at the top of the list for women, is that at all predictive of anything to come? >> i don't think so at all. look at who the competition was. kat

hillary clinton has been ducking the 2016 question. now bill clinton's role. >> if you ran, what would they call your husband, first spouse? >> i have no idea. first mate. i don't know. >>> good day, i'm andrea mitchell in washington. bad news on retail front. during this busiest shopping time of the year, retail giant said credit and debit of 40 million customers may have faced unauthorized access during a massive breach that started on black friday and went unnoticed. from that up to president obama to limit the powers of the nsa i'm joined by nbc justice correspondent pete williams and michael leiter, nbc news counter-terrorism export and former director of the national terrorism center. mike liter, y e liter, you know. how is this possible and implications. >> there is something in common with target and edward snowden. that's we as companies and governments but an enormous amount of incredibly valuable information including privacy information with credit cards in our computer systems. that means crime today affects people. when i

you have got hillary clinton and sarah palin who suspect there still. oprah. oprah is always popular. people love oprah. >> inched out by michelle obama by one point. >> oprah had her own show oprah might have been at the top of the list. there is not much competition. sadly as a woman i'm sad that we are competing with the brits and the royals. >> i thought it was interesting. sam, if you are a republican and looking at this list and thinking well maybe i will throw my hat in the ring for the 2016 presidential race, you have got a big hill to climb because your name id is pretty much zero. >> that's right. you saw president obama way up at the top and then as you said george w. bush and the pope and everyone else was at about 1%. i think ted cruz was on that list. but, you know, it is as you point out just another indication of how exactly how wide open things are there is really nobody on the republican side other than somebody who has already been a two term president who even sort of ranks in this. >> jonathan, let me get your take on the rnc, they posted

the new york times is trying to help hillary clinton. it is no wonder if they're doing as bad as they are. lori: interesting take. thank you so much. be sure to get your orders in for the new book. debuting january 7th and is now available online for pre orders. take a minute to check us out on twitter. follow us or go to our facebook page with links to everything. and next this hour it was a record year on wall street. a new report by the "wall street journal" says the return of jobs is next. [ female announcer ] what if the next big thing, isn't a thing at all it's lots of things. all wang up. connecting to the global phenomenon we call the internet of everything. ♪ it's going to be amazing. and exciting. and maybe, most remarkably, not that far away. we're going to wake the world up. and watch, with eyes wide, as it gets to work. cisco. tomorrow starts here. ♪ lori: new polls on the economy, and it is good news showing that for the first time in years the majority of americans feel that it was a good year. up from 42% to felt that

the good feelings for bill clinton in particular, as well as hillary clinton. and so she may have an extra edge that she obviously department have eight years ago when she was polling as well. >> she was and barak obama came out of no where. and you can have elizabeth warren sort of came out of no where and have her end up with the nomination. she has a couple of problems. benghazi. it would be a consistent loop a d what difference does it make and the other problem is, the voice ofdom saying before obama care there was hillary care and show a mechanic of mccullace culkin screaming and running away. >> and you bring up the point, no one is critizing anybody. polls look better before the negative attacks have begun. you could have hillary clinton's 3 o'clock a.m. phone call. refurbished and polished and introduced with a slight tweak that relates to benghazi. when the phone rang late at neat, she didn't answer. all of these are possible for her to overcome, but we don't know she will. and a lot of it will depend on how the country feels about barak obama and the

that is on the subject of hillary clinton 2016. and i say this. i will be full disclosure, yes, i've worked for hillary clinton. i worked for her in the white house. i worked for her senate race. i am sick of hearing about 2016, not the least of which because, kiki, we have a president right now. he's got three more years. a lot of stuff that he needs our help on. >> yeah. i completely agree. the fact of the matter is, there's a president in an office. whether or not hillary clinton decides to be president doesn't impact what's happening today. more to the point is, i would like to hear from hillary clinton when she's ready to talk about it as opposed to everybody else telling me what they think she's thinking about. >> that's right. eric, you wrote about this, this week. specifically looking at "the new york times" piece about how they're trying to, you know, the clintons are trying to get back in good with the black community. as you point out, there's so much that just wasn't even in that piece in terms of, you know, sort of the numbers where h

i think the other thing to remember, if hillary clinton decide to run. which we don't know if she will. >> come on. come on on this show she is running. she is running. >> for you i will say, so great to my dad last night at the holiday party. but i think, the point of it is, she has also got a very good answer for why. and either you agreen with it or you disagree. the point is something looking that that is so old, just pure politics. if you are asked the question and you have a good answer, that's sort of the end of it for a lot of voters. again i think particularly at a time when it is far more likely talking income inequality. and the economy. and jobs. the sort of last several years of, republican cuckoo caucus than we will the iraq vote. not that it may not be important to some voters. i don't think it is again going to have the same kind of potency that it did back then. >>> good evening from new york. i'm chris hayes. republicans close out their year on capitol hill, suddenly invested with a new sense of swagger and braggadocio. everywhere you l

i think the other thing to remember, if hillary clinton decide to run. which we don't know if she will. >> come on. come on this show she is running. she is running. >> for you i will say, so great to my dad last night at the holiday party. but i think, the point of it is, she has also got a very good answer for why. and either you agree with it or you disagree. the point is something looking that that is so old, just pure politics. if you are asked the question and you have a good answer, that's sort of the end of it for a lot of voters. again i think particularly at a time when it is far more likely talking income inequality. and the economy. and jobs. the sort of last several years of, republican cuckoo caucus than we will the iraq vote. not that it may not be important to some voters. i don't think it is again going to have the same kind of potency that it did back then. it can't be the only thing. you would have to make a much bigger vote. >> thank you for joining us tonight. >> thank you, lawrence. >>> grabbing the rebound. let's play "hardball." â

. >> i think you'd be a great running mate for hillary clinton, what do you think? >> i don't think so. i'm happy where i am. >> if asked would you? >> i'm really not interested. appreciate the compliment, though. >> it's in my mind, because i'm looking for a good, solid ticket there. for the ticket purpose, i think you would be a perfect, perfect pair. >> merry christmas to both of you. happy holiday, i should say. >>> coming up, president obama's sending openly gay athletes to represent the u.s. in sochi. plus 2016, who are the democratic viable alternatives to hillary clinton if she doesn't run? now there's talk about jerry brown, the three-term governor of california. >>> and president obama spreads a little christmas cheer to unsuspecting tourists at the white house. >> what's going on, man? what's your name? you've got ears just like me. >> yeah. >> has anybody ever said that? that's good, man. that gives you some special power. >> and there's steve harvey. >>> finally, let me finish with the fear that's driving so many americans to the crazy right. this is "h

governor chris christie would be neck and neck with hillary clinton. does hillary have what it takes to be in the white house and win the white house? i have my doubts too but charles krauthammer has some bold remarks. >> i think the status she enjoyed with democrats is semi devine. it is not a correlation, it will be a worship service. >> it will be weak, if they decides to run, which i think she is likely going to, i think she will be a rather weak opponent and republicans will have a good shot at the white house. >> i agree and disagree. which i don't. let's go around the table. we'll start with you. >> well love, charles. brilliant. i disagree. i think she'll be a good candidate and have a boat-load of money and exceed any numbers with money. and when the negative advertising happens that helps a lot. but kind of -- for -- i asked twitter and facebook viewers about their opinion, obama was number one and benghazi was number two. people are still tuned into benghazi. this will haunt her in 2016. i guarantee what difference it doesn't make that point

and he, you know, brought up hillary clinton's iraq war vote. he didn't mention her by name but it was clear who he was talking. tack a listen to what he said last night in iowa, wolf. >> anybody who runs in the cycle, whether democrats or republicans, if they were in the united states senate and voted with george bush to go to iraq when i'd say 98% of america knows it was a folly, a waste of treasure and blood, and if they voted to go to iraq, there will be questions for them. en on left and on the right. >> reporter: now, schweitzer is just sort of poking around out here in iowa but again and again in an interview with me and in the speech he gave, he made these veiled illusions to hillary clinton, both her vote for the iraq war and just the fact she's been in politics for so long. it was surprising that people in the room, i've got to tell you last night, thought he was going to talk about economic issues, incomee inequality and thing like that. people were surprise head brought up iraq war vote over ten years old. she voted for iraq war in 2

hillary clinton leading all potential republican candidates, except for chris christie. and the interesting thing about that, david, is that christie almost never talks about benghazi. he virtually never mentions it. something, i imagine, would change, if that poll remains the same and he becomes the leading republican candidate. >> all right, back to the beach tonight. jon karl with the president there in hawaii. jon, thank you. >>> and we turn overseas tonight, and to a difficult headline. one of the most accomplished race car drivers on earth is now in critical condition after an accident on the ski slopes. retired formula 1 world champion racer michael schumacher, who clocked speeding reaching 247 miles an hour on the racetrack, reportedly fell on his head at a resort in the french alps. we're told he was wearing a helmet, but arrived at the hospital in a coma and underwent emergency surgery for a traumatic brain injury. the 44-year-old german won seven world championships and secured 91 wins in formula 1. >>> and in antarctica tonight, the big question looming now,

the new york times is trying to help hillary clinton. it is no wonder if they're doing as bad as they are. lori: interesting take. thank you so much. be sure to get your orders in for the new book. debuting january 7th and is now availablenline for pre orders. take a minute to check us out on twitter. follow us or go to our facebook page with links to everything. and next this hour it was a record year on wall street. a new report by the "wall street journal" says the return of jobs is next. friday night, buddy. you are gonna need a wingman. and with my cash back, you are money. forget him. my airline miles will take your game worldwide. what i'm really looking for is -- i got two words for you -- re-wards. ♪ there's got to be better cards than this. [ male announcer ] there's a better way with creditcards.com. compare hundreds of cards from all the major banks toind the one that's right for you. it's simple. search, compare, and apply at creditcards.com. first round's on me. [run your ente business with all-new intuitit.kbooks. search

. >> congress adam schiff, does this exonerate the president to susan rice to hillary clinton? >> i don't think "the new york times" report is designed to exonerate the security lapses within the state department that left our people vulnerable. i agree with mike that however the intelligence indicates that al qaeda was involved but there were also plenty of people and militias that were unaffiliated with al qaeda that were involved. >> so bob, i'll start with you because we talked about this over the weekend on e-mail. the story praised for journalism and for the writing and the detail that dividend kirkpatrick was able -- that david kirkpatrick was able to detail, but many say the story is not accurate, do you think "the new york times" is left without a story here. >> plenty of story. they had plenty of story. i hope everybody here read it. let's rememberal sherria is a libya based organization. it is like a mcdonald's burger. there is no core al qaeda any more. they are gone. they are running independent operations and adon'ted the well-known name. i don't agree with the vi

nope, it's hillary clinton. >> this program was born at the start of the clinton era, and it appears we might be at the dawn of another. >> what do you think of that selection? >> who cares what barbara walters thinks. she has been around too long. >> i'm not attacking hillary clinton. she is impressive in a lot of ways. but her husband is fascinating. she is not. >> the former secretary of state was asked the question on everybody's mind. >> okay, here it comes. >> the question on everyone's mind. >> i have to push for the answer about whether or not you might run for president. >> i haven't made up my mind. i really have not. i will look carefully at what i think i can do and make that decision some time next year. >> she is going to put off procrastinating that reveal? >> i don't think we should be looking at the next election. >> the talk has begun, but it is way too premature. >> i think we should be looking at the work that we have today. >> let's get to work. >> the people who actually choose the nominee in the early primary states are way to the left of hillary clinton. >> ou

when asked if this is good cover for hillary clinton because she came under intense criticism. take a look at his response. >> some people have suggested, well this is trying to clear the deck for hillary clinton in 2016. >> don't know but i found it interesting that there's this rollout of stories, including susan rice would go on tv and have a direct discussion on this we still have an ongoing investigation in the house intelligence committee. >> do you think that's to protect -- >> i find the timing odd. i don't want to speculate on why they might do it. >> that was mike rogers and not daryl issa. you seem dismissive, but i had a chance to talk to people in d.c. they say this is the one major important thorn in our candidacy? a lot of republicans feel they are sitting on something big here and you don't seem to agree. >> it is a potential thorn right now. my argument is 2016 is a whiles off. there's a campaign and primaries to be had and something could come on later on. i think republicans have used this to bloody up president obama as well as hillary clinton now she's out

hillary clinton beats out every potential republican that seems to be on anybody's list. by double digits, ted cruz she beats by almost 30 points. but chris christie gets closest. and is that really what any republican needs to do, susan, is just really narrow that gap, that gender gap? >> absolutely. that's a critical part going into 2016 is not to look like you're against women as a republican. that's what they're running the train. that's why those numbers are so bad as they are. chris christie was able to run against a woman, which is really important when you think about who's going to -- if hillary runs and who would run against her because he's already had the practice of doing it, frankly. because it's not an ease judge skill set to develop. and he won and he beat her in double-digit numbers. he knows how to communicate, and he knows how to speak to diverse groups, whether it be women, hispanics, all across the line there, which is great. >> is there also going to be a little bit of -- and we saw it, to some extent, in the last election when barack obama ran again

on the democrat's side, former secretary of state hillary clinton miles ahead of other candidates at least for now with a whopping 68%. bringing in our political panel to take a look at these. welcome to both of you. always great to have you here. >> thank you. >> great to be here. >> maybe there's no surprises for you guys at this point, but what about down the road, angela? do you think these poll numbers -- >> i think it all depends on the democratic side, if joe biden decides to throw his hat in the ring. they're saying president obama might endorse his vp so that could be a problem for hillary also. ben gaez. let's not forget. a great television commercial would be what does it matter now when she testified before the committee in the senate. we'll have to see, if joe biden throws his hat in, i think hillary will have a problem. >> richard, i was thinking about this last night after a took a look at these fox news polls, that hillary clinton perhaps as one campaign issue could say joe biden was really the foreign policy president, but our relationship with israel, et cetera, wou

he'd lead hillary clinton by 9 points among independents. when asked if christy would make a good president, 40% of iowans said yes, 42% said they didn't know. in other matchup, clinton holds a narrow lead over the presumed runners jeb bush and ted cruz. now, the one thing that's interesting is chris christie is getting a taste of the national stage with all this bridge gate controversy and the questions of whether or not he closed a lane of the george washington bridge out of political retribution. they are looking into it and some people have resigned. but i don't know yesterday what the there there is. does anybody have anything more? because they are definitely after him. >> one thing i understand is he's going to be doing, this is what, if he runs for president, this is what he will be doing the next three years. they will scrutinize everything. >> i think the real question we hear over and over again is whether he's got thick enough skin to handle it. >> if he's going to be able to handle all the insit-coming and not take it person ala

let's start with hillary clinton polls. who do you think reads that poll and laughs harder longer? >> that's a question, but i'll tell you something, they aren't laughing at the clinton camp. while they have no predictive value at this time, they do give you a snapshot of what is going on, and what this poll reflects is that the obama care troubles that the president has had are now laughing up on hillary clinton, as well. she's had a lead overall republicans up until now. the fact that she's in a tie with chris christie in three different polls, especially this one under scores. there has been a lot of damage and it's not a walk away. remember this, hilary clinton, health care, she's more tied to him than she probably would like to be at this point. >> kevin, let's talk about about christie, with suburban voters, doesn't do as well as women voters. we're laughingly far away from this election but do numbers like this help shape the republican party, help build fire walls against the tea party wing? >> what is interesting is the contrast with christie's numbers versus those with co