this week, huntsman on the hunt. >> i won't necessarily trust any of mi opponents. >> republican candidate huntsman is hitting hard against his own party's front-runners. mitt romney. >> if we talk about inconsistencies, we'd beer here all afternoon. michele bachmann. >> i don't know what world that comment comes from. >> and as for rick perry -- >> when you find yourself at extreme end of the republican party you makekeourself unelectable. then as president obama experiences worst poll numbers of his political career, we'll talk to top obama campaign

adviser, david axelrod. >> as president obama heads to martha's vinyard -- >> -- we were watching stocks go down again. plus surprising numbers about whwhat is iviving ters with republican pollster frank luntz. joining our "roundtable" with george will, democratic strategist, donna brazile, jeff zeleny of "the new york times" and fox business network's liz claman. good morning. christiane is off. i'm jake tapper. and we will l t to our exclusive interview with republican presidential candidate jon huntsman in a moment. but first some news since your morning papers. libyan rebels say they're closing in on moammar gadhafi's stronghold on tripoli. a day after fighters launched their first attack on the capit capitol. heavy gunfire and explosions

battled tripoli with reports of coordinated nato air strikes after firefighters captured the coastal town. in egypt. protests continued outside the israeli embassy in cairo after a rare apology by the israelry government on saturday for the deaths of three egyptian soldiers. this latest round of violence began on thursday, when eight israelis were killed. the tensions sparked new violence as palestinians hit southern israel with at least 80 rockets and mortars since friday in response to israeli air strikes. turning now to the race for the republican nomination. the republican candidates all certained their sights to the new hampshire. rick perry, mitt romney and michele bachmann spent time in the live me or die straight. one stakakg all of it. former governor jon huntsman. i spoke with him earlier. joining me from san diego, former governor of utah and former u.s. ambassador to china, jon huntsman, thank you for

joining us. >> thank you, jake, glad to be here. >> last week, tim pawlenty drop out of the race. this is what he said, quote, what i brought forward what i thought was a rationale -- >> -- established credible strong record of results, based on experience governing a two-term governors of blue state, i think the audience, so to speak, was looking for something different. >> isn't governor pawlenty describing the same problem you're having on the campaign trail right now? >> right now the country is crying out for a sensible middle ground. this is the center right country. i am a center right candidate. right now we've got people on the fringes. president obama is too far to the left. we have people on the republican side too far to the right. we have zero substance. we have no good ideas that are being circulated or talking about that allow the country to get back on its feet economically so we begin creating jobs. >> you said president obama is out of ideas on the economy. what are your ideas? >> the most important thing we can do to get this economy going

today is, number one, we've got to reform our taxes. we've got to create a competitive tax code like we did in the state of utah. we've got to take the business tax which is the second highest in the developed world and we've got to phase out the loopholes and deductions, get rid of corporate welfare, we've got to lower the rate and broaden the base. number two, we have to get the regulatory monkey off our back. they're not putting money in the marketplace, they're not hiring because there's so much uncertainty and confusion about where this economy is going. number three the most important step we can take is energy independence. weaning ourselves off the heroin-like adadction of imported oil. those are the things i'll drop on the doorstep of congress the day i'm elected president. >> you instituted a flatter tax bringing rates to 5%. critics said the flat tax in utah raised taxes on the middle class while essentially cutting

them for wealthier individuals in utah,h,uch as yourself. how can you institute a flat tax across the country without raising taxes on the middle clasas >> you simply phase out deductions and use that to paydown the rate. you can do i iin a neutral fashion. >> your competitor mitt romney made several comes in support of the flatter tax system in new hampshire. here's what i said, quote the proposals i'll talk about will talk about bringing the tax rates down -- >> -- both at the corporate level. and individual level. simplifying the tax code. perhaps fewer brackets. the idea of one bracket alone is even better in some respects. >> are you and mitt romney on the same page on this issue? >> i know in 1996 he was against a flat tax. if we talk about inconsistencies and change on various issues, we'd be here all afternoon. if he's in favor of a flat tax now where he wasn't before, at least he's moving in the right direction. >> let's talk about some of the

other competitors. this is a big week for texas governor rick perry. he went on the campaign trail and he raised a lot of eyebrows. he made some comments about evolution, and he said this about climate change. quote, i don't think from my perspective that i want to be engaged in spending that much money on, still, a scientific theory that has not been proven, and from my perspective, is more and more being put into question. >> these comments from governor perry prompted you to tweet, quote, to be clear, i believe in evolution and trust scientists on global warming. call me crazy. >> were you just being cheeky or do you think there's a serious problem with what governor perry said? >> i think there's a serious problem. the minute the republican party becomes the party, the anti-science party, we have a huge problem. we lose a whole lot of people, who would otherwise allow us to win the election in 2012 when we take a position that isn't willing to embrace evolution, we take a position that basically

runs counter to what 100 to 900 climate sign ticht scientists have said with what the national academy of science has said. what is causing climate change and man's contribution to it. we find ourself on the wrong side of science and therefore in a losing position. >> governor perry also caused controversy this week when he said this about fed chair ben bernanke. quote, if this guy prints more money between now and the election, i don't know what you all would do to him in iowa -- >> -- but we would treat him pretty ugly down in texas. printing more money to play politics, at this particular time in american history, is almost treason in my opinion. >> a former bush political guru karl rove call thad remark unpresidential, what do you think? >> i don't know if that's presuccession texas or post succession texas. in any event, i'm not sure that

the average voter out therere wl hear that treasonous remark and say that sounds like a presidential candidate that sounds like someone serious on issues. but it gets to the broader point, the fact that we've had so much hope and hype in politics, we've found ourselves in the extreme ends of political spectrum. people are crying out for us to get back to some level of sensibility. we have side shows take place, finger pointing and name calling, it takes usushat much further off the ball which is xing our core in this country, getting the economy fixed and creating jobs. >> do you think governor perry is unelectable? were he to get the republican nomination, he would lose to president obama? >> i think when you find yourself at an extreme end of the republican party, you make yourself unelectable. >> this week, congresswoman, michele bachmann said in a town hall meeting that she would pursue energy policies that send gas prices back down to levels not seen since early 2009. quote, the day the president became president --

>> -- gasoline was $1.79 a gallon. look what it is today. under president bachmann, you will see gasoline come down below $2 a gallon again. that w wl happen. >> do you think that will happen? >> i just -- i just don't know what world that comment would come from, you know. we live in the real world. it's grounded in reality. and gas prices just aren't going to rebound like that. but just as we are in a static world, that is completely unrealistic, and again, it's talking about things that, you know, may pander to a particular group, or sound good at the time. but it is simply not founded in reality. >> you were one of the only, if not the only republican candidate to support the deal to raise the debt ceiling. you called congresswoman bachmann's position a quote, crash and burn approach. would you trust a president bachmann to do the right thing with the economy? >> i wouldn't necessarily trust any of my opponents who are on

the recent debate stage with me when every single one of them would have allowed this country to default. you can imagine, even given the uncertainty of the marketplace the last several days, and even the last couple of week, if we had defaulted, the first time in the history of the greatest country that ever was. being 25% of the world's gdp and having the largest financial services sector in this world by a longshot, if we had defaulted, jake, this marketplace would be in absolute turmoil and people who are already losing enough as it is on their 401(k)s and retirement programs and home valuation, it would have been catastrophic. i have to say that there was zero leadership on display in terms of my opponents, zero leadership on display in terms of the president who should have used the bully pulpit well ahead of time. he should have walked away from the teleprompter. people want you to speak from our heart and soul. tell us where you expect to go. tell us what you expect from

congress, tell us what is on your mind and that never happened. it waited until the 11th hour, and then we had some of my republican opponents who i think recommended something catastrophic for this economy. >> when s&p devalued from aaa to aa plus, one from the reasons they said was dysfunction in washington. they didn't have confidence in either side to come together to make a compromise to get the country on the right fiscal path. you along with other republican competitors raised your handndnd said you would be unwilling to accept a deal of 10-1 spending cuts for tax increases. that would be if you just eliminated the bush tax cuts for those who make more than $1 million a year by one computation. that would be $6 trillion in spending cuts. aren't you buying into the same brinksmanship that y y're criticizing? >> jake, it was a nonsense question. the fact you can even ask a question that is that important with such profound implications

for the united states, t tanswer by show of a raised hand, i mean, come on, what have debates gotten to in terms of how we discuss the truly important issues of the day. i don't think tax increases good for this country right now. in fact i think it's the worst thing we can do. >> are you sorry you raised your hand for the quote, nonsense question? >> i'm sorry the debate resorted to a raising of hand, as opposed to some discussion where this country needs to go in terms of overall tax policy. >> last question, you're hovering about 2% to 4% in national polls. when you enter the race in june, you said give us a month or two. and we'll be punching through. this interview notwithstanding, i don't know you can say you're punching through yet. how long can you cononder yourself a viable candidate with that sort of support? >> i would say, jake, because we are on your show, that is evidence that we are punching through. but, you know, we kind of use our standing and measure it against 2008, fred thompson would be president today, or in 2004, howard deen. in new hampshire, they pick

presidents, they pick something else in iowa. for us, the trajectory and ground game is pretty clear. we're going to do well in new hampshire and we'll do well in south carolina and then bring it home in florida. i'm m nfident we're getting there. but i'm even more confident that the message we bring to this race. that of a center right message for a center right country, that is looking for common sense solutions, and a leader whose actually been there and done that in the marketplace, and can apply those same principles now to a nation that's so desperately needs it, that's where we are, and i think that's the message that's going to attract people. let's face it, jake, the dog days of summer, months to go before people begin to pay attention. i like exactly where we are. stay tuned. i think we're going to do just great. >> governor huntsman, thanks so much for joining us, good luck on the campaign trail. >> thank you, jake. >> one of the reasons jon huntsman may have hope. none of the other candidates seem to be punching through either.

for reason why that is i'm joined by republican pollster frank luntz, thanks for joining us. >> thank you. >> whether that works or not. the nomination is still very much up for grabs. according to your own polling, 12% of republicans are satisfied with the candidates and chosen the person he or she will support in 2012. this is still up for grabs. >> you have another 44% who are satisfied and still haven't definitely chosen and almost half, 44% that are not satisfied with who is there. the reason why is what i call the three ps. principle, politics and a plan. they want to choose somebody who they are sure is going to defeat barack obama. and that, they think, describes governor romney. they want to choose someone with a plan once they get elected and even though he was critical of governor perry, where perry is done in texas is very impressive. then someone with principle,

someone who is not going to compromise and that's michele bachmann. no candidate in the race has all three of those ps. that's what is holding the gop voters back. >> so what are the liabilities in your folk us groups when you talk to voter, who do they not see, in, say the three front-runners you've just mentioned? >> i've looked at it through advertising, debates and speeches. they look at mitt romney and say he looks and sounds presidential but they're nervous about his taking different positions on issues over the years. they are afraid he might revert back to when he's governor of massachusetts. they look at michele bachmann and appreciate the fact she's a fighter. using that word again and again and again. republicans respond well. they want to know what the plan is and don't think she's electable. then look at rick perry, saying he's got an incredible record in texas in terms of job creation and economy. they're wondering, has he said things or will he say things that don't help him come november.

remember, and i say this to governor huntsman, he is mainstream america in what he says, but he's not mainstream republican and this, after all, is a republican primary. >> that's why there is this opening and is still a call for a good figure, a savior for the republican party. you have spoken in recent days to one of these possibilities, republican congressman paul ryan of wisconsin, and to people around new jersey governor chris christie. these are two people that a lot of pundits are hoping will get into the race. do you think ryan or christie will get not race? is there an opening for one of them in not both? >> because of the work i do, i speak to almost all of the presidential candidates from time to time. i am always focused on the language. chris christie has the advantage he's basically a blue collar republican. he says what he means, he's in your face and republicans love that. they see what he's doing in new jersey and they want to see that happen in washington.

paul ryan's case, they regard him as one of the smartest candidate, intellectual candidates, whether or not they run, i have no idea. i would tell you that they would be very powerful entries in this republican contest, because they've got all three ps. ey've got plans, they've got principles and seen as being electable. >> one last note on paul ryan, i don't see a lot of candidates embracing the ryan budget. you say he has a plan, but is that plan an asset or liability? >> it's an asset. >> you saw what happened with newt gingrich, you saw what happened when he challenged it and came after him. the primary voters saying to washington, enough is enough. one last point. those are two candidates who knkn how to talk positive. there's a lot of negative in what jon huntsman said. republicans don't want to hear republicans attacking other republicans. they want to know how you take on barack obama. there's too much negativity in this race so far. >> frank, stay with us for the "roundtable," we'll look at whether former governor sarah palin will step up. and get into the race. and joining us, donna brazile,

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♪ the secret is out, it seems within seconds -- >> sarah palin was also at the fair today. >> on this day, she happens to in iowa. >> another leg of her one-nation bus tour. >> grabbing the attention of

iowans, and, yes, the media. then mother of the momma grizzly, sarah palin with a slick new video. acting more and more as a candidate. she told me last week in iowa, she'll make her final decision next month. joining me on the political "roundtable," george will, democratic strategist donna bra zile, frank luntz and jeff zeleny. thanks for being here. george, i'll start with you. in today's column in "the washington post," you talk about governor chris christie. is there an opening for a governor christie, for a governor palin in this race? >> there's still time and room on the political spectrum for people to get in. but my conviction is, after spending some time with mr. christie recently, he has no intention of running. he has four children. he's a happy father.

he's enjoying being governor of new jersey, and i think he doubts, probably reasonably, whether the tone of voice that has made him such a figure, is a national presidential tone of voice. >> donna, which republican do you see as a supporter of the president's, who would you least like to be the republican nominee? who would pose the strongest challenge for president obama? >> you know, i think about that question all of the time, because i believe, given the uncertainty on the republican side, democrats should not go to bed at night thinking that, you know, michele bachmann, yay, or rick perry, yay. the truth of the matter is the president is going to have to really fight hard to get the economy moving again. to mobilize his base and get them out in record numbers, you know to have a very compelling message that will unify the country and if he can do all three and raise a lot of money, then i think democrats will be able to rest easily, once republicans decide on their candidates.

right now, the republicans behaving as if they want to be president of the tea party not president of the united states of america. >> jeff, you were in iowa for three day, covering rick perry from waterloo to dubuque, how did voters respond to him in the heartland of america? >> voters responded pretty well. in one respect, because they're looking for someone new, like the energy he brought in. they like the leadership qualities, you heard that in again and again interviews. he looks like a leader. i think they also saw rick perry's biggest challenge may be rick perry himself. he was free wheeling, he was unscripted. that got him into trouble, really, in the first day of his campaign. a lot of e eablishment chamber of commerce mainstream republicans worried about his swagger, a lot of enthusiastic hard-core republicans think it's fine for now, but when it comes time to pick a president, i'm not sure that he will be as strong as he looks right now. in the opening going, they like what they saw.

not as many people compared him to george w. bush as we like to say back here. sure, he sounds like him a little bit. if you look into it a little more, he does not remind me of the governor bush who you and i saw in 1999 in iowa. >> for one thing, his accent is real, governor perry. >> that's true. >> just a joke. okay. i want to talk about the electorate. this is an angry electorate. some of your polling, it indicates there's an overwhelming feeling that this nation's best days are behind us. 58% of respondents in one of your polls said their children's quality of life will be worse than theirs. worse. what does that mean for these candidates that so many americans are depressed about the outlook for this nation. >> it means they don't trust washington. they don't trust wall street. they don't trust education, schools, to teach their kidsds they don't trust the media to tell them the truth. they don't trust anybody right

now. 80% of americans say that the federal government is not working for them. or simply not working at all. that's the highest in two decades. and so i iyou're here and part of washington, it's one of the reasons why we always fear about a third party every four years. i think you can hear about a no party. a month or two months before the election someone rises up and say, vote them all out. vote for no political party. vote against every incncbent. it's not been this way. i've been through this in 1994. i've been through this in 1992. washington in 2006. we trust no one anymore. >> trust no one, an "x-files" election year, trust no one? >> george, what did you think of governor perry's first week on the campaign trail? i can't imagine e l of the language out of his mouth is the kind of language that you would approve of. >> no, he, too, is having trouble getting the national tone of voice, treasonous remark

about expending money supply and all of the rest. in spite of all of the homogenizing forces of modern u.s., the reasonable differences in this country are amazingly durable. his texasness, means he can carry the voters. who are apt to decide this. john kerry did not carry a suburb continuous to boston, new rk, phil or chicago. that's a recipe for losing. the question is, can perry break through? i talked to a number of people, scott walker, the governor of wisconsin, for example, he thinks perry would do very well in wisconsin. remains to be seen. >> some pundits, donna, think the way we elect presidents is as a reaction to previous presidents. perry looks pretty much like the anti-obama in a lot of way, perhaps more so than any other republican in the field. i think he can be a serious

challenge to the president. don't you? >> look, i remember rick perry when he was a democrat. he was a conservative democrat. he supported al gore the year i supported dick gebhart. that says a lot about me as well. >> 1988. >> that's correct. some of us are not so young. i know you're young, george, but i had to tell my age today. but the truth is, rick perry is a good campaigner. he understands how to connect with real people. he's very folksy, he's down to earth. but rick perry's problem is that the country is also looking for a unifier, they are not looking for another divider, another person who will just spend all of his time, you know, criticizing president obama, criticizing washington, d.c. criticizing the federal government, the size of the federal government that he benefited from. that's another conversation about rick perry, but the truth is, rick perry first has to deal with the voters in new hampshire. as you know, 45% of the primary voters are republican.

25% are independents. and another 10% may be democrats. so, if rick perry can appeal to those independents, those swing voter, he can have a shot of not winning the presidency but remember, president obama is still one talented political leader who i don't believe should be discounted at this hour. >> sure. we're a long way away from election. one much the things interesting to me, and you were there. so please share, is perry seemem to go hot and cold. one day he would be really hot, talking about bernanke, talking about this or that, and the next day, his comments were much more measured, why? >> i think because he got himself in a little hot water. early on, at least. his advisers are trying to keep him con vined in the beginning. we saw the natural tendencies are to answer every question and give that sharp response he's used to giving in texas. he's now running on a national stage. he has to become a different kind of candidate. you can see the -- he was able

to make the conversion really quickly and really well. he can play to all kinds of audiences. he was doing a sitdown lunch with a dozen or so business leaders in dubuque, he's able to hold the chamber of commerce crowd just fine. he's also able to given the sermon on sunday. he's able to do what some republicans are worried michele bachmann cannot do is having executive experience. i think his first week is actually more impressive than none. the comments he made has gotten a lot of attention to himself. that's fine for now in the republican primary. i think he's able to be a chameleon if you will in a positive way and able to sort of do all things to all people. we'll see how he grows. in new hampshire he'll have to be okay. if you goes iowa to south carolina, all roads do not have to go through new hampshire. that's one thing in the back of his mind. >> karl rove has said that he thinks sarah palin is going to run. do you think sarah palen is

going to run? >> i don't think she can. michele bachmann operate in the exact same space. they have similar personalities, attract similar voters, there's no space for her right now. there's a space for chris christie, if he decided to do it, or for paul ryan. but i don't see sarah palin. but in the end, someone's going to have to stand up. with all due respect, i don't agree about washington. someone will have to stand up and take responsibility for r is mess. that the american people want someone to do what jerry brown said to meg whitman in 2010 gubernatorial case. you blame me, you blame the press, blame the union, stand up and take responsibility for your action, admit you made a mistake and learn n om it. that's what you're asking from washington, d.c. and no one has done that. it's all of the blame game. obama blames conservative, tea party people blame him. who will stand up and say, i made a mistake and i got it wrong. okay, when we return, obama campaign adviser david axelrod take on president obama's bumpy road to re-election.

>> announcer: this week with christiane amanpour from the newseum in washington, d.c. will continue after this from our abc stations. ll continue after this from our abc stations.

the kincaids live here. across the street, the padillas. ben and his family live here, too. ben's a re/max agent, and he's a big part of this community. there are lots of reasons why re/max agents average more sales than other agents. experience, certainly. but maybe it's also because they care about the markets they serve and the neighbors who rely on them. nobody sells more real estate than re/max. visit remax.com today. actions speak louder than words. the president's actions are

killing jobs in this country. >> he's killing all americans when it comes to job creation. >> he has not got the job done, he's hoping that three days on a bus he can make up for hundreds of days of failure. >> republican front-runners taking turns hammering president obama on the economy. it's been another brutal week with a talk of double dip recession. huge losses on wall street and more bad news on jobless claims. monday the president announced he'll present a new economic plan. right now he's on a ten-day vacation. at martha's vinyard. joining us from michigan is the top campaign adviser, david axelrod.joining us from michiga top campaign adviser, david axelrod.at martha's vinyard. joining us from michigan is the top campaign adviser, david axelrod. david, welcome back to "this week." >> thanks, jake, good to be here. >> what can you tell about the speech president obama will give after labor day, which he'll outline jobs programs and a way to reduce the deficit and why is he waiting until after labor day? >> well, first of all, jake, and as he said, we thought it was

actually healthy for members of congress to go home and speak to their constituents here from their constituent, hear how what they witnessed, and me of understand how desperate people are for action. they want congress to act, not to act out. and hopefully they'll come back with that message, resonating, and we can get to work on the task at hand. there are specific things that we can do right now that will accelerate our economy, some of which the president has already talked about. some of which will be new in his speech. all of which have, in the past, gotten broad support from republicans, and democrats. if they don't move forward, the only reason will be politics, and we can't afford that right now. so the president is going to outline a short term plan to accelerara the economy in the face of the hits we've taken, because of the arab spring in oil prices, because of the japanese earthquake, because of europe that have slowed down economic growth. and he's going to talk about the

long-term debt picture, because that's another piece of the puzzle that we have to solve, but we have to solve it in the right way, in a balanced way, in a way that's fair, in a way that protects the investments we have to make in education, research and development and the things we need to build good middle class jobs in the future. >> the president in the last week and a half has updated his speech with new language, in which he suggests that one of the reasons that we're not making economic progress is because some of his plans have been blocked by those, obviously alluding to republicans, by those who put party before country, who would rather see america fail, and their opponents win. isn't there a suggestion being made by the president that those who don't support his plans are something less than patriotic? >> well, jake, when people don't support plans that have, in the past, garnered bipartisan support, when people are willing to walk the country to the brink

of default, when people instead of saying where there's a will or a way, it's my way or the highway, you have to assume politics at play. last week i saw the spokesman say that they would not call any of the president's job-creating proposal, other than his proposals for three new trade treaties which we need to open up markets and for patent reform so that entrepreneurs can bring their products to market more easily. those are good things, but we need to do more. for example, we need to extend the payroll tax cut in place right now. it is unthinkable to me, that the republican party would say we can't touch -- we can't touch tax cuts for the wealthy. we can't touch special interest corporate tax loopholes, because that will hinder the economy, but will allow a thousand dollar tax increase on the average american come january. how could that be? the only explanation for it, is politics. >> david, my understanding about those three trade deals is that

members of congress are waiting for the president to send them up to capitol hill. why does the president keep talking about the need to do this without having sent them to the house and senate to act upon? >> well, as you know, jake, we've actually made progress on this in the senate, because there's a dispute. because the president wants to pass the treaties in tandem with trade adjustment assistance for any workers who might be american workers who might be disadvantaged by the treaties, on the whole there's their will be a big plus for american worker. in some sector, there could be impact. we want to make sure we're being fair to american workers. we feel like we reached an agreement, or made progress in the senate. we need to get this through congress, come the fall. so, i'm encouraged that the speaker wants to do that. but there are a whole e nge of other things we should be doing, and as i said, it's bewildering, as to how they would take the position that we're not going to

move anything the president says before he even speaks. it just doesn't make sense. >> david, in the last month, there's been a lot of criticism of president obama by prominent members of the african-american community. in fact, this week, the congressional black caucus, launched a "for the people" jobs tour. hehe's what democratic congresswoman maxine watters had to say. >> we are supportive of the president. our people are hurting. unemployment is unconscionable. we don't know what the strategy is. we don't know why on this trip he's in the united states. we don't know that. >> david, she was referring, of course, to the rural tour that president obama took, but regardless of whether or not it was okay to go on a rural tour, what do you say when a member of the congressional black caucus said she doesn't know what strategy is for unemployment.

this is a big ally of the president's. >> obviously the thing that the president is proposing, things like moving forward on the road, transportation service program, roads, repairing roads and bridges and so on, which has been, by the way, done on a bipartisan basis, but stuck in the house. those are going to have big impacts up and down the economic scale. there are other things he's proposing that have big impact up and down the economic scale. he fought hard in the debt ceiling negotiations to make sure those safety nets, medicaid and pell grants for poor students, of all backgrounds, were protected from those cuts, because they are important. and his program for the future, has in it, education, and opportunities, for people to advance their skill, so they are not looked in a cycle of poverty.

so there's lots that is there with an eye toward those who need the help the most. but we've got to move the entire country forward, jake. not just one community, and he is focusing on doing that. we can do that if we get some cooperation, instead of a very kind of political position that we're not going to cooperate on anything while the country is waiting for action. >> lastly, david. i know that you're well aware that you have a big task ahead of you when it comes to motivating obama supporters from 2008 and potentially future obama supporters, rallying the base. prprressive filmmaker, michael moore had this question that he wanted me to ask you. quote, are you aware of how profoundly disappointed so many of the president's supporters are? do you realize that each time the president moves to the right, he picks up no votes and loses many? or do you cynically believe that because these people have nowhere else to go, they'll end up voting for obama?

how do you respond to liberals like michael moore, who want to vote for the president, but are profoundly disappointed? how do you convince them to turn out in november 2012? >> well, first of all, no one is cynically moving one way or the other. the president is not moving left or right. he's interested in moving the country forward. we've got a very, very sharp debate here. and the question is, are we going to take steps in a short run to help stimulate this economy, to help create jobs, to help create growth and are we going to take the steps in the long run that will protect the investments that can grow our economy and most importantly, jake, can create good middle class jobs in n e future on whicicpeople can raise their families. that's what education is about. that's what research and development to create new technologies, in advance

manufacturing is about. that's what the infrastructure, that's what roads and bridges and repairs that put people to work now, but also create the opportunity to move our goods across this country, and all of these things part and parcel of a strategy that is completely opposed by the other side, who want to go back to the same trickle-down deregulation, the same mantra we heard in the last decade that led up to this problem we're hearing again, i think this i isuch a profound choice that the president's supporters and independent voters and people across this country will rally. because the future will be determined by this debate and the path we take. >> thank you so much. david axelrod. good luck out there on the campaign trail. >> with big expectations for the president's economic speech after labor day, there's a lot more to talk about on the "roundtable." liz claman of fox business network will join us when we run. stay with us. fox business network will join us when we run. stay with us.

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welcome back to our "roundtable" with george will, welcome back to our "roundtable" with george will, donna brazile, liz claman of fox business network and jeff zeleny of "the new york times." george, the president say in the last week that we are not headed for a second recession or double-dip recession. what do you think? >> that's his argument. i did all of these things, a lot you didn't like. t.a.r.p., general motors, but i had to do it to end the crisis. the american people never feel the crisis ever ended. and they can't distinguish between recession and bad recovery. we've had the biggest stimulus ever and worst recovery ever since the second world war. what we hear of the president. he reminds me of a character in a chicago sports write percent short story. there was a story called alibi ike, about a ball player who couldn't do anything write, it was everybody's fault.

>> the president said it's the arab spring, the japanese tsunami, oil prices, it's atms and airport kiosks that have taken jobs, nothing is his responsibility. that does not sound presidential. >> liz, how many of the current econic woes that we're going through do you think are the fault of domestic politics in this country? how much is it matters that are out of our hands? >> we don't have jobs recovering and everybody knows that. that is a huge issue. the speech is so highly anticipated at this point. we didn't really get much clarity from david axelrodn what it's going to say, but people are saying, where is our hoover dam moment. is f that is psychologically in their minds that we haven't seen the massive projects come to pass that would soak up the greatest number of people that are unemployed. that is high school, uneducated males working in construction

and commercial and presidential real estate. where are they going to go? that weighs on the economic woes certainly, but now, all of a sudden, we have issues out of europe. people in the midwest can sit there and say, i don't understand why that afafcts me. why would a french bank in trouble affect me? it does, now, we are, for better, now as we see, for worse. part of a global economy. >> jeff, i forget, the last time i saw you if we were in a cornfield in iowa or manufacturing plant in illinois. we were on the president's midwest bus tour. here's a little sound of what he said when he announced his economic speech. >> i'll be putting forwardrd, wn they come back in september, a very specific plan. to boost the economy. to create jobs, and to control our deficit. and my attitude is, get it done. and if they don't get it done, then we'll be running against a congress that's not doing anything for the american people and the choice will be very stark and we'll be very clear. >> how much do you think -- what are the odds that president obama is going to be able to introduce something that will

pass congress. >> i think the odds are pretty slim, and they realize that. but, it's not about getting it past, necessarily, it's about framing the argument for the fall, and really into next year. they're trying to draw this distinct line between him and republicans. they are looking to him for some kind of solution here. i think the biggest -- for awful the powers of the incompetency, for all of the advantages he had as he was rolling through minnesota, iowa and illinois, one thing that hung over him is reality. that's one thing he didn't have to deal with in 2007 or 2008. he can say all these things, which he did. but now his own supporters are coming to him with tough questions, looking for relief, not just framing the argument. i think he has to do more than simply fight with congress. he has to try and go back again and get something with speaker boehner. but the reality just really confronted him, even in these friendly areas. imagine how it's going to be when he goes to some harder

places, some counties in michigan, count tis in wisconsin, ohio, pennsylvania, where he has even more work ahead of him. >> right. he is going to say, if it weren't for congress, i could spend more money. i'm not sure that's going to be a good selling point. he's going to say that congress is stopping me from another stimulus. he's going to say, in fact, that the government is too frugal. now, these are hard arguments to make. particularly when you consider, in cainsian term, cain said deficit spend something stimulus. we've had $5 trillion in stimulus in the last three years. progressives who used to be called liberals want more investment which u ud to be called spending. and i don't think that resonates with the country. >> donna. >> i'm listening. i'm smiling. the truth of the matter is, the president cannot simply run against congress, because congress will not make the right decisions to get the american

people back to work. everyone knows that congress is as popular as a root canal. they're at 13%. the president has to do more than just run against congress. he has to tell the american people that his administration has used every tool at their back on track.t job creation first of all, the government grant contracts each and every week. why not, you know, stipulate that these government contracts, the defense contractor, some small business supplying toilet paper or janitorial equipment, why not stipulate that there's a hiring quota there, there's a hiring recipe there. why not give more credit to small businesses so that they can go out and hire people. when maxine waters, who i have enormous respect for said to members of the black community. alesia, she's not saying i want to attack the president, she's saying, we want strategy.

we want another plan. we know the republicans want to prove a a esident's plan. we want a long-term strategy to bring jobs back to inner cities. black wealth, not because i'm black, because i'm an american, but over the last four year, 53% of black wealth has just disappeared. 6 the average for white family, median income is $113,000. black family, 5,000. 5,000. it has dropped. these families are hurting. they want help, they want relief. they don't want to hear about congress, they don't want to hear about the tea party they want jobs. >> what does it say that maxine waters is the one who is now being critical of the president who was supposed to be the uniter. last week you saw he united people. the tea partiers, the far left, the people in the midding by saying, where is your leadership on jobs? to make people wait for that speech is questionable. on the same said, say this is the president who, since he has taken over and a lot of people have looked at 401(k)s and been worried lately.

since he's taken over. almost every sector in the s&p is up double digits. things have recovered. this is also the president under whom we got osama bin laden. those two things not getting him any gravitas at the moment. whoever is running pr for him needs to work on that part of it, and then add to it and say here's what we're going to do. do the contracts, do the government things that george talked about. talk about making sure and donna's idea, how about getting the permits in the gulf for natural gas. which is clean burning, and we have a lot of it. why not get those back up to speed. they did a lease s se last week, that's important. but to get the government to start allowing that that-to-happen, those are real job, jake. >> i think the pr thing is one thing, that's even breaking through to voters. i was talking to a man outside the president's town hall in atkison illinois. he was pounding in flags a couple hours before the president's visit. >> the whole road was lined with flags. >> it was, it was a extraordinary site. he voted for obama and still believes in the president. he said he must have the worst

pr machine in history. so this is from a man pounding in flags in atkison, illinois. i said what do you mean by that? he said look at all of the good things he's done, we haven't heard about it. that's one sort of quiet hope for the people who still feel support of the president, that at the end of the day, when you match his accomplishments with whoever his opponent will be that he will come out looking stronger. i'm not sure those independent voters in the middle. people who will decide the election who george talked about in the northern suburbs, will have at least an open mind when it comes to that. i think the president will send out to the heartland his own state of illinois to kind of refuel his tank, if you will, to kind of, energize himself. he was really hit with stark reality of the approval rating polls that he has significant work to do in his own backyard. >> we only have ten seconds, george. do you have a final word? >> you referred to the hoover dam, great achievement of the '30s.

you couldn't build a hoover dam today, because they've discover a smart darter in the coloradad river and they'd stop it. >> on that note we continue in the green room on abcnews.com/thisweek. later you'll also find our fact checks. the "funnies" are next. stick around. build a new app for the sales team in beijing. and convince the c.e.o. his email will find him... wherever he is. i need to see my family while they're still awake. [ male announcer ] with global services from dell, jim can address his company's i.t. needs through custom built applications, cloud solutions and ongoing support in over 100 countries. so his company sees results. and jim sees his family. dell. the power to do more.

and now, the "sunday funnies." >> pawlenty made this announcement on abc's "this week" with jake tapper. >> i'm announcing this morning on your show, that i'm going to be ending my campaign for president. what i brought forward i thought was a rational, established credible, strong record of results, but i think the audience, so to speak, was looking for something different. >> yes, they were not looking for rational. racialality rationality is the third rail of american politics. >> president obama on a big bus tour last couple of day, of the midwest and he's talking about jobs and apparently came out

today the bus he's riding was made in canada. so unpatriotic, if he was a real american, that bus would have been made in china, don't you think? >> dow had the biggest point drop ever. let me tell you something, if i had any understanding of any of this, i would be very nervous right now. i really would. fortunately, though, i don't. today, though, the market boboced back and gained 430 points. so i guess we're rich again? congratulations. [ applause ] we'll be right back. congratulations. [ applause ] we'll be right back. the future of business.t'se in here, inventory can be taught to learn. ♪ machines have a voice. ♪ medical history follows you. it's the at&t network -- a network of possibilities... committed to delivering the most advanced mobile broadband experience to help move business... forward. ♪ to help move business... forward.

or creates another laptop bag or hires another employee, let me tell you something, if i [ applause ] the entire community. it's good for at bank of america, we know the impact that local businesses have on communities, so we're helping them with advice from local business experts and extending $18 billion in credit last year. that's how we're helping set opportunity in motion. and now "in memoriam" -- >> roughly 10,000 of those prisoners died on the forced march to prison camp, the infamous bataan death march.

>> in this system, each has a welding gun mounted on its outer end. somebody as the new president is facing something that the nation needs to know about, deserves to know about. ♪ this week, the pentagon released the napes of 14 soldiers and marines killed in afghanistan. ♪

♪ we'll be right back. ht back. every day, all around the world, energy is being produced to power our lives. while energy developement comes with some risk, north america's natural gas producers are committed to safely and responsibly providing decades of cleaner burning energy for our country, drilling thousands of feet below fresh water sources within self contained well systems and using state of the art monitoring technologies, rigorous practices help ensure our operations are safe and clean for our communities and the environment

we are america's natural gas. what if we designed an electric motorcycle? what if we turned trash into surfboards? whatever your what if is, the new sprint biz 360 has custom solutions to make it happen, including mobile payment processing, instant hot spots, and powerful devices like the motorola photon 4g. so let's all keep asking the big what ifs. sprint business specialists can help you find the answers. sprint. america's favorite 4g network. trouble hearing on the phone? visit sprintrelay.com. that's our program this week, you can see the full interview with jon huntsman, including comments on afghanistan and mormon faith. at pbs news.com/thisweek. be sure to watch "world news" with david muir tonight for all of the latest headlines. for all of us here, thank you for watching. we'll see you next week.

in the news this sunday, two people are shot and a fan is beaten at a pre-season game at candlestick park. >> and the families of shane bauer and josh fattal react to their sentencing to eight years in an iranian prison. join us n n n n n n n n n n n nn