to run but it leaves a huge hole i in th south for replicans. >> haley barbour has decided he likes to eat too much. he has been on a diet all year, and he decided he hated it -- >> if i had to choose between a pizza and air force one, i would choose air force one. >> you know who loses? everybody who covers this race. he is f a a good politician. >> when you have been a lobbyist, substantial part of your life, my assumption is -- i take him at his word, thahe did not have the fire in the belly, and ththat youook at everything you have done in l life and you decide how it might be construed -- >> he is a realist, and he looked at the situation from all angles and realized he would have a hard time winning. >> other potential candidates are looking for s support. >> he will be importt in the race. he could be in t cabinet. he is a respectable guy who knows how to run a state and parties. >> he assembled one of the most able teams in all of politics not sily on the republican side. >> then he saw a giant pizza pie and decided he cannot do it. >> donald trump-severability it -- donald

even this week we can tell, haley barbour dropped out of the race. that is already is starting to remake the field. and i also think i'm not sure donald trump is going to run. either he is facing the prospect that he was a democrat for all those years. gave money to -- >> chris: registered democrat in 2008. >> exactly. gave majority of his money to democrats. i'm not sure that he, when push comes to shove and he has to release financials about his business dealings and when more starts coming out in the press about his business dealings, i'm not sure he is going to run. >> chris: bill, as we sit here today on sunday, romney has not decided whether or not he is going to participate in the fox debate on thursday. but, you know, you look at the numbers and he is largely stayed under the radar. he hasn't really gotten involved. he hasn't come on any of the sunday talk shows. he is doing just fine. he is at this point maybe by default, the leader so is his strategy the right strategy? or should he be out more, engaging more and dealing with issues; specif

governor of mississippi, haley barbour. best of luck in the coming days with the flood issues. >> thanks, john. >> we'll be right back. , at&t i, building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before in an effort to give you the best network possible. at&t. rethink possible. can become romantic just like that. a spark might come from -- a touch, a glance -- it can come along anywhere, anytime. and when it does, men with erectile dysfunction can be more confident in their ability to be ready with cialis for daily use. cialis for daily use is a clinically proven low-dose tablet you take every day, so you can be ready anytime the moment's right even if it's not every day. tell your doctor about your medical condition and all medications and ask if you're healthy enough for

governor haley barbour warning residents about the health risks once they get back. he says tests of the water show levels of e. coli bacteria 200 times the normal level. >>> a disturbing sight in yazoo city, mississippi. caskets have started floating from a cemetery. so far three have floated away. >>> floodwaters in the region aren't going anywhere any time soon. some placed expect to be under water until mid-june, making it tough for everybody especially people who live and work right on the river. jeanne meserve is right on the river for us this morning. jeanne, good morning once again. it's one thing, you try to just save your home, but then you have to worry about saving your livelihood as well. >> reporter: that's right. you have to worry about your business and the full cost of business and to farmers has yet to be calculated, t.j. the good news for this story is that the levee system appears to be holding. there have been minor problems, sand boils keep cropping up but thus far able to control them, there have been no major problems. the second piece of good

ron pauls, santorums, haley barbours can't win. he can't say hey, i'm not sure. he looks like hamlet. what is the -- what are the daniels people say? they say we are waiting to hear what sherry wants to do. that puts a lot of attention on her. now, we know that there is a story about how she left him and married somebody else for a couple of years. i think this -- humanizes her and makes her look less political. so i don't know that this is a strategy but i should hope it is a strategy because it is a really good one. i think that we in the media in a way are being led by a leash. >> hasn't occurred to me this may be a grand play by the daniels' forces. i mentioned at the top calista gingrich is often at his side. he talks about her a lot. she helped him convert to catholicism. does all of that add up to a front page story the day before he announces? >> of course. because, again, you know, these guys are running for president they have a base. the base is a religious base. religious right base they have the appeal to in order to get the nomination. he converts t

haley barbour. i wanted haley barbour to run because i could go on tv and translate everything that he would say, but mitch daniels is not in the race, tim pawlenty is the person i think to beat. >> person to beat. >> at this point, yes. >> what do you think, ed? >> i think it's wide open. i think that's great for our party right now and i think largely the field is formed. and there may be some late entrants to come, but i think we've got a field that whomever emerges as our nominee will be able to beat barack obama in 2012. >> you say largely. i think you were more definitive earlier in the week. you said the field is formed and the nominee will come from the current crop. >> i think i said largely for -- there may be some late entrants. my point is that i think for most republican activists and donors and elected officials, they're probably going to sign up for somebody now in the current field. there may be somebody who comes later but i suspect the field is pretty formed. whoever emerges is lik

haley barbour has decided not to run for president. why not? >> it means mitch daniels is slightly more likely to run because he and haley are friends and kind of had an understanding that only one would run dry in the is a gaping hole in the south of republicans. >> he decided he would like i to eat too much. he has been on a diet all year and he decided he hated it so much -- >> if i had to choose between a pizza and air force one, i would choose. >> -- i would choose air force one. >> you know who loses? everybody who covers this race. he is fine and he has a goo -- is fun and has a goo -- and is a good politician. >> my assumption is that i take him at his word, that he did not have the fire in his belly. you look at everything you out in life and see how it might be construed -- you have done in life and see how it might be construed -- >> he looked at the situation from all angles and realized he would have a hard time winning. >> other candidates are looking for his support. >> he could be at the cinet now he is a respectable guy who kns

>> one of the things that the white house looked at, haley barbour looking at the idea of becoming not so much an anti-war candidate but a war skeptic and i think they're looking at that and seeing where the horizon fits. chris: they may not be on the right? >> right. >> i don't see republicans clamoring to stay in this war. it's not a popular war. i don't think this will be a big issue. chris: the old fight, republicans want to fight, democrats want to come home, is that the backdrop to next year's election? think democrats want to come home. the question now is where the republicans end up and what they decide. i think that's going to be really, really interesting to see just what side of obama they decide to put themselves on but also where obama himself ends up, he's got biden and a lot of people on the left in his administration who are going to be saying, look, we've got osama bin laden, it's time to come home. chris: the fact that patraeus has moved away from the front, does that give him more freedom? >> he hasn't moved away yet. he's going to make recommendations on precisely

and haley where haley barbour made comments but dropped out the race. >> you think should come back in? >> no. [everyone talking at once] >> haley should come back? a lot of people do. the way he is conducting himself with his ravaging mississippi river down there. >> well suited to that and i'm sure he will be advising other candidates. very savvy politician. but i don't think -- >> he's a savvy politics? >> not a likely presidential candidate. >> some members of the appropriations committee, jeff flake, come traves and george -- moving to cut spending vote to go cut spending, introducing -- amendments to cut military spending. and the question is whether the democrats will give up their sacred cow, which is planned parenthood funding, now the republicans are willing. >> i can make a point? >> bin laden -- [everyone talking at once] >> i can make a point? were you playing into ladies, to of the speech. everyone focuses on that one line. and he was wrong about. that. military is stronger -- is smaller in terms of the economy than in 1961. he was right where warning about the powers whi

barbour, his dear friend, with the giant roll desk, jumps in and tries to establish him. gwen: the bush is calling him to urge and get in. there's some establishment support. but what about the antiestablishment support? since last week when we were sitting here, mike huckabee dropped out of the race, if he was ever really in it. so that means that people who were sitting back on the sidelines and trying to decide what to do next have to scatter and go somewhere. where do they go? >> one of the things doyle was hinting at is there's a number of key constituency that still have yet to find a good horse. social conservatives don't have one although michelle bachmann could come up. the tea the tea partyies, other than ron paul who may or may not be a viable long-term candidate -- >> tim to plenty? >> he gets in. he's trying. he's been meeting with them and if you look at the field, as michael has said, all of them have really strong problems with their canned day d.a. sis. -- canned da sis but pawlenty is a little bit different because he has growth room. romney can't become

but now that you've had so many others, haley barbour, are you seeing any activity from huckabee out in iowa? is there any indication that he's ready to make a step? when was the last time you met with him? >> we haven't seen many indications on the ground. there is a group of his supporters around that has created a seemingly organic group, i believe, stuck on hurricane, is what they've called it and they're organizing events around the state. but a number his senior leadership team from the 2010 and 2008 caucus season has actually been spread across various campaigns. one has signed up with governor to lenty. another has signed up with congresswoman bachmann. a couple other of the leadership is with judge roy moore. it might be tough to assemble the leadership he had because as everybody knows here in iowa, it is a very retail-heavy process with about is,-- ,800 precincts where you need somebody organizing in those precincts. even though governor huckabee starts with more of a head start than he did four years ago introducing himself to iowans, i don't think he can put off a decisi

has urged daniels to run and that's meaningful because haley barbour has huge political know-how. and if daniels were to get in, with haley behind him, he would have a formidable force. >>> also, tim pawlenty has taken the opportunity to dep fend israel but also slam the united nations in the statement that he said that the united nations has been, this is a quote -- has been and continues to be the single worst forum to resolve key issues between the israelis and palestinians. the palestinians should be sitting down to negotiate with israel. we shouldn't have the united nations making it's own statement about the republicans as is national health care reform. so he is not taking any political risk there but a very pointed statement. and that's the latest. >> jessica yellin with the political ticker. we appreciate you as always. >>> meanwhile, weeks after stirring the political pot, donald trump is not running for president. but he showed americans how scary the political system has become. in fact, he calls trump's whole campaign of sorts a house of horrors. he's with me next. na

mitch daniels, mike huckabee, donald trump, jeb bush, haley barbour and chris christi say they are not running in 2012 and the possibilities at this point, they're likelihoods, mitt romney former massachusetts governor and jon huntsman, former governor of utah and then balkman and palin are big maybes. bachmann leaning towards a race, sarah palin, a lot of folks don't think she is going to run. for tim pawlenty he's known for this, a slick video announcing he's running for president. he released it on youtube last night. >> we need a president who understands that our problems are deep and who has the courage to face them. president obama doesn't. i do. tomorrow, my first campaign stop will be in iowa. and that's where i'm going to begin a campaign that tells the american people the truth. >> and speaking of iowa, we were just in iowa last week and a lot of iowa republicans that we were talking to throughout there, christine and kiran, were talking about tim pawlenty. he has a very big presence in that state. he's one of the few candidates who's opened up a campaign office out there, s

>> yeah, the mississippi governor, haley barbour has told us in places like this where the water is everywhere and some of it is sewage, the e. coli levels are sometimes 200 times above normal. and he -- i couldn't say it better than him. he said this stuff is nasty. they're really concerned about that. they have security concerns as well because in vicksburg, near here, officials are saying they're patrolling the streets night and day with police and sheriff's deputies to make sure abandoned homes and businesses aren't broken into. that could be a concern for many weeks to come because we're told these waters may not go back to the banks of the mississippi for almost another month. >> all right, our brian todd reporting from near redwood, miss miss. what a mess. thank you, and please stay safe. >>> let's turn to jacqui jeras in the cnn severe weather center. how worried should be people be about the rain in the forecast? >> they should be worried. in terms of the mississippi river at this time, if it's 3 to 6 inches of rainfall, it's probably not enough to bring the crest up, but it's some of

barbour, the current governor of mississippi, announced he was not going to run. >> mike viqueira, see you next hour. >> reporter: okay. >>> sunday church services are filling with those mourning the dead. in alabama alone, officials say at least 250 people were killed in those storms, and nbc's charles hadlock is live for us. a good sunday morning to you, charles. tell us what you are seeing there this morning. >> reporter: there's a lot of devastation still on the ground, workers are stringing new cable across most of alabama, which has seen about half a million people without power. church services are under way across alabama and a number of churches have been damaged or destroyed. congregation members have been scraping away the debris. today they're holding church services on the foundations of their broken churches, symbolic of the rise they say will occur in alabama once again. the death toll remains at 343, 250 of the dead are in alabama, 39 of them are here in tuscaloosa. a lot of neighbors are missing, relatives are gone, and landmarks that everyone used to become so familia

. >> reporter: the mississippi is projected to crest tomorrow at vicksburg, but governor haley barbour warned today that's not the end of it. he said it could be late june before the water retreats from parts of the mississippi delta. >> ifill: the massive flow of water headed down the mississippi river is doing more than just flooding neighborhoods. it's also sweeping pentially toxic chemicals into the environment. "newshour" correspondent tom bearden reports from southern louisiana. >> reporter: an enormous quantity of water is roaring through the bonnet carre spillway west of new orleans. it's being diverted from the main channel of the mississippi river, and surging toward lake ponchartrain. the army corps of engineers opened the floodgates on may 9 to lower the level of the flood- swollen river and take pressure off the levees that protect new orleans. but some people are worried about what's in all that the water-- higlevels of nitrogen fertilizer, pesticides from flooded fields further north and sediment. and how it all might affect the environment. we went along with hydrologis

what the governor of mississippi, haley barbour has said, they've taken samples of the water and the e. coli levels are 200 times the normal level in some areas. he said it better than i ever could, he said, that stuff's nasty. he's absolutely right. this is what they're faced with, a potential health hazard. possibly security concerns as well, don, because in vicksburg near here we're told law enforcement is patrolling the streets day and night making sure that none of the abandoned homes and businesses are broken into. that's something they're going to be dealing with probably for a while, because floodwaters aren't going to completely recede until midjune. >> brian todd, great reporting from redwood, mississippi, and make sure you stay safe as well. a lot of hazards in that water, so pleasing safe out there. let's turn now to meteorologist jacqui jeras in the cnn severe weather center. more rain in the forecast. you saw all that water brian was standing in. how worried should people be along the mississippi right now? >> well, not as much on the mississippi as say the ohio river a

. >>> haley barbour is pushing. he was once considered a possible candidate, the governor of mississippi, he dropped out. >> there's also a little bit of suspicion on the conservative side about daniels particularly because he called for a truce on social issues so the country could get its financial matters in order. this is a guy who's going to have to answer questions like that before conservatives sort of anoint him as the front runner. >> joe and gloria, thanks very much. >>> we now know the identity, yes the identity of the woman who arnold schwarzenegger secretly fathered a child with. what we're learning. stand by. >>> and president obama deliver amajor speech on u.s. relations with the arab world, but does it really represent the start of what he calls a new chapter in regional diplomacy? lots of news happening right here in "the situation room." building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your

barbour has not. exactly. >> newt gingrich now suing his personal trainer. >> lehrer: did you just ruined my segue. i was about to say david, speaking of president obama, what did you make of his speech and what happened today with netanyahu in the middle east? >> yeah, i thought the speech, parts that concerned the arab spring were very good, very strong, put us on the right side. i was less impressed with the parts concerning israel and for this reason. it is obviously true in the abstract that the final settlement will have to involve the '67 borders with land swaps. so to that degree, what the president said was blindingly obvious. but we're not talking about the situation in the abstract. we're talking about it in a concrete historical circumstance. and in that circumstance israel has just withdrawn from gaza, took away set e em-- settlements and it didn't lead to peace. it lead to more violence and threats. the same thing happened in lebanon. so the people in israel are nervous about giving away

. >> sreenivasan: across the river, mississippi governor haley barbour has a lake house near vicksburg that's already been flooded. he had advice today for his people. >> get your property out as early as you can-- furniture, appliances. to the degree you can literally remove those from the area that might be flooded, do it! if you hadn't done it now, hurry up because you may be too late. secondly, elevate things that can be elevated. third, tie down things that float. >> sreenivasan: both barbour and jindal said the mainline levees along the mississippi are holding and will likely not be breached. wall street was hit with new worries today about debt problems in europe. the dow jones industrial average lost 100 points to close at 12,595. the nasdaq fell 34 points to close at 2,828. for the week, the dow lost about a third of 1%; the nasdaq rose just a fraction. the economy's struggles have cut deeply into the solvency of medicare and social security. the program's trustees reported today that the medicare hospital insurance fund will be exhausted in 2024. that's five years earlier tha

people like governor haley barbour. >> last question. social security. can we, should we raise the retirement age over a course of 10, 15 years? >> i don't think we should for this reason. my view is that people who earn their living the way we do, yes, we could easily do that. the fact is if you are doing backbreaking work, that early retirement is a hardship. there are other ways you can do it that allow people to voluntarily retire. maybe take less. there are other ways to do it other than saying you have to retire early. for you and me, not a problem. for people who are doing manual labor -- >> doing real work. >> not as easy. >> thank you for joining us. pleasure. good seeing you. ♪ [ male announcer ] in 2011, at&t is at work, building up our wireless network all across america. we're adding new cell sites... increasing network capacity, and investing billions of dollars to improve your wireless network experience. from a single phone call to the most advanced data download, we're covering more people in more places than ever before in an effort t

donald trump, mike huckabee, haley barbour, what do you make of the guys staying out of the race? >> how much things changed since last november. the president was on the ropes and republican had a big victory. now established republicans are running from the race as fast as they can. this is good news for the president. it will be a protracted contest where they will dissipate resources while he builds a war chest they have to appeal to the tea party move in the iowa, south carolina, new hampshire, while he can move to the middle and appeal to independent and moderates. so the establishment republicans, tim pawlenty and romney seem to be unhappy with that, which raises the prospect of an outside person coming in. you see repetition of what happened in delaware and lesser extent to nevada and colorado last time, nominee who doesn't appeal to the middle. this is all good news for president obama. >> chris: is there anybody out there like a christie, ryan, like a jeb bush who would scare you? >> christie is an interesting candidate. i have a fondness for former governors but he has

when we got our heads handed to us, haley barbour left the rnc with $10 million of debt. you all remember what 1997 was like. that was that reality. my reality was the committee took out the lines of credit, i was not crazy about it. i like to spend money i do not have, but the executive committee approved a those budgets and wanted to spend that money. if you give me the resources, we will do what we need to do. we won. now with the 63 house members coming in, and the congressional races, and gubernatorial races, the party will be in the position to raise the dollars to move forward. one of the things i said was the political dynamics have changed. there was a headline the other day in "politico" talking about the relevance of party committees going into future cycles because of rulings like mccain feingold. infrastructure has changed. you have the three current members of the republican national committee forming a super pac. where are they going to get that money from? that is the new reality for the dnc, the rnc, at the national level that they are going to have to li