the last word with lawrence o'donnell is week nights 10:00 p.m. eastern only on msnbc, the place for politics. >>> here is your first look at other news going on around america today. a shoplifting duo's getaway was leaving to an all-out brawl there inside a new jersey store. the scuffle began when the male suspect attacked the employee who confronted him. the couple escaped with over $1400 worth of baby formula. no arrests have been made. >>> tennessee authorities rescued over 100 dogs crammed into a truck and minivan for a cross country trip. police made the heart breaking discovery after 25 dogs were spotted inside the minivan without any food or water. further inspection revealed other animals locked inside the cargo area of the truck. the owners were arrested for aggravated animal cruelty. >>> and finally, animals doing tricks, we love this, right? this is a pet of one louisiana artist. she may have a little picasso in her. video of a squirrel paint abstract art has gone viral and the animals' work is starting to get some attention. one piece

we couldn't have wrote this script better if we did it ourselves, rachel. >> lawrence o'donnell, host of "the last word, "kwhat are you looking for? >> tonight marks the end of the year of idiocy in republican campaigning. the most single embarrassing year of modern campaigning within the party. the fake candidacies that the media fell for, most embarrassing political performance for the media, too. fell for sarah palin, couldn't read the clues when she started quitting her job, clear she was never going to run for anything. they fell for donald trump and the republican voters, and they got infatuated with michele bachmann and in-fat fatated with impossible candidacies. the insanity is over, and the reality starts tonight and it turns out when we get to 2012 the reality candidacies are a former governor and a former senator. big surprise. no game show host, no junior member of congress like ms. bachmann, no edgy, flaky guy like ron paul, always been where it's been, a former governor and former senator. >> if ron paul places first in iowa which he has a chance to do? >> aunter meaning

this is what the law is, lawrence. >> lean forward with "the last word" as lawrence o'donnell takes on the day's most compelling stories. it airs week nights at 10:00 eastern on msnbc, the place for politics. >>> here is your first look at the other news going on around america today. a murderous crime spree by a couple the media dubbed a modern day bonnie and clyde came to an end in tuesday. they gave up without a fight after an air unit spotted them wandering in a desert. they allegedly killed an elderly couple in their utah home and shot a woman in the head during an attempted carjacking in nevada. the couple faces numerous charges. >>> a collision between a tractor-trailer and jeep led to a multivehicle crash on a dallas highway. the initial crash caused the truck to slam into a concrete divider crushing two other cars. crews were called in to clean up a diesel fuel spill and clear the accident. one person was hospitalized. >>> finally, check this out. a georgia neighborhood is beginning to look like a scene from a famous hitchcock movie. residents have been invaded by a flock of t

. >>> last night on the last word with lawrence o'donnell, debbie wasserman schultz gave lawrence her impression of the field of gop candidates. >> if there wasn't already a dramatic contrast between barack obama and any of the republican field, today it was made as clear as day that there will be a very stark choice between the direction the president has taken in this country and the direction that any of the republicans, but particularly how shockingly out of touch with mainstream america and working families mitt romney is. i think all of the kecandidates the whole selection of them is doing a good job of destroying themselves. mitt romney said he likes firing people. he also tried to say that he somehow empathizes with people who have been fired because he worried about a pink slip at some point. he's claimed he has -- he created 100,000 jobs as head of bain capital but he outsourced jobs to other countries, fired people, bankrupted companies deliberately. this is the record he's surmounted and we should put in the white house to get the economy turned around? i don't think that'

now it's time for "the last word with lawrence o'donnell." >>> rallying around romney. some of the gop frontrunners' toughest critics rise to his defense. >>> dining hazards. scary moments when a tractor-trailer wheel crashes through a louisiana restaurant window. >>> and iphone uproar. angry customers egg apple's flag ship store in beijing over the postponed launch of a product. very good morning to you. those stories and much more straight ahead. this is "first look" on msnbc. >>> and we begin this morning with romney's record. with a week to go before the south carolina primary, republican contenders are sharpingening their tacts on mitt romney and his business career. brian moar joins us with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. romney supporters are calling the recent attacks desperate. mitt romney is looking and sounding a lot like he's ready to take on president obama in the fall. >> we are going to see the change we're looking for. it's not barack obama. i believe it's going to be mitt romney. >> reporter: with wins in iowa and new hampshire, rom

>> you don't want to miss lawrence o'donnell's "last word" on biggest issues and the most compelling stories of the day. it airs 10:00 p.m. eastern time only on msnbc, the place for politics. >>> a former u.s. marine pleaded guilty to shooting a gun at the pentagon and other military targets last year after the 24-year-old entered a guilty plea, prosecutors released a video he made, showing him in his car, waving the gun at the camera. you can see a muzzle flash from the gun. he recorded himself wearing a mask as well. no one was hurt in the shootings. he was arrested last june and admits to five separate shootings in october and november 2010. twice at the national museum of the marine corps and once each at the pentagon and at coast guard and marine corps recruiting offices in virginia. prosecutors say he intended to strike fear throughout the region. he agreed to a 25-year prison term and will be sentenced in april. >>> australia's prime minister says she's okay after a narrow escape from angry demonstrators. there were tense moments when she was dragged by security guards by a pr

now it's time for "the last word with lawrence o'donnell." have a great night.

let me about go to ed schultz and lawrence o'donnell. let me give you a shout out of the barrel coming at this. i think it was a hell of a debate. i think david gregly did a great job. they needed somebody to say, go at it, guys. >> two different debates from last night and today. we have substance in the first 30 seconds of today's debate. i think romney is the guy that has been the conventional wisdom shall he's the guy to beat. why have they tab en so long to go after him? if they had been doing this for a month, we might have a different poll in new hampshire. >> the answer, they're competing for? >> they shouldn't be. if they're of their conviction and they believe that they should be president of the united states, they should be going after the lead and trying to convince people. i don't get a sense from any of the candidates that they're doing that. i thought that romney showed his cards today. who he is. his dad told him that if he couldn't make his mortgage payment, maybe he shouldn't be running for office. does that mean only

. >>> on "the last word" lawrence o'donnell talks to a man who lost his job after mitt romney's firm bought the company he worked for. an up close look at romneynomics is just ahead. >>> apparently there's news happening that has nothing to do with iowa. that's weird, right? >>> in 1984 on christmas day, two men from pensacola, florida, fire bombed an abortion clinic in that city. they were convicted and sentenced to ten years in prison. in 1993, another pensacola resident named michael griffin assassinated a doctor who worked at a different pensacola clinic that provided abortions. the man who was killed was dr. david gunn. a little more than a year after that in 1994, the site of the other fire bombed clinic in pensacola was visited by an antiabortion activist named paul hill. paul hill shot and killed another doctor who provided abortions in pensacola. dr. john britton. yesterday on the first day of 2012, that same clinic in pensacola was gutted by fire. nobody was injured. the fire apparently happened after midnight on new year's eve. the building was reportedly burned as if from

also ahead, chris matthews, lawrence o'donnell, and sam stein. you're watching "morning joe" live from the bar in manchester, new hampshire. when i grow up, i want to fix up old houses. ♪ [ woman ] when i grow up, i want to take him on his first flight. i want to run a marathon. i'm going to own my own restaurant. when i grow up, i'm going to start a band. [ female announcer ] at aarp we believe you're never done growing. thanks, mom. i just want to get my car back. [ female announcer ] discover what's next in your life. get this free travel bag when you join at aarp.org/jointoday. >>> governor, i wish you would calmly and directly state it is your former staff running the pac, your millionaire friends giving to the pac and you know some of the ads are untrue. say that straightforward. >> well, of course it's former staff of mine and of course they're people who support me, they wouldn't be putting money into a pac that supports me if there weren't people who support me. and with regards to their ads, i haven't seen them. and as you know under

. >>> on "the last word" lawrence o'donnell talks to a man who lost his job after mitt romney's firm bought the company he worked for. an up close look at romneynomics is just ahead. >>> apparently there's news happening that has nothing to do with iowa. that's weird, right? [ kyle ] my bad. [ roger ] tell me you have good insurance. yup, i've got... [ dennis ] ...allstate. really? i was afraid you'd have some cut-rate policy. [ kyle ] nope, i've got... [ dennis ] ...the allstate value plan. it's their most affordable car insurance -- and you still get an allstate agent. i too have... [ dennis ] ...allstate. [ roger ] same agent and everything. [ kyle ] it's like we're connected. no we're not. yeah, we are. no...we're not. ♪ the allstate value plan. dollar for dollar, nobody protects you like allstate. the allstate value plan. i refer to her as "that woman with the great gums." as jill's dentist, i know that her gums are a foundation of a healthy smile. jill knows that, too -- so she uses crest pro-health clinical gum protection toothpaste. it helps eliminate plaque at the gum line

. >>> right after the show on "the last word," this is important, lawrence o'donnell will be here live breaking down tonight's republican debate, fresh and hot. you'll want to see that. plus, his special guest is elizabeth warren. yes, that elizabeth warren, so you have to watch lawrence tonight. >>> and here, our little talking to with politifact continues, even though my girlfriend, susan, is now afraid they're going to start following me home at night. that's next. slip-on's the way to go. more people do that, security would be like -- there's no charge for the bag. thanks. i know a quiet little place where we can get some work done. there's a three-prong plug. i have club passes. [ male announcer ] now there's a mileage card that offers special perks on united, like a free checked bag, united club passes, and priority boarding. thanks. ♪ okay. what's your secret? ♪ [ male announcer ] the new united mileageplus explorer card. get it and you're in. ♪ let's go ♪ ♪ cruise like a norwegian ♪ forty years ago, he wasn't looking for financial advice. back then he had something

very important distinction. >> congresswoman, it is lawrence o'donnell. i just want to put -- >> hi, lawrence. >> -- on a frame for this for viewers nationally. florida didn't vote vote tonig. one third a little bit less than a third of florida are registered republicans. 36% registered republicans. only registered republicans are allowed to vote in this democrat. you may well have had a turnout lower than in 2008. and so about 1/6 of florida voters voted, when you look at the larger polling, president obama has some massive leads in key demographic, including the hispanic vote in florida which mitt romney seems to have won tonight among republicans. with that massive lead that president obama has, do you see any real challenge to him in florida in november? >> another important thing to note is that the republican electorate in particular that turned out tonight, more than two thirds of them identify withed tea parties, are supportive of the tea parties, this was an extremely right wing conservative extreme republican electorate that turned out. not refl

. >>> right after the show on "the last word," this is important, lawrence o'donnell will be here live breaking down tonight's republican debate, fresh and hot. you'll want to see that. plus, his special guest is elizabeth warren. yes, that elizabeth warren, so you have to watch lawrence tonight. >>> and here, our little talking to with politifact continues, even though my girlfriend, susan, is now afraid they're going to start following me home at night. that's next. omorrow. for more than 116 years, ameriprise financial has worked for their clients' futures. helping millions of americans retire on their terms. when they want. where they want. doing what they want. ameriprise. the strength of a leader in retirement planning. the heart of 10,000 advisors working with you one-to-one. together for your future. ♪ the sleep number bed. the magic of this bed is that you're sleeping on something that conforms to your individual shape. you can adjust it to whatever your needs are. so whatever you feel like, the sleep number bed's going to provide it for you. and now, the company that redefi

eastern hosted by chris matthew, reverend al sharpton, rachel maddow and lawrence o'donnell p. don't miss our coverage right here on msnbc. >>> one of the biggest factors in the florida primary has been the large number of those expensive tv campaign ads. former florida governor charlie crist talked to chris matthews about the political polls reflecting the negative tone of the campaign commercials and the impact of all the money being spent on political acts. >> i think the old expression is that money is the mother's milk of politics. certainly that's been the case this week. to the romney campaign's credit, they've raised an enormous sum of money before i think the spending is about four to one compared to gingrich. that's hard to overcome and it's making an impact here just like it did in iowa for the speaker. and it's having a profound impact in florida. it's like a circled firing squad, if you will. and i know other republicans have talked about the challenge and the difficulty this could present to the nominee facing president obama who doesn't have this will kind of bac

tonight lawrence o'donnell posed a question to the counsel for mitt romney, and he said why doesn't mitt romney clear the air of the campaigning by calling on all unaffiliated super committees to stop all negative ads and ben ginsberg answered with something his own candidate hasn't been saying. ginsberg said a candidate can't tell an unaffiliated pac. let's hear what he said on "fox & friends." >> there's coordination rules and you're not allowed to coordinate. i am sure i can go out and say please don't do anything negative. >> well, i have to go back to lawrence and pass it back to him, rachel, because he started this little kerfuffle. turns out ben ginsberg has not checked with his candidate. his candidate believes he has the right to stop this by simply calling up his own political action committee associated with him and say stop doing this. ben says he couldn't do that legally. i think we just heard the candidate say he could. >> he did do that, chris, and he could make it more general if necessary to satisfy attorney ginsberg's technical reading of this law enforcement he would j

. >> valerie, it's lawrence o'donnell here. the president wanted to change one parliamentary rule in the senate, the filibuster rule in nominations. but there's another parliamentary rule, it's the only one that's in the constitution. and that is that all tax bills must begin in the house of representatives, which is now controlled by republicans. so much of what the president was talking about tonight involves changes to the tax code. how does the president think he can get that kind of change initiated in the republican house of representatives? >> because i think it's what the vast majority of the american people want. they're calling for equity, they're calling for fairness. they're saying that, look, just as we saw tonight, warren buffett's secretary, who was sitting in the box, who pays a higher tax rate than he does, that's not fair and i think that's common sense that the average american can understand. so our hope and our expectation is that the american people will have a great deal of influence here and that the rep

. >>> last night on lawrence o'donnell, stephanie cut ter, mitt romney was asked about cutting jobs in the private sector. >> we're wondering why nobody was even bringing up this topic. it was brought up in the 2008 campaign n fact, john mccain attacked mitt romney for precisely these reasons that, mitt romney is taking credit for jobs, taking credit for being in the private sector and john mccain was holding him accountable for that. he went into a company, stripped them down and sent them into bankruptcy and fired workers and sent the jobs overseas. so this debate was had in 2008. we've been waiting for it to happen. we're pleased the issues are finally raise. we disagree it's free enterprise on trial. this is about mitt romney staying his entire candidacy on his private sector jobs record. and it's only natural for people to ask what that record is. and what that record means and are those the values we want in the oval office? i think most people are saying no. >> be sure to lean forward with "the last word" at 10:00 eastern on msnbc, the place for politics. >>> and now to the late

o'donnell who talks about that g.i. bill. although i'm hearing the discourse about cutting the fact two alternatives to balancing a budget. one you cut and the others you raise revenue and could raise revenue by having a more fair tax system. so i was surprised and pleased to learn on one of the most critical issues of the 20th century lawrence o'donnell and newt gingrich agree with one another. >> michelle? >> i know something i didn't know who hours ago thanks to governor johnson. i had not known among -- the big ideas that newt gingrich is famous for one is instituting the death penalty for marijuana possessions. >> two ounces or more. >> we know that newt gingrich has an authoritarian. to me, this adds a whole new dimension to the kind of president, god forbid, that newt gingrich could be. >> even singapore input is harsh, dude. i spent a lot of time in george w. bush 2000 campaign book for a piece i was doing comparing the two records. it's remarkable how different he positioned the republican party. >> absolutely.

. >>> here is lawrence o'donnell, also a former staff director of the senate finance committee. when we talk taxes, you have to listen to him. reverendal sharpton, a former presidential candidate. ezra klein, washington post. karen finney, former communications director of the democratic national committee, a veteran of the clinton white house. karen, let me start with you. you were in the clinton white house after bill clinton had suffered the bad mid-term losses that he suffered in 1994. faces a state of the union address in a reelection year, how much is the balance getting reelected and how much is the balance annual state of the union address? >> the balance is tipped but the reality is no matter what party you're from or what president you are, when you give this address everybody hears it as a political "this is the kick off to the campaign." there is a couple different messages, number one, he has work to do, right? he has to go in the chamber and say in a nice way, forceful way, i've got things i'm going to try to do, i want to work with you, if you won't work with me,

lawrence o'donnell with the romney family travellog. >>> best new thing in the world, straight ahead. ♪ more and more folks are trying out snapshot from progressive. a totally different way to save on car insurance. the better you drive, the more you can save. no wonder snapshot's catching on. plug into the savings you deserve with snapshot from progressive. >>> debunction junction, the secretary of state's office made a prediction, predicted that 250,000 people would vote in the republican primary, which would be a record. it would be more voters in the republican primary in new hampshire than in 2008. then there were anecdotal reports and some projections yesterday that, actually, turnout in new hampshire was lacking to be a little bit low. so how did it turn out? was the prediction that a quarter million voters would turn out for the republican primary yesterday in new hampshire, was that prediction true or was that false? true. well, almost. according to a little "rachel maddow show" math, the total number of voter who is cast ballots in the republican primary yesterday in new h

o'donnell and steve schmid. lawrence made a point i think overlooked in the 2012 process. the point is this. mitt romney winning new hampshire actually needs an asterisk, because mitt romney winning new hampshire was a foregone conclusion. not because mitt romney is the front-runner, because mitt romney was ahead or mitt romney had a good campaign. mitt romney winning new hampshire was a foregone conclusion because historically speaking, new hampshire couldn't have been won by anybody other than him. because he's the guy from massachusetts. the guy from massachusetts, whether a republican or democrat, always wins new hampshire. in 2004, john kerry, in 1992, paul songas, michael dukakis, henry cabot lodge, john f. kennedy. when a massachusetts politician is running for president it's a safe bet they will wine in new hampshire. they will win. there are two exemptions to the rule. two exceptions to the massachusetts guy winning in new hampshire in modern political history. 1980, jimmy carter got a primary challenge

host of msnbc's the last word, lawrence o'donnell with us and we have washington anchor and world news america, katty kay with us and pulitzer prize-winning columnist and social editor of the "washington post" and msnbc political analyst, eugene robinson. >> lawrence o'donnell. it's about to get very interesting, newt gingrich is go to put bain capital and mitt romney on trial. what's your take? >> let me see what the "new york times" says about that, joe. because i take my dictation from the "new york times." what does it say. >> it says -- mr. gingrich, who is fighting to keep his presidential aspirations alive. it's, it's a fascinating dilemma for them. rick santorum last night was invited to join this and he didn't. he was on fox news. and he said, just like jon huntsman did here, i'm not going to go there. and it's just fascinating to see republican like gingrich doing it. it makes gingrich the pat buchanan of this campaign. pat buchanan loosened support for president bush when he was running for re-election up here. that's what allowed bill clinton. >> he did tremendous damage to

now it's time for "the last word with lawrence o'donnell." have a great night. >>> tonight, who is the real mitt romney and where does he keep his money? and we'll bring you the gruesome hollywood murder mystery that has los angeles trans fixed. >> conservatives come together. we beat romney. >> all that newt-mentum. >> i want to knock him out. >> i need your help to beat romney. >> today newt did what newt does. >> newt gingrich is ceasing the opportunity to hit him. >> and i think they will do anything. >> dirty, dishonest, and desperate. >> i fully expect the romney campaign to be endlessly dirty and dishonest. >> romney so uncertain about how to handle this tax issue. >> mitt romney is now admitting that he's paying 15% tax rate. >> it being looks like he's hiding something. >> let's get all the facts out there. if you have tax returns to put out, you know, you should put them out and put them out sooner rather than later. >> this is one of the bigger acts of baloney. >> i think everybody will know that the story is much to do about nothi

o'donnell all liberal commentators. is that something they shouldn't. >> fox network is not a news network. i do opinion journalism. it means you have an opinion. >> megan kelly. >> have you watched her through the republican debates? do you not think she's asked aggressive -- >> i think fox has gotten more aggressive. fox's coverage across the board skew to the right. >> you're going to your larger view. is msnbc no longer a news network if it has commentators doing caucus night. >> yeah, i think it's a left wing echo chamber. that's what these decisions tell me. at these fox debates, the journalists at fox have asked the best questions, toughest, when they asked the candidates would you accept a deficit reduction deal, 10ds spending cuts, $1 tax hikes, that was the defining moment. >> wait until there are democrats, then fox -- >> a key part of tv coverage of the race. we'll talk to two of them about life on the trail. >>> dubbed campaign beds, network producers who follow candidates around. here is a brief look at ni

now it's time for "the last word with lawrence o'donnell." have a great night. >>> president obama has finally found something that he thinks is worth risking an all out war with congressional republicans. a war about one person. that person joins me tonight. >> our message is, you can run but you can't hide. >> he is the one who can defeat barack obama. >> rick santorum is ready to take on barack obama and restore america's greatness. >> the democratic national committee, barack obama. >> we have to have richard cordray in place. >> republicans in the senate have blocked richard's confirmation. >> they don't even want the consumer financial protection bureau. >> i'm very proud of the president of the united states. >> i'm not going to stand by while a niminority in the state- >> they refuse to even give richard an up or down vote. >> republicans just want to have fun. >> this is a quirky process. >> you know the boring white stuck-up guy? >> rick santorum has moved into fourth place. >> he usually wears a sweater vest. >> newt and rick versu

after this show on the last word, lawrence o'donnell breaks down the republican debate fresh and hot, don't miss it. here the most moving piece of video i have seen in a long time. that's next. [ gargling ] oo-ay-ow. savings. savings. savings? progressive was the first to offer online quoting. you can do better. first to show comparison rates. ding! the "name your price" tool. oh! gosh, don't mind if i do. who was the first to offer pet injury coverage? we were. and when did you know you wanted to sell insurance? i said i wouldn't cry. um... whee! it's flo time. now, that's progressive. call or click today. >>> we don't usually do this on this show, but today and in this case i think it's warranted. by now you have heard the news that congress woman gabrielle giffords is stepping down a crazed kid with a handgun and he can tended magazine full of bullets tried to assassinate congress woman giffords, killed six other people, wounded 13. she was shot in the head, grieveously wounded. she has recovered, amazingly since then, but has now decided to step down from congress to focus on her

now it's time for "the last word with lawrence o'donnell." >> the big winner in the iowa caucus is president barack obama. >> it's not a team sport. >> wonder twin powers activate. it's like a form of bitterness. >> i can understand that disappointment. >> you know, i understand the speaker is pretty disappointed. >> having newt out there pounding mitt romney every day. >> i have a target on me now. >> romney is a massachusetts moderate. >> get ready, mitt. the right's coming at you. >> i've got broad shoulders. >> i am really here for one reason and one reason only. >> the massachusetts moderate. >> to make sure that we make mitt romney the next president of the united states of america. >> he's not the most electable candidate. >> let's get that job done. >> he is not going to win the nomination. >> the republican party is becoming the almond joy party. sometimes they feel like a nut. some days they don't. >> i clearly like rick santorum a lot. >> can he deal with the ultimate pro lifer. >> i'm not sure that rick santorum is going to be able to win the new hampshire primary. >> what about

after this show on the last word, lawrence o'donnell breaks down the republican debate fresh and hot, don't miss it. here the most moving piece of video i have seen in a long time. that's next. ♪ h ♪ home was an airport lounge a an ipad ♪ ♪ made sure his credit score did not go bad ♪ ♪ with a free-credit-score-dot-com ♪ ♪ app that he had ♪ downloaded it in the himalayas ♪ ♪ while meditating like a true playa ♪ ♪ now when he's surfing down in chile'a ♪ ♪ he can see when his score is in danger ♪ ♪ if you're a mobile type on the go ♪ ♪ i suggest you take a tip from my bro ♪ ♪ and download the app that lets you know ♪ ♪ at free-credit-score-dot-com now let's go. ♪ vo: offer applies with enrollment in freecreditscore.com™. >>> we don't usually do this on this show, but today and in this case i think it's warranted. by now you have heard the news that congress woman gabrielle giffords is stepping down a crazed kid with a handgun and he can tended magazine full of bullets tried to assassinate congress woman giffords, killed six other people,

. >>> after this show, lawrence o'donnell helps to break down the republican debate fresh and hot, do not miss it. here, the republican chosen to respondent respond to president obama's state in the union address and the mess in his hometown he's dragging into the national spotlight. this seriously is the best day in politics ever. more ahead. >>> i did not know if we were going to be able to find a best new thing in the world today, because, obviously, the best new thing in the world today is what happened in politics today. but the news gods gave us something i never could have expected. the news gods gave us, newt gingrich, no thief. tylenol:nyquil. what are you doing? nyquil (stuffy): just reading your label. wait! you relieve nasal congestion? tylenol: sure. don't you? tylenol (another bottle): hmmm...no... nyquil (stuffy): dude! anncr vo: tylenol cold multi-symptom nighttime relieves nasal congestion... nyquil cold & flu doesn't. but you go in pieces. [ female announcer ] you can't pass mom's inspection with lots of pieces left behind. that's why there's charmin ultra strong. it