. >> and paul wrien. >>> and paul ryan. any leader who the rebels, shall we say, within the republican conference could have, is now aligned with wehner completely. strengths his hand. he's the sole negotiate, whatever he gets from president obama will be the rule of law. and i think what's really emboldened boehner, ironically, mitt romney's loss. it's this idea that john boehner's survived, he's the one who came through. we were able to keep the house. he does get a lot of credit for that among house republican circles, they were able to keep the house. people think -- >> he raised something like 100 million dollars. >> he's the kingmaker. i suspect that, from folks that i've talked to, eric cantor will not be a thorn in boehner's side. eric cantor realizes he has time, niece his 40s, he wants to be the first jewish speaker of the house. sit back, relax, you know what? if boehner becomes unpopular you don't have to lead a charge against him. you can say, well, that's too bad, john, you don't have the support. but he doesn

paul ryan -- paul ryan and i are about the same age. these are different kinds of republicans. they're not afraid of talking to people of color, not afraid of some of these things, some of their parents and grandparents were. this is what i'm saying. democrats have to be careful. barack obama supporting a democrat in 2016 does not mean that democrat's going to get black and latino votes. these democrats are going to have to have solid programs that appeal to these constituencies and fundamental relationships and not be dependent upon the president to carry that water for them. we saw it in 2010. it didn't work. probably won't work again unless these democrats have their own ideas. >> but, david, the democrat in 2016 or even the democrats in the midterm in 2014, i agree, can't depend on the president to deliver votes from latinos or african-americans. but the republicans not being able to expand can only help a candidate win that without having to do much of anything. >> and they're not going to be able to expend in the next two years. it's interesting that tonight these speeche

but wait a minute, that was the old paul ryan, we've got a new and improved paul ryan and he's singing a much different tune. last night in his first address since the republican's defeat, romney gave some veiled criticism of his former running mate's 47% remarks by offering this. >> both parties tend to divide americans into our voters and their voters. let's be really clear. republicans must steer far clear of that trap. we must speak to the aspirations and the anxieties of every american. >> but you didn't. ryan made those remarks at a tribute dinner to the late congressman jack kemp, adding, he's proud of the campaign he and romney ran. ryan's pivot toward compassionate conservatism and a call to action on helping the middle class was echoed by senator marco rubio of florida. he's in on it too. in fact, rubio mentioned the middle class, what, 35 times in his speech? but dave weigel of slate points out, "rubio's many mentions of the key phrase were mostly lead-ins to boilerplate, not any policy proposals." rubio too attempted to distance himself from the 47% remarks by warning of a

i'm so struck seeing paul ryan at the jack kemp dinner. i don't know how you can can idol i idolize rand and jack kemp. jack kemp saying, of course, we don't forget about anyone or leave anyone behind, and ian rand says you leave behind anyone that can't fend for themselves. >> i think it's paul ryan trying now for at least a year to leave rand behind, and he's said -- he's tried to back away from all that. i think when you listen to both ryan and rubio today, this isn't like st. paul getting blinded by a new truth. these guys are practical politicians who saw the damage the 47% did and are changing their rhetoric. most of those speeches were standard conservatism. i think the fact they change the rhetoric is a really big deal. since ronald reagan it's been liberals that adjusted to conservative ideas. the beginning of that was bill clinton saying the era of big government is over. i think this is the first time in three decades where conservatives have been pushed or forced by theç reality of politics and an election results to aadjust

i was up on the hill and saw paul ryan and the others there. i think for all the rhetoric, i think they are becoming to come to terms with reality here. i mean, paul ryan did sign off on this $800 billion tax increase. no, it's not enough. no, it's not done in the format it will need to be in the end. but they have finally chucked or at least reer toicly this long-time insistence. i think they're saying, okay, we lost the election, we are to get down to reality. they are off the cliff but it's an important concessions. >> that's not bad, after four weeks, a general realization of reality. >> today we heard john sununu echo his candidate's 47% remarks. also there's this editorial from the great ted nugent on how to resolve the fiscal cliff. the nug says, let's stop the insanity by suspending the right to vote of any american who's on welfare. how effectiveç is voter suppression good at cushing insanity? >> this is the first time we've heard from john sununu. probably not the first time we've heard from ted nugent. these are two outliers within

one is, i think my answer is choosing paul ryan to be the vice presidential nominee. just because a, it never gave him the lift that anybody thought it would. he effectively neutered mitt romney, whether it was the stuff with todd aken, or the ryan budget, there was no way to run away from it. >> alex and i were on the same wavelength, picking paul ryan was the worst move, and not only for those reasons, but mitt romney went on to lose wisconsin badly. there were questions after paul ryan's debate performance against joe biden of whether he was really ready to step on the stage and be the number two. and i think a lot of people who were thinking about maybe going with romney, not only were they uncomfortable with how far to the right he was, how extreme his positions on social security and medicare, but they also just felt like he was not quite ready for prime time. so i think it was a very bad strategic move for them. >> steve, the worst move? >> let me come at it from a slightly different angle. >> you always do. you don't have to preface that. >> from the standpoin

one is, i think my answer is choosing paul ryan to be the vice presidential nominee. just because a, it never gave him the list that anything thought it would be. he effectively neutered mitt romney, whether it was the stuff with todd akin, or the ryan budget, nowhere to run away from it. >> alex and i were on the same wavelength, picking paul ryan, not only for those reasons, but mitt romney went on to lose wisconsin badly. there were questions after paul ryan's debate performance against joe biden of whether he was really ready to step on the stage and be the number two. and i think a lot of people who thought about going with mitt romney, not only were they uncomfortable with how far to the right he was, how extreme his positions on social security and medicare, but they also just felt like he was not quite ready for prime time. so i think it was a very bad strategic move for them. >> steve, the worst move? >> let me come at it from a strategic move. >> we always do that. >> it is the booze talking, i don't know. from the standpoint of voters who -- you know, i thi

paul ryan, who ran for vice president, the keynote speaker. at the dinner he also had someone with him. someone we are familiar with, senator marco rubio from florida. here is mr. ryan talking about the american dream. >> we need to carry on and keep fighting for the american idea. believe that everyone should have the opportunity to rise. to escape from poverty. to achieve whatever your god-given talents and hard work enable you to achieve. jenna: paul ryan says that for too many americans, that promises not being met. marco rubio saying that big government cannot substitute for a thriving free economists. >> it is a supporting role. that enables prosperity and our private economy. that is a crucial role, but a necessarily limited one into karl cameron is live in washington. you just took off brit hume's coat. how is it possible that we are talking about the 2016 presidential campaign? >> it is not too early. all the way back in 1992, on election day day itself, it was jack kemp who is talking about 1996. we were watching that campaign. last

and we haven't even mentioned paul ryan and his brutal budget of austerity. so republicans are having trouble deciding who really is the primary negotiator. the second requirement, again, according to law enforcement, is that hostage negotiators must minimize any background distractions. but for the last three weeks, republicans have engaged in a pointless pursuit of u.n. ambassador susan rice. instead of focusing on the fiscal cliff and without the president ever saying that he plans to promote miss rice to secretary of state, republicans have preferred this distraction to the core task of negotiations. and now comes the third essential component to a successful negotiation. it is to isolate and contain the hostage taker, and this is exactly what the president has done. speaker boehner has not offered anything more than what mitt romney tried to sell throughout the election campaign, and the people voted against him. and now the president has speaker boehner cornered and isolated like never before. according to law enforcement, these strategies of

paul ryan was one of the only [applause] kemp right now. him are. economic challenges and currently faces. vibrant american middle class a vibrant middle class. in the history of the world, american middle class. make it to the middle class. today, there is this growing opportunity gap developing. millions of americans worry they may never achieve middle- class and i, one of the fundamental challenges is to find an appropriate and sustainable role for government. the key to a vibrant middle families and enjoy leisure time, save for retirement, and pay for education so they can grow up earning more than their parents. this. the weekend the american economy is not creating any jobs of any kind -- enough jobs of any kind. to many americans cannot have the skills they need. the path to a prosperous middle class is a combination of a vibrant economy that creates and positive role. federal policies on the national debt, taxes and regulations, allclass job creation. opening and growing a business. they are afraid of getting hit with a massive tax increase

jack kemp and paul ryan are the exceptions. toward the end of the campaign, paul's staff called me and said, paul really wants to talk out on an anti-poverty agenda. could you organize an event in ohio that would bring the leaders from around the state who have experience transforming not only lives but also revitalizing neighborhoods. i identified 20 people and sent him to hit -- send them to his staff. they had to be vetted and secret service looked over the list of names. i got this call from paul's staff that says, three other people -- three people out of the can you send me had criminal records. i said, i am shocked. i thought all of them had criminal records. i said, do not worry. they have been redeemed and baptized. everything will be just fine. i said, trust me on this one. one of them at the round table, they came there are with tattoos on with his wife of 30 years on his harley, he was one of our stars. he said to me, do you think it is ok if we just prayed and laid hands on paul? i said, i am not sure that works wi

the two on the budget committee voted against paul ryan's budget. the chairman of the budget committee. speaker boehner issued these punishments with the full support of the republican leadership including the majority leader eric cantor and majority whip kevin mccarthy. jonathan capehart, this is fascinating. i am interpreting this as a positive thing for president obama and the democrats in an attempt to at some point either before or after going off the cliff, reaching some kind of deal with boehner. what boehner's message seems to be to these conservatives willing to vote for something because it is not conservative enough. i need better team players if i'm going to walk back from the white house with a deal. i need your vote on it. >> right. by removing the two from the house budget committee, they basically, what he's doing is putting in people who will do what he says. people who will get him the votes out of the budget committee that would then make it possible for him to take it to the floor and get a big vote. we will see it as much as las

. >> and paul ryan is another guy to watch. he is the guy who has the real support of the house conservatives and a lot of people who don't love boehner, they love paul ryan and ryan at the final minute of plan b and he was whipping for plan b and came out in support of plan b, and if paul ryan the most high profile guy who could be a consensus candidate against boehner is not even interested. >> if the president gets it through, doesn't this mean that going forward he has to negotiate with mitch mcconnell and what is the point of talking to the house republicans at this poi point? >> you to include john boehner because he is the speaker of the house, and in control of of the house, but you are making a fair point that the power of the republicans to drive the debate is being under question right now, and we are not sure how boehner can do it moving forward coming to the debt ceiling, and people will look at this experience on the fiscal cliff as an example of how john boehner may or may not drive the discussion. >> and also at

>> if i was paul ryan, i would want to be something else. if i was selected vice president and i got slaughtered in my -- and my candidate got slaughtered in my home state, i would be looking to have a makeover also. i don't blame him. i think that senator rubio could run on anything he wants. i agree. if he wants to run on economic expertise, perceived economic expertise, it's a good thing for him to do it. he should do that. it's apparently what he believed before. if he wants to change his mind, that's his business too. i don't fault any of these guys. and 2016, the political commentators, the more politics, the better it is. >> looks like we're starting tonight, james ryan. >> yeah, all for it. he's great. >> this is actually a really interesting development, in my view. i think if you're looking at paul ryan, one thing you hear from folks in the ryan camp, is that he was very eager to talk about poverty and a new war on poverty during the romney campaign. but he didn't have much of an opportunity because the romney folks were so risk-av

the number one googled item about paul ryan was "paul ryan shirtless." so thanks, p90x. >> the worst way to show your true colors. the guy who had the romney/ryan logo tattooed on his face. hey, pal, ever hear of bumper stickers? best fund-raising. both sides stuffed their piggy banks until they squealed. total amount raised and spent by the parties and their supporters, nearly $6 billion, or enough to hire 3,600 extra teachers for ten years. just saying. worst running mates. other republican candidates who crushed their party's hope for taking the senate with comments about women, rape, and abortion. not that democrats exactly thrilled america either. worst thing in all of politics, once again this year, the united states congress. which, according to gallup, voters trust now just slightly more than car dealers. >> the good thing for congress, there's nowhere to go but up. >> they have no faith in the government at all. >> best way to keep the polls going down, that delaying tactic called sequestration. neither party wanted to tackle tough budget issues

there's nothing in the paul ryan budget that calls for cuts. it's just as we are not willing to increase. remember, the president in his opening discussion, talked about three to $50 billion worth of cuts. they are -- $350 billion worth of cuts. they are not really cuts. it is a decrease in growth. it is not as if we are not going to continue to spend money. on the paul ryan budget, the medicaid portion, simply block grants to the states, and increases the amount every month because of inflation and population growth. he is not about cutting things, but moving the growth rate to something sustainable. these programs will be bankrupt in a decade we do not do something. you can not willy-nilly raise taxes to cover it. there is not enough money. host: from twitter -- capital gains could be taxed the same as income from work, including text for social security and medicare. gee, i disagree, because you want people to -- guest: i disagree, because you want people to invest, and with capital gains, you do not know if you will win or lose money. you n

host: why did he choose congressman paul ryan? guest: to a certain extent he was pressured into doing it by the mainstream republican establishment. i can tell you from the perspective of chicago, i was ridiculed a lot when i reported this, but they were really worried about tim pawlenty and they felt they could deliver some of those midwestern states in a way to ryan did not. ryan did not deliver his home state or even come close. towards the tail end of the campaign, he was not much of a presence. host: the announcement came at 9:00 in the morning, the last day of the olympics. why the timing? why not wait until the following week? if you're going to select congressman ryan, run on the rhine and budget. guest: they wanted to get it in before then but there was the massacre at the sikh temple. i don't know exactly what the study on why they did not wait, but i think romney saw a lot of himself in ryan. serious, cares about policy and ideas. i think he saw him as someone who could be a respectable running mate to help him politica

and the fact that even paul ryan and mitt romney ran away from entitlement cuts in paul ryan's budget in the last election i think is a sign of where the american public is. they do want the rich to pay their fair share in taxes, but they really don't like a lot of the entitlement cuts. >> that's a fair point. that's a fair point. >> the entitlements affect everybody, to some extent. >> look. in response to what you were just saying about the fact these savings don't really kick in for ten years. that say legitimate point. look what we did in 1982. tip o'neil sat down with the most conservative president and one of the most liberal speakers of the house. when they reached that deal, today, we are reaping huge savings from that, so those savings ten years, 20 years, 30 years from now, those are going to be enormous. the problem is we keep punting every time we come to this and the most important factor in the budget is the fact that we got 80 million baby boomers that will be retiring in the next 20 years. >> as we found out, new immigrants aren't having as many kids so who is going to

i want to do a phrase first to describe paul ryan's performance tonight. let's start in the back. shawn began this by talking about biden's interrupting and occasional laughing. did you guys see that? was it obvious to you? >> i will tell you what is obvious, his agenda. wonder why he's praising the ad. >> there's an ad that we tested a week ago. it's one of the best ads of the week ago. >> it's no surprise fox guest pushing agenda but now we have a contributor getting paid from a candidate and the conflicts of interests are all over the place. this is a political outfit that affects what happens inside the party. joining me now is aaron bola are rte. senior fellow and joe madison, nationally syndicated radio host for the power. thank you both for joining me tonight. >> thank you. >> eric, secretly receiving money, be you reported that story. what is your reaction? >> media matters broke this story and it's painful to look at the facts. i mean, here's what is supposed to be a news analyst and he's getting paid to say how great even paul ryan is doing. and -- >> and being paid by t

. >> so paul ryan is the person who has the support of the house of speakers. those who don't like boehner, don't love boehner, they love paul ryan. he was whipping plan b. so paul ryan, probably the most high-profile guy who could be a consensus candidate getz boehner. he's not running against barren. he's not even interesting. >> if the president get this through, and it i know it's a big if -- he has to know goes yags. >> you're always going to have to include john boehner. he's speaker of the house. i think you're making a fair point that the power of house republicans to drive the debate is being underquestioned right now. people are going to look to this experience as to how john bane err may or may not be able to drive this discussion. >> sam, on this kind of deal, there's always last-minute horse trading. things get thrown on the paper and the base finds out and gets upset. what gets him upset when he's trying to get it done by the end of the year. >> the likely thing that will get him peaked would be the tax rates. my guess is that in the process of tr

paw ryan, paul ryan budget mfte out yesterday saying he's in favor of plan b. all of them together after the election whipping, is the republican party still looked at as the party of economic growth? the message you outlined with which i basically agree, that jack kemp sends a message, keep tax rates -- flat tax -- has the gop lost that message? >> they certainly don't articulate it to the extent we would like. they tend to leap right into the details and forget to frame the case, and you hear this all the time. if you listen to talk radio. not the republican talk radio, but anywhere else, if they're reporting on a news event, and it's unfortunate, because, really, what the republicans are about is helping those 23 million americans who don't have a job get a job, and obama is spending more money taking it out of the private secretarier into more government spending is not the way to get us to 4% growth. >> just capping deductions, gone from the private sector to the -- great point. keith boykin, back to you. you heard what heather said, what congressman schoc

ryan is the last boyscout of the republican party but i somehow or would have just called paul ryan's stupid as eisenhower wrote to his brother edgar in one nine hundred fifty four she'd any political party attempt to abolish social security unemployment insurance and eliminate labor laws think michigan rick snyder and farm programs you would not hear that party again in our political history there's a tiny splinter group of course that believes you can do these things if you texas oil millionaires and an occasional politician or businessman from other areas their number is negligible and they are stupid as barlow told me republicans used to care about helping poor people the republican party through reagan and the first president bush. didn't want to abolish the well first they also believe that if you were going to spend money you had to raise the taxes to pay for every republican until george w. bush was willing to support tax increases to pay for government and rush limbaugh's republican party of today is tragically i mean we really need two parties in a dynamic debate between and

. >> and road to 2016, congressman paul ryan and senator marco rubio drop big hints at last night's dinner honoring jack kemp. >> you know any good diners in new hampshire or iowa, right? >> paul, thank you for your invitation for lunch in iowa and new hampshire, but i will not stand by and watch the people of south carolina ignored. ♪ >> and take five, to remember one of the greatest innovators jazz has known, composure dave brubeck, died a day short of his 92nd birthday. ♪ >> good day. i'm andrea mitchell live in washington. we begin with the fallout from a senate vote that seemed to underscore everything that is wrong with capitol hill. the senate's rejection of an international treaty to guarantee equal rights for people with disabilities based on what has been american law since the first bush presidency 22 years ago. the treaty supported by every democrat and eight republicans, came five votes short of passage of the required 66 needed for ratification. 38 republicans voted no despite the return to the floor of former majority leader bob dole only days out of the hospital. there

he was a mentor to paul ryan. you know, ryan got the award last year, the first year this foundation gave out the award. rubio got it this year. >> ryan and rubio talked about as potential contenders for 2016. and they even joked about it. >> they did. right off the bat. in both their speeches both guys got it out of the way. here's what they said. >> as you may know, marco is joining an elite group of past recipients fors this past award. two of us so far. i'll see you at the reunion dinner. table for two. know any good diners in new hampshire or iowa. >> paul, thank you for your invitation for lunch in iowa or new hampshire, but i will not stand by and watch the people of south carolina ignored. >> i don't have to tell you this, you're from iowa, iowa and new hampshire and south carolina traditionally lead off the presidential primary and caucus calendar. listen, it will be a lot of talk about these guys, in the spotlig spotlight, but 2016 a long way away. >> marco rubios has already been to iowa. >> already. >>

we found out both senator rob portman and paul ryan were against doing that ad. they wanted something though on the bailout. >> portman wanted something. >> something much earlier on but not that ad that played the whole china card. paul ryan wanted to do an ad earlier on framing the issue in janesville, his hometown, where there was a shuttered gm plant. the romney campaign trying to play catch-up at the end of the campaign and address issues that should have been addressed months ago where romney was on the auto bailout. they never wanted to talk about it because there was a thought that's playing into obama's terrain, let's not go there. >> the most interesting thing that i think has not been reported, if you will, there wasn't a lot of in-fighting in romney world. was there not disagreement? did everybody just buy into the stewart way of doing things? >> stewart was a fairly polarizing figure but comparatively to other campaigns, they did get along pretty well. we found out that ed gillespie at the end of the campaign was trying to do more with hispanics and

. >> equally as important, you have the chairman of the ways and means committee, paul ryan paul ryan is the budget, you can have anybody from the senate, you have to basically sit down and do this in a very serious way. the fiscal cliff come as you have said, it is a man-made crisis. it is not a real crisis we wn

here comes paul ryan now. oh, look at him. he's vowing to help americans rise up from poverty and he's slamming his old pal mitt's 47% comments. what a change. okay, who's next? none other than senator marco rubio. a few weeks ago he was proudly standing with mitt romney and he and agreed on tax reform. look at him today. he's mr. middle class. >> middle class. >> middle class. >> middle class. >> and we have a very special guest makeover. it's rick santorum. earlier in the year he ran for president on an anti-immigration platform. and look at this. now he's saying immigration will bring economic growth to america. incredible makeover. but stop the music. the entire party is trying to cover up who they really are inside. the policies haven't changed is all rhetoric. like most makeovers, the gop is only skin deep. joining me now is abby huntsman, producer of huff post live and dr. james peterson at lihi university and contributor to the grio.com. what do you make of these republican makeovers? >> well, they are not makeovers. t

. >> paul ryan is not the guy to watch, right? so paul ryan is the guy who has the real support of the house conservatives. a lot of people don't like boehner, they love paul ryan. now ryan, at the final minute, remember, he was with you for plan b. paul ryan, probably the most high profile guy, he's not running against boehner. he's not even interested. >> but robert, if the president gets this through, and i know that's a big if, doesn't this mean going forward, he just has to negotiate with mitch mcconnell? >> i mean, you always are going to have to include john boehner. he's a speaker of the house and a republican's control of the house. but i think you're making a fair point that the power to drive debate is being under-questioned right now. we're not sure how he can do it moving forward. people are going to look to this experience as how john boehner may or may not be able to drive this discussion. >> on this deal, things get thrown on to the table and then the base finds out and they get upset. what is a president's base go

paul ryan's speech was about building the ladders out of poverty. senator rubio had a great message about how he came from a family, the same story he told at the convention but it is incredibly powerful, how his parents were in cuba, they came here, i believe worked in the hospitality business, his father was a hotel bartender and he talked about the people in this country, on would shoulders we, really, stand. the service industry, the hotel tremendous, people working construction, wherever they are, people who are trying to earn a living, they come here to do it. and certainly immigration is a kit california issue. it needs to be addressed. and building a strong middle class from everyone who wants to live in this unique experiment in history, the united states of america. >>eric: thank you, jimmy concern, the jack kemp foundation founder and son of the great conservative jack kemp. thank you, sir. did babs make a boo-boo? medicare open enrollment. time to compare plans and costs. you don't have to make changes. but it never hurts to see if you c

chairman paul ryan's thought is that it meets that criteria. robert reich, there is paul ryan, suddenly now he is forced to say he is in favor of this one. and he may find himself the thing tomorrow he is in favor of is unable to be brought to a vote in the house if john boehner can't round up those votes. >> absolutely, i mean, if you have grover norquist and you have paul ryan saying that this is okay for republicans. it is okay to raise taxes over a million dollars. it is not okay to raise taxes over 250 million, what is the principle here? what are we trying to uncover as the traditional republicanism, particularly when there is no hint on the table. i mean, there is nothing there. there is no principle on the table. i don't know how they can say with a straight face, not only to republicans and to independent america, we have a principled position with regard to deficit reduction and avoiding the fiscal cliff. >> governor dean, through a different approach, you have ended up in basic agreement with "the wall street journal," they're saying

that is the test for marco rubio and paul ryan. >> what about chris christie and bobby jindal? >> christie is in temporary quarantine because of his behavior in the last week of the election. he is in talk. -- detox. >> detox on the jon stewart show. >> you have bobby jindal, kelly ayotte, ted cruz -- unless you are barack obama, you don't imagine yourself as president before you even serve in this and it. [laughter] he will have to wait. obama, of course, is the one exception. but this is a strong young outfield. mitch daniels and in jeb bush on the outside. what this tells you is what could have been in 2012. you remember the line of it republican candidates earlier this year, it was not exactly a credit to the party. and 20 debate heard them. -- hurt them. >> the quarantined governor christie and the new jersey has a 72% favorable job rating among his constituents, the highest ever recorded by quinnipiac -- i mean, of any governor of any state. whenever republicans have done to shun him has worked very well in the garden state. [laughter] >> what about some of these other na

paul ryan, for instance. but there's also names i think are particularly interesting on this state level right now that have some real national potential appeal. particularly juan who is the san antonio mayor, he has been talked about as a potential national figure and has also potentially could be really elevated with a 2014 memory coming out and camilla harris, the attorney general out of california. she has some big aspirations people tell us and the democratic operatives with the eye on her noted she could be a potential eric holder, attorney general or a national political figure. >> well, you mentioned a look at the states and put my nominee in there. i have to mention it. i love when the old folks manage to stay relevant. i think this is a great story out of california. jerry brown. age 74. he's been in politics for like 50 years. his father was the governor in the '60s and he managed something incredible this year in california. ungovernable state, he went out and campaigned for a tax hike and the vot