IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

PoliticsNation, Friday, Decemeber 2, 2011

Read the transcript from the Friday show

Guests: Donna Edwards, Lee Saunders, Hilda Solis, Joe Madison, Bob Franken,
Adam Green, Ethan Porter

REV. AL SHARPTON, HOST: Newt Gingrich won`t back down. The GOP war
on the poor and middle class continues as Newt stands by his attacks. But
he knows better than what he`s saying now, and I`ll show you that tonight.

Attacking Elizabeth Warren, a new plan by Wall Street to take her
down. But we`re exposing it tonight.

And this is progress. The president`s relentless fight for jobs is
working despite Republican roadblocks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Now is not the time to
slam the brakes on the recovery. Right now it`s time to step on the gas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Welcome to POLITICS NATION. I`m Al Sharpton.

Tonight`s lead, growing outrage over an insult to poor children in
this country from the man now leading in the Republican presidential race.
Newt Gingrich is standing by his attacks on the poor. In fact, he`s
repeating them.

Here`s what he first said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Really poor children in
really poor neighborhoods have no habits of working and have nobody around
them who works. They have no habit of, I do this and you give me cash,
unless it`s illegal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Poor kids have no habits of working? That`s outrageous.

But when Newt went on Fox News to explain himself, he didn`t back
down, he doubled down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINGRICH: Think about somebody who grows up in neighborhood where
nobody goes to work, they live in a housing project where there`s no
examples of success, they don`t acquire any of the habits.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: You should know better than that, Newt. In fact, you do
know better. I know, because I was there with you.

Newt, you and I traveled to inner city schools across the country to
promote an education initiative back in 2009. You talked to these kids,
Newt. You know they are working hard. You know their parents are working
hard.

But as I said last night, Newt`s not alone. He`s repeating the
central principle of this mean-spirited Republican Party: protect the rich,
attack the poor.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JIM DEMINT (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: They are getting unemployment
and they are getting food stamps, and they say, call me when unemployment
runs out. We also have to realize, there are a lot of people gaming the
system right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Our nation needs
to stop doing for people what they can and should do for themselves. Self-
reliance means if anyone will not work, neither should he eat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If you don`t have a job and
you`re not rich, blame yourself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Corporations are people, my
friend. We can raise taxes -- of course they are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Republicans can`t admit it, but the poor are some of the
hardest-working people in America. 7.6 million people work more than one
job. Nearly 300,000 -- 300,000 -- hold down two-full-time jobs. They are
working nights and weekends, 80 hours a week or more, just to make ends
meet.

4.3 million people earn the federal minimum wage or less. That`s
$7.25 an hour. That`s a yearly salary of $15,000.

How do you feed a family with $15,000 a year? How do you feed a
family when nobody`s hiring?

These people are being ridiculed and attacked by the Republican Party.
NBC News has been collecting some of their stories all year long. Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Angel (ph) was laid off as a
building manager. The condo complex where he worked foreclosed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a nightmare.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s really hard.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re trying. The main thing, that we`re trying.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We`ve got to feed the kids. We`ve got to pay
the bills. What is more important? We make $42 too much to get on food
stamps.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don`t want to have to depend on people,
because I`ve always worked, and since I was 15. With everything happening,
the washing machine broke and the roof needed to be fixed, sometimes you`ve
got to do what you`ve got to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: If it sounds like I`m angry about it, I am, because these
people in many communities around this country, the working poor that are
putting in more hours than some of those that the government bailed out
after they went and did the economy in, now they have to be humiliated and
insulted?

Do you know how hard it is to get up and do two jobs? Do you know how
hard it is to try to feed a family by stringing together minimum wages? Do
you know how hard it is to look at your children and they are looking at
Christmas lists that you can`t provide, and then you go to bail out
billionaires and spit in the face of the working poor?

It`s not fair. It`s not right. And it shouldn`t go unanswered.

Joining me now is Congresswoman Donna Edwards, Democrat from Maryland,
and Lee Saunders, secretary/treasurer of the American Federation of State,
County and Municipal Employees, the nation`s largest union for public
service workers.

Thank you both for joining me.

REP. DONNA EDWARDS (D), MARYLAND: Thank you.

LEE SAUNDERS, SECRETARY/TREASURER, AMERICAN FEDERATION OF STATE,
COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES: Thank you.

SHARPTON: Congresswoman, this is emotional to me. What does this say
about this political season, that now, all of these candidates are just
taking turns slapping around people that seemingly they feel can`t defend
themselves?

EDWARDS: Well, you know, Al, I`m outraged, too. I mean, you
described it as a war. It`s a frontal attack on the poor, people who get
up every day and go to work, but who are still poor in this country and who
just want to take care of themselves and their children. I mean, it is
outrageous, and nobody who says the things that Newt Gingrich has said and
some of these other candidates have said deserve to be president of the
United States.

SHARPTON: Lee Saunders, you represent the largest public service
workers in the country in terms of the public sector. And you and I have
known each other, worked together, traveled together, marched together.
You had an outstanding victory in Ohio this year.

Public employees are the backbone of the middle class and the backbone
of this country, and yet they are acting like they are the ones that are
getting a handout here rather than putting a hand in.

SAUNDERS: Well, we are getting a handout, Al, as you well know. We
are playing by the rules every single day, providing essential public
services to the citizens of this country. Yet, we`re being scapegoated
every day by folks like Gingrich and his cronies, who say that the services
that they provide are not important.

For him to suggest -- and it`s an outrageous suggestion, and it`s even
vicious -- for him to suggests that children can take the place of workers,
of janitors in schools, it`s just completely off the charts. And he is
living on a different planet. So what he`s suggesting is that we`re going
to lay off the mothers and the fathers and employ the children, and we are
a better country than that.

SHARPTON: You know, Congresswoman, he said in one of the statements
that they live in housing developments and there`s no one in the
neighborhood that they show with a work ethic or that are symbols of
success that work. I can take him to any number of housing developments
anywhere you want in the country. And you know what? At the time to go to
work in the morning is the time you see people flooding out of the
buildings.

Most people in these developments are going to work and trying to make
ends meet. Yes, there are bad elements in some of these communities, but
they are not the only symbols in the community, and they are the, in many
cases, the ones that the hardworking people are preyed upon. So, for them
to be victimized twice is, to me, something that is beyond a pardonable
political sin.

EDWARDS: Well, you know, Reverend, you and I both know that most poor
people in this country get up every single day and go to work. And they
don`t just go to work at one job, they go to work at multiple jobs.
Sometimes even their young children who are teenagers have to work to also
help out the family.

You know, the benefits that they described, the supplemental benefits,
the food stamps that families receive, $134 a month for a family? Let`s
see Newt Gingrich take $134 a month and buy bread and eggs and oatmeal and
all of the things that it takes to feed a family. I know he couldn`t do
it.

I challenge him to take $134 a month that food stamp recipients
receive and go to the grocery store and buy his groceries, and let`s see
how he gets along. He has no idea how poor people work so hard in this
country. And it`s disgusting that he`s chosen to attack them instead of
going after the wealthiest one percent in this country and saying it`s time
for you to pay your fair share.

SHARPTON: Well, the wealthiest in the country can pay you $60,000 for
a speech and poor people can`t.

But, Lee, let me come back to you. I said earlier, I toured --
President Obama challenged Newt Gingrich and I since we agreed on education
to tour together. I toured with Newt Gingrich and Secretary Duncan.

We went to a school -- let me show you. We`re here at a school in
Philadelphia, in a city, poor neighborhood. These are the kids he`s
talking about. That`s why I know he knows better.

All of their parents worked. All of these kids had a work ethic and
wanted to grow up and be somebody. How do I know? Because Newt and
Secretary Duncan and I talked to them.

This is using the baiting of poor people and class warfare to play to
the cheap margins of American politics. That`s why I`m so mad, and that`s
why you are right when you talk about public workers are being scapegoated.
These people know better than this. They are paying to people`s basic
instincts to try to divide this country.

SAUNDERS: That`s exactly right, Al. And we should be angry. We
should be frustrated. But we`ve got to channel that energy and channel
that anger to develop coalitions all across this country, and develop a
Main Street movement.

And you and I have been traveling all across the country doing just
that, where laborers coming together, civic associations is coming
together, the clergy is coming together, students, and retirees. We`ve got
to make our voices heard like never before.

What they are suggesting is taking this country backwards rather than
moving it forwards. And we`ve got to speak out very loud and very clear
and make our voices heard.

SHARPTON: Congresswoman, if you look at the GOP 2012 budget, Paul
Ryan`s budget, passed by the House in April, 2011, two-thirds of the cuts,
$2.9 trillion, come from low-income programs. $2.9 trillion come from low-
income programs like Medicaid, food stamps, Pell Grants, low-income
housing.

I mean, it`s war on the working class and working poor. And on top of all
of that, now I`m going to insult you and say all you do is illegal things
and you don`t have a work ethic.

EDWARDS: Well, that`s right. I mean, when I heard the comments about
crime, I mean, it`s so disgusting.

I mean, I see people every day, and they just get up and they work
hard, and they try to take care of their families. I remember when I was
in the same situation. Did I like the idea that I had to go to a food
pantry to supplement my -- the food in my household for my son? I didn`t
like it, but I did it because I had to do it even though I was working
every single day.

That`s what people do in this country, and that`s what they continue
to do. And I just think Americans know, whether you`re middle class or
you`re the working poor, you know how hard you work. And it`s time for us
to say enough of this attack on poor people and on the middle class in this
country, and it`s time for us to take the argument back.

SHARPTON: Well, Lee Saunders, I`ve been to Cleveland with you, your
native town, where we have fought for workers together. You come out of a
working poor community, and now you are one of the heads of the one of the
largest unions in the world, the largest in the country.

This Friday, you and I have 25 cities mobilizing. This is why we`re
fighting. We know better, and we`ve got to do better as a country for
these people, not demonize these people that have been forced through
outsourcing and layoffs to live a life that makes them struggle when they
ought to be living more in the abundance of this country.

SAUNDERS: And that`s why it`s so important, Al, that we are forming
those coalitions and we are meeting with organizations all over this
country. And we`re saying that what these Republicans are saying is
absolutely wrong.

It`s vicious. It`s outrageous. And we`ve got to fight back, and
we`ve got to organize like never before.

The 2012 elections, what will be taking place in Washington, D.C., and
across the states, in governors` houses and state legislatures, we`ve got
to be prepared like never before to vote, to participate in that political
process, so this nonsense doesn`t move forward.

SHARPTON: Well, it seems like that`s their strategy, but our strategy
is we are going to fight. We owe it to ourselves, and we owe it to those
that stand in need of a fair and balanced economic system, not those that
talk fair and balanced while they beat on those that have made this country
what it is.

Congresswoman Edwards, Lee Saunders, thank you both for your time.

EDWARDS: Thank you.

SAUNDERS: Thank you.

SHARPTON: Ahead, in the face of all the Republican roadblocks, the
president`s fight for jobs and working class is breaking through.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: We are going to make the dream that all Americans share real
once again. And that starts right now. It starts with you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: But before you rejoice, the job-killer himself, Willard
Romney, hit the spin zone.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROMNEY: This is the slowest recovery we`ve seen since Hoover. He`s
going to try to put a silver lining in a very dark cloud. He`s going to
have a hard time putting perfume on this pig.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Poor Willard. He`s had a bad week.

And long before the 99 percent movement, there was the ultimate Wall
Street fighter, Elizabeth Warren. She`s surging, and the bankers are
scared. We`ll show you what they are doing.

You`re watching POLITICS NATION on MSNBC.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SHARPTON: At least once a day a Republican will say something
hypocritical that I just have to laugh.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JEFF FLAKE (R), ARIZONA: I just think they are wrong.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are what?

FLAKE: I think they are wrong. I think that unless we have the
courage right now to address entitlement reform, we shouldn`t be extending
the payroll tax holiday.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: We shouldn`t help American workers unless we deal with
entitlement. Where was this fiscal responsibility when you were fighting
for the Bush tax cuts?

But he`s not the only one.

Last night, the Senate GOP, the U.S. Senate GOP, blocked a payroll tax
cut that would have helped 160 million Americans. Every Republican except
one voted to protect millionaires and billionaires.

This is what President Obama is fighting against.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Congress needs to extend the payroll tax cut for working
Americans for another year. Now is not the time to slam the brakes on the
recovery. Right now, it`s time to step on the gas.

We need to get this done. And I expect that it`s going to get done
before Congress leaves. Otherwise, Congress may not be leaving, and we can
all spend Christmas here together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: But his crusade to help this economy is working despite the
efforts against him. Look at this.

We`ve had 21 straight months of private sector job growth. This is
the best year for businesses since 2006. And now unemployment is below 9
percent, at its lowest since March of 2009.

Can you imagine where we`d be if Republicans were actually interested
in helping the economy?

Joining me now is Hilda Solis, secretary of labor.

Secretary Solis, where would we be if Americans had the pleasure of
Republicans working together, willing to rebuild this economy?

HILDA SOLIS, SECRETARY OF LABOR: Well, it sure would be nice if we
could do as the president said and have everyone work together before the
year`s end to pass the payroll tax extension that will help 160 million
families not have to worry about paying higher taxes. And, in addition,
saving those families, five million people who will be cut off from
unemployment insurance, unless we do nothing for next year. There would be
a real dismal Christmas for a lot of people, and the year that we`re coming
into wouldn`t look so hopeful.

So I`m hoping that we can get people together, because, in fact, the
president has worked very hard. And just last year at the same time,
Reverend, if you recall, the unemployment rate was 9.8 percent.

SHARPTON: Right.

SOLIS: And it has gone down, and we have created well over three
million private sector jobs in this economy on the average for 21 months.
You could say that 160,000 private sector jobs have been created. And you
cannot compare that to the Bush administration, when, in his time, we only
created 11,000 jobs per month.

SHARPTON: Now, how do you explain these Republicans? I mean, what
are we doing? Everything to them seems partisan politics. It seems like
that`s all they see.

How do you deal with this, Secretary Solis?

SOLIS: You know, I have to go straight to the people. And I`ve been
spending most of my time out in neighborhoods, talking to people in
community centers, at unemployment centers, people looking for jobs.

And you know what? It is very important that we keep those people
that have lost their jobs engaged, and that we make sure they come in for
services.

And number one, we have to extend the unemployment insurance. It puts
food on the table, puts gasoline in their cars so they can go look for
jobs. It keeps them on the road of recovery, and that`s what we have to
do. And this president is creating jobs.

I want to tell you that, today, he was out with President Clinton
talking about making investments, talking about we can`t wait for Congress,
making investments in energy production, and modernizing our facilities,
and putting people who lost their jobs in construction, people that have
been hit really hard for the past two years back to work.
I don`t hear any resolution on the part of the Republican members right now
except that, oh, we`ve got to take care of that one percent of high-income
earners that are not paying their fair share of taxes.

SHARPTON: Well, it seems like they are active in blocking. Look at
all that the president has tried to do. The American Jobs Act, blocked. A
bill for teachers and firefighters, blocked. A payroll plan that kills
200,000 government jobs proposed.

I mean, then when -- they can`t even get their partisan spin together.
Let me show you what happened this morning when Willard Mitt Romney tries
to act as though this means nothing, and they couldn`t even get their
talking points together with him on Fox.

Let me show you this exchange, Secretary Solis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do you make of it? This is going to be a
boost for Barack Obama, right?

ROMNEY: Well, we`ve had three years of Barack Obama`s presidency.
This is the slowest recovery we`ve seen since Hoover. He`s going to try
and put a silver lining in a very dark cloud. He`s going to have a hard
time putting perfume on this pig.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So we look at 8.6, but it`s below 9 percent, which
is at least going in the right direction for the country.

ROMNEY: I mean, it`s very good news, obviously, going into the
holiday season, people are shopping again. So very good news that the
unemployment rate is down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: I mean, somebody didn`t give Willard the memo. He says you
can`t put perfume on this pig. Even the show host there at Fox says, well,
it`s going in the right direction, and all of a sudden it was good news.

I mean, do these people stop at anything when it comes to what helps
people work? I mean, we know it`s an election but, my God.

SOLIS: The reality, Reverend, is that the numbers do indicate that
there has been positive increase in private sector job creation almost
across the board. The only sector -- and you well know this -- that we
haven`t seen recovery has been in those hard-pressed areas like
construction and manufacturing, to a certain extent, but also in local and
state government.

And that`s what we have to do, continue to make sure that we help
people, we make those investments, we get people trained up, and we don`t
allow people to be disengaged, that we keep them in the job market and
looking. The other thing in this job report that may not be so revealing
is that there are a lot of people who have decided they are going to start
their own businesses.

SHARPTON: Right.

SOLIS: And they are now becoming entrepreneurs. They will also show
up in our reports in a few months, and we are going to see that some people
are just taking the bull by the horn and saying, I`m creating my own job.

SHARPTON: We must also keep fighting, because there`s still a lot of
room, we still have challenges. African-American unemployment still at
15.5, which is up, 11.4 percent among Hispanics. So the fight is long from
over.

We`re going in the right direction generally. We have specific areas
we must fight. But fight, we must.

SOLIS: Absolutely.

SHARPTON: Secretary Solis, thank you for coming on the show tonight.

SOLIS: Thank you, too, Reverend, for the work you do. Thank you.

SHARPTON: Ahead, the banks are launching a new attack on Elizabeth
Warren. But don`t worry, we`re on to them.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SHARPTON: Folks, you know Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has pushed
some extreme right-wing measures. He`s gutted collective bargaining rights
and slashed budgets, but his latest move is just ridiculous.

His administration is planning an attack against people who protest at
the Capitol, like these people who spoke out against his union-busting
laws. Starting this month, protesters could be forced to pay $50 an hour
for having a police officer at their demonstration. They are also banned
from taping signs up in the Capitol. And groups of four -- just four
people -- will need a permit to demonstrate in the building.

This is a blatant attack on free speech and a flip-flop, because
here`s what Walker said in February.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT WALKER (R), WISCONSIN: First off, I want to begin certainly
acknowledging the thousands of people are outside protesting, many of whom
are from the state of Wisconsin, many more lately have been coming in from
other parts across the country. Certainly now, it`s there right to be
heard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: So Walker used to beg protesters had the right to be heard.
I wonder what changed? Could it be that he`s realized the impact those
protesters had? The movement to recall Walker`s going strong. Organizers
got more than 300,000 recall signatures in 12 days. That`s more than half
of what they need and they have 46 days to go. Governor Walker, you can
push this crazy plan to punish protesters but their message is still
getting out loud and clear. Nice try, Governor, but we got you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SHARPTON: Folks, with less than five weeks to go to Iowa,
unbelievably, the GOP raise is up for grabs. From the start, conventional
wisdom was Willard Romney was the front-runner. But suddenly, it`s all
falling apart. The last five polls all show Gingrich ahead of Romney and
Gingrich is getting cocky.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWT GINGRICH (R), FORMER SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: I`m going to be the
nominee. I mean, that`s very hard to not look at the recent polls and
think that the odds are very high, I`m going to be the nominee.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Romney is feeling the heat. Today, he went on the attack.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: To win the election, you`ve
got to earn it. You`ve got to get out and campaign, sell for grandiosing
statements about polls are not going to win elections. Newt has had a very
extensive long record of working in Washington with various governmental
and nongovernmental agencies. And I just don`t think that`s the background
that is ideally sued one, to replace Barack Obama and number two, to lead
the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Now, Willard can lash out all he wants but more bad news is
heading his way. Herman Cain says, he will make a major announcement about
the future of his campaign tomorrow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am reassessing because of
all of this media firestorm stuff. Why? Because my wife and family comes
first.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: If Cain drops out, it could be real bad for Willard. Cain
is still pushing at eight or nine percent. Now, those voters might have to
go somewhere else. If they like Cain, where did they`ll get a load of
Newt.

Joining me now is Bob Franken, a King Features syndicated columnist
and Joe Madison, host of "Mornings with Madison," on Sirius XM radio.
Thank you both for being here.

JOE MADISON, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Thank you.

SHARPTON: Bob, is Willard in more trouble than he expected?

BOB FRANKEN, KING FEATURES SYNDICATED COLUMNIST: Yes, certainly. He
was sort of hoping that he could both the entire thing by now. But he
keeps on having people who are the ABM candidates. that`s anybody but
Mitt`s candidates who sort of have the circular thing where each of them
has a little bit of time in the sun as an alternative. In the case of Newt
Gingrich, Gingrich is obviously a problem because he`s not a novice and
he`s gotten traction right now, in addition to which, the first election up
it`s not exactly and election, it`s a caucus. But the first result we care
about as Iowa, which is an extremely conservative state. Mitt Romney is
not going to do well, which presumably will mean that Gingrich will get
even more traction.

SHARPTON: Now, Joe, tomorrow Herman Cain is going to announce
whatever he is going to be the next step or not in his campaign. Whether
he stays in or if he drops out, what will the impact of his eight or nine
polling points be in terms of how to fix the outcome of this race, which is
now a Gingrich-Romney race?

MADISON: Well, it also could end up going, some of those votes, to
Perry. I think Perry was on a downward slide also. But Bob is absolutely
right. This favors Newt Gingrich because once again and we can see what
Newt is doing with his outlandish statements that you discussed early in
the program. He is appealing to that Tea Party crowd, to that base and
that`s what you have to do in a primary. Now, it won`t get him through the
general election.

SHARPTON: Well, that`s what I want to know, Joe. That`s the
problem. You`ve got to play to his base in the primary.

MADISON: Right.

SHARPTON: But how does any one of these guys come out and really
compete with President Obama in a general election? What does this say
about the whole crowd and how do they navigate through this primary season
that you`ve outlined, I think accurately, but then have appeal for the
broader American public to face the president, Joe?

MADISON: Look, I think that if the Democrats are smart and they are
in this one -- they`ve got enough sound bites to take them through the
general election and it`s all self-inflicted. That`s exactly what`s
happening here. When they get through -- and they are putting these sound
bites together now. You saw it with Mitt Romney. And it was very
effective. It made him actually go on the defensive with the Democratic
Party that he`s not even running against at this point in time.

SHARPTON: Now, Bob, do you think that there is a strategy that makes
sense for Romney in terms of now he`s coming out attacking Newt? It seems
as though as you said, Iowa is going to be hard for him. What does he do?

FRANKEN: Well, I think what he does is panic. And that`s what I
think we see happening right now. But he`s going to probably have to get
ready for a big fight, he`s going to have to make sure that all the
information about Newt, that`s negative about Newt, and Newt knows a lot of
that. All of that gets out. He`s going to have to play politics as
contact sports, he`s going to have to mix it up, which is not something
he`s wanted to do and was able to get away with it for so long. But I
think we`re all missing a point. And that is, when we talk about Herman
Cain leaving for instance as a possibility that this is going to mean help
for Newt Gingrich. I think we`re missing the point that we`re probably can
expect a Rick Santorum groundswell.

SHARPTON: Bob, you know.

(CROSSTALK)

Do you think that he plays contact politics?

FRANKEN: Oh my gosh, does he? I mean, this guy, if he was playing
football, the field with be littered with yellow flags. That`s the way he
plays. This is somebody who has built a career out of nasty politics and
that`s not about to change.

MADISON: Well, I bet you you`re going to see. And if I were
advising Mitt Romney and, remember when you and Newt Gingrich were
traveling the country together, Al?

SHARPTON: Yes.

MADISON: If I were Mitt Romney, that`s the photograph, that`s the
tape I would show. He`s got to make Newt Gingrich look like he`s more of a
flip-flopper than Mitt Romney as a flip-flopper. And he`s got plenty to do
it with.

SHARPTON: He`s even now flipped on the kids we toured with, with the
president.

MADISON: Absolutely.

SHARPTON: Let me ask you something Joe since you`re in the advice
business. Herman Cain has gone home tonight. If he`s watching, what
advice would you give Herman Cain?

MADISON: Oh, take a large piece of jewelry to your wife and ask her
for your forgiveness. Forget about the presidential campaign. You`ve got
a 43-year marriage that you`ve got to keep together and quite honestly, I
don`t think anything on the planet is more important than that.

SHARPTON: Bob, what advice would you give to Willard?

FRANKEN: Well, hope that Herman Cain stays in the race for one
thing, and as far as Herman Cain is concerned, whether whatever his wife
says, this candidacy is over. This man, as a candidate, he`s a dead man
talking. That`s really, he is.

SHARPTON: Let me say to both of you, New York Times headlines says,
Romney still can`t steal the deal with the GOP establishment, republican
leaders still seem torn about Romney. Does that mean that they can say,
better works, we`re going to have to go with Newt Gingrich?

MADISON: No.

FRANKEN: Well, I think there`s a lot of that conversation right now.
Don`t you, Joe? I mean, you know, Newt Gingrich has been the champion of
the party before. And you know, he`s making sort of a Richard Nixon kind
of resurrection here. You know.

(CROSSTALK)

SHARPTON: But can Gingrich win Iowa and then someone like from the
bottom tier come and use that to come later and try and be to stop Gingrich
guy?

MADISON: Well, remember now, Mitt Romney is not really campaigning
hard in Iowa. He pretty much gave Iowa up. Now, if Newt Gingrich comes
close, even close second in New Hampshire, he`s well on his way because
then we do what? We go south. And that`s where his strong point. So,
yes, that`s a very good possibility. But then, you know, I think the White
House is chopping at the bits to be able to run against Newt Gingrich.

SHARPTON: Bob Franken and Joe Madison, we`re out of time. Thank you
very much. Both of you have a great weekend.

MADISON: Thank you.

SHARPTON: Shocking new numbers in the race everyone is watching in
Massachusetts.

And the latest right wing attack against the muppets. I wish I was
kidding. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SHARPTON: Welcome back to POLITICS NATION. Long before the Occupy
Wall Street movement, the 99 percent in this country had a champion. Her
name, Elizabeth Warren. She came up with the idea for the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau. She fought against corporate greed and she`s
taken that passion to run for senator in Massachusetts. And Republicans
take note, she`s surging. New numbers just out show that she`s ahead of
incumbent Scott Brown by four points. Just three months ago she was down
by nearly 20 points. Wall Street is noticing and they are scared. Why?
Because Elizabeth Warren is not afraid to hammer Scott Brown for being a
one percent guy.

The securities industry gave brown a million dollars last time he ran
and center for public integrity reports today, quote, K Street and Wall
Street line up behind Senator Scott Brown in his race against Elizabeth
Warren. Quote, "In overdrive to raise millions more because Warren`s
campaign is off to a fast start," end of quote. It`s clear, Warren`s
message is working and Wall Street is preparing to take her down.

Joining me now, Ethan Porter, contributing editor at democracy
journal. Today he wrote a piece entitled "Hurling the Kitchen Sink at
Elizabeth Warren." And Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change
Campaign Committee, his group raised more than half a million dollars for
Elizabeth Warren.

Thanks to both of you for joining me tonight. Ethan, how scared is
Wall Street of Elizabeth Warren?

ETHAN PORTER, DEMOCRACY JOURNAL: They are pretty scared and they
have good reason to be. The Republicans and Wall Street see Warren as the
best chance for Democrats and progressives to take a stand against this out
of control capitalism that`s been a problem for a long time. Before she
even announced that she was running, the Republicans accused, told Harvard
to stop paying her. Once she announced her candidacy, they started calling
her a communists. They are desperate in their attacks on Warren because
they see in her a vision of affirmative government of the sort that
Democrats and Republicans and both parties haven`t really made in a long
time.

SHARPTON: Now, Adam, when we look at when Wall Street has given Brown
-- let`s look at this chart. From Fidelity, Goldman Sachs, Barclays,
Paulson and company. Morgan Stanley is pretty clear that they have lined
up in the past behind Brown and now with Elizabeth Warren in the race, they
have even more of an incentive. How does Miss Warren countered this?

ADAM GREEN, PROGRESSIVE CHANGE CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE: Well, Al, the
best way to fight corporate power is with people power. As you know, there
is a hunger out there for some leader to step up and say, it`s time for
Wall Street to be held accountable. It`s time for the middle class to be
put first in for Wall Street and the rest to pay their fair share. And,
you know, I`m proud to announce right here on this show for the first time
that Progressive Change Campaign Committee members have over raised over
$535,000 for Elizabeth Warren. And that`s not big money check. That`s
less than $20 a pop.

PORTER: That`s great.

SHARPTON: Let`s go slow on that. Let`s go slow on that. (INAUDIBLE)
is on POLITICS NATION, so we dramatized of here. This is the first time
you`ve announced this and you`ve raised $535,000 mostly in $20
contributions?

GREEN: That`s absolutely right.

SHARPTON: Wow.

GREEN: And again, that`s because she`s inspiring people across
Massachusetts and across the nation with her message that, you know, nobody
got rich by themselves. We need to pay it forward to the next kid to give
them a chance and I`m going to put the middle class first and ask Wall
Street to be finally, finally pay their fair share and be accountable,
that`s resonating with people and really it`s a model for all Democrats on
this cycle.

SHARPTON: Now, Ethan, when you look at the polling, it shows that
Warren is especially popular with middle and lower class voters.

PORTER: Right.

SHARPTON: With middle class voters, people making between 40 and 100
k, 48 percent of the vote is for Warren, 38 percent poll for Brown. To 11
point margin, lower class, people make -- 40 k. Warren is at 42 percent.
Brown at 27 percent, 15-point margin. That says a lot.

PORTER: It says, you know, for 40 or 50 years, the Republicans and
the conservatives have made a concerted effort to diminish government.
Warren, however, has made a very strong case for the role of government in
you know, policing us and giving us roads to drive on and giving us schools
to educate our children. In a way that few other politicians, frankly,
have. So, I think a lot of people see in Warren what`s been missing from
the political scene and she speaks to people who feel that they haven`t
gotten a fair shake, despite playing by the rules, despite working hard.
Warren says, you know, I`m going to fight for you. I`m going to defend the
role of government in a free society.

SHARPTON: Now, showing what you say as accurate, when she made that
statement that no one got rich on their own, nobody got rich on their own,
it was viewed 800,000 times. It shows it resonated with people. And, of
course, they come after her. Karl Rove`s cross roads, spend $600,000 to
run this add trying to make Warren support of the occupy movement look
back. Look at this, Ethan, and give me your response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Elizabeth Warren sides with extreme left protests
at Occupy Wall Street, protesters attack police, do drugs, and trash public
parks. They support radical redistribution of wealth and violence but
Warren boasts, I created much of the intellectual foundation for what they
do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Ethan?

PORTER: Well, Al, you know, I think the proof is in the footing, last
I checked, that ad had been viewed on YouTube about, I don`t know, 30,000
times whereas Warren`s speech in defensive government, you know, sort of an
impromptu off the cuff speech was viewed upwards of 800,000 times. People
are sick and tired I think of Karl Rove`s crash and burn politics.
Elizabeth Warren on her own has made a simple straightforward case for
government.

SHARPTON: Now Adam, let me show you that tape that was viewed over
800,000 times because people on the right were saying that acting as if
rich people just all of a sudden just created this wealth alone and
Elizabeth Warren stood up and said this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIZABETH WARREN, CONSUMER PROTECTION AGENCY: There is nobody in this
country who got rich on his own. Nobody. You built a factory out there,
good for you. But I want to be clear, you moved your goods to markets on
the roads the rest of us paid for. You hired workers that the rest of us
paid to educate. You built a factory and it turned into something terrific
or a great idea. God bless. Keep a big hunk of it. But part of the
underlying social contract is you take a hunk of that and pay forward for
the next kid who comes along.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Now, Adam, I, again, repeat, that was viewed over 800,000
times. I suspect it had a lot to do with that 535,000 that you announced
here tonight that you raised. People want someone that will say that.

GREEN: They do. That really inspires so many people. When that
video came out, we put that on our Web site, Boldprogressives.org and it
raised about $100,000 for Elizabeth Warren at the time. This weekend over
our Thanksgiving, while things are quite, we sent around Karl Rove`s ad to
our members and again, posted it on our Web site Boldprogressives.org and
raised another $100,000 for Elizabeth Warren. So, again, the best way to
fight corporate power is with people power. I want to point out one other
thing, Al, you know, there`s a lot of dots here that deserve connecting.
It`s not an accident that Elizabeth Warren is seeing her rise at the same
time that middle class families are speaking out for Occupy Wall Street.

SHARPTON: That`s right.

GREEN: It`s not an accident that Bank of America was forced to cave
on their fees.

SHARPTON: Thank you guys, I`m going to have to cut in, Adam. But
congratulations. Thank you, Ethan. Thanks for your time. Both of you
have a great weekend. I have to go to a hard break. We`ll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SHARPTON: We have breaking news to report. The moderator of "Meet
The Press," David Gregory is reporting their strong indications Herman Cain
will withdraw from the race tomorrow during a planned event with supporters
in Georgia. Associates Cain`s decision is to share this family for more
fallout from allegations of 13-year affair and sexual harassment suits.
Last night, Ginger White, the accuser in the affair spoke out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GINGER WHITE, CAIN ACCUSER: It wasn`t a love affair. It was a sexual
affair. As hard as that is for me to say and as hard as that is for people
to hear it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Earlier today, Cain spoke on his plans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CAIN: I am reassessing because of all of this media firestorm stuff.
Why? Because my wife and family comes first.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHARPTON: Though, I`ve seriously opposed a lot of Mr. Cain`s 9-9-9
plan and other things, whatever he decides, I wish his family well. But I
also hope that we don`t throw middle class families and poor families under
the bus on the middle of this campaign. This is about policy, not just
about bedroom rumors. Let`s put dignity in the campaign.

Thanks for watching. I`m Al Sharpton. Have a great weekend.
"HARDBALL" starts right now.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY
BE UPDATED.
END

Transcription Copyright 2011 ASC LLC ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No license is
granted to the user of this material other than for research. User may not
reproduce or redistribute the material except for user`s personal or
internal use and, in such case, only one copy may be printed, nor shall
user use any material for commercial purposes or in any fashion that may
infringe upon MSNBC and ASC LLC`s copyright or other proprietary rights or
interests in the material. This is not a legal transcript for purposes of
litigation.>