MSNBC - 2006-11-08 - 9 a.m. (E) (morning after midterm elections)

Channel: malgent

Transcript

Language: English (original, YouTube automatic captions)

[0:00] the majority for the first time since

[0:02] 2002. Two states still too close to

[0:05] call, Virginia and Montana. And there is

[0:08] a lot of Wednesday morning

[0:09] quarterbacking going on. Among the

[0:11] questions being asked, what went wrong

[0:13] for the GOP? Why did people vote the way

[0:15] they did? And what will it mean for the

[0:18] next two years and for President Bush?

[0:21] Our political team is going the distance

[0:23] this morning. David Schustster is in

[0:24] Virginia where the word recall is being

[0:26] thrown around. Michelle Hoffland is in

[0:29] Missouri where another woman is going to

[0:30] the Senate. Michelle will speak live

[0:32] with Senator Elect Claire McKascal. And

[0:34] Chris Jansing is in Connecticut where

[0:36] Senator Joe Lieberman is celebrating his

[0:38] dramatic comeback. We begin in Virginia

[0:41] where the race for Senate between

[0:42] incumbent George Allen and Democratic

[0:44] challenger Jim Webb is still too close

[0:46] to call. Let's take a look at those

[0:48] numbers. Right now you have Jim Webb

[0:50] there and George Allen with just a vote

[0:53] difference of 7,847

[0:55] votes. Hard balls. David Schuster is in

[0:57] Richmond, Virginia. So, David, what is

[0:59] the situation? When will we know the

[1:01] situation?

[1:03] >> Well, Amy, both campaigns are going to

[1:04] get a pretty good idea today whether or

[1:06] not this election is essentially win in

[1:08] without any m without major hitches or

[1:10] uh multiplica or additional errors or

[1:13] arithmetic etc. The point of today and

[1:16] again the election is not going to be

[1:17] certified for almost 3 weeks. So, what

[1:19] happens today is they continue counting

[1:21] some of the absentee ballots. That's uh

[1:23] was something they were doing all of

[1:24] last night, which is why the margins

[1:26] continue to change. Most of the absentee

[1:28] ballots were coming from districts that

[1:30] were very supportive of Democrat Jim

[1:32] Webb. So, you saw his margin over Allen

[1:35] get larger and larger through the night.

[1:36] Although, when you think about it, less

[1:38] than 8,000 votes out of 2.3 million

[1:40] cast, really amounts to only about

[1:42] 3/10en of 1 percentage point. But in any

[1:44] case, today they will continue counting

[1:46] some of the absentee ballots. They will

[1:48] also look at uh some of the provisional

[1:50] ballots that were cast. some voters both

[1:52] for Jim Webb and for Republican

[1:53] incumbent George Allen uh were either

[1:56] not registered or there's some problem

[1:57] at the polling site so they cast a

[1:59] provisional ballot. Those will be

[2:00] counted today. And then the other thing

[2:02] that's going to happen is you're going

[2:03] to have lawyers fanning out across the

[2:06] state, representatives of the parties,

[2:07] and they're going to engage in something

[2:09] known as a canvasing operation. Again,

[2:11] what the canvasing operation will do is

[2:13] they will check and make sure that each

[2:15] of the precincts reported their numbers

[2:17] accurately to the Secretary of the

[2:18] State. They will make sure that the

[2:20] tickers and the tape representing the

[2:22] electronic voting machines that those

[2:24] don't indicate major problems or any

[2:26] problems. And then there'll simply be a

[2:28] determination to try to make sure that

[2:29] the numbers from last night are

[2:31] accurate. So at least both campaigns

[2:34] should have a pretty good idea later

[2:37] today as to whether or not there were

[2:39] any heirs that might have been worth

[2:41] several hundred or several thousand

[2:43] votes. Uh last night, George Allen

[2:45] called this an interesting election, an

[2:47] election that continues. The Democrat

[2:49] Jim Webb said the votes are in and we

[2:52] won. But as far as the state of Virginia

[2:54] is concerned, this election will not be

[2:55] certified, as I said, for three weeks.

[2:57] And only at that point, only after the

[2:59] election is certified with whatever

[3:01] figures they come up with. Only at that

[3:03] point can the loser then request a

[3:06] statewide recount. Uh so there is still

[3:08] some room for that recount request based

[3:11] on the arithmetic and the math and

[3:12] whatnot. Uh but again, the message today

[3:15] is the candidates should have a pretty

[3:16] good idea whether there were any

[3:18] mistakes yesterday that are worth either

[3:20] several hundred or several thousand

[3:22] votes. Amy.

[3:23] >> All right, David Schustster, thanks so

[3:24] much. And so the Senate is still up in

[3:27] the air right now. Republicans have 49

[3:29] seats, but we're waiting on Virginia and

[3:31] Montana. If Democrats win those states,

[3:34] they will have 49 seats, and the GOP

[3:36] will have 49 seats as well. But there

[3:38] will be two independents. Lifelong

[3:41] Democrat Joe Lieberman has said he will

[3:43] vote with Democrats. Democrats gained a

[3:45] seat in Pennsylvania and the latest

[3:47] numbers give Senator elect Bob Casey an

[3:50] overwhelming 18% lead over Rick

[3:52] Santorum. Democrats also gained a seat

[3:54] in Rhode Island where Sheldon White

[3:56] House beat incumbent Lincoln Chaffy. The

[3:58] latest numbers give White House a 6%

[4:01] lead. The Democrats keep a Maryland

[4:03] seat. Ben Carden won a tough race

[4:05] against Republican Michael Steel. Cardon

[4:07] winning by about 10%. And there will be

[4:10] more women joining the most exclusive

[4:12] club in the world. Senators elect Amy

[4:14] Clobasher and Clare McCascal now bring

[4:16] the total of women in the new Senate to

[4:18] 16. That is the most to ever serve at

[4:21] the same time. All six incumbent female

[4:24] senators won reelection last night.

[4:27] Well, more on that Missouri race where

[4:28] Clare McKascal defeated incumbent

[4:30] Senator Jim Talent by just about two

[4:32] percentage points. McCascal told

[4:34] supporters, "This is all about change.

[4:39] Enjoy tonight. You deserve IT BECAUSE

[4:42] THE DEMOCRATIC Party once again has

[4:44] claimed Harry Truman's Senate seat for

[4:47] the working people of Missouri.

[4:50] >> NBC's Michelle Hofflin is in St. Louis

[4:52] this morning and I know Michelle

[4:53] standing by. You is Senator Elect

[4:55] McKascal.

[4:57] >> Yes, she is. You know, it was a

[4:58] nailbiter here throughout the night.

[5:00] Amy, uh we're watching the numbers very,

[5:03] very closely as they were coming in

[5:04] through the evening. had had Senator

[5:06] Talent with a lead. And then just a

[5:08] short time after midnight, that's when

[5:11] for the first time we had a big roar

[5:13] upstairs uh with the McCascal people.

[5:15] They were all excited because she had

[5:16] taken a 13,000 lead. 45 minutes later,

[5:20] it was over. Senator Talent conceded and

[5:23] the Senator Electascal,

[5:26] she announced her victory. Thank you

[5:28] very, very much for joining us. Thank

[5:30] you.

[5:30] >> You haven't had much sleep.

[5:31] >> No, I haven't. Not Not for a while.

[5:33] >> Okay. is to steal a line from the movie

[5:35] The Candidate. What do you do now?

[5:38] >> Well, we have some serious work to do. I

[5:40] mean, our country is divided. Uh

[5:42] Congress is divided. It doesn't matter

[5:43] who's in control. It's close. So, that

[5:46] means we need to quit trying to make

[5:47] each other look bad. And we need to

[5:49] start working together to try to solve

[5:50] some problems. That's what I hope being

[5:52] a moderate from the middle of America

[5:54] that I can bring to the Democrats in

[5:56] Washington. Let's quit trying to point

[5:58] fingers and let's get together and try

[6:00] to solve some problems for the American

[6:01] people. What about you being a female?

[6:03] There are now 16 women in the Senate.

[6:05] What does that mean to you? And what

[6:06] does that mean to the people in the

[6:07] country?

[6:08] >> Well, I you know, I think to the extent

[6:10] that I've had to multitask as a single

[6:12] mom with three kids and do less with

[6:14] more, do more with less, I think I can

[6:16] help balance the budget. Uh because I've

[6:18] had to do that in my life. Uh but really

[6:20] in the long run, I'm not sure gender is

[6:22] as important as as being an independent

[6:25] voice. Uh you know what happens? People

[6:27] go to Washington and they forget about

[6:28] the people at home. They start listening

[6:30] to the lobbyists and all the people that

[6:31] think they're important and they forget

[6:33] that they're real families that are

[6:35] struggling and we need to work for them.

[6:36] On a personal note for you, I've been

[6:38] watching and you have your sisters who

[6:39] are here. Your mother's been on the

[6:41] campaign trail. I saw your sister this

[6:42] morning. One of them, she has a t-shirt

[6:44] on and socks. No, she doesn't even have

[6:46] any shoes on at all.

[6:47] >> Yeah.

[6:48] >> Um they have been with you this whole

[6:50] campaign. I also understand the last

[6:52] hours, according to your PR person, you

[6:53] had volunteers literally dropping out of

[6:56] the sky. How did all this play with you

[6:58] and how did it have help you with your

[7:00] campaign?

[7:01] >> You know, this is Harry Truman's Senate

[7:02] seat. Missurrians are very independent,

[7:05] but there's a whole lot of Democrats in

[7:06] Missouri uh that realized that we could

[7:09] make something special happened this

[7:10] year for the first time in a long time.

[7:12] So, everyone was very enthusiastic. My

[7:14] husband, my family, everyone. And so,

[7:17] you know, they all had a part of this

[7:19] and I'm very grateful. You said that

[7:20] even though the polls were I mean it was

[7:22] looking like it was for Clare McKascal I

[7:24] mean for Talent Early you knew earlier

[7:26] on that it was going to be for you.

[7:27] >> We knew we'd done better in the rural

[7:28] areas than Democrats had traditionally

[7:30] done. We knew when we saw the early

[7:32] returns that it was probably going to be

[7:34] a good night. We just had to wait for

[7:35] St. Louis and Kansas City to deliver the

[7:36] results.

[7:38] >> Claire McKascal, Senator Elect, thank

[7:39] you very very much for joining us.

[7:41] >> Thank you so much.

[7:42] >> Thank you Amy. Back to you.

[7:43] >> All right, Michelle Hofflin. Thank you.

[7:45] Let's take a look at some notable House

[7:47] races. As Republicans lost one of their

[7:49] House seats in Florida's 22nd district,

[7:51] Democrat Ron Klein unseated Republican

[7:54] Congressman Klay Shaw, who has

[7:55] represented South Florida since 1981.

[7:58] In Connecticut, Republican Christopher

[8:00] Shaes keeps his seat. He held off

[8:02] Democrat Diane Frell to win an 11th

[8:05] term. Late last night, Frell refused to

[8:07] concede, saying there are a lot of votes

[8:09] that still had to be counted. And in

[8:11] Louisiana, William Jefferson. He's the

[8:13] congressman accused of hiding thousands

[8:15] in bribe money in his freezer. Well, he

[8:18] won his race with 30% of the vote. He's

[8:20] going to face a runoff with fellow

[8:22] Democrat Karen Carter. That happens on

[8:24] December 9th. And when voters left the

[8:27] polling booths Tuesday, the reasons for

[8:29] why Democrats ultimately won the House

[8:31] and possibly the Senate were quite

[8:33] different from what many polls showed

[8:34] previously. NBC's Chip Reed poured over

[8:37] those results and joins us now from

[8:39] Capitol Hill with some of the figures.

[8:40] and chip. Poll after poll in the weeks

[8:42] and months leading up to Tuesday said

[8:44] Iraq was the biggest concern of voters,

[8:46] but that's not what the exit poll

[8:48] showed. Correct.

[8:49] >> That is correct, Amy. Let's take a look

[8:51] at what it did show. These are voters as

[8:53] they're leaving the polls asked a series

[8:55] of questions. And one of them was what

[8:58] issues were very important to your vote.

[9:01] Corruption and scandal 75%.

[9:04] Terrorism 70%. Iraq 66%. To tell you the

[9:09] truth, Amy, I'm not sure what to make of

[9:11] this because clearly this was an

[9:13] election about Iraq. This is

[9:15] inconsistent with that. Will this later

[9:18] be proven to just be one of those funny

[9:20] exit polls that didn't quite jive with

[9:22] reality? I don't know. Uh but I think at

[9:24] the very least what it does show is that

[9:27] corruption and scandal were issues out

[9:29] there. They were important issues to

[9:31] voters. Uh and that is good news for

[9:33] Nancy Pelosi and company. Nancy Pelosi,

[9:36] the uh future speaker of the house,

[9:38] because she has made very clear that her

[9:40] number one priority, the first thing she

[9:43] and the Democrats are going to do when

[9:44] they come in is change the ethics rules.

[9:47] She calls it draining the swamp,

[9:49] cleaning the place up. And I tell you,

[9:51] if they don't do that after repeatedly

[9:53] promising that, promising to do so, they

[9:55] will be off to a very bad start. Amy,

[9:57] >> so Chip, in terms of the war with Iraq,

[10:00] even though it seems to be, according to

[10:01] these exit polls, not the most important

[10:02] thing on voters's mind, what did they

[10:04] have to say about what they feel should

[10:06] happen next?

[10:07] >> Well, let's take a look at that. On

[10:09] Iraq, let's see, on Iraq, what were

[10:11] voters feelings about what should happen

[10:13] next? And here's what we found. Troop

[10:15] withdrawal 55%,

[10:17] stay in Iraq, 37%. Now, that of course

[10:20] is much more consistent with what we've

[10:22] seen in previous poll polls. Now, troop

[10:25] withdrawal very vague. Does that mean

[10:26] immediately? Does that mean a phase

[10:28] withdrawal? I think you're going to see

[10:29] the Democrats getting into a big debate

[10:32] over that. As soon as they finish their

[10:34] first list of items, then of course they

[10:36] will turn to Iraq and that's what they

[10:38] will debating. How quick should that

[10:40] withdrawal be? And that doesn't mean

[10:41] George Bush will go along with any of

[10:43] it. Amy

[10:44] >> and Chip, an interesting statistic also

[10:46] was the reason why some people went to

[10:48] the polls at all.

[10:49] >> That's right, Amy. Let's look at full

[10:51] screen as we call it number three. uh

[10:54] 40% voted to oppose the president. That

[10:57] really is extraordinary that 40% of the

[10:59] people actually went to the polls to

[11:02] oppose the president. Uh and that tells

[11:04] you what this was about. And let me also

[11:06] mention that's a bit inconsistent with

[11:08] that first poll. If they were going to

[11:09] the polls to oppose the president, then

[11:11] Iraq was the issue, not corruption and

[11:13] scandal because that's a congressional

[11:14] issue. But uh clearly uh the president

[11:17] this was in in large part a referendum

[11:20] on President Bush according to this poll

[11:22] and according to so many other polls

[11:23] that we've seen. Amy.

[11:24] >> All right Chip, we appreciate it. Thank

[11:26] you.

[11:26] >> You bet.

[11:27] >> Well, coming next, one of the unresolved

[11:29] Senate races, the battle in Montana. I

[11:31] will speak with the Democratic candidate

[11:33] John Tester coming up next. Also,

[11:35] Senator Joe Lieberman stages one of the

[11:37] most dramatic comebacks in midterm

[11:39] history. We're going to head to

[11:40] Connecticut coming up. Plus, a reminder

[11:42] for the very latest vote totals on every

[11:44] House, Senate, and Governor's race in

[11:46] this country. You can log on MSNBC.com.

[11:49] On the front page, you can click on your

[11:51] state to see how the races ended. It's

[11:54] all on msnbc.com.

[12:02] MSNBC's coverage of Decision 2006 is

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[14:58] Well, the Montana Senate race is still

[15:00] too close to call. The ballots in

[15:01] Yellowstone County are being recounted

[15:03] this morning. Joining me now is John

[15:05] Tester, Democratic candidate for the

[15:07] Senate. And John, do you anticipate

[15:09] declaring victory? And if so, when?

[15:12] >> Well, as soon as we get all the votes

[15:14] tallied up, uh we'll uh we'll declare

[15:16] victory at that point in time. Uh this

[15:18] thing's wrapping up pretty fast here now

[15:19] and I anticipate it'll be shortly.

[15:21] >> I mentioned uh the recount is happening

[15:23] right now or at least the counting is

[15:24] going on in Yellowstone County. That is

[15:26] the area your opponent Senator Burns is

[15:29] from. You concerned at all about what

[15:31] that may do to the tally right now as it

[15:33] stands?

[15:35] >> Actually, from what we've seen come in

[15:36] so far, we've we've done uh as good as

[15:39] we could expect to do in Yellowstone

[15:40] County. We've been very satisfied with

[15:41] the results coming out of there. And

[15:43] it's just it's actually just a matter of

[15:45] getting the loose ends tallied up here

[15:47] in the state of Montana and uh and we

[15:49] can put this thing to a close.

[15:50] >> I know leading into the election,

[15:51] everybody puts on a on a rosie smile and

[15:54] says they're confident they're going to

[15:55] win. Are you surprised just how close

[15:58] this one has become and the national

[16:00] attention that's clearly focused on your

[16:01] state?

[16:03] >> Yeah. Well, it's kind of fun. I mean,

[16:04] it's it's part of the process. You know,

[16:06] politics isn't for the faint of heart,

[16:07] that's for darn sure.

[16:09] Uh, is it a little overwhelming?

[16:13] >> Well, you know, it it is actually. I

[16:15] mean, we've uh had got a lot of national

[16:16] media here and a lot of instate media

[16:18] and uh it's been a lot of fun overall.

[16:20] Uh, you know, it's great people and good

[16:22] people to work with and the people of

[16:24] the state of Montana have been

[16:25] absolutely super as we've gone around

[16:27] for the last 18 months.

[16:28] >> There was a lot of trouble for your

[16:30] opponent, Conrad Burns, and his alleged

[16:31] connections to Jack Abramoff. Do you

[16:33] think that this vote was a vote against

[16:35] your opponent and not necessarily for

[16:36] you?

[16:38] Well, I I think there was some of that.

[16:40] I mean, there was some resentment to

[16:41] what what uh what had happened there

[16:43] with the Abramoff connection, but uh I

[16:45] think overall I think Montana were

[16:47] looking for a change.

[16:48] >> Now, let's talk about Montana. This is a

[16:49] red the reddest of the red states. It's

[16:51] been called 59% in favor of President

[16:53] Bush just two years ago. Do you think

[16:56] perhaps that your uh potential victory

[16:58] within hours from now is a reflection on

[17:00] the changing of the state of Montana or

[17:02] do you think it's it's a part of a

[17:03] national trend?

[17:05] No, I I I think it's part of it, but

[17:07] really Montan have been pretty

[17:08] independent in their thinking and they

[17:10] just want honest representation back in

[17:11] Washington DC and somebody who's able to

[17:13] balance a budget and be fiscally

[17:15] responsible and somebody who will

[17:17] provide leadership and I think uh you

[17:18] know Montan over the years have been

[17:20] very independent-minded and I think they

[17:22] tend to vote for the person more than

[17:23] the party.

[17:24] >> All right, John Tester, we appreciate

[17:25] it. Thanks so much. Don't bite your

[17:27] nails too much.

[17:28] >> I won't do that. Thank you very much.

[17:30] >> All right. Well, in just a few hours,

[17:31] President Bush will hold a news

[17:32] conference to respond to the election

[17:34] results, and the loss of Republican

[17:36] seats is seen as a direct criticism of

[17:38] the president and the war in Iraq. NBC's

[17:41] Kelly O'Donnell is at the White House.

[17:42] So, Kelly, what can we expect in terms

[17:44] of the tone of this press conference?

[17:47] Well, the president is likely to try to

[17:49] do two things. Extend uh graciousness

[17:52] toward Democrats in their victory to

[17:54] congratulate them. He's already already

[17:56] demonstrated that this morning with a

[17:57] series of phone calls. I'm sure he'll

[17:59] speak about that in his opening remarks,

[18:01] but he will also try, according to

[18:03] advisers, to make clear that he views

[18:06] the fact that he has two years in office

[18:08] still to go, that there's plenty of work

[18:09] for him to do. And some have described

[18:11] it as he will not mark time, he will not

[18:14] uh run down the clock, terms like that

[18:16] to suggest that the president will try

[18:18] to uh kickstart his own agenda now

[18:22] working with Democrats. So you'll see

[18:24] those two sentiments. On the one hand,

[18:26] trying to be uh acknowledging how voters

[18:29] have responded around the country. I

[18:31] doubt very seriously that he would view

[18:33] this as a direct rebuke of his

[18:35] leadership, although there are many who

[18:36] view it that way. But that the president

[18:38] will say that there is work to be done.

[18:40] And then he'll take a series of

[18:41] questions. And I suspect that one of the

[18:43] questions will be uh having to do with

[18:45] the notion of political capital. When

[18:47] the president won re-election in 2004

[18:50] and he had his post-election news

[18:52] conference, he talked about having

[18:54] earned political capital in the campaign

[18:56] and his intention to spend it. Well, now

[18:58] two years later, is it the Democrats who

[19:00] have earned that capital? How will the

[19:02] president view that? So, I would expect

[19:04] that would be one of the questions and

[19:06] he may again try to assert his views on

[19:08] Iraq and on taxes and trying to find

[19:10] some middle ground. there are some

[19:12] issues where he believes Democrats have

[19:14] some of the same views in the area of

[19:16] immigration for example he feels

[19:18] strongly about a guest worker program

[19:21] and perhaps that's some place where they

[19:22] can try to work together so what I think

[19:24] you will see is an acknowledgement of

[19:26] the losses for Republicans uh a hand

[19:29] extended to Democrats but also a

[19:31] commitment to trying to keep working he

[19:33] does not want to appear as if this has

[19:35] uh stopped him from doing his job so

[19:37] blending of those sorts of emotions

[19:39] today

[19:39] >> all right Kelly O'Donnell at the White

[19:41] House. Kelly, thank you. And Hardball's

[19:43] Chris Matthews running on about uh well,

[19:46] apparently we have an exact calculation

[19:48] here, 3 hours of sleep. He will anchor

[19:50] our coverage of the president's news

[19:51] conference at 1:00 p.m. Eastern time

[19:53] right here on MSNBC.

[19:56] Well, 12 years after the Republican

[19:58] revolution, the Democrats have pulled

[20:00] off their own coup. We will be hearing

[20:01] from the incoming Speaker of the House,

[20:03] Nancy Pelosi. That happens at noon

[20:05] Eastern time. So, let's talk about how

[20:07] it happened. Let's bring in Craig

[20:09] Crawford of Congressional Quarterly and

[20:10] Jonathan Alter of Newsweek. Both men

[20:12] MSNBC contributors. Also with us,

[20:15] Republican strategist Joe Watkins.

[20:16] Everyone, thanks for being with us.

[20:18] >> Good to be here. Good to

[20:19] >> see you,

[20:19] >> Jonathan. Uh we heard everyone saying or

[20:21] at least conceding that they thought

[20:22] this was going to be a Democratic wave.

[20:24] Uh not a wipeout perhaps or we've heard

[20:26] tsunami thrown around as well, but that

[20:28] is pretty much what it looks like is

[20:30] happening here. Uh with the votes

[20:32] counted, do you think 2006 is the new

[20:35] 1994?

[20:36] Uh yeah, I think it will be uh mentioned

[20:38] in the same sentence as 1994. Um it's a

[20:41] historic election. Uh and and one of the

[20:43] things that's so interesting to me about

[20:45] it is there was this sense that the idea

[20:48] that the the founders had come up with

[20:50] which was that the house of

[20:52] representatives, the so-called people's

[20:54] house, was supposed to be very very

[20:56] sensitive to public opinion. There was a

[20:58] sense that that had broken down because

[21:00] of the powers of incumbency and the maps

[21:03] that were drawn and gerrymandered and

[21:05] the pork that the members would use to

[21:07] uh protect themselves. And so in some

[21:10] ways we're we're moving back toward what

[21:12] uh was originally envisioned which is

[21:14] that when people were upset about

[21:16] something in this case Iraq and

[21:18] corruption that there would be political

[21:20] change as a result.

[21:21] >> Craig, the Northeast kind of set this

[21:23] wave into motion. The blue states became

[21:25] bluer. We see Lincoln Chaffy losing his

[21:26] seat in Rhode Island. And many had said,

[21:29] "Hey, the Democrats need to learn how to

[21:31] play in in the South and in the

[21:32] Midwest." But based on this election, do

[21:34] you think Republicans need to learn how

[21:35] to play better in the Northeast?

[21:37] >> Yeah, properly. So, I mean, Democrats

[21:39] have solidified their base in the

[21:40] Northeast. Problem that is it's the

[21:42] shrinking part of the country. So, they

[21:44] are the best thing for the news for the

[21:46] Democrats is these inroads that they've

[21:48] made in the West and a little bit a

[21:50] little toll in the south which they need

[21:52] to expand. I don't know that Republicans

[21:54] have many opportunities, but in the

[21:56] Northeast, but there are a lot of seats

[21:57] there that would naturally go back

[21:59] Republican if they can get, but I think

[22:01] Republicans have to get away from George

[22:02] Bush. They have to start to move away

[22:05] from the age of Bush. Uh, two decades of

[22:08] party rule by a single family. And

[22:10] that's going to change. And the sooner

[22:11] they make that change, the better off

[22:13] Republicans will be.

[22:14] >> Joe, I know it's not a happy day for you

[22:16] and for your fellow Republicans. Many

[22:17] people are calling this a painful period

[22:20] of self-examination for Republicans. Uh

[22:23] do you think it was just the climate or

[22:24] do you think that Republicans were were

[22:26] off the mark were off their game?

[22:29] >> Well, this is uh clearly a tough time. I

[22:30] had a lot of friends in both the House

[22:32] and the Senate who lost their seats last

[22:34] night and a lot of staffers who worked

[22:35] with them and uh but you got to

[22:37] congratulate the Democrats. They did a a

[22:39] very very fine job. They uh had a very

[22:42] impressive showing yesterday and now the

[22:44] challenge for them is how do you make

[22:46] good on the promises that you made. Now

[22:48] I wish everybody well. I'm an American

[22:50] and I'm an American first before I'm

[22:52] even a Republican. And the hope is that

[22:54] everybody who was elected yesterday will

[22:56] realize that they're supposed to be

[22:58] about public service. Now that being

[23:00] said, Democrats spent a lot of capital,

[23:02] of course, beating the president up on

[23:03] the Iraq war and uh the tax cuts and

[23:06] various other things. Now they're going

[23:07] to have to work with the president.

[23:08] Howard Dean, I noticed, very quickly,

[23:10] stated that, well, of course, he won't

[23:11] be withdrawing from Iraq anytime soon.

[23:13] We'll work with the president to kind of

[23:15] redefine where we're headed there. And

[23:16] that's exactly what Democrats going to

[23:18] have to do. They're going to have to

[23:18] work with this president to make sure

[23:20] that we move forward as a country.

[23:22] >> And we are going to look forward with

[23:23] Joe, Jonathan, and Craig coming up in

[23:25] our next uh block. So, we appreciate you

[23:28] all sticking around for us. But in the

[23:29] meantime, election 2006 tainted by

[23:32] claims of old-fashioned dirty tricks and

[23:34] problems in the voting booth. What went

[23:36] wrong and what went right? We're going

[23:38] to hear from someone who was watching

[23:39] the polls just ahead on MSNBC.

[23:53] >> How could it be offensive if it's true?

[23:55] >> Okay, first of all, I'm not 100% in love

[23:57] with your tone right now.

[23:58] >> Tone aside, historically, you guys have

[24:01] struggled to adapt.

[24:02] >> Yeah, right. Walking upright,

[24:04] discovering fire, inventing the wheel,

[24:07] laying the foundation for all mankind.

[24:09] You're right. Good point. Sorry we

[24:10] couldn't get that to you sooner.

[24:12] >> Connie, your reaction?

[24:14] >> Sounds like someone woke up from the

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[26:57] >> You know, the message couldn't be

[26:59] clearer that it is time for a new course

[27:02] beyond all the partisan ideological

[27:05] division back to the vital dynamic

[27:09] center to begin to solve the problems of

[27:12] New Yorkers and Americans.

[27:15] By a margin of 36 points, New York

[27:17] Senator Hillary Clinton won her bid for

[27:19] reelection. And now that this race is

[27:22] behind her, the talk of a presidential

[27:24] run will begin in earnest. As for the

[27:26] first woman to be speaker of the US

[27:28] House, Nancy Pelosi will hold a news

[27:30] conference in about two and a half

[27:31] hours. Last night, she talked about her

[27:33] fellow Democrats who won back the House.

[27:36] Let's hear it for our candidates all

[27:39] across the country. Our fighting Dems,

[27:42] our vets who are running, our working

[27:45] moms, our community leaders, our law

[27:47] enforcement all across the board. These

[27:50] candidates have excellent credentials,

[27:52] great ideals, and they are again

[27:54] fighters for the future.

[27:56] >> So what will that future mean for

[27:58] Americans? Let's bring back in Craig

[27:59] Crawford, Jonathan Alter, and Joe

[28:01] Watkins. Jonathan, we just saw Nancy

[28:03] Pelosi there. Do you anticipate, some

[28:05] have said she'll be the mirror image of

[28:07] of N. Gingrich, likening uh what

[28:09] happened in 94, of course, what's

[28:11] happening in 2006, or do you think we'll

[28:12] see a more centrist uh Nancy Pelosi?

[28:15] >> More centrist. Uh you know, I had

[28:17] breakfast with her a few weeks ago, and

[28:18] I asked her precisely that question, and

[28:20] she answered it by saying more centrist.

[28:22] They they don't want to repeat the

[28:24] mistakes that the Republicans made uh

[28:27] coming in in 1994. But they do have an

[28:30] agenda of things that they're going to

[28:31] go at, she said, in the first 100 hours

[28:35] uh after they take over in in January.

[28:37] And th those include issues like the

[28:39] minimum wage uh and uh being able to

[28:42] negotiate for lower drug prices, which

[28:45] was something that was left out of that

[28:46] prescription drug bill last year. So, uh

[28:49] there are certain things they're going

[28:50] to push hard on. Uh but I I think

[28:52] they're going to be careful not to try

[28:54] to burn down the House in the process.

[28:56] >> In the second 100 hours, Bush will veto

[28:58] it. Not exactly.

[29:01] >> Well, Craig, what does 2006 mean for

[29:03] 2008?

[29:04] >> Well, I think we've seen some drop it.

[29:06] We see we know some people who aren't

[29:07] going to run now. George Allen possibly

[29:10] not going to be much of a presidential

[29:11] candidate. I would say even if he ees

[29:13] out this victory, uh but if definitely

[29:15] if he loses the Senate from Virginia, um

[29:18] and you I think we're going to see uh

[29:21] maybe some candidates like Rick Santorum

[29:23] play with it even though he lost the

[29:25] Senate. But really, I think what we are

[29:27] going to see is the Democrats have an

[29:29] opportunity, but also a challenge. Uh

[29:32] the many of the Democrats who were going

[29:34] to run for president wanted to run

[29:36] against a Republican Congress, so they

[29:38] can blame it on them. Now, Republicans

[29:40] are going to be able to blame the blame

[29:42] will go back and forth now. It'll be

[29:43] much more evened out.

[29:45] >> Joe, uh the Democrats running on a theme

[29:47] basically saying, "Vote for change." And

[29:49] it was funny on my way into work

[29:50] yesterday, someone shouted at me, "Hey,

[29:52] don't work too hard because no matter

[29:53] who wins, nothing's going to change."

[29:56] What do you What do you see happening?

[29:57] >> Well, I I think that's a very good

[29:59] point. I mean, Nancy Pelosi is going to

[30:01] face some challenges. Um,

[30:02] congratulations to her, of course, on

[30:04] being the first woman to be speaker of

[30:05] the House of Representatives. But the

[30:07] challenges she's going to face, of

[30:09] course, is she's going to have to come

[30:10] more to the Senate, as uh, of course,

[30:12] uh, Jonathan just explained she will,

[30:14] but in addition to that, she's going to

[30:16] have to reign in some of those House

[30:17] chairs. remember now that the

[30:19] chairmanship of some of the House

[30:20] committees of all the House committees

[30:21] will change hands and you've got some

[30:23] House chairs who uh have uh who are

[30:25] pretty radical guys. I mean, you've got

[30:27] uh of course John Conurs who's been

[30:29] threatening for months that if he gets

[30:31] to be chair of the Judiciary Committee,

[30:33] you know exactly what he's going to do

[30:35] and who he's going to go after. And

[30:36] Nancy Pelosi has to work very hard, I

[30:38] think, to make sure that she keeps her

[30:40] uh her new committee chair uh

[30:41] chairpersons in check so that they don't

[30:43] run a muck and allow her to actually

[30:45] work with this president to get some

[30:47] things done in in this two-year period.

[30:49] She's got about two years to get

[30:50] something done.

[30:50] >> All right, Joe Watkins, Craig Crawford,

[30:52] Jonathan Alter, thank you all for your

[30:54] expertise. We appreciate it.

[30:56] >> Well, a reminder at noon Eastern time,

[30:58] we will be hearing from the soontobe

[30:59] House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who won her

[31:01] race by a margin of 70 percentage

[31:04] points. She's holding a news conference

[31:05] at noon and we're going to have it for

[31:07] you live. Coming up, from claims of

[31:09] intimidation to electronic meltdowns,

[31:11] we'll check in with someone who is

[31:12] monitoring the polls last night and he's

[31:15] already calling it a lame duck Congress.

[31:18] Republican fire brand Tom Delay joining

[31:20] us after the break to give us his take

[31:22] on what the midterm results mean for the

[31:24] next two years.

[31:31] When the battle for Congress ends, the

[31:33] real fight will begin. Iraq, the

[31:35] economy, the war on terror with tough

[31:37] issues in play. Find out what it all

[31:39] really means from the best political

[31:41] team in the business. Decision 2006, the

[31:44] aftermath. Special coverage all day

[31:46] today only on MSNBC, the place for

[31:50] politics. I'm Anto Williams. The

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[34:09] >> Keeping you up to the minute, there is

[34:11] the opening bell on Wall Street. We'll

[34:12] keep a close eye on the markets today to

[34:14] see what, if any, reaction traders had

[34:16] to the shifting balance of power in

[34:18] Washington. The Dow's already down 46

[34:21] points at last check now. And we should

[34:23] mention it was at a new high at one

[34:25] point yesterday, reaching 12,196.

[34:27] But again, opening down. We'll continue

[34:29] to keep our eye on Wall Street. As of

[34:32] right now, Democrats have a net gain of

[34:33] four Senate seats, Ohio, Pennsylvania,

[34:36] Missouri, and Rhode Island. But two of

[34:38] those races are still too close to call.

[34:40] Montana and Virginia. NBC News is

[34:43] projecting Democrats will pick up 32

[34:45] seats in the House of Representatives,

[34:47] giving them the majority. And for the

[34:49] first time in 12 years, Democrats also

[34:51] captured a majority of governorships,

[34:53] winning 20 of 36 races. Democrat Deval

[34:57] Patrick Cruz victory in Massachusetts,

[34:59] becoming that state's first black

[35:00] governor. Well, 90% of the nation used

[35:04] high-tech equipment to cast ballots

[35:05] yesterday, millions of them, for the

[35:07] first time ever. And it seems the

[35:09] process was smooth for the country as a

[35:11] whole. But by the looks of these

[35:14] pictures, some areas did run into

[35:15] problems causing some very long lines.

[35:18] Joining us from Albuquerque, New Mexico,

[35:20] is Ray Martinez. He is the vice chairman

[35:22] of the US Election Assistance

[35:23] Commission. Thanks for being with us.

[35:26] >> Good morning, Amy. Thanks for having me.

[35:27] And I'm the former vice chairman of the

[35:29] Election Assistance Commission, by the

[35:30] way.

[35:31] >> All right. We appreciate that

[35:32] clarification. Uh it seems some of the

[35:34] biggest problems were in the larger

[35:36] voting places like Denver, Colorado.

[35:38] Equipment failures leading to long

[35:40] lines. Tell us what happened.

[35:43] >> Well, I think it's uh I think it's it's

[35:45] important to note that in in so much of

[35:47] the country, as you pointed out in your

[35:48] introduction, um we ought to give credit

[35:50] where credit is due. Election officials

[35:52] worked very hard to absorb a lot of

[35:54] changes that were asked of them, both

[35:56] with the technology that we use in the

[35:58] election process and with new laws and

[36:00] procedures. And so I think that's

[36:01] important to note that by and large

[36:03] things went smoothly. But it's also

[36:05] important to note that the the glitches

[36:07] that occurred are more than just a blip

[36:08] on the radar screen as you point out. So

[36:10] in Colorado and Denver, you saw that uh

[36:13] election officials were trying to use

[36:15] technology to their advantage by having

[36:16] vote centers so that people can have

[36:18] convenience of voting. But unfortunately

[36:20] the the the software or the the servers

[36:22] that were serving or that were

[36:23] supporting that particular uh technology

[36:26] went down. And we saw glitches similar

[36:28] to to that with some machines uh not

[36:30] being able to get started uh in time in

[36:32] other jurisdictions around the country

[36:34] as well. Amy,

[36:35] >> all as you noted, and most of the

[36:36] problems were of technical nature, but

[36:38] some of them were due to confusion.

[36:39] There were some new laws in several

[36:41] states that required specific ID to

[36:43] actually vote. In fact, I believe South

[36:45] Carolina Governor Mark Sanford had to go

[36:46] back home and prove that he was a

[36:48] resident. How much did that impact

[36:50] voting yesterday? Just the confusion

[36:52] about new ID laws. I think that is

[36:55] probably the most significant impact in

[36:57] my opinion. So what we have then are

[36:59] changes in technology and we've talked

[37:00] about some of the glitches that occurred

[37:02] but perhaps more significantly are the

[37:04] changes or the the complexity in the

[37:06] process that we're asking pole workers

[37:08] in particular to deal with. You know to

[37:10] be a pole worker these days in America

[37:12] you have to be part computer technician,

[37:14] part lawyer. Uh and and that's that's

[37:16] asking a lot of our poll workers. And so

[37:18] I think what you have are a lot of

[37:20] changes to laws throughout the country.

[37:22] you know, the chief election official in

[37:23] Missouri, Robin Carneahan, was

[37:25] improperly asked for a photo

[37:26] identification when she went to go vote,

[37:28] according to reports. So, we we have to

[37:30] emphasize greater uh training of pole

[37:33] workers. We have to figure out how we

[37:35] can ensure that pole workers have an

[37:37] ease or a comfort level with the

[37:40] technology, but also a good

[37:41] understanding of the laws and changes

[37:43] that occur throughout the country and

[37:44] from jurisdiction to jurisdiction with

[37:46] the laws that take place. We have to

[37:47] emphasize the human aspect of election

[37:50] administration and try to place a great

[37:52] deal of emphasis on poll worker

[37:53] training, voter education, election

[37:55] official trading, etc. Amy.

[37:57] >> All right, Ray Martinez, we appreciate

[37:58] it. Thanks so much.

[38:00] >> Thank you for having me.

[38:01] >> Well, one of the House seats the

[38:02] Democrats snagged from Republicans came

[38:04] in the Texas district of former House

[38:06] Majority Leader Tom Delay. My colleague

[38:08] Rita Cosby joins us now with more on

[38:10] that race. Rita,

[38:11] >> well Amy, it is a seat Republicans have

[38:13] held for more than 20 years. Democrat

[38:16] Nick Lamson defeated Republican Shelley

[38:18] Sakula Gibbs. Squoula Gibbs still will

[38:20] finish the last two months of Tom

[38:22] Delay's term. Former Congressman Tom

[38:25] Delay announced his resignation from

[38:26] Congress back in April to fight

[38:28] corruption charges in Texas. And joining

[38:30] me now live this morning right now is

[38:32] former House Majority Leader Tom Delay.

[38:35] Congressman, how would you best describe

[38:37] last night? An avalanche, Black Tuesday,

[38:39] or a political tsunami?

[38:42] >> Well, Reed, I'd call it a Texas

[38:43] whooping. That's for sure.

[38:46] The Republicans really took a a bath

[38:49] last night. I don't think it was a a

[38:51] wave. It was it's pretty uh it's less

[38:53] than the average of uh elections in the

[38:56] second term of a a two-term president.

[38:58] So, um and and then in my opinion, the

[39:02] the Democrats didn't win, the

[39:04] Republicans lost.

[39:05] >> What went wrong for your party?

[39:07] Well, I I think uh over the last couple

[39:10] of years um we just played not to lose

[39:15] and uh we didn't we didn't fight for the

[39:18] things that we really believe in. I

[39:20] think uh fundamental tax reform,

[39:23] redesigning government, uh winning the

[39:25] war on terror, a a strong immigration

[39:28] policy, uh turning around the culture of

[39:31] death, stopping overactive judiciary.

[39:34] None of that was articulated to the

[39:36] American people and um uh the the

[39:40] Republicans uh teamed up with the

[39:43] independents and um dumped on their

[39:46] incumbents.

[39:47] >> Speaking of what was articulated, exit

[39:49] polls show that an astounding three4s of

[39:52] those pled said corruption and scandals

[39:54] played a key role in their vote. Were

[39:57] the Republicans just too tainted after

[39:58] issues with Bob Nay, you and especially

[40:01] Mark Foley? Well, the Democrats had and

[40:04] with help from the national media did a

[40:06] very good job of of pointing out the

[40:08] corruption uh of uh Republicans. In my

[40:12] case, I haven't been found guilty of

[40:14] anything. In fact, I've been indi indict

[40:16] indicted on laws that didn't exist. Uh

[40:19] but others, FBI investigations, sex

[40:22] scandals.

[40:22] >> What about the Foley factor?

[40:24] >> Uh the Foley factor was the last straw.

[40:27] I mean, and and it's a double standard.

[40:29] I mean, the Democrats had plenty of

[40:32] corruption problems, too. I mean, Harry

[40:34] Reid, Alan Mullahan, um, you have

[40:37] William Jefferson, but that it's a

[40:39] double standard. Democrats reelect their

[40:42] corrupt members. The Republicans throw

[40:44] ours out.

[40:44] >> You know, last night, Howard Dean ripped

[40:46] into the Republicans, saying that

[40:47] Americans instead wanted a party of

[40:49] hope, and he said they voted out the

[40:51] party of quote, "corruption and fear and

[40:53] smear." What do you say to the Democrats

[40:55] today? Well, uh, they better get they

[41:00] shouldn't get too used to being in the

[41:02] majority because most of the seats that

[41:04] they won, uh, we will take back in in in

[41:09] ' 08. I mean, my own seat, uh, Shelley

[41:12] Sakula Gibbs got more votes in her

[41:15] special election than Dick Nick Lamson

[41:18] got in in his general election. So,

[41:20] >> how did you feel about the loss of your

[41:21] own seat personally, Congressman? Well,

[41:23] it's I'm I'm personally disappointed.

[41:25] Uh, unfortunately, it um a right in is

[41:30] almost impossible to do.

[41:31] >> Do you think redistricting played a

[41:33] role?

[41:33] >> The the the saving grace is Nick Lson's

[41:36] going to be a one-term congressman.

[41:37] >> Do you think redistricting played a role

[41:39] that you were pushing hard for in Texas?

[41:41] >> No, not at all. Uh it what played the

[41:44] role was uh uh a a a federal judge

[41:48] making a terrible uh ruling that did not

[41:51] allow me to be replaced by a Republican

[41:54] on the ballot because Shelley was on the

[41:57] ballot and she got more votes than Nick

[41:59] got uh in the general election.

[42:02] >> How do you like hearing the phrase

[42:04] speaker Nancy Pelosi?

[42:06] Well, it's very disappointing and but I

[42:09] understand it and um uh we'll just have

[42:13] to wait a little while for for the

[42:15] things that we've been fighting for.

[42:17] Fundamental tax reform, uh uh

[42:20] immigration policy, stopping an

[42:22] overactive judiciary, but none of that's

[42:24] going to happen anytime soon. And the

[42:26] American people immediately are going to

[42:28] every family is going to be paying at

[42:30] least $2,000 more a year in taxes.

[42:33] >> I've got two questions for you. Um, the

[42:35] president's going to address the nation

[42:36] a few hours from now. What do you think

[42:38] he should say?

[42:40] >> I think uh he he ought to say, "I will

[42:42] work with you when you stand for

[42:44] something." Um, and uh hopefully we can

[42:47] work together. But I know Nancy Pelosi

[42:50] and Harry Reid. The only way that

[42:52] they're going to work with the president

[42:53] is if the president capitulates to them.

[42:56] So, um, it's and and a a closely divided

[43:00] Senate means not much is going to get

[43:02] done for the next two years. What you're

[43:04] going to see is investigations defunding

[43:07] the war and raising taxes by because

[43:10] they can raise taxes by doing nothing

[43:12] and uh um and let the tax extensions

[43:17] expire. So that's probably what you got

[43:20] to look forward to in the next two

[43:21] years.

[43:22] >> Been a lot of criticism this morning.

[43:24] Some people criticizing Hastard of

[43:25] course tainted a bit by the Foley

[43:27] scandal. What do you think should happen

[43:28] to him? And also finally a lot of

[43:30] conservatives in the last, you know, 12

[43:32] hours or so saying Rumsfeld should

[43:34] leave.

[43:35] >> Well, I the leadership of the House and

[43:38] the leadership of the Senate are going

[43:39] to have to sit down and and uh think

[43:42] through, take a deep breath. Uh don't

[43:44] run from what you believe in.

[43:46] >> What about Rumsfeld?

[43:47] >> Um and and look at at how you you can uh

[43:50] per uh go forward. Uh I'm a great fan of

[43:54] Don Rumsfeld. I I would not uh uh take

[43:57] him out because uh he's done a great

[44:00] job. He will continue to do a great job

[44:02] in leading the the military in in

[44:05] winning this war on terror. And frankly,

[44:07] I think that'd be a great signal to the

[44:09] Democrats that we're not going to we're

[44:11] not going to capitulate to you. We'll

[44:13] work with you, but we're not going to

[44:15] give up what we believe in.

[44:17] >> Former Congressman Tom Dele good to have

[44:18] you on, sir. Thank you so much.

[44:20] >> Thank you, Rita.

[44:20] >> Thank you. And Amy, back to you.

[44:22] >> All right, Rita. Well, they expected him

[44:24] to lose, just not that badly. Some of

[44:26] the biggest surprises of the night,

[44:28] including Republican Rick Santorum's

[44:30] defeat in Pennsylvania.

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[47:36] >> He'll be back. California Governor

[47:38] Arnold Schwarzenegger has been elected

[47:40] to a second term. Voters seem to

[47:42] appreciate Schwarzenegger's bipartisan

[47:43] approach to governing, sending him back

[47:46] to office for a sequel.

[47:49] >> I love doing sequels. I love I love

[47:52] doing sequels, I tell you.

[47:58] But this, without any doubt, is my

[48:00] favorite sequel. I have to tell you

[48:02] that. What a great night. And what a

[48:04] great victory. What a great victory for

[48:06] the people of California.

[48:08] >> Democrat Phil Angelites failed to get

[48:10] even half the vote, finishing with just

[48:12] 39%.

[48:14] Well, Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman

[48:16] made a dramatic fourthterm comeback, but

[48:18] this time as an independent.

[48:21] >> I'm Joe Lieberman and I approve of this

[48:24] election.

[48:27] >> Well, here's where the numbers stand.

[48:29] Lieberman came out with 50% of the vote

[48:31] while Democrat Ned Lamont walked away

[48:33] with just 40%. MSNBC's Chris Jansing is

[48:36] live in Hartford this morning for us.

[48:37] And Chris, this wasn't a surprising win,

[48:40] but it's worth mentioning what a

[48:41] comeback.

[48:43] Yeah, amazing comeback. Really, I don't

[48:45] think you would have found too many

[48:46] people three months ago after his

[48:48] devastating primary loss to Need Lamont

[48:50] who would have believed that not only

[48:51] would Joe Lieberman come back, but he

[48:53] would come back to win by 10 points and

[48:56] embolden maybe even stronger than he was

[48:58] before as a force in the Senate. What

[49:00] happened here? I mean, twice as many

[49:02] voters in exit polls said they opposed

[49:04] the war and Joe Liverman, of course, a

[49:06] strong supporter of the war. Uh, several

[49:08] things. And Ned Lamont was seen by more

[49:10] than half of voters as someone with not

[49:12] enough experience to go to Washington.

[49:14] And give credit where credit is due. Joe

[49:16] Lieberman, analysts will tell you, ran a

[49:18] good campaign. He raised a lot of money,

[49:21] about $15 million, and he managed to get

[49:23] out a message apart from the war. He

[49:26] said he is the one with experience, that

[49:28] he is the one who's bipartisan, and that

[49:30] he could be a force for change, which is

[49:33] a pretty tough cell when you think about

[49:34] it since he's been in the Senate for 18

[49:37] years. But that also means in a small

[49:39] state like Connecticut, a lot of people

[49:41] know Joe Lieberman. They like him. And

[49:43] there were plenty of people, I have to

[49:45] say, according to the exit polls, who

[49:47] said they were opposed to the war, but

[49:48] voted for Joe Lieberman anyway. Amy,

[49:51] >> and obviously Chris, many people talking

[49:53] about what Lieberman will do, who he

[49:55] will side with once he heads back to

[49:57] Washington officially as an independent.

[49:59] He says uh he is going to vote with the

[50:01] Democrats. Is he looking for a

[50:02] leadership position?

[50:05] Well, he has been promised that he will

[50:07] keep his seniority and he has said in

[50:10] spite of some suggestions to the

[50:11] contrary that he will indeed uh remain

[50:14] with the Democratic camp. But he has

[50:16] sent out the message repeatedly over the

[50:18] last week and he said it again this

[50:20] morning on IMAS that even though he'll

[50:22] caucus with the Democrats, he feels

[50:24] after this experience of essentially

[50:27] being rejected by the Democratic party

[50:29] that he feels even more independent,

[50:31] that he feels uh he has to be a more

[50:34] critical voice. And so one of the things

[50:37] that's going to be interesting to watch

[50:38] is how the Republicans court him on some

[50:40] of these tight votes if it is as it will

[50:43] uh be a tight Senate. and see which way

[50:46] he lands. But Joe Lieberman goes back. I

[50:48] guess you could say BOC, big man on

[50:50] campus. I think one headline put it. He

[50:52] could be the Senate's 800 pound gorilla.

[50:55] Amy.

[50:56] >> All right, Chris Jansing, we appreciate

[50:57] it. Thank you. So, control of the Senate

[51:00] hinges on two races, including one that

[51:03] could take several days to decide.

[51:05] Virginia's Senate race between George

[51:07] Allen and Jim Webb. And Montana Senate

[51:09] race still too close to call, but we

[51:11] could know results in that race between

[51:13] John Tester and Senator Conrad Burns

[51:16] sometime this morning.

[51:22] >> Keith Oberman's special comment. One

[51:25] thing is certain, when Keith talks,

[51:27] people listen. Only on Countdown. Only

[51:30] on MSNBC.

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[54:14] >> With election night behind us, we wanted

[54:15] to take a look back at some of the more

[54:17] surprising results from across the

[54:18] country. So, to help us with that, we're

[54:20] joined by Mark McKinnon of hotsoup.com.

[54:22] Mark is also the former chief media

[54:24] adviser to President Bush. So Mark, what

[54:26] surprised you most?

[54:27] >> Well, all of it surprised me. I feel

[54:29] kind of like the homeowner after a

[54:30] hurricane, checking to see if he has any

[54:32] property left. Uh, pretty resounding

[54:34] results across the board. We'll see what

[54:36] happens in the Senate, but uh, clearly a

[54:38] change of leadership in at least the

[54:40] House. So,

[54:40] >> you didn't think that was going to

[54:41] happen?

[54:42] >> Well, yeah, certainly I had an

[54:44] expectation that could happen because it

[54:45] has historically happened. In fact, the

[54:47] numbers are a little bit under the

[54:48] average for the sixth year of a

[54:49] presidential term. Uh but you know,

[54:52] listen, I think when you have people

[54:53] like Rick Santorm, who's the third in

[54:55] line of leadership in the Senate being,

[54:57] you know, swept out by a fairly large

[54:58] margin, that voters are sending a

[55:01] they're sending a clear message for

[55:02] change. And I think the big question now

[55:03] is will the Republican

[55:07] uh get that message, listen to that

[55:08] message, and work cooperatively. And I

[55:10] and I feel very positively about the

[55:12] fact that uh that the president will

[55:14] reach across the aisle as he did in

[55:16] Texas when he was governor. We watched

[55:17] him work very well with Democratic

[55:19] leadership in the in the House and the

[55:21] Senate and got a lot of things done. So,

[55:22] I actually think that we can see a very

[55:24] productive couple of years here.

[55:25] >> In terms of surprises, I mean, Montana

[55:27] had been labeled the reddest of red

[55:28] states or at least in that block of

[55:30] really red states and Virginia and

[55:32] Northern Virginia aside, also a red

[55:34] state. Are you surprised how razor thin

[55:36] those elections are right now? And where

[55:38] do you think it's going to fall?

[55:40] Well, uh it we'll know in a few hours. I

[55:43] guess maybe a few days in in in in one

[55:46] case, but uh the No, it's it's it's not

[55:50] a surprise that uh that the race are

[55:52] close given what we saw before. In fact,

[55:54] in in Montana, I think Conrad Burns ran

[55:57] a much stronger race than anybody

[55:58] expected him to a couple of months ago.

[56:00] He was in double digit. He was losing by

[56:02] double digits. So the fact that he made

[56:04] a close testifies to a strong campaign

[56:06] that he ran and actually the president

[56:07] going in and helping him there at the

[56:08] end I think really gave him a shot. But

[56:10] but they are just I think the real

[56:12] surprise is Virginia where Senator Allen

[56:14] was a formidable senator and and a

[56:16] presidential prospect. Uh so that I

[56:20] think is the is the real surprise and of

[56:22] course could be the the seat that swings

[56:24] the balance of power.

[56:25] >> Absolutely. We Senator Lieberman winning

[56:27] is not a surprise. Recent polls were

[56:29] showing that he was definitely ahead of

[56:30] Lamont. What do you think we're going to

[56:31] see from him once he heads back to

[56:33] Washington? Do you think we'll all be

[56:34] surprised or is he going to caucus with

[56:36] the Democrats uh through and through?

[56:38] >> I think Joe will be Joe. And that's the

[56:40] great thing about Joe Lieberman. I you

[56:41] know he is that I think he's a great

[56:44] example of a a great character candidate

[56:46] who has stood up for his principles,

[56:47] stood up for what he believed in. And

[56:49] even in a heavily democratic state,

[56:51] people appreciate somebody who stands

[56:53] for what they believe in, stands on

[56:55] principle, and and and shows some real

[56:58] character, which is what Joe Lieberman

[56:59] has done all his political life, and I

[57:01] expect he'll continue to do in the

[57:02] future. And I think he could be a real

[57:04] leader in the coming years, uh, creating

[57:06] a bridge between the two parties.

[57:08] >> All right, Mark McKinnon, we appreciate

[57:09] it. Thank you.

[57:10] >> You are welcome. Well, we are coming up

[57:12] on the top of the hour and the jury is

[57:14] still out. In Virginia and Montana, more

[57:17] than 24 hours after voters headed to the

[57:19] polls, there are still no clear winners.

[57:22] Lester Holt continues our coverage next.

[57:30] As a veteran of the first Gulf War,

[57:32] Sergeant Paul Ray Smith was an

[57:34] experienced soldier whose mission was to

[57:36] prepare his company for the realities of

[57:38] combat. Before long, in a battle outside

[57:42] Baghdad's airport, Smith's company was

[57:44] put to the test.

[57:45] >> You can see RPGs streaming about 20 30

[57:48] ft over your head.

[57:49] >> Risking his own life, Sergeant Smith led

[57:52] his team into a desperate fight. Firing

[57:55] his 50 caliber machine gun, Smith held

[57:57] off the enemy and saved more than 100

[58:00] American lives.

[58:03] But at the height of the battle,

[58:04] Sergeant Smith was mortally wounded. In

[58:08] 2005, President George W. Bush presented

[58:11] Smith's young son, David, with this

[58:13] nation's highest military citation, the

[58:15] Medal of Honor. Sergeant First Class

[58:18] Paul Ray Smith, courage, and uncommon

[58:22] valor.

[58:30] I'm not a big fan of homework, but every

[58:32] once in a while, you do learn something.

[58:33] Like, did you know we've got more coal

[58:35] in America than the Middle East has oil?

[58:37] We've got like a 250ear supply. Now

[58:40] that's worth knowing. Here, I'll tell

[58:43] you more.

[58:44] >> I'm making Jimmy Dean. Want some

[58:47] >> high pressure system in the early

[58:48] afternoon?

[58:49] >> We'll have a high pressure system in the

[58:50] early afternoon.

[58:51] >> Uh, sunny high in the low 80s.

[58:54] >> It'll be sunny, high in the low 80s.

[58:56] >> A chance of precipitation.

[58:58] >> Chance of precipitation. There you go.

[59:00] >> Wow, that was fast.

[59:01] >> Wow, that was fast. microwave.

[59:03] >> No way. This came out of the microwave.

[59:06] >> Yep.

[59:06] >> No way. This came out of the microwave.

[59:08] >> The day begins with a happy breakfast.

[59:10] Delicious Jimmy Dean fully cooked

[59:12] sausage fresh from the skillet. Tastes

[59:13] fast.

[59:14] >> I got up this morning. My knees were bad

[59:17] again. So, I took Bear and that was

[59:19] that.

[59:20] >> Genuine Bear aspirin. Painkiller

[59:23] lifesaver.

[59:25] >> I expect to keep playing.

[59:27] >> Bear. Expect wonders.

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