plus giving mama's boy a whole new mining. he became a -- >> the sexual orientation of my parents has had zero effect on the content of my character. >> my exclusive with zach walls. >> marilu henner. she's one of the only people on the planet with total memory recall. >> august the 16th of 1977, that was a tuesday, and i heard on the radio that elvis presley had died. >> my god! >> in one of the weirdest things i've ever seen, she can remember every detail of her life. tonight i'll put her to the test. plus noenl amerionly in ame nfl draft. let's be honest, a multimillion dollar meat market. this is "piers morgan tonight." good evening, our big story, the selling of a president. i'll talk to a man who says 2012 will go down as the year of the sugar daddies. frank rich. also my extraordinary interview with marilu henner. you remember her from "taxi." what you won't know about her is she remembers every single thing about herself that ever happened. tonight she shares that extraordinary ability. >> july 29th, 1981, okay, it was a wednesday. i was shooting in soho the movie "dream house" with john schneider and we were shooting like my apartment there. and that was -- that's the first time i ever listened to a walkman and i heard the song by sting. >> that interview is one of the most amazing thing's you'll ever watch. that comes later. we begin with our big story, super pacs appear the selling of the presidency. sugar daddies, the old white rich men who are buying the selection. frank, it's a fascinating piece. these are basically the 25 leading conservative donors who have all contributed more than a million dollars into various super pacs. >> the 25 that we know about because in some of these super pacs or pacs you can remain anonymous. there's some that are called social welfare organizations. they really are very political. so these are just the ones we know about and just the ones so far when technically we're still not really out of the primaries. >> has there ever been a time in modern political history where the fate of a president has been so determined, some would argue, by straight cash through these strange institutions, the super pac? >> in modern times, absolutely not. we know that people of wealth and corporations try to buy influence, and in both parties often. but this kind of wealth -- first of all, there weren't even people this wealthy in real dollars. andrew carnegie in real dollars didn't have as much money as some of these sugar daddies. and now there's the mechanism legally through various rulings, not just citizens united, that allows them to give unlimited amounts. >> the worst thing is, frank, to me, i went on the trail of interviewing all the candidates regularly so i was in north carolina or wherever it may be watching attack ad after attack ad after attack ad. it was like demolition jobs. i was shocked. what was clear to me is there were ten times as many acting for mitt romney or on behalf of mitt romney or around the back door for mitt romney. and you cannot escape the conclusion that he didn't win the nominee because he's just the best candidate. he won it primarily because he blew the others out of the water financially. >> right. but also the demolition derby had blowback on him. the truth is people like adleson freeze who will rally to romney by supporting -- they have so damaged him that he has some of the worst positive poll ratings of a candidate at this stage of a campaign ever. he has negative ratings that are so high. so the same sugar daddies that are now going to try to help him destroy obama really did damage to him when they were working for santorum and gingrich. >> barack obama is not exactly short of cash. for march alone he got $104 million in, overall obama nearly $200 million. romney closing up on $100 million. are these misleading, these figures? >> there's an apples and oranges thing going on. you have to think if you're watching this from outside and don't want to understand election law too much, it's like having a savings account and a checking account. so what the official campaigns are raising and the official democratic and republican parties are raising is different from this pac money, which is so large and isn't counted in those ledgers. except by journalists who make rough calculations. so in some ways it's like you can't really keep score in that way. >> the premise of your piece is that you're seriously worried mitt romney could buy this election. >> mm-hmm. >> through these weird, unaccountable kind of super pacs. that's not good for american democracy, if that's what happens, is it? >> no, it's very much a replay of the late 19th century when we had far less regulation than we do now from plutocrats and people who were incredibly wealthy, which is fine, they're entitled to be wealthy, represent their own interests in the polling booth by just pulling the trigger from afar. and they have special interests that are not always transparent to the voter and they'll try to collect the bill if their guy or guys and women get in come november. >> we saw the battleground really kick off. the obamas really officially launched their campaign may the 5th, as the pair of them, michelle and barack, a multi-pronged attack of the youth. the cover of "rolling stone" magazine. the watch a bit of this from jimmy fallon, where he slow jams. >> the reason it's so important to keep down costs is so we keep college affordable. >> and the president knows his stuff, y'all. that's why they call him the potus, which means person on top -- what is it? >> jimmy, potus stands for president of the united states. ♪ he's the potus with the most >> it's very funny. >> it's very funny. >> people have criticized him. republicans have said it's more celebrity stuff by the president. others are like you don't need to do this. you haven't got to do this anymore, you've the president. actually he does have to do this because one of the battle grounds will be for the young voters and that's where obama will have an advantage. >> right. he has to mobilize them. it's unlikely he'll succeed in doing it in the huge numbers of the historic election of 2008, but this helps motivate young voters. but i'd also argue it's not just about young voters. a lot of americans live in the popular culture, not just young people, and so the more that he's out there i think in that culture, the more he seems like one of us. and for republicans, and mccain did this too with obama, to say he's a celebrity or he's demeaning, they look like mr. wilson in dennis the menace, old white guys that can't have fun and are out of touch with the way people consume culture in this country. >> what i like is the battleground which may come, which involves their ability to sing. and we actually cut together mitt romney and barack obama. it's not a fair fight by any means, but watch this. ♪ i am so in love with you ♪ for purple mountains majesty, above the fruited plain ♪ >> if that was the final of "the voice" i'm afraid mitt romney is going home. >> all i can think of is he has said that his first date with ann romney was to see "the sound of music." so i'm fully expecting "climb every mountain" to be the next piece of his repertoire. >> the republicans have already begun a few attack ads. i want to show you this one that's come out i think today. >> oh, yeah. ♪ i am so in love with you >> oh, yeah. >> nice. >> so you can see the battleground there being clearly aligned. a lot of the stuff that the obama campaign may see as positives being thrown back in their faces as the celebrification of the presidency against straight mitt romney. he rises effortlessly above all this. what do you think of this? >> i think it's going to back fire. it makes them look like old goi fogies. i'm fascinated by one shot in that ad, him drinking a peer. that's considered a major part of being a successful politician. and you have a candidate on the republican side who for religious reasons can't drink beer. what's that doing there, i wonder. >> let's take a short break. i want to come back and ask you about keeping america great. i can't think of a better guy to ask what america needs to do not just to recover but to keep great. what are the great virtues that should be maintained from the past. marry lieu. if you're looking for a bumper sticker to sum up how president obama has handled what we inherited, it's prets eat simple. osama bin laden is dead and general motors is alive. at aviva, we do things differently. we're bringing humanity back to life insurance. that's why only aviva rewards you with savings for getting a check-up. it's our wellness for life program, with online access to mayo clinic. see the difference at avivausa.com. why you fell in love with her in the first place. and why you still feel the same. but your erectile dysfunction -- that could be a question of blood flow. cialis for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph, like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medications, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sexual activity. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or if you have any allergic reactions such as rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a 30-tablet free trial. the utterly shocking sensation about cialis for daily use of being on a business trip where everything goes right. backed up by a 100% satisfaction guarantee. feel the advantage. feel the hamptonality. i'm not interested -- >> please be quiet. the president is experiencing severe chest pains. we just got word from south africa you need to get to the west wing immediately. >> i'm so sorry. >> ma'am -- >> julia louis dreyfuss from hbo's new show. frank rich is the executive producer of the show. he's back with me. keeping america great, love that show. i love julia. >> she's a great comic actress and this is a great role for her with more freedom than she's had in television in years. she is really something else. >> she's terrific. it raises the specter of vps generally. if you're mitt romney, what's the smart pick for you? >> i really believe in the old cliche do no harm. don't -- don't go for that hail mary pass. we saw what happened with mccain. i think it was a big factor in his defeat. find someone who's completely vetted, who's not going to get in your way. the idea that if you pick someone from a certain state or a certain gender or a certain ethnicity you're going to win that vote because of it is not born out by history. >> the recent polls are fascinating. condoleezza rice was at the top and i've always thought she is slightly wasted now and not being used at a high enough level. i've always found her very intelligent, interesting character. what do you think? >> i think it's true, although she's in academia and that's a legitimate calling. however, it's debatable about whether being veep would be a step up as indeed our show shows, it's kind of far removed from real power. she really had a more powerful job before than vice president would be. >> do you attend the white house correspondence dinner? i've never been but i'm going this year on saturday for the first time. i'm a bit alarmed by the guest list. i was imagining the president and vice president biden. i've just discovered that lindsay lohan and kim kardashian might be at the next table. that's not quite what i had in mind, frankly. >> i haven't become in years but it has become sort of a nerd prom in washington. it's kind of embarrassing not for politicians but to watch sort of the washington press corps be so stage struck and awe struck at seeing not always top tier celebrities. >> i am taking goldie hawn as my guest. now, that is top tier. i think we both agree on that. >> that is top tier and she's like me and like julia louis-dreyfuss grew up in the washington area so she's legitimately there. >> my pick of vp has been spot on. >> that's fine but you're not going to believe what you see surrounding you. and also it is funny, and i grew up in washington, to see washington -- button-down washington press people and political people just slobber over anyone on a red carpet. it's really kind of embarrassing, but it's like watching a car wreck, if you can watch it on c-span and i recommend it to everybody. >> let's talk about america. keeping america great. you've written about america for much of the last 25, 30 years. what do you make of the reality of what is happening? is america going to hell in a hand cart. is it massively exaggerated? is it simply the threat from emerging superpowers? is america embracing that threat properly? what do you think? >> i feel we've had a down period. i do not think that we're going to hell in a hand basket and i do think that we'll pull out of this. i think there's some structural problems that have to be addressed. this issue of inequality which really an mates the tea party on the right and the occupy wall street people on the left, there's a feeling here that something is out of joint, that people are not getting their fair share, whether they're on the right or the left. the most important thing about america, cliche though it is, is freedom. and that includes the freedom to have an equal chance at a livelihood, at a career, at being creative, and that's sort of been lost over the last 40 years in an equitable system and everyone knows it and we have to address it. problems with china, issues -- our status in the world, i think that's a lot of bluster. we were going to be defeated by japan, what, 15 or 20 years ago. i think that gets out of control. the down mood is excessive, i think. >> i've been talking to people like howard schultz at starbucks, who have been talking about a new sense of moral capitalism. now, not everyone is prepared to practice this. you look at what apple is doing. apple is the biggest company in the world but is very china centric in terms of its workforce and sales. you can see staggering sales in china that came out this week. how much should american companies like apple be following the starbucks lead and bringing jobs back to america, opening factories here, even if it costs them more money to do that? >> i don't think you can have a one size fits all policy, but i do think it's something that corporations have to take into consideration more, and it's going to require real building, because it also means that corporations have to get in the whole issue -- involved in the issue of education, local communities. it means having a political presence and a benign one, but one that's helpful. so it can't just be decreed. but, yes, a company like apple and any company should have a way of bringing some of it back to america with an understanding we live in a globalized world and not everything can be here. >> it seems to me ultimately short sighted for a company making so much money by their own admission, they're not quite sure how to spend it. they're not looking at the 8% or so unemployed in america and thinking how can we give back a bit here. america is so patriotic as a company i'm sure they would be rewarded for that. if they made a big deal of saying we're bringing jobs back to america, americans would go i love apple even more than i did yesterday. >> i think that's true. i think the brand, as they say, would be rewarded by that. of course they would be very effective at publicizing such gestures and initiatives. so you're right, it doesn't make sense that they don't. particularly all these companies sitting around on a tremendous amount of cash. why aren't they spending it here? they may blame the president, they may blame federal regulations, but i feel that's just an alibi, an excuse, and they have to step up as corporate citizens and be a part of the real fabric of america, particularly at a time when it's suffered so much. >> final question, frank. come november the 5th, who's going to be sitting pretty as the president? >> you! >> that can't happen. >> i'm not good -- i don't believe in making predictions. i really think anything can happen. it's going to be a close race. you know, some structural things are favoring obama, some things like the money and the sugar daddies are not favoring him. >> what do you sense the key battleground will be? obviously the economy probably collectively. but is there one thing? could it be as simple as gas prices? >> no. i don't think it's going to be one thing. and i do think a key part of the battleground is going to be women, which has already become a battleground. if romney can't win over women, he's not going to be president. i also think another key demographic is going to be hispanics, which were very important in certain swing states and that's going to be a big, big battleground. the youth vote obama will get, he just has to motivate it to go to the polls. but i think it's going to be classic, sort of meat and potatoes of american politics with the economy as an x factor, because we don't know how much the recovery is going to stall or not. >> frank, as always, fascinating to talk to you. please come back again soon. >> i'd love to, thank you. >> good to see you. next my primetime exclusive with a man's speech that made him an overnight sensation. >> my name is zack walls. i'm a sixth generation iowan and i was raised by two women. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] with 50 horsepower, dual overhead cams and fierce acceleration, the gator xuv 825i will shatter your expectations. ♪ and so no one gets left behind, check out our affordable xuv 550s at johndeere.com/gator. ♪ over the next two hours i'm sure we're going to hear plenty of testimony about how damaging having gay parents is on kids. but in my 19 years, not once have i efr been confronted by an individual who realized independently that i was raised by a dgay couple. you know why? because the sexual orientation of my parents has had zero effect on the content of my character. >> zach wahls speaking to the iowa house of representatives in impassioned defense of two mothers got 18 million hits on youtube and made him an instant celebrity. he's written a book "my two moms" and zach joins me now. welcome. >> thank you very much for having me. >> i replayed your speech this morning to remind myself because i remembered at the time just exploding on the internet. what i was struck by is a comment somebody put underneath. >> okay. >> on the youtube version that i saw and it just said there. wow, he didn't have devil horns coming out of his head. the world didn't implode. satan never rose up from hell. and damn our souls forever. in fact he seems like a normal, nice guy. i blame the parents. which i thought was a great comment to make. >> yeah. >> it kind of said it all. it was the most shocking thing about you was your nor mality and that was what was so disarming as well. you had to be staggered by the response. >> totally overwhelmed. >> when you walked in to make that speech, what was your real intention? what did you hope to achieve? >> you know, when i walked in, i was kind of overwhelmed too. it's a really big room. at hand was house resolution 6, this proposed amendment to reverse a supreme court decision that legalized marriage equality. so my goal for th