certainly goes a long way. >> and the president gets interrupted, i would say heckled, by a conservative reporter. jose happen tonio vargas, the journalist and illegal immigrant on the cover of "time" joins us discussion. it was the high watermark for modern journalism. 40 years ago today when police found a group of unusually well-dressed burglars at the watergate. a story covered by two local metro reporters. >> we would have coffee every morning off the newsroom floor. put a dime, which it cost in those days, for a cup of coffee in the machine. and i felt this chill go down my back. i said to woodward, oh, my god, this president is going to be impeached. now newspapers everywhere are slashing their staffs, and journalists are far more unpopular. is investigative reporting fading in the post-watergate era? we've seen it in iraq, afghanistan, egypt, elizabesyri elizabeth, the toughest journalist covering war. former correspondent michael wae was kidnapped by terrorists. >> when i was grabbed by al qaeda and pulled from my car, they were going to cut my head off. >> what about the human toll when the correspondent comes home? i'm howard kurtz and this is "reliable sources." the headline on the "time" cover says "we are americans, just not legally." the story is by jose antonio vargas who did not disclose his illegal status when he worked at the "washington post" and "huffington post." it was a coincidence, but on friday, a day after "time" hit the newsstands, president obama announced he is suspending deportations for many younger illegal immigrants. >> they are americans in their heart, in their minds, in every single way but one -- on paper. >> joining us to talk about the role of journalists and covering this politically sensitive story from new york is hose antonio vargas. welcome and let me start with this. in the last couple of years, has the media coverage of illegal immigrants in your view got more sympathetic, and could that have helped move president obama on this issue? >> well, thanks for having me, first, howard. i'm not sure if sympathetic is the right word. i just think it's gotten more and more human. i mean, i think -- i think journalists in general in the country have -- have written about the human stories and the struggles that people like me, you know, 11.5 million undocumented people in this country, face every day. >> but making it more human sounds like -- if you don't agree with the word sympathetic, certainly more real, that this is not some abstract political problem but a problem involving real people like yourself. >> absolutely. you know, we can -- we can relate that is on so many issues. too often, you know, policies in this country are covered from a purely political he said/she said what the republicans think, what the democrats think. i mean, this is to me -- i mean, what's interesting even reading the cover like yesterday of what happened on friday, you know, as far as i'm concerned, for people like me, right, like this is not -- this shouldn't be a political issue. this shouldn't be about what romney thinks or really even what obama thinks. this should be about doing the right thing. >> well, the right thing, of course, has to be -- the right thing has to be adjudicated by a political system and not everybody agrees. >> of course. >> when you came out about your status in "the new york times" essay a year ago, you were on this program, you said that you hoped to continue to work as a journalist. >> and this -- >> have you become a full-fledged activist instead? >> i think what i've become is somebody who's trying to dig up as many facts as i possibly can. and as somebody who's advocating for people like me, right? like we are not -- my goal from the very beginning last summer in writing that story for "the new york times" is saying we are not who you think we are. and also, by the way, my goal was to tell my fellow journalists -- you know, i've opinion a journalist since i was 18 years old. this was my only identity. my goal was to say, look, this is not -- immigration is not purely a latino issue. immigration is about kind of connecting these dots. you know, in our kind of social system. and talking about it in a much more holistic way. >> when you say dig up facts, and i certainly would not dispute that you marshal a lot of facts in this article, but you're presenting a case. you're minimizing the law breaking involved and focusing on a way to generate sympathy for people in this situation. >> i am just trying to make it as real as possible, and i'm trying to provide as much context as possible. to me, the fact that the biggest -- the most -- the biggest question that i get asked all year as i've traveled around the country is the question of why don't you just make yourself legal. i mean, to me, that speaks to kind of the ignorance and the misinformation that's out there. you know, when romney says that people like me should get in the back of the line, the fact that there's not a lot of followup that happens sometimes, in kind of explain, wait up, there is no process for most people like me to come forward and say, all right, this is how we actually adjust our status. this is how we become legal. >> right. another question -- >> that's what i'm talking about. >> another question you're frequently asked as you write about is, why haven't you been so deported since you've been so public in talking about this. the answer in my view is that would make you a cause celeb and make the feds look like they're retaliating again somebody who spoke out. your thoughts? >> i mean, that was something that i realized as i kind of moved forward. i mean, i got to tell you, though, when i wrote that piece, you know, for "the new york times," i had to prepare myself for whatever the consequences were. and the questions kind of got bigger and bigger. for example, you know, the obama administration deported about, what, nearly 400,000 people in fiscal year 2011. and i would get emails from kids who have been here since they were 3 or 8 saying, hey, my uncle is about to get deported or i'm about to get deported. there i am sitting down thinking, wait, like why hasn't anybody contacted me. to me, that was interesting. and i -- >> last question, even though it appear that federal immigration authorities are not targeting you and are not -- >> yeah -- >> having plan at the moment to send you packing, do you still war? do you wake up in the morning and say, gee, what if today's the day? >> i do worry about it, but i worry more about -- the question that kind of motivates me now, you know, is how do i tell this story as fully and as well as i possibly can. how do i use all the skills that i have as a storyteller to kind of as much as i can tell the story. i worry i think more about that. >> all right. jose antonio vargas, thank you very much for joining me this morning. >> thank you very much for having me. >> we will continue the conversation now in los angeles with the host of the young turks on current tv and the web as well. in washington, matt lewis, senior contributor for "the daily caller." and jank, while some conservative commentators have attacked what president obama did as amnesty, the reaction at fox news and elsewhere, conservative blogs, has been milder than i expected. does that surprise you? >> not really. and i'll tell you why. i knew that they couldn't -- especially mitt romney and, h hence, fox news, couldn't advance full throated because they're getting destroyed by the latino vote. they're really, really worried that they're going to lose it entirely. that's why mitt romney will say over and over, well, i'm worried about the process and the manner in which he did it. but bob schieffer asked him eight times this morning if he's going to change his policy, if he would reverse president obama's policy on this, and in the end he basically said no, he wouldn't. >> well -- >> they don't want to lose any more latinos than they have. >> since you brought that up, i want to play for our viewers a portion of that "face the nation" interview. the first non-fox sunday program that romney has done in this campaign. watch host bob schieffer as he comes back at romney again and again in this clip. >> would you repeal this order if you became president? >> well, let's step back and look at the issue -- >> what would you do about it? >> as you know, he was the president for the past 3 1/2 years, did nothing on immigration. >> but would you repeal this? >> well, it would be overtaken by events if you will, by virtue of my putting in place a long-term solution -- >> i won't keep on about this. to make sure i understand, would you leave this in place while you worked out a long-term solution, or would you just repeal it? >> we'll look at that setting as we reach that. >> matt lewis, kudos to schieffer for asking the question again and again. romney would not answer on the substance. he just talk period the politics of it. >> right. first of all, howard, i was booked before we knew that we were going to be talking about this. and i support marco rubio's version of the deem act. i actually -- what president obama has implemented, i actually agree with in terms of policy. but that's why i think it's incredibly destructive. and that's why -- >> before you get into the policy argument, i want to talk about this interview. >> right. >> bob schieffer repeatedly tried to get mitt romney to answer the question, and he wouldn't answer. good journalism on bob avenues part. but we have a candidate who seems to be ducking this. >> well, the truth is that mitt romney may not uphold this. and that i will lay at the feet of president obama. let me sort of put it in context and explain why i'm saying that. marco rubio has been pushing the dream act which is essentially the same thing. he's trying to do it legislatively through our democracy. the hardest people to persuade to support this are going to be some republicans and some conservatives. for this to last, big legislation, comprehensive immigration reform, requires bipartisan consensus and a national conversation. barack obama has now ensured that conversation won't take place -- >> okay, you're giving me the policy -- i want to come back to the focus on the media. let me turn to jank. what do we in journalism do when a candidate, you know, it's one thing if romney want to say i would repeal this tomorrow as he does, for example, with bicycle care. when a candidate is -- obama care. when is a candidate is dancing around a central question, not just to hispanic voters now people who care about this issue in the united states? >> you know, i criticize the media all the time as you know, and that's why i was actually really encouraged to see bob schieffer do a terrific job this morning when he did followup after followup. you've got to do followups and press them. he did. the reason that romney won't answer it is what matt's talking about. he knows that his base would hate it if he opposed the policy. he has to oppose every one of those policies. at the same time he's going to lose latino voters. that's why he wants to dance and run. should be the job of the media to hold his feet to the fire. at the end of the interview, mitt romney says, you know, i'm not interested in politics. i don't have a political career. come on, come on! you're running for president! and those answers in the beginning were the most political answers i've ever seen. and god bless schieffer for pressing him further on it. >> i think romney was trying to make the point that he spent most of his life as a businessman, one of his key selling points. i leak at the coverage, and regardless of what you think and support, rubio's version of the dream act, seems supportive. i don't see a lot of mentions of the fact that, for example, the president is choosing not to enforce law. you could say prosecutorial discretion, and i don't see mention that illegal immigrants would be allowed to stay here would be compete for jobs with americans who were born here. not saying i agree with that. but here's the "los angeles times," a piece interviewing immigrant rights activists. and the sub-headline is "the obama administration's decision to halt deportations is a significant victory. but opposition in congress is a major object stack told further gain." it seems e seems that there's cheerleading going on here. >> yeah, i think the one criticism and i heard david gregory say this on nbc news, is that what barack obama did w transparently illegal. it wasn't that he did this based on a desire to help people as much as it was smart politics. having said that, i think you're right. there's not a lot of criticism. look, the people who are going to oppose this are not conservatives in new york or d.c. and they're not liberals. they're going to be union workers in the middle of the country and conservatives in the middle of the country. i actually -- again, i think this is good policy personally. >> okay. >> but the people who would naturally oppose this are not in new york or d.c. >> okay. bottom line, cenk, is i would have expecteded when this happened on friday that this would have caused an explosion in the campaign. an explosion in the media, and yet -- and yet it seems that because romney's not -- declining to engage directly that that hasn't quite happened. >> yeah. i hear you. you know, just to address whether the political did this -- the president did this for political reason -- of course! of course he did! i love it when people complain that politicians act political. it's like complaining that derek jeter, all he's doing is playing baseball. yeah, that's what he's paid to do. he's a baseball player. and the president's a politician. he did it for that reason. look, the media's job here is to cover whether -- politics of it, and the substance of it. and i think they did a fine job here. >> okay. i've got to interrupt you because i got to toss it to candy crowley who has breaking news. candy? our breaking news here out of california. we want to go directly to captain randy deando. he is in rialto, california. captain, we understand that r g rodney king, a name familiar to so many of us, has died. can you confirm that for us? >> yes. good morning. the rialto police department received a 911 call from the fiancee of rodney king this morning about 5:25 a.m. rialto police officers responded to the scene. they arrived, and they found rodney king at the bottom of his swimming pool. the officers jumped to the pool and removed him and began cpr with mr. king. mr. king was unresponsive. theorialy to fire department, paramedics arrived on scene and immediately transported him to the arrowhead regional medical center where he was later pronounced dead at about 6:11 this morning. >> okay. captain, if i could, did you know at the time it was rodney king, first of all? and second of all, is there any sign of foul play, or does this look like an accident? >> yes. it was definitely mr. king, by the statements. and he was recognized at the location. and the rialto police department is conducting a drowning investigation. and preliminarily there is no signs of foul play at this time. >> was there any indication as to how long he had been in the pool? this was fairly early california time, correct? >> that's correct. apparently at the time of the call, the fiancee had heard him in the rear yard, and whether she went outside to see him, she found him inside the pool. >> so was there any evidence of injury, can you tell us? had he hit his head? i'm assuming if he had a pool, you may not know this, that he could swim. i'm trying to construct this as you might construct it. >> yes. there was no obvious signs of any injuries to mr. king. >> so what next for this investigation? is this a fairly pro forma thing? are you looking into foul play, or is this paperwork now? >> no. we will conduct a thorough investigation. we do have our detectives on scene conducting their investigation. and then what will occur now is that mr. king will be sent to the san bernardino county coroner's office for a full autopsy. >> captain randy deando with the rialto police. thank you very much for your time, confirming again out of california, rodney king, whose beating case by the los angeles police sparked one of the worst riots in american history when the police were found not guilty of wrongdoing in the case, has been found dead at the bottom of his swimming pool. he was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital. details, of course, coming up as we learn them. now we want to go back to howie kurtz and reliable sources." >> thanks, candy. let's talk about this breaking news. cenk, you're in los angeles. rodney king became an instantly recognized name. had a sad life because of the role that his trial played in sparking that awful riot in '92. >> you know, i just interviewed rodney king a couple of weeks ago on "the young turks." and he was actually such a decent guy. he grew up in a religious background that advocated nonviolence and was so moved by that. he didn't read the statements after the riot broke out. he went on script and said the famous line, can't we all get along. he had an addiction problem. he had an addiction problem for a large part of his life. if that's what happened here, but he was fighting it sometimes unsuccessfully. >> and don lemon recently interviewed rodney king. what can you tell us about your last encounter with mr. king? >> i spent a lot of time with him and his fiancee, cynthia kelly, whom she met during the civil role trial. she was one of the jurors. and the home that the police officers and the person candy spoke to talked to, i spent time with him. he loved that swimming pool. y would swim every morning, every day. cynthia would say that's his life and also skateboarding. you know, he's right. he did have an addiction problem for most of his life. and part of that addiction problem showed up when he was running from police officers. it was actually 21 years ago that that happened, the riots broke out a year later. and it was, you know, almost on the anniversary -- not long after the anniversary now of that beating. and of those riots, i should say, that we are now having this conversation. i think the name of the documentary that i did on rodney king, which aired a few weeks ago and then last year on the 20th anniversary of him being arrested was -- happened not long ago. >> all right. >> and we just did it. it's called "the beating of rodney king." so this -- you know, this is someone who had a tumultuous life growing as a child and even as an adult. even after the beating, he was arrested. and howie, i asked him pointblank during our conversation, i said, why after all this time preople are going to ask, especially black people, why are you still getting in trouble. he said, i don't know, i have a problem with addiction. i'm trying to get a handle on it. >> right. >> and now this. >> don lemon, thank you very much. >> all right. >> we'll continue our coverage after this break. c'mon dad! i'm here to unleash my inner cowboy. instead i got heartburn. [ horse neighs ] hold up partner. prilosec isn't for fast relief. try alka-seltzer. it kills heartburn fast. yeehaw! i'm trying to get a handle on >> right. ♪ lookin' good, flo! feelin' good! feelin' real good! [ engine revs ] boat protection people love. now, that's progressive. call or click today. once again, the breaking news, rod no king is dead at age 47. he was found at the bottom of his swimming pool at his home. the trial and acquittal of plinchs sparked one of the worst riot in history. roland martin joins me by phone. roland, what are your thoughts on the -- the sad end to a difficult life on behalf of rodney king? >> obviously, it's stunning. you think about beyond the beating and subsequent arrest that came after that, substance abu