Sideshow: Voter ID laws will never be bipartisan

>>> the "sideshow." matt damon does bill clinton . last night he told jay leno about an awkward bill clinton encounter he witnessed at a party back in the '90s. someone supposed up primary colors , that movie that gave a morally challenged portrait of clinton and damon remembers clinton 's response about the actor who refused to play limb in the movie.

>> in pausing he goes, you know, i understand they offered that part to tom hanks . tom hanks turned it down. he said it was disrespectful to the office of the president of the united states of america. i like tom hanks .

>> now we know how clinton tells you what he feels about someone else .

>>> next, a lot of republicans are still trying to figure out how to win elections. one idea broaden your base to attract more voters. another possibility, keep talking up voter photo i.d. laws and trying to prevent democrats from casting a ballot. enter republican campaign consultant scott trantor. here he is at a panel discussion yesterday talking about why democrats and republicans will never agree about voter i.d. laws.

>> i don't hold out any hope there's going to be any great grand bipartisan agreement on voter i.d. laws at the end of the day . a lot of us are campaign officials, campaign proflalsed and we want to do everything we can to help our side. sometimes we think that's voter i.d., longer lines, whatever it may be.

>> longer lines. at least he's honest. make it hard for the opposition to vote with the i.d. laws or keep them waiting in long lines. good idea, scott. worked a lot this year, didn't it?

>>> next, a serious political question . santa claus , democrat or republican? a holiday themed poll from ppp. the results, no surprise. 44% said santa is a democrat versus 28% who said he's a republican. maybe that's because republicans don't like the giveaaspect. next question, will president obama get coal or presents this year? it's tight. 51% said gifts, 49% said coal. for mitt romney , it's 63% for gifts, 37% for coal. maybe it's some kind of consolation prize .

>>> finally, senate majority leader harry reid paid tribute to ben nelson of nebraska yesterday and fessed up that the outgoing nebraska democrat is something he wants. the hint is in the top half of the picture.

>> if the truth were known, many, many senatorings would be very envious, as i am, and i would even think the presiding officer, about that hair of ben nelson 's. i mean, that is a mop of real hair. it's often that people call his office, e-mail his office. they believe he has a toupee. it's his hair. he has hair like a 15-year-old, mr. president, and so i have to acknowledge i am a little envious of his hair.

>> hair envy aside, nelson's real mark might be casting what many people called the deciding vote in favor of obama care. that was quite a moment.

>>> up next, the new movie "zero dark thirty" suggests we wouldn't have gotten bin laden without torturing terror suspects. not everyone agrees, and that's ahead. you're watching "hardball," the place for politics. if it wasn't