He was walking away from the pulpit to applause. As he approached his secret service agent, he stopped. He kept his distance. He reached for his mask. He put it on, and he continued to walk out. As someone said earlier today, it might have been the most considerate and thus the most president ial moment of the day, which brings us to the current president. He did not join the three former president s paying his respects to john lewis. He did start his day by suggesting on twitter that we delay our president ial election, which for the record is a power only congress has and has never invoked. Quoting here, with universal mailin voting, not absentee voting, which is good, 2020 will be the most inaccurate and fraudulent election in history. It will be a great embarrassment to the usa. Delay the election until people can properly, securely, and safely vote. Again, america has never moved or delayed an election despite civil war, world wars, other crises, and its not happening this year in the face of a pandemic. But it is worth noting perhaps that trumps post came 16 minutes after devastating new numbers underscoring the pain the pandemic is having in our nations economy. Well get to all that just ahead as well. But this afternoon the president spent a good bit of time continuing to try to sow doubt about the election, attacking without evidence the integrity of mailin voting. Tens of thousands of mail ballots have been tossed out in this years primaries. What will happen in november . So many years ive been watching elections, and they say the projected winner or the winner of the election. I dont want to see that take place in a week after november 3rd or a month or frankly, with litigation and Everything Else that can happen, years. Id love to see voter i. D. I also dont want to have to wait for three months and then find out that the ballots are all missing. Do i want to see a date change . No. But i dont want to see a crooked election. This election will be the most rigged election in history if that happens. As plit i fact notes and its incumbent on all of us to keep reporting and repeating this, there is no evidence to support trumps overall claim that mailed ballots are corrupt. All u. S. States allow qualified voters to vote by absentee ballot, and five states utah, colorado, hawaii, washington, and oregon currently conduct all their elections primarily by mail. And on capitol hill, even trumps most obedient allies today refused to back him up on this one. Never in the history of the country, through wars, depressions, and the civil war, have we ever not had a federally scheduled election on time, and well find a way to do that again this november 3rd. I understand the president s concern about mailin voting, which is different than absentee voting. But never in the history of the federal elections have we ever not held an election, and we should go forward with our election. No way should we ever not hold our election on the day that we have it. And of course all this is playing out against the bleak backdrop of a nation in the midst of an uncontrolled pandemic. Confirmed cases now closing in on 4. 5 million. Over 153,000 souls have lost the fight with this virus. Tonight the Washington Post is reporting that more than 1,400 deaths were reported nationwide on wednesday. That means roughly an american dies every minute. Florida broke its singleday record of covid19 deaths for a third day in a row with another 253. Staterun testing sites there are shutting down tonight ahead of the Tropical Storm that is expected to strengthen into a hurricane by the weekend. Also today weve learned that herman cain, former republican president ial candidate, has died of the coronavirus. One of his last public appearances was at President Trumps rally last month in tulsa. During todays briefing, trump offered condolences for cain and other covid victims, but then he seemed to segue into an effort to deflect any blame for policies that might have contributed to these new spikes. America grieves for all of the 150,000 americans who had their lives taken by this horrible, invisible enemy. All over the world, theyre having tremendous problems. Resurgence has taken place in many countries that people thought were doing well. California, washington state, maryland, virginia, nevada, illinois, oregon, and many others. They were thought to be doing well, and they had a big resurgen resurgence. Governors that were extremely popular are not so popular anymore. They were held up as models to follow, and then they got hit, and im not even saying its their fault. But a permanent shutdown would no longer be the answer at all. As we mentioned, the Commerce Department was out today with these alarming new numbers illustrating the impact of this pandemic thus far. The u. S. Economy contracted in the Second Quarter at a record rate and then some. It was the worst quarter in our history. The gdp from april through june dropped a staggering 32. 9 . Put another way, thats a loss of fully onethird of our output of goods and services as a country. And the number of unemployed americans rose by 1. 43 million. Thats the 19th week of straightup jobless claims. Meanwhile, that 600 a week federal unemployment benefit that has helped tens of millions of americans stay afloat, that expires tomorrow after the senate failed to reach an agreement on more relief. You may be interested to know the senate adjourned tonight for the long weekend. One more item on this busy news day. An incredible sight this evening as the nba resumes league play. Everyone kneeling, including some of the biggest names in the sport. Players, coaches, refs, trainers wearing shirts emblazoned with black lives matter. The league having suspended its policy of standing during the national anthem. Its a lot to cover, and here with us our leadoff discussion on a thursday night, jonathan lemire, White House Reporter for the associated press. Stephanie ruhle, Senior Business correspondent for nbc news. Shes a veteran of the Investment Banking and Business World and the host of the 9 00 a. M. Hour on this network. And tamara keith, White House Correspondent for npr. Tamara, id like to begin with you. Im going to play for you on the subject of delaying the election a clip tonight from fox news. Here is tucker carlson. At this point its probably unwise to suggest changing the electi election, voter fraud or not. Too much is in flux already. Thats not accidental. Its by design. A bewildered population dealing with change from every possible direction cannot fight back. Thats why theyre doing it. So our job is to defend what we already have as a nation and to promote the continuation of it. Keeping things the same has never been more important than it is right now. So, tamara, lets call that polite pushback from friendly media, but even on the hill, as we said, some of trumps true elected supplicants went against him on this today, and it brings us to a very 2020 question about discerning the line in your view between whether this was distraction or distraction mixed with actual intent. Well, and it doesnt necessarily matter exactly what it was. The president succeeded at distraction, and he did this thing that he has done throughout his political career where he just raises questions. And by raising questions and then his team or his allies rush to say, oh, no, he couldnt have possibly been serious, he then puts it into the bloodstream. He gets people talking about it. And really the effort here was part of his longstanding effort to discredit the Election Results or to sow enough doubt about the upcoming election just in case. And it comes in the context of him being behind in the polls, all of the polls, and obviously polls are just a snapshot in time. But President Trump has used this tactic repeatedly where he says something that goes too far. Then he and his aides claim, oh, he didnt really mean it. And then he mocks everyone for taking it seriously. But in this case, this is deadly serious, and thats why you saw Mitch Mcconnell and other highprofile republicans shutting it down very quickly. And jonathan lemire, indeed it is deadly serious. We are in the middle, after all, of a deadly pandemic. We do have militarized feds in the streets of at least one major american city. Did anyone in your reporting travels today treat this was a straight face, Anyone Around the president call this a great idea . No, brian. And it certainly wasnt some sort of strategy that was hatched beforehand. The Campaign Officials that i spoke to today were caught flatfooted by this as well. This was not something that was discussed in advance. This was the president sort of reacting, lashing out. And, indeed, as he so often does, just sort of floating the idea out there, which he can distance himself from later, which he largely did at the white house briefing. He kept saying, i dont want it to be delayed. I dont want it to be delayed. He was fixated on the idea that it would take several days, potentially weeks to get the results. But i think the point is important. It continues to his Ongoing Mission to sort of undermine the process itself, to cast doubt on the validity of this election. You know, we have even him rail against mailin voting. We have seen him question states and the governors there. We have seen him slow down funding to the post office, which in itself will delay ballots potentially to millions of americans across the country. I think there is a sense that because of the pandemic, because of the challenges the nations going to face, the states are going to face, and indeed counting votes this november, that it will take quite some time for the final victor to be declared. In the state of new york, for instance, that primary is more than a month old. All the results arent finalized yet, and i think we could be staring at Something Like that. And i think the president is not going to waste any opportunity, it stands to reason, to question the results, particularly if theyre trending against him. Launching investigations, lets say. Lets remember, of course, that he put together a probe into voter fraud in 2016. That probe came up empty, but he still ordered it. And i think its the idea of sowing doubt in whats going to happen. Indeed this idea was cast aside immediately. He cant do this. Congress made clear it wont do this. But its part of an ongoing effort by the president. One last point, republican allies are fearful, though, that also he betrayed his hand a little bit. It was recognition that hes losing and that that is a cause for alarm for republicans, particularly those in the senate who are trying to keep their seats and are afraid of being dragged down by him. So, stephanie ruhle, to tamaras point, regardless of intent, coming 16 minutes after cat cliz mick economic news, it was a de facto distraction. Before we get to the cat acliz mick economic news, i want to play for you a collection of the times the president has told us how unbelievably great its about to get. Youre going to have a fantastic Third Quarter. It will be a Third Quarter the likes of which nobody has ever seen before. The Third Quarter is going to be tremendous numbers, Fourth Quarter likewise. By election days, youre going to see some incredible numbers. Were going to have a good Third Quarter. But next year, and i said it before, will be the single greatest year economically that weve ever had, okay . I think next year is going to be an excellent year, maybe one of our best years ever from an economic standpoint. Stephanie, exactly how much trouble is the u. S. Economy in as of tonight . Well, the president you left out the sound bite of the president s Senior Adviser and soninlaw, jared kushner, who said wed be rocking and rolling come july. So while the president was splashing around in this kiddie pool of chaos, talking about the election, he was forgetting about the fact that in the last week alone, 1. 4 Million People filed for Unemployment Benefits. You mentioned it earlier. Tomorrow the expanded Unemployment Benefits run out. And, yes, gdp is down 32. 9 , more than triple the second worst quarter. Now, its no surprise. We turned off our economy. We expected that to happen. However, republicans, especially the president , have said over and over, were going to rocket right back. Its going to be a vshaped recovery. Brian, look at this economy. It is an economy divided by green. Yes, youre seeing a roaring comeback for, lets say, the four Biggest Tech Companies out there, whose earnings blew it out today. But for the majority of the rest of the country, there is extreme longterm pain without any solutions. And the fact that congress is going home without figuring out the next relief package is just extraordinary. We keep hearing over and over, well, theres tons of businesses who would love to hire their employees back, but theyre just making so much money on unemployment. That might be a portion a small portion of americans. But if they are so concerned with fraud and misuse of money, 2 trillion have been given out, and theres virtually no transparency. And on both sides of the aisle, not many lawmakers demanding more. Ten months from now, when the country is suffering even more economically, people will be demanding answers. Where did that money go because it didnt go to people who needed it most. Yeah. Steph, to your point, exactly how many workers are living so high on the hog thanks to the supplemental payments that its a disincentive to returning to their jobs . Brian, its a complete exaggeration. Are there people who worked in the Restaurant Industry who are not rushing to get back to work right now . Well, maybe, because maybe they live in states where the president is saying, were going to force you to go back to school, and we dont have child care sorted in this country. For working parents, if your kids cant go back to school, if there isnt a place for them to go, how can you . If you work in a restaurant thats only at 25 capacity or only doing takeout, how are you going to make your tips . So its a complete exaggeration saying that businesses are dying to hire people back. Theyre simply not. Take your pick. The Restaurant Industry, the travel industry, every day we hear about more and more businesses, businesses that are even doing well that have optimized, that have said were laying workers off. When google announced that all 200,000 of their fulltime and contract employees will not be coming back to the office until next year, think about all the ancillary businesses thats going to crush. Tamara, lets talk about the absence of a national plan. There have been days this week that have felt like march and april where this coronavirus is concerned. Is it your reporting, is it your hunch that this president s just going to try to get the rest of the way these next 96 days without a cohesive and considered National Strategy on a pandemic . Well, about two weeks ago the president said maybe it was only a week ago. Ive lost track of time. But he came out into the Briefing Room. This was his first briefing back after taking a couple months off. And he came into the Briefing Room, and he said we are working on a strategy. It will be a great strategy. He hasnt come out back into the Briefing Room and really laid that out. The closest that ive been able to detect of his strategy is something to the effect of protect the fragile, protect the elderly, protect people in nursing homes, and everybody else go out and live your lives. He has been more consistent much more consistent about talking about Wearing Masks. He was seen wearing one today. So talking about Wearing Masks, washing hands, social distance. He is saying some of the things that Public Health experts say you need to say and that you need to repeat. But in terms of, like, broadly how america crushes this virus, there isnt a big, Overall NationalStrategic Plan that is clearly articulated at least. And, again, some of the things that would have been cool to hear around march or april of this year. To jonathan lemire, to stephanie ruhle, to tamara keith, our thanks for starting us off on a busy thursday night. Coming up, dr. Vin gupta on the president s quote today, and here it is. Young people are almost immune. The doctor will talk about the challenges that covid survivors still face. And later, john lewis eulogized today with calls to get out and vote and make change. We will ask two Pulitzer Prize recipients about todays conflicting messages from the former president s, from the current president , as the 11th hour is getting under way on this thursday night. I am robert strickler. Ive been involved in communications in the media for 45 years. Ive been taking prevagen on a regular basis for at least eight years. For me, the greatest benefit over the years has been that prevagen seems to help me recall things and also think more clearly. And i enthusiastically recommend prevagen. It has helped me an awful lot. Prevagen. Healthier brain. Better life. 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Upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. Tell your doctor about your medicines, and if youre pregnant or planning to be. Otezla. Show more of you. If you look at whats going on, the younger the better. Amazing, the immune system. But children, the lower they are in age, the lower the risk. How can you assure people that schools will be safely reopened . So can you assure anybody of anything . I do say, again, young people are almost immune to this disease. Young people are not almost immune from this disease. In south carolina, a child under the age of 5 just died of covid. Its the second pediatric coronavirus death in the state reported this month. In florida, 9yearold kimmy linum died soon after she contracted the virus. In fact, trumps own Coronavirus Task force members you remember them say its a misconception that young people are troublefree from this virus. So theyre not immune . We just need to figure that out, and in that no, no, they have virus in their nasal fair anks, which means they very well could transmit it. With us tonight, one of the specialists we turn to. Dr. Vin gupta. Hes an e. R. Doc specializing in exactly these type of illnesses. Also an affiliate professor with the university of Washington Department of Health Metrics sciences. Doctor, i was thinking about you today during this briefing. It is clear without being a shrink, the president has decided this is an elderly issue. It would also match his narrative to declare it an elderly issue though i have to say it was startling watching a press Conference Today with an another healthy 28yearold woman who now has twin Lung Transplant thanks to a donor who she thanked today. Doctor, in your experience, whats the truth about covid and young people . In my experience, brian and good evening covids coming for us all. And the president trying to paint this narrative that children are somehow immune is dangerous because what it does is it loosens the guard. It creates it makes parents put their guard down when their guard should be up at a fivealarm fire right now, that they should be as vigilant as possible. Leadership requires planning for contingencies and having situational awareness, and thats leadership. Right now we need contingencies. We need to be prepared for the unknown. And the big unknown here is what happens when children go back to school in poorly ventilated, often in urban areas, classrooms that dont have windows or barely have windows so ventilation is not going to be great. Public School Districts are going to be poorly funded. In north carolina, theyve only got 17 million promised for the entire state for School Districts to somehow retrofit their classrooms to be safe for teachers and kids. What we know, brian, is children between the ages of 10 and 19 can just as easily transmit this virus as adults. What we also know is cases of hospitalizations, pediatric hospitalizations in florida have increased by 25 in just the past week. So the president saying that children are immune is just disinformation, but its the worst type of disinformation because it causes us to lower our guard when we should be most vigilant. Tell us how as a nation we can best control it because when i read the Washington Post reporting yesterday, americans dying at the rate of one per minute, it knocks you out. Well, heres a few ideas. First, every zip code in the country needs to mandate masks with enforcement. Weve tried, but americans are only Wearing Masks about 59 of the time when they go out in public. Thats our only line of defense. I hate to say that, but thats our only line of defense. Follow the leader of miami who is enforcing it. We need schools to not open up in hot zones, where an infection positivity is greater than 3 going up. We need Indoor Dining to shut down, indoor bars to shut down. Im looking at you, governor kemp. Im looking at you the governor of tennessee. Governor desantis, ive been looking at him for the last few weeks. Action is key here. Thats number one. You know what i would say . Im looking at the president here. I have a problem here, brian, if you dont mind. This is a point of care test developed by a company out in california. Its one of many where you just stick something into your nose, and you put it into this detector, and you get a result in 30 minutes. We need a moonshot. We need the defense production act to scale up point of care testing. We need more of these types of tests, not just the seven day turnaround tests. And in the areas where mask mandates have gone into effect and i know were living on a delay with this disease two to three weeks ago if policies were put in place, are we indeed seeing a tick up, an improvement in numbers . Oh, you bet we are. Governor ducey, to his credit, instituted masks. What were seeing now is a plateau. She shut down Indoor Dining. So things work. Even when governors have lagged in action, once they do the right thing, were seeing a benefit. Theres a lagged effect, unfortunately. It takes about three weeks. But if youre strong on masks, you will see a benefit. Your people will benefit. Dr. Vin gupta, thank you as we always do for your passion and your expertise on this subject. And coming up for us, john lewis left behind more words of inspiration to be heard the day we bid him farewell. Two distinguished writers, again both recipients of the Pulitzer Prize, will join us on how those words can be turned into action perhaps when we continue. Hey, can i. 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Or, heres my bank. Because if you download and use the chase mobile app, your bank is virtually any place. Visit chase. Com mobile. The nation said goodbye today to a giant, a civil rights leader, a statesman, congressman john lewis was memorialized at Ebenezer Baptist church in atlanta, the sanctuary forever associated with the reverend dr. Martin luther king jr. We live in a better and nobler country today because of john lewis. The story that began in troy isnt ending here today, nor is the work. I just loved him. I always will. And im so grateful that he stayed true to form. Hes gone up yonder and left us with marching orders. Someday when we do finish that long Journey Towards freedom, when we do form a more perfect union, whether its years from now or decades or even if it takes another two centuries, john lewis will be a founding father of that fuller, fairer, better america. That cite today was how you knew someone important had died. Congressman lewis left us, in fact, with a late call to action. It turns out he left an article behind to be published in the New York Times on the day of his funeral, and it reads in part, quote, though i may not be here with you, i urge you to answer the highest calling of your heart and stand up for what you truly believe. In my life, i have done all i can to demonstrate that the way of peace, the way of love and nonviolence is the more excellent way. Now it is your turn to let freedom ring. Here with us again tonight, Eugene Robinson, Pulitzer Prizewinning columnist for the Washington Post. Jon meacham, president ial historian, bliPulitzer Prizewinning biographer and importantly jon is the author of a new book his truth is marching on. Its a revealing portrait of the late member of congress which comes out next month. Gentlemen, good evening to you both. Eugene, ill put this very plainly. John lewis boycotted the inauguration of bush 43. Today bush 43 eulogized john lewis. What lesson about the presidency, when done right, the potential glory and honor and dignity and propriety of the office did you, watching today, learn all over again . Well, there would have been nothing unusual about that three or four years ago. We would have we would have expected that for such a towering figure, a living president of the other party would show up and would eulogize him even though they had had differences. Thats the way our democracy worked. Thats the way a lot of us like to see our democracy work again. There were three former president s at the service today. The sitting president was not there, and it does say a lot about the country and where we are. I think we will always remember president obamas eulogy, which i thought was a very good eulogy and perhaps a better political speech, maybe the best political speech ive heard all year because a lot of it was about this moment and this election and the urgency of now as he would have said a few years ago. But what brought tears to my eyes was the speaker was reverend james lawson, who 91 years old, mentored john lewis, diane nash, and bernard lafayette, and that entire amazing crew of activists in 50s in nashville in the philosophy and the techniques and tactics of nonviolent direct action. A toweringly important figure in our recent history that probably a lot of people dont know of, but, wow, what a History Lesson he gave us today. And at 91, he sounded as if you asked him, he would go right down and man the barricades again. It was quite a day, and it was the america that we that we imagine and that we hope to reclaim. Extraordinarily well put. Jon meacham, share with our audience at this hour some of our conversation earlier today in the 3 00 eastern hour of coverage about all the bisecting through lines that went through that sanctuary today. Its arguably the most fabled pulpit certainly in protestant the protestant world, i would argue. Dr. King, daddy king being there. John lewis lived and worked about four miles away at 6 raymond street, and that was the headquarters of the student nonviolent coordinating committee. What we saw all week from the journey from troy to montgomery to selma, to washington, back to atlanta mirrored johns journey in life. And lawson, as gene says so well, lawson may be the most important living american that not enough americans know about. Its probably a bigger category than wed want to admit. But he was a methodist minister, the son of a methodist minister, spent two years in jail for refusing to submit to the military draft in korea, a pure pacifist. He went to india. He met ghandi was gone by then, but he met ghandis lieutenants and had firsthand experience with the tactics and techniques. He brought that back. Howard thurmond and had other black leaders had an initial pilgrimage there. But what happened in the streets of the south and lawson ran his workshops about eight miles away from where im sitting in the basement of a Brick Methodist Church on a very unremarkable street in nashville. But what happened in that basement intersected with the panoply of earthly power. And what we saw today was perfectly john lewis because heres the son of troy who preached to the chickens as president bruush talked about s well, saying at least the chickens produced eggs unlike his colleagues in congress. It was lewis who brought the presidency and the world of protest together. And thats what america is. Its when the mass of us, its when we, the people, intersect with the power and the majesty of the presidency ideally to lift us to higher ground. Sometimes we, the people, intersect with a president , and it pushes us back. Tragically thats where we are right now in our temporal politics. What today reminds us of is what the Eternal Mission is, which is you want to be on the right side of history. You dont want to be bull connor. You dont want to be jim clark. You dont want to be George Wallace. You want to be lewis or lawson or king. Brian and that, dear viewers, is why eugene and i are looking forward to jons book. Go ahead, gene. I just wanted to quickly mention one thing. Tears did come to my eyes. Reverend lawson actually namechecked my childhood pastor. He named a number of other figures around the south who have felt the call, the call of the civil rights movement. And one of the people he mentioned was reverend Matthew Mccullen who was pastor of the church i went to at least once a week for my entire upbringing. Who i remember sitting around my house when i was very young and the adults talking with great urgency about about things that i didnt yet understand. And what they were talking about were actions and planned demonstrations and organizing. They were talking about the fight for civil rights. So that was a personal moment that deeply touched me. Lets not forget the word fight. A lot of hard work went into the struggle that endures today. Both of these gentlemen have agreed to stay with us. Well just fit in a quick break. In his tribute today, the former president spoke of the work john lewis did his entire life, ensuring every american has the right to vote, on the same day the current president did everything he could to cast doubt upon our upcoming election. Well talk about that dichotomy between those two men when we come back. Me back. As business moves forward, were all changing the way things get done. Like how we redefine collaboration. How we come up with new ways to serve our customers. And deliver our products. But no matter how things change, one thing never will. You can rely on the people and the network of at t. To help keep your business connected. George wallace may be gone, but we can witness our federal government sending agents to use tear gas and batons against peaceful demonstrators. We may no longer have to guess the number of jelly beans in a jar in order to cast a ballot. But even as we sit here, there are those in power who are doing their darnedest to discourage people from voting. Some pointed remarks aimed at the current president from former president obama today. Still with us, Eugene Robinson and jon meacham. Jon, i want to read you a tweet from congressman clyburn, who has you know is as personally responsible for the fact that joe biden is the Presumptive Democratic nominee as any other individual in the year 2020. The president s suggestion of delaying the election on the day we lay john lewis to rest is the most despicable affront to his memory and legacy. Americans will rise up and continue johns fight for unfettered access to the ballot box. Our voices will not be silenced. Jon, what a backdrop to today. First of all, seeing an unburdened former twoterm president is one thing, and then seeing the noise from the white house in the midst of this is quite another. It is, and i would commend everyone to pay particular attention i almost never say this to what the president said today because the delay is simply an element of this. He played that card, if you will. But he talked a lot today about litigation. He talked a lot today about voter fraud. He launched a frontal attack on mailin ballots. And twice, not once but twice, he said, you know, it could take years to know who wins in november. So there is we are at a dangerous point here, and i think what congressman lewis would be doing is having the conversations were having and trying to figure out how americans can best prepare to let the rule of law and not the whim and ambition of a single man or a single party overwhelm a 240year experiment in constitutional democracy that might be flawed, but as Winston Churchill said, it is in fact the best thing the best alternative. Eugene, you and i often talk about our profession. It should henceforth be illegal for members of our profession to fall back on the cliche of the president speaking code for x. This is a dog whistle for why. Look at what he has said out loud in the last 24 hours. Lets put his tweet from yesterday on the screen to remind people the historic nature in our adult lives of what the president said about lowincome housing, again out loud. I am happy to inform all of the People Living in their, capitalized, suburban lifestyle dream, you will no longer be bothered or financially hurt by having lowincome housing built in your neighborhood. Your housing prices will go up based on the market. Crime will go down. He has rescinded the obama biden era fair housing rule. Eugene, how should people process that other than an obvious appeal to the base . Is there that much of a silent majority to turn . No, i dont think so. Look, i think that is perhaps the most racist, direct, blatant appeal to white grievance that i have heard since the days of George Wallace and lester maddox. I think they actually would have phrased it more delicately than he did. He basically said, you dont want those people moving into your into your white neighborhood. Thats what he thats what he was saying. Thats the only way you can read what he was saying. It was outrageous. I wrote my column on that. Knowing that there was this huge event coming up with john lewis and perhaps it would get lost. But i just thought that had to be put down on the record. Its an outrageous thing the likes of which we havent heard for 50 years in this country, and we shouldnt be hearing now. And i think every member, every republican who supports this president for reelection should have to answer for that and should have to explain is that their policy on fair housing too . Do they want to get rid of, basically not enforce the Fair Housing Act, or do they have other ideas . And if they have other ideas, they ought to tell us about them. Jon meacham, im going to ask you the impossible. Yeah, go ahead. Just very quickly, the Fair Housing Act passed the congress in a wave of emotion after dr. King was shot in memphis in 1968. Young congressman from the seventh district of texas, George Herbert walker bush, voted for it much to the fury of his constituency in houston. So history just its not that it rhymes. Its just repeating. Absolutely. You did what i was going to ask you to do. To both of these gentlemen on a night like this, our everlasting thanks. Eugene robinson, jon meacham, two of them Pulitzer Prize recipients for good reason. Gentlemen, thank you very much. More of our broadcast when we return from our next break. Into a smaller life . Are your asthma treatments just not enough . Then see what could open up for you with fasenra. It is not a steroid or inhaler. It is not a rescue medicine or for other eosinophilic conditions. Its an addon injection for people 12 and up with asthma driven by eosinophils. Nearly 7 out of 10 adults with asthma may have elevated eosinophils. Fasenra is designed to target and remove eosinophils, a key cause of asthma. It helps to prevent asthma attacks, improve breathing, and can reduce the need for oral steroids like prednisone. Fasenra may cause allergic reactions. 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Get a 50 prepaid card when you switch. 5g is now included with all new data options. Switch and save hundreds. Xfinity mobile. President obama could never have said some of what he said at todays service in atlanta, but hes out of office now. And in the context of today, he was able to speak somewhat freely. Coming up after a final break, Something Else barack obama had to say about a hero of his in life, john lewis. Thats when the 11th hour continues. Ues. Veterans like l. An army family who is always at the ready. So when they got a little surprise. Two . They didnt panic. They got a bigger car for their soontobebigger family. After shopping around for insurance, they called usaa who helped find the right coverage for them and even some muchneeded savings. That was the easy part. Usaa insurance is made the way liz and mike need it easy. Little things can become your big moment. Thats why theres otezla. Otezla is not a cream. Its a pill that treats plaque psoriasis differently. 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The open road is open again. And wherever youre headed, Choice Hotels is there. Book direct at choicehotels. Com. Last thing before we go tonight, he was a young man when he put his life on the line for a cause larger than himself. We only have blackandwhite pictures of Young John Lewis and his role in the struggle that was all about black and white. John lewis getting beaten by Alabama State troopers. John lewis addressing the march on washington at the age of 23. He lived long enough to see a black man elected president of the united states. And here is a bit more of that former twoterm president remembering his friend, john lewis, today in atlanta. On Inauguration Day in 20082009, he was one of the first people i greeted and hugged on that stand. And i told him, this is your day too. He was a good and kind and gentle man, and he believed in us even when we dont believe in ourselves. And thats what john lewis teaches us. Thats where real courage comes from, not from turning on each other but by turning towards one another. Not by sowing hatred and division but by spreading love and truth. Not by avoiding our responsibilities to create a better america and a better world but by embracing those responsibilities with joy and perseverance and discovering that in our beloved community, we do not walk alone. What a gift john lewis was. We are all so lucky to have had him walk with us for a while and show us the way. God bless you all. God bless america. God bless this gentle soul who pulled it closer to its promise. Thank you very much. [ applause ] barack obama today on the loss of a giant, a man whose memory is already proving to be a blessing. That is our broadcast for this thursday night. Thank you so very much for being here with us. On behalf of all my colleagues at the networks of nbc news, good night. Its a rare event that brings out three former american president s in one place at one time, and especially during a global pandemic. But some events are just that important. The funeral today for congressman john lewis was such an event. John lewis represented atlanta in congress for over 30 years, and he was laid to rest there today. Hundreds of mourners gathered at Ebenezer Baptist church in atlanta to pay their last respects. President s george w. Bush and bill clinton made remarks. President obama delivered the eulogy. And it was a eulogy really worth hearing. Were going to play you some of it here in just a moment. Theres a lot more to get