Transcripts For MSNBC Weekends With Alex Witt 20240711 : vim

Good day to all of you from msnbc World Headquarters here in new york. Welcome to weekends with alex witt. We begin with President Biden saying donald trump should not receive Intelligence Briefings. In a new interview with cbs, biden breaking with tradition, saying trump has no need for those intel briefings now that hes out of office. Should former President Trump still receive Intelligence Briefings . I think not. Why not . Because of his erratic behavior unrelated to the insurrection. I just think that theres no need for him to have that Intelligence Briefing. What value is giving him an Intelligence Briefing . What impact does he have at all, other than the fact he might slip and Say Something . Also in that interview, the president says he will not budge on the 1,400 stimulus checks but maybe taking a more targeted approach on exactly who will receive those checks. I will talk with Congressman Ro about covid relief in just a moment. Today marks one month since the attack of capitol hill. Congresswoman val demings earlier telling me how those events still haunt her. Not a day that has gone by that i dont think about what happened. Not just what happened that day but what could have happened. Sometimes what could have happened can really be the most stressful. The questions that still exist, who participated . We know that we made a lot of arrests. We still got a lot more to go. Who funded this horrible attack on our capitol . Why wasnt there stronger Law Enforcement presence . Prepared for the fight on that day. It is our job to get to the bottom of it, and we will. And new reaction on the growing fallout surrounding congresswoman Marjorie Taylor greene after being stripped from her Committee Assignments in an unprecedented move, one democrat telling me last hour, its now the republicans turn to act. This is a cancer on the Republican Party, and i really hope that the Republican Party takes this action, that they take action with the appropriate outcome for her. Lets check in now with msnbcs mike melly whos covering the president in wilmington and also ali vitali. What are we hearing about whether or not trumps going to have access to intel briefings . Reporter alex, of course we heard from President Biden in this interview with cbs news yesterday, taped as part of the super bowl Halftime Special that they usually do have a conversation with the president in the white house at the time. And he said he was asked the question that the white house has really been tiptoeing around for the last several weeks which is will he continue to allow President Trump, as all former president s have access to intel briefings, classified information, and he was very blunt with his assessment. He said he doesnt believe that he should have access to that. He said he doesnt believe theres any need for him to have that access. Now, we got a little bit of a clarification from the White House Press secretary today, jen psaki, putting out a statement saying simply that President Biden was expressing his concerns about whether and how President Trump would review this sensitive information. She goes on to say that what they have been saying at the white house all week, which is that this is a matter that is currently under review by the intelligence community, and that President Biden trusts them to make the appropriate decision. Now, all of this coming, alex, as you know, as President Biden has been doing his best to try to sell his covid relief bill, that 1. 9 trillion package that made some progress in congress this week, but it does seem like theres at least one big change coming and that is the question about whether or not the 15 an hour minimum wage should be included as part of the legislation. Lets take a listen to part of that conversation with cbs in which he addressed this last night. My guess is it will not be in it, but i do think that we should have a minimum wage stand by itself. Look, no one should work 40 hours a week and live below the poverty wage. And if youre making less than 15 an hour, youre living below the poverty wage. But that may not be in your American Rescue plan. No, i put it in but i dont think its going to survive. Reporter now, alex, as we hear from the white house about the sense of urgency around getting this legislation passed, i would think often about what President Biden has told me over the years when he thinks back to the 2009 recovery act, which was a similar to provide economic stimulus to an economy under strain. He said it was important to get it passed but he worried that they didnt do enough to educate the American Public about what was in it and to how it would benefit them, so we see a new initiative from this white house. Youll remember, alex, we used to call it the president ial radio address. Well, they have a new Video Message released today in which President Biden has a conversation with a laidoff employee from california, talking about the importance of getting this legislation through, alex. Its a good one too. Thank you so much, mike, for that. So, preparations certainly under way for Donald Trumps Impeachment Trial as we mark one month since the deadly capitol insurrection. Lets go to ali vitali. It kicks off tuesday and from there the details get a little bit murkier. Theres a little bit that we know and a lot that we dont. Lets start with the things we know. We know were not going to see former President Donald Trump appear to testify at this hearing. Hes also not going to speak via letter. Remember, democrats asked that he testify and trumps lawyers have since said thats not going to happen. We also have a sense, though, of the contours of each sides argument here. The Trump Lawyers are likely to argue that its unconstitutional to even have this hearing in the first place. Theyll make the argument that trump is now a former president and thusly a private citizen and you cannot vote on these articles of impeachment after hes out of office. Theyre also probably going to say that he was exercising his right to free speech when he was talking to his supporters but notably in their arguments, they are likely not going to bring up the fact that donald trump has repeatedly said he won the 2020 election. Of course, thats just not true. Democrats on the other side are going to argue that trump incited the deadly insurrection that happened here just one month ago when he told his supporters on the morning of january 6th that they had to fight like hell. Theyre also probably going to lean on the personal accounts of lawmakers. We have heard those palpable, emotional remembrances of what it was like to be here on january 6th, and were likely to hear them also say that insurrectionists have said that they were here on trumps behalf. All of those are likely the democratic arguments, but then, in terms of how this process is actually going to break down, thats where things get a little bit murkier. Were not sure right now if there are going to be witnesses. Were not even sure how long this trial is going to last. But if you talk to people on both sides of this, alex, theres not a huge appetite for this to go on for weeks and weeks, especially because democrats would rather turn their attention to bidens American Rescue plan and covid stimulus relief. Okay. Ali vitali, thank you so much for the headsup on what we do know and i know youll bring the rest of it to us as soon as we figure it out. Joining me now, a democratic member of the House Oversight and reformed and Armed Services committee. He is also a Progressive Caucus deputy whip. Congressman, welcome back to the broadcast. Its good to see you. May i get your reaction to something i wasnt able to get to with ali and intended to, but that being, the Remittives Clyde and gohmert who are being fined 5,000 bucks apiece now because theyve evaded the house metal detectors. It is now a rule that one must go through those metal detectors. I heard clyde saying that it was a violation of constitution of his Constitutional Rights because it was delaying him. I mean, theres a lot more to it than just that. Alex, i really dont understand it. I mean, when you go to work, you cant say im an msnbc anchor to security doesnt apply. Ill just go wherever i want. Most people, when they work, realize they have to comply with security. Thats right. When youre in the congress, youre not something special. Theres a workplace. My i. D. With rules and we comply. Right. I think what offends these members of congress, theyre so used to being put up on a pedestal that it just feels offensive to them that they have to do something every other american has to do, and i really think its arrogance, and thats why its all upsetting. Okay. Well, well put on that. Lets start with covid relief, though, officially here. I know that you serve long champion 2,000 direct payments, you have President Bidens proposal for 1,400 checks. The white house was pressed on bidens Campaign Promise of 2,000 checks. First, lets take a listen to that. There were 600 payments as you know in the 900 billion package that passed in december. This is 1,400. Together thats 2,000 so it would be delivering on the promise he made and thats something that he is firmly sticking by. Jen psakis description there, 600 to 1,400, those amounts, do they add up to the 2,000 that you want to see . Well, i think we should be giving an additional 2,000 check. Now, i believe President Biden may have understood it as 600 plus 1,400. The main thing, though, is that this should be monthly, and second, we shouldnt be restricting the middle class and Working Class from getting it. I mean, some of the people are saying, cut it off at 50,000. That means if an individual is making 60,000 or 70,000, theyre not going to get it. That would be a big mistake, especially because theyre looking at the incomes from 2019 and theyre not considering those who have had reduction in hours, reduction in income this year. Means testing and excluding the middle class, excluding some of the Working Class would be a big mistake. When you propose 2,000 a month, were not just talking about a covid Relief Package and its a oneshot deal. What kind of pushback do you get on that . I imagine one of the first things is people say, we cant afford that. Youre absolutely right, and i say, well, we spend 8 trillion on covid relief. A lot of it is going to corporations. A lot of it has gone to institutions. Why is it that when it comes to ordinary americans, we cant afford to help them with their rent payments, with their kids, with their food payments, and the second thing is, people say, well, lets do it through unemployment. There was a study recently that says 75 of people who are unemployed are not getting unemployment benefits, and i recommend the study. There are a lot of reasons. Thats why just getting a check to people is the most efficient way. What about the 15 an hour federal minimum wage increase here . I know youve supported that. You heard President Biden say he doesnt think its going to make it into the final bill. There are multiple opeds that raise questions about whether now is the right time for that. They suggest the increase would negatively impact Small Businesses that have been struggling during the pandemic. It is their employees that would be the ones most receiving that kind of a federal minimum wage increase. So what do you say to that . Its just not factually true. Look at the economic studies that professor has studied it and if you have a minimum wage that is at 80 of Median Income and the median wage in america, Median Income is about 19 an hour, 80 , it has no impact on employment. Other studies have shown that where it does have an impact is people will require High School Degrees so maybe it would mean some teenagers may not be able to get as many jobs, but for Many Americans who are doing this fulltime, theyre going to get a raise, and its going to have a raise for the Working Class. We have to fight this and make sure its in reconciliation. It would be a colossal mistake not to include this in the package. The house can pass it with 15 and then we ought to inconference insist its in the final package. I dont think we should strip it from that bill. I wasnt aware of that study that you cited. High schoolers would have to finish high school. They couldnt just drop out for the shortterm to get out there and work. I understand there may be financially pressing issues in their home or whatever the situation may be, but the fact is, if you think longterm, at least they would have to get a High School Degree. Thats what the recent studies show. This has been actively studied and they say, yes, it would have an impact on teenagers who dont have a High School Degree but most employers pay the 15 and they require a High School Diploma and 90 of americans get a High School Diploma. But there have been so many times this has been studied and it doesnt have a negative impact on employment. When you pay people more, theyre spending and that creates employment and the creation of employment overcomes any of the potential loss of employment. Okay, lets talk covid now because this week, you urged the Biden Administration to consider a single dose vaccine strategy. Scientific research thus far on the vaccine shows no longterm efficacy after one doses of the moderna and pfizer vaccines. Whats been the reaction to your suggestion as well as your request to try to gather further data on the effects of just one dose of the vaccine . Well, actually, i spoke to dr. Osterholm and their concern is that were going to see a surge because of all the variants. Everyone believes we need to have two shots. The question is, how long can you space them out . There are studies that show that after 28 days, the effectiveness of one dose is about 80 . There are studies from britain showing that. And then the question is, how long can you space out that second shot before the effectiveness wears off . Some people are suggesting it could be as much as 3 to 6 months. I dont have all the answers. What i do know is that the cdc could convene the group to get all the data from the scientists and i actually respect President Biden make the judgment. I just want to make sure he gets all the data so he can make that judgment. Yeah, well, i got to say, i was reading an l. A. Times Headline Last Night that suggests that even people going for their first dosage in the next week are going to be unable to do so because youve got so many people in line right now for a second dose. I mean, its just a hot mess. That being said, what about Vice President rather, President Biden. I cant believe i said vice. Ive done that too. Thank you. I appreciate that. Its generous of you. Anyway, he gave his first Foreign Policy speech rolling back trumps isolationist agenda and returning the u. S. To standing with our allies. The president wants to end arms sales to other and other support as well to saudi arabia for the war in yemen. I know that you, sir, have been leading on this from the start. Youve proposed cutting off all funding for the war in yemen. Are you encouraged by what you heard from President Biden . Im very encouraged. Its a bold step. Its a moral step and i give the president enormous credit. But the people i give the most credit to are the Human Rights Activists and the online communities who for years have been telling us we should not be supporting the saudis and their Bombing Campaign in yemen. Its one of the greatest humanitarian catastrophes. Theres a risk of famine that could literally take the lives of millions. The president is finally helping America Change Course and this is going to help bring an end to the war. California Congressman Ro khanna, thank you. Always enjoy it, alex. Most people cant live without it, including those who stormed the capitol one month ago. Some new insight into how smartphones may help incriminate the rioters. Thats next. The rioters. Thats next. Age is just a number. And mines unlisted. Try boost® high protein. With 20 grams of protein for Muscle Health