what voters at home care about? should social media have a warning label, the same way cigarettes do? the new pitch from the surgeon general who says our children's well-being is at stake. and wiping the slate clean. maryland's governor just pardoned tens of thousands of people convicted of marijuana-related crimes. why he says he was motivated to take such sweeping ab shun. we start with president biden pushing spending to a new level in what is expected to be the most expensive presidential campaign in american history. today the campaign announcing a new $50 million ad buy, part of a massive new effort to reframe the stakes of this election just ten days before the first presidential debate. the goal in the words of the biden campaign is to focus on trump's legal issues and allow the president to project himself as a, quote, wise and steady leader in contrast to trump's chaos and division. >> in the courtroom we see donald trump for who he is. he's been convicted of 34 felonies, found liable for sexual assault and he committed financial fraud. meanwhile, joe biden has been working, lowering health care costs and making big corporations pay their fair share. this election is between a convicted criminal whose is only out for himself and a president who is vieting for your family. >> we want to bring in nbc's mike memoli who is covering the white house. mike, talk to us about the timing here and why they decided this message is the one they think will resonate most with voters? >> reporter: ana, i just came back from los angeles where we had the star-studded fund-raiser with president obama and president biden. a record setting campaign ad blitz across the battleground states and targeting key voting groups. you hear the message talking about donald trump's criminal convictions. it's a headline-making message. you look at what the campaign is trying to communicate, a message building for some time. the biden campaign believes there's great power in speaking to some of these voters who aren't happy with either of the candidates by painting this campaign as a contrast between two men with different philosophies. donald trump who is primarily focused about his own interests where president biden who has been out there working on behalf of average voters, that was the message i heard when i was on the road with first lady jill biden who just launched seniors for biden. it was striking to hear the first lady taking on the candidate's age. she noted donald trump and joe biden are very close in able. what really matters is character in this race. that character contrast is one the biden campaign wants to build up to as we look toward that debate next week. into ooes going to be a critical moment in a campaign, ana, where we haven't been talking about issues so much as personalities. it's one the biden campaign is hoping to build the advantage on. >> thank you for setting the stage for us, mike memoli. appreciate the reporting. michael tyler, communications director for the biden campaign joining us. michael, good to see you. explain the strategy here drilling into character and trump's legal issues. why do you think that's going to be the issue that wins over those undecided voters out there? >> thank you so much for having me. it speaks to the fundamental choice that the american people will see on june 27th on the debate stage and for the rest of this presidential election campaign. they'll see the choice between president biden who wakes up every single day fighting for the american people, to improve their lives. and across from the president on the debate stage, they'll see donald trump who is running as a convicted felon demonstrating every single day he does not care the harm he causes, the damage he does, so long as he serves himself. that's why he was convicted in the first place. that's why he sat idly by after encouraging the violent mom to storm the capitol on january 6th. so that's the fundamental choice that the american people are going to see coming up next thursday in atlanta. we're communicating that day in and day out until then and throughout the rest of this campaign. >> you're communicating it. we heard in that ad earlier convicted criminal. will president biden use those words to trump's face on the debate stage? will he call him a convicted criminal? >> listen, the sky is blue, and donald trump is a convicted criminal. what you can expect is donald trump to do what he's been doing, an attempt to undermine the rule of law, attempt to tear down the judicial system. the president, as he's done consistently, will talk about how dangerous and irresponsible it is to do that. he's running to uphold our institutions, our rule of law. >> michael, you didn't answer my question. >> that's the contrast you even see on the stage. >> will he call him a convicted criminal on the stage? it's easy for campaign surrogates to do so. but to hear it come from the president's mouth is another thing, right? i think you'll hear the president do what he's been doing. he'll talk about the fact that this is a man tried and convicted by a jury of his peers, but that we must respect if process. i think that's the contrast you'll see on the debate stage. you'll see donald trump attempting to tear down the judicial system the same way he's tried to tear down our democracy. that's what the american people will care about on the debate stage and that's what they'll see. >> so poll after poll has shown the economy and inflation is near or at the top of voter priorities. a new one by "the economist" shows 40% of voters approve of president biden's handling of the economy and just 26% of independents approve. how do you plan to address that? >> listen, i think you do it by running this campaign every single day. talking about the work that the president has done since he took office and the historic record of accomplishments, 15 million jobs, 800,000 manufacturing jobs, the work he continues to do for americans. the $35 cap on insulin for seniors, the work he wants to do in a second term to expand that cap for everybody, a fairer tax code, making sure as we move forward that no billionaire pays less in taxes than a school teacher or a nurse, and making sure people understand everything donald trump is talking about would only worsen the gap between the ultra wealthy and the rest of us. that's the choice the american people will see on the stage in atlanta and we'll continue to hammer home for the rest of this campaign. >> over the weekend, the trump campaign launched a black americans for trump coalition. your campaign mocked it and said it's not fooling anyone. but look at this. usa today/suffolk polls show from michigan and pennsylvania specifically, two king swing states. they show president biden has lost roughly 20 points among black voters in both of those states, down from 76% to the mid 50s. of course, in a close election that can make a huge difference. why do you think the president is losing support with these voters? >> listen, this campaign is going to be very good amongst black voters because no administration has done more for black america than the biden lsh harris administration. >> why is he losing support now? >> this is what the campaign for. we have to remind people of exactly where we've come from and where we're going. that's why we're running ads consistently, reminding people of the things that this administration has done for black america. record low black unemployment during this administration, black wealth growing by 60% since before the pandemic. we're going to remind people of the harm that donald trump caused to black america when he was in power. fumbling the bag on the covid report, leaving black people disproportionately dead, businesses disproportionately shuttered. we're going to remind people of who donald trump is as a person, stepping into public lose, falsely accusing the central park 5, taking birther richl mainstream. the chaos, division and violence he sows by hugging white supremacists every day. we're going to communicate that to all voters through the remainder of the campaign. >> i'll play what president biden had to say over the weekend when asked about the supreme court. >> the next president is likely to have two new supreme court nominees, two more, two more. he's already appointed two that have been very negative in terms of the rights of individuals. the idea that if he's re-elected he's going to appoint two more flying flags upside down -- i really mean it. >> could this be the scary evident part of all of it? >> i think it is one of the scariest parts. >> will president biden put out a list of potential nominees before the election? >> liss even, you can compare the types of judges and the types of justices that both of these presidents have nominated. president biden nominated somebody like ketanji brown jackson, and trump, you can see the results of the nominations he put into place. he says he's proud that he nominated justices that overturned roe v. wade. look at things like bump stocks this past week. elections matter. the power the president has to nominate the justices matters in the lives of the american people. if you care about reproductive rights, workers rights, making sure we have communities that are safe and free in gun violence, all of that we saw play out this past week. all that is on the line in this election. the president is going to make the stakes very clear through out the rest of this campaign. i think the difference is very stark between joe biden and donald trump there. >> michael tyler, really appreciate you taking the time. thanks for joining us. >> thank you. i want to bring in brendan buck, former aide to republican house speakers john boehner and paul ryan, also an msnbc political analyst. good to see you, brendan. what do you make of what we just heard there? do you think this contrast between biden and trump with the focus on trump as a convicted felon is the right strategy for the president's campaign? >> to a point i think they're on to something there. i think the point about donald trump being out for himself and jiepd potentially being more focused on working for you is a pretty good message, messages that tend to resonate are ones that people see as true. what i'm concerned about is i think people already understand that donald trump is a bad guy ethically, that he has questionable character and integrity. i think that's sort of baked in. the pivot to who you're actually working for i think is helpful. all that to say, unless they figure out a better economic message, none of that is sufficient. joe biden is not going to get re-elected by talking about the great things he did for the economy. i'm sorry, that would be nice if that's how our politics worked. joe biden will get re-elected if he can make this more about donald trump and talk about donald trump's potential economic policy would do. the economy and immigration are going to be much higher tier issues than character, unfortunately that's the reality. character matters less. until they figure out a way to drive at the heart of the economy as relates to donald trump and make this more of a referendum on donald trump than a referendum on joe biden's economy, that's the ticket for either side. if it's a referendum on joe biden, joe biden loses. >> the biden campaign has had a sharp eye on nikki haley voters and winning over disaffected voters, even hiring adam kinzinger's former chief of staff to help. he said his job is to, quote, build up the permission for republican voters to vote for president biden. is what we've heard from the biden camp a way to do it? are they doing what will connect with those voters? >> the door is wide open. the trump campaign should very obviously be working to bring in the people who are most likely to vote republican. that is, the people who have voted republican in the past. yet donald trump seems constitutionally incapable of moderating himself or trying to appeal to the middle. so he's leaving the door wide open for the biden folks. i will say it is a big hill to climb. while nikki haley is continuing to pick up -- has continued to pick up a lot of votes, we should appreciate a lot of those people are going to vote for donald trump without reservation. as much as a lot of people don't like donald trump in the republican party, i think it's important to appreciate there's a very high distaste for joe biden. it is very easy to dismiss him. they've got a lot of work to do. they're the only ones on this playing field. donald trump has completely seeded this to the biden campaign. they're smart to be going after it. even if it is a small 2, 3, 4, 5% of republican voters that switch over to biden, that could be close enough. >> the candidate himself has said he thinks those voters will ultimately come home. maybe he takes them for granted. we shall see whether that's a winning strategy. we have new polling from politico that was done since trump's conviction. 21% of independents say his conviction makes them less likely to vote for the former president. that said, 40% of independents say a conviction doesn't really matter to them. 12% actually say it makes them more likely to vote for trump. what do you make of that? >> those are really understand whelming numbers. i imagine a lot of the people were leaning against him in the first place. that's one of my bigger hang-ups with the biden campaign's focus on the conviction. they sat this out for so long. they did so little to frame what this conviction or the trial was all about, that donald trump was able to set the narrative around it and now they're trying to play catchup here at the end. i think they missed an opportunity there. of course they should be going after him for being a convicted felon. again, i think a lot of people know he's a bad guy and they're okay with that. it's clearly not the game-changer that maybe some people thought it would be. again, anything that moves a few people could be enoughment. >> brendan buck, please stay with us. when we're back in just 90 seconds, inside israeli pri cabinet and what it means for the future of the war in gaza that's next. re of the war in ga that's next. help fuel today with boost high protein, complete nutrition you need... ...without the stuff you don't. so, here's to now. boost. liberty mutual customized my car insurance and i saved hundreds. with all the money i saved i thought i'd buy stilts. being so tall definitely has its advantages. oh whoa. here you go, kiddo. thanks. hi honey ready to go? yup. there it is, there it is... ahhh...here we go. i guess it also has some disadvantages. yes it does. only pay for what you need. ♪liberty. liberty. liberty, liberty.♪ welcome back. there are major new questions about israel's leadership and the future of the war in gaza after prime minister netanyahu dissolved the war cabinet following the resignations of two more moderate members. that emergency government was formed as a sign of unity following the october 7th attack. now with the centrist parties no longer in the conversation, netanyahu will make key decisions with a smaller group of ministers. nbc news chief international correspondent keir simmons joins us from beirut, lebanon. keir, who exactly is involved in these key decisions now and what does that mean for where this war goes from here. that's a good question. inevitably decisions get made around prime minister netanyahu not always in ways that are entirely clear. the decision by the prime minister to dissolve this six-member war cabinet was expected. as folks who pay close attention, benny gantz, the centrist politician who was in the coalition formed after october 7th, he left eight days ago. that war cabinet saying there just wasn't a clear enough picture of where israel was going during and after this conflict in gaza. the problem for prime minister netanyahu has been, if he brought others into that war cabinet, they may not be very palatable for washington and others in the international community or even in israel. the far right finance minister and security minister, both of them might be considered choices to take benny gantz's place, but that wouldn't be very acceptable to many partners and am lies of israel. so instead, what will happen now is the 14-member security cabinet will make decisions, and really that was the way it was before october 7th. that's the way the prime minister's office is depicting this, as really kind of a return to a process that was already -- that was the normal process in israel. that's not to say that there aren't deep divisions and real fissures within the israeli establishment, if you like. one example of that just today is criticism of the idf, of the israeli army, for agreeing to have humanitarian moments in gaza, pauses if you'd like to call it. not clear how these are going to work, as is so often is the case, inside gaza. that's being criticized even by the prime minister's office, prime minister netanyahu's office itself. these are fractious times in israel as we know all too well. i think the dissolving of this war cabinet is another example of that. >> like you said, those 11-hour tactical pauses brought up over the weekend and the pushback from netanyahu himself. so we'll see what happens there. we'll stay on top of it. thank you, keir simmons, for the latest there. staying overseas, russian state media announcing the trial of american journalist evan gersing vits will be bin june 26th. he was arrested in march of 2023 on espionage charges. russian authorities including vladimir putin have publicly implied that they are open to a prisoner swap for gersgershkovi. if a u.s. soldier detained in russia was back in court. staff sergeant gordon black stationed in south korea was arrested in vladivostok in early made. he's accused of threatening and stealing from a russian woman who may have been his girlfriend. his mother says he was lured there by the woman who he had been seeing in south korea for over a year. the army says black was not authorized to travel to russia. according to russian state media, black admitted to some of the theft charges but denied separate assault charges. we're learning putin will travel to north korea tomorrow for talks with kim jong-un. the two leaders representing two of the most sanctions nations in the world have grown closer since russia launched its full-scale invasion of ukraine in 2022. this will be putin's first visit to north korea in 24 years when he met with kim's father, kim jong-il. nbc's josh lederman is following this story. josh, both leaders are locked in tense confrontations with the west. tell us more about their symbiotic relationship and weight it means for this visit? >> ana, there are not a lot of countries willing to throw down the red carpet for vladimir putin. north korea is one of them. china is another one. this visit by president putin which will start tomorrow and last until wednesday, to pyongyang, follows on a visit that kim jong un, the north korean leader, paid to russia to visit with vladimir putin last -- that was the first time we know kim jong un had left north korea since covid. we are expecting, based on what the kremlin has said, these two countries are going to announce expanded cooperation including potentially on the military front during this visit. the concern from the u.s. and its allies about that symbiotic relationship, as you described it, goes both ways. they are concerned that north korea's supplying of weapons and other assistance to russia is helping president putin be able to prop up his war in ukraine. in the other direction, they're concerned what russia is giving back to north korea in the forms of economic assistance as well aztec cal information about weapons systems, is going to help north korea build up its nuclear weapon