i want to start with the evolution of a lie. this pin tweet is sticking it to the top of the rnc accounts page meaning they are proud of this. they do not want this post to get lost in the shuffle. the post shows video of president biden at the g7 summit watching a parachuting ■ç demonstration with other world leaders. if you only saw the moments the rnc decided to post of this video, the video makes it look like biden is confused or wandering off. the rnc's caption what is biden doing adds to that impression. but if you watch a longer version of that same moment, or you watch it from other angles you can see that biden is clearly watching other parachuters out of frame and giving them a thumbs up. but rather than include that context, 90 minutes after the rnc posted their video, the new york post reposted it. but this time, with the video cropped so you never see any of the parachuters biden is looking at making him seem even more out of it. and of course, hours later, the rnc's video got the fox news treatment. >> during a parachute demonstration, ■çbiden got daze and confused, how shocking. and started to just, you know, wander off like that. as other g7 leaders looked on in agony. >> fox news says the other world leaders looked on in agony. never mind they are quoted on the record calling biden's acknowledgment of other parachuters quote very polite. the next morning the story was the front page in the new york post. headlining quote, meander in chief. trump's campaign quick to push out that front page on its own accounts. it is a conservative echo chamber. doesn't seem to care if what it is echoing back and forth is true or not. and the issue here is not just this one video. we have seen the same exact cycle again and again. two weeks ago it was the rnc i (r"en at a d-day ceremony in normandy france making it look like he was reaching for a chair that wasn't actually there. the issue was that being that there was a chair there. biden was just waiting to sit until defense secretary lloyd austin's name was announced. as were others if you look at, you know, the actual not cropped video. this week, the rnc is pushing a misleading clip after biden at a fundraiser claiming that biden freezes before obama grabs his arm and leads him off stage. as the ap points out in its own fact check, with the video actually showing biden pausing amid cheers and applause before exiting the stage with obama. but you know. facts didn't stop trump from posting the video himself. complete with the caption is this really who you want to be your president? misleading photos, videos, not ç a new phenomenon in american politics. what is new is having the republican party and a conservative media eco system and presumptive nominee for president pushing the misleading videos with no regard for the facts. last night, in wisconsin, trump continued to lob disingenuous personal attacks against the president as part of a 90- minute rant filled with lies. trump of course also repeated the false claim that he won the 2020 election. he also implored supporters to be on the lookout for more fraud this time around. >> you want to watch for the cheating. the radical left democrats rigged the presidential election in 2020 and we are not going to let them rig ■çthe presidential election in 2024. >> this week, liberal activist lauren windsor released secret video of roger stone talking about what he sees as trump's plan to challenge the election results this time around if trump loses. in this recording which again was recorded without stone's knowledge, she pretends to believe it was stolen to get stone to talk about how he thinks trump will respond if the election is stolen again. >> what stops them from just like voter fraud? >> in some states it will be easier to stop. but at least this time, when they do it, you have a lawyer and a judge, his home phone number standing by so you can stop it. we made no preparations last time. none. ■ç three days for pennsylvania voters to procure ballots not counted. the other 61 lawsuits failed miserablely. stone is not just trying to relitigate the failures and claim the 2020 election was rigged. no, he isn't even just saying he expects the election to be quote unquote rigged. he is also saying that the republican effort to take those false claims to court would be much bigger and better run this time around. particularly now that trump's daughter-in-law laura trump controls the rnc. ■ç >> all the provisions he mentioned he said are perfectly legal but that is not exactly a denial that the bad faith election challenges are indeed coming. and with the misinformation eco system that is primed for exactly this kind of stuff, how do we protect our democracy? during the 2020 election, former obama white house counsel bob bower helped to lead the response to ■çthe bad faith election lawsuits. bower is out with a brand new book that tackles these very issues. it is called the unraveling. reflections on politics without ethics and democracy in crisis. in it, he examines the line between hard nose political combat and a politics devoid of ethics. quote, political actors bear responsibility to demonstrate in the choices they make that politics can and should be an honorable ethical calling. good politic cans be played hard, passionately, but also with respect for the limits beyond which cannot go. cannot ethically go. not all the limits are clear. not everyone agrees on the limits. however, there has to be agreement that there are ■çlimi of some kind. joining me now, bob bauer, president biden's personal attorney. former white house that treats the law as something to be basically shunted to one side. or misused to hound or harass political opponents or as you pointed out in your opening, where there is absolutely no limit on the lies that are peddled to voters. no responsibility on the part of those who write the ads or cover the ads to really police them for some measure of honesty and fairness to the voters. to the question that you asked i want to stress this. i reject the premise that and i think i and others and democratic campaigns have done ç this for quite some time, i reject the premise that you can't compete hard. that you can't be strong in your convictions. that you can't be vigorous in your campaigns. and at the same time run them ethically and win. you can win. i was, with the obama campaign in 2008. the president won. president obama won. i was with the reelection campaign of president obama in 2012. he won. president biden in 2020. he won. so victory is possible. but the overall effect, it is something we have to be ■çdeepl concerned about. >> so in 2020, you outlined a strategy with trump questioning the results. i wondered when you realized you were going to actually need to execute on this plan? >> well remember that former president trump made no bones about his belief that he couldn't possibly lose an honest election. any election he lost would be a rigged election. as a matter of fact, he even claimed he hadn't lost to ted cruz in the caucuses. so he flagged that as did others in his campaign circle and a lot of energy went into thinking through what steps they might take to challenge the election. what steps they might take to ■ç undermine the process beforehand. thousands of lawyer hours, thousands of pages of memos. not all of it came to pass. but having said that, there were threats we anticipated. trump and his campaign did not succeed at all. >> as you just laid out, 2020, trump is setting the ground work for the possibility he is doing the same thing again. this time around, saying that he will call into questions the results of the 2024 election. it is interesting you and i are talking tonight. there is a new fox news national poll that shows president biden leading trump 50% to ■ç48% nationally among registered voters. which is notable because that is the first time we have seen that in this poll this cycle. do you believe team biden is prepared for the novel ways, right, the new ways that team trump has imagined once again subverting democracy? >> well, i recount in the book how we prepared in 2020 and it was exhaustive. and i can say that the preparations are just as exhaustive if not more so this time around. and the effort here, i want to be clear. the effort here is not just to prepare to protect a win. it is to prepare to protect a process. and i will say at the same time i'm involved in this campaign and i'm very involved in the campaign, ■çi also work with republicans on initiatives meant to be bipartisan to support our election officials in the conduct of elections. that is where the partisan politics has to stop. it has to stop at the point at which we are attacking the process we depend upon for the fulfillment of the democratic process. for the fulfillment of democratic will. yes. >> forgive me. as much about the fact this is a bipartisan challenge. you are clear about the fact, when we talk about republicans, this is bigger than donald trump. right? an egregious offense against norms when they ignored president obama's nomination of merrick garland in the supreme court. when another election year vacancy developed upon the ■ç death of ruth bader ginsburg, they rushed amy coney barrett. thehow corrosive was that specific breach in ethics? >> in my view, this is the step taken just to win to push through a result because you can push through that result that added together with all the other actions of that kind that are taken really does have a long term undermining effect. not just on the way the process should operate, but on the public's confidence in the process. the public loses faith that politics is an honorable calling. and that at some point in seeking their favor, seeking their vote in the campaign, ■ç there is a limit. there is a limit to what responsible political actors will do. in the same way they have to hope that in trying to enact public policies there is a limit to what people in government will do to win a policy debate. there have to be those limits. i'm convinced by the way that victory is possible while adhering to those limits. but now the public's confidence if that is true has been shaken. >> you are right in the unraveling about a moment after january 6th where you thought democratic life will get back to normal. that seems very quaint now. i'm sure you will agree nothing feels normal. we're in the middle of what we keep calling the most consequential election of our lifetime. i just wonder five months out what it is that keeps you up at night. >> you have ■fo worry about everything. we are living through polarized politics. we have seen a lot of ethical compunctions fall away. norms challenged. not just norms challenged, but repudiated in principle. and i do believe, however, if i could strike an optimistic note, having traveled around the country and spoken to election officials and community leaders, both democratic and republican, that yes. there is a wing of the republican party that donald trump commands that is prepared to repudiate the norms. prepared to challenge elections and say that the system iser redeemably disrupt. but there are others, some of them quiet, who think even if they will vote for republicans, that we have to defend the democratic process. and that there is a form of democratic politics that is ethical and respectful of the voters and respectful ■çof democratic traditions and norms. i have heard that from republicans. and i believe that there is a large number whether they are republicans, independents, democrats, more than a mayorty that wants to stand up and defend the democratic process in the united states. so as much as i worry at night, i have confidence that ultimately as i had confidence in 2020, that we are going to see the country, the voters stand up for the process currently under such severe attack. >> bob, that optimism that you share is in high demand and in short supply. so thank you for ending us there. president biden's personal attorney, former white house counsel and the obama administration and the author of the brand new book the unraveling. reflections on politics without ethics and democracy in crisis. thank you so much, bob. all right, coming up for us, a big applause line in ■ç donald trump's rally these days? his threats to cut funding to public schools with vaccine mandates. we will talk about that. but first, the strengthening alliance between kim jong un and vladimir putin on display today. what it means for national security in the 2024 presidential election. that's up next. ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ chewy, a citi client, uses citi's financial expertise to help drive its growth and keep its supply chain moving, so more pet parents can get everything they need... right when they need it. keeping more pets, and families, happy. ♪♪ for the love of moving our clients forward. voices of people with cidp: cidp disrupts. for the love of progress. cidp derails. let's be honest... all: cidp sucks! voices of people with cidp: but living with cidp doesn't have to. when you sign up at shiningthroughcidp.com, you'll find inspiration in real patient stories, helpful tips, reliable information, and more. cidp can be tough. but finding hope just got a little easier. sign up at shiningthroughcidp.com. all: be heard. be hopeful. be you. 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.♪ (♪♪) (♪♪) try dietary supplements from voltaren, for healthy joints. want to save on some of the biggest names in streaming on try dietary supplements from voltaren, the network made for streaming? x marks the spot. now you can add the new xfinity streamsaver™ that includes netflix, peacock, and apple tv+. that's xfinity streamsaver™ for just $15 a month. all your favorites. all in one place. only from xfinity. for more watching and less spending... x marks the spot. do it all on the network made for streaming, and bring on the good stuff. the red carpet was rolled out ahead of a carefully choreographed parade of two dictators. vladimir putin paid a rare visit to his counterpart kim jong un as part of a continued effort to strengthen russia's alliance with north korea. there was a welcome ceremony complete with goose stepping soldiers. thousands of north north koreans lined the ■çstreets to chant putin's name. the climax of this high profile trip was a defense agreement that vladimir putin and kim jong un signed today which calls for russia and north korea to defend one another in the event of quote aggression against'rer country. in other words, a nato style defense pact in return for the dozens of ballistic missiles that north korea provided to support putin's war. it could mark the strongest bond between the two countries since the end of the cold war. six senior u.s. officials told nbc news the biden administration is increasingly concerned about the intensifying military alliance. those ofijials say the u.s. is also bracing for north korea to potentially take its most provocative military actions in a decade close to the presidential election. possibly at putin's urging. the timing could be designed to create turmoil in order to hurt president biden's electoral chances and help donald trump. what do you make of this trip of this new agreement? does it subject that putin is in fact desperate? >> without question. putin is desperate. he would not have made this trip. first time he has been here in a quarter century. when i say here, i'm in seoul. so it is just up ■çthe street. that is by coincidence, i'm not trolling mr. putin. i just happened to be here. but it is very nerve racking for people here in south korea as well. because what you see is a real genuine just like you said nato style mutual agreement. they never have been this close it was just a few years ago before putin invaded ukraine when the united states and russia and china disagreed on many, many things. one thing that cooperated on was trying to prevent the expansion of kim jong un's nuclear weapons program. what this treaty, i shouldn't call it a treaty. what the security pact suggests is that now all of those bets are off and putin is not just trying to prevent it. he is trying to help them ■ç expand their nuclear arsenal. that is very, very dangerous new development. >> help me understand what this means practically for ukraine in its fight against russia? >> it means putin will have more munitions to kill ukrainians. it's that simple and the fact he doesn't have those weapons i think underscores how desperate he is. there has been a lot of chatter recently about how well the russian military is doing and the russian military industrial complex is back. i think we need to pump the brakes on that. yes, they are growing stronger. yes, they are gaining technology from countries like china but also countries from the west. that is disturbing. and it was important i think that president biden at the g7 summit focused on that. but ■çthe very fact he needs th pretty crude kind of technologies, these munitions, soviet era munitions from north korea suggest that putin is running out and this deal will help him advance his warrings in ukraine. it is bad news for the ukrainians. >> i want you to help me understand this in the context of the 2024 election. we know what former president trump thinks of putin. we know what he thinks of kim jong un. the way in which he has praised both of these leaders. if he were to be elected, what does it mean for this country? as they are both anti-west? >> well you said that we ■çknow about those relationships. how crazy is that in the first term with trump where he reached out and putin was one of his closest allies and friends. he said it repeatedly for years and years about kim jong un, i'm paraphrasing here, but mr. trump said we fell in love. now think about that. these two leaders are meeting today, putin and kim jong un, to one, threaten in a more direct way ukraine where we are trying to help ukrainians and i'm sitting here in south korea. and our south korean allies here are extremely nervous about what they are seeing in north korea and they are nervous that trump has embraced both of these gentlemen. so our allies are nervous about the return of (çmr. trump and i think we need to think about that hard before voting him back into office. i think it will create tremendous disruption with respect to our alliances. even if not immediately, everyone will begin to hedge their bets. that will lead to very unstable world that i think is not in america's national interest. >> your level of concern that north korea that russia that another u.s. adversary could in fact be planning an october surprise? >> there is no doubt in my mind, i know mr. putin better than kim jong un. there is no doubt in my mind that putin wants trump to win. he wanted to win in 2016 and remember, he helped him. he stole gm%1m them. doxed secretary clinton to try to help him. this time around, it is clear as day he wants to help them so if there is anything he can do before november, i suspect he will try to do it. whether it works or not, i don't know. but there is no doubt that putin both has the intention and the capability to try to help disrupt our elections. >> former u.s. ambassador to russia michael joining us from south korea. ambassador, stay safe and thank you so much for your time. coming up, the republican state lawmaker's bizarre actions against a democratic colleague shedding the light on a loss of civility