The president sparking outrage in great britain. And a rare review from americas closest ally after mr. Trump retweets an antimuslim video from a right wing political hate group. The fact that we Work Together does not mean that were afraid to say when we think the United States have got it wrong and be very clear with them, and im very clear that retweeting from britain first was the wrong thing to do. And joining the angry outcry from the u. K. , the husband of british m. P. Joe cox who was murdered by a supporter of that same hate group last year. I think what these type of actions do is they legitimize hatred. Well be talking to brennan cox, the widower of joe cox, coming up this hour. Good day, everyone. Im Andrea Mitchell in new york. We begin with the sexual harrassment allegations surrounding john conyers. Nancy pelosi now calling for john conyers to resign. One of the accusers is breaking her silence, revealing her identity on tv today. Marian Brown Details the Sexual Misconduct she experienced while working for conyers to Savannah Guthrie. Some of the things he did, it was sexual harrassment violating my body, propositioning me, inviting me to hotels with the guise of discussing business and then propositioning to, you know, for sex. And hes just violated my body. He has touched me in different ways and it was very uncomfortable and very unprofessional. He invited me into the hotel, and he has undressed, you know, down to his underwear, and again, it was the proposition of sexually satisfying him. He asked you to do something sexually . Yes. He asked me to satisfy him sexually. He pointed to areas, genital areas of his body and asked me to, you know, touch it. What did you do in that moment . I was frozen, shocked. I didnt know what to do. But one thing, i didnt want to lose my job, i didnt want to upset him, and i just and then also he asked me to find other people that would satisfy him. Joining me now is democratic congresswoman Jackie Speier who cosponsored a bill to pass the house yesterday requiring mandatory sexual harrassment training for all members of congress and their staffs. Congresswoman, first of all, nancy pelosi has said john conyers should leave congress. Do you agree . Im delighted that the leader has made the decision she has. After hearing the interview of the young woman who worked for mr. Conyers that you just showed, i just shook my head in disbelief. I find it so reprehensible that the pattern of behavior by men, whether its harvey weinstein, or, in this case, congressman john conyers, that somehow their expectation that someone who works for them should satisfy them sexually is an abomination, and we can no longer dance around what is clearly aberrant behavior and violates the Civil Rights Act and everything we believe in in terms of what we call here zero tolerance. We talk about zero tolerance, people talk about zero tolerance, but we were able to find this woman and have her tell her story. Why is it credible that not one of the 535 members of congress could find this witness, could have her tell her story . How could Democratic Leaders not know and still call him an icon on meet the press on sunday . I think that, first of all, because these are payments that have been made out of the members allowance, there is not an easy way of knowing who these people are. And i dont believe the leader was made aware that this settlement was made until it became public. So there is a very oblique system that exists here. There are still members who are serving right now who have these same similar settlements that are not known to any of us because there are nondisclosure agreements. Do you know any names . I do. I know one in particular right now who is that . There is a nondisclosure agreement, thats the problem with these situations. There is a nondisclosure agreement, so the victim cannot disclose, and the settlement is lost if they do so, and frankly, in many of these cases, the victims have already gone through a secondary trauma. Because going through the process that we have right now in congress is as bad as the actual original sexual harrassment in many cases. Can you disclose who the member of congress is without naming the victim . No, i wont do that because it will become very obvious that its a very small group of people that work for each member. They will be able to identify who that individual is. If that individual comes forward, thats a different story. And she may do that. But i think that its really important for us to recognize we have a serious problem in the halls of congress, and weve got to stop dancing around the fact that the system thats in place doesnt work for the victims, that we dont have a credible way of shutting down the bad behavior, and the ethics committee, frankly, is not the place to go because the process there is too long and doesnt provide the kind of swift action that should be taking place. I know youve been a leader on this whole subject, but let me share with you, yesterday i interviewed donna edwards, your former colleague, former congresswoman, democratic congresswoman, and she recounted the verbal abuse that Melanie Sloan, a former aide at the time she was an aide of john conyers suffered at the hand of john conyers in a judiciary hearing. Let me play it. It happened 20 years ago. About 20 years ago i had a group to end domestic violence. I had an advocate group from around the country. Melanie sloan was a staff member that helped us. She was working for mr. Conyers on the Judiciary Committee . She was working for mr. Conyers on the Judiciary Committee, and i witnessed the abuse she has talked about publicly in the Washington Post and here at nshlbc as wel. What happened . She told her she was a horrible lawyer, that she would never amount to anything, that she would never get a job anyplace else. It was the most offensive kind of abuse i think ive ever heard, and in fact, i stepped outside of the hearing room that we were meeting in, and i comforted her. She was trembling, she was visibly shaken, she was in tears. I asked her if it had ever happened before, and she told me yes at that moment. I think this was in 1998. At the time, as advocates, because other people around the country heard that, we were going through a decision about whether we were going to pull away from the reauthorization of the violence against women act because of that. And melanie convinced us that, no, we should just do it and finish it. Its something she had been working on, and i think she left the hill shortly after that. So it certainly influenced her career. Well, it did, and i think as a result i mean, ive known melanie for more than 20 years. Now i know her to be a truthful person, and i know what i saw. Although its not the sexual harrassment allegations that are also being attributed to mr. Conyers, i know what i saw. And i think that its unfair to characterize her, to characterize melanie in a way that suggests shes making up or exaggerating what happened to her. I believe what happened to her because i saw it. Thats very powerful. She was called Melanie Sloan was called a liar by john conyers. Well, you know, hostile Work Environment also is a violation under the Civil Rights Act, and that would be grounds there as well. I know Melanie Sloan. I listened to her testimony over the weekend, and ive said this over and over again, andrea. I believe the victims. You dont come forward in this kind of an environment without knowing full well that youre going to be trash by people, that youll be investigated. I mean, people who come forward right now are doing it, i think, in a very courageous manner. We are at a point where there is a new age of enlightenment, and were going to make sure we never have another generation of women who have to endure this kind of just demeaning behavior and sexual traumatization that so many have endured. I just want to share with you, while weve been talking, representative joe barton, the republican from texas, has announced that he is going to retire from congress. He will not seek reelection. So another departure from the house. Things are changing. Things are changing, and i believe theyre all changing for the good. I cant tell you the number of women that have come up to me in the halls of the capitol the last few weeks with big smiles on their faces saying thank you, thank you. And men as well. Because this has been one of those deeply held secrets in the halls of congress for a very long time that has never really been addressed properly, and were finally doing it. Just for context, he had his own issues with someone with whom he had a relationship when he was separated from his wife, and there was some sort of possible revenge involved, so he described himself as a victim. In any case, its been embarrassing and he is stepping down. Thank you so much, congresswoman Jackie Speier. Thank you for being with us. I also wanted to share with our audience that there has been a statement from the white house amidst reports that we have confirmed, reports also from the New York Times, the Washington Post and other news agencies, vanity fair, that Rex Tillerson might be stepping down or being forced out, i should say, in the coming weeks, maybe the turn of the end of the year or the beginning of next year, and possibly replaced by cia director mike pompeo, a trump favorite. Right now the press secretary Sarah Sanders for the white house, is saying, as the president just said, rex is here. That was the answer to a question at a photo opportunity. Sanders said, there are no Personnel Announcements at this time. Secretary tillerson continues to lead the state department and the entire cabinet is focused on completing this incredibly successful first year of President Trumps association. Well have more on this in a moment. Well be right back. Who could possibly be against that . Well, the National Debt is 20 trillion. As we keep adding to it, guess who pays the bill . Him. And her. And her. Congress, we should grow the economy. Not the debt. [ click ] [ keyboard clacking ] [ clacking continues ] good questions lead to good answers. Our advisors can help you find both. Talk to one today and see why were bullish on the future. Yours. Do you want Rex Tillerson on the job, mr. President . Hes here. Rex is here. Does he intend to stay in his job . Thank you very much, everybody. President trump last hour dodging questions about the future of his secretary of state Rex Tillerson. After the New York Times, Washington Post, vanity fair all reporting that the chief of staff has signed off on changes that would elevate cia director mike pompeo to replace the secretary of state if the president agrees. Were also hearing that at the white house and state department. Its been widely reported by nbc news and other outlets that tillerson would likely leave at the end of the year. Joining us is Philip Jordan and peter. Both political analysts. Peter, youre reporting on this because we know how things are. Theyre not true until the president signs off on it, but how likely is it, do you think, that mike pompeo would be the next secretary of state . He definitely seems to be the flavor of the day, no question about it. His stock has risen in the Trump White House over the past few weeks and months. Hes made a real connection with the president over the daily briefings, hes impressed the president. Hes had an extraordinary role, actually, beyond what a spy agency normally does. He gives advice on a number of policy areas that go beyond National Security, including things like health care. Hes a former congressman, he has ties to the freedom caucus, the tea party, conservatives in the house. The president has come to rely on him and sees him as a likely successor to Rex Tillerson, head of state. An ally and critic of Rex Tillerson and way too eager to cut the budget, but this is what corker has to say. I just had a kind of long conversation, and hes going to europe next week. He was on the phone this morning with the president and another role leader and is conducting business as is the norm. Hes not aware of anything changing and plans to be there. Its been evident to me that for some time somebody is, you know, seeking to undermine his presence here. I dont know who that is. Could be the president himself. And tillersons selfinflicted wounds. At least, jordan, you were in the National Security council, you know how these things work. I have never, never seen a secretary of state so undermined by his own inability to grasp the concept of the position as well as shots fired at him from the National SecurityCouncil Staff as well. Well, and every secretary of state always deals with the Foreign Service might not think they are welcoming enough, that they really engage the building. Colin powell was well known for engaging in his managerial style. I worked for secretary rice and she had a great relationship with the president that really changed the way the secretary of state operated. So now you look at tillerson and he has been essentially re relegated to this secondary position and its just an untenable position to be in. Weve seen the fact that they have not agreed on appointments. Its been a dispute between the white house, peter, and the state department over nominees. But also of the slowness to vet nominees, they claim theyre not being confirmed, but a report shows there are very few people in the pipeline that have not been acted upon. The failure is in the nominating process. Were almost at the end of the first year, so many key positions empty. Among them, for instance, the ambassador of south korea. That would be an important position to fill if north korea is your number one interNational Security challenge, as they say it is. Thats a frustration. Both sides kind of blame each other. The secretary of state has reportedly had shouting matches with white house aides about this subject. And, of course, there is this personal disconnect as well between the secretary of state and the president. Nbc, of course, famously reported that the secretary at one point referred to the president as a moron. The president chose to not believe that, at least publicly, but clearly did not take that well. And this has been sort of a slow death march through the last couple of months. At least one other point is that he is at the white house right now, but hes not in the oval office for a meeting with the foreign leader, so its not clear what hes doing with her. Hes going to have a one on one with the president at some point, but he is physically at the white house today. The other point is that mike pompeo has been spending so much time with the president. He, unlike previous cia directors, personally briefs the president every single day because the president likes to be briefed by him. People in the agency complain, and maybe pompeo himself is feeling the pressure of this, thats a time suck spending all this time and preparing the daily brief which is worked on into the wee hours of the morning and handed to him. It has to go to the white house, go back over to virginia. Its a problem. I saw pompeo last night at a public event. The ballroom in washington was filled with former cia directors and their deputiedeputies, but deputies were called out for their service, and pompeo made a joke, saying, all these former cia directors, i hope thats not my title this time next year. It was a fundraiser for the spy museum and a tribute to William Webster and to george bush xli. It was a big joke but it was very clear he may have another role in his future. As you know, on the benghazi committee, former west point student. Smart guy. But he has been appointed to the agency. And ive been watching how the sweepstakes in the secretarys position has shifted. The position was dominated by discussion of nikki haley, the current u. N. Ambassador, and that has really shifted to pompeo. I spoke to a source who is close to nikki haley, and that source explained that the thinking is, why would nikki haley necessarily want to move to washington and associate more closely with the white house . She has a good distance being in new york city and shes been able to establish her Foreign Policy credentials. So its been important to watch how this has played out. And it could still change and shift as we observe. Peter baker, thank you for your reporting, and of course, elise jordan. The tax plan getting closer and closer to a vote. Chris van holland, the son of a diplomat, joins me next to talk about all of this with him, too. Stay with us. 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