Transcripts For MSNBCW Deadline White House 20200818

Things when confronted by viciousness and cruelty. Going high means taking the harder path. It means scraping and clawing our way to that mountain top. Going high means standing fierce against hatred while remembering that we are one nation under god, and if we want to survive, weve got to find a way to live together and Work Together across our differences. And going high means unlocking the shackles of lies and mistrust with the only thing that can truly set us free. The cold, hard truth. Truth. Truth against lies, action against injustice, a vision of the high road that is sure to resonate in a country that chose not to ignore Donald Trumps latest assault on democracy. Open attempts to knee cap the mailin vote with funding cuts at the post office. The outcry that resulted, the postal workers who spoke out over the slowdowns caused by recent post office overhauls, the state officials who responded to thousands of worried voters with efforts to restore their confidence. The house of representatives which rushed back from vacation, even the criminal referral from two democratic members in congress have led to early signs of some progress on this front with todays breaking news. Postmaster general louis dejoy, a major trump ally and donor, announcing today that he is suspending those changes to the Postal Service. He says its in order to avoid even the appearance of any impact on election mail. For democrats, its a fight thats not yet won, though, as jerry nadler points out in a twitter statement, dejoys statement fails to remedy any damage already done. Nadler says House Democrats will pass legislation protecting the Postal Service this weekend. Well ask House Speaker nancy pelosi more about that later in this hour. But with the caution from congress, room potentially for optimism over a swift acknowledgement from a trump ally at the outcry over attacks on the post office was not to be ignored. Michelle obamas high road with a side of epic shade and a capitulation from a trump crony running the post office is where we start today. Pbs newshour White House Correspondent yamiche alsindor is here and maya gaye and eugene robinson. Wow, Michelle Obama. And wow, a pretty quick capitulation from trumps mega donor running the post office. Two big headlines this hour. Two big headlines. Michelle obamas speech, i thought, was quite a terrific speech and great start to the Democratic Convention. And, in fact, obviously it got under President Trumps skin because he was in a sort of tweeting frenzy and he had remarks earlier in the day that just showed they really got to him which was interesting. He really hates being challenged by a strong woman. And as for the Postal Service, you know, americans really like getting their mail. They really like the Postal Service, and this just turned out to be a bridge way too far. If that was the president s plan, and the postmaster generals plan to wreck the post office as a way of disrupting the election or weighing it for trump, that was the wrong plan. That doesnt go over well with endangered republican senators with republicans at all because their constituents like the post office, too, and they need it to deliver on their benefits, their medicines. It was a dumb plan, and theyve had to take it back after this huge outcry. You know, i dont want to be a Debbie Downer here, but is it possible that the damage was already done . Polls show that over 40 of americans already doubt whether all votes will be counted. If trumps intent was suppression, he may have changed the voting plan for some people, even trying to push the toothpaste back in the tube now, there may already have been harm done. Well, the big question here is, what was the harm already done and whether or not are there other issues that may be not as obvious as post office boxes piled up in a trash bin with photos for everyone to see. So i think the real question here for critics of President Trump is what can they do and what will they do that will not be as obvious to thwart the idea of mailin voting. Experts tell me the main part of Voter Suppression apart from physically stopping people to vote is also implying that peoples vote wont count so there are a lot of people now worried about whether or not they should vote absentee ballot here. The president is going to continue to rail about mailin vote and his allies are going to lead the post office. There are Big Questions there. The other thing to note is if i could turn to Michelle Obama please. This idea she was prosecuting the case against donald trump, she articulated everything that democrats want to articulate which really is bottom line that they think donald trump is not a decent man and is not up to the job to be president. Her talk about President Trump was really about the idea that most politics aside, hes not a good person. And when you hear people going for joe biden, thats their main thing theyre talking about. Theyre talking about, i may not agree on everything but i know hes going to do the right thing if hes president. Michelle obama set the bar high when it comes to a virtual convention. Yamiche, let me play some more of that Michelle Obama speech. Well talk about it on the other side. I am one of a handful of People Living today who have seen firsthand the immense weight and awesome power of the presidency. And let me once again tell you this. The job is hard. It requires clearheaded judgment, a mastery of complex and competing issues, a devotion to facts and history, a moral compass and an ability to listen. And an abiding belief that each of the 330 million lives in this country has meaning and worth. You simply cannot fake your way through this job. As ive said before, being president doesnt change who you are. It reveals who you are. Let me be as honest and clear as i possibly can. Donald trump is the wrong president for our country. He has had more than enough time to prove that he can do the job, but he is clearly in over his head. He cannot meet this moment. He simply cannot be who we need him to be for us. It is what it is. I described that last night as elegant but epic shade from the former first lady. It is what it is. Of course, what donald trump had to say about what is now nearing 170,000 american lives lost to covid. What did the white house think was going to happen this week . This is a week devoted not just to making the case for joe biden but making a case against donald trump which has nothing to do with his trespasses as a tv host as it was four years ago. But with his epic public failures as president of this country. And as she said, his complete indifference to the lives of the 330 Million People . I dont think theres a better encapsulation of the case against President Trump than what we heard from Michelle Obama last night. Its incredible. Michelle obama says over and over again that she hates politics. Last night she shows yet again how to articulate the case against donald trump if you are a democrat better than all the politicians that were speaking because she was someone who delivered the message that was pointed, piercing, critical, but she did it in an elegant way and very high sort of way and what she did there was essentially say, look, hes just not someone we should trust with our country. The other thing she was noting with her necklace that said vote, we understand as democrats that people are might have issues when it comes to mailin voting. If you can, go in person. Pack a lunch. Have comfortable shoes on. She was giving democrats not only the message of why they should be voting but how. Because she and democrats are anticipating this usps problem, thats going to be something thats going to continue to happen. People are going to be facing long lines on november 3rd. And shes essentially giving people a face to think of when theyre in line, wondering whether they should stay in line. In some ways its going to be uphill from here in terms of who else we hear from because Michelle Obama really was someone who closed the show last night. Democrats have really no better spokesperson. At least last night, than Michelle Obama because of all the things she articulated. And the white house expects democrats to come at them. But in this way, President Trump did not understand and did not really wasnt ready for the Michelle Obama to really prosecute the case in the way she did. And prosecute the case she did, even fox news forced to acknowledge that, mara gaye. Lets watch. Very difficult to try to connect with an audience without an audience there with you, but she has the ability to connect with people through the screen. Youve got the sense when you talk about authenticity, she has it in spades. I think the dnc, if they look over the course of the night, the First Virtual convention of our history, Michelle Obama stuck the landing. Michelle obama doesnt like politics and she said that this speech was her main contribution to the biden campaign. It was a heck of a contribution. She really filleted, sliced and diced donald trump. Mara . The sorry. Ive got a fly on me here. The thing thats amazing to me. I was watching last night. I was reminded when barack and michelle met, michelle was Barack Obamas mentor, and thats all i could think about last night because thats great. A piece of history to remember. Youre right. This is a woman who herself in a different world could have been president. And she is just as politically talented as her husband or as anyone that we see on the american stage. But yet, she also has the authdentisity of an american who cares deeply about her country and about her neighbors. But really isnt a political junkie necessarily. And i think that really is what makes her such a powerful asset really to any campaign and to american politics. So she has this way of delivering really brutal truths. But just as the neighbor next door and it really resonates with people who are not just politics junkies like we are, but with voters at large. And her point about creating a plan to vote is essential. Its only august and so the fear is that if weve already removed, you know, mailboxes and its august, what is going to happen the next few months . This is the beginning, not the end, i believe, of a strategy to suppress voters and suppress turnout. And i really think that people need to be on guard. I think Civil Society is going to have a large role to play. Lawyers who help protect the vote, organizations that are nonpartisan that do some of that work and help get people to the polls safely. Its all going to come together to protect our democracy. And eugene, some of that contributed, im sure, to the announcement today from the Postal Service that some of the reforms or changes or whatever they were spinning them as will be suspended. And to maras point, i think what Michelle Obama does is she reminds all of us that were not we dont have to be sort of victims of trumpism. Exactly. There is something we can do. Theres no more political document than the programming decisions of a political convention. I worked on three. And to put Michelle Obama and that speech last night, and they knew what was in that speech, to put that out there on Opening Night was, as we said, really this new more intense chapter of making the case for joe biden and making the case against trump and everything he ushered in. What do you think that she does in terms of sort of infusing this week with, as mara just said, action. People planning to vote. People using their voices. People saying, no more. That was the last part of her speech. She laid out the case. Remember, shes harvard law. You know, she laid out her case in a passionate but very logical way. And the conclusion was, you are not victims. You have agency here. Go vote. And she said, just go do it. They cant really stop you. They can dont allow yourself to be intimidated or depressed or somehow freaked out by whatever louis dejoy is doing, whatever donald trump is saying. Just go vote. Go vote early by mail, vote absentee in person, as you can do in my jurisdiction, vote on election day and be determined to stand there all day and all night if you have to. But you can do that. Thats within your power and no one can take that power away from you. And so she was telling people what their responsibility is. Its every citizens responsibility to express his or her voice at the polls. And that cant be done for us. Its something we have to do. Mara, to eugenes point, she was the most thematically powerful, the most appealing and most tactical. She went down and said if you break out the vote margin in the precincts in the states where donald trump won by the fewest votes, it was two votes per precinct. If you are at home and on the fence, Michelle Obama just gave you one more reason to get off the fence to get off the couch, put on your comfortable shoes, pack a snack and go wait. I want your thoughts on sort of that tactical information as a motivating factor. But im going to give you a twoparted question here. John kasich, winner loser . Let me start with michelle. Michelle obama is kind of like that democrat who has sat by for the past four years just enraged but also just deeply saddened and depressed and who she said so much. She said she was yes. Exactly. And so she knows better than anybody, i think, just kind of what malaise can lead to and how that can lead to apathy. And i think shes not an optimist in the same way her husband is. And so shes thinking very tactically about this. And it was a message to all americans but also, i think, to black americans, too, who have a long history of working very hard to vote. Its dont let people take your vote away from you. You have agency, but you have to act on it to eugenes point. You really have to force this issue, and it might take waiting in line all night to do so. John kasich. You know, after watching michelle last night, i just think, who . I mean, its just i just think michelle stole the night, and i think that shes going to be an asset Going Forward. And if i were in the biden campaign, id have her on every day for me. Shes a better campaigner than he is. I didnt mean the two of them side by side. But just the acknowledge i guess if kasich wasnt the right move, how do you think biden tries to represent what hes assembling which is a really ideologically Diverse Coalition . You know, i think whats funny is bidens platform is far more liberal than Barack Obamas was years ago. So when we looked at that as an editorial board, we were blown away how much more similar it is to Bernie Sanders platform in some ways than barack obama in 2008. But i think culturally what joe biden needs to do is he needs to say that he is the campaign of the big tent. And so that might mean having, you know, mitt romney even at some point. Lets remember he was at a black lives matter protest. The message is about the message is that this is about more than politics. This is a year to vote for your democracy, and then we can have substantive policy discussions later on in the family. But we have an existential threat. That is the message, and that goes beyond politics. Thats why cardi b is just as essential to joe bidens campaign as mitt romney might be. I love it. I love hearing from all of you. Yamiche this could take the whole hour but well pick it up another day. Thank you so much for starting us off. When we come back, a republicanled Committee Investigating trumps ties to russia reveals a vast web of contacts between Trumps Campaign and russians seeking to aid his candidacy in 2016. Well dig into the new report. Also, House Speaker nancy pelosi pulled the figurative fire alarm over the post office slowdowns, but could the damage have already been done . Well ask her. Speaker pelosi joins us on that breaking news and a look ahead to night two of the Democratic National convention. Plus, a grieving daughter vouches for joe biden at the Democratic National convention by placing the blame for her fathers death squarely on Donald Trumps shoulders. Well talk about the politics of trumps failure to protect americans. All those stories coming up. Try boost® high protein. With 20 grams of protein for Muscle Health versus only 16 grams in ensure® high protein. And now enjoy boost® high protein in new cafe mocha flavor. We live in the mountains so i like to walk. Im really busy in my life; im always doing something. Im not a person thats going to sit too long. In the morning, i wake up and the first thing i do is go to my art studio. A couple came up and handed me a brochure on prevagen. 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Anything coming out of this congress with bipartisan signoff is rare these days which makes the release of the Senate Intelligence committees fifth and final report on russias interference in the 2016 election all the more monumental. The nearly 1,000page report lays out the many communications between the Trump Campaign and russia. And as nbc news reports, it painted a stark portrait of a Trump Campaign eager to accept help from a foreign power in 2016 and a candidate closely involved in that effort. While confirming the conclusions reached by special counsel Robert Mueller, the findings by the republicanled committee go even further. Particularly when it comes to trumps former Campaign Chairman Paul Manafort and manaforts interactions with individuals close to the kremlin. The report describes him as a, quote, grave counterintelligence threat. Joining us, former fbi general counsel andrew weisman. Let me ask you first, you prosecuted the manafort case. Did you know everything that was in todays Senate Intelligence Committee Report . I did not. There is definitely new information, and there are some very fascinating things in the details. I cant tell you ive finished all 1,000 pages, but id say the big picture to steal a phrase that you used about epic shade is, this is a remarkable document because you have republicans and democrats both saying that they disagree with President Trump and attorney general barrs disparagement of this investigation. Because they conclude in this report that there clearly was russian interference in the election and the interference was to help donald trump. And they also conclude that it was amply justified to undertake this investigation. And as you know, attorney general barr is busy trying to argue the opposite. But here you have both republicans and democrats saying, as you just mentioned, just one example, Paul Manafort was a grave counterintelligence risk given his connections to russia. And lets deepen that explanation. What my understanding of the report is that the report found that Paul Manafort, who was Donald Trumps Campaign Chairman, was in Constant Contact with a russian agent. Does a report go so far as to assert that manafort was then acting as a russian agent when he sought to discredit the Intelligence Communitys assessment that russia attacked the 2016 election and spread russian disinformation about it . It does not go that far, but this is what is new in the Senate Report today. It describes Constantine Kilimnik who is the righthand man of Paul Manafort in ukraine. It describes him as a russian intelligence officer. That is much further than he was described publicly by the special counsels office. And it also says that there was some evidence that that person, kilimnik, was involved in the hacking operation. That is the russian operation to hack into the dnc emails and distribute those. So thats substantial new information. It also says that donald trump lied to you, that Donald Trumps answers to the special counsels office, to your boss Robert Mueller, were lies. Can you talk about that . So youre a very careful reader because id say that the report elegantly tries to not use the phrase lie but it comes darn close. And to give you the specifics on that, the president in his written answers to the special counsels office says he doesnt remember having communications with roger stone about wikileaks. And this report, signed off by republicans and democrats, says that roger stone actively was trying to get the information from wikileaks and did so in coordination with candidate trump. So it leaves it to you to decide, do you really think you would forget that given how important that information became to the campaign in terms of it dribbling out, you know, throughout october . I mean, and trump is the guy that can remember man, woman, camera, toe nail or whatever he is telling ubut he forgets talking to roger stone over and over and over again about wikileaks while at the same time talking about wikileaks over and over and over again on the campaign trail. I mean, do you have any doubt that Donald Trumps answers were lies . No, i mean just to be clear, the special counsel was asked that exact question when he testified under oath before congress, which is whether he believed that the president s answers in writing to him were accurate and truthful, and he said he did not think so. And i fully support that. So this is a personal question. Do you feel like its a fair conclusion to say, as just a voter and someone who has watched all of Donald Trumps assaults on the rule of law. He is still, as you said, hes got bill barr trying to prosecute members of the Intelligence Community who reached the same conclusions that mueller and the special counsels office did which were now affirmed by the republicanled Senate Intelligence committee. I mean, is it inaccurate or unfair to say that you all failed to stop him . Because no one thinks that donald trump isnt up to something much worse in 2020. So, i think i wrote a book about that, thats coming out, not to plug that, nicolle, but our job was not to stop him. Our job was to uncover the facts and apply the law to that. But i think that for a variety of reasons you could say there was a fail our the part of the special counsels office and on the part of congress in terms of, you know, how hard we would dig for information and also, i think congress can rightly be, you know, graded about what they did with the report once they had it because the facts were, or at least many facts were laid out to them that they could have taken action on. Andrew weissmann, thanks for your candor and spending some time on this with us. The postmaster general seemingly caving to public pressure suspending the measures that have drawn so much scrutiny. But does the move go far enough . Well talk to House Speaker nancy pelosi next. Want restaurants to open . And schools . Want the economy to get back on track . Youre not alone. And you can help make it happen. Stay 6 feet apart. Wash your hands. Wear a mask every time you leave your home. Choose to join the fight against covid19. Do your part. Slow the spread. Following a major public revolt around allegations that the Trump Administration is sabotaging the United States Postal Service ahead of novembers election, postmaster general louis dejoy today announced in a statement that he is suspending policy and operational changes until after the election. However, the statement did not include a commitment to restore the agency back to its full capacity. Merely that they stopped doing what theyve been doing the last few weeks. Just this afternoon, we learned at least 20 states plan to File Lawsuits in federal court seeking to reverse service changes. Congress is taking action, too. The postmaster general will appear in front of a Senate Committee on friday and a House Committee on monday. In the meantime, politico reports the house was expected to vote on saturday on legislation that would deliver 25 billion to address funding shortfalls and to block organizational changes. Joining us on this breaking news, speaker of the house nancy pelosi. I know you brought everybody back to deal with this. Do you feel the crisis is averted or you may just have someone at the table in the postmaster general who is coming to testify friday and monday . Hello, nicolle. Congratulations on your expanded presentation to the country. Were all delighted with that. Let me just say not so nice try on the part of the postmaster general. What he did was take three big steps forward and took one baby step back and that just doesnt do it for us. We will be voting on saturday to ensure that not only do they reverse what they did but they caused such damage that theyre going to have to show us how they not only restore Going Forward, but this isnt just about the election. This is about the coronavirus. This is a health issue and it has to go well beyond the election. It also has to, as our bill calls for, treat mail ballots as first class mail so they will be sorted in a timely fashion and peoples votes will be counted as cast in a timely fashion. You know, i wonder what you do with the fact that trump says it all out loud. Its all out there that all of this was about making it harder for people to vote. And as you said, its a baby step backward, but polls show that some of the damage has already been done. I think upward of 40 of americans already worry that their ballot wont be counted. Well, youre very astute to point that out, and what ive said to people is dont pay any attention to him. His purpose is to jeopardize the integrity of the election by scaring people that their vote wont count so whats the use of even voting. So ignore him. The more attention is paid to his falsehoods, thats good for him, rather than saying to people, just make a plan. What is your plan to vote. One thing your plan must do is include voting early, whether by mail or hopefully, but as our bill calls for, not this bill, but the bill that we have in the covid package, the legislation regarding elections which says that in the interest of the coronavirus, there has to be spacing. Therefore, there have to be more polling places, open longer, many more days, and again, enabling people to vote without risking their health. The best way to do that, of course, is to vote by mail, but vote absentee and that requires money. Both of them require money, and thats whats in our bill. Madam speaker, i was thinking about this testimony in the same way i thought of the testimony during the impeachment investigation of gordon sondland. You know, a trump crony who comes in and says, i was just doing what i was told to do. What do you expect to hear from mr. Dejoy when he testifies . Well, i would hope wed hear the truth, but what i have heard, leader schumer and i heard in our at the negotiating table when we asked him to come in was just a rationale but certainly not a justification for what he was doing. And what they are doing is following up on their ongoing plan. They always wanted to privatize the post office. They wanted to do that so they dont have to contend with collective bargaining, the beautiful diversity, the fact that nearly 100,000 veterans both work at the post office and that is part of the post office agenda. And so this is a continuation of that. But it comes at a time when they want to discredit the election so you see the Senate Report a bipartisan Republicanled Senate saying what is happening that it takes your breath away to see the communication that russians people, associated with the russian government had ongoing conversations with the Trump Campaign and with the trump family. So its again about undermining the integrity of the election. Its about dishonoring your oath of office to uphold the constitution of the United States. I want to ask you about that senate intel Committee Report. Its a republicanled committee affirming what Robert Mueller said and what others who have looked at this have said. It also finds that donald trump lied to the special counsels office in his responses about his conversations with roger stone. And i just asked Andrew Weissmann this question who served on the special counsels office whether it is fair as a voter to feel that everyone has tried to hold him accountable, including the special counsel, including congress, has failed. And if thats not fair, please push back but what is the reassurance that ahead of november we can stop any more of this interference or egging it on from the Trump Campaign . Frankly, i think that im very, very proud of the house of representatives. Our lead manager adam schiff, the chair of the Intelligence Committee, and our committee. We went forward. We impeached the president of the United States. Whether the senate decided to honor the republicans in the senate decided to honor their oath of office is another thing. I dont think they did. But what matters is that the record shows this president was impeached. Your previous guest didnt point out that we had limited access of information because the Mueller Report was not able that whole investigation was not able to go into the president s finances. They were barred from doing that, and that is where a lot of the truth lies. So when we have a democratic president in january and we have a democrat a new secretary of the treasury and the chairman richy neil of the ways and Means Committee asks for the president s tax returns, well see them, what the president has been trying to hide. And as i have said, including in that photo, pointing to the president , i said, mr. President , with you all roads lead to putin. I want to ask you if you have any doubt, this would require some speculation, if you have any doubt that what we learned from mueller was that russia aided trumps candidacy and the Trump Campaign welcomed it. What we learned from the senate intel report is an intricate web between the Trump Campaign and russian intelligence. We also learned that trump lied when he said to the special counsel he wasnt talking to his advisers about wikileaks. Do you have any doubt that trump was aware of russian efforts to help him in 2016 and do you think hes doing that again in 2020 . I would rather look forward, if i may. I dont think there was any doubt that he was aware. He even said he would invite. He didnt know that it was wrong to do. He has no scruples. Were dealing with something very odd and different from anything weve seen before. This isnt about partisanship. Its about patriotism for our country which he sorely lacks. Now and as we go forward, we know that the Intelligence Committee has said publicly, not that i can repeat, that 24 7, the russians are interfering in our election. This time we will be better informed, more vigilant than was than happened in 2016. As they were successful, they were with their bots, they were poisoning the social media. It was evil, and it was undermining the precious right to vote which is the dna, the fundamental of our democracy and donald trump said he would invite such a thing, foreign intervention. As we go forward, and lets just think about as we go forward, well have an afteraction review on this administration in a very short period of time. But in 77 days, we are having an election, a chance to take back our country in the way that would make our founders proud, addresses the aspirations of our children and is worthy of the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform who fight for our freedom and our democracy and our constitution. So lets go forward with that, and i think the committee, the Senate Intelligence committee did a service to the country. Its a republicanled committee and a bipartisan way put forth what they agreed to put forth, and there may be more, about the russian interference in our election. Again, breathtaking the contacts of the russians with the family and the campaign of donald trump. Speaker nancy pelosi, its always a privilege to get to spend some time asking you these questions. Thank you. Thank you. Especially at this time. Were very proud of our convention. Wasnt it wonderful last night . Look ahead to tonight. Some of what were talking about i expect sally yates who is one of tonights speakers, may address. What are you looking forward to tonight and the rest of the week . And you have an appearance as well. Mine is tomorrow, on wednesday. I think all of it is great. I love when they involve americans, Everyday Americans to tell their story. I thought last night was great. Of course, michelle was other worldly. So beautiful. So generous of spirit to share what she shared and then pragmatic in terms of her recommendations. But also Bernie Sanders. I thought he was fabulous. And it was great that john kasich was there. I think that was a very big plus for us because we do have to find our Common Ground as we go forward. We are very, shall we say, enthusiastically democratic, progressive as we go forward. But we want to hear other views and make sure as we go forward we are honoring what our founders guided us to be, from many, one. You have to go, but its interesting you mentioned john kasich. Hes generated some debate. It was my sense hes there to represent the Broad Coalition that joe biden has and plans to build on ahead of november. Some people didnt like seeing him there, but you think it was a good idea to showcase those four republicans . Oh, yes, yes, i do. By the way, i say to my republican friends and i do have some, nicolle, you know that. I know that. I say to them, take back your party. This isnt who you are. Youre the grand old party. Youve done so much for our country. Youve been hijacked by a cultlike group of people and others who are afraid of defying the cult leader. This isnt what the Republican Party has been about in our country. Lets go back to our normal debate of the role of government in the lives of the American People as our founders intended in a way that respects disagreement as we find our Common Ground. But understand that we must come together. I miss the days. The days before grown men and women were over a mean tweet. We beg for george w. Bush to be president. From your lips. In any event, congratulations to you on your expanded presentation. We all look forward to seeing you bringing your bipartisan, if you say that, but at least from the perspective of a republican, your view to whats happening in our country. Thank you. I appreciate you always come on and engage with us. We always learn very much. Thank you, madam speaker. Its my pleasure. Thank you. After the break, its one of the most powerful, most moving moments of the Democratic National convention so far. A conversation about the coronavirus as a political issue is next. Mornings were made for Better Things than Rheumatoid Arthritis. When considering another treatment, ask about xeljanz a pill for adults with moderate to severe Rheumatoid Arthritis when methotrexate has not helped enough. Xeljanz can reduce pain, swelling, and further joint damage, even without methotrexate. Xeljanz can lower your ability to fight infections. Before and during treatment, your doctor should check for infections like tb and do blood tests. Tell your doctor if youve had hepatitis b or c, have flulike symptoms, or are prone to infections. Serious, sometimes fatal infections, cancers including lymphoma, and blood clots have happened. Taking a higher than recommended dose of xeljanz for ra may increase risk of death. 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Tech just leave your keys on the dash and well replace your windshield with safe, nocontact service. Tech schedule at safelite. Com. Test. Auto. Former first lady Michelle Obamas speech has dominated the headlines last night and this morning and all of the post convention chatter. There was another stand out moment from the first night of the Democratic Convention, not have a politician or celebrity, from a normal person speaking from the heart. Take a listen. Hi im kristen, one of the many who lost a loved one to covid. My dad, mark anthony should be here today but he isnt my dad was a healthy 65 years old. His only preexisting condition was trusting donald trump and for that he paid with his life. Joining us now form he white house ebola advisor now, i gasped when i watched kristens speech. I teared up. I do obituaries from people who lost their live from covid every day and i say it every day every death is the destruction of a family, of a world of a universe of a community but her story is the first i heard where she blames her fathers death on donald trump. Yeah were at over 170,000 depths and the number is climbing every day. Lost almost 1,000 Health Care Workers to covid. We lost front line workers. All of these stories are strategic, and she told her unique story but its all too common in this country in the last four months more americans died in the last four months than any four months in american history. That is a fact about the failure of trumps failure at this stage of the game to have a plan to deal with it, by ignoring science, down playing the threat, all of the things we talked about before. I thought she put a human face on it last night in a incredibly compelling way. The convention is previewing what we can expect tonight from dr. Jill biden. Heres some of it. You can hear the anxiety that echoes down empty hallways no scent of new notebooks or freshly waxed floors. The doors are dark how do you make a broken family whole, same way as you do a nation, with love, understanding, small acts of compassion, with bravery, with unwavering faith. Theres times i couldnt imagine how he did it, put one foot in front of the other and kept going but i always understood why he did it, he did it for you. Jill biden offering a testimony much like Michelle Obamas last night of the character and humanity and decency of her husband. Yes and comes from probably the most decent person i know, dr. Jill biden. You know when you work for the principal scariest phone call is the spouse is on the phone. For sure. I can tell you all my years of working with biden its the h happiest call i would get is from dr. Jill. Shes a decent person and spent full time teaching people english as a second language. And she led Michelle Obamas effort to address military families and the efforts she helped launch and work as a military mom herself, as someone who cares about the sons and daughters become sent over seas to serve our country. Shes an amazing person and going to be an incredible first lady. Shes also the nicest person i know. Im so excited the country will get a chance to hear from her tonight and get to know her a little bit better. Always great to spend time with you. Thank you for spending some of your afternoon with us. When we come back, not even 24 hours after Michelle Obama warned, trump can and will do more to this country, well reveal how deep that can be. Second hour starts after a quick break. The virus is still spreading. Californias economic challenges are deepening. Frontline workers stretched too thin. Our nurses and medical professionals in a battle to save lives. Our schools, in a struggle to safely reopen, needing money for masks and ppe, and to ensure social distancing. And the costs to our economy, to our state budget . Mounting every day. We need to provide revenues now, to solve the problems we know are coming. If you think things cannot possibly get worst, trust me, they can and they will if we dont make a change in this election. If we have any hope of ending this chaos, we have got to vote for joe biden like our lives depend on it. Hi again, everybody. Its 5 00 in new york. Not 24 hours after Michelle Obama delivered that ominous warning that things can and will get worse under donald trump a threeyear investigation into the russian attack on the 2020 election confirms her fears. A Republicanled Senate committee find extensive contacts between russia and the Trump Campaign in 2016. A Republicanled Senate committee affirming Robert Muellers finding that trump aided and welcomed it. Assessment of the u. S. Intelligence committee now under investigation by trump crony bill barr that there was quote an exfencive web of contracts between trump advisors and russian officials, some with ties to the nations intelligence service, the report adds quote the report by the Senate Intelligence committee totally nearly 1,000 pages provided an extraordinary set of facts. For the russian government under took an Extensive Campaign to try to sabotage 2016 American Election to help mr. Trump become president and some members of trumps circle of advisors were open to the help of the american advisory. More plainly, a republicanled panel found the smoking gun, again, and its the Trump Campaign holding it against americas democracy and it might explain trumps failure to protect american troops it does not make clear what if anything may be under way or possibly planned during all those unreported, unstaffed out, calls and meeting between donald trump and Vladimir Putin when it comes to an encore performance in 2020. Former Obama National security advisor rice warned last night in an interview we should not be surprised if russia tries to meddle with the vote tallies. We know what the against kmoo community said russia is trying to actively interfere with our elections through a variety of means. In 2016 they tried to infiltrate the voting systems of a number of states. They didnt succeed in manipulating. If you show up at the polls youre not registered where you think you should be. And they didnt succeed in trying to mess with the vote tallies, we shouldnt assume they wont continue to try. Thats where we start with some of our favorite reporters and friends. With us from the wash post, ashley parker. And senior opinion writer for boston globe Kimberly Atkins and former assistant director for Counter Intelligence at the fbi and author of the fbi way. Frank, i have to start with you, lets dive right in. They find Donald Trumps former Campaign Manager was a quote, grave Counter Intelligence threat. I know we shouldnt be surprised but still shocking he was found by a Republican Committee to be a quote grave Counter Intelligence threat. Explain. Well have frank shortly. This is the times in which we live. Relying on zoom and face time. Ashley parker. Take me through what in here stood out to you . I read the post and times reporting on this as everyones digesting the thousand pages. But i pulled that out to start with because this description of Paul Manafort as a quote grave Counter Intelligence threat is new. Yeah, a number of things stood out to me, one was just the sheer number of contact between people in the Trump Campaign and people russian intelligence or in russia or who the Intelligence Community believed were trying to under mine the election. Theres a couple highprofile meetings we like to focus on, including the one in trump tower with the president s soninlaw and Paul Manafort and a woman who was reporting to have dirt on mcclintock. Hilly clinton. N. Hillary clint yoonl. Llary clint. Hillary clinton. It was widespread in all levels of the campaign. And coming out cleerply to say was a member of the gru of intelligence this goes back years, that Paul Manafort was providing polling information that if youre a Foreign Government trying to meddle with the u. S. Elections you would absolutely love to get your hands on and here the president s chairman of his campaign for a period seeming to happily and willingly pass this on to his contact in russia. Let me say, being one of the four of us who worked on president ial campaign its not normal for your Campaign Chairman or anyone on the campaign to hang out with and share overnight polls with a russian intelligence official. Let me dig a little deeper on this with you. They also found trump lied to Robert Muellers investigators. Trump in written responses to the special counsels office stated i dont recall discussing wiki leaks with stone nor do am a aware him discussing with anyone in my campaign paign [ reading ] [ reading ] two things, one, trump lied to mueller. We should never get to the point where that isnt a epic scandal, that the president didnt even sit for an interview and the answers he did provide were b. S. Two, trump is talking about wikileaks every day and strained any realistic scenario that he wasnt getting the information fed from stone. It would have been enormously coincidental if you look at 2016 the way the president did talk about wikileaks saying how he loved wikileaks hinting that more would be coming without some sort of knowledge of what might be coming. And yes, i do take, also, that the revelation that the president was not truthful in his answers under oath in an investigation that is a big deal. As well. But most concerning is the fact that this is yet more evidence as just how successful russian efforts to influence an election were in 2016. We have absolutely every reason to believe that with that success they would be doing it again. And trying to influence 2020 in these ways or perhaps other ways we havent even realized yet. And that we have an administration in place that not only has failed to tell russia under no Uncertain Terms not to meddle. Its failed to adequately punish russian officials. The punishments that came out from the meddle is from the mueller investigation, the charges lodged by Robert Mueller and his team, not any sort of strong rebuke from this administration. So if they were willing to accept that help which is what it appears with all these multiple ties ashley was talking about, theres a strong concern the same thing could be happening at this very moment. Ashley, theres reporting about how russia went about doing what kimberly just described. Let me read some more from the report [ reading ] [ reading ] i remember a Washington Post story from that period about jarrod trying to set up a back channel literally like a telephone that he could talk to russia on. It is it is so clear that in the final telling their extraordinary efforts to have conversations with the russians that no one else can hear all point in one direction. They were hiding something from someone. Do we have anything in this report that reveals what that was . Well, i think if you look at the transition, its a period, frankly, that thats not mentioned enough because ate love the problems the Trump Administration has had to deal with from the very beginning, for instance, some of what were seeing in this report that led to the president s ultimate impeachment, though we dont talk about that much any more, just several months ago and out of any decisions made during that transition process and things that sort of set the ball in motion and then just the chaos that we deal with daytoday and was eberle present early in the administration. You have a teams that young and experienced as they would tell you themselves, they were trying to claim they didnt collude saying we were too stupid to collude. You have this team that comes in with a visceral antireaction to president obama they want to undo everything, including his tough on russia policy, and theyre willing and eager participants ants to these overtures could argue if it is naivety or malfeasance but it sets the stage for what is in the report and ramifications were seeing now. Frank has been tracked down by telephone because we really wanted to hear from him. Im not sure how much of the analysis you just heard, but let me put it to you, this report finds the president s former Campaign Manager Paul Manafort was quote a grave Counter Intelligence threat. Also finds donald trump lied to the special counsels office about his conversations with rollinser stone about wikileaks. Stone of course has since been pardoned. It talks about the vulnerability that adversaries like russia had to curry favor. Seems those pay dividends. I wonder what you pull out of todays report. Yeah, nicole, you and i talk many times that the greatest threat facing the nation was an Insider Threat and still is. Insider threat is sitting in the oval office. This is a thousand page for that notion because russians were able to get a notion inside the campaign, chairing the campaign. The chairman of the campaign, manafort, selected basically as his silent partner the campaign is what we now know is a knownintelligence officer, essentially helping manafort run an election campaign. Think about that. Now we have an eager campaign and an eager candidate willing to accept. And most importantly lying about his knowledge of the role that wikileaks and russia is playing. Lying under oath to the special counsel. Theres no longer any doubt that the russians have helped the president and the president hiding his relationship with russia. Remember the day after andy mckay came on this program you said the real stoning revolution was that a full field investigation had been opened into donald trump. We never really found out very much about where that ended up. I wonder what you take from this report in terms of looking for echoes of what andy mccabe and others at the fbi were so worried about. Yeah i really see this as also a thousandpage vindication of the degrees to which the fbi tried to stem a threat that they saw coming and anyone including the attorney general, including john durans team, including the president s team, who think the fbi went too far or didnt properly predicate this case, needs to read this report. I know this president didnt read much but it shows theres a clear and present danger right up to the chairman of the campaign and even the candidate himself and any finding thats they want to come out with will have to deal with that reality. Well lets talk about that. William barr is still prosecuting those who looked at this very same issue, that the Republican Committee looked at, the russian attack on democracy in 2016. I mean, does it reveal that as purely political . Does it set it up to be in conflict with these findings . Wheres it lead mr. Durham . Well it leaves him a respected career prosecutor between a rock and hard place because best is what weve seen so far is indictment of low level new lawyer at headquarters who altered an email. In the timing of this, in the face of barrs policy, shouldnt do anything to mess with an investigation is going to come up to the release of durhams insist ant. You may see policy issues. You may see fbi not following its own rules. We know steps are in place to fix that. But you would be p hard pressed they wouldnt go after flynn and open the campaign and be concerned about the campaign. Lets Flash Forward to 2020 election. Kim atkins. This is from the odni head of the Community Intelligence statement on ongoing russian meddling efforts. They say this [ reading ] this is consistent with moscows public criticism of him when he was Vice President for his role i said, quote, using a range of measures to denigrate former Vice President biden. This assessment by the Intelligence Committee is a repeat assessment, same that happened before. The president had zero interest in engaging in this and has for four years or more dismissed this as a hoax, as a russia hoax, and has wanted nothing more to do with it than that, again, for four years this administration has had the ability to empower its Intelligence Committee and its d. O. J. And all over levers to impose sanctions, to rebuke this and to push back against these efforts and stop them and it has refused to do that. The only conclusion you can draw is that because it helps the campaign. We have seen for the last week or more an effort by the campaign by President Trump, by the administration to basically dismantle the mail system in a way that the president himself said was aimed at an election. Certainly it is hesitancy to even acknowledge this has happened and try to deflect it to something the democrats are not doing is an effort to take whatever benefit it can moving forward to another election since it worked the first time. As my colleague rachel mad you says we will all continue to watch this space. Thank you all for spending some time with us. When we come back, the post master general suspending cuts to the Postal Service until after the election but is the damage already done . Plus donald trump is once again going to extremes racing the prospect of an election doover, mailin balloting is allowed. And the list of republicans supporting joe biden is growing as democratic kick off nice two of their convention. 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The crush of political pressure on the u. S. Postal service to reverse course on proposals that would have slowed mail delivery ahead of the november election seemed to have work, at least for now. Postmaster general louis dejoy has come under fire due to changes saying any has put on hold but not agreed to restore the Postal Service to its previous capacity saying to avoid any appearance of any impact on election mail im suspending these initiative until the election is concluded. Last hour nancy pelosi told us it doesnt change the house plan to vote on a bill to change this. What he did was take three big steps forward and take one baby step back, that just doesnt do it for us. We will be voting on saturday. To ensure that not only do they reverse what they did but that they caused such damage that theyre going to have to show us how they, not only restore Going Forward our conversation nbc news correspondent jack bennett and former obama Campaign Manager. Bennett, you were on the post office beat, ive worked on three campaigns, its never been a big beat, everyone ends up on the campaign trail but in this election because of what donald trump said out loud he wanted to do when it came to mailin balloting and what his hand pick mega donor did at the post office has become a president ial beat in president ial politics. Tell us what is happening today and is it as nancy pelosi describes a baby step back. . In a way, and frankly we wont know, nicole, at least until friday when dejoy comes before the senate, he has a hearing with House Democrats on monday. On friday he will have a public airing of his strategy and will have to answer questions about the policy, transparency and specificity. In the state he said blue collection boxes will remain. He says over time will continue to be approved as needed. So what does that essentially mean . It could be the case a manager in a given facility doesnt approve overtime and in that region delays would persist. Dejoy said his policies are unintended consequences creating so cases in some case two strikes to three days and some waiting weeks for their prescription store drugs, its really veterans, lawmakers. For dejoy in part has reversed it. This is a rude question but was dejoy too incompetent to know it was the consequence or was he too sub serve ient to trump to care. Heres the interesting thing he is new to that experience but not new to the world to shipping, logistics and delivery. One reason hes a Million Dollar and top trump donor, one reason hes in that position he sold his Logistics Firm for 615 million in 2016. The notion that delays are an unintended consequence of his policies, one would think he would have to have known what the end result would be. One would think. What is this photo that you have in. So a postal employee that you see in that Photo Provided us this picture of a distribution facility in hen re etta, new york. This bin you see had sat for nine days. That was supposed to be handsorted. This picture was taken on august 16th, the bin as you see on the bottom its labelled august 7th. This is one bin, one fast implement, mail over flowing, sat unprocessed. Imagine that multiplied by the number of facilities across the country and number of bins in those facility. The postal employee said the reason that bin was unprocessed was a direct result of louis dejoys policies. As someone who mails and receives baked goods it made me cringe. Not that thats important. But anyone who relies on the mail to stay in touch with a Family Member during the pandemic. Its just an unbelievable unbelievable line to cross. David pluck you had some very savvy advice to democrats about that line being crossed, about how to draw attention to it, im checking your list, many of these items are already under way. When you talk people listen. You recommended over the weekend, primetime hearings now. Theyre not in primetime but there are hearings friday in the senate, monday in the house. Subpoena to Trump White House and Campaign Officials this is rico case i want to hear more about that. Visit local post offices with cameras, show people whats happening. Events with those getting prescriptions late involving governors. No rest, no vacation. Go to war for our country. Well, nicole, i think that posture has to continue. I think the dejoy statement was a defensive pr statement. I would consider it meaningless until we see a real change. The standard has to be whether its subscription drugs, Social Security check, letter to a Family Member or ballot, its delivered in the same amount of time as last year or the year before, the year before that. Theres loopholes about over time and other things. So democrats have to stay on this. Anyone can tell a story today with a phone. You can do competenting video. Compelling video, i would continue the hearings, i would file subpoenas. No way the Trump Campaign and Jared Kushner are talking to kanye west. This doesnt go all the way to the oval office. This is trumps desperate strategy i would think youre going to have a paper trail democrats oug ought to be all over it. Sorry, im so glad you said the second thing that came out of your mouth. I was waiting for the whole thing. Let me say this, it was a meaningless pr statement. Thats what happened today. A meaningless pr statement. Youre absolutely right, if Jared Kushner can get on an airplane and meet with kanye west about a fake run for president to siphon off vote from joe biden he certainly was involve in a National Effort to slow the mail delivery. Tell me what the investigation looks like. I asked this last night. Theres only 76 days left. I know two members of the House Judiciary Committee asked the fbi to look at this. Slice that piece off for me. Trying to find out how far this goes. We know trump is tweeting about it, obviously hes talking about it, how do they do that with the short Time Available . Right so investigations do take a long time but obviously House Committees have subpoena power so to call Trump Campaign officials, white house officials, maybe members of congress. Part of this is to just keep this in the publics eye. I think this will hurt trump with the public, nobody wants to see the post office degraded. Really. Maybe 10 of his base does. So id keep this in the public eye, keep pressure on. At the end of the day, far as i can tell, nicole, this is trumps election strategy. It is not an economic message. He has contradictory messages about joe biden on one hand diminished no mental capacity, if he is elected will be drooling in the office, and other thing is he is such a threat he will destroy everything we stand for but neither of those is working so his strategy is to cause questions with voters which i think could work, im not sure my vote will be counted, im confused. And for people who vote less a lot of people will apply today but a lot of people will wait until the end. We have to make sure if those mail ballots take five, to nine days instead of the two or three they should you will have hundreds of thousands ballots spoiled. So maybe youre not going to get to the bottom of this by election day but it should be the most important thing happening in the Democratic Party and hopefully will get relief to people economically. They have to put a laser on this and not take the word of anybody else. Hes just trying to get through these hearings, thats all that statement was. David and jeff thank you both. I have a feeling well come back to this early and often. When we come back, donald trump is saying the quiet part out loud as he looks to punish the city of minneapolis by withholding federal aid after civil unrest in the wake of George Floyds murder. That storys next. As democrats hold their convention and joe biden holds the leads in the polls, donald trump is traveling the low road, taking his rhetoric to new extremes. It is what he had to said about mailin balloting during a krerm that gave women the right to vote. Absentee is great but universal is going to be a disaster afterer the likes of which the country has never seen. It will either be rigged election or theyll never have an outcome. Theyll have to do it again. Nobody wants that and i dont want that. President also gave us another example of using levers of power to punish those who dont fall in line. During his visit in minnesota yesterday trump was asked by a local tv reporter that a deniable for request for federal funding to help clean up the damage over protesters over George Floyds death was a punishment. Heres trumps response. You know a punishment is being foolish or stupid, because they could have stopped that, if you have a Police Department you wouldnt let the police act, you wouldnt have it had a problem in minneapolis if they allowed the police to do their job. Were back with former obama Campaign Manager and joinled by the chairman of department of africanamerican studies at princeton university. Eddie, the two statements represent, i guess the full trump story, ignorancignorance, and saying whatever comes to mind. What do you make of what hes stitching together in this effort to, i guess, Counter Program the Democratic Convention . Well, first of all, its such a delight to be in the second hour of deadline white house. This season would. Thank you, thank you this is wonderful. Thank you, my friend. I want to say a couple things, thing that comes to mind immediately is that donald trump is engage in an ongoing effort to delegitimize the upcoming election because he thinks hes going to lose. He wants to sew mistrust and deep skepticism so people are skeptical about the outcomes because he doesnt think hes going to win. Thats first thing. Second when we hear comments about minneapolis and the like we need to understand hes not committed to democratic norms or commitments or principles however we describe it. The idea of responding to the protester in minneapolis the way he did reveals how he understands himself as the okay u pant of the executive branch. He thinks hes strong man but in reality he isnt, hes just a guy that really doesnt know anything about the constug of the United States constitution of the United States it seems to me. Thats the point Michelle Obama tried to make in her uniquely elevated way, a conversation you and i have had day in and day out. Hes not up for the job. It is what it is. What did you think of her indictment for his presidency. I thought it was the best nig line of the night outside of the preconditioning of not trusting president. We saw his response on twitter. Went ballistic. I think its really clear, it has to be unnerving. I said it on your show before that trump feels over his head, out of place, every time he steps in a room. It seems to me not only is he not fit for this moment, i think we need to go ahead and say it out loud since hes prone to say the quiet parts out loud. I think hes a threat to the public and we need to approach november with that in mind. Senate report says so much today that his former Campaign Chairman, which having worked on campaign theres no one more senior than your Campaign Chairman, thats the person most publicly facing. Everyone says oh, this campaign was different. I dont care your Campaign Chairman is your most senior official and certainly it is clear why he was targeted. The republicanlead Senate Committee found Paul Manafort to be a quote, grave Counter Intelligence threat. Everyones beyond outraged and feel like theyve heard this before but im curious ha you think it pore tend for this election when donald trump has now spent four ways working his way through Vladimir Putins honeydo list for him. It lets us for know that were going to experience trouble. We know that we already have the problem were having an election against the back drop of covid19. We know that the congress and particularly the Republican Senate have not in any sort of way invested the kinds of resources necessary to shore up what will already be a difficult circumstance. And now we have this report, a thousand pages, showing us what many of us already thought was the case. But that Donald Trumps campaign in so many ways, particularly his chairman was active in some ways in dismantling, how could we say it, nicole, im trying to find the right verb. Actively seeking to under mine our democratic process, it seems to me. So all those things together lead me to believe that november is going to be an incredibly vexed moment at the level of execution and process. And democratic in the Congress Need to really press this, not only with the Postal Service as you said in the last segment but in the broader context, what do we need to do to shore up the election process in november. So david, i know youre an advocate and skilled practitioner of focused campaigns, but i wonder what we do with the finding that there was this elaborate and intricate web of connections and contacts between Donald Trumps campaign in 2016 and russia and now on record we have half dozen meetings and calls between donald trump and Vladimir Putin, theres no notes or staffers, john bolton writing he wasnt even in the room. How do we protect the countrys National Security knowing thats under way . Where it takes me is more motivation we have to win this election. Yeah. There are going to be some voter whos care about that. Most voters dont think countries like russia should determine the outcome of our elections. You have the pandemic, the economy, health care, a lot of issues. Dont know if it will be front and center for joe bidens debate but it is another example. Back to your point what he said about minneapolis and elections. You mentioned, ive been around the track once or twice in politics, like you have. When you are losing an election, my view this election will tighten and democratic shouldnt get over confident but right now donald trump has to be in the business of addition and particularly in the suburban areas where he is hemorrhaging. They dont like the corruption which is what his comment was about withholding funding in minneapolis. They think our elections should happen on time and freely and fairly. They dont like go called suburban housewives. That to me, i think the next week, Republican Convention is far more important, because hes behind. So what does he do . Is it basically a series of grievances and insults and white power hours or does he try to make a compelling argument for second term. I think the russia story should make democrats understand were up against a lot. Voting in a pandemic. Maybe Postal Service delays. A lot of confusion. Disinformation. Russians are doing everything they can to have their asset remain in the oval office, strange as that sounds, but its more motivation. Once it is front and celebrity i dont know but should give us more motivation. I think second term would be moscows for the taking. We will all learn to speak russian. Thank you both for spending time with us. Charlie and amy will stick with us and talk to them about the impact of joe bidens growing list of republican support. Blict from prom dresses. To soccer practices. And new adventures. You hope the more you give the less theyll miss. But even if your teen was vaccinated against meningitis in the past. 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So ditch the old way of selling your car, and say hello to the new way at carvana. Tonight the Democratic National convention will pay tribute to another bipartisan relationship between joe biden and my boss the late senator john mccain. It was a friendship that shouldnt have worked. John a former navy pilot just released from a north vietnamese advison. Joe a young senator from delaware. But in the 1970s joe was assigned a military aid for a trip overseas. I was a Navy Senate Liaison and used to carry your bags on overseas trips. The son of a gun never carried my bags, he was supposed to carry my bags, damn it but he never carried my bags. Joining us now National Editor for cook political report. Amy walter. Amy, i travelled with john mccain and this friendship between john mccain and joe biden was real and one of the most memorable speeches i think john mccain gave in one of his last public appearances is when joe biden appeared with him and talked about Donald Trumps Foreign Policy said it would end up on the ash heap of history. What does this friendship mean both personally to joe biden in terms of the story theyre trying to tell this week at this convention. Right now. Right. Right. Thats a very good point it being very personal and showing this empathetic, personal side of joe biden that, again, we know because we follow politics but a whole bunch of voters dont know and specifically i think the kinds of people theyre aiming at with this story are those suburban voters, david just talked about them, that donald trump has been hemorrhaging since 2017, who really like the nostalgia of this relationship. The idea that a democrat and republican could not only Work Together but be friends. Now i recognize, especially for pay lot of either very strong progressives on the left or very strong conservatives on the right, this nostalgia is misplaced, this is not how it works, this is not you make things work in washington. , its a pipe dream. But when you go to suburba america, ive been watching a bunch of ads especially in 2018 in former republican suburban district they all talk about bipartisan and compromise. You know, charlie, i keep thinking of the guy that some of the voters, not a lost them, but some of them, but so not a lot of them but some voters thought they were getting when they picked donald trump. They didnt see that guy in year. Years. He didnt run as a guy who was good, his presence has of someo. Buried in overracism and overmisojny. So many womens stories that didnt get adequate air time. So many examples of him fanning the flames of division. What do you think this dynamic that amys talking about which someone smart talked to today but i think we romanticize but this exhaustion over what politics has become. How sort of unvoiced is that . Oh, i think thats a huge factor. I think this years election, with Ronald Reagan asked, are you better off than four years ago . I think this year, the question, is you take four more years of this and i think thats what makes these bipartisan friendships so important, and the appearances so important because this is not normal. This is off the charts and what we have as a country is not an existential crisis but a crisis of decency and can we just get back to this . I thought it was an interesting strategy and continues to be an interesting strategy for joe biden which is the opposite of donald trump. Donald trump is running a base only campaign and its very clear that joe biden is extending his arm and saying, were a very big tent and i think that if you believe and understand the politics about addition, this is a sound strategy. I love the dog barking. A sign of the time. I love it, i love it. Its like peak 2020. Can you both come back tomorrow . I think, you know, we heard mixed things from democrats and kasich. I want to ask both of you tomorrow if you think this moment, this tribute, that was sidney mccains voice, john mccains wife. I want to hear from both of you tomorrow, same time, same place, same dog. This time tomorrow. Find your friends. Find your sense of wander. Find the world is new, again. At chevy wed like to take you there. Now during the chevy open road sales event, get up to 15 of msrp cash back on select 2020 models. Thats over fiftyseven hundred dollars cash back on this equinox. Its time to find new roads, again. When youre affected by schizophrenia, you see it differently. Its in the small, everyday moments. And in the places, youd never expect. A little sign of hope. The feeling of freedom. And once these little moments start adding up, thats when it feels like so much more. It feels like real progress. Caplyta effectively treats adults with schizophrenia. And its just one pill, once a day, with no titration. Caplyta can cause serious side effects. Elderly dementia patients have increased risk of death or stroke. Call your doctor about fever, stiff muscles or confusion, which can mean a lifethreatening reaction or uncontrollable muscle movements which may be permanent. Dizziness upon standing, falls, and impaired judgment may occur. Most common side effects include sleepiness and dry mouth. High cholesterol and weight gain may occur, as can high blood sugar which may be fatal. In clinical trials, weight, cholesterol and blood sugar changes were similar to placebo. So if youre affected by schizophrenia, have a conversation with your doctor about caplyta today. door bell rings its ohey. This is amazing. With moderate to severe ulcerative colitis, are you okay . Even when i was there, i never knew when my symptoms would keep us apart. So i talked to my doctor about humira. I learned humira can help get, and keep uc under control when other medications havent worked well enough. And it helps people achieve control that lasts. So you can experience few or no symptoms. Humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. Serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. Before treatment, get tested for tb. Tell your doctor if youve been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if youve had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flulike symptoms or sores. Dont start humira if you have an infection. Be there for you, and them. Ask your gastroenterologist about humira. With humira, control is possible. We kand however we connect,ng. Whether its over the phone, online, or in your office, were here to listen and provide solutions that help you run your business better. Because the decisions you make have far reaching implications. And a relationship with a Corporate Bank like pnc can provide just what you need. As one of the nations largest banks, pnc brings customized insights and a local approach. To make informed choices now and in the future. For spending a perfectly reasonable amount of time on the couch with tacos from grubhub . Grubhubs gonna reward you for that with a 5 off perk. doorbell rings [crowd] grubhub fireworks exploding mother daughter parties in town for girls only with one exception. Alfonzo welcomed alongside his twin girls. He was a single parent, died of cancer six years ago. From then on, according to the tampa bay times, alfonzo became single mindedly focused on his childrens happiness. The twins and their younger brother got whatever they nee d needed. He was their shoulder to cry on, the person they turned to. He was their support, their joy, their pride. He was their dad. Alfonzo died of the coronavirus earlier this month. Were obviously thinking of his three children. We hope they know the community is there for them, more than anything, they have each other. For our part, we will do our best to honor and remember their amazing dad. Thank you for letting us into your home during these extraordinary times. Were grateful. The beat with my friend and colleague ari melber begins after a very short break. Dont go anywhere. Lber begins after a very short break dont go anywhere. 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