weekend. let's dive right into the week's top stories. >> it is interesting that nikki haley, again, is bad lane along with ron desantis, chris christie for first place, for second place right now. there may be a pathway for her to win new hampshire. there may be -- new hampshire's interest in this year. you don't have a democratic race. so you have a lot of independents that aren't going to be splitting between republican and democratic voting, but she has right now, and, again i, know she's a civet boosted to the shull polls, i've also filed enough campaigns. when people start talking about somebody, that's usually a leading indicator. you see polls go up, you but you look at the debate, the men screaming. you look at ron desantis and gavin newsom shouting at each other with sean hannity shouting in the middle. serious. there's a lot of men out there shouting. a lot of buffoon airy, a lot of really loud voices, and so, if politics is about contrast, then what a contrast and nikki haley has to every major politician they see on the air these days. >> there's a lot of contrasts. i would say that nikki haley rise in this republican race has not been a rise that's been based on her the intact fuller low-key. she's been somebody who attacked ramaswamy in the last debate, called him scum. she's gotten somewhere by being tough, by having a good debate moments. i think one of the questions people have is whether she's -- in every debates of our she's gotten a bump out of the debate. will she get one of last night or not? i don't know the answer to that question. but there's no doubt -- or whether you call a 2016, they're living in a world where they're all trying to figure out. their plane bracket ncaa bracket elegy. they think this one bracket that sam and those trump and trump's gotta buy in the first round, and they're gonna get him one-on-one. that did not work out well for anybody in 2016. they all thought that was a way to play it. didn't work in 2016. we'll see here, in the reason that halle is so interesting is that because south carolina, where because the amount of caucuses are going to be a gimme for trump, the rate for him to win. if she were to win new hampshire and the next big contest a month later is in her home state, that puts it in a different position than everyone else. -- and that was where he basically consolidated the nomination. he never looked back. if she can give -- take him on, really take him on, if she comes out of iowa new hampshire in a good place, 12, to one, and then gets him on home turf, that's the scenario, right? that's the scenario that she's thinking about. the rest of them, it's not clear what's under the thinking. about >> and that is, when you think about it, and again, it's a long shot now, but her pathway forward is to win new hampshire. and a lot of people, i've heard people saying if she comes in second in new hampshire, no, it's over. if she can win new hampshire, and she's got a month to do it, then there's no months between new hampshire and south carolina that she has a month where we're all going to be circling that day because if she beats donald trump, new hampshire, and then in her home state in south carolina, she goes into super tuesday with winds and anything is possible. if you lose their home state, it's over. >> and she's trailing badly in her home state. it's right now, she's got time. and if she wins new hampshire, things certainly changed. but in her home state, the ones you have to count on to win, she's trailing badly to donald trump, who is popular there. buried in all these polls that we look at, these trump biden, polls and haley does better than any republican against joe biden she could ever get there. where he's neck and neck with trump, trump biden, everybody within the margin of error. if you look at some of these polls, she beats actually by five, six, seven points to joe's point about independent luck -- -- >> ever going to be a woman president if she's republican. and she weaves in a much less threatening way than hillary clinton. but i do think for me, as someone who is pretty woke as a feminist, so to speak, i really thought last night she did really well. and i was actually kind of moved by chris christie. and i've been the biggest chris christie critic. but i was actually kind of moved by him stopping the tape and being lovely. micah, didn't you relate to that in a weird way? >> i did, and i'll tell you why, because, you know, i think that women can point out sexism and other things, ageism, whatever, but when men do it as well, it's even better. and i appreciated it, and i thought, you know, it was generous, didn't have to do it. could've left her standing alone to all of this, but kind of pointed it out and put a full stop on it. and, yes, she can do it for herself. she's already proven that. she's taken down that ramaswamy guy many times two massive applause in these debates. i think it's gotten to the point where everybody needs to sort of point out what they see. and i thought what chris christie did sort of reminded me about what i tell women, i know your value community. we have to have a voice, but we also have to have an open mind two men who step up for us because that's part of it. and i think it was great. i think it was great, and, joe u.n.i. have talked a lot about this. i know it's sort of a southern thing, what you're talking about out there as well, and i understand that. but it meant a lot to me when he did that. >> yeah, it really did. and one man, he's always start out for, mage on ethan lemire. jonathan. >> chivalry is not dead. the >> chivalry is not dead. >> it wasn't chivalry, it was pointing out stupidity. >> in the rougher parts of boston proper. >> so, john lemire, obviously, nikki haley does better against biden than any of the other candidates. is the white house looking at that? are they just hoping that they get donald trump because he's obviously, by far, the weakest republican candidate? >> joe, you rarely need defense. rarely. the white house certainly believes and those in the biden campaign operation believe that he's gonna get the nomination. they believe that's the candidate they want to face. they think biden has the best chance of beating trump than any republican. there are democrats in this conversation to get alarmed when you think about the possibility of nikki haley nomination for the republicans, but short of a black spawn political event, that is very hard to see. right now. despite the momentum she has to have that trump alternative. this is the campaign, and we heard from the president, i thought was pretty telling this week about one of the biden operation has been saying about the 2024 election. and i've got some great new reporting out this morning on it that's the biden team seizes on trump's comments about wanting to be a dictator for a day, and to them, this is affirmation, this is validation of how they see this fight. yes, they understand that the economy will be big. of course abortion rights will be big. of course there are other issues that will sway voters next year. but they think that it will be fought about democracy again. much like 2020 was, much in many ways like 2022 was in some ways. and they feel like this is the campaign that biden himself personally -- people close to him have told me that this is what he wants to talk about. that donald trump remains, much like he was in 2020, a threat to the soul of the nation, to quote a phrase from somebody else on this program right now. and this is somebody that the threat has only grown as biden's told people that if trump were to win again, he would likely have at least one republican house of congress to go with him. he's got a conservative supreme court. he's got a gop that forgave him for january 6th and only made it more powerful. he's got -- also believe that he will have survived. again, if he wins, he will have survived all these criminal indictments and still emerged as president and has the power of the federal government's fingertips. and they say that is the clearest in starkest argument that they need to commit going forward. >> and you can add packing his administration with people hell-bent on retribution against the deep state, media, and everybody else. jon meacham, the soul of the nation was involved, so let's go to you here. and chris christie in this race, this republican race anyway, is the only one making the case that jonathan lemire just talked about. the biden campaign making, which is that donald trump is a threat to democracy. here's what chris christie said last night. >> so do i think he was kidding? when he said he was a dictator? all you have to do is look at the history. and that is why failing to speak out against him, making excuses for him, pretending that somehow he's a victim empowers him. you want to know why those poll numbers are where they are? because folks like these three guys on the stage make it seem like his conduct is acceptable. let me make it clear. his conduct is unacceptable. he's unfit, and be careful of what you're gonna get if you ever got another donald trump term, he's letting you know i am your retribution. he will only be his own retribution. he doesn't care for the american people. it's donald trump first. >> thank you governor christie. governor desantis. governor desantis, thank you, thank you. >> so john, a mix of some applause that morphed into booze there in the arena tuscaloosa's when he went after -- chris christie actually became sort of moderator in turn to desantis at one point and said, do you think donald trump is fit for office? and none of the people on that panel would answer the question. >> i think kristi is doing an extraordinary service to the country by standing in rooms that probably are not tuning in very carefully to everything billy guys things and about -- about making this case that, in many ways, it's not that trump's on trial, it's not the republican parties on trial. there is nothing unclear about this at all. he wants to be an authoritarian figure. desantis, i think, last night, made it case which is particularly unsettling, which is that, well, trump's not very good at it so therefore it's okay was the implication. right? he didn't do x and y, he said he was going to do this and then he didn't. wow, well, that's a novel way of looking at it. i think what governor christie is doing is important. there were sort of three different stories on that stage, it seems to me. christie's telling the truth as he sees it. i happen to agree with him, so therefore, i think he's very wise in this case. haley is threading the needle, but a recognizable republican figure. desantis, a little less so. and then were off on january six being an inside job, which was among the more irresponsible things. to me, look, what makes america work and what makes the constitution work is a functional two party system. we can argue about whether that's a good idea or not, about whether the electoral college is a mistake, all that, but basically, this is what we have right now. and you had need two parties that are basically conversant with reason. and the republican party, with the exception of christy, is ambivalent at best and at worst hostile to reason. and that's what i have a feeling we're going to end up with a very stark choice next fall. >> coming up, tommy tuberville, he folds. he folds after wrecking the lives of military men and women for a year. down. lost her card, not the vibe. the soul searcher, is finding his identity, and helping to protect it. hey! oh yeah, the explorer! she's looking to dive deeper... all while chase looks out for her. because these friends have chase. alerts that help check. tools that help protect. one bank that puts you in control. chase. make more of what's yours. i've never been healthier. chase. shingles doesn't care. but shingrix protects. proven over 90% 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this guy, i want you to look at him. this is a guy, again, what passes for patriotism, what passes for christiana do these days kind of crazy. i go back to mike johnson's saying, look at the bible, that's what i do. and then you see one line after the other. tommy tuberville, you know, campaign as a patriotic american. only does attack the military. says they're weaker than ever, what a liar. what a lie. what allied to say that our men and women in uniform are weaker than ever. there are stronger than ever. they're more powerful than ever. they are relative to the rest of the world, tommy. relative to the rest of the world, our military is stronger than it has ever been. and if you don't believe it, you ask our enemies. you ask people that cross the united states military, and they will tell you. but can you believe we've gotten to a state where the republican party has the senators who say they would rather our troops be like russian troops, who get routed, have been rounded by ukraine. and then says, our united states military is weaker than ever. what a complete and total lie. and slander to the marines, to the soldiers, to the sailors, to the airman, to those who serve in the coast guard. what an insult to all of our service men and women that the republican party has senators who say our military is weaker than ever when it stronger than ever. >> but the sikh twist, joe, is that any challenges this military might be facing, i mean, they will overcome them. but any challenges they might be facing is because of this senator blocking promotions, hundreds of them. so join the conversation we have former u.s. senator, now in this nbc political analyst claire mccaskill. post of the podcast on brand with donny deutsch. donny deutsch is with us and senior political columnist for politico, jonathan martin, jackie alemany and jack barnacle are still with us as well. >> senator, i'm not glib when i say i'm proud to be an american. i have been my entire life. i'm so proud of the men and women in uniform. i just can't thank them enough for their service. i also read history. i also know history, and i also know that our military, right now, relative to the rest of the world, stronger than it has been since 1945. and yet, you have republicans like tommy tuberville trashing them and saying they are weaker than ever. what gives? >> well, first of all, everything is upside down. the idea that they're hijack cain aid to ukraine and as a loyal member of nato, and their hijacking aid to israel. and they're hijack cain aid to taiwan over a domestic policy that they have not managed a bipartisan vote on since 2013, when i was still in the senate. but i got a kick out of tuberville yesterday. he's so dumb, you know, coach actually said to the press outside of the capitol yesterday that it was a draw. well, in languages that coach would understand, no. this was alabama 62 auburn nothing and the last two points were a safety where he was tackled in his end zone. this was not a draw. he took on a heavy water politically and frankly, while all of us were frustrated that schumer wasn't dominating the floor action with overcoming the hold, he finally got the republican party to turn on him. and that was a big deal. this happened because the republican party turned on one of their own. you would like to see them be half away as aggressive with donald trump because he is just his down and just as, frankly, unstable, probably as coaches. and coach is out of his taps here, and frankly, didn't know what he was doing. and has hurt our military. and importantly, the military families. and by the way, he still holding 11 four star generals. four star generals are very important in terms of military readess. so he is not really given up yet. i think he wants to suit up again and, once again, he will be dominated on the field by his arch rival. >> and by the, way the wall street journal editorial page slightly more subtly making the point that clare is making, suggesting this morning that tommy tuberville was an easy mark for right wing activist groups that they could get their message out and really get nothing in the end. policy, jacqui, hasn't changed. so the question is, why now? why did he give up this fun? hurting america's readiness keeping families in limbo for ten months. all this to what i? and >> the combination of factors,. clare is absolutely right that the pressure from his own colleagues was certainly moved him at least a little bit. chuck schumer was also threatening to force a vote on a resolution that would basically allow lawmakers to circumvent the vote to confirm some of these people en masse. but at the end of the day, i don't think it's a surprise that this comes weeks after democrats showed in the off-season election that they can still win on abortion. and as joe biden and democrats have struggled with a lot of other issues, especially young voters, is positioned israel radio, his age a lot of people are increasingly uncomfortable with, abortion, still the issue winning for democrats. and you've got to think that tuberville realized it's not the hill that he wants to die on, or at least, launched the republican party to die on going into next year. >> you know, there's a question that lingers in all of this. this problem is not gonna weigh completely. clare just pointed out there's 11 fourth stars waiting promotions, waiting assignments that he's still holding up. but the school year began in august and september for many, many, many military families. and they put their kids in the school where they were posted then. they may have been posted elsewhere in the interim, so you may have had a head of household, the father, a soldier, or a mother who was a soldier sent somewhere else other than where the children are going to school. that family is just disrupted for an entire year because of one thing. this dope, and he is a dope. tommy tuberville. i don't know about you, but the idea that we spend so much time legitimately on what he has done to damage the military at the expense, which we don't spend enough time talking about, at the expense of the families involved. >> the republicans are upside down on just about every issue. as jacqui, said abortion, guns, obamacare. and they lose the military. if i was putting together a campaign for the democrats in 2024, i would start with milley and every other person, every other general and secretary of defense to say that this is not a group, this is not a party that is behind the military the way they need to be. this is a president that change the military, shames our defense system, and once again, i'm gonna use the military as part of my weaponry, for lack of better word, in a political campaign. >> coming up, former republican congresswoman liz cheney will be our guest right here on morning joe. she joins us with her new highly anticipated book owes and honor. that is straight ahead on morning joe. start your day 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some athletic gene in here. endurance, no. speed, average. i would say below average. give the gift of family heritage with ancestry. >> in our country, we don't swear an oath to an individual or political party. we take our oath to defend the united states constitution, and that oath must mean something. tonight, i say this to my republican colleagues who are defending the indefensible. there will come a day when donald trump is gone. but your dishonor will remain. as americans, we all have a duty to ensure that what happened on january six never happens again, to set aside partisan battles, to stand together to perpetuate and preserve our great republic. >> that was former congresswoman and vice chair of the house select committee investigating the january 6th attack on the capitol. liz cheney with a warning to her own party. since those hearings, we've seen the republican party elect a house speaker who cheney says cannot be counted on to uphold their oath to the constitution. >> and one who actually took the lead in the big lie. >> and back another trump term, even as the former president openly touts an extreme and authoritarian agenda while facing 91 criminal counts. and liz cheney joins us now. she is a professor of practice at the university of virginia center for politics and author of the new book entitled oath and honor, a memoir and a warning. and thank you very much for coming on the show this morning to talk about your book. we all watched and were impressed and aghast at your work during the january six committee hearings, you know, just to name a few things. we've been talking this week about the latest issue of the atlantic, which is a deep dive into a look at the dangers of a second trump presidency. and we look at trump's own words, even now. we could go on for four hours and still have not enough time to talk about the things he says he will do, the things he has said he would do and has done. so my first question to you, with so much insight into this and to the republican party and what is happening to it, why do you think he is still the front runner for the republican nominee? and how much did the reasons you have for that concern you about the future? >> well, first of all, thank you for having me on. and thank do you guys and everybody here for the coverage that you've been given of this issue now for so many years. it really is important and very much appreciated. and you put your finger on what i think is, you know, one of and one of the most important questions politically, certainly, that we face at this moment. i think there are a combination of things going on. i think first of all, there are millions of people around the country who feel like they are not heard by the government, who have felt like they don't have a voice. and donald trump has managed to convince them, dishonestly, that he could be their voice. and so, i think that reflects a certain percentage of the republican party. it's not a huge percentage. certainly, the people in congress who actually believe what he's saying is very very small, but he's enabled and appeased and collaborated with five people who know better and leadership in the republican party today and that's part of what makes him so dangerous these people have been willing to look the other way and go along, even when they know that's wrong. >> you know, it once was they would look the other way because, you know, they don't want to lose the base, they don't want to lose their seats in congress. but you write that even during the trump impeachment time that some members, maybe even many, were scared for their own safety if they would vote toward impeachment. can you tell us more about that, what you heard? >> yeah, it was widespread in many instances. people would say it directly. it's a knowledge that if they did the right, thing if they publicly opposed to trump, if they voted for his impeachment, for example, that they would be putting themselves and potentially their family at risk. you know, i talk in the book about the vote, the first time that the republicans attempted to oust me from my conference chair position, where, you know, we prevailed significantly. it was a secret ballot. and i suspect that it had impeachment been a secret ballot, for example, the numbers would have been much more republicans would have voted in favor of impeachment. that's, the fact that we live in a situation where you have to think about a secret ballot because people need to protect themselves and they feel like they're threatened by violence, that's not a place that we've been before in this country. >> congresswoman, what's very clear reading this book is that you knew this effort was going to cost you your job, that you knew if you stayed in wyoming where donald trump won by 43 points, it was not going to be popular to stand up to him. so as you undertook this fight, did you give any consideration to your political career, do your political future? you had a lot of road ahead of you still, senator, maybe higher office as well. how did you balance those things? because clearly, you and adam kinzinger and a handful of others made that choice when most of the others said no, this job in this power is more important to me. >> in a way, it's a difficult question to answer because i never thought about it that way. and i was surprised that people did think about it that way. >> and that's the only reason i ask because so many other people did think about it that way. >> to me, there was no question about what the constitution required. beginning actually while we were being evacuated from the floor of the house while we were been rushed down the steps into the tunnels underneath the capitol, i knew then that he had to be impeached and removed. he was a clear and present danger. it was obvious that he was not sending help. he was not telling the mob stop. and, you know, each moment that went by was just obvious self evident that that was in another moment of an impeachable offense. so i think that the founders were clear about and sharing people an elected office where an oath to the constitution and put something above what they called factionalism, allegiance to a single individual. and i think what we've seen of the last couple of years is how important that really is, how much that really matters. and what we have to demand of our elected officials. >> you're watching morning joe weekend. we'll be right back. i guess i blacked out. this is the best squeaky toy ever. probably shouldn't. but we did get you a few more gifts. honey. ooh, there's more. chewy's prices were so great. you don't need to explain yourself, linda. keep on saving. pet's aren't just pets. they're more. well, i hope i got a leaf blower this year. you got a turtleneck. unwrap the excitement with deals up to 40% off at chewy. at first, i used better than bouillon for broth. and then stir fry... sauces... even marinades! and now there's the 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(upbeat music) i started golo because i was unhealthy due to my weight. the minute i started taking the golo release, i knew it was working. i was not hungry, and i did not have any cravings. since losing weight with golo, i'm healthier now than i've ever been, and my doctor is thrilled. golo is so much more than weight loss, it's gonna give you your life back. >> now to what legal analysts say was a significant development in the case against former president donald trump. trump is not immune from civil lawsuits looking to blame him for the january six insurrection. this is a big step against him. in a unanimous ruling on friday, a three judge appellate court found the former president is not entitled to immunity as an elected official because he was speaking as a candidate january 6th, not in his official capacity as then president. multiple police officers and members of congress sued trump nearly two years ago, saying he incited the riot at the capitol. the ruling does not say trump is liable in those suits. it only says the case may now move forward to find out a fee is liable. in a separate court on friday, judge tanya chutkan who's overseen the federal election trial ruled the former president also does not have protection from criminal prosecution. in her decision, judge chutkan wrote, quote, whatever immunity is a sitting president might enjoy, the united states has only one chief executive at a time, and that position does not confer a lifelong get out of jail free pass. and yet, donald trump is now trying to claim it is joe biden who is the threat to democracy. >> joe biden is not the defender of american democracy. joe biden is the destroyer of american democracy. it's him and his people. they can do whatever they want, break any law, tell and a lie, ruin any life. trash and a norm, and get away with an they want. >> what projection, what confession on his part. >> the new york times writes, quote, mr. trs a history of accusing his opponents of behavior that he is himself guilty of, the political equivalent of a no you are playground retort. polls ha shown that significant percentages of voters in both parties are concerned abouthreats to democracy. during the midterm election candidate to embrace mr. trump's lie that the 2020 election was stolen from him were defeated, even in races in which voters did not ranked democracy as a top concern. mr. trump and his campaign have sought to dismiss such concerns as a concoction to scare voters. but on saturday, they tried to turn the biden campaign's arguments back against the president. >> let's bring in right now the host of the last word on msnbc, lawrence o'donnell. also justice department reporter for the new york times, katie benner. thank you for being with us. lawrence, it's a little harder for donald trump to say no, you are, when it's donald trump who said he would terminate the constitution if he needed to do that to become president again. who is talking about executing members of the military, chairman of the joint chiefs, because he's not been sufficiently loyal. taking networks off the air and trying their leaders for treason because they are insufficiently loyal to him, and yes, yes, was the guy that incited the riots on january the 6th. so talk about donald trump and the rising threat that he poses to democracy regardless of what he tries to project on to joe biden. >> well, this is what he believes works for him is to actually just tell these lies so directly. and it almost seems that the more his lies about joe biden mirror what donald trump has actually done, the happier he is when he's actually just delivering it right back with absolutely no substance to it whatsoever. i did along piece the other night with joe about the leading republican presidential candidate came out and said i want to close down a news network. and there was nothing. there was nothing. the three national news broadcasts, nbc, abc, cbs, did not mention it. they didn't mention it. now, here is the thought experiment. imagine joe biden came out and the language he used was, you should use the power of government to come down hard on msnbc. that's what he said. so let's say president biden came out today and said i am announcing that i am using the power of government to come down hard on fox. how long, how long would it be that that was the leading story in the country before any other story ever got air? and that's the world we're living in. >> morning joe weekend will be back after a short break. meet the jennifers. jen x. jen y. and jen z. each planning their future through the chase mobile app. jen x is planning a summer in portugal with some help from j.p. morgan wealth plan. let's go whiskers. jen y is working with a banker to budget for her birthday. you only turn 30 once. and jen z? her credit's golden. hello new apartment. three jens getting ahead with chase. solutions that grow with you. one bank for now. for later. for life. chase. make more of what's yours. detect this: living with hiv, i learned that i can stay undetectable with fewer medicines. that's why i switched to dovato. dovato is a complete hiv treatment for some adults. no other complete hiv pill uses fewer medicines to help keep you undetectable than dovato. detect this: most hiv pills contain 3 or 4 medicines. dovato is as effective with just 2. if you have hepatitis b, don't stop dovato without talking to your doctor. don't take dovato if you're allergic to its ingredients or taking dofetilide. this can cause serious or life-threatening side effects. if you have a rash or allergic reaction symptoms, stop dovato and get medical help right away. serious or life-threatening lactic acid buildup and liver problems can occur. tell your doctor if you have kidney or liver problems or if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or considering pregnancy. dovato may harm an unborn baby. most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea, trouble sleeping, tiredness, and anxiety. detect this: i stay undetectable with fewer medicines. ask your doctor about switching to dovato. your shipping manager left to “find themself.” leaving you lost. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire students... students of any age, from anywhere. using our technology to power different ways of learning. so when minds grow, opportunities follow. ♪ there are some things that go better... together. burger and fries... soup and salad. like your workplace benefits and retirement savings. with voya, considering all your financial choices together can help you make smarter decisions. voya. well planned. well invested. well protected. >> ted lasso working hard back there. >> pomp and, and ted lasso pump and back there. >> that is kenan thompson, the man who holds the record's longest running cast member of snl now in his 24 season doing memorable bits like that. he's out now with a new memoir which goes into his time on the show, those two decades. the time he nearly quit. he also details what life is like offstage, describing himself as a fortysomething regular guy and suburban dad of two young girls. his new book titled when i was your age, life lessons, funny stories, and questionable parenting advice from a professional clown. keenan joins us now. keenan, it's always so good to see you. >> it's good to see you, man. it's good to see who two brothers. this is a cool environment. all in 30 rock together. >> straight down the elevator. >> basically. >> and we put you to work doing bits with reverend. >> already, off the top. thanks for being cool like that, man. appreciate that. >> keenan, when i say 21 seasons that snl, what does that mean to you besides the fact that you've got stain power that people love seeing you every saturday night? what does that mean to you? >> it means a lot. the 21 i grew up with was dominique wilkins, so it's like, i just remember that number being very powerful. honestly, it just feels like a long journey in a very special place. i've been lucky enough, and blessed enough to stay that long and get the job in the first place, you know what i'm saying? it's definitely been a journey in the best times of my life, basically. it's my ongoing college because i didn't finish college. >> we were watching d'andre there. do you have sketches for you that are most memorable? your fans have one c they love the most. other some you love the most? >> yeah, scared straight is up there. great betty white. what's up with that, for sure. black jeopardy. big papi. steve harvey, family feud. -- >> whoa [inaudible] see >> you, also know about you, as busy as you are upstairs here. always doing something, doing the show at nbc, flying back and forth, new trolls movie al. good burger to is out and stray main. if i missed anything, please correct me. now you're sitting down and running memoirs. how do you keep yourself so constantly working? >> you just stay busy, you know? just try to multitask and keep a lot of things kind of going because everything kind of schedules that cell when it does. the book was a five-year process, you know domain. trolls was probably year and a half and good burger we shot over the summer and it happened all the same time. so that's a blessing that makes me seem like i'm a lot busier than i am. but, i do like, do you know, try to dabble in a bunch of little things. >> let's talk more about the book. what inspired you to write it, particularly in this moment of your life when you are so busy? and one of the things you wanted to tell. >> i just felt like a lot of people -- a lot of my heroes in the game had written books and they've done well and it's a peek inside to the actual person. a lot of the times, i don't really get to be myself, you know what i mean? it's very performative when you see me, talk show, or an actual show or whatever. so i thought, you know, this might be a good peek into who i really am for people, because it's been like a 30 year career at this point, kind of thing. it felt like i finally had enough to talk about that was serviceable. >> talking about who you really are, i met you 20 years ago. i was running for president and i hosted saturday night live. we did a skit of jimmy fallon was still on there. tracey, we did ask it about around this time of year, about three wise man gone ahead and following this down the east. so i watched you grow back and forth, but what impressed me was what i found grounded you, and i want to know if you cover that in the book. i was rushing through an airport one day, lady stops me, and i said, yes ma'am, keep going. she said i don't want to sell. the i'm kenan's mother. i stood there, i almost missed the plane talking to your mother. talk about how you are grounded by your family and your mother, that made you keenan. >> absolutely, as you can see, my mom is a real one, you know what i mean? my old families like that. and i talk about it in the book, you know. humble beginnings, they come to young kids from virginia, they raise the mid-atlantic. my whole family that's in virginia and all my cousins, like, they're real normal people, we know to maine? that was my whole life growing up until i was 15. i think that was another advantage, was yes i was young, but i wasn't too young, you know what i mean? i was pretty established in who i was as a person, i guess. so by the time is 15, i love my family, i was very close to, you, know the experiences that i had. i don't bag come from a whole lot of actors or musicians or anybody like that. i was kind of like the first one to do it. even though my dad sane he sang at church and in the army and stuff like that, nobody knows their names. i'm the first one to get, famous, in the family. it was easy for me to keep it real because the holidays was what i prefer, you know what i mean? it was my comforts earn. lynchburg, virginia was my comfort zone. it's a real place. >> as we watch a little footage of that sketchy we're talking about here. these are three wise man. look at tracy on the left, rev in the middle -- >> they brought tracy back to do that sketch. that's how strong tracey is. >> looking good, rev. you also know continue the family tradition with your beautiful daughters. i think the experience a lot of well-known people have, which is they're just kids in your just add. and they don't really notice what you do for a living until you say they realize that you are a voice and trolls. they were pressed finally, is that right? >> i finally got them with the trolls. i mean, tiny diamond nailed it. that was a bull's-eye. but yeah, they discovered good burger on their own to. their friends bring into them or something like that. so yeah, they're kind of at that age where they know what i do, but there are not impressed. >> it's better that way, isn't it? >> it's more so about what's going on in their world, and i'm here to support that. shout out to the girl dad. >> that does it for the first hour of morning joe: weekend, but we're not done yet. more of the week's top stories after a quick break. one gram sugar, 25 vitamins and minerals, and nutrients for immune health. (♪♪) he hits his mark —center stage—and is crushed by a baby grand piano. you're replacing me? customize and save with liberty bibberty. he doesn't even have a mustache. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ the subway series is taking your favorite to the next level! like the #20. the elite chicken and bacon ranch. built with rotisserie-style chicken and double cheese. i love what i'm seeing here. that's some well-coached chicken. you done, peyton? the subway series just keeps gettin' better. >> welcome to our second hour of morning joe: weekend. let's take a look at some of the week's top stories. >> jonathan lemire, we know that yesterday president biden spoke to prime minister netanyahu, public support for the mission to destroy hamas, but emphasizing perhaps a little bit more strongly this time the need to avoid civilian casualties and to allow rights for aid to get. and >> this is probably the sharpest criticism the white house has delivered yet to what the israeli military is doing and gaza. the president expressed that in his phone call with the prime minister, but also publicly from secretary of state blinken who held a news conference yesterday and was very frank. he said when i visited the region last and talked about the limit, the effort to limit civilian casualties, what i said then and what is actually happening, i gap remains in between. israel has very much not done what it promised to do to not take out the civilians. these are obviously disturbing images. we don't know much about them just yet, with the palestinians being held, but we do know this civilian casualty toll continues to rise. it remains very high, and to this point, mike, the white house is very clear, and that's not going to change and supporting israel. but there seems to be a real growing rift with how this war is being conducted, and we know privately, the president has some real misgivings about the israeli prime minister. >> i think he privately has some real misgivings about netanyahu, indeed. it is a highly controversial thing that's going on in israel right now. you have the most congested urban situation in the world in gaza, and you have ongoing combat each and every hour of each and every day. you have a nation israel, a small nation, as richie just pointed out in the report, consumed by the fate of the hostages and the plight of answering the question of why these really -- what happened to these really army. those two things you keep hearing, you've heard, it are concerning the state of israel, and there are no answers yet. he beat netanyahu is sitting on a very perilous position for himself. really, this is a tough situation all around. >> and micah, secretary of state blinken held a joint news conference with david cameron, the foreign minister of the uk yesterday, and he was very explicit and saying that there is a gap right now and what israel says it is doing to protect civilians and what is actually happening on the ground. he said that -- pledging america support for israel. but the criticisms become more public. >> there is a gap interest, in this is a real challenge for the administration and for joe biden. president joe biden. when he is dealing with a counterpart that you are not necessarily sure you are getting the full story. think of it this way. this response time, the question is not just a little follow-up for later, but this is a disturbing reality. eight hours? israel is the size of what, massachusetts? maybe? benjamin and yahoo was very quick to declare war. he could assess the situation and realize that israel was at war, but eight hours? to get two women who are being sexually assaulted for a year, for months, disregarding a female analyst who said that this is coming. there's a 40 page document spelling it out. and i want to spell this out even more specifically for you. think about, it this is a small country. these gates crossings are militarized. you're going to tell me they don't have cameras? you're going to timely that they don't have panic buttons? you're going to tell me that they have absolutely no communication with the outside world? but there was no warning of this? there was no sign of this? there is no way to know that we immediately need to respond and get there within minutes? this is a problematic question. is a problematic question and it is fair to ask, it should be asked now, and quite frankly, how does the administration go forward without knowing the answer? we are suffering the repercussions here in the united states. we are learning a lot about attitudes and the response to this complex situation, but that question needs to be answered. meanwhile, a 20-year-old man is facing federal charges for firing a gun outside of a synagogue in upstate new york hours before the start of hanukkah yesterday afternoon. the man allegedly fired two shots from a shotgun outside of the temple in albany. roughly two dozen children were at preschool inside of the building at the time. nobody was hurt. police say the man was caught in the temples parking lot. as he is being taken into custody, the man said, free palestine according to police. the episode is being investigated as a hate crime with the fbi. in response to the incident, new york governor kathy hochul directed the state police in the new york national guard to be on high alert as the holiday gets underway. this morning, we continue our weeklong look at the new special issue of the atlantic, which delves into the potential dangers of a second term for donald trump, what it would pose for the country and the world. joining us now is one of the contributors to the issue. staff writer at the atlantic, mark leibovich. and mark, your piece is entitled, this is who we are, and in it, you write in part, quote, in the last spring of the obama administration michelle bomb out was delivering her final commencement address as first lady at city college of new york. obama couldn't help but lob some barely cloaked denunciations of trump's wrecking ball. a presidential campaign, the one that would be rifd with a republican nomination, that is not who we, are the first lady assured the graduates. that is not what this country stands, for no. the prome did not age well. not that november in that sense. the axiom prpts a question. who is we anyway? because it sure seems like a lot of this we keep voting for trump. you can dismiss trump voters all you want, but given this. they're every bias american as any idealized vision of the place. if trump wins in 20, his detractors will have to reckon once again with the voters who got us her to reconcile what it means to share a country with so many citizens who keep watching trump spiral deep into his moral void and still conclude, yes, that's our guy. and mark, i can agree with you more. i think that especially applies to the evangelical community and people who call themselves christians who spend a lot of time judging other people but can't seem to reconcile these two realities. i would also add that i do think that a lot of people are somewhat victims of sort of a cult, really. >> there's no doubt. the powers of persuasion in the media and given the sound machines that the right and the trump world has at their disposal, you're online, fox, whether it's any number of outlets. they have very powerful messaging system, and it starts with the guy who basically has been interfaces for eight years or seven years, it could be more. and so i think what i want to look at here, and the issue of the atlantic looks very much issue by issue granular louis at what this administration, if it happens again, could look like. what i want to do is step back and evaluate what it means to live in a country where this keeps happening, where this is a critical electoral mass. it may not be a popular mask, but the majority where just a lot of people think that this is fine. and obviously, we have a lot of information about donald trump. his character is not a mystery at this point. the fact is that a lot of people like it, and that is the country we live in right now. >> mark, good morning. as usual, you are on to one of the central questions of our time, which is if you could say in 2016 people took a flyer on donald trump, maiden like hillary clinton, they thought he was going to be that co they see on tv to shake things up and change the way washington gets done, do a budget deals with democrats, but now as you write in the piece, there is a large body of evidence of how he conducts himself as president, how he conducts himself outside of the presidency and its meeting to overturn a government. you have 74 million votes in 2020, and it's not just donald trump, as you write. it's all of the people like marjorie taylor greene and the list goes on and on and on. they're getting a lot of support, and a lot of people see what they do. they see how they conduct themselves, they see how they behave in public, and they say, yeah, i want more of. that it's a question that i don't think a lot of people have reckoned with yet that it is not some anomaly. maybe it is who we are. >> yeah, it's definitely not an anomaly. again, it's probably not a majority electorally, but the powers of denial though among people who don't support donald trump are extremely strong. there were, like you said, there were people who kind of assumed at the end of 2016 that, okay, this is a one-off, this is a statement. donald trump was teaching a lesson to the political establishment, to the media, to people who have been entrenched in the stuff for a long time. and, it we want something new, we want to break this, and then it was broken. down trump did not exactly go out in a blaze of glory. he did not end his presidency or even his post presidency to a lot of things to enhance his popularity. and yet still to this day, he's probably a jump ball possibility of being elected again. and again, people know exactly who he is. again, it's not like -- he is very in some ways fundamentally a con man, as we've pointed out many times, but it's all very upfront. and so yeah, this is up to our country right now, and this is where i started with the that's not who we are question that we've been scolded with or at least maybe comforted with for a long time now. >> next, our conversation with republican presidential candidate chris christie fresh off of his fiery performance at this week's gop primary debate. from pep in their step to shine in their coats, when people switch their dog's food to the farmer's dog, the effects can seem like magic. but there's no magic involved. 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[ screams ] we're trying to get to jamaica. stay close and... everything will be all right. i'm ok. i'm ok. donald trump was once again a no-show at last night's fourth republican presidential debate, the final one before the iowa caucuses. that left four candidates on the stage in tuscaloosa, alabama. ron desantis, nikki haley, vivek ramaswamy and chris christie, who are all trailing trump by wide margins in the national polls. the debate kicked off with a question about donald trump's major league, but instead of going after the presumptive primary front runner, ron desantis and vivek ramaswamy focus their attacks on nikki haley. >> nikki haley, she caves anytime the left comes after her. >> the only person more fascist in the biden regime now is nikki haley. >> it is leading with all of these people. they want to use economic power to impose a left-wing agenda on this country. >> just to respond to iran, he continues to lie about my record. >> i was warning about the woke industrial complex in this country as a warning. apparently she read it as a how to manual. >> in terms of these donors that are supporting me, they're just jealous. they wish they were supporting them. >> nikki, you were bankrupt when you left the u.n.. after you left the u.n., you became a military contractor, now you are multimillionaire. that math does not add up. it adds up to the fact that you are corrupt. >> i love all the attention, fellas, thank you for that! >> i'm looking at my watch now, we're 17 minutes into this debate, and except for your little speech in the beginning, we have had these three acting as if the race is between the four of us. the fifth guy, who doesn't have the guts to show up and stand here, he is the one who, as you just put, it is way ahead in the polls, and yet i have these three guys who are all here to compete with voldemort, he who shall not be named. they don't talk about it. >> right now from the site of last night's republican debate, presidential candidate and former new jersey governor chris christie. chris, roll tide, alabama. >> roll tide, maybe. >> you are at the home of the greatest college football team this year, and so that is very exciting. i want to ask you about last night, and i have to say, all of the screaming, all of the shouting, and all of the screening and the shouting and the sean hannity debate, it just turns americans off. you see 15 minutes into the debate, talk about what you saw from up there? >> well what i saw are two people -- three people who are in the land of make believe. nikki haley, brown desantis, and vivek. vivek, let's in the conversation about him here. he is like a drunk driver on the debate stage. he's a guy who, you never know where he's going to go or what is going to make up next. what then he's going to swerve into. but with ron and nikki, they are any make-believe thing but somehow this contest is between the two of them. the contest between the two of them is for who is going to be the first loser. and i felt that last night they both did not acquit themselves very well at all to pretend somehow they can talk about donald trump. rhonda scientist tied himself into a philly pretzel, and willing to say whether trump is fit or unfit for the office. he refused to say whether he would send troops to taiwan or not if china attacked, and he refused to say whether he would send troops to gaza if there was a reasonable plan to try to rescue the american hostages. at some point, you have to answer the darn question and not just keep talking about what you did in florida. quite frankly, and i'm running for governor of florida again, ron, you're running for president of united states, and that is for nikki to decide. i don't know whether she was really going to answer questions or not or just keep talking about her donors. so look, this race is against donald trump, joe, you know that, and i'm the only one on that stage who's going to take him on. and what i ask republican voters who are discontent with trump's, who do you want to be the last person on stage? who shows that they have the skill, the ability, in the guts to take him on? and i think that last night showed that pretty clearly. >> so governor christie, speaking about the people in that stage last night, there were four of you up there. if someone dropped in from outer space with a marginal interest in public life in america and launched that debate, i am pretty sure but within 15 to 20 minutes of watching the debate, they would be saying, okay, who doesn't belong and why? and so it would look like a you didn't belong up there because you are different on the other three and that you are taking on the principal candidate for presidency, donald trump. why were you there? >> i'm here because the race started off with 13 people and we're down to the final four because the big one can't be counted. last night he was showing himself to be donald trump's wing man. somehow auditioning for secretary of commerce in the trump administration. in the end, i am there because the truth needs to be told, mike, and the american people need to hear the truth, and they're not going to take it in until they hear it over and over and over again. unlike me in, you lose some of our lives besides our families, our politics and baseball, unfortunately not everybody else has the same point of view, and so i have to keep at, it i'm going to keep at it. patience and persistence will win this race, and i think what republican voters decide, that will decide is who they want to be the last person on stage when donald trump ultimately shows up, and i think that i showed last night not only that i'm more prepared for any of those three people to be president of united states by directly answering questions, but also i am the only one who has the guts to take on trump. >> coming up next, former congresswoman liz cheney live on our studio to discuss our nubuck, both an honor. we talk about the threat that she sees from a potential second trump term. the state of republican porter and her own future in politics. you're watching morning joe, we will be right back. will be right back i felt like my movements were in the spotlight. #1-prescribed ingrezza is the only td treatment for adults that's always one pill, once daily. ingrezza 80 mg is proven to reduce td movements in 7 out of 10 people. people taking ingrezza can stay on most mental health meds. ingrezza can cause depression, suicidal thoughts, or actions in patients with huntington's disease. pay close attention to and call your doctor if you become depressed, have sudden changes in mood, behaviors, feelings, or have thoughts of suicide. don't take ingrezza if you're allergic to its ingredients. ingrezza may cause serious side effects, including angioedema, potential heart rhythm problems, and abnormal movements. report fevers, stiff muscles, or problems thinking as these may be life threatening. sleepiness is the most common side effect. it's nice. people focus more on me. ask your doctor about #1 prescribed, once-daily ingrezza. ♪ ingrezza ♪ liberty mutual customized my car insurance and i saved hundreds. with the money i saved, i started a dog walking business. oh. 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fine. hey, did i set the alarm? yes, you did. shop holiday deals at ring.com. this week, we spoke to former congresswoman liz cheney about the dangers of a second trump presidential term. and her new book. here is more about that conversation. >> liz, can you tell us about the conversations that you had with your father before january 6th? >> yeah, on a number of occasions i talk about in the book, and it is emotional thing for me, understanding the extent to which my dad and my mother also have been so fearful about and so heartbroken about what is happening in our party, what is happening in our country, and so time and time again particularly with respect to things like the letter from the living secretaries of defense, i sought his counsel. i talk to him every day and there were moments where listening to him for example, the secretary defense level over the phone to don rumsfeld, and thinking of a history of those two men, whether you agree with the policies we disagree with the policies, these were people who served the country for decades. we are having discussion about the possibility that the leaders of the department defense, including secretary of defense chris miller, the acting secretary, the need to warn them publicly against following an illegal order from donald trump, to win the publicly that they're criminal liability for them personally if they take some of the steps that we're hearing that they might take. those were very chilling moments. and of course on january six itself, he called me to tell me that i was in danger just after donald trump had said that they need to get rid of the liz cheney's of the world. they were very, very emotional moments and my commitment both to my dad, my mom, but also to my kids to make sure that we stay a country where we have a peaceful transfer of power is really fundamental to what i know is important to do. >> you talk about in the book, sitting across the table, my gosh, they may go up in this, world they live in this world. that is not a given that there will be a peaceful transfer of power. given what you just said about your father's frustrations, i'm curious how you assess the future of the republican party. if there is no room right now anyway for liz cheney, for goodness sakes, or mitt romney, or if john mccain is going to be trashed -- john mccain is going to be trashed by this current version of the party. if, as you write in the book, they defy everything that ronald reagan stood for, what does the republican party look like going forward? >> certainly right now it has been in those principles. i joined the party during the era of ronald reagan, and, today the party looks much more like a kurt cult of personality, frankly. donald trump is not a conservative. he's not been a republican very long. i talk in the book at one point i wanted to say that, or to tweet that i had been a republican longer than donald trump had been straightening. my communications director said now, don't say that. but the seriousness of it is that the party is now walked away from the constitution. and so i don't know if our party can be saved. it may be that we need to build a new party, but i think that those issues have to come after this 2024 cycle, because the focus has to be just completely right now on making sure that we don't return -- to the white house. >> which leads list to the question that i know you and a lot of conservatives, a question that i have been troubled by every day. how do you beat trump? how do you beat trump in 2024? what is your advice to democrats? what is your advice to independents? what is your advice to people running the biden campaign? what do they need to do to beat trump? what do they>> what we have to t trump's be unified. we have the numbers on our side. the numbers in terms of people across the political spectrum who will not support him, but we cannot get into a situation where people think that there are other issues that might have a more than this one. we have plenty of time to debate and to argue about all of those issues that we care deeply about, but that is not where we are now. where we are now, we have to be focused on this. >> congresswoman, i want to revisit the buck, a really important moment. two days prior to this. you had a phone call a trump lawyers, campaign staffers and surrogates. walk us through what was said in that call, what alarmed you so much, and what did you have to do afterwards. >> i've been invited to this call, and i was on the email list during the campaign, and so i had an email the day before saying that there is going to be a surrogate call to talk about january six. and i thought to myself, you know what, i'm going to dial in and listen. as i listened, and it was jason miller and jenna ellis. it was the first time that i have heard in such clear terms what they were planning to do with the fake electors and making these claims that there were these, they call them alternate electors. they were fake electors that vice president pence was going to use to justify stopping the count, either throwing out votes that were legitimate ones, or refusing to count, and it was chilling. as soon as i listened, that's one is the call was done and they walk through the plans, and they walk the names of members of the house who are on board with these plans, including jim jordan and a least fonac, as soon as the call ended, iran until the capitol for the house parliamentarian who is the nonpartisan who is the non part-able expert for rules on the house to say to win, wait, what do we do it for the joint session and the vice president refuses to do his duty and rejects legitimate votes? and after that meeting where it was very informative meeting because it was clear that there was not much that we could do, he said to me, you have to work with the senate on this. and so i went and called mitch mcconnell to say, hey, what's our game plan here? if they do this, do we move to adjourn? i learned later that there were other people, vice president pence's office as well, who at that same moment were precisely focused on this. it gave me just a sickening feeling. what do we do if those fake electors are in the mahogany boxes that are carried into the house chamber? or be going to be facing the most serious constitutional crisis since the civil war? >> so so much incredible recounting in this book, and at the title says, such a warning. the new book entitled oath and honor, a memoir and a warning. former congresswoman liz cheney, thank you very much for running the buck. thank you for your service. thank you for coming on this morning. >> up next, the danger of a second trump term beyond u.s. borders. the atlantic's saint applebaum tells us how it will affect our nato allies. nato allies. picky, and we started noticing some allergy symptoms. we heard about the farmer's dog and it was a complete transformation. his allergies were going away and he just had 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an interview for more than three decades ago where trump spoke admirably about china crushed democratic protesters in tiananmen square, and also highlights his past praise for former iraqi dictator saddam hussein, and philippine strongman rodrigo duterte. the paper notes that in a hypothetical second trump administration, the force is somewhat contained his autocratic tendencies in his first term, including some staffers, congressional republicans, and a partisan balance on the supreme court, would all be weaker. as a result, mr. trump and his advisers more extreme policy plans and ideas for a second term would have a greater prospect of becoming reality. >> let's bring in staff writer for the atlantic you anne applebaum. her new piece part of the atlantic special issue highlighting the dangers of a potential second term for donald trump. it's titled trump will abandon nato. anne, think you so much for being with us. the new york times lead written by charlie savage, jonathan swan, and maggie haberman. it is much like a piece that the washington post has recently written, and also what is happening with the atlantic this month. you, jeffrey goldberg, so many others writing about the dangers of a second trump term, and again, this is all lifted straight from i believe it was your book in 2017. it seemed that all of your warnings appear to be taking shape in the form of donald trump's plans for a second term. >> i think people are suddenly realizing that trump is very likely to be the republican candidate, and i think that they're also realizing just about now that he is running on the explicitly anti constitutional platform. he is running as someone who would overthrow the constitution, who would undermine it, who would undermine the american civil service, maybe the military, and i think that is why you are suddenly seeing so many people write about it. in fact, your previous item, we already having a taste of what a trump second term could look like in this battle, really irresponsible battle over funding for ukraine. here is an ally who we have been supporting bravely for the last 19 months. they are fighting on the ground. they are undermining the army of one of our important geo political rivals, russia, and we are arguing in washington about whether or not to keep helping them? i mean that is outrageous, but it is a taste of what could happen if trump were to win, in which case he is very likely to say, i don't care about europe, i don't care about nato, i'm leaving. >> so anne, as you studied in your book, as you studied what orban did on the path to power, as you studied what the law and justice party did on the path the power, i don't remember it even being explicit. the threats against democracy in hungary and poland even being as explicit as having a presidential candidate promising to terminate the constitution, execute generals that are insufficiently loyal, and being on television news networks that he does not like. again, in the campaign phase. this seems far more explicit, far more extreme than even what we saw in or bonds rise and the lawn justices rise in poland. >> no, you're absolutely right. it's true that in both of those cases, it was the second term. it was the second time of being in power when those political parties and leaders began to push back against the media, change the constitution, change the courts. and so in that sense, this is a parallel, but you are right that this kind of language about attacking my enemies and describing them as vermin, which is the kind of language that not cease used to describe their enemies and describe jews, this is not something that you heard in central europe. it sounds much more like what you would here in russia or in one of the severe autocracies around the world. it's not even the language of declining democracy elsewhere. >> coming up, former u.s. capitol police sergeant aquilino gonell is our guest to discuss his new book, american shield, the immigrant sergeant who defended democracy. morning joe is coming right back. back [deep exhale] ♪ trumpet music plays ♪ 579 breaths to show 'em your stuff. every breath matters. don't let rsv take your breath away. protect yourself from rsv with abrysvo, pfizer's rsv vaccine. abrysvo is a vaccine for the prevention of lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. rsv can be serious if you are 60 or older. having asthma, copd, diabetes, or heart disease puts you at even higher risk. abrysvo is not for everyone and may not protect all who receive the vaccine. don't get abrysvo if you've had a severe allergic reaction to its ingredients. people with a weakened immune system may have a decreased response to abrysvo. he most common side effects are tiredness, headache, pain at the injection site, and muscle pain. ask your pharmacist or doctor about pfizer's rsv vaccine, abrysvo. visit these retailers or find other retailers near you at abrysvo.com [deep breath] ♪ we're building a 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most prescribed biologic for asthma. >> as we continue to learn more about the emotional and physical toll the day that members of law enforcement who bravely defend the capitol on january six. former capitol police sergeant aquilino gonell will be our guest in a moment, but first, a bit of what he recounted and hearing a few months after the attack. >> to be honest, i did not recognize my fellow citizens who are storming the capitol on january six where the united states they claimed to represent. they called me a traitor, a disgrace, and started that i, i, an army veteran and police officer should be executed. for most people, january six happened for a few hours, but for those of us who were in the thick of it, it has not ended. now they continue to be a constant trauma for us literally every day, whether because our physical or emotional injuries or both. >> and former u.s. capitol police sergeant gonell joins us now. he's out with a new memoir titled americans shield, the immigrant sergeant who joined us defended democracy. sergeant, great to be with you this morning, great to have you back on the show. i'm just curious, before we dive in on the book, what your reaction is to the leadership and republican party and loud voices in the media try to rewrite the story of what happened on january six. >> good morning, thank you for having me back. in respect of the new speaker of the house conflating some of the events and trying to rewrite history is amazing. this is the same person who probably is a material witness to the events of january six, and if i were in his position, of course i would want to blow out some of the images. but then again, this is coming from a party that claims to support law and order and the rule of law. when he says in the same sentence yesterday he said that we support -- we are the party of law and order, we want to blur out some of the faces of these people so they cannot be arrested and prosecuted, and also to our dismay, also saying that he wants to be transparent. how can you be transparent when you can't even separate those things in the same sentence? in relation to what what we are experiencing since january six, they keep telling us that we need to move on from that day. the officers and those of us who have spoken out, and yet the former president is running just from january six alone by calling those insurrectionists hostages. if they are hostages and political prisoners, what does that make us, the police officer? we defend the capital, we kept in oath, and we did what we signed up for. in oath, and we did what w si>> sergeant gonell, you came o the night states of america when you are 12 years of age as a dominican. within a decade, you're going to iraq wearing the uniform of the united states of america as united states army member. then you became a member of the capitol police force, and he wore the uniform of the united states capitol police. we know what happened to you, we know it happened on january 6th. what do you think today of the united states of america? >> we are going through difficult times. it is amazing that a lot of -- as i speak my, book american shield, there's a lot of people claim to be conservative and claimed to be critical of our democracy, and we've gone to war for. it that's one of the main reasons why we ended up interaction at the first place, and as a soldier, and also as a police officer, i have devoted half of my life to defending in protecting this country. january six was no different for me. and to hear some of these people, the very same people who are -- at a time that we allow them to go and hide in their safe house or evacuate the building, first it was antifa and then the fbi, and these are innocent people, and he's a political prisoners, and then these are hostages. then they desecrate our national anthem with creating a january six anthem and the former president also use that as a badge of honor. so this is, desensitizing and containing that behavior for future youth. it is amazing that they had abandoned and betrayed those principles and values, as i speak in my book. >> up next, actors constant woo and corbin blew. they are guests to talk about their roles in a musical revival of little shop of horrors. rrors. woah, a lost card isn't keeping this thrill seeker down. lost her card, not the vibe. the soul searcher, is finding his identity, and helping to protect it. hey! oh yeah, the explorer! she's looking to dive deeper... all while chase looks out for her. because these friends have chase. alerts that help check. tools that help protect. one bank that puts you in control. chase. make more of what's yours. ♪ students... students of any age, from anywhere. students in a new kind of classroom. ♪ using our technology to power different ways of learning. ♪ harnessing ai to plant new beginnings. ♪ so when minds grow, opportunities follow. only unitedhealthcare medicare advantage plans come with the ucard - 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[limu emu squawks.] only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ after advil. feeling better? on top of the worlddddd!!! before advil. ♪ ♪ ♪ advil targets pain at the source of inflammation. when pain comes for you, come back fast with advil liqui-gels. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> so beautiful. golden globe nominee constants wu performing some of the screen from the iconic musical little shop of horrors. constance stars as audrey in the off broadway revival alongside actor corbin blue as the timid and sweet seymour, and they both join us now. corbin, i will start with you. what's different this revival and for those who have not seen us. fill us in. >> as far as revivals, go this has been a revolving door of incredible performers and i think that i am the seventh iteration of seymour. we've had, what 45 address throughout the show? opening in 2019? it just had its 1000th performance. >> i think this is the first sin or audrey combination were both simon andriy are people of color. >> yes, yes. >> which makes a lot of sense for what is going on in the show. >> so certainly, it is obviously a major film and this is a bra off broadway revival that is historic in that way and so tell us a little bit about why you make such an iconic role your own. >> well i relayed al-ata audrey, because she has really humble beginnings, and she has had to be really scrappy to survive, and so i think that i personalize that a lot, and yeah, that is just sort of how i make a lot of roles my own, bringing my own heart to it. >> for those who don't know down on the -- with a crush on his coworker audrey when he discovers a mysterious plant. and suddenly the thrust into an epic battle to save all of humankind. how do you translate that on the off broadway stage. >> the fact that we are on an off broadway stage, the ship was meant to be in the house. and it starts with a 1960 found that's a b movie. it is supposed to feel very campy and intimate. they've done a broadway run as well. it -- even though we've had a giant mandating plant, there's something about when you are amongst solely what, 280 other people that you really feel like that plant is coming for you. >> there are days i wish we had a giant plant. here >> we do. >> like this morning. >> symbolically, we kind of do. >> jonathan use the term iconic describe part of the show, but it is a iconic performance, the show. it has been around all sorts of honors. do you come with any extra weight on your acting shoulders when you take the part that you both have in the show? >> extra weight? i mean i think it's more like excitement and privilege. just enthusiasm for it. i mean, the reason that it is iconic is because it has these kind of timeless themes of bike greed, late stage capitalism, but it also has incredible heart and is really frigon funny, and another thing that everyone relates to, fear of the dentist. that is a trope. and so i think that because it is iconic and it transcends so many things, that is what makes it a pleasure and a joy to play rather than some kind of weight or a burden or anything like that. we have been having the best time. >> and a little news about the two of you, when we're last rolls the? >> january 28th will be our final performance, and so everybody has about another two or so months to get to the west side theater to come see us. >> like a month and a. half >> yeah. did your tickets. constants wu and corbin -- thank you so much for being here, you can catch them athletes in little shoppers now showing off broadway right here in new york city until january 28th. >> and that does it, first we are back monday at 6 am eastern. have a great weekend. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪