Transcripts For MSNBCW The Last Word With Lawrence ODonnell

Prove this in a court of law, to have that greeted with the president essentially saying, am i in trouble . Its just its almost unbelievable. Am i in trouble yet, actually, is his response. Because this is a limited scope indictment. And, of course, its returned by a grand jury. So these are american citizens who made this judgment that this is what they see in this evidence. Thats exactly right. Thank you, my friend. Thank you, rachel. Thanks. President trump found something that he liked. That he really liked about the witch hunt today. He found something that he believes, something the witch hunters told him today that he really, really likes and believes. Here is the president s favorite line to come out of the witch hunt so far and it appears on page 3 of that 37page indictment filed by special prosecutor Robert Mueller against 13 russian individuals and three russian organizations accusing them of, quote, interfering with the u. S. Political and electoral processes, including the election of 2016. The president has called this investigation a witch hunt so we know theres no such thing as a witch, a witch hunt is a fraudulent exercise. On page 3 it says beginning as early as 2014, Defendant Organization began operations to interfere with the u. S. Political system, including the 2016 u. S. President ial election. Donald trump believes that. He believes that line as written in the indictment of the witch hunt today. Donald trump loves that line. And the reason we know he loves it so much is because he tweeted it after the indictment was made public. Russia started their antiu. S. Campaign in 2014, long before i announced that i would run for president. So now he believes the witch hunt. Russia started the antiu. S. Campaign in 2014. Now that he believes the witch hunt, maybe hell start calling it the russia investigation instead of the witch hunt. Now that 13 russians, who are not witches, have actually been indicted. We know thats not going to happen. We know that donald trump has an increasingly limited vocabulary and hell never get the witch hunt thing you on of his head and hell never stop lying about what Robert Muellers investigation is actually about and what it is accomplishing. In a 37page indictment filed in district court, Robert Mueller said that 13 russians have conspired since 2014 to violate laws that prohibit foreigners from spending money to influence elections in the United States, including the president ial election in 2016, in which their Constant Mission was to hurt Hillary Clintons candidacy and help Donald Trumps candidacy, as well as anyone else who was running against Hillary Clinton, including senator Bernie Sanders in the democratic primary and Green Party Candidate jill stein in the general election. Senator sanders issued this statement today. It has been clear to everyone except donald trump that russia was deeply involved in the 2016 elections and intends to be involved in the 2018 elections. It is the American People who should be deciding the political future of our country, not mr. Putin and the russian oligarchs. Its imperative that the Mueller Investigation be allowed to go forward without obstruction from the Trump Administration or congress. That was a president ial reaction to what was revealed today. That reaction by Bernie Sanders. Jill stein has not issued a statement about the indictment. Todays indictment is the first set of charges brought by the special prosecutor specifically for interfering in the 2016 president ial election, which was the first specified jurisdiction of the special prosecutors investigation. Deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein, who oversees Robert Muellers investigation, announced the indictment. The defendants allegedly conducted what they called Information Warfare against the United States. They used stolen or fictitious american identities, Fraudulent Bank accounts. The defendants posed as politically and socially active americans. Advocating for and against particular candidates. They established social media pages and groups to communicate with unwitting americans. They also recruited and paid real americans to engage in political activities, promote political campaigns and stage political rallies. According to the indictment, the americans did not know they were communicating with russians. Some defendants, posing as u. S. Persons and without revealing their russian association, communicated with unwitting individuals associated with the Trump Campaign and with other political activists to seek to coordinate political activities. Asked whether Trump Campaign officials had had knowledge of the russia scheme or were duped, Rod Rosenstein chose his words carefully saying that particular allegation is not included in this indictment. There is no allegation in this indictment that any american was a knowing participant in this illegal activity. There is no allegation in the indictment that the charge conduct altered the outcome of the 2016 election. The special Prosecutors Office also announced it has reached a plea deal with a california man who committed Identity Fraud as part of the russian criminal conspiracy. The charges against Richard Pinedo indicated he sold Bank Account Numbers using the stolen identities of u. S. Cities to people outside the United States. As part of the plea deal, he agreed to cooperate with Robert Mueller. Its noted, his plea deal does not include all of the facts known to me regarding this offense. That indicates that he has told the special prosecutor much more information than is revealed in his plea deal today. The indictment of the 13 russians today says defendants also used the stolen identities of real u. S. Persons. Heres what the president had to say today when he was asked about all of this. Do you feel vindicated in the Mueller Investigation . Mr. President will you punish russia . Will you punish russia . Will you put sanctions on russia . Nothing on russia, mr. President . Join us for tea . Joining our discussion jill winebanks, ari melber, and ben wittes. Ari, i know you have been studying this indictment and talking about it a great deal on the network today, including talking about it while studying it. As it stands tonight, now that youve had a little bit of time to breathe and digest it, give us your frame the significance of this indictment for us. Youre right, lawrence. Im happier to do it here with you live on the last word because i dont have to talk while reading it, which is happening in the news room with breaking news. This is a turning point, february 16, 2018 is a day in american history, a day where donald trump ate his own words and had to cough up an admission that no fact checker could get him to do but bob mueller made him do, which was what was known and wildly reported but now a legal fact that russia did interfere in our elections. The take away i have from reading this indictment is that mueller is telling a story and the story is the russians meddled deeply inside the u. S. , that was illegal under federal law, that they had cooperation inside the u. S. How much we dont know. And number four, this is most important Going Forward, bob mueller is saying very clearly in the legal sub text of the indictment any such cooperation can be a u. S. Crime. There has been a debate, saying there is no crime here. The theory of this case, through this indictment, beyond the russians is that there are federal election law violations and other types of fraud and wire fraud and stolen identity violations, to say nothing of the hacking that americans can be on the hook for if they voluntarily cooperated. That would lead me to a final observation here as weve all digested this. Prosecutions are not only about crime. Prosecutions are always about evidence. What do you have . What can you prove . And what we see detailed throughout here is how much evidence bob mueller has, including foreign what appears to be foreign intelligence evidence, domestic evidence, the cooperating evidence he has. So it reminds me, if i may, of the Rapper Rick Ross who has a line where he says, shoe box, no shoes in it. And the implication is theres drugs in the shoe box. The implication here, i point specifically to page 33, is a list of accounts that are empty, suspiciously so, and the same point stands, bob mueller saying to a court, there is evidence of crimes here, and when there is material missing in this case, what he calls wire fraud and Identity Fraud, that is in this theory what the russians were up to and hes saying hes on the case. Jill winebanks you have written indictments, you have read indictments. What went through your mind today as you were reading this one . This one is extremely detailed. I think its written for the American Public to understand how deeply in danger america is from the russian meddling in our elections. Its also i think a way of protecting rosenstein and mueller because of what theyve done, and its also showing that theres a reason why theres been an obstruction of justice. We now have proof that the russians meddled, and that there was, at least unwitting cooperation with americans, including Trump Campaign aides, unwitting as its alleged now. But thats not the end of it. Just because this indictment doesnt set it forth, does not mean that theres not another one coming and it will then be set out as to who cooperated with this. Benjamin do you agree with jill that this indictment protects rosenstein and mueller . It certainly should. If the goal is, you know, to establish the importance of the investigation, it certainly does that, right . And you know, i agree that this is a speaking indictment that tells us a story. Its not simply a spare laying out of charges. Its a document of remarkable forensic detail that describes a major intelligence operation or covert operation against the country. Whether it will protect rosenstein and mueller requires you to spend predictive time in the mind of donald trump, which is something i sort of try to avoid doing. This is, as you know, a highly capricious individual who you know, comes and goes. So whether it has that effect only time will tell. It certainly does establish to any reasonable person, which by the way, so did the flynn and Manafort Indictment and papadopoulos plea, it establishes again to a reasonable person this is an extremely Serious Investigation looking at very serious conduct that is should be of grave concern to any american. Ari, how did you read the press conference today, and why didnt we hear from Robert Mueller at that press conference . In the past when charges came out we discovered them basically through judicial proceedings in court with the actions that occurred in court. This is the First Press Conference and the lead prosecutor wasnt there. Exactly. That was certainly significant. In contrast to every other indictment in this special counsel probe, Rod Rosenstein comes out and speaks. I think the most traditional interpretation would be because this involves National Security and foreign actions and Foreign Espionage that there was a need to do it at the higher level and we are told brief the president as well. I think the secondary interpretation is given whats going on Rod Rosenstein decided he wanted to be on board with this clearly in his personal presence and he wanted to be on camera literally speaking to the nation, either because he thinks thats the right thing given the import or in combination of the fact he wants to show hes behind this. And if the day should come, and lord knows its come for other doj and fbi officials if the day should come that he has to make a call, or step aside or hes removed, he has showed through this speech that hes supporting mueller and its important. And to the final button to that point it was within the last ten days that the president vocally said that he was not willing to give his vote of confidence to Rod Rosenstein. So that tension is raw and its right now. And bloomberg is reporting tonight that special counsel Robert Mueller and his prosecutors have not concluded their investigation into whether President Donald Trump or any of his associates helped russia interfere in the 2016 election according to a person with knowledge of the probe. Jill, that goes to something that the president has been trying to suggest today, thats it, this is the full case and im not a defendant, and im not charged with anything. Therefore, theres nothing to see here. I think this is clearly not the case. And that its the same thing as arguing that a not guilty verdict means youre innocent. It does not. Not guilty means there wasnt enough evidence presented to convict someone. It does not mean that they are actually innocent. And the fact that this indictment addresses one segment of russian meddling, which is limited to the social media aspects is not the same as saying there was no collusion, although that is what the president announced in capital letters, boldly stated, it does not mean that. It means there may be another indictment and well have to wait and see. Benjamin, you know these players and the protocols. Were you surprised to not see Robert Mueller standing there at that announcement today . So i think that mueller has clearly made a strategic decision to say nothing. And, you know, the voice of his office is what they say in court. And im i suspect he is aware that, you know, ken starr got in a fair bit of public trouble because of communications with the media. And there are a lot of people who are really eager for there to be muellerleaked stories. So i think this may be partly a reflection of the judgment that we will simply say nothing, except what we say in court. And if theres one place in washington that can keep a secret, it sure does seem to be bob muellers office. Ill just add on the question of whether the president has been vindicated by the absence of a collusion allegation, i really think the white house would do well to cool its heels on the triumphs on that point. You know, this indictment is a limited subject matter. Right. It is not simply only about the russian side of the equation. It is only about the social media side and within that it is only about the nongovernmental side, the private sector actions of the Internet Research agency and associated people. The allegations in the indictment make no reference to the activities of russia government or intelligence agencies. So i think the fact that there is no specific collusion allegation is simply a reflection of the subject matter of the indictment. Now that doesnt mean there will eventually be a collusion allegation, but it sure isnt evidence that there wont be in my view. Lawrence, just briefly to echo that. Its further than that. The prosecutors not really supposed to issue wider opinions about other people that arent indicted. So if you read the Manafort Indictment, which is before flynn, you wouldnt read that and say this doesnt indict flynn hes in the clear. Today these indictments were the russians and one california man. And the fact that it states its the russian three organizations and russian citizens, that doesnt eliminate that the russian government was involved. There were millions of dollars spent and putin runs russia in a way that would suggest to me that there is no doubt that there is russian Government Operations involved in this and it is a covert operation of the russian government. Only a commercial break could force me to interpret my legal team tonight. Thank you all for joining us on this important night of coverage. Really appreciate it. Thanks. The russians were trying to stop Hillary Clinton. First by trying to help Bernie Sanders in the primaries then helping donald trump in the election. Bernie sanders and donald trump both issued statements about the indictments of the 13 russians who were trying to help them, and only one of those statements was president ial, and it wasnt the one from the president. Thats next. Big news from advil. Advil liquigels minis. Our first concentrated pill that rushes powerful relief. A small size. Thats fast, cause its liquid. Youll ask. What pain . Advil liquigels minis. For all the noses that stuff up around daisies. For all the eyes that get itchy and watery near pugs. For all the people who sneeze around dust. Theres Flonase Sensimist allergy relief. It relieves all your worst symptoms including nasal congestion, which most pills dont. Its more complete allergy relief. And all from a gentle mist you can barely feel. Flonase sensimist helps block 6 key inflammatory substances. Most pills only block one. And 6 is greater than 1. Flonase sensimist. Tonight the president visited the Florida Hospital where victims of wednesdays Robert Mueller<\/a> against 13 russian individuals and three russian organizations accusing them of, quote, interfering with the u. S. Political and electoral processes, including the election of 2016. The president has called this investigation a witch hunt so we know theres no such thing as a witch, a witch hunt is a fraudulent exercise. On page 3 it says beginning as early as 2014, Defendant Organization<\/a> began operations to interfere with the u. S. Political system, including the 2016 u. S. President ial election. Donald trump believes that. He believes that line as written in the indictment of the witch hunt today. Donald trump loves that line. And the reason we know he loves it so much is because he tweeted it after the indictment was made public. Russia started their antiu. S. Campaign in 2014, long before i announced that i would run for president. So now he believes the witch hunt. Russia started the antiu. S. Campaign in 2014. Now that he believes the witch hunt, maybe hell start calling it the russia investigation instead of the witch hunt. Now that 13 russians, who are not witches, have actually been indicted. We know thats not going to happen. We know that donald trump has an increasingly limited vocabulary and hell never get the witch hunt thing you on of his head and hell never stop lying about what Robert Mueller<\/a>s investigation is actually about and what it is accomplishing. In a 37page indictment filed in district court, Robert Mueller<\/a> said that 13 russians have conspired since 2014 to violate laws that prohibit foreigners from spending money to influence elections in the United States<\/a>, including the president ial election in 2016, in which their Constant Mission<\/a> was to hurt Hillary Clintons<\/a> candidacy and help Donald Trumps<\/a> candidacy, as well as anyone else who was running against Hillary Clinton<\/a>, including senator Bernie Sanders<\/a> in the democratic primary and Green Party Candidate<\/a> jill stein in the general election. Senator sanders issued this statement today. It has been clear to everyone except donald trump that russia was deeply involved in the 2016 elections and intends to be involved in the 2018 elections. It is the American People<\/a> who should be deciding the political future of our country, not mr. Putin and the russian oligarchs. Its imperative that the Mueller Investigation<\/a> be allowed to go forward without obstruction from the Trump Administration<\/a> or congress. That was a president ial reaction to what was revealed today. That reaction by Bernie Sanders<\/a>. Jill stein has not issued a statement about the indictment. Todays indictment is the first set of charges brought by the special prosecutor specifically for interfering in the 2016 president ial election, which was the first specified jurisdiction of the special prosecutors investigation. Deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein<\/a>, who oversees Robert Mueller<\/a>s investigation, announced the indictment. The defendants allegedly conducted what they called Information Warfare<\/a> against the United States<\/a>. They used stolen or fictitious american identities, Fraudulent Bank<\/a> accounts. The defendants posed as politically and socially active americans. Advocating for and against particular candidates. They established social media pages and groups to communicate with unwitting americans. They also recruited and paid real americans to engage in political activities, promote political campaigns and stage political rallies. According to the indictment, the americans did not know they were communicating with russians. Some defendants, posing as u. S. Persons and without revealing their russian association, communicated with unwitting individuals associated with the Trump Campaign<\/a> and with other political activists to seek to coordinate political activities. Asked whether Trump Campaign<\/a> officials had had knowledge of the russia scheme or were duped, Rod Rosenstein<\/a> chose his words carefully saying that particular allegation is not included in this indictment. There is no allegation in this indictment that any american was a knowing participant in this illegal activity. There is no allegation in the indictment that the charge conduct altered the outcome of the 2016 election. The special Prosecutors Office<\/a> also announced it has reached a plea deal with a california man who committed Identity Fraud<\/a> as part of the russian criminal conspiracy. The charges against Richard Pinedo<\/a> indicated he sold Bank Account Numbers<\/a> using the stolen identities of u. S. Cities to people outside the United States<\/a>. As part of the plea deal, he agreed to cooperate with Robert Mueller<\/a>. Its noted, his plea deal does not include all of the facts known to me regarding this offense. That indicates that he has told the special prosecutor much more information than is revealed in his plea deal today. The indictment of the 13 russians today says defendants also used the stolen identities of real u. S. Persons. Heres what the president had to say today when he was asked about all of this. Do you feel vindicated in the Mueller Investigation<\/a> . Mr. President will you punish russia . Will you punish russia . Will you put sanctions on russia . Nothing on russia, mr. President . Join us for tea . Joining our discussion jill winebanks, ari melber, and ben wittes. Ari, i know you have been studying this indictment and talking about it a great deal on the network today, including talking about it while studying it. As it stands tonight, now that youve had a little bit of time to breathe and digest it, give us your frame the significance of this indictment for us. Youre right, lawrence. Im happier to do it here with you live on the last word because i dont have to talk while reading it, which is happening in the news room with breaking news. This is a turning point, february 16, 2018 is a day in american history, a day where donald trump ate his own words and had to cough up an admission that no fact checker could get him to do but bob mueller made him do, which was what was known and wildly reported but now a legal fact that russia did interfere in our elections. The take away i have from reading this indictment is that mueller is telling a story and the story is the russians meddled deeply inside the u. S. , that was illegal under federal law, that they had cooperation inside the u. S. How much we dont know. And number four, this is most important Going Forward<\/a>, bob mueller is saying very clearly in the legal sub text of the indictment any such cooperation can be a u. S. Crime. There has been a debate, saying there is no crime here. The theory of this case, through this indictment, beyond the russians is that there are federal election law violations and other types of fraud and wire fraud and stolen identity violations, to say nothing of the hacking that americans can be on the hook for if they voluntarily cooperated. That would lead me to a final observation here as weve all digested this. Prosecutions are not only about crime. Prosecutions are always about evidence. What do you have . What can you prove . And what we see detailed throughout here is how much evidence bob mueller has, including foreign what appears to be foreign intelligence evidence, domestic evidence, the cooperating evidence he has. So it reminds me, if i may, of the Rapper Rick Ross<\/a> who has a line where he says, shoe box, no shoes in it. And the implication is theres drugs in the shoe box. The implication here, i point specifically to page 33, is a list of accounts that are empty, suspiciously so, and the same point stands, bob mueller saying to a court, there is evidence of crimes here, and when there is material missing in this case, what he calls wire fraud and Identity Fraud<\/a>, that is in this theory what the russians were up to and hes saying hes on the case. Jill winebanks you have written indictments, you have read indictments. What went through your mind today as you were reading this one . This one is extremely detailed. I think its written for the American Public<\/a> to understand how deeply in danger america is from the russian meddling in our elections. Its also i think a way of protecting rosenstein and mueller because of what theyve done, and its also showing that theres a reason why theres been an obstruction of justice. We now have proof that the russians meddled, and that there was, at least unwitting cooperation with americans, including Trump Campaign<\/a> aides, unwitting as its alleged now. But thats not the end of it. Just because this indictment doesnt set it forth, does not mean that theres not another one coming and it will then be set out as to who cooperated with this. Benjamin do you agree with jill that this indictment protects rosenstein and mueller . It certainly should. If the goal is, you know, to establish the importance of the investigation, it certainly does that, right . And you know, i agree that this is a speaking indictment that tells us a story. Its not simply a spare laying out of charges. Its a document of remarkable forensic detail that describes a major intelligence operation or covert operation against the country. Whether it will protect rosenstein and mueller requires you to spend predictive time in the mind of donald trump, which is something i sort of try to avoid doing. This is, as you know, a highly capricious individual who you know, comes and goes. So whether it has that effect only time will tell. It certainly does establish to any reasonable person, which by the way, so did the flynn and Manafort Indictment<\/a> and papadopoulos plea, it establishes again to a reasonable person this is an extremely Serious Investigation<\/a> looking at very serious conduct that is should be of grave concern to any american. Ari, how did you read the press conference today, and why didnt we hear from Robert Mueller<\/a> at that press conference . In the past when charges came out we discovered them basically through judicial proceedings in court with the actions that occurred in court. This is the First Press Conference<\/a> and the lead prosecutor wasnt there. Exactly. That was certainly significant. In contrast to every other indictment in this special counsel probe, Rod Rosenstein<\/a> comes out and speaks. I think the most traditional interpretation would be because this involves National Security<\/a> and foreign actions and Foreign Espionage<\/a> that there was a need to do it at the higher level and we are told brief the president as well. I think the secondary interpretation is given whats going on Rod Rosenstein<\/a> decided he wanted to be on board with this clearly in his personal presence and he wanted to be on camera literally speaking to the nation, either because he thinks thats the right thing given the import or in combination of the fact he wants to show hes behind this. And if the day should come, and lord knows its come for other doj and fbi officials if the day should come that he has to make a call, or step aside or hes removed, he has showed through this speech that hes supporting mueller and its important. And to the final button to that point it was within the last ten days that the president vocally said that he was not willing to give his vote of confidence to Rod Rosenstein<\/a>. So that tension is raw and its right now. And bloomberg is reporting tonight that special counsel Robert Mueller<\/a> and his prosecutors have not concluded their investigation into whether President Donald Trump<\/a> or any of his associates helped russia interfere in the 2016 election according to a person with knowledge of the probe. Jill, that goes to something that the president has been trying to suggest today, thats it, this is the full case and im not a defendant, and im not charged with anything. Therefore, theres nothing to see here. I think this is clearly not the case. And that its the same thing as arguing that a not guilty verdict means youre innocent. It does not. Not guilty means there wasnt enough evidence presented to convict someone. It does not mean that they are actually innocent. And the fact that this indictment addresses one segment of russian meddling, which is limited to the social media aspects is not the same as saying there was no collusion, although that is what the president announced in capital letters, boldly stated, it does not mean that. It means there may be another indictment and well have to wait and see. Benjamin, you know these players and the protocols. Were you surprised to not see Robert Mueller<\/a> standing there at that announcement today . So i think that mueller has clearly made a strategic decision to say nothing. And, you know, the voice of his office is what they say in court. And im i suspect he is aware that, you know, ken starr got in a fair bit of public trouble because of communications with the media. And there are a lot of people who are really eager for there to be muellerleaked stories. So i think this may be partly a reflection of the judgment that we will simply say nothing, except what we say in court. And if theres one place in washington that can keep a secret, it sure does seem to be bob muellers office. Ill just add on the question of whether the president has been vindicated by the absence of a collusion allegation, i really think the white house would do well to cool its heels on the triumphs on that point. You know, this indictment is a limited subject matter. Right. It is not simply only about the russian side of the equation. It is only about the social media side and within that it is only about the nongovernmental side, the private sector actions of the Internet Research<\/a> agency and associated people. The allegations in the indictment make no reference to the activities of russia government or intelligence agencies. So i think the fact that there is no specific collusion allegation is simply a reflection of the subject matter of the indictment. Now that doesnt mean there will eventually be a collusion allegation, but it sure isnt evidence that there wont be in my view. Lawrence, just briefly to echo that. Its further than that. The prosecutors not really supposed to issue wider opinions about other people that arent indicted. So if you read the Manafort Indictment<\/a>, which is before flynn, you wouldnt read that and say this doesnt indict flynn hes in the clear. Today these indictments were the russians and one california man. And the fact that it states its the russian three organizations and russian citizens, that doesnt eliminate that the russian government was involved. There were millions of dollars spent and putin runs russia in a way that would suggest to me that there is no doubt that there is russian Government Operations<\/a> involved in this and it is a covert operation of the russian government. Only a commercial break could force me to interpret my legal team tonight. Thank you all for joining us on this important night of coverage. Really appreciate it. Thanks. The russians were trying to stop Hillary Clinton<\/a>. First by trying to help Bernie Sanders<\/a> in the primaries then helping donald trump in the election. Bernie sanders and donald trump both issued statements about the indictments of the 13 russians who were trying to help them, and only one of those statements was president ial, and it wasnt the one from the president. Thats next. Big news from advil. Advil liquigels minis. Our first concentrated pill that rushes powerful relief. A small size. Thats fast, cause its liquid. Youll ask. What pain . Advil liquigels minis. For all the noses that stuff up around daisies. For all the eyes that get itchy and watery near pugs. For all the people who sneeze around dust. Theres Flonase Sensimist<\/a> allergy relief. It relieves all your worst symptoms including nasal congestion, which most pills dont. Its more complete allergy relief. And all from a gentle mist you can barely feel. Flonase sensimist helps block 6 key inflammatory substances. Most pills only block one. And 6 is greater than 1. Flonase sensimist. Tonight the president visited the Florida Hospital<\/a> where victims of wednesdays High School Massacre<\/a> were treated. He spoke privately to the medical personnel there. He also visited with the leaders of local Law Enforcement<\/a> who responded to that massacre on wednesday. He spoke with a small group of them in private, including the officer who apprehended the suspect. The president did not meet with the students who escaped the attack and have been publically demanding that the president change his position on gun control. He obviously has nothing to say to those students. And he has nothing to say today on the day that 13 russians were indicted for interfering with our election. The government must have decided his favorite lines about the russia investigation might not sound too good today. You know, this russia thing with trump and russia is a madeup story. Its an excuse by the democrats for having lost an election. They needed an excuse, so they said russia. And then they said, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Russia and trump. Honestly, its the thing they did best. They did a rotten job of running but to convince people about this hoax. I have nothing to do with russia, Everybody Knows<\/a> it. That was a democrat hoax. The witch hunt continues. Its a democrat hoax that was brought up as an excuse for losing an election that frankly the democrats should have won. Todays indictment said the 13 russians engaged in a range of activities, operations included supporting the president ial campaign of thencandidate donald j. Trump and disparaging Hillary Clinton<\/a>. The indictment said the russians communicated with unwitting individuals associated with the Trump Campaign<\/a>. It also said they made fictitious personas to denigrate other candidates such as ted cruz and marco rubio and to support Bernie Sanders<\/a> and donald trump. And they were to use any opportunity to criticize hillary and the rest except sanders and trump. We support them. Joining us now neera tanden and david frum. Neera, you were captured in some of the emails that these people managed to obtain in their effort, their attack on this campaign. I want to get your reaction tonight to what weve learned today. This is a farranging indictment. And really proves what the intelligence agencies said over a year ago. Proves what the intelligence agencies said and what donald trump has been denying on an almost weekly basis which is that the russians interfered in our election. And it demonstrates how. They spent millions of dollars a month to take on, undermine Hillary Clinton<\/a> and support donald trump and other candidates. And i think the reality here is that its hard to say what impact they had, although when 71,000 votes are at stake, the idea that millions of dollars spent by a Foreign Government<\/a> on a monthly basis had zero impact i find really hard to believe. David frum, we did get a president ial reaction to this news today from Bernie Sanders<\/a>, who issued he was one of the people that the russians were trying to help in the primaries against Hillary Clinton<\/a>. He issued a statement of outrage about what the russians did. A statement of urgency about trying to stop them in the 2018 elections. The president of the United States<\/a> could not bring himself to say anything like that. Yet we do see the emergence of a defense messaging strategy from the president and his surrounding people. What is striking to me is there is no effort to appeal to moderate minded people, people in the middle or undecided at all. It works in the short term when you say things to your core group like were vindicated in a document that doesnt vindicate you at all. You can persuade your core group to believe that. But theres nothing to the rest of the country. Thats a selfdefeat that has happened quite early. Neera, i wanted to show something that the the russians paid for specifically. The indictment said they asked a u. S. Person to wear a costume portraying Hillary Clinton<\/a> in a prison uniform. We have that photograph, i believe, that we can put up on the screen. This person was paid by the russians to do this. To be dressed up at Hillary Clinton<\/a> in a prison uniform. Thats the kind of thing you were seeing on the Clinton Campaign<\/a> every day. Absolutely. They list out a number of campaign memes and hashtags they use, the indictment does, and one of the key ones was hillary for prison. And for many people on line we saw that in and out, mostly from the right but sometimes from the left. And the disruption that happened at the democratic convention. You heard people there chanting lock her up. But obviously chanting lock her up at the Republican Convention<\/a> and a bunch of events. So, you know, i think if you looked at social media and looked at this indictment, youd see a lot of ties between narratives that were being spread. Now we know from a Russian Disinformation Campaign<\/a> from the russian government, essentially, to undermine Hillary Clinton<\/a> and help donald trump win this election. Which their intention was his success and they spectacularly succeeded. David we have no statement from jill stein tonight but the russians apparently worked hard to help jill stein and her margins in pennsylvania, michigan and wisconsin threw the Electoral College<\/a> to donald trump. So every bit of money they spent helping jill stein paid off. It won donald trump the Electoral College<\/a>. No one will prove whether this effort is why donald trump is president. People who work on campaigns have feelings on that. But theres a more fundamental question thats the one i appeal to people in the republican world to ponder. Whether or not this made donald trump president , you have to ask the question why, what made it about the russians want to help republicans . That ought to cause some moral searching. Perhaps among i dont know jill stein. But Bernie Sanders<\/a> might want to ask that question as well of himself. Why me . If youre attracting this kind of support what does it say . Can i add one thing, look at Donald Trumps<\/a> behavior, for everyone saying nothing happened, nothing here, the house intelligence committee, paul ryan, a week ago, all worked to undermine the fbis investigation, to undermine the Mueller Probe<\/a> through the nunes memo with the full sanction of donald trump. If he were innocent of any wrong doing, why wouldnt he try to get to the bottom of this and say this attack on america is something im supposed to fight, instead of condone by my silence. If the russians thought they were getting their guy, boy have they made a mistake, hes never said that, hes confirmed everything. Thank you both for joining us tonight. Really appreciate it. Thank you. Today it was reported in the new yorker on a playboy playmate who was paid 150,000 to never tell of her affair with donald trump that occurred during his third and current marriage. Is that something that Vladimir Putin<\/a> already knew about donald trump . Did Vladimir Putin<\/a> know about Stormy Daniels<\/a> . What does Vladimir Putin<\/a> know about donald trump and why is donald trump afraid to say a single negative word about Vladimir Putin<\/a> . Thats next. Its time for the ultimate sleep number event on the only bed that adjusts on both sides to your ideal comfort, your sleep number setting. Does your bed do that . Save 50 on the ultimate limited edition bed. Plus 24month financing ends monday visit sleepnumber. Com for a store near you. Take 5, guys. Tired of your bladder always cutting into your day . You may have overactive bladder, or oab. Thats it we really need to get with the program and see the doctor. Take charge and ask your doctor about Myrbetriq Mirabegron<\/a> for oab symptoms of urgency, frequency and leakage. Its the first and only oab treatment in its class. Myrbetriq may cause serious allergic reactions. If you experience swelling of the face, lips, throat or tongue, or difficulty breathing, stop taking myrbetriq and tell your doctor right away. Myrbetriq may increase blood pressure. Tell your doctor right away if you have trouble emptying your bladder or have a weak urine stream. Myrbetriq may affect or be affected by other medications. Before taking myrbetriq, tell your doctor if you have liver or kidney problems. Common side effects include increased blood pressure, common cold symptoms, urinary tract infection, constipation, diarrhea, dizziness and headache. Okay, time to do this dont let your bladder always take the lead. Ask your doctor if myrbetriq is right for you. And visit myrbetriq. Com to learn more. We all want to know you know, the new, new thing. With xfinitys retail stores, you can now see the latest. Want to test drive the latest devices . Be our guest. Want to save on mobile . Just ask. Want to demo the latest innovations and technology . Do it here. Come see how were making things simple, easy, and awesome. Plus come in today and ask about xfinity mobile, a new kind of network designed to save you money. Visit your local xfinity store today. And what did the president of the United States<\/a> do on this day when some of the particulars on the russia attacks on our election were revealed in a 37page indictment by the special prosecutor . Nothing. Absolutely nothing. This is the first president of the United States<\/a> who has had to deal with the aftermath of a direct attack on the United States<\/a> by russia and because donald trump is the weakest president in history and because donald trump lives either in fear of russia or in service to russia, or both, donald trump continues to do absolutely nothing in response to the russian attacks. The white house issued a press release falsely claiming that the indictment indicates that there was no collusion between the Trump Campaign<\/a> and russia and that the outcome of the election was not changed or affected. The press release includes a quoted statement by the president , which was obviously written for the president by staff, and in that staffwritten quote, attributed to the president , it condemns the attacks. Not the attacks by russia. The president wouldnt dare Say Something<\/a> about the attacks by russia. The president s written statement says its time we stop the outlandish partisan attacks. The president couldnt bring himself to say its time to stop the outlandish attacks on our democracy. Why has donald trump who has always been so concerned with appearing to be the strong man so willing to play the role of the helpless, weak little boy whos dominated and controlled by Vladimir Putin<\/a>. Why hasnt donald trump thought up a derogatory nickname for Vladimir Putin<\/a> . Why does Vladimir Putin<\/a> have a hold on donald trump . The president said nothing today about taking appropriate measures about what was revealed in that indictment, the president said nothing about carrying out sanctions against russia because of its interference in our election. Any other president would have called for additional measures against russia. But what if russia owns the president of the United States<\/a>. What if donald trump has been compromised to the point he lives in fear of russia, lives in fear of Vladimir Putin<\/a>, lives in fear of what Vladimir Putin<\/a> might reveal about him and his history . Donald trump brags about being smart, how to handle himself in moscow, and thats why he would never do anything with prostituted in a russia hotel but this indictment shows that russia is willing to send people to the United States<\/a> to do what they have to do. What if Vladimir Putin<\/a> had donald trump under surveillance not just in moscow but in new york city and elsewhere for years. What if Vladimir Putin<\/a> knew everything about donald trump and Stormy Daniels<\/a> before that became public . What if Vladimir Putin<\/a> knew everything about donald trump and every playboy play mate who donald trump has had affairs with, including karen mcdoogle, whose relationship was revealed today in the new yorker . What if Vladimir Putin<\/a> knows more about donald trump than anyone else could find out about donald trump and what if donald trump knows that Vladimir Putin<\/a> knows all of that . That would explain Donald Trumps<\/a> public subservience to Vladimir Putin<\/a>. That would explain the press release today, it would explain everything that donald trump did not do today, everything that donald trump did not say today. It may be that Vladimir Putin<\/a> knows more about donald trump than anyone else who deals with donald trump. If we ever get the answer to what Vladimir Putin<\/a> really knows about donald trump, it will probably be Robert Mueller<\/a> who gets us that answer. We will be joined next by russia experts malcolm nance and amy knight to connect the dots in todays indictment. And strangers alik e. This is what americas about. Sometimes its nice to see all the good thats out there. Bringing folks out, we have seen it in community after community. Aah . I would have said you were crazy. But so began the year of me. I discovered the true meaning of paperless discounts. And the indescribable rush of saving drivers an average of 620. Why does fear feel so good . I fell in love three times once with a woman, once with a country, and finally. With myself. So, do you have anything to declare or not . Isnt that what im doing . So, do you have anything to declare or not . Looking for a hotel that fits. Whoooo. Your budget . Tripadvisor now searches over. 200 sites to find you the. Hotel you want at the lowest price. Grazi, gino find a price that fits. Tripadvisor. They appear out of nowhere. My secret visitors. Hallucinations and delusions. The unknown parts of living with parkinsons. What plots they unfold, but only in my mind. Over 50 of people with parkinsons will experience hallucinations or delusions during the course of their disease. If your loved one is experiencing these symptoms, talk to your parkinsons specialist. There are Treatment Options<\/a> that can help. My visitors should be the ones i want to see. This indictment serves as a reminder that people are not always who they appear to be on the internet. The indictment alleges that the russian conspirators want to promote discord in the United States<\/a> and under mine Public Confidence<\/a> in democracy, we must not allow them to succeed. Joining the discussion amy knight an expert on russian politics and history, the New York Times<\/a> describes her as the wests foremost scholar on the kgb also joining us is malcolm nance, a former intelligence analyst. He wrote a book in the middle of the president ial campaign describing exactly what was described in this indictment today. Amy knight i want to get your reaction to what you read in this indictment today. Well, i was surprised, actually, at the extensiveness at this campaign. I mean, i had heard that the russians were doing this, but to be honest with you, i was quite impressed at how they managed to penetrate so deeply into our whole system. And so, yeah, i was i was surprised. Malcolm nance, im marking you down as not surprised since you wrote a book. What is it now 18 months. 18 months before this indictment, which is the short version of your book. Well, to tell you the truth, youre right, im not surprised. Simply because what weve seen here in this indictment, besides the fact it appears we have excellent human intelligence sources in russia, to the point we could get their entire Administration Data<\/a> base it appears. What it shows me is that the russians were carrying out a longterm Information Warfare<\/a> operation designed at the beginning. Back when they started it in 2013, they started doing their first hires of english linguists. They needed to shape the information environment for whoever they thought was going to be the opponent to Hillary Clinton<\/a>. And, you know, the russians have been knowing about donald trump as far back as the first intelligence reports in 1977 when his wife, his second wife, was going to she canal slovakia. So hes been on the radar for a long time. That he would have come there for ms. Universe, he would have spoken to the oligarchs. They would have tried to shape what they call the perception management of the information battle space for donald trump to enter in with preconceived notions about what was good for russia. That would be antinato, antiEuropean Union<\/a> and antiimmigrant, which you know was his platform. Did you see the hand of Vladimir Putin<\/a> in this . Yes, i did. One of the interesting things is the indictment seems to confirm the Christopher Steele<\/a> report because he talks about the russians sort of earmarking donald trump and cultivating him for several years. So to me he also discusses the cyber operations. So its very interesting for the people who have tried to discredit the steele dossier this is another confirmation. We have to squeeze in a break and then come back with our russia experts because this is the most important part of this discussion tonight. Well be right back. Its time for the ultimate sleep number event on the only bed that adjusts on both sides to your ideal comfort your sleep number setting. And snoring . Does your bed do that . Right now during the ultimate sleep number event, save 50 on the ultimate limited edition bed with adjustable comfort on both sides. Plus 24month financing. Ends monday. Visit sleepnumber. Com for a store near you. 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Same here, but this one has Leather Seats<\/a> use the cars. Com app to compare price, features and value. Going somewhere . Whoooo. Heres some advice. Tripadvisor now searches more. Than 200 booking sites to find the hotel you want and save you up to 30 . Trust this birds words. Tripadvisor. There are seven continents, seven seas, but at Celebrity Cruises<\/a>, wed argue, more than seven wonders. For a limited time, enjoy two free perks, like complimentary wifi and drinks. Plus savings for everyone in your state room when you book now, during the Celebrity Cruises<\/a> sail beyond event. Robert muellers indictment of 13 russians says that they, quote, arranged for a real u. S. Person to stand in front of the white house to hold a sign that read happy 55th birthday dear boss defendants informed the real u. S. Person that the sign was for someone who is a leader here and our boss, our funder. The nickname for that boss is putins cook. And our russia experts are here to teach me how to pronounce his real name. Back with us, amy night and malcolm nance. Tell us about putins cook and his appearance in the indictment. Yes, ive known about mr. Prigozhin. Hes been written about in the independent russian media, and there have been be some scandals and hes well known to be close to president putin, but interestingly enough he was in prison for nine years during the soviet period for theft and dealing with prostitutes. So hes kind of a sleazy guy. Again, i was rather surprised that he would have been the person who was leading this whole effort. Malcolm, your reaction to the emergence of putins cook in this story . You have to remember the strong men like people around them who are very loyal. You might recall Donald Trumps<\/a> personal body guard who he tried to get into the white house, was the gentleman sent to go fire james comey, the director of the fbi. The way i see it is this is a guy who comes back to putins oldest days, back when he was liquidating soviet assets. So loyalists who are going to do whatever you need done, whether theyre thugs or cooks who are thugs, theyre the guys putin can rely on for an operation that is not really an intelligence operation, its one step removed from an intelligence operation using intelligence contractors. Amy knight, what is Vladimir Putin<\/a>s likely reaction to this indictment and what will it mean for russian activities Going Forward<\/a> . Well, i was wondering about that. On the one hand, of course, he cant be too pleased that all of this has been uncovered. But on another level, you know, this was a very, very successful, what we would call in the kgb days, it would be called active measures, this kind of campaign turned out to be extremely successful. They managed to get their man elected president of the United States<\/a>. So i think at some level mr. Putin is probably feeling kind of proud. What about that, malcolm, other leaders might be looking at Vladimir Putin<\/a> now thinking, what happens when he comes after me . Well, the same thing is going to happen. I mean, putin has gone after many other world leaders. He has an entire network of these sort of altright conservative sort of bordering on neonazi movement. The United States<\/a> was the last place to get the treatment. We saw they meddled in the elections of france, germany, sweden. And theyre close to the government of austria. These governments, rightwing extremist governments have relations with putins personal party there. So the United States<\/a> has donald trump, and that may be his western pillar of what he wanted to accomplish, the dismantlement of nato and the breakup of the European Union<\/a> but Emmanuel Macron<\/a> sort of saved us. Had marie lepen gotten in, putin would have gotten everything he wanted. Thank you for joining us tonight. Tonights last word is next. Im not at risk. Even healthy adults 65 and older are at increased risk of pneumococcal pneumonia. Isnt it like a bad cold or flu . Pneumococcal pneumonia is a potentially serious bacterial lung disease. In some cases, part of your lung may fill with mucus, making it hard to breathe. Can i catch it from a pneumococcal vaccination . No. The vaccines do not contain live bacteria. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about how to help protect yourself. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist looking for a hotel that fits. Whoooo. Your budget . Tripadvisor now searches over. 200 sites to find you the. Hotel you want at the lowest price. Grazi, gino find a price that fits. Tripadvisor. Time for tonights last word. After 17 students and teachers were murdered in parkland, florida on wednesday. Donald trump and the Republican Party<\/a> continue to do everything they possibly can to make sure that americas mass murderers will always be able to buy assault weapons. The president hasnt specifically said that this week, but that is exactly what his silence said tonight in parkland, florida. Do our gun laws need to be changed, mr. President . Donald trumps silence is tonights last word. More on the 13 russians indicted by a grand jury today on the 11th hour with Brian Williams<\/a> and that starts now. Breaking news tonight the stunning evidence of how far russia reached into our lives, media and our president ial election. Robert muellers bombshell indictments alleging the russians arrived in this country to turn americans against one another. Psychological and Information Warfare<\/a> that didnt stop with the election. The president repeating there was no collusion. The 11th hour on a friday night begins now. Good evening once again from our nbc news headquarters here in new york, day 393 of the Trump Administration<\/a>. This day was different because this is what we learned today. We learned that russia interfered with our election, we learned how it helped the Trump Campaign<\/a> and how it hurt the","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"archive.org","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","width":"800","height":"600","url":"\/\/ia800107.us.archive.org\/11\/items\/MSNBCW_20180218_010000_The_Last_Word_With_Lawrence_ODonnell\/MSNBCW_20180218_010000_The_Last_Word_With_Lawrence_ODonnell.thumbs\/MSNBCW_20180218_010000_The_Last_Word_With_Lawrence_ODonnell_000001.jpg"}},"autauthor":{"@type":"Organization"},"author":{"sameAs":"archive.org","name":"archive.org"}}],"coverageEndTime":"20240617T12:35:10+00:00"}