Necessary, jane will appoint her. Remembering Supreme CourtJustice Ruth Bader ginsburg from brilliant legal mind and champion of legal rights to pop culture icon. The question is can the country handle the bitter battle over how soon to replace her . Plus, the u. S. Passes 200,000 deaths of covid19 even as we stair dow the battle with the flu. The question is does the president still think hes done a very good job handling the pandemic. And power graham the director of human health and services over the fda. What does it mean for the administrations rush to approve a Covid Vaccine snit is way too early for this. Good morning and welcome to way too early, the show that never really went away. Im kasie hunt on this monday, september 21st, and well start with the news. Supreme Court JusticeRuth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to serve on the nations highest court died friday at the age of 87. The court said ginsburg died, quote, surrounded by her family at her home in washington, d. C. , due to complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer. Ginsburg served 27 years on the Supreme Court. In a statement marking her passing, chief Justice John Roberts said, quote, our nation has lost a jurist of historic stature. We at the Supreme Court have lost a cherished colleague. Today we mourn, but with confidence that future generations will remember Ruth Bader Ginsburg as we knew her, a tireless and resolute champion of justice. Standing at just over 5 feet tall, she was larger than life, both on and off the bench as she became a cultural idol to a much younger generation. Viewed as a feminist icon, she broke countless barriers, dedicating her legal career to challenging laws and regulations that diskrimm nalted on the basis of sex. Along the way, she never shied away from making contentious comments, earning the nickname notorious rbg by her devoted fan base. Diagnosed with cancer four times, ginsburg had Numerous Health scares including several recent hospitalizations, and her death will open a pivotal seat on the court less than 50 days before the prltal election. According to nmrs Nina Totenberg just days before her health waned dictated this statement to her grand daughter, kwoelt, my most fervent wish is that i will not be replaced until a new president is installed. And now to the political fight. The president says he will nominate a replacement, and Senate Majority leader Mitch Mcconnell said the nominee will get a vote. Whats different now from 2016 when mcconnell denied Barack Obamas nomination of Merrick Garland in the find year of obamas term. Mcconnell claims its because the party is both in the presidency and the senate. Mcconnell wrote, over the coming days we are all going to come under tremendous pressure from the press, us, to announce how we will handle the coming nomination. For those of you who are unsure how to answer or for those inclined to oppose giving a nominee a vote, i urge you all to keep your powder dry. There are already at least two republican defections. Democrats would need four. Senator Susan Collins, whos in a tough reelection battle back in maine and senator Lisa Murkowski of alaska said they oppose voting on a replacement before election day. Meanwhile senator Chuck Grassley said in july, quote, if i were chairman of the Judiciary Committee and this vacancy occurred, i would not have a hearing on it because that is what i promised the people in 2016. Were also watching senator mitt romney. He has not yesterday indicat in stands on this question. The president has said he will nominate a woman. Three sources tell nbc news that fellow Appellate Court judge Amy Coney Barrett is on the short list. She was on the list to replier Anthony Kennedy in 2018. Barrett svelted and of known quantity giving her sitting on the bench. Chicago thought she performed well and defend her views that her religious beliefs as a catholic would color her legal judgment. Two others are on the list. Barbara lagoa is on the sir caught court of appeals for the 11th district based in georgia. The other is for the sixth circuit in senate, amul thapar. Joining me to talk about this, Jacqueline Alemany and New York Times reporter jeremy peters. Its great to have both of you so early this morning on our premiere edition of way too early. Jackie, let me start with you to set the stage here in terms of what your reporting is or under Amy Coney Barrett as the emerging frontrunner. What are the dynamics around her specifically but also between the white house and the senate in terms of who prefers her. Hey, kasie, well welcome to the 5 00 a. M. Club. Congrats on the new show. As you rightfully and notably noticed out, Amy Coney Barrett was on the list the last time around. The vetting and questions surrounding her have already been taken care of. Shes someone whos safe. Mitch mcconnell said he could achieve the 51 votes necessary in order to push her through as the nominee in what will probably be a contentious vote before the election. That being said, the white house has taken in recent days, especially over the weekend, a liking to barbara lagoa, who they believe could be a real political asset in florida, which the president really needs to win in his president ial election in november. Aides say that the president might get along with lagoa. She would have shes been described as a feisty he likes her ivy league credentials. Again, that being said, Amy Coney Barrett might be the safer pick here. But, mcconnell is going back and forth with the president s chief of staff mark meadows on the vetting process and how to move forward as quickly as possible, and those conversations are happening right now. Theyre also waiting on a number of senators to actually stake out their position on whether or not they support holding a vote prior to the election. Jeremy peters, youve spent a lot of time covering conservatives, the conservative movement, and im curious what your early reporting is telling you about how these dynamics are playing out. It seems as though the president is leaning if he is leaning toward la goya, it has do with winning florida as jackie said, and in the context strictly of the president ial race, Mitch Mcconnells calculation seems to be that, well, i need the votes in the senate, and Amy Coney Barrett is somebody who already seems like a known quantity. That should make things easier for me, perhaps even voting on evangelical voters where hes got senators up for reelection. Whats your take and reporting on how this ultimately shakes out . Thats exactly right. I mean, lets not lose sight of the fact that if republicans do not control the senate, they do not control who gets to sit on the Supreme Court, and thats of paramount importance that youve seen over the past few years, past few election cycles, their power, their ability to win the majority in the popular vote waned. They really are dependent on these countermajorian institutions that allow them to hold onto power without winning the majority of votes in the country. So you have that going. You also have the fact that there are an awful lot of senators who are going to do be nervous about having an election day. Its about six days away. It would be a rushed process it. Would make senators like cory gardner in colorado whos in a tight race for reelection, worry that they are angering the electorate in third home states and further endangering their prospects for reelection. Interestingly, though, you had other republican senators who came out over the weekend who are in tight races saying, you know what . Lets go forward. I think President Trump deserves a vote on this right away. Senators like thom tillis in north carolina, and we know hes in a political fight of his life right now. This doesnt break down easily along any particular line, partisan or whatever. Its hard to game out, and its even harder to tell who it could benefit politically if the republicans did ram this through at the last minute. Well, and jackie, my early reporting suggests that Mitch Mcconnell seems to want to with hold the fight until after the general election, which is what jeremy is talking about here, that moderates like Susan Collins and others dont have to make a decision. But at the same time, they want to move forward with a confirmation hearing. Weve heard early reports that the white house wants a different time line. Is there tension between the white house and the hill and whats your reporting on the timeline . The political calculations are definitely a hot topic at the moment. Theres been a lot of back and forth. I think theres been a lot of debate how these things will pan out politically. As jeremy noted, there are a number of vulnerable republican senators who most of which, aside from Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski have supported holding the vote prior to the election and confirming trumps pick of nominee without knowing who that nominee is. Then you have someone like senator gardner who hasnt made his mark clear. Hes in a tight race in clo, and he could be that extra defector that prevents mcconnell from pushing someone through. So those calculations are being debated. You know, the president himself, known to be an opportunist, its fairly possible that he believes that holding this vote right after the election would actually incentivize more republicans to turn out for him on election day. But that being said, thats why barrett is actually such a being pushed by mcconnell. She is a devout catholic, and mcconnell seems to think shell make people like Susan Collins more comfortable with the decision with holding the vote asap. All right. Jackie alemany and jeremy peters, thank you both for getting up early with us this morning. Its great to have you. Still ahead, weve got much more battle over the Supreme Court. Senator Lindsey Graham was pretty bold in 2018 when he said they should not vote on it. And ill speak with senator joe manman chin from west virginia. Way too early back in a moment. Est virginia way too early back in a moment federal dollars are spent on schools, hospitals, and restorations in our neighborhoods. Funding is at stake for marginalized communities. So make it count to be counted. The more you know. Its ubrelvy. For anytime, anywhere migraine strikes without worrying if its too late, or where i am. One dose can quickly stop migraine in its tracks within two hours. Unlike older medicines, ubrelvy is a pill that directly blocks cgrp protein, believed to be a cause of migraine. Do not take with strong cyp3a4 inhibitors. Most common side effects were nausea and tiredness. Ask about ubrelvy. The anytime, anywhere migraine medicine. Ask about ubrelvy. 20 associate cart pusher. Urly the different positions ive had taught me how to be there for others. I started out as a cashier. I mean, the skys the limit with walmart. Its all up to you. Tried to disrupt him. The win. Oh, its gone. Anthony davis has won it for the lakers welcome back. Time now for sports. And the Lakers Anthony davis with that buzzer beater 3pointer in last nights game two of the western conference finals against the nuggets. Last defeats denver, 105103, and now leads the series, three games to none. And now to the nfl. Russell wilson matching a careerhigh five touchdown pass. This game came down to a final play at the goal line. Here we go. Cams going to take it himself. He doesnt get in. And the seahawks win the game. They stuff cam newton on the one yard line. The seahawks win it, 3530. In pro golf, a new u. S. Open champion as bryson dechampion wins two shots ahead of matthew wolf. He pulled away a long a flawless back nine pulling a sevenputt. He captured a three under, 67. Didnt allow another round under par. Major league baseballs shortened schedule is coming to a close with the playoffs now over a week away. Several teams have punched a ticket for the expanded format includingizati includi including san diego padres. They had an 11inning rally yesterday. Im so glad baseball is back. But now we want to turn to the weather and the devastating wildfires on the west coast that are continuing spread. Californias bobcat fire has grown to 103,000 acres, making it one of the largest wildfires in los angeles countys history, and that fire is only 15 contained. Crews are hoping lower temperatures and calmer winds might give them an upper hand on the blaze. Meanwhile in oregon, officials reported more progress in the plan to contain wildfires across the state. 700 firefighters are working on the effort. Cooler weather, and higher rainfall is helping to make the progress. The number of confirmed fatalities remain at nine and there are five still missing. Lets bring in nbc meteorologist bill karins. Bill, its good to see you way too early on this monday morning, this obviously a difficult story. Its back. I know. Its back. Its great. But weve been seeing smoke here in washington obscuring the sun at different times over the past few weengs this. Is tough. Is there any end in sight for these fires . It depends where youre talking. Were going to get rain looks like tuesday to wednesday in the northwest. Maybe oregon and washington state. But for california, their rainy season doesnt arrive until like november, so not much relief for them. It looks like were going to get another pretty big heatwave in about eight to 12 days in the west too. So the fear of additional fires and large fires is there. Let me the big weather headline today is Tropical Storm bay tachl we have Tropical Storm warnings on the coast. Thankfully this one is not a big storm. No big concerns with the wind, but we do have to worry about the storm surge, which were getting right now, about 1 to 3 feet in many areas. Were having minor problems with that. But this storm is going to linger along the coastal areas for two our three days between victoria and houston. If youre familiar with houston, you have problems on the highways with flooding. This could last two to three days. Thats the issue with this storm. We have a flash flood threat from new orleans all the way back to houston and victoria. 10 Million People are at risk, and it looks like people could see as much as 3 to 6 inches of rain today and tomorrow. Thats the concern, kasie, with this storm. It does seem to be huge and punishing, but well watch houston closely. Keep an eye on all of it. Thank you very much, my friend. Still ahead here, the president said back in march that a covid death toll below 200,000 would mean the administration did a very good job handling the virus. Were going to explain that coming up next. Were going to explain that coming up next in the middle of the darkest night its true, i will rescue you oh, i will rescue you and at fidelity, youll get planning and advice to help you prepare for the future, without sacrificing whats most important to you today. 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This is 5g built right. Only on verizon. So what grade do you give yourself on the virus over the last six, seven months . Other than the Public Relations, which is possible, because its a fake media, fake. Theyre fake. I know you disagree. Yeah, i do. Yeah. Other than the fact that i have been unable to so whats the grade, sir . I give ourselves an a. But the grade is incomplete, and ill tell you why. If we come up with the vaccines and therapeutics, then i give myself an aplus. Welcome back to way too early. That was