Transcripts For MSNBCW With All Due Respect 20160919

Meanwhile, Islamic State is claiming responsibility for a knife attack inside a mall here in minnesota on saturday night, where nine people were stabbed by a 22yearold man who was fatally shot by an offduty Police Officer at the scene. Fortunately, no lives were lost in any of these attacks. The political world has been quick to react this morning, after donald trump responded to the latest attacks by defending racial profiling on fox news, Hillary Clinton made the following remarks from an airplane hangar in white plains, new york. We also know from the former head of our counterterrorism center, matt olson, that the kinds of rhetoric and language that mr. Trump has used is giving aid and comfort to our adversa adversaries. Thats why ive been very clear. Were going after the bad guys and were going to get them. But were not going to go after an entire religion. We choose resolve, not fear. We will not turn on each other or undermine our values. Well stand together, because we are stronger together in the face of this threat and every other challenge. That aid and comfort comment has gotten the most notice today. Those words echo verbatim the Legal Definition of treason. Trump shot back with this in his rally in ft. Myers, florida, this afternoon. Hillary clinton talks tougher about my supporters than she does about islamic terrorists, right . She calls the patriotic americans, who support our campaign, many of them cops and soldiers, deplorable and irredeemable, and she means it. Millions and millions of people. Has she ever talked that way about radical islam . No. The prospect in the final weeks of this election might be dominated by a terrorist attack or more than one has been talked about for a long time now and today was a test case for how both candidates would deal with this kind of event. Mark, my question to you is, how do you think they did . I think each has two things going for them. For Hillary Clinton, shes got a more traditional resume, National Security, voters on some measures look at her as stronger there. And trump does things that are untraditional that the collin folks and Hillary Clinton can jump on. On trumps side, he has been a strength candidate. He talks about immigration, he talks about fighting terror in a way that base voters, Republican Base voters, at least, find appealing. And the other thing trump has going for him is the traditionally, republicans have done better when National Security is at the forefront. Not always, but traditionally and usually. And right now, im not prepared to say who did better today, or whos going to win if this dominates, but they both showed their cards that they think are strong. Its always uncomfortable for us when we try to talk about the political implications of this, because theres serious things and theres jeopardy instead of talk about whos politically capitalizing the best, its a little awkward, right . You know, she is because, as you say, her traditional resume, theres also this thing, the temperament contrast which shes the trying to do, which is to say, im not only more experienced in a traditional way, but also more sober and im going to be calming. And trump is doing things that do play to his strengths, but theyre also he says things that are ridiculous. An idea if trump became president , terrorism would end. We would never have events like this in the future. I dont think anybody believes that anybody in the oval office can end terrorism. But the Republican Party right now, generically speaking, are held in higher regards than democrats are on this issue of keeping the country safe. And there are Many Democrats who say, if terror is front and center, it will help trump. So she worked very hard. Her team worked very hard. Its clear neither side will give any quarter, change the subject. They both recognized, when this dominates the news, this is what they have to talk about. And this is the drain they have to fight on. President obama just happens to be in new york city today, because hes attending the opening of the u. N. General assembly. He did take some time out to speak to the country about the attacks just as reports that the bombing suspect in new york and n new jersey was starting to emerge. He stuck to his now patented and very notable calm and measured approach, which he usually exhibits in the aftermath of terror attacks. You know, at moments like this, i think its important to remember what terrorists and violent extremists are trying to do. They are trying to hurt innocent people, but they also want to inspire fear in all of us. And disrupt the way we live. To undermine our values. And so even as we have to be vigilant and aggressive, both in preventing senseless acts of violence, but also making sure that we find those who carry out such acts and bring them to justice, we all have a role to play as citizens in making sure we dont succumb to that fear. We are going to have White House Press secretary josh earnest on the show in a few minutes. But how do you think barack obama has handled the past few hours . This is the president s style and hes never going to change, just as Donald Trumps never going to change. And i think he did everything appropriately, but it is the case, again, as you said, were talking about the politics here. No one has been killed and thank goodness for that, but its a reality that were in the midst of 50 days out. The reality of the president ial campaign. I think donald trump likes Barack Obamas tone on this, because it plays into this notion that he can lump Hillary Clinton and barack obama together, that theyre insufficiently viscerally outraged by whats happened. The president is outraged, but this is his style and this is how he shows it. And he does care about balancing talking tough with trying to have a, again, an obama view of the right way to fight terror, short and longterm. Heres the thing that, you know, one we have no idea whats going to happen in the next 50 days. But and i think we all pray that theres not another single terrorist incident for the next 50 days, for the next 500 days. But the possibility that there will be a ramping of of these kind of attempts, because a lot of foreign provocateurs want to stabilize our election, i think its possible. And the kind of the potentially dangerous eventuality of that for democrats is, if things do ramp up and it seems to be happening more frequently, this calm and measured tone that barack obama has, which i think is the right way to govern, could be really politically problematic for democrats and could really play into trumps hands, even though, again, i say its the right thing for him to do, is to try to keep people calm, rather than exacerbating peoples fears. It could hurt the president ial candidates on his party, but also down ballot. The other thing i say, the coordination between federal, state, and local, seem to be exceptionally good. And thats to the president s credit. Were moving on. The trial over bridgegate started today, as two former associates of new Jersey Governor Chris Christie face charges related to closing of lanes on the George Washington bridge, that traffic scandal, bridgegate. Theyre involved of doing that to try to punish a local official. Chris christie knows nothing about the incident and has said that over and over and over again. But in the opening argument os. Trial, federal prosecutors say that david wildstein, who pleaded guilty and is expected to testify in the trial, had bragged, and i put quotes around that word, bragged, to christies about the closures while they were underway. Christie is leaving trumps Transition Team and he could be in line for a big job in the trump administration. Chief of staff, u. S. Attorney general boebl a big future for chris christie. My question to you, mark, is, there was some very vivid language in what happened. And christie saying that he knew all about it in realtime, basically. How bad could this be for christie . It could be horrendous, but its baffling to me that theres no talk of his being indicted, if the prosecution believes he knew in realtime, he clearly told them, not under oath, were told, but nonetheless, he told federal investigators that he didnt know about it. Theyre saying he did. I guess maybe theyre saying, theyre giving the benefit of the doubt that he forgot, somehow. But the reality is that christie still denies it. And there seem as far as we know, theyre basing it on the testimony just of wildstein. And theyre going to say hes a questionable witness. But the prosecutors, obviously, dont think hes a questionable witness, because their case is built around him to some extent. If all the following things are true, i think its correct to say you cant be charged with perjury unless youve given testimony under oath. You can be charged with a violations of a false statements law, pretty much at any time, if you lied to a government official. There is the question of wildstein and his voracity or his credibility. I just think that the reality is, we go back to when we first when this whole scandal first unfolded, and we, knowing a fair amount about how Chris Christies office ran at the time and still runs even now it, just always seem ee eed implaus that no one let him know what was going on and he might have had some role in it. I think every reporter was skeptical about that. And hearing these lawyers now asserting it in very vivid terms, it makes you kind of think, you know, i think theres something there. Let the trial play out, but, man, seems weird. Could be very bad for christie. The prosecutors say he did a bad thing. No attorney general, if true. Were going to take a break. When we come back, Hillary Clinton is struggling to reunite the Obama Coalition. Were going to talk about that and more, right after this. Energy is a complex challenge. Peop want power. And power plants account for more than a third of energyrelated carbon emissions. The challenge is to capture the emissions before theyre released into the atmosphere. Exxonmobil is a leader in carbon capture. Our team is working to make this technology better, more affordable so it can reduce emissions around the world. Thats what were working on right now. Energy lives here. Of being there for my sons winning shot thats why im quitting with nicorette. Only nicorette mini s a patented fast dissolving formula. It starts to relieve sudden cravings fast. Every great why needs a great how. In her quest for 270 electoral votes, Hillary Clinton is trying to put the Obama Coalition band back gether, as she attempts to gin up more support from the masses of young voters and minority voters that turned out in record numbers over the past two president ial cycles. But honest democrats will tell you that Hillary Clinton has gotten some enthusiasm ground to make up with those groups. Today at temple university, in philadelphia, Hillary Clinton made a very direct appeal to one of the groups that have been lukewarm about her campaign, the millennials. I know that with washington paralyzed by big money and partisanship, the gap between the change we want and the progress that politics should deliver can look like a chasm. I also know that even if you are totally opposed to donald trump, you may still have some questions about me. I get that. Register your friends. Register everyone you know. This is going to be close. We need everyone off the sidelines. Not voting is not an option. That just plays into trumps hands. It really does. Another directed and impassioned appeal over the weekend from president obama. He was speaking to hesitant africanamerican voters at a Congressional Black Caucus dinner saturday night in d. C. Theres no such thing as a vote that doesnt matter. It all matters. And after we have achieved historic turnout in 2008 and 2012, especially in the africanamerican community, i will consider it a personal insult, an insult to my legacy, if this community lets down its guard and fails to activate itself in this election. You want to give me a good sendoff . Go vote so thats Hillary Clintons millennial problem. Her africanamerican problem, and then theres her hispanic problem. Recent polls show that clinton is underperforming president obamas 2012 numbers amongst latino numbers in important states such as florida, despite donald trump having his own problems with hispanic voters. Jo john, why does Hillary Clinton still have a problem with these socalled coalition of the ascendant . You know, the place to start, obviously, why shes having a problem with the Obama Coalition is shes not barack obama. That is true in a lot of different ways. Shes not cool, the way that obama was. A lot of them werent interested in politics, they were interested in barack obama. For a millennial, she actually isnt cool. You can hear it in Hillary Clintons voice there, when shes talking to millennials. Shes not talking to them in a way that im psyched about voting for that candidate. Shes got youre cool enough, hillary. Shes got different problems with hispanics and different problems with africanamericans. But an interesting question will be, when this is all said and done, they decided not to do a lot of hispanic language advertising, the interesting question that they spent a lot of time this summer focusing on, trying to target moderate republicans who are uncomfortable with donald trump, rather than focused on their base and on the Obama Coalition, on election day, that is now looking to be maybe a dubious strategic choice. They do a lot of work behind the scenes with earned media, with all these groups. And they have more people working on it than ever, and super surrogates like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren and barack obama and others reaching out for them. With so much of this race, now that its tightened up, shes got to earn it, do it. Will she be as cool as barack obama, will she have as direct appeal to africanamericans as barack obama . No, but shes going to have to figure out a way to talk it to them about issues they care about. Ill give you one example, climate change. I dont hear her talking about it very much. There are issues millennials care about. For instance, that i think shes got to prove to them that she earns their vote. But this is it is, i think, really importantly, this is partly a generational problem, where you see it most strongly is millennials, then millennial africanamericans, and millennial hispanics. And this is a generational problem for her. Shes not you know, shes a full generation older than barack obama, and finding a way to talk to all those groups, in a way that they find relatable, its not obviously or easy for her. She could do it, but its not obviously and easy. A democratic president for eight years skpaand a lot of th dont feel like they dont know much about the clinton legacy. Up next, White House Press secretary josh earnest stops by our new york studio after these words from our sponsors. engine revs the things it does to your parade. Weve got a saying about rain, too when it rains. It roars. The allwheeldrive charger. Domestic. Not domesticated. Get between you and lifes dobeautiful moments. Llergens by choosing flonase, youre choosing more complete allergy relief and all the enjoyment that comes along with it. When we breathe in allergens, our bodies react by overproducing 6 key inflammatory substances. Most allergy pills only control 1. Flonase controls 6. And six is greater than one. 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Tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts, or if these feelings develop. Some people taking otezla reported weight loss. Your doctor should monitor your weight and may stop treatment. Side effects may include diarrhea, nausea, upper respiratory tract infection, and headache. Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take, and if youre pregnant or planning to be. Ask your dermatologist about otezla today. Otezla. Show more of you. We are joined now by the chairman to have the Democratic Congressional republican campaign, representative ben ray lou hahn. Let me ask you one question to start things off. What odds do you give right now on the possibility of the democrats retaking control of the house . Its not my job to make predictions, its my job to win races. Ill i leave the predictions to others. Ill make sure we maximize our wins. Congressman, i appreciate that. I wasnt asking you to make a prediction. I was asking you to give us a sense of how likely you think it is. Even in general terms if you dont want to put specific odds on it. How good a chance do you think you have of retaking the house . Were in a volatile environment were working in and trying to maximize the battlefield weve established. I dont know that i can even describe it as a likely or unlikely environment. I know that were on offense and were going to be picking up seats, but donald trump is definitely giving us the environment that shows that there is a path forward. Given, especially, over the last couple of years, that people have discounted it completely. So given the environment that were in, racing up to the last 50 days to election day, plus, donald trump, its a very positive environment for democrats across country. Congressman, i know every race and every set of candidates is different, but make the argument that your party in general is stronger based on its record and policy positions on fighting the war against terrorism than the Republican Party is. Well, right now, as we travel around the country, and especially given everything that happened over the last 48 hours, not only up in minnesota, but here in new york as well, first off, you know, everything that we can say to go out to the families that were impacted by this horrific event, really leads to where people are feeling that they are in america today. That things are unsafe. And i can say the difference between democrats and republicans is, the contrast that were seeing even with donald trump is that republicans are more about talk, rather than tough and smart policies, the recklessness that were seeing from donald trump. And heres what it comes down to, between House Democrats and house republicans, is house republicans, time and again, have voted for budgets that reduce funding for more support to the fbi, to the Law Enforcement agencies and to the Intelligence Community that democrats have been asking for and republicans feel to overturn sequestration, which is further impairing our ability to be able to invest in this safe nature of keeping people in a better place in america. That couples with more talk from republicans about tough and safe policies is why democrats are in a stronger place given the environment were in today, and especially when it comes to National Security, both foreign and domestic. Congressman, in looking at president obamas record on fighting terrorism, both Homeland Security and groups abroad, do you consider his record to be perfect or are there areas where you would have liked him to do better . Under barack obama with secretary of state Hillary Clinton, Osama Bin Laden is no longer. The president is working diligently with air strikes, going after isis infrastructure, isis fighters, and cutting off isis money. The president congressman, with all due congressman, with all due respect, im asking if you think there are any areas where you think he hasnt done a job. I know there are lots of areas where you think he has. But are there areas where you think the president has fallen short in fighting terror . The president has made it very clear that his number one goal is to go after isis. And i think its important that we continue to work with the president when it comes to working with Silicon Valley and providing the president to support that he is asking for when it comes to the fbi and his intelligence agencies to work with him. So on that with that being said, ill continue to work with the president , with the directives that hes given to us keep the American People safe. Just ask you one more time, are there any areas where hes fallen short, or has he been, in your view, perfect in fighting the war on terror . Look, there are always places we can strengthen what were doing in america, wbut when the president is not getting the tools hes needing for counterterrorism activity, we have to work with the teams that we have. And with that being said, the president is working diligently through the intelligence communities and the fbi to make sure that were keeping people safe in america. But theres more that must be done when it comes to monitoring whats happening online, to be able to combat isis, wherever they may be. And especially as online tools are being used more and more, to reach out to bad people around the world. Namely in america. And thats more we can do, as well. Congressman, we were just talking about Hillary Clintons effort to try to activate the Obama Coalition. I want to ask you about hispanic votes. Theres some concern right now among a lot of democrats that although Hillary Clintons doing well in terms of the percentage of his papanic votes that she h the support of, shes not generating a lot of enthusiasm. Thats a pretty important voting bloc. Give me a sense of how well you think shes doing with hispanic voters and what you think she could do better . I would say all across america, every voting bloc in the United States, we have to be working more and more diligently to earn and maintain the trust of voters. This includes the Latino Community. You know, as the first hispanic chairman of the Democratic Congressional campaign committee, its something that is very important to me, personally. And were make sugar that were communicating to latinos in a more direct fashion. I think what were seeing from the Clinton Campaign, in addition to what were doing as House Democrats is a very active program and communicating early, developing a strong ground game, thats comprised predominantly of latino field staff in those latino communities, but its not just in communities where its a 30 or 40 Latino Community. Its also in districts where the Latino Community makes up 3 or 4 . Were going after every voter across america, and especially in the Hispanic Community. Congressman, do you think theres a do you perceive what a lot of democrats perceive right now, theres a worrying lack of criticism. Or duke everythings just fine. We can always do better in every demographic, but in this case where the numbers are showing, but its only after labor day. Right after labor day is when the general elections kick off and more and more communications are taking place in the community. And i expect that we will do better, and especially the Latino Community as well. Congressman, in the last few 50 days of this campaign, which two issues do you think will determine which way voters vote . Above all the others . The two most important . I would say this is a security election, whether were talking about the National Security of the American People or Economic Security. And even though theres a Strong Foundation that we can build from, from an economic perspective, theres a lot of real anxieties that are out there, to make sure that were able to help people get ahead and stay ahead. And also to make sure were keeping people safe. Thats our number one priority, and keeping people safe is both with National Security issues as well as with Economic Security issues. Those will be the two drivers come november and forward. All right. Congressman ben ray lujan. Thank you very much for coming on this show. Well have you back when we get closer to election day. And how donald trump and Hillary Clinton are reacting to the acts of violence that took place this weekend. Well be right back. I served in iraq in tikrit in 2009. When i took the ancestry dna test, i mean a few results came up that were really shocking. 11 of me comes from the part where i had served. We all come from such different backgrounds that you never know. My eyelove is making allsomething unexpected. Ays my eyelove is girls night out. My eyelove is the september issue. Eyelove is all the things we love to do with our eyes. But its also having a chat with your eye doctor about dry eyes that interrupt the things you love. Because if youre using artificial tears often and still have symptoms, it could be chronic dry eye. Go to myeyelove. Com and feel the love. Youre not taking these. Hey, hey, hey youre not taking those. Woah, woah youre not taking that. Come with me. Youre not taking that. Youre not taking that. Youre not taking that. Mom, im taking the subaru. Dont be late. Even when were not there to keep them safe, our Subaru Outback will be. vo love. Its what makes a subaru, a subaru. My name is jamir dixon and im a locafor pg e. Rk fieldman most people in the community recognize the blue trucks as pg e. My truck is something new. Its an 811 truck. When you call 811, i come out to your house and i mark out our gas lines and our electric lines to make sure that you dont hit them when youre digging. 811 is a free service. Im passionate about it because every time i go on the street i think about my own kids. Theyre the reason that i want to protect our community and our environment, and if me driving a that truck means that somebody gets to go home safer, then ill drive it every day of the week. Together, were building a better california. Welcome back. Joining us now, two great political minds. Ed rogers, a republican strategist, who is not currently supporting donald trump. He also writes a column for the washington post, and harold ford jr. , a former senator from tennessee, and a big supporter of Hillary Clinton. Harold, how concerned have democrats over the last few days as the battleground state polls have tightened . Some have been, but some expected this. You cannot maintain those kind of leads. Having said that, i think it will call for some strategic adjustments as we get along here. Weve got a week to go before on the big pivots in the campaign when the first debate takes place. Theres a lot of strategizing and rehearsing for that. This is one of those moments where secretary clinton will have to distinguish herself as the big thinker and mature thinker. I think she will emerge as the winner. I think thats the approach thats being taken now. And to the extent trump doing well has caused the gap to narrow, what has he been doing well. Well, actually, hes been doing less. And maybe that can translate into him doing well or better. His number sits there between 44 and 40. And hillary kind of comes up and down and so he really hasnt picked up so much support, as i think her numbers are moving around. That said, i dont think theres one person over at the clinton camp that didnt think she wouldnt have a doubledigit lead against donald trump, six months ago. So, they got something thats not working. And maybe trump is going to segue into something that does work. I mean, this is a change election, and he is the change candidate. Maybe too much. This is a change election, she is not a change candidate. If its close and they go into these debates and she makes a mistake, the race could pivot to him. It could happen. Harold, i want to ask you a question that mark and i just discussed earlier in the show. Weve now seen pretty compelling evidence that all of the important components of the Obama Coalition are not there with enough enthusiasm for Hillary Clinton as they were for barack obama in 2012 and 2008. Millennials, africanamerican voters, hispanic voters. Why is that, do you think . Whats the core problem she has, and what can she do to fix it . Well, i think part of first of all, its a great question. And im a strong believer that reassembling the coalition that the president built in 08 and 12 is a big effort. Whatever the reasons are, if youre in a party and youve won a few times and things are going, moving along the right way, you sometimes can get a little complacent. I think, two, the Clinton Campaign has got to reach out in a more effective, and a more sustained way. I know they believe that they are and they have been, but theyve got to be even more creative and reach out to the youth community, the black community, the Hispanic Community across the country, because those communities are a waiting to come around her. And finally, you know, every four years, things are different. And iscaaign, to eds point, i think, i hope that everyone is listening, particularly on my side. There may need to be some changes, just small things as you get into the game here. The patriots have won a lot of super bowls over the last few years, but they need to make adjustments. Secretary clinton is the dominant player in this game. And we may need to make a few adjustments as we go along. Hillary clinton is uninspiring, thats a big problem. And even on a day like today, she took the she used the occasion, said a lot of the appropriate things, about the two terrorist attacks here in new york and in minneapolis, but she wants to talk about the insider meeting shes been in, in washington. She wants to show her exposure and poise in contrast to trump, when really what she needs to do is not so much worry about trump, but she has to sound the alarm. She has to make people understand that she has some visceral reaction to either the economy or a terrorist attack. She is uninspiring, shes flat. The dogs dont like the dog food. If she doesnt do something about it, trump can sneak up on her and we can have president trump. Courtesy of hillarys sort of non ed, ed yeah . Ed, let me follow up with you just on that. You just mentioned how Hillary Clinton reacted to the terrorist incidents today. How do you look at it as a trump skeptic, as someone whos not behind druonald trump by any means, how do you think he performed today . Sloppy, rabid, calling into a morning news show and sort of craving some sort of acknowledgement that he was first. There was nothing poised about it. But trump has a visceral reaction. I think people want to know that the next president understands the terrorists are now here. The fight is here. San bernardino, orlando, now this. Minnesota. The fight is here. People want there to be a visceral reaction. Trump could have done a lot better. Like i said, i think it was ragged and way off the bullseye. I think hillary was flat and steal, looked like business as usual. Whats going to win that fight . I dont know. Guys, may may nnot get a chao have you back before mondays debate, Start Talking about that with both of you. If Hillary Clinton said to you, harold, whats the biggest mistake, the biggest pitfall, the biggest danger for me in this debate. What would you tell her . Dont fall into the pit with donald trump and the back and forth and the slinging of the mud. I think at each moment, shes going to disagree with him on a lot of things. Let him make her point, come back to her are, and make the point, lester, i disagree with my opponent and heres what i would do. I think shes got to stay in the substantiative lane. Youve got to smother him with ideas and answer and vision. And to eds point about being inspiring, i think all of that will just continue the inspiration that shes brought to this campaign. Ed, whats the biggest danger for clinton and whats the biggest danger for trump in the debate . Both candidates have got to try to steer clear of playing to their negative stereotype. Trump has got to be poised, have a modicum of dignity, and be informed. Hes sort of got to be that character that briefly appeared at the press conference with the president of new mexico a couple of weeks ago. Hillary cant tell a lie. Hillary, if she tells a lie, theyll be ads, the rnc will be running them before the debates over with. If she plays to her negative stereotype, by saying something that is demonstrably false, it could be a real dagger for her. All right. Ed rogers, harold ford jr. , thank you both, guys, appreciate it. Well look down the road next with some talk about down ballot races and the president ial campaign. A few top reporters. If youre watching us in washington, d. C. , you can listen to us on the radio at bloomberg, 91. 11 f. M. , the nations capital. Well be right back. You dont just learn how to drive. Or solve the worlds problems. Be a dad. Or someing and we dont just make sandwich or something we handslice avocado, pull smoked chicken, bake fresh foccacia and craft every sandwich clean from top to bottom. Theres nothing or something about it. Panera. Food as it should be. Whenhis busy family. Got a cracked winhield. Their dad went to the new safelitedotcom. And scheduled a reacement. In just a few clicks. With safelite you dont haveo miss a thing. Yall did wonderful thank you. girls sing safelite repair, safelite replace. Im raph. My name is anne. Im one of the real live attorneys you can talk to through legalzoom. Dont let unanswered legal questions hold you up, because were here, were here, and weve got yourack. Legalzoom. Legal help is here. Everyone thought i was crazy to open a hotel here. Everyone said its so hard to be a musician, but i cant imagine doing anything else. Now that the train makes it easier to get here, the neighborhood is really changing. Im always hopping on the train, running all over portland. I have to go wherever the work is. Trains with innovative Siemens Technology help keep cities moving, so neighborhoods and businesses can prosper. I can book 3 or 4 gigs on a good weekend. Im booked solid for weeks. It takes ingenuity to make it in the big city. Im Milissa Rehberger with breaking news on the bombings in new york and new jersey. The suspect, ahmed rahami, has been charged with five counts of attempted murder of a Law Enforcement officer. This mug shot was just released. He was captured this morning after exchanging fire with Police Officers. Two were hurt, neither seriously. Back to our program. With us now, two of the nations finest political reporters to talk about the battle, for the battleground states. Joining us, eliana johnson, the washington editor of the national review, and phil rocker, National Reporter for the washington post. Phil, you and dan balz wrote a story over the weekend. One fact caught my eye. You said, the Clinton Campaign looks at ohio and iowa and sees real trouble. Talk about that. Thats right. So these are, two of the swing states where she is the most vulnerable, theres a large white population there, that seems to be pretty galvanizing and energized around Donald Trumps candidacy. The public numbers show trump with a growing lead, both in iowa and ohio, but the Clinton Campaign, theyre worried about those two states. Now, good thing for clinton, is she has an easy path to get to those 270 electoral votes without those two states. Theyre looking really good in north carolina, which is a very close race, but a state that the clinton people feel like could be a real, a real roadblock for trump and can block off his path there, with as well as in pennsylvania. A big state, a lot of electoral votes in p. A. Eliana, obviously, we all play with Electoral College calculators all day. If you take ohio and iowa and give them to trump, how much easier does that make it for him, or is that not a huge step towards 270, the prospect of 270 . You know, its really interesting, it looks like were on a path where donald trump could be the first republican in, i dont even know how many years, but to win in ohio and lose the president ial race, which would be fascinating. But the white whale for republicans, for many, many years now has been pennsylvania. And i just dont see a path for trump to get to 270 votes, even if he wins ohio and iowa, without taking pennsylvania. There are some farfetched scenarios, i think, where he could the get there, but i find it tremendously difficult for him without taking pennsylvania. He continues to trail Hillary Clinton by between six and eight points there. So, eliana, you say you think that pennsylvania is a mustwin state for donald trump, no matter what the other combinations are, but is there some way, theres some path for trump to get to 270 without pennsylvania . Theres a path for him with north carolina, florida, maines second congressional district, ohio, iowa, that he does have a path. Its not impossible, but i think its a difficult path and a rather unlikely one for him. Phil, i ran into you up in New Hampshire just the other day. Tell me about thinking about not some of the biggest battleground states. You mentioned iowa and New Hampshires another one. Talk about the state of play in places like New Hampshire. Theyre minor battleground states, where things to be tightening up all of a sudden. Its interesting. New hampshire is a sliver of a state. Its tiny. There are only four electoral votes. We were both there for tim kaines election. New hampshire is one of these states that could really tip the scales one way or the other, if this electoral map looks really tight. Another state like that is nevada. Four electoral votes out there, too. These are close states, theyre very competitive. New hampshire in particular has a tendency to make big swings, sort of late in the game year. It certainly seems to be an environment that favors Hillary Clinton. Its a place she has been leading by a lot. But its tightened up a lot. The senate race in New Hampshire also has tightened up a lot. Kelly ayotte very much in the game there for her reelection. Its a place where trump was last week, as well, and its a place that could be tight all the way to the end. Okay. Eliana johnson, phil rucker, thanks to you both. Great to have you, as always. Be right back with the press secretary of the white house, josh earnest, after this. Experience the thrill of the lexus is f spor because the ultimate expression of power, is control. This is the pursuit of perfection. [ crowd noisewhoa. [ gears opping ] when your pain reliever stops working, your whole day stops. Try this. But just one aleve has the strength to stop pain for 12 hours. Tylenol and advil can quit after 6. So live your whole day, not part. With 12 hour aleve. We have a lot to unpack with our next guest, White House Press secretary josh earnest joins us from our set in new york. Josh, were sorry were not there with you. Its good to have you on the show. A rare trip to me from new york. Im going to rearrange all the books on the shelves while you guys are gone. Yeah, i have a feeling that was the no good youd be up to. Josh, just give us an update about just give us an update about where the president about what the president thinks about about what happened in the wake of this weekend . He gave a statement today. Bring us up to date on where things are. First thing, we have to give credit where its due to our men and women in Law Enforcement. We saw seamless coordination between state and local Law Enforcement officers and federal officials. You got, you know, Law Enforcement guys on the street walking the beat, doing the Good Police Work to track this individual down. But you also have, you know, fbi experts, using their forensic skill and technology to trace this person. And in the space of a little over 24 hours, you go from a device going off, somewhere in manhattan, to a name being released by the fbi as a potential suspect and then that person just a few hours later, being brought into custody. So this is really a testament to the heroism of our men and women in Law Enforcement. And the investigation is continuing and we obviously want to learn as much as we possibly can about this individual, about what may have motivated him. About what ties he had to other people who may have been involved. And obviously, that work just beginning. Josh, do you agree with the Clinton Campaign that donald trump, through the words he uses in the course of the campaign, can actually hurt americas security . Well, i think theres no denying that the rhetoric that weve heard from a lot of republicans, including the nominee, is contrary to our values and does undermine the argument that we are making against isil. The fact of the matter is, the president has organized an International Coalition to go after isil. And weve taken 14,000 air strikes in iraq and syria combined. Weve had some success in taking isil officials off the battlefield, including leading external Police Reports just in the last call of weeks, but we also know isil is trying to propagate a radical ideology, a bankrupt, false mythology, that theyre establishing a caliphate, and trying to inspire vulnerable individuals into carrying out acts of violence. Thats why we need to make sure were not just taking the fight to isil on the ground, were going to destroy this terrorist organization. But we also need to make sure were doing this consistent with our values and consistent with a strategy that doesnt allow isil to successfully make the case that somehow they represent true islam in a war against the west. Josh, you made a comment earlier today about how the battle between the west and isil is a battle of narrative. The Trump Campaign jumped all over that and said youre basically out to lunch and out of touch by framing the battle in those terms. Whats your reaction to that charge . Theres no disagreement that we have different viewe views o to take on this fight. But the rhetoric does undermine the case were making against isil. First of all, our first and foremost priority is protecting the American People, and that includes using our military power, our intelligence, our Law Enforcement, to keep the American People safe. And the president has demonstrated a willingness and a success in making those orders, designing that strategy, and implementing it. But what we also need to be aware of is the fact that there is a battle that isil wants to wage of narratives. They want to drive the narrative, that they represent islam, and that they are representing islam in a war against the west. That is false it is not true. The fact is, there are millions of patriotic muslims in the United States right now that are serving in our military, that are serving in our Law Enforcement, that are, you know, that are also our teachers and lawyers and doctors and nurses. These are individuals who are making an important contribution to our great country. And to deny that fact or obscure that fact to win political points is shameless, its inconsistent with our values, and it undermines our effectiveness to degrade and ultimately destroy isil. And the rare exception to that are those people who have come here, become naturalized citizens, and have committed acts of terror in the United States. Donald trump and others say that the system needs to be changed dramatically to keep that from happening. Is that a fair charge . Are there things that need to change for vetting of people who come in this country to try to keep those instances, rare as they are, from happening . The thing we first should acknowledge, and this is something our critics do not acknowledge, is the fact that refugees that come to the United States are subjected to more vetting than any other individual who enters the country. More vetting than somebody who enters on a tourist visa. They have to undergo a background check, biometric information is collected about them, and thats run by our military agencies, by international Law Enforcement agencies. They are thoroughly vetted. And what i will say, if there is more we can do to strengthen that even further, were certainly open to that. But we shouldnt enter into a situation where we are doing something that sop republicans have suggested, which is essentially imposing a religious test on people who seek to enter the United States, a muslim ban. But josh, short of a religious test, are you saying the fact that this happens on occasion is just sort of the cost of doing business, or we shouldnt accept the fact that some people are welcomed into this country and then commit acts of terror and we should change the system to stop it. What im suggesting is that the most effective way for us to deal with this is not to shut down the refugee process and try to erect walls and keep people out of our process. What we should do is seek to ensure that weve got strict vetting of refugees for entering the United States. Thats exactly what weve done. We also need to implement an effective Homeland Security strategy, both in terms of Law Enforcement, but also in terms of making clear of people who are at risk of potentially being radicalized by isil that they have a home in the United States. The president spoke movingly about this last year. He went to a mosque outside of baltimore and delivered a direct message to young muslims all across the country. And made clear they do belong in the United States. That they are welcome as part of this american community, and making sure were delivering that message, thats the most effective way for us to prevent isil from radicalizing vulnerable populations here in the United States. That, obviously, is paired with an effective military strategy that is going after isil, that is taking back territory and taking out their leaders, but we also cant lose sight of that important element of our strategy, as well, and the president s determined to make sure we dont lose sight of that. Not only because its an important part of our National Security society, its also consistent with our values as americans. Josh, i want to take you back to a couple of events of a couple days ago and point out what seems to me to be two events in somewhat in contradiction to each other. The first is president obama on friday, when donald trump, in that kind of terse and tepid way that he did, withdrew himself from the posture of asserting that president obama may not have been born in the United States, the birther day. President obama came out and basically say, i dont want to talk about this, its not important, weve got more important things focus on. Literally the next night, you had him in front of the Congressional Black Caucus, as fired up as ive ever seen him, saying that if dont vote for him or if they dont vote for Hillary Clinton, that hed consider it a personal insult. It seems to me hes pretty riled up about donald trump, yet on the birther thing, he tried to slough it off. Whats the emotional state right now of the president . I think hes quite energized about this campaign and he understands the stakes in this campaign. And the stakes in this campaign are not about repudiatining dond trump. The stakes in this campaign are that we continue to build on the progress we made in the last eight years. Lets build on the offeredable care act. Lets make sure we build on the economic process that weve made, by continuing to raise wablgs for low and middle income families. And making sure that were also continuing to reduce the deficit. Lets make sure that were building on our progress in fighting the causes of climate change. Lets make sure that we are more effectively josh in the same way that strengthens our economy. Thats whats at stake in this election, and thats why the president s fired up and ready to go. I get all of that, josh, but i have to say, when the president starts using the phrase personal insult, if people dont vote for Hillary Clinton, it seems like theres sympathetic going on there thats more than a squattered opportunity if Hillary Clinton lost. He seems to be very personally invested in this . Theres no denying that hes very personally invested in what weve done over the last eight years. Hes poured his heart and soul into the progress our country has made and is so proud of the progress weve made. He spoke to a room full of supporters and saying, that my name is not on the ballot, but all the work weve done over the last eight years is, so you need to get engaged and get just as fired up for Hillary Clinton as you are for me. Josh earnest, well see you next time and well be right back. Dont let dust and allergens get between you and lifes beautiful moments. Flonase gives you more complete allergy relief. Most allergy pills only control one inflammatory substance. 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Tonight, once again, the epicenter of the war on terrorism is new york city, the countrys point of entry, its historic melting pot. And once again, we have another name added frighteningly to the vocabulary of violence. Another episode to stir fear,