>> it is so crazy, you said this before, the seven states will determine -- the seven states and the voters inside of those seven states, we're talking about a nation that's got 340 million, and 110, one or 20 million people who probably voted in the presidential election. and it's probably gonna be like 100,000 voters -- [laughter] to determine this. >> it's a little more than that. if you think about the actual swing voters, and then you think people who might vote third-party, and then if you think about people who might not vote, the turnout target, you are across those states, talking 2 million. that's the election. it's basically a small governor's race. it's spread across time zones, but that's what it is. and when you think about it that way, it becomes much more manageable organizationally. >> david plouffe, as always, illuminating. thank you. that is all in on this wednesday night. happy new year to you all. alex wagner tonight starts right now. my friend ali velshi is in for my friend alex. good evening, ali. >> nice to see you in person, chris. and thanks to at-home for joining us this hour. i'm ali velshi in for alex

wagner. ron desantis described it as a crisis at war. donald trump called it an invasion. with less than two weeks left until the iowa caucuses, today, trump and desantis published dueling op-eds in the des moines register. both cast immigration as the most pressing problem facing our country. both candidates promised that they, and they alone, can't fix it. now, what both trump and desantis are advancing in these offices, neither actually fixes to our country's border issues, nor are they actually immigration policies. but they are the sort of plans you can tell people that you have, and they are articulating them to the public. they want to let fewer brown people in. they want immigration to be the most painful process possible. they want to set new records in deportations. again, none of that really addresses any of the root causes of migration, for the actual problems with our immigration system, which are real. but it is a plan, and it's a plan around which republicans are largely unified.

this is video from last friday of migrants, including children and adults, carrying children, attempting to cross the river at the southern border in eagle pass, texas. the texas governor, greg abbott, tweeted this video out today. not out of sympathy for the plight of these migrants that you are looking at on your screen, and their harrowing journey, but to celebrate the razor wire that his government put up to make their journey more difficult. governor abbott is currently facing up with a biden administration in court about whether it was illegal for abbott to put the razor wire of in the first place. but legal or illegal, and it probably is illegal, the cruelty is the point. and, again, this is not just abbott, this is not just desantis, this is not just trump. to take, the speaker of the house, mike johnson, let a delegation of 60 of his fellow republican congresspeople to eagle pass, texas, the same spot on the border that the governor was tweeting about. members of that delegation threatened to shut down the entire federal government if

their demands on border policy are not met. >> shut the border down, or shut the government down. >> we're all committed to that. >> now, what would shutting the borders down actually mean? again, none of what republicans are proposing is anywhere near an actual, tangible solution. but they are putting forward that unified vision, something that has been sort of lacking from democrats. and they are traveling from d.c. to texas for photo ops like this want to push that mission. while at the same time, republican governors are continuing to send buses and planes of migrants from the southern border to northern states like illinois, without warning, using migrants as pawns in a publicity stunt to stick to the blue states. republicans are doing everything they can to telegraph that they are, quote unquote, tough on immigration. just last month, texas passed a new law that will allow state police to usurp the role of federal border patrol and arrest people suspected of illegally crossing the southern border.

the new law would allow local judges to deport those people. today, the biden sued texas to put that new law on hold, for reasons we will discuss in a moment, texas's new law is probably unconstitutional. republicans in the house also announced today that they will begin, weeks from today, they will begin impeachment proceedings against the department of homeland security secretary, alejandro mayorkas, for his handling of the border. what exactly secretary mayorkas has done that warrants impeachment? i don't know. i honestly couldn't tell you, nor could anyone you know. i don't know if anyone could actually tell you a reason for it. but republicans are pushing ahead with impeachment proceedings anyway. there's not a lot of substance in any of the proposals put forward by republicans to fix our country's immigration system. but there is a vision. it's cruel. it's awful. it won't fix anything. but it's a plan. so, what's the biden administration's plan? well, as far as running the country properly, it's been pretty comprehensive and effective.

wages are up. inflation is under control. the stock market is hitting records. consumers are feeling more confident. manufacturing is coming back. and god forbid, if we have another pandemic, our supply chains are strong. and erica has rallied all of nato and 20 other countries to fend off russian expansionism in ukraine. our success there is probably keeping the chinese from invading taiwan. and the north koreans from blowing stuff up. the biden administration has a lot to brag about as we head into 2024, but we have seen time and time again that those issues are not registering with voters. biden just isn't getting credit for them for, the most part, biden's campaign so far has been about what he said he was waiting for in 2020, battle for the soul of the nation. and don't get me wrong, protecting democracy and preventing our nation from slipping into autocracy is actually more important than inflation or the climate or abortion or immigration, because without democracy, you cannot debate or fight for any of those things. but republicans are breaking that issue of immigration front

and center for 2024, so what is the democratic party's vision here? what is the plan? joining us now, the former 2020 presidential candidate, and former secretary of housing and urban development, and former mayor of san antonio, julián castro. and the pulitzer prize-winning staff writer at the atlantic, caitlyn dickerson, an immigration expert. thank you both for being with us. i really appreciate it. secretary castro, let me see the story, when you ran for president in 2020, you did make this central. you actually it's -- one thing you had in common with republicans. this is really an important issue for us as americans. and you had plans about how you would deal with both the border and the concept of immigration, which are different things. in fact, you haven't thought about what you do about the countries from which many of these migrants were coming from, and how to help them, you know, move forward. none of that has materialized into real policy for democrats. >> unfortunately, ali, it seems to oftentimes, democrats are

afraid to talk about this issue. and because of that, they're often very defensive on it. they try to avoid it. they may make policy -- put forth legislation, but don't really spend any time talking about the details of that, or putting forward an overall vision that is based on the values that we share as americans, that this is a country of immigrants, that says that we can manage migration effectively and also humanely, that we can both deal with the flow of people today, and also make sure that we address the root causes of immigration so that people can find safety and opportunity at home so they don't have to seek it in the united states. in that vacuum that exists, republicans fill it with bogeyman politics, with fearmongering, with all the kind of dog and pony show politics that we saw speaker johnson engage in at the border today. they do it over and over and over. and democrats need to flip into

a mode of going on offense, instead of being so defensive, or else the public is gonna buy what the republicans are selling. >> kaitlan, you've spent so much on this. you understand the distinction between immigration policy, border flow and management, which is its own thing, and the root causes, why people are coming to this country. they are separate issues. democrats really want to lean into a solution to this, all they need to do is read your stuff. what can they do to own this issue, as opposed to, you know, constantly being under the defensive about it? >> well, thank you, ali. what i hear from voters is this same question that you are echoing very loudly right now. you know, what we hear from elected officials on the democratic side, including the president, is just these no. no, we shouldn't get rid of asylum. no, we shouldn't close the border. no, we shouldn't enact mass deportations. and then, the question is, well, what should we actually do instead?

i think that almost what all americans agree on is that they want a system that works, and what most americans agree on is that they want at system that is humane. and i think starting from a place where you have a functioning system, where you address the immigration backlogs, where you have a place for people to go to apply to get a legal pathway into the united states if they've gone through vetting processes, i mean, that seems to be the baseline. and i agree that democrats have been too scared to put forth any ideas as to how to go about doing this. i mean, there are a lot of resources being spent on border security, and a lot of resources being set on immigration, spent on immigration. and there are people who know how to we organize them, to make that system work. it's just a matter of coming out of that defensive crouch that democrats are in currently, and actually putting forth a position, a plan. >> secretary castro, you talk

about creating a pathway to citizenship for people who come into this country. we have a 3.7% unemployment rate. we just have done nothing but go up for the last two years. there's this strange argument that immigrants make wages go down. it's been disproved several times. but i remember talking to john huntsman when he was governor of ohio, many, many years ago. he was one of a number of western governors who wanted work permits and ways to get migrant workers into america for agricultural work. we have since realized we need people for manufacturing work, for construction work. that need for immigrants is acute in this country. it doesn't seem so hard to figure out what's the system by which we will manage that, determine who it is we like to let into the country, determine how the pace by which we let them in and fix the problems that kaitlan was talking about, because they're just problems, they are logistical problems more than anything else. logisti>> yeah, we were sittina three and a half percent unemployment rate right now in

the u.s.. and there's a lot of industries that already rely on these immigrants for labor. and jobs that unfortunately americans don't want to do. and that's the reality, whether people like it or not, that's the reality out there. and this area of the need for this immigrant labor and our economy, i think, that's an intersection where you may see some progress in the years to come. unfortunately, in the last few years, the business end of the republican party has not had a strong voice when it comes to trying to muster support for these kinds of measures, compromises on immigration reform. in fact, you don't hear that argument very often anymore. but it's a reality. we know it here in texas. we know it in other border states and throughout the country, places like utah, that you mentioned. my hope is that as congress continues to pursue potential legislation, and the economic needs of the country, as it involves these immigrants, will

be under consideration. >> kaitlan, one of the things you and i have talked about for a long time, this has been a decades long failure by both parties. this could have been fixed a long time ago. but this cruelty was not a hallmark of the republican party. in fact, former president bush, jeb bush of florida, they all have views about integration and immigration policy that are much more in line with mainstream views. the cruelty is not part of the way they see things. they do see things as, as the secretary says, from a sort of economic perspective, that we need these people in our country. we don't give birth to enough people to supply our workforce on an ongoing basis. what's the shift in the republican party? and why has that worked so well? where is this from? i know some of it was, sheriff are up higher, some of it donald trump coming down the stairs from the trump tower, announcing his candidacy. but wanted that shift happened? >> i will say the shift is actually not just occurring

within republicans. i think the entire country really has moved to the right on immigration. i think that starts with trump 's rhetoric, running in 2016, and i think that it continues today because, as you've said, republicans have so well harnessed this message. when you combine very scary rhetoric with the feeling of scarcity, which is always an issue to some degree in this country, whether we're talking about, you know, moments when unemployment is higher, unlike now, or when you are talking about being in a pandemic. we've got a lot of social issues in this country. a lot of people who feel like they need help. and so, when you have a scapegoat put in front of you, you know, pointing the finger of blame, it's a very powerful message. and it's a convincing one. you know, joe arpaio was famously unpopular. he was an elected official. he had support. but not somebody who could have run for president and won. and now, the entire republican slate of candidates, hoping to run against president biden, are repeating these messages of

donald trump. it's important to point out, though, you asked me earlier, what works? what should be on the table for consideration? deterrence, and in particular, policies that are really, really harsh and cruel, you know, taking peoples children away from their parents, subjecting them to awful conditions in detention centers for months at a time. these deterrence measures do not work -- >> their cruel and they don't solve the problems. >> right. >> secretary, when you and i met, you were mayor of san antonio. the mayors in this country are in an interesting situation. there are democratic mayors of cities that either consider themselves officially sanctuary cities or don't. but they generally have positive views on immigration, and are now feeling the squeeze because of these buses and these airplanes that are showing up in cities around the country. these are cities, and governors now, who are pressuring the federal government to say, you have to solve this problem. because now, these migrants are in our towns and our states. again, it's a ruse, but it's

working. it's republican governors like desantis and abbott causing northeastern mayors and governors, democrats, to put the squeeze on the federal government. >> yes, i mean, it's using these migrants as political pawns. it's cruel, but it's not done your politics, if we just analyzing the politics of it. and it has had that desired effects of making these mayors pressure the biden administration to come up with resources. here is the thing, ali. the biden administration has pushed for more resources, for whether it's new york, chicago, or other places, and also for some fixes, like allowing these migrants to be able to get work permits more quickly so that they can provide for themselves while they await their asylum claim. but republicans won't go along with that. at every juncture, they actually block potential solutions, and then they scream about how broken the system is.

that is that tragedy, that is the folly here, and that's the hypocrisy of his republican party. >> i'm gonna ask our viewers if they haven't done so, to look of everything that kate has written. in fact, recently, you had a remarkable feast that earned you a pulitzer prize. it's important for people to understand, this is not a solution that doesn't have answers. it's not an unsolvable problem. secretary castro, good to see you as always. thank you again, you made this a major issue when you are running for president. you are two of the best people to talk to about this important issue, former secretary of presidential candidate julián castro, pulitzer prize-winning staff writer at the atlantic, caitlyn dickerson. we appreciate your time this evening. coming up, we will talk to biden's deputy campaign manager about the presidents plans to use january 6th as an anniversary to draw contrast with donald trump. first, the former president asked the supreme court to help him out on the colorado primary ballot. he says let the people decide. we'll get to the legal analysis on that, next. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

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tonight, donald trump's lawyers are asking the u.s. supreme court to reverse the colorado supreme court's decision to remove him from that state's ballot. in december, the state supreme court ruled that trump should be removed from colorado's primary ballot because of his involvement in the january 6th

violence, violence that the colorado court called an insurrection. the colorado supreme court was the first to issue such a landmark ruling, citing a post civil war constitutional amendment that prohibits insurrectionists from holding office. the court said that trump had engaged in an insurrection and consequently is disqualified from holding the office of the president. now, just a few hours ago, trump's lawyers asked the united states supreme court to weigh in on this, as expected. his lawyers say the colorado supreme court got it wrong. they write, hot, it was not insurrection, and president trump was in norway engaged in insurrection. they say the question of trump's eligibility is reserved for congress not the state courts to decide. they want the united states supreme court to, quote, we turn the right to vote for their candidate of choice to the voters. the colorado's high court is not the only one grappling with this question. last week, maine's secretary of state barred trump from that state's primary ballot. and trump's candidacy is being

challenged in 17 other states. the supreme courts 6 to 3 conservative majority is expected to take up the question of whether trump is constitutionally eligible to run for president and its decision could reshape the race. joining me now, barb mcquade, former u.s. attorney for the eastern district of michigan, and msnbc legal analyst, and author of a new book coming out next month titled, attack from within: how disinformation is sabotaging america. i cannot wait to get my hands on that. barbara, thank you for being here. donald trump's lawyers are latching on to something that has been popularized in the media recently. and that is notwithstanding the constitution section three of the 14th amendment, which disqualifies someone who has taken an oath from running for office, the people should decide. and that's an interesting question because there are many, like judge luttig, like jamie raskin, constitutional experts who say that's not an either or thing when it comes to

something that and the constitution. you can say the court got the interpretation wrong. what if the constitution says x, you can't just decide, well, we'll just let the people decide. >> yes, this is an argument that has some appeal at a got level. we think about our democracy, everybody gets to cast a vote, and choose what they want for president. but the constitution itself is created by the will of the people. even the 14th amendment had to be approved by two thirds of congress, and then three quarters of the states. and so, we created through the democratic process, the qualifications for being president. there is an age limit. there is a term limit. there's a citizenship limit. and there's also a limit that you cannot be an insurrectionist. so, these are hard questions. the court is gonna have to look at this and decide how to sign this question. but the idea that we just disregard the 14th amendment, and say it's for the people, it's the weakest argument in trump's new petition. >> so, the slightly less less weak argument, no one that a court can't consider is whether january 6th was an insurrection,

whether or not trump took part in it. the colorado supreme court did not take the easy way out of this thing. they really, really examined it. they looked at various ways in which the term, rebellion, in the constitution could have been interpreted and give care and comfort to those who participated in could be interpreted. and they deliberated. they came out with a decision that they've said donald trump did participate in an insurrection. it's interesting because a lot of the republican argument is that there's been no adjudication of that matter. >> yes, i think this is the weakest part of trump's new petition, you know, kind of a single paragraph, he says, you know, and insurrection means waging war against the united states, like the civil war. and since this was a peaceful protest that got out of hand, that's something completely different, end of story. i don't think it's as simple as that. i think the language, and of course, the supreme court in this current makeup is a very

big on original textualism. and so, what was the common public understanding at that time of the 14th amendment? and there are certainly some debates at that time that's up, we want to make sure this doesn't apply just to our current situation with a civil war, but all instructions that may come in the future. it's a hard question, but i don't think donald trump's brief tackles it with the seriousness it is deserving. >> let's just put some meat on those bones. when this amendment was written out and ratified after the civil war, there was a pretty clear idea of what rebellion looked like, because it had been in a civil war. is donald trump's team leaning into the fact that you can't compare january 6th visit to the civil war, or he didn't raise an army. i've heard all sorts of arguments. >> yes, they say this wasn't an insurrection. and insurrection only stance if you are waging war against the united states, and even if it was an insurrection, donald trump did not engage in it, which is the ward in the 14th

amendment, because all he did was give a speech, and that was protected by the first amendment. so, that's, some of the same arguments that we've heard before. one of the arguments i've heard is that due process requires that he'd be found beyond reasonable doubt to have engaged in insurrection. and that is certainly the case, if he doesn't make that argument, i think that in most civil matters, preponderance of the evidence is the standard that can be used. and other evidence can be used. as the colorado supreme court did, to the january six house committee hearings, it seems to be perfectly appropriate for determining whether there was or wasn't an insurrection. >> there was a sense amongst those who had been proponents of the 14th amendment, section three, that the colorado case, the 17 states that have a view on whether or not trump should be disqualified from running, that the colorado case was the strongest. how do you evaluate that? are they -- i've heard people ask me, aren't they, all constitutionally applicable in

all states? >> yes, it is. but each of these states is looking at a different procedural point. i think people think, and i agree that the colorado case is the strongest, because they actually had a trial. they brought in witnesses. they had some of the police officers who were there on the capitol on january 6th testifying. and they had expert witnesses testify. and in some of these other states, they have either relied solely on the record of the house committee, or have decided it is on the basis of some procedural issues. so, this one seems to be the one that is the appropriate vehicle for the court to look at this question. and i do agree with one thing in trump's brief that this is a significant public question that require prompt decision by the supreme court. >> trump's lawyer, elena hub, said on fox news today, interesting, trump is deeply concerned that the supreme court justices, particularly the ones he appointed, may shy away from being pro trump because they're trying so a hard to look neutral. i imagine that is not a legal

argument, but there is some messaging that's intended to get these supreme court justices to say, don't overdo it, don't bend over backwards to not look like you're on my side. i don't know how a lawyer with your experience evaluated statement like that. >> i think they are working the rafts. but i don't think, you don't, certainly, this court has a very conservative worldview. i don't know that they're in a bag for trump. but i do think that it may be easier for them to find some off ramp to avoid deciding the question. and donald trump's brief provides them with a number of off-ramps, for example, finding that the office of presidency is not covered by the 14th amendment. or the other one they raised, which is, i had heard this before, which is the 14th amendment does not talk about whether someone can run for president, only whether they can hold the office for president. and so, all of this is premature. you ought to be able to run, even get elected. and it's up to congress to decide whether he gets seated in january of 2025.

>> if you ever get invited to a constitutional convention, words matter. barbara, great to see you. looking forward to the book. thank you, as always. barbara mcquade. we've got lots more ahead tonight, including biden's election year message reset. principal deputy campaign manager for biden 2024 joining me later in the hour to discuss. but first, new developments, shedding light on who was behind the deadly explosion in lebanon this week that killed a top hamas official. suspected of being directly involved in the october 7th terrorist attacks. more on that, after the break. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

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developments related to the ongoing war between israel and hamas and the broader region. there are images from an explosion this week in the suburb of beirut, lebanon's capital, that killed at least seven members of hamas, including saleh al-arouri, the commander of hamas's military weighing in the west bank, and the deputy chairman of the group's political bureau. he is suspected of being directly involved in the october 7th terrorist attacks against israel that killed more than 1200 people. nbc news is reporting tonight that israel did not notify the united states in advance of this strike, but did inform washington as it was underway. that is according to two u.s. officials, a u.s. defense official, and a person briefed

on the operation. israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu has suggested in the past that al-arouri was a potential target. his military has vowed to hunt down all hamas leaders involved in the october 7th attack. as of now, israel has not claimed responsibility for mondays assassinations. but today, israel's mossad spy chief said that he was committed to, quote, settling that score with hamas, adding, quote, let every arab mother know that if her son took part directly or indirectly in the october 7th massacre, his blood is forfeit. end quote. let's strike on al-arouri marks the first assassination of a top hamas official outside of the west bank in gaza and recent years, and it comes at a time when officials across the region and here in the united states are worried about the war in gaza igniting wider regional conflict. al-arouri was a key figure who helped repair hamas's relationship with iran. his death, according to experts, could now be perceived as a

warning to tehran, which is armed and financed hamas over the years. iran's leaders have not made public comments about al-arouri death, but iran's islamic proxies in the middle east, including hezbollah in lebanon, have already vowed to retaliate. hezbollah chief hassan nasrallah said that, quote, this crime will not go unpunished. hezbollah's leaders also claimed today that nine of its fighters have been killed with clashes with israeli forces in the past 24 hours. that raises the total number to 148 hezbollah fighters since the october 7th attack. meanwhile, 1600 miles east of beirut, a separate incident today shocked the region that's already on edge. in the central iranian city of kerman, two explosions, minutes apart, killed nearly 100 people who were attending attending a memorial for qasem soleimani. he is a senior, was, a senior iranian general assassinated in 2020 by a u.s. drone strike. the first of the two explosions

hit around three pm local time near's two in the kerman martyr's cemetery. 15 minutes later, a second explosion went off about 2000 feet away. iranian tv footage shows people running, bodies transported from the scene, and ambulances leaving through large crowds. they are one in government said it was a terrorist attack. it's unclear whether the blasts in iran have anything to do with the israel-hamas war. but the white house today denied any involvement in them. they also said they do not believe israel was behind it. u.s. officials and experts consulted by nbc think the attack could be the work of i.s.i.s.. given the militants long running conflict with tehran and the relatively unsophisticated way in which the blast was carried out. still ahead tonight, president biden is statistically deadlocked with trump at the polls. but his campaign is out with a plan to help their guy pull ahead? the question is will it work? i'll talk with biden's principal deputy campaign manager about that next. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

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clansman at white supremacy and neo-nazis come out in the open and that's when we heard the words of the president of the united states that stunned the world and shocked the conscience of this nation. he said there were, quote, some very fine people on both sides, very fine people on both sides. if we give donald trump eight years in the white house, he will forever and fundamentally

alter the character of this nation. that was joe biden, when he launched his campaign for president four years ago, citing the 2017 white supremacist riot in charlottesville, virginia. now, joe biden is poised to face off against donald trump the second time, and he is returning to similar themes. on friday, president biden will mark the third anniversary of the january 6th attack with a speech at valley forge, pennsylvania. then on monday, biden's gonna visit mother emmanuel amy church in charleston, south carolina where nine churchgoers were killed by a white supremacist in 2015. part of what the washington post reports is biden's new election year push to try and center his campaign on central message, that american democracy would not survive another trump presidency. the message is stark, but the stark message has effectively been the central case against donald trump for the last four years. and yet, both continue to show biden and trump in a dead heat.

those who do not think that this election is a battle for the soul of america, or for the future of democracy appear to be unmoved by those arguments. and if those voters remain unmoved, then the future of democracy and this nation itself may be at risk. joining us now is clinton forwards, principal deputy campaign manager for joe biden's 2024 reelection campaign. it's good to see you, thank you for being here tonight. i do not envy you and your team at the job you have to do. that is a hell of a lift. if you cannot look at the last four years, three plus years of what donald trump spin up to, and the four years before that and doria bout the existential nature of our democracy, i don't know what it is you plan to tell people to convince them otherwise? >> first of all, thank you for having me. it is the one thing i can assure you, that our team is well prepared to do it. we have to make the case, donald trump does not continue to pose an existential threat

to our democracy. as you heard president biden lay out, and that is exactly what he was defeated. donald trump tells us every single day that the type of president he would be if use a bill to gain control of the white house again. that's being a dictator. it's plain and simple. we have to bring this case to the american people. >> it's not even obscure, he just says it. he says, the words, he says words that mussolini used and, yet, the message about trump as a threat to the soul of the nation, which worked in 2020, arguably, that there is worse, because now his team is smarter, now he says the quiet part out loud, and yet, the polling does not indicate that the fear is breaking through so, what do you do? i'm a regular people who say that donald trump never does anything, he just talks a big game. with detail to those people? >> look, we continue to do

exactly what we laid out to do. we continue to say that will take this case directly to voters. we continue to put ourselves in a position to remind them. look, for the past four years, as donald trump has been out at the spotlight, american voters have been focused on the things that matter, kitchen table issues, the economy, joe biden brought 4 million jobs, drove inflation down, brought cost down, created jobs. look, those are the things that we pay attention. we do need to remind that just because donald has not been in front of the camera for the past two and a half years, does not mean that donald trump is not a factor. this is the front runner in the republican party. the others in the camp don't believe this. african americans have to work for development training for slavery, and the list goes on and on. they are a danger to everything we build, and the fact that we clawed that from the brink of destruction, that was trump put assad, after covid and the presidency, where he got it social service programs that millions of americans depend on. these are tangible things that

donald trump -- i did not know what it was like to go into an airport before donald trump's muslim ban, the rhetoric he uses today. it's the same type of rhetoric he's is now. it's real and vibrant today as it was four years ago. or make that case, and make that every single day from now until the election. >> 2020 had an interesting coalition of people from across the spectrum politically, including progressives and young people. how worried are you, and let's pretend we're not on tv here, give me an honest answer. how worried are you about the loss of some of these progressives from groups who are feeling this administration is not, sort of, putting itself forward on certain issues that they care about, whether it's climate, or, whether it's at the israel hamas war, which continues to affect people in the administration, if you think the administration is not have a nuanced enough you on this? >> first of all, the coalition that joe biden and kamala

harris had put together, the largest coalition of voters in presidential history, they have the most at stake, young voters, voters of color, young voters, we are under no illusion, this will be a close election. when it comes to the issues and accomplishments, joe biden as the artists investment in climate history. he's done marvelous work on the economy, when it comes to israel and hamas. he's been great as commander-in-chief, which is great for the stark contrast of how republican alternative approach would be. look, we have to double down and do the work. i think that these voters know exactly what is at stake. we'll talk about going to deliver the speech. i think it's fitting, because it's the place where our founders got together with colonial militias to fight for our democracy. that's exactly what we'll have to do with the constituency group that you mentioned. what to bring them all and doubled down on this fight for our democracy and hopefully put that on trump and the

republican party, the maga agenda behind us. >> you're totally right. that some of these folks dissatisfied with the biden administration would not necessarily be served by a trump administration, particularly, people frustrated by this administration's handling of israel and hamas. i am not sure how they think it would be better under a trump administration, but it's a real issue. you're tommy, we have to go out and talk to these people. what will you actually say? when somebody says to you, 23,000 people are dead in gaza, funded by american military, you've been with american support, some people calling it looks like a genocide. what is the actual answer? what do you say to them? >> look, what i would say is that joe biden is thinking about the safety of america, and that joe biden has approach this issue not as a political one but from the perspective of commander and chief from the outset of this situation. and has stayed steady, held a steady hand in foreign policy,

something that the republican party is about. the other thing that the president does and tells us is that we have to engage with people, even when they disagree with us on policy matters. that is what our campaign will do. i want to be explicitly clear about, this that at the end of the day, this election is between somebody who's had for years to show us what they'll do, and has ripped away rights and freedoms, put us in a position, where we are breaking about the rights and freedoms, women's right to choose over what they do with their body, or joe biden and kamala harris wake up every day to think about how to put america first. and they lobby for people in america a little bit easier. we have to do that. we have to continue to build towards that progress. that is the case that i'll make. when it comes to israel hamas, it's not a political one, it's about the safety of america, the safety of the world on a global standing, and, that is simply a, we'll put that up against anything that the

republicans are doing. joe biden, kamala harris on the economy, domestically here, and foreign policy related, with everything going on. now it's not a time to put somebody back in office, who's had four years and fell asleep on the wheel and made a mockery of america on the global stage or any of the other republicans who are running, who don't understand where half the places are. look, at the end of the day, we are very confident about what the president in the administration have done for the american people, and when it comes to foreign policy -- >> quentin fulks, good to talk to you tonight, thank you for being with us. the principal deputy campaign manager for joe biden's reelection campaign. appreciate it. one more story for you tonight. republican presidential hopefuls not named donald trump barnstorm to the hawkeye state today. their message to voters less than two weeks out from the iowa caucus. we'll tell you next. we'll tell you next. prevagen helps your brain and actually improves memory. the secret is an ingredient originally discovered...

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go until the iowa caucuses, the republican presidential candidates trailing donald trump are at the hawkeye state, trying to move voters. and nikki haley's case, she is trying to clean up towards, after failing to mention slavery in response to a question about the cost of a civil war at a campaign stop in new hampshire last week. this was nikki haley today. >> without question, slavery was a part of the civil war. it goes without saying in south carolina. we know it, we hear about it in school. we hear about it where we live, it's just a deep part of south carolina. we know that. i should have set, slavery off the bat. i took that as a given. >> nikki haley's home state was the birthplace of this succession that sparked the civil war over slavery. so her falls firming of the history is especially confusing. it also does not square with her actions when she was the governor of that state to remove the confederate battle

flag from the state capitol grounds after the deadly 2015 mass shooting at the mother emmanuel a.m.a. church in charleston. nikki haley made that decision, a brave decision, after learning of gun man's a dylan roofs fixation with that racists emblem. meanwhile, another republican presidential contender there, ramaswamy, he claimed -- while denying white supremacy that he has no clue who dylan roof is. >> this myth of white supremacy, the closest we can find is -- >> mr. ramaswamy, how can you say that when talking about white supremacy, when people like dylan roof exists? >> i don't know who that is. >> so vivek ramaswamy and nikki haley have to have a sit-down about white supremacy. republican presidential candidates quickly hope the cause of the civil war, showing little awareness, but one of the deadliest races massacres in the united states, it's a jarring, especially as the need grows for this nation to have more nuanced conversations

about race and equality, unless you think that vivek ramaswamy's embrace of right-wing talking points is admiration, just listen to what he thinks about his latest endorsement. >> you know what, they hit me for yesterday, but i tell you about steve king's endorsement in this race. somebody who is actually a patriot. >> yeah, the steve king, the former iowa congressman who basically claimed once that immigrants had, quote, cavs at the size of cantaloupes from smuggling drugs into this country. who's white nationalist rhetoric became so toxic, that his house republican colleagues stripped him of all his committee assignments. elsewhere in iowa, ron desantis, the first candidate to have his way through all 99 counties in that state, found i'm self in an awkward face-off with a voter who thought that he was too soft on trump. >> can i be honest with you? >> sure. >> okay, so, i think a lot of us voted for trump. and i have a couple questions. for one, why haven't you gone

directly after him? polls are down. he's you know, up -- >> what do you mean going directly after? >> i mean your, in my viewpoint, you're going pretty soft on him. >> i've articulated all the differences is, time and time again on the campaign trail. i, know i think there is a narrative -- i think the narrative is this. with the media wants is, they want republican candidates to just kind of smear him personally, and i do that. that's not how i roll. >> rhonda scent this would rather talk to an iowa voter this close to the caucuses and then speak out forcefully against a trump, but a, it's about two weeks away, i guess. it's hard to find some words. that's it for tonight. it's time for the last word with lawrence o'donnell. good evening, my friend. >> good evening, ali. f with donald trump going to the supreme court tonight, we have andrew weissmann and neal katyal lead