i think he's having a midlife crisis i'm not. you got us t-mobile home internet lite. after a week of streaming they knocked us down... ...to dial up speeds. like from the 90s. great times. all i can do say is that my life is pre-- i like watching the puddles gather rain. -hey, your mom and i procreated to that song. oh, ew! i think you've said enough. why don't we just switch to xfinity like everyone else? then you would know what year it was. i know what year it is. ? it good morning, it is saturday, february 3rd. emily cemented is here but symone sanders-townsend and

michael steele. we are following the breaking news on the u.s. air strikes hitting targets in iraq and syria, including new reaction from the iraqi government. also, donald trump's election interference trial is officially delayed, what it means for his legal timeline. it is election day in south carolina. congressman james clyburn joins us as democrats their head to the polls. it is a very busy day of news, welcome to the weekend. we begin this weekend with the breaking news, justin, state media in iraq now reporting that the foreign ministry has summoned the highest ranking u.s. diplomat in baghdad to opper a former protest over last night's airstrikes in iraq and syria. the u.s. military says it hit more than 85 targets facilities used by iran's revolutionary guard and the militias they

sponsor in the region. this is the first wave of what officials say could be a weeks- long campaign in response to the deaths of three american soldiers in jordan last weekend. joining us now is nbc news chief international correspondent, tara simmons and nbc news foreign correspondent, raf sanchez. >> i heard you last hour with our colleague, andrea mitchell, talking about the impact of these strikes and how it seems to be limited. can you just -- what has this intra impact been? is this speaking to the broadening concerns about a wider conflict in the region? >> all of those things. the operation began at around midnight time in the region here. and they were over within an hour, 125 precision munitions dropped, including by u.s. b

one bombers flying from the continental united states. the operation focused on the border between iraq and syria. the border that runs to jordan, where of course when those three u.s. servicemen and women were killed last weekend. reports here in the region, from iraqi media i'm citing iraqi officials say 16 were killed, 3600 here. that is according to the reports, including civilians. meanwhile, in syria, the syrian observatory for human rights, which monitors these things, says 26 sites in eastern syria were hit. 18 iranian-backed militias were killed. this is clearly an escalation by the u.s. drone facilities were hit, munitions, iranian- backed militia were killed.

they -- win it was also limited in the area. if you want to call it a region near to where the strike that killed americans hop in, when the biden administration said don't kill americans. as you mentioned at the top, that big, said it has prompted a blistering response from the iraqi government, accusing the u.s. of deception for suggesting that they were warned about this, saying that iraq is on the edge of the abyss. now it's important to remember that iraq is part of the u.s. and a partner of iran. the iraqi government is in a difficult position. certainly one of the risks here is that these strikes will push the iraqi government more towards iran. there are programed voices calling for the u.s. to be pushed out of iraq. the same voices have said that in the past but the risk is that it gets louder. for many americans, paying

attention, i'm -- when about the extent of iranian influence and facilities across the region. just to give you an example, this might be the first stage of the operation, even after the operation took place, there were fresh strikes on the houthi rebels in yemen. another is the iranian-backed group. hours later, reports said that israel carried out a strike on the revolutionary guard south of damascus. the risks here, there are many risks but the real risks are or that it's an escalation that leads to more escalation into fuels wider war in the region. conversely, tehran doesn't get the message and back off of its strategic goals in the region. >> raf, they're picking up on cues about the escalation of this. you have the u.s. sending a

clear signal, or rockies responding with the iranians meddling in the background. what is anticipated by the administration of how this moves forward? do they see this as a one and done, you hit us, we responded, don't kill americans as kira just noted. or is there concern or preparation for potential escalation going forward as this blistering attack as keir just noted, is elevating the game for iran, iraq and the u.s.? >> michael, you saw the president saying in his statement overnight, this is the beginning of the u.s. response which will continue. u.s. officials have been telling nbc news consistently since sunday that this is likely to be a multi day, potentially multi week american campaign. we've already seen that it's taking place in multiple countries. and you can bet that an

american base across the region, al-assad air base in western iraq to give you an example, they will be hardening their defenses in case the iranian-backed militant groups do decide that they are going to escalate further. the hope is that tehran gets the message and the u.s. will not tolerate attacks on american facilities. and that it does what it can to rein in the proxy groups across the region. it is not totally clear, we should say, that iran will tell these iraqi groups, the syrian groups, the yemeni groups, stop shooting. we can't afford it. we have a certain level of autonomy themselves. i will say, here in israel, what is going on is american strikes are being very very closely watched. prime minister benjamin netanyahu will not be at all sorry to see american firepower exerted against iranian influence in the region.

but the strikes are coming at an incredibly delicate moment in the negotiations between israel and hamas to pause the fighting in gaza, potentially get more humanitarian aid to civilians and secure the release of of the hundred and 30 or so israeli hostages who are still being held in gaza. so far there is no indication that american strikes in eastern syria, western iraq, would derail these talks. but there are still major obstacles, hamas is saying that as part of any deal there needs to be an end to the war in gaza. and israel needs to release thousands of palestinian prisoners, some of whom are senior hamas officials convicted of terrorism. israel is saying that is not something it is prepared to do. in fact, it is threatening to attack the city of rafah in southern gaza where more than 1 million palestinians are currently sheltering. at this moment you have the u.s. managing these airstrikes across the region but also

trying to keep those talks alive not to get this deal over the line. guys? >> raf sanchez, and nbc's keir simmons for us. former cia director and msnbc senior national security and intelligence analyst, john brennan. thank you for being with us. before we get into the specificity of these attacks, the response we are now hearing from iraq, i want to talk about the complexity of the decision that the biden administration had to make here. a need to respond balanced by and need to not be drawn into a larger war. >> well, the u.s. government, the biden administration, continues to support the presence of our troops in the area. the ones that were attacked in jordan have been there for many years, working with the jordanian government.

when u.s. forces are attacked, the casualties, three dead and over 50 wounded, it was incumbent by the administration to respond appropriately, to take away the capabilities of these proxy groups. the biden administration is trying to decide exactly how to balance the need to respond to these attacks, the aggressive attacks on the part of iranian proxies, without triggering a broader war. what they've done is target these areas, these sites, that have been responsible for carrying out these attacks. and also the sites where the iranian al-quds force, which is the element of the iranian revolutionary guard that has worked these -- for many years. this is embedded there. it's a clear signal for iran that the united states will not tolerate these attacks. but also it's an effort to try to degrade as severely as possible the capabilities of these troops from carrying out further attacks. >> listen director, the question we have now is, what are the next steps for the

administration? how did they prosecute this response with iraq? but also, as nbc news correspondents have just reported, do the delicate dance with israel to bring some stability to the region? you have secretary blinken traveling to the middle east tomorrow. he's also going to go next week to visit saudi arabia, egypt, qatar and israel. what do you think of the messaging from the administration? in light of what happened today? >> well, the middle east is very complex, there are a number of things happening simultaneously. secretary blinken is going to the region to push forward as far as seeking a cease-fire in gaza and the release of the hostages that hamas continues to hold. at the same time, secretary blinken is going to talk to leaders in the region, the saudis and others, about the need for the united states to

continue to take action to prevent the iranians from exerting its influence and continuing to provoke violence in many parts of the region. i do believe that there is going to be receptivity privately to blinken's explanation as far as what the united states is trying to do to balance the equities we have here. they support the ad -- negotiations ongoing between israel and hamas about the negotiations and gaza. doing what we must in order to protect our troops, interest, and prevent the export of iran's revolution to the rest of the region. >> director brennan, symone sanders-townsend here, can we talk about the fact that today the iranians are essentially noting that they did not know in advance about the attack. the americans have said that they did notify the iranians.

they are now saying otherwise. talk about this, why is that a factor here in terms of the united states? they want to respond and again, note that the killing of americans is not tolerated, but i don't think the united states government is trying to escalate issues within the region as well. talk about why iran noted that, from their perspective, they didn't know about this. could that be a problem? >> yes, i think you're referencing the iraqi government. the rockies are claiming that -- these strikes took place in syria as well as a rock. we are closely working with the iraqi government. we have troops there working with him to bring a semblance of security and stability to the country. i'm sure that the biden administration to defy the iraqi government given that these strikes are going to take place on iraqi territory. however, this part of western

iraq, this province, this area, it's not been governed or police by the iraqi government. these militias are basically tribal elements that have free reign in this area. it is ungoverned space. the united states is basically saying to the iraqi government, if you're not going to take care of this problem within your own territory, we are forced to do so and we will do so. so i think the strikes were very targeted, they were focused, they try to prevent any type of civilian casualty and they were directed against these proxy groups that have the capabilities to continue to carry out the strikes. so i am confident that the united states government notified the iraqi government in advance, the iraqis though, i think for public purposes, are going to still criticize these strikes as big a violation of iraq's sovereignty. >> director brandon, there is military might and there's also other tools that the u.s. has a disposal, intel, cyber, the new york times reporting to american officials saying that the united states also

conducted cyber operations against iranian targets on friday. they declined to provide further details. can you give us a sense of what is likely happening behind the scenes? the elements of this that we cannot see specifically the role of the cia? >> well, i believe that there is going to be other dimensions, as the point, out that are not going to be publicly visible. and on the cyber front, what i think we will try to do is degrade the command and control communication systems in place between the iranian government, originally -- and these various groups as a way to disrupt their activities. and therefore, whether or not it is elements of the intelligence community, the u.s. military, i think this is going to be a multi dimensional -- with the military capabilities of these groups, disrupting those capabilities behind the scenes that enable them to carry out these attacks. i wouldn't be surprised if there are some things that are directed against the iranians,

not military action against iran proper, but in addition to possible cyber operations, the biden administration might decide to an act financial -- against the iranian government, given that iran's support for these groups really has enabled them to carry out these attacks. just the way a road supports hamas was really critical to hamas's ability to carry out the atrocities against israel on october 7th. >> along those lines i think it is notable that even just on thursday, when secretary austin was doing a press conference, his first big press conference since his hospitalization at the department of defense, he was very particular not to blame iran for the attacks that killed the three united states service members. i think folks listening to this right now might say, well, why are we not being specific? why are the americans and the folks in government not just calling the thing a thing.

can you unpack that for folks? >> well i think there has been a fair amount of blame placed on iran by the u.s. government officials. president biden, when he was asked the other day in front of the white house, the west lawn, he said that iran does bear responsibility for this because if it were not for our wrongs provision of weapons ordinance musicians, financial support and other types of things, these groups will not be able to carry out these attacks. iran has been doing this for many many years across the middle east. it cultivates these relationships with these groups as a way to extend its influence. to have a presence and capability inside of iraq, syria, yemen, and other areas, it goes to supporting the fellow shia extremist groups but also provide support from various sunni islamic groups. hamas is an islamic group as well. iran's hand is clearly visible in this. at the same time i think biden

administration does not want to trigger a broader conflict and war by attacking iran directly. but it will go -- iranian presence. given that they are embedded with these proxy forces in or carrying out, on a daily basis, these attacks against u.s. forces in the region. >> former cia director, john brennan. could not think of a better person to have with us this morning to unpack these very critical developments. we appreciate your time, sir. up next, we are live at the white house with president biden's response following yesterday's strikes. later, why -- i think we will have to get a little longer for donald trump's federal election interference trial to get started. that's just what's happening. you're watching the weekend on msnbc.

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following the strikes of iraq and syria -- this is what he said in part. the united states does not seek conflict or middle east or anywhere else in the world. but all those who might seek to do us harm, no, this if you heartbroken we will respond. and respond, the united states. did the strikes came hours after the president attended the dignified transfer of the three follow service members killed in last week's attack in jordan. that is -- of carrollton,

georgia. special -- bladed sanders of waycross, georgia, needs -- of savannah, georgia. let's bring in nbc news white house correspondent, allie raffa, joins us from the white house. ali, we've been told by the administration that this is likely to be a tiered response. what are they saying about the success of these attacks and where they anticipate things going in the coming days? >> you see we have heard white house officials repeatedly say that this is going to be phase one of this multi tiered approach that could last for days, possibly even weeks. it could entail financial targets in the form of sanctions, possibly cyber sphere to interrupt communications and coordination's for these iranian-backed militia groups. as far as the first phase and how u.s. officials see its execution, remember that this was an extremely complex decision-making process to even get to this point, officials

really having several main goals and objectives out of this response. the president hoping to send this message to iran, to these iranian-backed proxies, to retaliate against last weekend's attack on jordan that killed three u.s. service members. also defend u.s. forces still in this region by issuing this warning to these groups to not try to provoke the united states, potentially dragging the united states but deeper into the conflict by taking advantage of the instability in this region. we heard the national security council, john kirby, until reporters last night that after the strike that a very large part of this objective, the strikes last, night were obviously to destroy critical infrastructure and weapons storage facilities and communication hubs for these groups. all of that, while still trying to prevent this escalation, this conflict from escalating and spread even wider, that is something that the president and white house officials have

repeatedly said is their top objective since the war began between israel and hamas on october 7th. despite several efforts being made to act as deterrence, more forces being sent to this region, more strike groups being sent to this region, it has not stopped the iranian- backed proxy groups from repeatedly attacking u.s. forces in this area. we've seen u.s. officials repeatedly stated that most of those attacks have been able to be intercepted. the impact on u.s. service members in injuries have been minor. remember, the president set a threshold early on saying that if any u.s. service members are killed as a result of these attacks, that would warrant a much stronger response from the white house. that is what we saw the president meet with officials security team, his top advisers going over a menu of different options, weighing the pros and cons of each one, trying to really check off all of those

bullets. i mentioned at the top there, those objectives again preventing this from escalating and becoming a bigger and wider conflict. the message that the u.s. is intending to send to iran in the surrounding it backed proxies, whether they receive those messages and are respecting them, that seems to be still unclear. but we are hearing early reaction from iran, and so it remains to be seen how this goes moving forward, especially as we await the second phase of this multi phased approach. where it is going to be and how that will be executed. >> nbc's allie raffa for us outside the white house. ali, thank you so much. joining us now, new york times pentagon correspondent, alina cooper, he's also on a minutes nbc political analyst. how, and it is good to see you, thank you for joining us this morning. you are in the briefing room with secretary austin earlier this week, and he talked about

the united states response on thursday. we have now seen the start of a response. what is next here? understanding that the united states has said they don't want to escalate the conflict. hi submitted, the express of a. that is the big question right now. certainly this was the beginning, it's by no means the end. i think you could expect to see more strikes against shia militia, a rodeo-backed militias in the region, in a, rocket syria, in continuing attacks against the houthis. this is -- you guys mentioned a little bit earlier that the administration has hinted at cyberattacks. you're not gonna talk about those. but there is belief that those have already started. yesterday we saw attacks by air, you could see strikes from

the naval assets that we had in the region. we do have quite a few. it is really interesting that last night the united states sent bombers all the way from continental u.s. to the region. that was sort of a show of force and to demonstration of capability. there are not a lot of countries, there are none in fact, that can actually do that type of long range deployment. the united states has the capability to refuel in mid air the few, if any, other nations continue. and it's sending a message again to iran and to america's allies in the region. a lot of these countries are american bases, they get fidgety until like the idea of the u.s. using their bases to

launch strikes that could kill people at a time when they don't want to be seen as if they are aligned with israel. there is a lot of -- going on in the region. and so as a result it is both necessity and capability of the u.s. biden administration that is launching from the aircraft carriers and -- but we could strike you from the airbase. so we it was a rather muscular show of force. we started off this question talking about the lloyd austin press conference. i wouldn't say he foreshadowed it but there was a little bit of tough talk at this conference on thursday when he said that the iranians have capabilities, they have a lot of capabilities, and he paused pregnant lee and said i have a

lot more. >> hello and, you make the point about the posturing in the middle east right now. there's also posturing here at home. it's very telling, you have speaker mike johnson's statement on all of this, it is long overdue for the biden administration to admit that its strategy of appeasing iran has been disastrous for the international community and regional stability. we must stand firmly against those who would harm america needs, profit k terror or threaten our allies. now is the time for president biden to wake up to the reality that -- iran has failed. the hyperbole in this statement, what do you see or are hearing inside the pentagon and to the white house about posturing this attack for the american people? giving it proper context, giving it a good understanding relative to our interests is not just the interest but also

the response to the taking of american lives and the firmness with which the united states will respond now and in the future. >> yes, that was quite a hyperbolic statement. the pentagon, they don't do posturing. they are much more interested in going after capability. and the militia's ability to strike american troops. the drone attack on sunday took american lives. showing the photos, two of them were 23, 24 years old. american service members killed. that was a red line which the biden administration, everybody knew that once that was crossed that the biden administration sought to retaliate with some degree of force. that said, there is a lot to look at with what the biden administration has not done.

the united states has not targeted iran specifically. the irgc, video of the irgc -- who were in syria and iraq hightailed it back to iran right after the drone attack because we both they and the world know, at this point in time, the united states is not looking to start a war in iran. we are not targeting actual sites in iran. that could change if things escalate but nobody wants in the biden administration to go that far. and his response, while forceful, has still been somewhat limited and limited by choice. he is not looking to widen this regional war anymore than it already has. and there is no desire. this is a guy who pull troops out of afghanistan. he has repeatedly declined to

send american troops on the ground to ukraine. he is not looking to start boots on the ground conflict. well any american conflict with iran would likely and poorly, we would still take a lot of hurt. iran has a capability to inflict a whole lot of hurt on our assets in the region, our troops, it's not something that you can just sit back and say, let's bomb around and go after it. we look at what happened in iraq, it would be a whole different kettle of fish. >> it would indeed. helene cooper, thank you so much as always. next, justice delayed, donald trump's election interference case. highly anticipated trial has now been postponed. this is the weekend on msnbc.

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late breaking developments of donald trump's legal battles. march 4th d.c. trial plotting to overturn the 2020 election. it has officially been dropped from the federal court calendar. it means the first of trump's for criminal trials this year could be his new york hush money case. in the backdrop of this calendar swap, we are still waiting for an appeals court to answer one of the biggest legal and political questions in our nation's history, does donald trump win get any presidential immunity from criminal charges? joining us now is msnbc legal analyst and former prosecutor, charles cohen. he hosts the charles cohen podcast and he is one hell of a brother. welcome to the table, my friend, looking fine on this saturday. >> you are looking find this early morning. >> [laughter] >> can i ask a question? please jesus? >> yes you can. did >> i think it's very concerning

that now the chutkan case has been taken off the schedule and there is a delay. because i understand stormy daniels payment might be the first trial but i don't feel like the american people are holding stormy daniels payments at the same highest regard as they are the insurrection on january 6th. >> i will address that in reverse. number one, they aren't, but their case will not go first. more likely than not you will see that donald trump's defense team going into the new york court and say to the judge that we need to have this trace check. this case was go lower priority to the federal matters and that they are going to follow the schedule for those. in terms of the first -- discussing around the schedule you should not be that surprised. the onset of everything happening, we as americans, the public that are watching this,

we are getting a front row view of how the legal system works. we are seeing the different counter maneuvers that they are able to do. this is what they should be doing. >> she is not surprised. she's concerned. >> she is echoing the concern that a lot of americans share that the calendar schiff said he escapes accountability. the closer we get to the election the greater argument he has for kicking the can down the road. >> the justice department have a little thing that they do about not wanting to influence anything happening electorally. >> that normally would be a valid point but this is sort of the insurance that you have so that you're not as concerned. merrick garland has also said that because these prosecutions have started already they are not going to stop. so if you take him at his word, what he said last week, these are going to continue as we go forward. as compared to something that had not already been indicted, we are in the midst of election season, i don't think we're at a point where we're hitting the panic but just yet.

but what i do think is that there is a place in the calendar that we reach where donald trump has more viable argument that these things should pause because then it becomes election interference. we're not there yet. >> i never bought the whole march 4th game plan. quite honestly i am not really by much in terms of the federal courts dealing with this. they don't want to deal with this. they don't want to get this mixed up into politics. donald trump is -- so how does the court actually sandwich this in between all of the hype that is going to become big? starting from south carolina, the south carolina primary. is that happening anytime soon? mike? >> democrats today -- republicans -- >> okay, here we are, we're already in the game. we are going to have these high profile cases when so in one sense the stormy daniels case is actually probably ironically

a good place to start because it draws people in in a way because it's titillating in all of that. how does the court, in your view, actually prosecute this process because that is what we're talking about here. are they really going to have the nerve to really put on not just the counter but follow up and hold donald trump's behind in the court and said it there and do a trial. primary schedule be damp, because that is on you, you did that. that's why you're here. >> because you have brag shaping this election interference case -- >> that's a very tenuous line that all of the prosecutors, whether you're talking about fulton county, whether you're talking about mar-a-lago, whether you're talking about new york superior, all of these prosecutors have to think about this. because what we're talking about, essentially, is the intersection between politics and law. what i mean by that is that

this is becoming increasingly political. every day that it gets closer to the general election, obviously, in november it becomes more -- >> what do you mean increasingly political? >> every move you make becomes more -- you're analyzing it not just in the legal lens but the political lines. and if you recall, and this is not a secret anybody here, donald trump the candidate donald trump the defendant have really become literally the same person. and his narrative around biden's doj becomes larger and larger and larger the more that these federal cases become an issue, the closer we get to the election. you're talking about a minefield politically and legally. the jury influence, how they will receive, that donald trump has been beating the drums very very loudly in terms of controlling the narrative. the closer we get to the election of this prosecution, it seems to be influencing or having the potential to influence the election. it may be proving him right to

some of his supporters, or at least to the general public that might be sitting on one of these juries. >> the jury thing has always been the piece that no one is paying attention to. but donald trump has from day one. >> and he's been telling lies. >> yes. charles, don't go anywhere, stick around, we have more with you. >> we want to touch the beard? did >> i touched it last time. >> this brother is supporting my sartorial expressions. >> that's what it's all about. >> after the break, fulton county district attorney, fani willis, admits -- here we go, to having a relationship with the prosecutor in the election case against trump. you're watching the weekend.

the georgia election interference case just got a lot more complicated. yesterday fulton county d.a., fani willis, announced a personal relationship with the investigation special

prosecutor. donald trump is trying to disqualify the prosecutor and frankly the entire district attorney's office from the case. a lawsuit -- one of trump's codefendants accuses willis of misusing taxpayer money on vacations that she took with a special prosecutor. d.a. fani willis responding saying that she has not received any director indirect financial benefits from the relationship. so charles coleman is back. charles, two questions, does this change the facts of the case? two, talk about where the statement landed vis-@-vis no receiving any financial acceptance. >> absolutely not. it is supported we don't lose sight of. those two things can be true at the same time. fani willis may have made a decision that has ethical implications or that is problematic in terms of the public narrative, but that does not inhibit her ability to successfully prosecute donald trump and 18 other coconspirators under the r.i.c.o. statute in georgia, period, point blank. it does not change the fact that brought this indictment, the facts that were uncovered

during this investigation. therefore the case needs to move forward. in terms of what she was talking about around the financial benefit, that would be this serious ethical line that you could not cross as a prosecutor that would really sort of call into question the notion of it disqualification for her to have gotten to a remote agree layton ship with a coworker, someone who she was essentially the superior of, in on top of that receive a financial benefit from that. it would have been unethical nightmare. it would have been a question of her fitness to serve in front of the bar. the fact that she is asserting that is sort of a whistle to the people that look, there's a line here. maybe this decision wasn't the smartest in terms of a personal level, someone who i may have been involved with, but i have not done anything that crosses the ethical line that means that i need to sort of be disciplines in any way. >> so itchy damages the case. at some point you have to ask yourself, what were you thinking? that this would not come out in a high profile case against the

former president avian hearted states? >> can i just -- >> i just think that that piece plays hard on the street. it's not just the street in georgia, which is her backyard, it's the street around the country, given everything that we just talked about coming into this part of the conversation that is going on relative to donald trump and trials, this is one more thing that influences jury polls, that makes it more difficult for the case to be made. but i would really -- that piece of it aside, you do have the reality of jim jordan. asking right no for, as nbc news reports, fani willis, the d.a. who's been charging the subpoena case for documents. she wants people -- wants her to come citizen of his committee. she has responded, your request violates the principle of separation of federalism. how does the other narrative, this other piece aside on the

relationship, she still has to deal with the reality of prosecuting this case it is now, federal interference in that case with jim jordan. >> jim jordan, this is not new for him. he tried the same thing with alvin bragg if you recall. alvin bragg september 8th tensely worded letter to let him know that this is what you do. this is what i do. and i suspect that in many respects that is what fani willis will have, along with what she said about this being a separation of powers issue. i think that the notion of tainting the jury pool is a valid one. i don't think that fani willis stepping away from this case eliminates that. because you still talk about her office, her investigators, you're still talking about her indictment. she did the right thing by saying look, this is what it is, she can't get in front of it because what we need to realize is in the streets of fulton county, this was considered to be a public secret in terms of this relationship. it doesn't make it better or

worse, but what i'm saying is, i don't know that the impact on the jury will be as significant as people are thinking it's going to be. because for the jury pool, it may not be that much of a surprise. >> that's why in her spot responds, while the allegations raised our salacious, they garnered the media attention, they don't provide the court with any basis upon which to order the release. >> there it is. >> charles coleman? thank you very friend. we appreciate you stopping in. they have a new documentary, black man in america, the road to 2024. you could see it tomorrow at nine pm eastern, right here on msnbc, streaming on peacock it is a watch. you have to do it. the next hour, we will speak -- with in south carolina where he's covering today's democratic primary. we will be right back, on the weekend.

welcome back to the weekend. , so here's the deal. there's a lot of baskets here and there's a lot of confusion for voters, but i think this really kind of boils down to the politics of this. we've touched on a little bit with the courts and all. that how do you see this playing out? >> i take charles's point that people shouldn't be surprised, even if they are concerned and this is not something that is surprising to folks. in terms of the legal things taking time, the courts are slow. this just underscores why i think folks should increasingly

take their eggs out of the legal, and the courts are going to take care of donald trump and put more of their eggs in that basket of electoral strategy. what does the electoral strategy look like for nikki haley and this republican primary, or the biden campaign, and in terms of the general election. what are they doing, what strategies are that employing over the next couple of months, to beat him at the ballot box? that's really where this is going to be, because i tend to believe that we might not see any actual convictions prior to november on the criminal cases that could make a difference to these voters in the polls. >> i just don't see the courts being the superhero here, coming into rescue the campaigns. of biden. i think it's going to be hard work on the ground, and the political piece is going to be a big play here. we've got another hour, folks, of the weekend coming up. we're so glad you're with us. for life in the middle east

with the latest from the u.s. strikes against iranian-backed militias. and later, we'll be joined by assistant democratic leader james clyburn to discuss the chaos on capitol hill and the day's democratic primaries in south carolina. i guess, there's elections going on right now. you are watching the weekend on msnbc. on msnbc. with nurtec odt, i can treat a migraine when it strikes and prevent migraine attacks, all in one. don't take if allergic to nurtec. allergic reactions can occur, even days after using. most common side effects were nausea, indigestion, and stomach pain.

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