the moment i met him i knew he was my soulmate. "soulmates." soulmate! [giggles] why do you need me? [laughs sarcastically] but then we switched to t-mobile 5g home internet. and now his attention is spent elsewhere. but i'm thinking of her the whole time. that's so much worse. why is that thing in bed with you? this is where it gets the best signal from the cell tower! i've tried everywhere else in the house! there's always a new excuse. well if we got xfinity you wouldn't have to mess around with the connection. therapy's tough, huh? -mmm. it's like a lot about me. [laughs] a home router should never be a home wrecker. oo this is a good book title.

♪♪ good evening, everyone. welcome to msnbc's special coverage of tonight's presidential address. all eyes are on the white house tonight, where president joe biden is scheduled to speak to the nation, one hour from now about his stunning decision to drop his bid for re-election. i'm joy reed. joined here at msnbc headquarters by my wonderful colleagues, nicole wallace, jen psaki, alex wagner and the reverend al sharpton. rachel maddow is under the weather tonight, but not to worry, she will be joining us just a little bit later. now, it has been three days. can you believe it's only been thee days? seems like 347 years. since president biden posted a

letter online announcing that he was stepping aside. but we have not yet seen him talk about that decision. that changes tonight. when the president delivers an oval office address about his exit from the race. this is also day three of the presidential campaign of kamala harris, whom vice president biden -- whom president biden endorsed for the democratic nomination shortly after announcing that he would no longer be running. the vice president was in indianapolis today giving the keynote speech at the national convention of the historically black sorority. she began her remarks with praise for president biden and said that in his speech tonight he will talk about both the extraordinary work that he has accomplished and his work in the next six months. that is the final six months of his presidency. the stakes could not be higher. in this moment for president biden. vice president harris, the democratic party and frankly the nation. excerpts of president biden's prepared remarks released ahead

of time by the white house include this declaration from the president. quote, the defense of democracy is more important than any title. the remarks continue. the great thing about america is here, kings and dictators do not rule. the people do. history is in your hands. the power is in your hands. the idea of america lies in your hands. let me go to this wonderful panel. of course, i have to turn to the one person at this table who has actually worked for a president of the united states. nicole -- >> two, two, two. >> wait. hold on a second. wait, what am i doing. whoa. >> proud to be fellow. >> hello. two people. i'm going to go to the two people who worked for a president. i'm so sorry, jen. >> you don't need to be sorry. go to nicole. i want to know what nicole thinks. >> start with you, nicole. >> there is no -- i guess i pointed to jen for a lifeline. there is no parallel, right? and i think that's the history

that president biden made on sunday at 1:46 p.m. and i love the conversation that we started on sunday, right? where were you? we'll always remember where we were because it was that impactful. i think that there's something happening in the country, though. and i think that we're at the point in the calendar where no matter what was going on with the top of the ticket, we would be talking more and more about the voters, right? and how they're reacting to everything. it's almost the way we covered the trial. i don't know how the jury is going to see this. it's all in their hands. i don't know how the voters are going to experience this. it's all in their hands. we know how the voters experienced the last three days. we know they are fired up. we know that the despair, which was palpable about the state of our democracy, about this feeling that whether it was real or not that the possibility of a second trump presidency was very much on the table. it was something people were preparing for. it was something people were preparing their kids for. it's still a possibility. but the fight feels so different. and the energy feels so

different. and this is president biden's decision. and to the degree that people felt disoriented by the president biden they saw on the debate to the degree they felt anxious about what would happen to vice president kamala harris, who is beloved as president joe biden. all of that anxiety has been replaced, not just by hope but by action. people have a place and a way to channel their energy. and this is the last piece before i think people really rocket toward november. this is hearing from the president who made this decision, who put the extraordinary events of the last three days in motion. by not just what he did but the way he did it. >> yes. >> and by really launching vice president kamala harris into november. >> yeah, absolutely. now i want to turn to the one person at this table who has actually worked for a president. i'm just kidding. but this president, jen. you worked for him. what do you think that he's thinking right now? how does he prepare for something like this? and what do you expect? >> well, first, one thing that's

a challenge for any president and certainly for president biden is that oval office addresses are short. and they're short for a couple of reasons. one, that it's the most effective way to deliver an address during primetime. the second is networks not including msnbc will not give more than a certain amount of time. i don't think they're going to turn him off. but typically they're not more than 15 minutes, as nicole knows. those are hard speeches to write because you're trying to put a lot in the speech. they've kind of been previewing that this is not going to be a political speech. i mean, in the sense of this is not going to be everything joe biden loves about kamala harris. of which there is a lot. he's going to give a convention speech in a couple of weeks where he will do that, right? and so, i expect this is going to be part what he will do over the next six months. you saw -- i was laughing just because i've been through a lot of putting out excerpts to one of these excerpts which was -- a very important point is part of what he cares deeply about where he talks about i will continue to lower costs for hard working

families and grow our economy and keep defending our civil rights from the right to vote right to choose. very, very important things. you dent get that covered if you don't put it in excerpts. so now we're going to talk about it. and you won't get it covered later. and that's an important thing. but i also think this is about this moment in time as nicole was referencing. while i don't expect it to be overly political, i do think he'll talk, of course, about -- or i expect about his decision he made, why-an important decision to be made. and this ore excerpt, the great thing about america, here kings and dictators do not rule the people do. history is in your hands. that's a core of why he made this decision. because of the threat of trump. mitt romney was not going to be a dictator. john mccain was not going to be a dictator. donald trump wants to be a dictator. so those are the things i'm watching for. >> yeah, absolutely. rev, you know this president. what are you expect to hear from him tonight? and how -- there's got to be a mix. i have to imagine, of kind of a bit of pathos for him because this was supposed to be his run

for a second term. it's something he clearly really wanted to do. he ceded the opportunity in the most bad ass way. the way he did it i thought was brilliant. that pause and then the endorsement and that launch for her. it was so well done. but i just wonder, as a human being, you know, this is also kind of hard. >> well, i'm the only one on the panel that has marched on most of the offices. >> or run for president. >> and run for president. >> indeed. >> but i am thinking tonight about how in january of '20, joe biden came and keynoted for our d.c. martin luther king breakfast. he pulled martin luther king iii said i think i'm going to run. what this guy did in charlottesville needs to be stopped. he started real bad. he came in fourth or fifth in iowa. fourth or fifth in new

hampshire. and then went to south carolina. and i was there the morning having a breakfast meeting with 300 ministers. and he and jim clyburn came in and clyburn said he was going to endorse him later that day. he did which turned his campaig to change the course of this nation's history. by stopping a dictatorship that was on its way. and a catastrophe. so he's a great man. people should get their kids to watch him tonight because they're looking at a great man who really meant what he said he wanted to save the republic. i couple that with kamala harris, who said, that the baton now is in our hand. and i hope when people watch this great man tonight, when it's other, they'll know the baton is now in all of our hands to save this country. this is not an election. this is a selection on which way this country is going to go. are we going to select going back to the 1940s and '30s? about women's rights and civil

rights and voting rights. or are we going to put that baton, put the mantle on our shoulder and soldier on. and i think that tonight will set the tone for that as a man who gave more than half a century of public service to put us on the right course. are we going to now detour and go another way for a sham artist. >> and the thing is that's so fascinating is the organic way we will not go back has kind of become vice president harris' campaign theme. and it is an interesting -- it is kind of ironic that this oldest president is also the youngest united states senator, he really has become a bridge to the future and very personal and dramatic way in handing the baton over. what do you expect to hear tonight, alex? you've been out there covering -- >> i'm the only one had really bad seats and really bad seats at biden rallies. how about that? >> how about that? >> listen, we're going to talk a lot about kamala harris from now until november. and i think tonight's one of

those nights where we really should put in perspective joe biden's extraordinary career in politics. this is a man who first ran for president in 1988. >> yeah. >> right, at the end -- the twilight of the reagan years people don't credit with being sort of the laboratory as much as it was for the new right and a lot of the policies we see in full bloom today. he was 44 years old. he was the young guy. and here he is in the twilight of his career, saying good-bye to a legendary service in american politics. and of course we're going to remember him for being a bullwork against trump and fascism and also be barack obama's running mate and the running mate to kamala harris. to think about those two people, if she does indeed get the presidency, for him to be the wing man for the first mixed race, black president, and the first maybe female mixed race black/asian president is an extraordinary position in history. to say nothing of his career as

a senator. you know this guy had a front row seat to pivotal moments in history. from the supreme court to legislation that was both controversial and exhilarating. he's seen it all. and i think for him i would imagine he's certainly thinking about the moment at hand and kamala harris. but he's also thinking, this is it, right? this is one of the two biggest speeches he'll give. the other is at the democratic national convention. here is a moment for him to put into perspective, to see the curtains coming in on his career in politics. and that is both you know melancholy and bittersweet but also a time for -- he's such a romantic. he has such poetry in his vains that the irish -- the irish poet in him i would imagine is alive and well in his head as he thinks about these moments. and i'm really eager to see how he contextualizes tonight. >> and the only other thing people have sort of projected on to him and taken from him and

he's given willingly is he's the most high-profile public official in our entire country to grieve publicly. and to make grief a centerpiece of what he will give freely to anyone and everyone. i mean, there were convention stories about other people with stutters. every fred guttenberg lost his daughter in parkland. he is someone who taught the nation to stand in their grief and not feel alone. >> yeah. and the thing is that i think president biden is somebody who ran for office -- to the point you made, rev -- to heal the soul of the nation. unfortunately i don't think he's been able to be the unifying figure he wanted to be because the right decided they didn't want it or allow it. that was clearly his intention. he's still trying to do it. it's sometimes remarkable to me how much he still believes in the idea that we -- he says the united states of america a thing part of his thing. let me bring in democratic senator brian shots of hawaii.

on sunday he endorsed vice president harris and tweeted this photo showing him climbing up a coconut tree and writing, madame vice president, we are ready to help. senator shots, welcome. and you're in on the memes. we love that. the young people love it. what do you looking to hear tonight? what are you hoping to hear tonight? >> well, you know, parting is sweet sorrow. this will be a little sorrowful. i'm getting choked up just thinking about the president's long career in public service for just about as long as i've been alive. he has seen so much. he has done so much. he has endured so much that i think all of the panelists are right, that tonight is about president of the united states. tonight is about a person who has devoted his life and sacrificed a lot on a human level to be in public service. and i think it is worth pointing out that basically nobody in power gives up power.

and so it was reasonable over the last couple of weeks to really wonder, quietly and for some people outloud, whether or not it was in him to give up power. to relinquish the most powerful position in the world. but when you -- now when we look back on it, of course he was going to do the patriotic thing because every time he has had an opportunity to choose himself over the country, he has not done that. he has always chosen the country. and so, you know, i'm glad we are going to have these last six months of his presidency. i'm glad that we're going to go into the convention honoring his work. and i just want to add one thing in addition to his character and his patriotism. i also think it is worth talking about all we've accomplished. he is legislatively, arguably the most successful president legislatively. the things we have done in four-year period are exceeding most reasonable expectations. so that's part of his legacy as

well. >> and i have to ask you this, only because the juxtaposition today has been the prime minister of israel was here -- was not here, was in washington. and of course, president was not there to greet him. he did address a joint session of congress. we know this president worked hard to try to resolve the situation the middle east. it's something that's been a great deal of consternation for his base. it's been difficult for him. but it's something he clearly wanted to do. do you expect and do you foresee that he still has time. he still has six months to make some progress. do you see any inklings of that? >> there is time. i am moderately hopeful. this is a very challenging situation. but tony blinken is saying we're on the ten yard line. he is not someone who is imprecise with his words. he says we're on the ten yard line, i believe him. i think that joe biden's foreign policy team is going to try to get this thing across the finish line. i think it's fair to say when you have a new nominee and new

potential president, you also have the potential for changes in policy, even if we are carrying on the great legacy of internationalism that joe biden has led in the asia pacific region and uniting europe as russia invaded ukraine. his foreign policy legacy is extraordinary, because of his experience, because of his relationships but there's also an opportunity for a pivot and a fresh start. i think that's getting a lot of citizens across the country very excited. >> senator brian schatz, thank you very much. we appreciate it. let me come back because i like that ukraine was mentioned. because this president's legacy a lot is going to be about expanding nato. holding the west together, which was an important project that had to be done because of who vladimir putin is. what do -- how do you all foresee his foreign policy legacy? that will be a big part of it. the challenge with bee bee netanyahu is its own angle. >> for all his conversation age the last months, he was first president to be on the ground in

sort of two war zones where america wasn't one of the countries at war, on the ground in ukraine and on the ground in israel after the terrorist attack of october 7th. it's my understanding from some great reporting one of the things that made him comfortable doing is that kamala harris has been in all those rooms with him. the vice president has been in the situation room and she mentions it when she goes to the wilmington campaign headquarters and he calls in. there's this clear synergy because of the nature of the structure of these jobs, it's not always on display. you hear both of them talking at once. she's a surrogate for the administration, usually at her own events. but to hear them both together, it's clear that everything that he dealt with in a very public way, you know, on behalf of the country, she was privy to all those conversations. and he very much i think sees her as someone who both a partner in all of that and benefitted from all that. and i agree. i think his foreign policy

legacy is in a league of its own in terms of expanding nato at a time of a hot war between russia and ukraine. >> i think of -- he, other than sort of lyndon johnson, you know, this is somebody who chaired like all the key committees. the foreign relations committee chair, judiciary chair during the clarence thomas hearings and presided over so much of the senate and senator in his guts you know very well when barack obama was president, he was vice president, he is the guy who would go to the hill because he knew everybody and could stalk to everybody. >> and probably more comfortable in the senate even over the last four years than maybe he was in the trappings of the oval office. which i think is part of also his legacy. nicole was talking about his empathy before and all of the tragedy he's been through. and that has been a driver for him. i saw this up close in how he was able to -- you've seen this too, rev, connect with people. right? because he has this humanity because he's been through so much. that when he sees people hurting in their eyes or struggling, yes, when it's a loss of a loved one, certainly.

but no matter what it is, he connects with that immediately. and i will say, i was just thinking as you all were talking about his legacy when i first started, and we read -- we looked up all of the op-eds he wrote from 1970s and '80s just to see -- wouldn't it be fun to see kind of what was he talking about then. you know what he was talking about, workers, labor unions, raising the minimum wage. there's a consistency about his legacy that i think is also so unique because it's so rare for people to serve for the number of decades he has. and they've been the same drivers that have kept him running for office and fighting for the same thing. so that optimism you see, the desire to unite people is not just like a talking point for him, it's actually how he operates, how he governs. i heard him have more heartfelt conversations with mitch mcconnell, it would shock you, right? because he believes there's always a way forward. it's who he is, not just what he says. >> when we come back, i do want to talk about his legacy on things like civil rights and

apartheid. he was one of the more vocal anti-apart hide senators during that time period. we'll take a quick break to pay bills. coming up, white house correspondent mike memoli on how president joe biden is preparing for what could be the most important speech of his life. congresswoman jasmine crockette will join us later this hour and our friend rachel maddow will give us her thoughts right after the president speaks. super busy night. stay right there. joe biden is a leader with bold vision. he cares about the future. he thinks about the future. he has extraordinary determination and profound compassion for the people of our country. e oofur country. et the jennifers. jen x. jen y. and jen z. each planning their future through the chase mobile app. jen x is planning a summer in portugal with some help from j.p. morgan wealth plan. let's go whiskers. jen y is working with a banker to budget for her birthday. you only turn 30 once. and jen z?

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i give you my word. i will always level with you. i will defend the constitution. i'll defend our democracy. i'll defend america. >> greatest thing you can do for another human being, in my view, is let them know you understand what they're going through. and then try, try just engage in one act of kindness. >> we believe in the american people! because i know you! we know you! and it's never, never, never, never been a good bet to bet against america!

[ cheers and applause ]. in some ways joe biden has been preparing to deliver this speech on this night all of his political life. but in another sense, this moment is like none that he or we as a country have faced before. for the latest inside the white house, let's bring in our friend and colleague, nbc news white house correspondent mike memoli. mike, you know this president. you know this president's family. you know the ins and outs of his presidency better than just about anyone covering it. take me inside what these moments before this address must be like for president joe biden. >> reporter: first, nicole, you're giving me flash backs. i think i covered all the speeches you showed. my long time covering this president. what i look to what he's going to say tonight, first of all the circle of advisers part of the preparation here is just as small as those who were part of that announcement on sunday that shocked the world. and so, what we do know about it, though, is that this is going to be a very deeply personal speech. it was really important, i'm told, for the president to have this opportunity to speak

directly to the american people about this very consequential decision he made, why he made it, but also as a statement of his priorities going forward. and it's notable, as well, that i've been thinking back to the speech he gave in 2015, when he announced he would not be running in 2016. and the people who wrote that speech along with the president himself are very much at the table again tonight. that speech in 2015 was actually the speech he would have given if he was announcing he was running with a last-minute bit of changing to reflect he was going to bow out of the race. this is going to be a similar speech about how he's no longer going to be a candidate but he still wants to be very much a part of the debate and based on the excerpts we're seeing tonight, he wants to make that argument about the importance of preserving our democracy, front and center, in a way he can make that argument now much more directly as a private citizen -- soon to be private citizen than as a candidate in this race.

>> mike memoli, spoke on the the president since sunday. they said he sounds great. like a weight lifted. i had a chance to interview congressman jim clyburn yesterday, dear friend of this president who became emotional and said he wanted to watch this speech from home so he could cry. tell me how the president receives all of this outpouring of love and gratitude for him in this moment? >> reporter: well, to be candid, nicole, it's with mixed feelings, right? as i have been talking to a lot of people around the president, you can see the emotions on them as well. this is not a moment they anticipated. he was fighting with every fiber of his being to stay in this race. he thought he could convince his party to stay in this race. but ultimately he could not fight a two-front battle against his own party and against donald trump and be successful. so he is making the decision he believes is in the country's interest. but as he is seeing all these tributes now, there's a bit of mixed feelings about it.

he knows some of these people were also those pushing him out of the race. nicole, he is seeing in some ways his political obituary written before. he remembers the tributes in 2016 from the entire u.s. senate when they held a tribute -- day-long tribute for him from barack obama giving him the medal of freedom. it's tempered by the fact that he thinks he could have still won this race. but he is at peace with this decision. he knows that he has an opportunity now to pass the torch, as he will say tonight. and he knows that his legacy in many ways will be tied to kamala harris' success and he wants to see that she is successful. >> nbc news white house correspondent mike memoli, thank you so much for your reporting everyday. but especially tonight. rev, this sort of nuanced understanding of the emotional landscape of president joe biden is what you hear from his closest friends who are still smarting and frankly a lot of our viewers and lot of his supporters and friends who are still hurting about the way these conversations happened

over the last four weeks. >> absolutely. but i think that it's also a pride that they can have and look at what he's done. he's literally changed a lot of the landscape of this country. if you fast forward 50 years from now, children will learn the first time a black woman went in the supreme court as a justice. he put her there. first time a black woman was vice president, he put her there and maybe put her there as president. he was there taking hard positions on apartheid when a lot of moderate members of the democratic party were afraid to touch it. you have to remember even in the reagan years they called nelson mandela a terrorist. so in the long swing of history, he's going to be a very much regarded transformative president because you can't make up what he achieved. affordable care act, he helped quarterback that for barack

obama. so, he has done more in four years what most presidents didn't do with longer time. and he did it because he believed in it. he took some hard positions. i remember -- and you mentioned when he ran in '88. many of us that were more on the left saw him as a centrist. he was in the democratic leadership conference. reverend jessie jackson was running against him in the rainbow. he ended up helping to bring the rainbow into being. and he was never a hostile person. you always say, well, al, tell me why you're against the crime bill. later he said, maybe you're right. it did have some unintended consequences. when president obama was in and trayvon martin happened and all that. i was in the room in meetings we would argue. and he was always on our side. so, this man -- this is not somebody that came and said i'm for women's rights. he put women in power. i'm for blacks he was the vice president for the first black

president of the united states and ushered us into the first black vice president and supporting her to be the president. he stands between the bookends of when america started becoming inclusive. he ought to get credit for that. >> as a senator, you can think about that crime bill that got so much heat. that was also where we got the violence against women's act. >> that's correct. >> that's also where we got the only assault weapons ban we ever had that reduced gun violence and murder in this country. he's -- he's passed another landmark gun safety bill as president or at least signed it and, you know, he's pretty consequential guy as president or senator. kamala harris, the surge in excitement over the 2024 election is literally like anything we have seen in american politics, at least since president obama. at least. the endorsements, the fundraising, the organizing and now the surge in people literally registering to vote. we will talk about it all with congress woman jasmine crockette after this quick break.

when president obama asked me to be his vice president, i said i only had two conditions. one, i wouldn't wear any funny hats. even on class day. and two, i wouldn't change my brand. [ cheers and applause ]. >> republicans seem to support one fella. some guy named brandon. he's having a really good year. and i'm kind of happy for him. d. (♪♪) voltaren... for long lasting arthritis pain relief. (♪♪) (children speaking)

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we love joe and jill. we really do. they truly are like family to us. >> so do we. >> everybody here does. >> it's mutual. >> i knew he was still there. you're not going anywhere, joe. >> i'm watching you, kid. i'm watching you, kid. i love you. >> i love you, joe. >> judging by his phone call into an organizing muni for the harris campaign on monday, there is definitely a lot of love between president biden and vice president harris. and it appears that young people also have a lot of love for kamala harris. almost 40,000 new voters registered in the 48 hours after the vice president announced her

candidacy. of those 40,000 people, 83% were between the ages of 18 and 34. let's bring in texas congresswoman jasmine crockette. congresswoman crockette, thank you for being with us. the last time i saw you, i believe it was at the debate. and you were mounting a stalwart defense of president biden. a lot has changed between now and then. i wonder what you make of his decision to leave the race and also what your constituents are telling you about his choice of his vice president to take his place atop the ticket. >> yeah, absolutely. so, first of all, the love that you just displayed between the two of them, i just feel like i'm the middle of that love session as well. i love both of them so very much and believe in all the work that they have done together. and it was interesting to listen to y'all talk about here just a second ago some of these accomplishments. one of the things that people fail to acknowledge is that all that this president was able to

do, he did it really in two years. we know that this has been a completely dysfunctional congress in the 118th. but the majority of these accomplishments weren't accomplished in four years, they were accomplished in two years. i want to throw that out there. i must say that my constituency stands very strongly with the vice president. overwhelmingly the delegates from texas 30 said, yes, we are all in for the vice president. but they also were calling me. and as i was standing strong with the president, they were thanking me for doing that. so it's a really emotional time on the hill, if i'm being perfectly honest. there's definitely all these different feelings, right? on one side, some of us definitely feel a lot of sadness. but on the other side, we feel a lot of hope. hopeful has been the word of the week. and so, we are so excited to support the candidacy of our vice president to become the next president of the united states. >> when you talk about the emotions in congress. i wonder what you make of the

republican response. house republicans, conservatives have been calling the vice president of the united states, quote, an unqualified dei hire. i know you have thoughts about this. >> i absolutely do. listen, this tells you everything that you need to know about these clowns. they have nothing of substance to contribute as they normally don't. i mean, this is exactly why we literally are supposed to be working next week. and we're not coming to work to make sure that we can pass a budget because they have no plan. i need the american people to wake up. they have no plan. unless we start talking about project 2025, which doesn't do anything for any of us. and one of the things that they continuously push in project 2025 are these unwarranted attacks on anyone that is diverse in any way. and they try to pretend as if we don't have credential. but my question is, as you continue to say, that somehow jd vance is prepared and qualified to be the vice president of the united states, i'm sorry, but

this guy is walking into a role with way less qualifications than our vice president. if we want to look at the qualifications required of her before she got the job, she had been elected a prosecutor. she had been elected the attorney general. she had been elected to the u.s. senate before she was ever the vice president. jd vance has been in the senate for not even two years. so what i don't want to hear from that side is about a dei hire. because what i can tell you for sure is that this is them talking about the fact that they literally just cannot measure up to my vice president and soon to be their president of the united states. >> i knew you would have something to say. texas congresswoman jasmine crockette. great to hear from you. thank you for sharing time with us this evening. >> thanks, alex. >> she's so cool. yes. and the feelings are big on this one, right? the dog whistles aren't dog whistles at this point. lawrence, i think it is -- first of all, dei is cover for this is

a person of color. we want to talk about race without saying the word racism. on the other side, she makes a point, jd vance has served in the senate for like ten minutes and before that as rachel maddow likes to say was hatched in a lab by a bunch of tech bros. donald trump is a reality tv star that stumbled his way in the presidency through stoking grievance and division. i think it's really rich they're throwing shade on kamala harris' qualifications. >> so, as the congresswoman was speaking, i was taking notes. making notes of my list off the top of my head. of vice presidential candidates chosen for diversity, equity and inclusion. lyndon johnson. dan quayle. dick cheney. joe biden. lyndon johnson, the kennedys from boston needed a southern, a texan to make sure they could carry the south.

he needed someone older than jfk, then the youngest presidential candidate in history. dan quayle, george h.w. bush needed someone younger because that was just about as old as we thought presidential candidates could get. dan quayle's qualifications other than his age, were zero. absolutely zero. that's called diversity. diversity of age. dick cheney. very inexperienced, governor of texas, going into the presidency. needed foreign policy experience. he just grabbed it off the shelf with dick cheney. diversity of experience. spear row agnew, richard nixon was so thrilled that he was what nixon called ethnic. he wanted that diversity that california white republican wanted that diversity he thought geographic, agnew from maryland. joe biden couldn't be more unlike barack obama and the

diversity equity and inclusion in the ticket of barack obama and joe biden was completed by joe biden. it was the old, white guy who was the diversity hire for that ticket. so, none of these were objectionable choices on those grounds, of diversity, age, diversity, geographic diversity and political diversity with lbj and jfk. and diversity is what the vice presidential choice has usually been about. i mean to show you an example of how glaring it is when it's not, it's bill clinton and al gore. >> double dip. >> no one was thinking about any diversity at all. it was just who do we think will be a good campaigner with this guy. that's it. >> and doubling down on the idea of young. yeah. >> but every -- almost every other time you can think of without trying hard you'll come up with diversity in the choice of the vice president. >> and by the way, in this case, the search for a running mate for vice president harris is

literally about finding the diversity of the right white man to put with her because they're like they need the diversity to make sure they're shoring up different constituencies. they're thinking about region. they're thinking about do we want somebody from the midwest. do we want somebody from one of those states? like no one is saying that is objectionable diversity. >> can i translate what is happening? it isn't even in its most biting anl sitz about what it's about. they don't have anything else yet. they're stumped. donald trump wouldn't have picked jd vance if he thought -- donald trump would never give up anything. donald trump didn't leave when he lost. lifelong republican described the most secure election in american history. so donald trump never really contemplated that someone would give up a job that he left his vice president to be hung, to hang on to. so there's no part of his brain, no part of his circle that could tell him this could happen. and so the idea that this is all they've got is because this is all they've got. they'll come up with something

else, i'm sure. but on day four, this is all they've got. >> and it's pathetic. it's not helpful for winning white suburban voters who usually don't want to be associated with just sort of barking dog racism, which is what we're starting to see. >> and misogamy. >> right. we can't even begin to talk about the fox business comments of today. maybe we'll talk about it after the break. we have to pay bills. we appreciate you being with us on another historic night in american politics. we are now just minutes away from president biden's address to the nation from the oval office with everything on the line. one last quick break as the company continues and we're right back. ♪♪ if you have chronic kidney disease you can reduce the risk of kidney failure with farxiga. because there are places you'd like to be. farxiga can cause serious side effects, including ketoacidosis that may be fatal, dehydration, urinary tract, or genital yeast infections, and low blood sugar. a rare, life-threatening bacterial infection in the skin of the perineum could occur. stop taking farxiga and call your doctor right away

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get paid back up to ninety percent on unexpected vet bills. fetch. the most comprehensive pet insurance. get your free quote today. we can see each other not as adversaries, but as neighbors. we can treat each other with dignity and respect. we reject all forms, all forms of hate, that is what great nations do and we are a great nation. we have not relegated racism and white supremacy to the pages of history. but the greatness of this nation has always been and must continue to be that we still strive. >> we are just minutes away from president joe biden's oval office address in which he will

explain his exit from the presidential race. lawrence o'donnell, what are we going to hear? >> i think i know what we are not going to hear. there are millions of americans will watch this speech tonight feeling sorry for joe biden. including fierce and loyal supporters of joe biden who were loyal supporters of joe biden through sunday morning and it will be a hard speech for them. there will be, as i say, so many people feeling sorry for joe biden. joe biden will not be one of them. that is the only thing i know about this speech. it will not be a speech by a person feeling sorry for himself. >> you are talking in the break about the people who don't get a lot of attention, but are probably feeling a lot of feelings. having a rough time and that would be the staff. >> i think we have been talking

accurately about the many people in office and elected office who love joe biden. nicole's interview where representative clyburn said he would be at home crying and i was reflecting on the fact it is not just people of joe biden's generation who feel that. he has had staff who work for him for decades. he has also had staff who work for him through a campaign nobody thought could win and they were told every day the guy you are working for can't win. then there was covid, they battled through that. then there was january 6. they were there through one of the most difficult first years of a presidency in history and many are still working on his campaign now. i have talked to a lot of them not in a source way, but a human way. it is not that they don't love kamala harris. they think it was great she came to the campaign office, she is inspiring, but they love him. they love him for what he has done and the person he has. i have been thinking a lot about them and how they are

digesting this. >> it can be harder for people who work for a president, because they take it personally. joe biden actually has a great deal to be proud of. as a united states senator coming in at 29 years old, chairing all of these committees and passing so much legislation and then on his third try becoming president of the united states. it is pretty incredible. >> and he has the thing a lot of politicians don't have. he has the incredible love affair with his wife. a son who adores him and would obviously do anything for him. stand between him and anyone who would hurt him and he has supporters who adore him and friends like jim clyburn. i think this is a moment to reminded of exactly who he has always been and who he will always be in for him to sort of through his deeds and his words and his speech, kind of erase the memory of the last four

weeks. >> he stands in so many ways that the fulcrum of our story of race in this country and you would not think this older irish dude did, but he played second to the first black president of the united states and for his generation it is a big deal to step back and do that and maybe usher in the first black woman and first asian american woman as president. >> yes, let's not forget. i think jen is reading op ads from the 80s and the late 70s. justice is a through line of joe biden's life, whether it is working class, race in this country, equity and inclusion as it is now termed in the 21st century. these are the foundational beliefs of this man and he spent a lifetime in politics trying to lift them up. i have to say i'm excited for the last six months of the joe biden presidency. he is not done and he is

obviously hamstrung in terms of broad legislation, but he has a lot of foreign policy to figure out. there is a lot he can sort of on principle stand for in the closing hours of his presidency and i think we are getting a window into it. >> can we do a little bit of fun? a real person. the goofiness of joe biden. before there was a lot of drawn about his gaza policy, my kids cut up -- kind of thought of him as the funny guy with the glasses. it is part of the fun of him. he might be one of the most weirdly fun political characters that we have seen in our lifetime. >> self-effacing. >> dark brandon. >> he fully embraces a, so now we have dark brandon and it seems awesome for the democratic party. >> right and i think the fact

that he has allowed the sort of fog to lift in this campaign, because i think for a lot of people it felt like the handmaid's tale was around the corner and people were bracing themselves to slog it out, but now there is something joyful about that. >> and he lifted it. to lawrence's point, we should not feel sorry for him. he does not feel sorry for himself. at the end of the day he could've made a different choice and he didn't and i think what is being celebrated is extraordinary. we erroneously projected that on to him and he never did anything in his long career for us not to think at the end of the day that he would, you know, get with whoever he turns to. it sounds like it is his close family and lifelong advisors and make this choice, which in hindsight looks like the quintessential joe biden thing to do. i think i said this on sunday.

a longtime friend of his said on friday that we have to keep in mind as we talk about this incessantly, he is a good human being and a decent human being and i think that has come full circle. >> passing the torch is one of the conveyances of power because you have to have power to give it. nancy pelosi made this sort of elegant movement to pass power to hakeem jeffries and that young team and doing that is powerful and not doing it can have huge consequences. ruth bader ginsburg, dianne feinstein, but he did it. it is 8:00 p.m. now. no it is not, wait a minute. >> it is. almost. we are waiting and i think we should also speak to our own anticipation. we have been here so often because it has been an incredibly historic chapter and the moment is upon us. it is just before 8:00 p.m. on the east coast and we are now moments away from president joe biden's first address to the nation since he s