more, not because i'm not sad, but because it is normal. this anticipatory trauma. i'm ready for it and prepared for the worst. what kind of reality is that. one more thing, i visited martin luther king high school in north philly, they have this huge library. sprawling library. there is no books on the shelves. so if you want -- if you are a kid in that community that wants to get out, beyond the cards dealt for you, you look to education but there is no resources. >> where-y are there no book on the shelves? >> because of the resources. there is not enough resources put into the community. i spoke with the new police commissioner, commissioner bethel just sworn in in january, he knows this community and grew up in this community, single mom and knows what the kids are dealing with. they have -- they're optimistic something will change. >> thank you for bringing us this story. i'm out of time.

otherwise i would linger longer. thank you. that is going to do it for me today. "deadline: white house" starts right now. hi there, everyone. it is 4:00 in the east. and just 83 days left to go before the election. there is an element audible crack in the fortress of tired old arguments and mistruths that make up donald trump's political playbook. everywhere you look, they're inescapable signs that not is the disgrace and twice impeached four times indicted ex president losing to kamala harris and governor walz, not only is donald trump losing the momentum war in the grassroots enthusiasm war, but now losing one of the central arguments that he's made to his base of supporters for years. an attack line that he falls bab on time and time again. that inflation in america is out of control. that largely changed today.

as much as donald trump likes to bang the inflation drum, today the argument appears to be slipping through his fingers with news that for the first time in three years, inflation has dropped below 3%. in plane english, as axios puts it, this is the latest confirmation that the inflation shock is over. end quote. inflation is one of the things that makes people, most people, feel the most anxious. so today's news that the quote, inflation shock is over, isn't just welcome political news, it is a big huge story. it is about the news in every newspaper all across this country. but that didn't stop donald trump from dusting off his inflation boogeyman talking points. this morning the trump campaign blasted out an email with the headline, quote, prices aren't down, they're way up. known as do not believe your lying eyes. or the math. or the economists. straight out of the dog eared all too familiar trump playbook. vice president harris and her

running mate governor walz have been playing offense on the topic of inflation and the economy. >> because, look, while our economy is doing well, by many measures, prices for everyday things like groceries are stoo still too high. you know it and i know it. unlike donald trump, i will always, i promise you, put the middle class and working families first. >> donald trump knows nothing about service. it's -- yeah. it is pretty hard to provide service to others when you're too busy looking at for only yourself. again, and again and again, donald trump made decisions to weaken this country to strengthen his own hand. he sowed division and chaos

among our citizens and that is to say nothing as his record as president. he froze in the face of the global covid pandemic and our and our neighbors died because of it. by not addressing covid, by not addressing covid, he drove our economy no into the ground. and i just want to set the record straight because facts do matter and there is not an alternate set of facts. >> there is not an alternate set the facts would become a roaring applause line was not something any of us could have predicted. but that kind of campaigning, rooted in the fakes and setting the record straight, in that forward-looking optimism is paying off. new polling from the cook political report shows vice president harris now leading or tied with donald trump in all but one swing state. and now the chorus of republican voices warning that trump's old

playbook is backfiring is getting very loud. last night a republicans for harris online rally with the motto, it is okay to be a republican and vote for kamala harris was attended by 73,000 people. things are getting so dire for the trump side that even nikki haley, who has endorsed trump, is going on tv to sound the alarm over on fox news. >> i want this campaign to win. but the campaign is not going to win talking about crowd sizes. it is not going to win talking about what race kamala harris is. it is not going to win talking about whether she's dumb. you can't win on those things. the american people are smart. treat them like their smart. >> the american people are smart. treat them like they are smart. and you have to give a note like that to donald trump, you might be in trouble. it is where we start today with our favorite reporters and friends. for the 19th and host of the podcast the amendment, analyst aaron haines is here.

plus political strategist and senior analyst, matt dowd is back. also joining us, former republican congressman and political analyst david jolly is here. we're joined as well by nbc correspondent vaughn hillyard. vaughn hillyard, you are at a trump rally that they're not calling a rally because it is not the size of a rally and it seems they don't want their rally to be compared to the size of the harris-walz rallies. but tell me what this event is. is it people in a venue with a podium in the middle and remarks planned? >> nicolle, this is an economic address. it is not a rally despite looking like one. i want to be clear. the campaign has structured events like this frequently over the years, right. the campaign sometimes has one idea of a theme but then so often donald trump, he may refer to a few lines and in this instance about the economy, but then as he so often does, go off

the script here. this is being billed as an kl after three weeks in this donald trump and his campaign have lacked a theme, have lacked focus. you heard nikki haley there bemoan the fact. but it is not just nikki haley. it is donald trump acolytes. those have been ride or die through the years including in the last months who have been, i would say, gloomy over the prospects of this campaign acknowledging that not only is donald trump suggested that the crowd size for kamala harris is fake, or questioning her race, but also even the message that he has attempted to deliver on policy and substance has been fraught in difficulty. if you take the economy, you have inflation here that is under 3% now. compare that in 2022 when in october, right before those midterm elections, republican were running on the large point. inflation was 7.5%. if you look at the border, there was a record number ever migrants crossing into the

united states in october of '22. compare that to what is in place here in the summer of 2024, it is a record low during the biden administration for the number of border encounters by the border patrol. and so this, for the trump came is coming at a time, another example of violent crime. we're seeing year-over-year violent crime and homicides drop in major american cities here. so for donald trump, it is not just a contrast in terms of the visuals between the harris campaign and his campaign, but also on policy. which his own team wants him to get back to. this is a difficult time because he wants to put the focus on the biden-harris administration, but some of the messages in the final three months are -- are facing difficult numbers and difficult realities based off of pure statistics at this point. >> it is so interesting, vaughn. because what is covered is that his advisers and his allies want

him to get back to policy. but what you're reporting and what the data bears out is that on the issues where he feels like he has an advantage, the facts don't line up the way they might have at another point in time. what is plan c? >> i think that is a good question, nicolle. because, let's be clear, this campaign structure that he's surrounded himself with, susie wilds and chris la cevita, he's chosen to run on standing on stage as january 6 defendants sing the star-spangled banner. it has meant calling those individuals patriots. it is allowed him to bemoan the state of the migrant crisis and the number of migrants coming into the united states and they're stealing your jobs and coming from insane asylums. they've allowed donald trump to run his own campaign messaging for the better part of almost two years now and up until this

point, they won in a republican primary and up against joe biden it had him leading in polling and battleground states but that is not the race he's running against now and that is what all of us that are reporting on donald trump are looking at. but also those who are allies with him. i talked to someone connected to that world who was questioning where do they go from here because they could very well try to fire one of the key campaign advisers but what does that do because organizationally, they have implemented what trump wanted in terms of a ground game operation and putting resources toward being able to challenge election laws and potentially in the weeks after the election challenge, you know, voting tabulation. and so right now, this campaign, they have done what donald trump has want and i think it is a question now, where does donald trump want -- where does he want to go and i think this last week is an indication and the question is could anybody, kellyanne conway convince him

there is a different path forward. >> matt, i wonder how much that matters. it looks like a structural reshaping of the race and a lot of myths that were unchallenged are being challenged all day every day including on fox news. nikki haley is someone who -- who speaks to former trump voters. let me play -- or i'm going to read it actually. she said don't assume people will bend the knee that 20% -- they're ideas are still out. what they like about kamala harris is that she's hopeful and they don't want a former president talking about the past. you've got permission structures from evangelical americans, from thousands, tens of thousands of republicans who were saying, voting for kamala harris is not a democrat or republican decision, it is a patriotic decision. let me play jeff duncan making that argument. >> i think it is important for us to remind ourself, just because we vote for kamala

harris in 2024 doesn't mean we are democrats. it just means we are patriots. what story do you want to tell your kids and grandkids? do you want to they will them when they ask this election, this chaotic period of time, this temporary moment of insanity for the republican party, do you want to they will them that you voted for a morally bureaucrat person, a womanizer and an indicted felon, a convicted felon, just because he had an "r" next to his name or did you vote for someone that was morally decent and you disagreed with on a handful policies. i hope that answers that you have the courage to vote for someone that was descent. >> i think this is a important conversation. because i think that the thing that has not been talked about enough is the psychic, the actual psychic shift of this race in a fundamental ray. that seldom happens in politics even this close to election day. what happened a few weeks ago is joe biden stepped back, and

then -- then pushed and then said he endorsed kamala harris in this race. that was like him stepping on the fault line of our politics. and the tet onic plates fundamentally moved. and when they moved, the facts that were on the ground began to line up with people's feelings because what held back the democratic ticket, wasn't the facts but it is how people felt. and for some reason this psychic shift from joe biden, where people felt sour and didn't feel right and people said i'm going to vote for that, all of a sudden changed. and what happened, what happened dramatically, vice president harris's numbers have improved by 20 points in three weeks. 20 point improvement in her favor ability numbers. who works best on the economy, has went from a dramatic advantage of donald trump to basically even today and that is a fundamental shift. and how people feel optimistic

and hopeful about the direction of america has fundamentally changed. so people have argued the facts now for months and months and the public seemed to be impervious to the facts. but also now they're not no longer imper viehus, because their feeling the race is fundamentally changed and that is the problem that donald trump and his campaign have. and i struggled through this as a strategist, to see how you could put it up and fix this, it is very hard to fix it when there is that psychic of a shift in a race. >> matt, with that said, take me through how you see the data that is out today, the new data is the cook political report and then i think yesterday or earlier this week we had the new "new york times" polling which puts her ahead in most of the battleground states. >> so, in my view of the data right now, is there are actually underestimated vice president harris's support. >> wow!

>> it came out of the field august 2nd. data was out 12 days ago. so it hasn't been in the field. it was gone two weeks ago. and so to me the last ten days have only improved the vice president's position. there is a monmouth poll out in the last two hours, a national poll that had the race as close as right on as anybody in 2020. they had joe biden winning the race in 2020 by five points. he won it by 4.5. as of today, the vice president has a five-point lead nationally in this race. in a very a plus polling firm. and i think when we discuss the cook political report and "the new york times" political report and all of that, all good news. but i don't think it is near as good news as what i actually think reality is today. and that is why i think you're seeing the aggression, that is why i think you're seeing the floundering by donald trump and his campaign and the discussion. they know this data that i'm telling you. they don't think it is a one or

two point race. they know it is a four or five-point race as of today. >> matt, one more question about strategy. my sense is that what -- you know, what trump had in terms of political strength among his supporters was electability and that seemed to feed on itself after the debate. so what you're seeing or i wonder if some of what you're seeing is that when robbed of electability, because he's not likeable and trustworthy, because he's not right on the issues as vaughn is ticking through inflation and crime and immigration, there wasn't anything else. so if your own supporters don't believe you, if you're wrong on the issues, how do you -- you know, to your point, what do you -- what is there? i'm guessing that is why we're seeing him call out members of once obscure election boards. >> well, i think we forget how

unelectable donald trump is. because he won in 2016, he lost the popular vote. by 3 or 4 million votes. he barely won because of series of things in electoral votes against an unpopular candidate hillary clinton. and then in 2020 he losed and has horrible favorable numbers. he carried horrible favor ability numbers through last two or three years. there was a moment it time in the aftermath of joe biden's debate performance and then the republican convention and then the donald trump's attempted assassination where donald trump's favor ability numbers didn't go positive, but they improved. and that improvement only gave him a one or two-point lead. that all of those factors that were in play. so i think what we've often underestimated because of whatever the hold back on joe biden and his age and the question marks, as soon as that hole back was removed, the nature of the race returned to -- went to a place that we

have not seen. which is now a popular democratic candidate, far more popular than joe biden, far more popular than hillary clinton, and donald trump's numbers returning to the norm of what they normally are. they were in 2016 and they were in 2020. and so you have this situation, to me, that -- that it is only going to get improved for the vice president when you go through the next week of the democratic convention, and the question is how does donald trump change that dynamic of the race that has fundamentally shifted and there is only one way. he has to do a debate. >> yeah, i mean, a million more questions i want to bring david and aaron in on as well. i have to sneak in a quick break we turn the floor over to them an the other side. also ahead for us. tim walz was a coach and a teacher and the member of the u.s. military. full stop. he shouldn't have to be defecting any aspect of any of that. especially his service. but he is because of a line of

attack from donald trump. two former u.s. service members join our conversation in how he successfully knocked this down. and later in the broadcast, what the trump campaign doesn't want you to read, the architect of project 2025s that delayed the publication of his book, hoping to distance the group's radical agenda from donald trump. but, we'll be joined by someone who got a hand on it and read it and they'll tell us about it and knows just why they're trying to keep the contents away from broadcast like us. all of those and more when "deadline: white house" continues after a quick break. don't go anywhere. k break. don't go anywhere. e losing weight and keeping it off? same. discover the power of wegovy®. ♪ ♪ with wegovy®, i lost 35 pounds. and some lost over 46 pounds. ♪ ♪ and i'm keeping the weight off. wegovy® helps you lose weight and keep it off.

i'm reducing my risk. wegovy® is the only fda-approved weight-management medicine that's proven to reduce risk of major cardiovascular events in adults with known heart disease and with either obesity or overweight. wegovy® shouldn't be used with semaglutide or glp-1 medicines. don't take wegovy® if you or your family had medullary thyroid cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if allergic to it. stop wegovy® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or an allergic reaction. serious side effects may happen, including pancreatitis and gallbladder problems. wegovy® may cause low blood sugar in people with diabetes, especially if you take medicines to treat diabetes. tell your provider about vision problems or changes, or if you feel your heart racing while at rest. depression or thoughts of suicide may occur. call your provider right away if you have any mental changes. common side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems. with wegovy®, i'm losing weight, i'm keeping it off. and i'm lowering my cv risk. that's the power of we.

♪ ♪ check your cost and coverage before talking to your health care professional about wegovy®. with so much entertainment out there wouldn't it be great... ...if you could find what you want, all in one place? show me paris. xfinity internet customers can enjoy the ultimate entertainment experience and save on some of the biggest names in streaming, all for just $15 a month. get the fastest connection to paris with xfinity. with so much entertainment out there wouldn't it be great... ...if you could find what you want, all in one place? show me paris. xfinity internet customers can enjoy the ultimate entertainment experience and save on some

of the biggest names in streaming, all for just $15 a month. get the fastest connection to paris with xfinity.

we're back with aaron, matt, david and vaughn. aaron, this is the tweet from the evangelicals for harris. quote, evangelicals for harris drops their first media spot in an effort to win over some of those on the fence. evangelicals for harris will be targeted conservative christian media websites. this is not a play for christians. when i saw that, politically, i saw they thought of anything and it is only a couple of weeks in. this is really, to matt dowd's point, this is ground game and targeting of voters. but this is psychological warfare, the likes of which politically speaking donald trump's campaigns have not faced. >> absolutely. and look, those evangelicals for harris will also be having their zoom call tonight at 7:00. so their joining the latest wave

of doomers for harris to try to galvanize people to vote for her and against the former president. evangelicals, this also got me attention. i will not lie. i was like, wait, evangelicals joining this coalition. that is something. because we know that that is such a core part of his base. i'm old enough to remember last month when you have people on the floor of the republican national convention who were basically believing that god spared donald trump from an assassination attempt because he is destined to be president. now you're going to have who knows how many people on this zoom call tonight. i mean, look, the former president is, to use a political parlay, shook at what is happening with the harris-walz campaign. and regardless what he said about her crowd size being a.i., and he knows what it looks like because it happened to him in 2016 and when he was at the republican national convention in milwaukee. but the harris campaign has been

a runaway train for the last month and he's had no answer for that. the culture war, plan c, you asked about plan c, it is the culture war and it is not working this time because democrats are headed into their convention in november with an optimistic future focused missage that is resonating with people at rallies and at zoom calls and early voting starts two weeks after that. to matt's point, this debate on september 10th might be the only way to interrupt this but i don't know if that is going to work at this point. >> david, let me pull you in on this. there is something tragic that we have the same reaction, what, evangelicals. because one of the most extraordinary political developments over the last nine years is trump's ability to sort of crawl inside as a person who is proudly not aligned in terms of the -- the values he projects out in the world with the values

most people associate with evangelical american households and win them over. and so, it is surprising and it is sad that it is so surpriseding. but again, it is to me, another sign as a former campaign person, of the political astuteness of the harris portfolio operation. >> that is right. nicolle. a lot has been spoken about donald trump's ability to gather the support of evangelical community starting in 2016. but a new chapter is about to be written. if you haven't seen the ad dropped by evangelicals for harris, it is probably most theologically effective and theologically on point message that we have seen from a group like this. it is very clean. it is essentially presented billy graham giving the christian pathway for salvation for those that practice the christian faith and then presents donald trump in his own

words essentially saying, he does not need the forgiveness of christ. and it is chilling to see that. it does not confront donald trump on values on the ex-wives or on the at fairs or the other matters. it is very effective. and it your point, it is showing a movement in the country. not necessarily a campaign, but a movement that in some ways is making this campaign quickly get out of reach for donald trump. now, democrats are going to sprint through november and work as hard as if they're losing ten points behind just as they could. but as matt was sharing, we're seeing the ceiling, donald trump's ceiling tested at 46, 47% and no likelihood of breaking through that. as aaron said, maybe at the debate. but at harris, i think we're seeing her lock up certain elements, not just the verticals, evangelicals and republicans and whatever those might be. the right direction and wrong direction voter. those who have trump fatigue. that you sometimes see with a second term president, that is

applying now to donald trump perhaps because he served four year and never really went away. this right direction, wrong direction feel, that the harris campaign has locked up is very, very hard to unwind if you're donald trump. this is getting away from the former president. democrats will continue to work hard but donald trump is in a lot of trouble. >> and david jolly, it changed the conversation with life long republicans who, for whatever reason, haven't felt -- haven't felt a magnetic pull to the only alternative there is. if you don't like what is happening in your party, voting for hillary clinton and voting for kamala harris, those should be easy. for some people, they haven't been. and i talked to someone today and i said, go talk to your wife and how she feels, your kids when they go to school, they can't be allowed to behave in any of the ways, to do anything on their devices on their school

tablets that donald trump does. they can't bully and be allowed to lie. i think people are taking another look at the trump alternative for the purposes that people like jeff duncan and adam kinzinger and liz cheney have been articulating and to pull matt's point in, without a permission structure or a coalition to lead them there. and i wonder how important you think it is that there are these waves of republicans, waves of evangelicals, waves of sort of permission structures being presented by the campaign. >> that is what is making this kind of impenetrable for the former president. people see him as divisive and they have the fatigue and disagree with his value system and take his threat to democracy real. but this is a coalition, this is 2024 and not 2016, that understand under a biden/harris

administration, if thinking there was effort made toward building an economy for all people. access to health care and education for everyone. representing america on the world stage with decency and strength and they could look at that and say, i don't know what type of ideology this is, but it doesn't offend me. but at its core i think the problem is donald trump. i shared how our 5-year-old daughter said i'm on her team and she didn't know why. she just saw it. i will tell you the pretext. i was at the table with brian williams in 2017 or 2018, our daughter had just been born and i said i hope donald trump is gone before our daughter is old enough to know who the president is. we're an american family right now that is living that. we don't want our children, our young children to get introduced to donald trump. because of their ages, we have a shot. we have a chance for them to experience a president harris, not a president trump. that is a reflection of millions of americans who just don't want donald trump to be the leader,

the leader of this country. >> aaron, there is some sort of rich -- irony in the fact that it was -- president barack obama led a movement where there -- the coalition was -- i mean, you walk through any airport and there were people in hope an change t-shirts. it wasn't regional and democratic. but running against a movement is different, to vaughn's report, totally different than running against a candidate andin penetrable is a good word for that. there is an amazing -- that the two politicians that seem to bee fuddle donald trump the most are the last president who ran a movement and this sort of unlikely leader of this entire pro-democracy movement and coalition, vice president

harris. >> yeah, i think that is absolutely it. because the thing about a movement, it is not just about a candidate, it is about the american people as well. so when we talk about this excitement and the enthusiasm around the harris-walz campaign, it is not people are excited about having a couple of fresh faces in the race with president biden stepping aside. this is people who are also excited to door knock and people who are excited to phone bank or to send text messages. my phone has never blown up so much. how do those people get my phone number. i'm being texted constantly and people doing this for the very first time. people who have never donated money to a candidate who are saying, how could i donate to the harris-walz campaign. if i buy merchandise, it is going to help the campaign. that is also enthusiasm. it goes beyond someone just saying not only do i want to register to vote, but i'm going to help to get this woman

elected by my means necessary and that is what we're seeing out here. when you have them making this future forward optimistic case that helps people feel like things are getting better when the facts an the feelings and the vibes are ain looing which is kind of the moment that we're in now, this is a very potent combination for people, right. and look, on the other side, yes, president trump is certainly been a divisive figure, but we're also looking at this weird word taking root and that is something that is also not just about donald trump or j.d. vance, but then you have sp voters saying, wait, i don't want to be seen as weird but what we normalize over the past four years, over the last eight years in terms of the divisive politics and policies now cast as weird by the harris-walz came, that is something that is making folks who may be previously supporting donald trump rethink where they want to

go. i think that is something that we're seeing evangelicals and something that we're seeing with some of the never trumpers that are getting on zoom. white dudes for harris, all kinds of people who are suddenly saying, wait, maybe that is weird and don't want to be associated with weird so maybe i could be open to this candidacy in a way that i wasn't before. >> i love that you made that point. because i feel like by calling it weird, it is just shrunk down to size everything that we ushered in by normalizing them. right. i feel like it is the antibiotic or -- leaving the phone talking about extramarital sex with an adult newscast. that became normal. we did that for three months while he was on trial for hiding that alleged sexual relationship. i mean, there is so much that really falls under that weird umbrella that i just love that they sort of punctured all of it with a single -- a single

adjective. aaron haines and mad doubt, david jolly, vaughn hillyard, let's do this for longer next time. have a million more questions for all of you, thank you for stander starting us off today. and up next for us, veterans standing behind governor tim walz and slamming the trump side politically motivated attacks against him and his service to our country. two of those fellow service members will join us next. ♪we love home internet from t-mo'♪ ♪billllllle!♪ ♪now mesh boosts wifi all over your home.♪ ♪hooommmmmmeee!♪ ♪take a class in your attic,♪ ♪that dead spot is gone.♪ ♪stream ballet in your man cave,♪ ♪learn to paint on your lawn.♪ he's glorious! for a limited time get a free upgrade to home internet plus. just $50 bucks a month. ♪do, do, do, do, do!♪ from pep in their step to shine in their coats, when people switch their dog's food to the farmer's dog,

the effects can seem like magic. but there's no magic involved. (dog bark) it's just smarter, healthier pet food. it's amazing what real food can do. ♪♪ vicks vapostick provides soothing non-medicated vicks vapors. easy to apply for the whole family. vicks vapostick. and try new vaposhower max for steamy vicks vapors. you got this. one - remember, i don't want surgery for my dupuytren's contracture. two - i want to be able to lay my hand flat. three - i want a nonsurgical recovery. four - i want options - nonsurgical options. and five... and if nonsurgical treatment isn't offered?

i'll get a second opinion. let's go! take charge of your treatment. if you can't lay your hand flat, visit findahandspecialist.com to get started. (vo) when the internet said “red lobster's going away...” your boy, flavor flav, said “not today!” crabfest is here, boy. and they got two flavors: roasted garlic and new cajun butter. when you gotta have seafood, you gotta have red lobster.

[introspective music] recipes. recipes that are more than their ingredients. ♪ [smoke alarm] recipes written by hand and lost to time... can now be analyzed and restored using the power of dell ai. preserving memories and helping to write new ones. ♪

if the only thing that they could find about tim walz to complain about it-s to disparage his military record that was clearly honorable, remember, you can retire at 20 years. tim walz served for 24. >> you get to sergeant major because you've served this country. you goodet to sergeant imagine yoir because you were willing to put on the uniform. >> but overwhelmingly, people who serve with tim walz know what type of person he is. even though those who are republicans and those that aren't going to vote for him said he served with distinction. >> and a few lines of attack with the ineffective ability to project their alternate reality and facts on to the american electorate. quite like what they're doing here. they're trying to do to the 24-year record of service of governor tim walz. as he so passionately defended

himself from such slander yesterday, more than a thousand military veterans and caregivers and survivors signed on to an open letter his recent comments attacking governor walz's service record are disrespectful and deeply disappointing given vance's own service which we are also foundly grateful for. but given donald trump's long record of expressing disdain for service members and veterans an their families, it is unsurprising that his running mate has stooped to such lows. joining our conversation, host of the independent american's podcast, the founder of iraq and afghanistan veterans of america, paul reichoff, who is smiling for the tirs time since we've had him on this program and lieutenant colonel and founder of democratic majority action pac, amy mcgrath is here. paul, what is always amazing about a trump story is that if

you tell it without the full picture, you lose what is really most audacious about it and the full picture is that reporting from the atlantic, and several folks who have written books about it, have resealed in no uncertain terms and since sarah mathews and others have confirmed, that what donald trump believes about dead soldiers, men and women who gave everything to this country, is that they are, quote, suckers and losers. it is also, reported and reported and corroborated at the highest levels of the united states military, that trump is disgusted by men and women who have been injured in the line of duty and he doesn't want to see them at any public events. so what is this attack by the most unpopular vice presidential pick in american political history on governor walz really about? >> it is about politics. it is about the oldest dirtiest and recently most effective

trick that the republicans have had in their book. this swift voting as it is called, worked against john kerry. it hurt him. he had an honorable term of service but republicans kept pushing a lie and attacks and they're pushing it because they think it is going to work. here what is different. here is why i'm smiling. because energy is contagious and that is what this feeling is feeling right now around harris and walz. and so it command climate. and what they're bringing forward is a tone of respect, of honor. of integrity. in tim's response, i've i've been open and i've known tim for 20 years and he's an honorable man and served his country and tenacious on the hill, when he responded, he defends himself and then he went high. he didn't counter attack like he could have. he went high when they went low. now i hope that works this time. it is been a struggle for democrats in the past.

but i think it is a strategic move, but it is also in response to what the country wants. they're tied of negativity, and threats of violence and tires of weird. and what walz and harris are offering is honor and respect and a bit of cool. which is also very important. and think that is part of what you see in this energy that is flowing around the country right now. >> amy, cool is what is projected from -- at the highest levels of the military these days. mark milley had to stay cool while trump had him march around lafayette square and after the january 6 insurrection when he was on the line with the american allies and adversaries reassuring them this that we haven't completely lost our collective minds here. cool is what secretary austin has to project when right-wing loons in the senate attack him for being woke. i mean, that is a really interesting analysis of what walz and harris are projected here. do you think it will work?

>> i do. i think that like paul said, i think the country is ready for this type of leader ship. look, the way that governor walz responded was exactly the way that you would expect a former command sergeant major to respond. and some people are calling it forceful. i call it just like paul said, honorable. hey, j.d. vance served the country, i'm proud of my service, i served the country as well. we should not disparage each other's service or any veterans. but here is the thing. this is exactly what the party, the republican party under trump has been doing for years. remember, nicolle, trump was the one that went after john mccain. probably served this country almost more than anybody i can think of. and then he went after gold star families during the last campaign. so j.d. vance, who is basically like a mini trump, does the exact same thing. but this time i don't think it

will work because americans are tired of that. we respect our veterans. and here is the other thing, governor walz has a stellar, stellar career to stand on. he doesn't need to stoop low. he just needs to stand up and say i'm proud of it. >> well, i have to sneak in a break. but i want to -- even people that served for him i'm not going to vote for him but his service was nothing less than honorable. i want you to ask you about the conversation within the military and -- and sort of military families. but i have to sneak in a quick break. we'll have that conversation on the other side. can bring out a smile. but it's been a few dog years since she was able to enjoy a smile of her own. good thing aspen dental offers affordable, complete care all in one place. with flexible hours and weekend appointments. plus 20% off treatment plans for everyone. loving our patients unconditionally.

it's one more way aspen dental is in your corner.

♪ loving our patients unconditionally. (woman) c'mon c'mon ♪ (man) yes! ♪ (vo) you've got your sunday obsession and we got you. now with verizon, get nfl sunday ticket from youtube tv on us and get every out-of-market sunday game. plus $800 off samsung galaxy z fold6.

only on verizon. (jalen hurt) see you sunday. these guys have -- are even attacks me, for my record of service. and i just want to say, i'm proud to serve my country and i always will be. i'm going to say it again as clearly as i can. i'm damn proud about my service to this country. and i firmly believe you should never denigrate another person's service record. anyone brave enough to put on that uniform for our great country, including my opponent, i just have a few simple words. thank you for your service and sacrifice. i know when i ask you to tell me what the military

thinks, it is the obviousin accuracy, it is not a monolith. this is they have as many different views as all americans. but how personal is this to have this achievement of the vice presidential nominee on both sides as a veteran and one is attacking the other, paul. >> i think it is very personal. i mean, it feels like a fight in the family. right. and you hope that you don't see family fighting. with he could joke around army versus navy. but this is nastiness of our political environment manifest in a whole new way. and we knew it was coming. i've been on this network for 20 years and we knew there could be a day where there would be presidential candidates and i've said it before and i will say it again, i hope we have a cease-fire, a safe space where people don't attack each other's military record. and we as veterans set a higher bar for our politics and leadership. and i think that's a deeper issue too. this is about character and it's also about being a role model.

this is about what it means to really be tough in america, what it means to be a man as a leader in america. right? because now you've got two guys on the right that are the anti-role models, that are people i don't want my young boys to be like. they don't have honor. they don't have integrity. they're bullies. they push down other people. and then you've got tim walz, who's a teacher and who's a coach and who's positive and is vulnerable and loves his kids. and he's a positive male role model. and i think in many ways our country's really been looking for that. and that's something that i think is going to pan out over the course of the next couple months and will especially resonate with military and veterans' community members because they want character and they want leadership and leaders who lead by example. >> it's so -- it makes me cry, that the ticket talking about childless cat ladies is you're right, the ticket you don't want your kids to see. amy, i'm going to give you the last word. i have to sneak in one more break before we do that. don't go anywhere. re we do that. don't go anywhere. zevo traps. zevo works 24/7 to attract and trap flying insects. for effortless protection.

zevo. people-friendly. bug-deadly. only purple's gel flex grid passes the raw egg test. no other mattress cradles your body and simultaneously supports your spine. memory foam doesn't come close. get your best sleep guaranteed. save up to $1,000 during our labor day sale. visit purple.com or a store near you. you'll find them in cities, towns and suburbs all across america. millions of americans who have medicare and medicaid but may be missing benefits they could really use. extra benefits they may be eligible to receive at no extra cost. and if you have medicare and medicaid, you may be able to get extra benefits, too, through a humana medicare advantage dual-eligible special needs plan. call now to see if there's a plan in your area and to see if you qualify. all of these plans include doctor, hospital and prescription drug coverage. plus, something really special, the humana healthy options allowance. your allowance. to help pay for essentials

like eligible groceries, utilities and rent. even over-the-counter items. and whatever you don't spend gets carried over to the next month. plus, with a humana medicare advantage dual-eligible special needs plan you'll get other important benefits. all of these plans include dental coverage. with two free cleanings a year. plus, fillings, and a yearly exam. vision coverage, including eye exams and a yearly allowance for eye wear. and hearing benefits. including routine hearing exams and coverage toward hearing aids. you'll also get free rides to and from medical appointments. best of all, you'll pay nothing for covered prescriptions, even brand name ones, all year long. and zero dollars for many routine vaccines at in-network retail pharmacies. plus, you'll have access to humana's large networks of doctors and specialists. so, if you have medicare and medicaid, call now to see if there's a plan in your area that will give you extra benefits, including an allowance to help pay for essentials.

plus, no-cost for covered prescriptions. and coverage for routine dental, vision and hearing. a knowledgeable, licensed humana sales agent will explain your coverage options. and, if you're eligible, help you enroll over the phone. it's that easy! call today and we'll also send this free guide. humana. a more human way to healthcare. >> no application fee if you apply by august 29 at university of maryland global campus, offering online and hybrid courses and lifetime career services. learn about our more than 135 degrees and certificates at umgc.edu.

why do couples choose a sleep number smart bed? can it keep me warm when i'm cold? learn about our more than 135 degrees wait, no, i'm always hot. sleep number does that. during our biggest sale of the year, save 50% on the sleep number limited edition smart bed and free delivery when you add any base. paul and amy are back. amy, i guess my last question for you is does this change something? we've talked a lot about the reluctance of some of the former generals who saw the worst instincts of donald trump in a national security context to enter the political fray. when one veteran attacks another for his service, do you think it changes the calculation of some folks who've been on the sidelines? >> i think it may. why? because i think it really is personal. and you mentioned this in the

last segment. what j.d. vance has done is he has essentially implied that tim walz was a coward for not going to combat. and every single veteran knows how much of b.s. that statement is because you don't get a choice. that's why they're called orders. and the other thing is it's a slap in the face to anyone that served for over 20 years to do what vance accused walz of doing, which was, you know, somehow dropping out after 24 years of service. every veteran knows that that is a b.s. attack. and so i think that veterans and especially high-ranking officers are going to be more likely to step up and say hey, enough is enough. >> it's a really important conversation. i think you both know we're going to continue to turn to you over the next 83 days. paul rieckhoff, amy mcgrath. a new episode of paul's podcast

"independent americans" is out tomorrow featuring our friend and colleague michael steele. check that out when you have a chance. up next for us, you can run but you cannot hide. how the trump-vance campaign continues to try and distance itself from project 2025's radical agenda. the next hour of "deadline: white house" starts after a quick break. don't go anywhere. k. don't go anywhere. ♪& doug.♪ and if we win, we get to tell you how liberty mutual customizes car insurance so you only pay for what you need. isn't that what you just did? service! ♪stand back i'm going to show ya,♪ ♪how doug and limu roll, yeah!♪ ♪♪ ♪you know you got to live it,♪ ♪♪ ♪if you want to win...♪ [bump] time out! only pay for what you need. ♪liberty, liberty,♪ ♪liberty, liberty.♪

your record label is taking off. but so is your sound engineer. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire ah, these bills are crazy. she has no idea she's sitting on a goldmine. well she doesn't know that if she owns a life insurance policy of $100,000 or more she can sell all or part of it to coventry for cash. even a term policy. even a term policy? even a term policy! find out if you're sitting on a goldmine. call coventry direct today at the number on your screen, or visit coventrydirect.com. [cough] honey... honey. nyquil severe honey. powerful cold and flu relief with a dreamy honey taste nyquil honey,

one second. >> okay. we've confirmed news that senator vance is the vice presidential running mate. you will see a broad smile on my face because you may know that

we're good friends. the entire list of names considered are great men and women, truly. truly. all of them friends of heritage. they're -- among them, though, was someone that privately we were really rooting for. and he's just been named the running mate. why were we rooting for him? not even because of politics and policy but because of who he is. j.d. vance is a great husband. he is someone -- and a great dad. he's been a great member of the senate. >> because of who he is. hi again, everybody. it's 5:00 in the east. when j.d. vance was first announced as trump's running mate as you saw right there, one person was really, really, really, really, really happy. kevin roberts. could not contain his enthusiasm and excitement. roberts is the president of the heritage foundation. he's the architect of the blueprint for turning our democracy into an autocracy. project 2025. he was nearly giddy. in the weeks since roberts has seen both trump and vance try to

distance themselves from him. pretty unsuccessfully, i should add. from him, from project 2025 and from its radically and wildly unpopular agenda. roberts himself has felt the backlash as well. so much so that the book roberts wrote, which his friend j.d. vance wrote the forward to, suddenly had its publication date pushed back to after the november election. well, the progressive media watchdog group media matters got its hands on an advance copy of that book that roberts has written. it's titled "dawn's early light: taking back washington to save america." and in it they find this. quote, roberts repeatedly invokes revolutionary rhetoric. quote, it's time for a conservatism of fire, he writes. roberts also proposes a question to his readers, asking this, quote. what's your alamo? what are you dying for? there's a time for writing and reading and a time to put down

the books and go fight like hell to take back our country and build our future. does that last line sound familiar? >> we fight like hell. and if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore. >> good lord. media matters goes on to explain more of what roberts writes in this book that has been, again, yanked from publication. to no one's surprise the topics echo themes outlined in the 900-page project 2025 mandate. there's the extreme anti-abortion rhetoric, a slamming of funding for public schools, attacks on unions, attacks on access to contraception. as much as trump and vance repeat their project 2025 doesn't speak for me defense, their connection to the man and everything in his plan is undeniable and inescapable. just take vance's own words in the book's foreword. he refers to roberts' ideas as,

quote, an essential weapon in the fights that lay ahead. and like roberts' revolutionary rhetoric vance calls for readers to, quote, circle the wagons and load the muskets, end quote. nbc news has not yet reviewed the book. we have asked the publisher for an advance copy of our own. in addition we reached out to roberts, we reached out to the heritage foundation and the book's publisher for a statement. the ties between the gop presidential ticket and project 2025 is where we start the hour once again with the president of media matters for america, angelo carusone and professor of history at nyu and author of "strongmen: mussolini to the present," ruth ben-ghiat. angelo, take me through the book. >> i think that -- one thing that always sticks out at me since we sort of went through the copy, it's this one part of the book, it will sound familiar because it explains partly why vance was so willing to write

the foreword, where roberts writes about the fact that he doesn't believe -- and argues that having a child should not, quote, be an optional individual decision. and what he argues for is it's a societal act to not use only soft means like pressures but they should do everything possible from a policy perspective to take away that choice from individuals. that means banning contraceptions. that means take a whole suite of issues against reproductive health and banning abortions. that is a massive overhaul. and to me the one through line throughout the book, whether he's railing against education or he's arguing for rolling back unions and eliminating them and rolling back workplace safety protections, even when he goes into this massive tangent about dog parks which you know, he's sort of angry about the fact there are more people that have dogs than children which again, not entirely true, that feels like one of the through lines, which is that fundamentally if you just read it and let it absorb you're left with this idea that there's a bunch of childless people out there that

are destroying the country and that something really drastic is needed and that is a theme we've heard throughout project 2025 and roberts in order to stop them from ruining the country, and that to me is the big takeaway. there's lots of little policy and narrative weaved in. but i just can't escape that one narrative because it seems to be the one thing that connects all the dots. otherwise, it's just a bunch of random musings from this guy. >> angelo, can you hear me? i lost you there at the end. >> yes, i can. i hear you. i was saying that's the one thing that connects the dots. >> let me read from the book because it is precious that we actually have the book itself. and if we take all of our time doing that it will be an incredible service. okay. so this is that section on ivf. "once you understand this pattern, individual choice masking cultural upheaval, you will see it everywhere. in vitro fertilization, ivf seems to assist fertility but has the added effect of incentivizing women to delay trying to start a family.

often leading to added problems when the time comes." this was the first time i understood their demented assault on ivf. it isn't justice taking away choice in what for many families is a miracle. it's taking await optionality of choosing the time when you start a family. what offends them about ivf is that a woman would pursue a career and postpone having a family using the miracle science of ivf. >> yeah, it gets back to this idea about control. and in a way part of it is that he's reasserting control over women's bodies. and that's a through line we've seen through some of the policys. just now they're becoming much more explicit about what the intention is. they just don't like the idea that people have any control over the -- over when to have children, particularly women. and you'd think he would want ivf, right? because part of the book, part of the storyline is that there's not enough children, there's not enough people having family, but it just goes to show you what the book is really about and

what their philosophy and theory is about, which is control. and that ties into the authoritarian bedrock. and a lot of what the book is about and project 2025 and roberts is advocating for is really built on. >> and here's the section that roberts writes about childless society. quote, that's a problem because a childless society becomes decadent and nostalgic. aging barren societies literally become consumptive, taking on higher levels of debt and depleting savings as they pay foreign workers to keep things going. they become less and less capable of innovation, a young person's game, and more and more stuck and decrepit every year. getting married and having kids, on the other hand, gives you skin in the game for the future of your country. it forces you to grow up, give up childish things and live in the real world. it grounds you, gives you a sense of purpose in life and helps generate community, gratitude and joy. a culture of children is a culture of hope." again, if you close your eyes,

that could be j.d. vance talking in any one of the hundreds and hundreds of interviews and podcasts he did before he was tapped, angelo. >> yeah. and to bookend that because it ties in with the example i referenced before about the dog parks. because he describes this dog park in washington, d.c. and he's really mad about it. he's angry. and his whole theory about the dog parks if you go to this, it's not just the size he's mad about. it's the fact that he describes these people there that are angry and unhappy and miserable. he sort of paints this very bleak picture of childless people gathering around this very large dog park, and he blames sort of democrats and public policy for even allowing for such a facility to be built in order to accommodate these really depressing -- these depressed angry people. and to me that's the illustration you're left with based off the description you just described, is he takes that sort of policy narrative and then he starts to put it into practice and he basically makes it seem that anyone who doesn't have a kid is miserable and not only are they miserable but they're hurting everybody else as a result of it. and you know, i think when i go

back to what j.d. vance wrote in his foreword, he calls the book the essential blueprint for the future. he is adopting a lot of this philosophy wholesale and i think it sort of ties into why roberts in the intro clip that you played was so excited to see him as the vp pick, because vance is an avatar for not just dawn's early light and what's expressed there, that narrative, but the entire policy structure of project 2025. >> ruth, this is the dog park reporting. on page 69 roberts rails against the swampoodle dog park in washington, d.c. for having too much room for dogs to play and not enough for children, blaming this on the anti-family culture shaping legislation, regulation and enforcement throughout our sprawling government. i spent time in republican politics. this is so extreme and so radical and so bizarre. it doesn't have its tentacles in anything remotely familiar to

me. this hatred for childless women, or women who want any control over when and if they have kids. and clearly the hatred for men or women who have dogs is so pathological. i want to understand its role in moving america toward an authoritarian state. >> may i say that these far right extremists seem to have a problem with animals between the governor of south dakota shooting an animal and robert f. kennedy jr. with the bear cub thinking he could have a dead bear cub and finding it would be a fun joke. and this. but actually, you know, what i take away from the dog park thing, it's very scary because all of this discussion we've had, you know, authoritarianism is about lifting regulations and rules for the very rich, for the elites through privatization,

deregulation. more rights, more freedoms for them. and fewer rights and more controls for everybody else. and so this obsession with childlessness, and it goes back as angelo said to the idea that women would have choice, that women have autonomy over their bodies, over their destiny, the timing of their families, who's in their family, who they marry, all of that is part of a war on women. by the way, it's also very fascist especially if you link it to the kind of great replacement of white christian births thing. and some of the language we've heard reminds me of mussolini, who in the late '20s he said -- he was obsessed with these things too. and he said the cemeteries are full and the cradles are empty in italy. and he had a whole program, no contraception, no abortion. also vance talks about penalizing people who don't --

it's not just that they're bad people. it's that you should actually as angela said use policy to penalize people who won't have kids. and so not only were there extreme controls under fascism on women's autonomy, taking away reproductive rights, but there was attacks on bachelors imposed in the late 1930s to punish men as well in the interest of growing the family and having more white christian babies. so although this is a blueprint for the future it's a blueprint that echoes the fascist past. >> ruth, let me play again j.d. vance's attack on women who make the choice not to have kids or families. >> we're effectively run in this country via the democrats, via our corporate oligarchs, by a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made. and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable too.

it's just a basic fact. you look at kamala harris, pete buttigieg, aoc, the entire future of the democrats is controlled by people without children. and how does it make any sense that we've turned our country over to people who don't really have a direct stake in it? >> because it's so outrageous and offensive, every time i've seen it before today and before reading these sections from the book i've had sort of an emotional reaction. but when you lay a political lens over it, it's catastrophic for the trump-vance ticket. i mean, trump was tied to project 2025 because all of his people made it and run it. but in terms of what he projects to his own voters it's so promiscuous that trump could have tap-danced away from it at least in the eyes of some of his base. i'm guessing. maybe not. but he would have tried to. but by doubling down on the walking, talking embodiment of the hatred toward childless

women, the intolerance for marriage equality, the authoritarianism that drips off every page, and then writing the foreword for the book the guy that makes it, trump is now attached to this in a way that you can't walk away from politically. and i wonder, ruth, the first amendment protects their right to say all these things, right? and to write it and someone to publish it. and that's fine. but everything else is up to the electorate. and what is sort of the political response to extremism like this? >> well, first of all, these people don't want to be liked. they want to be feared. and in a way, you know, when trump says we don't need the votes often what extremists do is they know that they're -- the reason they need to consolidate power and eventually make elections into a hollow shell without much meaning is that

they know that their extremist population hating, women hating, gay hating things are unpopular, but they don't -- so they can't rely on the popular vote anymore because they would lose. so the gop is locked in this thing where it's become so extremist it's distanced itself from the desires and aspirations and actual principles of many americans. and thus they have to be on this course to seize power at any cost. and roberts is part of this, and so is vance. and the original title of the book was "burning down washington." and you know, roberts may have a ceo title. he may wear nice suits. but he is less than one degree away from jailed extremist agitator steve bannon. and steve bannon's language, from deconstructing the administrative state -- this is a war on democracy, a war on government, a war on the american people. it's very extremist.

and his fingerprint is all over this. and roberts also frequently was going on bannon's "war room." so we have to be mindful of exactly how extremist this whole thing is. and when you're in this universe there's always a war on women. there's always a kind of demographic racist, you know, component to -- and this is the orban playbook. there's a reason orban when he comes to washington, he doesn't see biden. he sees -- he goes to kiss the ring of trump, and then he goes to kiss the ring of kevin roberts. these are kindred spirits, in the interests of growing white christian civilization. so all of this is very predictable. and they really don't care what the american people think. >> so ruth, what is the best way to defeat this ideology if you're among the majority of americans who finds it incredibly offensive and not the

way any of us want to live? >> i think that it's very important to call it out so that americans, you know, deserve to know what is coming. if they vote the republican ticket. because although project 2025 and all of them are talking about restoring self-government to americans and, you know, making the state smaller, small government, actually as angelo pointed out and you with the dog parks, what they have planned is a degree of control over our everyday lives which is positively authoritarian. i mean, that's what the dog park thing's about too. that's what the control of bodies is about. that's what putting the ten commandments in classrooms is about. denigrating teachers. you know, talking about workers as bad if they strike. so they want to control small and big things from our lives while they have the fiction of

restoring power to the american people. we need to call these contradictions and hypocrisies out so that people can make an informed choice because this is the most important election of our lives. >> angelo, it appears from the things that they're doing, and my colleague rachel maddow has trained us to watch what they do, not what they say. that they are running for the hills. they're trying to hide their extremism. they're trying to hide their associations with vance and the trump campaign. is that the case and, you know, do you see them sort of going dark or going dormant between now and november so that people won't learn how close and inextricably linked they are? >> it's not possible for them to go dark or dormant even if they want to, even if they try if that's the strategy. and the laenz why is because that's where all the kinetic energy is in trump's base. all the kinetic energy is in exactly this sort of philosophy, this worldview, this authoritarian bent. so this control of women, this

is it. this is what they want. so if they want to get their base moving again, have any chance of organize, they're going to have to run toward where the energy is. that's it. so that's what i know. i look at the tea leaves, i can see where the engagement is. this is what they want. they may try to see some sandpaper on the edges. and i think that's why they delayed this book. maybe not put any more rakes for them to step on, try to smooth out some of the edges. but ultimately this is where the energy is, this is where they're going to go, and this is what they really believe. but i think ruth said something important. and i didn't mention it when i was talking. that a lot of this is also a veiled christian nationalist worldview. one of the things roberts talks about throughout his book and i was thinking about it, i was listening to your discussion, was this idea that using revolutionary language, talking about the fact we have to bring the rest of the world back to its natural order, so using a lot of christian -- religious language, and he describes the natural order of things as the western worldview and the

american worldview. and i think that's where the tie-in is here, that relationty and that christian nationalism is again what's in about, and we have to make sure they're not able to mask it. and you've been doing good work and a lot of others to not let them run, keep that spotlight on them. >> we'll do that with your help. it's just gobsmacking. it's incredible. angelo, thank you so much for being here and breaking this down. ruth, thank you so much for putting it all into context. and thanks to both of you for starting us off this hour. when we come back, how today's republican party is trying to rewrite more of its history right before our very eyes. it's the topic of a new book by rachel maddow show producer steve behnen. and he'll be our guest. plus in georgia where one of the members of the state election board is under scrutiny for expressing interest in working with a potential trump administration. critics say it's more evidence the board charged with overseeing that state's election might well be in the tank for

donald trump. "deadline: white house" continues after a quick break. don't go anywhere. continues after a quick break. don't go anyerwhe. ♪ [suspenseful music] trains. [whoosh] ♪ trains that sense what isn't on the schedule. ♪ trains that use the power of dell ai and intel. ♪ to see hundreds of miles of tracks. ♪ [vroom] [train horn] [buzz] clearing the way, [whoosh] so you arrive exactly where you belong. on chewy, save 35% off your first order with selection for any pet, with any diet, at prices you'll love. delivered fast, right to your door. for low prices and fast shipping. for life with pets, there's chewy with everything. (vo) you've got your sunday obsession forand we got yous, now with verizon, get nfl sunday ticket from youtube tv on us... and a great deal on galaxy z fold6... for a total value of twelve hundred and fifty dollars.

only on verizon. (jalen hurts) see you sunday! (vo) when the internet said “red lobster's going away...” your boy, flavor flav, said “not today!” crabfest is here, boy. and they got two flavors: roasted garlic and new cajun butter. when you gotta have seafood, you gotta have red lobster. what causes a curve down there? is it peyronie's disease? will it get worse? how common is it? who can i talk to? can this be treated? stop typing. start talking to a specialized urologist. because it could be peyronie's disease, or pd. it's a medical condition where there is a curve in the erection, caused by a formation of scar tissue. and an estimated 1 in 10 men may have it. but pd can be treated even without surgery. say goodbye to searching online. find a specialized urologist who can diagnose pd and build a treatment plan with you. visit makeapdplan.com today. what does a robot know about love? and build a treatment it takes a human to translate that leap in our hearts into something we can see and hold. etsy.

pete g. writes, “my tween wants a new phone." "how do i not break the bank?" we gotcha, pete. xfinity mobile was designed to save you money and gives you access to wifi speeds up to a gig. so you get high speeds for low prices. better than getting low speeds for high prices. -right, bruce? jealous? yeah, look at that. -honestly. someone get a helmet on this guy. get a free unlimited line for a year when you add one unlimited line. plus, get a new google pixel 9 on us. bring on the good stuff.

this is a hoax just like russia, russia, russia. just like ukraine, ukraine -- >> the incursion of the u.s. capitol struck at the very heart of our republic. mob violence goes against everything i believe in. >> people who love our country protest on january 6th in washington, they become hostages -- >> and then i see the disinfectant. it knocks it out in a minute. one minute. and is there a way we can do something like that?

by injection inside or -- >> i was asking a question sarcastically to reporters like you. >> unbelievable job on that. we came up with things that nobody thought was possible. >> i did finish the wall. i built a wall. i built hundreds of miles of wall. and i finished it. >> that was even more perfect nan any call to -- >> let's talk about it. >> -- the president of ukraine. i told them, i said the election was rigged. i said all sorts of things about the election. they believe it 100%. >> they told you it wasn't -- >> i have all the facts. >> it's exhausting and a bold and taxing challenge that the ex-president has adopted as a political strategy, to lie so many times to try to convince people that their own eyes and ears has deceived them, that contrary to tangible evidence, testimony, votes, the realities of a global pandemic. a new book by our next guest is filled with examples of how republicans are rewriting things we all lived through

collectively, often with success based on the expectation that americans would just believe them. steve benen writes this in "the ministry of truth." quote, with unnerving frequency the contemporary republican party sees the recent past as an enemy to be overpowered, crushed and conquered. to see such authoritarian tactics in american democracy as anything less than dangerous would be a mistake. joining us now, producer for "the rachel maddow show," editor of the maddow blog, and author of the new book "ministry of truth: democracy, reality and the republicans' war on the recent past" steve benen is here with us. it's so nice to have you here. thank you so much. >> thank you, nicolle. >> you articulate perfectly what it is that is perhaps most detrimental to having one of the two political parties in this country collapse on itself and truly implode around a leader whose corrupt and doesn't care about any of them, who humiliates them, embarrasses

them, calls them fat, calls them stupid, and then they go on tv shows and say yeah, i'm with that guy, i'm going to vote for him again. but the piece of -- and that's fascinating at a human level. but the piece that's most dangerous to the country is the story you tell. tell us more about the attack on the truth so we can see with our own eyes and hear with our own ears. >> sure. you look back over the culture war, and i think you see a lot of effort to rewrite history from generations past. the civil war, revolutionary war, founding fathers. and as important as that is i think it's more audacious when we see republicans and trump and his allies target the recent past, events we all saw and lived through and experienced. things like january 6th, the federal response to covid, the trump russia scandal and so on. it's incredible to watch this unfold, but it's a systemic problem in republican politics where they can't allow the recent past to remain intact, and so they badger us and they try to overpower our memories with their alternative narratives, which are ridiculous

but yet nevertheless believed by so much of the republican base. it affects our democracy in a great many ways. it affects our legislation. it affects elections. but it also tears at the system itself by undermining the integrity of the recent past, by targeting our very -- by gaslighting us and targeting our understanding of reality. >> i want to read from the book itself. you write this. "this campaign of rewriting recent history is built on a foundation of pernicious pillars. the first is a wholesale indifference toward reality. the second is the absence of shame. the public will pick up on sheepishness. so republicans who intend to replace a factual series of events with fictional ones must fully commit to the new narrative no matter how ridiculous it is. the third is the role of allies. finally, there's the importance of reputation. recent history isn't rewritten overnight. it takes a sustained effort reinforced over time." this absence of shame is what as a former republican was so gutting and disgusting to watch.

that people like rob portman who'd been the omb director in the bush administration, i would sort of watch a trump trespass and say well, certainly this guy, he's normal, he'll come out before 4:00 and condemn this. no. i mean, this falling into line around provable, easily disprovable lies, what is -- what is that? what is that about? >> well, i think that in republican politics right now there's a realization that trump is certainly the ringleader of the circus but he can't do this on his own. no one person no matter how powerful, no matter how influential, will be able to override our memories with his brute force rhetoric. they can't simply rewrite history alone. they need partners. they need fox news. they need conservative media. they need a united congressional republican caucus in the house and senate to play along. and so we've seen that time and time again. as ridiculous as donald trump's rhetoric about january 6th has been, it's absurd but it's then bolstered by republican leaders in both chambers and at the

gubernatorial level and state legislative level and so on. we see a unified republican party either made up of people who are true believers or people who are too afraid to tell the truth. but either way it's the same result, which is a party that's united around attacking the recent past and united around the idea that our memories can be overpowered and conquered by their alternative narratives, no matter how absurd they are. >> but steve, every time there's a leaked tape it proves the first, right? it proves that they see reality that we see. mitch mcconnell privately thinks trump is a threat. kevin mccarthy on tape recordings that were unearthed by journalists writing about that period thought trump was so dangerous that impeachment would take too long. wanted to round up votes for the 25th -- there are no examples of the private conversations revealing that they agree with him, simply that they refuse to acknowledge the reality that you

and i can see with our own eyes. what is the solution to make their private sort of confessions about trump's lies match their public statements? >> well, i think ultimately the power is in the hands of the people who deserve it, which is the people of the united states, the voters, the electorate of the united states. so i think what is the solution? one of the key elements here is that parties change when voters tell them they have to. if donald trump is successful in the fall and republicans win up and down the ballot in the fall, this trumpified party will determine this is necessarily working for them, that they have succeeded in their war on the recent past and they've replaced our version of reality, and that therefore they should just move ahead on that trajectory. but if they lose, if the voters say no, we've had enough of this, we've seen this scam, we're no longer falling for it, then all of a sudden republicans have a new incentive. what do we do going forward? how do we perhaps reform the party? how do we perhaps get on a more reality-based footing? so i think we will see in the fall whether or not the campaign has succeeded. my hope is it has not.

>> steve benen, it's so, so, so important and so nice of you to join us to talk about it. the book is called "ministry of truth: democracy, reality and the republicans' war on the recent past." and it's out right now. and if you're looking for it on audio book, my friend and colleague rachel maddow voices this thrilling new read. you don't want to miss it. thank you so much for being here. >> thank you. >> when we come back, major ethical red flags are being raised once again about that state election board in georgia. the republicans on the board who have been singled out by the disgraced ex-president are now raising new questions and big ones over whether one of them is seeking a job with a potential trump administration. we'll bring you that reporting next. l bring you that reporting xtne you didn't live this strong, this long to get put on the shelf like a porcelain doll. if you have postmenopausal osteoporosis and are at high risk for fracture, you can build new bone with evenity®.

ask your doctor if you can do more than just slowing down bone loss with evenity®. want stronger bones? then build new bone; evenity® can help in just 12 months. evenity® is proven to reduce spine fracture risk by 73%. evenity® can increase risk of heart attack, stroke, or death from a cardiovascular problem. do not take evenity® if you have low blood calcium, or are allergic to it. serious allergic reactions and low blood calcium have occurred. tell your doctor about jaw bone problems, as they have been reported with evenity®. or about pain in your hip, groin, or thigh, as unusual thigh bone fractures have occurred. don't let a break put you on a shelf. talk to your doctor about building new bone with evenity®!

♪ ♪ not every decision you make will be as good as getting a volkswagen at the savvy vw summer sales event.

2024 volkswagen models cost less to maintain than honda. get 1.9% apr financing or a $2500 customer bonus on a new 2024 tiguan.

i watched a cult be birth birthed and i watched followers just walk off the deep end of the plank for donald trump. i could see this trainwreck coming but would never have guessed it got as bad as it got in 2020 with the election. donald trump can never, never, ever be in charge of anything again in this country. >> that's former georgia lieutenant governor, lifelong republican geoff duncan, on the danger posed by the cult of donald trump and his election

denialism, especially in former lieutenant governor duncan's home state of georgia, where that cultism has even infiltrated the organization tasked with presenting oversight influence, the georgia board of elections, where three election deniers have been doing trump's bidding, pushing policies that would make it easier for trump to successfully try to steal the 2024 election. creating questions about whether their loyalty is to the state of georgia and georgia voters or to donald trump. new reporting found that one of them solicited a job from the trump campaign. the "atlanta journal-constitution" reporting this, quote. rick jefferies, a former state senator who was tapped to the board in january, said he proposed himself as a candidate for a regional director of the environmental protection agency to trump aide brian jack. quote, i said if you all can't figure out who you want to be the epa director for the southeast, i'd like to have it. that's all i said. it's no surprise that trump has

praised him and his fellow election deniers directly from the podium at a recent rally in atlanta. here he is earlier this month. >> the georgia state election board is in a very positive way. this is a very positive thing, marjorie. they're on fire. they're doing a great job. three members. janice johnson, rick jeffries, and janelle king. three people are all pitbulls fighting for honesty, transparency and victory. >> they're on fire. they haven't done anything yet. joining our conversation, voting rights attorney, founder of the site democracy docket, marc elias is here. also joining us washington correspondent for the "atlanta journal-constitution" tia mitchell is back. we keep coming back to this, marc elias, because i think as the polls move, and they can move the other way, right?

83 days is a long time. it's clear how central this part of the trump campaign is. the installation of trump loyalists to the election boards. what is this new reporting about a job being sought by one of the members donald trump called out at his rally signal to you? >> it signals that donald trump is a transactional figure. he only engages in transactions. and the thing about donald trump is there is always another transaction. anyone that thinks that donald trump is happy with just one rule being passed by the georgia board of elections doesn't know donald trump. and the maga supporters that he endorsed on that board, they understand how transactional he is. he is there to obtain an outcome, not a procedure. and so if the way to get that procedure is -- the way to get

that outcome is through a procedure, great. if it requires finding 11,000 votes, fine. if it requires an insurrection on the nation's capitol, so be it. and if it means a job for one of these people in a future administration, that's an easy one. but everyone needs to be aware that donald trump is losing this election and when he loses an election, as we saw in 2020, that does not spell the end of his efforts to undermine democracy, it is the kickoff for his efforts to undermine democracy. so we all need to be ready. >> let me show you how he specifically pressured republican officials in georgia last time when he lost georgia. >> all i want to do is this. i just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have, because we won the state. we wanted fulton county. and you wouldn't give it to us. now, why aren't we doing signature -- and why can't it be

open to the public? you will find you will be at 11,779 within minutes because fulton county is totally corrupt. look, brad, i got to get -- i have to find 12,000 votes. and i have them times a lot. and therefore, i won the state. i watched you this morning and you said, well, there was no criminality. when you talk about no criminality, i think it's very dangerous for you to say that. >> you know, tia, what's amazing is he did this to lifelong republicans who had supported his campaign and had voted for him and had audited the vote in georgia. that count was done three times and they found no fraud and they found no discrepancies between the hand count and the count on election day that would change the outcome in the state. and yet the state of georgia passed a voter suppression law

that was so offensive to major league baseball -- we forget this chapter. but major league baseball for the first time in its history moved the all-star game after georgia did that to colorado. talk about how even while denying the existence of any fraud in the 2020 campaign georgia has still done extraordinary things to accommodate donald trump's lies. >> yeah. i think even down to governor kemp, who we know donald trump is no fan of governor kemp right now. they're in somewhat of a feud. governor kemp and secretary of state raffensperger insisted that the election was fair, there was no widespread fraud, that there were a lot of lies about the way the election was carried out in georgia. still they supported these new changes to the state election law that even in real time my colleagues and i were asking republicans why are you doing this?

if the election was fair, why are changes needed now? and they really had no clear answer other than to say, well, people still question the outcome. well, yeah, they're questioning the outcome because donald trump is feeding them lies and misinformation. but again, republicans still moved forward with it. governor kemp signed this legislation and others into law. republicans have again overhauled the state election board in a way that makes it much more trumpy and conservative-leaning. so that's kind of the thin line. even those who have directly taken over donald trump, in some ways they have allowed some of the election conspiracies to be facilitated in georgia. >> i mean, marc, it's the whole point about appeasement. it does not ever work. it does not work in war. it does not work in diplomacy. and it doesn't work in election denialism. >> no, it doesn't. the only thing that donald up from understands is when people

push back and they win. you know, and that's why he was so upset when my law firm, my legal team and i fought him and beat him more than 60 times in the post-election in 2020. it is why he got so upset when jack smith indicted him and when he was indicted in new york and in georgia. because the only thing he understands is when he loses. and that is why he is so panicked right now, because he is set to lose to kamala harris this november. but i want to turn to one thing you said and just highlight it so the audience understands it. when he's having that call with brad raffensperger, as you just said, he had already lost a full statewide machinery count and a full hand recount. so by the time he's having that call there is no doubt what the election results are. it is already january 2nd. the certification by the governor had already taken place. what was the only thing left for him to do? four days later violent insurrection in the nation's

capitol. >> right. and it's such a window into what with absolute immunity a second trump presidency would be. oh, i'll pardon you and no one can get me. i mean, he's asking him to commit the crime of election fraud and telling him exactly how many ballots to steal. all right. no one's going anywhere. we could do a whole hour on georgia. we have to fit in a very short break. we'll all be right back. back. inez, let me ask you, you're using head & shoulders, right? only when i see flakes. then i switch back to my regular shampoo. you should use it every wash, otherwise the flakes will come back.

he's right, you know. is that tiny troy? the ingredients in head & shoulders keep the microbes that cause flakes at bay. microbes, really? they're always on your scalp... but good news, there's no itchiness, dryness or flakes down here. i love tiny troy. and his tiny gorgeous hair. make every wash count! and for stubborn dandruff, try head & shoulders clinical strength. your shipping manager left to “find themself.” leaving you lost. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire

the warnings are growing

louder about the danger donald trump's election lies pose to the workers themselves, the people who selflessly administer our elections. earlier this week senate democrats urged the department of justice to do more to protect our election workers. quote, in recent years we have seen an ongoing barrage of threats and abusive conduct targeting election workers. these threats to our public servants endanger our democracy itself. we're back with marc and tia. i mean, i cannot think about this without thinking of ruby freeman and shaye moss, who are still in litigation. they've prevailed in their suits against rudy giuliani and others. but there are shaye mosses and ruby freemans who are being targeted. the secretary of state of michigan, jocelyn timed, joslynn the program she's been assaulted twice this week and the attacks on election workers are under way and relentless. >> the problem is ruby freeman

and shay moss are no longer election workers. you have two women who were a, experienced and b, loved the work they were doing and when you lose that experience and you lose people who are dedicated to the work regardless of political affiliation, unfortunately, that creates openings and that creates openings for people who may be motivated bipartisanship, may be motivated in ways that may not ultimately serve their local municipalities, their state or, quite frankly, democracy overall, and that's the fear you're hearing from these lawmakers. it's not just yes, they want to protect election workers and they want to protect americans from abuse, but they also want to protect the election system by not allowing bad actors to fill some of these vacancies that may arise when good workers don't want the hassle anymore of, you know, being potentially targeted for abuse or -- or, you

know, even worse, violence. >> mark, there's something -- we are in the public arena. it comes with being in the public arena, but election workers before trump really weren't. it feels like the fact that there are people, men and women who won't do this work is unfortunately, immeasurable and a sign of how effective and the threats of violence against them really are. >> and how committed the republican party is to this mission of making it harder to vote and easier for them to cheat. you know, we started this segment by talking about the efforts of donald trump's infiltrated the election board in georgia, well there's something else going on that's equally scandalous is the republican parties and their allies are in court in state after state trying to strike

down laws that prohibit intimidation and election. as crazy as that sounds, okay, they are literally going to court saying we have a first amendment right to harass election officials. we have a first amendment right to intimidate election workerses and that is because republicans know that the only way of winning this election is by intimidating voters and making it hard for voters to participate in the process and by setting up a permission structure after the election for them to be able to engage in the kind of frivolous and harassing litigation and ultimately, the kind of tactics we saw in 2020, but on a much wider scale and everyone needs to be paying attention to that, that's why we cover democracy and that's why you cover it every day on your show and it's why lawyers show up in court every day. >> i want to -- we've run out of time. we never have enough time for

these conversations, but i want to understand, mark, what is being operationalized to push back. i know the harris campaign has a pretty robust operation and integrity operation, but a lot of people watching want to know what they can do as citizens to help so next time we will press on that open door. mark tobias and tia mitchell, thank you very much for having this conversation with us today. another break for us right here. we will be right back. r us righ. we will be right back. when you're a small business owner, your to-do list can be...a lot. ♪♪ [ cellphone whooshes ] [ sighs ] that's why progressive makes it easy to save with a commercial auto quote online so you can take on all your others to-dos. already did. see if you could save at progressivecommercial.com. (children speaking)

millions of children are fighting to survive due to inequality, conflict, poverty and the climate crisis. save the children® is working alongside communities to provide a better life for children. and there's a way you can help. please call or go online to give just $10 a month. only $0.33 a day. we urgently need 1000 new monthly donors in the next 30 days to help the children we support around the world. you can help provide food, medicine, care and protection,

plus so much more that a child needs by calling right now and giving just $10 a month. all we need are 1000 monthly donors in the next 30 days. please call or go online now with your monthly gift of just $10. thanks to generous government grants, every dollar you give can have up to ten times the impact. and when you call with your credit card, we will send you this save the children® tote bag as a thank you for your support. your small monthly donation of just $10 could be the reason a child in crisis survives. please call or go online to givetosave.org to help save lives.

[introspective music] recipes. recipes that are more than their ingredients. ♪ [smoke alarm] recipes written by hand and lost to time... can now be analyzed and restored using the power of dell ai. preserving memories and helping to write new ones. ♪

half of puerto rico is without power this afternoon as the island continues to battle the torible rain and winds of up to 75 miles per hour from hurricane ernesto upgraded to a category 1 hurricane earlier this morning before it moved out to open water. more than 140,000 people were without power as of this afternoon according to the puerto rico emergency portal system. schools, offices and public transport were shut down while they expect widespread disruption to continue alongside the heavy rainfall and the wind has caused significant damage ripping roofs off houses and trees out of the ground. keep an eye on that. another break for us. we'll be right back. us we'll be right back. (man) yes! ♪ (vo) you've got your sunday obsession and we got you. now with verizon, get nfl sunday ticket from youtube tv on us

and get every out-of-market sunday game. plus $800 off samsung galaxy z fold6. only on verizon. (jalen hurt) see you sunday. what's up, you seem kinda sluggish today. things aren't really movin'. you could use some metamucil. metamucil's psyllium fiber helps keep your digestive system moving so you can feel lighter and more energetic. metamucil keeps you movin'. and try fizzing fiber plus vitamins.

ryan t. writes, "moving is stressful. metamucil keeps you movin'. can you help me take one thing off of my to do list?” ugh, moving's the worst. with xfinity, you can transfer your internet in just a few taps. just a few easy moves. did somebody say “easy moves”? ♪ ♪ oh no. no, i was talking about moving your internet. this will move the internet. ♪ ♪ ooh, ooh. -let's keep it professional. professional dancers! -ok! stay connected during your move with the best in home wifi. easily transfer your services in the xfinity app. bring on the good stuff. thank you so much for letting us into your homes during these extraordinary times. we are grateful. "the beat with ari melber" start right now. >> thank you so much. i'm a