this sunday, after the conventions, a 65-day sprint. republicans attacking joe biden. >> he is the destroyer of america's jobs. >> looking to the future. >> we will make america great again, again >> rewriting history. >> fortunately, as the virus began to spread, the president acted quickly. >> and trying to make the election a choice, not a referendum. >> this election will decide whether we save the american dream or whether we allow a socialist agenda to demolish our cherished destiny. >> my guests this morning, white

house chief of staff mark meadows, and the co-chair of the biden campaign, congressman cedric richmond of louisiana. plus, deadly scene in pro-trumpr protesters clash overnight. gunfire erupts during one confrontation and a man was killed. we'll have the latest. also, the police shooting in kenosha, wisconsin, of jacob blake. >> they shot my son seven times. >> leads to violent street scenes and the fatal shooting of two protesters by a teenage vigilante. nba players speak up. >> it's amazing why we keep loving this country and this country does not love us back. >> and walk out, soon to be joined by players in other major sports leagues. i'll talk to former nba player etan thomas, and sue bird of the wnba. joining me for insight and analysis are nbc news chief white house correspondent, hallie jackson. "the new york times"

correspondent michael schmidt. yamiche alcindor, and former republican governor of north carolina, pat mccrory. welcome to sunday, it's "meet the press." >> announcer: from nbc news in washington, the longest running show in television history, this is "meet the press" with chuck todd. good sunday morning. we're going to get to all the political news in a moment. we're going to start with a deadly clash in portland, oregon. pro trump and counterprotesters clashed overnight. fist fights broke out and at one point gunfire broke out during a confrontation and a man was killed. joining me now is mike baker of "the new york times" who has been covering these events in portland. mike, tell us what you saw, what you witnessed, and if you can, who shot this individual? >> yeah, last night there was a huge gathering of trump supporters out in the suburbs of portland. they had this vow that they were going to go into portland waving

flags as sort of a caravan. initially the plan was to sort of circle around the highways, but some of the ppdowntown wher were a whole large crowd of counterprotesters there ready to confront them. and so we saw fist fights on the streets in some cases. people in the backs of pickup trucks shooting paintballs into the crowd. other people throwing things onto the trucks where the pro trump supporters were driving around. and then eventually there was a smaller conflict on the streets where someone was shot. it looks right now like the person who was shot had a hat with the insignia of the group patriot prayer which is a right-wing group here in the portland area. >> mike, do we have an idea of where these gunshots came from? did they come from protesters?

was it law enforcement? is it possible it was accidental? or do we just not know any information on this? >> i mean there's sort of a distanced video of the scene a . it looks like there's some sort of small crowd milling around. so it appears to be some sort of conflict that occurred between a couple people and that's when the shot was fired, shots were fired. >> overall, what has been -- how would you describe the situation over the last month in portland? >> you know, it's changed a lot. you recall in july when the federal government came in with their forces and wearing camouflage and pulling people i. that brought out huge crowds, many thousands of people were coming out at that point. since then it's really come down a lot. i've been here most of the week and with a lot of the protests

at night. it's usually been a couple hundred people. you know, there are much smaller numbers but they're also a crowd that's been still -- the more hard core group that's out there protesting, doing direct action every night. that includes spray painting or lighting a police union building on fire. at the time, you know, because it's smaller numbers, the police would come in and clear them out and make a whole bunch of arrests. police have made dozens of arrests the past week and it's really kind of kept things into a much more contained -- much more contained way than it was compared to a month ago. >> until we saw what happened last night anyway. mike baker from "the new york times," really appreciate you getting up very early for me on the west coast and giving us your eyewitness account. thanks, mike. >> thanks for having me. well, the events in portland came at the end of a volatile week in this country. one that began with the police shooting of jacob blake in kenosha, wisconsin, the shooting

deaths of two protesters in kenosha by a teenage vigilante who came in from out of state and the republican national convention. president trump and other speakers presented a far different picture of america than democrats did a week earlier. not one in which president trump was responsible for mishandling the coronavirus and tens of thousands of unnecessary deaths, but instead one where the virus is a thing of thpa, the president having saved millions of lives with a swift response, and the violence in the streets a sign of what will happen in a joe biden presidency. joining me now is the white house chief of staff, mark meadows. mr. meadows, welcome back to "meet the press," sir. >> good to be back with you. thanks, chuck. >> i wanted to start with this. the president on thursday night painted a picture of what he said would be joe biden's america. and i look at the violence this week, mr. meadows. this is in donald trump's america. how much responsibility should voters be giving the president for his inability to keep the

streets safe? >> well, i mean you can try to reframe it that way, chuck, but that's just not accurate. i can tell you that when we look at kenosha and the phone calls that were made to the governor of wisconsin, we offered help. help was denied. obviously there was multiple gunshots and people lost their life. we made a repeated call then the next day, sent in national guard, fbi agents, u.s. marshals to restore peace in kenosha, wisconsin. and that's what needs to happen in portland. you know, it's interesting to see you frame portland that way after 94 days. perhaps now we're going to act because someone was shot last night. but to suggest that somehow it's been peaceful in portland, chuck, is just not looking at the facts. we've had over 200 anarchists, and they're not peaceful

protesters. these are people that every single night conduct violent acts. and it is in democrat cities. you want to talk about donald trump's america. most of donald trump's america is peaceful. it is a democrat-led city in portland that we're talking about this morning who just yesterday denied help once again from the federal government. and so, listen, we need to get to the bottom of this. we need to make sure that we hold people accountable. ultimately, we need to make sure that these people that are conducting these acts go to jail. we've had over 97 federal law enforcement arrests that were conducted in portland, but largely the d.a. there in portland, chuck, you know, he says even if you acost a police officer, we're not going to enforce that. it's just not what most americans believe should be happening in our cities. >> you made an interesting

comparison. i guess you're saying that is there parts of the country that the president doesn't govern? is the president only in charge of places where he has supporters? you sort of -- you're saying, well, these are all democratic cities. i just want to -- i'm just trying to understand does the president not believe he has responsibility of governing and leading the entire country? >> well, he does govern and lead the entire country. but, chuck, you're smarter than that. these are local law enforcement efforts that are -- that can be supported by a federal backstop, whether it be national guard or the fbi. and so when we look at that, as we look in portland, it's not donald trump's d.a. that's saying to stand down. it's not donald trump that is saying that we need to look the other way, it's the mayor of portland. so let's at least have a true version of what's happening in these cities. if your viewers are going to tune in this morning, why don't

you show them the letter from the mayor of portland where he says, no thanks for federal help, and yet we have someone who lost their life overnight. i can tell you that we are ready. in fact the president is ready to make sure that we provide whatever law enforcement support that we can. and it's not this president who has said let's defund the police, chuck. >> let me ask you this. if the president is cheering on people that are going to go into portland, those protesters, the president called them great patriots. do you think the president should be telling his supporters de-escalate, don't show up with long guns, don't play vigilante? we haven't heard the president try to -- he only wants to de-escalate the protests he doesn't like. he has not talked about de-escalating the protests that support him that are showing up with long guns and certainly

trying to at least give a visual incentive to create a conflict. >> listen, when we look at the constitution, the constitution is very clear. it gives the right to peacefully protest. it also gives the right to -- for assembly. but when we look at that and we somehow suggest that in some cities that these particular areas are off limits, it's not who we are as a nation. you know, when we look at what happened in washington, d.c., the largely peaceful protests that happened on the mall were certainly not something that anyone condemned. and yet what we saw were some of the splinters that came off of that that were running around in the streets of washington, d.c., accosting senator rand paul that you know about but that is not what the constitution protects and not what we should be endorsing, whether you're a democrat, republican,

unaffiliated or in between. we need to make sure that we proper -- >> i understand that. >> we properly address that, chuck. >> right. but this young man that took matters into his own hands. the president has yet to condemn these actions. why? >> well, you just had the report there, chuck. you're talking about the young man last night in portland who was shot? >> no, the man who shot protesters in kenosha. i'm talking about kenosha. >> the president has been very clear. the president has been very clear. whether it was with that individual or mr. blake or anywhere else, he has asked for proper investigation. in fact, i was in the oval office when he brought the attorney general in and 9:30 in the morning when mr. blake was shot just the previous evening. when he looked at that, he says what i want to do is make sure that there's a proper investigation. that's why we have laws and that's why we have a justice system. and lady justice has a blindfold on that should look at all of these things in a way that makes

sure that justice is brought forward. but for you to try it out on a sunday morning show or for me to do that on a sunday morning show is not what our justice system is set up to do. what we always must do is make sure that the rule of law is there, not just because it's a rule of law, but because it creates a safer community, whether it's in kenosha, wisconsin, or anywhere else. >> right. i'm just trying to understand the president denounced the violence on one side of protesters he didn't like. but why not denounce what this young man did? why not say, please, don't take matters into your own hands? the president has not said that. one of his chief supporters in the media has actually defended this. isn't it incumbent on the president to help de-escalate some of this violence on his side as well? >> and the president -- you say one side or the other. let me tell you where the president is. the president is on the side of

law enforcement and the rule of law. he's been very consistent in that. he said any governor, republican or democrat, any particular area can request help of the federal government. we're willing to come in. we're willing to provide additional assets as we did in kenosha, whether it's fbi, whether it's operational controlled vehicles, whether it is the national guard. we're willing to do that. he's been very consistent. so the message to your viewers this morning is clear. the president believes what we need to do is make sure that we have exactly what resources are available for every single city. if you're having a problem, governors, we want to make sure that we can haelp you with that >> let me ask you, i'm running low on time. i know that perhaps you and speaker pelosi may be talking today. the democrats believe they have come down and they would like to meet you halfway. they believe halfway should be $2.2 trillion, maybe $2

trillion. are you willing to bring up the number that the president will support? >> well, we brought up the number. i had a conversation with speaker pelosi. and even on her $2.2 trillion counteroffer she can't tell the american people nor me what is in that. i can tell you what is in the offer that the president has made and he's willing to sign. enhanced unemployment at levels she would agree with. enhanced help for small businesses that she would agree with. literally help for day care and hospitals at levels she would agree with. and help for schools at levels she would agree with. here's the problem is she puts forth a number, suggests that she came down, and yet she's willing to turn down $1.3 trillion of help that goes to the american people because she would rather them have nothing than to give way on what her fantasy might be. >> mr. s,hat you're

suggesting can't pass the senate, right? >> no, it can pass the senate. i mean that would require senator schumer, as you know, anything in the senate requires both democrats and republicans. but speaker pelosi, if she worked with chuck schumer, i can tell you all of those things that i just mentioned are available for the american people and the speaker pelosi is saying no. >> are you going to bring your number up or is $1.3 your final offer? >> listen, we're not going to negotiate here because the speaker has been very clear. when she said $2.2, she said don't do anything at all, chuck. i said what does the $2.2 represent? you know what her response was? i'm not going to tell you, let me fill in the blanks. that's not a proper negotiation, nor is it anything that the american people accept. in fact, many of her rank and file members don't even accept it. >> mark meadows, the chief of staff for the president, i appreciate you coming on,

sharing the perspective of the white house. thank you, sir. >> thank you, chuck. joining me now is the national co-chair of joe biden's campaign. it's congressman cedric richmond of louisiana. congressman richmond, welcome back to "meet the press." i want to start with a column from george packer who writes the following and says this. ordinarily it's the incumbent president's job to show up at the scene of a national tragedy and give a unifying speech but trump is temperamentally incapable of doing so. biden then should immediately go to wisconsin. cedric richmond, is joe biden going to be going to wisconsin tomorrow? >> i don't know the answer to that. but also i think that vice president biden has a responsibility to not make things worse, to make sure that the policea

accommodate his visit and i think he is weighing all of those things right now. >> given what we saw overnight in portland, given what we've seen take place all week in kenosha, what are your concerns about where the biden campaign is right now on this issue in particular? >> well, i don't have a concern where we are on this issue. i mean we have been very clear that police reform in this country is a necessity and that unarmed black people being killed by the police should be low-hanging fruit. if we could just get president trump to acknowledge that and to push for real police reform, then let's address the issue why nba players did not play in basketball games. the fact that people are waking up and speaking out on jacob blake's death. i mean that's the issue. and i think that without a plan from the white house to address

it, it's just really sweeping it under the rug and you hear the rhetorical gymnastics from his chief of staff that was just here. vice president biden has been very clear. he put out a plan on police reform. and i think that that should be the subject we're talking about. >> when it comes to the violence in the streets now, who should be held responsible? >> those perpetrating the violence. look, vice president biden has been very clear that peaceful protests are the bedrock of our democracy. but what i don't want to do, chuck, is to ever confuse or compare peaceful protesters with those committing crimes. those are not peaceful protesters. peaceful protesters are out there trying to make this country a more perfect union, trying to make sure that their black and brown daughters and sons are safe and survive police encounters. those that are out there committing crimes are not a part of those peaceful protests and

they should not be labeled that way. and i think that law enforcement has to deal with it. but what was very interesting just now, when you talk to the chief of staff that president trump is on the side of law enforcement. well, the question becomes, well, who's on the side of justice? who's on the side of constitutional policing? it's not about law enforcement or protesters, it's about making sure that police are held accountable when they violate people's constitutional rights when they shoot unarmed black people. and if the president can convene that conversation, then i think that we would be in a better space. and so he keeps talking about what biden's america would look like. well, this is trump's america. he has to own this moment. he has to own the incompetence around coronavirus and 00 american deaths, almost 6 million infections, almost 38 million jobless claims. he has to own it. this is his america.

so how do you break this country and then run for re-election saying i want to fix everything that i just destroyed. and so that will be the message of the campaign and we're going to have to make that case. but at the same time, i think america is in a real fragile point. i think that you will hear joe biden speak, you will hear him try to heal this country, because the president just doesn't have it in him. >> i'm curious what you made last week of all the testimonials from black men at the republican national convention and how much of an impact do you think it might have? i want to show this chart of the presidential vote among black men going back to 2008. and there has been a consistent erosion of support for the democratic party from black men. a high of 95% in 2008. just 80% of the vote in 2016. there clearly was a concerted effort by the trump campaign to try to appeal to black men. what do you make of the effort,

and what should the biden campaign do to counter it? >> well, i'll tell you this. donald trump very effectively 2016nkow black men see clearly what they have to lose. they can get killed and the president won't say a word, won't utter jacob blake's name, will not talk about police reform. if you look at unemployment, black unemployment is twice that of white unemployment. the fact that almost 40% of black businesses will not survive his covid-19 incompetent response, black men see that. and so you will see us as a campaign talk directly to black men. we will not make assumptions. we will not take them for irtly them. so whether it's about mass incarceration, economic opportunity, homeownership, college affordability,

increasing education funding, all of those things. so we're going to go where black men are and talk to black men about their issues. but i think they see clearly what it is they have to lose now. >> i want to move on to the economy a bit. the last time you and i spoke we talked about -- you told me you thought the democrats hadn't done a good enough job reminding people where the economy was in 2016, reminding people of the economy that donald trumpin haire -- inherited. you saw what the rnc is pushing in regard to the economy. do you think democrats have done any better of a job since we last talked about reframing where the economy was in 2016? >> well, i think a little bit of that has happened. i think a lot more has to happen after labor day. clear to people that this president has the worst job creation record under any president in the united states history. he's lost 6 million jobs.

the obama/biden era created 16 million jobs coming out of the great recession. this president just does not have an economic plan, and i think democrats have to hone in on that. the one thing trump does very well is says the same thing over and over again. most of the time it's a lie, but he says it over and over again and people start to believe it. we have to continue to say over and over again that this president has destroyed and wrecked this economy just like everything he has ever touched in his life. and so we need to point out that there are farmers that are filing bankruptcy at all-time highs, that the unemployment numbers are where they are, small businesses are closing their doors every day. and so, yeah, it's incumbent upon us to keep reminding people of that. >> congressman cedric richmond, the national co-chair for the biden campaign, thank you for coming on and sharing the campaign's perspective. i appreciate it.

>> thanks for having me. when we come back, the events last week in kenosha, wisconsin, a pol right now, the worst place to be is stuck in-between. accelerate your investments or pull back? change the plan or stay the course? that's why northern trust is here. with specialized expertise... a history of success through every economic climate... and proven strategies rooted in data and analytics. giving you more control. clarity. and confidence. for now and whatever's next northern trust wealth management.

(peter walsh) people came and they met and they felt comfortable. it's what we did with coogan's. you felt safe and, if you were safe, you could be joyful. everybody has a coogan's. and almost half those small businesses, they could close if people don't do something. we have to keep our communities together. that's how we get through this. ♪ i'm a verizon engineer, and i'm part of the team building the most powerful 5g experience for america. it's 5g ultra wideband, and it's already available in parts of select cities. like los angeles and in new york city. and it's rolling out in cities around the country. with massive capacity, it's like an eight lane highway compared to a two lane dirt road. 25x faster than today's 4g networks. in fact, it's the fastest 5g in the world.

from the network more people rely on. this is 5g built right. only on verizon. welcome back. the nba was back in action last night with a slate of playoff games, including the milwaukee bucks versus the orlando magic. those two teams were supposed to play wednesday when the bucks walked out to protest the police shooting of jacob blake in kenosha, wisconsin. the walkout by those nba players led to similar actions by athletes in other sports leagues, professional and college, including those not dominated by african-american players. it was the most striking example of professional athletes demonstrating a willingness to use their celebrity and economic power to leverage social change. joining me now are former nba player etan thomas and current wnba all-star sue bird who's the vice president of the women's national basketball players

association. etan and sue, welcome to both of you to "meet the press." etan, i want to start with you. this week we saw this ground swell, some call it a boycott, a wildcat strike, if you will. the number of teams that participated, i want to put up on screen, nine playoff games, 11 baseball games postponed, six wnba games, four nhl playoff games, the mls, the nfl, even college practices. what made this different, etan? what do you think made it where the sports world united? >> well, first of all, thanks for having me on today. it's interesting, because, you know, now after everything has happened, you're seeing a lot of people criticizing the nba players for voting to go back to playing after their two-day strike or boycott, like you said, or whohowever you want to call it. i think that's ridiculous. they have gone above and beyond the call of duty, both the nba, wnba and with the mlb standing in solidarity. they made their powerful

statement heard really around the world. you know, they did it altogether. and then they formulated the social change fund and they're going to be focused on advocating for police reform and police accountability and voting initiatives and criminal justice reform and a lot of great things. so they're doing their part. but it's also not the job of professional athletes to solve the policing problem that we have in this country. that should be the focus of all the people that we just saw at the republican convention this past week. i would say instead of donald trump screaming law and order at the american citizens exercising their right to protest, that he should be screaming police accountability, but i bet we probably won't hear that. >> sue bird, a boycott takes money out of the hands of owners, takes money out of the hands of sponsors, takes money out of the hands of leagues, and i assume that there is an intention there that, okay, we

want you to be paying attention. what role do you want to see owners and sponsors of sports leagues play? because you're sending a message to them too. >> right. you know, i do think the wnba is in a unique position in that we have a lot of support from our owners. in fact i know myself, a bunch of other players from other teams got calls directly from their owners saying we support whatever you want to do. so i think a lot of it is more so about, like you said, the corporate sponsors, trying to get them to understand where we stand, what we believe in, what we're fighting for. but this isn't new for us. we've been doing this for years and years and years. i think what was so special about this moment was an opportunity, like etan said, for all of these leagues to be unified. and that's when, you know, we've learned in the wnba when we're unified as one voice, that's where the impact is f eelt for . so to have all these leagues together, you've seen what's

happened. like etan said, it's been seen around the world. >> etan, you probably discovered this as an active player. speaking out in the nba as individual players was a bit more common. you didn't see it a lot in the nhl and major league baseball. i just wonder how important do you think that here's two sports that are whiter and certainly their fan bases are very white. the importance of having the sports world united across racial lines. >> it's definitely important, especially in these times. right now when you see from the right that there's so much divisive type of a tone. i mean just looking at the republican national convention, you know, everything is divisive. and so sports has the opportunity to be able to bring people together. and so it's a matter of empathy. so some of these sports that as you say are whiter, they might not be dealing with the same things that i'm dealing with as a black man in this country. and people have to understand, you know, every single time that something like this happens, the

conversation that happens in black homes. you know, my son, malcolm, just turned 15 years old. i'm terrified for him. like literally every single time something like this happens, i can't sleep at night. i have to go and tell him again, you know, the rules of engagement. when you're stopped by the police, make sure that you have no sudden movements, you have to de-escalate a situation that you didn't escalate in the first place. the only reason why it's escalated is because of the color of your skin. so you can't do what you see your white friends doing because they can come down to the police, go off, whatever they want to do. they can not comply, everything like that, and they will get to live. and that's a tough situation to be in. so when you're hearing athletes -- a lot of people are saying why is lebron feeling so emotional about this. because the fact that you are making millions of dollars in the nba doesn't save you from being black. that's the difference. so when the police pull me over, i have to follow a set of guidelines. it doesn't matter what i've accomplished in life or who i am or what tax bracket i'm in or

anything like that. i'm a black man and i'm a threat. >> sue bird, very quickly, we heard some politicians don't like it when the sports world speaks out on social issues. what do you say to those critics? >> i mean for me as a female athlete, the one thing that i've come to realize is we're judged on everything except our sport. we've been judged because we're black, gay, because we're women. nobody talks about us playing. so you fast forward 10, 20 years of this, and we've developed an identity. we're being authentic to it. so for us when people say stick to sports, it's kind of like, yeah, 20 years ago we tried and you wouldn't let us and now you're saying that? so it makes no sense to me. >> sue bird, etan thomas, i really appreciate both of you coming on and expressing your perspectives on this. it's a conversation that i hope continues. >> thanks for having me. >> thank you. when we come back, two conventions down, two competing to go till olympics delection d.

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it's the fastest 5g in the world. this is 5g built right. welcome back. the panel is joining us. nbc news white house correspondent hallie jackson, "the new york times" correspondent michael schmidt. yamiche alcindor, white house correspondent for pbs news hour and former republican governor of north carolina and radio host, pat mccrory. welcome to all of you. i'm going to start with showing our apocalyptic campaign frame that both trump and biden created at their conventions. take a look. >> he is the destroyer of

america's jobs. if given the chance, he will be the destroyer of american greatness. >> he's failed to protect us. he's failed to protect america. >> the hard truth is, you won't be safe in joe biden's america. >> donald trump's failure of leadership has cost lives and livelihoods. >> hallie jackson, this isn't a campaign where you're wondering, geez, boy, both sides are running on the same message. it's pretty clear. i tell you, we heard those messages. two people were killed -- we had three people killed this week in essentially what may be political protests. we're entering uncharted waters here. >> i mean you're completely right, chuck. it's something that we're going to be hearing a lot more about from especially the person that i cover, president trump. i'm told by sources over the weekend as i was coming on the air with you, chuck, that violence in the streets, quote

unquote, will be one of the three central themes to the president's campaigning and the vice president's campaigning moving forward over the next 65 days or so along with what they consider to be a focus on what they see is an improving economy as well as talking about the coronavirus and what they are doing to try to mitigate the pandemic, if you will. whether or not that will be effective messaging for people remains to be seen, but this issue of violence is one that you've already seen the president, his allies, his surrogates talking about. they believe truly that this is going to be something that will motivate people to get to the polls. it's a message the president is expected to take on the road, chuck. i can tell you that he is going to be traveling a ton. over the weekend he was telling allies that he wanted the best and most aggressive travel schedule. in the words of one person i talked to, he knows he can't win from inside the building so it's a message the president will take on the campaign trail heavily over the coming weeks and days. look for him to be in florida, look for him to be in north carolina. michigan, wisconsin. i heard a lot of talk about minnesota as well, chuck. >> yamiche, where are we right now, and where's the biden

campaign in this moment in your mind? >> the biden campaign agrees with essentially one thing that president trump said during the rnc, which is that this is the most important election in the history of the country. both of them are making the case that this election is going to be changing lives. and as cedric richmond told you, they see this issue of unarmed black people being killed in the streets as low-hanging fruit. that america should be able to get this right. so they see this as really pitching this forward and saying this is the chaos, the deaths that we're seeing from covid as well as the deaths of african-americans at two and a half times the rate of white americans at the hands of police, this should be the central issue. they pitch this as a battle for the soul of america. that's the messaging that you're going to hear over and over again. they're really going to be making the case that president trump failed miserably on the coronavirus. i thought it was interesting as i was covering on the south lawn of the white house today, that gathering of people with no masks, sitting shoulder to

shoulder cheering on the president on this hot summer night in d.c. the white house transformed completely into a convention space. the president started making the case that the united states was one of the best places when it came to death rates in america. so his idea and the plan there is going to be to try to paint this rosy picture and speak about the virus almost as if it's in the rear-view mirror. we know that's not true. the united states is second only to india in the number of new cases. we're seeing every day about 42,000 cases. along with the death rate being one of the worst if not the worst in terms of modernized, industrialized countries. so those two things, race and the coronavirus will be top of mind for joe biden. he's going to be hitting the campaign trail after labor day as well going to all sorts of states that he sees as critical. >> pat mccrory, how does the president not walk a line and not look like he's rooting for violence? you know, kellyanne conway on friday making the case that somehow that she believes this

helps them. there's this line, and there's at times you look from a political perspective, it's almost, oh, the violence can be helpful politically and that can come across as almost looking like he's rooting for it. >> well, back in may when i was on this panel right after the minnesota riots and protests, i gave warning, do not underestimate the anarchists. i actually think a lot of democratic mayors and democratic governors and even joe biden underestimated the anarchists and the feeling that people will have, especially the middle class, both black and white, against people who attack our police, who want to defund our police, who come across as anti-police, when most people in america are in favor of the police. they're not in favor of bad shootings, terrible, horrendous shootings, but what's happened is the anarchists have infiltrated peaceful protests and have gotten no pushback from the liberal wing of the democratic party or anyone in

the democratic party. it's put the democrats on their heels regarding the issue of public safety. so public safety is now a major issue in this presidential campaign. >> you know, michael schmidt, look, i think democrats would respond to governor mccrory and say that's one-half of the problem. there are also right-wing instigator instigators. it does seem as if right now there is some bad instigators looking to take advantage of this moment maybe for nefarious reasons or reasons we're not talking about. this to me is the real danger of this political moment we're in as a country. >> the thing that i picked up on this week as this was all playing out with the conventions, is just this idea that things are tightening. as we came through the summer, as the president struggled to communicate amid all of these

crises, there was some sense that biden was really pulling ahead. but in the past few days coming out of this, there's just this prevailing feeling amongst folks, and maybe it doesn't bear itself out in every poll, but that this is a much more unpredictable situation than we thought maybe just a few weeks ago. when we look back at 2016 and you look at hillary clinton's numbers at that point compared to where biden is now, it's just that this is not a sure thing for anyone or for anything. this is going to be an incredibly unpredictable fall. whether it's the virus, the politics or the protests, there's just an enormous amount of unpredictability as we head forward. >> chuck, i want to also say i didn't say right-wing or left-wing, it's anarchy. either side can underestimate anarchists. if we do, we're in trouble as a nation. >> no, no, no, no.

i'm glad youlai that, pat. a lot of people throw the anarchists onto the left wing and i think that that's a -- there seems to be instigators here messing around outside of either sort of political movement at this point. >> anarchists don't care. they just want to cause violence. >> exactly. they want to burn it down. all right, guys, i'm going to pause it here. when we come back, both political parties are fighting to

♪ come on in, we're open. ♪ all we do is hand you the bag. simple. done. we adapt and we change. you know, you just figure it out. we've just been finding a way to keep on pushing. ♪ we've just been finding a way to keep on pushing. i'm a verizon engineer, and i'm part of the team building the most powerful 5g experience for america. it's 5g ultra wideband, and it's already available in parts of select cities. like los angeles and in new york city. and it's rolling out in cities around the country. with massive capacity, it's like an eight lane highway compared to a two lane dirt road. 25x faster than today's 4g networks. in fact, it's the fastest 5g in the world. from the network more people rely on. this is 5g built right. only on verizon.

welcome back. data download time. as in every presidential election year, both parties are fighting to register new voters ahead of november. so let's look at how they're doing in four key battleground states starting with pennsylvania. one of the three states that narrowly put president trump over the top in the electoral college. since election day 2016, pennsylvania has added just over 922,000 new voters to the rolls. this is according to data.

democrats have an advantage, they have registered 132,000 more voters than republicans. that's not insignificant in a state where president trump won by less than 45,000 votes. then there's north carolina, where there is also a competitive senate race on the ballot this year. overall, there are 1.3 million new voters, and again, democrats have an edge of more than 56,000. arizona, there are more than a million new voters, and there things have been a bit closer. democrats only hold an 11,000 vote edge in new registerings. finally california, 2.4 million new voters since election day 2016 with democrats holding a 59,000 advantage. democrats have a lead in new voter registrations but there's another wild card. there are another 35% of new voters in those states that are not affiliating with either political party. these folks are young. take a look at the percentage of these unaffiliated voters who

are under the age of 40. 63% of new registrants in arizona, 61% in pennsylvania, 69% in north carolina and 56% in florida. what do we know about younger voters? well, they don't appear to be trump fans. candidate trump lost voters under 40 by double digits in 2016. so add it all up and these new voter registration numbers suggest an additional challenge that president trump and his party faces going into the final stretch of this campaign. when we come back, both when we come back, both pressshe i'm a verizon engineer, and i'm part of the team building the most powerful 5g experience for america. it's 5g ultra wideband, and it's already available in parts of select cities. like los angeles and in new york city. and it's rolling out in cities around the country. with massive capacity, it's like an eight lane highway compared to a two lane dirt road. 25x faster than today's 4g networks. in fact, it's the fastest 5g in the world. from the network more people rely on.

this is 5g built right. only on verizon. (peter walsh) people came and they met and they felt comfortable. it's what we did with coogan's. you felt safe and, if you were safe, you could be joyful. everybody has a coogan's. and almost half those small businesses, they could close if people don't do something. we have to keep our communities together. that's how we get through this. ♪

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welcome back. the panel is back. we are going to hear from the president in kenosha tuesday. we expect to hear from joe biden tomorrow. we don't know where he's going to do that. pat mccrory, if you were joe biden would you try to get to kenosha tomorrow before the president? >> it's high risk, high reward.

you just don't know what type of environment you're entering when you come into a situation where there's been a lot of violence. as a mayor and governor, i did try to go in there, but you have to be very careful about the circumstances because often you cannot control the message. >> yamiche, what does biden need to say tomorrow? how should he be framing his remarks? >> biden should say that i understand that african-americans and people of color in this country are fed up with being treated like second-class citizens. i've talked to so many people, including jacob blake's own father who told me he felt like his son was treated like an animal. he understood that the forces that led to his son being shot, they were part of a diabolical consequences of chattel slavery, those were his words of t. if joe biden wants to connect with african-americans and people in this country, he's going to have to understand that there are people who are hurting and who understand that millions of dollars, a good job, a great degree, none of those things

protect you from someone criminalizing your body because you're an african-american. frankly president trump will also have to do that. instead we heard the white house call the protests by the nba absurd and silly. of course kellyanne conway saying more chaos and violence works in our favor. so joe biden could find a lane for himself to say those people are rooting for violence. i'm here to do this and be with you and connect with you. >> hallie jackson, it was an interesting phrase that mark meadows used with me. it's mostly peaceful in donald trump's america. it was a jarring line to hear because he's currently the president. there shouldn't be a distinction there. do you expect that to be the frame for the rest of this campaign that they attempt? >> it already is, chuck. i don't think that's going to change over the next several months. congressman meadows also said something interesting to you earlier in the show where he talked about how the president is on the side of law enforcement and on the side of law and order. i think that is the frame that you're going to see when president trump goes to kenosha on tuesday. the campaign and frankly administration officials that

i've talked to think that this is a positive message for the president in the sense that they think it is effective to people who are feeling fearful, frankly to people in president trump's base. so instead of going out and doing what yamiche is talking about, trying to talk about, for example, building bridges to members of the black community who understand that they have been part of this institution of systemic racism, president trump has not done that in the last three and a half years. there's no indication that's going to change on tuesday when he goes to kenosha. instead the framing will be about that thin blue line that you've heard him, the vice president, other members of the campaign talk about. chuck, this morning, nobody is backing away from those remarks that you talked about from kellyanne conway. f t president's surrogates are leaning into it. i think it's more of what we'll see over the next 65 days. >> you know, michael schmidt, perhaps it's events on the ground that are doing this, but if violence is what's being talked about and not the virus, that's probably not -- that's probably not good news for joe biden.

>> i just think the remarkable thing about what the president has done here is that he's essentially running as if he's not in charge of the country. you tried to raise this question earlier with the chief of staff just about the issue of isn't the president in charge. and the president is sort of running as if he is sort of continually the outsider. it's just another example of the president's unprecedented approach to the presidency. it's something that i focused enormously on in the book. it's not just the president's unusual use of power, but it's what that causes. and the products of that. and in the case of what i write about, it's about how the people around the president have been forced into this highly unique situation where they are trying to contain the president, trying to stop the president, and standing between the president and what they think is potentially the abyss.

>> pat mccrory, were you uncomfortable with the south lawn being used for political advertisement? and what would you have said if barack obama had done it? >> i probably would have criticized it. we're all rather hypocritical. but the nba too, i admired muhammed ali and bill russell and arthur ashe, but the nba, the corporate messaging on the courts i think is a turnoff, especially while they're wearing shoes in china. >> okay. i've got to -- all right. i've got to endi the conversatin there. thank you all. thank you everybody watching today. we'll be back next week because if it's sunday, it's "meet the press."

this afternoon, my heart is heavy. my heart goes out to the family and the friends of the man who was killed last night on the streets of our city. >> portland's mayor speaking out about the deadly confrontation between a pro-trump caravan and protesters with the black lives matter movement. >> president trump is set to visit kenosha, wisconsin to meet with local law enforcement his opponent joe biden hits the campaign trail asking voters are you safe in donald trump's america? the u.s. has surpassed 6 million coronaviru