mayor nick cornett, oklahoma city, a neighbor and friend. we appreciate him being here. craig fugate is here, and obviously we're very proud of the work that he and his fema team have done. suzie pierce, superintendent of schools here, thank you for your leadership. amy simpson, i want to especially commend plaza towers elementary school principal as well as shelly mcmillan of the briarwood elementary school principal. they were on the ground when this happened, and because of their quick response, their keeping a level head, their putting kids first, saved a lot of people. and they're still going through some tough times. you know, i can only imagine being their husbands who were here and the panic that i'm sure they were feeling when the tornado first struck.

but i know that they couldn't be prouder of their wives for the outstanding work that they did in this amazing situation. i want to thank chief of police jerry stillings and all the first responders in this area who were some of the first folks on the scene, who were putting themselves at risk to save other people's lives. that's what first responders do, but sometimes we take them for granted, and it's important we don't and we remember moments like this. that's why it's so important that we continually support them. at my direction, craig fugate arrived here on tuesday. fema was on the ground even before monday's tornado hit, and their teams have now completed searches of more than 1200 buildings. we've helped to register more than 4200 people for disaster assistance and we've approved more than $3.4 million in direct aid. obviously there is a lot more to

come. but it's not just a government response. we've seen incredible outpourings of support from churches, from community groups who are helping folks begin to recover. this area has known more than its share of heartbreak, but people here pride themselves on the oklahoma standard. you know, what governor fallin has called being able to work through disasters like this and coming out stronger on the other side, and that's what we've been seeing this week. from the forecasters who issued the warnings to the first responders who dug through the rubble, to the teachers who shielded with their own bodies their students, oklahomans have inspired us with their love and their courage and their fellowship. neighbors have been offering up spare bedrooms and couches for those in need of shelter. universities have opened up their buildings for temporary housing and local companies have pitched in, so this is a strong

community with strong character. there is no doubt they're going to bounce back, but they need help. just like any of us would need help if we saw the kind of devastation that we're seeing here. we have about 1200 homes that have been completely destroyed, but we've got 12,000 that have been damaged in one way or another. and that's a big piece of business. along with the schools, we've got a hospital that has been destroyed. it's going to take a long time for this community to rebuild. so i want to urge every american to step up. if i've got one message for folks here today, go on line, donate to the american red cross, and if you're from the area and you need to register for disaster assistance, you can call 1-800-621-fema. that's 1-800-621-fema, or you can go to sddisasterassistance.v

on the web. either way, if you've got significant damage and have been impacted, go ahead and reach out and there are going to be professionals there who are ready and willing to provide you the assistance you need. we know moore is going to come back stronger from this tragedy. your mayor said that you're already printing new street signs, and i want folks affected throughout oklahoma to know that we're going to be with you every step of the way. on sunday the first deadly tornadoes touched down about 40 miles from here, and i mentioned this the day afterwards. there was a story that really struck me in the press. in the rubble was found a bible open to the words, the red man will be as a hiding place from the wind and a cover from the tempest. it's a reminder, a scripture

often is, that god has a plan, and it's important to know that we also recognize that we're an instrument of his will. and we need to know that as fellow americans, we're going to be there as shelter from the storm for the people in moore who have been impacted. and when we say that we've got your back, i promise you we keep our word. if you talk to folks in alabama who have been affected over the last couple years, you talk to the folks in joplin who i know have actually sent volunteers down here to moore, if you talk to folks in new jersey and new york, they'll tell you that when we say we're going to be there, until y until you completely rebuild, we mean it. and i want everybody to have that confidence. to all the people behind me, i want to say how proud i am of them, how grateful i am for their service. i want to make one final comment. a lot of the first responders talked about the training that they've done, in part through

some federal grants, to prepare for disasters like this, and as a consequence, when it actually happens, they know what to do, they're not losing time, they're able to go through all the drills and the training that they've gone through. training, education both for citizenry but also for first responders is absolutely critical. and we've got to make sure those resources remain in place. so i know everybody in congress cares deeply about what's happening, and i'm confident that resources will be forthcoming when it comes to rebuilding, but remember that it's also the ongoing training and equipment that we're making sure that those things are in place. we can't short-change that kind of ongoing disaster response. we can't just wait until the disaster happens. that's how, in part, we were able to save a lot of lives. and i want everybody to keep that in mind. with that, let me just, again, say thank you to everybody here. madam governor, thank you for

your leadership and may god bless the people of oklahoma and obviously continue to bless the united states of america. thank you. >> and there you have it, president obama in moore, oklahoma six days after that ef-5 tornado just devastated that town. president obama there shaking hands with some of the survivors. there's governor fallin there as well and representative tom cole who is not just a congressman who represents that area, he is also from the city of moore. president obama promising the people there that we will be a shelter from the storm for all of you. also asking folks who might be watching or listening to go on line to donate to the red cross. president obama saying at one point, quote, oklahoma has inspired us with their love and their courage, talking about the response not just of the first responders there but also the thousands of folks who descended

on oklahoma in the days after that tornado to lend a helping hand. mr. obama thanking not just the first responders but also the meteorologists in oklahoma who really did a fantastic job of making sure that people were aware this storm was coming and that it was going to be a big one. and also thanked the teachers. and those, of course, are the stories we've been talking about the last few days, the stories of heroism, teachers at plaza tower schools, teachers who literally threw their bodies on top of children to shield them from harm. i want to talk to an oklahoma force there on the ground for a number of days now. charles, i understand president obama will be touring the devastation, talking to folks on the ground; is that correct? >> reporter: that's right, craig, he's at plaza towers

elementary school which is about half a mile through the debris. he's speaking to the delegation, some of the first responders, the school principal. he's also taking a motorcade tour through some of the devastated areas. there's a lot to see. 22 miles long this path of destruction across oklahoma left a scar on the landscape here. it's about a mile wide where the president is now. that's where the ef- ef-5 200-mile-an-hour-plus winds occurred at that elementary school were seven children were killed. the president will also thank first responders in person. there is a station that he will probably stop there. we're not sure exactly yet, but he is expected to thank the first responders personally, greg. >> can you tell me about the memorial service that's happening in moore there today, or has it already happened? >> it's an interfaith memorial service that will happen at 6:00 tonight at the first baptist church. there are several staging areas

for people who don't have transportation because their cars are gone. there will be buses to take them to this memorial service to help them heal through this tragedy. >> charles is at moore, oklahoma. we'll check in with you a little later as president obama is going to spend a little more time on the ground there. i'd like to continue this conversation now on what we just heard from president obama. thanks so much for being with us, both of you. rachel, president obama, it was about eight or nine minutes there. what struck you most about the president's remarks? >> thanks for having me. we saw the president in an all too familiar role, that of comforter in chief. he is the public face of healing for the nation and of solidarity. i feel like over and over again when we see president obama in these very sad moments, he does a couple of things. he praises the courage of the people on the ground, he did that here today. you'll remember after boston, he said, you will run again when he

was there. and he talks about the nation being there for them for the long haul. he makes it very clear this is not just a moment in time. we as a nation will be there for you for the recovery process. and we'll hear that again from him next week when he goes back to the jersey shore. >> yeah, tuesday. david, as someone who has traveled with presidents, can you explain to our viewers a little bit about what goes into a presidential visit, to a trauma zone specifically, the kinds of preparations that are involved and why, more often than not, it takes a few days to get the commander in chief to an area like this? >> as you can imagine, the president is traveling all the time for his political trips to visit factories and other things to try to advance his agenda. those are planned out well ahead of time. these obviously don't have much lead time, and the office says the president wants to respond here, he wants to make sure he helps the community in any way he can, but he doesn't want to get in the way. that means as the first responders get in there, there

could be survivors, there could be other clues to things that are happening on the ground, the president and his big motorcade and security doesn't want to barge in on that. so it usually does take a few days, it did in this case, but he does want to make an appearance. in this case the president is not making a big sort of speech where he has teleprompters and things like that. he was more off the cuff. it's less political, and as rachel said, it's more about showing empathy and that the government is going to be there with the people. >> the president's tone for this particular speech, for lack of a better word -- because, again, it really wasn't so much a speech as some off the cuff remarks there that lasted about 8 or 9 minutes -- they were political for the most part until the very end where he talked about the need to make sure disaster relief and disaster response was something that was fully funded. >> absolutely. that can certainly be seen in a political prism. although it's also important to remember that a large part of the president's role here is to

make the government look efficient. remember hurricane katrina and the bush administration response. that was a lesson to all presidents of either party moving forward about how important it is to talk about cutting through the red tape, ask not just talk about it, but make sure it looks to the american people like you're actually doing it. >> david, due to the sequester, groups like fema, groups like noah, they are expected to take hits this year. how will this tornado play into the political arguments about the damage that these cuts could have to federal funding? >> i think if the response is good and healthy and works well, i think that will say, hey, as the president said, these people have been trained to respond in the way that they do and that costs money. so when you go for the sequester, obviously, this year it was across the board cuts. that's something the agency said was very devastating. depending on what happens this summer as the congress and the president go again in another round of deficit talks, it may be, and it looks likely, the

sequester is here to stay. however, next year i think the agencies will have more ability to sort of move the money around, ask thatnd that's goinga bit more interesting. the president has often said in recent days that after the boston bombings when he and duvall patrick, the governor of massachusetts, were heading out to talk to the first responders, he said they had a long conversation about how do you bring this sort of togetherness and this good feeling of unity among the political parties and the people together for a broader conversation. i don't know that's going to happen in washington but the president has often talked about that. >> david nakomara, renee smoken. big thanks to both of you. >> thank you. >> thank you. coming up, police say an oregon teenager planned bloodshed at his school. the disturbing finds from inside his home. next up, closing the prison at guantanamo bay, but it's not

an open and shut case, to say the least. we're going to talk to a congressman who returned from guantanamo bay yesterday. we'll be right back. ♪ and she forgot to pay her credit card bill on time. good thing she's got the citi simplicity card. it doesn't charge late fees or a penalty rate. ever. as in never ever. now about that parking ticket. [ grunting ] [ male announcer ] the citi simplicity card is the only card that never has late fees, a penalty rate, or an annual fee, ever. go to citi.com/simplicity to apply.

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president obama outlined his strategy and renewed his contention to close guantanamo bay. >> as president i tried to close gitmo. before congress imposed restrictions to detain us from transferring prisoners to other countries or imprisoning them here in the united states. these restrictions make no sense. >> mike pompaya, the president is intelligence of the house committee and just returned yesterday, i understand, from a

briefing; is that correct? >> that's correct. i spent most of the day friday down at guantanamo bay with the amazing young men and women of joint force task guantanamo who is doing a good job with the efforts down there. >> what do you make of the president's attempts to close it? >> we've got folks who are doing remarkable work. they're taking great care of these detainees in a very difficult environment, so i want to thank them for their service to our country. the second thing is the president talks about releasing these detainees, but history shows very clearly 25% of the folks that have been released to date have returned to the battlefield to wreak havoc against american interests in jihad. there were other folks on this trip as well. i don't think it makes any sense, when you've got at least a quarter of the folks, to come

back and risk americans. >> what about those who say the risk of keeping guantanamo bay open poses as well, the fact that it em boldboldens our enem abroad and that folks would be terrorists using guantanamo as one of our rallying cries. what do you say to those folks? >> the president's speech on thursday had that same tone to it as well. i think that's a fundamental misunderstanding of what it is that causes these people to attack america. it's not guantanamo bay, it's not our strikes against them. those are demonstrations of strength. what causes folks to attack us are when we behave weekly, we forecast our enemy, we tell our enemy we're going to leave afghanistan. we're going to pull out of this place, lose all the intelligence assets, all the hard work we've done there and we're going to allow them to build back core al qaeda. the president is actually right. he has done a good job at getting at some of the

leadership at al qaeda and i applaud him for that effort. but to take all the good things our american men and women fighting for our country have done to keep al qaeda on the run and keep that pressure on, i was very disturbed by the president's speech on thursday. all the things he talked about, we're going to release that pressure and we're going to allow those folks who mean harm to us to continue to expand their power. >> on the program yesterday, an attorney for the center for constitutional rights, she represents several guantanamo detainees, she painted a bleak picture of the detainees' life there. take a listen. >> the hunger strike continues. it is well into its third month. the military itself is saying over 30 people, nearly 40, are being force-fed, forcibly fed with tubes and restraints. it continues to be a crisis situation. >> what did you observe about the conditions there? >> i have no idea what that woman is talking about. the experience i had -- and i had full exposure to exactly

what was going on in every one of the facilities down there. i don't know what she's talking about. it is not a crisis mode. it's a clean facility, the prisoners were well taken care of -- >> congressman, are you denying there was any force feeding, or are you just saying you didn't see it? >> we have prisoners down there that have chosen not to consume calori calories, chosen not to take protein. we have an obligation to try and take care of them, and our folks down there are doing an amazing job of doing that. the thing to say about these hunger strikers, they look to me like a lot of them had put on weight. is it it looked to me like from what i hear -- >> did you see them two months ago? how do you know they put on weight? >> i just know this. i know these hunger strikers are being well taken care of. our men and women are doing this with full compliance with the observations they're complying with the international red cross. they're doing a remarkable job taking care of these folks.

these are folks who have done enormous harm to america, and in the case -- >> it has been determined that all 166 of the detainees there do not pose an imminent threat to this country and have not posed -- >> calvin, that's just not true. that's just not true. that's factually inaccurate. >> that's not factually inaccurate. what you just said is factually inaccurate. first of all, my name is craig mel m melman, it's not calvin. >> i apologize. >> are you advocating retention? >> even the president in his speech acknowledged there are folks down there that there's no place to release them to. there is no country that can provide assurances that we could do that. he understands that, too. >> congressman, that's not what the president said, but congressman papayo from kansas, thank you very much. i do appreciate your time.

>> thank you, craig. have a great day. the rolling thunder run. generations of troops and supporters who are rolling through the capitol this morning. we're going to talk live with wounded warrior and superstar dancer as well, j.r. martinez, about the message they are trying to bring to washington. you are watching msnbc. ♪

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weekend. listen to these numbers. san antonio alone got 12 inches of rain in just 24 hours yesterday. two women died after being swept away by the surge and emergency workers made more than 200 rescues to help other motorists and stranded homeowners as well. the floodwaters are expected to recede today, but what does the weather look like for tonight and into memorial day? lots of folks traveling. we're with meteorologist alex wallace joining me now. how does it look, sir? >> the northeast hasn't felt like memorial day weekend, that's for sure. it's been chilly, dreary. much better conditions as we head through next week which will bring some warmer air in place. we'll notice it tomorrow. a lot of areas stuck in the 50s, we'll see more 60s and 70s, including around philadelphia. memorial day 76, and by tuesday, a few 80s start to dot cleveland all the way down to our nation's

capitol. so good news there. middle of the country, track in a few showers and storms. parts of iowa have seen some flooding for this morning. things are starting to calm down a little bit there, and we'll notice this for our memorial day. 80 degrees in st. louis, 70 showing up in chicago and jumps up to 82 as folks head back to work on tuesday. tomorrow we'll see rain from seattle all the way to northern california. craig? >> the alex wallace force there. thanks, alex. i appreciate that. here's a quick look at other stories making top news this weekend. more information about the oregon teenager who officials say was planning to blow up his school. prosecutors say 17-year-old grant accord was hiding six bombs in a secret compartment under the floorboards in his bedroom. the district attorney says the teenager will probably be charged as an adult with attempted aggravated murder.

some more details about that bridge collapse in mt. vernon washington state this weekend. you remember the bridge on i-5 sent two cars and two people into the freezing water below. luckily all three survived. authorities are still investigating what went wrong, but today they say an oversized truck too tall for the bridge caused the collapse. and check this out. the fresh prince is back. i love it. that's, of course, will smith singing the fresh prince of bell air theme song. he's on a british late night show this week. the two are then joined by jazzy jeff and alphonso rivero who played carlton. no word on whether carlton danced. president obama back in moore, oklahoma again, getting a firsthand look at the damage from monday's deadly tornado. tuesday the president will head back to the jersey shore to assess that area's recovery from

hurricane sandy. nbc's christian welker is live at the white house. kristin, what can the president do to move his agenda forward? >> well, craig, if the end of this week was focused on the president's foreign policy, i think you'll see the president shift his focus back to domestic policy this week. the main issue he wants to be talking about, the economy, the unemployment rate is at 7.5%, and at this point most economists agree that they are seeing a recovery albeit a slow one. so in recent weeks, we've seen president obama travel to highlight places where the economy is surging and where people and businesses are thriving. at this point in time, nothing on his schedule to do that, but wednesday and thursday he travels to chicago where he will speak at some dcc fundraising events, so i wouldn't be surprised if he not only highlights that in his remarks but finds a time along that stop to stop and highlight with some

folks how the economy is improving in that area. now, of course, again, nothing on the schedule, so if he doesn't do it there, he might hold an event later on this week. so is, of course, what the republicans want to be talking about, not the economy but those controversies that we have spent so much time highlighting in recent weeks, craig, the controversies with the irs, the department of justice, and so that is what you will see republicans hone in on. the mantra behind the scenes here is that white house staffers only want to be spending about 10% of their time focused on those controversies, 90% focused on the president's second term agenda which also includes things like immigration reform and deficit reduction. i think it's going to be hard for this white house to only focus 10% of their time on those controversies, because as you know, there have been new twists and turns almost daily. craig? >> kristen walker from 1600 pennsylvania for us on this sunday. kristin, thank you. >> thanks, craig. >> and again, congress on recess for the next week, but when members do return june 3rd, they

will take up immigration reform, and they'll also, of course, be spending a fair amount of time on the controversies, the irs, benghazi, the d.o.j. let's take it to the war room right now. alice stewart is a radio talk show host and former rick santorum press talk show host. good afternoon, ladies. >> good afternoon, craig. >> one of the architects of the immigration bill, the senate poured some cold water on expectations that the bill is going to soon get to the senate. he told a spanish tv network, quote, we don't currently have 60 votes identified in the senate. we need to add more votes on the floor. danielle, is there some real concern that the bill won't make it to the floor, or is senator menendez just looking for some assurance? >> i think he just wants to set proper expectations, but i don't think there's a real concern. i think the general consensus is that this bill will make it to

the senate floor. you know, they went through a very difficult and long process of going through all the amendments, but generally speaking, i think most of the people have been following this very carefully will say it will get to the floor. how many votes it will get, that remains to be seen, but i do think they'll be able to clear that 60-vote threshold. >> on top of that, alice, earlier this week we heard from leadership in the house that they're basically not necessarily sold on the senate version of this immigration plan, to say the least. how high of a hurdle is that going to be? >> well, that will be difficult. i understand there are folks behind the scene, but the overall sentiment at the house is they want to see the product out of the senate. as we know, it started out with about 840 pages, and with the amendments it's over 1,000. it's changed quite a bit from the very beginning, and as with obamacare, let's see what's in this bill before we pass it. we have to make sure it addresses what the republicans' concerns are. we can't have blank eliateraet .

we have to make sure it includes border security. we have to make sure people breaking the laws are held accountable. those are key decisions that republicans want to make sure are included in this package. >> congress, when the president does return, so will the pressure on the white house, the irs controversy, of course, will be back in the spotlight as members of congress say they are going to continue to demand answers and hold hearings. this was senator rand paul on abc this morning. >> i don't know whether people were targeted for conservative religious values or just conservative political values, and sometimes there's an overlap. i think we have to get to the bottom of this. i think the constellation of these three scandals ongoing really takes away from the president's moral authority to lead the nation. >> danielle, is that fair, is that accurate? >> i don't think that's fair, i don't think that's accurate, and i'm not surprised that senator rand paul would say something like that. look, when the president learned of these scandals that were

happening, he acted quickly, he took decisive action in all of them and wants to get to the bottom of what's happening. but you know, the white house and congress, they have to be able to waulk and chew gum at te same time. republicans in congress and some democrats want to investigate what's happening, and that's fine, but they still have to govern and focus on things like immigration reform. i don't think that rand paul is correct about this over many things, so i do think that congress, they still need to govern. >> alice, you know, at some point, obviously, these irs hearings will end but not for the foreseeable future. at what point does the gop run the risk of taking a substantive search for truth and turning it into some silly side show? >> well, the truth is what we need to get to, and if we would just put the players out there who are supposed to know what happened, we could move on to the business at hand, which is fixing the economy and dealing with immigration. but the fact is, the people that know or that should have known aren't being forthcoming with

the answers when it comes to benghazi, the irs or this doj scandal. they want to do a full investigation, let's have a waiting period, cool thijz ongs, and they're hoping what happened with benghazi will happen with the irs and doj. eight months will go by, and at some point when we're still talking about this, they'll pull someone like hillary clinton out of hiding and she'll bang her hands on the table and say, what difference at this point does this make? it makes a huge difference, so let's be truthful with the people and get some answers today so we can move on. >> we're moving on as well. thank you so much. alice stewart, thank you to you as well. >> thank you. happy memorial day. up next, new evidence in the trial against george zimmerman. see the new pictures released ahead of an important court date this week. also, how not to handle scandals. we're going to break down what the white house and what the gop should and perhaps should not be doing. we'll be back. new car!

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new developments in the trial of george zimmerman, the man accused of killing trayvon martin. he says he killed martin in self-defense. with a few weeks left to go before a trial date, two important motions will be considered. the prosecution is asking for a gag order against mr. zimmerman's lawyer, mark o'mara. they claim that o'mara is essentially trying the case in the press. they're also upset over the release of photos and documents by the defense that appear to paint trayvon martin in a negative light. the orlando sentinel is reporting george zimmerman's defense team is asking for a six-week trial delay because, quote, they need more time to hire an audio expert to counter the testimony of a state witness who is expected to testify that the voice heard screaming for help in the background of a 911 call was trayvon.

we have an nbc legal analyst. kendall, let's listen to a little bit of that 911 call. >> it sounds like a male. >> and you don't know why? >> i don't know why i think they're yelling help, but i don't know. >> does he look hurt? >> i can't see him. i don't want to go out there, and i don't know what's going on. there's screaming. >> does he keep yelling help? >> yes. >> what is your -- >> there's gunshots. >> kendall, if the state experts testify that it is trayvon martin yelling for help, how damaging would that testimony be for george zimmerman? >> that may be some of the most important evidence in the whole trial. once a jury decides whose was the voice crying for help, the jury may then decide that that person was the real victim here. and if the jury decides that trayvon martin was the victim

screaming, begging for help, then it may decide that george zimmerman is the defendant who should be convicted for second-degree murder. >> how would a trial delay help zimmerman? >> well, obviously, the defense lawyers are concerned about potential strength and quality of prosecution evidence that includes forensic examination, in effect, scientific analysis of some of these tapes. we're coming out with what may be strong testimony that this is the voice of trayvon martin, after all, screaming for help. why the defense wouldn't be prepared for it is a little hard to understand. this has been a big issue from the very beginning, and 15 months later, you would think the defense would have their own experts lined up. if they don't, the judge might still give them some slack, because when it comes down to it, judges don't want to commit a mistake by denying the defense something they need to defend themselves. that can lead to reversals on appeal down the road. >> so it sounds like you think a trial delay could be likely

here. >> it's possible. i'm not going to say it's likely. the judge has previously denied a defense request for postponement. but what the judge may look to do is find other ways so that the defense can be prepared for this issue. maybe give them more access to information about the prosecution experts, maybe even allow the defense to bring an expert in at the 11th hour if that's what's needed to assure a fair trial. >> let's talk about marco may m here, the lawyer for george zimmerman. here's what he had to say about the trayvon martin photos showing him smoking pot and allegedly getting into fights. let's listen. >> if we're talking about who trayvon martin was that night, if that becomes relevant according to how the state presents it, then the idea is that this person was familiar with fighting, getting on top of something with other texts there, i think that's important for the jury to say what

happened in that other minute or so that we don't have audio evidence for? >> is this the kind of evidence that could taint the jury pool? >> absolutely, it could taint the jury pool. these various indications that trayvon martin was some kind of wannabe tough guy, we've seen the photographs, we know there is stuff there that's pretty sensational, will clearly be hard for potential jurors to forget. how do you unsee things you've seen already splashed across television and the internet? it adds considerably to the already difficult challenges of getting a fair and impartial jury and has got to be one of the most intensely watched cases in the history of seminole county, florida. >> what do you make of the strategy the defense seems to be trying to employ there? >> well, he's been working the press, trying his case in the court of public opinion. and that's not unusual in high-profile cases. it happens a lot. what i think the judge will be a little frosted about come tuesday is working the press, going on tv talking about the

case this close to the time of jury selection. because, you know, 12 months ago, who knows what a jury that's going to be impanelled during june would remember? but this close to it, when you're putting out stuff that is kpleerl clearly infamatory, might want to make sure that mr. o'mara shuts down his tour of various television interviews. >> nbc legal analyst kendall coffey. we'll be spending a lot of time with you in the next few months. thank you, sir. thousands of veterans roll through washington today. we will go live to d.c. and spend some time with a war veteran, j.d. martinez, grand marshal of the veterans day parade. h and he's apparently quite the

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thousands of bikers from around the world gathered this morning to ride in the annual rolling thunder run from the pentagon to the national memorial. this kicks off in d.c. every year to remember soldiers who were fighting overseas, veterans and those held captive and missing in action. tomorrow the group is organizing the national memorial day parade followed by a minute of silence to honor the fallen heroes. distinguished iraq war vet j.r. martinez is the grand marshal of this year's parade. he is an author, an activist, of course a championship dancer as well. good to see you, sir. >> good to see you, too, man. thanks for having me on. >> did you ever think -- i'm familiar with your story. i know that in the days after that injury you sustained in 2003 where you were severely burned, those were dark days for you. those were days where you've talked openly about not wanting to live. and here you are tomorrow the grand marshal in this parade. how did you get here?

>> just not quitting, not giving up. a lot of per severance, a lot o believing. in the end i believed in myself. i know that i can bring something to the table. although it's difficult for a lot of service members to come back and make a transition into civilian life, i received a couple of opportunities. when i got those opportunities, it was my moment to prove to them and myself and to everybody watching me that i can do this, and i was more than capable of it. for me ten years ago, i almost became, like a lot of service members, i almost became part of what the purpose of memorial day is about, is to honor and celebrate the life and the service that a lot of men and women have given to this country over the years and never got that opportunity to come back home. so it's really an honor for me to say, i'm now going to use my second chance at life and my opportunity to not only raise awareness for the troops that

are here every single day but for the ones that we lost and for their families that are suffering every single moment. >> you are certainly doing your part to help honor our soldiers and our troops and those who have gone on. are we doing enough collectively as a country, do you think? >> no. i think we can all do a lot more, and i think some of a lot more that can be done is from the government's perspective, when you talk about the governor's administration, when you talk about the iraq and afgh afghanistan veterans of america, for troops to get their benefits, it's taking sometimes up to 300 days depending on the markets. we can absolutely do more, and as far as the american people, we can all do more as well, but i think that applies to every situation that is a tragedy, unfortunately. you talk about oklahoma.

the president urging people to every american to step up and do more. we have the power to do so much more, and tomorrow, of course, everybody is thinking how they have a long weekend, how they're going to enjoy it with their family and friends, barbecues, pools, nice, warm weather, a cool beverage in their hand, but i just hope people who don't have a connection to the military take a moment of silence and essentially think about the men and women that have -- you know, whether -- this is not about politics. not about politics. just put that aside. but the men and women who said ultimately when something was happening, instead of running away from it and finding a safety net, essentially they ran to it. and i just hope that people take a moment to just appreciate and to honor those individuals. and so tomorrow, in the midst of smiles and waves and a couple hundred thousand people, we hope that people also tune in to the

ninth annual memorial day parade which is going to be televised, so for everyone to check their local listings. it's a great place to do it in d.c. people here can have the power to make a lot of change and create that change, so we hope that when they see us going down, you know, d.c. and going around that they get inspired. >> j.r. martinez, iraq war vet and a living and breathing inspiration. thank you, sir, for your service to our country and all you're doing now. good luck in the parade tomorrow. >> thank you, man. have a great weekend. right now the president again is touring tornado tornado-devastated oklahoma. we'll go live to oklahoma for more. we'll get a report on the ground there. also coming up, overcoming obstacles, a homeless high school senior takes her future into her own hands. she is going to join me live to tell me about the amazing results and what's next for her. mine was earned in djibouti, africa. 2004.

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good as you understand afternoon. i'm craig melman. you're watching msnbc politics and here's what's happening now. >> there's no doubt they'll bounce back, but they need help. >> president obama tours moore, oklahoma less than a week after that ef-5 tornado devastated the city. also, how not to handle scandals. we're going to break down what the white house and the gop should and should not do. from homeless to head of the class. we'll meet graduate chelsea fierce and talk to h-- pierce a became a valedictorian while living in a homeless shelter. president obama visiting moore, oklahoma. just moments ago he talked on the ground about the resolve of the people of moore, oklahoma.

take a listen. >> people here pride themselves on the oklahoma standard. you know, what governor fallin has called being able to work through disasters like this and come out stronger on the other side, and that's what we've been seeing this week. >> let's go to nbc's charles hadlock who is on the ground for us in moore. charles, what else did the president say and what has he been saying to folks on the ground when he meets them? >> reporter: the president told the group when he arrived at plaza towers elementary school that america has their back. and i think that's the message people want to hear here, that they are not forgotten. that's the biggest fear. fema is here now, but in the months to come, maybe they won't be around. but the president today assured them that the agencies will be here, the government will be here to help people through this disaster, craig. >> we saw president obama speak to reporters there at the elementary school. what else has president obama been up to on the ground? >> reporter: right now he's at

fire station number 1 greeting the first responders and thanking them for their fast and efficient response. without them, the death toll could have been much higher. they were able to get in quickly and rescue a lot of people. and also at the fire station, he's meeting with several of the families who lost loved ones in this tragedy. as you know, 24 people died in this disaster. nearly 400 were injured. 1200 homes were destroyed and 12,000 others were damaged. it's going to be a long road to recovery here in moore, oklahoma and people here are glad that the federal government is here to help. >> charles, you know, i left you there in moore a few days ago, so i know you've been on the ground, you've been talking to folks. when i talked to you yesterday, i think we spent some time talking in terms of logistically folks putting debris out to the road, the government stopping by in the next few days to pick that up. in broad terms, what are we going to be seeing over the next few days or the next few weeks logistically in terms of the cleanup? >> reporter: well, when you

left, a lot of the roads were still closed. i can tell you now that a lot of the roads have reopened, the traffic is building on them, so now access is now not a problem. what they're doing now is going around and making sure all the road signs are up. you heard the president mention that earlier. a lot of neighborhoods are simply gone. there is no landmark to see, so the road signs are definitely needed, and the city has gone around and put those up. the next step is to remove the debris. land owners are encouraged to move what they can to the curb and the city will take it from there, and beginning next week the city will begin sending out forms to land owners, property owners, to allow the city to come onto their property if they're wanted to remove the debris. that's where the federal government is going to come in, too. somebody has to pay for that, and a lot of that is going to come from federal funds. >> charles hadlock, force on the ground in oklahoma. one other thing president obama

wants to encourage folks who are at home or listening, if they are interested in helping out, they can always get on line and donate to the american red cross. let's get to other political headlines. senator lindsey gram spoham spo today about the irs controversy and the alleged targeting of conservative groups. he says president obama is responsible for the culture in the irs. >> this culture of going after tea party groups that were, you know, on the president's case about obamacare did not just accidentally happen. i think it comes from the top in terms of tone. >> former congressman anthony weiner has been getting a lot of buzz in the big apple ever since he announced his bid for mayor of new york city this week, but big name democrats are not exactly all chomping at the bit to endorse him. this is senator chuck schumer this morning. >> are you going to support him? >> i'm not commenting on the mayor's race or on anthony

weiner's race at this point, no. >> do you think he ought not to run? >> i'm not commenting, bob. >> all right. well, i guess that's that. >> i guess that is that. and president obama took some flak today for saying thursday yet again that he wants to close guantanamo bay. congressman peter king said on abc that if the president really wanted to close it, he's had pli plenty of time to do that. in the meantime, he should lay off the harsh rhetoric. >> i've been to guantanamo. it's a moderate prison. is it ideal? no. but we don't live in an ideal world. >> between president obama and the irs and everything in between, there is no shortness of controversy for people to take aim at. joe scarborough, host of "morning joe" wrote yesterday that republicans shouldn't get too giddy here. he wrote, republicans' overreach

during bill clinton's impeachment trial in the 1990s is an example how not to handle a scandal trial. they handled that so badly that they did the impossible by turning bill clinton into a sympathetic figure. republicans got routed in the mid-term elections and clinton left office in 2001 with a 60% approval rating. so are republicans overreaching this time around? good to see both of you. >> thanks for having me. happy memorial day. >> happy memorial day to you as well, good sir. could the mounted republican attack on president obama, could it work to his advantage in any way, vinny? >> could it work to obama's advantage? >> yeah. >> i mean, that's going to be hard to tell. you're going to have to watch this play out, but i think what's important to note here, and what is particularly fascinating about this series of scandals is you have a

bipartisan moment because nobody wants to target the irs for its political affiliations, democrats or republicans. nobody wants to tap the fine lines of journalists. some think this is a smart move by the doj. republicans have been critical of it, democrats have been critical of it. i think it's important to strike a note here where it's bipartisan and where you're going at things in a calm and understanding manner and you really just want to speak the truth and not make this hyperpartisan because you can get a lot of traction here from both sides. >> kevin, how real is the possibility that at the end of, you know, the 15th or 16th house irs investigations that we are going to find that some of the behavior, while disgusting and shameful, at the end of the day was not illegal? >> i think that it's too early to tell about the legalities, but i'm not sure that we have a bipartisan moment here. i think jeff scarborough is

right in that they want to watch their tone. republicans don't want to be calling for impeachment right now. it perhaps is a bit too far and extreme. however, what i think is going to be interesting to watch is over the next couple of weeks, if they are able to link this irs scandal to their longer narrative about obamacare, already we're seeing reports that the irs will, in fact, be part of implementing a controversial obamacare. it's going to be interesting to see how that plays out. >> former republican bob dole was on fox this morning. he said his own party was not in great shape. this is some advice that he had for republicans. >> i think they ought to put a sign on the national committee doors that says, closed for repairs. >> closed for repairs. 89-year-old bob dole there, we should note, talking about the hyperpolarization that members of the gop are displaying right now in his opinion. who in the republican party, benny, is working on remedying that right now?

who is reaching across the aisle most aggressively? >> reaching across the aisle most aggressively? we've done a lot of work on buzzfeed with some young members of congress, aaron schock being one of them. you have youthe youngest memberf congress in history. 20 members are under 50 in the house, and they're split bipartisanly, so you have 20 republicans and 20 democrats. i think the younger members are trying to reach across and make the case we need to work together and get past this gridlock. who can you name specifically? i'm not exactly sure. >> at least you're honest. republicans have been calling for eric holder's head for some time now. how likely is that to happen, ken? >> he's recused himself from this irs scandal, so i think he's trying to take a backseat. this thing is going to continue, and over the next couple of weeks when you just look at this larger -- again, the larger

narrative for republicans and memorial day weekend. everybody is going to be talking about politics. it speaks to this republican sentiment of government overreach. if they're able to tie all three of these scandals together and talk about government overreach into this narrative, i think it could potentially be bad news for the democrats for quite some time as more of these hearings and investigations continue. >> benny johnson buzzfeed, kevin serilo of politico. thanks, you guys. >> thank you. we talked about the controversy the irs scandal is having on obama. >> nobody questions his legal authority, but i think he's losing the moral authority to lead this nation, and he really needs to put a stop to this. i don't care if you're a republican or democrat, nobody likes to see the opposite party punishing you for your political beliefs. >> joining me now is congressman

schweigert from arizona. is that correct? >> how does the president ultimately set a tone that works its way through the bureaucracy. you and i are talking about the irs, but do understand, there has been literally two years of oversight hearings on everything from the sec to other parts of bureaucracy. and there is a pattern out there. now, is that just a pattern of self-preservation and saying, look, the party on the left is more comfortable with big bureaucracy, so we're going to support them? or is this now hunkering down, focusing on the irs? >> is it just the pattern of government in general? i mean, when are you guys not holding hearings? >> but that's actually called the constitution. i mean, the fact of the matter is that's one of the things prescribed to congress to do, is the oversight. but there is a really interesting philosophical discussion between, you know, someone on the left and someone on the right is, why are we so

uncomfortable with big government? what's the number one rule of a bureaucracy? self-preservation. if self-preservation means we're going to work so one party stays in power, you understand why those of us on the right are so uncomfortable with big bureaucracies. >> on friday you tweeted out a video with your thoughts on what to watch as this irs story unfolds. i want to play a snippet of it and talk to you on the other side. here it is. >> we're coming across stories where the ir srks leaked person financial and tax information about political contributors and activists, and they have also gone after other religious affiliated conservative groups. we think there may be much more to come. >> congressman, what proof do you have that personal information from religious groups may have been taken and leaked? >> well, actually, the first one on the religious groups, we already are seeing that. that's actually now rolling out.

what's more interesting is the stories, and a couple of these, actually, i think your network has run some of this in the past, is individuals who had personal financial information, they were tapped on during the election cycle. they just happened to be friends, supporters, superpac contributors to the romney campaign. >> my question is what proof do you have that it's been leaked, congressman? in the video you talk about -- >> once again, that's why you have the oversight hearings. because that information had to come from somewhere, and it appears it's coming out of the irs. we'll have the oversight hearings, we'll do it in a workmanlike, professional, unlike some of the wacky things we've seen -- i'm sorry -- from the left. >> congressman, that video was wacky. why would you produce a video

like that until all the facts are in? >> but that's the point. if you actually watched it and listened, which might be a novel concept, you could actually say -- let me finish. look, i know you have the editor there. let me finish. we're hearing the stories and we've been hearing these for two years. i actually push back on my tea party groups a year and a half ago saying, oh, no, none of this could be going on. the administration and the irs would never be singling you out. now i have the humiliation of saying, you were right, you were singled out. so in this sort of case, enjoy the cascade, but we're only in the first inning of discovering how far the bureaucracy, the left and this administration have been willing to go after their political enemies. >> congressman schweigert, we're going to have to leave it there. wish we had more time. thank you, sir. >> enjoy your memorial day. coming up, seeds of dispute.

millions around the world rally against genetically modified foods, calling them unsafe, but what do regulators say? up next, helping wounded warriors on this memorial day weekend. how people are helping veterans live a better life when they return on the home front. we'll be right back. with the spark miles card from capital one,

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memorial day is when we honor those who gave their life in wars. there have been advances in war equipment, and as a result, many are coming back alive but many

injured. craig, good to see you. >> thank you, good to be here. >> tomorrow is the day for the fallen but we also need to honor those with severe injuries as a result of going to war. you deal with these every day. tell us about some of the folks and some of the injuries you typically are treating. >> i don't think you have enough time on your show for me to tell you about the folks we take care of because they're some of the most amazing human beings you could meet in your life. they're coming back and facing adversity. they're facing limb loss, they're facing catastrophic limb and body injuries which would make most of us just shudder. yet, i get to see them day after day come through that door with an attitude that just can't be beat. an attitude where they're determined to get better, and it's just an inspirational job and it's an honor to be able to serve them. >> colonel, how has weaponry and tactics, how have those things changed the types of injuries that you see?

>> well, i think that would be kind of difficult for me to comment on. if i just remain in the medical field, i don't think the injury patterns are very different from what we've seen in the past having read journals and what surgeons in the past wars have had to take care of. certainly blast injuries are nothing new. i think the thing that's different in this war is our ability to save these individuals on the front line by getting medical assets so far forward that soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines who might not have survived on the battlefield before are able to get to us. i have to say any time i speak about that, my hats off to the medical corpsmen on the front line, because they're the ones that are trained so well that they're getting patients back to us that we never would have seen in the past. they make our job difficult, but we're glad they do. >> how will the fallen be honored tomorrow at brook? >> tomorrow, actually, it's

interesting. if you look at our patients, it's not only what we can do for them, they're always looking to give back. we have half a dozen patients right now in europe that are about to do a bike ride from paris to london over the next few days, and it's all for charity. our patients are unique. they want to give back, and this is one way that our patients are giving back. we have other patients that spend time locally at the food bank and habitat for humanity. our guys are just absolutely phenomenal people. i'm just lucky to work there because i have people i can look up to every day on how to rebound from the catastrophic injuries they sustained. >> lieutenant colonel gyaski from the brook medical center. a big salute to you and your team, doctor. >> thank you. that runner from ethiopia is making an extraordinary gesture to honor the victims of the

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a boston marathon winner announced he will be donating his medal to the victims there. he will return to boston with that medal and hopes to run in next year's marathon as well. on april 15 he finished the marathon in about 2 hours 10 minutes. he finished about two hours before the bombs went off. the explosion killed three, left more than 200 wounded. some who were unable to finish the marathon that day were given the opportunity to do so this morning on the track of the indy 500. there they are right there. for about 35 runners, it was a chance to symbolically finish the race that ended in tragedy. up next, a ninth arrest -- count them, nine now -- in a deadly attack on a london

soldier. this as the victim's family visits the memorial. and homeless for years. now a high school valedictorian, jaleesa fierce, tells me how she succeeded while living in a shelter, also a car at one point. her story is truly amazing. she'll share it with us after this. but a fresh sheet of bounty duratowel leaves this surface cleaner than a germy dishcloth. it's durable. and it's 3 times cleaner. so ditch your dishcloth and switch to new bounty duratowel. diarrhea, gas, bloating? yes! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues... with three strains of good bacteria. [ phillips' lady ] live the regular life. phillips'.

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check this out. flash flooding in san antonio, texas this weekend, people trapped on roofs. floodwaters reached 12 inches in just 24 hours yesterday. two women actually died after being swept away by the surge. emergency searchers helped more than 200 stranded homeowners and motorists. it looks like the water receded in san antonio, but what does the weather look like for the rest of the weekend? we're joined by meteorologist

alex wallace. alex? >> good sunday to you, craig. as we check things out for the next few days, a much brighter scenario for us in the northeast. we're talking about this weekend. it was quite cool, dreary, damp, giving way to warmer conditions as we work towards the midweek. in fact, we'll start to notice it as we head to our memorial day. a lot of people stuck in the 50s now in the 60s and 70s. into the middle of the country also going to see things warming up here. 71 expected in and around chicago. you head down to st. louis, 80 degrees for your afternoon so not too bad as you fire up the grills. on the west coast, watching for some wet weather. that will continue from seattle all the way down to northern california. and the other thing we'll be watching very closely is the middle of the country as we head into the middle of next week. there will be the threat of strong and severe storms coming back into the heartland. we'll watch closely for damaging winds and hail as well as even a few tornadoes. for now enjoy the rest of your

holiday weekend. >> potentially more bad weather for oklahoma. the weather channel's alex wallace. alex, thanks to you. some other top stories making news right now. a ninth arrest in a brutal stabbing of a soldier on the streets of london. authorities took a man into custody this afternoon in connection with the bloody killing. he's just the latest to be arrested in that case. two suspects are in custody in london hospitals. another three are being detained. and again, three others were arrested then released. meanwhile, back on these shores, protesters rallied in dozens of cities yesterday to protest agricultural giant monsanto. the companies makes genetically modified food. they have become increasingly controversial in recent years. health advocates wants them labeled. federal add voluntaadvocators i

they're safe. he's the highest paid coach in the nfl and the highest paid coach in the united states period. peyton gets an estimated 8$800 million per year. obama still touring the devastation in oklahoma this hour. it's the beginning of a busy week for the president. kristen wilker is live for us. tomorrow, of course, memorial day. what's on his agenda? >> craig, it's going to be a traditional memorial day here at the white house. the president will start it off by hosting gold star families, those who have lost loved ones in combat. he will then go to arlington national cemetary. he'll lay a wreath at the tomb of the unknown. he will then make comments at a memorial day service. and if you look at his weekly address, he really focuses on the importance of the nation rallying around the nation's

veterans, making sure that they're not only supported emotionally but also economically. i expect he will touch on some of those themes when he speaks at that memorial day ceremony tomorrow. now, on tuesday, he heads to the jersey shore where he will be greeted by governor chris christie to tour the recovery there that has happened seven months after hurricane sandy devastated that area, so really a sign of how federal, state and local officials can build -- work together to build a community. you remember when president obama visited days after the storm, governor christie got some criticism for praising president obama. some thought he helped president obama win reelection. the white house called governor christie and said, is it okay for president obama to come? governor christie said whenever the president wants to visit, he is thrilled by that. those are sentiments that he echoed on the "today" show last week. then wednesday and thursday, president obama heads to chicago. he will attend some dcc

fundraisers there. i expect he will talk about the economy. that's an issue he really wants to be highlighting right now. the unemployment rate at 7.5%. a lot of economists believe we are, in fact, in a recovery. but as you know, these controversies that we have been focused on with the irs, the justice and state departments will continue to take up a lot of his time and focus. craig? >> nbc's kristin walker from the white house for us on this memorial day eve. kristin, thank you. >> thank you. folks, this is a story we're really excited to tell you about this sunday afternoon. an inspiring story of a 17-year-old girl who was homeless at one point who overcame all odds to graduate -- not just graduate, graduate at the top of her class. her name is taleesa fierce, and she delivered a powerful speech as valedictorian at her high school last week saying she gained strength from an unusual source.

>> and tai was the type that got defeated because every time he got knocked to the ground, he only got stronger. i know i was made stronger. i was homeless. my family slept on mats on the floor and we got no more than one meal a day. getting a shower and clean clothes was an everyday struggle. tais, be my strength. >> we should let folks know, you weren't just valedictorian. what was your grade point average? >> right now it's a 4.529. >> 4.529. so in four years, did you make a b at all? >> no, sir. >> straight a's four years. >> yes, sir. >> and you have fantastic manners as well. let's start with your story, taleesa. you were homeless at one point, i understand, right? >> i've been homeless for the past six years, so it's been

multiple times. >> how do you study for tests when you're living in shelters? >> you pray they keep the light on. but no, i used my mom's light on her cell phone. i would use her light and try to block everybody out, keep the noise at a minimum and just think about what i need to do. >> were there points at any point over the past six years when you thought to yourself, i don't know if i'm going to be able to finish high school. i don't know if i'm going to be able to do this. >> i don't think -- no, not at all, because that was my job, to always finish high school and go to medical school and do what i needed to do to get a better life for myself. >> your sister is quite the achie achiever as well, i understand. she was salute tore yann -- salutatorian at a nearby high school, is that right? >> yes, sir. >> how did your mother keep you going in this situation? >> i just always told myself to

pray and lean on my mother and she will find a way for us. >> what kind of support did you get from the community? >> actually, the homeless liaison department in clinton county, they paid for my books for one semester, but not that many people knew about it. it was sort of just my family and i. >> chelesa, did you ever, while you were achieving in high school, i'm sure you had friends who were not achieving, who were probably slacking off, did you ever say, you know what, i've got straight a's and i live in homeless shelters. there is no reason you shouldn't be able to get your act together. >> i never told them i was homeless specifically, but i did tell them to keep themselves together and do what they were supposed to do and not fall into any traps or anything like that. >> you never told them you were homeless? >> no, sir. nobody knew until graduation, until may. >> how were you able to keep that a secret? >> we didn't live in the county

homes. we traveled to school on a bus. many kids didn't ask questions, and i never went back to the school, so they didn't ask questions. >> how did that make you feel? >> feel about what? which part? >> when you would go to school and you would interact with folks and they seemed to have, you know, fine lives, they would go home to their houses and you would go back to the homeless shelter. how did that make you feel? >> i didn't dwell on it at all. i just did what i had to do, go to school and do the best that i could. i never dwelled on anything. i just stayed positive the whole way. >> and there's not a bitter bone in your body. i love it. i love it. your spirit just shines through. where are you going to college? >> when or where? >> where? where are you going? >> spellman. >> of course. what are you going to study? >> chemistry and philosophy. >> and what do you want to be when you grow up? >> i want to become an oncologist. >> why? why oncology?

>> well, my mother had cancer, so that's like my main factor. that's like one of the reasons we're homeless, so i just want to aspire to help other people get out of the situation when they have cancer. that's why i want to become an oncologist. >> have you been at all surprised by the outpouring of support since your speech? >> yes, sir. it's overwhelming, but i'm surprised how many people were like, congratulations on everything, and i appreciate them all. >> before i let you get out of here, what was your motivation? you could have easily given that speech and not have said anything about being homeless. that could have been the secret that you kept with your family forever. >> my mother. she's like the driving force behind everything that i do. she always makes a way out of no way, so she's been my biggest inspiration. also god, praying and reading the bible when i feel like the ceiling would come down, i would

pray. >> why did you make the speech? why did you tell people? >> i always wanted to do some type of motivational speaking, so i wanted to tell my classmates that despite any hardships, you can always go on and do great things. i mentioned it then to be an inspiration to someone. >> you have certainly done that. motivational and inspirational. chelesa fearce, thank you so much. good luck at spellman next year, okay? >> thank you. >> remember what you said now. you said you're living on campus, right? >> yes, sir. >> you be careful. it's easy to get distracted down there in college freshman year. >> i'll make sure i keep your advice in mind. >> don't come back in nine months. i nearly got kicked out a few times. good luck. >> thank you. up next, the pope's message for the mafia. also, something small that's a really big idea. it's our sunday big idea. the project helping our wounded warriors as they return home.

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[ female announcer ] honey nut cheerios cereal -- heart-healthy, whole grain oats. you can't go wrong loving it. former president bill clinton is in vienna this weekend at a charity to raise awareness about aids and the hiv virus. he appeared with barbara eden. you remember her from "i dream of jeannie" fame. hopefully president clinton has become quite the avid tweeter. we're waiting for him to tweet out some pics. and the pope is speaking out against the mafia. he urged them to change their ways and stop exploiting people in rackets and prostitution. the priest was killed in 1983 because he was trying to keep

youths from being recruited by the mob. as we remember those who gave their lives for us on this memorial day weekend. a token from home to those on the battlefield. a simple bracelet with saints for troops is the big idea of battle saint founder cynthia le may. also with me billy white who is leading a fallen heroes fund. good to see both of you. >> good to see you, craig. >> we generally only do the big idea on saturday, but this was an idea that we really thought worthy of sharing with our viewers at home, especially on this memorial day weekend. cynthia, walk us through, first of all, what we're looking at here and how this all came to be. >> well, it all started, craig, with a family reunion where we had seven members of my immediate family there who were actively serving, my son and my neesz a nieces and nephews, and around a big bonfiere i began to hear

stories of war and close calls, and i just felt compelled to make a difference. so i researched this bracelet to provide a sense of protection as well as to provide much needed funds to the intrepid fallen heroes fund to provide a place for those to heal when they came home. >> on each bracelet you have pictures -- >> pictures of different saints relative to the military. for example, st. barbara is on here. as soon as she was killed, she was struck and hit by lightning. her executer was struck and killed by lightning, so she is known for working with explosives, so important in today's fighting. >> in addition to the bracelets, you guys also sell scarves. >> we do, we do. when my son and nephew came back from their recent tours, they encouraged us to add this to our product line to raise more funds for the intrepid. these are invaluable when you're deployed. they protect you from dust storms, they provide you with a

pillow when you have nothing but the ground to sleep on, and our soldiers wear these all over when they're deployed. so we have these as well. >> and they're pretty snazzy, too. >> they are, and you're helping our troops. >> the bracelets cost $5 apiece. proceeds from the sale go to the intrepid fallen heroes fund again. i understand your group so far received about $75,000 in proceeds, is that right? >> which is amazing. i want to thank cynthia and her husband jim and her whole family for, number one, their service to our country because it's not just the young man and woman in uniform, it's the whole family that's participating in that service. for them to have all these family members who have served and to want to continue to give back in this way is incredible. 100% of the money that goes to the intrepid heroes fund is going to nine brain injury centers around the country, and we've raised almost $35 million in the last 12 months. we've got 65 million to go.

and we're about to open up two of these at camp lejeune and fort delwar. we have two sizes, medium and large. let's put on the large one now and make you protected. >> cynthia, what strikes me about this idea, and others as well, this is an idea that a regular person had just sitting around a kitchen table, and look what it's become. >> exactly. especially this memorial day when we honor our fallen heroes. i just encourage everybody to be involved, to do something to make a difference. we had no idea. i sat around my kitchen table and came up with this idea and now we have 100,000 of these on the wrists of different soldiers and people. >> you have pretty significant high-profile help as well, the zach brown band and the band of brothers. >> the actors of the band of brothers are supportive as well as the zac brown band.

we did a show with the band of brothers actors and we had an incredible turnout of that as well. >> what's your goal? do you have a dollar amount goal? >> we do not have a dollar amount. our goal is to continue this until we get these satellite centers built. these centers these satellite centers built. so these centers across the country are so vital and we need to continue raising the money to get those built. >> what goes on at these centers? >> if you think about it for our viewers and for memorial day, we honor those who have given the ultimate sacrifice and look out and say, thank you for your service, we love you, and pray for you on this tough day. but those that are coming back home, all those families who have lost a loved one say, we have to take care of these kids. there's a suicide a day, active duty, in uniform. these centers will give healing hope, treatment, diagnosis, and care in the long-term for these wounded troops that are coming back. you know, we have 600,000 -- 600,000 troops that cynthia and her family are trying to help. that have some form of posttraumatic stress, tbi,

traumatic brain injury, and the country, when you hear about this, msnbc, craig, you putting this on as the big idea is awesome, because people will go online, they will donate right now, and that's what we need and we can help save lives. >> what's the website again, cynthia? >> it's battlesaint.com. >> cynthia, bill, thank you so much. thanks for sitting around the kitchen table. >> thank you. >> praesht that. up next, my thought bubble for my travels the to moore, oklahoma, and the spirit of the resilient folks there in the heartland. on the other side of this break. anything's possible, if you have the right tools. ryobi has over 50 products that work off of one 18 volt battery. and with new improved lithium and lithium plus batteries, you'll get a while lot more done in less time. plus, they'll improve the performance of every 18 volt tool we've ever made. now that's getting more power for your money. ryobi one plus. the one system that delivers more. available only one place.

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last week that devastating tornado and its aftermath took me to moore, oklahoma. first, i saw the damage. then, i saw the spirit. i think i'd share my thoughts this week from moore, oklahoma, a city, of course, that continues to rebuild and recover

after a devastating tornado that tore through this place earlier this week. the images behind me have become all-too familiar. you've seen these for the past several days. cars stacked up like hot wheels. there was a bank in the back of this parking lot. in fact, it was the bank where those 24 folks huddled in that vault and prayed and managed to get out of that situation relatively unharmed. scenes like this all over moore, oklahoma, and you're floor with the numbers by now as well, i'm sure. 24 dead, 10 of them children. the first funerals have started to happen. 377 injured. 377 people hurt after those 200-mile-per-hour winds ripped through this town. $2 billion, $2 billion in damage again. those are preliminary estimates. one thing that has struck me all week, and it was the same thing that we saw in boston after the bombings, the same thing we saw just a few weeks ago in

cleveland as well. it's amazing to me how cities that are reeling from tragedy manage to pull themselves together and reach out and help their fellow man. i've seen hundreds of, lots of students starting their summer vacations by helping out. there was a guy that just walked up to me a short time ago, had some heavy machinery that he wanted to put to good use. lots of you probably wondering what you can do. there's always the red cross and the salvation army. they've been here all week. but you can also do something in your own communities. whether it's donating time or whether it's donating money. so our thoughts this week, and our prayers are with the people of oklahoma. up next, out of the shadows. we'll dig deep into the president's orders to change the drone policy. what does it mean for the cia, and what it, perhaps, does not mean. also, untold war stroirs. a military historian sharing some little-known but really fascinating details on this

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♪ and a good sunday afternoon. i'm craig melvin. you're watching msnbc, the place for politics. here's what's happening right now. president obama consoler in chief today. he was heading home from moore, oklahoma, after meeting the survivors and first responders. of last week's devastating tornado. we're live with the very latest ton rebuilding efforts there. and some new orders from the top on the country's drone policy. but how will the military and the cia handle their new roles? and congress is on recess this week, so, what are they hearing from their constituents back home? we're going to talk to the brain trust. first, though, our political headlines on this sunday. fallout from the irs scandal continues this afternoon with democratic national committee chairwoman, debbie wasserman schultz, saying she supports a full investigation of the irs.

>> at the end of the day, an agency as powerful as the irs should never engage in any conduct that treats taxpayers less than neutrally. former republican presidential nominee bob dole gave a rare interview this morning on fox. he may be 89, but he's still got some kick. >> is the senate broken? >> it is bent pretty badly. as howard baker said, running the senate is like herding cats. that it takes leadership, somebody to stand up and say, we're going to do this. >> bob dole. former congressman anthony weiner has been getting a lot of buzz in the big apple ever since he announced his bid for mayor of new york city this week. but some big-name democrats are not exactly champing at the bit to endorse him. this is new york senator chuck schumer this morning. >> are you going to support him? >> i'm not commenting on the

mayor's race or on anthony weiner's race at this point. >> do you think he ought not to run? >> i'm not commenting, bob. >> all right. well, i guess that's that. >> and that was that. president obama toured the devastation in oklahoma this afternoon. he met with families of those impacted by the deadly tornadoes that killed 24, injured 377 people as well. president obama urged americans to help oklahomans rebuild their communities. this is just a snippet of what he had to say. >> oklahomans have inspired us with their love and their courage and their fellowship. neighbors have been offering up spare bedrooms and couches for those in need of shelter. universities have opened up their buildings for temporary housing and local companies have pitched in. so this is a strong community with strong character. there's no doubt they're going to bounce back, but they need

help, just like any of us would need help if we saw the kind of devastation that we're seeing here. you know, we have about 1,200, you know, homes that have been completely destroyed, but we've got 12,000 that have been damaged in one way or another. and that's a big piece of business. along with the schools, we've got a hospital that has been destroyed. it's going to take a long time for this community to rebuild. so i want to urge every american to step up. if i've got one message for folks here today, go online, donate to the american red cross, and if you're from the area and you need to register for disaster assistance, you can call 1-800-621-fema. that's 1-800-fema or go to disast disasterassistance.gov on the web. either way. i guarantee you, if you've got

some significant damage and have been impacted, go ahead and reach out and there are going to be professionals there who are ready and willing to provide you the assistance that you need. we know moore is going to come back stronger from this tragedy. your mayor said that you're already printing new street signs? >> yes, sir. >> and i want folks affected throughout oklahoma to know that we're going to be with you every step of the way. on sunday, the first deadly tornadoes touched down about 40 miles from here, and i mentioned this the day afterwards. there was a story that really struck me in the press, in the rubble was found a bible, open to the words, "a man will be a hiding place from the wind and a cover from the tempest." and it's a reminder, as scripture often is, that god has a plan and it's important, though, that we also recognize

we're an instrument of his will. and we need to know that as fellow americans, we're going to be there as shelter from the storm for the people of moore who have been impacted. and when we say that we've got your back, i promise you, we keep our word. if you talk to folks in alabama, who have been affected over the last couple of years, if you talk to the folks of joplin, who i know have sent folks down here to moore. if you talk to folks in new jersey and new york, they'll tell you, when they say we're going to rebuild there until you completely rebuild, we mean it. and i want everybody to have that confidence. so, again, to all the people here behind me, i want to say how proud i am of them, how grateful i am for their service. i want to make one final comment. you know, a lot of the first responders talked about the training that they've done, in part through some federal grants to prepare for disasters like this. and as a consequence, when it

actually happens, they know what to do, they're not losing time. they're able to go through all the drills and the training that they've gone through. training, education, both for citizenry, but also for first responders, is absolutely critical. and we've got to make sure that those resources remain in place. so i know everybody in congress cares deeply about what's happening and i'm confident that resources will be forthcoming when it comes to rebuilding, but, remember that it's also the ongoing training and equipment that we're making sure that those things are placed. we can't shortchange that kind of ongoing disaster response. we can't just wait until the disaster happens. that's how, in part, we're able to save a lot of lives. and i want everybody to keep that in mind. so with that, let me just again say thank you to everybody here. madame governor, thank you for your leadership. and may god bless the people of oklahoma and obviously continue to bless the united states of

america. thank you. >> president obama about two hours ago in moore, oklahoma. the president left just moments ago, we're told, after meeting with a number of folks affected by the tornado. he surveyed the storms as well, including a visit to plaza towers elementary, where seven children, seven, were found dead after the tornado. i want to bring in michael thompson, oklahoma secretary of public safety and security. michael, good to see you, sir. >> reporter: thank you very much, sir, for having me on. >> let's talk about short-term and long-term here. logistically, in terms of the rebuilding effort, what comes next? >> well, you know, wave kind of shifted from a rescue effort to a recovery effort. and there's going to have to be some very hard, emotional decision as to how we clear some of these properties and get the properties to where they can start looking at the rebuilding phase of this operation. >> have you guys decided what's going to be done with the hospital there?

>> you know, it's -- if you can see this area here, the scale of this devastation is just incredible. and the hospital, unfortunately, is just one of the places that got hit very hard here, along with an elementary school and some neighborhoods. so it's going to be a collective effort to get this community up and back on its feet again. >> but no decision about whether you're going to demolish that hospital or whether it's going to be able to be salvaged? >> no, sir. i'm not sure, yet, what the exactly decision is on the moore hospital right now. >> this morning, governor mary fallin said that one of the things she needed most from washington right now was basically as little red tape as possible. so far, with regards to the federal assistance there, have you guys found that the process is going smoothly or have you encountered a great deal of red tape? >> well, i echo the governor's call for assistance here in oklahoma. and the governor has led a very, very strong team here, and

there's nothing off the table as far as helping this community. and as far as any red tape, you would not believe the level and amount of coordination and the folks that are just willing to pitch in and make this thing work. director fugate at fema said everything they can do to help us get back on their feet again, they're going to help. the president echoed that a few hours ago. and it's very reassuring to have the federal government take such an active role right now in such a tragedy. >> the white house said today that fema has invested more than $57 million, i believe, in oklahoma, to help build nearly 12,000 private and public safe rooms in your state, more than any other state in this country, we should note. why weren't there more safe rooms in the moore area? >> that's a good question. when it comes to the safe rooms, it's a district-by-district decision that we have to make. and we have to be sensitive. you know, times government doesn't always know best.

and having a safe room as mandatory is a pretty tough call, because they are costly. but there's no doubt that a safe room does save lives. >> but michael, you just said it right there, yes, they are costly, but we know that they save lives. and there have been a lot of folks who said that if there was a safe room or a number of safe rooms in that elementary school, there might be a few more children walking around today. >> yeah, i'm not sure if there was a question in there or if you wanted me to comment on that. >> i would like for you to comment on that. >> yeah, you're right on. i mean, a safe room saves lives. and it's a combination of. i think what we're doing, as far as forecasting, i think we've got about a 16-minute warning here for moore, that danger is coming, to get to a safe room or try to get out of the area. but, yeah, i would think that the safe room conversation would really be elevated to the forefront after a tragedy like this. >> we've heard an awful lot about the quote, oklahoma

standard. we heard it today from the president. i was there in moore for a number of days this past week. a lot of folks talking about the oklahoma standard. for folks who might not be familiar with it, what are people talking about when they talk about the oklahoma standard? >> well, unfortunately, sir, for us, we've had to deal with tr g tragedy. you know, we had a the murrah building bombing years ago and had to regroup and recover from that. we had a terrible tornado 1999 and a tough tornado come through in 2012. it's just a spirit of putting everything else aside and our focus, our sole focus is getting this community back on its feet and returning this community to a sense of normalcy. >> thank you, sir, much. michael thompson, oklahoma secretary of public safety and security. good luck to you, sir. >> thank you very much, sir. and thank you very much for the attention you're giving us here in oklahoma. we need the help. >> and we'll be back, too. a quick programming note,

folks. this wednesday, country music singers blake shelton, his wife, miranda lambert, will be among several music stars staging a benefit concert for tornado victims in oklahoma. it's a one-hour special. it's being called healing in the heartland. it will start at 9:00 eastern on nbc. president obama used his major counterterrorism speech last thursday to narrow the use of drone strikes. i want to bring in connecticut democratic congressman joe courtney now. he sits on the armed services committee. congressman, good to see you. thanks for coming in on a sunday. >> thanks, craig. >> president obama, thursday, defended the use of drones, even against u.s. citizens. this is what he said. >> when a u.s. citizen goes abroad to wage war against america and is actively plotting to kill u.s. citizens, and when neither the united states nor our partners are in a position to capture him before he carries

out a plot, his citizenship should no more serve as a shield than a sniper shooting down on an innocent crowd should be protected from a s.w.a.t. team. >> congressman, here's the thing, though. many legal experts believe that citizenship is a shield of sorts, and that the white house needs to allow for due process. you're an attorney. will the drone guidelines, these new guidelines will they be enough to quiet the president's critics? >> first of all, it is a huge step forward from the prior status quo, which is absolutely no rules at all. and again, i give the president a lot of credit for the fact that he really proactively got out there and actually proposed ways to limit his own power. i mean, that by itself is probably, you know, i can't remember a president in our lifetimes who's actually gone out and proposed reducing his war powers. and that's really what the president was doing. you know, the conditions that he attached to that scenario, that he described, i mean, i would just comment that they really

are a fairly narrow, extremely narrow set of circumstances that, you know, i think he or any other president would have to satisfy to justify that type of use of force. but, again, i give this guy so much credit for the fact that he's gone out there and at least, finally, taken this issue that's been in the shadows, and a lot of people have been complaining about it, and he's put it out there for an honest debate in this country. >> congressman, here's something the president did not mention, did not talk about. he did not say that if there's another drone strike in the future, that we're going to know about it. what's the harm in telling the american public about a drone strike after the fact? what we've accomplished? >> well, again, that, i think, really gets to the core of this, which is about accountability and transparency. which, again, is completely nonexistent and has been for the last 12 years since 9/11. and the -- you know, what i would say is that there's got to be some system for review.

not everything that we do in terms of intelligence or, you know, operations around the world is necessarily disclosed publicly in all instances, but there certainly is some information sharing, at least with congress and sometimes with courts when they seek to do authority in various items. and that's where we've got to get going here in trying to set up this new technology, which has just operated really outside of any rules, to get real systems in place. and the armed services committee, which is going to be marking up the defense bill when we go back after the break this week, that's going to be the place where this process finally begins, about trying to get some more accountability in terms of how these weapons are used. >> congressman joe courtney of connecticut. congressman, thank. >> thanks, craig. up next, ghost army. a military historian sharing some untold stories from world war ii on this memorial day weekend. and just the ticket.

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tomorrow is memorial day and it's, of course, a dare of remembering those in the armed services who have made the ultimate sacrifice, who have given their lives for our country. jonathan gaunt is a military historian. he's also an author. his latest book is titled "finding your father's war." good to see you, sir. thanks for coming on, jonathan. >> my pleasure. >> memorial day created to honor those who have fallen serving this country. i've got to start with this question, though. has the meaning, in your opinion, has it at all been lost today? >> i think so. i think people of it as a day to

have barbecues and -- >> how'd that happen? >> i don't know. i think for the most part, as the veterans from world war ii die out, then families have fewer people around to remind them of friends that had fallen in the war. it may be time for it to come back now that we have a whole new generation of veterans. it would be -- >> it's kind of said in a way, to have a day where you don't want someone to wish you happy memorial day, because it's not a happy day. it should be a time for thought and a time for realizing what has gone on with soldiers in the past. >> you've written a number of books about some of the lesser-known units in world war ii. you were interviewed extensively for that new pbs documentary, "ghost army." tell us about that particular group of soldiers and the dangers that they faced.

>> well, the ghost army, which is a wonderful documentary by rick buyer with, and it's showing on pbs for the next few weeks, and i highly recommend people watch it, it's incredibly well done. what that was the 23rd special troops, which was a tactical deception unit, set up by the united states army to operate in europe in france and germany. and they essentially tried to fool the germans by sending out false radio signals, so that the germans would think that there was a unit in that area that wasn't, and the germans would send over reconnaissance aircraft, and they would photograph what they thought were real trucks and tanks and tank tracks. when, in reality, they were inflatable decoys and tracks made by bulldozers. and the germans -- german intelligence would plot these units on their master board and it would affect how the war was

thought. >> that's fascinating. in what ways are soldiers and airmen and coast guardsmen and sailors, in what ways are those folks today different than some of the folks who served in past wars? >> i think the biggest difference is that it's an all-volunteer force now. and one of the reasons that, say, in world war ii, with the ghost army, you had such a spectacular grouping of men was because everyone was involved. unlike vietnam, you didn't get a deferment if you were from a wealthy or politically connected family or you were in college. in fact, a large number of the men in this unit were taken right out of a college program. and today, you have -- military service seems to start to run as a family thing. it's almost as though, if it's in your family, it's there, and if it's not, it's not.

and there's an interesting debate to be had on whether that's a good thing or not. >> military historian, jonathan gawne, jonathan, thank you, sir. >> thank you. up next, flashback time. a man scales the world trade center 36 years ago today. the amazing video and the surprising reaction from the city. all stations come over to mission a for a final go. this is for real this time. step seven point two one two. verify and lock. command is locked. five seconds. three, two, one. standing by for capture. the most innovative software on the planet... dragon is captured. is connecting today's leading companies to places beyond it. siemens. answers.

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climber from new york, inching his way with the help of a homemade harness, designed to hook into a metal strip that holds a support line for window washers. people couldn't believe it. 8:00 a.m., at the 55th floor. police lowered a bucket with two officers to see whether they could talk willeg out of it? 8:30 a.m. willeg passed a note to the police. it said, best wishes to my c co-ascenders. below, police put up a inflated bag for safety, but they knew that wouldn't do much good. at 10:05, 3 1/2 hours after he had begun, willeg had made it. later, reporters cheered willeg, but police charged him with criminal trespass, reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct and the city filed a suit for $250,000 to cover so-called emergency expenses. >> i climbed it because i thought it would be an exciting

thing to do. >> the city dropped that initial $250,000 lawsuit and new york's mayor at the time, he gave willig a few fine. $1.10. a penny for each of the floors that he climbed. up next, president obama tours the devastation in oklahoma and promises help for those affected. but how much help and could this become just another political fight in congress? our brain trust is going to weigh in on that and a whole heck of a lot more. this is msnbc, the place for politics. hey, look!k! a a shooting s st! mamake a wish!h! i wish w we could lie e here forevever. i wish thihis test dririve was , so we e could headad back to thehe dealershihip. [ [ male annououncer ] it's p practicallyly yours. testst dri! bubut we stillll need your s signature.. vovolkswagen s sign then d drie is back.k. and d it's neverer been easisir to get a j jetta. that's t the power of german n engineerining. get $0 dowown, $0 due at t signing, $ $0 dep, anand $0 firstst month's p pt on any n new volkswawagen.

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how old is the oldest person you've known? we gave people a sticker and had them show us. we learned a lot of us have known someone who's lived well into their 90s. and that's a great thing. but even though we're living longer, one thing that hasn't changed much is the official retirement age. ♪ the question is how do you make sure you have the money you need to enjoy all of these years. ♪ severe flooding in san antonio, texas, this weekend. they got 12 inches of rain in just 24 hours yesterday. two women died after being swept away by the flood waters. and emergency workers made more than 200 rescuers to help other motorists and stranded homeowners as well.

again, that's san antonio, texas, yesterday. here's a quick lack at some of the other top stories making news on a sunday afternoon. new details about the oregon teenager who officials say was planning to blow up his school. prosecutors say the 17-year-old was hiding six bombs in a secret compartment under the floorboards in his bedroom. the district attorney says the teenager will probably be charged as an adult with attempted aggravated murder. and traveling this summer? a new study from texas a&m university says weekends, saturdays and sundays, are the best time to buy a plane ticket. that's right. researchers found that ticket prices dropped nearly 5% on saturdays and sundays. and folks, we have a winner. his name is tony kanaan and that means he joust won the indianapolis 500 this afternoon. it was his 12th attempt. right now, president obama

is heading home after touring the devastation caused by the deadly tornado in moore, oklahoma, last week. again, that tornado killed 24, including 10 children. seven of them were found inside one elementary school there. nbc's kristen welker standing by for us at the white house. he's scheduled to get back to the white house in a few hours, kristen. tomorrow, obviously, memorial day. the president has a busy agenda this week, i understand? >> reporter: he does, and it starts with traditional memorial day ceremonies here at the white house. he will be hosting families who have lost loved ones in combat. he then heads to arlington national cemetery and lays a wreath at the tomb of the unknown. he will speak at a memorial day ceremony, talk about the importance of honoring veterans and also marking the day and remembering those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. then on tuesday, he travels the to new jersey, the shoreline there, where he will be greeted by governor chris christie and he will view the recovery.

seven months after hurricane sandy really ravaged that area, it has been rebuilt and the president and the governor will likely highlight the fact that it is a symbol of what the federal, state, and local officials can do when they work together. of course, there are some political undertones to the visit, as well, as you remember, when president obama visited in the days after hurricane sandy. governor christie actually got some criticism for being too effusive about president obama. some republicans feared he would help the president get re-elected with those comments. so the white house actually called governor christie to say, is it okay if the president comes? and governor christie was, of course, happy to welcome him. when matt lauer asked him about this on the "today" show last week, he said he's thrilled to have the president, he's not worried about the political implications for him. a little bit later on this week, wednesday and thursday, president obama heads to chicago, where he will attend some events for the dcc, help out with fund-raising there. i am told we shouldn't rule out the possibility that he will

make an unannounced stop, possibly at a diner to greet some folks there in chicago. and then he has meetings a little bit later on this week. so a lot of travel this week, as the president right now heads home from oklahoma. craig? >> kristen welker from 1600 pennsylvania avenue. kristen, good to see you. thank you and enjoy your memorial day. >> reporter: you too. thanks, craig. >> again, president obama wrapping up that trip to tornado-ravaged moore, oklahoma, heading back to washington, d.c. should get in in a couple of hours. i want to talk to the brain trust now about the politics of destruction. angela ry, former executive director of the congressional black caucus and director of impact strategies. bob franken, syndicated columnist for king features, and matt welch, editor in chief at "reason" magazine. good to see all of you. bob, how you doing down there in d.c.? >> well, i feel a little lonely here. >> we've got to work on the travel budget, bob. angela, more than 400 fema workers on the scene right now in moore, oklahoma.

more than 4,000 folks according to president obama have applied for assistance. both oklahoma senators voted against that proposed sandy relief bill earlier this year. could this create a problem for long-term aid in oklahoma or not so much? >> well, i think, first and foremost, this year, despite efforts with sequestration and broader cuts, there is still a significant amount of funding, i think around $11 billion, in federal disaster aid relief funding, that exists. i think the larger problem and the bigger thing that we're going to have to look at long-term is how we put partisan politics aside to ensure that the nation's citizenry is taken care of, regardless of disaster. the other thing is, we know that disaster is going to strike every year. we've been talking about it all week. you know, the number of tornados that hit. so we have to do better at proactively funding these things before they take place and happen. >> and right now you've got, you know, noaa's looking at cuts and you've also -- of course, you've got the hurricane center. i mean, a lot of these agencies

that help predict storms and agencies that respond to storms are looking to cuts. matt, i want to get your take on something, because i feel a feeling it might be a unique take. is disaster relief itself, should that be a function of the federal government or should disaster relief be something that's left to states and left, in some cases, even perhaps to local municipalities? >> the federal government is uniquely bad at disaster relief. the federal government, the further removed you are from an actual catastrophe, the worse the response is going to be. the best responder is the true first responder, which is the next-door neighbor and that is the local police and everybody else. the federal government always comes with the money that they send, a ton of bureaucracy, people in joplin, missouri, have found that sometimes it was better to not have federal money in order to rebuild things like elementary schools. it's just not very efficient at it. so it should, and it doesn't, it

should rise to a certain level of size and scope where localities can't help themselves or if there's a multi-state kind of aspect to it, as you could argue with hurricane sandy. but the federal government is not good at this. unfortunately, our politics is such that everything becomes centralized, and anyone, like tom coburn who says, hey, maybe we should offset this kind of spending is treated like a moral monster. so repeat the same kind of pattern we've seen since hurricane andrew in 1992. >> bob, matt raises an interesting point about the role of government. but you've got certain states like california running a surplus now, connecticut running a surplus now. but there would be certain states that would be, you know, adequately equipped to respond to disaster. and then there would be other states, and i'm not going to name names of states, because i don't want tweeting or e-mailing me, but there are certain states in this country that you and i both know would not be able to respond very well, if at all. >> well, first of all, there are some people, in and around the political scene, who believe that the federal government should have no role, that

nothing is appropriate, in anything. the federal government, first of all, apparently fema and the disaster relief under this president, has been pretty sharp by the impressions left by the various governors who have been involved. but the federal government, in effect, is supposed to play a coordinating role and to a large degree, a financial role. as for the debate that's going on about offsetting money to pay for this disaster relief, that's something that is an ongoing discussion in washington. in fairness, it should be said that the united states is in a financial bind right now, and perhaps some of the fat that's in the budget, we probably disagree on what the fat is, perhaps some of that fat could be defunded, so to speak, so we can pay for disaster relief. >> you know, one of the things that always interests me, anytime we have a natural disaster, it seems like at least over the past few years in this country, there's this song and dance that dp democrats and republicans do. we're not going to release funding until we cut -- the offsets we were just talking about.

but in the end, invariably, everyone caves. it always happens. what bothers me most about that, we know that the song and dance is, you know, pandering. pandering to folks who don't want government to do anything or want government to do very little. i don't understand why we have to have -- >> well, it's also pandering to people who think that every spending is nonideological and anyone who would oppose spending is acting ideologically. every single big disaster relief bill has pork in it. and what is the best way to make sure a pork-laden disaster relief bill gets passed? is the other people who are making, who are talking about resisting this are portrayed as monsters. so it's not just a one side is playing politics on this. >> but i think to be fair, it's not about the pork. we know that in every single legislative measure almost, there's something wrong with it. but at the end of the day, we can't say this isn't right how we do this, so let's strip federal government from this.

we know that as bob said, there are states if left to their own devices would be a tragic mess if they had to respond to federal or disasters -- natural disasters on their own. >> there are two points, first of all, to angela's point, we should not have to accept as inevitable the fact that people are going to try to sneak if their favorite little politics when we have disaster relief. we do accept that, and maybe that needs to be a change in the legislative process. as far as the ineptitude of a federal bureaucracy, we'll find that kind of ineptitude sometimes in a local government, sometimes we'll find it in the various charities. i think it goes with the territory. >> ineptitude does go with the territory when we're talking about government, state, local, federal. >> absolutely. and the private sector. >> that's right. >> what are you trying to say, bob? >> well, what i'm trying to say is when you have such a massive effort, you are going to create bureaucracies, which are going to get in the way. simple as that. up next, the brain trust returns. and we're going to start with bob, because he's making faces and i want to make sure we hear -- we want to give him time

to. when we come back on this memorial day weekend, the brain trust shares thoughts on the thousands of american troops that remain in afghanistan right now, and iraq as well. we're going to talk about what their return means. and we're also going to talk about what memorial day has become in this country. i have low testosterone. there, i said it. see, i knew testosterone could affect sex drive, but not energy or even my mood. that's when i talked with my doctor. he gave me some blood tests... showed it was low t. that's it. it was a number.

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the brain trust is back. angela ry, former director of the congressional back caucus, bob franken, matt welch, editor in chief at "reason" magazine. let's talk about memorial day here, guys. and bob, i promised to start with you, so i will. this country has been at war for more than a decade now. how important is it to the country's psyche when the last combat troops come home from afghanistan? how important is that going to be for all of us collectively? >> well, i think that, certainly, there's going to be a sigh of relief. certainly on the part of the

families. but there's something i think we can all agree on. and that is, the scandal of how the treatment that many of these veterans get when they return. i'm talking about the v.a. the veterans administration. and talk about bureaucracy. the long, long delays in fulfilling the contract we have with these combat troops when we come back. i think it's all well and good we honor the troops with memorial day celebrations and all that kind of thing, but we really need to honor them by living up to our part of the deal, by getting the veterans administration to get its act together. >> is memorial day still something that we -- do we properly acknowledge it, angela and ryan? sometimes when we have federal holidays in this country, it's really about sleeping late, drinking too much, eating too much. is this one of those holidays where we actually do pause and remember the sacrifices that thousands of men and women have made, tens of thousands of men and women have made? or is this one of those other holidays? >> i think it's split.

i think there are folks in this country who were personally impacted, maybe, you know, that they, themselves, for example, congressman rangel talks often about how he's never had another bad day since the korean war. i mean, he was right there in the thick of it and lost friends. you know, there are people who lost spouses and brothers and sisters. and i think for them, memorial day is much more significant. there are many more of us who look for the best vacation deals for memorial day. and i think that we all have to make a conscious effort to say, what is this day about? how can we best remember the troops? and how can we make sure that we don't continue to ignore the soldiers that thought for us and preserved our liberties? >> matt, i do think sometimes memorial day, veterans day as well, we do a really good job in this country of talking, you know, making speeches. and we do a really good job of talking about how much our troops mean to us and how much our -- but when it comes down to it, we really haven't always matched our actions with our words collectively.

>> i think perversely, part of the reason why we're sort of more disassociated from memorial day now than we used to be is kind of good news, right? i mean, i was born in 1968. more u.s. combat troops died in 1968 than in all subsequent american military actions combined, right? so we're dying less here. warfare, the broad sweep of warfare, as steven pinker wrote a great book about this, has just been going like this, even though we feel like it's going like this. so it's actually kind of a good news story, in that we don't all have to be conscripted. we're not killing people and being killed in the scope that we were in the korean war, for example, which is just a hideous body count. so part of that is that we're making less war, even though it feels like we're constantly at war. >> and much of this detachment, this disassociation, how much of it also can be attributed to the fact that we have an all-volunteer army now, an all-volunteer service, and also, the way that we fight wars now,

as well. we like to use drones and we like to use special forces. i mean, we don't have masses of infantry going in, and we don't see the images like we used to see as well. >> i mean, some of the not seeing the images is because of censorship, so that's kind of a bad thing. we can all say that. but i would say that the professionalization of the military forces is part of the reason why our military is the best in the world, when it's not people being drafted against their will, it's people who are making that decision voluntarily. you're going to have a much higher quality. it also is going to have the effect that there are whole swaths of american society who just are abstracted from the military. they don't know anybody in the military. they don't think in terms of military terms. so it has this strange kind of division between some of civilian society in the military. >> quick break here. when we come back, the brain trust gives us their sneak peek at the week. it's very exciting. come back. and some superheroes need complete and balanced meals

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the brain trust is back. angela ry, bob franken, matt welch. congress is in recess. lawmakers are back home, meeting with constituents, presumably. bob franken, what will members of congress hear about most while they're at home, on recess? what would it look like? >> well, without a doubt, they're going to hear about guns and hear about the irs. proving once again that the only two srcertainties are death and taxes. and they'll also hear about health care. you have the republicans all set, if this rollout doesn't go well in 2014, the republicans all set to discredit president obama for his signature issues. >> bob, do you think a lot of folks are still talking about guns in their home districts? >> oh, i think the people who did not have their way when the congress didn't act on the legislation are going to be making sure that the subject comes up. >> angela ry, your headline, sneak peek? >> yeah, i think that folks are going to be talking about why aren't we focused on jobs in the

economy. i think particularly when you look at the most recent infrastructure failing in my home state of washington -- >> by the way, this is your headline? that's the longest headline -- >> that wasn't supposed to be the headline. nevertheless, nevertheless, back to being on message. the point is, folks are looking at our eroding infrastructure and wondering what are we going to do about it. and the president's american jobs act, that he had introduced last congress, it addressed $50 billion to our infrastructure, $10 billion to an infrastructure bank, all which create jobs. it's time to get serious about the economy. >> matt welch? >> you know, we're on our, i think, fifth recovery summer, so i agree in part with angela. the economy is lousy. we have fewer able-bodied americans are working now than have since 1979 and the prospects don't look any particularly better going forward. so after all of this sturm and drang in washington, we still

have a lousy economy. >> angela, do you really think there's an appetite in this country to spend billions of dollars on infrastructure, even though we all know that it's something that has to be done? >> i think that we can't continue to wait until something bad happens. you see cars in the water, people floating on top of their cars and it's just like the disaster relief we talked about earlier. we know this is going to happen. we've got to be proactive. >> angela rye, impact strategies, syndicated columnist bob franken, who i apologize for just cutting off, but we're out of time, and "reason's" magazine matt welch, a big thanks to all of you. before we go, we want to leave you with some words. president reagan, 1982, talking about those that we've lost. >> words are even more feeble on this memorial day, for the site before us is that of a strong and good nation that stands in silence and remembers those who were loved and who in return loved their countrymen enough to die for them. yet we must try to honor them.

not for their sakes alone, but for our own. and if words cannot repay the debt we owe these men, surely with our actions, we must strive to keep faith with them and with the vision that led them to battle and a final sacrifice. >> and between the hot dogs and beer and time with friends and family tomorrow, let us all pause and remember the sacrifice. thank you all so much for watching. i'll be back here next weekend, 2:00 eastern, right here on msnbc. up next, though, he's standing by, he's rearing to go. his name is ed schultz. "the ed show" on the other side of this break. [ phil ] when you have joint pain and stiffness...

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good evening, americans, and welcome to "the ed show" live from new york. thanks to the republicans, bridges are crumbling in america. lindsey graham is absolutely tone deaf over the war on

terror. and bob dole, a blast from the past. he's talking trash about the grand ole party. this is "the ed show." let's get to work. ♪ think about all of the bridges and roads we're driving on this memorial day weekend, it's kind of frightening. >> there's no reason for republicans andn congress to stand in the way of more construction projects. >> if something goes wrong with the key structural element, you may have a catastrophic result. >> building better roads and bridges and schools, that's not a partisan idea. >> the government is so slow and plodding to get these things fixed. >> my next-door neighbor's two dogs have created more shovel-ready jobs than this current administration. >> shovel-ready project my astroturf, yeah, right. >> we need solutions. >> maybe private bridge companies could help out. >> this is a service that local news could do, identifying the bridges in your town that pose a problem. it's kind of