tv The Reid Report MSNBC February 5, 2015 11:00am-12:01pm PST
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this is "the reid report." i'm joy reid. we begin with the fight against isis. as jordan's king abdullah ii comforted the family of his country's slain pilot today, muath al kasaesbeh's comrades took the lead in conducting many of the allied air strikes against the terrorist group today. video released on tuesday by isis purports to show the 26-year-old pilot being walked into a metal cage and burned alive. the effect of the brutal propaganda video in jordan has been to rally much of the country behind its king and the allied war effort, at least for the time being. speaking at a national prayer breakfast today, u.s. president barack obama reiterated america's collective thoughts about the brutality of the group known alternatively as isis the islamic state, and isil. >> you see, isil a brutal vicious death cult that in the name of religion carries out
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unspeakable acts of barbarism, terrorizing religious minorities like the yazidis, subjecting women to rape as a weapon of war, and claiming the mantle of religious authority for such actions. >> nbc foreign correspondent ayman mohyeldin is here with me now. ayman? >> hey joy. as you've mentioned, the jordanians today are carrying out what they've been doing throughout the last several months, which are air strikes. according to one senior u.s. pentagon officials, the jordanians were given their flight package that involved the targets they were meant to carry out. jordan's 20 fighter pilots bombed various targets in syria, predominantly targets close to raqqa. it is where a lot of their major resources have been held. the jordanian fighter pilots took off from jordan targeting those locations inside syria as they have been for the past several months. it was a very important symbol
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from the jordanian monarch and government that they're still very much committed to this fight. we also saw an image that was released by the jordanian government showing king abdullah in military fatigues. also, once again driving home the point that he is as commander in chief of the jordanian armed forces very much involved in the operational -- operations that are being carried out against isil. this was a very important symbolic message being sent by the kingdom while the country still reels from that barbaric attack. >> and ayman, is there any truth to these stories that king abdullah would actually fly missions and not just wear, as you said, his garb as commander in chief of the military? >> well at this point, sources close to the jordanian monarch and the royal court are saying he did not participate in any flight missions over syria or take part in any air strikes. he does have experience as a special operations force commander at some point throughout his career. more importantly, now as the commander in chief of the jordanian armed forces the
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image that has been put online as you see there, certainly is one to convey leadership. more importantly, he is very much involved in this. there's also been -- he's been briefed on the situation. he visited the military headquarters in jordan where he was given an update on those jordanian air strikes. so i think at this point, the jordanian government is not substantiating any claims that the jordanian king was involved in any type of flight operations against isis targets. >> all right. thanks very much, ayman mohyeldin. and for a deeper dive into what is going on inside jordan right now, we're joined by sofia jones, middle east correspondent for "the world post." she's in amman. let's talk about the political situation inside jordan where the reports are for now at least the population is four square behind the war effort. is that something that appears to be maintainable by the jordanian government? >> right now most jordanians i've spoken to are out for
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blood. they're backing the king in his war effort. there are also people who express doubt and concern over jordan's role in the u.s.-led coalition fight against isis. around 1500 jordanians are thought to belong to isis and there are supporters across the country. >> in terms of the situation with refugees there are, of course more than 700,000 syrian refugees inside jordan. how is that altering the calculus for the jordanian government in terms of this fight against isis? >> well right now jordanians are cash strapped. they're spending lots of money -- [ inaudible ].
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>> all right. sophia jones reporting from amman, jordan thanks very much. washington, mean while, appears to be divided over whether to arm ukraine in its fight against russian-backed separatists. renewed fighting in the eastern part of the country has brought calls to provide ukraine with defense material including anti-tank weapons. the divide on whether to do so has up to now appeared to be more about the white house versus congress than the usual ds versus rs. today during a news conference with ukraine's prime minister secretary of state john kerry said president obama is weighing his options. but he gave no indication that the president was ready to change his mind. >> we are not interested in a proxy war. our objective is to change russia's behavior and will consider all options that are available to us in coordination with our partners that will help us achieve a negotiated solution. >> and framing the other side of the debate, the senate armed
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services committee held a bipartisan press conference today where both the chairman and the ranking democrats said the time has come to arm ukraine. >> it will raise the risks and costs russia must incur to continue its offensive. it will pierce the veneer of the cynical and false narrative that there are no russians in ukraine. >> at the same time, we should make it clear to the ukrainians that while we support their commitment to defend themselves they cannot expect u.s. combat forces to come to their aid in the fight. >> and senator jack reed added that any policy on ukraine should be conducted in conjunction with our allies. meanwhile, german leader angela merkel and france's francois hollande were also inkey kiev today. >> reporter: good afternoon, joy. a day of intense diplomacy that follows weeks of intense fighting in eastern ukraine. john kerry was here for about nine hours. he met ukraine's president and
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prime minister. and they told him, among other things, that they need weapons. they need weapons to stop the advance of the separatists. we're not fighting rebels or guerrillas said ukraine's prime minister, we are fighting the regular russian army. of course russia strenuously denies that but there's no question that in terms of the weapons, those that have been supplied, says john kerry, from russia are state of the art. they really are good, modern missile systems compared to the ukrainian army's systems, which are decades old, out of date and they certainly aren't stopping that rebel advance. so asked about the possibility that the united states would supply weapons to ukraine, john kerry said president obama is reviewing all his options, and among them is the possibility of providing defensive systems. the president, he said will make his decision soon. obviously, there's an anxiety about the united states providing weapons here pouring
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fuel on the fire say some. they may not deter president putin or deter the rebels. in fact, they may turn what is a regional conflict into a proxy war between the united states and russia. john kerry addressed that as well, said we're not interested in a proxy war. we want to change russia's behavior. we're not choosing a military outcome, but you cannot have a one-sided peace. well, john kerry is now on his way to munich. he will land in munich and there tomorrow he'll meet the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov for talks. meanwhile, here in ukraine, the french president, francois hollande is here with the german chancellor angela merkel. they're meeting ukraine's leaders. next they'll go to moscow and meet president putin, who denies that his troops are crossing the border, that he's supplying any weapons. so a day and two days indeed of intense diplomacy trying to keep pace with the violence.
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we've seen dozens killed in recent days. 5,300 and more killed since this conflict began. and the risks of this conflict escalating are still growing. joy? >> that was nbc's bill neely reporting from kiev. over to taiwan now, where rescue workers in taipei spent another day searching for missing passengers who were aboard that plane that crashed into the river yesterday. so far, crews have recovered at least 30 passengers' bodies while at least a dozen people are still unaccounted for. this comes as more chilling sights and sounds have emerged from the aftermath of flight ge-235's dramatic low-altitude crash. here's nbc's ian williams with more. >> reporter: rescue efforts continued today, plucking mangled wreckage from the river. the search for those still missing hampered by strong tides and murky waters. from his hospital bed, this survivor said he felt there was a problem as soon as the plane took off. he told the person next to him they should hold on to their
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seats and cover their heads. the 72-year-old said the plane went down the minute he was done talking. these new pictures capture the horror of a survivor at a window desperately waving to rescue workers as the water filled the cabin. officials today confirmed eded eded the recording of the pilots distress call soon after takeoff. engine flame-out, he said suggesting possible engine trouble. that seems to be confirmed by pictures showing the left propeller at a standstill as the plane careered towards the rir. an engine was among the debris pulled from the water today. while the black box has also now been recovered. >> that was nbc's ian williams reporting from beijing. the investigation, meanwhile, also continues into the deadly commuter train accident here in new york. the suv that was virtually impaled by the train's electrified third rail has now been removed from the tracks. the driver has been identified as 49-year-old ellen brody, a wife and mother to three daughters.
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brody's husband allen posted on facebook yesterday, thank you to those who shared their condolences for the terrible tragedy that took my beloved wife ellen, whom so many of you knew. as investigators piece together the events leading up to the crash, we now know that traffic was backed up behind brody due to an accident on a nearby highway. the driver of the car directly behind her says he tried to get brody to back up off the tracks. >> she looks at me i gesture to come back i back up again further to even indicate there's plenty of room to back up and she turns, walks, and gets back in the car. >> in addition to brody, five train passengers were killed including 36-year-old robert dirks, a research scientist who was married with two small children. >> he just loved his family. he loved his wife christine, who he met at cal tech at a bridge tournament. and they just clicked. they were just perfect for each
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other. he was a guy you could always count on. he loved life. he loved his brother and his brother loved him. >> nbc's adam reese joins me live from the scene of the accident in valhalla new york. what's the latest on the investigation and the victims? >> reporter: good afternoon, joy. eight patients remain here at the hospital with injuries that remain from lacerations to burns to broken bones. investigators from the ntsb who want to talk to both the engineer and the conductor to find out what they know about the accident. they'll also be looking at the recorders. one was sent to washington one here in new york. the data has been downloaded. they'll analyze that for train speed and when the brakes were applied. they'll also want to know why did ellen brody stop on the tracks? did the gate come down? did she try to lift it up? why didn't she heed the passenger behind her who was urging her to back up? they'll also do a site survey to determine when the conductor or the engineer saw her as they
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approached and when she might have seen the train approaching and whether or not she could have gotten out of the way. they'll be here for about five days. they say they'll have a final report in about a year. joy? >> all right. msnbc's adam reese, thank you. and still ahead, with the stakes rising and as jordan continues to exact its revenge for the apparent killing of one of its own, we'll discuss what's next in the u.s.-led war to defeat and dismantle the terrorist group isis. plus, as the "american sniper" trial gets under way in texas, we'll get a soldier's prospektsive on the controversial movie that's become a cultural phenomenon. >> half these guys are civilians six months ago. >> let's coach them up. i'll lead the unit on the street. >> we need you on overwatch. house to house it the deadliest job here man. you got some sort of savior complex? >> i just want to get the bad guys. but if i can't see them, i can't shoot them. a 3d white smile has the power to captivate. that's why shakira uses... crest 3d white with whitelock technology, removing
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jordan's more active participation in the fight against isis today raises several important issues for the future of the u.s.-led alliance. air strikes like these were conducted today, mostly by jordanian pilots. they're a very public retaliation for the death of their fellow pilot muath al kasaesbeh kasaesbeh, whose death by fire promoted in a gruesome isis propaganda video has ignited the jordanian population. today's developments raise the issue, however, of how long public anger in jordan will extend support there for what has been a less-than-popular war. another issue, money, american money, to be exact. at a time of tight u.s. budgets as well as calls to arm ukraine against russian aggression, the white house is being asked to spend more money.
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here's how the white house responded to that issue today. >> there had been some interest in the -- expressed by the jordanians and others to try to expedite assistance that was already in the pipeline. this is not an uncommon request from other countries with whom we have a security relationship. so that's something we're always working on. >> and joining me now is senior military reporter for defense one, gordon loubald. let's talk about the jordanian side of the military effort against isis. how robust is it? really how capable is the jordanian military of being an active and important and lead participant in the fight against isis? >> right. so a couple things. it's one of the strongest and well-funded militaries in the region. the u.s. is very proud of the alliance, as with the country. they spend like $1.5 billion on
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defense, which is more than a lot of european countries spend in terms of gdp. so it's seen as a very professional military force, has a lot of aircraft has a lot of tanks and special forces capabilities. so i think what we're seeing is you know, a very impressive response to what happened over the last few days. but i think what folks back here in washington are going to be asking is what's the long-term plan to really fight isis. >> and gordon i think for a lot of american they presume, and some are concerned, that the long-term plan is that u.s. soldiers are going to have to come in and supplement and maybe even become the lead force on the ground in the fight against isis. right now there are about 1700 american soldiers who are stationed in jordan. of course, there are those who are working in terms of the air strikes. jordan receiving about $300 million in military financing from the u.s.
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it's gotten about $81.7 million in excess pentagon equipment. and about 300 jordanian military personnel study each year in the united states. can the current situation be sustained without a substantial increase in american troops? >> right. so i think that kind of is the question and was really the subtext of a hearing yesterday with the secretary of defense nominee ash carter who will be taking over at the pentagon probably in the next couple weeks. i think that the white house has clearly been criticized for its policy in the middle east particularly in syria. and it's ramping it up but i think what carter may do is bring fresh eyes to the problem but also new credibility to that office. chuck hagel, who's the sitting defense secretary, didn't get a lot of traction with the white house. i think the idea is that carter can bring some of the traction
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that's needed to kind of look at this problem. to answer your question i think the just is still going to be playing a large role and a lead role and more forces will likely be required. one of the things real quick is that carter is going to have to look at the restrictions against american ground forces in iraq and see if there's room to move on that because i think a lot of folks in the pentagon feel ham strung without being able to do more on the ground. >> and gordon i think that does raise the twin concerns of a lot of americans. number one, that we're not openly debating what a lot of americans believe is almost inevitable with an increase in ground troops. we're not openly just debating it and putting it on the table and letting the american people decide if they're for it. second, we have poured substantial money into these regional armies into the army in iraq, keeping in mind of course, that the islamic state as it calls itself is there
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because it was the iraqi insurgency against us. to we produced what we're seeing now. but a lot of americans don't want to get sucked back into another ground war in the middle east. >> absolutely. and there's no support for another major ground war. i think in the debate and kind of as americans passingly pay attention to this issue, the idea of is there going to be another iraq or afghanistan war with tens of thousands of troops, that's not really on the table at all. but i think what is at issue is loosening up some of the restrictions, really political restrictions rhetorical restrictions that the white house has set out to allow the military to put more trainers on the ground put more folks on the ground to collect intelligence, and to call in air strikes. there's been some, you know more than 2,000 air strikes in iraq and syria, but they amount to kind of pinpricks. if you're going to have a sustained effort you have to go further than that probably. >> all right. defense one's gordon lubold
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thank you for being here. now three things to know on this thursday. the nation's second largest health insurer is working with investigators to determine who was behind a massive and very sophisticated cyber attack that exposed the private information of more than 80 million clients and employees. anthem says hackers infiltrated its computer network and got access to personal details like social security numbers and birth dates. the company says that credit card information was not compromised and there's no evidence that medical information has been targeted. sony pictures entertainment announced today amy pascal will step down as co-chairman and the head of the film studio to launch a new production venture at the studio. pascal became embroiled in a controversy following a massive hack attack three months ago, which revealed embarrassing e-mails she sent. and in an exclusive interview with seattle seahawks coach pete carroll, matt lauer
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asked about the controversial goal line call that many are calling the worst call in nfl history. >> you've heard the experts, not just average joes say it was the worst call ever. >> it was the worst result of a call ever. the call would have been a great one if we'd catch it. it would have been fine and nobody would have thought twice about it. >> this was properly planned. it just didn't turn out well. >> it was that play at that time to match up what happened. we knew we were going to throw the ball one time in the sequence somewhere. this all of the sudden they had a goal line group of defense on there we could take advantage of if we threw it so we did. it just didn't turn out right. >> carroll admits the play has cost him some sleepless nights but he also said he believes his team will recover, which they will. as the velocity of change in the world increases new players in new markets face a choice: do it fast and cheap. or do it right. for almost 90 years, we've stayed true to the belief
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is weighing heavily on your minds today. he would have been 20 years old today. and trayvon's mom, sabrina fulton shared a message exclusively with "the reid report." happy 20th birthday, trayvon b. martin. although you're not here we will continue to fight for you. against an unjust system one nation under god, indie visible with liberty and justice for some, change will come. you're also commemorating the activism his untimely death inspired and you're sending thousands of tweets like this one. happy 20th birthday to trayvon martin. we have not forgotten you or the value of your life. may your spirit urge us to keep fighting. meanwhile, the battle over net neutrality had many fearing our free and open internet might be coming to an end. but fcc chairman tom wheeler released a summary of his proposed rules regarding web data yesterday. and by reclassifying isps as
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public utilities, broad band providers would be barred from blocking access to legal content. they won't be able to throttle content or slow content down and most importantly, isps won't be able to prioritize content based on what customers are able to pay. wheeler calls these bright line rules, and he added in this essay, i propose to fully apply for the first time ever those bright line rules to mobile broadband. some of you are calling this the biggest liberal victory since "don't ask, don't tell" was repealed. and meanwhile, the release of the "sports illustrated" swim suit edition cover has sparked a debate about body image. model hannah davis is on the cover, but plus-size model ashley graham is on the inside and she's the one who's trending. she's the first plus-size model to appear in the magazine. this woman posted yes, by
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technical standards, she's plussed sized, but she looks healthy and is rocking that bikini with confidence. this person added, wait is she a "sports illustrated" swim suit model now? nope just in an ad that happens to be in the swim suit edition. good for her though. and speaking of diverse images, the hashtag 28 days of black cosplay is celebrating. people like this are posting pictures of themselves dressed as comic characters. the hashtag was started to empower african-american members of this underground community who often feel marginalized. this user tweeted, when my friend's brother was in first grade, his classmates told him, you can't be batman. we need things like 28 days of black cosplay. what a unique way to fight for equality. and you can join the conversation with fellow reiders on twitter, facebook instagram and msnbc.com. and now this the beef with
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through ptsd issues. the film and the memoir upon which it's based have been hit in part over issues of accuracy. however, some critics have focused on another issue, its depiction of war and the people who fight it. with me now is michael kay, international correspondent and former adviser to the u.k. ministry of defense. i should also add, somebody who has himself been in combat. michael, let's talk a little bit about the perspective that this book and film "american sniper" presents. just putting apart the issues of accuracy about the depiction of his own story, were the sentiments and the feelings that were expressed by the character true to life to you? >> well i don't really know chris kyle. for me, that wasn't my takeaway in terms of getting into who the actual man was. i've served in northern ireland against the ira. i've served in kosovo, macedonia. i did three tours in iraq and
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three tours in afghanistan. something that defines the nature of 21st century combat is the asymmetric threat the unconventional threat, and the threat or the enemy that we face is an enemy that doesn't wear a uniform, doesn't play by any rules, it doesn't understand what the geneva conventions are or play by them. it's not accountable to the international criminal court or their own statute. it uses very basic technology in terms of ieds and suicide bombers. that is something which is incredibly hard to be able to fight against. for me "american sniper" really harness -- if you look at the trailer and the first 100 seconds, the way that clint eastwood articulates a soldier's dilemma in combat today -- it was sobering. very sobering. that's the bit i took away. it wasn't so much about who chris kyle was. i never met chris kyle. one thing i can say about chris kyle and we should be cognizant of is chris was a highly decorated u.s. navy s.e.a.l.
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he fought in four combat tours of duty four. that's just insane when you're a soldier in the most dangerous lands in the world. he was shot twice and blown up six times. if you didn't know him as a person, then i would hesitate to judge on that front. but you cannot take away those facts that he went into combat four times and he served his country with real valor. so i wanted to come away from that and really write a piece on what 21st century combat is about and what happens when our soldiers are sent into war. because it's not our decision. it's never our decision. we are merely servants of the political elite, and we bear the consequences of political indifference. i think that was the important bit that jumped out for me personally. >> yeah and we're putting up a bit of the piece you did write for msnbc.com in which you did write, there's no room for polite negotiation when you're ordered to fight an unknown enemy in a faraway land. it is the soldier that bears the physical and psychological
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consequences of plit cap indifference, both on the battlefield and long after conflicts subside. it is this story, i believe, that eastwood successfully told. i think that's one of the points because we don't have universal service in this country. we don't have conscription anymore. people are sort of divorced and can make the moral judgments about the soldiers who are doing the work that the rest of us are not called upon to do. but i think when people judge the film and judge chris kyle by that measure, by a moral measure rather than knowing what combat is like, do you think it creates a divide between our fighting forces and the public? >> i think there are two very polarizing debates that are going on that surround the film. the first one is the political aspect in terms of, you know, the legitimacy of the iraq war. that's still playing out in the u.k. for example, as an inquiry, which was launched in 2009 which still needs to be published. and so the jury is still out on the political side. but it wasn't about the political side.
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i also don't think for me it wasn't about the man himself. it was about what soldiers are sent into and the type of i did dilemmas they face. >> all right. michael kay, thank you very much. really appreciate your perspective always. thank you. all right. coming up negotiating reform in a policing culture that for the most part appears quite resistant to change. (soft, calm music.) hi, you've reached emma. i'm out of the office right now, but will get back to you just as soon as i possibly can. your call is important to me. join princess cruises for exclusive discovery at sea experiences. enjoy cruises from $499 during our 50th anniversary sale. call your travel consultant or 1-800-princess. princess cruises. come back new. crest gave one friend crest 3d white whitestrips. and the other, a whitening
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outgoing attorney general eric holder is also on the front lines in this debate. he's in oakland today holding talks aimed at building trust between citizens leaders, and police. but not everyone agrees the system is broken. in staten island today, two months after a grand jury decided not to indict the officer in eric garner's choke hold death, a judge is deciding whether or not to release the jury's secret records. just yesterday, new york police commissioner william bratton said that he opposes a proposal for an independent monitor to step in when a grand jury fails to indict an officer. bratton also told reporters that he's in favor of raising the penalty for protesters resisting arrest, from a misdemeanor to a felony. and it all leads back to the question, can relations between communities and police really be improved? and with me now is former new york city mayor david dinkens, katia due diallo the mother of a.m. due diallo who was shot
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and killed by new york police officers in 1999 and former head of the aclu norman siegel. i want top thank you all for being here. i understand you just returned from a forum on this very issue. i want to start with you, former mayor. what solutions were discussed and described in that forum that you can share with us today? >> first, let me say that mrs. diallo is the head of our foundation in her son's name. norman siegel is the treasurer. i have the title of chairman but i understand that she's really in charge. we had a forum at columbia university along with the school of international and public affairs. norman particularly laid forth some things that might be done to improve relationships between police and the general community.
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it obviously needs some improvement, and we believe it can be. when i was privileged to serve this city one of the things we saw was what is referred to as community policing. >> right. >> and lee brown, dr. lee patrick brown, as i loved to call him, he implemented that for pus. >> right. and of course we know community policing was so important. and there was a change in mrs. diallo, the way terms operated in terms of putting on uniforms after your son was killed by plain clothes officers. beyond that, making it more obvious when you are being confronted with a police officer, what in your mind would victims such as yourself, the families of victims, want to see changed about the way police operate? >> thank you, joy. as you said the unit was disbanded after my son's killing. so many changes were called for by the community at large and
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nationwide. i think we're still having problems because we're still having many innocent victims being gunned down by law enforcement. i think bringing people and community together with the police is something at large where you have many different points. more education, more awareness, most importantly police residency is one of the things that -- >> living where they patrol. >> yes, exactly. >> absolutely. and i want to talk to you because the other issue is police resistance to reform. we know during the mayor's time there was a great resistance to the idea of civilian complaint review boards. now you have the current police commissioner who's presided over the end of the stop and frisk era saying is the following about the notion of moreale, saying it's at an all-time low. he said, one of the things critical in addressing morale is being there. idea if you can be with the troops, be among them, even for a moment being acknowledging of
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them. he alluded to a similar strategy dwight d. eisenhower implemented during world war ii. police officers are public servants. they work for the public. i think a lot of critics would say that they're emphasizing so much the coddling of officers' feelings that they're not emphasizing the fact that police officers are feared by part of the community they police. they're not the military. >> right. and i think that's a pr spin by the commissioner. second, it's wrong. we don't want to militarize the police officers. in fact, we have to change the attitude of the police officers and how they stereotype people especially in the african-american and latino community. residency requirement, foot patrols again, so people know who they are. we were at a forum the other night, a young latina got up and said, we don't know them they don't know us we're strangers. we need a special prosecutor for cases where there is allegations of police misconduct. we have to change the grand jury
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system. in 26 states around america today, they have an alternative, a preliminary hearing that's public. two states have actually gotten rid of the grand jury. we need to make sure that what happens in the grand jury ferguson and staten island can't be behind secret doors because that breeds resentment and confusion. you see the videotape of a chokehold and there's no indictment. the only indictment would mean there's probable cause to have a trial, not that he's guilty. if we can't get that that's why people are out on the street and the commissioner has to understand the morale might be low of the police because they have certain quotas which summons an arrest but morale of protesters are low too because we don't think we're getting justice. >> and the other issue is of course this notion of bratton supporting harsher penalties for resisting arrest. >> no that's terrible. if he promotes that and if the mayor of the city of new york advocates that there's going to be a lot of resistance to that. protesters who are peacefully
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protesting should not have felony records. if it's resisting arrest that's a misdemeanor. do not make it a felony. that will create a lot of controversy in and of itself. we don't need that today. >> indeed. i'll end with this question to you, mayor. what do you make of the pressure that's being put on the current mayor to improve relationships with police officers and even to apologize to them? >> well i think they should apologize to the mayor for turning their backs on him. one should at least respect the office of the mayor. i think bratton has said as much. i think they did wrong there. i'm confident that bill de blasio understands that part of his job is to smooth over relations between the police and the community. >> indeed. >> they need each other. the police can't do their job without the community, and
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obviously we of the community need to be protected by our police department. >> absolutely. former mayor thank you so much for being here. always great to see you. thank you, all. and next we'll read between the lines on senator rand paul's new crusade to opposed president's attorney general nominee. and the major brand problem he's running into on the issue of vaccines. and as we go to break, here are the results of an msnbc.com survey. 87% of you agree that the science is clear, vaccination is a necessity. major: here's our new trainer ensure active heart health. heart: i maximize good stuff like my potassium and phytosterols which may help lower cholesterol. new ensure active heart health supports your heart and body so you stay active and strong. ensure, take life in. curling up in bed with a favorite book is nice. but i think women would rather curl up with their favorite man. but here's the thing: about half of men over 40 have some degree of erectile dysfunction. well, viagra helps guys with ed get and keep an erection.
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the attorney general of the united states, the new nominee, loretta lynch, have you decided how you're going to vote? >> i can't vote for her. >> that was senator rand paul stating his opposition to loretta lynch's opposition to be the next attorney general of the united states. actively opposing the ascension of the first black woman to the
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ag post is an interesting tact for paul who's made criminal justice reform and the disproportionate impact of the present system specifically on people of color a center piece of his current political brand. making him perhaps the one potential gop presidential candidate who might stand any chance at all of broadening the republican party's appeal to younger voters and voters of color. now, rand paul is quixotic. he's the son of the whacky yet popular with the atlas shrugged kids ron paul. despite his attempts to rebrand himself as a serious potential president who the gop should not fear or try to destroy, paul is also a guy who's indulged the alex jones info wars crowd and the anti-vaxxer movement on the subject of vaccines in the potential to create illness rather than prevent it and even
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bring on the marshal law. >> i've heard of many tragic cases of walking, talking, normal children who wounds up with profound mental disorders after vaccines. >> but why go after lynch and risk alienating african-americans and women and presumably people who agree with rand paul on criminal justice reform? well, here's more of senator paul's explanation during his appearance on fox. >> the big issue for me is something called civil forfeiture. this program predominantly has targeted black individuals, poor individual hispanic individuals, and i wish she had a little more concern for people who live in poverty before taking their stuff. >> and rand paul added to that in a statement today saying, mrs. lynch remaining noncommittal on the legality of drone strikes against american citizens while i believe such strikes unequivocally violate rights granted to us. she also supported president obama's calls for executive amnesty, which i vehemently
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oppose. the attorney general must operate independent of politics independent of the president, and under the direction of the constitution, unquote. so amnesty, drone strike and taking poor black people's stuff. rand paul fighting loretta lynch from the right and left. right now all indications are that loretta lynch will be confirmed. even republicans blocked an attempt by senator ted cruz this week to prevent her from getting a confirmation vote at all. with utah senator orn hatch making it abunt candidately clear they'll not let anything stand between gop arm nemesis eric holder and the door. saying, republicans have been complaining about eric holder for a long time. this is an opportunity to make that change. i don't think we should delay it at all. i think we ought to get her over there and get her working. so rand paul's very public opposition is not about defeating lor ret da lynch.
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it's how edward jones makes sense of investing. jordan is stepping up its fight against isis but who else will step up to the plate? ♪ cycling right now, the jordanians are launching new air strikes against isis strongholds. good afternoon. i'm tower rayure. they're promising to wage a harsh war against these trufts. king abdullah paid tribute to that murdered air pilot today while war planes roared overhead in his honor. in syria, where officials tell nbc news that 20 jordanian f-16s launched air strikes against isis targets there. we just got an update via jordanian state tv. they vow to continue their
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