live for us in chicago with that other developing story. that does it for this hour. "mtp daily" starts right now. if it's wednesday, bill cosby is charged with criminal sexual assault. the newly elected district attorney made prosecuting cosby part of his campaign. it's "mtp daily" and it starts right now. >> good evening from new york. i'm steve kornacki in for chuck todd. we got lots tonight. we'll get to 2016 politics in just a minute, but we start with some breaking news. comedian bill cosby charged just this afternoon with second-degree felony, aggravated indecent assault. this stemming from a 2004 encounter in pennsylvania.

the 78-year-old cosby was arraigned this afternoon at a courthouse outside of philadelphia. bail was set at $1 million. he was forced to forfeit his passport. the next hearing set for january 14th. at a press conference earlier today, montgomery county district attorney elect kevin steele laid out the evidence in his case against cosby. >> the evidence shows mr. cosby established a relationship with the victim after meeting her through her work, associated with temple university's women's basketball program. through the course of their association, the victim came to consider mr. cosby her mentor and her friend. on the evening in question, mr. cosby urged her to take pills that he provided to her and to drink wine. the effect of which rendered her unable to move, respond to his advances and he committed

aggravated indecent assault upon her. >> pennsylvania has a 12-year statute of limitations for bringing charges and it was set to run out next month. this is the only time the comedian has been charged with a crime, despite accusations of inappropriate sexual behavior from dozens of women. cosby and his representatives have repeatedly denied all allegations in the past and they just released this statement. it reads, quote, the charge by the montgomery county district attorney's office came as no surprise, filed 12 years after the alleged incident and coming on the heels of a hotly contested election for this county's d.a., during which this case was made the focal point. make no mistake, we intend to mount a vigorous defense against this unjustified charge and we expect that mr. cosby will be exonerated by a court of law. the alleged victim in this case, andrea constand accused cosby after the incident. the previous district attorney

declined to charge him. but today the prosecutor took a second look at the woman's allegation after information came to light in july. according to her attorney, con stand is gratified with the overwhelming positive response to today's events. joining me with the latest from the courthouse is msnbc's adam reese. quite a scene earlier today. what can you tell us? >> steve, good evening. he arrived here right on time at 2:30. he walked that gauntlet of cameras. almost tripped on the curb. very fragile as he entered this small courthouse in montgomery county. only 32 chairs in the courtroom. he walked in, seemed a little dazed and confused as he was guided by his aid to his seat. she was telling him, come a little to the left, he sat down with his cane. judge mchugh read the charges, set bail at $1 million. he had to hand over his passport. she said to him, mr. cosby, you

can have no contact with the accuser. he seemed to be confused as to what she was saying. she repeated herself. with that, it was over. all of ten minutes. he walked back through the gauntlet of cameras, over to the police station where he gave his fingerprints and the mugshot which you just saw. now here's the district attorney explaining some of the charges. >> when you look at the case, there is a number of aspects that are undisputed in the case. and that has led to the charges that are being brought forth today here. there's not a question in terms of pills being provided to her. there's not a question as to the occurrence of what went on. >> now, if this does go to trial, some of the other accusers could be called to testify as to his m.o., his

modus operandi, that so many accusers have similar stories, that he plied them with alcohol and then sexually assaulted them. he'll be back here on january 14th. steve? >> all right, adam reese at the courthouse there in pennsylvania, thank you for joining us. appreciate that. let's bring in criminal defense attorney thomas mez rue, who has represented celebrities in many high profile cases, including michael jackson in his 2005 child molestation case and seema iyer. seema, with that background and both sides of this, this happened basically 12 years ago, the statute was set to expire, i think basically two weeks from now. >> that's right. >> from a prosecutor's standpoint, how hard is it going to be to get a conviction on this? >> i don't think it would be hard at all, because of the fact that this woman, most importantly, she outcried, she told right away. that's an important part of presenting evidence, whether the outcry was timely. then you have all of these other

accusers. and steve, some of them will testify. and they will testify, like adam was setting up, about modus op rand die, motive, opportunity, pattern. all of this will be established. i think this is a great case for the prosecution, despite the fact there isn't any physical evidence. >> so, thomas, what kind of defense could be mounted here? you heard the prosecutor there saying, there's no dispute on some of the basic facts, including that pills were given, that there was an encounter. how do you mount a defense with those facts established? >> this is deja vu for me. because when i took over the michael jackson defense nine months before his criminal trial, he had just fired his lawyers, it looked like a similar situation. they were going to use an interview he did on television with martin bashir where they claim he made incriminating statements. they claimed other young men were figure to come forward. they had civil settlements and

the idea was, nobody could withstand this kind of prosecution. we went through a five-month trial. the witnesses turned out to be not credible. it's like bowling pins cross-examining these people. they would come in with outlandish statements and on cross-examination, they would crumble. so i'm disturbed by the political nature of the case, that somebody ran for office on the basis that he would file charges and then he gets into office and files charges two days before the statute has run. i'm disturbed by the fact that this woman filed a civil case and apparently collected money. that's going to be an issue in the case as well. and i think there's a lot to defend here, although i'm not involved in the case. i don't represent mr. cosby and i don't know a lot about the evidence, but i'm very disturbed by the way this momentum is building in the media to almost condemn him before he's had a chance to defend himself. it's not right, and it's not american. >> you mentioned the politization of this, this was an issue in the race for

district attorney in this county last year. the man who is filing the charges today ran an ad on this issue. i want to play the ad, this is what voters were hearing in this county last fall. >> kevin steele, first assistant d.a. with a 98% conviction rate and tough sentences for sexual predators. or bruce castor, a former d.a. who refused to prosecute bill cosby. castor said he don't charge people for making a mistake or doing something foolish. many more victims came forward, and he admitted he could use their testimony against bill cosby, but he didn't even try. >> seema, does this complicate things at all? if the man bringing the charges before he brought the charges, campaigned for office basically said elect me so i can go after this guy? >> no. because that has nothing to do with the process. let me be clear, castor, the first d.a. who wouldn't prosecute, he said i'm not going to prosecute because i can't get a conviction. that's not the threshold.

when you present a case to the grand jury, you don't present a case with the idea of getting a conviction. the idea is, is there enough evidence to present that can move this case forward? that's the standard. with respect to mr. mez rue, this case has 50 accusers. in michael jackson's case, it was far less. also in this case, the laws 30, 40 years ago were so different. so women didn't have the encouragement and the support of society to come forward. now they do, now they have the protection and like dominoes, one after the other fall in line because they have each other's support. and it's corroboration. the law recognizes that. >> thomas, i'm curious, if i was understanding you right, when you were drawing the parallel to the michael jackson case, are you saying that if some of the other accusers in this case are called to testify that presents an opportunity for the defense side, if they can impeach the credibility of a few of them, they could hurt the whole case? >> well, yes.

in the michael jackson case, they called dozens of witnesses and i disagree with what was just said. she doesn't know the case. i was in the courtroom for five months. they called witness after witness after witness trying to say that these people were molested, they were seen being molested, et cetera. the thought was that if you bring in this kind of propensity evidence that no defendant can withstand it. the fact is, we turned it in our direction, the fact that the prosecution would bring so many witnesses lacking in credibility in a serious case like this, thoroughly backfired, as one after another got discredited, i think the jury was shaking their heads and wondering what clown the prosecution was going to call next time. >> but these women have credibility, they have stories -- >> how do you know? >> because it's been out there. we've heard from them. >> what do you mean? they waited 40 years. >> some of them, and some of them spoke right away, like miss

con stand. have you looked at kate snow interviewed 27 of these women and collectively, they had very similar, if not identical stories about the pattern that mr. cosby engaged in. perhaps your case involved silly complainants, but this case certainly does not. these women -- >> how do you know? you haven't investigated these women? you don't know why they were with him, what their motives were, what their history of drug use was, you don't know what they did recreationally, if that i made claims against anybody else like this. >> just hearing this back and forth, this is interesting. we might be getting a taste in the exchange we're listening to right here of how potentially it could complicate things to introduce these other accusers. in your judgment, this could case stand on its own without bringing in the other accusers? >> it could. it would be more difficult because you have -- under the law, you can go forward with just one witness. okay, you can do that.

you can have someone come in and say, i was sexually violated and this is what happened. because there's no physical evidence, it is harder to prosecute. however, again, i'm going back to the outcry evidence, because she told right away, very much plays in her favor and the prosecution's favor. >> and thomas, let me ask you this from a defense attorney's standpoint, do you think there's any discussion at this point, any thought at this point of some kind of plea deal? chblt i really don't know. i'm not involved in the case. the charges are so serious that i have trouble believing that any decent plea will be offered to him. from what i understand, he vigiously asserts his innocence and probably would not be willing to admit he did anything wrong. again, it's easy to make an accusation, it's easy to jump on the bandwagon. gloria alred is representing a number of these people. in 2001 she had a press conference and represented a woman who claimed mike tyson had raped her. i was asked to be counsel on that case, we did a thorough

investigation and the d.a. decided not to prosecute. we discredited that person. she also jumped on the bandwagon against michael jackson and supported a complaint that said he was an unfit parent. that was dismissed. he was acquitted 14 times, and they called witness after witness thinking they had a strong case. so, look, we don't know what this evidence is. and i also disagree with what was just said, that a d.a. should bring a case that they don't think they can prove beyond a reasonable doubt. that's an abuse of power. >> that's the process. when you have evidence and a credible complaining witness, the process calls for allowing a grand jury to hear the evidence that you have. that mr. castor could have done. >> but he didn't think he could prove the case. >> didn't want to come up against mr. cosby. >> have to leave it there. appreciate you both joining us.

coming up on the shshow, ou the old, in with the new, the case marco rubio is making to the republican establishment. trying to get their support. we'll see how it playing out on the trail. and later, chicago mayor rahm emanuel reveals new reforms for his city's police force. we'll discuss the mayor's plan and the politics behind it. ub. this little guy is non-stop. he's always hanging out with his friends. you've got to be prepared to sit at the edge of your seat and be ready to get up. there's no "deep couch sitting." definitely not good for my back. this is the part i really don't like right here. (doorbell) what's that? a package! it's a swiffer wetjet. it almost feels like it's moving itself. this is kind of fun. that comes from my floor? eww! this is deep couch sitting. [jerry bell iii] deep couch sitting!

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you are looking live at the record flooding in missouri today. the death toll from floods in illinois and missouri now stands at at least 21. 16 counties are under flood warnings, including the area where the missouri and mississippi rivers meet. 20,000 people in missouri are without safe drinking water. the state's governor, jay nixon urging the public to stay away from the flood waters. >> we could say anything over and over and over, it would be don't drive into water. of the fatalities we've had,

every one except one has been somebody who drove into water. most of them end up being at night. >> the national guard remains activated and they're monitoring a dozen vulnerable levies along the mississippi river. we're keeping a close eye on that area of the country. we'll bring you any news as it happens. up next, the traffic jam in the establishment lane in new hampshire. except that managing my symptoms was all i was doing. and when i finally told my doctor, aed; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure.

before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. ask your gastroenterologist about humira. with humira, remission is possible. welcome back to "mtp daily." there is a serious traffic jam in the establishment lane of the republican party. and we could be heading for a crash. although marco rubio leads jeb bush, john kasich and chris christie nationally, he doesn't have a clear road to the nomination. at least not yet. with all their campaigns betting on new hampshire in a big way, raubio seems to be embracing a domino theory. go big on iowa first, hope for a better than expected showing there, and then hope that it gives him a quick bounce in new hampshire.

and now, there are whispers of a budding anti-cruz, pro-rubio alliance out in iowa. cruz is leading in polls there, the national review online reports that some supporters of huckabee and santorum, some of them think cruz is pandering to eampt evangelical voters, looking towards the general election, rubio has gathered 19 endorsements from members of congress, second only to jeb bush, among them well respected conservatives, like darrell issa and trey gowdy. he joined him on the trail today. rubio has racked up three endorsements from senators, including cory gardner in colorado, a nod to the next generation of republicans is a point that marco rubio stresses on the campaign trail. >> we can't afford four more years like the last eight. that's why hillary clinton cannot win this election. and by the way, this is why we can't afford to elect just any

republican. this election is not just a choice between two political parties. this election is a generational choice, it's a referendum. >> rubio believes his recipe is right, but he still can't build up the traction to pull himself out of the middle of the pack. even as ben carson's star falls, rubio remains tied with the surgeon nationally. even if rubio doesn't capture iowa, he might not need to. momentum from a good showing in iowa could create enough buzz to raise his profile in new hampshire. and that has the other candidates trying to fill the establishment lane a little worried. christie has already stepped up attacks on rubio for his poor senate voting record. bush's super pac released an ad with the same sentiment. and just today the bush campaign announced it would pool resources to the earl state ground game instead. conventional wisdom says the primary will come down to one

establishment candidate and one outsider. that's how it's worked in the past. the question now is who. let's bring in today's panel. beth louie, senior editor at msnbc. ozzy paver of politico and heather from the "wall street journal." >> let me start with the establishment log jam, whatever you want to call it. traffic in the establishment lane. from rubio's standpoint, he seems to be embracing the strategy of do well in iowa, have everybody saying we didn't think rubio had that much support, the gary hart theory. you go to new hampshire, get the win there and you're off and running. >> that's the theory and the conventional wisdom, there's three or four tickets out of iowa. rubio is likely to be up there, who knows and that carries him to new hampshire with some buzz and comes in second to trump who has been very strong in new hampshire. the thing is, it's interesting, though, that jeb bush, chris christie are going after rubio, because i think they're trying to plant doubt in the minds of those voters in those states

about things that already the voters are uncomfortable about with rubio, like, why isn't he campaigning harder in they want to see the candidates in their states, that they're trying. rubio doesn't seem to be trying very hard. and his rivals are pushing on the notion that rubio is kind of lazy and just wants it because he's the next big thing. the early state voters want people who really care and really try. >> and chris christie from his standpoint, he's betting it all on new hampshire. so he's going after rubio right now. he doesn't want him getting the momentum and he's using the issue of his attendance record in the senate. but christie's been out of new jersey this year. >> it's a really interesting pairing. christie is going after rubio for his attendance record, saying freshman senator just like obama, we don't want that again. stressing his own executive experience. bush can also stress that he's a former governor. but rubio's singislinging it ri

back and christie has a lot that can be slung at him, particularly with his record in the state. and they're prepared for that. when i spoke to him on his campaign bus in new hampshire recently, they know that his record's going to come up. he can defend himself on the economy, which is definitely going to come up, obviously the bridge scandal is going to come up. but if he's going to give it, he's going to have to take it as well. >> we saw donald trump this week, starting to bring up some of the christie stuff in new jersey. but let me ask you about rubio. i think what the rubio people hope people see in him is the most electable republican, the best contrast with hillary clinton, the one who can stand on the debate stage with her. so far, they don't see that? >> no. the republican electorate has this ininate distrust of anything connected to the government. there's something about him that's not energizing or

captivating this angst that's motivating a lot of voters. donald trump seems to have the right chord that's connecting with voters. so even if you disprove his statements, people feel there's something genuine about him. and rubio is trying to directly appeal to the idea that he's the future, he's the person that you're going to have to appeal to in order to start winning elections in the future. >> beth, we were talking about this a little bit on the show yesterday. but the old model, the traditional model, a one-on-one race on the republican side, the establishment candidate and you got the outsider. ultimately the establishment wins, mccain, romney, whoever they need to get through. is there a trap? with the way the republican party's evolved, is there a trap for somebody like rubio, that if you get tagged as the establishment candidate in this climate now, there's not enough votes for you? >> yeah, to this point, there's a large percentage of the republican electorate that are very anxious, they don't like traditional candidates, they don't like government.

rubio was part of the gang of 8 on immigration reform. that's still a very toxic issue for him. just because he thinks he can walk away from it and turn his back on a bill that he helped write, the voters aren't necessarily going to buy this. and with trump in the race, it's a different race than in the past. he's so completely dominated this republican race right from the beginning that the notion that it's all going to settle into the way it's always gone before, i think it's unlikely this time. >> if cruz wins iowa, if trump wins new hampshire and it's rubio or christie or bush or somebody who gets this close are than expected second, there's three coming out of there, already we're somewhere we haven't been before. it's not a one-on-one race coming out of new hampshire. it gets more muddled. >> i think what's going to be interesting is south carolina. now that lindsey graham is out, things is freed up. but for months and months, very few endorsements coming out of south carolina. so that being be a place where there's a live, heated contest.

bush and rubio does well in south carolina, so does cruz. >> and without lindsey graham, it also means john mccain is freed up. in new hampshire that could mean something. i guess we'll look closer to the new hampshire primary to see if he makes a move up there. stay with us, we haven't even gotten to trump's epic event today. we'll talk about who he's calling his enemies now. i'll show you some of that too. plus, will chicago mayor rahm emanuel's plans quiet calls for his resignation? charmin ultra mega roll equals mega value. each sheet is 75% more absorbent so you can use less with every go. which means charmin ultra mega roll lasts longer than even the leading thousand-sheet brand. enjoy the go with charmin.

chicago mayor rahm emanuel made his first public appearance today since the city's most recent fatal police shooting this past weekend. forced him to cut short his family vacation in cuba. amid mounting criticism, emanuel revealed his plan to change the chicago police department. the plan would emphasize deescalation techniques during

confrontations, would direct officers to use the least amount of force necessary, and look to improve communication between officers and suspects during confrontations and it would double the number of officers with tasers by june of 2016. >> today the chicago police department is owning, embracing and publishing one of most meaningful changes in their history. obviously, we as a city have a lot of work to do. and the change won't be overnight. these policies are not the end of the challenge, they are the beginning of a challenge that chicago has faced for decades. >> emanuel has faced calls to resign since a dash cam video was released last month showing a 17-year-old laquan mcdonald being shot 16 times. the officer is charged with first-degree murder. he pleaded not guilty this weak. emanuel publicly apologized for mcdonald's death earlier this month. >> i am the mayor.

as i said the other day, i own it. i take responsibility for what happened because it happened on my watch. and if we're going to fix it, i want you to understand, it's my responsibility with you. but if we're also going to begin the healing process, the first step in that journey is my step. and i'm sorry. >> joining me now is illinois congressman danny davis, who represents chicago, was in his district where the most recent fatal police shooting occurred. the reforms that the mayor outlined today, if implemented, will they restore confidence in the mayor and in the police department? >> well, i think that's going to take a lot of things to help restore the confidence that is needed. right now, there's a tremendous amount of anger, frustration,

anxiety, disbelief. i was fortunate to meet with the mayor earlier this morning, with a small group of people. as he outlined to us what the plans were. i certainly agreed with doubling the number of tasers, but i also think that every officer on patrol or on a beat should actually have one of these instruments. i also think that just having them is not enough. that they must be used, that the officers must be made to understand that when they go out on the street, leaving the taser in the car, or leaving the taser someplace else doesn't do any good. so, yes, i believe that we can

overcome the anxiety and frustration, but, you know, my mother always told us that what you do speaks so loudly until it's hard to hear what you're saying. and so the implementation of these plans, they're going to cost money, and we got to get the money from somewhere. we're going to need help. ware going to need help from the federal government. because the mayor also outlined some economic development activity. outlined some programatic things to take place in disadvantaged neighborhoods. tutoring. recreational. >> right. >> football programs. boy scouts. girl scouts. all of these things are needed. but it's going to take a great deal and people are not eager to

wait and see. they want to see some immediate changes. they want to know that law enforcement officers in chicago are being trained differently. and of course it's going to take a while to see the results of that training. but we want to see it begin now because the culture is deep and it's going to take a tremendous amount of effort to change it. >> and let me just ask you this then. there have been so many calls for the mayor to resign, to step aside. he's saying he won't do that. there's been a move to recall him down in springfield. we're at the end of 2015 now. do you believe by the end of 2016, he'll still be the mayor of chicago? >> i do. i don't think the mayor is going to resign, although i think people are going to continue to do any number of things that they can try to do to change the

situation. the calls will keep coming. i know there's been legislation introduced in springfield that would create a recall for the state of illinois, which currently we don't have any. but i think if the mayor follows up, follows through, and demonstrate the kind of leadership that i think he is capable of demonstrating, that is letting policemen, law enforcement officers know that they've got to operate at a different level, there are different standards they must adhere to and if they don't do that, then they really need to find another place to work. >> congressman danny davis, thank you for joining us, happy new year to you. >> my pleasure. still ahead on "mtp daily," why donald trump says president obama's focus on the environment is cramping his style.

but first, hampton pearson with the cnbc market wrap. >> thanks, steve. stocks sink on the second to last day of trading of the year. the dow falls by 117 points. the s&p down by 15. the nasdaq is off by 42 points. sliding oil prices weighed on those stocks. unexpected build of crude inventory sent oil down more than 3%, pressuring the transport. pending home sales fell last month as prices moved higher in some areas. and shares of apple shed more than 1% after the company agreed to pay about 350 milli$350 mill settle an italian tax dispute. that's it from cnbc, first in business worldwide. write down the number on your screen, so you can call when i finish. the lock i want to talk to you about isn't the one on your door. this is a lock for your life insurance,

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i'm looking to win everything. we want to run the table. we want to run it. because that sends a signal. >> stop talking before you finish the applause. and you know why? because i'm so excited because we have so much potential. it's true. i don't want to wait for your freaking applause. it's true. we have so much potential. >> that was donald trump earlier today, wrapping up a three-day swing through the early voting states. in iowa, new hampshire, and then today in south carolina. the republican front-runner called jeb bush and hillary clinton his enemies, and said he views the fight for the white house as a war. nbc's hallie jackson is live on hilton head island. you always hear something new when you cover a donald trump event. >> you know it, steve. you always hear the stream of consciousness, he's unlike other candidates in some ways, never used a teleprompter, just rifts off the top of his head.

certain things he always discusses, jeb bush, hillary clinton, attacking them. but listen to the next sound bite, because it's a sign of just how quickly trump can shift from something very serious, like middle eastern violence, to something like this. listen. >> he's got a problem with the carbon footprint. you can't use hair spray because hair spray is going to affect the ozone. i'm trying it figure out, i'm in my room in new york city and i want to put a little spray so that i can -- [ laughter and applause ] right? but i hear where they don't want me to use hair spray. they want me to use the pump, because the other one, which i really like better than going bing, bing, bing, and it comes out in big globs and it's stuck in your hair and you got to take a shower again, my hair's all screwed. >> i have a can of hair spray behind the camera if you need a

prop to explain what trump is talking about. this has now become part of the republican platform. it's trump being trump and the crowd loved it. >> yeah, i can't think of a speech writer out there who would write that. but you're right, the crowd loved it. anyone want to try to dissect what trump was doing there with the hair spray? you know what he did, he created a viral moment. >> a viral moment, a red herring that something they, obama, or the democrats are going after him for his famous hair. i remember the time when you were stop using aerosol because it's going to kill the ozone later, but that was circa jimmy carter. i don't know what he's doing. he's showing his age or something. >> i think what he's doing is occupying the moment. anytime we're talking about him and not talking about other people is a win for donald trump.

like we just saw george pataki suspend his campaign, which never really caught fire. but anytime people are talking about trump, whether it's hair spray or he's being entertaining, he's winning. and everybody else trying to catch up to him, loses. >> since trump took off, it's like, how long can he sustain the audience's interest? and he keeps finding new ways. >> and they eat it up and we all talk about it. but with the hair spray or whatever example he uses, this appeals to average folks. people like it, it's entertaining. he's interesting to listen to. we're not talking about really difficult concepts. people can get into this easily, fit into his whole song and dance and just run with it. i mean, i think that's part of the appeal, that he's easy and very visceral as a candidate. >> and this is the end of the

year, this is the time that the experts, the political scientists, this is the time voters start taking things seriously. all the laws of political gravity and political science are supposed to reassert themselves now. do you think that's going to happen? >> it might. it's just hard to imagine. i mean, nothing about this race has matched anything in the past. let's face it. trump has jumped in, took over, he's now completely dominated it from the get-go. why anybody thinks he's suddenly going to fade makes no sense to me. and another part of that rally that we didn't hear, trump said, you know what, if i lose, this whole thing has been a colossal waste of time. so it's like, what! so, yet again, he's coming up with a line that everybody's going to remember. he's also just saying, i'm in it to win. that's another reason why there's no chance he's going to take his marbles and walk off. >> i'm thinking as we go into the new year, january 4th, next week, trump is going to be in

massachusetts, ten miles away from bill clinton in nashua. he found a way, he's extended the story line. >> no, he is the story of 2015 in a way that no one could have predicted. and it's fascinating. it's making everyone rethink what it means to campaign. do you have to do policy votes and roll out complicated ideas? or do you just have to keep people's attention? people like to be engaged, they like to feel entertained and clearly that's what trump is providing. he's not sitting there articulating these well thought out ideas about how to combat counterterrorism or the economy. he's actually speaking to people in a way that they're used to people speaking on television. and apparently that's a winning success. and i'm sort of curious about what this leads to afterward. are other people going to campaign in trump style? >> or the other question, can they? i think we all hear this all the time. trump, he's just a creation of the media. we can do a whole hour on the

media's role in all this, but i think that oversimplifies it to a degree. because i don't know that the other candidates or politicians for that matter are capable of making themselves -- of commanding that kind of media attention. i think it's a skill. >> no, he's clearly talented and he knows it. he's very confident with himself on stage. he knows he's funny and the hair will always get a laugh. but i do think it's interesting, the news of yesterday was that he's going to spend money on ads, so he's starting to take the steps that a traditional candidate needs to do. he's also doing phone calls. he has a database of voters that he's now amassing. i think they realize, you can bring everyone to the show. you can laugh, and then you leave. but you got to get them to come back and vote. so they need to spend some money to be doing that. >> and that's the big if about trump, how sustainable he is. up next, a special edition of

the ws, the who, what, when, where, and why of the new laws around the country, including where workers will be getting raises. stay tuned. these dogs shed like crazy. it's like being inside of a snow globe. it takes an awful lot of time to keep the house clean. i don't know what to do. (doorbell) what's this? swiffer sweeper and dusters. this is nice and easy boys. it really sticks to it. it fits in all the tight spaces. this is really great. does that look familiar to you? i'm no longer the butler, i am just one of the guys.

you're looking live at times square in new york, the nypd and the fbi say that i ready for the 2016 ball drop, with an unprecedented show of force to keep celebrations safe amid international terror threats. tomorrow, almost 6,000 officers will be on duty, many with long

guns, radiation detectors and bomb-sniffing dogs. federal agents are also amping up their presence in washington, d.c. and los angeles. the state department telling msnbc that the u.s. is not acting on any specific threats. >> i can tell you that law enforcement and our national security apparatus are going to be very vigilant and on alert. the american people should feel free to ring in the new year and have fun, but stay vigilant. >> internationally, authorities stopped two alleged terror plots in the planning stages. in turkey, isis militants were arrested on suspicion of organizing attacks in the capital. they seized bomb-making equipment, as well as a suicide vest and a backpack set to detonate. brussels has canceled its fireworks displays because of terror threats. they arrested two members of a biker gang for allegedly

planning an attack. authorities have not said if the group is tied to isis. we'll be right back with more on "mtp daily." ñ8m÷hh

and it's time for a special edition of the ws all about new state laws set to kick in with the new year starting with a who. it is all children in california. a new law makes vaccinations mandatory for every kindergarten through 12th grade student in the state. the what, it is open carry in texas. licensed hand gun owners will no

longer have to conceal their weapons in most public places. private businesses can ban guns. the when. that is when you are allowed to smoke in hawaii. it will be age 21. the state will be the first in the union to raise the age up to 21. the where, these 13 states you see here raising their minimum wage largest increase in california and in massachusetts up from $9 to $10 in those states. now to the why. some states will have new voting laws in 2016. in north carolina voters will need to show a government-issued photo i.d. at photo places in california and oregon people will be automatically registered to vote if they have a driver's license. estimates show the law could regser 6.6 million voters in california alone.

this shows stark difference for laws between states. you can expect laws to come up in national conversations as we move towards november. next in the lid, the panel is back with me for final thoughts on the year in politics that was and the one that is ahead. stay tuned. chuck, i know i have a 798 fico score, thanks to experian.com. kaboom... get your credit swagger on. go to experian.com. become a member of experian credit tracker and take charge of your score.

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when you're on hold, your business is on hold. that's why comcast business doesn't leave you there. when you call, a small business expert will answer you in about 30 seconds. no annoying hold music. just a real person, real fast. whenever you need them. so your business can get back to business. sounds like my ride's ready. don't get stuck on hold. reach an expert fast. comcast business. built for business. welcome to the lid. let's bring back the panel. so end of the year, end of 2015,

looking ahead to 2016. let's try to put the year in perspective. i'm going to go around and ask you what was your biggest surprise in politics in the year 2015. i will take one off the board and that is the obvious one trump. we were all surprised that donald trump ran. that one is off the board. 2015 what is your biggest surprise in politics? >> i have a few but i guess i have to choose the epic fail of scott walker. he was the odds on favorite. he was going to combine the trump voters with the establishment voters. he was a good hard core conservative. he waged a war on planned parenthood, curtailing voting rights and done all the right things by republican standards and just departed so epically. >> time he was thought to be the favorite in iowa and didn't make it past the summer. >> i would put it in terms of new york city with bill de

blasio and the fight between the police commissioner. every indicator in new york city is going in the right direction. economy is good, crime is down and somehow bill de blasio is not popular. he mishandled the growing problem of homelessness and now very recently the former police commissioner is accusing bill bratten of misreporting crime which goes directly at the heart and the problem is how to adjud kate this. who is going to come in to look at this and say someone is right and wrong? if this question lingers then it becomes a big problem for city hall and gives more support sdprm. >> i think superpacks couldn't do everything. when we came into the election this was going to be the year of

superpacks. and i just come back to jeb bush and shock and awe. he was going to dominate this race and you look at scott walker. he had a lot of super pack money but it didn't matter. hard dollars is what matters. we saw the blurring of lines this year can carly fiorina. >> that is a good one. we thought politics changed. thank you for joining us. tune in tomorrow. chu erica hill picks up our coverage next. tonight on msnbc live, breaking news around the country and we're there. >> he committed aggravated indecent assault upon her. >> near philadelphia, bill cosby charged in a sexual assault acase