for us. ask your doctor about xarelto®. and now a kick. it's caught. alabama has got the ball back! spelling, henry now.

looks down the field again. it's howard for his second long touchdown tonight and the tide reclaim the lead. alabama back on top! of the college football world. after the semifinal we asked can we get a smile. how about now? >> you got it. >> good game. >> good morning and welcome to "morning joe." crimson tide nation. it was an incredible game. mika brzezinski, along with me we'll be talking about nothing but this. >> i try to stay with these teens in my house. i watched. that guy running along the side to make the touchdown for alabama. that was incredible. do you know what i'm talking about? >> thank you, mika.

>> so willie geist. no doubt about it that you're looking at nick saban has to be obviously the greatest coach of the modern era, and he only competes. the guy has won at least top flight football, five national championships, four out of the last seven years. i thought what was remarkable about last night's game is that, you know, this is one of the few games i've seen alabama play in the nick saban era where they played a team that could have beat them by 20 points. when nick saban's back was against the wall, they completely threw them off. it was an unbelievable game. >> clemson is really, really good which makes alabama win all the more impressive. you saw the balance.

it was henry taking over the game. and then the second half, coker was great. alabama fans haven't been sure about over the years. he comes in. no interceptions. throws a touchdown. 350 yards. he played great. you do have to say about saban, can you ever imagine a day, joe, where people would be starting to have a debate, bryant versus nick saban. bryant, i don't have to tell you is god down there, the stadium is named after him and everything else as well. nick saban, i don't know, he's played in a tough era because he's had to go through playoffs and sec championship games, he had to win things that bryant did. he's sneaking into that conversation. >> i'll tell you something else, willie as you were saying. back when bryant was coaching you could get the 200 best players in the southeast to play on your team. you had all these advantages.

nick saban is in a tough era where a coach would be lucky to win two of these things in his lifetime. four out of the last seven years. what was remarkable about last night's game the heisman trophy winner but a field goal kicker, an immigrant r from poland who has been having trouble through the years, making basic field goals, that turned the game around. you had a tight end that everybody had forgotten about this year who was really the star of the year at the end of the day. then you had jake coker a guy that transferred from one school to another. he was pushed to the side last year. he was benched in the ole miss game this year. the kid after he got benched, he got ticked off. it was an extraordinary game, extraordinary season. nick saban's favorite theme. >> he said this is my favorite -- well i don't want to

say this is my favorite team. but you could tell he had a soft spot. clemson was really good and they wouldn't go down until tend. unbelievable talent. >> we'll have more on this. we have so much with politics. did you guys see biden. hello. we'll see this. we have john meacham, eugene robinson. in washington republican pollster and columnist at the "washington examiner," kristen anderson. vice president biden, this sort of stuck out, right. i asked this morning because we were going to lead with something else and i said gene what do you think and he said that was the most surprising thing he had seen in the past 24 hours. vice president biden making good on his promise to stay in the mix during the democratic primary. last night he offered this explanation about why the democratic primary feels closer

than so many predicted. >> i think that, that bernie is speaking to a yearning that is deep and real and he has credibility on it. and that is the absolute enormous concentration of wealth in a small group of people with the middle class now being able to be shown being left out. >> hillary is talking about that as well. >> but it's relatively new for hillary to talk about that. hillary's focus has been up to other things now. bernie -- no one questions bernie's authenticity on those things. >> they question hillary's? >> she's come forward with some really, really thoughtful approaches to deal with the issue. >> so, translation, joe, her message is not authentic and bernie's is. i don't know how else to look at

that. >> well that's the message. she's relatively new to being worried about people that are poor than the rich. income disparity which is, of course, the most important issue right now not only in the democratic party but a lot of economists would say in america and she's flip flopping on a lot of other issues. there's no doubt joe biden has said he's haunted every day by the decision he made not to run. he sees that hillary is behind in a lot of polls. in iowa. she's behind by a large amount in new hampshire. he sees polls where hillary clinton does worse against donald trump than bernie sanders. and there's no doubt about it and we've talked about this, gene robinson, that the question is not what happens to hillary clinton running against bernie sanders in south carolina, after she loses iowa and new hampshire, if she loses iowa and new hampshire, the question is,

is that when joe biden and john kerry who have been privately thinking about this, discussing with friends, even al gore who friends say have been obsessed with the issue whether he should jump into the race or not do they see that weakness as an invitation to open this race as wide-open as republicans will open the race up if donald trump wins iowa and new hampshire? >> well, you know, on the democratic side, let's be real. hillary clinton has a very good chance of winning. both those first states. now, if she loses both of them, then everybody will look at south carolina. if she had a problem in south carolina that would mean that the fire wall is not there. that because you have to -- if she has to do, she has to underperform according to expectations with african-americans in south carolina in order to lose that. it would be very, very hard for her to lose that. if she got into trouble there, then, sure, you would see a lot

of people who want to be president for a long time saying hold on, how is this exactly going to work out? >> i don't think, those willie it takes just losses in iowa and new hampshire and then win in south carolina and turn things around. there are a lot of democratic donors over the past year and a half that have been concerned with her performance on the campaign trail. it doesn't seem to be getting better. her numbers don't seem to be getting better. there are a lot of issues swirling around her right now that are making democrats, a lot of rich democratic donors scratch their heads and worry. >> yeah. i think we also see some of this contrast on the campaign trail now where hillary clinton is sharpening her differences with bernie sanders and one of her clearest breaks yet from president obama, hillary clinton last night called on the administration to end raids aimed at deporting central americans to enter the united states illegally. >> i have come out against the raids. i don't think the raids are

appropriate tool to enforce the immigration laws. in fact, i think they are divisive, the they are sowing discord and fear. >> will you deport children? >> let me say this. i would give every person but particularly children due process to have their story told. i cannot sit here and tell you i have a blanket rule about who or who won't ever be let into the country to stay because it has to be done individually. what i don't like are the mass round ups and the raids that just pick people up and send them off in the middle of the night and that should end. >> those comments last night were secretary clinton's first about the policy where she said quote i have real concerns. her opponents, martin o'malley and bernie sanders came out more forcefully against the raids when they were first reported. sanders sent a letter to president obama last week calling for an to end the

program. this comes as a war of words between the two candidates showing they are essentially tied in new hampshire. >> i'm asking you to choose, to caucus for me over either of the other two. and part of the reason i'm asking to you do that is because we do have differences. >> if the democrats want to nominate a candidate who, in fact, is electable to being become president of the united states, defeat the right-wing republicans that are out there, i think it is becoming increasingly apparent that bernie sanders is that candidate. >> he would take it all together and send health insurance to the states. turning over yours and my health insurance to governors, like terry brandstead. >> i voted against the war in

iraq. [ applause ] secretary clinton voted for the war in iraq. >> there was a vote in the congress, do we give the gun lobby the manufacturers and the sellers absolute immunity from any liability or accountability. president obama and i were both in the senate and we voted no. senator sanders voted yes. >> secretary clinton and her campaign now know she's in serious trouble. suddenly bernie sanders is no longer a nice guy and he's wrong on this and he's wrong on that. that is not surprising when you have a clinton campaign that is now in trouble and now understands that they can lose. >> wow. it's clear when you watch hillary clinton's public comments and talking to her campaign privately that the days when the clinton campaign to dismiss bernie sanders who is a socialist and could he in certificate be president are gone.

they are taking him serious now because they have to. >> they are taking him seriously and leading to hillary clinton taking positions that's further to the left than she had hoped to get through this primary season having to take. coming out last night with statements on things like immigration, the hyde amendment about whether or not the government can provide funding for things like abortion. she's taking position on issues that i don't know she was planning to wade into. she's got this real fight on her hands. the other thing she has to prove this electability argument. bernie sanders talks about how he's the one that is best prepared to go into a general election and he's certainly correct he has better favorability ratings than hillary clinton does in the polls. typically she's stronger she has more money and more name i.d. don't count bernie sanders out. he's undercutting this

electability argument that she's the only one who can carry the democratic banner in the again rag election with success. this is a strange election and bernie sanders can undercut her entire electability candidate. >> john meacham this is such a strange election. if you look what happened on the republican side. we've been talking about donald trump, all been talking about ted cruz, talking about disruption on the right. you look what a socialist on the left is doing to the democratic party right now and the two states that matter, and the two states where they have been campaigning actively and you see disruption on the left as well. you have ve michael bloomberg putting out polls if he comes in as a possible third-party candidate. i read the "times" a couple week ago and trump's biggest

supporters are democrats and then i read another column this weekend about 1968 and george wallace effect and i'm just wondering already this is starting to look a bit like 1968 where you have disruption, you have eugene mccarthy and then you have somebody coming in whether on the republican side or democratic side like bobby kennedy did to try to save the day. there's so many moving parts right now. >> yeah. it's analogy central which is a great thing. you know, you're exactly right in the focus has been on the republican side and that chaos. sanders has made this equal opportunity chaos. often there's this tendency particularly in the conventional media to talk about extremism on the right.

there's also extremism on the left. you have this man who is a socialist talking about an extraordinary populace revolution on the left that is pulling hillary further to the left than she wants to go at this point. so you have, in this case you have both candidates, both parties being pulled, i think, closer or farther away from the center than they arguably want to go. >> the one thing about analogies you have to remember, though, is that the electorate has changed so much. in both parties, actually. so the republican electorate is not what it was nearly in 1968 and the democratic electorate isn't what it was in 1968. the country isn't what it was back in 1968. it's hard to reach back to a prior year. >> this is crazy right now. >> things i don't understand,

gene, what your point is. if you look at the article in the "new york times" what you're seeing is, again, a lot -- you could draw parallels back to 1968. you do have republicans in the primaries going further right than they have ever gone. you do have the democrats going further left than they have gone since bill clinton was elected for the first time. there's a socialist, a self-described socialist from burlington, vermont who is ahead in iowa and new hampshire in the first two polls. there is donald trump ahead -- we have new republican polls out. he's blown the doors off of everything. you have people -- you have people being pulled to their side. i don't quite understand what you're saying. >> i'm saying we haven't had donald trump before. not him. we've had other -- >> nothing like him.

>> we haven't had donald trump. and bernie sanders, we've had people who have been led insurgent campaigns on the democratic side certainly. bernie sanders is, you know, he's different from, to me, he's different from eugene mccarthy. >> parallels are there. >> quickly as to joe's point, 1948 is also a possibility here where you had a democratic and republican party that spun off a progressive and a regional party and so you got the chance the republican party implodes. >> strings of historic parallels. also, joe, when we get to the next block with the republican polls you are going to say that trump needs to actually call it in and just dropout. >> it's so sad. >> everybody was right. >> seriously, listen everybody was right. we have to do a mea culpa in the

next block when these polls come out. i wonder if trump can back out gracefully. these numbers are so sad. at this point you would really think he would be ahead more than by 25, 30 points. he needs to give up the ghost. >> let's get to the other headlines. overseas we're following the latest on deadly explosions in turkey and iraq. the governor of istanbul confirmed ten people died after an explosion in a popular tourist area. the cause is under investigation. in iraq new footage shows the aftermath of an attack near a shopping center in baghdad. insurgents set off hand grenades with two bombs. isis claimed responsibility. reuters says 51 people were killed in attacks in baghdad and another eastern town. the u.s. supreme court appears likely to vote against unions that represent millions of nations public employees.

justices heard arguments yesterday. teachers want the court to overturn a 1977 law that allow unions to collect money from nonmembers. 23 states require nonunion members to pay a share of yien dues. unions say it would cast a cloud for millions of police officers, firefighters, and teachers nationwide. finally we're learning new details this morning about the capture of mexican drug lord joaquin "el chapo" guzman. guzman was arrested following this pre-dawn raid and police chase. this morning we're getting a first look at the aftermath inside that safe house in mexico. there are bullet holes along several walls and a secret passage way. another tunnel. >> he loves secret passageways. >> guzman tried to escape the raid. i'm saying it's crazy. nobody notices these tunnels being built? what's the deal.

still ahead on "morning joe" the stage is set for the next republican debates. here's a shocker. not everybody is happy where they ended up. later the chairman of the armed services committee, republican senator john mccain also white house press secretary josh earnest previews tonight's state of the union address. plus the house majority leader kevin maccarthy and congressman mike mccall wikauccaul will be . this friday we're going back to java joe's. donald trump will be among our guests. if you're in the area stop by and get there very early. you're watching "morning joe." we'll be right back.

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♪ you keep spinning when you ought to be truthing ♪ ♪ you keep flipping when you should have not flopped ♪

♪ you keep leaving when you ought to be voting ♪ ♪ now work is work but you ain't earned it yet ♪ ♪ these boots are made for flipping ♪ ♪ and that's just what they will do ♪ ♪ one of these days young marco is going to flipflop on you ♪ wow. wow. oh, boy. >> i think it's funny. that's the first look at a new ad from the right rise the superp.a.c. supporting jeb bush. willie, what do you think? >> what i think is i've never seen a more mike murphy joint. mike murphy runs that superp.a.c. >> joe, i think i like it, actually. i think it's funny, right? where are we in this election? >> firmly with nancy sinatra.

very retro, and very 1968. when we first saw those groovy boots in manchester straight out of austin powers. >> all right. i actually liked them and plan to wear them tomorrow. two days before the next republican presidential debate. >> marco's boots. >> yeah. they are hot. >> so the main stage, even fewer candidates on the main stage. fox business announced the primetime lineup yesterday which will allow for the top six candidates in national polls along with anyone proclamation in the top five in the latesta or new hampshire polls. so the seven candidate lineup is the smallest and this is kind of exciting. republican debate yet. trump at center stage. flanked by rubio, cruz, carson, christie, bush and kasich now on the edges. the criteria sends rand paul and carly fiorina down to the under

card contest where they are invited to appear alongside mike huckabee and rick santorum. last night rand paul called the decision an insult. >> we do not think anyone should be able to characterize our campaign as anything less than first tier. we raised $25 million. we're going to be on the ballot in every state. we just announced the other day we have a thousand precinct chairs in iowa. it's a rotten thing to do to designate which candidates have a chance or not. >> so that's one way of responding. i don't like the whole way they do these debates anyway so i kind of feel having said that if you look what chris christie said in reaction to this happening there's more, well just sort of -- take a look. >> i'll be debating somebody on tuesday night whether it's the folks that i have been debating with before or other folks. i don't care in one respect.

put a podium out here on the lawn and foliage i'll debate them. there's 90 days before new hampshire. we're moving numbers. we'll keep working hard. >> so, joe, i mean, i don't know, rand paul -- the debate situation, with all these people on the stage and then people getting moved i do see the frustration in that. >> i see the frustration. i really do think if you got 16 candidates, 17 candidates much better to split it newspaper to two debates and maybe mix them up. i don't know you do all top tier. all that aside it depends on what rand paul decides to do with that night. and you say he's whining. some people might think it's a good decision. i'll tell you, the first debate that i had, i was an unknown, it was 1994. i was 30 years old at the time. 30, 31 years old at the time. it was first debate that came up on the calendar sponsored by

green peace. nobody knew who i was. green peace were doing protests across europe and so i refused to do the debate which i remember to this day, my parents telling me that i was crazy and saying how can do you that? i was young enough they were still calling me joey and everybody thought i was crazy. while that debate was going on i held a press conference. nobody knew who i was before. i said i refuse, if my republican opponents want to be with an anti-american, anti-military, anti-free market organization like green peace they can do it. and i made a big media event about it. they reported on the first debate of the campaign season, i was the headline, i was the lead, and all the candidates had to justify why they were there. now this point isn't, of course to talk about how brilliant i am because i would blush. the point is if all rand paul

does is complain about it and then sulk in his corner then it's a failure. if he uses it as an opportunity to separate himself and perhaps take a page out of donald trump's book and figure out how to make the big news that night off the stage, i mean hell i would set up a podium outside and i would actually hold a protest outside and talk about the issues that -- do something with it. you can just complain and sulk off. >> i'm so embarrassed. >> mika, this is embarrassing. >> he's going to have to hold a press conference. >> he has to quit. >> he has to show the escalator going down. i'm out. >> willie geist we called this guy the abraham lincoln of our time two years ago. two years ago before we even knew he would run. >> it's over. >> he's no old abe.

he needs to dropout. >> his support is craterring. donald trump dominating the field once against. nbc news survey monkey poll puts donald trump at 38%. >> that's the ceiling. that's the ceiling. >> ted cruz is up 20. and he's 27 points ahead of marco rubio. >> that's the ceiling. >> let's look inside some of these states. in iowa donald trump rebounded to a tie with ted cruz, 31-29. donald trump up there. look down the poll just a bit. jeb bush tied with mike huckabee down there at 3%. senator cruz easily has the best approval rating of republican candidates in iowa, 75% favorable, 17% unfavorable. donald trump favored by 61%.

unfavrable by 34%. trump supporters the most dedicated. 52% of republicans said they made their minds up including 55% of cruz supporters and 61% of trump backers. let's look at new hampshire with 28 days to go there. another big lead for donald trump. 32% to cruz's 14%. ted cruz tied with john kasich at 14%. marco rubio in that pack at 12%. chris christie at 8. a third of republican voters say they have decided while nearly half of trump supporters 46% say they are locked in. that's in the state of new hampshire. a lot to talk about. john kasich up five points and right in that second tier. >> i was going to say second poll in a row john kasich in second place. and i don't know, kasich just late last week said if he didn't

do well in new hampshire, he may leave the race. he's doing well in new hampshire right now and the second time he's in second place. these leads, though, willie are, i mean my god nationally and especially in new hampshire donald trump in a more dominant position today than he's been the entire year, and you have in both of these polls jeb bush down below 5%. it is a volatile electorate but even in iowa you have trump going back in first place. he's in first place. >> that's the thing, joe. these polls indicate that trump actually has a chance to run the table, basically. you know, imagine if he wins iowa, then wins new hampshire, he probably takes south carolina and then who stops him?

>> kristen, what do you make of this, especially with kasich, which i feel like oh, that's kind of surprising having said that, watching his candidacy, looking at his record. kind of makes sense in some ways. >> kasich and christie are candidates that focused almost exclusively on new hampshire at this point. they know there's this musical chairs happening where everybody wants to be second and third place behind donald trump and they know that's their ticket to move on the next contest stierks in the top tiers, to keep the donors happy and keep the machine moving. so they are seeing success by spending so much time in new hampshire. where you got someone like rubio who is still trying to make sure he shores up staying in that second or third place more likely third place spot in iowa. kasich and christie are not doing that. they are focusing on new

hampshire. fighting to stay well in the race. hoping that gives them what jon huntsman called it a ticket to ride. >> joe what after that? >> after that, i've said it all along if donald trump wins iowa everybody else -- they want to put up a fight they can. he'll roll through new hampshire. he gets strongest in the south, south carolina, across the deep south. nobody can stop him. if he wins iowa everybody else might as well go home. the party is over. like barack obama in 2008. they knew in 2008 if they won iowa they were going to win the nomination. a lot of their logic holds up with donald trump too. i got to go back to you john meacham. in the past week, week and a half, we've been talking about trump, truchism, everybody has been trying to analyze this new phenomenon in american politics and there's nothing like donald trump ever and the further we get into this campaign season

the more we realize that past is always prolog. this didn't about donald trump this is pat buchanan with billions. can you go back to some people are talking about what wallace did in '68. we talked about how rfk supporters went to wallace afterwards. you talked about '48. take it all the way back, go back to andrew jackson and i swear to god i read a story in the "new york times" that sounded like it could have been written, come straight out of andrew jackson book when they talk about how trump was turning over the tables in the political temple it sounded a lot like what people were saying about andrew jackson when he dared to be elected president and not being a rich landowner from virginia. >> yeah. it's the newest and most compelling chapter in the history of american populism. no question about it. you're right in terms of the

historical lineage. americans have been populace even before we had a constitution. the shay's rebellion. mika was just thinking about it. shay's rebellion. the vegas odds on shay's rebellion, 500-1. made a $2 bet. but it's true. we had a populace revolt that led to the constitution. so, we're an ornery people ultimately. the question is does it win out. >> i got hives in history class and getting them now. >> mika, what's so nice and sometimes i call john late at night and we talk about history and politics and very weighty things and the call is always interrupted because one of his children will come to him and you hear that tug on the arm in

john's pj's, actually his paisley smoke being jacket and you hear in the background, daddy, daddy, will you tell us another story about the french-indian war. >> it's so true. >> now we can talk about shay's rebellion. >> all right. coming up reverend al sharpton join us for the must read opinion pages. "morning joe" is back in a moment. woman: it's been a journey to get where i am. and i didn't get here alone. there were people who listened along the way. people who gave me options. kept me on track. and through it all, my retirement never got left behind. so today, i'm prepared for anything we may want tomorrow to be. every someday needs a plan. let's talk about your old 401(k) today.

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has 26 essential vitamins and minerals, including calcium and vitamin d to support strong bones and 10 grams of protein to help maintain muscle. all with a great taste. i don't plan on slowing down any time soon. stay strong. stay active with boost®. . 45 past the hour. joining us now for the must read opinion pages host of msnbc's politic's nation and president of the national action network reverend al sharpton. good to have you back on the show and "new york times" columnist frank bruni. i'll read from your piece, be a knocks justness is the enthusiast charisma. who needs poetry when you have mockery. not trump or crews who are the product of these tweeting times. their style overlap is evident. cruz's believe is the likely heir to any trump defectors. in his strategy to treat trump respectfully as a result.

it's a courtesy he doesn't afford the majority of the politicians in his own party. they don't understand as he and trump do that at this crazy cynical juncture there's a band of voters so distrustful of the usual he ti commonwealth their valor lies in viciousness, integrity in insult. trump and cruz are only too happy to oblige. joe, what do you think, there's so much here i don't know where to begin. >> well, i guess, frank, obviously as you're writing the column you were not only looking at the character traits that seemed repugnant to you and many others but you also, obviously, had to think long and hard about why this worked. this would be the equivalent -- you obviously are a great --

great food critic. what they do would be the equivalent 20 years ago of a waiter coming out and spitting in everybody's food and telling them to go out and 20 years later those restaurants get five stars and they are the restaurants everybody wants to go to. what is the calling for this kind of political spitting in the food? >> i think people experience this as authenticity. it's really strange. name calling is seen as the new truth telling. we often had one candidate like this who has done very well. the fact that two candidates have deliberately proudly abrasive style and leading in national polls, leading in iowa, new hampshire is murkier, it's very striking that there's two of them and it suggests there's something different in the electorate. >> i don't think it's a band much voters, i think it crosses over on a lot of different levels. it's a lot more people than what we saw last time around in the

sarah palin crowds. >> but why, though? why, mika? again -- >> because in the past -- >> i think that when you are in a reality show culture, where obnoxiousness has gone across the board and the voters are the political reflection of that. i was telling frank off camera the chairman of the national network was teasing me saying brunt bruni is right, these guys are far more outrageous than i was considered and it's the politics of being outrageous. it's the reality show of being outrageous. we're in that kind of time. people think that's reality. that's being authentic. that's being real. >> reverend are you telling us you were 30 years ahead of your time. >> i am telling you i never

thought i was obnoxious. >> before we went to break mika called me obnoxious so you're in a pretty good club. it is fascinating, willie, i said it openly i called donald trump early in the campaign i've known donald for ten years, donald you need to apologize for what you said about senator mccain pup need to apologize. trump, the megyn kelly comment. finally after the tenth time was like oh, hell, obviously this is speaking to something that i don't understand. >> you can't apologize, you can't admit weakness. last night he was on with jimmy fallon. fallon said donald have you ever cried? he paused and said when i was 1. he said it in a funny way. that gets to the core of who he is and his message. we talk to supporters.

so much of his appeal is he rails against political correctness. call it obnoxiousness or ruddness he says i don't have time to play by these old rules and walk on egg shells and call people the name they want to be called. we more serious things to tackle. that's what people like about him. >> that's the key don't want to play by the old rules. people want something totally different. what we have been doing isn't working. the nature of our dialogue hasn't gotten us anywhere. this new coarseness, you see it on twitter. society right now outbursts. >> reverend al sharpton two big events president's state of the union address and then the republican response. what are your expecting, hoping for? >> obviously the last state of the union by the president is historic. he is the first african-american president so a lot of us will be looking at that with pride. i mean the fact that whatever your politics to see this and to

see what he's done. those of us that agreed with his politics and those of us that worked with him will be looking at what he's been able to achieve walking back a lot of economic problems that he inherited and other things. and those that oppose will be looking at that. i think, those he'll set a tone. he'll interpret what happened in these last seven years plus. he will also talk about where the country needs to go. i think it will be challenging. then governor haley, i thought it was an interesting choice, when the charleston nine massacre happened and i went to south carolina, i knew reverend pinckney who was killed. i spoke at one of the funerals and spoke i hadn't met her. she got up behind me and said if you come inside i'll hug pup this is a different kind of republican. here's a woman, a minority and she tries to be moderate. i'm not too sure that tonight

could launch her into a vice presidential shortness this year for be the republican ticket. >> a big opportunity for her. >> she could balance a trump out. i mean if you had a trump and a haley we would have to really, really see what the democrats could come up with. >> joe, what do you think? >> it would be interesting. nikki haley we saw her at her first gubernatorial debate. we were impressed by her. i was impressed by what i saw. we went down charleston. very impressive and she has to be on anybody's short list. frank bruni let me ask you briefly what do you expect to see tonight or what do you hope to see tonight from the president >> the big question is how many people will tune in because this is being so overshadowed by the republican contest but i get the sense when i watch obama over recent weeks that he sort of wants to go for broke in the last year.

he's tired of being restrained. he's tired of being polite. he's tired of biting his tongue. so i'm really curious to see if it's reflected in the words he use tonight. >> frank bruni, reverend al sharpton thank you very much. we'll be watching politics nation saturdays 8:00 eastern time. coming up he's called one of the republican front-runners a whacko bird while others question his status as a war hero. john mccain has history with both ted cruz and donald trump. he joins us just ahead with his take on the state of race. you're driving through the woods when a majestic beast runs into view. then you run into a tree. but your totaled new car isn't totally replaced. with new car replacement, we'll replace the full value of your car plus depreciation. liberty mutual insurance.

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. white house press secretary josh earnest is standing by. why the administration is promoting tonight's state of the union address as something we have never seen before. plus, if donald trump was trouble for his rivals before he practiced politics, what's going to happen now that he's sharpened his skills? "the washington post" explains how the candidate is getting much better on the trail. "morning joe" is coming right back. glad i could help you plan for your retirement. alright, kelly and promise me that you'll try that taco place on south street. and we have portfolio planning tools to help you manage your ira. yeah, you're old 401k give me your phone. the rollover consultants give you step-by-step help. no set-up fees. use your potion.

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. let me ask you, as we head into the state of the union, is there a moment you're going to remember with the president? >> well, yeah there is one. he may be embarrass ed. we were having lunch and it was pretty clear bo was having trouble with his speech and he still had three months to go, four months to go as attorney general, and i said, you know, my concern is, i said if bo resigns he has no, there's no, nothing to fall back on, his salary. i said i worked it out. i said jill and i will sell the house and be in good shape. he said don't sell the house. promise me you won sell the house. he'll be mad at me saying this. he said i'll give you the money. whaufr need. i'll give the money.

don't, joe. promise me. promise me. his love of family and my family and my love of his family, you know, his two children and my grand daughters are best friends. his number two daughter my number three granddaughter vacation together, sleep at each other's homes all the time. it's really -- it's personal. it's family. >> wow. welcome back to "morning joe." it's the top of the hour. with us on set we got john meacham and eugene robinson and joining the conversation from washington msnbc political contributor and editor of the fix at "the washington post" chris aliza. joe this is a moving story. >> it really was so moving. it was moving, the president's

gesture really extraordinary and joe biden's time, joe biden, you see the humanity there. what so many people hate about most politicians being so perfectly practiced and focused, it doesn't apply to joe biden. this guy is real. anybody that knows him loves him. you can't help but love the guy when you meet him. he's also mischiefous. i don't know that hillary loves joe biden. we can talk about that. we'll be talking about that. obviously the president's state of the union tonight. josh earnest is coming up. and willie geist, also last hour we talked about alabama, talked about winning the national championship, extraordinary job by nick saban. one guy we did not mention, deshawn watson, extraordinary quarterback, at one point i got some remark statistics.

he accounted for 300 of clemson's 335 yards. >> yeah. he's a sophomore, by the way. he finished third in the heisman voting. he'll be back next year. clemson will be back next year. he's a phenomenal talent. he passed for more than 4,000 yard. ran for more than 1,000 yards. he's a once in a generation quarterback. i'm so impressed with what alabama did last night. clemson is a good team. 14-1. nothing to be ashamed of. they wanted to win the game but they ran into an awesome alabama team. there's the heisman trophy winner running in the first half. couldn't get much going in the second half. that's when coker started to throw the ball. hit the tight end but who was incredible but hadn't caught a touchdown pass and got two last night. clemson wouldn't go away. scored a late touchdown to bring themselves twin spread. there was some cheering and maybe booing in vegas. clemson never said die and it

was a great game. >> they refused to die. they kept going. what a great team. the best team that alabama has played in the past four or five years. i was surprised by how food they were. mika, let's go to news. we have so much to talk about. obviously, again, we have the president's state of the union address. we got the republican's response. we have a war breaking out of words on the democratic side. new polling on the republican side, we joke about it but seriously it shows donald trump in a stronger position as our good friend the fix will tell us. donald trump, stronger position today than he's ever been and politically chris says he's only getting better by the day. >> we've noticed this as well. it will be an interesting conversation. josh earnest is about to sit down. we'll get to him in a moment. you mentioned joe biden and hillary clinton not being too happy when he decided not to run for president he said quote i intend to speak out clearly and

forcefully to influence as much as i can where we stand as a party and where we need to go as a nation. in an interview last night he did not disappoint. he offered this explanation about why the race feels closer than many thought. >> i think that bernie is speaking to a yearning that is deep and real and he has credibility on it. and that is the absolute enormous concentration of wealth in a small group of people with the middle class now being able to be shown being left out. >> hillary is talking about that. >> but it's relatively new for hillary to talk about that. hillary's focus has been on other things up to now and that's been bernie's -- no one questions bernie's authenticity on those issues. >> and they question hers? >> i think they question everybody's who hasn't been

talking about it all along. but i think she's come forward with some really, really thoughtful approaches to deal with the issue. >> what's he doing there, joe? >> well he's saying she's a johnny come lately on tissues that matter the most to the democratic party but she's thoughtful about it. again joe biden, he regrets not being in the race every day. they see the fact that bernie sanders is doing very well in iowa, doing very well in new hampshire. they see a series of problems that hillary clinton keeps having. if you looked at her yesterday, if you looked at what came out of the "des moines register" op-ed board that was not a candidate at the top of her game. and there are real concerns. concerns inside the clinton camp, concerns among clinton fundraisers and certainly the talking will continue for some time even though right now you would say hillary clinton s-of

course, the presumptive favorite, democratic nominee. let's bring in now, the white house press secretary josh earnest because we're going ask him about nothing but democratic squabbles and presidential campaigns and ask him what his favorite donald trump quote is. let's start first with an easier question. josh, we've heard that tonight is going to be a state of the union unlike any the president has delivered yet. what do we expect? >> mika, i think josh lost the feed. why don't we let the white house fix that up and then we'll get back to josh. >> alex, let us know when we have him. right now we can do the polls because hillary clinton is continuing to brush off those early state poll numbers that show her locked in a tight race with bernie sanders in both iowa and new hampshire. here she is in an interview released yesterday by "the des

moines register" editorial board. >> do you have concern about where you are three weeks out from the caucuses? >> i don't. i always expected it would close. i never -- you know i don't really pay attention to polls because there's just no guarantee. we know that the circumstances of polling, the kinds of polling that is done, the difficulty that people have had in polling races, most pollsters have had problems in the last couple of go arounds, and so i'm focused on what we're doing on the ground. i just feel good about where we are. but it's unpredictable. we'll have to wait and see how it turns out when the folks are actually in the room. >> joe, i'll let you -- i know we got josh back. you don't look at polls but all of a sudden she's attacking bernie and showing differentiation between her and him like she has never before.

>> listen, she can't afford to lose iowa and new hampshire back-to-back. those polls are very close right now. we'll see what happens. people can talk about south carolina and how things go. it sounds a lot like rudy giuliani fought his strategy. you can't get embarrassed if you're the massive presumed front-runner a year out you can't lose in iowa and new hampshire to a guy who is a socialist from burlington, vermont. >> that would be a problem. >> let's bring josh earnest back in. josh, so what are we expecting tonight from the president? we heard this may be a state of the union unlike any other state of the union president obama has delivered. in what way. >> good morning guys. i appreciate you having me on the show. what the president is hoping to talk about tonight are the challenges that our country will face not in advance of the next election but as we prepare the next generation of americans to succeed in the same way previous

again regulates have. the my is a good place to start. what we've seen we've seen an economy that is going through some wrenching changes as a result of technology. that technology has spread prosperity in ways that were unimaginable even a decade ago. at the same time this posed significant challenges. not just jobs on the factory floor being replaced by technology but all kinds of jobs in a variety of sectors. the challenge for this country and for the government of the american people is how do we support our workforce as we go through these changes and what can we do to help our workforce to capitalize. look, there are some candidates particularly on the republican side who concluded it's in their interest to exploit people's fears and insecurities about those changes. the fact is the president hasn't been more optimistic about the ability of our country and capacity of our people to meet dhools. >> josh it's willie geist. big focus in tonight's speech on guns. leaving one seat open for

victims of gun violence inside the chamber there. some people in the democratic party, some progressives felt like if the president was going to go for it on guns using the executive action he could have gone farther than he went. if he had his druthers whole would president obama do about guns even more than what he laid out in the executive action. >> the president, despite contrary to what you hear from our critics the president listens close try to his lawyers and what his lawyers concluded after spending years scrubbing the law and taking a close look at this the president has gone as far as they based on the current reading of the law to do as much as possible to keep guns out of the wrong hands. the fact is what we're trying to do is do as much as we can using executive authority. congress can do so much more and in a way that's long lasting. that's why the president made it a priority of calling on people all across the country to challenge congress to take common sense steps that would keep guns out of the wrong hands.

the kind of proposals we put forward that the president supports and encourage information advocate for are the kind of proposals that are supported not just by a majority of democrats but by republicans and gun owners. >> background checks? what else? >> this is closing the gun show loophole, closing the loophole for people on the no-fly list. this is common sense measure that would prevent gun manufacturers from being able to escape liability for the way their products are being used. these are common sense measures. we're not looking to take away anybody's guns. we're looking for common sense ways we can keep our kids safe. >> john meacham? >> just wondering if we'll hear anything about attempts to fight radicalization at home. obviously guns are a huge issue, but without the ideology, the problem would be better. is the president in thinking

about that is there anything we can look forward to. >> the president has been thinking about this. he dispatched a significant number of leading numbers of his national security team to travel up to california at the end of last week to meet with leaders in technology to talk about how government and the technology companies can actually work together to confront this threat. there's a template for trying to manage this kind of threat. government and technology companies have been able to work effectively together to try to counter child pornography. we know child porngraphers are criminals and disgusting but they use new technology to p propogate their products. there's a way that extremists use technology to proppogate their product. patriotic americans don't want to see their products used to

advance attacks against innocent americans. we should able to find common ground. the other thing we can do and this is something you spend some time thinking about as well is making sure that as we put together a response to isil that it's entirely consistent with the kind of values this country has long stood for and that includes making sure they are treating everybody equally and not discriminating against them because of their religion. >> josh earnest, thank you very much for being on the show this morning. >> no problem. >> msnbc's coverage of the president's final stein starts at 8:00 tonight. >> a new national poll shows donald trump continues to come to nature the field. the nbc news survey monkey tracking poll puts trump at 38%. up three points from last week. 18 point ahead of nature ted cruz and 27 point ahead of marco rubio. and with 28 days to new

hampshire, another big lead for donald trump, 32%. ted cruz has 14%. who is tied with ohio governor john kasich. that's where the story is. rubio is at 12%, cystive at 8 and yesterday trump took on some other fix tuesday of the new hampshire republican establishment. >> the union leader, really a dishonest paper. it's terrible. personally i don't think they will be in business much longer. useless leader. i mean there's a guy name john h.sununu who wrote an article in this phoney paper. it's so bad. he's a bushey. john sununu was fired by bush. fired, right? he was fired like a dog. he was fired viciously and he is such a dumb guy doesn't even know he was fired.

>> joe, wow. and he continues. >> yeah. rule number one in donald trump's campaign, go into new hampshire and attack the sununus. it's pretty remarkable like i said to frank bruni the very thing that would defeat a candidate in the past only seems to make donald trump stronger. chris, you bring up a great point something we've been noticing and people have been whispering around the set in the middle donald trump interviews when we think we cornered him on an issue he gets better and better. you look at candidate like hillary clinton who have been dhoing 30 or 40 years who seem to be getting worse at times. trump has only been doing this months now. i'm struck about what rudy giuliani told us two months ago. i said what's the one thing donald trump we need to know. you have worked with him in new york city for a very long time

for him and against him. he said he's one of the fastest learners i ever met in my life. we're seeing that in front of our eyes. >> yeah. look, i've spent a lot of my time, i don't know if it's a waste or not, watching him speak, the full speech. every speech of his is broadcast online. you can watch the full speech in the last month or so. he's get in inarguably, whether you agree or disagree he's getting better to deliver the message giving people what they want to hear. he latched on to immigration. it was not at the forefront of his announcement speech, it was buried about two-thirds of the way through it. he understands, oh, people this is something that gets people interested, gets people fired up. he moves to it the top of the speech. the engagement with protesters, go back to the burlington, vermont speech and watch how he engages with protesters. he understands the more aggressive he is, get them out. leave their coats. things that people roll their

eyes at he understands that for his audience, right, he doesn't care about us, for his audience he is playing right to them. i compare him in a piece he's like a comedian. he throws away the ones that don't work. stays with the good laugh lines, good applause lines and what you're looking at is greatest hits. >> inedits in his head. >> barack obama has been critiqued for not understanding what jfk understood. howard dean brought up a fascinating point. trump says throw them out and take their coats it's ten degrees below zero let them freeze. we'll send them their coats in a week. howard dean laughed and said by the way it's 40 degrees. it was balmy in vermont. but trump -- if you talk to

trump about that, trump would laugh just the same about it that as howard dean says he understand understands the art of politics as it has to do with performance. and my god john meacham, in 2016 apparently that's just as powerful as it was in 1980 when a b list actor ronald reagan burst on the scene and people were offended. just as well as harry truman cursing jfk in 1959-1960 for being a daddy's boy and being a pretty boy and a lot of the old-timers being offended because this guy was going to win the democratic nomination in part because he looked good on tv. >> right. every great political leader master the means of communication of their time. jefferson and lincoln were great writers, fdr mastered the radio, jfk mastered tv, trump has mast

ered the media world. >> he absolutely has. that's a great point. the other thing is that with trump he thaks the theat rirch -- takes the epiththeatrics. protesters didn't show up he would have to hire them because the ejection of the protesters is like a symbolically what he plans to do to the country. >> all of this is paralleled with hillary clinton, look at where "the des moines register," she's in her head. she's in her head. everything is discussed and prepared, that's what all the candidate do, they are all in their head. they are all in their head and thinking about what they were talking about and how they should not touch.

it's incredible the difference. go ahead, willie. >> his speeches, his rallies are affirmations. he's telling everyone in that crowd i'm right but so your. the way you see the world you're right. these cameras in the back they are against us. it's us against them and that's why they are successful. let's go to capitol hill right now. house majority leader republican congressman kevin mccarthy from california joins us. it's good to see you. let's talk about the state of the union, what you expect to hear tonight. i know you have been frustrated with president obama's foreign policy. what specifically has you most frustrated. >> i don't see a clear plan to defeat isis. i mean think about it. from paris to san bernardino to philadelphia now this morning to istanbul. this world is unsafe. and we can't leave this problem just sitting out there until the next president. we all have to come together, find the strategy that defeats isis and put the commitment to it. >> what could he be doing president obama that you think

he's not doing? he's got people in the state department, got people in the department of defense working on this problem. what are they not doing that you think would work. >> if you talk to those military generals and others they say they do not have a plan to defeat it. they have a plan to maintain it. i think that's much different. when america gets into a war, when america decides they want to win a war everything is going after it. that's what we need to have haen. it's beginning to spread around the world and affect everything we do. >> congressman what does that plan to defeat isis look like? when you actually parse what critics are saying i'm having a hard time telling the difference what critics are saying and what the president is saying. >> you have to have a very honest discussion. sit down with the generals, write a plan and that means troops on the ground. if we're serious about that that

means other countries have to join with us. that's the only strategy that will win in the long run. otherwise they are going to be able to continue to grow and continue to affect the rest of the world. >> american troops on the ground? >> you're going to have to have the combination of that with special forces in there to make sure. you can win this just by the air. >> we do have special force. your talking about -- >> do you have the size long enough, big enough and is this the plan that the generals have picked. i don't want people elected officials deciding what this has to do. tell a strategy from a military perspective. these are the very best trained men and women in the world. let's make sure when we go about this that they are in their safest place but tell us the strategy that neighbors it happen and let's go forward. >> all right. house majority leader kevin mccarthy. thanks very much. still ahead, house homeland security security mike mccaul

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do you take responsibility for that and the reason i ask it is people said after eight years of george w. bush in the white house the american people were hungry for your mers sag. hope and change. so after seven years of the obama presidency, do you feel you're responsible for a certain hunger out there for the message that donald trump is putting out. >> the message donald trump is putting out has had adherence a lot of times during the course of our history. you know, talk to me if he wins then we'll have a conversation about how responsible i feel about it. >> so when you stand and deliver that state of the union address and know part of your mind or brain can you imagine donald trump standing up one day and delivering a state of the union address? >> i can imagine in a saturday night skit. look, anything is possible.

>> that was president obama speaking with matt lauer moments ago. joe, what's your take on that? >> well, i am taken by what frank bruni said also when he was here that this is a president who just doesn't seem to care quite so much what anybody thinks about him. he's untethered politically and speaks his mind. talk to me after donald trump is president of the united states. but i do have to say, though, that i remember a time in 2007, mika, when you were one of the only people who said that guy, barack obama, was ever going to be in the white house before 99% of us thought he had a chance to be in the white house including myself. and we've seen this unfold throughout this election season with donald trump as well. you never know which direction the american people are going to go and so it's really hard to

say. but to move from hope and change to make america great again is quite a correction course. >> yeah. gene? >> my column this morning says that if democrats think it will be easy peasy to defeat donald trump in november they need to think again. he's an extraordinary political athlete. he's different. he's riding some sort of wave. i'm not sure any of us fully understand it. but it's nothing is a slam dunk this year. my theory of this year is nothing is a slam dunk and we don't know nothing about what will happen. >> that's where we should have been from the get go. >> john, you see the president roll his eyes about trump. what's more interest cigarette how he feels about the democratic nomination, how does he feel about the prospect of hillary clinton inheriting his less ga circumstance how does he feel about bernie sanders running neck and neck, how does he feel joe biden not there

being. >> historically no president ever want as predecessor or successor. george h.w. bush once said once you sat at that desk you have a hard time envisioning anyone else sitting there. they follow it very closely. that's an example. there's a fascination. because no matter how intellectually distant you may want to appear this is in some ways a referendum on you. >> and john meacham, again we can go, we can talk one president after another. george h.w. bush and everyone who voted for george h.w. bush had contempt for bill clinton. could not imagine a person like bill clinton walking into the white house and were offended by the very notion that bill

clinton would follow a world war ii hero like george h.w. bush. dwight eisenhower showing jfk around the white house in 1960 when jfk kept looking at the button that he could push to call marine one, turned to him and said you have more things to worry about than that. follow me. basically said follow me sonny boy. this is not new. going on for 240 years. >> ahead the story of where ted cruz was born is just not going away. and now more establishment republicans are jumping into the fray. they don't like him very much. they decided it's time. we'll be right back.

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all right. in iowa donald trump has rebounded to a statistical tie with ted cruz, 31-29%. cruz has the best approval rating of the republican candidates, 75% favorable, 17% unfavorable. >> they love canadians. >> trump is viewed favorably by 61% and unfavorably by 34%. this comes as more members of the republican establishment are joining donald trump in questioning ted cruz's eligibility to run for president. yesterday iowa's republican

governor said quote, when you run for president of the united states any question is fair game. so let the people decide. he's not expected to endorse but some of his top aides are working for chris christie. mitch mcconnell said the senate will not -- they hate him. they just hate him. he has made no friends and it's coming back to haunt him. do i read on? do we even bother? they hate him. >> they pass ad resolution for john mccain, you know, who was born in the panama canal zone. >> but, as john mccain did say, i was born on a military base. i don't know. i'm so confused. >> here's the deal. you can't work in washington if you can't get along with

anybody. right? >> it is -- i got to say as our dear friend patrick j. buchanan was quoted in the "new york times" this weekend talking about trumpism, the chickens have come home to roost and they are all roosting all over ted cruz's head right now. it is comedy. oh, my god it is comedy. john mccain with a straight face. then nancy pelosi, well i don't know. it's kind of confusing because you know senator mccain's family who was in the military -- >> you all are terrible. >> they got him coming and going and everybody is hammering him. i'm trying to figure out, is ted cruz a suspect because he's a canadian or is he suspect because he's a cuban? one day it's the canadian strategy the next day i don't know. >> he's suspect because he's so disliked. >> i don't.

they can't stand him. >> i think he's a wonderful guy. wonderful guy. >> he seems really nice. >> i don't understand why this constitutional question has become so muddled. i'm just a poor country lawyer. i hope the republican establishment can explain it to me in the coming weeks. >> i have a feeling it will remain confusing for a while, right? and, the thing about it is really cruz seems rattled by it. he's been scrambling to explain and releasing his mother's birth certificate to brof sheprove sh american. if it's gotten under his skin which it seems to have done i have a feeling people will keep it up. >> first of all remember it's so funny the establishment is horrified and disgusted and shocked and april p-- appalled y

donald trump. >> he plants the seed. if it was just donald trump it could be dismissed. but when you have respected people like john mccain and mitch mcconnell and others saying -- >> they took the bait. >> that flower grows planted by donald trump. >> it's one of those lessons where you're nice to people all the time in general not just when you wanted to be. senator john mccain will join us ahead. plus he's one of the politicians hoping to repaint the former deep blue arkansas red. asa hutchinson is just the fourth republican governor is in 1900 and joins us on set next. ♪

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you >> of course it was. noticed the stock market went up 50 points which is not a bad start. >> not a bad start at all. tell me about, we've been talking about donald trump, obviously, like a lot of people. you, obviously, are in a state where trump has to be strong. he has an unusual amount of support across the deep south. why is that? >> well, because he has a message that resonates. people are frustrated with government. he expresses it in ways as you point pd out thea trc hout. he has tapped into that and campaigned, he's been in arkansas campaigning as well as ted cruz and so we're part of the march 1 sec primary and it's still going to be a race and he's very competitive in arkansas. >> so do you like him as a candidate? >> i think he's brought a lot to the table. it's not my message.

you know, i worry about the party in terms of expanding our base and what the message does to our recruitment of hispanics, outreach to minorities and so you got to worry about the fall election and whether this is a message that's going to carry in michigan, ohio, florida and those states that we need to carry. >> governor, you've worked in washington, of course, spend some time negotiating, workeding with different presidents. what kind of president do you think donald trump would be? >> you, i actually was, i had a conversation the other day with a former president who remarked that historically people who run for president actually do what they say they are going to do. now in this case, it's a little bit hard to imagine trump doing everything he says he'll do such as making mexico pay for a wall along the border. you have to listen to what he says and how he conducts himself.

i don't know he would be that different from what he is now in negotiating with vladimir putin. >> you think that's a good thing or a bad thing? >> i don't think it's a good thing. you know, we need people who in the presidency that understand how the world works, understands that there's a time for bluster and there's a time for reason. >> has the trump campaign reached out to you at all for possible support to touch base, anything like that? >> no. again. he's campaigning in arkansas. i had a good visit with him. it was early on. he brings a lot to the table. but, you know, we have a campaign this year of real very substantive issues. you look at debates, the candidates are talking about our foreign policy, they are talking about terrorism, they are talking about, you know, our economy at home. and so real issues are being talked about and i hope that

continues. i think it makes a difference, and donald trump, the other candidates are really articulating the message. i hope the american people can respond to. >> we went to the kemp forum over the weekend and it was remarkable event. i mean it was looking at the future, opportunity, looking at poverty, looking at how to address these issues. it was a republican event. the candidates were incredibly impressive and it doesn't seem to translate on the grand scale. that a trump effect or is that a failure on behalf of the republican party? >> no. one, i think people are listening. i think people are excited about the campaign this year. i think there's going to be a big turn out. donald trump has brought the interest and energy to the campaign and i think that pours over. i think it's easier for that message actually to get through whenever you're talking about

poverty and the republican ideas to move people up the economic lad ladder. that's a message that's important in arkansas. >> governor, inside the state of arkansas you all have done something fascinating which is mandate computer science in your classrooms and you've seen incredible numbers of students go up in coding, especially with women, especially with minorities. why dual think that was so important? >> my grand daughter inspired me to do it. she was 11 years old and built a mobile campaign app for my campaign in a said hey this ought to be in every school. whenever you look nationally only one out of ten high schools in america offer and teach computer coding. we mandated that every high school and because of that it's increased minority participation, we could produce 6,000 students a year into our economy that know how to write software whether that's for video games or whether that's

for agricultural software applications. so extraordinary opportunity economically for our state but also it's really going to keep those jobs here at home versus just recruiting that talent overseas. >> so smart. >> governor asa hutchinson thank you so much. great to have you on the set. still ahead chairman of the armed services committee and chairman of the homeland security security committee, senator john mccain and senator mike mccaul join us. we'll have much more on "morning joe." you totaled your brand new car. nobody's hurt, but there will still be pain. it comes when your insurance company says they'll only pay three quarters of what it takes to replace it. what are you supposed to do? drive three quarters of a car? now if you had liberty mutual new car replacement, you'd get your whole car back. i guess they don't want you driving around on three wheels.

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>> savannah with vice president joe biden just moments ago at the white house. >> we begin with oil prices that have slipped to a near 12-year low. china's slowing economy has been one contributing factor. a convoy of trucks carrying humanitarian aid reached besieged areas of syria yesterday, including the blockaded town of madaya, where dozens are said to have died

interest starvation. international officials say there are no reassurances of future deliveries after supplies run out in a month. the 10,000th syrian refugee is expected to arrive in canada today. that's according to flight arrival data posted on canada's immigration department web site. the immigration minister said 25,000 syrians in total should be in canada by the end of february. >> now to the latest on the deadly explosions in both turkey and iraq. turkey's deputy prime minister said a 28-year-old suicide bomber is responsible for this morning's explosion in istanbul. ten people died. most are believed to be foreigners. it's unclear if that number includes the alleged bomber. and in iraq, new footage shows the aftermath of an attack in baghdad. insurgents set off hand grenades and at least two bombs.

isis has claimed responsibility. reuters said at least 51 were killed in baghdad and another eastern town yesterday. the u.s. support appears likely to rule against unions. california teachers want the court to overturn a 1977 law that allows public unions to collect money from nonmembers to cover costs of collective bargaining. right now 23 states require nonunion members to pay a share of union dues. unions say a loss would cast a cloud over contracts for millions of police officers, firefighters, teachers and nurses nationwide. >> and finally, we are learning new details this morning about the capture of mexican drug lord joaquin el chapo guzman. this morning we're getting a first look at the aftermath inside that safe house in mexico. there are bullet holes along

several walls and a secret passageway that guzman used as he tried to escape the raid. can you imagine if he made it through that again? no, seriously. what? >> so they're probably working on the new tunnel right now, right? wherever he is at the moment. >> the guy is like a magician or what? alabama wins their fourth national championship in seven years, bringing coach nick saban just one tigtle shy of the all-time record. joe has just a few thoughts on that win. plus the gloves finally come off in the democratic race for president. >> i think the most important point to be made is that secretary clinton and her campaign now know that she is in serious trouble. suddenly bernie sanders is no longer a nice guy and he's wrong on this and he's wrong on that and he's wrong on that. that is not surprising when you have a clinton campaign that is

now in trouble and now understands that they can lose. >> bernie sanders says hillary clinton is in serious trouble. we will take a look at the latest polls to see if he has a point there. "morning joe" is back in a moment. ♪ sweet home alabama with creative new business incentives, the lowest taxes in decades, and university partnerships, attracting the talent and companies of tomorrow. like in utica, where a new kind of workforce is being trained. and in albany, the nanotechnology capital of the world. let us help grow your company's tomorrow, today at business.ny.gov at ally bank no branches equals great rates. it's a fact. kind of like ordering wine equals pretending to know wine. pinot noir, which means peanut of the night.

64 yard and eight plays. the big conversion the key play. now an onside kick. and it's caught! alabama's got the ball back! spelling, henry now and coker. and it howard for his second

long touchdown tonight and the tide reclaim the lead! alabama back on top of the college football world! >> after the semifinal we asked could we get a smile, how about now? >> you got it, baby, you got it. >>. >> you got it, baby, you got it, baby! welcome, good morning. >> it was a good game. >> good morning and welcome to "morning joe," crimson tide nation. it's so good to have you with us this morning. it was an incredible game. mika brzezinski along with me will be talking about nothing but this for the next three weeks. >> i tried to stay up with the surly teens in my house but i couldn't. that guy running down the side to make the touchdown for alabama. that was incredible. that was incredible. do you know what i'm talking about? >> kickoff return. >> thank you, mika. >> so willie geist, let's go by

the numbers here. no doubt about it, you're looking at nick saban now has to be obviously the greatest coach of the modern era -- >> yup. >> and he only competes with bear bryant. the guy has won top flight football, five national championships, four out of the last seven years. i thought what was remarkable about last night's game is that, you know, this is one of the few games i've seen alabama play in the nick saban era where they were playing against a team that could have beaten them by 20 points. clemson shocked me. they were a great team. and when saban's back was against the wall, he did the ol' dipsy doodle onside kick that completely threw him off. it was an unbelievable game, wasn't it? >> you're right. clemson is really, really good which makes alabama's win all the more impressive. you saw the balance. it was the first half, derek henry, the heisman trophy winner taking over the game.

the second half, coker was great. the quarterback who alabama fans haven't been so sure about and even this year, comes in, no interceptions, throw s a couple of touchdowns, 350 days. can you even imagine the day when people would be starting the debate, bear bryant versus nick saban. bear bryant is god down there. nick saban has played in a tougher era. he's had to go through playoffs and go through sec championships and had to win things that bear bryant didn't. i'm not saying he's better than the bear but he's sneaking into that conversation. >> we have so much with politics. did you guys see bide? with us we have pulitzer prize winner john meacham.

and eugene robinson and chriskr anderson. >> and gene said that was the most surprising thing he's seen, vice president biden making good on his promise to stay in the mix throughout the presidential primary. he offered this patently frank explanation of why the democratic primary feels clorer than so many predicted. >> i think that bernie is speaking to a yearning that is deep and real and he has credibility on it, and that is the absolute enormous concentration of wealth with a small group of people with the middle class now being able to be shown being left out.

>> but hillary is talking about that, no? >> but it's relatively new for hillary to talk about that. no one questions bernie's authenticity on that. >> and they question hers? >> i think they question everybody's who hasn't been talking about it all along. i think she's come forward with some really thoughtful approaches to deal with the issue. >> so translation, joe, her message is not authentic and bernie's is. i don't know how else to look at that. >> well, that's the message. when he says, well, she's relatively new to being worried about people that are poor than the rich, income disparity, which is of course the most important issue to not only the democratic party but a lot of economists would say in america. she's flip-flopping on a lot of other issues. but there's no doubt joe biden has said he's haunted every day by the decision that he made not to run.

he sees that hillary's behind in a lot of polls, in iowa, she's behind by a large amount in new hampshire. he sees polls where hillary clinton does worse against donald trump than bernie sanders, and there is no doubt about it and we have talked about this, gene robinson, that the question is no what happens to hillary clinton running against bernie sanders in south carolina after she loses iowa and new hampshire, if she loses iowa and new hampshire, the question is is that when joe biden and john kerry who have been private lily thinking abou this, discussing it with friends are even al gore who has been obsessed with the issue of whether they should jump into the race or not, do they see this as an invitation to open thing up as much as donald trump has opened thing up.

>> let's be real, hillary clinton has a very good chance of winning both of those first states. now, if she loses both of them, then everybody is going to look at south carolina. if she had a problem in south carolina, that would mean that the firewall was not there because you have to -- she has to underperform with african-americans in south carolina. it would be hard for her to lose that. but if she got in trouble there, sure, you'd see a lot of people who have wanted to be president for a long time say, sure, how is that going to work out? >> i don't think it takes just losses in iowa and new hampshire and then south carolina to turn things around. there are a lot of democratic donors over the last year and a half who have been very concerned with her performance on the campaign trail. her numbers don't seem to be getting better.

there are a lot of issues swirling around her right now that are making democrats a lot of rich democratic donors scratch their heads and worry. >> we also see some of this contrast on the campaign trail now where hillary clinton is sharpening her differences with bernie sanders. one of her clearest breaks yet from president obama, hillary clinton called on the administration to end raids aimed at deporting central americans who enter the united states illegally. >> i have come out against the raids. i do not think the raids are an appropriate tool to enforce the immigration laws. in fact, i think they are divisive, they are sewing discord and fear. >> will you deport children? >> let me say this, i would give every person but particularly person due process to have their story told. i cannot sit here and tell you i have a blanket rule about who

are who won't ever be let into the country too st stay because has to be done individually. i don't like the mass roundups and the raids that pick people up and send them off in the middle of the night. that should end. >> those were her first words about it when she expressed concern about it. this all comes at the war of word between the two leading democratic candidates is escalating in the wake of new polls that show the two essentially tied in both iowa and new hampshire. >> i'm asking to you choose, to caucus for me over either of the other two. and part of the reason i'm asking you to do that is because we do have differences. >> if the democrats want to nominate a candidate who in fact is electable to become president of the united states, is going

to in fact defeat the kind of right-wing republicans that are out there, i think it is becoming increasingly apparent that bernie sanders is that candidate. >> and he would take it all together and send health insurance to the states, turning over yours and my health insurance to governors, like terry bransted. >> i voted against the war in iraq. secretary clinton voted for the war in iraq. >> there was a vote in the congress, do we give the goun lobby, the manufacturers and the sellers absolute immunity from any liability and accountability. president obama and i were both in the senate and we voted no. senator sanders voted yes. >> secretary clinton and her campaign now know that she is in

serious trouble. suddenly bernie sanders is no longer a nice guy and he's wrong on this and he's wrong on that. that is not surprising when you have a clinton campaign that is now in trouble and now understands that they can lose. >> wow. >> kristen, it clear when you watch hillary clinton's public comments and talk to her campaign privately that the days when they could dismiss bernie sanders as a socialist are gone. they're taking them seriously and they have to. >> they're taking him seriously, and it's leading -- you know, coming out last night with statements on immigration, things like the hyde amendment, which is whether or not the government can provide any things like abortions. she's taking positions on issues that i don't know that she was planning to wade into these issues quite as forcefully.

if this was going to be a coronation, she could have been running in the general the whole time. but she's got this real fight on her hands. the other thing she's got to prove is this electability argument. bernie sanders talks about he's the one who is just prepared to go into a general election. he's correct he has better favorability ratings than hillary clinton does in the polls. typically she tends to be a l b little stronger in part because she's got more money and more name idea. but don't count bernie sanders out. this is a strange election and bernie sanders is going to be able to ride to undercut her entire electability argument as a core of her campaign. >> john meacham, this is such a strange election. if you look at what's actually happened on the republican side, we've all been talking about donald trump, all been talking about ted cruz, all been talking

about discorruptikrupgruption o. you look at what a socialist on the left is doing to a democratic party right now in a two states that matter, in the two states where they've been campaigning actively and you see disruption on the left as well. you have michael bloomberg putting out polls to see if he can become a third party candidate. and i read the times a couple weekends ago and trump's supporters, 20% were democrats or a solid chunk of his are some democrats. and then i read another column this weekend about 1968 and the george wallace effect. and i'm just wondering whether this is starting to look a bit like 1968, where you have disruption, you mccarthy and somebody coming in on the republican or democratic side like bobby kennedy did to

try to save the day and then a three-way race. i mean, there are so many moving parts right now. >> it's analogy central, which is a great thing. you know, i think you're exactly right in that the focus has been on the republican side and that chaos but sanders has made this equal opportunity chaos and i think that there's often this tendency, particularly in the conventional media, to talk about extremism on the right but there's also extremism on the left. and you have this man who is a socialist talking about an extraordinary populist revolution on the left that is pulling hillary further to the left, as kristen said, than she wants to go at this point. in this case you have both candidates, both parties being pulled, i think, closer or

father away from the center than they arguably want to go. >> the one thing about analogies i think you have to remember, though, is that the electorate has changed so much. in both parties actually. so the republican electorate is not what it was nearly in 1968 and the democratic electorate is not nearly what it was in 1968. the country isn't what it was in 1968 so it really hard to reach back to a prior year and say this is playing out like that year in i don't thi year. i don't think you can do that. >> i don't understand what your point is, gene. if you look at the article in the "new york times," what you're seeing is, again, a lot -- you could draw parallels back to 1968. you do have republicans in the primaries going further right than they've ever gone, you do have democrats going further left than they certainly have gone since bill clinton was elected for the first time. there is a socialist, a

self-described socialist from burlington, vermont who is ahead in iowa and new hampshire in the first two polls. there is donald trump ahead in -- i mean, we have new republican polls out. he's blowing the doors off of everything. you have people being pulled to their side. i don't quite understand what you're saying. >> i'm saying we haven't had donald trump before. not him. we've had other charismatic figures. >> nothing like him. >> we haven't had donald trump. and bernie sanders, we've had people -- >> posers. >> who have led insurgent campaigns on the democratic side certainly. bernie sanders is different -- to me he's different from eugene mccarthy. >> he's totally different. >> parallels are there. quick meacham. >> quickly to joe's point, i think 1948 is also a possibility

here when you have a democratic and republican party that spun off a progressive and regional part. you have the chance that the republican party implodes. >> still ahead on "morning joe" being congressman mike mccall is live with us, chairman of the house security committee. plus senator john mccain joins us. we'll ask him why questions over ted cruz's citizenship are fair game. but first, bill karins with a check on the forecast. bill. >> wintry forecast at that, mika. the lack effect snow machine was turned on high between buffalo and eerie. some areas picked up 30 inches of snow yesterday. the plows were struggling on interstate 90 to keep up with the snow bap. and how about parking your car next to lake erie with large waves and a strong wind. you didn't even get what kind of car that is in what do you do? just tow it and wait for it to

thaw? a little mini snowstorm, delays in ohio, kentucky is seeing snow, louisville and now snow spreading through cleveland. a lot of school delays and cancellations. this is head to the north and east during the day today. here's the snowfall predictions. this pinkish, reddish color and then maine tonight gets the snow redeveloping. as the snow tracks this evening, even d.c., philadelphia and new york could see a brief period of snow between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. keep that in mind if you're going to be on the road. finally, the last weather story of the day, i don't know how they do it but negative 32 in fargo, not much better from des moines to sioux falls to minneapolis. i know our crew on "morning joe" is going to be heading to sioux false soon. i hope it warmer when they get there. >> last year at this time we had

almost a foot of snow on the ground in central park. you're watching "morning joe." we'll be right back. starvation and frostbite. today we make history. >>bienvenidos! welcome to the south pole! if you're dora the explorer, you explore. it's what you do. >>what took you so long? if you want to save fifteen percent or more on car insurance, you switch to geico. it's what you do. >>you did it, yay! does printing from your tablet give you a jolt of confidence? then you might be gearcentric. right now, all hp ink is buy one get one 50% off! office depot officemax. gear up for great. if yand you're talking toevere rheumyour rheumatologiste me, about a biologic... this is humira. this is humira helping to relieve my pain and protect my joints from further damage.

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together, we're building a better california. so when you stand and deliver that state of the union address, in no part of your mind or brain can you imagine donald trump standing up one day and delivering a state of the union address? >> well, i can imagine it in a saturday night skit. look, anything's possible. >> do you take responsibility for that? and the reason i ask it is people said after eight years of george w. bush in the white house, the american people were hungry for your message of hope and change. after seven years of your

administration, do you feel responsible for the message that donald trump is putting out? >> the message that donald trump has had adherence during a lot of times during the course of our history. talk to me if he wins, then we'll have a conversation about how responsible i feel about it. >> that of course is president obama talking to matt lauer. mika holding up a headline from gene robinson "don't count on trump losing in november." it getting pretty interesting out there. let's bring in the chairman of the senate armed services committee. senator john mccain not on a legislate end all across america and all across the world because he's a war hero and his status there but beloved in my hometown of pensacola because we've seen his kindness and concern over

ted cruz's citizenship. >> bless your heart. >> it is moving and humbling that you care so much about your fellow senator ted cruz and whether he's actually eligible to be president of the united states. our prayers are with you and the cruz family right now, senator. what save you about ted cruz's eligibility to be president of the united states? >> first of all, many of my colleagues over the years would tell you i have shown that deep concern and affection and care about them as well. >> they are no longer with us. >> let me just say in response, what i said was -- first of all, i assume that ted cruz is eligible, of course. i think he and his people would have looked at it. but when i said it should be looked at, everything about a

candidate for president of the united states is looked at. there was a demand for my medical records, all of which i revealed. there was the senate looked at my eligibility. in fact passed a resolution 100-0 saying i was eligible because of my birth in the panama canal zone. so looking at this is certainly a far cry from trying to stab him in the back. come on. >> that's what they say in the south, bless your heart, right? bless your heart. >> you know, the thing is though actually, senator, a more serious point. we're obviously having a little bit of fun with this. but what does it say about a senator that he comes to washington, d.c., he doesn't get the same, let say, courtesies extended as other senators do and he tries to get an ex-tensiextension of time to speak and he can't

get one fellow senator to go along with him. how can a man who is so detested in his own institution help make washington work again? >> well, i think it would be difficult. as you know, it's routine to have a, quote, second, in order to get a recorded vote. several times recently senator cruz has tried to get a second in order to have a recorded vote rather than a voice vote on an amendment and he's been unable to get that. i think he has a hill to climb. i also know he is a very, very smart guy. he is very intelligent. he's a great speaker. i'm sure he would understand if he was president of the united states that he has a challenge there. but i'm sure he would appeal to people like me to say, look, we have to work for the good of the country. we're now experiencing attacks on the united states of america and i'm sure we would respond. we'd have to.

that's our job. >> gene. >> i'm sure you're just dying to give ted cruz a hug, but i'm going to change the subject and ask what you're expecting from the state of the union tonight. what do you expect to hear? >> the previews are that the president is going to take a victory lap about his many accomplishments. we keep hearing that. by the way, gene, anybody who comes on this show say please remain seated, please remain seated and then we don't have to jump up and down. at my age i'm getting a little weary of that to start with. second of all, why doesnn't we t listen to the president. anyway, that probably won't happen. >> i don't think age has ever been your complaint, sir. >> what i would like to see the president do is talk about what his number one issue on americans' minds today and of course that's terrorism, national security, the situation in the middle east and the attacks on america. and there's an empty chair, i understand, for children who

have been victims of the gun violence. i'd like to see another empty chair for the 250,000 syrians that have been slaughtered and barrel bombed and stafford to s starved to death because of al bashar because of his feckless, failed policy. there are seminal moments in history and that was a seminal moment when we lost the confidence of our friend and allies. gene, you might want an empty chair for the people being held hostage including a brave and wonderful "washington post" reporter. >> jason, exactly. >> jon meacham. >> senator, what would you have us do at this point in the battle against isis? >> go and destroy them. it would require about 3,000 or

4,000 more troops on the ground in iraq, it would probably require about 10,000 of 100,000 person force, have the sunni arab countries pay for it, include the turks, saudis, egyptians and others and go in and take them out. as long as they've got this territorial capital, latest news they're now building bombs and chemical weapons, they're going to be able to export terror. mr. baghdadi i know is getting young men and saying join this refugee flow and get to country x and we'll contact you there on a secure site. i mean, there's no doubt about it. that's what baghdadi has said they want to do. you don't have to be an intelligence expert to figure out they want to attack america. they can't destroy america but there certainly will be more attracts just as lindsey and i predicted the attacks that are taking place now. you got to go in there and right now there is no strategy. there is no strategy. >> joe.

>> what will historians say of this president? obviously george w. bush made many mistakes as it pertained to iraq and he will be judged ha harshly by historians for that. how can anything on the foreign policy stage other than syria not be barack obama's legacy? 20, 30, 40 years from now? and how do we turn that around? >> i think the iranian deal will also be a very big part of his legacy and i know he's going to taught that tonight. with iranians are firing missiles between 1,500 yard of an aircraft carrier and violating u.n. security council resolutions on missile tests, as you well know, a couple weeks ago they told congress there was going to be sanctions and then they decided not to do it because the iranians said it

would break the iranian nuclear deal. they've got us. i mean, it really remarkable. so i think his legacy will be that as well. he inspired millions of americans to be involved in a political process. he still has a strong base of affection and support in parts of america. he is an articulate individual who i think has done a good job in that respect and so i'll leave it up to historians. >> senator, with lindsay graham out of the race, i can't believe i'm saying this, i kind of miss his voice. i thought it was awesome, especially at the last debate. do you have any plans to endorse anybody? >> i do not. i think it's better for me to stay out of it. i'm still in mourning. i still believe in lindsay could have gotten into the top tier, he would have gotten traction. i've been wrong in every

prediction so far so maybe i ought to quit. >> well, let me ask you to follow up on what gene said, trump could win in november. i asked asa hutchison, the governor arkansas to explain why he's so popular in arkansas. can you explain donald trump's appeal to many of the same people who have been voting you into office since 1982? >> the only thing i can say, joe, is the obvious, that so many americans are dissatisfied not so much with washington, although that's true, but the slow pace of recovery, millions of americans having to look for work, perceived nonresponsiveness from the government -- >> but what is it about donald trump? why is donald trump the vessel for those frustrations? and can you work with donald trump if he is elected

president? >> as i said, if he's elected president, i have to. there's too many threats to our nation's security. all i can say is that it's the make america great again, it's possibly the kardashian effect. it a lot of things all mixed together and also he knows how to touch certain cords with a segment of our american citizenry that inspires a lot of emotion in them. it's obvious. >> can you forgive him for what he said about your service to this country? >> oh, sure. look, you know, you've been in this business long enough to know you have to have a pretty thick skin, but i do resent -- just last week i presented the p.o.w. medal to a 92-year-old man who was a prisoner in world war ii. it was a deeply moving ceremony. i still kind of recent comments about people like him and i always will.

>> senator john mccain, always good to have you on the show. thank you very much. >> thank you. >> up next, the chairman of the homeland security committee said he knows how to stop threats against our country. congressman mike mccall joins us next. bailing me out all the time... i'm not the i.t. guy. i'm the desktop support tech supervisor. and my customers knowing right when their packages arrive. introducing real-time delivery notifications. learn more at myusps.com the wolf was huffing and puffing. like you do sometimes, grandpa? well, when you have copd, it can be hard to breathe. it can be hard to get air out, which can make it hard to get air in. so i talked to my doctor. she said... symbicort could help you

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country. we could not comprehend that people wanted to kill us. >> that was the co-chair of the 9/11 commission lee hamilton back in 2004 discussing the, quote, failures of imagination that left the nation vulnerable to terrorist attack. joining us is the chairman of the house committee on the homeland committee, republican mike mccall of texas. he's the author of a new book that refers to that phrase titled "failures of imagination" and we have bianna golodryga. joe, i never thought there would be a way could you have a domestic terrorism joke ever, there's just not. but we came close here because mike has not one, not two, but five teen-agers in his house, including the first two kids,

and then triplets. yes. >> oh, dear lord! >> what? i can't even ask you a challenging question now. i just won't do it. you're tortured. >> that's my personal experience. >> that will prepare you for a multitude of domestic terrorist attacks. i mean, domestic as defined as inside your own. >> sympathy. >> what an absolutely fascinating book you've written here. and it reminds he after 9/11 the intelligence community calling in hollywood producers because they needed them, there had been a failure of imagination. nobody had imagined al qaeda or our enemies would think so big. talk about your book and talk about, first of all, some of the things that you fear the most and then how much we stwe stop

happening here again. >> we didn't imagine pearl harbor, 9/11, the 9/11 commission spoke to this issue. i thought it was an important public service to the american people to imagine the threats that i see, the biggest threats facing the nation and quite frankly tell the truth to the american people what those threats are, can they happen and what we feneed to do to stop th in. >> what are they? >> obviously isis is front and center. what we saw in paris, san bernardino happened really within a month after the writing of this book. the threat to the aviation sector, to airliners. we saw the russian airliner being downed, a very similar plot in this book as well. cyber security continues to be one of the biggest in terms of consequential damages to not only our nation but to the world

and then i talk a lot about the russian threat and mr. putin and his aggression. i think we need to be doing more about isis, though, as well to stop the threats that we're seeing both in europe but also here in the united states. >> bianna. >> as a fellow texan, i want to ask you about the new controversial law that was enacted this month about the open carry policy in texas. proponents say if there are a soft target attack that those with a gun would be able to kill the shooter. what are your thoughts on that? do you think that open carry policies will enable americans who aren't terrorists to take on terrorism? >> sure. in texas we like our guns, as you know. and this is a new policy. we'll see how it works. i think it is open. people can see it. you know, a terrorist may think twice about an attack. i think this is an experiment quite honestly and we'll see how it plays out.

i'm worried about someone will the mental illness, i'm worried about guys being radicalized over the internet out of raqqah. there are 200,000 tweets per day from syria into the united states to radicalize. the gun debate, it's a dicey one in this country. there's too much gun violence and guns in the hands of terrorists is a concern of my as well. >> what's your solution for self-radicalization? do you have ideas? you look at something like san bernardino. how in the world could government intervene? is it even possible? >> you have two threat vectors i talk about in the book. one is the foreign fighter who has gone to the region, trained as a military officer, if you will, 5,000 europeans with

western passports, the threat to europe is far greater than the united states. hundreds of americans have traveled and come back. and then is a phenomenon of internet radicalization itself. in most of these cases, whether it be san bernardino, chattanooga, boston bomber, there were indicators along the way, flags not picked up on. the san bernardino, the male suspect of the family warned people about his radicalization. boston bomber kicked out of a mosque for being so radical. chattanooga friends talked about it. it always after the fact. we need to identify these signs before the fact so we can stop them. within one of the things i talked about in the book that is a concern of the fbi is the ability of the terrorist to communicate in dark space. we cannot see what they're saying even if we have a court order and wire tap. so if we're getting these

internet communications to as in the philadelphia case to kill police officers, here in new york with the nypd it's a real threat here, as in chattanooga kill military, if we have a court order, if they're using these apps that are encrypted, we don't know about these communications. why doidn't we know about paris? because they were using encrypted apps. that is one of the biggest challenges we have. >> the book is "failure of imagination," out today. chairman mike mccaul, thank you very much. >> still ahead, oil prices continue to plunge, now down to nearly $30 a barrel. we'll go long to sara eisen and get bianna's take as well on what that means for the economy.

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let's go to sayer a irah eisen. we've been hearing when oil and gas price goes down that consumers get a bump and the economy gets the bump. we're learning the bump is not quite as big as we expected and the energy sector is getting slaughtered and a lot of people losing their jobs. >> that's going to be the question for this year, joe. >> $31 a barrel, it insanity. >> it's insanity and wall street forecasters are out saying it going even low. they say we could be looking at oil in the 20s. standard chartered even throughout the $10 a barrel level in a note today. keep in mind all of these wall street forecasts are completely got the price wrong. they were calling for higher oil prices over the next few years. but gas prices, they dropped in every u.s. state last week. $1.96 is the average price per gallon ands th that's supposed

really help consumers in this country and it will. it helps them with savings and pay down debt but it also causes a ripple effect around the world, iran, russia, brazil, canada. the question is how many bankruptcies are we going to see in this country as a result of the falling price of oil and how many job losses are we going to see? it's already starting to pile up. >> it really is. and beianna, what a bitter iron. this is not only impacting our economy, it not only impacting jobs but, as sarah suggested, this is going to have a massive impact on foreign policy across the globe. >> that's right, my home state of texas withstood the great recession that we went through. obviously not the case right

now. but we're seeing countries that are not oil producers but are commodity producers taking a big hit as well. you see russia and australia taking a big hit and canada as well as south america. sarah, can i ask you a question? we always talk about the disconnect between the economy and the stock market and we look at the stock market here, especially over the past week or so here in the u.s., compared to the good news that we're seeing out of the economy with the job situation in this country. what do you think viewers at home are looking at right now? what do they care more about? the reports that come out about a gdp and unemployment or what they see at the stock exchange. >> i would say what they're seeing abroad is what is worrying them the most. number one, china. it lost more than 10% in the first week of trading and there are some real questions right now about economic leadership in

that country. can they get a handle on their economy? china is the second biggest economy in the world. it impacts us and the price of oil, the economic damage that's doing, that's worrying investors and sort of offsetting what you said is a better u.s. we created almost 300,000 jobs in the u.s., a great number, yet the stock market sold off, continuing to focus their attention abroad. >> sarah eisen, thank you very much. like having cable instead of directv. hey, jebediah, how's it going? working the land. hoping for a fertile spring. all right. so we have to live with lower customer satisfaction? i'm afraid so. now go churn us some butter, boy, and then make your own clothes. yes, sir. (vo) don't be a settler. get rid of cable and upgrade to directv. call 1-800-directv. amerivest selects the funds and manages your portfolio. is it run by robots?

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. welcome back to "morning joe." i will tell you what i learned, is that love is not a lost art in washington, d.c. and compassion still lives in the capital. senator john mccain's heart warming concerns about ted cruz's legitimacy, heart warming. >> he may be from arizona but he's got that southern touch when he says "bless your heart," which means, bianna, you're dead. what did you learn today? >> it's a fine line the president is going to have to walk tonight when touting the recovery. >> jon meacham? >> money. >> i was going to say i learned

about rebellion. but i learned about the democratic race which seemed frankly kind of a snoozer is heating up. >> it is. joe, if it's way too early, what time is it? >> it is time for "morning joe." but stick around because msnbc live is going to be carrying news about the republican polls, the fight on the democratic side and of course the countdown to the president's final state of the union address. we'll see you tomorrow and they start right now. right now on msnbc live, we have politics covered from all angles and what we found just three weeks before the iowa caucuses. president obama takes today's matt lauer on a room-by-room tour of the white house and has his thoughts on the final state of the union and his campaign to take over the highest office in the land. plus