so you have to be ready for them. find out how american express cards and services can help prepare you for growth at open.com. you don't have to look very far to see the investigation tanls of slavery that are still in play, in effect in this nation today. >> and why roots is relevant to everyone. >> whether you're black or white or somewhere in between on that

color spectrum, roots is your story, too 37. >> from rockefeller center in new york, this is politics national with al sharpton. good morning. i'm al sharpton. if i had said a year ago that donald trump would clinch the gop nomination before the democratic nominee clinched that nomination, would you have called me crazy. but that's what happened this week and it's allowed trump to focus on his likely opponent, hillary clinton. >> she is a total lightweight. she was an unbelievably nasty, mean enabler. she goes and donald trump is a terrible person! and he wanted to buy housing

when it was at a low point. who the hell doesn't? who doesn't? she's declared war on the american public. she's as crooked as they come. >> >> clinton is still dealing with bernie sanders and questions about the e-mail controversy while doing her best to hit back against trump. >> he actually said he was hoping for the crash that caused hard working families in california and across america to lose their homes. donald trump is an urgent threat. trump economics is a recipe for lower wages, fewer jobs, more debt. how can anybody lose money running a casino, really? we're not going to let him bankrupt america. >> of course trump has issues, too. we saw massive protests at his rallies out west.

some turning violent. and strutrump hasn't united th gop. marco rubio has suggested he will vote for trump, but paul ryan is not there yet. >> we had a productive phone call. i want real party unity because we need to win it will location in the fall. >> and a new bloomberg poll showswill location in the fall. >> and a new bloomberg poll shows trump trailing clinton among, quote, must win groups. middle income voters in the rust belt. let's bring in our panel. tamara, vice president of policy and research, "washington post" political reporter, and conservative political analyst amy holmes. so amy, what should trump be worried about, protests or paul ryan still on the sidelines? >> i think actually the protests

sort of help donald trump because they underscore the point he's trying to make in terms of making america great again and the forces that he's up against. he needs to worry about party unity. he does. he doesn't necessarily need to worry about paul ryan per se, but at this point he's only won 43% of the republican primary and caucus vote. so he has 57% more republican voters and not to mention the middle. >> phillip, marco rubio called trump a lunatic and con artist but now he's supporting him. >> and we're seeing this happen. we're seeing the republican base fall in line. we've seen trump catch hillary clinton in recent polls and in part that's because republicans are uniting among him. it doesn't matter what paul ryan does. paul ryan is the speaker because they didn't have any other

choice. republican leadership has been in a mess and the republican base has said they are uniting around donald trump. >> tamara, let's go to the otetr candidate here, hillary clinton. this is what she said after the report eefr hover her handling e-mai e-mails. >> i understand people have concerns, but i think voters will look at the full picture of what i have to offer, my life and my service and the full threat that donald trump offers our country. >> the e ha-mail controversy pld right into trump's crooked hillary -- >> crazy bernie. >> that's right. the conservative tag line. well, crooked hillary, it plays right into that. can she handle it better? >> i think that what she said here is spot on.

shemishandled the use the servers, but that pales in comparison to trump. i think voters will hold a little bit of disappointment in the whole e-mail scandal, but put that alongside the just great endangered threat of trump becoming the president of our country? i think that's an easy choice for voters actually. >> now, let me go back to you, phillip, on the elizabeth warren question. because she's been ramping up her attacks on trump. >> donald trump was drooling over the idea of a housing meei elementdown because it meant he could buy up more property on the cheap. what kind of a man does that? what kind of a man roots for people to get thrown out of their house? >> could we see a clinton/warren

ticket? it's a strange year. could we see elizabeth warren on the ticket? >> we certainly could. i think one of the things that will give pause for hillary clinton is the fact that warren is a very effective senator. she would lose a spot in the senate and she can't do much if she doesn't have control of the senate. so i think that will give her because. but we'll see. obviously elizabeth warren feels to the same folks that bernie sanders appeals to. and if clinton is trying to unify her party, that may help her do that more quickly. >> and amy, will america support two women at the top of the ticket and what does warren mean for conservative forces and for the trump party now, the republicans? >> possibly. i could possibly go for a two warren ticket. but elizabeth warren doesn't help hillary clinton when it

comes to the electoral college map. massachusetts is very likely to vote for hillary clinton. but i think conservatives would love to see elizabeth warren on this ticket ideologically, that that would be a very sharp contrast with conservative ideas. >> let me go paback to you, tamara. paul manafort, trump's campaign chair, said this about donald trump when he was talking about what he might choose as a running mate. says he needs an experienced person to come the pado part of doesn't want to come. he sees himself more as the chairman of the board than even the ceo. what does that say about how trump views the presidencpresid? have you ever heard anyone describe -- running for president saying there are parts of the job he doesn't want to do and he's more of the chairman than the qvc so you won't be the

chief executive? what does this even mean? >> it underscores what so many of us have money. he doesn't take this seriously. he's running as if he's running to be the figure head of the country, not the an actual leader of the free world. it just underscores that he doesn't at that time sacrosanct responsibility of being president of united states serious enough to talk about doing the full job. >> i'm not so sure about that. >> so explain that. >> i think what he was saying is that he intends to delegate and, yes, he's a business person, he's outside of politics so he doesn't know the political process, working on capitol hill, sending over your em emissaries to work -- >> he doesn't want to, not that he doesn't know. >> he does not like politicking.

>> but his chairman of the campaign saying he doesn't like to go to the senate. >> our current president doesn't like to. >> but this is his chairman saying -- >> according to the "new york times," obama not liking to do that part of his job. >> but they don't -- his spokesman says this is how we're going to -- >> you have this bone and you're not going to let it go. >> i have a quote and i'm not going to let it go. but hold on a minute. we'll be back. tamara, phillip, amy, stay right here. lots more ahead. later -- one-on-one with lavar burton. why the new roots is more relevant than ever in the age of obama. as you'll see, when shoppers add an item to their jet carts, they automatically shrink the prices of millions of other products.

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i'd love to debate bernie. he's a dream. i think it would get very high ratings. it should be in a big arena somewhere and we could have a lot of fun. i would love to. >> it would have been yuge! but donald trump says it won't happen. but a lot of people are still asking what it would have looked like. at times trump and sanders can sound very similar. >> we cannot the continue these disastrous trade agreements like nafta. >> nafta has been one of the great economic disasters. >> without being dependent on wall street and big money interests. >> these guys are all taking their money from special interests. >> we are not going to cut social security. >> social security we're going to save it.

>> in terms of judgment something clearly lacking. >> bernie said bad judgment and it's true. >> but of course there are more differences than similarities and each candidate has been more than willing to attack each other. >> we're going to run against crazy bernie. >> he lies august tll the time. >> socialist/economist. >> he lies. sfwr amy holmes is back me and i want it bring in joy reid, host of a.m. joy. joy, could this debate have actually benefited trump or did he think this was a loser from the start? >> it would have been a free cal pain ad toward the end of

getting him back on the air before i think that's important because he doesn't have the ability to buy more air time and it would have allowed himself to contrast with donald trump and in a lot of ways to embarrass donald trump. bernie sanders would have been a up tougher debate than the republicans he was debating. >> but would it also have hurt hillary clinton, overshadowed hillary clinton? >> right. i think this could have been, would have been, the greatest debate you'll never see in 2016. the person who loses is hillary clinton. it puts her in the thoez bleed section and would give some voters the impression that we're already in the general and it's trump versus sanders. >> and the reality is -- i agree, i think it would have been bad for hillary clinton because it would have marginalized her, but i actually think it would have hurt bernie sanders, too, because bernie sanders matches him on the issues where trump is strong if a mainstream accepsense. things like nafta. he could have challenged trump

not only on his authenticity it, but the way he conducts himself. >> the problem i have is the optics. i was in debates 2004, many debates. i don't think you can button hole trump like that. because trump is very glib and the authenticity of sanders, he would play on. i think trump would have used to try to appeal to some of sanders voters. 17% have been in one poll of bernie sanders saying they will vote for trump a lot more said hillary. but he would have tried to say i'm your best alternative and played on to bernie sanders. it's rigged, you were robbed and try to -- i think that's where trump could have gone. >> i agree completely and that was actually in trump's statement. that he said that the democratic party system is rigged and there was a poll just in west have a have alone that 44% of bernie voters said they would vote for donald trump.

so this could have been an opportunity for him to make that pitch to bernie sanders supporters and also to tell them, and he's said this in the past that bernie sanders should go ahead and run as an independent candidate. >> and that was the reason i think that clinton world was really angry about the way that sanders would elevate himself to almost the general election candidate again. i disagree that it would be all that helpful to touchdown except for what you just said. donald trump does appeal in some ways to sanders voters more than hillary does. there now, here's the other part of that that you referred to, the discount to actual dislike from some of the clinton and democratic establishment of why sanders even agreed to this in the first place. isn't this really about goals? if the goal is for sanders to become a major player in the party since it does not look feasible that he could win the

nomination, wouldn't he have been better to have taken the noble thing of i'm not going to debate when it was offered and i am going to respect the process of the democratic nominee because it's about something bigger than me. because now it could also be looked in some circles that, oh, you went out there for what reason and trump played you. he put it out there and then snatched the carpet back. >> and the thing that has been consistent throughout bernie sanders' run is the fact that he has maintained this distance from the democratic party and show nothing signs that he will put the interests of the party ahead of its open. >> because he's a registered independent. so i see this as a benefit for bernie sanders when he goes back to the senate which is i think where he's headed, i don't think he's getting the democratic nomination, that he's a registered independent who caucuses with democrats. now he will have a lot more power to bring. >> but isn't that the question, joy reid, that i certainly want

to ask if i can't get it, you will? bernie sanders, since you have been on the debates, on the platform, are you going back to the senate as an independent or democrat? >> and i think that is one of the questions that the caucus is asking. because bernie sanders will not the go back with influence if they believe that he he fought the part theity even to the detriment of the nominee against donald trump. if it's believed that he had his own self did sb self-interests that ahead of ultimately defeating trump, i think he would go back to the senate weakened. >> but let's remember where he was when this process started. nowheresville. he was a fringe candidate that -- >> no doubt about it. but if you're going to have influence and power, you have to have -- >> bernie sanders was a punch line before this started. now he goes back to the senate much stronger. >> but he goes back with the village of ralph nader or image

of spoiler, i don't think he gains popularity. >> we're almost out of time. there was a guy that got a huge vote that is -- did you ever hear of ross perot? amy holmes, jay roooy joy reid . catch a.m. joy coming up at 10:00. and still to come, what polls reveal about the obama factor. we'll hear from the 2012 campaign manager next. ♪ staying in rhythm... it's how i try to live... how i stay active. so i need nutrition... that won't weigh me down. for the nutrition you want without the calories you don't... try boost® 100 calories. each delicious snack size drink gives you... 25 vitamins and minerals and 10 grams of protein. and it's available in two new flavors, vanilla caramel and double chocolate fudge. i'm not about to swim in the slow lane.

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obama had just a 40% job approval rating in our nbc news poll. it's now up to 51%, the highest since his second inauguration. gallup shows his job approval is at 52%. compare that to the other two term presidents at this point. president bush's rating was just 28%. president barack oba president clinton's 57%. and president reagan's, 48%. president obama has already started to go after trump, saying world leaders are watching the election closely. >> i think it's fair to say that they are surprised buyer ty th p republican nominee.

they're rattle bhiy him and because the lot of his proposals display ignorance of world affairs or a cavalier attitude or and interest in getting tweets and headlines. >> joining me now is jim massena, campaign manager for president obama's 2012 re-election. thank you for being here, jim. >> good to be with you. good to see you. >> good to see you. now, when it comes to the 2016 race, how important are the president's strong approval ratings. >> well, they're a real asset to the democratic nominee for president. campaigns do four things, raise money, pervade voters, turn them out and president obama is the best at all. and he has a strong record, rising approval rating and it's just another reason why we feel

good going into the general election. >> will the president be more focused on uniting democrats or attacking donald trump? >> well, i think the president is clearly going to unite the democratic party. he's talked about that recently. he views it as one of his roles and as you know, he's the most popular national democrat among the party faithful. but as the clip you showed clearly shows, the president is also going to call some balls and strikes. he will tell people the way he sees it. and he's already started doing that and i think he'll do that throughout the entire general election. >> you're talking about he's already started doing it at this year's white house correspondents' dinner, he actually mocked trump. watch this. >> they say donald lacks the foreign policy experience to be president. but in fairness, he has spent years meeting with leaders from around the world. miss sweden, miss argentina.

and one area where donald's experience could be invaluable and that's closing guantanamo because trump knows a thing or two about running waterfront properties in to the ground. >> do you think the president's very effective use of humor and could this be a real weapon in the general election? >> absolutely. there will be so much negative campaigning on both sides of this election. so much anger that you've seen in the primaries spill over to the general. that sometimes humor is the most valuable weapon. and the president has a unique ability to do that. the other thing people are for getting is president obama is the most successful social media campaigner in history of american politics. and that ability, cut through using humor, use you power, using inspiration on social media will be a real weapon

here. >> now, you said and i want to quote it right, but you said back in february you were rooting for trump to get the gop nomination. in fact you said every morning you wake up and say god, give me donald trump. are you still so confident, jim? >> oh, absolutely. look, as you said i prayed for over a year that god would grant us donald trump and turns out that god loves me. and part of why i wanted that is because you can't get a more clear difference between the democrat and republican party than donald trump. donald trump's record with swing voters in this election, with women, with african-americans, with latinos, there is a poll out this week saying that donald trump has an 87% disapproval rating with latinos in florida. you can't get 87% of americans to agree on anything. and yet they agree that donald trump is wrong for this country. and that kind of contrast will

really, really help democrats and hillary in the fall. >> let's me ask you this. in 2014 on my syndicated radio show, i asked president obama, who was my guest that day, about candidates, democratic candidates, who didn't want them to campaign for him. here's what he said. >> a lot of the states that are contested this time are states that i didn't win, and so some of the candidates there, you know, it is difficult for them to have me in the state because the republicans will use that to try to fan republican turnout. >> now, this it ti time around, democrats be more anxious to have the president campaigning for them and for the nominee of the party? >> absolutely. just look at his numbers in these swing states.

president obama understands that if the republicans get in there, they will go break all the things he spent 7 1/2 years fixing. and so he's part of this whole thing and it's going to be be on the trail and will be helpful and the united democratic party has said this is our president, we're proud of him, his record is something we can be strong about. and we're going to put him on the trail and let him go after it. and i think that's a great thing for democrats. >> jim massena, thank you for your time. >> thanks, sir. talk to you soon. straight ahead -- returning to roots. the politics nation interview with lavar burton, talking about why the new roots should matter to everyone. (man) hmm. what do you think? ♪ (stranger) good mornin'! ♪ (store p.a.) attention shoppers, there's a lost couple in the men's department.

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for the top spot at the box office. and the first apple 2 computers hit the market. also that year, nearly 85% of american households were glued to their tvs for an epic event, a historic cal portrait of slavy in the mini series "roots." >> tonight we present "roots." the true story alex haley uncovered in his 12 year search-his ancestry. after two years of production, we plenresent it thissing so g epic motion picture. spanning years, continent to continent, slavery to freedom. sf >> the finale was the most watched tv show ever at that time and it helped change how

americans thought about race and about the past. and now nearly 40 years later, the history channel is updating "roots" with a 2 1 century remake. joining me is the star of the original "roots" and one of the executive producers of the reboot, lavar burton. thanks for being here. >> it's really a pleasure. >> the pleasure is mine. the original series was so legendary. why do a remake is this. >> i am not a fan of remakes. i'm really not. and i did not ever believe that this would be done. i didn't think it should be done. but mark woolford, son of the executive producer of the original "roots" convinced knmet needed to be done. i got a call from him and i asked hip the same question, why

are you redoing "roots." and he shared with me a story in which he showed the original to his children and they watched it, but they complained an awful lot. they felt it was dated, the makeup was bad, which it was, and they said we get why "roots" is important, but it's like your music, it doesn't speak to us. so mark realized if he was going to get his kids to watch the similar work of his father, their grandfather, he was going to need to remake this for a new generation in a story-telling style that they can actually relate to. >> now, also in that same vein, we're in the age of obama. we're in the age of a lot of protests, some of which i'm very involved with. where in the context of now does "roots" become as important as it was almost 40 years ago? >> 40 years ago, "roots" really

did change our frame of reference in this nation, what we're talking about when we talk about slavery in america. before "the roo"roots," it was to say it was an economic begin that helped through labor and propelled meamerica. after "roots," you could not think about slavery without thinking about the human cost. it put a face on the institution. and it was kind of like pulling a scab off of a wound and it brought a lot of stuff to the surface on both sides of the color line. and i'm really hoping that this time around 40 years later, yes, in the age of obama, but i don't think we're in any way shape or form living in a post-racial america. there is still a lot of work we have to do. you don't have to look very far to see the investigation damave

still in play in this nation today. so i'm hoping we can revisit this conversation at a critical time absence some of the shame, right, that black people associate with being enslaved and some of the guilt that white people associate with our slave-holding past, that we can really just sit down at the table, create a safe space for everybody to be a part of the conversation. and really acknowledge our slave-holding past as a nation. only then can we begin to move on. >> why should people that are not of african descent watch this? >> number one, depending upon what historians you talk to, only about between 5% to 15% of those ships that left the african coast arrived here in america. so where did those other ships go? they went to the caribbean, south measuramerica, europe. the modern world was built on the backs of black people. so if you are alive and a

citizen in this country today, if you are participating in this democracy, then "roots oig is your story whether you're black are or white or somewhere this between on that color spectrum. "roots" is your story, too. >> even godown to the language. one of the things that really got me was when you look at some of the expressions, when i saw the remake which i've already seen now and it comes on starting memorial day, sold down the river was referred to, slaves sold down the mississippi to plantation. we were talking about not knowing how it came from. grandfathered in was from laws after the civil war to keep freed slaves from voting. peanut gallery came from the days of segregation. we use this language without knowing their origin. >> absolutely. and so the links between our past and our present are really clear. and unless we really resolve a

lot of these issues in our present, we will they successfully get to a future that really came,s in on the promise of america. >> what are the most emotional scenes -- one of the most emotional scenes when you played in "roots," where you were beaten into changing your name. >> accepting that new name. >> watch this. [ screaming in pain ] >> in our name is toby. i want to hear you say it. >> kunta quinta. >> you were 19 years old when you played that. what was going through your mind, what did playing that scene mean to you as a 19-year-old? >> it's funny, rev.

from the first time i read the scenes for the purposes of auditions, when i read those initial signs, i knew, i knew who that kid was. i knew what he was thinking, i knew what he was feeling. and i was really just looking for the truth of the moment. it's interesting. it's been poecinted out to me tt in the original version, he takes about ten lashes. and in this new one, that scene goes on for about 20 lashes longer. >> wow. now, did you give any advice to the young man playing your character now? >> he didn't need any advice from me. he had it well in hand before i arrived on the set. he is an amazing actor and a remarkable humming. i could not think of anyone better to hand this role over to. he is quite extraordinary.

>> now, one of the other things i want to talk to you about for a minute, because you phrased your heritage, your background back to sub sahara africa. i once was traced -- a newspaper in new york traced my hair damage where my great grandfather was a slave owned by the family of strong thurman. >> is that right? >> why is it important to trace our background and know our roots so to speak? >> this is a part of our story that has allege ways alluded us. that's part of the miracle alex haley was able to accomplish back in the '70s, creating that linkage. with the human gienome project, we ask just spit in a tube and get the results of where our dna shows up on the planet. p that's essential information in terms of putting the pieces

together of our own personal stories. it's a miracle to me really that we have access now to this information. ahead -- more of al sharpton's interview with lavar burton. you show up. you stay up. you listen. you laugh. you worry. you do whatever it takes to take care of your family. and when it's time to plan for your family's future, we're here for you. we're legalzoom, and for over 10 years we've helped families just like yours with wills and living trusts. so when you're ready, start with us. doing the right thing has never been easier. legalzoom. legal help is here. hi! hey! i've made plans for later in case this date doesn't go well. same here. wouldn't it be great if everyone said what they meant?

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welcome back to politics nation. now more of al sharpton's interview with lavar burton. >> i want to bring you to some of the issues today because you said something, you shared that was something that is near and dear to me. you talked about policing and how you deal with when you're stopped by a policeman. >> law enforcement. >> and you had the conversation with your son. >> and my son's crew with all of the fellows that he used to run

with when he was coming of age and turning 16 and getting ready to drive and be out there. >> what did you tell them? >> i taught him my ritual. and i taught him that when you are stopped, not if, because that's a foregone conclusion, when you are stopped, i want you to do what it is i do, i take off my sunglasses, i put them on the seat next to me, i take off my hat, i roll down the window, i take my hands and i put them on the driver's side door. because i want that officer approaching to be as relaxed as possible. this is a survival skill, rev, that i have taught my son and my son's friends. >> wow. let me go to something else that you've been a fierce advocate of and that's education. >> absolutely. >> you have really worked in that area. you relaunched "reading rainbow" for the digital age. >> that's right. >> and you worked with the white house. do you look at education as a

civil rights issue? >> it absolutely is. education is a leveler of the playing field. in my opinion, it is difficult it if not impossible to achieve your highest level of potential unless you can read in at least one language. for me it begins with literacy. literacy and affinity and affection for the written word. if you can read in at least one language, then you can educate yourself. you know that. and no one can pull the room over your eyes, in one can tell you that the sky is purple. you can pick up a book, find out the truth for yourself. >> and the challenges when we look at the percentage of fourth graders that are not reading proficiency -- >> at a fourth grade level. >> -- 82% of african-americans hot proficient. 79% hispanic, 54% white. that gap is real.nhot proficien. 79% hispanic, 54% white. that gap is real.ot proficient. 79% hispanic, 54% white. that gap is real. >> the gap is absolutely real.

a child not exposed to a proliferation of words in their early formative years, they just fall behind and there is a deficiency in their skills and their ability to communicate. so these are issues that we can actually do something about. i'm a firm believer in utilizing this technology, this very engaging technology that we all want to be on, these tablet computers. we can each our kids anything we want. all we need to do is put this information in the form of story telling, right, every culture on the planet has tradition of story telling. we embed whatever information we want on story telling, put it on tablets, employ some gaming mechanics, leveling up, rewards, we can turn this around. we just have to have the will and desire to do it. >> let's ask you one more question. diversity in tv and movies. 40 years later, how codo you se that issue? >> still very much an issue. certainly better.

we have a new generation of filmmakers both in front of and behind the camera. is their parity? absolutely not. same with women. look, all of these old dinosaur industries of communication, right, music, film and television, finally books, they have all gone through this transition from analog to digital. and until these gatekeepers, right, that generation of predominantly white males, until that generation is gone and new blood moves in, we really won't see parity in terms of diversity and the diversity of stories being told and the talent this front of and behind the camera. people tend to do business with people that they feel comfortable with and who look like them. once we get more diversity in

those green light positions, then we'll see a significant real change. >> the new "roots" starts on monday, memorial day, on the history channel. that var burton, thank you so much for being with us. >> always a pleasure. you're watching politics nation oig with al sharpton, only on msnbc. ♪ try your favorite ranch with a fresh taste so crisp, you'll be surprised it doesn't crunch.

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finally this morning, a few thoughts on this memorial day. tomorrow the nation will pause to remember all those heros who lost their lives defending america. that includes many who are denigrated today, like muslims who made the ultimate sacrifice while in uniform. tomorrow we also honor people like the tuskegee air thmen who

heroism was overlooked in the past. but the heros we lost overseas did give their live so is we can protect our children here at home. so this memorial day, let's also remember those who died from the violence of guns in our streets and in our homes. every single year over 17,000 children are shot, nearly 3,000 of them are killed. i've been to too many funerals with tiny little coffins. if we don't speak up, take action, and honor those we lost, these tragedies will continue. let's remember that this memorial day, as well. remember those, all of those, that gave their lives and remember what they gave their lives for, so we do great honor to them by continuing to build the nation. they sacrificed all on behalf of. that does it for me.

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