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whatn your wallet? hi, i'm richard lui at msnbc news headquarters in new york city with some breaking news this hour, 3:00 eastern time right now. we're getting a statement from melania trump just into msnbc and nbc's katy tur is here with us with those very details. we're just getting these words in from her. >> melania trump just releasing a statement coming in through the campaign, saying that the words that my husband used are unacceptable and offensive to me. this does not represent the man that i know. he has the heart and mind of a leader. i hope people will accept his apology as i have and focus on the important issues facing our nation and the world. these 2005 audio recordings coming eight months after donald trump married melania, his third wife. >> right. >> and while she was pregnant

with their child, barron trump. this is a scandal and a controversy that is unfolding by the minute. republican leader, republican senator, republican congressman, republican voices coming out one after another and either condemning donald trump or calling for him to step aside. many, many of whom say that they're just, frankly, not going to vote for him. kelly ayotte even saying that she's going to write in governor pence when she goes into the ballot booth in november. this is a snowballing controversy that is not losing steam, despite the fact that donald trump himself came out with an apology at midnight last night. we have never seen donald trump apologize, in the 70 years of life he's had and all of the years that we've seen him in the public eye, this is the first public known apology that we've seen donald trump give, and frankly, on the campaign trail, he's bragged about how he's not needed to apologize for anything. he's attacked gold star

families, he's attacked a miss universe pageant member, he's attacked a federal judge, claiming that his heritage, his mexican heritage, means that they couldn't be unbiased in a lawsuit that was surrounding donald trump's own university. this is the first time we've seen him apologize for anything he has said. this statement that he gave last night was 90 seconds long and he quickly pivoted to attacking hillary clinton and bill clinton for their marriage, calling bill clinton an abuser and saying hillary clinton only supported him during that time. >> a very busy 12 to 18 hours so far here. and again, getting that statement from melania trump, just coming into us. katy tur with that. and let's bring in now nbc's hallie jackson at trump tower. it's been a busy day there as well, hallie. you've been reporting throughout the hours of folks coming and going and then we have this trump from melania.

>> reporter: yeah, i mean, it's like a news avalanche here. and remember, we don't often see statements from melania trump, as you know. this is something we heard a little bit about when there were some questions about her immigration status, but she is not a very high-level presence on the campaign trail, in the sense that she doesn't go out with her husband to a lot of campaign events. she has not been a surrogate. she has said she prefers to stay home here and spend time with their son. but the big question mark was how she was going to react, and the other question mark is how ivanka trump is going to respond to this, as well. because ivanka has, unlike melania, has been a presence on the campaign trail, particularly in recent weeks, on a more local level, trying to get out trump's messaging on his child care policy, trying to combat some of the narrative that has developed about trump's problems with women voters, as has been reflected in polling. i want to share a little bit of news for you, as well. we've been talking about what does this mean for the trump campaign, the political fallout here, and specifically the money fallout, right? we have confirmed a report that the victory fund, the joint

fund-raising effort between donald trump's campaign and the rnc has put a stop trailer on male -- certain male production, male projects, and that is because they are trying to figure out the right messaging at this point. so there is clearly a sense that the republican establishment apparatus is in, if not crisis mode, at least figure it out mode right now. i'm told by a source that victory is continuing its fund-raising efforts. there are still plans for a dallas fund-raiser tuesday to raise money for victory, but there is an acknowledgement that donors are angry. some have been yanked out. some have dropped out. some have, you know, this is having repercussions within the campaign and within the fund-raising apparatus. >> it certainly is huddle time, no doubt. let's bring in moderator of "meet the press" and nbc news political director, chuck todd. chuck, what does this tell you about what is happening inside the campaign? we get this statement, top of the hour, right, from melania trump. >> well, look, i get the attempt at strategy here, which is, the

person that people should -- that should be the most offended by what donald trump did is his wife, since they were newlyweds at the time, and in fact, she was pregnant at time that this occurred. so clearly, the hope by the campaign is that her saying she's disappointed and she's offended, but she's forgiven him, will somehow be enough. but if they want to make that credible, i think a paper statement isn't going to be enough. and again, trump has only apologized and even what's mentioned in the statement is he's only apologized for the words, not for the sentiment, not for the action that he bragged about, which is, he can say and do whatever he wants, because of his star power. and no one will tell him no. that -- it's the action that he describes that he is yet to apologize for or answer for, and

the trump campaign has not dealt with. and that is, i think, obviously, that is the -- what is incredibly offensive beyond the other stuff that is offensive to so many people. >> and many of the critics watching this, chuck, are saying you did not apologize to the women that are subject to the acts that he was alluding to in his -- >> he didn't even apologize to his own wife in that video statement. >> that's a good point. and we're seeing the word twice here, katy, "apology," right from melania. she use as the word "apology," she uses the word "apology." would ivanka come forward? is that a possibility, too, here? >> that is the question. we are waiting to find out if any of the kids come forward. we so far have not heard from them. allie batali, our embed at trump tower, did just see don jr. and kellyanne conway going up in the elevator, presume appably up to donald trump. but we have not heard from the kids. and they have been so far his strongest supporters, his strongest allies. when people question donald trump, they question his

temperament, they question who he is as a man. oftentimes, you'll see him point to his kids and say, how could somebody be so bad. look at the kids he's raised. they're great kids, they're successful, they're well spoken, they're polite. and they have done a lot to, you know, bolster and gird this idea that he is not somebody, this caricature that you see on these reality shows, that behind the scenes, he is somebody different. he's somebody who is a family man, who cares deeply about his loved ones. but we are seeing more and more of these rumors be, you know, certified, validated by his own words. and this was not donald trump appearing on howard stern and being as he says, an entertainer. this is donald trump having a private conversation with somebody in a bus, that was picked up by a hot mike. and donald trump knew he had a microphone on him. i spoke with somebody who worked

on "the apprentice" who said that this was not uncommon, that he would talk like this about members of the cast and crew, female members, judging them about -- by whether he would want to sleep with them, have sex with them. and that always, he knew that he was wearing a hot mike. he was aware of it. he didn't do anything to censor himself. and i think chuck is absolutely right to brick up the fact that he is only apologizing for the words, not the sentiment, and he is not apologizing to his wife, melania. most people, when they are caught doing something while they are married, saying something inappropriate, especially in a public way, the first apology they would give would be to their spouse. and when you're a political figure, you make that a very public apology. >> which he did not do in the 90 seconds, as you and chuck are saying here. and in the statement, i guess, from melania, and i'll read that again that you were just reading to us here, katy, from melania trump coming out today, her statement on the situation in

the last 12 to 24 hours. she says, quote, the words my husband used are unacceptable and offensive to me. this does not represent the man that i know. he has the heart and mind of a leader. i hope people will accept his apology, as i have, and focus on the important issues facing our nation and the world, end quote. coming from melania trump. this in response to that tape and we were showing some of it there on "access hollywood" again, caught on mike, that has been played so many times so far. i do want to bring in john harwood, cnbc chief washington correspondent. john, so many things happening here. what are you seeing, at least from where you're at and the folks you've been speaking, number one. number two, hallie was alluding to this, fund-raising, right? they're going to take a stback right now, they've got to huddle, figure out what the right words are. >> the republican party is in a nightmare scenario at this point. they're very deep into the campaign, just a month left.

there's really nothing they can force donald trump to do, as the republican nominee. he appears to have lost his ability to any possibility of winning the election, at least, that's how republicans strategists see it. and now the question is, how do other republicans protect themselves? you've seen a cascade of republican members today saying that donald trump should step out of the race, that they're not supporting him, that mike pence should be the nominee. on the other hand, i had a message a few moments ago from vin webber, former member of congress allied with newt gingrich and reince priebus, saying mike pence should step aside for his own sake, because mike pence is suffering a humiliation now, given husband background as a conservative christian. so it's a very difficult situation. we don't know exactly what's going on inside of trump tower. i just got a note a moment ago from jason miller, a spokesman for the campaign, asked him about some chatter that kellyanne conway, the campaign

manager, might resign. he said, like all of your previous intel, that is false. so the word is that she's not quitting and at last night, when i exchanged messages with steve bannon, the ceo, asked, is there any possibility of donald trump quitting this race, he said, "are you serious?" and rogerstoroger stone, another ally said, "no, there is no possibility." and that's come out of donald trump's own mouth today, in the "wall street journal" and "washington post". >> so standing strong, at least from all the surrogates of the campaign. i want to bring in mark murray, nbc news's senior political editor there in st. louis ahead of the debate there. mark, it's been said a lot about opo research being dropped at the right time, there could be more and this is very unfortuito unfortuitous, clearly, for the trump campaign here ahead of what's going to be happening where you are at. and the question might be, how are they going to be handling this very topic during the debate itself? >> reporter: yeah, and so much of it actually is up to donald

trump. and that will be the key moment. i'm certain this issue will be one of the first questions, if not the very first one, and how donald trump responds and how tlk reacts will be so big. we ended up reading the statement that melania trump put out. and what ended up striking me is melania trump saying, i want america to please accept my husband's apology. how donald trump communicates that tomorrow night here in st. louis, how hillary clinton ends up responding, you know, we've seen republicans break away so far. i think that tomorrow night in the aftermath of that's even going to be more important to kind of gauge republicans, their chances up and down the ticket. this is going to be a big moment tomorrow night, richard. >> i want to go to jacob rascon as well. thank you for that, mark, jacob rascon, who's in wisconsin, where donald trump was supposed to appear as well as pence. and we know, the headline is here, jacob, they're not going to be there. this as those who are attending this rally were so hoping to see them. and then you had to, i know,

explain to them, no, they will not be there. and instead, it's not going to be the headliners. >> yeah, that's because we just learned that morning pence was not coming. a lot of people were coming to see trump, but then learned that trump would not be here, had to learn through us that he would not be here. of course, they were disappointed. in fact, many said they were disappointed specifically in paul ryan and other republican leaders who were distancing themselves from trump's comments, saying that they should stick together, just like, in their words, the democrats do. i would say that many of them did say they wanted to stay specifically to heckle some of the republicans that are on stage. right now we have lieutenant governor of wisconsin. and some of them have. we've heard brief interruptions, chants of trump's name, one man stood up and yelled, "you uninvited trump" and he was angry about it, another woman yelled back and they started arguing, there were brief chants of, we want trump. that's the scene of today. what we were going to have, what

some people thought we were going to have was trump and priebus and ryan all on the stage together for the first time. it was supposed to be a big unity moment. instead, you have anything but. >> jacob, thank you for that. chuck, as we look at this, this particular topic is one that some have said, that could be talked about at water coolers around the country in different ways, and other comments that have come out from the trump campaign and donald trump himself have been before. it is simpler, it's more basic, if you will, it's more offensive in so many different ways to those who listen to it. who does this message, tloef controversy reach differently than previous comments that he has made. and what does it mean to the potential polling that you've been watching so carefully on women voters and others? >> richard, it comes across as one of the most authentic statements we've heard from donald trump, authentic offensive statements. and the reason i say that is because the times that he talked -- when he offended mexicans and he attacked these other folks, there was always -- he always seemed to leave open

with his supporters this idea, oh, he was just saying what he thought they had to hear, but there was always that aspect under the surface, that he didn't believe half the stuff he was saying. this is so much different, because it's caught in a moment of -- it's a private moment. so there's no question this is who he really -- it's no question it's who he really is or it's revealing of part of his character of who he might be and who he really is behind the scenes when there isn't a camera or he isn't in public. and that's why i think it is even more damaging than some of the other things, because on the surface, you would say, well, why did it take until now, for instance, for kelly ayotte or so-and-so, or you pick the republican office holder to say, okay, this is it, this is the last straw? i think a lot of republicans i talked to always assumed that they didn't -- that trump himself didn't believe half of the offensive things that he said. that trump was somehow stereotyping his own supporters

and just saying what they wanted to believe. >> this is different, because it felt so authentically offensive. that it was not -- you couldn't somehow explain it away, as him just playing to a crowd or any of that business. as for the polling, look, he's going to crater with women. right now he does, had been sort of holding up among women without a college degree. white women without a college college degree. i don't think he keeps all of them. i think the idea that people who were with him before this will stick. i think with maybe 80% of his supporters, that's true. i think he may lose even more support among women. >> best team around on this breaking news on melania trump and her statement coming out saying she will accept donald trump's apology that he gave, that 90-second video last night, overnight. i can't thank you enough, chuck todd, moderator of "meet the press." of course, you can catch him tomorrow on "meet the press." also nbc news's political director. also, hallie jackson, thank you

so much. we had mark murray, jacob rascon, katy tur, thank all of you. donald trump saying that there is zero clans that he'll quit for the race for president despite all that has happened. we'll get reaction from the clinton campaign about that, after this. what are you doing? geing your quarter back. fountains don't earn interest, david. you know i work at ally. i was being romantic. you know what i find romantic? a bust annual percentage yield that's what i find romantic. this is literally throwing your money away. i think it's over there. that way? yeah, a little further up. what year was that quarter? what year is that one? '98 tha's the one. you got it! nothing stops us from doing right by our customers. ally. do irit. let's get out of that water. g new cars. ally. do irit. you're smart. you already knew that. but it's also great for finding the perfect used car. you'll see what a fair price is, and you can connect with a truecar certified dealer. now you're even smarter. this is truecar.

more reaction on the statement made by donald trump and that "access hollywood" video, where he talks about groping and assaulting women. now, this hour, breaking, a statement from melania trump coming into us within this last 20 minutes. in it she says this, quote, the words my husband used are unacceptable and offensive to me. this does not represent the man that i know. he has the heart and mind of a

leader. i hope people will accept his apology, she alluding to apology on video at midnight eastern time. she goes on to say, as i have and focus on the important issues facing our nation and the world. well, with that just happening within the last 15 or 20 minutes, it's the clinton campaign now as they look to hit the headlines that have come out on trump, hitting him hard for his past comments on women. take a listen. >> pregnancy is a wonderful thing for the husband. it's certainly an inconvenience for a business. the look obviously matters. like, you wouldn't have your job if you weren't beautiful. i moved on her like [ bleep ]. i couldn't get there. and she was married. she's totally changed her look. >> mr. trump, women are going to be the reason you're not elected to be president. >> all right. that's a brand-new ad there from the clinton campaign. joining us now from st. louis is msnbc's kasie hunt. kasie, you're there right before this debate. we couldn't add anymore headlines for you to cover here at this moment. we have a statement coming out

from melania trump. any reaction from the clinton campaign there on the ground that you've been hearing? >> reporter: so far, richard, i think that the clinton campaign is trying to restrain its glee, is probably how i would put it. they are being very careful to, for the most part, let donald trump do the talking on this. you did have a very, very brief statement from spokeswoman christina reynolds last night, calling these comments or horrific. then you played that video that we know the clinton campaign has been talking to its supporters outside of the campaign, saying, we're going to let donald trump's words speak for themselves. and as you noted, melania trump coming out, having to talk about this. of course, you know another person who's had an experience of being a political wife, embarrassed by the conduct of their husband, and that's hillary clinton. so kind of an interesting day here in clinton world. the question, of course, being, how will this play out on the debate stage tomorrow night?

we know that clinton has been spending four days preparing for this debate, holding those mock sessions, studying policy. they are preparing this time around to be ready for those jobs that bill clinton's past. and that coming out of donald trump's comments, suggesting he was going to go there in the wake of this "access hollywood" video being posted. i think they're going to try to make it look like they're taking the high road anytime sympathetic like this comes up. >> kasie hunt there in st. louis for us. lots to watch there. also joining us from st. louis, democratic congressman, william lacy clay, a hillary clinton supporter. so, congressman, if donald trump comes after hillary clinton based on what came out in the last 12 hours here as a defense tactic, how do you think secretary clinton should react? >> well, i think you are seeing now how his own party is reacting. you have quite a few of them

abandoning ship. or asking that he resign or drop out of this campaign. and so i think that as michelle obama says, when they go low, we go high. and i think hillary clinton will do exactly that. she doesn't have to get down to mr. trump's level. if you -- if they -- what he described yesterday, to me, was the description of a -- of the crime of sexual assault. and it tells me that he is totally unfit to serve as president of the united states. >> what do you make of the statement that came from melania trump, that we just got in, in the last 25 minutes, where she is saying, i quote here, i hope people will accept his apology, end quote. that's just in part of her statement here.

because in his quote/unquote apology video, he never addresses melania and melania was his wife when these statements were made. >> well, it's apparently that melania is trying to salvage what's left of his campaign for president and, of course, she's going to stick by her man. but it still, it's no excuse for what was described, what he described to me, it points to his whole persona of privilege, of power, of taking advantage of people, of even white privilege. and so i think it -- he -- she is trying to salvage what's left of his -- of this campaign. >> from the democratic perspective in the hillary clinton campaign, as you think about this congressman, one of the headlines leading up to this

weekend were statements made by secretary clinton, supposedly, a transcript coming out of her statements during wall street fund-raisers, which were, some have called it anti-populist, if you will, addressing those of the same space that you were just talking about, from the democratic perspective, it's got to be big sigh of relief. >> and i'm more alarmed the about mr. trump still believing that the five central park figures, who were falsely accusing the victim of raping a jogger, are still guilty. when dna evidence has proven that they are not guilty. and that the -- and that the real culprit has been captured and charged with the crime. and so i'm more alarmed by what donald trump said than i am about what hillary has said in a speech that she was paid for. >> well, there are a lot of larms ringing, not only for you, congressman, but certainly in the trump campaign headquarters

today, here in new york city. from the great city of st. louis, always a favorite place for me, thank you so much, congressman william lacy clay. appreciate it. >> thank you for having me. we're also following breaking developments this hour, a different storm, if you will, hurricane matthew, the weekend storm made landfall as a category 1 hurricane in south carolina. that happened just this afternoon. coastal areas are bracing for severe flooding. we have the latest. for lower back pain sufferers, the search for relief often leads here. introducing drug-free aleve direct therapy. a high intensity tens device that uses technology once only in doctors' offices. for deep penetrating relief at the source. new aledirect therapy.

i'm not a customer, but i'm calling about that edit scorecard. (to dog)give it. sure! it's free for everyone. oh! well that's nice! and checking your score won't hurt your credit. oh! (to dog)i'm so proud of you. well thank you. even if you're not a customer. scorecard at discover.com. i moved on her, actually. you know, she was out of palm beach, i moved on her and she failed. i'll admit it. i did try to [ bleep ] her. she was married. nancy, i moved on her very heavily. in fact, i took her out furniture shopping. she wanted to get some furniture, i said, i'll show you where they have some nice furniture. i moved on her like a [ bleep ]. i couldn't get there. she was married. now all of a sudden i see her, she's now got the big phony [ bleep ], whatever, she's totally changed her look.

>> that video coming out from about ten years ago, and then donald trump reacts to that. at around the midnight hour, early morning on a saturday, donald trump responds and he issues this statement, about 90 seconds long, in response to what he said and the reaction that followed from that video we just saw. take a listen to this. >> i've never said i'm a perfect person nor pretended to be someone that i'm not. i've said and done things that i regret. and the words released today on this more than a decade-old video are one of them. anyone who knows me knows these words don't reflect who i am. i said it, i was wrong, and i apologize. >> so the word "apologize," the first time we've heard that from donald trump throughout this campaign. then, this statement comes out at 3:00 p.m. today, from his wife, melania trump, who he did not mention in that video statement, which we just played in part. melania saying this, quote, the

words my husband used are unacceptable and offensive to me. this does not represent the man that i know. he has the heart and mind of a leader. i hope people will accept his apology as i have and focus on the important issues facing our nation and the world, end quote. that is just the last 12 hours and this is happening right now. 3:33 eastern time, in front of trump tower. pro-trump demonstrators there, if you will, with flags, reacting there. it has been a flurry of activity there. rudy giuliani coming and going in front of trump tower as well as many others. they are huddling, is what we're hearing from hallie jackson today, determining what will be the next steps. this, of course, in advance of that crucial debate that is happening tomorrow in st. louis, missouri, both the clinton campaign and trump campaign readjusting, based on these developments that we have just described to you. we'll have more on this

throughout the hour for you. we are also watching this for you. the latest on hurricane matthew. that still moves on. the coast of south carolina is being battered by the storm. governor nikki haley says more than 430,000 customers are without power. >> we are always so passionate about getting people out, because we know thousahow bad i going to be. we know what's getting ready to happen. today we're going to be doing a lot of river analysis, bridge analysis, and flooding analysis to see how much and how bad this is going to be and how that will affect further downstream areas. >> fema administrator craig few dpa fugate joins us right now. craig, has the worst passed so far? what's your view right now there at the center? >> well, down in florida and georgia, the worst has passed, they're rapidly getting power turned back on and really moving into recovery operations. but this is still ongoing in south carolina and north carolina. not only do we have the storm still impacting the coast, we

are seeing heavy, heavy rains inland producing flash flooding. the governor of north carolina has already reported some recent fatalitiy ies associated with t, people driving and getting into accidents or being swept off the road. so extremely dangerous situations is still from the flash flooding, from the heavy rainfall from this storm. >> there's always, of course, when you look at all of this flooding, the concerns about hazardous materials, the liquids themselves, petrochemicals, as they make their way into the water systems. throughout all of these areas that we've been talking about, tell me about the next 24 hours and what you're concerned about. >> well, we've had coast guard and u.s. epa, their teams have been ready to go from as far south as florida. so we'll monitor that. i think the thing i'm focused on now for the next 24 hours as this storm moves out of the city is the heavy rainfall, flash flooding, and life risk, and the fact that we're still expecting storm surge, particularly in the outer banks, as those winds shift out of the north and then become -- start coming out of the northwest.

you'll see still storm surge in the outer banks, as the water in those sounds starts running up against the barrier island. so this isn't over yet. mainly, we're focused on the life, safety, and supporting the states, as they are still responding to search and rescue and other needs, because of the flooding. >> craig, you watch a lot of numbers as you're monitoring hurricanes like this. as it's still moving, matthew is. what's one number you want to tell us about that's of concern right now? >> rainfall of 3 or more inches per hour occurring in north carolina and fayetteville or other parts of the state. just imagine, that's like more rainfall than some areas get in a whole month, they're getting it in an hour. this just tells you, this is a very fluid situation. lots of water coming down. it is causing extremely high risk flash flooding. so if you're not in those areas, stay out of them. but also as these rivers are coming up very quickly, if you're told to evacuate, you're not going to have a lot of time.

move to higher ground quickly. this is a very dangerous situation still playing out in the carolinas from the flash flooding. >> all right. thank you so much, fema administrator craig fugate, such an important person, such an important administration or part of the administration during these very tough times, as we go through hurricane matthew. thank you for what you're doing. next, we'll return to presidential politics. donald trump sending out this tweet. "certainly has been an interesting 24 hours!" well, what happens next for his campaign after this latest bombshell controversy? ♪ using 60,000 points from my chase ink card i bought all the fruit... veggies... and herbs need to create a pop-up pick-your-own juice bar in the middle of the city, so now everyone knows... we have some of the freshest juice in tow see what t power of points can do for your business.

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reacting to mitt romney and informed senate candidate joe heck denouncing donald trump today at an event in las vegas. congressman heck joined a number of his capitol hill colleagues today calling on trump to step down. joining mow now is attorney and democratic strategy, fernand amou aamandai, and former deputy campaign manager for carly fiorina. okay, well, we've got something to talk about. 40 minutes in here, we have the melania trump statement. sarah, start with that for me. what is your reaction to melania's words here? obviously, trying to support her husband, donald trump. he did not address her at all in his statement, and that is the person, theoretically, that should be the most upset about what happened. >> yeah, i agree. i think what we're seeing here is a campaign kind of in disarray. they're trying to take things off the table before tomorrow night. because that's really where this will all come to a head.

you know, today's a saturday, it's a slow news day for most americans, if not us. but tomorrow night, the debate really was the last chance for donald trump to make a positive impression. the campaign is now going through a checklist of what do we have to take off hillary clinton's, you know, map, of possible things to go to. and obviously, melania trump was an important piece of that for them. >> as we look at this, rebecca, trump speaking to your colleague, robert costa today, saying, zero chance, i've never quit in my life. i can give you my word that i'm never leaving, going on to say more. but given that, given that development, that the trump campaign is standing -- pretty strong at this moment saying, we are not stepping down, we're going to move forward here. that the sentiment you're also hearing? >> certainly that's the sentiment that donald trump is saying and that's the sentiment that you're getting, that his aides is relaying to him as well. the question, of course, is the infrastructure around him. this is someone who's heavily dependent on the party, on the rnc to handle the campaign

infrastructure to an exstetent t very few campaigns have been so dependent in the past. if the rnc decides it's no longer in the mix. if it wants to shift its focus and save the hill, there won't be much that he can do about it. >> so this is a big softball thrown up at the clinton campaign here, fernand, and they've decided, we're not going to swing, at least right now, right? are they giving up an opportunity here to take advantage of something, to move that ball forward, if you will? >> no. this election is over. now the reckoning begins. it's bad enough that the vast majority of the republican electorate has gotten behind in full lockstep with this man who so clearly was unfit for the office two years ago, when he first announced for the presidency. what's inexcusable, however, is that the vast majority of the republican political elite and the republican political vanguard fell behind like lemmings, again, on this candidate, that an astronaut standing on the surface of the moon could tell so clearly,

richard, was unqualified for president. and that's where the reckoning now begins. the question now is not who's going to win campaign 2016, it's who was with donald trump and who was against him on the republican party when they had an opportunity to speak out against him. it is also a record of historical shame, i might add, historical shame, that this total opposition of the republican party against the backdrop of the nation's first minority president, would happen on the brink of the election of the nation's first female president. this is not going to be forgotten by the history books. >> to all three of you, we just got another tweet that came in from donald trump. and in that tweet, you see it here, the media and establishment want me out of the race so badly, i will never drop out of the race, will never let my supporters down. that just in from donald trump, as you can see, moments ago. i want to go to you on this, sar sarah. because you've seen the list here. donald trump clearly trying to stand strong, as we were just talking about.

fernand alluding, who is sticking with him, right? because that's really the political risk that is at stake here for many republicans. and the list -- and we've got it here. i'll just hold it up. this list i have here has been growing throughout the last 12 hours. and i'll just read what i've got here. there are 15 elected officials so far that have said, he has lost our vote. there are 14, actually, and there are 15 that are saying, donald trump should drop out. and this list is only growing. how big of a risk is it here, for the speaker, paul ryan, for instance, here, not putting his name on either one of these two categories? >> well, speaker paul ryan has said that he absolutely abhors these comments. i think he's handling this about as well as he can. he's the de facto leader of the party right now, because we don't have a nominee who be can be the leader of the party. but let me say one thing about the earlier comments. it is absurd to pretend to have all of this faux outrage about donald trump when republicans are coming around and saying they do not accept these comments, they will not vote for him and they hope their nominee steps aside --

>> wait a minute, it took this video to convince republicans -- >> scandal after scandal -- >> after all of the comment he's made over the last two years -- >> not a single democrat has renounced any of hillary clinton's -- excuse me! >> really? >> excuse me, i was talking. it has taken no democrats to ever denounce hillary clinton or step away from anything she's done. >> because they have nothing to renounce. they have nothing to denounce. >> are you going to continue to interrupt me or you going to let me talk? >> go ahead, sarah. >> we saw yesterday in her leaked speeches where she advocated for open borders and open trade, something her base would not like. i didn't see any democrats coming out and denouncing that. in fact, i haven't seen democrats denounce the clinton foundation, denounce the e-mails, denounce benghazi, anything hillary clinton has done in her entire career of corruption. >> we're going to -- i want to get one quick word there from rebecca. we've been talking about oppo research, opposition research, more is to come. hugh hewitt, a conservative radio host is saying, look out. there could be more. he's also asking for donald trump to step down. what's your thought here,

rebecca. more to come? >> absolutely. there very well may be. i think the important thingo note is as donald trump himself noted, the elites are saying one thing, but you are hearing from a lot of voters that he still has their support. and that's the very difficult position that speaker ryan and other republicans find themselves in right now. >> okay, quite a weekend so far. fernand amando, thank you all. we're also watching breaking news from the carolinas as floodwaters have been rising as hurricane matthew arrives.

donald trump is remaining defiant in the face of many calls from some republicans for him to drop out. he just released this tweet, and in that tweet he says -- the media and establishment want me out of the race so badly. i will never drop out of the race. never let my supporters down. that last part in all caps. more reaction on that coming up after this.

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thousands of residents in georgia are still without power, and half million people evacuated from coastal counties after hurricane matthew unleashed record-breaking storm surges. paul goodloe in jacksonville, florida and nbc's raheem is ellis in georgia. start with you. what are you seeing? >> reporter: richard, i can tell you, i'm here on ribber street in savannah, and normally this would be an area bustling with activity because of all of the shops. many boarded up, packed up and left the area and encouraged to. look at the sign here "didn't survive the storm." 7a% in chatham county deevacuate. a lot of this area is like at n ghost town. lost power two deaths blamed on the storm. trees downed. power lines were down. and authorities right now are telling people they should stay

where they are, because there are a lot of roads that are blocked by downed trees. in addition, because there's no power, there are no gas stations open. no supermarkets open. no mini marts or grocery stores. all of that is closed. authorities say until they have an opportunity to access the damage, clear the roads, fix the power line this is still not a safe place to be. >> beautiful savannah still closed down there. rehema ellis, thank you. over to meteorologist paul goodloe in jacksonville, florida. it's passed but not. right, paul? >> reporter: yes. the storm is passed. cleanup still begins. at the courseyard in jacksonville beach, definitely water in the first floor and busy trying to clean up the debris and get this place back open for business, but a lot of cosmetic damage generally. you have structure damage thanks to all of the storm surge. in fact, we were here thursday

night planning on riding the storm out in this hotel and our experts at the weather channel said the storm surge forecast, way too close and got out of here as well as the hotel staff. they weren't staying if the weather channel was leaving. walking up the stairs. you see storm surge put at least, what, 2 1/2, 3 feet of sand here and blowing through this gate. try to climb over the gate, and that's the thing about storm surge. it's not just the water coming in. it comes in with plenty of debris as well and that has push and through here, and some of that into the first floor of this hotel. now, when i was talking to brian thursday night, walking between dunes. sand dunes. you can see the dune here is gone. obliterated by the storm surge. that's just that rise of water with the hurricane coming towards the coast. now, the purpose of sand dunes is to do that. absorb the ocean as it comes this way. now, again, i'm actually walking where there was a ne. in fact, about a six-foot tall dune. i'm 6'5". follow me here walking towards

this bridge. i'm actually walking to a place that would be already a former dune. now, if you come all wait over her -- the way over here a huge cut in the dune. talking this dune was probably, i don't know, ten feet? you have to remember, i'm 6'5". you can't see me right now as my photo is closer, notice how much room is now above my head. that's the former height of the dune. all of this washed out, because the storm surge with hurricane matthew. back to you. >> paul, no doubt it's going to be a different coastline, all said, when this is done. paul goodloe, great report from the weather channel. appreciate it. and with that, that does it for this hour of msnbc live. i'm richard lui in new york ski. kristen welker picks up coverage at the top of the hour. stick around. i talked to my doctor and found a missing piece in my asthma treatment with breo.

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