asked who they thought were the leaders going to be after this election, i think it was 27% said mike pence and 24% said donald trump. that means 1 out of 2 voters think the people that are on the 2016 ticket will be the head of the party leading into 2020. >> i think pence above trump there is interesting. >> that's interesting. ted cruz at 19%. paul ryan at 15%, and john kasich at 10%. all right, that does it for us. thank you so much for being with us all week. as always, we thank you for your patience. we know it's hard sometimes. stephanie ruhle, though, picks up the coverage right now. stephanie. >> thanks so much, joe. have a great weekend. this morning, bombs away. a traditional night of joking for charity scores a lot of laughs. >> donald, if at any time you don't like what i'm saying, feel free to stand up and shout "wrong" while i'm talking.

>> i'm actually a modest person. very modest. it's true. in fact, many people tell me that modesty is perhaps my best quality. >> i think that was the moment to say, wrong. well, guess what. it turned ugly as donald trump misread the room and the laughter turned to boos. >> hillary is so corrupt, she got kicked off the watergate commission. >> and doubling down. meanwhile, donald trump refusing to say he'll accept the results of the election. >> i will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election if i win. >> i thought that was the best joke of the day. plus a one-two punch from the obamas. president obama and the first lady on the trail. as the president not only goes

after trump but marco rubio, too. >> marco seems to just care about hanging on to his job. >> we begin today with the awkwardness, to put it best, at the al smith dinner where every four years, the presidential candidates come together to tell jokes all for catholic charities. there were a lot of good jokes, before it turned a little more uncomfortable. take a look. >> just before taking the dais, hillary accidentally bumped into me and she very civilly said "pardon me." >> it's amazing i'm up here after donald. i didn't think he would be okay with a peaceful transition of power. >> donald wanted me drug tested before last night's debate. and look, i gotta tell you, i'm

so flattered that donald thought i used some sort of performance enhancer. now, actually, i did. it's called preparation. >> michelle obama gives a speech and everyone loves it. it's fantastic. my wife melania gives the exact same speech and people get on her case. and i don't get it. >> all right, to donald's credit, i thought that was a fantastic joke. he could have ended on that high note, but he didn't. halfway through his monologue, his jokes hit a sour note. the room turned on him and things went downhill fast. >> hillary believes that it's vital to deceive the people by having one public policy --

[ boos ] >> -- and a totally different policy in private. that's okay. i don't know who they're angry at, hillary, you or i. for example, here she is tonight in public pretending not to hate catholics. >> that's a tough joke. i'm not sure if that was a joke. let's bring in peter alexander who is join me from just outside the waldorf-astoria where last night's dinner took place. i'm guessing the night ended pretty early. we're not seeing people roll out this morning. but from what we saw, and we only saw media clips, tit seeme pretty nasty. >> what was sort of striking is, remember, this is a catholic charity gala. it has a tradition of civility and generally self-deprecating humor. but it was mean spirited at times. a lot of these lines frankly in both directions were laced with truth and there were daggers on

the stage. donald trump, i think there is widespread agreement that he bombed. we spoke to a senior adviser of the trump campaign that said, why? there simply aren't that many funny people inside trump tower right now. what the audience missed, though, is one moment apparently that happened behind the scenes with cardinal timothy dolan, recognizing they were separated not by a moderator but a man of the cloth. here's what he told us about a private moment with boat candidates. >> mr. trump turned to secretary clinton and said, you know, you're one tough and talented woman. and he said, this has been a good experience, this whole campaign, as tough as it's been. she said to him, and donald, whatever happens, we need to work together afterwards. >> the kind of graciousness that we certainly have not seen on the campaign trail. this was a stunning night. keo mistake, this thing has been going on for years. every four years. but there's never been a night where one of the candidates, particularly donald trump, was booed, jeered, and heckled by the crowd. at least it did conclude with

what was one simple sign of civility, a hand shake between the candidates. something they hadn't done in either of their last two debates. >> all right. i want to move on from last night and go a bit earlier. 24 hours before, donald trump refusing to accept the election results. and then we saw all of his surrogates kind of qualify it and talk around it. is he not backing down? >> well, certainly, a lot of republican top strategists said this was a disqualifying statement. it's put so much pressure on down ballot republicans, senators like pat toomey who called it irresponsible. kelly aua ayotte, richard burr. donald trump defiant as he was in ohio, offering a new promise with the caveat and a clarification. take a listen. >> of course i would accept a clear election result but i

would also reserve my right to contest or file a legal challenge. >> so initially, he said i will accept the results if i win. then he said i want to have the right to reserve the right to challenge or contest if it is not a reasonable, not a fair solution. resolution here. the problem with this, obviously, is republicans are telling us that the comment he initially made was in front of tens of millions of americans. his follow-up, the cleanup, was seen by a far smaller audience and certainly isn't the item that's going to resonate. >> one might argue he didn't clean much up. peter, thanks so much. peter alexander outside the waldorf-astoria. and it's friday, which means the moderator of "meet the press" and nbc political director chuck todd is here with me to break it all down. let's first talk about this al smith dinner last night. we're giving these two candidates a really hard time. this is a vicious election. and neither of them are comedians. did donald trump just misread the room?

>> 100%. but this is -- you know, this is not the first time. you know, the self-depreciation issue with him has always been a problem with him. go back to the comedy central roast. he does not know how to laugh at himself. he's not comfortable doing it. a lot of people want to read into why that is. but obviously, he totally misread. if he had a joke writer, he didn't listen to them. if that is what the product was of hiring a joke writer, then he should fire that joke writer. look, i didn't know it was possible to lose the al smith dinner, but he lost it. >> was it the hate catholics line? that's a tough -- that's a tough joke for anyone to deliver. >> i think it was thinking that somehow you could make a political -- that somehow you could be that blunt in that room. if he wanted to make some hay on it, then find a way to tell a joke. i mean, look at hillary

clinton's routine. it was tough. >> hold on, chuck. >> in some places, it crossed the line. >> yeah, wouldn't you say -- >> but because trump so blew it, it made her, who went second, not seem as inappropriate or seem like she was crossing the line. >> doesn't that kind of inka encapsulate the whole election? >> there you go. >> i want to stay on the election rigging. yesterday, he started to qualify it. all of his surrogates saying it's not contactually what he meant. what's going on here, chuck? >> the way -- i think this is him -- i think this is him, a natural instinct of his, when things aren't going his way, to question the system a little bit. he obviously m lly has a histor this. but i think that what he's caused himself now is every republican in the country that's on the ballot had to essentially distance themselves from him. i think only one really backed

him up. that there might be problems with the election. that was the secretary of state from kansas, who has dipped into voting fraud conspiracy theories in the past, this guy chris coback. other than that, every other republican official that either has an impact on the election process or is on the ballot totally disputed what trump said. and that's not a good thing 18 days before the election to have major republican figures finding ways to distance themselves from the nominee. >> okay, then, chuck, for the next two weeks, if the cake is baked, is the real problem for donald trump who come november 9th can work on his media platform or building a hotel, or is the problem for republicans who have stood by him? i saw the piece out this morning by charlie coke, who wrote the gop gave donald trump the keys to the car and he drove it off a cliff. >> no, i think at this point, i look at it this way. i have talked to some folks that are sort of in and around this campaign who said that their goal for the next three weeks is

to keep him in the battleground states that have important senate races, and send him to areas in those states that, where he's the most popular. we know that there are pockets in all of these battleground states where he's enormously popular. so the one thing that they are concerned about is this idea, what you just said, if the cake looks like it's baked, then what? well, if his voters think this is over, there is concern that maybe they don't show. or maybe other republicans who are not enthusiastic about trump and think if he can't win, they don't want to bother. that's the concern they have now. will he listen to advisers who say, hey, you know, spend your time in the battleground states. spend your time in your core areas. hold your rallies. have a good time. fire up your supporters. because at the end of the day, at least it might help a pat toomey, at least it might help richard burr, marco rubio. so if that's how he spends his 18 days, doing his rallies,

talking to just his people in those spots in those states, he can limit the damage that he does. >> all right, charles, you're talking donald trump and gop goals. what are president obama's goals right now? i want to share a bit of his stump speech yesterday, where he wasn't talking trump. he was really going after marco rubio. >> we can't afford to give the nuclear codes of the united states to an erratic individual. you know who said that? marco rubio. why does marco rubio still plan to vote for donald trump? >> so what is the president trying to do here? is he trying to have marco rubio lose or trying to get rubio to distance himself from trump? >> no, he's simply trying to get marco rubio to lose. look, i think he is of the mindset that he wants the entire republican party to pay a price for trump because i think he thinks if they pay the price for trump, then they will look in the mirror and possibly change

the way they work in washington. that's at least the obama theory of the case and what motivates him to help down the ballot. >> all right, chuck. be sure to watch chuck on "mtp daily." i know you're all sports. did your teams win? >> i went 1-2. it was a long night. i'm not -- i'm not that happy. i'll be honest. but go packers. >> chuck todd and donald trump maybe not that happy this morning. you can more about why chuck's not so happy today when you watch "mtp daily" at 5:00 p.m. eastern right here on msnbc and of course on sunday "meet the press" only on nbc. i'm going to take a break. when i get back, donald trump's political director stepping back from the campaign with 18 days to go. what is going on inside trump tower? one of his advisers joins me next. >> after listening to hillary rattle on and on and on, i don't

think so badly of rosie o'donnell anymore. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ geico motorcycle, great rates for great rides.

i am totally blind. i lost my sight in afghanistan. if you're totally blind, you may also be struggling with non-24. calling 844-844-2424.

or visit my24info.com. intercom: the library [ kis now closing.] ok kid, closing up. goodnight. the hardest part about homework shouldn't be figuring out where to do it. through internet essentials, comcast has connected over 3 million people in need to low-cost internet at home. welcome to a brighter future. comcast.

another woman came out and said you groped her. can you answer allegations about that? >> i know nothing about that. >> 19 days out from the election, you have been labeled a racist. you have been called a sexist. how do you respond to that? >> i am the least racist person you have ever met. >> i'm the least racist person you have ever met. that was donald trump cutting short two different interviews while in central ohio on thursday. an extension of what has been a rocky few days for the republican nominee. steve cortez is a trump campaign

surrogate and a member of his hispanic advisory council. good morning. >> thanks for having me. >> i want to start with news that had the campaign's national political director jim murphy has taken a step back with two weeks left to go. help me understand how a key member of the team walks off the field at the ninth inning. >> you know, stephanie, i don't know. frankly, i deal with the communications staff. we had a very steady, very motivated staff there. i have not been at trump tower this week. i was there last week. i will tell you this. the news media seems to const t constantly want to put out a story that we're a ship that's taking on water and there's this internal descension and pessimism. when i'm at trump tower, i see a group that's incredibly motivated. we know we have work to do, we're still the underdog, but we believe we're going to win this. the particulars of why he's stepping back, it could be personal. i don't know. details were not offered. in communications in my area of the campaign, we have, as i said, a steady. experienced, motivated staff.

>> okay, then this will be your and my opportunity to not let this nefarious news media control anything. you and i, from a communications standpoint, which is something you know well within the campaign, how does it happen on the day of the debate donald trump's own daughter puts herself out there in a very difficult position, it was not easy for her to sit in a room of powerful women and talk about her father. she said clearly, my father will accept the election results. kellyanne conway did the same thing. six hours later, donald did the opposite. from a united communications standpoint, how does that tell the world we're on the same page, everything is hunky-dory? >> well, stephanie, i think we are on the same page. i'll be the first to admit, one of the attributes of donald trump is he's not a politician and not scripted. at times he speaks inartfully, and i don't think he spoke correctly. he didn't explain himself well, but it's unfair to end the story there. the very next day, meaning yesterday, he did clarify

himself. and unequivocally. i think, stephanie, frankly it's unfair. you have done it and a lot of shows have done it when you only play the joke he made of i'll accept the election if i win. he then went on and said clearly and seriously, of course, i'll respect all of the traditions of candidates who have come before he. he said i will accept any clear result. there is no story there. he made a funny joke and then he clarified himself. we have been clear about this as a campaign and now he clarified himself as a candidate. of course we will accept the will of the people. >> how can you say he's been very clear while at the same time for days ringing the bell about a rigged election? that to me does not seem like a clear message. >> look, when he talked about things being rigged, i don't think we're talking about the election as in the polling place. there's going to be irregularities -- >> hold on. he specifically said go to the polling places. have your friends and neighbors watch the polls. so that, i'm sorry, sir, is not correct. >> be vigilant.

of course. we should always be vigilant to make sure polling places are accurate. i live in chicago where sadly polling place nonsense is a tradition. >> but steve, you just said to me he's not talking about the polling places. and 30 seconds later, you then said, well, you do have to look at the polling places. so please -- >> be vigilant. that's not a contradiction, stephanie. what i'm saying is when he says the election is rigged, he's talking about the media. he's talking about the absolute unfair torrent of coverage about our campaign and our message, the fact we're called a racist almost every single day, all day by the mainstream media, often without anybody on the other side to object. that's what he says when he's talking about something being rigged. >> that's true, but in addition to that, we have heard surrogates just like you say, look at the north carolina election. barack obama stole it. so i'm sorry. you're only -- >> you have never heard me say that. i wouldn't say that. i don't believe that. look, i'm very, very confident that, of course, in a country

this big, there's always some chicanery at polling places. i'm confident it's not going to determine who wins this election. i don't believe it determined who won the 2008 election. and so you have never heard that from me and you won't. it's also totally unreasonable to ask mr. trump that he has to prepromise in advance that he's okay with the election results. what he has said is as long as we have a clean election and a clear mandate from the people, of course we'll accept it. we expect to win, by the way, so we don't think this is going to be an issue, but if we happen to lose and people speak, so be it, we have to accept it and move forward. >> in terms of the media and sort of a one-sided narrative, i would like to play for your what fox's bill o'reilly said. >> donald trump made a tactical mistake by continuing to suggest the election may be rigged. that may play well with trump's base, but he needs to win over independents and people who are skeptical of him. talking points does not understand why donald trump does not understand that stuff like

that hurts him. >> so if this is what bill o'reilly from fox is saying, within the trump camp, what are you telling your candidate? >> right. stephanie, listen, and i agree with bill o'reilly. do, because what are we talking about? his statements rather than the state of the economy and the state of national security, which is what i think we need to talk about as a country and how we win as a campaign. i'm the first to admit again, i think he has spoken at times inelegantly. part of that is an attribute. he's not a scripted politician. he hasn't been doing this for decades the way hillary clinton has. at times, it brings us challenges as a campaign. what i'm trying to do, what i think he did yesterday, clarify this. we don't believe in polling place rigging. we do believe that the media and that washington, d.c., for that matter, are both rigged systems largely and incredibly biased, not just against us but against the best interests of the american people. i think, you know, what we have created in this country is a system where elites of the media

and business and washington, d.c. have created a crony system that works extremely well for their benefit to the detriment of working americans who are struggling just to pay their bills. donald trump has become a voice for those people, and it bothers the elites a lot. so they're fighting hard against us, which is to be expected. when i talk rigging, that's what i hear, and that's what i'm trying to project out there. i agree, we need to speak more clearly. we don't have much time left. the clock is ticking. we need to work really hard here to the finish. by the way, the media wants a lot of people, including trump supporters, to believe that this race is over. that's simply not the case. if you look adcredible polls, new upi poles that came out yesterday, in every battleground state, according to upi, we're within four points or less. we're tied or within margin of error. this is going to be a horse race right down to the wire. >> without a doubt. i'm not saying that it's over and i want to make one thing clear. the media isn't necessarily a fair statement. thank you so much for joining me

this morning. up next, the director of the national intelligence says he's very confident russia is behind the wikileaks hack, and that they're trying to affect the election. here's the big question. why? one of vladimir putin's chief rival s a chess champion, joins me next. my lenses have a sunset mode. and an early morning mode. and a partly sunny mode. and an outside, to clear inside mode. transitions® signature adaptive lenses now have chromea7 technology. making them more responsive than ever to changing light. so life can look more vivid and vibrant. why settle for a lens with just one mode? experience life well lit®. upgrade your lenses to transitions® signature. visit your vision source doctor and start living a life well lit® with transitions lenses. make sure it's ano make a intelligent one. ♪ the highly advanced audi a4, with available virtual cockpit.

♪ everything your family touches sticks with them. make sure the germs they bring home don't stick around. use clorox disinfecting products. because no one kills germs better than clorox. [ crowd noisewhoa. [ gears stopping ] when your pain reliever stops working, your whole day stops. try this. but just one aleve has the strength to stop pain for 12 hours. tylenol and advil can quit after 6. so live your whole day, not part... with 12 hour aleve.

time now for your morning primer, everything you need to know to start your day. we begin with a battle for the swing states. today, hillary clinton hits cleveland, ohio, while donald trump rallies in north carolina. later in pennsylvania, vice president joe biden and vp nominee tim kaine stump for hillary clinton. >> the pentagon has announced an ied has killed a u.s. service member in northern iraq. it is the first american casualty in the offensive to drive isis out of the city of mosul. >> meanwhile, isis suicide bombers have stormed a power plant in the nearby city of kirkuk. this morning, 11 workers were

killed before iraqi security forces could stop them. >> and federal officials have confirmed an 11th death linked to toccata's detective air bag inflat inflaters. they have led to the recall of 70 million cars and trucks. >> and the chicago cubs crushed the l.a. dodgers last night, 8-4, putting them just one victory away from their first world series appearance, ready for this, in 71 years. now, russia. russia probably has not played such a prominent role in an american election since the days of the cold war. but there it was, the name of the russian president coming up in this week's debate over and over again. >> putin. >> putin. >> putin. >> putin, putin, putin. >> i was getting tongue tied over putin, putin, putin. one man knows him very well. russian pro-democracy leader and former chess champion garry kasparov. he's also the author of "winter

is coming." good morning. >> good morning. >> let's make it clear. you have for quite some time been an anti-putin, anti-trump guy. >> anti-putin is quite a history because i'm against dictators, and i would warn for years that vladimir putin who is our problem in russia then later the problem for neighboring countries would become a problem for everybody because that's what happened with all the dictators in the past. >> that's where we are. why do you think vladimir putin, if he is, is trying so hard to interfere with the election. >> of course, he is involved. i trust u.s. intellgents agencies, all of them, are unanimous lly confirming russia was behind these hacking attacks. there's no way that any russian agency could afford to attack the united states without direct order from vladimir putin. now, why he's doing that, we should listen to trump. because trump flip-flops along with every issue, but he's very consistent in defending vladimir

putin. >> why do you think that is? >> he's also very consistent in repeating that election is going to be rigged. all these supporters, and we just heard bill o'reilly, a clip from his show, are confused, saying that that's a big mistake for trump. though trump is not very experienced in politics, she should recognize the damage to him while he's repeating these statements. if he's still doing that, saying the elections are rigged and putin is not involved, that tells me that we have to connect the dots. putin wants cios. global chaos. he needs it because as a dictator who wants to use foreign policy, his aggressive foreign policy, as a staple for domestic propaganda, he needs to weaken the european union, nato, and of course, you know, the biggest prize of all is the united states. if putin can demonstrate to russians and the rest of the world that elections in america are rigged, it's at least

confusion, the will be riots, even violence. that's, you know, that will justify everything he did against democratic institutions in russia. and trump is a perfect agent of -- >> why? take me inside the mind of vladimir putin. why is donald trump a perfect agent? >> because what trump says, what trump is planning to do, trump's statements about nato, undermining nato, his statements about global security, it's all perfect. and let's not forget, trump keeps defending putin. i don't know why. he's denying the report from american intelligence agencies, and you know, if we put together another fact that donald trump categorically refused to release his tax returns, i would like to see what is in it. >> what could be in donald trump's tax returns that would make you think he's an agent of vladimir putin? >> money. money. trump faced several

bankruptcies, and we knew that russian oligarchs led by putin were aggressive in pursuing every opportunity to infillerates western financial and business structures. and trump was an ideal target for these kind of recruiting. women, casinos, gambling, bankruptciys, i don't know. it may be pure speculation, but trump refusing to tell us about her taxes, about potential loans, he keeps praising putin. he talks about rigged elections. that's the line of putin's propaganda. i'm reading russian press. you know, putin-controlled press. i'm attacked by russian trolls, those on facebook r i can see these unanimity of the arguments. proven that american election is rigged, an american will be swamped with this civil unrest. that's the biggest prize for vladimir putin. if he wants to attack baltic

states, if he wants to continue his expansion by spreading confusion and terror in the neighboring countries, he needs america to be totally isolated, and donald trump, even if he doesn't win, could create the atmosphere inside the country that will benefit vladimir putin. >> what do you say to americans who look at vladimir putin and look at donald trump and say, well, donald trump is a tough guy who talks turkey. he could go head to head with vladimir putin, maybe he could be the guy to work with vladimir putin. >> look, vladimir putin's strategic interest is diametrically opposite to the interests of the united states and the free world. economic is falling in russia. and unless putin can prove that russia is surrounded by the global evil and he's the white knight fighting it, he cannot survive. trump, many times, repeated that you're right, putin. he even admired putin.

and i don't think america needs someone who is always for putin and failed, repeatedly failed, to condemn putin's europe, in ukraine, in syria, that the civilized world qualified as crimes. >> to share these thoughts is not an easy task. coming up, michelle obama ventured into red state territory, stumping in arizona. can democrats tn some of the red states blue or are their overreaching here? something new has arrived. uniquely designed for the driven. introducing the first-ever infiniti qx30 crossover. visit your local infiniti retailer today. infiniti. empower the drive.

♪ everything your family touches sticks with them. make sure the germs they bring home don't stick around. use clorox disinfecting products. because no one kills germs better than clorox.

so wi got a job!ews? i'll be programming at ge. oh i got a job too, at zazzies. (friends gasp) the app where you put fruit hats on animals? i love that! guys, i'll be writing code that helps machines communicate. (interrupting) i just zazzied you. (phone vibrates) look at it! (friends giggle) i can do dogs, hamsters, guinea pigs... you name it. i'm going to transform the way the world works. (proudly) i programmed that hat. and i can do casaba melons. i'll be helping turbines power cities. i put a turbine on a cat. (friends ooh and ahh) i can make hospitals run more efficiently... this isn't a competition! honestly didn't think i would have become president if it hadn't been for the opportunities i had to be in the school music program. which is one reason we should test but not too much. >> hillary clinton's powerful weapons back out on the campaign trail. that is bill clinton, of course, in florida today.

speaking just moments ago, one day after the obamas were attacking donald trump for refusing to say he could accept the election outcome. our own kristen welker is live in white plains this morning where it's pouring rain. i would like to point out how hard kristen welker has worked throughout this campaign, through rain, through snow, through sleet. here she is. kristen, let's talk about some of these stump speeches. michelle obama was in phoenix and she went hard after trump. let's take a look. >> you do not keep american democracy in suspense. because look, too many people have marched and protested and fought and died for this democracy. >> all right, the first lady in z arizona. is this a sign the clinton campaign thinks they can turn -- arizona is not a state one would think could even go blue. >> you're absolutely right,

steph. i have to point out, you have been working hard too this campaign season. i think you're right. you hit the nail on the head. they sent the first lady to arizona. it shows how confident they are feeling in that traditionally red state. the polls getting very tight there. but that's not the only state. secretary clinton heading to ohio today. of course, that's traditionally a battleground state, but donald trump had a pretty good lead there, and now that has closed. the polls show it's all tied up at 45% each. secretaryclipten is going to talk about getting out the vote early, early voting, which started last wednesday, and right now, turnout has outpaced where it was this time in 2012. so that is encouraging democrats. and then they're looking at georgia, steph. take a look at the latest poll there. donald trump still has a lyde, t it's getting a lot tighter. it's within the margin of error. 44% to 42%. in terms of messaging, secretary clinton is going to hit him on what you heard michelle obama talking about, the fact he has been saying that the election

cycle is rigged, the democrats see that as a fatal error on the part of donald trump. they're capitalizing on it. one of her top campaign officials tell me it's also important, she feels, that voters feel as though they have something to vote for, more than just voting against something. i think increasingly you're going to see her message turn positive and really start to focus on her policy issues heading into the final sprint of this race. >> all right, kristen. stay warm. stay dry. i'm voting for you, kristen welker. >> i'm going to try. thank you, steph. appreciate it. >> coming up, we're going to talk to comedian and actor jake thomas about why some jokes hit and some missed at last night's al smith dinner. tonight, let's embrace the spirit of the evening. let's come together. remember what unites us and just rip on ted cruz. ♪ [ rear alert sounds ] [ music stops ] ♪ just can't wait to get on the road again ♪ [ front assist sounds ] [ music stops ]

[ girl laughs ] ♪ on the road again ♪ like a band of gypsies we go down the highway ♪ [ beetle horn honks ] no matter which passat you choose, you get more standard features, for less than you expected. hurry in and lease the 2017 passat s for just $199 a month. ugh. heartburn. sorry ma'am. no burning here. try new alka-seltzer heartburn relief gummies. they don't taste chalky and work fast. mmmm. incredible. can i try? she doesn't have heartburn. new alka-seltzer heartburn relief gummies. enjoy the relief.

and i thought, well, you need to go to the doctor. i was told that is was cancer, and i called cancer treatment centers of america. dr. nader explained that they can pinpoint the treatment. once we identified that there was this genetic abnormality in her tumor, we were able to place her on very specific therapy. our individualized care model gives each lung patient specific treatment options with innovative procedures that are changing the way we fight lung cancer. we have excellent technology that will allows us to perform very specialized procedures for patients who have lung disease. to learn more about these targeted therapies and advanced procedures for lung cancer, as well as the experienced physicians who deliver them, go to cancercenter.com when he showed me the cat scans, i was so amazed. with this treatment, she had a dramatic response. call or go to cancercenter.com. cancer treatment centers of america.

care that never quits. appointments available now. with another new flavor you never saw coming... grilled, glazed korean bbq shrimp. and try as much as you want of flavors like new parmesan peppercorn shrimp. just come in before it ends. looking back, i've had to listen to donald for three full

debates. and he says i don't have any stamina. that is four and a half hours. i have now stood next to donald trump longer than any of his campaign managers. >> this is the first time ever, ever, that hillary is sitting down and speaking to major corporate leaders and not getting paid for it. >> last night's al smith dinner gave the presidential candidates a chance to let loose and show that not only can they be serious, but they can tell a joke, they can take a joke. the question is, did they? joining me to discuss it is a man woo knows this, two-time emmy award winning actor and comedian and the host of the jay thomas show. a lucky guy who gets to do his show from santa barbara. all right, jay. i'm going to defend both of them. being a comedian is really hard. how do you think they did? >> yes.

i think she did great. i think her writers were terrific. well, also, donald trump can now add he was booed by priests last night. and no one in the history of the al smith dinner has ever been booed. and i think that it was -- she was well prepared. i thought she was funny, great writers. they're not barack obama, for sure, or bill clinton. i just thought he wasn't as prepared and was looking down at his paper too much. looked like a kid giving a report in front of a class. i thought her line about the statue of liberty losing the tablet and the torch and it became a five. i thought that was funny stuff. but he really -- when he said that she was pretending she didn't hate catholics, i think that really hurt him last night. i really do. it wasn't funny. it really hurt him. >> quick, before hast night, were you a hillary clinton supporter? i should have asked you that from the get-go. >> yes, i am. i just find her to be, you know,

ready to be the president. i do believe it would be fun to have somebody with a message different than what we see. i just don't think it's donald trump. i have been around the guy, years ago, i hosted man of the millennium, which i think he gaveo himself. and i just think -- i just think personally, he's excited about doing all this. i don't -- i don't think he's the kind of guy who wants to run things. i don't know. i just don't think he wants to be the president. >> i want to talk about what goes into a roast and how those who are roasted should take it. i want to share what she said to say about rudy giuliani for a moment. >> oh, yeah. >> we'll show that. >> rudy actually got his start as a prosecutor. going after wealthy new yorkers who avoided paying taxes. but as the saying goes, if you can't beat them, go on fox news and call them a genius. >> now, rudy giuliani stone

faced through this. walk us through how this is supposed to work. >> ridiculous. trump smiled and laughed, and really was having a good time. i thought that was terrific. the joke about his wife and the michelle obama speech, i thought was terrific also. so i thought they both were very relaxed. i didn't get the rudy giuliani thing. he looked like he hated her guts. and that was -- that was pretty odd. i really -- i was surprised at that. he looked really mean. really rough. i like both of them last night. i really did. >> you liked boat hillary and donald. i want to share a bit more of what donald said. take a look. >> we've learned so much from wikiaks. for example, hillary believes that it's vital to deceive the people by having one public policy -- [ boos ] >> -- and a totally different

policy in private. >> so where's the line? right? this is a roast, but he got booed. where is the line? where is the line here? >> you know, it is hard to tell jokes. i think that he was telling jokes, and he was saying his own stuff. which is what he does, right? it wasn't his crowd. so they booed. at the event during the day, they cheered at the very same line. so donald trump just wasn't in, you know, the friendly confines he's used to. and the word corrupt didn't belong at the al smith dinner. that's all. it should have been more jokes. but that's him. that's donald trump. he's always going to do that. so it wasn't unexpected. >> all right, then. jay, thanks so much for joining me. jay thomas, breaking down the laughs, the roars, and the boos of the al smith dinner. thanks, jay. >> the priest booed him. that's the best thing i have ever seen, ever.

booing priest s, ever. >> aggressive. with the whole hating catholics, that's a tough one. >> coming up, we're going to explore the highs and lows of the election week. my friend mark murray is coming over.

at the marine mammal center, the environment is everything. we want to do our very best for each and every animal, and we want to operate a sustainable facility. and pg&e has been a partner helping us to achieve that. we've helped the marine mammal center go solar, install electric vehicle charging stations, and become more energy efficient. pg&e has allowed us to be the most sustainable organization we can be. any time you help a customer, it's a really good feeling. it's especially so when it's a customer that's doing such good and important work for the environment. together, we're building a better california.

it has been an incredible week. the final debate is in the rearview mirror for the presidential candidates and the election is just a couple of weeks away and i want to get the highs and the lows and the man to do that is senior political editor mark murray. what was your high point of the week? >> stephanie, it was the debate season is over. and it's officially over. as a political journalist, this is my fourth to cover and i love the back and forth and the debate over ideas and policy, but this debate season in particular that second debate in st. louis, i think everyone is glad to have the debate season behind us and just 18 days ago until election day. >> i miss ken bone already

though. >> the low, stephanie, was donald trump getting booed at the al smith dinner. i know you've been all over last night's performance but you have to do something really wrong to get booed at a charity dinner and that's what we ended up seeing from donald trump last night. >> in his defense, i will say, stand-up comedy is really, really hard. and these two candidates are coming off, you know, some people called president obama comedian in chief. he's really good at it. >> it is very hard but as you and chuck were talking about earlier, you can hire comedy writers to help you out with things and president obama has a team of helpers to help him out and sometimes if you're a candidate, if you're donald trump, you want the best ideas and use the best jokes you can and have some good timing to deliver them. >> the say what of the week? >> the say what was despite all of everything that happened last night, cardinal dolan was on "the today show" in between hillary clinton and donald trump

and said they said nice words about each other which makes me go, what? so you end up having donald trump saying, privately, that hillary clinton is a tough woman and talented woman and hillary clinton saying that donald, no matter what ends up happening, we need to be able to work together. so kind of a nice way to end what seemed to be a very rough evening last night. >> i thought it was really nice to see donald trump smiling. i felt like you saw a few genuine smiles. these are humans and they're just in the midst of a really rough race. >> that is true, stephanie, but i'm glad this race is almost over for us. >> me too. coming up, a former president who lost a contentious election shows what it means to peacefully transition power. the incredible letter that has gone viral. that's next. and remember, do not miss the msnbc original series "in other news" tomorrow at 9:00 p.m. eastern which explores what else happened as the 2000 presidential election hung in the balance. [alarm beeping]

♪ ♪ ♪ the highly advanced audi a4. ♪ i've got a nice long life ahead. big plans. so when i found out medicare doesn't pay all my medical expenses, i looked at my options. then i got a medicare supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare,

you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. the rest is up to you. call now and find out about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement insurance plans, it helps pick up some of what medicare doesn't pay. and could save you in out-of-pocket medical costs. to me, relationships matter. i've been with my doctor for 12 years. now i know i'll be able to stick with him. [ male announcer ] with these types of plans, you'll be able to visit any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients. plus, there are no networks, and virtually no referrals needed. so don't wait. call now and request this free decision guide to help you better understand medicare... and which aarp medicare supplement plan might be best for you. there's a wide range to choose from. we love to travel - and there's so much more to see.

so we found a plan that can travel with us. anywhere in the country. [ male announcer ] join the millions of people who have already enrolled in the only medicare supplement insurance plans endorsed by aarp, an organization serving the needs of people 50 and over for generations. remember, all medicare supplement insurance plans help cover what medicare doesn't pay. and could save you in out-of-pocket medical costs. call now to request your free decision guide. and learn more about the kinds of plans that will be here for you now - and down the road. i have a lifetime of experience. so i know how important that is. 80% but up to 90% fall short in getting key nutrients from food alone. let's do more. add one a day women's 50+ complete multivitamin. with vitamin d and calcium to help support bone health. one a day.

all right, guys. this one is just for me. in a campaign that has many of us weary and longing for civility, a handwritten letter from george h.w. bush to bill clinton after he lost the election has gone viral. here's why. along with giving advice, bush 41 said you will be our president. "our" is underlined. your success is our country's success. i am rooting hard for you. this is a true lesson in graciousness after a loss. well, that couldn't be more aprapo. my friend craig melvin tweeted it last night and i said, right on. craig is up next but i'll be with you tomorrow on "weekend toda" also with craig melvin. >> thank you for following me on twitter. >> not only following you, i retweeted. >> see you many a few hours, my

friend. good friday to you. trump and clinton like we rarely see them. smiling, laughing, even poking fun at themselves. sure, there were a few moments when the attempted funny fell flat but all in all, it was a refreshing 34 minutes, 6 second break from the ugliness that defined this thanks to an annual kappa charity. a brief break from self-dep ra kag cation. >> i know you all have a place in your heart for a guy who started out as a carpenter working for his father. i was a carpenter working for my father. >> i think the cardinal is saying, i'm not eligible for saint hood. but getting through these three debates with donald has to count as a