kennebunkport, george w. bush had the ranch? president-elect trump now has the trump tower. stay tuned for this special guest, rnc chairman reinc reince priebus. that starts right now. it's thursday. meet the new boss. not at all the same as the old one. tonight, meet the trumps. the obamas host the next first family as the 2017 transition team kicks it into high gear. >> i very much look forward to dealing with the president in the future, including counsel. >> i'll talk to rnc chairman reince preibus. plus, the trumps contend with their new public reality. and the real reason hillary clinton lost the election. it's not what you think. this is "mtp daily" and it

starts right now. good evening. i'm chuck todd back here on the "meet the press" home set. a sobering reality now faces president-elect trump. pulling off the most historic upset in american politics, that was the easy part. now comes the really hard stuff. he's got to govern. reince preibus a likely candidate to be trump's chief of staff. but it was a busy day here in washington as a flurry of transition meetings played out against a backdrop of social unrest last night. anti-trump protests flared all over urban america from new york to chicago to seattle, los angeles, you name it. more are planned for today. speaking of today, president-elect trump met with president obama at the white house, and in the great american tradition, these two political

rivals presented a united prunt -- front in transitioning the executive branch from one to the other. it was an extraordinary moment because of how ordinary it really is. this is what outgoing and incoming presidents do, period. here's president obama. >> it is important for all of us, regardless of party, and regardless of political preferences, to now come together, work together to deal with the many challenges that we face. most of all, i want to emphasize to you, mr. president-elect, that we now are going to want to do everything we can to help you succeed, because if you succeed, then the country succeeds. >> and then here's president-elect trump. >> the meeting lasted for almost an hour and a half, and it could have -- as far as i'm concerned,

it could have gone on for a lot longer. i very much look forward to dealing with the president in the future, including counsel. he explained some of the difficulties, some of the high-flying assets and some of the really great things that have been achieved. so, mr. president, it was a great honor being with you, and i look forward to being with you many, many more times in the future. >> the two also shared a lighthearted moment just as the cameras were about to stop rolling. >> we are not going to be taking any questions. thank you, guys. thank you. that was a good rule. don't answer questions when they just start. >> it's always the last one. >> trump did actually answer a shouted question there which a whole bunch of pool reporters are saying, oh, a president who may answer shouted questions. trump met with house speaker paul ryan, a few moments later with future first lady melania

trump at his side where they talked about a shared agenda. trump met with mitch mcconnell in a meeting wrapping up just a few hours ago. all of these transition meetings underscore one hugely important point. transitions between parties are always complicated, and adding to the difficulty, the majority don't think trump is qualified to be president. many people voted for clinton, not trump, and a chunk say they're literally scared of his presidency. let's dive in. i'm joined by rnc chairman reince preibus. first, mr. chairman, congratulations, because as many people know, trump doesn't win without the rnc. >> well, we don't win without a great candidate like president-elect donald trump, so you need both things. you need a great candidate, a historical candidate, someone who has energized the country. even a lot of democrats came out and voted for him as well. that's always the first ingredient is a great candidate.

we had one, and what he did was historic. >> he obviously ran hard against washington and said how rigged it is. today washington embraced him. how does he square that? >> well, i think you saw it setting on wednesday morning when he gave his speech at 2:30 in the morning. i can tell you he wrote that speech. and he decided that we're not going to continue -- this is not a continuation of the campaign speech, this is bringing america together, calming the waters, selling america. i'm going to be your president no matter what your political background is, no matter what your religion faith, everything, i am going to be your president. i thought that was an important message. you saw him today, you played a lot of clips. it was a great day. and it was president-elect trump. and that's what people saw. and so he gets that. he wants to do the things that he's talked about. he wants to make all americans proud, not just republicans, but

everybody, and i know that. that's his heart's desire, to do a great job and be a great president. >> you saw the pictures last night. a lot of protest in a lot of cities in america. do you believe he should at least make an attempt to address it a little bit and try to do what you're trying to say here, which is he wants to present a message of unity, at least at the start of this administration. do you think there's something he can say or do to try to calm the waters? >> well, chuck, i thought his speech was perfectly on message and eternally fantastic. his meeting today, it was a 15-minute meeting and it went for 90 minutes. that should tell america something about president-elect trump. they genuinely had a good meeting and you could see what was going on today. those are are tthe kind of thin that give americans real confidence. secretary clinton conceding in a

speech yesterday, i thought, was important. so i think everyone gets it. it's time to move on, get going on real things that matter in this country, you know. and i know that's where donald trump is. >> do you think he should, as a way to underline that point, or put an exclamation point on it, say, there isn't going to be a muslim ban per se. some of this was heated rhetoric. do you think it's necessary for him to say as president-elect now? >> chuck, i know what you're saying. he just gave a speech wednesday morning. it's thursday now. he had meetings all day with the president. i know you get that. but he's already said those things in the campaign. he's already said -- this is now going on since june that he has said that there is no ban on muslims in america. this is a matter of restricting immigration from places that harbor terrorism, nobody one.

and he also said the only deportation pres that might go on is getting rid of the criminal elements of immigration in our country. then after that, we will look at the plan moving forward with people that remain. so that has been said over and over and over again -- >> but -- and the uncertainty. i throw it out there as he continues to send out this unifying message. do you see him taking more steps? maybe it's not exactly the way i describe, but more steps like that, that at least give the appearance of a bridge or an olive branch. >> yeah, i'm not sure. i'm not the spokesperson for him, but i think -- >> well, not yet. >> -- but i think i understand where his head is at. >> are you -- >> i don't know, chuck. that's not something we're talking about. i know people don't believe

those things, but we're just not talking about those sorts of plans right now. it's been a day, basically. this is a slow-moving process. >> let me ask, if asked to serve in a trump administration, do you want to do that? >> obviously, i would be honored to continue to help him in any way that i can, but right now i'm chairman of the rnc, love the job. we delivered and it was a great feeling. >> obviously, the rnc turnout, what you guys showed, i thought what was interesting, and i've had this conversation, i think, with some of your folks off line as well, is while you hit all your targets, perhaps the surprising thing was clinton underperforming. is that how you read this election? >> yeah, both of those things. it was amazing. people need to understand. i know mechanics can be boring. i know you love it like i do,

chuck, but the key to all this ground game talk and data, skpef -- and everyone swirls with information, but people guess with turnout. if you can't guess with turnout, you don't know how many ballots you need in the box. that's where the rnc excelled. in florida we projected turnout to be 9.4 million voters. it goes beyond that, but it was actually 9.36 million voters. we pinpointed the actual turnout which is absolutely stunning, and we did it in state after state after state, and that is the key to winning on the ground. >> let me ask about a couple other pieces of things in the news today. one is a "washington post" report from russia that said we had contact with the trump campaign. this is deputy foreign minister sergei ryabkov who said,

obviously, we know most of the people from his entourage. quite ah few have been staying in touch with russian representatives. the trump campaign had denied any links, any formal back and forth with members of the russian government. what's the truth here? >> i think it's preposterous. >> do you think the russians are making it up? >> whoever is writing that -- >> that is a quote from the russian deputy foreign minister. >> then either the person is not telling the truth and is spinning some sort of pr message that's totally bogus, or the writer themselves is lying, which i don't suggest that. so it must be the former. so it's ridiculous. i've never heard of anything like that. it's insanity. >> i finally want to ask you about donald trump's business dealings, and obviously his business. there is no conflict of interest

law that impacts the president or the vice president, but there is a conflict of interest law for every member of the executive branch. congress passed that law. separation of powers, they can't do it for the president and vice president. will a president trump abide by the same conflict of interest rules that govern executive branch staffers? >> i would imagine so, but it's not something i'm involved with, chuck. i know this is an important question, but it's not something i'm dealing with, it's not something i'm involved with, so you're asking the wrong person as far as conflict details, and in particular, employees in different departments. that's something i think we're a little bit too soon, but i would imagine so. he's going to do everything, i think, as well as he can, and i think he's going to impress a lot of people and i think he's going to be a great president. >> finally, this was in the "new york times" today, and it sort of surprised me. it came from nfl commissioner roger goodell. and he said the following.

he said the election of donald trump makes his job harder on the issue of domestic violence. he says this. i have twin daughters and a wife, so i have to explain it on that front. does it make it harder publicly? listen, i think our country has to have more respect for one another, and we have to unite. the nfl has been dealing with its own image problems when it comes to women and domestic abuse and all of that. if that's the commissioner of the nfl responding to president-elect trump's -- to donald trump's election, do you have a comment? >> other than he treats people with tremendous dignity and respect, number one. number two, i think people are going to see very quickly the president donald trump in action, and i think they're going to be impressed with what happens, and i think he's going to be a great president. >> it was interesting today watching him with president obama.

it looked to me as if the weight of the job was -- that he was starting to realize the weight of the job. do you get that sense? >> i thi he always understood the weight of the job. he's taken on mountain after mountain. this is a huge job, this is a massive responsibility. i think he totally gets it. i saw that on wednesday morning when he was preparing his speech, and what he wasn't willing to say and what he was willing to say. and it was all about bringing the country together, moving forward and accomplishing the goals he set out on the campa n campaign. it wasn't about bragging, it wasn't about rhetoric, it was about leadership. and i saw it instantly when i was in his kitchen and he was there working on his plans moving forward. i see president trump forming right now, and it's a good thing. >> all right. reince priebus, chairman of the republican party.

you had to deal with grief from a lot of people in multiple cycles. you look at where the republican party is today up and down the ballot in the rnc ground game, and i think a lot of people owe a thank you to you. >> i appreciate that, chuck. we worked hard and everyone here is thrilled. >> all right. reince priebus. i hope to have the first interview with you when you're chief of staff. >> oh, please. that's crazy. thanks. >> you got it. we just got our first look at another transition meeting that happened today in washington. this is a picture of white house first lady michelle obama meeting with melania trump. democratic pollster and matthew contan terks cont ark contanetti. where are you from what you've seen from trump in the last 24 hours?

do you feel better, less nervous or what? >> i'm mildly optimistic. this is the most significant political event in my lifetime. i was born six months after reagan was inaugerated. and it only really compares to reagan's election. even then, there is some differences, right, because reagan was a two-term governor of california. he had been in the public eye since he started -- >> he had run for the presidency before. >> he had run for the president in '76. trump has none of that. of course, reagan also had a republican party that was not in control of congress. i don't know the condition in the states. >> he had just gotten -- >> he got the senate in '88, lost in '86. it's a much more powerful republican party overall and as much of a novice taking office in what can only be described as a political earthquake. >> you've gotten to know trump a little bit, i've gotten to know him a little bit. that looked like somebody who

was a little bit nervous. but you would think anybody in that position would be. >>. certainly his affect was quite subdued. i think he is trying to show people he's taking this seriously. as a candidate, he didn't take it seriously, he often behaved in a crude manner, he was not disciplined. to the extent he wants to prove to people he can really do this job, he's going to act in a way that reflects the gravity of the office, i think. >> cornell, you know president obama pretty well, having been his pollster two campaigns in a row. he is basically going out of his way to say, i want to talk about this. he's not making political points when he's standing with the president-elect. >> no, he's behaving like a president should. he's behaving like george bush did with him.

tru trump is like the dog he was chasing the car. i don't know who was worse, him with ryan. he's got some battles with the republican party to deal with. i think at this point -- i actually got caught up yesterday in some of the protests, and i have friends of mine and family members who are literally scared, chuck, about what's going on in this country. i think how he talks and how he talks about the transition in the next couple of days and couple of weeks. >> i think he ought to address this in some form. >> absolutely, because we have people who are afraid. coming up, we're going to talk about the hard lessons the democrats need to learn from

tuesday'soutcome. senator bob casey will join me to discuss the way forward with his party, and we'll start actually in his home state of pennsylvania. plus, he openly mocked his party's presidential nominee. one of the most vocal in the senate. stay tuned.

tuesday was not the historic night hillary clinton wanted it to be, but it was not a historic night for women on the ballot. the number of women who will be in the senate quadrupled tuesday night. right now she's the only woman of color to serve on the body. she's only the second woman of color to serve in the senate. tammy duckworth of illinois, con stance cortez. it's a small group but four times larger than any other time in american history. we'll be right back. as long as .

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the passion fuelling those urban protests wasn't enough to overcome how trump overperformed in rural america, especially in states like michigan, wisconsin and pennsylvania. take a look at the crucial swing state of pennsylvania, in fact. donald trump received 332,000 more votes than romney did in 2012 and hillary clinton got 145,000 fewer votes than obama. so what's next for the party and who is their leader? bob casey of pennsylvania. he won reelection in 2012 which obama kept the state blue. if he chooses to run for reelection, he would be up in 2018. senator casey, welcome back, sir. >> chuck, good to be with you. thank you. >> tell me in your words, what happened in pennsylvania? >> well, chuck, i think what you

saw was the usual democratic performance in rather substantial high numbers in southeastern pennsylvania. philadelphia was very strong, suburban philadelphia was, in a number of other communities, but what we saw in western pennsylvania to a large extent in the middle of the state as well is democratic performance that was down but even down below where it was in 2012. this problem didn't just arise this year. this has been happening over a number of years. i saw a lot of them when i was running in 2012, for example. i think it was off even more substantially this time. if you're a democrat like me, you have to be able to have conversations with folks who live in those communities and do some listening and do some learning. >> i don't see clinton doing a lot of outreach in the t of pennsylvania. was that a mistake in hindsight?

>> look, i'm not going to analyze strategy and i'll leave that to others to analyze the campaign. i'm just talking about going forward, democrats are going to have to a more direct conversation, and a lot of that conversation is going to be listening to folks in those communities. >> but i want to pause here. it just strikes me. i'm talking to bob casey jr., right? and your dad and you, you won elections not on the back of philadelphia and pittsburgh, you won because of how well you did in the scrantons. is it possible that hillary clinton didn't connect to the scrantons of the world? and because, you know, barack obama had a joe biden by his side who certainly was part of the ticket. is that part of it, too? >> chuck, i'll leave that to others to analyze that. but what i'm saying is that i think as a party, and i start

with myself, we're going to have to figure out ways to engage with voters in those communities. i think trade is an area where in this election that was a driving issue, but look, if we have a method to come together in common purpose on an issue like infrastructure, rebuilding roads and bridges, we have 502,000 bridges in our state structurally insufficient. we have people around our world and our country that don't have broadband. there are people who don't have conne connectivity to the internet. there are ways we can connect with folks but we have to do better. >> the leader of the democratic party, the operational or functioning leader of the democratic opposition, what does

that mean to you? how should democrats perform -- conduct themselves as an opposition party when it comes to dealing with president trump? >> there are probably a number of areas where we can work with them. infrastructure is one. he may have a conflict with his own party on that. we have been trying for years to have a bipartisan substantial investment in infrastructure. we'll see if republicans go along with this, but i think that's one area. but there are going to be areas where we don't agree. for example, i'll just speak for myself here, but i think it's true of a lot of democrats. if president-elect trump embraces fully, for example, the ryan budget, he's not going to get my vote on that, which would devastate programs like medicaid, which is not just a program for poor children in our inner city, but it's also a major reason why people can get into nursing homes, for example. that's not going to work very well in pennsylvania. >> let me ask about the supreme

court. senator republicans basically decided to prevent the senate from -- prevent president obama from filling the supreme court opening for about nine months. will senate democrats allow president-elect trump to fill that vacancy, or will senate democrats decide that they will fight this just as hard as republicans fought it? >> first of all, i think merrick garland should get a hearing and a vote this year in the post-election period, because senate republicans have been totally derelict in their duty. there is no constitutional basis or otherwise for the position they've taken to deny him. but when it comes to trump administration's supreme court nominees, we're going to qution them very closely, we're going to scrutinize them and then make a decision.

speaking for myself -- >> you won't go along with a filibuster. go ahead. >> there's nothing wrong with filibustering, but when you go along with the supreme court, they should get a nod and a vote. >> do you think there will be anyone saying, hey, do everything you can to prevent them from ever filling this. since they did that to president obama, why wouldn't you do it tit for tat? >> you can't say in 2016 that someone deserves a hearing and a vote. that doesn't mean you fight very hard to make sure that when they're in that area -- that time of review and scrutiny that you question them and you cast a vote against them if you don't think they have the temperament and the judicial philosophy that you think would be appropriate for the supreme court. but we want to start, first of

all, with getting merrick garland in a vote, and then we'll hear what the new administration does if there is a vote coming up. >> bob casey, good to see you. are you running for reelection for sure, or have you decided yet? >> yes, i will be, chuck. thanks. >> there it is. for any of my pennsylvania reporter friends, he's running again. my colleague rachel maddow will have an exclusive interview with senator elizabeth warren, tonight. never say never. the congressional republicans who spoke out against donald trump. will they get behind their new president? jeff flake joins me for his take. stay tuned. marvel studios. we are very much hands on producers. if my office becomes a plane or an airport the surface pro is perfect, fast and portable but also light. you don't do 14 hours a day 7 days a week for decades if you don't feel it in your heart.

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shortly after meeting with president-elect trump, president obama met with the cavaliers. he thanked them for their contributions to the cleveland community, but hey, lebron was at the white house, and this time in a cleveland jersey rather than a miami jersey to celebrate. we have more "mtp daily" just ahead, but first here's hampton pearson. >> thanks, chuck. we had a mixed close of the markets, but for the dow at 218 points is a record high. the s&p gains 4, the nasdaq sheds 42 points.

disney shares are sinking after hours. the company reported revenue and earnings that missed estimates. the stock is up more than 2% in late trading. and filings for first-time jobless benefits fell by 11,000 last week to 254,000. they remain well below the level associated with a healthy labor market. that's it from cnbc, first in business worldwide. but then i . so, i finally broke the silence with my doctor about what i was experiencing. he said humira is for people like me who have tried other medications but still experience the symptoms of moderate to severe crohn's disease. in clinical studies, the majority of patients on humira saw significant symptom relief. and many achieved remission. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb.

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. welcome back to "mtp daily." republican leaders on capitol hill greeted president-elect trump with open arms today. how he works with congress remains to be seen, especially how he deals with those in his own party who did not support him. joining me now is one of those republicans and the biggest critic of trump in the republican party. welcome to the show, sir. >> thanks for having me on. >> we've gone from him at one point have a superpac fund a

challenge against you, if necessary, to where we are today. how do you expect to work with president trump in the u.s. senate? >> i was very pleased to see the speech that he gave just after he won. i thought it was gracious and uplifting and healing. so i will look for the good, assume the best and hope he does as well. >> you were really troubled more, i think, on much of his -- the personal behavior coupled -- and the muslim ban, i think, was one of your last straws as well. that's really not off the table. does he have to take that off the table for you to get more comfortable working with him? >> well, we'll see what comes down. i think that he's going to work with congress where he can, and he's shown that today. he sat down with paul ryan, i understand, and leader mcconnell as well, and that's a good sign. we've seen all good signs so far. obviously in congress, we'll go along. there are a lot of things we

agree on getting rid of some of these burdens for regulations, obamacare. there is a big menu we could choose from on areas we agree completely on. we'll obviously encounter some issues where we differ and we'll deal with those when we get to them. >> whose agenda is it? kay granger yesterday, congresswoman if texas who was not a trump supporter, said, you know what? he earned this election, and in many ways a lot of republicans should acknowledge they owe their reelection to him, and to the turnout and support levels that he got, looking at wisconsin, for instance. you're in the majority, arguably because of how well he did in wionsin and indiana and missouri. so whose agenda is it? is it his agenda? is he the captain here, or do senate and congressional republicans, do you get to push your agenda?

>> obviously he's the leader of the party. he's the president-elect of the united states. i think all of us who have opposed him during the process of eating a huge helping of crow already. i didn't think he would get this far, i really didn't. having said that, obviously, when there are areas of disagreement and there may be some, there will be some, we'll push back. but in the meantime, there are a lot of things we agree on. i think he's been gracious so far in terms of outreach and has done it right so far. we'll see where we go. >> i just interviewed senator bob casey, democrat from pennsylvania. i said, why wouldn't senate democrats do the same thing to a trump supreme court nominee that basically senate republicans did to merrick garland, and i will set aside, you have been a loud voice of saying merrick garland deserves a hearing, merrick garland deserves a vote, all of those things. i'm well aware of that.

would you blame democrats if chuck schumer said, you know what, we're just going to make this impossible for you to get this. we're going to put every barrier we can to make sure this is as difficult as possible to confirm this justice. would you blame him? >> no. i think a number of us, a number of republicans were approached by the news media on reports that people would demand that we not confirm any hillary clinton nominee or not allow them to be considered if we were to retain the majority, and a number of us said no, that's not reasonable. that's not what we were sent to the senate to do. and i would expect that most democrats feel the same way. you may have a few who want to block forever, but you can't do that. you shouldn't do that in the senate. so i would expect them to be reasonable. >> but -- and senator casey said he wouldn't do that. he said it would be hypocritical, we demand a hearing and a vote, so he wouldn't do that. >> right. >> he is also still saying,

still holding out hope that merrick garland will get a hearing and a vote. that's not going to happen. but has this been a stain on the senate? >> since 2003, when democrats first and republicans later, have kind of blocked the president's executive calendar, which was really never done before that, i think it has been a stain on the senate. i hope we can get back to moving the president's nominees and cabinet officials at least to the floor for a vote. it has not been good for the senate. i hope we can move away. i do think we ought to continue to treasure the legislative filibuster. it makes for better legislation, it forces people to work across the aisle, and it's not so prone to overreach by either party. >> so you will not support any movement by mcconnell to go to a nuclear option, so-called nuclear option? >> on legislative agenda? no. >> what about on the supreme court? >> no. i would like to return to where

we were prior to 2003 when simply nobody ever filibustered an executive -- part of the president's executive calendar, including supreme court nominees. i hope that we don't do that. but if we did, it would simply be defacto, or what was defacto prior to 2003. what i'm most concerned about is the legislative filibuster and not breaking with the senate there. that's been good for the institution and good for the country. >> as every senator will tell you that's been there a ile, you're only in the majority until you're in the minority. >> that's exactly right. it's tough to remember sometimes, but it always happens. >> senator jeff flake, republican from arizona, thanks for coming on. >> you got it. i look at some of trump's promises about the first 100 days.

stay tuned. until i put these babies on. now we're on a winning streak and i'm never taking them off. do i know where i'm going? absolutely. we're going to the playoff. allstate guarantees your rates won't go up just because of an accident. starting the day you sign up. so get accident forgiveness from allstate. and be better protected from mayhem, like me. ♪ well, if you want to sing out, sing out ♪

♪ and if you want to be free, be free ♪ ♪ 'cause there's a million things to be ♪ ♪ you know that there are ♪ and if you want to be me, be me ♪ ♪ and if you want to be you, be you ♪ ♪ 'cause there's a million things to do ♪ ♪ you know that there are ♪ welcome back. i'm obsessed with a myth on tuesday, that trump won with a huge turnout. all along we wondered if donald trump would change the electorate. it turned out she changed the electorate. hillary clinton was handed the obama coalition and she turned it back to the al gore/john

kerry coalition. in other words, she turned out the electorate that john kerry got. compare the number of votes mitt romney won in 2012 to what donald trump got this year. it's almost identical. now compare president obama's 2012 vote. 1.6 million plus to hillary clinton's less than 1.4 million. now, that's a difference. that's a big difference between obama winning big in 2012. he won wisconsin by nearly seven points, and clinton losing it very small in 2016. want more proof? let's take a look at michigan. trump outperformed romney by several thousand votes. but clinton got less than 3,000 votes. let's be clear. donald trump did bring out some new white voters, especially in suburban and rural areas.

in pennsylvania he added more than 200,000 votes to romney's total. he did generate enthusiasm. that's all true and that's exactly what hillary clinton couldn't do. she couldn't generate enthusiasm. so yes, we in the media most definitely got the result wrong. but as we gnash our teeth over what went wrong, let's look at something else. hillary clinton didn't lose because of a donald trump surge. she lost because she lost because millions of democrats were too busy or maybe too indifferent or maybe too unenthusiastic about her to bother to vote. we'll be right back.

time now for "the lid." while we've been on the air, a former democratic national committee chairman announced that he wants to be the future chairman of the democratic national committee. howard dean tweeted the following. quote, the dems need organization and focus on the young, need a 50-state strategy and tech rehab. i am in for chairman, again. the panel is back, molly, cornell, matt.

by the way, that's for the out party, especially when your first loss after you've lost the presidency, the big campaign is for who runs the dnc. cornell, you worked for howard dean. >> i think -- >> you worked for him in '05. >> we were shaking things up. all that stuff. by the way, that was very successful. a lot of democrats panned it, oh, this would never work. then when it started working, it was brilliant. >> i though it was all obama. >> and the obama campaign picked it up. but howard dean is right to a certain extent. we do need to get back focused on the 50-state strategy. we do need to get back expanding the playing field and expanding the map. i think there's going to be a strong, hard, tough-fought-for for the chairmanship this time around. there's some younger people, not

as traditional thinking about it. and there should be. we need some new blood and new thinking. i don't want to go into another election where so many of the democrats so need black and brown people and young people and the top of the democratic party, with budgetary authority, there are no people of color. this is the last time i'm going to support a party when people of color don't have a voice. >> do you think cory booker would have made a difference as her running mate. >> that's a tough question, chuck. >> i've had some democrats ask me that. >> and good for you. >> you brought it up. i wasn't gonna, but you brought up the topic. >> i think cory booker is an awfully talented and strong politician. >> i think you just gave me the answer. >> and i look forward to his future. >> matthew, let me ask you this. i'm curious what your response was to bob casey jr., basically saying, ruling out, no way would they ever do that to -- is -- do

you watch and think, boy, the conservatives fight a lot better than the democrats do. >> well, there's a big difference. the republicans were in the majority. >> truth. >> they had the power. this is about power. if somehow we had a result where schumer was going to be the majority next year and donald trump was still the president, well, yeah, i think they might have thought about this strategy and just continuing the mcconnell strategy. i wrote earlier this year that we could face an eight-seat supreme court for this time. we don't have power and that's the thing, in washington, power is all. >> molly, it's interesting. how senate democrats handle this is going to matter to the grassroots of the party, even as a bob casey has to think about running in a midterm election and not alienating swing voters in pennsylvania. it's going to be an interesting, i think, push/poll on some -- particularly some senators that are up in 18. >> look, i think the debate that is going to be had within the democratic party is going to look very much like the debate

that republicans have been having for the past eight years. if you're going to win another national election, do you need to focus more on turning out your base, what cornell was talking about, what you were talking about, all those people that weren't enthusiastic enough about hillary clinton, but would have voted for her if they would have hypothetically showed up. or is it about to going back to scranton and getting those union members and those white working class people back in the fold of the party. that was the choice that republicans had. you had one part of the party going out and saying, we've got to talk to hispanics and young people. the other part saying, no, we need more white people. that side won and it worked out. >> here's the x factor. it's not just the democrats who have a say in the future of the democratic party. it's going to be president-elect trump, as well. what does he do? remember, he has no real tie to the conservative movement as we understand it. >> you heard casey say on infrastructure -- >> by the way, that whole debate between ryan and trump, you know who's going to win that debate? trump. he's the president.

he already won it. and trump has already made some outreach to the african-american community. it was not always the best outreach. it was not always welcomed. but if he continues this type of visits to black churches, to doing something about a city agenda. >> if he asks me, uhl serve. >> last word. >> i know we've got to wrap, but the battle between those who say, we've got to go more white and working class and those who say, we've got to go younger and more diverse, that's the fundamental ballot of the democratic party right now. >> obama/biden said do both, i would argue. >> i agree. >> molly, cornell, matthew, appreciate it. thank you. after the break, will trump and clinton carry on another important post-election tradition? stay tuned.

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finally, in case you missed it, there's a big post-election event yet to come. as we showed you earlier, president obama made with president-elect trump in the white house today. that's an american tradition and the signal of everybody wants to be a smooth tradition of power. but there's another tradition we would like to see, perhaps performed maybe. the meeting between the winner and the loser. four years ago, president obama met with mitt romney in the oval office after the election. in 2008, it was senators john mccain and barack obama barack obama sharing the stage together. following the 2004 election, george w. bush and john kerry shook hands at a ceremony honoring the baseball great, jackie robinson.

and in 2000, it was george w. bush meeting with vice president al gore after that contention election. it can't be easy for the losers to come face to face with the people who beat them, especially after a bitter or close election or even a contested one. so far, both hillary clinton and donald trump have been gracious to each other in public. the question is, when or if # will they have their post-election face to face? that's all we have for tonight. "with all due respect" starts right now. >> i'm john heilemann. >> and i'm mark halperin. with all due respect to the media, the next four years best run as a marathon, not a sprint. >> what a photo op this will be. awkward. >> awkward. >> awkward. >> awkward. >> awkward feels like an understatement. >> we are watching donald trump's plane. >> there is donald trump's plane. >> there's donald trump. >> we're watching the motorcade pull into the white house. >> donald trump is in the white house. >> this meeting has been going on for a pretty lengthy amount of time. >> this meeting