meantime, i'm alex witt alongside ayman mohyeldin and louis burgdorf. >> this is not a joke. >> this is not a joke. moonlight has won best picture. "moonlight" best picture. >> awkward. that happened actually. good morning, everyone. it's monday, february 27th. welcome to "morning joe." joe has the morning off. did you all see that? >> i fell asleep. >> i watched this morning. >> i need you to get cell phones. we will go over that later. with us on set political analyst and coauthors of "game change" mark halpern and john heilemann. former democratic congressman harold ford jr. >> good morning. >> in washington, msnbc political analyst and former chairman of the republican

national committee, michael steele. your cell phones, how awkward would that? be would you hand them over? >> if you asked. >> did you all see the oscars? >> a lot of them. >> whoa. the epic best picture blunder, possibly the worst in oscar history, someone gave warren beatty the wrong envelope for the night's biggest prize. take a look. >> the academy award for best picture. >> you're awful. gosh. "lala land." >> when the camera goes to the audience you can hear a confused warren bettatty, it says here ea stone.

as filmmakers take the stage to accept the award, an accountant from price-waterhouse cooper, the firm that certifies the oscar votes, came running out on stage. >> i'm sorry. no. there is a mistake. "moonlight" you guys won best picture. "moonlight" won." this is not a joke. this is not a joke. i'm afraid they read the wrong thing. this is not a joke. "moonlight" has won best picture. "moonlight" best picture. i would like to see you get an oscar any way. why don't we give out a whole bunch of them? >> i will hand these to my friends at "moonlight." >> warren, what did you do? >> i want to tell you what happened. i opened the envelope and it said emma stone "la la land."

that's why i took such a long look at faye and at you. i wasn't trying to be funny. >> my god. the hollywood audience just as shocked as everyone at home. filmmakers of "moonlight" take the stage to claim their award. >> very clearly, even in my dreams, this could not be true but the hell with dreams. i'm done with it because this is true. oh, my goodness. and i have to say it is true. it is not fake. we have been on the road with these guys so long and so gracious and generous to them. my love to "la la land." >> i'm not sure this is real but thank you to the academy and so humbling to be standing up with here still the -- no, they are gone. it's very humbling to be up here. >> that is horrible. look at this part. do you think that he set faye up?

i don't. although one would consider that like a mike barnicle move. >> i think he is looking for a second opinion. >> i think he is. >> he was hoping -- >> the only thing missing here is he should have just said, do i have the wrong -- and showed it to them in the front. >> you think about the pressure you're under at that moment. this is not supposed to go wrong! they couldn't have given me the wrong envelope! >> here is what didn't go wrong. willie geist's sister. >> yes, yes! >> my daughter and i have been watching this series she created. libby geist won an oscar. it won for best documentary. >> and the oscar goes to "o.j. made in america." >> and the oscar goes to

"o.j." -- [ screaming ] >> i'm going to cry. >> that is the geist household! oh, my god. that is so cute! what amazing. >> i hope they weren't eating guacamole. >> that is incredible. congratulations, willie. i cannot believe it. libby! >> oscar winner. >> incredible thing. >> incredible piece of work. >> amazing. >> if anybody who hasn't seen it, a brilliant thing and they knew they had a chance to win an academy award and eight-hour long documentary and put it on for a couple of weekends in new york and l.a. so it would qualify for an academy award recommendation and it paid off. >> i don't watch anything. i don't have the time.

i sat there, i think i watched five hours with my daughter. is that possible? >> yes. >> in a row. binge watched to her. >> jimmy kimmel was outstanding. >> hysterical. that steve harvey line, amazing. >> i thought he was great. >> he was very good. i didn't get to the end. >> let's get to the politics. a day before the president makes his first address to a joint session of congress, the new nbc news/"the wall street journal" poll shows him with a historic disapproval rating. he is the only president in modern polling to begin his presidency with a net negative rating 44% of americans approve. 48% disproof of his job in official so far. the numbers come as the white house is cracking down on leaks -- remember when i asked for your phones? >> i do remember that. >> this really happened. according to politico, press secretary sean spicer met with a

dozen of his communications officers to discuss recent leaks. staffers were reportedly told to dump their government and personal phones to prove they had nothing to hide. the irony is that this story was leaked! politico. like, i'm just trying to envision that happening. does anyone have any inside report? did they all put them in a basket and people went through the phones? i would say no way. is that what happened? >> the account that was given seems to suggest that people in the room felt compelled to put their phones on the table. >> how many? >> not sure. >> on friday, president trump doubled down on his criticism of what he calls fake news. >> i want you all to know that we are fighting the fake news. it's fake. phony. fake. a few days ago, i called the fake news the enemy of the people and they are. they are the enemy of the

people. because they have no sources. they just make them up when there are none. >> just hours after that speech at cpac the white house held a press briefing but not open to all reporters. los angeles times and hail and politico were some of the outlets barred from the briefing. has this ever happened before? >> never. >> the associated press and time were invited but they declined to attend in opposition. spicer defended the decision to limit the press. >> i think that we have shown in abundance of accessibility. we have brought more reporters into this process and the idea that every time that every single person can't get their question answered or fit in a room that we are excludeing people we have gone above and beyond to making our team and briefing more accessible than

any prior administration so i think you can take that to the bank. >> that is fake news. i don't know what he would base that on. i can ns he is upset but i used to defend sean. this is indefensible. he knows better. as much as they may not like some things that are being written about them, you don't take it on by barring people. you counter it with facts. it's an unfortunate moment and i'm hopeful that sean and perhaps those in the white house will try to dissuade this president, whomever else might be behind these decisions. >> what is the end game here, mark halpern? this war with the media that is getting so ugly. by the way, this is a nice guy. but his very first act in this presidency was to walk out and do a hostage video talking about crowd size. obviously, forced by his boss whose ego was so busted by people talking about his crowd size that he actually made his press person walk out there and do a press availability on crowd

size. and they are talking about his very first act in this presidency, and they are looking at the media as not being honest and trustworthy? this is getting a little bit concerning. >> america, not just the washington press corps. america needs to stand up. this is a fundamental principle about the press holding the power of the white house being accountable. i don't think it will stand and i'm hopeful it's not repeated and i'm hardened by the pretty widespread reaction but everyone should look at this not as some inside baseball thing but a fundamental principle of our democracy being violated. the white house cannot penalize news organizations on the content of their reporting. they can't. >> i think sean spicer was quoted in november or december saying barring legitimate news organizations from the white house briefing that is what dictators do. he said that back in december. >> right. >> that is what this reeks of.

i agree with everything mark just said. horrible and they should not be doing it. one of the questions they have raised in going after the president so hard and not barring organizations from the briefing but what president trump said at cpac maybe sensitive about stories related to russia and discredit the press ahead of those stories they know are on in the pipeline. >> get to that in a second. i want to look at the poll numbers again, michael steele, and ask you about this. this is president trump's poll numbers, the latest ones. he is the only president in modern polling history to began a presidency with a net negative rating of 44%. 48% disproof of his job and he is upside down in being knowledgeable and experienced and 18% says he has the right

temperament leaving him with a 37% deficit. a lot of people do not think he is doing a good job so far. michael steele, declaring war with the media and on news organizations, what is the end game? >> i think that actually plays into that narrative, that he will go out and sight a rasmussen poll that shows 50% or more. the idea that these polls somehow make legitimate, his administration is not something he is going to rely on. i think this was pretty much to what john was saying, a shot cross the bow to the press to say we will control the leverage of access and control the space that you're in. if you want to play with us, you're going to have to play by the rules we set in motion. i think the press is going to be october to do otherwise and that is going to come to a big showdown particularly what john said about other stories that are in thepipe line that will

very harsh and severe on the administration. they have to put their big boy pants on and deal with this stuff effectively without violating the rights of citizens and the press. >> if seems studying and knowing trump over the years this is a personality issue. this is a guy obsessed with the press, whose office in new york city is adorned with pictures of him in the press and who often called the press all the time. was always obsessed with being in the media and characterized the right way. >> on friday one of the things he said at cpac anonymous sources should not be allowed. he has his own anonymous organization in new york city. >> the media will not be distracted from these fights from our fundamental acts. i think the big question for the president and the people around him are they going to be distracted by this?

because they need to deal with the press, they need to worry about these russia stories but are they going to pass tax reforms or health care owe infrastructure? we have seen administrations involved in fights like this. they can be distracting and as you suggested the president can be extracted by this too. he will not be judged by history whether he beats the press. he will be judged by -- i don't think these fights advance him -- to rally his base. >> they rally his base. >> which is what a lot of this about. >> i agree with everything mark just said. even parts of his debates we saw over the weekend i think darrell issa is called for the appointment of a special prosecutor to look into some of these matters involving russia. i think you would be hard-pressed to find any reasonable person to suggest that darrell issa, somehow a left leaning liberal or somehow sympathetic to democratic calls. to your point i don't think

there is any doubt. there must be stories and other things they are concerned about but they will not stop the press doing their job and may not confront the press and lay out facts like they want and not able to stop members of congress who look at these facts and say it warrants a different approach. >> this approach to the press almost seems infinile. it is short sided and shows a complete lack of understanding first of all, how washington works but how the press covers news and these news organizations. should we -- >> gave him all of the attention a year ago. >> he loves it. >> sucked up all of the press in these news organization. >> michael steele, jump in. >> the press has been an effective tool for donald trump he has used throughout his public career and business and now in politics. it has remained so until it isn't and that is what he is up

against. you know, it's one thing, you know, to be the new york businessman, developer, socialite. it's another thing to be a leader of the free world and the washington press corps is not the new york press corps. the washington press corps is not the foreign correspondents. it is a group of men and women who are dedicated to laying out the story of an administration. i think that mark hit it right. he's got to understand that they are not going away. the stories aren't going away. >> i wasn't going to go here but you bring up something interesting. president trump's understanding of the press is a product really of all of the years he was embattled with the new york tabloids and colluding with them. linda stuffy who chronicled, i guess his marriages and gossip stuff, his marriage to marla maples in the '90s, said she could have predicted his

presidenti presidentialgaita. he would plant stories and get mad if they didn't come out as he wanted. it never occurred to him he couldn't control anything. now she says he is shocked he is not in control of the press. multiple reports have come out saying president trump hid his own identity to push self-promoting stories back in the 1980s, posing on the phone, like with an accent or something, as his own public relations man unship under the fake names of john miller and john barron. this is our president. last spring, "the washington post" posted a audio clip of this. take a listen.

>> this miller guy seems to know a lot about donald trump. >> he does a great trump iltatii imitation of miller. >> when the tapes emerged last may, president trump denied that it was him. >> i don't think it was me.

it doesn't sound like me. i don't know what they are talking about. have no idea. >> the post office said this is something you did rather routinely, you would call reporters and plant stories and say either you were john miller or john bar ron but it was you on the phone spp is that something you did with any regularity? >> it wasn't me on the phone. it was not me on the phone i will tell you that and it wasn't me on the phone. when was this? 25 years ago? >> we will end the block with this. maureen dowd writes in "the new york times" our president's most intense primal torrid relationship is in full the war of the roses bloom. it's with the press. the mirror for the first narcissus. president trump thinks that the mirror is cracked and the coverage is fake. and many in the press spanning the ideological spectrum think he is cracked and a lot of his pronouncements are fake.

can this strange sip be saved? probably not and be like a play where the attraction is toxic. trump could not live without the press. it is his krak crack. while many in the press may disdain the way trump uses them to rile up the crowds and deflect from transgression. we need a credible president very badly. we need credibility from him. i feel more concerned about the success of his presidency every day when he acts like this. >> just to say even on friday, as he was decrying anonymous sources his own administration is serving not only leakers but his direction serving as anonymous sources and on background and having their name attached every day. >> so many leaks in the administration.

i talk to so many people who have no idea i'm talking to the other person and the other person because everybody in there is scared. everybody in there is trying their best but they are scared. and they don't like the way things are going so they are sort of incredulous and they call hoping to get stories out there, hoping to shape things from the outside. i've never seen anything like that. i've never seen so many people talking outside of the administration just sort of in almost with desperation in their voices. >> there has never been anything like it. >> never been anything like it. still ahead on "morning joe," democrats chose tom perez to lead their comeback and it's met with consternation in the party. can he right the ship in later president of the white house correspondents jeff mason on president trump's decision to sit out of the annual dinner. from the democratic leadership, senator dick durbin joins us here on set. "morning joe" will have special coverage of president trump's address to congress. we will be live on capitol hill

tomorrow and wednesday morning at 6:00 a.m. first, bill karins with a check on the forecast. >> we end february talking about tornadoes. seems like we haven't had much in the winter storms and dealt with severe weather than anything else and do it again. today, not so bad. heavy rain through mississippi and tennessee. watch out around new orleans, mobile, maybe isolated severe storms. tomorrow the tornadoes are in the forecast. little rock to memphis and south of st. louis. this is tuesday. then we take that storm and blow it all the way to the eastern seaboard. this is the wednesday map. this is 62 million people under the risk of severe storm. mostly wind damage and isolated tornadoes and tennessee, northern alabama, mississippi and we could see the strong thunderstorms heading all the way into areas like washington, d.c. by the time we get to wednesday afternoon. so, again, this is going to be tomorrow and then into the first day of march on wednesday dealing with severe weather across the south and through the

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the results are 235 for mr. perez and 200 for mr. ellison. it is my great honor -- it is now my honor -- it is my honor now to present the gavel of the next chair of the democratic national committee to mr. tom perez. mr. perez, congratulations.

the democratic party elected tom perez the next chair of the dnc and beating out keith ellison. some of the spourers fupporters ellison were chanting. then perez maimed ellison his deputy chairman. the two called on the crowd for the democrats to come together. >> if you came here supporting me, if you're wearing a keith t-shirt or any t-shirt, i am asking you to give everything you got to support chairman perez. >> we will all be able to say whether you're sitting here, whether you're sitting outside, or whether you're looking on across america, we will all be able to say, the yuted democratic party led the resistance, ensured that this president was a one-term

president and elected democrats across this country. >> mark halpern, what do you make of this new team and how it went down over the weekend? >> i think given the candidates is the best outcome the party could get. the democratic party is in an extraordinarily weak position and a lot to do and i think the word is still out whether perez will rebuild the party and make the party acceptable to business at the same time which needs to be done for any viable party. i think he has got a chance to do it but the democratic party has a lot bigger problems right now. >> they do. where do you begin with sort of their order of business in terms of bringing the party back together? first of all, take a look at jimmy carter. he was talking during a sermon at a church service yesterday about the defeat of the democrats. >> >> in the 2016 election, a lot of the working people -- i can't believe -- workers too t

but -- in georgia and -- and in pennsylvania. vote democratic and vote republicans because they felt neglected. >> we will hear from hillary clinton in just a second. harold ford, jimmy carter was like joe biden, concerned about the people that they were forgetting in the run-up to the election. can this new team sort of capture the message? >> i hope. i think what he was saying and if i heard him correctly that we ran a campaign where we had message for blacks and hispanics and women and gays and we forgot we are one country. obama gave that great speech where he talked about we are not

a red or blue but a purple nation. we have to find our way back to a message like that and deal with the everyday issues that everyday americans are dealing with. i thought it was interesting in the poll you showed with president trump being upside down in some areas. he remained a net positive in some areas whether or not he would change washington or whether or not it was bold and decisive and things i think a lot of americans are looking for that people thought were lacking and think traits were lacking with democrats. the question for democrats now is the worn wing of the party been weakened? if it has been, that is fine on one level but we can't ignore the enormous interview that exists on that side of the party. how do you bring that energy with the moderate wing of the party which i represent in a lot of ways and i think is our path back. not just for the white house but the key seats. as chairman perez said up and down and about. probably smart for him to convene democratic mayors across the country so say what are you dealing with and all across the country deal with crime.

listen and if you're serious about the message from the bottom up let the message come from the bottom up and listen to those leaders, including that one fellow from south bend, indiana. i can't pronounce his name. >> mayor pete. >> i thought he was impressive. bring him in and convene a group of young mayors and young elected officials how the democratic party allows them and empowers them and allows their movement to move to the forefront. >> the chairman of the democratic party never historically nor the chairman of the republican party has been the person who creates the image or the message of the party. the reform of the party takes leaders, elected leaders who step forward and capture the imagination of the party. bernie sanders and elizabeth warren are not weakened by tom perez becoming chairman of the dnc. a big fight will happen in the democratic party. the party chair is not the person who is going to change the party and figure out what

the party is about. it has to be elected leaders of the party. i'm not disagreeing with you, harold. party chairs are functionary. this was a symbolic move. what the democratic party becomes over the next four years is going to be fought out among people like elizabeth warren, bernie sanders and chuck schumer and nancy pelosi and others who step forward to become presidential candidates in 2020. >> i agree with you. do you recall a time in our lifetimes when the party chair of any party has received this kind of attention after presidential race? i don't. >> because the democratic party has been decimated. >> speaking of. >> we thought we were going to win this race. >> the person who we thought was going to win or we, i say in the collective we. i actually was really concerned in the weeks leading up to the election. hillary clinton tweet out congrats to dnc chair tom perez

and deputy keith ellison. on friday, she released a video urging democrats to stay defiant. >> we, as democrats, must move forward with courage, confidence, and optimism and stay focused on the elections we must win this year and next. let resistance, plus persistence, equal progress for our party and our country. as long as we stand together and work together with respect for our differences, strength in our convictions, and love for our country, our best days are still ahead. so keep fighting and keep the faith, and i'll be right there with you every step of the way. >> michael steele, am i oversimplifying it, or is there

a potential for democrats to make some headway in those crowds that are showing up at town halls worried about their health care being taken away? >> well, absolutely. i don't think you're being short sided on this point at all. having been in the spot that the new chairman perez finds himself in now on the heels of the election of barack obama, i walked into the rnc. we had no cash coming in. had just lost a big election. the party was splintered at its base. when you have the white house i would agree with john. the chairman is a functionary because it is supposed to coordinate the dollars that the president is raising and making sure that the building is doing what it's supposed to do. but when you don't have that, when your base is practiced and when you have no core message at the moment, you've got to be the person who pulls all of that together and working through the national organization and using the chairman at the state level.

this is all about the grassroots. you cannot overlook or underestimate the power of those forces on the ground. so chairman perez will be wise to do that, to begin to form with those individuals a message that really speaks to what hillary clinton was saying if that is the pathway they want to take where they show resistance, but where they also showing where they can be confident and becoming a governing majority two, four, six years from now. coming up, top republicans appear divided over whether a special prosecutor should investigate the trump campaign's ties to russia. that story is ahead on "morning joe." i love how usaa gives me the peace of mind and the security just like the marines did. at one point, i did change to a different company with car insurance, and i was not happy with the customer service. we have switched back over and we feel like we're back home now. the process through usaa is so effortless,

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i want to say thank you to president trump. remember last year when it seemed like the oscars were racist? it's gone, thanks to him. it has been an amazing year for movies. black people save nasa and white people save jazz. that's what you call progress. >> up next, we will bring the president and ceo. national urban league, mark moreyle and opinion pages.

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african-american child, family, and worker, to have access to great schools and safe communities and good paying jobs. i want every disadvantaged child in america to have a choice about where they go to school. so important. i also want to honor and promote the achievements of historically black colleges and universities throughout our nation. they do a fantastic job. they are not given the credit that they deserve and they are going to start getting that credit. in order to help african-americans thrive, we are working very hard to make sure that every child can grow up in a safe community and have access to high paying jobs. we have lost a lot of our best jobs to other countries and this has hurt the african-american community very badly. this week, i met with

manufacturing ceos who are going to be working to bring back those jobs, and i mean really good paying jobs. >> that was president trump in the weekly presidential address this past weekend focusing on african-americans. mark halpern, how would you describe the president's weekly address? what he said? >> he set the tradition up and this was well written and seemed like emotionally delivered than is norm. it's surprised to me the addresses prior to this one haven't gotten more attention. >> we have stealing cell phones and lashing out at fake news. think about that. it was good but who is going to believe us, right? >> how he is going to break through with that when he is out there tweeting. >> if you listen to the whole thing, it was good. >> very well done. >> it's hard to disagree with

anything he said in the speech. he doesn't want -- >> what we need. >> good to hear -- >> no, i'm not being cynical. >> no, i know. joining us now is the president of the national urban league. chime in. >> let's listen to tomorrow night and see if anything that came across in that weekly address is expressed in the president's speech to the joint session of congress. as is the case, the proof is in the policy. whether, in fact, the words and the vision or the statements made by the president come through in public policy. and that is really the question. i agree that historically black colleges and universities are crucial to the country. haven't gotten the support and credit that they deserve. but what they need is support, not just credit, but support to help the students attend those schools and remain in those

schools. >> so you went with ivanka trump and linda mcmahon to baltimore and you chos the location. iv ivanka is on the forefront of some positive things. >> very small. i met her about a month ago. we learned that we had the university of pennsylvania in common and had a professor or two in common who as the world turns out, we had a conversation. i invited her as i'll do in anyone who is interested to visit one of the national urban league's entrepreneurship centers. we have 12. one in baltimore. she took us up on the offer and a chance for her to learn to about 12 entrepreneurs, women and minority entrepreneurs, to talk about how our program in baltimore was helping them, how some of our relationships with 10,000 small businesses and other partner organizations was helping them and some of the challenges these entrepreneurs face.

so i think she listened very intently. i was impressed with her knowledge and interest in the subject of women and minority entrepreneurs. we had one a year ago. in this year we had ivan trump and linda mcmahon and dina powell. i will have anybody who wants to len about the strength of investing in our minority entrepreneurs. >> dina powell is a strong pick to back up ivanka trump if this is what her focus is. >> a network of people. >> yes. >> that wide network helped to bring -- >> we know that. personally. michael steele, jump in. >> yeah, no. i thought the address by the president was spot on and that is going to follow today or maybe tomorrow with an executive order on hbcus and a lot of folks very anxious to hear what the president down in writing to

sort of fill out his promise to do more with and for these institutions, which have been largely forgotten since the bush administration, which was the last administration to really focus on how to drill down and make these institutions a bigger part of the occasionally fabric. i think given what mark is saying, the other important piece in the black community is not just the entrepreneur but the educational piece and how secretary devos is able to roll out strategies that empower those urban communities for those families to lift those kids up in failing public schools and goes beyond charter schools but do something subsequently with the school and the neighborhood in which i live, that will go much farther than anything else the administration can do at this moment. >> harold ford? >> i think michael's point is spot on. do you think that that issue come up education? and, two, did you ask specific

things of young ivanka -- >> no. >> i think she is impressive and i think she has a bigger role than she is given credit for. >> let me say about the policy. vouchers would be devastating to black kids and it would drain money from public schools into what i call speculative schools in many communities, right? so i'm curious to see what the real policy is. what we need is to stay the course of commitment above high standard and questionable funding and i hope you'll be open and the administration will be open. >> mark, please stop talk the talking points with the educational issue? >> i'm not. >> you look at washington, d.c. you look at the former black mayor of washington, d.c. bringing those voucher programs to the school system here. why? because he wanted to create the competition. he was a democrat. he wasn't a republican. so the idea of

ally as i'm for or against something let's see how we make it work and not separating them out. parents want choice. they want choice in the public schools and choice for their kids. it includes vouchers and it includes charter. it also includes getting up off our butts and doing something for failing public schools right now. beyond just the hot rhetoric of we don't want violence. >> let me say this. in louisiana, vouchers were a flop, michael. vouchers, if you will, part of the right wing talking point agenda. what people want is quality public schools. they want a quality opportunity. >> do you know why it was a flop? and what was done to fix it? >> i allowed you to finish, michael. >> sorry, sir. >> thank you. they do not work. they drain money from what we need to do to focus. 95% of kids go to a public school in america. many work well. many in inner cities do not work

well. >> they just don't. >> inner cities do not work well. the formula that works in suburbs which are probably resource public schools, parental engagement and a commitment to high standards, we need to apply that to public education. >> but, mark-- >> i'm open so quality chaverters bchaverrters but i think vouchers are a mistake and no comprehensive proof. >> my daughter lives in baltimore. she tutors in a public school in baltimore and there are kids coming to her that held a 0.47 average. that is under 1. they are beyond failing and they have no family involvement. so the concept you're describing is built on a premise that these kids in the inner cities have something that they don't have. >> but let me say this. if we are committed to public education, if we are committed to having a strong public education system, we need to

focus on high standards, we need to focus on better commitment to parental engagement and we need to commit to proper resourcing. many of the public schools in baltimore have no, if you will, extracurricular activities and very high student teacher ratios in many inner schools. so i'm hope to looking at innovation but what i don't want is rank experimentation, particularly if there is no proof, something like vouchers, that it's really worked. >> michael? >> i can give you an example of a voucher program that works. the opportunity scholars here in washington, d.c. the voucher program that enables up to 1700 students here in the district of columbia to have a choice in their education. it works. i can also tell you as a former lieutenant governor of the state that reviewed our occasional system in maryland we put together a competitive strategy that looks at education to the eyes of children leaving nothing off the table. i agree with a lot of what you're saying, mark, but one

size fits all approach is just old school. just not -- let me finish. >> it is not a one size fits all. >> it is beholding to a strategy that no longer works and you need to give these parents and these kids in these inner cities and urban communities a chance to pull themselves up. if you're sitting there with a 0.1 average, you've got to do something more than just talk about it. give them choices. >> talking about the voucher. the premise of a voucher there are private schools that exist. that can accommodate the additional students that would be transferred. >> not just private schools. >> hold on, michael. you're interrupting me. let me finish. thank you. and that is the premise of it. i suggest that you point to comprehensive examples where vouchers have worked. i think it's the wrong approach. let's continue to have the debate. i've been open because in my own hometown in new orleans, well regulated nonprofit charter schools have made a difference.

but to suggest that it is a comprehensive strategy is certainly not the -- >> let me ask you this. in your event with ivanka, dina and linda mcmahon do you think they understand the concept of thousand these multilayers are? >> i think so. what we were focused on was on minority business enterprise and small business entrepreneurs. i think providing them with an opportunity to see how a public/private approach led by the urban league is making a difference. because i think for a problem like entrepreneurship, public/private approaches can make a difference. i think they understood it. what is most important they got an opportunity to hear it directly from the entrepreneurs in baltimore. >> mark, thank you very much. we will be right back. all of my purchasing. and that unlimited 2% cash back from spark means thousands of dollars each year going back into my business...

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♪ i'm goin' up the country, baby don't you wanna go? ♪ geico motorcycle, great rates for great rides. very unfortunate what happened. personally, i blame steve harvey for this. i would like to see you get an oscar any way. why can't we give out a whole bunch of them? >> i'll be proud to hand these to my friend from "moonlight." >> that was bad. that's a mistake. has that happened? >> gets more publicity for "moonlight." >> i thought it was a joke. welcome back to "morning joe." it's monday, february 27th. joe has got the more thanning off. with us is coauthors of "game change" mark halpern and john

heilemann and former democratic congressman harold ford jr. and former head of the republican national committee michael steele. 'author of the book of "diagnosis in black" eddie glaude jr. willie is not here either. he had a late night. you know why? his sister libby geist, and ep on the "o.j." documentary, they won an oscar. here is that announcement followed by willie's family reacting. they kind of were excited. just a little bit. take a look. >> and the oscar goes to "o.j." [ screaming ] >> willie and his parents libby geist.

she won an oscar and they are a little happy. oh, my gosh. the video sent in by the geist family. look at willie! i'm so happy for them. it's so good that documentary. i don't watch anything and i've watched like five hours of it. it's so good. epic television. now to the epic blunder. when someone gave warren beatty the wrong envelope for the night's biggest prize. >> the academy award for best picture. >> you're awful. gosh. "la la land." >> oh, my god. right after announcing "la la land" you hear a confused warren

beatty saying off camera, it says here emma stone. the filmmakers from "la la land" take to the stage for accept the award, an accountant from price-waterhouse came running on stage and had to do this. >> i'm sorry. no. there is a mistake. "moonlight" you guys won best picture. "moonlight" won." this is not a joke. this is not a joke. i'm afraid they read the wrong thing. this is not a joke. "moonlight" has won best picture. "moonlight" best picture. >> i would like to see you get an oscar any way. why don't we give out a whole bunch of them? >> i will be real proud to hand these to my friends at "moonlight." >> warren, what did you do? >> i want to tell you what happened. i opened the envelope and it

said emma stone "la la land." that's why i took such a long look at faye and at you. i wasn't trying to be funny. >> oh, my gosh. the hollywood audience just as shocked as everyone at home. filmmakers of "moonlight" take the stage to claim their award. >> very clearly, even in my dreams, this could not be true but the hell with dreams. i'm done with it because this is true. oh, my goodness. and i have to say it is true. it is not fake. we have been on the road with these guys so long and so gracious and generous to them. my love to "la la land." >> i don't know what to say. i'm not sure this is real but thank you to the academy and so humbling to be standing up with here still the -- no, they are gone. it's very humbling to be up here. >> edit eddie, what happened?

everyone was very confused. how did they mess that up? and faye dunaway, everything thinks warren beatty sold her out. i think he is trying to let her know he had the wrong card and she just read it. >> that was so gracious by the producer. the producer of la la land. even though it was a mistake it was a beautiful moment. >> get more people to see "moonlight" which is all good. >> and both films. now to politics. a day before the president makes his first address to a joint session of congress, new nbc news/"the wall street journal" poll shows his him a historic disapproval rating. he is the only president in modern polling to begin his presidency with a net negative rating 44% of americans approve. 48% disproof of his job in official so far.

>> it shows a lot of people like his policies. tomorrow night is an opportunity to talk about policy that people are open to or, in some cases, like a lot. as opposed to all of the personality stuff come ironically, a guy who rose on the power of his personality has not been serving him well with the majority of americans. >> eddie, what are you looking for? i don't know if you heard his address over the weekend this which was pretty strong. it was good. >> i'm looking for trump to model what we heard from steve bannon at cpac so i'm looking for the three buckets. i expect to hear something about national security and sovereignty and economic nationalism and the deconstruction of the administrative state. there will be talk about the regulation rollback. i'm pretty unsettled by the

construction of the state as a shorthand for all of these policies and i think we need to pay close attention to what that means. i think what it means in a nutshell is the dismantling of the new deal. is the final effort to kind of strip away those guarantees that i think would benefit the very people who, in so many ways, are excite about the policies. >> at the same time, the president saying he is not going to touch -- >> we also see he is rolling back in the leaks in terms of the preliminary budget process. he is going to roll back significant funding for epa as we came out of february. >> repeal obamacare. >> and reduce the budget for the state department. so i think we have -- >> the military. >> we have a lot to talk about. >> the numbers come as the white house is cracking down on leaks coming out of the west wing. a paranoia that has taken over the white house. i mean, i've never actually -- i can't -- i'm trying to envision what this looked like in the

ro room, what the looks on people's faces were. according to politico, press secretary sean spicer met with a dozen of his communications staffers to discuss recent leaks. twelve people in a room. i guess apparently with some white house lawyers present? is what i'm hearing. starves we staffers were told to dump their government issue and personal phone and to hand them over to prove they had nothing to hide. can you imagine that scene? what did they do? look in the phones and read them outloud? the irony somebody leaked this story to politico. so you still have leaking problems big time. big-time leakers. what is the word he uses? bigly? >> bigly. >> the news comes as president trump's relationship with the trump continues to escalates. on friday he doubled down on his criticism of fake news. >> i want you all to know that we are fighting the fake news.

it's fake. phony. fake. a few days ago, i called the fake news the enemy of the people and they are. they are the enemy of the people. because they have no sources. they just make them up when there are none. actually, the sources are in your administration. they are calling the press. every second of the day. >> including some high level people. >> really nervous. very high level people are calling the press all the time leaking. >> strange how he reconciles those words with the fact that his own press secretary asked his staffers to come in and hand over the phones because there is a -- they suspect somebody in that group is leaking. >> they may have found stuff on their phones but those aren't the -- >> it's happening at every

level. >> very much wondering where their jobs stand. a lot of people paranoid they are going to lose their positions and a lot of people just looking at what is happening saying, oh, my god, how do we keep this train on track? >> a lot of pressure. >> and a piece in "the new york times" today about the use of the phrase the enemy of the people even cruise ship wouldn't use that phrase. >> no. >> the problem who is the enemy of the people? the leakers talking to the president pres? they are in your administration. michael steele? >> yeah, no. i think the key point. sean spicer asking his com shop to drop their phones on the table? big whop! that is not the source of the leaking. the leaking is coming all over the administration and some in the offices of the west wing have nothing to do with the com shop. i think if the administration want to be serious about this they have to be competitive about it and this is not the way to solve that problem because it's not just in sean's office. >> your top ten people just hand over the phones.

>> the president needs to look in the mirror and realize this is from people who want help him and not hurt him on almost every instance. >> i agree with that. there is a fear that they can't talk to him. so they try and find othervo'n to communicate. hours after that speech at cpac, the white house held a press briefing but not open to all reporters. cnn, buzzfeed and "the new york times" and the l.a. times and hill and politico some of outlets barred from covering the briefing. the associated press and "time" were invited "but declined to attend in opposition to unity. spicer defended the decision to limit the press. >> i think that we have shown in abundance of accessibility. we have brought more reporters into this process and the idea that every time that every single person can't get their question answered or fit in a room that we are excludeing people we have gone above and beyond to making our team and briefing more accessible than any prior administration so i

think you can take that to the bank. >> there is a different spicer that we have for you. back in december, here he is. >> we have a respect for the press. when it comes to the government. that that is something you can't ban and entity from. you know, conservative, liberal, or otherwise, i think that is what makes a democracy versus a dictatorship. >> let that marinate! >> yeah. >> yeah. >> is that where we're at? anybody want to participate? he just described himself. >> 70 days may be a long time in his mind. that was 70 days ago. >> are they trying to create a dictatorship? i'm not joking and i'm not angry.

>> one of the things that i think we have been talking about on this show, over the time that i've been part of it, is joe and you have mentioned the importance of democratic institutions, holding in check, right? the autocratic tendencies of donald trump and his administration. what we might be seeing here is an attempt to erode some of those institutions and here the fourth estate is under attack and if you read, the fourth estate is crucial to the workings of democracy. i'm deeply disturbed by this. at the same time, that we are focusing on the banning of news outlets from the gaggle, there is priebus talking to the fbi. there are folks trying to impact stories so there is something happening here. >> well, you have -- i'll read from kathleen parker. you have a weekend i think the president had one of his best moments, presidential moments.

if you look at his weekly address, it was good. but we really can't talk about that because either were the fake news and you shouldn't be watching. or you've got this press spokesperson who clearly is now describing months ago what would be a dictatorship and banning media outlets. kathleen parker writes this in. "the washington post" spicer makes an impossible job even harder. to give him the benefit of the doubt his job must be the hardest in the history of press secretarieses. explaining trump is a relentless, thankless task for which he will be punished one way or another. unlike most press secretaries who typically come from the reporting world, spicer is a veteran flak with a flak's contempt for the media. what is missing, also a missed opportunity, is the camaraderie and mutual respect that often develop in the media briefing room.

spicer would do well and would be well served if he would treat all reporters with the same respect he wishes for himself. they're a loathesome bunch to be sure. but they're also suckers for on pros who are self-aware enough not to take themselves or this business too seriously. i don't think sean spicer takes him too seriously. i think he is a really nice guy in a really bad position. and i think he wears -- you can see the bad position that he is in, written all over his face, which ultimately i think may undermine his effectiveness. >> the decision to exclude legitimate news organizations from a regular briefing, not a private -- >> you can't do it. >> is a fight they will lose and should lose. >> where does that decision come from? >> i don't think clear but i think they compounded their -- by not being honest. >> do you think sean spicer made that decision? i don't think he did. this is the crowd size hostage video where he went out and did something he doesn't believe in

but i think had he been a veteran journalist, it would have been, no, mr. president, no. you can't do this. you can't do this. i'll walk out. >> they defended by giving an explanation that it doesn't match up with the facts. and it's going to be, as i said, a distraction. we can't be distracted by it in terms of doing our jobs. we do have to fight for the principle. they cannot decide who gets to cover the white house based on whether they like the coverage or not. it's not going to work. >> every president has tension with the press. this is not new. >> of course. >> everybody tries to shape stories which we all acknowledge. and i think maybe mark or even michael or maybe eddie, said that it's clear, though, this white house decided that their opponent as much as it's going to be democrats and whoever democrats put up at various levels, it's the press as well and whether it's what heilemann said earlier they are anticipating stories in a pipeline or not, they have made clear that the press is a problem for them. so they are going to run against it. they have taken this to a level unseen.

i used to feel bad for sean but after watching being reminded what he said back in december. >> it's what he knows. >> it's what he knows. who he is. >> i don't have any problem him saying things i disagree with or defending policies i may differ with, but this is fundamentally just i think against whom he is and he shouldn't, based on who he said back in he's did, shents be defending this banning news organizations and taking on the media this way is not going to advance the agenda of this white house. >> if you're in the white house to help the president and you know something -- >> narrow political agenda but not advance your policy agenda. >> bannon called the media the opposition party. >> they are the new opposition. >> other administrations have, on occasion, done things like this. they have retribution against news organizations against coverage they didn't like but kidding if they think what they did on friday -- >> is there any way sean spicer didn't know that before he walked out there? i think he does know. >> i don't know if they thought

no one would protest or have a chilling effect? i assume by now they say it's not a winnable fight and nor should it be in a free country. >> i don't think anyone can say no to him. michael steele? >> to mark's point just now, mark, do you think that donald trump, himself, is really concerned about that part of this, that it didn't work or didn't work as well, or was it just more the effect of knowing that as president, as the white house, west wing, if we want to do this, we will do it? >> i think it makes him feel good. unfortunately, because of the behavior of news organizations during the campaign, they, i think, learned a bad lesson which is they got away with it during the campaign and think they can get away with it in the white house. >> michael steele, if you were in the white house was would you be advising this president on this issue? >> don't do this! >> don't do it! >> are you kidding me? >> look. . there is truth about going up against the one who, you know, buys their ink by the barrel.

and that is -- >> the reason not to do it? >> on no, not the reason not to do it but also, i think, it's the respect for the institutions as well and recognizing, i think someone made the point earlier that this is not about you personally. this is about just covering your administration. you tell us the story. we will cover the story. and i think if they appreciate that, they can get past the personal stuff going on right now. >> the story right now they are barring the media from press briefings and handing over cell phones apparently in a state of swirling paranoia. still ahead on "morning joe," president trump said he will not attend this year's white house correspondents dinner. that was after bloomberg canned their party and different reporters, including this one said, i'm not going to this thing when you call this fake news. the last time a president skipped the dinner in 1981, ronald reagan missed it because he was recovering from a gunshot wound after a failed assassination attempt. he still called in to provide a

few remarks. we are going to speak live with the head of the white house correspondents association. plus, president trump, once again, exaggerates how big his crowd sizes are. >> you folks are in here. this place is packed. there are lines that go back six blocks. and i tell you that because you won't read about it, okay? because there are lines that go back six blocks. >> when i walked in here before the ballroom was declared to be at capacity, there were no lines at the magnetometer to get in and our truck operators have not found anyone outside of this sprawling complex here in national harvard. >> jared? just remember. it's not a lie if you believe it! >> thanks, man. 2 united club passes... priority boarding... and 50,000 bonus miles.

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isn't there. you know, one of the things we say in the south, if a girl scout egged your house would you buy cookies from her? i think this is a pretty similar scenario. there is no reason for him to go in and sit and pretend like this is going to be just another saturday night. >> who is throwing eggs? what are they talking about? they are literally making up something that doesn't exist. that was white house press secretary sarah huckabee sanders defending the president's decision to skip the white house correspondents dinner. joining us from capitol hill is white house correspondent for reuters, jeff mason. he is the current president of the white house correspondents association. jeff, thanks for being with us. >> my pleasure. >> so this dinner has been controversial over the years. sometimes it's been criticized for being a little too cozy or a little bit too showy and flashy

in hollywood, whatever. describe what the point of the dinner is at this point. >> sure. i think it's a great question. the overall point of the white house correspondents dinner is to celebrate the first amendment, to celebrate journalism and celebrate the good work of the members of the correspondents association and other journalists who write about boxes ovpolitics over thed what we will be doing with or without the participation of president trump. we also give scholarships to up and coming student journalists and journalist to showcase the excellent talent that is the next generation of our professi profession. we look forward to celebrating that again this year. >> often, the way that is done is through humor, correct? >> sure. yeah. there are jokes. and, honestly, mika, i'd like to say the accordance association has worked very hard this year to build a constructive relationship with the trump white house. i think in many ways we have succeeded. and we would have liked to have

showcased that at the dinner. that doesn't mean -- this comes in the context of very, very negative rhetoric coming from the president of the united states. but it's important, i think, for viewers to know that despite that rhetoric, we have worked well with the trump white house. we have had many opportunities for journalists to ask questions of the president and of his press team. and those things count and those things are also things we would have and will celebrate at this dinner. >> your reaction to the president saying he is not going? >> well, i was surprised. i was surprised that we hadn't had chance to even talk about it, except in passing a couple times over the last month. we have been focusing on a lot of major challenges between the press and the white house and the dinner is, you know, not been at the top of our list for that. >> right. >> but we are planning that dinner. we are working very hard and we are going to have that dinner. and if the president changes his mind, he is still welcome. >> okay. the roots of the president's distaste for the white house correspondents dinner and some

say his 2016 candidacy for president can be traced back to 2011 when his potential candidacy and crusade for president obama's birth certificate was the butt of jokes. >> obviously, we all know about your credentials and breadth of experience. for example, no, seriously. just recently in an episode of "celebrity apprentice" at the steak house, the men's cooking team did not impress the judges from omaha steaks. and there was a lot of blame to go around, but you, mr. trump, recognized that the real problem was a lack of leadership, and so, ultimately, you didn't blame little john or meatloaf. you fired gary busey. these are the kind of decisions that would keep me up at night.

>> donald trump has been saying he will run for president as a republican which is surprising since i just assumed he was running as a joke. i like that trump is filthy rich but nobody told his accent. his whole life is gold columns but still sounds like a know it all. mr. trump may not be a good choice for president but he would definitely make a good press secretary. how much fun would that be? kim jong-il is a loser. it's latest rally was a flop. i feel back for ahmadinejad. he never wears a windbreaker. he has no class. i, aerneon the other hand, sell own toois and can you find them at macy's. >> he doesn't like to laugh at himself is what i'm told but he can't. mark halpern? >> manage smg that i think a lot of senior accomplished people have and going to that dinner would have been a challenge for him. although i agree with jeff. he might change his mind.

jeff, ask you two things. one, do you examine other members of the administration to attend and participate in the dinner? two, what will the correspondents association posture be going forward if sean spicer tries to restrict news organizations to attend briefings? >> we sell tables to members of the association and they are welcome to invite whomever they want. i'm sure there will be people from this administration there and they are welcome. on your second question, the correspondents association objected be to what happened on friday where certain news organizations were not included in the press gaggle or briefing. we have been in talks with them about and working hard to make sure something like that doesn't happen again. >> if it does, how would you characterize the problem? >> well, i guess the first thing i would say, mika, i want to put it in the larger context of what has happened during this first month. during the first month, sean

spicer has been briefing regularly from the briefing room and on television and that is what we asked for. and so that is important not to forget. the fact that they did not include a bunch of organizations on friday is certainly a concern. and, of course, it comes in the context of president trump saying things like the fact that he believes the media is the enemy of the american people. we absolutely do not believe that. the media is in a critical part of a u.s. democracy and those are the values we are fighting for. if this happens again then we will have to talk about it with our members about how to proceed but i'm hoping we get the message across and i'm hoping the white house realizes it's not in their interest just as it's not in the interest of a free press. >> jeff mason, thank you very much. ahead, another high profile appointee from the president bows out. we will tell you who it was. also ahead, we look back at the life of actor bill paxton. a mainstay of some of the most iconic movies of the last half

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i think we are going! maybe we should get off of this road. >> movie star bill paxton has died at the age of 61 following complications from surgery. paxton starred in classic movies including "apollo 13" and "twister." they spelled out b.p. on the map using their gps. more recently, paxton starred in a hit tv shows "big love" and

"hatfields and mccoys." he told carson daly earlier this month he considered himself a working actor and the tributes from his fellow actors and actresses are pouring in. jamie lee curtis tweeted a pictures of herself and paxton in the movie owe tr"true lies." writing the following. and tom hanks writing this. he leaves behind two children and his wife of 30 years, lewis. bill paxton is dead at 61 ir. the country is remembering judge wapner. he was a world war ii veteran and wounded by sniper fire in the pacific and served two decades in the california courts. on the show that made him a

cultural institution, he could be curt with plaintiffs and defendants but known for fairness in his decisions. a "the washington post" poll from 1989 found that while more than 60% of americans couldn't make a supreme court justice but 54% of could name judge wapner. he died in los angeles. he was 97 years old. still ahead one debate the new national security adviser h.r. mcmaster seems to be closer to president obama's position than president trump. we will explain what that is ahead. want longer lasting heartburn relief?

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and whether it can truly remain independent. in a statement released on friday, senator mark warner said that he spoke with committee chairman senator richard burr and cia dr. mike pompeo to discuss his concerns. his decision, he stressed, followed reports that the white house sought the help of senior intelligence officials and lawmaker on the house and senate intelligence committees to try and combat news stories over those alleged connections. meanwhile, top republicans remain divided over calls for a special prosecutor to handle the investigation. >> you cannot have somebody, a friend of mine, jeff sessions, who was on the campaign and who was an appointee. you need to use the special prosecutors statute and office to take not just to recuse. you can't just give it to your deputy. that is another political appointee. you do have to do that. >> i think that is way, way getting ahead of ourselves here. chuck, no allegations of any

crime occurring. there is not even an indication there is criminal investigations on the underway by the fbi. if we get down that road, that is a decision that attorney general sessions can make at the time. >> that was darrell issa and tom cotton talking about this. walter russell reed writes this. trump isn't sounding like a russian mole. if he was the candidate that people keep wanting to believe he is here will some of the things he would be doing. limiting fracking as much as he possibly could and blocking oil and gas pipelines and opening negotiation for major nuclear arms reductions and trying to tamp down tensions with russia's ally iran. that trump is planning to do the opposite of these things may or may not be good policy for the

united states. but anybody who thinks that this is a russia appeasement policy has been drinking way too much joy juice. american needs a solvent and stable press to give this president the skeptical and searching scrutiny he needs. what we are getting is something much wrors for the help of the republic. a blind instinctive rage that lashes out without wounding, that injures its own credibility more than its target, that discredits the press at just the moment where its contributions are most needed. mark halpern, is that a fair assessment about press overreach and common logic? >> the list of things is a good solid intellectually solid one and some of his opponents are critical about russia but does not explain the fundamental things given the question and to knock down officials whether his campaign is investigated we have two credible news organizations have reported that they are. >> and -- go ahead.

>> it seems to be a confusion around what is motivating there. it's that russia russia was involved in our election. >> allegedly. >> allegedly, right? it seems to me to kind of say he is a manchuran candidate makes us to look someplace else. i think it's confusing article. >> your straw man, i believe, is the phrase you're looking for. >> shorthand for. >> at the same time, i can't figure out why he just can't -- i just wonder if it's more a psychological thing, that he just is -- for people who are popular or well-known or seem strong, that equals good. it could be a as simplistic as that, his possession with putin or inability to say what putin really is to tell the truth. i don't know.

i can't -- it's one thing i can't figure out. >> i think an independent counsel is something the white house has to watch. there is no independent counsel statute any more. the attorney general could have picked as was suggested a u.s. attorney with a record of independence to look at it. >> what are the chances that will happen? >> right now low. i say an interesting person to have said this, don't -- tom cotton didn't go nearly that far but he did lean in the notion this needs to be a fair investigation and i think you need to watch on capitol hill as they deal with health care and everybody else that people follow what i just said. >> the stories as they mount like the story about the white house reaching out to intelligence community, people -- intelligence -- members of the intelligence committee on the hill asking them to vouch, to knock these stories down, all of that reporting at the end of the week, their problem is not increase the volume of democrats

call for an independent council but like darrell issa. a lot of republicans have real estions about this russia issue and if republicans start to break in that direction, the presre on sessions to do that will become considerable. he may or may not bend to it but the pressure will get big if republicans go that direction. >> the question they have trouble answering i believe if he did nothing wrong if all of these reports are false why not have an independent investigation to remove the shadow of doubt. >> had which is clearly there. >> including amongst a lot of republicans. >> a lot of republicans. >> and a lot of lobbyists. >> joining us from the white house nbc news national correspondent peter alexander. apparently another dropout happening? >> reporter: exactly right. this is the second military secretary to withdraw his name before the confirmation process. philip builtin was an officer for a decade among the concerns he cited were about privacy and separating himself from his private business is interests.

now james mattis, the defense secretary, has to come up with another name to suggest as the next navy secretary which notable about this is that his withdraw came basically a week after the white house pushed back firmly against any claims that he would be dropping out. this was the tweet from sean spicer on february 18th. he wrote those people would be wrong who suggest this. just spoke with him and he is 100% committed to being the next sec navy, pending senate confirm. as for those private business concerns he was heavily involved until his recent retirement with a global private management firm. which leaves own the air force secretary the remaining military secretary up for confirmation. >> peter, the president's budget proposal is expected today. what are be we going to hear? >> reporter: multiple senior administration officials tell me he is going to outline his budget priorities. they will includin the words of one official massive hikes in

military homeland security, intelligence, and law enforcement. separately, this official tells me that they will not have any impact on social security and medicare and medicaid. tump is barely mentioning the goal of a balanced budget. he wants his federal government to

so much their admiration for trump but the loathing for democrats and their agenda on taxes and deregulation. old pillars of the reagan evolution. skepticism about it and bannon's economic populism are not below the surface. they yearn for him to deliver. if the results are disappointing, the pieces of his conservative base may not be as dependable as you would like. michael, what do you think? >> we need an honest assessment that the reagan revolution is over and the era of ronald reagan is done. i think republicans/conservatives have to reconcile themselves in this era of trump. he is with bannon's and reince's appearance at cpac, his own appearance at cpac opened this front within the conservative movement that is about economic populism, economic nationalism in a way we have not seen

before. how do you reconcile big government spending programs, whether it's $1 trillion for infrastructure, growing defense, et cetera with the idea the folk that is came to congress in 2010 and sense then they wanted a small government, limited spending, reducing the debt and deficit. it will be interesting to see how they do that. >> so, in terms of military spending, there are some legitimate needs, like a massive computer overhaul of the department of defense and things that do cost money. is this new front in any way fiscally conservative? no, right? michael? >> no, it's not. it's not. i think that's part of the reconciliation. a lot of folks want more defense spending, but at what cost? you have to offset that. given what the president's budget, at least preliminarily is looking at, those savings aren't there.

how much can you get out of 17% of the budget? that's going to be a big point that paul ryan and conservative hawks inside the house and senate are going to have toome to the table with a whether or not the president gets his way. >> and people losing their health care. dear trump voters, trump spoke to your genuine pain, the fading of the american dream and he won your votes. will he deliver? the truth is, among the biggest losers from trump policies will be you, trump voters, especially working and middle class. you were hoping you would elect a savior. instead, donald trump is doing to you what he did to just about everybody who trusted him. he's betraying you. the sooner you recognize that, you can push for policies to protect your health care and social security. defend the integrity of the health care system and your own interest. you have a false savior.

you will have to turn on him to save yourselves and our nation. is that going a little too far too soon? >> i don't know. it's the typical american relic of jeremiah. the sermon -- >> there's a lot of -- there's a lot of history that backs this up. >> yeah, i think it's really important. we talked about this during the general election, both sides failed to speak to working people. the policies of the reagan revolution and clintonism decimated every day, ordinary people working their behinds off to make ends meet. trump came into that space. >> yeah. >> in some ways a space that was and judgment on the obama years and said we are going to change matters. >> yeah. >> and what we see. tax reform. what we see? deregulation. we see policies that defined the landscape since the '80s. i think it is reasoble to conclude that every day workers, black, brown, white, will not benefit from the policies that

trump put forward. it might be a kind of exaggerated rhetoric, but -- >> john heilemann. >> a fascinating story, johnson who covered trump's campaign wrote this piece. she drove across iowa and talked to 100 trump votered in iowa and found they are having misgivings, not mixed feelings. they have not turned on him yet. a lot said now as they see him in action, they are quezy. >> he spoke to working people. will he help them? still ahead, democrats just elected a new party chairman. activists are looking to shake up the rest of the party's leadership. we'll talk to the senate's number two democrat, dick durbin. plus -- >> of course, you know, it was an amazing thing to hear "la la

land". we would love to have won best picture. we are so excited for "moonlight." >> emma stone speaking eloquently after the epic mix up involving the envelope in warren beatie's hand. how did they blow the biggest momentld of the night? "morning joe" is back in a moment. s ke a trip to la plata, colombia. this is boris calvo. that's pepe. boris doesn't ju grow good coffee, boris grows mind-blowing coffee. and because we pay him a fair price, he improves his farm to grow even better coffee and invest in his community, which makes his neighbor, gustavo, happy. that's blanca. yup, pepe and blanca got together. things happen. all this for a smoother tasting cup of coffee. green mountain coffee. packed with goodness.

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"moonlight" has won best picture. "moonlight," best picture. >> awkward. that happened, actually. good morning, everyone. it's monday, february 27th. welcome to "morning joe." joe has the morning off. did you all see that? >> i watched this morning. >> i need you all to give your cell phones. we'll go over that later. with us on set, political analyst and co-authorsover "game change." msnbc political analyst, former democratic congressman, harold ford jr. and in washington, msnbc political analyst and former chairman of the republican national committee michael steel. no, i'm serious, your cell phones. would you hand them over? >> if you asked, sure. >> what happened? did you see the oscars? >> i saw it. >> whoa! the epic, best picture blunder,

possibly the worst in history, someone gave warren beatie the wrong envelope for the biggest prize. take a look. >> and the academy award for best picture -- >> you are awful. come on. >> "la la land." >> right after announcing "la la land" when the camera goes to them, it says emma stone. then as film makers from "la la land" take the stage to accept the award, an accountant from price waterhouse cooper, the company that certifies the votes, came running out on stage. >> i'm sorry. there's a mistake.

"moonlight" you won best picture. this is not a joke. this is not a joke, i'm afraid they read the wrong thing. this is not a joke. "moonlight" has won best picture. "moonlight" best picture. >> i would like to see you get an oscar anyway. why not give out a bunch of them. >> i'm going to be proud to hand it to my friends from "moonlight." >> warren, what did you do? >> i'm going to tell you what happened. i opened the envelope and it said emma stone, "la la look." that's why i took a long look at fe and at you. i wasn't trying to be funny. >> my god. the hollywood audience just as shocked as ever. the film makers of "moonlight"

take the stage for their award. >> even in my dreams, this could not be true. to hell with it. this is true. my goodness, it is true, it's not fake. we have been on the road with with them so long. it was so gracious and generous to them. my love to "la la land." >> i don't know what to say. i'm not sure it is real. thank you to the academy. it is so humbling to be standing up here with hopefully still the "la la" crew. no, they are gone. it's humbling to be up here. >> horrible. look at this part. do you think he set fay up? i don't. one would consider that a mike barnicle move. >> he's looking for a second opinion. >> i think he's looking for a second opinion. >> he was hoping someone from backstage might -- >> he should have said, do you have the wrong -- and showed it to them in the front. >> think about the pressure you

are under in that moment. it's not supposed to go wrong. >> it can't go wrong. they can't give you the wrong envel lope. >> here is what didn't go wrong. willie geist's sister, we have been watching this series that she created. libby geist won and award. she won for best documentary. >> and the oscar goes to "o.j.: made in america". and the oscar goes to "o.j." -- >> ahhh! ahhh! >> i'm going to cry. that's the geist household. oh, my god. that is so cute.

oh, my god. it's a family night. that's incredible. congratulations, willie. i cannot believe it. libby. amazing. >> oscar winner. >> incredible thing. an incredible piece of work, i will say. if you haven't seen it, it's a brilliant thing. they knew they had the chance to win the academy award. it's an eight-hour long documentary. they put it on for a couple weekends in new york and l.a. to qualify for consideration in the documentary category and it paid off. >> it did. i don't watch anything, i just don't have the time. i sat there and i think i watched five hours. is that possible? >> it's possible. >> in a row. bing watched with her. all right, to politics. >> jimmy kimmel was outstanding. >> he was. the steve harvey line. >> i thought he was great. >> he was very good. i didn't get to the end. we are all prokimmel. >> everyone is prokimmel, except

matt damon. >> let's get to politics. a day before the president makes his first address to a joint session of congress, the nbc news/wall street journal shows an historic disapproval rating. the only president in modern polling to begin with this rating. 44% approve, 48% disa i prove. the numbers come as the white house is cracking down on weeks. remember when i asked for your phones? >> i do remember. >> this really happened. according to politico, press secretary sean spicer met with a dozen communication officers to discuss recent leaks. staffers were told to dump their government issued and personal phones to prove they have nothing to hide. the irony, of course, is this story was leaked to politico. i'm trying to invision that

happening. do you have inside report? did they all put them in a basket and people went through the phones? i would say no way. is that what happened? >> it seems to suggest the people in the room felt compelled to put their phones on the table. >> how many in the room? >> not sure. >> the relationship with the press continues to escalate. friday, he doubled down on his criticism of what he calls fake news. >> we are all fightinging the fake news. it's fake. phony, fake. a few days ago, i called the fake news the enemy of the people and they are. they are the enemy of the people. because they have no sources, they just make them up when there are none. >> just hours after that speech at cpac, the white house held a press briefing, but it was not open to all reporters. cnn, buzz feed and new york times, "the los angeles times,"

the hill and politico were some of the outlets barred from covering the briefing. has this ever happened before? >> no. >> never. >> anybody seen this before? the associated press and "time" were invited, but they declined to attend. spicer defended the idea to limit the press. >> i think we have shown an abundance of accessibility. we have brought reporters into the process. when they don't get their answer, we have gone above and beyond with making ourselves, our team and briefing room more accessible than any prior administration. i think you can take that to the bank. >> that's fake news. i don't know what he would base that on. i understand he's upset, but i used to defend sean. this is indefensible. he knows better. as much as z i may not like things written about him, you don't take it on by barring the people. you counter with facts.

that's an unfortunate moment. i'm hopeful sean and those in the white house will try to dissuade this president and whoever else might be behind this decision. this is not healthy. >> what is the end game, mark halperin? the war with the media that is getting so ugly. this is a guy, nice guy, but his very first act in this presidency is walk into a hosz taj video talking about crowd size, forced by a boss whose ego was busted by talking about crowd size that he made his press person walk out there and do a press availability on crowd size. they are talking about -- >> his very first press -- >> his very first act in this presidency. they are looking at the media as not being honest and trust worthy. this is getting concerning. >> america not the washington press corps. this is a fundamental principle about the press holding the power of the white house

accountable. i don't think it will stand. i'm hopeful it is not repeated. i'm heartened by their widespread reaction. people around the country should look at this, not as a baseball thing, but democracy being violated. the white house will not like the press coverage. they cannot penalize news agencies for content of their reporting. they can't. still ahead on "morning joe," we continue our coverage on president trump and the media and why his experience with new york city tabloids informs the approach to the press now. plus -- >> you cannot have somebody, a friend of mine, jeff sessions, who was on the campaign and who was an appointee. you are going to need to use the statute and office to take not just a recuse. you can't just give it to your deputy. you do have to do that. >> should there be a special prosecutor to look into the ties between russia and the trump campaign? we'll talk about it with senator

dick durbin. you are watching "morning joe." we'll be right back.

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call today. comcast business. built for business. before the break, we were talking about the president's crackdown on the media outlets and the attempt to stop leaks from the white house. his understanding of the press is a product of the time in his rough and tumble world of the new york tabloids. linda stasi who chronicled his marriage and gossip, the marriage to marla maples in the '90s, coif predicted theage tile. he would get mad if stories didn't come out as he wanted. it never occurred to him he couldn't control everything. now, he is shocked he's not in control of the press. multiple reports have come out

saying president trump hid his own identity to push self-promoting stories in the 1980s, posing on the phone, like with an accent or something as his own public relation man under the fake names of john miller and john baron. this is our president. last spring, "the washington post" posted a 14-minute audio clip of a reporter's interview with john miller in 1991. take a look. >> what's your name again? >> john miller. >> and you work with donald trump? >> yes, that's correct. >> what kind of comment is coming from your agency, or from donald? >> just that he really decided he wasn't, you know, he didn't want to make a commitment. coming out of a marriage that he's starting to do tremendously well financially. he called and wanted to go out with him, that i can tell you.

one of the other people that you are writing about, by the way, i'm sort of new here. >> what is your position? >> i handle pr because he gets so much of it. frankly, i can tell you off the record, get to you you and talk off the record, i can tell you, he didn't care if he got bad pr until he got a divorce. >> oh, my god. no. >> yeah. this miller guy knows a lot about trump. >> he does a great trump imitation. incredible. >> he was brand-new. >> brand-new, just started. >> when the tapes emerged last may, president trump denied it was him. >> i don't think it was me. it doesn't sound like me. i don't know what they are talking about. i have no idea. >> the post say this is is something you did rather routinely, you would call reporters and plant stories and say you were john miller or john baron, but it was you on the phone. is that something you did with regularity? >> no, it was not me on the phone.

it was not me on the phone. it doesn't sound like me on the phone. when was this? 25 years ago? >> we'll ends the block with is. maureen dowd writes trump versus the pss. the president's intense torrid relationship is in full the war of the roses bloom. it's with the press, the mirror for the first narcissist. president trump thinks that the m mirror is cracked and the coverage is fake. many in the press spanning the ideological spectrum think he is cracked and that a lot of pronouncements are fake. can this strange relationship be saved? probably not. it's going to end like the plays and movies from a fellow to endless love where the mutual attraction is so powerful, it is toxic. trump could not live without the press. it is his track. many may disdain how trump uses

them, they know they have a rare story and a tantalizing, antagonizing protagonist. i'm going to read from russell mead that warns we cannot preach. we need a credible president badly. we need credibility from him. i feel more concerned about the success of his presidency every day when he acts like this. coming up on "morning joe," japanese billionaire met with president-elect trump and promised $50 billion worth of investment in the united states. now he's infusing the hottest start up with a ton of money. brian sullivan joins us with that when we continue.

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the results, 235 for mr. perez, and 200 for more allison. [ cheers and applause ] >> it is my great honor -- it is -- it is now my honor -- it

is my honor now to present the gavel of the next chair of the democratic national committee to mr. tom perez. mr. perez, congratulations. >> the democratic party elected tom perez the next chairman of the dnc beating kell ellison. some of ellison supporters in the crowd were angry by the decision, chanting, party of the people, not big money. but, immediately after taking over, perez named ellison his deputy chairman. they addressed the crowd, calling on their fellow democrats to come together. >> if you came here supporting me, if you are wearing the t-shirt or any t-shirt, i am asking you to give everything you got to support chairman perez. [ applause ] >> we will all be able to say whether you are sitting here, whether you are sitting outside,

or whether you are looking on across america, we will all be able to say the united democratic party let the resis tense ensure this president was a one-term president and elected democrats across this country. >> mark halperin, what do you make of this new team and how it went down over the weekend? >> i think given the candidates, it's the best the party could get. the democratic party is in an extraordinarily weak position. the jury is out whether tom perez can rebuild the party, fund raise, accommodate the far left wing of the party, make it acceptable to business, which needs to be done by any viable party. the democratic party has bigger problems than the dnc right now. >> where do you begin with sort of their order of business in terms of bringing the party back together? it seems -- first of all, take a look at jimmy carter. he was talking during a sermon at a church servicebout the

defeat of the democrats. >> 2016 election common working class people -- i can't wait for -- workers too. african-americans, hispanics and women. you haven't mentioned white men. the white men, too, because we vote. voted republicans because -- >> harold ford, jimmy carter was, like joe biden, concerned about the people they were forgetting in the run up to the election. can this new team sort of capture the message? >> i hope. i think what he was saying, the president, if i heard him

correctly, they ran a campaign with a message for blacks, hispanics, women, gays, forgot we are one country. obama gave the speech we are not a red or blue, we are a purple nation and have to find our way back to a message like that and deal with the every day issues americans are dealing with. in the poll, you show with president trump set down, he remained a net positive in important areas, whether or not he would change washington or if he was bold and decisive. things a lot of americans are looking for and traits that were lacking with the democrats. the question for democrats is the sanders/warren wing of the party, has it been weakened? if it has, it's fine on one level, but we can ignore what exists on that side of the party. how do you bring that and marry it with it? for all the key seats, as

chairman perez said eloquently, up and down the ballot. it would be smart for him to convene democratic mayors across the country. what are you dealing with? all across the country, deal with crime and inequality. listen. if you are serious about the message coming from the bottom up, let it come from the bottom up and listen to the leaders, including the fella from south bend, indiana. i can't pronounce his name. i thought he was impressive. bring him in. let him bring in mayors and elected officials about how the democratic party enables him and allows their message to move to the floor. >> coming up on "morning joe" -- >> the fact is, the heat is on the republicans. it's on us. i said this at a meeting with the governors yesterday. we asked for authority to change the country. we have two-thirds of the state houses in america. we have a house, we have the senate, we have the white house. it's now on us to produce results.

one of the things we need to do is engage with the public. i understand why members of congress don't like it. you know what? you asked for the job. go do it. with pressure mounting on republicans, can democrats capitalize? senator dick durbin joins us. you are watching "morning joe." we'll be right back. my belly pain and constipation? i've heard it all. eat more fiber. flax seeds. yogurt. get moving. keep moving. i know!

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it's only been one month in office. he's got four years. secondly, i think you have to take the man for his word that he wants to unify the country. it's hard with the news media being so split up. when i was president, you know, you mattered a lot more because there was like three of you. now, there's all kinds of information being bombarded out. people can say things anonymously. it's a different world. >> did you ever consider the media to be the enemy of the american people?

>> i consider the media to be indispensable to democracy. we need an independent media to hold people like me into account. power can be addictive and it can be corrosive. it's important for the media to call to account people who abuse their power, whether it be here or elsewhere. one of the things i spent a lot of time doing was trying to convince a person like vladimir putin to accept the notion of an independent pre and, it's kind of hard to, you know, tell others to have an independent free press when we are not willing to have one ourselves. >> that sums it up. president george w. bush speaking moments ago on "today." joining us now, member of the senate judiciary committee, democratic whip, dick durbin of illinois. good to have you back on the show. what did you think of the former

president? >> i like that guy. i look back and think moments after 9/11, when this country was in complete turmoil, he said this muslim religion is a religion of peace. they are corrupting the beliefs. what an amazing, historic statement to make at that moment. i wish we heard more of it today. now he gives reference 47% of people get their news from facebook. you can tell, you know, he's really put his finger on it. >> you used to matter more when there were only three of you. i like that. at the same time, what's happening between this current president and the media is somewhat disturbing. beyond that? >> it's troubling. he questioned the integrity of our judiciary, so-called judges and judges you can't trust because of their ethnic background, then he goes in and goes after the media. the fact is, this is a tenuous

moment where we'll be tested on constitutional issues. >> you are just back from meeting with lithuania officials. ties on russia and whether or not ey should be fully investigated. take a look. >> as a former president, wod you like to see a special prosecutor appointed to look into this once and for all and give the american people answers? >> first of all, i think we all need answers. whether or not it's a special prosecutor is the right way to go, you are talking to the wrong guy. i have great faith in richard burr the head of the intelligence committee, really good guy and independent thinker. if he recommended a special prosecutor, i would be -- it would have more credibility with me. what i'm really -- i have never been a lawyer. you know, i'm not sure the right avenue to take. i am sure, though, that question

needs to be answered. >> mark halperin, he is saying, what? >> maybe. he's got -- he says he's got faith in burr. i would be interested in what you think, senator, when the republicans in the senate say we are going to do a thorough investigation. based on what you have seen, do you think they will do a thorough, apolitical investigation? >> i sat on the intelligence committee for four years. you couldn't find a sign on a door. the meetings were secret. we need an independent and transparent investigation. >> do you trust mitch mcconnell and senator burr and other republicans to do that? >> no. i think we need a special prosecutor or independent commission -- >> is that because you don't trust them? >> the venue they have chosen guarantees the american people will not know what is said and ultimately, months from now, maybe years from now, they will produce a classified report

available to the american people if the approval is gained from the white house. >> do you think they are doing that because they are trying to protect the white house? >> to keep it under wraps? >> why? >> they think itight be embarrassing. as one said off the record, we are supposed to investigate the affordable care act, not other republicans. when i go overseas to poland and sit down with the polish leader, he says if you won't investigate the russian invasion into your election, what faith do we have under article v that you would come to our aid? >> you were asked that question? >> i was. it isn't just vladimir putin's troops, it is a cyber war, a propaganda war they are fighting throughout this area. why within the we taking this seriously, too. this is a fact verified by every major intelligence agency, the russians invaded our sovereignty.

>> michael steel, it's not just whether or not there should be investigation, it's that the outcome needs to be trusted, not just by the american people, but if you listen to the senator, by the rest of the world. >> we take it seriously. >> go ahead, michael. >> that's exactly right. i think that's one of the challenges that confronts this administration out of the box is establishing that trust on something that is so important and so much who we are as americans. our electoral system. if we cannot hold that up as a beacon around the world, if we are not willing to fight for it and defend it, i think the senator has a good point. if folks are saying, if you won't defend that, how are you going to defend us. you elected a new chairman. the democrats are back on their heels, hell, a lot back on their heels right now. how do you see the party turning itself around and going down a new path to move back to a

governing majority when the new chairman comes out and says something we heard and are familiar with eight years ago, wanting to make it a one-term president. is that going to harken down a path we have already been or are democrats looking to open a new front that is clabtive and combative. >> i have never seen it before and i have been at this business for a while. there is an energy and spontaneity that i have never seen before. people are showing up in towns, illinois has a meeting based on an internet solicitation of a group called ind viz zable. 250 people showed up. they said we are going to slate a democratic slate of candidates for a township and we are going to work the doors, work the phones, get people registered. that spontaneity is at the base of our party and the november 8 election brought it to life. >> okay.

president george w. bush was the last winning without the popular vote. he responded to how trump is handling the devision in the country. >> you took office in 2001 after an extremely contentious election, controversial end to that, the supreme court decided if the nation was incredibly divided, how would you compare the divisions we faced then to what we are living through now? >> it's hard to compare times. one thing is certain, the job is a tough job. everybody looks at the presidency when they campaign one way. then they get in office and find out there's a reality to the job. you know, there's times we have been divided. i remember growing up as a kid, out of college, we were really divided. it's, you know, it requires a lot of people coming together to make us united. >> how does that happen in this

climate? ed eddie? >> how has trump handled the division? that's the question. has he stoked hem? has he stoked our fears in terms of the immigration ban and the executive orders? how has he handled the division. >> where would you find the olive branch in the first six weeks? i haven't seen it. >> yeah. >> i haven't seen effort beyond casual conversation to meet with the president a couple, three times. when it comes to executive orders, there's no olive branch, it's confrontation. he had to dismiss his own attorney general. he had three federal courts stop his executive order on the muslim ban, then he had to accept the resignation of his security adviser. it's been a divisive time. >> what about the divisions within the democratic party? the race between ellison and perez reflected, a deep schism.

>> these are the residuals from the presidential campaign. a lot of bernie supporters will always believe the mainstream democratic party is suspect by the way it raises money. i can tell you, when it comes to the senate, with few exceptions so far, we have been able to bridge the gaps. we have the democrats working together in a positive way. i feel very positive about what's going to happen here. tom perez, a talented person, won in a close contest. keith ellison could not been more gracious. i'm the deputy. anybody for me, be for this team, for this party. that's great. they both are really strong players in all of this. big picture for the party, what do you make of the poll number and the new nbc poll that shows this, 44-45, split, essentially, about whether or not they support the temporary travel ban

from seven countries? what does that tell you about the country that you are dealing with when you are trying to build a party within that? >> it shows me donald trump's message has been effective with a lot of people. that's why he ended up with as many votes as he did. people are concerned about security. the democrats are concerned about security. we are. we believe the muslim ban, put it in shorthand, just can't be based on fact. we don't know these seven countries are the sources of the greatest insecurity for america. yet, he signaled them out. here we have muslim-americans across the board and hispanic americans concerned about where we are headed. >> in his cpac speech, trump spelled out his philosophy on foreign policy, get a sense of the trump doctrine forming here and american leadership in the world. take a look. >> in the middle east, we have spent as of four weeks ago, $6

trillion. think of it. by the way, the middle east is in -- i mean it's not even close, it's in worse shape than it was 15 years ago. if our presidents would have gone to the beach for 15 years, we would be in better shape than we are right now, that i can tell you. global cooperation, dealing with other countries, getting along with other countries is good. it's very impornt. but, there is no such tng as a global anthem, a global currency or a global flag. this is the united states of america that i'm representing. i'm not representing the globe. i'm representing your country. >> when it comes to imposing sanctions on vladimir putin, do we want cooperation or just america? if it's just america, it's pointless. if we have european nations and

others joining us in the effort, then it has an impact. for the president to say america first, good. we are proud to be americans. >> sure. >> to be effective, we bring together allies, people who share our values and try to impose, at least with some pressure, changes in the world to make it more peaceful. >> i don't know if it was that speech, but he was going off about paris. paris, all these terrible things. i think the leader of france was a tad bit insulted. mark halperin, is there a lot of thought put into how these words are being formed? if so, should we be scared? >> he's saying things that are alarming. he says he's going to reach out and engage in diplomacy. >> bull in a china shop. >> he's not going to the international summits. when he does, you will see a different style. he thinks it will be effective. he's going to have a lot of explaining to do when he gets

there. you said democrats are united. your colleague has a valuable commodity in his e-mail list of supporters from the campaign. he's resisting. would you urge him to make that available to the democratic national xh national committee? >> bernie sanders is going to help. how, i can't say. >> do you think it's urgent. >> you bet. he has to do it at his pace and his way. i think he shares our goal. >> what is his argument in handing it over? >> i don't know. i don't want to push too hard. i think the result will be positive. >> look in the camera and address it. >> see you back in washington, bernie. >> there you go. senator dick durbin thank you very much. up next, the aftermath of the deadly mission in yemen. the father of fallen navy s.e.a.l. william ryan owens is demanding an investigation into his son's death. we are going to talk about that and why he declined to meet with the president. keep it here on "morning joe."

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♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ sfx: engine revving ♪ (silence) ♪ in a moment, we'll take a look at the president's budget proposal coming out today, massive spending hikes for the military intelligence and homeland security performance. first, we look at the ground we covered today. he is the only president in modern polling to begin his presidency with a net negative rating. >> in that poll, a lot of people like his policies. >> sean spicer met with a dozen

communication officers to dis recent leaks. >> the president needs to look in the mirror and realize thi is from people that want to help him. >> the white house held a press briefing, but not open to all reporters. >> as much as i don't like things written about him, you don't bar people. >> the state is under attack. i'm deeply disturbed by this. >> the white house will not like the press coverage, but they cannot change the rules. >> concerned reporting is forthcoming. >> they have to put their big boy pants on and deal with this effectively. >> this is a guy obsessed with the press. >> part of a u.s. democracy. they are the values we are fighting for. >> this is tinnous moment. it will be tested. >> he will not be judged by history, by whether he beats the press z. >> the next chair to the democratic committee, mr. tom perez. >> the best the party could get.

the jury is out if he can rebuild the party. >> if you are serious about the message coming from the bottom up, let it come from the bottom up. >> a person who creates the image or message of the party. >> and the oscar goes to o.j. -- >> ahhh! ahhh! >> i absolutely love that. that is the geist household watching libby geist, i was going to say christine. that's willie's wife. winning an oscar for the o.j. dock. that's the family. play it again. i can't get enough. the dog. the dog is like mommy, daddy, what's going on? this is awesome. congratulations to the entire geist family. you all are somewhat talented. another family celebrating oscars. a red carpet with emma and lila walking it.

they are 4 1/2, can you believe it. alex, they are so cute. emma, lila and who liked the dresses better? they had emojis. very fun. i was asleep. did you make it to the end? >> absolutely not. >> did you miss the whole faux pas? >> watched it this morning. >> oh, my gosh. back to news. president trump will reveal his budget priority with what senior administration officials say are spending hikes. claiming they will be matched dollar for dollar with cuts to other agencies. the president will scale back spending in nondefense areas, including the state department and the environmental protection agency according to reports. the budget outline does not reduce funding for the largest entitlement programs including social security and medicare. with us now, cnbc's brian sullivan with more on this. brian? >> 73% of the budget is social

security, medicare, medicaid. if you are not going after that, you are not going after much meat at all. that's fixed cost, almost. put this in perspective. the defense budget is $523 billion a year. state department is $66 billion and e.p.a. is $8 billion. those are small agencies compared to defense. if you add whatever 10 or 20 billion or however much to defense, are you taking that out of state? that would be 15-20% of their budget. >> i know people there that i have spoken with are nervous. >> what, you broke this exclusive from the japanese firm soft bank, megainvestment in a u.s. start up. tell us about this. >> the only reason you care is because it involved the president, it involves trump. the guy met with trump, masayoshi son met with him

promised $50 billion in investment. sources tell me, they are going to invest $3 billion if you want to lease a desk and they are all over the world. this is massive investment. valued the company at 20 bill$2 billi billion. the biggest and richest start up in the world. maybe this is the reason i bring this up. maybe this is the first of these investments. this guy, soft bank, masayoshi's son running sprint. 153 locations. >> president george w. bush on "today" this morning talked about a wide range of issues. here, now, we have him weighing in on the controversial executive order that president trump signed restricting travel, the muslim ban. take a look. >> bank people from seven predominantly muslim countries from entering this country, do we make it easier or harder to fight the war on terrorism? >> well, i think it's very hard

to fight the war on terrorism if we are in retreat. i think we learned that lesson that, you know, if the united states decides to pull out before a free society emerges, it's going to be hard to defeat them. >> just want to make sure i understand. you are for or against the ban? >> for an immigration policy that is welcoming and upholds the law. >> so, is he before or against it? >> the body language suggests he's against it. he's made it his practice, he is not talking about successors. his criticism on the media as well. >> yeah. certain things tough have a rock solid approach. that would be one of them. now to this. the father of fallen navy s.e.a.l. chief petty officer, william ryan oens is demanding an investigation into his son's death.

owens was killed in the raid in yemen. one senior military official says quote, almost everything went wrong. his father, bill owens tells the miami herald don't hide behind my son's death to prevent an investigation. i want an investigation. the government owes my son an investigation. bill owens, himself a veteran and retired police detective refused to meet with the president. i told them i didn't want to make a scene about it, but my conscience wouldn't let me talk to him. the white house maintains the mission was a success. there are plenty of critics, including senator john mccain. yesterday, a spokesperson said she would imagine the president would be supportive of an investigation. michael steele, your thoughts? >> yeah, you know, that's a tough place for the president to be in. in one sense you have the loss of a soldier and the family's response to that. unlike what we have seen with

the gold star family in the past, the more the administration stays above that kind of conversation and understands and respects that father's position, stay true to where they want to take the country, the better off the administration will be. hopefully, we won't see emotional or personal response on this. >> as we wrap up and looking ahead to the president tomorrow addressing, final thoughts. >> massive resis tense, march 8, a day without women. a strike across the globe. we will see the resis tense continue. >> mark halperin? >> tomorrow night a big deal. everybody is going to watch to see what the president says and how he is received by lots of audiences including democrat who is aren't interested in working with him. >> warren buffett said any of his employees, got hundreds of thousands, get the sweet 16 perfect on their ncaa bracket, he will give a million a year

for life to that employee orem ployees. apparently it's a lot harder than you think it is. it's statistically impossible. >> stop the war on the media. fake news, fake presidency, that's what it's going to come down to. a fake presidency. we are live on capitol hill tomorrow and wednesday. "morning joe" coverage of president trump's address to congress. that does it for us this morning. stephanie ruhle picks up the coverage right now. >> thanks so much, mika. good morning. i'm stephanie ruhle. we are talking budget crunch. president trump to announce a new budget today with huge increases in military spending and drastic cuts everywhere else. >> going to get a massive budget request for our beloved military. >> new calls for an investigation into his team's russia connections from republicans this time. >> you are going to need to use the special prosecutors statute