this sunday, president trump promised to change washington, but is it possible washington is changing him? >> this is more work than in my previous life. i thought it would be easier. >> the president fights to meet a 100-day deadline he calls ridiculous, with an outline on taxes. >> we are going to cut taxes and simplify the tax code. >> that faces stiff opposition. another attempt to repeal and replace obamacare. >> we think it is a really good step in the right direction. >> that is still short on votes. and a promise to get rid of nafta.

>> we e going to get rid of nafta for once and for all. >> that turns into a decision to negotiate instead. last night the president took a victory lap in a campaign-style stop in pennsylvania. >> we are keeping one promise after another. >> this morning i'll talk exclusively with the vice president, mike pence, who joined me here live. plus, two senators from opposite sides of the aisle on what it would take for our two parties to finally work together. angus kane and susan collins are here live. and winners and losers. what president trump's tax outline could really mean for the people who support him the most. joining me for insight and analysis, chris matthews, host of hardball at msnbc. helene cooper, from "the new york times." nbc news political analyst nicolle wallace. and danielle pletka of the american enterprise institute. it's "meet the press."

>> announcer: from nbc news in washington, the longest run ini television show in nbc history, celebrating its 70th year, this is "meet the press" with chuck todd. president trump certainly looked like he was eager to cross the finish line. but this week the president has struggled to put big legislative points on the board. he has won the confirmation of neil gorsuch. the supreme court rolled back quite a few regulations and stayed true to his promise to restrict immigration. but in what may be the most revealing moment of the week, the republican house rejected his call for a $1 billion down payment for the wall with mexico. like many presidents before him, president trump came to town promising to defeat washington. like many predents before him, he's discovering that the washington empire knows hoto strike back. >> we are keeping one promise after another and, frankly, the people are really happy about it.

>> reporter: in harrisburg, pennsylvania last night the president marked 100 days in office in his favorite element. >> we're going to have the wall. don't worry about it. major tax relief for the middle class. we're going to get the premiums down. we're going to get the deductibles way down. we're going to take care of every single need you're going to want to have taken care of, it's not going to cost that kind of money. >> reporter: it is a stark contrast to this admission earlier in the week. >> this is more work than in my previous life. i thought it would be easier. >> reporter: the 100-day honeymoon is regarded, politically at least, as the easiest part of a president's job. on the campaign trail, governing looked easy. >> so a lot of politicians said you can't get mexico to pay for the wall. i said, it's going to be so easy. >> you're going to have such great health care at a tiny fraction of the cost. and it is going to be so easy. >> presidential's easy. >> reporter: but of the ten major pieces of legislation mr. trump promised in his contract with the american voter, none

have been accomplished. if mr. trump is still battling washington, then washington appears to be winning. health care is stalled for the second time in the house. >> i'm disappointed. i'll tell you, paul ryan's trying very, very hard. >> reporter: the president's plan to overhaul thousands of pages of the federal tax code, so far just a single sheet of paper. >> we will let you know the specific details at the appropriate moment. >> reporter: a white house demand to include a down payment for a border wall in any spending bill? dropped. >> build the wall! >> we'll build the wall. >> reporter: after promising to terminate nafta, instead on saturday, mr. trump signed an executive order which simply launches a six-month review. mr. trump railed against so-called globalists during the campaign. >> hillary clinton is the chief emissary for globalism. >> wants to surrender america to globalism. >> a representative for globalists. you know what globalists are? >> reporter: but this week he called himself one, telling the

"wall street journal," hey, i'm a nationalist and a globalist. and then there is the russia investigation. it continues to hang over this presidency with new questions this week about former national security advisor mike flynn. >> when they say "we" didn't vet, well, obama i guess didn't vet. because he was approved at the highest level of security by the obama administration. >> well, we got a lot to get to. no better person to talk to than my next guest, vice president of the united states, mike pence. welcome back, sir. >> good to see you, chuck. >> happy day 101. >> thank you. >> the president made that remark that this was more work than in his previous life and he thought it would be easier. what has the president found harder than he expected so far? >> well, i don't know that he's found it harder. i think he has found the range of issues as president of the united states at home and abroad given the path of the past administration to be particularly challenging. as the president's said, world is a mess.

he spent an awful lot of time in the first 100 days re-engaging the world. he sends many of us around the world. we're rebuilding our military. we're rethinking trade agreements that have been costing american jobs. then here at home the president has rolled his sleeves up, literally, not just 100 days, chuck, but since the day after the election, the president has been out there fighting for american jobs and in 2017 alone more than 500,000 jobs have been created. you see optimism ang job creators in america, enthusiasm among consers across the country. it's just i think -- i think we went through a difficult time the last eight years but america's back under president donald trump fp. >> but in many ways, he's found himself -- it's almost like washington has either moved him or his has defeated him so far. would you accept that? you look at his positions on nato, or even the pullback on nafta a little bit, what he has

said about china. it's all falling into the washington conventional wisdom. >> oh, i don't -- i don't really share your perspective on that, with all due respect, chuck. i mean on the international scene, here's a president who said that nato had a change, that our nato allies had to begin to step up to begin to share the burden of the cost of our common defense. and they are. they're also changing the mission of nato to focus more on terrorism. that's exactly what the president called for when -- i mean he didn't change on nato, nato changed. >> but nato changed years ago. nato's been at the forefront in afghanistan fighting terrorism. nato -- he's not the first president to complain that the rest of the nato nations don't pay their fair share. >> well, most of them don't. the president's going to be visiting nato in just a couple of weeks and he'll deliver that strong message again and i know the secretary-general is standing shoulder to shoulder with him. but, look, i think you look at what this president has done, come to washington, d.c. to fight for the forgotten man and women of this country and they see him doing it each and every

day. i mean he announced this week that we're going to renegotiate nafta. in the early days of the administration, we got out of the transpacific partnership which, as the president said, would have made nafta's failures pale in comparison. he literally each and every day has been out there fighting to keep his word to the american people. and he's, frankly, been fighting against the gale-force wind of the establishment here in washington, d.c., and frankly, fighting against the gale-force wind of many in the national media who would constantly like to change the subject away from the president's relentless effort to keep his promises to the american people opinion >> one promise had to do with a ton of legislative action. these are the pieces of legislation he promised to at least introduce and begin fighting for. no one said he was going to sign all of this, that i will give you. tax reform, offshoring jobs, infrastructure, school choice, health care, child care, immigration, ethics reform,

military, crime and drugs. the only place where there's been any action actually in congress is really on health care. so what's taken so long getting these other aspects introduced? or was it an overpromise? >> well, no, it wasn't an overpromise. remember, this president has already signed more bills in the first 100 days than any president since harry truman. i mean he's literally 13 different pieces of legislation that have rolled back job killing regulations from the obama administration signed into law. he's taken executive -- >> okay, but we're not on health care, we're not on tax reform. we have -- i'm talking the big signature pieces of legislation. >> but he signed over 30 different executive orders on virtually every one of those topics that you just referred to. and we're working with the congress. i think health care reform, repealing, replacing obamacare, is just around the corner. because this president is driving relentlessly toward an agenda to make america great again. i got to tell you, when we were out visiting a factory yesterday near harrisburg, pennsylvania, you saw the big crowds, the

thunderous crowds, virtually unanimous support of the people who supported us in last fall's election. but was even more inspiring to me, as we walk the shop room floor, not just the business owners expressing enthusiasm for the president's plan to cut business taxes and cut taxes across the board, but the guys that had paused from working on the line, to reach out to this president and just thank him for being there. somebody said to me recently thatverybody that puts on a steel-toed bt ins couny knows they've got somebody fighting for them every day, and it is absolutely true, and it is president donald trump. >> let's get out of atmospherics and get into some details. talking about health care a little bit. i know you've been working hard on this, in many ways back and forth, people see you ducking into different congressional offices. one of them has to do with this so-called macarthur amendment that moderates on the other side are worried about. >> i wouldn't be surprised if

they pass something. but i'm not for it. i'm just telling you. >> it could affect people with pre-existing conditions, and it will make insurance probably much more expensive for them in some cases inaccessible. >> it doesn't help the people i represent. >> you've heard this concern which is that if you essentially eliminate these essential benefits you give the states the opportunity to essentially take out the protection for pre-existing conditions, or if you do keep it, making it so that those folks are guaranteed to be paying a lot more for health insurance. if that is the case, how do you pass this thing? >> first before i get to that, let's begin with the fact that obamacare has failed. i mean it literally is collapsing all over country. insurance companies are fleeing -- >> a lot of folks -- that is a very debatable point, mr. vice president. in frness. that is a very debatable point. >> there are states around the country where literally where people in half of the state have no choice for health insurance at all. people have seen their insurance premiums skyrocket. the american people know that we need to repeal and replace obamacare.

and president trump, from the first day of this administration, has been working every single day to keep that promise to the american people. and i have to tell you, the legislative process is often slow. nobody knows it better than you. >> and yourself. you were a member of congress. >> what's the old saying? if you like sausage, don't go where they make it. we're making law here and we're unmaking one of the worst pieces of legislation in modern american history. and on this point, congress obviously wasn't ready to begin the process of repealing obamacare little more than a month ago. but i think we're close, and it is owing to the fact that you're seeing members of congress coming together to repeal the onerous taxes and penalties that people pay if they don't have insurance in obamacare, to expand health savings accounts, to give governors like my friend john kasich the ability -- all-new flexibility to improve medicaid for their most vulnerable citizens. but we're also keeping our promises to protect people who have pre-existing conditions.

>> besides protecting them, are you going to be able to prevent their premiums from skyrocketing? that's the concern. if you isolate them into risk pools that the inevitable impact is the rise in premiums. how do you protect that? >> i think the way you protect that is, first and foremost you make it very clear. as we did in the first bill, but with the amendments that have taken place, in the last several weeks, and come forward, it is even better still, that we're basically borrowing an idea from the state of maine that has seen a significant drop in premiums for people on their health insurance because you take people that have pre-existing and costly conditions and put them into a high-risk pool and you subsidize that so that it is affordable to those individuals. so you're guaranteeing coverage for pre-exisng conditions. anflexibility that you're referring to in this latest macarthur amendment, states can only apply for that waiver in flexibility if they have either a federal or state high-risk pool that guarantees that people will be able to have coverage. and it will be affordable. >> by the way, terrific segue.

i have two maine senators coming on the show later today. i will ask senator susan collins about that maine risk pool. i want to go to taxes here. by the way, on health care, i know the president stressed the house votes in the next couple of weeks. you going to be able to sign a new version of health care, whether it's full repeal and replace or not, by the end of this year? >> i believe through a series of bills, that first one that we are hopeful there will be action in the house of representatives soon, and through executive action, and through further legislation that we'll deliver on our promise to repeal and replace obamacare, and give the american people the kind of world class health care they deserve. >> before the end of the year? not making that promise? >> i hope before the end of the year. look, again, i go back to the first point, chuck. i know you say it is debatable, get out across the country. obamacare has failed. every promise of obamacare has been broken. premiums have skyrocketed. people have lost their insurance, lost the ability to choose their doctors. we've got to do better.

we will under president trump. i want to ask you on tax reform. a lot of estimates. lo, we're very early in this process. i'm well aware, won't get into too many of e weeds. but e overall impact looks like a big shot at the deficit. some people estimate as much as 7 trillion over 10 years, as small as 3 trillion. if this increases the deficit, will the president still sign it? >> we have nearly a $20 trillion national debt that doubled under the last administration, because of a struggling american economy. we just got the numbers. 1.6%? the strongest economy on earth growing at less than 2%? less than 1% in the first quarter. look, all of those statistics and talking with every-day americans and job creators across this country attest to the fact that the american people are crying out for tax relief. we have one of the highest corporate tax rates in the

world. the president's going to drive to lower that to 15% to make businesses large and small more competitive. and we're going to lower the tax rate to three marginal rates for every american and unleash the bound-up energy of the american economy. >> how are you going to pay for it? it is going to increase the deficit. everything you outlined will increase the deficit, period. how do you prevent that? >> the only way we're going to meet the obligations that we face in deficits today are long-term obligations in our entitlements, chuck, is through growth. the president has a growth vision for the american ecomy that begins with allowing the american people to keep more of what they earn. the president has proposed one of the largest tax cuts in american history. i have to tell you, the early response on capitol hill has been very encouraging. >> i understand people are happy about it. but you are going to increase the deficit. >> well, maybe in the short term. but the truth is, if we don't get this economy growing at 3%, or more, as the president believes that we can, we're never going to meet the

obligations that we've made today. quickly, on south korea, i know you were in asia. there's some news this morning that we -- the national security advisor, general mcmaster, has reassured or south korea allies about missile defense, about extra protections and that the united states is going to pay for this. president trump said south korea would. how you going to square that? >> well, when the president asked me to go to south korea and japan and visit our allies in the region, it was to reassure them during these troubled times where we see increased provocations from the regime in north korea that american stands with them, america will defend them. and i have to tell you that the bonds between the people of south korea and the people of the united states forged during the korean war are immutable and unshakeable. and however we resolve the issue of their defense, the people of

south korea know that america will be there to defend them, even as they defend themselves. >> so at a minimum, we're not going to argue over the bill now is what you're saying. >> no. look, the president's been very clear, whether it is our allies in eope or south korea or japan or other countries, that we expect countries around the world to do more. whether it's this missile defense system or other systems. i think you can be confident the president of the united states is going to continue to call on the prosperous nations that the united states provides security and protection for to do more in their own defense. final question. you did lose the popular vote by an estimate of 3 million. and there has been some concern that this administration hasn't done enough to reach out to those that didn't support him. and the fact is, you want to bring this country back together. there's -- i believe you in that. but why haven't you made a concrete step to reach out to the other side a little bit and to try to sort of heal some of these wounds? >> i think the president reaches out every day. you know, i'm with him virtually

every day. we were on the road yesterday, out to pennsylvania and in the oval office, and i've soon an extraordinary collection of americans come through the white house, come through the oval office. we had the teacher of the year, teachers from all 50 states surrounding the president's desk. i've seen him reach out to leaders across the spectrum. last night -- >> has it worked? last night was a campaign rally and they have felt good. but it wasn't uniting rhetoric. it was pretty divisive rhetoric. >> yeah, but last night the president said whatever your race or your creed, that we're all americans and we all have the same patriots' bloods in our veins. i think you are going to continue to see the president reach out. look, this is a very tough time. america faces real challenges at home and abroad. it's created a great deal of anxiety among the american people. but i think as the american people see the strength and resolve of this president, as they see our economy coming back, opportunities for themselves and their children and grandchildren, and as they

see a safer and more secure world because of the strong leadership of president donald trump, i'm confide you're going to see more unity in america as a result. >> mr. vice president, i'm going to leave it there. always more to get to, but i appreciate the time you spent with us this morning. thanks for sharing your views. >> thank you, chuck. later in the broadcast, the outline of that tax plan we saw this week and the trump supporters who may be surprised to find they're not among the winners. and later, how have the democrats done in the first 100 days of the donald trump administration, perhaps not as well as you might think there either. tion, perhaps not as well as you might think there either. okay let's call his agent i'm coming over right now. the newly advanced gle can see in your blind spot. onboard cameras and radar can detect danger all around you. driver assist systems can pull you back into your lane if drifting.

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welcome back, chris matthews host of "hardball is here." nicolle wallace.

my new cable neighbor. i can't wait for you to start at 4:00. >> your lead-in. >> and danielle pletka of the american enterprise institute. okay, you pantheons of washington establishment. basic question here -- who's winning? washington or president trump? >> i think if you ask his supporters, he is winning in a landslide. but i think that the question as you posed to the vice president, i don't know that he's gained an inch. i don't think he's taken the first step out of the gate to do that. >> washington is winning for sure. just from the foreign policy perspective, there's no question that trump came in threatening a whole series of different things whether it was disengagement from nato which we heard the vice president talk about, whether it was walking away from a variety of trade agreements, which he hasn't done. whether it was not engaging in the middle east, and we bombed syria. so from my standpoint, all to the good. the president has actually stepped up and washington -- if

that's washington winning? please, washington, keep winning. >> i think he's dominated the news and i think that's the most important thing. every hour on the hour, it's donald trump. we do a think every night on the show called "trump watch," it's always about him. what's that's done has gotten rid of the middle politically and polarized the democratic party. the democratic party is all anti-trump. they're defined as anti-trump. that moved them to the left. now what you have is a country that's either putting up with trump and or hating trump. i think it is still open, still a question of whether he is going to make it or not. i think he can still make it. >> helene, your beat is sort of the monument to the washington establishment in many ways. the pentagon -- >> oh, come on! that's a low blow! >> it just is. that's a case where they're almost actively trying to restrain this president sometimes. >> yeah, it is a very weird situation we seem to be in. president trump has given an enormous amount of military authority to the pentagon, he treats them very deferentially. he loves defense secretary jim mattis. we're now in a position where we

are looking at the pentagon to sort of exercise judicial american foreign policy and also kind of restrain president trump. danielle went through a really good sort of list of where on the foreign policy scene president trump has sort of ceded to the general washington -- but i'd like to zero in on china for a minute. during the campaign donald trump was so -- the kind of anti-china rhetoric that we heard during that time was -- it was amazing. and now you see where now things have completely shifted again. you hear the way he's talking about china and talking about -- >> about president xi. they're like blood brothers now. >> this complete flip-flop i think is extraordinary. >> can i just say? this is where i think it gets complicated for him at the 100 day mark. you go back to his voters. while the republicans that came along and fell in line are

largely happy, i'm covering the democratic part of his coalition -- in his defense, softest part of his coalition -- they're completely alarmed there when it comes to china. they're completely horrified that on foreign policy he's doing exactly what hillary clinton would have done. this is where his bottom could drop out. not for his support. his numbers will stay high because of republicans. he won because democrats in pennsylvania, michigan and wisconsin chose him over her and if he flips on china and he flips on foreign policy, they will be gone in four years. >> that's pretty intellectual. that's pretty intellectual. >> let's not confuse chris here, >> but there are two sides -- >> that's pretty intellectual. >> let's not confuse chris here, but there are two sides to this. there is the political side and there's the substantive foreign policy side. on the foreign policy side the reality is when donald trump says i'm working with the chinese and i'm going to do this for them if they do this for the united states, that is how every presidency works. the difference is most presidents don't say it. the other side is the political. i agree with you, i think the bottom could drop out.

he got a lot of criticism from democrat supporters and republican supporters. >> chris, i want to get at something here. i think the first 100 days are the easiest period of a presidency. let me put up this graphic here. >> i've seen the numbers. >> it's unbelievable here. last six presidents. the 40-day -- 100-day approval mark and by the time of the mid-terms. in every case but one, the approval rating of that president went down from 100 days to the mid-terms. the exception is george w. bush and the intervening event there was 9/11. my point is this, chris. usually your political capital continues to dwindle after the first 10da an they're just starting to try to g a legislative -- >> the big part is the media. the media heralded the arrival of jack kennedy who won by nothing practically. 100,000 votes. yet he came in to the point where people said i voted for him. everybody said they voted -- they didn't vote. this president has gale-force winds against him. he comes in with the media killing him every day. the new york times does enterprise pieces four or five

against him every day. clearly it's not a popular thing to say you voted for trump. in fact, every time i look at a poll i go wait a minute, more people voted for him than admit they voted for him. that's what's going on. before the election that was true. i think it is about attitude. i think last night by not going to the press dinner and going to harrisburg he expressed his defiance of us and it goes over very well. it is not about where you stand on china -- again, too intellectual -- it is about attitude. as we say in philly, atty-tude. he's got, i like her but i'm not hiring her because she's got "atty-tude." i think that is what people feel about this guy about he's still screwing us, still saying, "to hell with you guys," and still saying stuff that isn't true. and i think his people know some of this stuff isn't true. this term, fair and balanced? nobody who watched fox thought it was fair and balanced. but they loved the way these guys would say that, fair and balanced. take that. >> it's the cultural thing. >> your newspaper deals with that this morning. >> i love the piece. fantastic. as a representative of the failing "new york times" -- >> it's not failing at all.

>> -- i don't think these stories you are talking about are against trump. i think these are just enterprise stories that are laying out just what is going on in this country. >> but they're all about him. >> and he's the president. >> i know. but i've never seen so many stories about a guy. we do them every hour. he's always in the news that hour. he's in the news. here's good news. i'm just going to pause the conversation. that's it. when we come back, a rare sight on television these days. a senator who caucuses with the democrats and a republican senator appearing together, at the same time. no walls between them. no two boxes in satellite studios. sitting next to each other in our studio. if democrats and republicans can ever work together, it is these two senators who may show us the way. they're next. together, it is th two senators who may show us the way. they're next. (vo) pro plan bright mind

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welcome back. welcome back. at our mrecent nbc news/"wall street journal," just 20% of americans say they approve of the congress is doing. 72% disapprove. that's primarily because the voters have pushed the democrats to the left and the republicans to the right. and very little gets accomplished. we have joining us this morning, two senators who could

theoretically buck that trend. republican susan collins, who's among the most bipartisan members of the senate. angus king, just 1 of 2 senate independents. he does caucus with the democrats. both happen to be from maine and they join me now to discuss whether the two sides can ever get along. welcome to both of you. >> thank you. >> it is going to be pollyannaish. and you guys are going to say the right things about bipartisanship. but what are the hurdles to bringing common ground back to the case where a politician might see it as a reward, not as a duty that the voters will punish? senator collins, you first. >> there are two big hurdles. one is the rise of ideological-driven groups, on both the left and the right, who are requiring 100% compliance with 100% of their views, 100% of the time. and the threat for members is that if they don't comply, they will face a well-funded primary opponent. second factor is that the polarization in washington in

many ways reflects the divisions in our country. more and more people are living with people who have the same views that they do, they're accessing news outlets that reinforce what they already think. we are seeing a growing intolerance on campuses for alternative viewpoints. all of that combines to produce the visions in our country that i think washington reflects. >> that's pretty good answer. senator king, what would you add? >> those were on my list, but here's one that's sort of odd, and that is the senate schedule. we leave on thursday night, come back monday morning. no one lives here anymore. when i worked here 40 years ago in the senate, everyone who lived their, their family was here. people literally don't get to

know each other and that's a problem. you don't have relationships. here's another piece that i think might surprise you. over 65 of the current senators have been there ten years or less. and that means they don't know how to win. we're like a football team that's lost every game for five years. there's not a culture of success. something doesn't work, you don't get the votes, move on and you don't go back and try to make it work. >> in fact, senator collins, you seemed to mention -- you were asked about the idea you might run for governor. but you even said, you know if you do that, you actually are vacating an important role here. is it because of that lack of experience that's here that senator king's referring to? >> it is. and if you look at the way the senate used to be, bipartisan was always difficult. >> right. let's not pretend it happens all the time. >> right, it wasn't easy. but people were much more willing to sit down, negotiate and try to find common ground. and i've been part of several of those issues over the years. and i worry that the shrinking

center in the senate is making that more and more difficult. we saw that just recently that there's a profound lack of trust between the two parties that makes those negotiations hard. >> but here's what i don't get here, senator king, with all due respect to essentially, i'll say 95% of the u.s. senate. which is if i talk to any of them individually, any all lament this issue. is this a leadership-driven problem? is it that the leadership because they are being held to an electoral and political standard, they cannot even allow bipartisanship to happen? >> i don't thinkt's the personalities of the leaders, but i think you're on to something in the sense that the pressures on the leaders to be partisans first is very intense. i mean it's -- chuck schumer's in a difficult place. any time he makes a move -- in fact, at the beginning of this session, he talked about we're going to try to work with the president when it's necessary and when we believe he's right. huge reaction from the democratic base.

you can't, you've got to resist, you can't compromise. like senator collins said, there are these outsides groups putting pressure on you. >> the state of maine was brought up by the vice president today. i thanked the vice president for the great segue. you may have the vehicle here for repealing, recalling, whatever you want to call, health care bill. but city right in his description of these maine risk pools that they somehow do protect those with pre-existing conditions and keep costs down? >> maine for two years had what was known as an invisible high-risk pool. and people with pre-existing conditions did not even realize that they were part of it. it was financed by an assessment on all the health care policies

that were sold in the state. >> which is an important part of how it work. >> it is. but what was important is after an individual's expenses reached a certain amount, the high-risk pool picked that up. and it did work well for two years. it had a $5 million surplus when it ended. but the affordable care act ended it. >> would you be able to support something like that? >> it's all in the details because what's being proposed doesn't have the subsidy, for example, that made the maine high-risk pool successful and there are a lot of people in maine that argue that there were limitations, that a lot of the coverages were dropped and that expenses for older -- people over 60, for example, went way up. so it is certainly -- we got to look for what happened in the states. it's worth looking at. but i don't think it is a panacea and i don't think it necessarily is an easy answer to the dilemma of pre-existing conditions. >> i can't let you go without asking about your governor, paula page, and the similarities -- he called himself trump before trump. what have you learned -- what

have the two of you learned that paula page found success in the same state that elected and independent and a very moderate republican and what have you learned from trump that you think you need to get better at? >> well, president trump spoke particularly to those people in maine, particularly in the northern part of the state, who had lost their jobs, in part due to poorly negotiated trade agreements. and he's right about that. and if you're a displaced mill worker in maine, you feel pretty left out. and he spoke to that group. he spoke compellingly to them. and i think that's something that we all need to do better on. trade agreements often result in lower prices for consumers overall, but if you're without a paycheck, you don't really care about that. >> senator king, what have you learned from the success of a la

page and a trump? >> i think what you learn is to listen. and i think -- i remember -- everybody thought hillary was going to w and the day before. i rember saying if and when she wins, she's got to do some serious listening to the people who voted for donald trump. the same things goes in maine, it goes across the country. now turning that around, i was disappointed in the president's speech last night because he's still in campaign mode talking strictly to his people. there are a lot of people who are disappointed or angry, or whatever. they have reason, too. i think we need a little quiet -- what i call -- eloquent listening in order to understand. people who voted for trump and paul la page have absolutely legitimate concerns and need to

be responded to. by the same token, people concerned about the trump policies have legitimate concerns. the country is divided in half. >> this is great! hopefully your other colleagues will see, hey, folks from both sides of the aisle should appear together. thanks for doing this. how a tax break could wind up being a lot less than it seems. and the best moments from last night's white house correspondents' dinner from comedian hasan menage. >> no one wanted to do this, so of course it lands in the hands of an immigrant, that's how it goes down. the road can change in an instant. but with lightning fast shifts and dynamic track-tuned suspension, at the roademands, the gs delivers. experience high performance through high technology, in the lexus gs 350 and gs turbo.

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and we are back. "data download" time. there was a lot of talk this week on tax reform. and we still don't know exactly what the trump tax bill will look like. a lot of the criticism though has centered around how the plan appears to benefit the wealthiest americans, doing away with the estate tax but it could also help many people in the president's core base of supporters. more than 1,800 counties that voted for president trump had a median household income of less than $45,000 per year. toe these two counties -- somerset in pennsylvania and ionia in michigan. the president won both by 30 points and both have median household incomes of $45,000 per year. so why does that matter?

well, for people who make less than $50,000 a year, 87% take the standard deduction rather than do an itemized return. so what does that mean? the president's proposal doubles that standard deduction and that would mean married couples who earn less than $50,000 a year could cut their federal income tax bill significantly. good news for people who leaked elected mr. trump, right? but if people get the tax cut and so do wealthy americans, how does the government fill difference? see, filling the budget gap would require deep spending cuts. if you look at some of the programs, president trump's budget blueprint plans to eliminate, they're in places like the mississippi river delta and appalachia, parts of the country that have struggled economically for years while urban centers have been thriving. so while some low-income families could benefit from an extra $1,000 or so in the short term, there could be lasting, more long-term negative

implications in these areas for rural america where many of them live and where many government subsidies are invested. when we come back, there's been a lot of talk about president trump's first 100 days. but how about the democrats? how have their first 100 days gone in the age of trump? instead of allergy pills. it delivers a gentle mist to help block six key inflammatory substances. most allergy pills only block one. new flonase sensimist. ♪ ♪ welcome to holiday inn! ♪ ♪ thank you! ♪ ♪ wait, i have something for you! ♪ ♪ making every stay a special stay. holiday inn, smiles ahead. whether for big meetings or little getaways,

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back now with the panel. we've been talking a lot about the first 100 days of donald trump. but what about the first 100 days of the democrats? a conservative columnist

writes -- what the democratic party has yet to understand is that its social and cultural agenda is irrelevant or inimical to the material and spirit all fact. to the material and spiritual well-being. i'm going to guess chris matthews you agree with that? >> a lot of this is cultural, not just economics. i think that the position hillary clinton, for example, took on abortion, late-term abortion is fine, federal funding, get rid of the hyde amendment, pushed too far. i think a lot of people came out and voted in pennsylvania where i'm from, are pro-lifers. with all trump's problems, morally, personally, whatever, they didn't like hillary's position. i think the party moved too far to the left on cultural issues. >> thether interesting fact, the most popular member of the democratic party is not a member, bernie sanders. >> that's true. no, that's very true. left of the democratic party, as you know, loves him. i don't -- in the last 100 days, we haven't seen -- you said

we're going to talk about the democrats. i was like, who are they again? it's like they've completely disappeared. i certainly hope -- >> but they're more popular right now than the republican counterparts. >> they may well be in power again in a year, in two years. i hope they are spending in time out in the wilderness coming up with actual proposals and plans for what they're going to do, unlike the republicans who spent their time in the wilderness getting rid of health care, then didn't have a plan. >> the big problem is it hasn't gotten better since election day. you go out and talk to democrats who picked trump, and they say they're more embarrassed now, can't imagine voting for a democrat, that nothing they've done since the election has seemed to address the reasons they alienated their working class base on election day. >> that's right. the democrats were meant to be the party of the people. donald trump got elected as a man of the people. argue with it all you want. but at the end of the day they looked like the party of beyonce. we saw that at the white house correspondents' dinner last night. they're the party of beyonce and barbra streisand.

>> don't knock beyonce. >> well -- >> no, seriously. >> the beehive will come for you. >> she is not a political leader. forgive me. she is not a woman who's going to fix the political problems. >> all the big stars of the party now, elizabeth warren, bernie sanders, you ask them what's your position on illegal immigration and they're offended by the question. they don't have a position. the reasons people voted for trump they don't even want to address. you need a counter agenda right now. they had a good bipartisan pill bill on immigration. we're not for throwing people out. wee for reasonable, enforceable border patrol and we're for stopping illegal hiring. we're for real things. instead they just think running against trump is their solution. >> which didn't work for hillary. >> okay, okay, okay, except guess what? in 2009 we were having similar conversations about the republicans. they had no counter agenda. president obama was throwing

everything. and just sitting there, allowing anti-obama unite the party worked. >> i disagree. obamacare is what worked. obamacare -- >> so repealing obamacare will work for the democrats too? >> i don't think so. but i done think it was that they were doing nothing and they woke up and suddenly had great successes. i think a grassroots sort of element of republicans and libertarians went out in opposition to obamacare. >> what's happening now? what do you see with this energy on the left? because you are right, democrats haven't offered anything but the energy is there. >> but it is all energy and it is not directed towards anything. it is exactly what chris said, it's all about name calling. it's not about standing for anything. at the end of the day if the party doesn't stand for something they don't get elected. >> by the way, you can sit here and say, you know, mitch mcconnell, that's a brilliant idea. your number one objective is to get rid of obama. why should anyone in the middle of road or whatever, why should it be the job of the people who think about issues to help one party win over the other? what's the point? >> to chris' point --

>> i'm just telling you what politically works. >> i don't even want to answer that question. being awful works sometimes. >> but i think if the democrats said i'll take your money and build a bridge, i'll work with you on trade because i'm as protectionist as you are, i think what the democrats are missing is that some of trump's stuff is their stuff. >> exactly. >> yeah. but the republicans played that game and it worked for them. i mean there was a lot of -- >> right, but obama's stuff wasn't our stuff. >> why hasn't pelosi said i've got a plan to fix obamacare? i'm going to break the rule, i'm going to go to the floor and break the rule, get control of the schedule and we're going o have a vote on that. go out there and be aggressive. that's what reagan did, break the rule, get the other side on the vote. i think the democrats could start winning a lot of issues if they'd start challenging the leadership. >> i think it is very possible they don't need to do that. >> susan collins said this. they said people punish you work with the other side. that's the biggest problem in politics right now.

>> all right. back in a moment with "end game" and an extra half-hour. we'll have some highlights from last night's white house correspondents' dinner as well. >> announcer: coming up, "meet the press" "end game," brought to you by boeing. always working to build something better. whether you're after supreme performance... ...advanced intelligence... ...or breathtaking style... ...there's a c-class just for you. decisions, decisions, decisions. lease the c300 sedan for $389 a month at your local mercedes-benz dealer. mercedes-benz. the best or nothing. try new flonase sensimistgies. instead of allergy pills. it delivers a gentle mist to help block six key inflammatory substances. most allergy pills only block one.

new flonase sensimist. at crowne plaza we know business travel isn't just business. there's this. 'a bit of this. why not? your hotel should make it easy to do all the things you do. which is what we do. crowne plaza. we're all business, mostly. time's up, insufficient we're on prenatal care.es. and administrative paperwork... your days of drowning people are numbered.

same goes for you, budget overruns. and rising costs, wipe that smile off your face. we're coming for you, too. for those who won't rest until the world is healthier, neither will we. optum. how well gets done. >> announcer: "meet the press" "end game" is brought to you by boeing -- always working to build something better. the panel is still chatting here. whether we are on air or not. we're back now with "end game." i want to play a couple of moments from the white house correspondents' dinner. obviously it was without president trump. it was with comedian hassan menage, plus a familiar face from the samantha b. not the white house correspondents' dinner. here are a couple of highlights. >> who would have thought? with everything going on in the country right now, that a muslim would be standing on this stage. for the ninth year in a row, baby!

no one wanted to do this. so of course, it lands in the hands of an immigrant. >> how do you like me now? huh? the prodigal son has returned. yeah. i don't know what that means, but i know it is positive. >> we got to laugh a little bit. split screen, nicolle, you were visual person too, a communications director for the president. good decision for him to skip the dinner. >> does him no harm not to be in the room. but i don't know as a staff not to show up. but the president certainly didn't suffer injury by not being there. >> to the contrary, i think the president is actually helped by this which makes me sad as a former journalist. this is a gathering of people all of whom have a great deal of

contempt for the president. but to a certain extent also for the republican party. >> dick cheney went every year. i think it showed dick cheney could laugh at himself. it didn't hurt him to not be there at all. >> i think he was smart not to go. some year he will come back and show a picture of obama making fun of him and he'll say, look where i'm at now. but i think last night was smart. harrisburg was the smart move. being up there. >> that's for sure. i'm going to close it there, these guys will keep going. that's all i have for today. we'll be back next week because if it's sunday, it's "meet the press." we'll see you in may. >> announcer: you can see more "end game" and "post-game" on the "mtp" facebook page. t-game" the "mtp" facebook page.

hello i'm brian williams. in 2012, nbc news was given the opportunity to take television cameras inside the white house situation room to talk about the decisions and the military action that resulted in the death of osama bin laden. as we reach the anniversary of that history-making mission, we present for you now a special rebroadcast of "inside the situation room." >> we have been preparing for months. we had seen mock-up of the compound. we had looked at helicopter flight patterns. >> president said to go. and we looked at him and he said, it's a go. >> and in that situation, you just -- you do some praying. >> wha