i love this panel. my thanks to you all. that does it for our hour. i'm nicolle wallace. "mtp daily" starts right now. hi, chuck. >> how are you, nicolle? supersizing our panel. you'll love t.it. >> i watched you last night. thanks for bringing the news. >> fascinating stuff. we'll keep it going. thank you. if it's wednesday, trumpism got trumped. the democratic off-off year wave. >> it's smell awave coming. >> will the blue crush on election day 2017 become the new rule? or simply the off year exception. plus, more republicans call it quits. how is the president's party working to regroup for 2018? finally, 70 years of war and

peace. >> we won't forget this peace. >> and a look at how the longest running television show has covered the news. >> this is "mtp daily," and it starts right now. good evening. i'm chuck todd here in washington. welcome to "mtp daily." folks, there's one word to explain what happened last night -- trump. no debating. except they are debating that inside the republican party right now. president trump says he wasn't the reason republicans across the board were swept away in what was a mini democratic wave last night. at least not in virginia. he says republican candidate gillespie was crushed by nine points, because he "did not embrace me or what i stand for." even though there's ample evidence that gillespie was crushed because of his embrace of perhaps what the president stands for. but if you asked five different

republicans today about the president's impact on last night's races you're going to get five different answers or in cases, non-answers. >> i profoundly disagree with him on his view of what happened in virginia last night. i do think it was a referendum on the president. >> the democratic party in this election was more are energizedn the republican voters. looks to me like. why that is, i don't know. >> a lot of people are saying it's because of the president. >> well, maybe, maybe not. >> how much the president played into it, is just going to be, the pundits will debate that. >> will the president be a drag on his party here? >> i don't know. >> is the president going to be a drag on republicans running next year? >> i don't think so. i don't think so. actually, i think if anything, if he had gotten more involved in these races it might have turned the other way. >> no question an anti-trump environment contributed to last night's democratic sweep, which happened in contests large and small. from blue new jersey in

washington state to states with varying shades of purple like new hampshire, virginia and maine, to even red georgia and beyond. the only question is, how big was the president's impact? in the marquee race, the answer was a very big, "yes." both sides acting like this was a very tight race, but democrats won in a nine-point blowout, propelling them to big gains in the virginia house of delegates, which is often a hargbinger in the following year. and how much this significantly impacted this race. 56% of virginia voters disapprove of the president. nine of ten backed the democrat ralph northam. 17% voters said the reason they cast a ballot to support the president. twice as many, 34%, said they turned out simply to oppose him. on the issues, the president's request to repeal and replace obamacare seemingly on the ballot too. the most important topic by far

in virginia was health care and those voters broke for northam of a 3-1 margin. 41% of voters identified at democrats versus 30% in virginia likely the lowest percentage of republicans in the state of virginia since at least 1993 and that 28% chunk of independents split their vote. remarkable. they go republican or at least used to. democrats look at these numbers ahead of next year's midterms and see pay dirt. >> in 2005 i was head of the dscc. and you could smell a wave coming. the results last night smell exactly the same way. our republican friends better look out. >> but, folks, last night has important caveats. a lot of these victories came in

states that were already blue or getting more blue and these candidates weren't washington democrats. republicans weren't able to boogiephi anybody. yes, we should make that a word. boogiephi. think nancy pelosi, remember that, or hillary clinton to run again. so breaking it down a supersize group of analysts and experts to dig in. start with david wasserman, senior analyst and house senator of the cook political report and our panel includes editor ruth marcus, and editor-in-chief matthew continuenetti and adviser jennifer palmieri and michael steele. welcome all. supersized panel. we're all going to be with wasserman right here. buddy, at times you were calling this a wave. why is this -- why did this feel like a mini wave to you last

night? >> chuck, democratic turnout was extraordinary. noary way to put it. turnout state-wide was up 16% over 2013. in charlottesville up 31%. northern virginia, democrats were exceeding 2013 levels by mid-afternoon. and we've seen this enthusiasm a gadge in other special elections. confirmed last night. i don't think you can look at the results and say anything other than democrats are the slight favorites to take control of the house from today's vantage point. >> you say right now better than 50/50 chance democrats win the house, based on not just last night but really the buildup of all of the special elections with the crescendo to last night? >> i do. here's why. at this point in the cycle of the of '06 and "10, the last two times the house flipped, it wasn't apparent the party had a good chance of retaking the house. today that's pretty apparent based on what we're seeing. so we may see an exodus of republicans in swing districts too decide, i don't want to raise $5 million for re-election

when i have to survive a toxic anti-trump climate. >> michael steele, you've been a candidate. a candidate in a wave year that went against you. >> yes. >> and '06. a party chair in a wave here that benefited the republicans in 2010. you've seen both sides of this coin. this, what does haley barbour say? good gets better. and bet fer retirements, recruiting, money comes in. go to the retirement front. how serious paul ryan needs to be worried? >> paul needs to be serious. two more members today sort of take their hat, put it on a hook. other members by end of the year do the same. go back to districts and listen to people and look at their numbers. see where the president is standing. and even if the president is in the positive, like 50-plus percent in their district, still not a guarantee they're not going to get a charge from the right. doesn't give them any wiggle

room to sort of finesse the upcoming election on issues like taxes and health care. they're going to be boxed into a hard corner the leadership will force them into because the president is forcing the leader ship. this is in effect the president will put this on the party in a permanent way going into next year, and for a lot of members they'll sit there and go, i don't know if i want to raise the $million because i don't think it's out there for me to raise and therefore i'll look at the race, bow out gracefully. as corker has done, and the house become as place that's a playground for democrats. the saving grace, democrats have a tendency towards incompetence in these areas sometimes. we're see how that plays out, if they are able to pick up on some of those other features that allow them to turn it into a positive, but they have the upper hand right now. >> jennifer -- just for you. what was the difference between last night and a year earlier?

what is it -- you saw, the big knock on last year's campaign, a whole bunch of people didn't turn out. maybe didn't think there was something worth turning out for. last night northern virginia decided there was something important turning out for? >> my first reaction was i felt such relief. not just as a democrat but i thought, okay. we are not going to disintegrate into a fiery pit of racial hatred and division. that is not what's going to happen here. and -- if gillespie had won were by hobbling together a coalition of i'm not that close to trump but accept some way to get elected, and be successful, i was very concerned not just for the democrats chances in '18, just what that poor tendwould pr country. a year ago tonight, when it happened. it was -- it was for me the unimaginable. which is meaning, not that we didn't know it was possible we

could lose. a one in three chance to lose. share that. you just couldn't imagine america would make this choice. and i don't think there's anything the president can do to stop what happened last night. i think those people who turned out to vote, they're not reacting to trump in the moment. they decided on november 9th they would appropriate r operate differently, run for office and turn out and vote. that's virginia, not everywhere, but what we saw last night. >> matthew what did you see last night? >> a state trending democrat for almost a decade now. beginning with senator george allen's loss in 2006. there, too, racialized campaign in some elements. and just made more so through obama's two victories, through hillary clinton's victory in the state last year. you saw many of the same people who voted against trump last year come out again but more of them. like dave says. that, to me, is the big takeaway. the enthusiasm gap between democrats and republicans

translated into the down ballot races. >> right. >> wasn't a surprise northam won. always had a polling advantage. small in the rcp average. the real surprise is the eraser of the republican majority in the state house. >> and by the way, northam had to win by ten to do it. that tells you something. ruth, seems to me if there's one thing that every republican pollster i talked to today are not fully ready to concede red states are vulnerable? the dead fish in nebraska vulnerable, but conceding a big problem in suburban america, if you will. northern virginia, an outsized example of suburbia and it is moving away from even swing. >> suburban america, the married white women that were not -- >> ten points? >> not exactly there for you a year ago. turned out. i want to take issue with one small thing that jen said which is that people woke up on november 9th determined on this. i'm not sure that they did,

because if you look back and think about what then president-elect trump had to say on election night, it sounded like it might have been a different trump. he talked about bringing the country together and healing. i think people might have been more willing to give him a chance. i think he helped build -- you and i agree on the energy. we only disagree on the day it got started. certain some people were energized on the night, but he built up, built up, and built up this rezirchsistance and first all, see that interaccess and the way ed gillespie decided to play this campaign with confederate statues just didn't work for him. >> david wasserman what did karen handel do right that ed gillespie did wrong? if you're a republican running in a swing state, is there anything to say, well, geez, maybe karen handel figured it out. more distance -- from trump,

than gillespie did. she didn't go as trumpian in her issues's is that a lesson? >> some republicans would say she was herself. as opposed to ed gillespie, who -- who changed. >> seemed to run as somebody -- look, in an interview with us in the spring with mark murray had e said he plan and running on his tax plan and running the economy. >> but look. what happened, democrats spent $40 million and woke up the republican base. didn't see a turnout on the republican side anywhere near georgia 6. >> a ralph northam stat that's unbelievab unbelievable. first successful democratic candidate to win the governorship that has not carried what? >> a single precinct west of radford, virginia and lost the eastern shore. where he grew up on a farm. i don't think the virginia results can tell us that claire mccaskill is any safer in missouri or doug jones has a

chance in alabama. they speak to two very polarized americas, in which democrats have an across the board enthusiasm advantage but not necessarily winning over large numbers mp trump voters. >> pause it here. don't worry. a lot more to go, but wasserman letting go. why he got the last word there. all right. most of you sticking around, still ahead, the dnc chairman tom perez joins us right here at the table to discuss the democratic sweep in virginia and how he hopes to keep that momentum going. we'll be right back. more people shop online for the holidays than ever before. (clapping) and the united states postal service delivers more of those purchases to homes than anyone else in the country. ( ♪ ) because we know, even the smallest things are sometimes the biggest.

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welcome back. democrats in virginia have a lot to celebrate, but let's dig into the numbers more at the start of the night. republicans held a 66-3 4 advantage in the states house of delegates. in all 100 seats up for election. democrats figured they'd flip anywhere five, maybe dreamed of ten or more. perhaps. what happened? at least 15 of the states flipped from a republican-held seat to a democrat. with four races yet to be

called, democrats have a chance of gaining control, which seemed unthinkable 24 hours ago, but here's something interesting. of the 15 seats, all previously held by republican men. and 11 were won by women. the fact is, women were a big factor in the democrats' victory last night? virginia. our poll shows democratic candidate ralph northam won women voters by a whopping 22 points. actually five points better than hillary clinton ran with women last year in the state of virginia. democratic women in virginia actually made up the largest share of any partisan gender group by far. about a quarter of the electorate. not surprisingly. democrats are hoping what happens in virginia doesn't stay in virginia and that their success might be repeated across the rest of country in 2018 and beyond. we shall see. we'll be right back with whether the democrats can capitalize on the victories from last night. be right back. where to go,

and how to work around your uc. that's how i thought it had to be. but then i talked to my doctor about humira, and learned humira can help get and keep uc under control... when certain medications haven't worked well enough. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. raise your expectations and ask your gastroenterologist if humira may be right for you. with humira, control is possible. welcome back. after big wins across the country last night, political

wins. now appear to be at the democratic party's back, but for how long? there's still a party without a leader and without a clear message. panel is still here. joining us, the nan whoman it i keep the democrats coming out on top. long time no see. must be in a lot better mood than sunday? >> we feel good. not only a good night in virginia but new jersey. go up and down and all around the united states. we now have the state senate in washington state. so we have every chamber there. down in georgia, too two seats of the special election. no longer a super majority. those wacky constitutional amendments they can't get through. >> and talking about donna brazile out there, talking about issues between the clinton wing and the sanders wing and a loss here. look, doug wilder, no supporting top of the ticket.

upset at the treatment of -- what does winning do to party fracturing? >> winning helps. >> is it a band-aid? >> breaking news! we need help. >> obviously does it make it go away? do you still have to deal with it or make it easier? >> the story of virginia i think is the story of the democratic party on the rebound. because tom paperriello. two candidates, agree on just about everything, run a spirited campaign, record turn out. on the republican side, disunity. gillespie wins by one point. that story actually wasn't told. corey stewart loses declays i don't believe in unity. as we came forward we saw that unity continued. i met so many people. spend 700 miles in my car over

the weekend, and i can't tell you the number of people who came up to me and said, i was a bernie supporter, and i see what you're trying to do to the party. i support it. so many important fights ahead. we've got to focus on the future. exactly what they did. that's what they did in new jersey. >> what was the difference between coming up short in georgia 6 and having the big night last night? >> the georgia race got nationalized and it's a much more conservative -- >> arguably, virginia was nagtized. >> georgia 6, look at money poured into the airwave and a much more concentrated period of time. virginia, you have, it's a purple state. >> is it anymore? >> oh, i think it's a purple state. watch the video of "morning joe" the day before the election. everybody, sorry, joe, don't mean to get in your cage there, everybody predicted ralph northam would lose. the reality is, we won. and this is the undertold story of virginia.

two undertold stories. number one, chuck, the role of organizing. grass roots organizing. the most extensive coordinated campaign in the history of virginia. not the history of off year. knocked down 500,000 doors. terry mcauliffe four years ago. very good campaign. over 1 million this time. secondly, you can't write away if you don't have people on the board. 88 people running for the house of delegates. all of whom were spectacular. and so they were getting door knocking done and they were developing this synergy. when you have a solid healer top of the ticket like ralph and 88 people running, you have a perfect opportunity when you're organized. that's the lesson for me going elsewhere. >> and you may think maybe jennifer is the most empathetic person here. i bet you a former party chair, oddly, even on the other side. michael steele. >> we have history. >> weirdly, but -- >> dude --

>> jump on in. everybody jump in. >> and welcome to the world. right? here's the rub. the rub. i remember the 2009 and -- the elections in new jersey and virginia. where we won, big nights for the party, and it set the tone and stage for what was to come in 2010. the question for you is, how do you now, as national chairman, begin to corral all of those passions out there that are going to define this win their way? i think one of the interesting challenges you're going to face is you need to define this win in a national way that galvanizes people and moves them towards it. how do you do that? you can't afford the various pockets of interest, whether the bernie sanders wing or any other wing, that wants to say, this is what should have happened or didn't happen or did happen. how do you make that -- >> well, there were 33 different stakeholders in the coordinated campaign. and everybody -- >> geez. 33? >> it was the most extensive coordinated campaign in the histories of virginia.

it was spectacular. we were knocking on doors sunday for the third pass. it was -- it was remarkable. and what everybody understood, michael, and i think this is where we have the ability to scale and replicate, is that, this is not simply an election -- this isn't a referendum on donald trump. well, it is in part, but it's also a referendum on american values. people are really getting tired of these twitter tantrums. people are really getting tired of an america they can't be proud of. and people really care about health care. health care -- to have a doctor on the ticket in the year when he was trying to take health care away was really helpful. because ralph northam is a healer. when we talk about these issues that are really touching people, and then when we organize, organize, organize, the democrats didn't do as well as we needed to in past years, and in showing up in every zip code across america.

i think we're doing better. the combination of that message plus the infrastructure that is indispensable for success i think we can replicate this. just like '05 was it's last time we won both governors' races and you saw what happened in '06. >> mr. chairman, with all respect i'm not sure i'm hearing that much of a message. i'm hearing trump referendum and a referendum on american values. but that's another way of saying it's a trump referendum, rights? ads on statues and confederacy and ms-13 and things like that. do you need, and did virginia give you some clue as to a positive, affirmative message where you want to take the country? other than a way from donald trump? leading up to next year? >> i think the message that was clearly resin nant and certainly in what we were doing was -- i'm a health care voter. we believe in shared prosperity, and part of shared prosperitisy having access to health care and

i'll tell you. look at the polling. health care voters went overwhelmingly for ralph northam and members of the democrat -- >> what's your majority going to tell the health care voters you're going to do for them? is it i'm just going to stop the evil republicans from taking away your obamacare or is it, we have an understanding where we want to take the country on health care? because -- not so clear. right? >> i think the broader message of the democratic party was embodied well by phil murphy. throughout the campaign, he said something that my parents taught me as a kid. the democratic party has always had your back. they had your back in the '30s, when we brought us social compact of the 20th century. in the '60s, when we fought for medicaid and medicare, for the civil rights movement. had your back now for good jobs, the right to form a union. the right of women to make sure they can control their own bodies, and we're going to continue to have your back. some voters stopped believing that, and i get that.

and that is why we have to get out there in every zip code. why organizing everywhere matters, and when i think we lead with those values that we have your back on health care. we have your back on education. that's when we do well. >> all right. take the final question here. you said organizing in every zip code. what are you doing in alabama? >> well we -- >> taking it seriously or trying to avoid -- >> doug jones i've known for 20 years. he is -- >> been through this before. i know. what does that mean -- >> well, last month in october we began a program where we've increased our investment in state parties by 33% because we believe that democrats can win in every single state. that's why we did it. doug's undeniably the underdog. it's an uphill ballots, and i'm confident that doug is going to keep fighting. >> i don't hear, we're coming in with tv ads, coming in with -- is that not the case you're going to do? >> you know what? i think doug jones is -- we didn't increase our investments in state parties, because we thought that we should just

throw money away. we increased our investment in state parties because we want to make sure that everyone in every state can win. >> all right. leave it there. congratulations. i know it was a rough week last week for you. >> more work to do. no one spiked the football at our end. a good start but we have to take it to scale. >> i'm certain you're glad you're not having so many donna brazile questions. leave it there. we'll be right back. we have the view from the other side of the aisle on this one. a republican member of congress, also says a thing or two about polling. we'll be right back. when you say you need

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welcome back. folks, election day yesterday was about much more than virginia and new jersey. mayors across the country in big cities like new york, boston, cleveland, cincinnati and detroit, they all sailed to re-election to another term. that's not all america does. a whole set of new mayors leading many of its cities. let's meet a few. francis suarez, coasted to victory in the city of miami. in charlotte, north carolina, democrat vi lyles. the first city's african-american mayor. seattle, voters elected jenny durkan, first female mayor since the 1920s and the first openly lesbian mayor.

and man chester, joy craig. ousted longtime republican mayor, becomes the city's first-ever female mayor, and on speed dial for any democrat running in 2020. atlanta is also set to get a woman mayor. no candidates had enough votes to win outright so two women are advancing to a runoff next month and in minnesota, melvin carter, elected st. paul's first african-american mayor. america, just a few of your new mayors. we'll be right back with more from the other side of the aisle.

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welcome back to "mtp daily." as republicans digest what the virginia election means for 2018, they're asking themselves, run as a trump rb or run away from the president? ed gillespie made this his argument, even though distancing himself from the individual. it didn't work.

the most prominent retirements, jeff flake and bob corker. in the house. refusing to run in 2018. two more today. two served a combined 19 terms. a republican seat, and a swing seat. why we're keeping our eye on these 21 members. all republicans who represent districts hillary clinton carried in 2016. if last night taught us anything it was an anti-plutrump environt can trump a well-run campaign. joining me republican congressman, a former chairman of the nrcc whose job to get more republicans elected to congress. congressman, thanks for being one of the few willing to come on tv today, sorry. >> oh, happy to come. hey, my committee won. the nrcc won out -- >> one house race. >> gracongratulations to the nr. >> the story is utah.

right? no. let me start with this. trumpism was on the ballot. what did you learn? >> well, first of all, i learned that normal is still normal. look, the party in pow hear lost both in virginia and new jersey, the governor race five times in a row after they've taken power. in that sense, there's not much new here. it is a canary in a coal mine, no doubt about it, bought normal canary. the real question, can you do something between now and mid-terms to change results there? for most candidates most of the time, it's been no. or most parties, i should say. we have a lot to do. the most important thing, members need to be ready. i think ours are. we have really exceptional incumbents in these swing seats. the committee needs to be ready. i really think ours is. 5-0 in these special elections and stivers and his crew are unbelievable. finally, you have to actually deliver on the promises you made when you ran as a majority. and we stumbled badly on health

care, my opinion. we have an opportunity to redeem ourselves on taxes. that doesn't guarantee victory but puts you in better position to run on. we don't right now. >> let me bring up taxes here. seems to me this morning while the fierce urgency of now i assume is with all of you, when it comes to, oh, my gosh pup guys got to get this done. at the same time, it's every republican for themselves. and i got to think many of those suburban republican incumbents saw the northern virginia turnout and are probably popping tongue tongues, i have to fight heard against the leadership on some of this tax bill. does this compromise your ability to get 200 votes on the tax bill? >> i actually think it works the opposite way around. in a tough fight a tough environment. smart advice walking through the valley of death, hang together and keep moving. that is what what i see the ways and means committee doing.

voting down most democratic amendments that are unacceptable to us and hanging together. the conference will do the same thing, i think. our people know that this is important politically and frankly believe in it philosophically. so i think we'll be fine in the house. my guess is in the senate, that you know, quite frankly, not to chastise nigh friend, you fumble on the 1 yard line, can't do it again in the big game. i think they'll get it done, too. i think we have a great chance of getting it through. it doesn't guarantee you a majority, but it gives you an accomplishment when you guys do the roundtables end of the year. they finally have something big done. that's important, actually. and it's important for morale. around here, success breeds success. failure breeds failure. we need a big success. we've had a lot of little successes, singles and doubles but need a home run. tax reform is a home run, i think we'll hit it. >> what do you do with the president? run with him? run against him? what's the lesson here? >> i've always told people, run your own campaign.

presidents affect the environment no matter what you do for good or ill. they just do. and they affect it in different ways and different places. one catchall strategy doesn't make a lot of sense. the most important thing, i with a lot of candidates made it through tough elections. did their homework. were good in their district, actually delivered in congress, had a great political operation, and as a majority, the best thing we can do to help them and remember, 70%, 80% of our guys are safe. they're not going to change. those people need to help the committee, help their colleagues. the people that are on the point fortunately are some of our very best members. i always say, you know, you might beat a barbara comstock or in virginia, but you better bring your a game and best candidates, because those people are terrific at what they do and are great members of congress. i actually, you know, i know we're in a fight. i told our people, literally the

day after the election, get ready. nobody's had a good mid-term since 2002. so we have to be ready, and our job would be up here legislatively to produce and politically to prepare. >> talked to one smart republican strategist who said to me, the fear he has is that steve bannon's going to tell the president, you know, ed gillespie didn't go nationalist enough. you need a trade war, to rip up nafta. what you need to do. that will galvanize the base. that will send a message. and this person said that to me -- worried that that would be the advice the president would take. if steve bannon came to you saying, hey, this will galvanize the base, we need a good trade war. >> a little more economic nationalism, what would you say? >> i'd say, take a hike. you don't run national policy on the basis of what's good for you politically. you try to do the right thing for the country. fortunately i think the president's broadly done that

and surrounded by very good people. look, i'm a big admirer of general mcmasters, admirer of general kelly, big admirer are my friend, former congressman michael pompeo at the cia. i think rex tillerson is hugely underrated. those are the people that i think will give him good advice and frankly the president is taking good advice when he's gotten it. done more on north korea than any other president before him. his stance on afghanistan showed great maturity of judgment. actually changed his position having heard the arguments. i haven't seen him fall for those sorts of things. i don't think he'll fall if he gets that kind of advice again. you don't run the country on the basis of trying to win an election. you try to do what's right for the country and then you will win the election. >> put your pollster hat on for me. last year donald trump got 46% of the country. didn't get 50%. obviously neither did hillary clinton. what i'm getting at here is, how does the republican party become

a 50% plus one party without support -- the suburbs of america? particularly the suburbs of the sun belt and mid-atlantic and places like that? >> you have to produce. you have to actually follow through on the commitments you've made. actually i think tax reform is a huge opportunity. and challenge for the republican party. >> do you have to go away from social issues? too much on the cultural that's turning out of suburban america? >> i wouldn't look at it that way. depends on what part of suburban america. bottom line, you have to deliver. we've done a lot in the congress, particularly in the house. done a lot more legislatively than we get credit for, but three big home run opportunities. health care, didn't do it. swung and missed. when the senate couldn't get it done, that really endangered our majority in the house, my view. tax reform, we will get it through the house. the question is the senate. i think they'll be there. if they do, that's a big win. finally some sort of infrastructure bill and then

you've got to make the government work. got to do the routine things, funding government. i think we can get that done, too, by the end of the year. again, our fate's in our own hands. you're foolish not to recognize it's a midterm. nobody does well in midterns. have a lot of challenges. individually you've got to be ready. your committee's got to be ready and most of all, deliver for the american people. >> tom cole, straight talk from you. republican from oklahoma. appreciate when you come on. i can talk politics with you a long time. anyway good to see you, sir. thanks for coming on. >> thanks. we'll be right back. ♪ everyone deserves attention, whether you've saved a lot or just a little. at pnc investments, we believe you're more than just a number. so we provide personal financial advice for every retirement investor.

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welcome back. and appeared on "meet the press." obsessed with warren keyes throughout the years. take a look. >> i am not communist. i am not agree with communist. >> and nuclear business, and the hydrogen bombs. evil things. >> there is no reason, no excuse and no justification for the loss of one more american life there or for the loss of more vietname vietnamese. these war can be ended and it should be ended now. >> what we are hoping for is for action that is going to move the government so that they do eventually get to negotiate with the authentic representatives of

every section of our people. >> we want to live in peace with all our neighbors including the israelis, i think the time has come for all of us as muslim nations to restructure our own outdated systems in a more democratic light. >> we want to do everything we can to help the iraqi people regain their sovereignty and build their state and the stabilize it, and live in peace with themselves and their neighbors. >> and october 11 occurred, the united states knew there was a willing cooperation of afghanistan to go to and to work with to remove terrorism. >> the threat of a nuclear armtarmt armed iran is now off the teeab, and i think that's a success.

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behind the scenes, there's been an interesting discussion about whether the democrats need to have a message in 2018 or not. if you recall, ruth marcus, you were questioning tom perez. er and you were noting, he claimed it was a message but it was anything but trump. i'll start with you. has any successful mid-term outparty truly had a national message beyond not the president? >> no. the democrats' message is we're not trump. and that's a pretty effective message for getting democratic voters out. if there's one thing democrats can do that is in their control to improve their chances in 2018, it would be replacing nancy pelosi. i don't think that will happen. >> do they need a message? >> i think they do. the idea of getting a better deal is get some pizza but not elected office. and that's the real sweet spot for the democrats. how do they translate the success from last night and

around the country into something that galvanizes people to want to get out and vote. not just democrats. in a bigger election statewide, for senate races, you'll need some independents and maybe some republicans and a better deal is not necessarily going to get you that. >> you said you were nervous ralph northam about the gillespie attacks. >> i think he should have fought harder against ms-13, against the race baiting. i think they need to fight back harder. what will galvanize democrats to turn out is trump. but they should have not a national message but a national plan for how you're going to get the economy to work for everybody in the country. people will vote for them. the people who won't vote for them and they need to do that. that's not what will win them back. >> there's a saying in british politics, oppositions don't win elections. governments lose elections. the democrats don't need a message so much as candidates

who appeal to the center of the electorate. >> and i'm not sure totally about the difference between a plan and a message. i think you can get away without probably either of them in 2018. but you're sure going to need one and explaining why you're running as president he in 2020. and in addition to that, avoiding a civil war in the party between liberal and more centrist factions. >> what did you think of tom cole? he is the voice of conventional republicanism. >> i take opposite view. if you want the trump voters to show up next year, you need to give them something that trump is delivering on. you need to show that the wall is being built. >> you're saying his tax reform isn't cutting it? >> tax reform won't cut it for the coalition. >> i think it is phrases like the valley of death. and we have nothing to show voters. that's an illustration, he is an honest man of a party that is very worried about its majority. >> i think matthew is right

about that. i don't think tax reform will motivate trump people. and i don't think they will pass tax reform now. i think it will be impossible for them to do so and if they did it would give democrats an issue to run against. >> i think tax reform would get them halfway there though. that's an important legality. the president himself has talked about it and pressed it and pushed it. so that does resonate with the base. if they're able to get a big plan done, sure. tax reform might raise taxes on those suburban voters who are trending democratic. >> trump will men that. >> do you think you have to worry about that? or do you think they'll show up? >> the question is, does trump care whether republicans lose the house or the senate? >> that's a great question. >> it starts with an i and it ends with peachment. >> that's the only reason. >> if they spill over to the senate and there are pick-ups in the senate, and that affects it.

>> the u.s. senate in play? >> i think so. >> they need three seats. it might as well be ten. if i had to impose it, they might gain seats. that's how terrible it is for democrats. >> how about that? what do you think? >> i think that when you see a candidate like northam who wasn't the most charismatic one and didn't necessarily win the best ways win by 9 points, i think you have to consider the senate in play. >> don't get too cocky. >> here's the thing. let us know about tennessee. david, ruth, matthew, jennifer, michael, super size. thank you very much. we'll be back with a whole different kind of race today on capitol hill. (avo) when you have type 2 diabetes, you manage your a1c,

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the case you missed it, the cut throat race was between two republicans today. the majority whip steve scalise challenged sam johnson to a no holds bar scooter race. take a look. ♪ as you can see the capitol row

under thea served as the road. after the tight turns, it appears congressman johnson pulled out the win and by the way, he cared about safety first. he's wearing the helmet. come organization congressman scalise. use a helmet. "the beat" starts right now. >> good evening. >> thank you very much. we will keep our helmets handy as well. >> since 2016, the political aftermath raises three questions we have. one was this a rejection of trump? two, does this mean dems can take back the house? and if they do, will that make trump's life harder on russia? the first two questions are just up for debate. the third is not. because it is now a political legal fact that democrats taking the house would hand a powerful subpoena power to those