nicolle wallace starts right now. >> hi, everyone. it's 4:00 in new york. course correction. donald trump revealed today that he had planned to sign his signature tax bill into law after the holidays but when he realized that would mean missing his self-imposed christmas deadline, he changed his plans. >> and then when i watched the news, as you know, we had the largest tax cuts in our history just approved. and i was going to wait for a formal signing some time in early january but then i watched the news this morning and they were all saying, will he keep his promise and sign it by christmas. will he sign it by christmas? and i called downstairs and said get it ready. we have to sign it now. we were going to wait until january 7th or 8th and do a formal signing but all the networks were saying, will he keep his promise and sign it

before christmas. i immediately called and said let's get it ready. >> we thought you didn't watch the news because you were reading all the documents. with nothing less than the prospect of impeachment hanging in the balance, the white house has started to freak out behind the scenes about the 2018 midterm elections. while midterms are typically an uphill battle for any president's political party, the shellacking the republicans aligned with donald trump took in virginia and alabama have the president's motley crew of inside and outside political advisers sparring amongst themselves. as talk of more staff shake-ups loom large. three stories in three different publications today detail the commotion. from politico, speculation about additions to the cast of characters in season two of trump's west wing has ramped up as the administration braces itself for a bloodbath in 2018 and a wave of staff departures. from today's "new york times," dispute over political strategy

erupts inside the white house. and from "the washington post," within hours of celebrating president trump's biggest legislative achievement at the south portico of the white house on wednesday, his aides and outside advisers had a spirited and at times tense discussion with him about the political outlook ahead of next year's midterm election. the gathering saw tempers flare as aides vented their frustrations with their electoral defeats this year and concerns about the 2018 political map. let's get to our reporters and guests. kelly o'donnell is with us from west palm beach, florida, where the president is spending the holiday at mar-a-lago. phil ruker is also with us. and joining us at the table, the rev al sharpton, host of "politics nation" on msnbc and msnbc's joy reid, and evan mcmullin, former cia operative, former chief policy director for

the house of representatives and a previous candidate for president as an independent is here. phil rucker, let me start with you and that story in "the washington post" which was my favorite of the three that i mentioned at the top of the show. detailing that the staff woke up today or i guess after the tax bill and said, houston, we have a problem. this tax bill is not going to erase all of the perceived sins of donald trump and trumpism ahead of the midterm elections. and my question for you phil rucker is, was the president aware of how dire midterms are for any president's party? or did this sort of come to him as a revelation? >> i think it's come to him very slowly but it's come to him. his popularity has been in the tank really since he took office. he's been an historically unpopular president throughout this entire year and we've seen it play out in a couple of these special elections or the regular

election for governor in virginia where the democrat won. and then in alabama, where democrat doug jones beat trump's candidate. he's not been able to push his candidates over the finish line in those races. and that's been a rude awakening for him about his vulnerabilities as a politician, about a president and his ability to really carry the republican party through next year and keep these majorities which are very fragile, especially when you consider so many of these house races are in suburban districts where republican voters are really repulsed by this president. >> kelly o., let me read you something from "the washington post" about what have been his plans for -- to be a very active campaigner in the midterms. "the washington post" reporting earlier this week that after alabama lost, trump has ambitious plans to campaign in 2018 midterms to fill their top spot. i'm sorry. i've got the wrong excerpt here but reporting earlier this week

that the president really excited about hitting the trail to trum up support and to pring his base of support to candidates who are -- all the house of representatives are up in 2018 and to the senators that are up. but you know from covering my old boss, george w. bush, during the highs and lows of his presidency, that sometimes an unpopular president is the last thing that a candidate running in a tight race wants. >> and we certainly saw that in virginia where ed gillespie did not want to be aligned with donald trump but there will be republicans across the map who will want the ability of a president to help fund-raise. expect that there could be a calendar of political events for president trump and vice president pence that's more tilted toward filling the coffers to help support these candidates. and it's just never too soon to worry about november. and certainly the house is a precarious situation for the reasons you've explained.

on the senate side, prior to this year, just by looking at the map, it was advantage republicans because there is a third of the senate up every two years. most of those are democrats defending their seats. something like 25 or 26 of those meaning they start with republicans typically having an advantage. will that change because of the broader climate? will there be traditional republicans or republican candidates challenging democrats who do not want to be on the same stage with president trump. that will vary according to geography, according to some of the specific issues. and it's always the quality of the candidate, him or herself, that's up on the ballot that can ultimately make a big difference. we certainly saw that in alabama. you've seen in a couple of places earlier in this year where, for example, karen handle in georgia, was able to defeat a well-financed and well thought of young democrat, john ossoff, for the house seat.

it's been a mixed bag for the white house. and because of the president's standing, his ability to shake things up and do things differently is not necessarily what candidates are looking for as they're trying to run more traditional campaigns or database campaigns in their own districts and states. for the white house, they will see this as a report card of how they're being judged. historically, it's always tough in a first year for a president. this president may find it even tougher. >> joy reid, i don't need to review these exit polls but i'm going to put them up for our viewers. in alabama and virginia, women helped deliver decisive victories for the democrats in the doug jones versus roy moore race. he won women, 57%, 41%. in virginia, northam won over gillespie. this has sort of been in these big statewide races a story of suburban women grabbing back.

>> and in particular, women of color. one of the biggest -- >> they were never for trump. >> that's true. >> these are swing voters swinging back in the other direction. >> the puzzle has been, can they attract white suburban women to start voting democratic when a majority of white women period are republicans. can they get voters who are not typically active in midterms, voters of color and younger voters to come out in midterms. i think that what you saw in virginia, particularly in alabama, was the answer yes. if the energy is sufficient on the democratic side, a combination of being repulsed by donald trump, the moment, which is a lot about me, too, a lot of about women's issues and people of color ut, the sense of alarm such that you may see an unusual thing happen, which is that the reliable voters of the republican midterms who come out pretty consistent may get overwhelmed and swamped, particularly in these districts where hillary clinton either did really well, got within a point or won. and that is well over the 24 seats that democrats need.

i think about california. i think about new york. states that are getting hosed by this tax bill, even people like darrell issa who voted against the tax bill strategically could get swamped because of the energy. that's what elections are about. who has the energy? right now it's people of color, women and young voters. the energy is anti-republican and anti-trump. >> rev, could there be anything more energizing to joy's point, than the president of regaining control of a chamber that could vote to impeach donald trump if he's viewed by bob mueller's investigation to have done something impeachable? >> i think the mueller investigation and the implications is certainly going to be energizing, along with the other issues like the tax bill and clearly those states that are going to be most impacted. but i think even nationally. and i think when you look at things like the affordable care act and the criminal justice area that he has totally ignored. but if i was a candidate, aside

from the fact that i think you rightly state that traditionally unpopular presidents are not desired, i would particularly not desire donald trump because it's donald trump. you don't forget, this is the guy when he was running for president at campaign stops would say if you beat that guy up, i'll pay your way out of jail. you dont know what he's going to do. you aren't talking about a traditional guy. you're talking about when you had president bush who was unpopular, but president bush always had good behavior. you talk about a guy that will do anything at your campaign stop. and why would you even risk having this guy just ad lib and just go off at your expense? >> and the reason some republicans have taken that risk, which i agree with you, is ultimately not worth it is

because they've been so -- it's been from a defensive position. they've been so fearful of the trump base turning on them. but i think we now have proof in alabama and virginia that the trump base is nontransferrable. right? so the trump base doesn't attach itself to he who attaches himself or she, although we haven't tested many female candidates running as trumpers yet. so will that give them -- i think i know the answer already -- but will that give them any more courage to stand separate and apart as republicans who stand for more conservative things than trump and trumpism? >> maybe in some cases, but, look, i think this is a president who has governed his base. not republican the republican party but he's fed red meat to his base during his first year. that's why his approval ratings are as low as they are, yet in the republican party, they remain high, although with a significant amount of republicans now not supporting the president, not intending to support him going forward.

so i think that's part of it. i think joy is correct to say there's a lot within the democratic constituencies but also a lot of concern among a select group of republicans that will engage differently than they have in the past in upcoming elections as they did in virginia and alabama. so the president sensing this is now today talking about how he's going to rule more in a more bipartisan way. he spoke of that today. >> he just woke up and tweeted that. >> john sat in that chair yesterday and said being down eight points is republican lights out. the only open question as a life-long conservative is whether they also lose the senate. what do you think? >> i think that's basically right. but what i'm really getting at here is the president says he wants to govern in a more bipartisan way, which is important, if he's going to -- if he's going to force, stall or prevent this problem, the transfer of -- >> the president says he doesn't watch tv and then he woke up and

said i signed the bill because i watch so much tv. >> my point is that he -- they are right to identify that as the way forward. he is not going to be able to do it. and that is where you're going to end up with virginia and alabama in far greater places. the moderates and republican congress in the house are going to be gone, unfortunately. many of them. and you're going to end up with a more trumpian party which represents another challenge. >> go ahead. >> think about if you are dean howard in nevada where they have a good party where harry reid was able to win. where hillary clinton was able to -- cortes master who was polling behind hillary clinton. if you are in a place like nevada, you have the daca bill hanging in the balance that could finally be the thing that gets latino voters who typically underperform their population share energized enough to squeak you over the line. heller is unpopular. he voted for the tax bill.

all republicans have to do is add it up and say dean heller's net worth is x. you're getting $18 a week. that ad writes itself. even democrats can figure out how to do that. >> but therein lies the danger. if anybody can mess it up, it is the democrats. the problem is -- >> you guys have caught my self-loathing. it's contagious. >> they cannot look at these polls and say it's a wash. and not really go to work and get on the ground and really organize because they -- in alabama, let us not forget what all would happen, including this man being charged, accused by several people of pedophilia. he got 48% of the vote. democrats ought not go to sleep here. it's a great opportunity, but they have -- >> let me bring phil rucker back in. your piece also details some of the names that are leaving and some of the names that are -- i don't want to say they're incoming back into the white

house because that's always the rumor, but can you tick through some of the names? jeremy katz, the chief of staff to gary cohn. he's got family. he never relocated his family. the tax bill is what he had as a to-do. he's senior and important to the economic shop and another one of those traditional establishment republicans who lent a lot of credibility to this white house especially among skeptsical folks, skeptical republicans on capitol hill. >> you are right. it's not my piece, by the way, but we're expecting an exodus of departures. several have been announced. many more could be announced over the holidays. dina powell, a critical figure on the national security team, especially when it comes to meefts peace. gary cohn, a big economic adviser. the economic adviser. he's not announced he's departing but he's widely expected to be leaving some time early next year. his number two is a guy named

jeremy katz, a name not many are familiar with but he was really integral in economic policy and in particular on the infrastructure plan which is an agenda item that president trump wants to push with congress next year. he's out the door. and we're expecting other departures as well. there could be a shake-up in the political operation or change of some kind. a number of trump loyalists on the outside, including corey lun d lewandowski who has been saying he needs to add more firepower in order to get everything in gear, ready to go for the midterms next fall. >> is that what the fight about? three publications report this spilled over and became very, very intense and emotional. and that the president was present. was this a fight about the president not having the right kind of strategist on the political front as you describe? were outside advisers like corey lewandowski undermining the

current white house political operation? >> and lewandowski for a while has been complaining privately to his associates that he feels trump is not being well served by his political team in part because chief of staff john kelly is not a political operative. he comes from the military. he's done a good job getting the white house more organized and structured but he's not a political thinker. not particularly savvy when it comes to political chess moves and not a big karl rove figure, david axelrod figure in the white house right now. i think somebody who could be ascendant is kellyanne conway who kept a low profile through much of this year but is very much a political strategist in the white house and could play a key role in helping shape the strategy for the midterms. and you could see the addition of some outside operatives who can come in and help the president map out a game plan. >> all right. it's going to be interesting. kelly o'donnell, thank you for starting us off and spending some time with us. when we come back, as republicans wage a hot war

against america's premier law enforcement agency, the deputy director of the fbi testifies before republican-led committees for 16 hours. and corroborates a key piece of former director jim comey's testimony. also ahead, a key witness in the hot seat. longtime donald trump aide and associate rona graft to field questions from house investigators. and it was the best of times, the worst of times. pop some popcorn and get ready for the tale of 2017 in the time of trump. david. what's going on? oh hey! ♪ that's it? yeah. ♪ everybody two seconds! ♪ "dear sebastian, after careful consideration of your application, it is with great pleasure that we offer our congratulations on your acceptance..." through the tuition assistance program, every day mcdonald's helps more people go to college. it's part of our commitment to being america's best first job. ♪

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to the press, i beg you to get it right because you're recording this history. you got to get it right. this is a fight for the soul of our democracy. nothing less. and so i'm going to work hard to make sure we save that democraerks and i will fight until i die. cia criticized. fbi criticized over and over again. now the rumors, and i hope that that's all they are, of mueller possibly being fired, i hope that's not true. but those are the kinds of things that tear down a democracy because they are the very things that a democracy is based upon. and i say to all americans, and i beg you, to guard this democracy. guard it. >> a fight for the soul of our democracy. a very powerful statement from a very powerful democrat. congressman elijah cummings, ranking member of the house

oversight committee. that's after two days of interviews. 16 hours in all behind closed doors with deputy fbi director andrew mccabe. yesterday's was an emergency meeting called by the chairman of two separate committees. a source familiar with mccabe's testimony tells nbc news that mccabe did confirm that then-fbi director jim comey told him that trump asked for a loyalty pledge. today, house intel is speaking with rhona graff, a longtime associate of the president's who served as trump tower gatekeeper and ultimately as vice president -- senior vice president of the trump organization. joining us now is nbc news national political reporter. he broke the news about rhona being interviewed today. our panel is still here. what do you know? i got an indication this questioning may have wrapped up for the day. >> it looks like it was another very long day of questioning here in new york. it's important to note this questioning is happening in new york. i spent a lot of my time in the capital standing outside a secure room in the capitol

complex where most of these interviews take place. it's very unusual that this is happening in new york and it's one of the reasons democrats are accusing republicans of trying to wrap this up quickly. one day this week there are three separate interviews. today was the second interview that happened in new york, and we know of only a handful of members that have traveled for it. they couldn't come at all because of the votes they had, most specifically, the tax vote. rhona is a very important person. the gatekeeper to president trump. anyone who has met with trump has gone through her. and we know one of the subjects they were certainly going to bring up. don jr. testified before the committee december 6th. we know that rob goldstone who arranged that meeting in the e-mails between them setting it up, there was a reference to rhona. if you wanted to get the incriminating information to donald trump it was through rhona. that had to be one of the areas they focused on today. >> we also know that -- we know

from nbc's reporting, from your reporting and your team's reporting, that one of the things bob mueller is doing is piecing together a timeline. an exquisitely detailed timeline. not just on the question of russian collusion but on the question of potential obstruction of justice. so i wonder if figures like rhona and what they know and the communications that they've been in receipt of will go to sort of the depth and the duration and the length of some of these relationships with the russians that ended up in trump tower that day. the way don jr. and his folks will have us believe it -- and he's told several different versions of what went down that day to begin with. these were just some russians that called them out of the blue and offered up dirt on hillary clinton. we may find out these were russians who have been longtime acquaintances of the trump family. >> one of the other sbrintervies was a russian-born business associate of the trump

organization. he was the one who tried to arrange famously the trump moscow tower. the one he said would help elect donald trump president. this is something that, obviously, mueller's team is focused on. and the fact the house intelligence committee is conducting these interviews finally is significant. democrats have said these 24 witnesses they've wanted to bring before the committee all year since they started this work in march. the fact those two witnesses, sader and graff are only happening today, that speaks to the fact they're backloading the most critical interviews. there are reports about others coming before the committee next month. mike conway, the -- >> the republican person after nunes had to recuse but didn't really. he's now the republican running house intel. >> they're already writing parts of the final report. adam schiff is raising heck about this. he says not only is it too early to end this investigation but if republicans try to end it before we think it should be, we'll continue to do that work. mueller certainly will continue to do his work. if there are more allegations, more bombshells that come out of

those separate investigations, republicans will to have answer for that because they ended their committee investigation early. >> something else the republicans on the committee are doing are trying to revive debunked lines of investigation. and you have the epic debunking. you and shep smith are the definitive debunkers of the uranium one scandal. it was looked into. it's been vf gated. it has been debunked as a political scandal. and i wonder if you can just speak to the -- the inane nature of house republicans who run the committee. they are not minority members going rogue against a committee they run and trying to throw their shiny balls in the air. >> this is the committee to protect the president. devin nunes who has not recused. he was a part of the campaign and transition. but he's essentially running a shadow intelligence committee whose goal, let's be honest and be clear about it, is to

exonerate donald trump at all costs and by any means necessary. and if that means truncating the actual investigation so it's a sham investigation where they write a report exonerating donald trump or declaring the cia and fbi to be criminal enterprises operating out of washington to overthrow the president, they'll do that. if they have to dredge up false scandals against hillary clinton and drag her out of political retirement and essentially prosecute her in absentia and say she's the real criminal here. it was approved by nine federal agencies and she wasn't involved in it personally or if they have to bring her e-mails back. trey gowdy and devin nunes, the nonrecused chair of house intelligence, they've been clear and transparent. their goal is to exonerate donald trump. everything you see here is theater designed to do that. >> they must know he's guilty of something or they wouldn't be working so hard. they might instead of smearing bob mueller be trying to point to bob mueller, his

professionalism and -- you know, it just speaks to the psychology of believing that our political ally is guilty as sin. >> you wouldn't be doing this if you didn't know it or feel strongly that he was guilty. but i think you have got to go back to congressman cummings' admonition. they are undermining the government. they are undermining what the country is supposed to stand for. we can all take political sides based on what we believe. but, i mean, we are really cratering the entire principle of having a real fair process. and i think that this is what is most troubling. when you have members that are elected that would assign themselves to defend somebody that they know or believe is guilty, then what are we really talking about here? and i think that that is what elijah cummings raised. that is so scary here. it's like they don't even really believe in the government that

they are representing. >> mr. cummings is a very important figure. you can see the frustration on his part. it was just a few weeks ago he put forward this letter to trey gowdy with this unbelievable whistleblower account that michael flynn is on the daius saying we're going to get this nuclear deal through. >> this is like going to costco. i'm going to go get all my shopping done with you. jared kushner, "the new york times" reporting prosecutors were said to seek kushner records from deutsche bank. federal prosecutors have sought bank records about entities associated with the family company of jared kushner. so that would be -- would that be the u.s. attorneys, the eastern district? >> that's correct. >> what's the significance of that? >> this is a meticulously worded and careful "new york times" story. careful about what this could say. more of what they don't know just yet. mueller's team could or could not be looking into this. he's been doing some parallel investigations with the new york

state attorney general. and with the eastern district here. a few other points to make. the eastern district is one u.s. attorney position we know, one of three or four that president trump interviewed the candidates for personally. that's important to remember. and separately there's a letter from house democrats on this very subject that "the new york times" gets into which is the potential financing of kushner family properties. they expressed real concern about whether he was using his position both in the transition and ultimately at the white house and the contacts he has with foreign governments to try to basically bail him out of what is a massive debt for 666 fifth avenue. this is something that's already scrutinized by some members of congress, including on the oversight committee and judiciary committee. the republican chairman, though, are not necessarily pursuing that lead we know of yet. >> everything i know about eastern district i learned about. we have to sneak in one more break. mike, thank you for spending time with us. when we come back, alternate

facts. good people on both sides. nfl protests. african elephants. and mike flynn's guilty plea. what a year it has been. we'll take you through some of the lows and maybe a few silver linings. stay with us. [ click ] [ keyboard clacking ] [ clacking continues ] good questions lead to good answers. our advisors can help you find both. talk to one today and see why we're bullish on the future. yours.

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at some point, i'm going to be so presidential that you people will be so bored. >> bored? not a word i would use to describe trump's 50 yefirst yea office. and it's not over yet. we reserve the right to update what we're about to show you at any time. we wanted to bring you some of the most extraordinary moments of the first 12 months of the trump presidency. >> this american carnage stops right here and stops right now. ♪ you can't always get what you want ♪

>> i had nothing to do with russia. to the best of my knowledge, no person that i deal with. ♪ you can't always get what you want ♪ ♪ but if you try sometimes >> wiretap covers a lot of different things. i think you'll find some very interesting items coming to the forefront over the next two weeks. we just launched 59 missiles heading to iraq. >> headed to syria? >> when i decided to just do it, i said to myself, i said, you know, this russia thing with trump and russia is a made-up story. >> i was elected to represent the citizens of pittsburgh, not paris. >> i saw him at a cocktail party. and it was very sad because the hottest people in new york were at this party.

>> north korea best not make any more threats to the united states. they will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. >> we condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides. on many sides. >> i like real news, not fake news. you're fake news. wouldn't you like to see one of these nfl owners when someone disrespects our flag to say get that son of a bitch off the field right now. out. he's fired. he's fired! ♪ >> we love -- traditional way if you look at president obama and other presidents, most of them didn't make calls. >> we don't need a liberal person in there, a democrat. >> mr. president, is an accused

child molester better than a democrat? is an accused -- >> well, he denies it. look, he denies it. ♪ can't always get what you want ♪ >> we have a representative in congress who they say was here a long time ago. they call her pocahontas. >> it's a shame what's happened with the fbi, but we're going to rebuild the fbi. it will be bigger and better than ever. >> our panel is still here. joy may have had a stroke. music selected by donald trump. that was his campaign theme song. phil rucker, you've covered every last one of those moments. your paper covered the heck out of every last one of those moments. and i wonder, i'm not going to put you on the spot for highs or lows but speak to the velocity of -- at which this president busts through norms. >> it's incredible, nicole, that this has all been only a year because it feels like every

couple of days there's a new controversy that breaks another norm. and he's really redefining the presidency. and he has had some highs, you know, neil gorsuch to the supreme court but an awful lot of lows. and, you know, to single one out, look at charlottesville and just how much his comments there about both sides really -- really divided this country in a pretty horrible way. >> and it's funny. i asked all of you before the show for highs and lows. the other high we were talking before the show, joy, it was the saving the -- the sparing of the elephants. >> not murdering elephants. >> not permitting ivory to come back into the country. but we all had the same low, charlottesville. >> yeah. and it was hard to choose. going through that montage, the code talkers, having them stand in front of a photo of andrew jackson, the genocidal maniac who marched native americans across a trail of tears, having the russians in the oval office and giving away our intel. supporting roy moore, an accused

child molester. i think charlottesville crystallized what the core complaint about donald trump has been throughout his public life which is that he brings forward blatantly bigoted views and that he has a soft spot for people like those tiki torch marchers. that he does see some redeeming quality in white nationalism and that, you know, to coats' point. he's the first white president and unabashedly white nationalist and that's where he still stands even now. i think not since woodrow wilson have we had a president that had that embrace of it and not embarrassed about it. >> george w. bush stayed really quiet during the eight years of the obama presidency because he'd been in the audience and didn't think it was helpful for the office of the presidency to have any of your predecessors out there offering commentary. what really surprised me, made a

very pointed speech with a very direct rebuke of trumpism, if not donald trump and one of the most memorable lines, you and i were on the air together that day, rev, is that bigotry has been emboldened. and i wonder why more republicans won't speak out about -- we don't need to debate whether donald trump is a racist because the results speak for themselves. white nationalists, racists, think they have some cover while he's president. >> yes. they absolutely do. and, you know, the reasons why republicans don't more often talk about equality and advocate for equality, as i believe they should, as i would hope that they should, is because that word has become politically loaded for reasons that it's not -- it's not justifiable. we don't have time to talk about it. >> which word? >> the word equality. there are debates about what that word means, sadly. partisan debates. but they have -- what they've done is they've caused the republican party to drift away what its core meaning is. all of uall men and women,

despites -- regardless of our color, gender, any of that, we are all created equal. our country was founded about that premise, although imperfectly applied for some time, still imperfectly applied. but republicans have stopped fighting for equality in america for a while. that has allowed this white supremacist base to become more emboldened over time. certainly right now it is. and so it becomes very difficult for republicans, even if they are centrist republicans to even speak about that issue because they are unwilling to -- they are unwilling to fight for it. the future of the party, if it is to have a future, must be one in which republicans say we'll fight for equality as much as we say we're fighting for liberty. >> rev, let me get you quickly in on this conversation. donald trump makes it very easy to be for equality because the other choice is to bolster, to support, to give safe harbor to what george bush describes as a bowdened bigotry. >> i think he makes it easy if

you have any kind of commitment and conviction at all about -- >> how about if you have a pulse? >> exactly. if you have a pulse. or a moral impulse. we've got to remember something. when trump made these statements, we're not just talking about two counter marches. a woman was killed in charlottesville. people marched with torches saying verbally jews will not replace us. this is not no disagreement among nuances. this is murder. this is outright calling anti-semitism by name. and he said there are good people on both sides. the normalizing of that and the silence of many republicans, thank god george bush stood up because if we start -- not only has he brought the presidency down. he's brought the real interpretation of what hate and racism is to a new low where people started acting like this is some political debate. we're talking about murder here.

we're talking about people yelling jews while they march with torches. and we're acting like this is just some disagreement among people that have different views on equality? >> well, that sets it up perfectly. when we get back, we'll talk about silver linings and new allies. stay with us.

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with 0% financing for 72 months across a full line up. for a limited time, get an additional $1,000 cash back on top of 0% financing for 72 months. get these exclusive offers during the ford year end sales event. the donald trump presidency has forced many to dig deep in search of silver linings such as the new appreciation for all of the current president's predecessors. even the ones we disagree with on policy and to ask questions like this. with the me, too, movement ahead, if not for the women's march on the day of donald trump's inauguration, our panel is still here. phil rucker, i'm in love with all you "washington post" philips, let me read you something from bill kristol's twitter feed. this happened -- this was from a couple weeks ago. big kristol, life-long conservative tweeted the gop tax bill is bringing out my inner

socialist. the sex scandals are bringing out my inner feminist. donald trump and roy moore are bringing out my inner liberal. what is happening? there is a bit -- phil rucker, a bit of a realignment around just the question of donald trump. >> you might be right. bill might be onto something there with that tweet. absolutely. you know, you wonder if this me, too, movement, the reckoning we've had in this country over the last several months with regards to sexual harassment and assault in workplace treatment would have been -- whether there would have been as much energy there were it not for the trump campaign last year. were it not for the "access hollywood" tape and for all the accusers who detailed pretty horrific acts on the part of president trump that he then denied and won the election anyways. if that had not happened would we have this cultural reckoning we're experiencing now? >> our colleague brian williams says in a piece we did about the ten most impactful things that the reckoning has the women's

march in its dna. that was the thing that put in motion all of this. some of it is rage. some of it was just the shock and awe of trump winning after saying the things he said on the "access hollywood" tape. some of it is i'm not going to raise daughters and sons. as a mother of a son, my first thoughts were, how do you raise a good man when the most powerful man in the world can tweet about a woman's face-lift and talk about grabbing women in the bleep and still win. can you talk about, can you put together the women's march and that moment in our history with the me, too, movement? >> absolutely. as somebody, i have two sons and a daughter. immediately after the election, my kids are much older than your kids but even in schools you're seeing bullying in the name of donald trump. bullying of brown and black kids and bullying of girls. the idea of grabbing one by the -- i won't say it -- is now a meme people use to taunt other people. but i think what's happened, i teach college students.

the shock among young women that their rights are not guaranteed, i think has provoked a new cultural and social awakening that i think in the end is going to be beneficial. >> you clearbeneficial. >> you clear your throat. >> let me zasay this. i would go deeper than what brian said. i think the dna in the women's march and the #metoo was the "access hollywood" tape and with with president trump did. i don't think it started with the women's march. i think the women's march was because of what happened with trump. >> the tape. >> started with the tape, with his behavior and attitude and you had the first woman nominee of a major party get more votes than a man and still lost. all of that. remember, the it wasn't like calling a march. it was some unknown woman on facebook that generated this

march, which meant that it came on the back of something else that motivated that. that was not organized by a great leader. >> to bring it back to where we started. the terror -- the terror -- that the white house political operation feels about the midterms because of what the rev just said. the women's march wasn't a celebrity-led, come at this time and place and i'll be here. it was a grass roots movement. we saw in virginia and alabama really was women saying i don't think so. >> absolutely right. there's a certain poetic justice to this. what i think we'll see in 2018, which is a defeat of trumpism, electorally, that manifests itself most likely in the democrats taking control of the house. so you see because of women, you see where republicans in the house are failing to check the president. women will turn the house back over to the democrats. donald trump will be held to account by the house, i think, because of women.

and there's a certain poetic justice we're seeing. >> that bank of mainly older white men standing there deciding on women's health care, take away parenthood. giving tax breaks to ourselves, and hand them out to trump's billionaires. these men standing there makes women angrier and more fired up. >> the image at the white house, look back at the -- i know donald trump, we now love the stagecraft, bill rucker of his success, victory, first legislative accomplishment since being president, but if you look at that picture closely, it's a 71-year-old president surrounded by many white men in 60s, 70s and 80s. not the picture of a party that's rolling into the future. >> it's not, and the day after i picked up the front page of the "washington post" where we had a picture of that ceremony and on the south portico of the white house. where's waldo?

trying to find a single woman in the shot. all of these white men in the house republican conference which is the reality of the democrat graphics of the elected leadership of the republican party right now and a problem for the republican party included on the steps of that portic o blake pharon hord porto -- portico was mr. farenthold who has a sexual harassment allegation against him. >> and the moveme menment krist gillibrand moved to get al franken out, they cleaned house to prosecute republicans for tolerating a president accused of sexual misconduct by 12 women and as phil rucker said, their one legislative accomplishment a guy roaming around accused of

egregious sexual misconduct. >> you ask about paul ryan. by doesn't he do explore the base is with trump. hard for someone in the house to do that. i think more importantly here what we're seeing is a true test of leadership for people like paul ryan and also-- >> he's failed. what's left to be tested? >> stealing my thunder every time, nicolle. he has failed this test of his leadership and, in fact, that's why we're seeing him, i believe, step down now. he's already announced that after 2018 he's going to retire from congress. paul ryan failed the test of are his leadership. i don't know what's to become of him in the future. i do think something new will come of this politically wharnlg. >> what? >> seeing center right, the center, arnd and the center left come together in ways that important around the defense of our democracy nap will continue, i think, and build and grow. i hope it will. we're seeing its effects in

virginia, saw it in alabama, we'll see it elsewhere. what i'm hopeful for, but the leaders of the aniness in american politics i hope for will not be the leaders who failed the test of our time. >> i think your question -- it's the challenge. leadership is based on when you will stand against the tide. >> exactly right. >> be willing to lose your seat to save your -- we have to sneak in one more break. don't go anywhere. it's time now for "your business" of the week. 'tis the season year round as the christmas store in michigan. it's been a global icon ever since wally brawner started it more than 70 years ago. 2 million customers shop at the store every year. for more, watch "your business" weekend mornings at 7:30 on msnbc. >> announcer: sponsored by american express open. helping you get business done. ?

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>> donald trump woke up at mar-a-lago, he watches gobs of tv. if he called in what would you ask? >> asking how much money he expects to earn froms tax bill? that's the question to ask every republican benefiting from it. if he says he doesn't know, will you prove you're not earning more money and how much do you owe russian and deutsche banks? >> and wipe are you alling pulling him aside and can't even speak the sang language. maybe you can? vladimir putin. >> my understanding, putin does, doesn't necessarily do it for our benefit. >> even the translators -- >> donald trump is equal to the former kgb agent. when he includes me, putin is in charge of that conversation. >> and ask if frederick douglass is down there in his office. >> part of the foursome. my thanks to phil rucker, evan mcmullin, joy reid and the reverend al sharpton. catch joy tomorrow on "a.m.

joy." maybe donald trump will call in. never know. and reverend al hosts a special "politics nation: 2017, a year in social injustice." that does it for "dateline saturday night mystery". it's "mtp daily" with katy tur. if it's friday, alarm bells ring -- are you listening? good evening. i'm katy tur in new york in nor chuck todd. welcome to "mtp daily." the people around the president are simultaneously celebrating the end of this year, and freaking out about next year. let's start with the senate's pop trb mitch mcconnell, and his year-end press conference today. celebrating. >> this has been a year of extraordinary