you so much. thank you. so we're doing it. yes. start saying yes to your company's best ideas. we help all types of businesses with money, tools and know-how to get business done. american express open. our business. ♪ ♪ morning glory, america. i'm hugh hewitt. while much of america's business and political elite is in davos, here on msnbc following developments in the russia probe and the exploding fbi and doj controversies. after the week opened with the collapse of the schumer shutdown, a huge win for donald trump and mitch mcconnell and great shock to the democratic base about the lack of resolve among senate leadership, the news quickly turned to the continuing eruption of economic good news for workers and companies across the united states, as well as the surprising emergence of the outline of a deal on daca,

border security, and defense spending. after the break, perhaps before it, we will focus on what may very well explode into the biggest story of the year next week, an escalation with turkey, our nato ally. but first a few minutes with the trio of d.c.'s best reporters they found to be the biggest stories of the week. i'm joined by courtney kube, "the daily beast" martin and for the first time alana plot. i will start with lachlan, what did you think of the president's performance in davos? >> well, i thought the reaction was as interesting as what the president had to say. and you saw a lot of, you know, these global elites who are actually warming to president trump to a degree, especially folks in the sort of business-oriented contingent in davos. and i think they are warming to him to the degree that he is acting more like a generic

republican. obviously the stock market is booming. tax reform is a huge win. and i think it shows the degree to which trump's success is divorced from the trump show, so to speak. there is a duality. there are the policies coming out of the white house, which to a large degree are policies you would see from any republican president. and then there's sort of the speck cal of the tweets and the personal attacks. and i think folks are davos are realizing even if they don't like the latter part, the trump show, the trump presidency is something they can live with. >> his best speeches have come abroad. saudi arabia, islam and poland, now a great speech in davos. do you see any reason why that would be the case? he's better abroad than he is at home? >> well, i think he sticks more to the teleprompter when it comes to foreign policy. and certainly, you know, you saw, for instance, just to

illustrate this point, the heritage foundation said this week that they had 334 policy initiatives that they were hoping the new administration would enact heading into 2017. two-thirds of those, the trump administration has already enacted. to the degree that trump used to a predefined narrative or policy focus, one that is crafted by actual experts in the fields he's working in, i think he sees more success than when he flies off the handle on issues near and dear to his heart. that tends to turn off folks like the davos crowd, the republican establishment, and to a large degree voters in the u.s. in general. >> he certainly surprise odd immigration this week. alaina, welcome. great to have you from the atlantic. what is your big story of the week? i think it's immigration. >> exactly. the white house threw a bit of a curveball when stephen miller

and republican law makesers said they were proposing a pathway to citizenship for d.r.e.a.m.ers eligible for daca status. 1.8 million of them. so i'm already hearing from the house freedom caucus, senior aides there, this is breaking the promise of no amnesty that trump, you know, carried with him along the campaign trail. but here i think the big story here is you have hard line conservatives such as tom cotton and david perdue rallying behind the white house with this proposal. i think it will be interesting to see. i've covered the hill for a few years. i haven't seen where the house freedom caucus and senator is mike lee, cotton and purdue are not aligned. it will be interested to see if this bill actually does go through the senate. >> i have been arguing for this kind of package since 2006.

border security plus allowing the d.r.e.a.m.ers to stay. they've got to stay. plus, a number of other minor changes in the immigration law. so i think it gets through the senate and goes to the house. at that point, won't democrats have to vote for it? how would they not give a path to citizenship to 1.8 million people in the country? >> here's what i'm hearing from house democrats. you know, one senior aide described this proposal as a bit of a trojan horse. a pathway to citizenship for 1.8 million daca recipients. but you're also with this proposal, agreeing to a $25 billion trust when it comes to implementing donald trump's wall along the mexican border. so i do think you could see house democrats perhaps not the likes of chuck schumer and his cauc caucus. but when we get to the lower chamber them saying this is a front for something that could be tpwar more damaging to the immigration system in this

country. it wouldn't surprise me if you had a huge swath of democrats take a stand against the proposal. >> i will be shocked if they look 1.8 million people in the eye and say, no, you can't stay. courtney, you and i might be focused on the same thing. what's your big story of the week? >> what has the potential to be an explosive situation in northwestern sorry gentleman, hugh. you said yourself this could end up being a huge story. a week ago, turkish forces began air strikes. they began an extensive ground operation in northwestern syria in the afrin gap or afrin pocket. it is is in habgted habited by kurds. why this matters. the u.s. actually has not been backing this kurdish group. the ypg is. they have been the strongest fighters, the strongest ally

that the u.s. has in the fight against isis. and now these ypg are starting to turn their attention up towards afrin. so the u.s. forces that are down towards the man bige area, as turkey moves into afrin, as they are fighting their way in and killing civilians, they may move to man bige where there are u.s. forces. what happens? right now we just don't know. the other concern, of course, is that there still is an isis presence in the eye freighti eu river valley. this will take attention from that fight. >> courtney, we have 12,000 troops in northern syria. not many people know that. how do they grade the

nato-on-nato clash. that would be the first ever in the history of the alliance. i will ask the admiral after the break. what do they say about the the likelihood of that? >> so people at the pentagon are still convinced that the u.s. and turkish military ties are strong enough they can avoid that, but they are watching very closely. there is a lot of concern in the pent began about what's going to happen. they are looking to see if they actually move toward man bige. or if they stay up away from where the u.s. forces are. you have to look at this from turkey's side. this is not the first time they have gone across the board spwaoer syria. they see the kurds as a terrorist force, as terrorists who have attacked inside their country. the turks are very angry at the united states for continuing to support these kurds. from the u.s. perspective, from the coalition perspective, the ypg, the kurdz, have been the

strongest fighters on the ground. you could give them a lot of the credit for the fact that isis really has been all but decimated in syria. they are still isis fighters but they have lost their caliphate, their ground and their stronghold due in large part to this ypg force. >> they are incredible allies. a quick reaction from lachlan and alaina whether they are following this story. has this been on your radar? >> it has. i wish i could say i was an expert. i have been focused on the domestic lobbying operation that turkey has really beefed up in the united states the last couple of years. that is something to really keep an eye on, the degree to which experienced politicos and hands from past administrations are trying to sort of press that government's interest in the nation's capital. that is something to keep an eye on. >> alaina, have you seen that as well in your congressional reporting? >> the problem right now, hugh, even as recently as this morning when i talk to members and chiefs of staff of members, they

focus on the news of the day. so is right now, you know, it's the "new york times" report that donald trump insisted to his lawyer, don mcgann, that he fire bob mueller. so i do think these issues, what you think is the big story of the day gets lost in the scrum of daily news that these aides have to kind of combat and prepare their members to go back in town halls and talk about. >> that happened last july. courtney just described it happening now. that is a gap the media has to address. my thanks to you. the growing tension between the u.s. and ally turkey. i was wondering if an electric toothbrush really cleans better

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♪

welcome back. as i mentioned at the top of the show, as courtney kube just touched on. they may have missed a growing standoff between america and one of its long-time allies and a fellow member of nato, turkey. don't blame yourself if this snuck up on you. it appears it snuck up on the state department as well. as president erdogan said he was going to keep the the push up against allied forces there and indeed soon may be targeting a home to american special forces, of course that raises the first every nato-on-nato hostilities. presently the head of tufts university school of law and diplomacy. he was formerly the supreme allied commander of nato, as well as southern command. for 37 years an officer in the united states navy. the author of three books. accident al admiral, leader's bookshelf and sea power.

it has now entered into a period of unprecedented stress. welcome. let's begin with your general overview of what is erupting this confrontation with turkey. how serious the situation and how quickly it might escalate, admiral. >> we've got a very difficult tactical situation in front of us, hugh. as you know, this is centered on turkish operations in northwest syria, which is just south of their western and southern border. so it's actually quite a long way away from the center of the fight against the islamic state. as you indicated in your overview, turkish forces are moving steadily to the east. that potentially could put them in a situation where turkish military activity would impact u.s. troops on the ground. this has everybody's attention. it's very dangerous tactical situation, hugh. >> admiral, when you were

running nato, did you have turkish troops in your chain of command? >> i did. and i want to begin by saying how absolutely superb and professional the turks had been in the nato alliance, hugh. they have contributed ships, aircraft, ground troops in afghanistan. the libyan operation in the balka balkans. counter pry race, special cyber forces. this is the second largest army in nato. out of the 29 nations of nato, only the united states has a bigger army. very professional. very capable. >> so, admiral, i remember from sea power, you have spent quite a lot of time in turkey and you have a lot of friends in the turkish military. what happened, whether intended or unintended if turkish forces opened fire on areas where regular troops are stationed and we take casualties? what happens? >> it would be a disaster.

and it would really undermine a strategic relationship. the real question, hugh, is what should we be doing right about now. i would argue three big things. first of all, we have to get an ambassador in turkey. we don't have an ambassador currently. this is verging to the point where we almost need a special envoy, at least an ambassador, and somebody with deep experience working with turkey. like frank rick doney, for example. so we need a senior diplomat in turkey. second, a high-level military delegation that can go and stay in turkey and deconflict this. and thirdly, we need to use nato as a channel. turks respect their membership in nato. we need to bring it to brussels and defuse it before we have the kind of incident you're talking about. >> you just mentioned the strategic stress that would bring, any kind of conflict. there is an emerging entant.

speaker ryan was in the united arab emirates working with the sheikh to bring this new entant of egypt, the united states to bear on iran, syria, russia. where is turkey? >> unfortunately at the moment they're kind of on swinging in the middle, hugh. and that's a very bad place to find a nato ally. let's also step back and look at how important turkey is. the geography. they're the connective tissue between europe and southwest asia. secondly, the economy of turkey continues to grow. it's strong. their demographics are strong. by the middle of the century, their population will exceed that of russia. above all, the military capability.

we need to pull back from this confrontation with iran. that is the big game in the middle east today. >> why would president erdogan push this? i'm at a loss. turkey was for a long time a reliable ally of israel. what is it that erdogan wants to he's not getting from the alliance right now? >> two things, hugh. one is we underestimate the the way the turks look at the terrorist side of the kurdish society. currently we are allied and we should be, with the counter you islamic state part of the kurdish movement. but there is an extreme part of that that to the turks looks a lot like al qaeda looks to us. secondly, and this ties to the first point, all politics are local. a lot of this is about erdogan

appeasing his base, which is very anti-kurdish. and frankly not enamored with nato or western europe. so this is really about local turkish politics and erdogan's ability and desire to consolidate his own power within that country. >> well, then let me bring up the bear in the room, be russia. they have stitched together iran, syria, hezbollah. can turkey really get along with russia? you're a historian as well as a strategist and a military guy. russia and turkey, you don't think of them as allies, do you? >> no. you're rattling old ghosts in their cages, hugh. on one side, the empire centered on turkey and the other the russian czars who pushed to control that near broader around russia. ultimately russia and turkey are not going to be the best of

friends. that is a leverage point we should be exploiting as we work with our turkish colleagues. this is going to require delicate diplomacy. i think we can get this done because in the end turkey's broadest geo-political strength will be working with the west, not defaulting to that new, as you call it, that new axis emerging in the middle east. >> so let me finish by asking you if you had two minutes or five minutes with president trump and asked him to address russia, turkey, and this iran, what would you advise him to put into the state of the union this week? >> i would underline the threat of iran. and i think we will hear that in the state of the union. iran is going to press beyond its borders. they see themselves as an imperial power. and they are absolutely committed to controlling much of the middle east. secondly, i would tell him, rely on your allies. this is where, frankly, the

america first rhetoric weakens our ability to work with allies, partners, and friends in security. and thirdly, i would say russia is no friend to the united states. and vladimir putin, in particular, is no friend to the united states. let's recognize that as a fact. >> admiral, quick exit. do you think donald trump really doesn't get that? i hear different people arguing about that. i don't know how anyone could be blind to the fact that putin is not our friend. >> all i know is that when i hear the president talk about many other figures in the international system, he has plenty of criticism for people like angela merkel and others who are allies of ours. i've never heard him step up to the plate and talk about the the threat that vladimir putin poses to the united states. i hope he gets that and i hope we hear that. >> perhaps on tuesday night. thank you, admiral james is stavridis. follow him on tweet @stavridis.

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welcome back. and stay with msnbc as we get ready for the state of the union. listen to it and then analyze every word that's spoken. hopefully admiral stavidis is heard at the white house. also listen for the president's offer on daca, the d.r.e.a.m.ers and immigration reform plus border security. i do not know how one democrat votes against that. a pathway to citizenship for 1.8 million people, d.r.e.a.m.ers waiting for a dozen or more years for an offer to emerge from the republicans. this is the nixon to china moment. he made the offer, put it on the table in exchange for border security and changes to immigration law that ought to be easy to get to. so senator schumer and leader pelosi, sit down with your caucuses and say we have to take care of these 1.8 million people. they have real homes, real homes, real churches, real

communities and an opportunity to bring their children with them. we've got to pass this package. thank you for watching today. keep the conversation going on msnbc.com/hugh-hewitt. and see you next start morning here on msnbc. how do they find the time? ... with audible. audible has the world's largest selection of audiobooks. for just $14.95 a month... you get a credit good for any audiobook ... and you can roll your credits to the next month if you don't use them. audible members get free no hassle exchanges ... and use the mobile app to listen anytime, anywhere. start a 30-day trial and your first audiobook is free. listening, is the new reading. text audio22 to five hundred five hundred to start listening today. the mountain like i used to. i even accept i have a higher risk of stroke due to afib, a type of irregular heartbeat not caused by a heart valve problem. but whatever trail i take, i go for my best. so if there's something better than warfarin, i'll go for that too. eliquis. eliquis reduced the risk of stroke better than warfarin,

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