ti of civil commotion. -when insurance needs translating, get answers in plain english at progressiveanswers.com. ♪ -he wants you to sign karen's birthday card. it's a high honor. ♪ welcome to kasie dc. i'm kasie hunt. we're live every sunday from washington from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. eastern. tonight, it's all over but the shouting. brett kavanaugh is sworn in. we'll talk about the court's newest member. what could be a long shadow over our politics and the potential immediate effect on our midterms. mike espy joins me to talk about whether it will reshape his tight race with just 30 days to go. and later my interview with christine blasey ford's attorneys after their client was shoved into the spotlight.

what's next for her? first, the week begins with brett kavanaugh taking his seat on the supreme court. last night president trump was triumphant in kansas under the banner promises made, promises kept. republican leadership spent the weekend celebrating. john cornyn posting this photo. not beers for brett but bubbly for brett. still from certainty he'd be confirmed to near certainty he could not be. it exposed one of the nastiest, bare knuckle confirmations in history. it's anyone's guess how long it take for the wounds to heal. dr. christine blasey ford wrote an anonymous letter to democratic lawmakers. she was pushed into the spotlight for the world to decide whether she was credible or not. to the surprise of many, the president held off on targeting her. until this week. >> i had one beer. well, you think it was -- nope.

it was one beer. >> oh, good. >> how did you get home? i don't remember. how did you get there? i don't remember. where is the place? i don't remember. how many years ago was it? i don't know. i don't know. >> democrats have been openly wondering whether this will turn into midterm momentum. but that is cold comfort after losing the swing seat on the supreme court. and it has some rethinking their calculus altogether. "the washington post" reports, democratic strategists tracking polls in republican-leaning states where democratic senators are running for re-election. said they were surprised by the galvanizing impact that trump's offensive had on his base. brian fallon who ran a group opposing kavanaugh said support for the judge increased in these states after trump changed his tactics. fallon said he'd begown re-evaluate the dominant analyses of the 2016 election which held that trump was elected despite evidence of sexual misconduct against him not because the controversy

motivated his rovoters to the polls. i feel there was a primal scream-type reaction from the republicans overly white, overly male base. it leaves open the question of whether any lessons have been learned from the 2016 election. particularly for democrats. let me bring in my panel here on set in d.c. "washington post" congressional correspondent paul kane, "washington post" white house reporter, ashley parker, former special assistant to the president and former press secretary to the vice president, mike lauder and political correspondent and author of "the red and the blue," steve kornacki. thank you all for being here tonight. paul kane, i want to start with you because you and i have been running around the halls. i'm not exactly sure how to characterize it. we've spent a lot of time on marble floors in the capitol over the past 20 days. from kind of a history making 30,000-foot perspective, what do you think happened over the course of this week that's going to matter most in the long term?

and is the damage that's been done to the institution of the senate irreparable? >> i think the biggest long-term shift is on the court itself. this is a seat that for 47 years beforehand had been held by louis powell who was himself a cent rift swing vote and then bjork got defeated and that led to kennedy replacing powell who spent 30 years as a cent rift vo centrist vote. he has the possibility shifting the court to the right for years to come. in terms of the senate, lindsey graham summed it up best. if this isn't bottom, god help us. i think we're going to find out. >> cheerful. steve kornacki, let me go to you on this question that we sort of were talking about at the end of that script there. this idea that for democrats, they may have learned the opposite lesson. we all assumed the president

overcame the obstacles of having had all of these misconduct allegations and brian fallon was essentially arguing, well, actually perhaps those attacks motivated his base to get out there. is that what you see across the map? >> there's an interesting parallel, i think, between how the politics of the kavanaugh nomination may be turned around in a way that allowed republicans to get this nomination through. and what we saw time and time again in the 2016 campaign, i think most notably with that "access hollywood" tape around this time in 2016 but so many other trump controversies where in the moment where the controversy would come to light, when the "access hollywood" tape came to light, when the allegation against kavanaugh came to light this time, when christine blasey ford initially gave that testimony in front of the committee. in those comments, politically, it looked like the nomination was finished. politically in '16, it looked like donald trump was finished. but what would then happen was, over the next couple of days --

hours, days, weeks even, the republican side, the right side of the divide in this country would start to see the issue in different terms. and they would start to see it more in terms of who their enemies were, how their enemies were treating them, how their enemies were treating this story. this was the media, the democrats. this was popular culture ganging up on, in this case, brett kavanaugh. looking -- turning over every stone trying to get every piece of information out there, even including the michael avenatti stuff. it ends up having this rallying effect where there's a rallying behind trump in '16, behind kavanaugh. this time it had a lot to do with who their enemies were. and just the idea of being a bullwark against those enemies. we had a survey monkey poll in the field as the "access hollywood" tape came out in 2016. it was in for four days and you watched trump's numbers collapse in the first two days.

the second dave that poll he was losing to hillary clinton by 16 points that day, second day after the tape broke. by the forth day, back to base line. >> and ashley parker, two years ago tomorrow, it came out. >> wow. >> right? you have been doing some reporting on how the white house thought through all of this because initially the reaction to the president mocking dr. ford was incredibly negative from the senators whose votes at the end of the day were the ones that mattered. have they come to see what he did as something that contributed to getting kavanaugh confirmed? >> they almost instantaneously thought what he did was a net positive. to be clear it wasn't a strategic decision. they department sort of order him up to go off script. this was described to me as a president as he often does, having a visceral sense of the moment and seizing what he saw as an opportunity. he knew there would be blowback but it's worth mentioning that that trio, two of whom voted for

him, one who did not. none of them allowed the president's mocking of dr. ford to impact their decision. they came out, condemned it, they were unhappy about it but it did not affect how they voted on kavanaugh on the court. and what was interesting was the white house said that the president in doing that, and again, the white house would say that the president did not mock her quite reasonable people can disagree. but they argue that basically the president changed the momentum. he brought tarks wit away from conversation and scrutiny of kavanaugh's debauchery and youth drinking. he pointed out gaps in her memory and gave a green light and permission for republican senators on capitol hill, for these outside groups, for people to take a much more aggressive approach. and they absolutely believe that that was one of the key moments that helped shift the momentum. >> interesting. i want to talk about the broader impact here. grover norquist told "the washington post," we've been winning little victories with regulation. this is the big win.

we are cutting down the forest, not the trees. you agree? >> i would agree. it's one of the longstanding goals of republicans, conservatives was to stop the judicial activism of a liberal court. and so having a right/center majority that will look at the laws the way they were written and the constitution the way it was written is something that's been long sought after and going all the way become through reagan, they could not get it done. so we've finally seen 30-plus, 40 years of work on this as a success. >> so there's been speculation, maggie haberman tweeted this earlier today about whether or not this potentially opens the door for republicans to break with the president and hear me out on this because they've actually gotten done what they needed him to do. they passed tax cuts and cemented a conservative major ut on the court. the argument would go they don't necessarily need him anymore. do you think that's fair or off base? >> i think it's off base. but republicans are going to say

we're not done yet. i mean there are at least a couple more seats that may be coming up in what i would say the next six years, just given the age of the various justices. there are also still a lot of regulations that need to be rolled back. there are still more things they need to do to reorganize government. and the president wants to keep this economy going. so i think there will be a lot of reason to keep with this progress. and i think it's also very strong message for the midterms and heading into 2020. >> speaking of what people might do in 2020 or if there were additional -- mitch mcconnell was pressed on whether they'd appoint a trump nominee to the court if a vacancy should become available in 2020 which is a presidential election year. it harkens back to 2016 when mcconnell led republicans in blocking president obama's nomination of merrick garland saying the president shouldn't be able to choose a justice during an election year. >> the answer is we'll see

whether there's a vacancy in 2020. >> but you're not ruling out the possibility since you're the republican majority leader and there's a republican president that you would go for and push the nomination of a trump nominee in the election year? >> what i'm telling you is the history is you have to go back to 1880 to find the last time a senate controlled a party different from the president filled a vacancy on the supreme court that was created in the middle of a presidential election year. that's been the history. >> meanwhile, president trump seems to believe republicans will have multiple opportunities to appoint other justices, possibly many more. >> you're going to have other supreme court justices, places to be filled. it could be three. it could even be four. it could be a lot. >> paul kane, so to parse mcconnell's words, and i sort of had missed how carefully he was

parsing this, but he's saying, he's leaving the door open to -- >> absolutely. >> because he's saying, the last time that this happened in 1880 was actually when there was a split between control of the congress and control of the white house which obviously we don't have or won't have, we don't think we'll have in 2020. >> we called it the biden rule two years ago with merrick garland being nominated and joe biden's floor speech in 1992 said ghog who was in the senate majority and who was in the white house. biden was saying the final months before a presidential election you should not have a supreme court clash and mcconnell said that over and over again. that was when he expected hillary clinton to win. now it's, oh, gosh, well, we might have a president who is in a -- the party is this, that. he's adding on addendum to his rule as he sees fit and thinks it will help him. >> what's your view of mcconnell's level of devotion to the senate versus his devotion to politics?

democrats have really turned him into the villain in this whole affair. how much of that is justified? >> there's both. he is a senate institutionalist but wants to win more than anything else. his autobiography was called the long game for a reason. it's all about trying to set up long game victories. and in -- when it comes to judicial confirmations, supreme court especially, and winning elections, he has now two cycles in a row. 2016 and '18. thinks those two things are coming together for him and he's going to do that. he's going to choose that over senate comedy every time. >> steve kornacki, how do you think this plays out over the course of the next 30 days before the elections? is your sense that this may be something where republicans sit back, are satisfied and say we don't need to show up or does this enthusiasm bump we're

seeing keep going? >> i've never known gratitude to be a motivating and energizing force in politics which it seems to be what republicans are counting on right here. i think it's almost unquestionable when you look at the polling out there. when you start to look at some of the fund-raising. the grassroots fund-raising numbers we've seen. there's been what republicans have been searching for the entire trump presidency is some kind of equalizing boost in energy on their side to match what they're seeing on the democratic side. and the last ten days, two weeks, they have finally found it. but, yes, the election is a month away. if you just think back one month earlier, one month ago today, what were the big, defining stories in politics. it was the aftermath of john mccain's funeral and donald trump's handling of that. it was paul manafort. it was michael cohen. >> it feels like years ago. >> so you know, are we still going to be talking about this in a month? >> it's a great question. when we continue, we'll have much more on exactly this. how the kavanaugh vote shuffles the deck on the n kornacki is g

up his big board. and kasie dc back after this. >> chaos over kavanaugh's confirmation. >> christine ford tells "the washington post" that she is the author of that confidential letter. >> accusing supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh of sexual assault. >> i think this woman, whoever she is, is mixed up. >> the judge says this is a completely false allegation. >> very hard for me to imagine that anything happened. >> republican senator jeff flake told multiple outlets he's not comfortable moving forward with the vote until he hears more from kavanaugh's accuser. >> she should testify under oath and do it on capitol hill. >> senate republicans have a message for dr. christine blasey ford. testify monday or they'll move on with the vote. >> new yorker has published a piece claiming now sexual misconduct allegations against him during his college days at yale. >> a third woman accusing brett kavanaugh of sexual misconduct.

>> do you have 50 votes? >> i believe he'll be confirmed. >> dr. ford has arrived on capitol hill. >> with what degree of certainty do you believe brett kavanaugh assaulted you? >> 100%. >> do you think the american people are going to believe dr. ford? >> what happened to her, i don't know. why don't you believe him? what is it about him you don't want to believe? >> this whole two-week effort has been a calculated and orchestrated political hit. >> the most unethical sham since i've been in politics. >> we drank beer. i liked beer. still like beer. >> i think it would be proper to delay the floor vote. >> there is a sense among some republican leaders that a delay of kavanaugh's vote is essentially a death sentence. >> how did you get home? i don't remember. how did you get there? i don't remember. how many years ago was it? i don't know. three of the four key senators voting to end debate and proceed to a final vote. >> i could not conclude that he

is the right person for the court. >> i will vote to confirm judge kavanaugh. >> the nomination of brett m. kavanaugh of maryland to be an associate justice of the supreme court of the united states is confirmed. >> senator, do you think there's still a place in the democratic party for you after this? >> he's just an extraordinary person. a great, great talent. and i think he's going to make us all very proud.

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one of the sharpest displays of divisiveness was the show of activism. large crowds of americans opposing kavanaugh's appointment took to the steps of the supreme court and came inside the chamber in the senate. with scores of them getting arrested. senate majority leader mitch mcconnell called the opposition a, quote, great political gift for republicans ahead of next month's midterm elections. adding that the opposition is charging up the republican base. >> well, the people that were attacking our members at their homes and in the halls, it was really quite a display of aggressiveness. far beyond what i would consider peaceful protesting. they were trying to intimidate members of the senate. not only in our home states but

also up here actually in the capitol. and at our homes here in washington. i'm really proud of my members for not buckling under those mob-like tactics. >> the president is hitting the trail for a spring of rallies. he's going to be in council bluffs, iowa, then erie, p.a., and then on to ohio and kentucky. let's bring back in steve kornacki now at the big board. how does this shake out? >> you're talking about that bounce in energy republicans have seen. just to show you what those numbers look like. over the summer, a poll over the summer there was a ten-point advantage in enthusiasm for democrats. you can see it right there. their new poll just a couple days ago, look where it is now. that ten-point gap down to two points. that's the surge in republican enthusiasm. the kavanaugh nomination fight

seems to have produced. look, though, what this is doing potentially in the senate battleground. the senate battleground tends to be in trump states. trump friendly states. north dakota, trump won by 36 points in 2016. and now heidi heitkamp, this down 12 points. heitkamp voting against this nomination. is that going to, in north dakota, complicate her re-election further. heitkamp clearly the most vulnerable democrat. flip side of that, west virginia. trump won the state by 42 points. manchin from a few days ago. manchin has been running strongly in his re-election. the only democrat to vote for this nomination. is that going to solidify his hold on that trump state? then take a look at tennessee. this is where it seems we may be seeing significant movement. a new poll out this morning showing the republican marsha blackburn leading phil bredessen by eight points. a poll put blackburn ahead by

five. that's a change from what we've been seeing. a lot of other polls have shown bredesen very popular within the state. have shown him leading. keep an eye on that. texas. ted cruz up six. we continue to see cruz leading this race. not overwhelming. but leading. and then nevada, this is the one sort of exception in the rule. in dean heller, the only republican incumbent who is running for re-election in a state that trump lost in 2016. nevada went for hillary clinton by a couple points. here's heller trailing rosen. of course, heller voted for this nomination. is that going to complicate his politics? very quickly if you put those battleground states, we think this is the senate battle ground. say west virginia. say manchin hangs on there. take a look at nevada. jackie rosen were to win there. take a look at arizona. the polling has been strong for them there. there's a couple of bright spots for them. if you see in these new polls, if cruz hangs on in texas if heitkamp can't pull off a comeback, if tennessee starts to

shift from the democrats, that's all republicans would need. that would be 50 with mike pence breaking any tie. that would preserve the republican majority in the senate, even if democrats swept those remaining states. uphill climb for democrats. that news out of tennessee and north dakota particularly concerning for them, kasie. >> steve, thanks. paul, what's your take on what he just walked through there? where are republicans' heads? >> i just love how he works the board. >> it's amazing. we love him. >> what you're seeing is two divergent maps. there's a map in the house of representatives where all the key races are in suburban battlegrounds where white suburban women are breaking against the president and really were energized by her testimony. christine blasey ford's testimony. but in the senate, these are rural states. they're older states and whiter states where democrats are trying to defend. and you could have for the first

time in something like 45 years, an election in which one party wins more house seats and the other party wins more senate seats. it usually never works that way. the momentum always goes in one direction, but this year, right now, it's going in the opposite direction. >> ashley, what's the white house's thinking about how to best deploy the president, especially after kavanaugh? >> so first of all, the white house was incredibly happy at these tough votes that red state democrats had to take. i guess senator manchin is the one exception but they sort of say it only helps the map. i think what you're seeing is, first of all, the president you went through the schedule. he actually -- he's mixed. i was going to say he loves to travel but that's not quite true. he loves the comforts of home but he loves being on the campaign trail at these huge rallies, feeding off the energy. getting the feedback from the crowd. knowing which way to move. so i think you'll see that ramping up, up until the election. you'll see four, five, six make america great rallies every single week. he's going to be going into

these senate states where he is a huge draw. the part that's a little trickier is getting him into these senate states. as paul was saying, keeping him away from some of these house seats where suburban women may not love him standing there mocking a victim of sexual assault. >> yeah. >> so i want to talk for a second particularly about heidi heitkamp. >> i'm heidi heitkamp and i thought you should hear exactly why i voted against judge kavanaugh. first off, honestly, i don't think he told the truth. and even if he did, he showed himself to be too biased. i voted for neil gorsuch, so i know there are many other conservative judges who can fill this job without tearing our country apart. i approve this message because i believe a senator has to put politics aside and do what's right for our country. >> so, paul, she's still

fighting. is this a tragedy that can work? >> it's -- she's trying to be authentic if nothing else. it's just her, straight to camera. no bells, no whistles, no big letters. explosions. it's just her trying to explain. it's tough, though. it's tough. she's in a state that went to trump by 36 points, i think. and she's in a hole right now. she really needs the conversation to just go back to pre-existing conditions and health care and anything but this vote. >> anything, anything, anything but. all right. just ahead, my conversation with the attorneys for dr. christine blasey ford. i talked to them about whether their client would still come forward given everything that's happened. "kasie dc" back after this.

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while we know what is next for justice kavanaugh, what's next for dr. christine blasey ford remains to be seen. early are this week, i spoke with her attorneys, lisa katz and deborah banks. i just want to start by asking, how is dr. ford doing after all of this? >> i think she's doing pretty well, all considered. she feels good about the fact she came forward and was able to

share her experience with the committee and give them more information in order to make their decision. >> does she have any regrets about coming forward? her life has changed forever. >> i really don't think she has regrets. i think this has been an extremely difficult process for her. but she felt strongly that she needed to bring this information to the committee, and she did that. and then she took the kracourags step of testifying in front of the american people. i don't think she has any regrets because she feels it was the right thing to do, and it was important. >> this has been terrifying. her family has been through a lot. they are not living at home. it's going to be quite some time before they're able to live at home. the threats have been unending. it's deplorable. it's been very frightening. and she's also received extraordinary letters of support and encouragement. but these threats are extremely distressing. >> did she watch judge

kavanaugh's testimony? >> she did not. >> has she seen any of it in the wake of it? >> of course. >> so she is still convinced this is absolutely what happened to her and that it was this man? >> she's not convinced. she knows it, as she testified. she knew him. he knew her. and she knows exactly who sexually assaulted her on that day. >> she has never wavered and never questioned her testimony on that point. >> republicans have put the two of you in the spotlight, calling you democratic operatives in some cases. did you ever coordinate with democrats on the committee through this process? >> we did not. >> no. >> there was no communication whatsoever? >> well, there was communication in the sense that when she hired us, she had already been in touch with senator feinstein, and we were in touch with the committee to say she wants you to honor her request for confidentiality. we were in touch with that office. but there was no coordination. there was no effort to leak this letter and have this unfold as it did.

that's an absolute falsehood that the republicans are perpetuating. it is untrue. >> what would the witnesses that you wanted to speak to the fbi have been able to say that senators have not been able to hear? >> we keep hearing that there were no corroborating witnesses but there are who haven't been interviewed or talked to. and those witnesses can say several years ago, well before judge kavanaugh was ever considered for the supreme court, she told me that he sexually assaulted her. and this is years ago. those people were not interviewed by the fbi. those people were not called before the committee. so those are the kinds of witnesses, that's the kind of evidence that isn't before the senators. >> have you seen any of the results of the investigation yourself? >> no. but we know what's not in the investigation, and that's what's crucial. >> i'm wondering what dr. blasey ford views as her place in history in the wake of all of this. >> i don't know that she herself is thinking about it in those

terms. i think she's looking to get back to her life. but i think what others looking at this can see is that her efforts, her courageous actions have spoken to hundreds of thousands of women across this country. women and men. people who have found their voice and are able to speak up as victims of sexual assault. >> did dr. blasey ford see president trump mocking her on the campaign trail? >> yes. >> what was her reaction? >> i think she was as horrified as the rest of us were. it's terrible. it's disrespectful. it's horrible. >> did she -- was she emotional about it? was it distressing? >> she was upset by it, yes, as any woman would be who is the victim of sexual assault, who is mocked and belittled by anyone, never mind the president of the united states. >> as this whole saga is coming to a close, what does dr. blasey

ford hope the country takes away from what she did? >> that people have a civic duty to come forward. that even if you are terrified, people should be courageous. >> what do you both think is different about how this process has played out with dr. blasey ford compared to what happened in 1991 with anita hill? >> with anita hill, there was a full fbi investigation before there was ever a hearing. that did not occur here. this process was far worse. >> we thought it was bad back in 1991, and it's even worse today. the political climate and how women are treated. >> my thanks to the attorneys for sitting down with me this week. mark, i've got to say, i'm not convinced that republicans haven't done irreparable damage to their party with women voters. >> i think they showed dr. ford a lot of courtesy when they brought her in. they worked dill gently to bring her in on her terms.

made a lot of different offers to bring her in and let her testify. at the end of the day, her story could still not be backed up. the witnesses that she named that were supposedly at this alleged party that -- where this incident took place, none of them could actually testify that that happened or they knew about it. so i hope that america and everyone will allow dr. ford to return to the life that she wants to have in the future. we heard her story. and they -- and the senate voted. they voted on what they thought there was zero corroborating evidence for these accusations. and i hope that what we have -- what we do is we also allow the fact that justice kavanaugh now is also has to live with this. and he's going to have to move on and how he conducts himself. as clarence thomas has done for the last, you know, since the allegations were made against him in the early '90s. he's considered by many to be a

highly respected jurist and legal scholar. i hope justice kavanaugh will be given the same opportunity. >> the president did mock dr. blasey ford, although your point is taken that the senate tried to treat her with courtesy. we'll talk about a process in dire need of repair. and don't miss our "kasie dc" podcast. you can hear the highlights. you can find it on any app you use to get your podcast. so why not bundle them with esurance and save up to 10%?

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these are people i'm not going to name names, but i'm not sure they have a soul. i don't think their mother breastfed them. i think they went right to raw meat. they think he's a smoked turkey. it's time for the senators to be senators, for women to women up and men to man up. if you think this is a search for the truth, you probably ought to put down the bong. >> that was the always quotable senator john kennedy venting some of his frustrations this week. meanwhile, some senators have sought to restore the brand of the u.s. senate to crying tribalism and accusing both sides of exposing a moment for political gain. they sought to relieve some of the cynicism that's affected their hallowed halls. >> we all know the president cannot lead us through this time. we know that he's dispositionally unable to restrain his impulse to divide

us. his mockery of dr. ford last night in mississippi was wrong, but it doesn't really surprise anyone. it's who he is. similarly it was wrong last week when he said the attack on dr. ford was as bad as she says, charges would have been immediately filed with local law enforcement authorities, unquote. it was wrong when people insinuate that a woman bears blame for her sexual assault because she was drunk. this reinforces the stereotypes that have caused millions of women to bury their experiences of abuse and assault for decades. this kind of repugnant nonsense creates excuses for abusers. just because a woman drinks or even if she drinks too much does not make her body or her sexuality any less her own. and i don't want anyone telling those poisonous lies to my daughters. i also have a son, and in the event that god forbid he's ever

accused of a crime, i hope he's presumed innocent and permitted to exercise his right to defend himself. >> so that was ben sasse who is one of the younger members of the republican conference in the senate. and ashley, one of the things i picked up on as i was covering this, there was a difference. they all voted the same way at the end of the day but there was to a certain extent, i had a couple private conversations that revealed a level of discomfort among the younger generation of republican senators, ben sasse, jeff flake, tim scott, perhaps even marco rubio that they felt more uncomfortable with this debate than some of the older members. the old bulls, if you will. >> i think that's probably right. the thing you said about they all voted the same way is probably still the most important thing right now but it's interesting when we look at those hallway quotes you have, senator grassley saying the reason there's no republican women on the committee is because women don't like to work hard. so sort of the more problematic

quotes that are going to send moderates, women fleeing from the republican party, you are right. you're not hearing them from that younger generation of people. but the senator hatches, senator grassleys. how much do voters care about the rhetoric and how much do they care about the actual vote at the end of the day? >> i'm interested to see in the long term how this debate has affected the party. i wonder if that's not an early indicator. >> i think you're right. there's a generational difference. but is there a place for those people in the senate republican conference? jeff flake is already retiring. he'll be gone next year. ben sasse told me and he's told many others he's not sure if he's going to run for re-election in 2020. he doesn't ever really seem happy in the senate. so they have to figure that part out of how to recruit new

eyoungeyoung er people and how to retain them and get them elected. >> marc, is there any constituency in the republican party anymore for civility because it seems like they all want donald trump's brand of in your face politics. >> i mean, i would say the same place on the democratic side where you have -- >> i want to focus on the republicans here. these people do not -- to paul the point have a constituency in their party anymore. >> there's a lot of civility we see. we have to remember and senator mcconnell said while all of this debate was going on and all the media attention rightfully so was on this attention they in a large bipartisan fashion passed one of the largest opioid bills. 90% of what the senate and the house does is very procedural, very formatic and very -- >> spending money is easy. >> but it's the handful of things that go along partisan

lines where they get all the attention and rightfully so. so i think civility is still there. i think we do have members who are -- have generational challenges as probably many of douse in our own families when we have some of our older relatives that say things that, not really supposed to say it that way anymore. >> they're not in the senate. he's not a u.s. senator. >> i also worry on the other side, as we talk about how it impacts women. when you look at the video of people clawing at the brass doors of the supreme court, screaming expletsives inches away from police officers' faces and shrieking and being led out of the senate or storming the capitol, that is not necessarily a protest that's going to attract moderate, mainstream -- >> that is what mcconnell is arguing is going to help them in the midterms. marc lotter, ashley parker, paul kane, thank you for a great discussion. in our next hour, a first look at ally vitali with her

interview with donald trump jr. on the campaign trail. a closer look at america's deep divide. how and when did we become red or blue? we're going to talk about steve kornacki's brand-new book, up next. we need to fail down here so we don't fail up there. we got a bad fire. they're gone, neil. what are the chances this is the last time the boys are gonna see you? do you think you're coming back? we have serious problems. [ dramatic music continues ] first man. rated pg-13.

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yes, we're still here. and it's still too close to call. >> just before 8:00 p.m. in the east, a projection that portends trouble for the texas governor. al gore appears to have won florida. >> nbc news projects that he wins the 25 electoral votes in the state of florida. >> the news comes during a bush family dinner. started they quickly return to the governor's mansion. the nominee works the phones saying the projection is premature. >> i think america ought to wait before they count all the votes. >> that was the nbc nightly news digesting election night in 2000 after the poll his closed in florida. in his new book, "red america and blue america as we now know them were born on november 7, 2000". these divisions were created in the decade that preceded them. steve is back with us to talk

more about this book. first of all, thank you for sending me an early copy with the handwritten notes and the photos inside. that was lovely of you. >> they didn't have photos in the advanced copy so you put photo copies in. >> i appreciate it. one of the things that's interesting to me and at the outset of the book, i'm a child of the '90s, everything was great. you point out the economy was humming right along. we were not at war. it was a peaceful time and yet our politics took a turn for the worse. what do you -- in the three minutes that we have, what are the most important things that people should look for in this book that apply to what we're seeing today? >> i think everything that we talk about in some ways take for granted in our politics when we say it's broken now, take a look at the supreme court nomination politics. you look at the battle over the filibuster five years ago was thrown out on most of these judicial nominations, then the republicans threw it on the

supreme court. all of these sort of norms, all of these traditions, all of these customs in politics that used to sort of breed some level of bipartisan cooperation just one by one they're big discarded, being tossed aside for the purposes of political and partisan warfare. i think you do have to look back to the 1990s to see the creation of that. the key thing that happened in the 1990s and it's expressed in the perfect dilection, but all of the major divisions in this country, gee ographic division, that's what red and blue mean to me. the terms red and blue, it feels like we've had them forever. it was election 2000 when people started to look at the map and saw those divides in that form, that red and blue that those to terms were created. if you said the term red america five years earlier nobody would

have known what you were talking about. it was newt gingrich leading the republicans against bill clinton. >> can i ask you clinton quickly? that was one thing that i was reminded of. brett kavanaugh, now justice kavanaugh, he was an operative. he worked for ken starr and he raised the clintons in this hearing which a lot of people felt was stunning, but the fishers of that war, we're still fighting that same war. >> absolutely. it was 20 years ago. i believe it was this day in fact 20 years ago or it might have been tomorrow, i can't remember exactly what day it was that house republicans voted to launch the impeachment inquiry against bill clinton. and you had a couple months later the impeachment of bill clinton. and we think of the impeachment as the big political drama of the 1990s, but remember the investigation that led to that moment actually the ken starr investigation, that began in the summer of 1994. the white water controversy sort of sprung up as soon as bill clinton became president. it was a series of wars, a series of momentous events, the

republican ref lurvolution, the government shutdown, impeachment, and i think they were all building to that moment that you could see the country was torn in half. we've been living with that world since. it's the world that about two decades later donald trump came along. whatever side you're on, whatever you think of trump, he saw in those divisions opportunity and i think it's a big reason why he's president today. >> i can tell anyone who's listened who has been surprised by lindsey graham that they have forgotten what lindsey graham was like during impeachment. thank you. the book is "the red and the blue, the 1990s" go out and buy a copy. in our next hour, just in, taylor swift makes a political endorsement, plus the kasie dvr. we watch sunday shows so you don't have to. we're back after this. to. we're back after this. it's-being-a-master-of-hypnotism easy. hey, i got your text- sleep!

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the battle that's divided the country. >> still bitterly divided. >> closely divide. >> kavanaugh was officially sworn in yesterday. >> judge brett kavanaugh is now justice kavanaugh. >> justice kavanaugh. i love that. >> i am happy as a clam. >> is this your proudest moment as a senator? >> i think so. >> i think there are good reasons to have doubts about now justice kavanaugh. >> he's going to be on the supreme court with a huge taint. >> justice kavanaugh should not be seen as taunted. >> did you believe her? >> i thought she was credible. >> do you not believe her. >> there was no corroboration.

>> in this case it's he said, she said, they said. >> i do not believe that brett kavanaugh was her assailant. >> protesters stormed washington this week. >> it was really quite a display of aggressiveness. >> we may have lost a political battle, but i do think we are winning the cultural battle. >> this has been an awakening for this country. >> people of this country are so divided. >> have things gotten worse in the united states senate? >> they're worse. the notion that the senate is somehow broken is inaccurate. it's not broken. >> i've never campaigned against a colleague in my life. that's about to change. >> in the long term you have to wonder about the soul of our country. >> it's almost an out of body experience i must say. >> welcome to the second hour of kasie dc. joining us from miami, maria theresa kumar.

greg, i want to start with you. you have worked with mitch mcconnell whose laughter is -- the man has a sense of humor that people don't actually realize. but how much damage was done this week to the senate and to the press as you, if our viewers who haven't seen you on our previous weeks? you had wondered this process. >> i think a lot of damage was done. senators are personally angry with each other about how this was handled. it was not handled the way allegations are normally handled, so it was a divisive few weeks. >> the scene that unfolded marked a chilling crescendo to one of the most partisan fights that the chamber has seen in quite some time. >> will restore order in the gallery. the sergeant at arms will restore order in the gallery.

{ yelling } >> the sergeant at arms will restore order in the gallery. { yelling } >> the sergeant at arms has restored are in the galleries. >> as the daily beast's sam stein put it, those screams from the protesters seemed primal. these last 20 days have felt like one primal scream, one that's revealed even deeper f h fissures. even top republicans were downbeat on saturday afternoon as the vote neared, cognizant of the cost of the political and cultural reckoning that has been sparked alongside the confirmation process. that sentiment was echoed by susan collins in her floor speech friday and it's really

the only thing senators on both sides of the aisle have been able to agree on through this entire process. >> we live in a time of such great disunity as the bitter fight over this nomination both in the senate and among the public clearly demonstrates. it is not merely a case of differing groups having different opinions. it is a case of people bearing extreme ill will toward those who disagree with them. leann, we've been covering this the last 20 days. one thing that became clear to me and it was clear to me before dr. blasey ford came forward, the way the protesters approached susan collins and across the board, showing up at their houses, it caused them to dig into the positions that they

held, but on the flip side, i've never seen protests that were so personal and emotional, people actually standing outside offices telling deeply and personal stories about their own live. >> that's absolutely right and they were numerous. they were there on a daily basis. they were committed. you talked about digging in. i think that's absolutely what happened. it became a partisan thing as well. the protesters were the left. the right, the republicans didn't necessarily pay much attention to the protesters. as far as the mood on capitol hill, we talked to senators throughout the week who said that they've never seen it this bad, even some of these long-time senators. and even after kavanaugh was confirmed on saturday, people were leaving the senate chamber, you know, the republicans were happy, but still there was some solemn feeling. you know, jeff flake said rock bottom. all of them had very similar sentiments and how it repairs itself is still unclear. >> greg, how much of this falls

at the feet of senator mcconnell? he has a reputation as being, you know, and paul cain said it earlier, all he wants to do is win. >> well, he certainly had a priority placed on the judiciary and judicial issues going back for decades. this whole story is one that goes back for decades. mcconnell took a strong position on not filling the vacancy that arose during the obama presidency. >> which he calls his greatest achievement so far. >> but that's not the beginning. republicans it will tell the story going back to bourque who kavanaugh's feeling was supposed to be bourque's seat. mcconnell has been part of this fight, but so has schumer going back through the bush years and some nasty judicial confirmation fights. it's not exactly a straight line, but it keeps getting worse and worse. >> maria, i want to get your take on mcconnell's analysis of how this has affected his landscape politically.

he's called the protesters a mob. he says that that's essentially created an enemy that has animated his base in a way he wasn't able to do himself. what's your take on how those displays fit into what democrats are trying to accomplish this midterm? >> well, i think actually labeling these individuals, many of them were survivors coming forward as a mob and not actually listening to their voices plays into what a lot of the progressive movement believes is the republicans are helping incite a cultural war. i think the challenge mcconnell faces is to stir up as many of his base as folks that have been independent, but feel uncomfortable with the way the tone is. i have to say i used to work on capitol hill. i have never seen anything like it. it is a sad day when you can't have even the folks that are voting someone into the top judiciary -- excuse me, into the top office of the supreme court and feel at least that it was functional. i think that was the real underlying problem on this is

that it didn't seem functional. it didn't seem transparent. it wasn't like there was an honest dialogue of what was happening. the fact that kavanaugh was sworn in. even the people that were swearing him in didn't feel elated. there was a group that did, but they felt like they didn't do their job and i feel like it's something people should take seriously. >> do you think that the one week period while we were waiting for the fbi investigation, how do you think that ultimately tilted this process? >> i think it went two ways. i think jeff flake and senator chris coons tried to save the process with this fbi investigation. but when the fbi investigation came out, it was such a partisan response to it. democrats thought it was a sham investigation. republicans used it as an opportunity to say that there is no corroboration. and i almost think that it harmed the process anymore. i think that it gave republicans like susan collins and jeff

flake an opportunity to vote for kavanaugh, but as far as the senate is concerned, i don't think it did anything to improve it. >> you've seen a lot of these background investigations behind the scenes. what's your take on whether this was legitimate? >> i think it was an ordinary supplemental background investigation. i think the democrats got what they were asking for. and are disappointed now that it wasn't more than what they were asking for. there was a reason that senator schumer and senator feinstein when they were demanding the supplemental investigation kept saying it will only take a view days when that is what a supplemental investigation is. they go out and interview a few people to complete the file. i think that's what happened here. >> maria, what's your take on how the investigation or i know democrats are arguing that it wasn't actually an investigation. how ultimately it turned the process. >> well, if you recall, one of the second people that came forward was diane ramirez and

she herself said i'm open to have a conversation with the fbi, please interview me. that never took place. i think it was the fact that a lot of the folks that were accusing kavanaugh of basically these acts, it was not a comprehensive review. that and the way the information, the fbi investigative report was distributed. the senator his to stand in a room and basically rip off the report and share page by page. it wasn't widely reviewed in a way that you would most normally be bound and given to every senator. the process didn't have to stink, but it did because they basically created obstacles that were unnecessary. >> all right. when we continue tonight, the president relishes victory, but who stands to gain the most from kavanaugh's confirmation? i'm joined by mississippi senate candidate mike espy. women were front and center as the vote came down the wire. we'll talk about their historic roles when we continue. toric roles when we continue es

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. people that spoke to me most in the strongest of terms in his favor were women. women. women were outraged at what happened to brett kavanaugh. outraged. and i think that's a total misnomer because the women i feel were many ways stronger than the men in his favor. so we have a lot of women that

are extremely happy, a tremendous number of women. they're thinking of their sons. they're thinking of their husbands and brothers and their uncles and others. and women are i think extremely happy. >> president trump has praised susan collins speech and vote over and over again saying she's gotten an unbelievable level of respect. but senator lisa murkowski is another story. >> even when one side of this chamber is absolutely dead set on defeating his nomination from the very get go before he was even named, even in these situations the standard is that a judge must act at all times in a manner that promotes public confidence in the independence,

integrity impartiality of the judiciary and shall avoid the appearance of impropriety. and after the hearing that we all watched last week, last thursday, it became clear to me or was becoming clearer that that appearance of impropriety has become unavoidable. >> in a time with plenty of outbursts in the senate chamber, there was no one there to applaud her speech. and the president told "the washington post," quote, i think murkowski will never recover from this. i think the people from alaska will never forgive her for what she did. let's walk through all the way in this lisa murkowski, all the lessons she's learned about how much she does or doesn't need the republican party. this is a person who was

abandoned by her leadership when she lost a prime tary in 2010 a said fine, i'm going to launch a writing campaign and she won. >> i think the difference between lisa murkowski's floor speech and susan collins floor speech said everything. the republicans were right behind susan collins floor speech. they placed two republican women behind her. >> solidarity. >> lisa murkowski's floor speech the chamber was empty. but like you said, she has pr b proven that she has not needed the party to win. alaska is a fiercely independent state. she also one her last reelection campaign with at broad coalition. she won with women and men and a broad coalition of voters. she's done it before. >> greg, what's your sense of how the republican conference is going to react to lisa murkowski? >> i think she's been a valuable

to the party for a long time. she's an independent voice. even her take on kavanaugh was very unique. she asserted that she was sure he was a good man and didn't believe -- suggested she didn't believe the allegations, but she's upset with how this process has gone and that brought the court disrespect so she couldn't vote yes. >> it certainly -- i thought that -- because she tried to not focus on dr. blasey ford even though that was at the forefront of her thinking. the day before she had been meeting with sexual assault sir vi -- survivors. >> i think it's difference between collins and mur ckowski. they are good friends but they represent two different states and they're two different women. i was talking to a former murkowski aide shortly after she announced she was going to vote against kavanaugh and he said that murkowski has always taken great pride in representing women and republican women and

that is something that she has done throughout her career. susan collins when you ask her similar questions has a different take. she says yes, i am a woman, but i am a senator too. she doesn't view her role the same way that murkowski does from a gender perspective. >> that's really interest. susan glasser writes also in "the new yorker" about sally quinn who is a former "washington post" reporter and long time person here in washington and she said that senator john tower attempted to rape her in the back seat of a taxi after a dinner date when she was 20 years old. when tower was later was for defense secretary under president george hb bush quinn refused to talk to the fbi. she didn't think anyone would believe her story and she had no corroboration. he told glasser the night before dr. blasey ford's testimony that she could have been anita hill but she didn't want to be and that nothing has changed since then. glasser writes, quote, i called

quinn back on thursday evening after a tumultuous week when it was already clear it would likely not change the outcome of ka kavanaugh's appointment. bottom line, civic duty or no, it's just not worth it. what's your response to that? is the message that's been sent here that it's still just not worth it for women to come forward? >> no. i think if anything the opposite. the fact that we were able to get two women that protested flake at the elevator bank asking him to really reconsider and he basic went back and had a conversation with coons and promoted and encouraged that fbi investigation demonstrates that we have to be at the front lines p. wh what elected officials want us to do is turn off and turn away so they can't function in a transparent democracy. it should be the opposite. we should encourage people to come forward, to be courageous.

i think if anything the vote that we saw with murkowski was incredibly courageous. she was brave and went against her party because she was representing the people of alaska. >> we'll see, i'm interested to see if some democrats reward her for that when she's back up election again. some democrats are acknowledging that dr. blasey ford and deborah ramirez allegations could have more effect if not for michael avenatti. who is now eyeing a run for the white house. he entered the fray days after dr. ford went public. avenatti revealed his client julie swetnick's allegations that featured gang rape and spiked drinks. while kavanaugh denied those claims, republicans slammed them and took issue with avenatti's involvement. >> i think this process changed dramatically when mr. avenatti

entered the picture. i ang lthink a lot of people, including my democratic colleagues felt like at that point we had gotten into the foot hills of preposterous. >> it seems like democrats like chris coons are conceding he may have done more harm than good. >> i like the phrase the foot hills of the preposterous is going to end up being a memorable phrase. i do think he's correct that there was a widespread response certainly on the republican side, that these were not incredible allegations. >> avenatti is still standing by his involvement. here is what he told me last week when i pressed him on this point and asked whether swetnick might have been better served by a different lawyer. >> as it relates to my client, my client came to me because i am a very good lawyer. i represent my clients and i do a very good job as evidenced by the last 18 years of trial practice and the work that i've done for stormy daniels.

i've done an exceptional job. >> so i also want to raise, we just had a tweet from michael avenatti about an hour ago, he says he's quoting cory booker who says in iowa i have nothing personal against this president if he wants to attack me personally he can. michael avenatti taking cory book to booker to atask over this. we have different views about how solve the problems of his presidency. it seems like we're off to the races. i asked him that question last week because that's what i was hearing from democrats on the hill is michael avenatti's involvement made it worse. >> he did not like that question either. but so when christine blasey ford first came out and then the ramirez claims came out, democrats were trying extremely hard to not make this look political. republicans were charging that this was all politics.

the timing, they questioned all of it. then when avenatti stormed in, it made it look very political and that is the exact opposite thing that democrats wanted from the optics perspective. >> and republicans obviously, i mean, greg, what's your view of how avenatti involvement change s -- changed? >> it was like all democrats were lined up against kavanaugh before any of this came out and the hearings were contentious. democrats senators were suggesting he was lying. there was a line of question from kamala harris. the ford stuffed seemed credible. there was a pause but there was that background and by the time it got to avenatti, the ford story kind of sunk into all that other partisan mess. >> what's your take on avenatti?

do the democrats need somebody who's going to play a little bit more the way donald trump works? >> i think it's avenatti 2020. i think that's clear. he knows that cory book ser doing his rounds and wants to basically be the nominee. avenatti is saying i'll take the gloves off. it's going to be an incredibly crowded field as you know, kasie. avenatti i think is going to be on one end where people are going to fill in in between. it will be interesting if the american public really wants constant shouting at each other between the presidential trump and the nominee on the democratic party. i actually think that people want the temperature to be a little bit toned down and actually have thoughtful analysis, but we'll see. >> if you thought 2016 was exhausting, just wait. and now for something completely different and some breaking news for all of you at home, pop star taylor swift has made a political announcement. she has announced on her instagram she is endorsing two democrats, former tennessee governor for the u.s. senate and

congressman jim cooper for reelection to his seat. he said a republican senator marsha blackburn saying her voting record a pauls and terrifies me. the congresswoman hman has sinc tweeted his thanks. you took out the shake it off pun. that's sad. i like that. when we come back, mississippi is as dark red as it gets, but is there a chance it could follow alabama? we're going to talk to former congressman mike espy who faces an uphill climb as he runs for senate. if you ever missed the show, don't worry. kasie dc is still available on podcast. our breaking news and analysis. ♪

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today, life-changing technology from abbott is helping hunt them down at their source. because the faster we can identify new viruses, the faster we can get to stopping them. the most personal technology, is technology with the power to change your life. life. to the fullest. a vote for cindy is a vote for me and make america great again. >> and a vote for cindy's opponent, mike espy, is a vote for chuck schumer, nancy pelosi, and the legendary low iq person

max se m maxin maxine waters. that's why schumer's pack is funding mike espy with a lot of money. >> that was president trump rallying voters this week in mississippi where an nbc news survey monkey poll shows former democratic congressman mike espy leading cindy hyde-smith by one point. secretary espy joins me live from jackson mississippi. sir, thanks very much for being on the program. >> hello, kasie. good evening. i'm sorry we can't produce that lightning bolt. >> i will keep that in mind. we'll try and bring it back for your next appearance. >> next time. >> i want to ask you first, you've said that you're going to be a no on judge kavanaugh or if you were in the senate you would have been voting no. this is something that republicans have basically crowed about as leading them to much greater returns i suppose on the senate map.

>> yes. >> do you think that this is going to be a defining issue in your race and did you think about announcing or did you ever consider supporting kavanaugh? >> well, i mean, i didn't say, that but i want to qualify it if you'll allow me to. i'm running for the senate. i'm not there yet. so i was not privy to that confidential fbi report that all senators read on a confidential basis, so i was not able to read who corroborated what dr. ford said. but i base my answer on what i had seen and what i saw like most americans on that riveting testimony of dr. ford, i really saw her, you know, give a searing rendition of what she believed had happened to her. and i was -- it was searing and i believed it and i thought it was incredibly credible. on the other hand, justice kavanaugh, i believe that he

treated himself and came up with more of the victim. i think that someone running for the highest court in the land, you know, for a lifetime appointment, that fbi investigation should have been more thorough and i'm sorry that it wasn't. but on that basis alone, i said that if i had been there in the senate, i would have been a probable no. i said that. but it's qualified based on what was in the report which i didn't read of course. >> do you think you might have been a yes if you had read the report and concluded as many republicans did that there was no corroborating evidence for dr. ford's claims? >> well, i mean, i always like to make judge mt basment based , so i would have drawn a conclusion based on what i read. the only thing i have to base my conclusion on what i saw as an ordinary citizen which is dr. ford's testimony which i thought was serious and credible and the fact that the fbi did not interview her and i read that

she supplied other names of those who could serve as corroborating witnesses and they weren't interviewed. and then they did not interview judge kavanaugh. so that's why i said probable no. >> how do you feel this issue has impacted your state as you have been campaigning and talking to constituents? is this something that has broken through and you think is going to make a big difference in your race or isn't. >> i don't believe it will at all. it's been a couple days since that testimony and i've not seen -- we have not seen any perceptible change in polling or attitudes. i've been all over the state of mississippi, counties and rallies and people care about rural hospitalis closing, about the brain drain, about health care. all the issues that concern them much more than this. of course, this is a serious issue, but for me and my race, i don't think it's going to be that impactful at all.

>> what do you -- i think there are a lot of people who are surprised that this is a competitive race. there's not generally the perception that mississippi is ever in play for on the senate map at least. what is your explanation for why this is happening? is it about the president or is it about something else? >> no. it's about me. it's about me. >> perhaps that question was too easy for you. >> well, it's the truth. he's the president of the united states and he can go anywhere he chooses to go and, you know, he came to mississippi and that's great, but i'm not running against president trump. i'm running for the u.s. senate. i served as a member of congress for six years, elected to a fourth term. i served everyone regardless of race or party or gender or religion. i was a representative for everyone and everyone here knows that. i served as secretary of agriculture so whether you're a white farmer or black farmer, or a white or black resident, you're concerned about rural

hospitals and rural water and rural suer and ewer or race or d early on a quintessential republican was running and i endorsed him in public. it was done at the right time for the right reason because it was right after hurricane katrina had devastated mississippi. i said then in 2007, i didn't know i'd be running for any office, but i said in 2007 he's the right person at this time for mississippi because hurricane katrina had devastated our state. he was in the office with the rolodex and the network to bring greater rehabilitation to mississippi. that's why i did it. people know i will work across the aisle. i will work with everyone regardless of race or party, to lift our state, to improve our education, to improve our health care, and to improve our education and economic development. they know that. that's why i'm leading in the race today. >> haley barber a friend of the

show, mike espy, thank you for your time. we're going to be watching your race very closely. >> thank you very much. it's an honor to be here with you. >> thank you. when we come back, brand new reporting on the growing trump family business. campaign trail surrogate. her one-on-one interview with donald trump jr. up next. p next [ buttons clicking ] [ camera shutter clicks ] so, now that you have a house, you can use homequote explorer. quiet. i'm blasting my quads. janice, look. i'm in a meeting. -janice, look. -[ chuckles ] -look, look. -i'm looking. it's easy. you just answer some simple questions online, and you get coverage options to choose from. you're ruining my workout. cycling is my passion.

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and your first audiobook is free. cancel anytime and your books are yours to keep forever. audible. the most inspiring minds. the most compelling stories. text "listen27" to 500500 to start your free trial today. president trump will be campaigning across the country this week as the midterms near, but one of the most in demand surrogates is actually his son,

donald trump jr., who has been traveling the country speaking at republican rallies in some of the most critical races. >> but i'm here to help the people that we've had good relationships with. we're out there fighting for the people who have been there and who have supported my father. when you look at it, there's not a single economic metric that we are not better off today than we were two years ago. not one. it doesn't exist. >> nbc news caught up with donald trump jr. on the trail and ali joins us now. it's great to have you here onset. your reporting on the midterm elections has been great. i want to start on this point, not with the political side of this, but rather the fact that donald trump jr. frankly is under a cloud of legal suspicion and with the mueller investigation. do we know whether or not he's spoken to mueller? >> we don't. so when you ask him about the russia investigation, he really does give you this sense that maybe we care about it in washington, but voters don't necessarily. take a look at what he had to

say to me about that when i asked him that very question. >> when you're out here on the campaign trail and you talk about this, what's the reaction that you guys get? >> honestly, no one has asked about this in two years because everyone knows it was nonsense. it was a big catalyst because the media needed it to be true. they needed something to say this is why trump won. >> truly when i talk to voters and i ask about russia the one whose support trump are keeping up with it because they feel like it's another reason they're trying to get him out of office, but none of them are saying this is the issue i'm voting on, so i think there's something to be said when don junior said no one is paying attention to. mueller is, but voters might not necessarily. >> the family has been ramping up his legal defense as well. do any of the candidates seem concerned about it or not really? >> no, not really. when you listen to them, i followed them to montana and i

was with them in texas. in the tester race and then the ted cruz race. both of those candidates were happy to have him out there. the crowd loved having him there. s ask who you are here for and it was kind of a split. a lot of them are like i'm here for don junior. matt rosendale said he was ecstatic to have don junior there. when you're looking at can i get the trump base turn up, they think that's what is going to be the magic formula. sure democrats are energized and we can get them out as long as trump can come out here. matt said something like that. take a look. >> what do you think of having donald trump jr. out here? >> it's fabulous to have support from the white house, from the president, from the son. it's really been great. it brings energy.

very exciting. this is energy. this is a charged up republican party. >> so yeah, kasie, they're not paying attention to russia. they're looking for someone who is going to rally the trump base. >> greg, what's your take on the trump family and the long-term kind of state of the republican party? because it does seem as though -- i suppose if mueller actually finds something we won't be hearing as much from don junior in the future because he does seem to be following in his father's foot steps. >> i think he has a deep are rooting in the republican party. he was talking about republican policies for years before his father aligned himself with the republican party. with don junior you get the energy of the trump brand, but also someone who seems to have been committed to some causes that republican voters care about. i think he has in the family has the most star power. >> that is really interesting. i would not have thought that. ali, great reporting as always. last week we heard elizabeth

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elizabe . i want to ask you a question straight out. flat-out. i want you to give me an honest answer. >> are you considering running for president in 2020? >> i'm not thinking about running for president. >> i don't know what i'm going to do. i have no clue. >> i've been traveling around the country. raising money for democrats. >> i'm going to do all i can to win my seat first. have a baby, on november 14th. >> people want a fighter and people want somebody that can actually beat donald trump. >> sir, i can't imagine how you might accidentally end up in new hampshire, how many months out from the 2020 primary are we? >> you can't beat donald trump, you go home. >> are you ruling out running for president in 2020? >> no. that's another year. >> i don't know. i'm not ruling it out. >> so you're telling me there's a chance? yeah! >> got a great run of some of our favorite kasie d.c. segments. democratic senator from california. kamla harris happened to be in

california speaking on behalf of her party. she implored democrats to take back the power. >> what we saw and many of us became very disspirited over the last couple of days and weeks. let's deal with that, right? because what we saw was an exercise of raw power. raw power. which was used and had the effect of demeaning and diminishing and belittling people. well, here's the thing -- if we want to correct the course, what do we need to do? we need to take the power. that means -- we need to maximize the power of the people. the power of the people. and how do we do that? we vote. >> and with that, let's bring in nbc news national political reporter mike memally. you're talking about the memo today, so but you still put the

memo -- >> what are you seeing in ohio? >> well, kasie, the supreme court confirmation process just wrapping up here. really on the minds of everybody at this ohio state party dinner. that's senator kamla harris spoke to tonight. it's 30 days until the mid-term elections but 31 days until we can dive into the 2020 race, we had a chance to talk to senator harris earlier today. she did say she's focused on 18. that's why she was at this dinner tonight. her role in those senate confirmation process was really something that we heard from the litany of speakers here. every statewide office. she's one of the people who really emerges with her stature in hand what we heard from a lot of the speakers tonight is concern that the supreme court confirmation process may have helped energize republicans in a way they hadn't been previously. senator kamla harris, front and center in this process. she talked about the fact that there's still perhaps more to say, more to hear about what involves, involving judge

kavanaugh. here's what she had to say to the democrats in the room tonight. >> the truth is like the sun it always comes up in the morning. and on these issues that were presented during those hearings, i believe the truth will eventually reveal itself. >> one of the important things that senator harris is doing here not just filling a room, i promise you this room was very full about an hour ago. but also helping some of those red state democrats who are going to be facing even tougher races perhaps because of their vote against judge kavanaugh. you as you know well kasie. you reported some of this as well. sno donnelly and senator heitkamp. senator harris used her fundraising list to try to help those candidates. praising them and saying they need all the help they can get now. >> mike, thank you so much. and yes, that's right kamla harris' campaign folks apparently raising $400,000 for senator heitkamp in just 24 hours. maria theresa kumar, you're our

resident democrat here tonight. what's your take on senator harris' role in this primary process? how do you think she sort of stacks up against the emerging field? >> i think she is really impressive. she would be the first first-term senator to decide to run for the highest office of the land. what's interesting, though, is who she's endorsing, in august she endorsed the democratic oh oh secretary of state. she's saying she's going to be in iowa later this month after right before the mid-terms, she's doing all the right things. but she's also bringing in some of the more conservative democrats. you mentioned heidi heitkamp, there's a few others, she's trying to none straight she's a prosecuting attorney first, she's tough and that she is definitely weighing her options. where is she visiting, who is she visiting? she's with stacie abrams in georgia. going to the red states and is identifying with people she feels she can bring forward and help. >> certainly going to be one to watch. thanks. when we return, what to

watch for in the week ahead.

all right before we go, let's talk about what you're watching in the week ahead, maria theresa, what are you looking for? >> the florida, arizona and testimony tx, a surge of voters texas, voters registering, it will interesting to see what the outcome is. and texas alone, over 400,000 new registered voters. >> very great point.

leanne what are you watching next week. >> democrats are trying to turn the tide back to issues that their voters care about. they are going to push a bill this week on the senate floor about preexisting conditions. and effort to rally their base. >> i'm sure they need that at this point greg, what are you watching for? >> i'm watching the fallout from the kavanaugh hearings. a lot of senator was like to turn the page but that's not going to happen yet. call for investigation into how the allegations were handled and how it leaks out into the public. >> i'm watching to see the kavanaugh and the impact on the mid-terms is this just a sugar high for republicans or is it real and lasting? i also before we go, want to give a shout-out to wanda. and her human tom who is a friend of our show. this is our dog watching kasie d.c. for the evening. thank you, guys, for tuning in. we love it and all of you out there, send it to us on twitter with the #dogswatchingkasied.c.

we'll be back next week from 7:00 to :00 p.m. eastern. don't miss an all-new headliners, jared kushner. for now good-bye from washington. >> jared is a great young man, he went to harvard? >> he's the quiet power behind the brass president. >> he said we're going to win this thing. >> but jared kushner has drawn criticism of his own. >> raised a whole host of questions about his business deals, his financial history and his ties. to russia. >> had i no improper contacts. >> when you have a family member that you appoint and who is expected to serve you, there's a divided loyalty. >> kushner learned early about family loyalty. >> especially in a