stopped racial segregation in mek. also on the program, friend of the beat, tony schwartz from the art of the deal back with us tomorrow. that does it for me. don't go anywhere. "hardball" with chris matthews is up next. culture war. let's play "hardball." >> i'm chris matthews in new york. roe v. wade, the anchor on abortion rights faces a major challenge. the alabama governor signed into law the farthest reaching effort in the country this afternoon. it deliberately sets up a supreme court fight over roe v. wade. the measure passed last night in a republican-controlled senate in alabama effectively bans abortion in every stage of

pregnancy. it makes it a felony punishable by up to 99 years in prison for a doctor to perform an abortion. the only exception on the law in any stage of the pregnancy is for a case where the mother's health is in serious risk and includes no exceptions in case of rain or incest. after hours of impassioned debate, the bill passed 25-6 in the senate down there. the bill's sponsor in the house was clear about the ultimate goal with the measure. what they are up to with this bill. >> my goal is to have roe vs. wade de -- turned over and that decisionability to be able to sent back to the states. >> upon signing the bill, kay ivy ran this bill closely resembles an abortion ban that has been part of alabama law for over 100 years. as for the bill itself, it recognizes the long standing

abortion law is rendered unenforceable by the court decision in roe v. wade. no matter what one's personal view, we can recognize for the short-term this bill may be unenforceable. emboldened by the 5-4 majority in the u.s. supreme court, opponents pursued aggressive measures nationwide. alabama's would be the most restrictive, it's far from the only thing to curb abortion rights this year. lawmakers in georgia and ohio had heartbeat bills as early as six weeks. kentucky and mississippi passed similar measures. three others are considering measures to loosen restrictions on abortion. senator amy klobuchar. senator, what strikes me about this measure being pushed through, not just to bring it back to the states which a lot of people on the republican side

they said want it to be a state issue, they want to get rid of it. this is a ban. this is the most restrictive i've seen. what it said about the dangers to roe v. wade nationally. >> what they have done in georgia and alabama is dangerous. it is wrong and it is unconstitutional. 73% of americans do not want to overturn roe v. wade. think about that. why are they doing it? one, they want to put politics with women's health. two, they want to set up a case to go to the supreme court. when you think about the facts here, abortions were at an all time low during the obama administration. that's the last study i could find. >> 'is it low? >> because contra exception was made available. we reduced the number of abortions because of the fact that we funded planned parenthood where one out of five

women will visit for cancer screenings and birth control. think about that. we have reduced the number of abortions in the obama administration and this administration comes in and wants to take away the funding for planned parenthood and take away women's access to contraception and at the same time in a number of states across the country, republicans are trying to get rid of their right to choose. it's an outrage and the women of america and the men of america, the majority of them do not agree. >> let me ask you about the politics. i know you are running for president. it seems stupid on their part, not just wrong. if you have prohibition and a regime in this country of a woman could not get a safe legal abortion and had to go overseas, wouldn't that destroy the republican party based upon your numbers? >> i believe that this is

against their best interest politic politically, but they don't care about that. what they care about, it appears is not women's health or they wouldn't be trying to overturn the affordable care act and get rid of the ban of kicking people off their insurance for preexisting conditions or the idea that we used to have that being a victim of domestic abuse was a preexisting condition. it makes no sense for the people of america. when you trying to attract a certain base, you don't care about that. that's what all of the men in the legislature in the state senate, none of the women voted for, all of those men said today. . >> there is a contradiction. he never understood this contradiction. the pro life movement, anti-choice movement said the doctor should go to jail who performs a procedure and the woman is clean. there is no problem even though she asked for the procedure. it's a weird way. 99 years in prison for the

doctor. no mention of the woman. this is an inconsistency in their thinking. here's the president trying to be president, then candidate donald trump who supported abortion rights in his life. this calls to ban abortion and how he would make it work. here's trump. >> do you believe in punishment for abortion? >> the answer is that there has to be some form of punishment. >> yeah. there has to be a form. >> a fine or imprisonment for a young woman who finds herself pregnant? what about the young man or is he not responsible for an abortion? >> it hasn't -- different feelings for different people. i would say no. >> the trump campaign walked back his comments saying if congress were to pass legislation making abortion illegal or any state were permitted to ban abortion, the doctor or any other person would be held legally responsible, not

the woman. this afternoon a spokesman put out the statement on the alabama bill that department mention a legislation. unlike radical democrat who is allowed a baby to be ripped from the womb moments from birth, president trump is protecting the most innocent and vulnerable and called on congress to prohibit late term abortions. there you saw the congress. he never gave it five seconds of thought. he is slow on the responsibilities of the father. i find that fascinatinfascinati. >> when you talk about innocence, they don't have exceptions in here for rain, incest victims. it's unbelievable to me. the other thing i know -- >> in alabama? >> in that piece of legislation. there are pro life people where it is their personal belief and they have that personal belief and that's their right, but that doesn't mean for a lot of them

who abhor democrats, they don't mean it is applied to someone else. people are pro life that wouldn't agree with this legislation that they are passing. that's why i think you see 73% of americans do not believe that roe v. wade should be overturned. that's what they are messing with here. it's dangerous and they are taking away a woman's right to make a decision about her own health care. >> senator, you are happy with the way roe v. wade is now. thanks to the casey decision, you are happy with the law as practiced right now. roe v. wade? >> i am concerned. i think some states have done a better job than others in terms of how they made contraception and reproductive choices available. they want to make sure that any kind of right is cemented and that could be by court or

legislation. right now you have a situation where you are not even in that territory because you have got a republican party that is basically trying to reverse roe v. wade for the purpose of banning abortion. that's clear by the cases that they are setting up and the bills they are passing. we have to look at this as the reality. we have been trying to talk about the nuances of this. the reality is what we saw today with that bill that was signed into law in alabama that takes away completely a woman's right to choose. this is no longer nuances about third term or what they are trying to say. no, no, no. they did it in georgia with the six weeks and they did it in alabama. >> thank you very much. amy klobuchar of minnesota running for president. many other 2020 democratic candidates were quick to denounce the bill, calling it unconstitutional and an attack on women and some spoke about abortion rights generally.

>> let us all agree that women's health care is under attack and we will not stand for it! we will not stand for it! >> they are trying to overturn roe vs. wade. that's wrong with we will fight back. we'll fight back. >> it's nothing short of an attack on women's basic human and civil rights and something that women of america will have to fight against with everything they've got. >> democratic state senator coleman. contributor for "time" magazine and professor of constitutional law at st. john's school of law. thank you for this. what are they up to down in alabama? the republicans. >> they are up to destroying the state of alabama and destroying the country actually. trying to take women's rights away from us. it's so unfortunate when you live in a state where we are at the bottom of the list for

everything that's good and at the top for everything that's bad. here's a slap in the face for the women of alabama and women of the countries that these republican legislators and these men want to take away our rights to be able to choose what's best for our health care and our bodies and with our own doctors. >> what do you think they are thinking about? is this a culture war fight or really win it? do they want prohibition so a girl or a woman gets pregnant and decide they don't want to carry to term and they have no rights and must leave to go to new york or louisiana? what would happen? >> if they leave alabama, they could be subject to prosecution also. the goal is to take it to the supreme court to overturn roe v. wade. that is the goal. she said it overand overagain. it's sad with a piece of legislation that pat robertson said it went too far.

we have no exception for incest and rain. that's unconscionable. i want people to know thus goes alabama, thus goes the united states of america. >> why do you think they did this? >> i don't think that the republican party in alabama has been batting that great of an average. you look at how they managed to lose the republican-held senate seat to doug jones. this is more par for the course. this issue while temporarily it might make them feel good, dealing with the consequence of getting roe v. wade overturned and banning abortion in this country would not be politically palatable. >> like a guy in a bar as he puts his arms back to be pulled back. do they want prohibition or want to take the fight? >> the gop has been cynical and navigated the line of exploiting pro life voters who are fed up.

politically the leadership would never go quite that far. do i think that the republican party's leadership had enough sense to navigate the line. >> excuse me. do they want the win or the fight? >> they want the fight. >> what's going to happen? it seems to me the governor signed it today, basically prohibition. is that effective? >> the law has a six-month phase in. there is a start up period before it's live and lit gapts rush to court and under existing law it is clear as a bell that this is oun constitutional. the injunction should be affirm and the state petitions the supreme court to review it. that could take more than a year. >> does chief justice john roberts to avoid being hated, to some extent it's popularity. does he want to know as the guy who brings down roe?

>> he's concerned about the court as an institution especially if something hits in an election year. >> here didn't want to bring down obamacare. >> he pulled the court back from that. he does have a unique concern, but he has been a vote against roe vs. wade. >> kavanaugh and gorsuch owned by this president? do they have to vote against roe v. wade some. >> they are independent jurist, but they have a you that lines them up against roe vs. wade. >> thank you. what do you think will happen down there. you are concerned that this will take effect and not just be bad or skyey politics. >> right. i think not only alabama, but the southern states are emboldened right now. when we listen to the kavanaugh hearings, he didn't say how he would protect roe. what we are afraid of is if this

goes to the supreme court and roe v. wade is overturned, abortions will happen in back alleys in unsanitary areas. that's the fear. the men need to stay out of our wombs and allow women to make the best decisions for themselves and we are mad about it and will continue to fight even with the governor signing this bill today. we are going let people know across this country we are not going to stand for it. you need to stay focused on the state of alabama. not just this issue. we have a lot of other issues we need to talk about and make sure the public gets actively engaged. >> we have to trust women to make this decision. >> amen! amen! >> on the losing side. elise jordan and john barrett of st. john's university law school in new york. war hawks. this is my country like john bolton. pounding the drugs to get us into a war with iran. a new report indicates smart

allies in europe and the arab world are not buying this hype. some european officials think president trump success tricked into a path towards war by the hawks around him. has the grand old party become the party of trump? you betcha. why is mitt romney the only republican standing up, on occasion against the republican party? more after the break. more after the break so, what are some key takeaways from this commercial? did any of you hear the "bundle your home and auto" part? -i like that, just not when it comes out of her mouth. -yeah, as a mother, i wouldn't want my kids to see that. -good mom. -to see -- wait. i'm sorry. what? -don't kids see enough violence as it is? -i've seen violence. -maybe we turn the word "bundle" into a character, like mr. bundles. -top o' the bundle to you. [ laughter ] bundle, bundle, bundle. -my kids would love that. -yeah.

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measures accordingly. >> welcome back to "hardball." that was a major general and the number two officer in the coalition fighting isis and syria in iraq. the u.s. briefing pentagon reporters and disputing what the trump administration has been saying for the past 10 days about iran. as the "new york times" reports, the public dispute highlights a central problem for the trump administration as they seek to rally allies and global opinion against iran. our allies are telling president trump we don't believe you on the iran threat. the other thanes are with the war hawks. the president relies on them in his administration. they said several officials describe john bolton and mike pompeo as pushing an unsuspecting mr. trump through a series of steps that could put the u.s. on a course of war. this comes as they ordered the

departure of personnel with non-posts and iraq through increased threat stream the state department is seeing. helene cooper, correspondent for the "new york times." it's an honor to have you o. you are the reporter. i say i smell the same problem we had with iraq. we had an unsuspecting problem, probably not the smartest guy in the world, w, running the country. the war hawks were in the defense department and the vice president's office and now they are back. somehow how john bolton got back in and the national security adviser is seen pushing us into a war situation with iran? bolton? >> john bolton has you know has been very much a hawk on iran for all of his professional career. he called for regime change in iran and a military strike against iran. he very much has been part of the conductor of this entire trump administration strategy of

churning up the pressure on iran. he and mike pompeo were both in favor of pulling out of the iran nuclear deal which they were both opposed to and both prodding trump into put think them as a foreign terrorist organization and pushed the policy of the americans saying to the europeans, it's either iranian oil or the market. that has almost in the voice of one european diplomat who talked to me a couple of days ago who said it's like declaring economic war on tehran. mr. bolton and secretary of state mike pompeo are viewed as hawks in the trump administration. >> what voted for john bolton? who put him in that job? you are laughing, you everyone thinks it was an ask from the hawkish community and tried to

put him in there and now he seems to be calling the shots. do the european guys think they are calling the shots, not trump? >> i don't know if i would go as far as to say that bolton is calling the shots. at the end of the day, president trump is president. bolton prodded the president into the decision. >> w was president. >> i'm not sure he does that. we may be looking at president trump to put the brakes on this. >> w was president and we know it was the vice president and his neoconallies that pushed the war. i'm being too harsh, but -- >> i'm not sure. he is the who was pulling american troops out of syria and american troops out of afghanistan. i'm going to be curious to see how this plays out.

i don't think it's in president trump's instincts. i don't think it's his natural instinct to push for something like this. >> he's got a foot on the break and on the gas. thanks for reporting. we are learning by the way that on cap top hill, they'll be briefed by threats from iran. i want to bring in eric swalwell, democrat from california and 2020 candidate. the danger here if you are the president of the united states, you have to deal with this. creating a situation that lead us into a war. if we get on war footing and pull personnel out of baghdad and pressure them on the iranian guard and do all kinds of things to squeeze them and bring in a carrier fleet and a strike force of bombers into the region and all of which we are doing right now, it might give the people and even the moderates the thought we want to go to war.

>> good evening, chris. this president and his team are spoiling for war with iran. wie cannot let that happen. the way you treat iran who is an enemy is you have a nuclear deal with them which we had and which this president tore up. i'm concerned because the british are in iraq. either the threat is being inflated by the advisers or not sharing it with the british. both of those will be a problem. when you look at the other threats we face. why are we singling out iran differently than north korea. the president tried to strike a nuclear deal with north korea. the only difference is that kim jong un sends the president love letters. >> let me ask you about this. you were reading the newspapers and the run up to the war in iraq. the yet was to make this horrible menace of a nuclear bomb which cheney said they got

a bomb. not a program, a bomb. they got to be dangerous. you heard the idiots say it was going to be a cake walk and we'll get the oil for free and the war will pay for yes, sir. make it look like you have to do it and it will be free and fun to do it. one of your colleagues said this is going to be easy. one strike will be the last strike. they're doing the same game they played before in getting us into the iraq war. >> that's right. 120,000 people. that's not don, jr. and eric going over to iraq. that's our service members who a million of them served in iraq and afghanistan served over the last 15 years and it's taken a toll on our country. this is not 2003. we have a congress that will insist that the president tell us the time and the troops and the terrain and the reason we have to go. first things first. the whole congress should be briefed on what this threat is and he should tell us why our

allies are not with us right now. we can't go over there by ourselves. this will be an endless bloody, costly war for the united states. >> president trump said he gives good advice from john bolton. when it comes to iran, bolton calls for a regime change in a 2012 interview on fox. this is what he wants. >> you said you are prepared to take on the regime in tehran. how? >> i thought for 10 years or more, we should have regime change in tehran. >> it's one of the cute neoconwords. go to war until they throw you out. he said a preemptive strike would be warranted. this is bolton in 2015. >> the negotiations whether they lead to an agreement or not are not stopping them from getting nuclear weapons. just as israel struck the weapons programs in the hands of hostile states, i'm afraid given

the s that's the only real option open to us. >> this character has been pushing for war in a real country, not something created by winston churchill and they are modern and smart and they have a state-of-the-art military since 1998, since the iraqi liberation act, so-called. why is he in this administration? this president has instincts against war. why is he there? >> john bolton has never seen a solution he didn't want to bomb. i wouldn't say the president is a noninterventionist. just somebody who acts on what is most convenient for him. that could be peace with north korea and tomorrow that would be a nuclear war in iran. this guy has no core operating princip principals. these are not john bolton's or the president's kids. this is not iraq. this is a country of 80 million people. we do not want to occupy or try to engage with a country like

this if there is a diplomatic solution. we took them from three months of having a nuclear weapon to over a year. if you want to talk about the terrorism around the world, the way they are in iraq and syria, it's better to have them far away than allowing them to get closer. >> do you think he would fight to win reelection? >> i wouldn't take anything oust table with this corrupt, childish president. >> running for president in 2020. did does the keystone state hold the key to the presidency? history said yes. they voted for trump despite a long history of favoring democratic candidates. stay tuned for a sneak preview talking to voters in lucerne county, pennsylvania. coming up next on "hardball." pea coming up next on "hardball. ♪ ♪ this simple banana peel represents a bold idea: a way to create energy from household trash.

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>> welcome back to "hardball." i'm hosting a special edition of "hardball" live from pennsylvania tomorrow night. we are going there because the area in north eastern pennsylvania spoke with a clear voice in the 2016 election. that's where it is on that map. after voting for obama in 2008 and 2012, it gave the majority vote to republican donald trump. what was that about? the trump campaign prompting to

boost the economy and bring back coal jobs. cal perry went ahead of us to talk to trump voters about whether the president lived up to his promises. let's listen. >> the small mining community in pennsylvania is moving beyond coal moving to those who in what is called a dying industry. >> you see them go by with the trucks pushing the material with similar jobs to what's happening in the coal industry. if there was a transition from coal to reclamation, this is it. >> 180,000 acres are left to be reclaimed state-wide. 55 acres at this site. donald trump promised coal jobs would come back to pennsylvania, but they are not underground in mines. we found them here on the surface where the land is being reclaimed and converted for future business use. projects like this one may help lessen the blow for former coal

workers. >> the lay off situation going in the coal fields, we need to experience people doing these remediation projects rather than cleaning up what our great grandfathers did. >> because this swung so wildly from reliably democrat to trump, it's time to look for lessons learned. >> it's having a presence. there are many theories of why it turned in the 2016 election. my theory is because hillary didn't have a strong presence here. donald trump visited the area many times. built up a lot of enthusiasm. i think hillary just took it for granted that this was her home ground and didn't spend a lot of time here. you need to do that. >> being union country, we called a small quorum. three democrats and a trump supporter grabbing a drink after work. >> the young kids coming up are not going to want to work in

mines. i would never tell a kid to work in a coal mine. that was something he threw at people. it was a promise and people bought it. >> some people in the union voted for trump. does that explain what happened? >> how big of a part is that and will it factor in two years from now? >> a lot of people that were union in our plant voted for trump and told us the reason they voted for him is because of the promises he made. they thought because he came off as i'm not a politician, he was going to be truthful and he would fill these promises. i watched his rallies and he stated he was bringing manufacturing back in the state of pennsylvania. in 2.5 years he has brought zero manufacturing back. he only brought low income warehousing back. >> interstate 81 that runs through the hills is dotted with warehouses built on former coal mining sites.

major companies use the area partly because nonunion labor is so cheap. >> the problem with the warehouses, they pay $8 to $12 an hour with minimum wageworkers. >> what's minimum wage? >> $7.75. there are ads in the paper every day because they can't keep employees because people don't want to work for $8 an hour. they can't sustain a family on that. >> will say cheers. i appreciate you guys doing it. >> i'm just getting warmed up. >> appreciate it. >> cal perry joins us. great reporting. you talk to a lot of republicans as well. what's the mix of sentiment. it looks like it's going to be a close race against next year. >> it's fascinating to look at both sides. on the republican side, you have this urge to keep the promise of two years ago that donald trump is not a politician. that plays huge here. people are saying look, i know

politicians are lying because they are talking and that matters to the republican voters and the trump supporters. the other is the 401(k) factor. in the lunch we had, the donald trump supporter turned to the democrats and said how is your 401(k) doing? pretty well. people here work hard. after 30 years in the factory, your 401(k) matters. for trump supporters, it's about trump staying onfor democrats we speak to, the choice of the candidate is paramount. we heard from the party chair who talked about elderly voters, those are the go to voters. elderly voters in pennsylvania don't like radical change. a more moderate democrat is what people are hoping for to unseat trump. >> how much did you pick up of attitude feeling that the democrats in washington and the establishment look down their noses at them and ignored them?

>> that's everything. hillary didn't come here is what you hear people saying even though she is from here. approximaten pen is discarded and disregarded. people feel disrespected by washington and by the way they are spoken to. the mueller report did not come up yesterday in conversation in that pizza parlor, but the 401(k)s and the economy did. we are talking about labor and the factories and lost manufacturing jobs and transitioning from coal. when you are talking about getting lectured, it does not play here and republicans know and the trump supporters 99 those rallies and these rallies in pennsylvania, they know how to play to that crowd and know that that message still plays. >> i will be trying to pick up on what you picked up on. i hope i do as good of a job as you did. cal perry of nbc news. join us for the deciders. tomorrow night live at 7:00 p.m. this is the place in the country not that big cities and the usual predictable places.

you can't predict this place. that's what the story is. whether it goes for trump or against him. who they feel comfortable with. tune in on june 3rd, live town hall with presidential candidate pete buttigeig in fresno. it will be worth it. we will have him for the whole hour in early june. up next, what do you do with a judge who called barack obama an unamerican imposter? if you are donald trump, you put him up for promotion. what if you are a trump critic like say, mitt romney who gets to vote on that promotion? romney is showing stuff here. we never know when it's going to come, but once in a while, you see strength. back after this. a while, you see strength back after this.

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the grand old trump party, leaving republicans as bystanders in a party fully defined by president trump's whims. in the wake of the release of the mueller report, republicans circled the wagons around their leader. mitch mcconnell ignoring the findings of the report declared case closed. >> the special counsel's finding is clear. case closed. case closed. this ought to be good news for everyone. by my democratic col eelgs are working through the five stages of grooif grief. >> last weekend lindsey graham sided with the president's family over the institution he serves in saying donald trump junior should not comply with the subpoena from the senate. >> if i were donald trump, jr.'s lawyer, i would tell them you don't need to go back to this environment anymore. you have been there for hours

and hours and hours and nothing being alleged here changes the outcome of the mueller investigation. i would call it a day. >> there remains the voice of the night. tune in after the break to find out who that is. someone is willing to stand up within the republican ranks against the boss. you are watching "hardball." boss you are watching "hardball." w 2019 ford ranger, it's the right gear. with a terrain management system for... this. a bash plate for... that. an electronic locking rear differential for... yeah... this. heading to the supermarket? get any truck. heading out here? get the ford ranger. the only adventure gear built ford tough. woman: (on phone) discover. hi. do you have a travel card? yep. our miles card. earn unlimited 1.5 miles and we'll match it at the end of your first year. nice! i'm thinking about a scuba diving trip. woman: ooh! (gasp) or not. you okay? yeah, no, i'm good. earn miles. we'll match 'em at the end of your first year.

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ght, i brought in ...to give you the protein you needt ensure max protein... (grunti)g i'll take that. (cheering) 30 grams of protein and 1 gram of sugar ensure. for strength and energy. welcome back to "hardball." mitt romney, the lone ranger

among republicans broke with his party and the president to oppose a federal judge's nomination. the judge was under fire for past comments about immigrants, lgpt issues and president obama. in june of 2011 in a political event, this nominee for judge called then president obama an unamerican imposter. shortly after that vote, senator romney said he made particularly disparaging comments about president obama and as the nominee for president i couldn't subscribe to to that in a federal judge. this was not a matter of politics or qualifications, but as a former nominee of our party. the judge was confirmed 49-46. sounds like a party line vote and enjoys more than 90 conservative federal judges that republicans pushed through at break neck speed. eddie, thank you. i want to go to you, professor. what's more interesting?

the fact that romney, who has a history of having character occasionally and cow towning to trump decide toss show character on an issue of character. >> it's a good thing. it's important that romney in this instance exemplifies a kind of backbone. some backbone here. i was interested in this is not about politics or qualifications. it's an instance of inis civil, but the same guy who called immigrants maggots and the same guy who wouldn't say that brown v board of education was a correct decision. this is the same guy on politics and qualifications seemed woefully unqualified to sit on the bench and doesn't. >> this is that guy. >> that are guy that wouldn't say. >> exactly. >> to not say -- >> brown versus board of education. topeka kansas was not a good call.

>> here called president obama an unamerican imposter. >> what was that about. >> birtherism and some stuff underneath it. that was the line in the sand? >> that goes to the crazy part of trump. not just evil, but the crazy part that believed that somehow he didn't go to those schools is one of the phantom cases. this is strange belief system here. to believe that barack obama is not really barack obama. he didn't go to columbia or harvard law. he was registered under a fictitious identity. remember nobody knew him in school. what did that mean? >> i don't know if we ever solved that mystery. it's truly suspect. the statements on his part. >> he had 49 votes. >> that's unfortunate, but not the first time republicans came out against donald trump's judicial nominees. tom farr was similarly suspect

in racial terms. wendy is up for nomination and has been suspect by the naacp and susan collins voted against her and herman kaine and steven moore just last week off the top of my head. this president is weaker. >> you don't see what i see. i see a party that had been known for principals, fiscal responsibility and international alliances and certainly toughness in foreign policy through the cold war. and a consistency and this president seems whatever he said he wants, they go along with it. >> to an extent. >> why are they fishing for troubled waters in iran? >> doi have to disagree with you because a lot of the seszmentes. >> the administration's position is that this is should be overthrown. >> the "new york times" piece

was quoting the administration officials saying our objective here is to apply economic pressure and not to occupy the country. that would be a disaster. our strategy is to avoid strikes. >> you are talking about 120,000 troops. it sounds like a prepositioning plan. >> it also sounds like an eventuality you would need to plan for. >> like desert shield. we did the attack. >> it's an insufficient footprint. >> would you like to see the attack? >> no, it's not a strategy. >> this frightens me. >> absolutely. look, i want to make clear, i don't make a hard distinction between trumpism and the republican party. i think what trump has done is activated a dimension of the republican party that was already there. >> describe that. what is that dimension? >> has everything to do with the tea party and the wave that in some ways resided in that space

within the republican party. >> charlottesville? >> something to do with small government and social programs and something do with -- >> which charlottesville. the neo nazis or robert e. lee fans or both? >> they fade into one another. distinguishable, but not the same. i want to suggest that the metastasizing of this republican party and the leaders dancing with the folks and taking over the party. >> you think he picked a judge like this because of those characteristics? >> i think so. >> a poor vetting mistake and the notion that the republican party capitulated by the wall. they yessed the wall to death for two years. it's discrediting. >> it has been confirmed. >> it is a disgrace. >> he picks words like that? >> i don't believe so.

i don't know that his rhetoric is commensurate to his record. the rhetoric alone should be disqualifying that you generated votes against it suggests that the republican party -- >> some republican votes? >> some republican votes. unfortunately one. mitt romney gets special annuities as someone from utah and the former republican nominee. to suggest that this is indicative of a party's values is i think is betrayeded. >> do you like trump? >> no, i do not, but i'm not willing to jet san the republican party. >> would you vote for him next time? >> didn't vote for him before, i won't vote for him again. a healthy republican party is the next. >> i don't know how i'm going to vote. definitely not for trump. >> taking the show on the road to north eastern pennsylvania

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>> tomorrow night on "hardball," why the blue state of pennsylvania elected donald trump in 2016. we will be up in north eastern pennsylvania, a county that spoke with a clear voice in the 2016 election, voting heavily for trump after voting for obama twice. we will talk to voters about

what makes the issues and attitudes. what's going on heading into 2020. we call at this time deciderless. if history service, the people you are hearing from will be just that. if the presidential candidates including trump want to win, they don't want to miss it either. that's "hardball" for now. all in with chris hayes starts right now. tonight on all in -- >> this is the white house claim ing that the president is a king. >> the white house told congress they cannot investigate the president. >> for looks like a redo. >> the new claim in a letter from the white house with congressman jamie raskin and senator chris van hollen. tammy duckworth on what looks like a white house attempt to provoke a war with iran. outrage over