such a lively group. thanks to jeremy, matt, christina and elise. thank you all for watching. nicolle wallace. mtp daily starts right now my friend, chuck todd. ♪ if it's wednesday, all eyes on the white house right now where republicans are hoping that a deal with the mexicans can save them from an all-out fight with their own president. plus, joe biden's campaign makes a major mistake. and that's not even his biggest problem today as democratic candidates pounce, finding their anti-biden voice on the issue of abortion. and nancy pelosi says she's

not feeling pressure on impeachment. i'll talk to a judiciary committee member who is trying to change that feeling. welcome to wednesday. it's ""meet the press" daily." good evening. i'm chuck todd here in washington. happy hump day. and thank god for the nats' lineup. they can make up for that bullpen. anyway, confusion and frustration in the republican caucus. virtually no one in the republican conference supports the president's sweeping new tariffs on mexico but no one is willing to say publicly they will stop him. which is why soechl anxious and hand wringing republicans are watching what's happening at the white house this second where a mexican delegation is might meting with top white house officials to potentially cut a deal to stop the new tariffs, which could effectively function as a tax on american consumers. we could hear from some of the administration officials in this meeting, including the vice president and secretary of state. however, expectations are very low that any deal will be cut today. president's not there. president, you know where he is. the president today doubled down

on his demands and his frustration with mexico. >> they're swamping our border. mexico can stop it. they have to stop it. otherwise we won't be able to do business. it's a very simple thing. and i think they will stop t i think they want to do something. i think they want to make a deal. they sent their top people. we'll see what happens today. we should know something. >> we've seen a parade of senate republicans come out against the president's tariff threat. you break with him at your own peril. even on an issue that's been party orthodoxy for the past few decades. even the top republican in the house doesn't want to see these tariffs, but he basically signaled to his caucus that if you want to oppose the president,off got to support him. i'm not making this up. here is what he told nbc news about the president imposing these tariffs. >> nobody wants that to happen. that's why i think from one aspect, if we're all united going in, we can end up with no

tariffs. that's what we should be doing. it's undercutting and most likely to have a tariff if you undercut the president before going into negotiations. >> to be clear, would you push your members -- >> you're dealing in a hypothetical. >> so you got it? the party needs to unite behind the president's decision to threaten the idea of tariffs on mexico in order to make sure he doesn't impose tariffs on mexico. then there's chuck schumer's comments today, which makes you wonder if he's trying to goad the president by publicly calling him too chicken to go through with it. this is what american politics is today. >> i said yesterday that i don't believe that president trump will follow through on his threat to impose tariffs on mexico. the president has a tendency for bluster. the president needs a way out of his bluster. i continue to believe that he will back off. that has been his m.o. >> you know what that means. anyway, whatever happens, political ramifications will be

huge, as he might say. another transformational moment for the republican party, by the way, into something they haven't been in generations. it's not 2019 in the republican party. it might be 1919. protectionism, tariffs. we have a holly in the senate. will we find a smoot? i thought you would like that one. kristen welker. gave me a little chuckle, smoot holly. and howard fineman is an nbc news analyst. kristin, we are waiting with bated breath to see if something comes out. can mike pence and mike pompeo cut a deal with the president across the atlantic? >> reporter: i think that's going to be very tough, chuck. i should tell you a moment ago, i got a text message from a senior administration official who confirms that that meeting is ongoing. we're going into about a little bit short of an hour and a half now. will there be a deal?

based on my conversations, the expectations are very low, very low that that's going to happen because, of course, the president is overseas. he's overseas with a number of top officials who work on immigration policy, jared kushner, steven miller, john bolton overseas with president trump. who is in the room? mexican foreign minister, his delegation, secretary of state and the vice president, of course, leading these talks as well as other top officials. i was speaking to an administration official and said what does a deal look like? what is it that you guys want to get? they go back to this talking point, chuck, which is we want the border to be secured but really skim on the details. again, by all accounts it's going to be very tough to get a deal this afternoon. and, as you point out, a mounting number of republicans speaking out against these tariffs but what are they actually prepared to do about it? >> kristen, look at the people in this room right now. mike pence, congressman and

governor mike pence hated tariffs. mark short, mike pompeo, again somebody not a fan of at least congressman mike pompeo wasn't. kevin mcalean, i'm not going to pretend to know where he is on tariffs and the white house counsel is in there to talk about the legality of all of this. >> reporter: rate. >> that's what makes this odd. the people meeting with the mexicans are probably all sympathetic to the mexican government's point of view. >> reporter: i think that's right. even jared kushner was supposed to president trump making this threat to issue 5% tariffs on all mexican goods next monday if mexico doesn't do more to stem the flow of migrants. you're absolutely right. the president is yet again on another issue, apart from his top advisers. again that raises questions about how exactly they are going to be able to cut a deal with mexico. mexican officials, by the way, chuck, saying look, they feel as

though they have been cracking down on the flow of migrants crossing the border. cdp out with new statistics saying 144,000 documented migrants crossed the border last month, a 13-year high, chuck. >> i want to play for you from the mexican ambassador to build off to this point to seem to say you think this is a high number now, you ain't seen nothing yet. take a listen. >> we vowed mexico's efforts, an additional quarter million migrants could arrive at the u.s. border in 2019. slapping tariffs, along with the decision to cancel aid programs to the northern central american countries could have a counterproductive effect and would not reduce migration flows. >> one would assume she's likely in this meeting as well. is there anybody in the west wing that actual lly conquers wh

the mexican point of view, you have no idea how bad it could be? >> we're not hearing a lot from them right now. this is a president who launched his presidential ambitions on this topic of immigration, selling to his supporter that he would build the wall, stem the tide. he will continue to double down on this and say again and again, you've got to do whatever it takes. the numbers today that kristen welker was just mentioning will make the president's resolve to not back away from this. he wants to see mexico do more. it's a not clear in my reporting what more looks like and how he would avoid the effects in that sound bite, that are talked about. if he goes ahead with these tariffs, things could actually get worse. >> howard fineman, you're a mitch mcconnell watcher of sorts, being a louisville guy, at least as far as your university was concerned. mcconnell is sending

mcconnell-like signal, please don't do this, please don't do this, please don't do this, but is stopping short of fully threatening him. >> mcconnell's situation is even if the republicans in the senate abandon the president on this, mcconnell and the president can be sure that the house of representatives will not override a veto. >> are we pretty sure about that? >> i'm pretty sure about that. >> i think so, too, but i'm not 100%. >> i'm pretty sure of that. there's no other wing of the republican party. you said the ryan wing. there is no other wing. there's the trump wing and republicans are basically going along for a wild ride in which the president is saying ultimately in states like michigan and ohio, which according to new reports are two of the states that will be most affected by the 5% or 10% mexican tariff, that cultural fear trumps economic fear. that's ultimately what he's saying.

he's giving them steel tariffs and tariffs that they like but will take the risk on others. >> what's happened to the republican party? is it a protectionist party now or is it just a trump bypass for a few years? >> i think a lot of it has to do with how much trade power has been transferred to the president over the decades. if this were a question where congress had to affirmatively give him these tariffs he wouldn't get them. two had been third supermajority in the house and senate in order to take away that power from him. that's the problem. republicans might be willing to take him on. are they going to do what looks to them like a suicide mission? they don't get what they want, no tariffs, and they have to take on trump at the same time? that's why they're not going to have a fight. >> kristen welker, do they at all care about the senate opposition right now, considering it does look like

the house is with them on this or do they worry about it a little bit? >> i think they care about it, chuck. look, you saw some republican senators, chuck grassley, come out on day one and say that he was opposed to this. and part of the concern internally here is that this threat was, to some extent, rushed out, that senators weren't properly briefed. that's why you have the early opposition that is now growing and mounting by the day. again, does it cross that veto-proof threshold? that remains to be seen. you heard president trump yesterday during that press conference with the british prime minister say republicans would be foolish to take any type of legislative action. he's clearly trying to essentially dismiss any intra-party feud, chuck. i think it's real. it sort of underscores the fact that they were not in concert with republican lawmakers on capitol hill before announcing this. >> what's the likelihood, though, instead of a total

cave-in by the president and him not doing this, what's the likelihood? i think mcconnell has asked for can you delay till the end of the month? the other tactic with trump is buy a couple of weeks and after a couple of weeks he forgets he's angry about this. >> absolutely, chuck. one thing we know about this president, he has a tendency for distraction. that's why on an overseas trip you see him talking about everything except the state visit he's currently on. there's a possibility of this delay. this is his signature issue. he really feels strongly about curb i curbing the string of migrants. on other issues i might be more convinced but not so much on this one. >> ramesh, i want to jump on one jobs report, a did. p, private payroll people are reporting a disastrous may jobs number, something in the five digits rather than the six digits. if that does hit at the end of the week and these tariffs, does

that rattle the republican party or no? >> i think that it would, particularly, of course, the question would be whether it's sustained into another month and a month after that. >> right. >> i think the political risks for this president are also it's not just that he feels so exercised about the southern border. it's a big deal to a significant portion. >> he has made it a big deal to them. >> right. >> he said this is what i'm going to do. and i do take him at his word in that he knows he has nothing to lose. >> and he has run out of ways to achieve anything on this when he first of all didn't use the two years republicans held to congress to cut the kind of deal where he could have maybe made a difference there and that he lost control of the house and he's run out of options. this is what he has got left. >> what should democrats do here? do what schumer is doing, goad him into doing it? >> they'll have to let him play it out. i think in a way, as dramatic

and arguably unconstitutional as his threatened move is, because it's taxation without representation, essentially, because congress doesn't get to vote, i think that the democrats are not -- do not have the upper hand on the immigration issue for all. they just don't. and this is what's defined the trump era. they can't really change it right now. and either trump's gamble, which is what this is on michigan, pennsylvania, ohio, wisconsin, et cetera, is going to work or it's not going to work, there isn't really very much they can do. >> kristen welker, when he talks about parents, child separation, he takes the pressure off the democratic party to have to worry about the migration crisis. >> you're right about that. obviously, it's come under a lot of scrutiny right now, amid our own reporting that some of the attempts to reunitee families

and children have been botched, particularly last summer. it does take the heat off the democrats. chuck, just looking into a crystal ball -- of course, we don't know how this is all going to end up. but one scenario might be that's being discussed here is will that first tronch of tariffs go into effect monday and will they strike a type of deal before the second traunch goes into effect? economic pain starts to be felt over time not immediately on monday. you talk about delaying, that's what that delay could potentially look like. >> donald trump has been talking about slapping 25% tariffs and chinese goods for 15 years. we're getting close to the 25% number. maybe he wants it for mexico too. want to mention howard, you're sticking around. house judiciary committee working on keeping the momentum for impeachment going.

has it stalled? joe biden is he playing defense today as his fellow democrats take him on over his record on abortion. >> let's pass a strong, robust roe versus wade and enforce it all across this country. it's time to go on offense. e to. wow. plug that in for me. whoa! - holy smokes! - oh wow! and the all new silverado has more trim levels than any other pickup. whoa! (laughter) oh wow! there's something for all of us. it's time to upgrade. get 0% financing for 72 months. or, get a total value of over $8700 on this all-new silverado. find new roads at your local chevy dealer. i swibecause they let metual, customize my insurance. and as a fitness junkie, i customize everything, like my bike, and my calves. liberty mutual customizes your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

my time is thin, but so is my lawn. now there's scotts thick'r lawn 3-in-1 solution. with a soil improver! seed! and fertilizer to feed! now yard time is our time. this is a scotts yard. who got an awful skin condition. with uncontrolled moderate-to-severe eczema, or atopic dermatitis, you feel like you're itching all the time. and you never know how your skin will look. because deep within your skin an overly sensitive immune system could be the cause. so help heal your skin from within, with dupixent. dupixent is not a steroid, and it continuously treats your eczema even when you can't see it. at 16 weeks, nearly four times more patients taking dupixent saw clear or almost clear skin compared to those not taking it, and patients saw a significant reduction in itch. do not use if you are allergic to dupixent. serious allergic reactions can occur, including anaphylaxis, a severe reaction. tell your doctor if you have new or worsening eye problems,

including eye pain or changes in vision. if you are taking asthma medicines, do not change or stop your asthma medicine without talking to your doctor. help heal your skin from within. ask your eczema specialist about dupixent. hey! i live on my own now! help heal your skin from within. i've got xfinity, because i like to live life in the fast lane. unlike my parents. you rambling about xfinity again? you're so cute when you get excited... anyways... i've got their app right here, i can troubleshoot. i can schedule a time for them to call me back,

it's great! you have our number programmed in? ya i don't even know your phone anymore... excuse me?! what? i don't know your phone number. aw well. he doesn't know our phone number! you have our fax number, obviously... today's xfinity service. simple. easy. awesome. i'll pass. make no mistake. we know exactly what path we're on. we know exactly what actions we need to take and while that may take more time than some people want it to take, i respect their impatience. it's a beautiful thing and it's important to our country. >> that new line she introduce there had, i respect their impatience. welcome back. that's house speaker nancy pelosi, steadfast in her stance to hold up on impeachment proceedings. 59 democrats, about a quarter of

their membership in the house, support the launch of an impeachment inquiry right now. is t 19 of those made their decision after robert mueller's public remarks last week. grace nap dlnapolitano was adde after we made our list so she's not on here. some thought we would be in the hundreds after that memorial day recess. it has been more of a trickle. that raises the question, it robert mueller didn't cause a ground swell of support for impeachment inside the house democratic caucus, will anything? democratic congresswoman joins me now, house judiciary committee and one of the democrats who support an impeachment inquiry. good to see you. >> thank you for having me. >> do you feel -- are you surprised that there wasn't a greater number willing to go public about impeachment? here we are, one week removed

from robert mueller's, at the time, stunning public remarks. >> chuck, no, i really wasn't. to begin an impeachment proceeding, process, is a major undertaking. for me as a former law enforcement officer i say it along with the majority of my colleagues in the very begin g beginning, let wait to see what is in the mueller report and kind of take our direction from that. well, after reading the report, i said two months ago and still say today i believe there is enough in that report to show that the president clearly obstructed justice, tried to prevent others from cooperating, persons around him lied, they've been indicted. i believe there's more than enough right now to begin those proceedings. but, look, i have the utmost respect for our speaker. she's the speaker.

she has a lot more to consider. she has to look at the bigger picture than what's going on in the judiciary committee. so i'm not really surprised at the number of people who have not come out publicly. publicly. we have private conversations, a lot of people are frustrated. they are impatient. they feel the way that i do. but let them figure it out. we want to get this right. and so -- but for me, i believe we have enough and we're ready. jim clyburn was implying that impeachment feels inevitable. you're not ready now but you're sort of -- you're getting close. are you one of those that believe -- and i know he walked back the comment. do you believe it's going to happen? it's just not there yet? or this is a 50/50 proposition? >> let me say when you read the mueller report, clearly the president, multiple times either obstructed justice or attempted

to obstruct justice. we know right now, chuck, that he is continuing to obstruct justice by not allowing those around him and those who are former staffers to obey lawful subpoenas that have been issued that prevent us from doing the investigations that the american people expect us to do. now, you know, i heard what the majority whip said. i believe if we stay on this path and justins to be obstructed and we're unable to provide the oversight and do the investigations we need to do, i don't see how impeachment is not inevitable. >> congresswoman, how would -- i assume you're going to run for re-election. i don't want to make assumptions but assuming you run for re-election a year from now and you're out there campaigning and you've not opened an impeachment inquiry, do you think that's a tougher thing for you to explain to your constituents or do you

think -- >> i think a major part of what we're doing right now, right, is to make sure that the american public, people in my district and districts all over this country, understand exactly what the impeachment process means, what it involves and really lay out the case to them. we know they don't have time to read all 400 and something pages of the mueller report. it's up to us to lay the case out for them. it was so significant for the american people to hear bob mueller in his own voice explain some of the most significant portions of that report. >> right. >> but, you know, i keep an open dialogue with the people in my district. of course, they're asking, when are you all going to begin impeachment? some are asking, can you explain what that means? i'm just keeping the lines of communications open for them so they'll understand, those who are in favor. but clearly understand those who are not quite there yet.

so we can all move forward and deal with some of the issues, really, that we have been sent to congress to deal with, like health care and other issues that the other american people worry about. >> i'm curious, does it matter to you that polls are showing that a majority aren't there yet on impeachment? one in michigan showing a majority in michigan. swing state where right now democrats are polling very well against trump but a majority don't want impeachment? in florida that number is higher of people who don't want impeachment. does that have an impact on you at all? look, you're in the swingiest of swing states. >> yeah, i am. >> and if somebody came to you and said impeachment is going to mean the difference between florida going red or blue and starting impeachment is going to push it red, would that have an impact on you? >> chuck, you know, i wish that i had the luxury for me to make every decision as a former law enforcement officer, nows a

member of congress, based on how popular or unpopular that decision would be. i don't have that luxury. and as i said earlier, when you read the mueller report it is clear to me that the president abused his power, obstructed justice and tried to get others to do the same. we have an obligation to address that and take the action given to us by the constitution. it would have been great if robert mueller had drawn a prosecutorial decision but he didn't. i think he laid out the case that it's congress' responsibility. and he has given it to us to act and we need to do that. >> by the way you think you sound like bob mueller wasn't clear enough. i had somebody on my panel sunday say he took a mulligan and hit it into the lake. >> what i said a couple of months ago on a confidential phone call i was on with the

democratic caucus was i wish he had been clear but he did leave us, my words, bread crumbs to follow. and so it would have been great if he had drawn all the conclusions. he didn't. we know in our hearts what the right decision is and we have work to do. >> congresswoman val demings from central florida, thank you for sharing your views. i appreciate it. >> thank you. up ahead, joe biden is being attacked from all sides today. republicans are hitting him on that plagairism charge and president trump having an interview with his old "apprentice" star peers morgan. >> prince charles, he doesn't have to worry about that in theory. that's what impressed me maybe the most. eory that's what impressed me maybe the most

award winning interface. award winning design. award winning engine. the volvo xc90. the most awarded luxury suv of the century. the volvo xc90. as a doctor, i agree with cdc guidance. i recommend topical pain relievers first... like salonpas patch large. it's powerful, fda-approved to relieve moderate pain, yet non-addictive and gentle on the body. salonpas. it's good medicine. hisamitsu. -[ scoffs ] if you say so.

♪ -i'm sorry? -what teach here isn't telling you is that snapshot rewards safe drivers with discounts on car insurance. -what? ♪ -or maybe he didn't know. ♪ [ chuckles ] i'm done with this class. -you're not even enrolled in this class. -i know. i'm supposed to be in ceramics. do you know -- -room 303. -oh. thank you. -yeah. -good luck, everybody. -oh. thank you. -yeah. (kickstart my heart by motley crue)) (truck honks) (wheels screeching) (clapping) (sound of can hitting bag and bowl) (clapping) always there in crunch time. ♪ run with us. on a john deere z500 series mower. built to mow better, faster. because sometimes... when you take a look around... you notice... your grass is long... your time is short... and there's no turning back. ♪

♪ nothing runs like a deere™. run with us. visit your john deere dealer today, to test drive a z500 or z700 series ztrak™ mower. what is that? uh mine, why? it's just that it's... lavender. yes it is, it's for men but i like the smell of it laughs ♪ you should be mad at airports. excuse me, where is gate 87? you should be mad at non-seasoned travelers. and they took my toothpaste away. and you should be mad at people who take unnecessary risks. how dare you, he's my emotional support snake. but you're not mad, because you have e*trade, whose tech helps you understand the risk and reward potential on an options trade it's a paste. it's not liquid or a gel. and even explore what-if scenarios. where's gate 87? don't get mad. get e*trade and start trading today.

>> michigan may be leaning somewhere else these days. >> with us, will you never, ever be forgotten again. >> donald trump was the first

republican nominee to win michigan since the '80s. a new poll shows an uphill battle for him to do it again in 202 2020. >> are you ready to vote tomorrow, michigan? >> some accused hillary clinton of taking michigan for granted in 2016. democratic candidates are focusing on the state early this time around. >> i wanted to come to detroit. after this, i'm going to lansing because i wanted to talk about another economic plan for america. >> michigan wasn't the only state with some new polling for 2020 out today. check out these numbers from texas. joe biden, the only democrat to lead president trump in hypothetical match-ups in texas.

warren trails by one, buttigieg by two. we're back with more "mtp daily" after this. "mtp daily" after this ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ applebee's new loaded fajitas. now that's eatin' good in the neighborhood. when it comes to type 2 diabetes, are you thinking about your heart? well, i'm managing my a1c, so i should be all set. actually, you're still at risk for a fatal heart attack or stroke. that's where jardiance comes in. it reduces the risk of dying from a cardiovascular event for adults who have type 2 diabetes and known heart diseas. that's why the american diabetes association recommends the active ingredient in jardiance. and it lowers a1c? with diet and exercise. jardiance can cause serious side effects including dehydration, genital yeast or urinary tract infections, and sudden kidney problems. ketoacidosis is a serious side effect that may be fatal. a rare, but life-threatening, bacterial infection in the skin of the perineum could occur. stop taking jardiance and call your doctor right away if you have symptoms of this bacterial infection, ketoacidosis, or an allergic reaction.

do not take jardiance if you are on dialysis or have severe kidney problems. taking jardiance with a sulfonylurea or insulin may cause low blood sugar. so, what do you think? now i feel i can do more to go beyond lowering a1c. ask your doctor about jardiance today.

welcome back. joe biden's campaign may have thought their day was going to be about cleaning up one major mistake, after admitting that climate plans had been taken from other sources and not cited properly. it was an actual plagairism scandal that derailed his presidential bid in '88. that isn't what republicans are talking about biden about right now and it's not what democrats are in attack mode. 2020 opponents are going after him for a separate issue, one first reported by our own heidi

pryzbylla. biden's campaign confirmed to nbc news that biden still supports the hyde amendment. that didn't take long to fire up biden's 2020 opponents about the issue. >> i will continue to fight to rip them down and empower women to have better access to contraceptive care, health care and kind of things that help them live healthy lives where they control their destinies. >> this is not about politics. it's about what's right. the hyde amendment should not be american law. >> a woman in the united states of america, no matter how much money she has or doesn't have, should be able to plan the size of her family and deal with her personal health issues. >> harris, gillibrand, o'rourke, sanders, diblasio all tweeted their support for repealing the hyde amendment. joe biden's

the hyde amendment is something that has had general support over the years. here is a poll from 2016. while a majority of democratic voters believe that medicaid funds should be allowed to pay for abortions, 55% of democrats said yes, 37% said no, among all voters, this has been a majority issue the other way, 58% against it, 36% said no. but boy, it allowed every other democrat to basically say look, i'm not joe biden. >> because this is a different context in which we're having this conversation than any previous debate, arguably going back to the inception of roe, with abortion being such an divisive issue on the left. hyde is being seen as one part of how you codify roe.

if the court is going to try to take away roe what can we do legislative to codify roe? they're making this a litmuchlt s test so joe biden stands apart from everybody else on this in that he still supports it. to his credit, it's the same position he has always held. it's just surprising in this current environment and also a lot of these activists, including the aclu, planned parenthood, emily's list. go down the list. they thought they had gotten him to flip on this issue. >> garrett haake, i said his greatest asset is that he has been in politics for 40 years and his greatest liability, he has been in the mainstream of democratic politics for 40 years. is the campaign uncomfortable with how today has gone? i'll get to the whole plaigerism

charge in a moment. >> where the rest of the field is is striking. voters care about this issue a great deal and this has already penetrated since heidi's story came out this morning. >> they need to come out and talk about an issue. this is an issue of his faith and it's not a clean-up. they have to figure out how to talk about this going forward. in terms of the democratic party rather than the plagiarism issue, it's more stable ground to fight on. >> i want to play a quote for you yesterday.

>> number one roe v. wade is the law of the land. woman has a right to choose. and if this court, if this court were to overrule roe v. wade and i was president, i would push to make it legislative veto. >> is that enough to sort of keep the activists who are, as you say, i think because of the moment we're in, what's happened in states like alabama and missouri there's less tolerance in some activists groups for joe biden to moderate his position on abortion. >> we shall soon find out. in my reporting, this is one of the things that was upside down to me. they're saying they want to codify roe but the easiest way to do that is to overturn hyde. he's saying i'm not there yet. you get a feeling he's waiting to see how big the blowback is and then he'll say --

>> i'll sign whatever passed. >> access is already at risk. if access is at risk then we'll do t a lot of democrats say we're already there. >> garrett i want to go to the pl pl plagiarism issue. you expected him to have a bare bones operation, volunteers. joe biden has his name on a public policy institute at the university of pennsylvania. he has been preparing to run for president at least for the last 18 months, perhaps longer than that in different ways. why are they cutting and pasting climate change proposals at the last minute? that, to me, seems to be -- is this a sloppy campaign? are they not up and running? what's going on? >> reporter: look, this was obviously a junior varsity moment for this campaign in what should be very much the varsity level squad. it's embarrassing. it is a staff level mistake. i think it's important to keep the context in mind.

we're not talking about 1988 or '87 technically when words from bobby kennedy and others were coming out of joe biden's mouth. he's not sitting at the word processor typing this out. but, you know, look this is embarrassing. this is not what you want to be talking about. you're the front-runner by 20 points. to have this kind of thing take away essentially, put a cap on the day of talking about an issue that is really of importance to democratic primary voters to me, chuck, the climate issue is, if not the biggest single shift for voters between 2016 and now. this went from an ivory tower liberal elite issue to something that the core base cares about. joe biden's team put together a robust plan and then tripped over themselves in the rollout of it, by not having footnotes over t you and i would have failed a college paper because of this. we lost at least a day on t there's not a plagiarism caucus who will abandon joe biden but

if cheating joe becomes a donald trump twitter nickname -- >> it hits at the electability argument. joe biden is the safe harbor, isn't the risk. now they're like do they run a sloppy campaign? that, to me, is the danger of this story, it actually introduces the idea what if he is not the most stable electable candidate? what if they've got a they're not ready for this? >> in this field they've seen the trend where success begets success. if you appear to be doing poorly, your numbers slide. it's so fluid. if your whole argument is that you are an electable juggernaut who can take down the sky and you're the only one who can't, you have to act like a juggernaut all the time. that means you can't have these kind of mistakes. >> junior varsity line. heidi and i were impressed with that one. well done there. garrett haake, good to see you,

sir. >>s a former junior varsity player. >> i hope to make the squad. heidi pryzbyla thank you. 2020 democrats distancing themselves from front-runner joe biden. and tune in tonight, speaking of somebody who is all in on going after biden. elizabeth warren joins "all in" with chris hayes for a live town hall event. elizabeth warren live frindiana tonight at 8:00 p.m. eastern. i'm all in. are you? m. eastern i'm all in are you? it's a beautiful piece of land.

so why haven't you started building? tyler's off to college... and mom's getting older... and eventually we would like to retire. td ameritrade can help you build a plan for today and tomorrow. come with a goal. leave with a plan. td ameritrade. ♪ if old sphow will theyense helps know i worked hard?, i've gotta make stuff harder. ♪ there, that's hard. ♪ they're america's biopharmaceutical researchers. pursuing life-changing cures in a country that fosters innovation here, they find breakthroughs... like a way to fight cancer by arming a patient's own t-cells...

because it's not just about the next breakthrough... it's all the ones after that. back then, we checked our zero times a day. times change. eyes haven't. that's why there's ocuvite. screen light... sunlight... longer hours... eyes today are stressed! but ocuvite has vital nutrients to help protect them. ocuvite. eye nutrition for today. my time is thin, but so is my lawn. now there's scotts thick'r lawn 3-in-1 solution. with a soil improver! seed! and fertilizer to feed! now yard time is our time. this is a scotts yard. that's why with dell small business technology advisors. you'll get tailored product solutions, expert tech advice and one-on-one partnership. call an advisor today at 877-buy-dell. ♪

(alarm beeping) welcome to our busy world. where we all want more energy. but with less carbon footprint. that's why, at bp, we're working to make energy that's cleaner and better. we're producing cleaner-burning natural gas. and solar and wind power. and wherever your day takes you... we have advanced fuels for a better commute. and we're developing ultra-fast-charging technology for evs.. at bp, we see possibilities everywhere. so we can all keep advancing.

plagiarizeplagiarismnow it's actually called extreme weather. >> we're confused, too. weather changes both ways, whatever that means. then there was his dust-up with meghan markle, duchess of sussex, over whether he did or did not call her nasty, which he actually did say on tape. >> what happens is they talked

about nasty. we were talking about nasty, she was nasty to me. and that's okay for her to be nasty. it's not good for me to be nasty to her and i wasn't. >> did you get a chance to talk to her? >> i think she's doing very well. >> denying word nasty, i think he said it six times in that sentence. i'm still confused. then there was the matter of the uss john mccain. >> i did not know anything about it. i'm not sure it happened. someone said they had to paint the ship and they have tarpallins all over the place. i hear it is fake news. maybe it is and maybe it isn't. >> the painting thin is new to us here. the u.s. military confirmed that it was a white house staffer that made the request for the ship to be kept out of sight for the recent visit. mulvany came on the show and said it. i did not even get to the tape where mr. trump said nobody knew about vietnam when it was

happening. s happening. your brain changes as you get older. but prevagen helps your brain with an ingredient originally discovered... in jellyfish. in clinical trials, prevagen has been shown to improve short-term memory. prevagen. healthier brain. better life. (woman) when you have the support of a probiotic and the gastroenterologists who developed it. wherever you go. (vo) align naturally helps to soothe your occasional digestive upsets 24/7 with a unique strain of bacteria

you can't get anywhere else. (woman) you could say align puts the "pro" in probiotic. so where you go, the pro goes. oh. (vo) go with align. the pros in digestive health. my time is thin, but so is my lawn. now there's scotts thick'r lawn 3-in-1 solution. with a soil improver! seed! and fertilizer to feed! now yard time is our time. this is a scotts yard. ♪ ♪ award winning interface. award winning design. award winning engine. the volvo xc90. the most awarded luxury suv of the century.

[ slurps ] gwho's a good boy?. it's me. me, me, me. hey guys! you're gonna want to get in on this. i know how to those guys in here. let's pause the internet on their devices. wohhh? huhhhh? [ grumbling ] all: sausages! mmm, mmmm. bon appetite. make time for what matters. pause your wifi with xfinity xfi and see the secret life of pets 2 in theaters.

in these times, democrats can no more keep a promise to take us back to the 2000s or the 1990s than conservatives can keep a promise to take us back to the 1950s.

we can only look forward. >> time for the lid. democrats were already trying to create a contrast between themselves and joe biden. that was over the weekend. that was before today's news about the vice president and his continued support for the hyde amendment. so howard, joe biden is, we've been through this year. this is his strength and weakness is the same thing. this long track record in american politics. you know what you're going to get with joe biden. and the democrats, i feel like, have been trying to figure out how to chip away at him. they've been trying to do night nice way. does the nice start to go away? >> we are inevitably entering the pinata phase here. joe biden has been stably ahead in all the polls for a number of months. let's head into the debate season. people are now looking for contrasts and ways to take them

down. joan is the person and secondarily bernie sanders who have the most to lose in the series of debates. and people are looking at ways to distinguish among the different subcategories of candidates. but also joe biden. he is kind of like, he represents the democratic party to the extent there is somebody who sort of institutionally represents the party. everybody else is arguing for change. his trick has been the difficulties he's to be an institutionalist and change at the same time. that's the hardest thing he has had to do. especially at his age and given all of his experience. >> i want you to hear it from this voter. ask about joe biden. take listen. >> biden is a good default, i guess. i wish he was more progressive rather than, rather than so moderate.

he is good except i don't like this amendment we're talking about right now. >> in a general, no. but in the primary, i would not vote for him in the primaries anyway. >> that seems to be, he won't be the candidate for some in the primaries. but that is his strength is what she said. i'll vote for him in the general. is that a strength or a weakness for biden? >> i think it is both. what is so glaring is that it illuminates something that was howard was talking about. this idea that joe biden is campaigning on what was lost since president obama left office. a rolling back the clock. then you have all the other candidates running for a new democratic party. a new future there. and i think what joe biden has said really illuminates what many feel about him. that he is out of step with today's democratic party. which has shifted left.

we saw that with the type of candidates elected in many places. i think that's where it gets dicey for him. >> i think there are some things he has to stick to his guns on. he can't show he will get pushed around. on there are some things. >> i don't know if that's right. yes, he is standing alone among democrats but he is standing with an awful lot of democraters voters. >> those numbers are three years old but a third of the democrats. >> that's right. and it is not necessarily a deal breaker. i think this is what another issue which puts him in a better position for the general election. the problem is, at the same time, he is undermining the electricitiability by the way he's going about it. having to appear to endorse getting rid of it a few years ago and then coming back and saying he's still for it. that raises the question, oh-oh, are we going to have more gaffes with this campaign? this is the third presidential campaign. the other two were pretty bad.

>> is there sort of like, is biden protected on the "gaffe front by trump? >> unfairly, no. >> you don't think so? >> no. everybody has to answer. the president doesn't even, he talks both ways. >> we're talking about the two different universes here. the democratic party universe. the answer is no. trump is irrelevant to the question of who will be picked to take him on in that sense. one other thing. i talked about kentucky a lot. western pennsylvania is my home and i know in those counties, where there is a strong rural catholic vote. >> the jack murtha candidate. >> yes. >> the fact that joe biden will stick to his guns on the hyde amendment. not only doesn't hurt him. it helps him. the problem is getting from here to there. >> that's interesting. it does feel like the gloves are somewhat off the democrats when

it comes to joe biden. >> finger by finger. >> if it's wednesday, you know what that means. there is a new chuck todd cast. get it now. you get a new preview by my buddy. it's a good listen. that's all for tonight. we'll be back tomorrow. more "meet the press daily." >> we have a lot including this new ad that donald trump might actually see because it is running on fox news. the republican prosecutors alleging donald trump committed crimes. later, i'll be joined by a conservative who actually left the gop over donald trump. george will is here for a very special conversation. and then we go live to indiana where elizabeth warren is campaigning in trump country. chris hayes is on "the beat" for that later tonight. we begin the long shad over bob mueller. a public servant with such a sterling reputation. such integrity, such influence which many say was e