please wear a mask and stay safe and remember, if it's sunday it's "meet the press." thanks for being with us here tonight very happy to have you here. our guest tonight is mary l. trump. the niece of the current president of the united states when the president's, what is it, 54th national security adviser, john bolton, sought earlier this year to publish his book about his time in the trump white house, you may recall there were lots of threats from the white house and from the president personally, there was a concerted legal effort including anne esffort by the u department of justice to try to stop john bolton from publishing that book. that's the kind of thing this attorney general, bill barr, is happy to do for this president

but john bolton's publisher,shut to the mattresses for him. they fought tooth and nail they defied the white house bluster and threats. they fought every legal action and they got that thing out. and, you know, simon and shuster has the first amendment on their side and they were righteously and effectively standing up for the first amendment rights of themselves and their author, for sure to be honest, though, simon & shuster also knew it was really important that the bolton book hit bookstores because they knew it would sell a gajillion copies and it did the bolton book has been a huge bestseller, something like 800,000 copies in its first week that was a record for simon & shuster. until today when the same publisher just announced that mary's trump new book about her uncle, the president, her

account of her life in the trump family and what she came to learn about her uncle, what she describes as his manifest unfitness for office, we learn the today her book didn't sell 800,000 copies in its first week like john bolton's did her book sold nearly 1 million copies in 1 day. sorry, mr. bolton, mary trump will have your seat now. and congratulations to simon & shuster for what is amounting to a bang-up summer for people saying absolutely horrifying things about what they know about this president from close proximity to him so as i mentioned tonight we're going to be joined here by mary trump. you should know that before she wrote this book, she was not exactly in hiding. this is obviously her debut as an internationally known person, but she has pursued a distinguished academic career including recognition as a literature student at tufts, which may explain in part why

she's a notably good writer, which i think is helping sell this book. she earned her ph.d. in clinical psychology she's contributed to widely-whited book ewidely cited books in that field and been in the press in the past as a lower profile but goodstanding member of the famous trump family she was notably in the press before, in an instance where something went very, very wrong inside that family and you should know this for context. i'm going to quote this to you from an article in the "new york daily news" from december of 2000 "on june 25th, 1999, fred trump, one of the last of new york city's major post-war builders, died in a queens hospital of age 93 after suffering from al alzheimer's disease for several years. fred iii, a 38-year-old real estate broker, told the 650 mourners at marlboro collegiate

church his grandfather was a generous man who show eed a responsibility for those in need he was glad he was asked to speak, an acknowledgement to his dead father, and he and his sister were family fred delivered his eulogy, his wife, lisa, sat in a front pew pregnant with her third child. that night after returning into their home in greenwich, connecticut, lisa went into labor. all seemed well at first 48 hours after baby william trump was born he turned blue in his mother's arms, his body stiffening and shaking uncontrollably it was the first of many devastating seizures to come what followed for the next harrowing six weeks of his life were brain scans, spinal taps, blood tests, and heart-wrenching visits to three different hospitals including yale medical center doctors eventually diagnosed young william with infantile spasms, a rare disorder that can lead to cerebral palsy or autism and a lifetime of care

"we just don't know what william's future holds and what he'll be able to do in his life," said lisa, a full-time mom. during the baby's three-week stay at mt. sinai, robert trump called to assure his nephew that whatever the child needed would be covered by precise, the trump company medical plan around-the-clock nurses, neurologists, pulmonologists, emergency room visits, when william stopped breathing twice in the first eight mornths of hi tragic life. we were so relieved when he called, fred iii remembered. followed by a july 19th letter to a lawyer to the family insurance broker which read, quote, please instruct precise, the trump company medical plan, please instruct precise to pay 100% of all costs relating to baby william's care, notwithstanding any plan limits, percentage, number of visits or maximum dollar amount and whether or not they are deemed by precise to be medically necessary. so, the baby was born in june

1999 the day of fred trump sr.'s funeral. lisa trump goes into labor baby william trump is born june '99. the family as of june and july 1999 was explicitly and in writing promising to pay through the family business health plan 100% of all of the health care needs for this little boy in their family in the meantime, though, there was the matter of grandfather trump's will remember, he had passed away in june '99 and there ended up being a dispute in the family as to whether or not all five of his kids, including the descendants of his eldest son, freddy, who died, a dispute as to whether or not all five of fred trump's kids would receive equal shares of the grandfather's will. or would only the surviving four kids split the estate. well, donald trump, the current president, was one of the

surviving four kids and from what you know about him, you can imagine how he felt about that dispute. right? if you cut out the descendants of his deceased elder brother, freddy, well, donald's sir hare the inheritance would be that much larger, split four ways instead of five. as that dispute percolated in the family, donald trump and his surviving siblings decided to pull the one nastiest little lever that they had over their deceased brother's kids. they explicitly moved to cut off the medical coverage for the little baby boy with a seizure disorder "on march 30th, fred iii received a certified letter informing him the medical benefits that had always been provided to his family by the trump organization would end lisa trump, friday iii's wife, said, quote, i burst out into tears. fred says, quote, i just think it was wrong these are not warm and fuzzy people they never even came to see

william in the hospital. our family puts the fun in dysfunctional. and then there's donald trump. asked in an interview with the "daily news" whether he thought cutting this health coverage could appear coldhearted given the baby's medical condition donald told the "new york daily news" that he made no apologies. he said, quote, i can't help that george washington couldn't lie about whether or not he cut down the cherry tree. jfk had pt109. eisenhower saved the free world from the nazis all presidents have backstories. you know, what they do to get them to the white house. it's part of their lore, right part of why the country chooses them to lead for donald trump, there is that time he cut off health insurance to his baby boy nephew with a severe seizure disorder as a hardball legal tactic against his relatives so he could get his share of their money i cannot tell a lie says george washington about the cherry

tree i can't help that, says donald trump about denying life-saving care to a baby so he can inherit his relative's share of his dad's money in addition to the millions of dollars he was already getting from his dad's estate so that makes news in 2000 and mary trump surfaces in that story at the time, she's a grad student and she's trying to be supportive of her brother and her brother's sick little boy and she tells the "daily news" for that story, quote, my aunt and uncles should be ashamed of themselves quot quote, i'm sure they are not when mary trump's uncle, donald, would go on to be elected president in 2016, mary trump responded online to "new york times" columnist charles blow writing online about his dismay with the election results that night. mary trump responded, quote, worst night of my life that same night legal analyst lisa bloom wrote on twitter,

quote, dear world, i'm so embarrassed for my country, please do not judge us too harshly for this mary trump wrote online in response, quote, we should be judged harshly i just hope we do the work to right this horrific wrong. i grieve for our country bloom then wrote, quote, we are not moving to canada, we're staying an fighting like hill. like hillary like hell we're staying and fighting like hill for values and our country, in the courts, in the streets. mary trump wrote back to her, one word, one number, really, mary trump wrote back to her online that night, quote, 2020 period well, now it's 2020 and mary trump's new book about her family, specifically, about her uncle, sold a million copies on the first day of its release this week. and the white house did everything it could to try to stop this book from coming out, too. threatening and talking all

sorts of smack the president's younger brother, mary trump's uncle, robert, miraculously sprouted the same anti-first amendment lawyer that the president has repeatedly used to try to stop people from publishing things about him that he doesn't like. they sued mary trump to try to stop the book. and, you know, the past financial disputes within the family on which ms. trump and the president have definitely been on opposing sides, you know, that certainly tells you, yeah, you know, wow, there's probab probably family bitterness there, take that with a grain of salt when you read very unflattering things she has to say about him. you know, those financial disputes, themselves, she's not hiding them. and they're not just psychological context in terms of understanding what she's written here those financial disputes are also material to this as news. because part of the story that mary trump has to tell is about the president cheating financially. including trying to cheat

members of his own family. those disputes ultimately lead to mary trump having reams of trump family financial documents which turns out contained evidence of decades-long schemes carried out by the president and his family to not just evade taxes, but to commit serious financial fraud including some types of financial fraud that may have affected tenants in new york city in a we thay that continues even to this day those alleged fraudulent schemes and tax evasion schemes were laid out from those documents that mary trump provided and explained ultimately in a gonzo huge "new york times" investigation that produced a pulitzer prize for the reporters who wrote it and created legal concerns for the president that remain today as both congressional investigators and new york prosecutors have just been cleared by the united states supreme court to pursue

financial records and tax records for both the president, himself, and his businesses. just today, new york prosecute s ers and the president's lawyers were in court arguing about how quickly a subpoena for his financial records can now be served now that the supreme court says he can't evade that subpoena just because he's president. i should say the prosecutors were making the case to that judge today for how quickly they'd like to get those records from the president the president i's lawyers were arguing to the judge how much more slowly they'd like the judge to go, please, because tick tock, election's in november also, tick tock, mary trump's book about her lifelong knowledge of the conduct and scams of the president, well, that book is out now and it has sold a million copies and there's a weeks-long waiting list right now to get a physical copy of this book at some major booksellers. that said, you have an advantage because you are here and mary trump joins us here tonight to talk about it. joining us now is mary l. trump.

she is the niece of president donald trump she's the author of the new book called "too much and never enough : how my family created the world's most dangerous man." ms. trump, thank you so, so much for being here we have been through -- we've been through the wars together, technically, in terms of trying to get this sbrinterview on the air. thanks so much for sticking with us and thank you for being here. >> it's an honor, rachel i really appreciate your having me >> first, let me ask you in terms of the introduction that i did there and the way that i set this up if i'm looking at any of that the wrong way or if i've been misconstruing anything that you were trying to do in terms of the way that you approached the book i want to make sure that i'm explaining these things in terms that you're comfortable with >> yeah, it was both accurate and devastating. >> how are you doing since the book has landed? i mean, i imagine you knew that this was going to make a splash, but i can't imagine that you

thought it was going to make this big a splash both in terms of the number of books sold but also the attention, the national attention, that this has brought to you is this how you thought it would go >> not even close. it's been extraordinarily gratifying i have to say. it's been a long time coming and it hasn't always been an easy road. so really happy, way beyond my expectations >> have you heard from anybody in your family or in the white house or the trump organization or anybody since the book came out or since people knew what was in the book or has it just been basically the legal fight to try to stop you from publishing, other than that you've been on your own? >> yeah, it's just been the legal fight. and i think that's -- that's fine with me that's appropriate >> i found myself thinking in

speed reading the book the first day that i got it and then rereading it when i found out i was going to get a chance to talk to you, i found myself thinking about your, like, acute cognizance of whether it's a useful thing for you to do this. you, obviously on election night were despondent that your uncle had won the presidency and we learn through the book about the deep, dark, sort of secrets of your family in terms of why you feel like he is so inappropriate. so unsuited for the job. but you also seem to be sort of resigned to the idea that nothing you say might change anybody's view about him that you didn't release the book before the 2016 election because you didn't think it would make a difference or change anybody's mind how did you -- how did you -- how did your state of mind about that question change between 2016 and now that you felt like it was worth taking it on now,

it was worth putting yourself out there? >> yeah, that's a great question there's been quite an evolution and i think we need to start with the fact that the concept of learned helplessness is something that runs very deep in my family. and i think there are examples in the book that point to that so, in 2016 literally all i would have had was my own experience and my own voice. and i -- there was no reason for me to believe that either one of those would have mattered. i thought about it, but first of all, in the context of all the other things that were going on, the donald was getting away with, from his attacks on a gold-star family, the khans, and serge koboleski, a reporter at "the new york times" and, of course, culminating in the "access hollywood" tape, i just

didn't think anybody would take me seriously i had a lot of reasons to believe that i would be dismissed as a disgruntled, disinherited niece, who had been out of the family to all intents and purposes for almost 20 years., too, was thinking that donald was the problem. right? and, of course, after the inauguration, he would be surrounded by more competent people who understood how government worked and they would protect him and us from his worst impulses clearly, i was wrong to make that assumption. so it wasn't just the speed with which he started upending norms which he'd started doing during the campaign it was the number of people who lined up to help him in that endeavor

which has only grown longer and more egregious as time's gone on i can't say that there was a last straw because there have been so many straws, but certainly, the horrors at the border, you know, the separating of children from their parents, the torture, the kidnapping, and the incarceration of them in cages, was unthinkable, unbearable, and when i had -- when an opportunity presented itself to me to do something, i needed to take a leap. >> our guest tonight is mary trump. her new book is called "too much and never enough." we'll be right back with more. ta-da! did you know liberty mutual customizes your car insurance so you only pay for what you need? given my unique lifestyle, that'd be perfect!

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you write in a very dramatic section of the book toward the end about the leap that you took when you decided that you would provide the financial documents that you had to "the new york times. there's this great moment where

you describe the reporter, suzanne craig, from "the new york times" turning up on your doorstep to ask, help, to ask for your help with this thing that they are working on in terms of trump family finances and you say to her that it is, quote, so not cool that you are showing up at my house and you send her away but do let her leave her card with you. and i asked suzanne craig about that she was very professional and really wouldn't talk about her side of that at all other than to confirm everything you were saying was true. >> right. >> but that -- that seems to me like that was maybe a pivot point for you, too you initially did not have any interest in talking to her, but something happened with you alone you decided, you know what, maybe those documents can help and they should get out there. without even really knowing what was in them, you decided to hand them over. what was that process like >> first of all, the crucial

difference was that suzanne craig, extraordinary investigative reporter, was finally giving me something concrete that i could do i totally forgotten about those documents and there was no reason for me to think they mattered they hadn't mattered when i needed them 20 years ago why would they matter now? an after i asked her to leave but took her card, anyway, in an interesting bit of unconscious wishfulness i guess, she persisted. she wrote me a few letters she called a couple of times and i thought about it you know, i still wasn't necessarily going to do anything because it wasn't even clear to them what would be in these documents, quite honestly. and i didn't feel yet able to.

it would have been taking a big risk not that i necessarily felt that, but it was so amorphous, still, for me, and then i fractured my fifth metatarsal badly and wound up on my couch for a few months so i watched far too much tv than was good for me and was on twitter far too much as well and watching in real time what was happening to this country. the destruction of institutional norms, the perversion of our institutions that were desiesigd to protect us. the failure of the other branches of government was really weighing on me so finally one night i remembered all of the things sue had been telling me and i decided to trust her and i called her

we had a long conversation and within a week i was on my way on my crutches to the office of the lawyer who'd represented me all those years ago and it's a much longer story than i'll tell now, but a few weeks later i left with 19 boxes full of whatturned out to be quite explosive documents. >> and they were explosive in ways that you didn't necessarily understand when you decided to hand them over i mean, part of the "times" reporting and part of the reason their piece was like, 14,000 words and went on to win the pulitzer prize is they were able to tease out from essentially anodyne looking records this incredible story of alleged fraud and criminal tax evasion and, again, there are some trailing ends of that right now in terms of the president's potential legal liability, but by the time the "times" story came out, did you know what they had?

did you know that sort of the explosiveness of the alleged misdeeds that they were going to uncover, thanks to what you gave them >> i had no idea it was extraordinary i mean, the brilliance o overstated they were anodyne documents but they were also incredibly complex. and the financial devices that my family used to cover up certain things they were doing were not easily decipherable so, i was utterly blown away as, you know, just objectively by the story, but also personally, to find out just exactly what had happened in the family that i didn't understand at the time and also considering it wasn't just, you know, people in my family did these things

that they shouldn't have done, but that these were my aunts and uncles who also happened to be my trustees and clearly i didn't benefit from the role that they were supposed to play in protecting my financial interests when i was younger >> the consequences of that reporting and of what was uncovered thanks to those documents that you had access to and handed over and that those reporters analyzed, still i'm not sure we totally understand what the ultimate implication of that is going to be. obviously, there's statute of limitations questions for a lot of that alleged behavior in terms of whether or not it could ever be criminally charged, but it does seem to have cost your aunt, mary ann trump, her lifetime job on the federal bench. she resigned ahead after heahe inquiry that would have looked into her role in those financial schemes. it also is potentially linked to both the congressional investigation and new york

prosecutors' subpoenas that now have been greenlit by the supreme court. in terms of the president's finances and trump organization finances being handed over do -- how -- going through what you've been through, learning what you have learned, knowing what your family has done, do you have any expectations in terms of what prosecutors or congressional investigators might find if they got complete -- the kind of access that they want to the financial records that your uncle is trying to keep hidden? >> i have no particular insight into that. you know, nobody's spoken to me about it essentially, my role ended when i handed over the 40,000 pages of documents but if the "times" story is anything to go by, i think there's a lot more to uncover. and there will clearly now that the supreme court made, in my opinion, the correct ruling, there will be many more documents to come. >> let me ask you, mary, about something that you said in an

interview with "washington post" this week. you talked with ashley parker at the "washington post." and you said there was -- she's quoted you saying there was knee jerk anti-semitism, knee jerk racism, in your family the "post" quotes you as saying, "growing up it was sort of normal to hear them use the "n" word or use anti-semitic expressions. i wanted to you to expand on that do you mean just generally within the family that was an accepted thing or do you mean specifically you heard your uncle, donald, use that kind of language >> just generally. with the older generations as if it were perfectly commonplace and ordinary to say such things. i had the benefit of living in jamaica, not jamaica estates, and going to school in forest hills, so i didn't share their ideas about race and judaism at

all. when you grow up with that, being perfectly normal, then you don't really think twice about it >> have to press you on it a little bit just to ask if the president, if your uncle, was an exception to that in your family or if he -- if you ever heard him express, either use anti-semitic slurs or the "n" words or other racist words or sentiments. do you mean this was an ambient thing in your family and never heard it from him or hear it from him, too? >> yeah, of course, i did. i don't think that should surprise anybody given how racist he is today. >> have you heard -- have you heard the president use the "n" word >> yeah.

>> and anti-semitic slurs, specifically >> yes >> mary trump's new book, "too much and never enough," is about her uncle, the president, and her upbringing in the trump family we will be right back with more. experience the adventure of a bigger world in a highly capable lexus suv at the golden opportunity sales event. lease the 2020 nx 300 for $339 a month for 36 months. experience amazing at your lexus dealer. of new gain with essential oils detergent.t she was really feeling it when... she remembered everything. you've got this girl. just inhale. and repeat. new gain with essential oils detergent.

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i thought was the single weirdest thing in the book, which other reviewers and people who have read it and talked about it have not singled out. this strikes me as so weird i literally woke up in the night thinking about it. >> i'm sorry >> it's -- you -- no, it's all right. i wake up a lot, anyway. but it's this anecdote where you are being introduced to the -- not the president but donald trump, your uncle at the time introducing you to ivanka, who would go on to become the first

lady, page 163 spro deuces y introduces you to mrs. trump and immediately tells melania in front of you that you had a terrible drug problem, which is not true, you correct him in the moment, never done drugs in pmy life "he slid me a smile, he was embellishing the story for a fact and knew i knew it. she was a total disaster, smiling more broadly." the reason this sticks with me is not just because he told a weird lie about you doing drugs when you didn't do drugs but that he voiced that lie in front of you when he knew that it wasn't true and then seemed to sort of take pleasure in you being helpless before him lying about you? it's a very -- psychologically, your trade isclinical psychology, psychologically that's a weird portrait about what pleasure a person would get from lying, isn't it >> yeah. it's also a power play >> hmm.

>> one, it fits into his favorite narrative you know, the comeback is much more impressive if you're coming back from a really awful place in the gutter like being a drug addict instead of just, like, having a tough time in life, just as with his comeback, you know, it was the bankruptcies and the horrible economy and he was really down for the count. so, therefore, climbing the summit again was even more impressive although, you know, it's questionable whether that actually happened. so, there's that it's framing the narrative in a way he prefers it also makes him the savior because remember, that story is told in the context of, and then i gave her a job so, he's sort of taking responsibilityin part for my

reclamation, if you will but more than that, it really is a power play the difference between that anecdote and other things i see happening is most of the time people don't correct him, which completely plays into his hand because then he's -- he can do it with impunity >> in that sort of -- the comeback idea there is because he did at one point engage you to potentially ghost write another one of his ghost-written books which would be about "the art of the comeback. it's also telling and fascinating to me that after you spent time at the trump organization and you were, you know, provided materials that you were supposed to srt ort ofe to start ghost writing this book, you write pointedly, the last line of one of your chapters that for all that you were allowed to see and all that you were allowed to witness including sitting in on his

supposed business phone calls where he'd just put somebody on speaker without him -- without that person knowing that you were listening in, getting all this access, you write you really at the end of it had absolutely no idea what he did for a living, it never became clear to you what his actual business work was because it never really seemed like he was doing anything that's fascinating to me because a lot of people who have taken a look at his finances and his business -- supposed business background, have also come up empty but they've been looking from a distance. you were looking from up close and just felt like there was no -- there was no actual real business work ever done by him >> right it's also important to remember, it was a very small company. certainly compared t estate developers. but the only work i saw being done was by other people in the

office so it was pretty fascinating first of all, his never being willing to sit for an interview with me but then just having absolutely no insight into any productive projects that he was engaged in i didn't see any evidence of it. >> mary trump is our guest tonight. her new book just sold nearly a million copies on its first day. more ahead stay with us (vo) parents have a way of imagining the worst... ...especially when your easily distracted teenager has the car. at subaru, we're taking on distracted driving... ...with sensors that alert you when your eyes are off the road. the subaru forester. the safest forester ever.

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the first and only full prescription strength non-steroidal anti-inflammatory gel available over-the-counter. new voltaren is powerful arthritis pain relief in a gel. voltaren. the joy of movement. in terms of the work that he is capable of, you spent some time in the book discussing the president's terrible consequential mismanagement of the coronavirus epidemic and you spend a few pages kind of marveling at the fact that it wouldn't have been hard for any president to be kind of a hero here, right? to use the defense production act to produce more supplies and tests and ppe. i mean, you have to listen to

the scientific experts and, you know, amplify their message and do what they say activate the gears of government that are supposed to turn during this kind of crisis. instead, he didn't, and you kind of, as i said, marvel at that in the book i think the country along with you is kind of stuck on this open question that you are asking here about why and how he has bungled this crisis so badly. just now openly musing that it will go away on its own as if that's the only thing that he's capable of doing i wonder if you can just talk a little bit about why you wrote this part of the book and what you think the answer might be to that question about why the president has made all the wrong decisions around this crisis and done so little work to fix anything >> i thought it was very important to address this because, of course, it's ongoing. even at the time i was writing, we were, i think in new york we

were past the worst of it but it was clear that the rest of the country was not doing what it needed to do i want people to understand what a failure of leadership this is and the reason he's failing at it is because he's incapable of succeeding at it it would have required taking responsibility, which would, in his mind, have meant admitting a mistake which in his mind would be admitting weakness which in my family was essentially punished with the death penalty. symbolically, or otherwise what i think we need to grapple with now is why so many people are continuing to allow this the fact that he is dividing us at the expense of people's lives, i mean, what, we're

140,000 americans and counting are dead and the vast majority of those people did not need to lose their lives, if only donald had said, listen to the scientists, wear a mask, stay home the fact that this is continuing, people are dying every day. there are states in this country that are absolutely out of control. and to curry favor with donald, certain governors are continuing to ignore the science and more people are getting sick and more people are going to die. it is utterly insane at this point. we need to wake up and instead of taking it seriously, instead of standing aside and letting the experts take over, donald is hocking black beans.

it would be add subsurd if it w' so devastating >> your uncle, of course, has a very reasonable chance at winning a secondcourse, has a very reasonable chance at winning a second term. any incumbent does, even one with sort of upside numbers like he has right now what do you think the consequences of another four years of a donald trump presidency would be? you write about that in the book, as if you are genuine lie fearful that a second term could be qualitatively for dangerous for country than his first term was. >> yeah. and i want to -- i want to make something really clear this -- this is beyond partisanship this is so beyond party. we need to be thinking about this, as americans we need to be thinking about what -- who we want to be as a people, going forward. i hear people say, all the time, this is not who we are this is exactly who we are right now. so, continuing along this path, which is exactly what would

happen if donald were to be elected in 2020, would, i absolutely believe, be the end of the american experiment i do not believe there's any coming back from this. there are too many enablers who are, for whatever reason, continuing to enable him bill barr has gutted the justice department mike pompeo has gutted the state department we are in serious, serious danger, here and unfortunately, that is no longer hyperbolic. that's just the way it is. >> do you share the concerns that some people have voiced that if your uncle loses the election, that he might try to not leave the white house? that he might try to hold onto power through some extrademocratic means, by force. do you think that sort of worry is hyperbolic at this point?

or is that the sort of thing that you're concerned he might resort >> no, i think it's perfectly reasonable to think about that but how he responds, depends a lot on, if he loses, how badly he loses i think the more resounding joe biden victory, the less likely it is for donald to stick around he, as a, you know, somebody who needs to be right all the time and needs to be winning all the time will need, desperately, to spin away from a crushing defeat and i don't know what form that would take but that, as far as i'm concerned, is the only way to, not guarantee but, at least, give us a better possibility that there will be a peaceful transition after the election on november 3rd

>> okay. we're back with mary trump, in just a moment. i have one last sort of difficult-to-ask question that i want to ask her. that is straight ahead stay with us i should get a quote. do it. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ and still going for my best. even though i live with a higher risk of stroke due to afib...

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question for you and again, i want to thank you for spending this much time here and talking with us. and i just have to ask given what you're saying about your uncle, and what degree you think he'd be willing to go to, in order to get what he wants. and what you've done, in terms of handing over documents to reporters. and what you have said in the book and what you've laid out here i just have to -- i -- i find myself worrying about you, and wondering if you are scared. if you feel like you have put yourself in personal danger, by doing what you've done and talking the way that you have, and saying the things that you've said. that the president obviously doesn't want out there in the

world. it's different than some critic who has no relation to him criticizing him in harsh terms what you are doing is different and comes from a place that's very close to him. i i wonder if you feel safe? >> i'm not scared. i'm taking appropriate precautions, certainly, because i am not diluted about potential scenarios. he is in a position of great power. i know my family to be quite vindictive, and donald has a rather passionate following. but, all of that aside, i -- this need -- i needed to do this i felt it was my responsibility. i felt it was my obligation. and whatever the consequences are, i'm prepared to deal with them, as best i can. >> mary l. trump the book is called "too much and

never enough, how my family created the world's most dangerous man. it is breaking records, in terms of books sold on its first day and it is changing the world, as we speak mary trump, thank you so much for -- for writing the book. but also, especially, for being here to help us understand it. come back neanytime you want to. i'd love to have you back. >> thank you so much, rachel. >> i need to tell you we did ask the white house tonight for a response to mary trump's claims, that she has heard the president use anti-semitic slurs and racial slurs, including specifically the n word, the white house gave us this statem response. quote, this is a book of falsehoods, plain and simple the president doesn't use those words. just to be clear, this claim that mary trump says she's heard the president use the n word and other racist slurs and anti semitic slurs, that claim isn't actually from her book it's just something she said in this interview so them denouncing the book doesn't help

but still, we thank the white house for at least giving us the statement. that is going to do it for us tonight. i am now going to have like ten martinis and try to not think about this for a few hours god. god bless us all this is an msnbc special series >> voting is as american as apple pie. i voted in every election since 1980 to me, the right to vote is as fundamental as the right to eat. i'm traveling through some key battleground states. >> if you change florida, you change america >> eating some of the best food in the country. >> that's as good as barbecue gets. >> and questioning whether that basic right really is open to everyone >> why wouldn't we do everything that we can to make sure that

everyone can vote? >> but we do. >> there is no better way to find out what's really going on than by sharing a meal. >> this is insane. >> with those fighting for a seat at the table. it's not a red/blue issue. this is an american issue. >> i'm andrew zimmern. storyteller, chef, world traveler. >> that's delicious. >> i'm exploring our country, looking at the biggest social and political questions of the day, through the lens of food. i mean, there is no one solution sharing some amazing meals, along the way. and trying to figure out what's eating america november 2020 could be the most important election in modern-american history.

yet, several states are actively making it more difficult for people to cast their vote. >> as wisconsin is springing into action to take more than 230,000 voters off the rolls, effective immediately. the great state of georgia, as of tonight, is doing the same thing. >> voter suppression has a long history in the united states so does the fight for voting rights modern-day act vikivists on the front lines at places like the ballot box in places like arizona, florida my first stop is atlanta,

georgia, to visit a legendary name in soul food since 1947 pascal's classic dishes, like smothered catfish, ribs, and savory greens and of course, the house specialty, fried chicken help make pascal's one of atlanta's hottest spots. it was, also, a place that helped fuel the fight for civil rights throughout the 1960s. >> this is where the coalition started. we had a hotel, at that time and they met there, day and night. sometimes, they wouldn't leave for act a month. this was just known as the home for the movement and for everybody to congregate in atlanta. >> they nurtured and they fed martin luther king john lewis coretta scott king. >> historian and author of the book "one person, in vote. >> to think about what it takes to steel yourself, to be able to

face the kind offolks, who were determined to break open an oppressive system. and to have a place where you can get nurtured, fed, replenished, renewed it's absolutely essential. >> the one thing that i've always known, since i was little, was that hug that only food can give you. right? in an era when african-americans were denied service throughout the south, dining out, itself, could be an act of resistance. >> they're famous for their fried chicken. i couldn't help getting us a little bit of catfish and shrimp jambalaya. >> this is what reminds me of my mom. >> when i read your book, my eyes opened because everything starts with a person's right to vote >> dr. anderson writes in her book that freed slaves exercise their new voting rights in large

numbers after the civil war, and began winning elections. so white southerners devised new methods to keep fellow sit zepe disenfranchisement of black voters. >> always, to keep black people away from the voting booth. >> absolute i. through the 1950s and into the '60s, african-americans began organizing the civil rights movement, demanding their right to vote. then, on march 7th, 1965, in selma, alabama >> this march will not continue. >> bloody sunday a three-day peaceful march, turned violent police attacked marchers on the edmund pettus bridge, injuring dozens, sending 17 to the hospital months later, a major turning

point in the fight the passage of the voting rights act. >> every american citizen must have an equal right to vote. >> signed by president johnson, the act outlawed poll taxes, literacy tests, and other tack tak tactics of suppression 55 years later, in 2013, the supreme court struck down a key provision of the act concerning federal preapproval for election laws nine states wasted no time changing their voting rules. >> two hours after the supreme court gutted the voting rights act, texas implemented its voter i.d. law that multiple courts have found to be racially discriminatory. within a few months, alabama implements its voter i.d. law. these legislators wrote the law, based on the types of i.d.s that african-americans, disproportionately, did not

have what we are seeing now is massive voter suppression, in the 2016 election, the first presidential election in 50 years without the protection of the voting rights act. black voter turnout went down by 7%. >> that 7%, dr. anderson believes, didn't just stay home because they didn't like the candidates but as a clear result of voter suppression and misinformation targeting black voters in the last decade, 25 states used the specter of voter fraud to enact laws that make it hard for people to vote but voter fraud is almost nonexistent in america the problem isn't fraud. it's that there are more barriers between voters and the ballot box >> when the majority of americans have the right to vote, then, we're going to get the democracy we deserve and not the one that people are trying to foist upon us >> critics of yours have said

that you've been running elections on behalf of democrats. >> i say those folks are just full of it so, if your network's down, you're down. verizon knows your customers need to reach you seamlessly. your team needs to work from different places across many devices. plus, you want the security trusted by some of the largest companies in the world. and that's why you trust us. the most reliable network in america. liberty mutual customizes your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. i wish i could shake your hand. granted. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ we see you. doing your part by looking out...for all of us. and though you may have lost sight of your own well-being, aetna never did. by setting up virtual monitoring for chronic patients, 24-hour

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arizona. land of big skies, big deserts, and a big role to play in the 2020 election. to understand the impact voter suppression can have here, i'm meeting a man who is fighting for voting rights, from inside the system >> you ready well, let's go >> whenever a politician invites me to a speakeasy to check out their mariachi band, well, my answer is always yes adrian fontez is the first democrat, in 25 years, and first latino ever elected to countywide office in maricopa county

>> thank you. >> this is your guitar for quite a long time. >> this guitar and i have been together longer than i've been married to my wife. >> i can see, i mean, just looking at the at the frets, you play with a strong left hand. >> yes, i am a democrat. >> when he's not with his band mariachi af, fontez is the maricopa county recorder that's the official who oversees elections. >> i just want voters to be able to vote and i want their ballots to count. >> it's a big job because maricopa county, which includes phoenix, is hom to nearly 4.5 million people. >> if maricopa county was a state, we'd be right between kentucky and oregon. i was just in idaho. we have got more voters than they have people and horses.

>> the story how this lawyer and former marine became county recorder begins with arizona's march 2016 presidential preference election. the state's version of a presidential primary. >> yesterday, thousands of people in maricopa county waited in line for three, four, some five, hours to vote. five hours. >> tell me about 2016. >> i went down to one of the polling places and when i showed up, there is people standing in long lines and there's cops everywhere. and i'm like this is not america. >> maricopa county had slashed the number of polling places by 70%. predominantly, in minority neighborhoods. local newspapers reported that more than 100,000 voters walked away, without casting a ballot. >> and that hurt me, personally. and that really prompted discussion, this is wrong. something has to happen. something has to change. >> fontez decided to be the

change he ran for county recorder, himself, and won. >> that was the first election you ever ran in? >> yes i was going to run in 2014 for state house. and that didn't pan out because i wasn't really very serious about it but this one was like in the gut. the idea that people couldn't vote, in my town, in my state mu that was just like, nope, not soe acceptable. >> for the midterms, fontez had the ability to interpret the laws and created emergency voting sites. >> i am so honored that arizonans chose our vision of a better arizona >> for about first time in decades, democrats, narrowly, won two key races.

republicans cried foul, claiming the emergency voting law doesn't specify what qualifies as an emergency. >> critics of yours have been saying you've been running elections on behalf of democrats. >> i say those folks are just full of it 2,700 people that vod at those locations this is a controversy that they created because they don't like me >> after the election, republican legislators passed a law that makes emergency voters sign an afb daffidavit stating y have emergency. >> you wanted to make it easier for people to vote. >> i wanted to get america back, for those people who couldn't vote because they got cheated out of that. and if you are narrowing that pool of voters for a political motive, that's flatout unamerican >> in all of my conversations

with so many people around the topic of voter suppression, one name keeps coming up michelle ugente rita. >> i hope you are going to like this place it's so good. >> what do you usually have here >> i usually, because i don't have the best pronunciation. i go i'll do the 14 and the 20. >> rita is a republican state senator with a long track record of sponsoring bills that, she says, are designed to protect the integrity of state elections. >> it sounds real dry and boring but it's, honestly, i think, hot and sexy because it -- it -- it matters >> we're grabbing lunch. the grilled calamari and oil for her. and whenever there's house cured prosciutta, i have to try it.

>> so good. >> it's all really, really nice. the squid. great choice, by the way love it. can you tell me about your bill prohibiting the dropping off of mail-in ballots at the polls >> sure. so, in arizona, you can vote by mail your ballot is sent to you in the mailbox. and the deal is you put it back in the mailbox what has been happening though is many people drop it off at a polling location on election day. >> i think it's addressing a problem that really doesn't exist. who cares if they drop off their ballot at least they're voting and getting it heard if it's delayed by a day or two, what does it matter? we need to encourage, everywhere we can, people to vote. >> look. this isn't a system -- the mail-in system is a convenience the state offers if it's not convenient for you, don't sign up. >> that bill did not make it through the arizona state senate. >> you sponsored a bill this year, which became law, that

makes people swear that they have a real emergency that prevents them from voting. and threatens a criminal prosecution if they are found to have stretched the truth what was the point of that bill? >> it's a great bill, and i did sponsor it there was no accountability to make sure the people utilizing the emergency center were truly experiencing an emergency. >> who cares if they come in the next day because they feel that they have an emergency >> okay. that is a recipe for, like, chaos and anarchy. >> how so? >> the laws -- the laws matter if you don't like the law, if you really -- if you don't like it, repeal it. >> ah. i love kapanada. >> the senator maintains each of her bills are designed to make voting easier, not more restrictive. >> i -- i -- i just think it doesn't exist. i don't know anybody who wants to suppress anyone's vote. what undermines the system is --

is playing identity politics is constantly telling different communities that, somehow, they're being treated differently. and -- and treating them like they need some special consideration because they can't manage on their own. that -- that is what i condemn >> i think -- i think a lot of those communities, latino community, the native american indigenous first peoples populations here, have -- have, systemically, been prevented access we do need to help them have, not just a seat at the baseball b table. but a seat that's the same height and the same distance to the food as everyone else. >> no doubt. and that is why we need to have proper i.d. laws. >> oh. >> i had an i.d. bill. i'm surprised you didn't even bring it up. >> maybe we're getting there

why within t why wouldn't we do everything we can to make sure people can vote >> we do we do. if you're not voting, you don't want to vote, in arizona so have i >> no. i like the eating and arguing. it feels very italian. >> it does i want to throw something. >> how many people have been convicted of voter impersonation in alabama >> since i've been the secretary of state, zero. >> so, why a voter i.d. law? how about no no

uh uh, no way come on, no no n-n-n-no-no only discover has no annual fee on any card.

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arizona is a swing state and potential tipping point in the 2020 election. 50 years ago, not everyone could cast their votes here. the through the 1970s, latinos in arizona were given literacy tests. those who failed, were not allowed to vote. today, latinos are taking a stand and they are helping to flip arizona from solid red to

purple and in maricopa county, even to blue. >> if you want to get out the latino vote and understand how it's possible to do that, then, you have to come talk to these three incredible women abril, alex gomez, and gina mendez run living united for change in arizona or lucha they have invited me for breakfast at a little tacoria. fried tortilla strips. spicy salsa and cheese. >> we were having debate whether eggs go on top of. >> so my preferred breakfast in any restaurant like this give me chile and put fried eggs

on top and it's just about the best breakfast in the world. >> in spanish, lucha means fight and that's exactly what the group has had to do to grow political power. >> so in 2012, we started with 13,000 and we thought that was like the most amazing number and we are really proud to say that, in 2018, we were able to, as a coalition, register almost 200,000 people to vote >> do you find that because we have a man in the oval office right now, saying the most horrific things about people from mexico. that it's a little easier to mobilize and convince people they're voters >> we do see what we call a people's wave. that people are ready. they're excited to participate and what our organizations do is make sure that our families know that they don't have to live in fear >> it's a sunday in phoenix.

and lucha is mobilizing to register voters. >> who increased minimum wage? we did that's right and who is going to get rid of trump in 2020? >> we are. >> all right l let's go my people, we got a story. ♪ we got to tell the whole worl this is people territory ♪ ♪ i said my people, we got a story, we got to tell the world this is people territory ♪ >> with many undocumented in this phoenix neighborhood, residents are weary of a knoc n on the door. [ speaking foreign language >> why is it so important for

you to participate in this process? >> that's right. that's right i am extraordinarily moved by these idealistic, young people many of them are out here fighting for people's right to vote because their parents can't vote here's the thing several of these activists can't cast a ballot, either. like abrille, she is a dreamer brought here, undocumented, from mexico a mexico as a child. >> what keeps pushing us to do the work that we do. in the midst of all this, what still connects us to our roots is the food, right >> are you rewarding me from a hard morning of canvassing with lunch at your mom's house? >> yes. >> so you're so lucky.

>> everybody loves my mom's quesadillas. >> when you say quesadilla to people, most people think of a 12-inch flour tortilla with these and it's something that you order a 5-year-old this is a case kquesadilla the e food gods intended it to be cooked abrille's mom sandra uses yellow corn to make her masa, stuffs it with seasoned beef and cheese, and deep fries it to perfection. >> it's a little hot. >> this is insane. your mom's a really good cook. i mean, really good. how does your mother feel about the fact that you're devoting

your life to helping people to get the right to vote, but you don't have the right to vote, yourself >> my mom, my dad, always say like we're going to pray for all of you guys. they call us angels of justice. >> you are an angel of justice do you think that you'll ever be able to vote in this country >> i'm hopeful when we think about legends of like women fighting for the right to vote and all that i think about like, in the future, whil gen i would get to share the stories with my children, maybe my grandchildren, about how there was one time where their mom or their grandma couldn't vote and now i can. >> it's going to be a party at your house. >> yes, like we're going to have many quesadillas and voting or something like that. for sure, there's going to be food. >> there is no way that politicians should have that much power to decide which

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here is what's happening coronavirus pandemic continues to grow in the u.s., as the number of confirmed cases nears 3.8 million. at this hour, the death toll stands over 141,000. in florida, some hospitals report they are running out of the drug remdesivir. one of the few drugs currently being used to treat coronavirus. state officials say 30,000 vials are on the way now, back to what's eating america. in order to see one of the biggest voting rights fights of the nation, i've come to, where else, the sunshine state florida is almost always the key state in deciding the presidency >> you've been saying florida, florida, florida. >> i never stop saying florida,

florida, florida. >> imposed a lifetime voting ban on anyone convicted of a felony. in 2018, the number of formerly incarcerated felons in florida was greater than in any other state. and disproportionately, african-american a total of 1.4 million people. even after serving their time, they were still not allowed to vote one of them was desmond mead >> so this is a special blend of seasoning i have on it the mead secret recipe. >> and i'm never going to get it. >> no, that is a trade secret. >> mead started fighting for his right to vote when he was at his personal bottom. >> in august of 2005, i was hooked on crack cocaine. i was recently released from prison homeless unemployed i was standing in front of rail rea

road tracks and the only thing was how i'm going to feel when i jumped in front of an oncoming train. for some reason, that train didn't come. >> he poured himself into overturning that felony disenfranchisement law >> we can't vote. >> no. >> because we got a record you know, so just because we can't vote, that means we got to be silenced, right >> right >> to understand the full context of what desmond mead faces to reclaim his vote in florida, i have come to st. petersburg. >> the sign said stop right here i just do what i'm told, ma'am >> this is the duces a historic african-american neighborhood in south st. petersburg. >> do you have to be 6'10" to barbecue properly? >> no, 7-foot. >> you want to wrestle >> i'm too big to arm wrestle. >> residents here understand the power of their vote.

>> that's exactly right. everyone i vote. >> especially, over here if we don't vote and get out and vote, we are just pushed back further and further and further. that one vote counts. >> take a bite for the country >> that's as good as barbecue gets the duces is also home to chiefs cafe, a favorite for things like hearty gumbo and shrimp and grits. i am hear to meet one of desmond mead's allies. >> it's out of control >> i think it's the best krr charlie crist represents the district which includes the duces but he was florida's republican governor and a

supporter of expanded voting. >> lekds laws, that have been passed in the name of voter fraud. was that ever the real reason? >> i don't think so. it's the reason given. . >> yeah. >> but i think the real reason is to make it more difficult for the other party to be successful. >> you extended early-voting hours. you extended the number of polling locations and restored voting rights to more than 33,000 returning citizens. those are people coming out of prison each year when you were governor, what type of reaction a that point >> concern i started getting calls from some of my then-fellow republicans. what are you doing and i said if these people have paid their debt to society, i believe in forgiveness >> and i guess, like the disenfranchised communities and

the vulnerable populations, this is a ghost community that isn't seen from. but it's massive. >> it's huge we are the largest swing state in the country so if you change the dynamic and the calculus, as it relates to florida, you change america. >> in his single term as governor, charlie crist restored voting rights to more than 150,000 returning citizens >> today is the end of politics, as usual, in tallahassee. >> but under crist's successor, republican governor rick scott, that flood became a trickle. >> number 66, leon gellis the 3rd is here. >> a parade of returning citizens would travel to the state capitol to petition for the return of their voting rights >> i commend you for what you have done to turn your life around but at this point, i am going to

deny restoration of revcivil rights. >> governor scott restored voting rights to three times as many white men as african-american men. >> can ci ask you a question >> sure. >> how long is that? >> i'm not sure. you know, i think every -- every case is different. >> in this case, leon gillis the 3rd, a community leader who founded a halfway house for other returning citizens, never did have his voting rights restored before he died just a few years ago. >> in eight total years, i believe less than 5,000 people were able to have their rights restored. >> roughly, 40 times the number of floridians saw their voting rights restored during governor charlie crist's years in office. >> there is no way politicians should have that much power to decide which american citizen get to vote and which american citizen don't get to vote. >> agreed. >> so desmond created a ballot

initiative called amendment 4. and on november 6th, 2018. >> the amendment that will restore voting rights to 1.5 million people, that passed. >> our vote! >> our voice >> our vote! >> our voice >> you had over 5.1 million votes that was based on love, forgiveness, and redemption. on election night, the world actually got to see love winning the day. >> and in the weeks after amendment 4 passed, desmond was among thousands who rushed to register >> there are some people who think that amendment 4 was the end of something. >> but, remember, it's florida only six months after those rights were restored, the republic republican le republic republican legislature added a condition.

>> the bill passes. >> they passed a law that requires each returning citizen to pay all outstanding fines and fees to the many who can't afford that, the new law acts just like a poll tax that requirement has been challenged in the courts >> more and more people are understanding the power of people who are closest to the pain returning citizens leading the charge into communities that, typically, are ignored by people on both sides. >> in july 2020, the united states supreme court declined to overturn the federal appeals court's decision despite florida's vote restoring rights to ex-felons, they will not be allowed to vote until all fines are paid. >> i'm looking at the face of recovery in america right here that is a dad and taxpayer who is activating people. >> right but we're transforming the world. >> and doing it, one plate at a

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apartments-dot-com. the most popular place to find a place. i'm touring the state, alabama, with a troubled past. and, some would argue, a troubled present and i'm going in style >> hey how you doing? >> welcome to the blackest bus in america. >> thank you so much for letting me ride along. >> we're glad to have you. >> all right >> la tasha brown and cliff

albright are the founders of black voters matter. the group is constantly on the move energizing communities to get organized and turn out on election day >> how do you motivate people who think your vote doesn't matter or your vote doesn't count >> our response is to say, you know what? we feel you. we agree we feel the same thing to affirm the frustration they are feeling is real to tell people, one, that they're loved. two, they're not alone and three, that they matter. >> we intentionally named our organization black voters matter instead of black votes matter because there a whole bunch of folk that care about black votes but don't care about black voters. >> i don't know how i could meet two people so quickly and fall in love so fast. >> we're just loveable. >> we are cruising along one of the historic routes of the freedom riders

our ultimate destination is selma, alabama but we're stopping to see key civil rights landmarks along the way. >> what got you into activism? >> my entire life, i never could stand bullies. like, i always had this piece of not wanting to see people be mistreated and so, as i got older, i started paying attention to why certain communities look certain ways and some communities don't. it's one thing to have a system. it's another thing to have people who are -- feel so empowered. right? feel their own sense of power, that they're willing to go through what ever means to transform a system >> first stop, montgomery. the state capital. birthplace of the civil rights movement and first capital of the confederacy. >> and if you look at the statl.

>> alabama has some of the most restrictive voting laws in the united states. and the effect on black voting has been dramatic. even though 26% of alabama's p population is black, none of the statewide offic statewide officeholders are african-american the man responsible for elections here is the secretary of state john merrill. we are grabbing lunch at dreamland barbecue. >> you bring him some slab, you bring him some sweet tea. >> unsweetened i know i know trying to watch my waistline, mr. full slab. >> when he was a dastate legislator, merill was a co-sponsor of the voter i.d. law. >> how many people have been convicted of voter impersonation in alabama >> since i've been the secretary

of state, zero >> so why a voter i.d. law >> well, there's a reason we don't have in-person voter fraud. because we -- we have the i.d. law that would prevent that from occurring. >> you -- you've got a law on the books that's intended to solve a problem that we got a better chance of being struck by lightning than it actually happening. and it has negative consequence of disenfranchising a whole group of people. >> i don't see where that is since we're breaking every record in the state for participation. the state's turnout ranks in the bottom half of the country. >> man, are these good >> what are your feelings about alabama's history of keeping african-americans from voting? do you feel like you have an obligation to right those wrongs >> sure. but this is the thing you got to remember

okay >> uh-huh. >> the time that we're talking about, that was a dark time in the past of alabama. i can't do anything about it i can't influence it i can't impact it. i can't change it. >> but the secretary of state can make sure that it doesn't happen again. >> so why not make it an automatic right? >> why when we've already had unparalleled and unprecedented success in the history of the state with what we're doing. >> automatic voter registration is catching on 16 states have approved it, but not alabama. >> i don't think that just because your birthday comes around, that you ought to be registered to vote just because you turned 18 doesn't give you the right to do anything. >> of course, being 18 and a citizen is exactly what the constitution says gives you the right to vote.

instead of automatic registration, merill has a a more personalized solution. >> if there is a person that you know of that says i can't get off to go register all you got to do is call me on my cell phone and we will go to their job site and register them to vote right there. >> he really likes giving out his cell phone number. >> why don't y'all call this number they can call our office they can call us or they can call their courthouse or they can call me on my cell phone at 334-328-2787. all they need to do is contact us if you have a question, then you can contact us. >> call your cell phone. >> they can. >> people shouldn't have to contact john merill, directly, in order to exercise their right to vote. >> nancy abudu is an attorney with the southern poverty law center. >> alabama, actually, was sued a couple of years ago because it was not properly complying with

which requires the availability of forms at government agencies. >> if you want everyone to vote, why not make it as simple as possible and there's lots of models for that around the country. oregon, for example. you hit 18, you're automatically registered to vote, period, full stop, end of discussion. oregon officials will tell you it's cheap, it's fast, and it's efficient. >> which means it's too easy >> so since there's still no automatic registration, if you live in alabama and are having trouble registering to vote, you have an open invitation. >> why don't y'all call this number >> please tell him i sent you. >> they were just beatin black. white. male

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after meeting people fighting for the right to vote, all over the country i make it to the birthplace of the movement selma. we are joined by veterans of the struggle who marched for voting rights here, 55 years ago. protest songs created a soundtrack for the movement. ♪ you never can jail us all ♪ oh tell wallace segregation's bound to fall ♪ >> the music was the thing that kept everything going. >> all right. >> we used to have us a good time >> you are amy kimy kind of lad

the way. >> lind a lowry and her sister jan bland were there it's a day they'll never forget, nor should anyone else. >> crossed the bridge at 14 years old. i remember when we were walking up to the apex of this bridge, our singing just died down because what you saw, on the other side, was state troopers across four lanes of highway >> go home this march will not continue >> they were just beating people old, young, black, white male, female it didn't matter the last thing that i remember is seeing this horse and this lady he hit her and she fell. 54 years later, i can still hear the sound her head made when it hit that pavement.

>> nobody with me deserved the brutality that we got that day after that day, the determination i had became triple >> future jgenerations have to know where we've been as a nation we've come a long, long way. we just have so far to go, we're not nearly where we need to be. >> we can create america to be what we want america to be i'm just interested in going into that space, of innovation and imagination and possibilities and promise. that's where i want to hang out. >> 54 years ago, this city changed the world. we gonna do it again >> i'm not going to lie. i'm concerned about the vote in

2020 in a 2019 study of electoral integrity, worldwide, the united states ranked lower than every other western democracy, due to restrictive election practices >> there is no moral issue it is wrong, deadly wrong, to deny any of your fellow americans the right to vote in this country >> more than six decades since president johnson signed the voter rights act, those words ring as true as ever protect each other protect our democracy. and in 2020, vote. ♪ we shall, we shall not be moved ♪ ♪ we shall, we shall not be moved just like the tree that's

planted by the i'm craig melvin. >> and i'm natalie morales. >> and this is "dateline." >> we were going to work behind closed doors, after hours, wherever the case was. >> one of the most extraordinary cases in lapd history. >> toto, we're not in kansas anymore. >> a newlywed murdered just months after her wedding. >> as she walked away, she gave me a big smile and i