tv Andrea Mitchell Reports MSNBC August 17, 2020 9:00am-10:01am PDT
9:00 am
we're at one of those inflection points. you've heard me say that before in our history. a life-changing election for this nation. the choice, the choice will make this november is going to decide the future of america for a very, very long time. >> this is a moment of real consequence for america. everything we care about, our
9:01 am
economy, our health, our children, the kind of country we live in. it's all on the line. >> good day, i'm andrea mitchell in washington. you hear the music. the democratic national convention is getting under way today as the party tries to make a virtue of being virtual bringing in hollywood stars and emcees. hoping for no technical glitches and injecting as much youth as they can to energize young voters to come out to the polls including joe biden doing an interview with rapper cardi b. >> oh, snap. is this real? >> how ya doing? >> hi. how are you? >> how are you? the name's joe. >> i love ya, joe! >> the massive virtual effort we will see throughout the week is the democrats' big chance to grab an audience and make their chance that joe biden is the right man to lead the country
9:02 am
reeling from a coronavirus pandemic and a crippling recession. the latest snapshot of the race. our new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll part of a clearer pictures we see in three other major polls. biden hitting 50% or higher among registered voters with the president needing to make up some ground, but with a smaller lead than just a month ago for biden and warning signs for him as the president is still ahead on the ability to handle the economy. a key factor. the biden campaign is kicking off tonight's big opening with two governors getting high marks for their handling of the pandemic arn drew kwo pandemic andrew cuomo and gretchen whitmer from michigan leading up to republican prior governor john kasich and the most popular democrat in the country. michelle obama. president trump will spend dnc week breaking from all tradition. instead of hanging back, he visits four key swing states and even appear in joe biden's hometown of scranton, pa, in al
9:03 am
yawn important battleground state when biden is delivering his acceptance speech virtually on thursday from wilmington. as all of this action is playing out, the other huge political story, whether the president and his hand-picked postmaster general are trying to cripple the post office to suppress the vote. in a rare move, nancy pelosi announcing she's calling back the house from its august recess to try to vote end of this week to protect the post office from further cuts. this, as president trump continues to attack mail-in voting. >> -- postmaster general, a big donor to you, to slow the mail? >> not at all. wouldn't do that. now, i have encouraged everybody, speed up the mail. not slow down the mail and i also want a post office that runs without losing billions and billions of dollar as year, as it has been doing for 50 years. >> joining me to lead us off,
9:04 am
"weekend today" co-host kristen welker, and donna edwards and kimberly atkins from "the boston globe." kristen first to you. thought we'd be in milwaukee. instead you're in wilmington, delaware. what will we see tonight? >> reporter: andrea, an unconventional convention. democrats will try to bring about some of that same time of energy you would typically see at a convention, but they're going to do it virtually. the sce theme tonight is "we the people." we're going to hear from some of the biggest names in the party including senator bernie sanders. those outside the party, republican john kasich and, of course, former first lady michelle obama. in terms of the technology, stephanie putter, executive of this event, said that success will be if no satellite feeds go
9:05 am
down. backups to the backups to the backups to try to make sure this goes out without any glitch. in terms of how the actually going to look, some of the speeches will be pre-recorded, like former first lady michelle obama's, including former president bill clinton who is going to speak tomorrow night, but most of the major speeches will be live, including from former president obama, senator kamala harris will speak on wednesday and then, of course, the big keynote address by joe biden on thursday. there's going to be a virtual roll call, andrea, with delegates stretched out all across the country, and then they're going to be watch parties as well all across the country. i'm told these watch parties were sent production kits by the dnc to get shots out virtually and the night of that big address on thursday, i'm told there are going to be watch parties and drive-in theaters. the stakes could not be higher here. both technically speaking, also in terms of the messaging.
9:06 am
the goal to try to unify the party and also to try to introduce the country to this history-making ticket, joe biden, and kamala harris, and to the issues that they are fighting for. they are going to make this about leadership as relates to covid-19, as you just talked about, andrea. of course, on racial disparities as well as the economy. they will try to cast themselves to the counterpoint to president trump. so it is high stakes as this convention gets under way, like we have never seen before. andrea? >> indeed. and donna, talk about the speakers. gretchen whitmer, a finalist in the vice presidential sweek sta scene staix, kicking it off in the 10:00 hour and credit for tough handling on the pandemic. bernie sanders sews party unity. explicit and going to be over the top. unlike he was in the run-up tore the 2016 campaign, the biden
9:07 am
camp worked closely with him. explain john kasich, as well, from highway, that's a key state, but john kasich, a republican in such a prominent role on the kickoff night for democrats. >> you know, i think -- i mean, what you're going to see tonight and america is going to see is the breadth and depth of the democratic party and special inviteers who found themselves alienated by this president. i think that the addition of john kasich, i know it's, you know, met with some considerable derision in parts of the party, but i think it is important and it speaks to joe biden and it speaks to the kind of test for governing that joe biden wants to build. tent for governing that joe biden wants to build and at the same time, bernie sanders and michelle obama saying here's who we are as democrats. what we value. value our unity going into november, november 3rd. and then we're going to come out
9:08 am
and make sure that we can create a party for governing. i think it's a really, you know, impressive lineup, when you consider the depth and breadth and says something about the kind of democratic party that joe biden and kamala harris want to unite going into november 3rd. >> and kim atkins, the other democrat in the spotlight, of course, is kamala harris. she's already been repeatedly attacked by the president with racist probes including flatly rejecting a live birther conspiracy when kelly o'donnell really pressed him on this saturday night in bedminster. let me play his answer. >> i just don't know about it. but it's not something. >> reporter: you do know, sir, you do -- mr. president you know. you can certainly clear this up. >> don't tell me what i know. lem put it differently. put it differently. to me, it doesn't bother me at all. i don't know about it.
9:09 am
i read one quick article. the lawyer happens to be a brilliant lawyer, as you probably know. he wrote an article saying that there could be a problem. it's not something i'm going to be pursuing. >> reporter: is she -- >> i just told you. i have no gone into it in great detail. if she's got a problem, you would have thought she would have been vetted. >> so, kim, he was given every opportunity to say i know that's not true, and he keeps putting out he's a brilliant lawyer, this is a column that's been now "newsweek" even disavowed what they put up, and extraordinary that they even put it up in the first place. he's a controversial lawyer. you're a lawyer. he doesn't believe in birthright citizenship. he is an outlier to start with. it's not true. it's totally false. and it's a racist conspiracy theory that is a lie. >> this begins and ends with the fact that kamala harris was born in california. point blank, period. there's nothing more to say about that and nothing more to learn about that issue.
9:10 am
what we -- is the failure when given repeated opportunities not just the president but the people who speak on his behalf all morning yesterday on the political shows were given ample opportunity to say not only is that not true -- institutionally not true but that it is -- racist attack and denounce it and say they want to do nothing with it, and announce the person making it. -- opportunity -- at a time -- yesterday -- which is sadly just the latest a person of color -- super citizenship -- >> and donna, talk about michelle obama. she had has memorable slogan "you go low. we go high" last time. how does that message evolve tonight? >> i think, you know, tonight what we're going to have is a michelle obama who -- she says,
9:11 am
i mean, no longer sort of, you know, in the white house, but she certainly is a leader of our party. her voice is so incredibly important. not just to democrats but to americans. i mean, she's admired across the political pespectrum and i thin her remarks tonight will set the tone both for the week and for the entirety of his campaign period. i'm really looking forward to it. we've been watching her over these last several months really come into herself, and i think that she's going to deliver a very powerful message for democrats tonight. >> and delivered a very powerful message already on instagram supporting kamala harris against these conspiracies and against the angry woman racist trope as well. thanks to you all so much. kristen welker in wilmington and looking for you tonight and throughout the day and tonight. and kim atkins and donna
9:12 am
edwards. before leaving for minnesota this morning, president trump told reporters he may hold a small memorial service for his brother, robert trump, at the white house this friday. robert trump passed away over the weekend at the age of 71. youngest of fred trump seniors five children. served senior executive in the trump organization. real cause of death erased. president trump said in a statement in part he was not just my brother he was my best friend. condolences to the president's and his family upon hearing the news. joe biden tweeted his condolences saying in part, i know the tremendous pain of losing a loved one and know how important family is in moments like these. and coming up next, house speaker nancy pelosi calling members back to washington for an emergency vote. a rare decision to call them back in the middle of august recess. vote on the postal service and cutbacks. senator mitch mcconnell says the post office is going to be just fine. our reporting is next. plus, more on tonight's big kick jaup of the democratic
9:13 am
national convention. michelle obama, the big headliner. does she plan to take on president trump? you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc. >> tech: we'll fix it right with no-contact service you can trust. >> tech: so if you have auto glass damage, stay safe with safelite. >> singers: ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace. ♪ find your get-up-and-go. find pants that aren't sweats. find your friends. find your sense of wander. find the world is new, again. at chevy we'd like to take you there. now during the chevy open road sales event, get up to 15% of msrp cash back on select 2020 models. that's over fifty-seven hundred dollars cash back on this equinox. it's time to find new roads, again. and whether we connect pnc kover the phone, online,ing. or face to face, we're here to help- utilizing our resources
9:14 am
as one of the nation's largest banks and a local approach with a focus on customized insights. so you're ready for today. so to breathe better, i started once-daily anoro. ♪ copd tries to say, "go this way." i say, "i'll go my own way, with anoro." ♪ once-daily anoro contains two medicines called bronchodilators that work together to significantly improve lung function all day and all night. do not use anoro if you have asthma. anoro won't replace rescue inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than once a day. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition, high blood pressure, glaucoma... prostate, bladder or urinary problems. these may worsen with anoro. call your doctor if you have worsened breathing, chest pain... mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes or eye pain, while taking anoro. the most common side effects are sore throat, diarrhea, and pain in the arms and legs. ask your doctor about once-daily anoro
9:15 am
to start treating your copd. we're here for you during this challenging time--and always. find support at anoro.com. iredefined the wordng th'school' this year. we're here for you during this challenging time--and always. it's why, at xfinity, we're committed to helping kids keep learning through the summer. and help college students studying at home stay connected through our university program. we're providing affordable internet access to low income families through our internet essentials program. and this summer, xfinity is creating a virtual summer camp for kids at home- all on xfinity x1. we're committed to helping all families stay connected. learn more at xfinity.com/education.
9:16 am
9:17 am
president trump of a campaign to sabotage the election by manipulating the postal office to disenfranchise voters. that's a quote. over the weekend the president falsely claimed results from the election may not be known for months even years. even though he has voted by absent ooee ballot, virtually t same and voting agains this year by absentee ballot. joining kne ining me, president historian michael boeseschlosbe. talk about the special place the constitution, in the founders' concept how to tie these colonies together and create a more perfect union. >> sure does, andrea. never seen a president in american history showing this kind of selfish contempt for a sacred democratic institution like the post office, almost wholly in our history. ben minh franklin first
9:18 am
postmaster general 1775. the constitution specifically says that our government has to provide post offices and post roads just as you said, andrea, to draw the very different states of our union together. donald trump took an oath to defend that constitution. he's violating it by breaking up parts of the post office are and denying people the kind of service that they deserve. >> and the fact is, this postmaster is a prolific fund razor, cut jobs, is cutting back right and left. but nancy pelosi is calling them back to vote on a bill to protect the post office from further cuts, but if mitch mcconnell doesn't pick up that bill, it's not going anywhere and the president would likely veto it. so you know, whether she's coming back to put pressure as well on the board of governors of the post office. a new letter has gone out to board of governors saying if
9:19 am
dejoy, postmaster general doesn't cooperate with the oversight committee, they have authority to fire him. >> which she should do if that happens. he and the president argue they have to make the post office profitable. it's a joke. what this obviously is, a transparent attempt to sow chaos in this election so that it donald trump may be able to slip through. that's something we have never seen before in american history. as far as the profit thing is concerned the government promises in the constitution to provide for the common defense. provide us all with safety and defense. if the defense department is not a profit center in the a given year, does the president say, all right. we're going to deny defense to cincinnati or st. louis? this is ridiculous. >> one thing the president just
9:20 am
said today was that the postal service lost money for 50 years. well, that's true, but in 50 years no president has ever tried to make such cuts that they could be cripple and not able to have a mail-in election in the middle of a pandemic, and someone pointed out they handled the christmas mail in a short period of time, which is probably more intense than the voting mail as well. take a look at what mitt romney a republican senator had to say about the, why the president is against voting by mail. >> i heard some people say they think that the reason the president doesn't want people to vote by mail is that polls show that people who wanted to vote by mail tend to vote for vice president biden. people who tend to want to vote in person tend to want to vote for president trump, and so this is a political calculation. >> and geoff bennett joins us now. geoff has been in charge of a new nbc unit, really digging into this. geoff, you've done all the
9:21 am
reporting i think joining us by phone tell us some of the most egregious effects you've seen of some of these cutbacks especially veterans getting their medicines and some other critical functions no longer happening in realtime. seeing it already in our mail here in d.c. >> reporter: right about that, andrea. military veterans too depend on the vanch.a. for prescription d. fills prescriptions to veterans through the u.s. postal af al s. it's all over the country. spoke to one veteran last night lives in indiana. air force veteran. former secret service agent who has to drive two hours round trip to pick up life-saving heart medication, because of the delay in the mail was just so long. he's now wait are fog a medical device normally takes three to five days in the mail once sent from the v.a. and now taking some three weeks. this is an issue even as the president continues to attack the post office and continues to
9:22 am
target mail-in voting because he sees mail-in voting as an existential threat to his political standing in the gop, the consequences of these delays extend far beyond the election year and stretch out to medications, people who still rely on the mail for their checks. and so what you heard there from mitt romney, it's interesting. the president actually said as much in an april interview he did to a conservative media outlet. if you have all mail-in voting you can never have a republican elected in this country again. there is no real evidence to back that up, but that is the way the president sees it. voting by mail makes it easier for people to vote and more people vote, more people will vote for democrats. that's how the president sees it and that is basically what instructed the entire approach to this mail-in voting issue. >> i want to share with all of us something that brian williams learned in talking to general russell honore last week on what
9:23 am
happens to veterans. he's a 37-year veteran, locked down in new orleans. he saved new orleans for everyone, of course, during katrina. this is what he had to say about how had now has to go out and try to find his medicine because of this mail delay. >> you know it soldiers and sailors, marines ashds the world rely on the post office. as a veteran i rely on the oeft pofs. my delivering on time. they news the post office. i have the option to drive to the store. what about my buddies that have no one to take them to the store when their medicine don't show up. this has to stop. >> a graphic example. geoff bennett what options does pelosi have if mitch mcconnell doesn't take it up? >> reporter: there really is no
9:24 am
option legislatively beyond that. the other option, raise public attention. that's the time of which he's doing calling for this vote now on saturday. it's happening saturday, that's between the two nominating conventions. the two party nominating conventions and then tomorrow house speaker is asking members to hold a day of action at post offices around the country. the post office is apolitical. it's history -- post office are and every should be invested in preserving it. that's the message, the takeaway i've gotten. >> geoff bennett and michael boeschloss. thank you to both of you. appreciate your being here. this year it's more important than ever we are all-informed how, when and where to vote. nbc created an interactive state-by-state plan your vote guide with everything you need to know about casting your ballot in the 2020 presidential
9:25 am
election. it's really terrific. go to nbcnews.com/planyourvote for more. and we have a lot more on what democrats are doing to ensure every vote is counted this november. congressman cedric richmond, the biden campaign co-chair joining me next. you're watch wering "andrea mitchell reports". this is msnbc. this is msnbc.
9:29 am
as democrats are return to washington to pass a bill to try to protect the postal afs ahe a ahead of the election it's not clear what mitch mcconnell would do in the senate and also unclear, the new postmaster general, democrats want limb to testify about the budget cuts, how will this affect making sure there's a fair vote? joining us congressman cedric richmond. co-chair of the biden campaign also. thank you for joining us. first, the fight over the post office, what democrats can do what can the biden campaign do to make sure that votes are counted and that the election is not tampered? >> well, first of all, our leadership -- thank you for the question. our leadership is calling us in to service on saturday, and we will pass a bill to give the
9:30 am
post office the funding that they have articulated that they need. that's their board of governors, appointed by trump. this is not partisan at all. this is giving the post office what they said they need to make sure that u.s. mail delivery is on time and reliable. remember, the united states postal service is not a for-profit business. it is a service. it is a vital service to the american people. so it is critical that we make sure that it is reliable. small businesses depend on it. our people depend on it. our election, our democracy depentsd depends on it. we're going in and make sure we pass legislation to protect it. send it to the senate. mitch mcconnell will do usually whatever president trump tells him to do. i'm not very optimistic it will get swift access, but the people will know who the on their side and who's on the side of small business and others that depend
9:31 am
on reliable postal service. >> i want to turn your attention to where joe biden stands in our new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll, and chuck todd coming up at 1:00 will have even more poll numbers from this poll. joe biden is behind trump on the economy by ten points. ahead on the pandemic, on race and other issues. why hasn't biden been able to close the gap on the economy given the way this has been handled by this president, and record level unemployment? >> well, i think that the vice president, the next president, will get a chance to make his case on the economy today. the numbers on the economy have gone up and down in sort of peaks and valleys. but i think that he will have a week to make his point on the economy is the coronavirus response, and you can't separate them out. i think that you have to look at those two numbers together, because this pandemic has
9:32 am
crashed our economy. it crashed the economy that vice president biden and president barack obama left to trump, and so i think that those numbers are just ebb and flow, but more importantly, i don't think you can look at them isolated. i think you have to combine it with pandemic response, because they are related. >> also i wanted to ask you about this birther lie from, conspiracy here toists the presidethe -- theorists, given ample opportunity, the president leaves us hanging out there even though it's completely untrue about kamala harris. >> it's unfortunate. the -- the real problem is he is exactly who he shows himself to be every day. that's a guy who has racial issues. you can classify him as a racist, but also a person who
9:33 am
lies to get whatever they want. you know, we, tonight, our convention is about "we the people." donald trump's mantra is "me the people." he's all about himself no matter who he hurnts, harms, no matter lost 160,000 people so far to this pandemic, no matter that over 5 million people have been infected. he still thinks he's doing a good job in the pandemic response, but we have so many families that have been affected, and he just doesn't care. so for him to come back and go out with another birther movement, birther lie or give it view is very consistent to give him attention in the first place, to attack president barack obama. he's just -- he has challenges, and he can't grow into the position. he's uncapable of leading the country and he's incapable of just acknowledging the truth and that everything is not about donald j. trump.
9:34 am
>> congressman, we're hearing now from the "new york times," from katie rogers, the republican national committee filed for a permit to have a fireworks display at the washington monument on the night the president gives his convention speech at the white house. what's your reaction to that? >> i would borrow a line from your last guest, general honore. stuck on stupid. it appears they will not rise to the occasion. people are dieing every day. our sole focus should be on making sure we have a medical response to this pandemic that saves lives. that we address it economically so that people don't continue to be evicted and go bankrupt. and that we make sure we have a safe and fair election and transition of power. that's what we should be focused on in this country. but they cannot get past donald trump's ego. and so it's just more of the
9:35 am
same, and it's just -- it's unfortunate. i think at some point even most republicans would just stand up and say, enough is enough. this is about "we" and not just about "me" as in donald trump. >> i guess the national parks service has to give that permit. wait and see if they stand up to the president. i want to the ask about the progressives and bringing the party together, the job at the convention. bernie sanders we understand absolutely explicit about the need to bring the party together and his endorsement. what about aoc and the fact at least reportedly she's only being given one minute? isn't that a waste of one of the more important progressive, young voices in the party? >> well, let's just start here. it's a two-minute -- i mean a two-hour convention. not what we've ever seen before, but my colleague and friend aoc
9:36 am
comes on right before bernie sanders and it is a strong nine-minute segment where we will talk about progressive issues, talk about uniting the country. i believe i'm only on for a little over a minute tonight, because this is not about us. this is not about elected officials. this is about "we the people." you will see a lot of content from ordinary people, and so, you know, as much as elected officials are leaders, this convention, this election, it's about the people, and we want to make sure that people understand that. so for every segment of the population that's out there, we will have some of their leaders speaking tonight telling them, reaffirming to them how important this election is and why joe biden specifically and now senator kamala harris are the best to lead us to a more perfect union and a more equitable union. so that's what i think you'll hear tonight from a number of people.
9:37 am
>> cedric richmond, co-chair of the campaign and of course, the congressman from louisiana. great to have you. thanks very much. good luck tonight. we'll all be watching. >> thanks for having me. and an unconventional convention to say the least with this year's party mostly all online and can the democrats get the traditional convention bump? 's wlat and what's going to happen in wisconsin and milwaukee? we hear from them necessary. and obamas are back with first lady michelle obama, the big headliner delivering the big speech tonight in prime time. more on that ahead. plus, coming up at 1:00 eastern, much more from the man who knows all of this. the latest nbc news "washington journal" poll with chuck todd. i'm andrea mitchell only on msnbc.
9:38 am
♪and they're always glad you came♪ ♪you want to be where you can see♪ ♪the troubles are all the same♪ ♪you want to be where everybody knows your name♪ applebee's. all your favorite burgers, all just $8.99. now that's eating good in the neighborhood. all your favorite burgers, all just $8.99. ior anything i want to buy isk going to be on rakuten. rakuten is easy to use, free to sign up and it's in over 3,000 stores. i buy a lot of makeup. shampoo, conditioner. books, food. travel. shoes. stuff for my backyard. anything from clothes to electronics. workout gear. i even recently got cash back on domain hosting. you can buy tires. to me, rakuten is a great way to get cash back on anything you buy. rack it up with rakuten, sign up today to get cash back on everything you buy. woi felt completely helpless.hed online. my entire career and business were in jeopardy.
9:39 am
i called reputation defender. vo: take control of your online reputation. get your free reputation report card at reputationdefender.com. find out your online reputation today and let the experts help you repair it. woman: they were able to restore my good name. vo: visit reputationdefender.com or call 1-877-866-8555. ...this one's for you. you inspired us to make your humira experience even better... with humira citrate-free. it has the same effectiveness you know and trust, but we removed the citrate buffers, there's less liquid, and a thinner needle... with less pain immediately following injection. ask your doctor about humira citrate-free. and you can use your co-pay card to pay as little as $5 a month. humira can lower your ability to fight infections. serious and sometimes fatal infections,... ...including tuberculosis, and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened,... ...as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems,... ...serious allergic reactions,
9:40 am
and new or worsening heart failure. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common... and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections,... or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. ask your doctor about humira citrate-free. the same humira you trust with less pain immediately following injection. if you can't afford your medicine, abbvie may be able to help.
9:41 am
if you can't afford your medicine, apps except work.rywhere... why is that? is it because people love filling out forms? maybe they like checking with their supervisor to see how much vacation time they have. or sending corporate their expense reports. i'll let you in on a little secret. they don't. by empowering employees to manage their own tasks, paycom frees you to focus on the business of business. to learn more, visit paycom.com
9:42 am
our nbc news reporters closely tracking voter sentiment in five counties in battleground states. part of our county-to-county project including milwaukee county where we thought the convention would be held and where we find nbc news correspondent garrett haake who talk told voters to see how they're feeling about tonight's virtual convention. a lot of disappoint economically. hammering mia ing milwaukee. the pandemic means we can't all be in milwaukee but at least you are. >> reporter: right, andrea. a recognition among voters how the nominee in this case joe biden handles the convention is informative how he would handle country. the pandemic an issue around every voter you talk to around the country and that's the case here. people want money into communities. a lot of voters want more stimulus checks, more unemployment benefits. responsible leadership in the time of a pandemic, issues
9:43 am
voters will use and watching closely who they will support in 2020 or indeed if they'll vote at all. voters here were heavily focused on hearing from african-american voters. a big drop-off in turnout. some of the things driving southernout have to do with the moment in the country including killing of george floyd and protests after. here's what one voter said this morning about that. >> yeah. because it's like everybody's woke now. everybody gets to what we've endured, going through, for so many years. so now it also shows by the last election that our vote does count. our voice does need to be heard, because without it, it's like you also are probably like part of the problem. instead of being part of the solution. and being a part of the solution is getting out and voicing your opinion and getting your vote out there.
9:44 am
>> reporter: andrea, i and clearing this around the country. being apolitical, things like the protests are galvanizing communities across the country. we see that play out as election season begins in earnest now. >> garrett haake in a key area, milwaukee, wisconsin, where the convention was to have been held. thanks, garrett. joining us, former white house press secretary for president obama and an msnbc political analyst. robert, great to see you. well, can you think of a -- >> good to see you. >> -- this virtual convention. we're not on the floor of the convention, not in usual positions but watching a show, and they've had more time to prepare, because they were being so careful about the pandemic, which they think is one of their calling cards in this campaign. this is a high-wire act. isn't it? >> absolutely it is, but i think you mention e, there's been a lot of planning.
9:45 am
i think it will take a little getting used to. i don't think you'll see a lot of really long speeches, except maybe a couple each night. i think you're going to see a lot of sort of shorter speeches that frame different debates. look, i think the real thing the democrats have to do in this convention is not focus on defining donald trump. i think the nbc news poll shows donald trump is fairly well defined. people understand that country is moving in the wrong direction. what they need to get out of these four days for democrats is a sense of what joe biden would do. who he is as a person. and instill confidence in him as a president come january of 2021. so, to me, that's the big business that has to be done here virtually or sort of from milwaukee. >> in the middle of a recession, with unemployment so high, why do you in that joe biden is still lagging well behind president trump on handling the
9:46 am
economy, which is such a key factor? >> well, as you mention. it's the most important issue in the nbc poll, and i think it just shows -- it shows the challenge that i think the biden campaign still has with this election. 2020 hasn't been like any other year in almost anything, and certainly not in politics. we haven't had rallies. we haven't had policy speeches to the degree we're used to. this is a time in which you're generally going to have the focus and attention of voters in this country, and now is the time to put forward a plan for what you would do to get the economy moving, for national strategy around coronavirus, what you're going to do to improve race relations and how you're going to get all of this is done. that, to me, as you said, that's the big piece of business that the biden campaign has over the next four days and we'll see and measure that effectiveness. again, i don't think it's how you define trump. trump's fairly well define and
9:47 am
certainly will be defined in some of these speeches, but how are they going to define joe biden? >> and what is your reaction to the fact that the president is trying to get a fireworks display at the washington monument the night he does his acceptance speech at the white house? can the democrats -- >> look i don't think, i don't any voters will make up their minds on who has the best fireworks show or who has the biggest boat parade. i think what they're going to look for is who do they feel like they are most confident in getting this country back on track. we are badly off the rails. we have had a disastrous response to coronavirus. it's imperative that voters feel some sense of confidence in going forward. i wouldn't focus too much about fireworks. that's something that will come and go quickly. they'll focus instead what is said at each convention and what the plans are for going forward.
9:48 am
trump's never laid out, still hasn't laid out, what he would fill the next four years with. now it's joe biden's chance to fill that slate in for us. >> robert gibbs, a pleasure to have you. thanks so much. and -- >> thank you. next, an inside look at president trump's battle and his security within his own camp. you're watching "andrea mitchell reports" on msnbc news. ll reports" on msnbc news. voltaren. the joy of movement.
9:49 am
9:50 am
9:51 am
for dust on my floors, i switch to sweeper. the heavy duty cloths reach deep in grooves to grab, trap and lock dust bunnies... no matter where they hide. no more heebie jeebies. phhhhew. glad i stopped cleaning and started swiffering. $225,000 in debt. ah, sofi literally changed my life. it was the easiest application process. sofi made it so there's no tradeoff between my dreams and paying student loans. student loans don't have to take over for the rest of your life. thank you for allowing me to get my money right.
9:52 am
national security adviser insisted on meet the press that the director of national intelligence found china, iran, russia were trying to interfere in the november election. >> once again, the report that has not come out before, detailed the influence and efforts of china and much iran to denigrate president trump and make sure he is not reelected. also talked about russian interference. as i have said as the president made clear, we're against every party, foreign party trying to get involved in our elections, whether it is the communist chinese, vladmir putin's russia, the theocracy in iran, we want them all to stay out of our
9:53 am
election. >> here's the fact check. the statement said they prefer president trump be defeated, didn't say they had taken action. to the contrary, they said russia is the one country already taking action to hurt joe biden and help donald trump by interfering already in the election. joining me now, writer for "new york times" robert draper. his new book "to start a war." they're trying to create equivalence amongst three countries, there's only one, russia, led by vladimir putin, already trying to interfere in the election. now our reporting is that the president wanted to even invite putin to the u.s. for a white house summit before the election. >> all right. you're right, andrea, essentially two dynamics are being conflated. iran and china have a preference
9:54 am
perhaps, perhaps would like to see joe biden win, but they're just trying to influence campaigns in this above board way, china by hiring lobbyists. iran doesn't possess one-one hundredths of russian sophistication. russia is trying to do it through trolls, bots, disinformation, voter suppression, hacking infrastructure. these are very different things. but it is not a coincidence they're all mentioned in the same breath. they're mentioned in the same breath, the story i wrote recently references president trump believes that any discussion about russia's interference in the 2016 election and in the upcoming one calls into question his legitimacy as president. he doesn't want to hear it. they're trying to drown out that stark fact by bringing in china and iran who are just not important actors in this election. >> and this was central to him forcing out dan coats, previous
9:55 am
director of national intelligence. >> yeah, that's right. and coats was on that occasion and others simply stating facts that russia had interfered in 2016, that russia had a preference for the current president for 2020, and this is of a piece, andrea, with former director of national intelligence coats, simply stating the facts. for example, isis has not been defeated, that north korea is not intending to give up its nuclear capabilities anytime soon. when he stated those things in a worldwide threats testimony in late january of 2019, trump called him on the carpet for that. that's when coats knew his days were numbered. again, not by registers any opinion. those are assessments the intelligence community has held with virtual u nnanymity.
9:56 am
>> thank you very much. that does it for this edition of andrea mitchell reports. nbc has coverage of the democratic national convention. prime time coverage begins 7:00 p.m. eastern. i'll be on your local nbc station as well and the network for coverage of the convention with lester holt, savannah guthrie, chuck todd. first, chuck is up next for the new hour of "mtp daily" here on msnbc. f "mtp daily" here on msnbc. try wayfair. you got this! ♪ ♪ perfect. -you're welcome. i love it. how'd you do all this? told ya! wayfair. let's talk dining tables. yes! blow it up. ♪ wayfair you've got just what i need ♪
9:57 am
i wondered.. could another come around the corner? or could it play out differently? i wanted to help protect myself. my doctor recommended eliquis. eliquis is proven to treat and help prevent another dvt or pe blood clot. almost 98 percent of patients on eliquis didn't experience another. -and eliquis has significantly less major bleeding than the standard treatment. eliquis is fda-approved and has both. don't stop eliquis unless your doctor tells you to. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding. don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. if you had a spinal injection while on eliquis call your doctor right away if you have tingling, numbness, or muscle weakness. while taking eliquis, you may bruise more easily- and it may take longer than usual for bleeding to stop. seek immediate medical care for sudden signs of bleeding, like unusual bruising. eliquis may increase your bleeding risk if you take certain medicines. tell your doctor about all planned medical or dental procedures. what's around the corner could be your moment. ask your doctor about eliquis.
9:58 am
i'm looking for my client.er ci'mi'm so sorry.nt.. hey! hey man, you're here! you don't trust me here in vegas, do you? uh, well, i thought we had a breakthrough with the volkswagen. we did, yeah! we broke through. that's the volkswagen? that's the cross sport. wow. seatbelts! please just tell me where we're going. another bundle in the books. got to hand it to you, jamie. your knowledge of victorian architecture really paid off this time. nah, just got lucky. so did the thompsons. that faulty wiring could've cost them a lot more than the mudroom. thankfully they bundled their motorcycle with their home and auto. they're protected 24/7. mm. what do you say? one more game of backgammon? [ chuckles ] not on your life. [ laughs ] ♪ when the lights go down
9:59 am
but what if you could startdo better than that? like adapt. discover. deliver. in new ways. to new customers. what if you could come back stronger? faster. better. at comcast business, we want to help you not just bounce back. but bounce forward. and now, we're committed to helping you do just that with a powerful and reliable internet and voice solution at a great price. call or go online today.
10:00 am
if it's monday, nothing says 2020 like the packed day we have. we are following several breaking stories, just released numbers, more numbers from a "the wall street journal" poll with revelations how americans are losing confidence in the accuracy of the vote as democrats prepare to kickoff the convention. speaker pelosi plans to hold an emergency session of house of representatives in attempt to pressure republicans in the white house and vote on legislation to address the post office crisis. democrats would like to see hearings featuring the post master general. we'll see if he agrees. welcome to monday. it is press
122 Views
IN COLLECTIONS
MSNBC West Television Archive Television Archive News Search Service The Chin Grimes TV News ArchiveUploaded by TV Archive on