r pubic hair and skin with a patented irritation defense bar for a smooth shave with blades that barely touch skin good afternoon, everyone. i'm ayman mohyeldin in new york. we're keeping an eye on the white house this hour where later president biden will meet with a bipartisan group of mayors and governors to talk about what the infrastructure package could mean for their communities. we expect to hear from the president at the start of that meeting, and, of course, we'll bring you his remarks live when they begin. now, this comes shortly after he went to capitol hill to rally senate democrats on the bipartisan infrastructure plan and a proposed $3.5 trillion bill focusing on other infrastructure priorities. here's what the president had to say as he left that meeting. >> i have no comments other than

saying great to be home and great to be back with all my colleagues, and i think we're going to get a lot done. >> in just a moment we'll talk about all of this with california democratic congressman ro khanna. 150 companies are now signing on to the bill to pass the john lewis voting rights act as texas lawmakers continue to make the round on capitol hill urging congress to take up voting rights bills. we'll talk with one of those lawmakers later in the program as well. also today the biden administration saying it will start evacuation flights later this month for afghans who assisted the u.s. during its 20-year mission there, and the number of new coronavirus cases in the united states has doubled in recent weeks, driven by the delta variant and lagging vaccination rates. lots to cover, but we begin this hour with the very latest from washington, d.c., and joining us now is associated press white house reporter jonathan lamire

and punch bowl news founder anna palmer, both msnbc contributors. jonathan, i'll begin with you, and the message coming out of white house, what was the white house's message to mayors and governors from both parties and beyond them? who are they trying to reach with this event? >> well, the meeting will start shortly, and i'll be part of the press pool that goes inside to catch the top of it and the president's remarks. this is part of their push, public relations push, to sell this deal, obviously this part is more focused on the hard infrastructure, bridges, roads, highways, broadband, public transit, things like that. we have this $3.5 trillion deal that was struck last night that is more of the cares act, the family part, if you will, of the biden infrastructure plan and it's going to be a message saying look, this will help your community. they know at least the white house is touting polls that show that the president's plans will

broadly popular among both democrats and republicans alike in terms of citizens. far fewer republican lawmakers but they have enough to get that bipartisan deal done, but there will be tricky political maneuvering an two tracks at once they get the bipartisan bill done and the reconciliation bill. the president met with senate democrats to rally them behind them. so far so good are the signals from them. bernie sanders appeared with leadership last night to announce deal, each though he wanted more like of trillion as opposed to 3.5 trillion and now the eyes are on the progressives in the house and the moderate senators, manchin and sinema who previously balked at a deal this big but so far sending positive signals. >> let's talk about joe manchin for a moment, anna. help's a key person to watch, among others. what's interesting is obviously most things today, anything happening on capitol hill, west virginia democratic senator joe

manchin is at the center of it. here's what he had to say earlier today when he was asked about the proposed $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill. watch this. >> i've been very clear that i want to see the pay forward to make sure that whatever we do is going to be globally competitive. >> is the $3.5 trillion too high? >> depends on if we can pay for it. >> forgot all the filibuster talk for a moment. is it a warning sign that democrats may have trouble getting all 50 of their own senate colleagues on board with the reconciliation bill? >> it's certainly not going to be an easy task that chuck schumer has. you know, when you look at the degrees of the progressives to the more moderates like joe manchin. they have more priorities. the devil is always, always in the details on capitol hill of the right now you're seeing democrats come together basically saying they are supportive of the process moving for a.

they want to see what the papers are. like manchin said, they want to see what the program specifics, are and so this is just the beginning of this process, and i think what's really important to remember is not only do you have to have all 50 senate democrats. then it has to go to the house, and at that time nancy pelosi is probably only going to have a three-seat majority in the house. that means things are going to have to really fall in line from her very progressives to some of the more moderate democrats, and they are all going to have to get aboard and hold hands on this package for it to go forward. >> jonathan, does the white house think that the president has actually made some headway on getting senate democrats on board with the infrastructure bills, and are there any worries at all that the bill around the bipartisan bill could impact the ability to get the bipartisan bill through coming? >> the bipartisan bill is hopeful but they are not there.

the president and his staff -- it's part of the public space to sell this one, phone calls, meetings, and right now they do think everything is moving right direction, but they know it's not a guarantee that they need to keep some in lines, particularly manchin. yeah. there is concern from republicans who might take a lock at this reconciliation bill saying that's so much spending. i'm not sure i want to sign on for the nearly 1 trillion in the hard infrastructure program, the bipartisan deal, so, yes, there's going to be alast massaging. i was talking to white house aides who say this is going to be an ongoing process. this is what a bunch of weeks will look like from this white house is to try to get this done? this is priority number one for them even as we know there's an outside pressure that say voting rights should be a pop prior. >> joining us now is california

democratic congressman ro khana, a member of the progressive black caucus. you told congress last night after an agreement on the reconciliation bill was announced that you needed to see the bill and what climate provisions were in there. several hours later have you been able to get more clarity on that? >> first of all, senator -- this will have free college education, renewable energy standards and there are a lot of things about the bill and we need to make sure it's not diluted and the ultra rich and big corporations will pay for it. there's a lot of enthusiasm. we want to try to go a little

bit further on some areas, but overall a lot of support for what senator sanders did and what the senate achieved. >> let's talk specifics for a moment, if we can. what specifically do you want to see this $3.5 trillion plan address when it comes to climate change, and would you vote against the bill if it does not include what you are looking for? >> i certainly wouldn't put out a red line, but other are the things i think will be included and should be included. first there has to be a clean energy standard so we get to a carbon net zero emissions standard. second, we have to get rid of the fossile fuel subs dies somewhat senator wide yep's finance committee have been doing that and that should in there. there should be a conservation civilian corps dedicated to the environment. i believe that will be in the -- in the bill, and massive investments in solar and wind, i think that will be in the bill. >> let's switch gears for a moment. you sit on the house services

committee and george w. bush who order the invasion of afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks was asked whether the u.s. withdrawal from afghanistan is a mistake. here's a part of his response. >> i think it is, yeah. because i think the consequences are going to be unbelievably bad, and i'm sad. laura and i spent a lot of time with afghan women, and they are scared. i think about all the interpreters and people that helped not only u.s. troops and nato troops and they are just -- it seems like they are just going to be left behind to be slaughtered by these very brutal people, and -- and it breaks my heart. >> what do you make of what former president bush had to say about the decision to low of afghanistan? >> well, look, i respect present. i supported the initial strikes in afghanistan that he led, but 20 years of a war was taking a

lot of civilian lives. i mean, if you talk to afghani women and children and civilian leadership there, they will say that the ongoing conflict was actually taking the lives of a ganny women, hurting innocent civilians, and when is enough enough? is 20 years not enough? i think no one today questions the president -- that president bush was wrong to go into iraq, that they were surrounded with neo-conservatives who wanted to have these endless wars, and i -- i don't think that that's where the american public is at. >> today the biden administration announced that it would start evacuation flights by the end of this month for afghans. as you heard the former president there talking about who assisted the u.s. mission in that i recall country and who have applied for special immigrant visas. given that it the taliban seems to be accelerating their advance across the country is this too little too late, do you think and what do you make of how the biden administration is getting this specific issues, getting

people who helped and served america, are they doing it fast enough? >> they are doing a extraordinary job. we did not provide and i give the president and secretary blinken enormous credit to make sure civilians who want to come to the united states for refuge will have that opportunity and i hope conservatives will praise them instead of playing politics with that issue. >> congressman ro khanna, thanks so much for joining us this hour. greatly appreciate, it as always. still ahead, the international plot to kidnap a brooklyn-based journalist and now four iranian operatives are under suspicion for being behind that plot. plus, texas democrats are in

their third day in washington, d.c. and we'll speak to one member to see if they are making any headway. this is "ayman mohyeldin reports." headway. this is "ayman mohyeldin reports. no matter how you got copd it's time to make a stand. ♪ ...and i'm feelin' good ♪ start a new day with trelegy. no once-daily copd medicine has the power to treat copd in as many ways as trelegy. with three medicines in one inhaler, trelegy helps people breathe easier and improves lung function. it also helps prevent future flare-ups. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. do not take trelegy more than prescribed. trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur.

it's time to start a new day. ask your doctor about once-daily trelegy. and save at trelegy.com. [john legend's i can see clearly now] ♪♪ make your reunion happen with vrbo. ♪♪ your together awaits. ♪♪ - [announcer] at southern new hampshire university, we never stop celebrating our students. your together awaits. from day one to graduation to your dream job, that's why we're keeping your tuition low for the 10th year in a row. - [student] the affordability and the quality of education, it can be enough to change your life. - [announcer] as a nonprofit university, we believe in making college more affordable for everyone.

- southern new hampshire university, it was just amazing experience. - [announcer] find your degree at snhu.edu. ♪ watch the olympic games on xfinity ♪ ♪ root for team usa and feel the energy ♪ ♪ 7000 plus hours of the olympics on display ♪ ♪ with xfinity you get every hour of every day ♪ ♪ different sports on different screens ♪ ♪ you can watch it anywhere ♪ ♪ and with the voice remote ♪ ♪ you never have to leave your chair ♪ show me team usa. ♪ all of this innovation could lead to some inspiration ♪ ♪ and you might be the next one to represent our nation ♪ ♪ this summer on your tv, tablet, or any screen ♪ ♪ xfinity is here to inspire your biggest dreams ♪ delicia: this is where all our recycling is sorted -- 1.2 million pounds every day, helping to make san francisco the greenest big city in america. but that's not all you'll find here. there are hundreds of good-paying jobs, with most new workers hired from bayview-hunter's point. we don't just work at recology, we own it, creating opportunity and a better planet.

now, that's making a difference.

today marks the second day in a row that the texas statehouse is convened without a quorum after the democrats left the state over a restrictive voting rights bill. the group of texas house democrats is intensifying their lobbying efforts as they meet with federal lawmakers and some texas state senators are joining them. >> if anyone thinks this is a vacation, let me -- let me help you out with your definition because i would much rather be home with my family. they ask how much voter fraud are you willing to put up with? that's not the question. how many people are you willing to rob them of their vote? >> meanwhile, some 1,500 miles away over in austin, texas, the state senate passed their own version of the sweeping bill sb-1. joining me now from austin is

nbc news correspondent priscilla thompson. the priscilla, what are you hearing from republican lawmakers who are in the capitol, and what is their response to what the democratic members have done? >> well, the speaker of the house just released those republican house members a little while ago or at least the majority of them were released, and they have been at ease all day and that's because they haven't really been able to get anything done today. now what i will tell you is that republicans are changing the messaging around this a little bit so within the next hour they are actually going to be holding a press conference, and they are not going to be talking about the election bill. they are going to be talking about retired teachers receiving a 13th check, and that's because that was one of the lesser known agenda items that was on governor abbott's aiming did a for this special session so what we're seeing here on the ground is a refocusing of the

conversation around some of the more product call issues like the thrown check for retired teachers, foster care reform so republicans are starting to message around that and what democrats are not getting done as a result of being in washington, d.c. and having broken quorum but in terms of what republicans can do to try to compel their democratic colleagues to come back there, isn't really much that they can do, and asked one of the republican lawmakers here with b that. take a listen to what he had to say. >> these are our rules. this is the law, and they are supposed to be here, you know, time will tell, but i really expect that when the new wears off and the novelty act kind of ends in d.c., when they have worn out their welcome and gone to all the receptions and cocktail parties and been to the capitol and seen the vice president, that pretty soon there's going to be like -- they are going to come to the realization it's time to come home. >> reporter: of course, democrats have said that they have no intention of coming back

here until this special session is over. if they do come back before the house ends the house has given the sergeant-at-arms permission to go after them to brick them back here to finish the work on the voting bill and. it's -- republicans say it could affect their election changes. let's start with jasmine crockett. i wanted, to if i can, get your thoughts on a few things. first of all, what happened in your meeting with the vice president? how have your meetings on capitol hill gone so facts and circumstances and do you feel like the trip has been a success so far in terms of what you set out to accomplish? >> thanks for having me. good to see priscilla. she was there when i load the flight to get out of austin.

our conversation with the vp was one of inspiration, so i want to be clear. we are very confident that we are on the right side of history in this particular matter and standing for voting rights. the vp was very encouraging. she said that this was as american as american pie what we were doing, defending democracy, and sadly enough we have seen over and over in this country that every single time a certain group of people, typically people of color, start to get involved and engaged, those in power get nervous and they want to try to restrict their accessibility to the ballot box so that's where we were with the vice president. as far as have we been successful? i really would not measure our success just this early on. are we getting in? are we having conversations? do those conversations seem to be fruitful so far? they absolutely do, but my goal isn't necessarily just to talk the talk but it's to walk the walk. it's the exact same reason that

we walked ourselves all the way to d.c. we need this reform. if they would pass a bill next week i promise you we'll come home and let them pass their intentionally discriminatory bill and guess what. we'll finally have federal oversight. texas does not know how to police itself, and that's the problem. the problem is that we don't have lawmakers that actually want to do what's right for the people. they say they love the constitution, but they only love the constitution if they are talking about the second amendment. they ignore every other amendment, especially the 15th amendment that gave black folk the right to vote. >> madam, let me play to you what the senior senator from your state of texas had to say earlier today. >> i don't see that playing particularly well at the state level where these folks are going to have to run for election in 2022, and i don't think this has a good look to t.running away from your work is not exactly a texas virtue. >> i want to give you a chance

to respond to that wittcism. how do you respond to it, and more specifically the specific charge that you are running away from your work and that you should return and negotiate a compromise? >> yeah, you know, it's interesting that they now want to talk about negotiating. we've tried. this support the first time we've opinion fighting in texas and we've been trying to reason with them. after i killed the last billion why we're negotiating with terrorists in the first place. we got things like -- everyone could sue someone and get $10,000. now they want to act like they care about teachers. the republicans have the majority in the house and the senate and they have the governor's mansion. if they cared about teachers

they would have took care about teachers before they worried about everyone having guns and make texas the wild, wild west so i appreciate the senator acting like he cares about my election, but i'll take care of mine, and at the end of the day i am not running so that i can just win another election. i am running to represent people. i am running to protect constitution from all and to protect us from all threats, domestic and foreign, and right now there's a domestic threat that is pending and it's lurking right here in the united states right here in the state of texas. >> all right. texas state representative crockett, thank you so much for your time. greatly appreciate it. >> thank you. still ahead, pittsburgh four iranian operatives are facing charges to kidnap a dissident journalist in new york in a brazen plot. she speaks out about what it was like to be targeted next. you're watching "ayman mohyeldin

reports." g "ayman mohyeldin reports. even in early stages. tell me more. it's for people 45 plus at average risk for colon cancer, not high risk. false positive and negative results may occur. ask your prescriber or an online prescriber if cologuard is right for you. i'll do it. good plan. [♪♪] i'll do it. if you have diabetes, it's important to have confidence in the nutritional drink you choose. try boost glucose control. it's clinically shown to help manage blood sugar levels and contains high quality protein to help manage hunger and support muscle health. try boost today. gillette proglide. five blades and a pivoting flexball designed to get virtually every hair on the first stroke. so you're ready for the day with a fresh face for a fresh start. for a limited time get a 5th cartridge free.

(gong rings) - this is joe. (combative yelling) he used to have bad breath. now, he uses a capful of therabreath fresh breath oral rinse to keep his breath smelling great, all day long. (combative yelling) therabreath, it's a better mouthwash. at walmart, target and other fine stores. this may look like a regular movie night. but if you're a kid with diabetes, it's more. therabreath, it's a better mouthwash. it's the simple act of enjoying time with friends, knowing you understand your glucose levels. ♪♪

pretty taxing. i was diagnosed with depression and anxiety.

and, uh, i found cerebral. cerebral is an app that combines medication management and behavioral care all in one nice package. i signed up, i got the video call, i got the pills shipped to me. normal therapy costs about three times as much as cerebral. getting this type of care online, it really is a life saver. join today for just $30 at getcerebral.com. a. details of an astounding international operation surfaced in court here in according to federal prosecutors. an iranian american author was the target of a kidnapping plot spearhead by iranian intelligence networks. the author was not named in documents but brooklyn-based masih alinejad confirmed that she was the intended target. for you iranians charged with plotting to kidnap her who has

been a critic of the modesty mandate sharing instances on her own social media profile. here's what she had to say about it this morning. >> when they showed me the photos of my private life with my husband and my step-children and my beautiful garden in brooklyn i was like wow, so the government are that close to me, and then i took it serious, so they send me to the safe house and i'm being under fbi protection until now. >> this afternoon the state department says it categorically condemns the plot that maintain nuclear talks with iran will continue. joining me now is nbc news justice correspondent pete williams. pete what, an elaborate plot when you read the details. what more do we know as to how close they got and how serious this was? >> well, to be clear the four iranians were never in the u.s. the people who did the spying on her were private investigators, government says, hired by four people in the iranian intelligence service who were

asked to keep extremely close tabs on her, and they were told that the reason they wanted this is for a client to whom she owed money, that she had skipped out of the country and they wanted to have the goods on her, but they did photograph, and it's fascinating to hear her say that the fbi showed her some of the photographs that the investigators, the private investigators here took because obviously those are people that the fbi talked to, and the court documents are quite details about the communications that the four people had with each other. there's even attached a screen shot from one of their searches on the internet to look the possibility of taking her out of the country by boat, but all of this was in the goal, the government says, of trying to get information about her so that she could be kidnapped, and the fbi was very concerned about this, didn't consider it an idle threat and you heard her say she was in a safe house. she was actually in three different safe houses for eight months during the time that the

fbi's investigation was at its height. now she's back home again. you're right. show owes an outspoken critic of the iranian regime and its human rights record. >> pete williams in d.c. for us, as all, thank you. turning now to a brutal conflict that's displaced more than 1.7 million people and left hundreds of thousands tar joining. in ethiopia's tigre region ethiopian troops have been pushed out of capital. it's a major shift with the federal government declaring a cease-fire after its administration fled the city. ethiopian prisoners of war have been paraded threw the catch at all streets amidst cheering crowds, even as the recently re-elected prime minister downplays the success of those rebels. joining me now is declan walsh, chief african correspondent for the "new york times." good to see you. i know you just returned from a week's long trip to ethiopia. the reporting has been

absolutely eye-opening. describe what you saw. what does the day-to-day life of people in tigre look like right now. >> well, it's been changing dramatically over the last number of weeks. when we arrived in tigre just after ethiopia's elections on june 21st, the ethiopian government was still in control of the regional capital and much of the surrounding areas. over the days that followed, things changed very quickly. the tigran forces had been -- had won a series of saddlefield victories against the ethiopians in the countryside. they pressed in on the capital city, and as you can see in the pictures there the ethiopians were forced to abandon the city and the tigran forces opened to a huge reception from the local people so since then we've seen the tigrans being buoyed by the

victory saying they have pressed to the south where there's been fighting to the south and in the north where eritrean forces are, and they say they are going to keep going until they expel all of those outside forces, ethiopian, eritrean and ethnic mill shot from the region until they succeed. >> how have they been able to succeed so far? we think of ethiopia as being one of africa's strongest armies? how based on your reporting did the tigran rebels, excuse mow, make these advances? >> well, there's a couple of factors. certainly numerically much smaller than the national army but when this war started in november many of the officers in the ethiopian army were from teeingry. many of those defected to the rebel side. they suffered serious losses in the beginning, but over the

spring they have been quietly regroupg and reorganizing, and they have has benefited from a huge surge in recruitnent, young tigran from across the region joining is the fight and many said they were motivated to get involved because of the atrocity that have been taking place in parallel with the fighting. in the past couple of months there's been numerous reports of massacres, ethnic cleansing, looting and horrific sexual violence in teeingry. much of that has been blamed against the ethiopian forces, against their partners, the eritreans, and so the young people that we spoke to that we saw out in the countryside, in one instance, thousand of people marching down a country road, young people who were coming to sign up for this tigran force, they said they were motivated to join the fight because they were

outraged by the atrocities that touched their communities and many cases touched their own families as well. >> i wanted to ask you really quickly bin sightful reporting that you've been doing about the women fighting on both sides of this war. what did you learn about women soldiers in this case? >> it's very striking. when we were there, we saw these prisoner of war camps with thousands of ethiopian soldiers. among them there were many women. similarly on the tigrean said, women competing with men. it's an area where women have participated in warfare hand in in particular conflict it's particularlile particularly poignant because women have suffered some of the worst abuses in the fight and some of the tigrean woman who i spoke to said they were motivated to sign up to the war because of the

sexual violence and in particular the women in their communities had suffered. >> all right. the "new york times'" chief african correspondent declan walsh with an eye-opening report from tigre. as always, thank you, my friend. >> my pleasure. stay safe. >> can pop star olivia rodrigo help young people get vaccinated? more on that when we come back. you're watching "ayman mohyeldin reports." you're watching "ayman mohyeldin reports. new contractor for town arts center development project asap. is lefranco construction in? if he was gonna pull this off, he needed to rent another crane. like, yesterday. so he turned to his american express business card, which allows him to pay off his balance over time. and boom. crane time. contract signed. art for all. get the card built for business. by american express. if you have moderate to severe psoriasis, little things can become your big moment. that's why there's otezla.

otezla is not a cream. it's a pill that treats plaque psoriasis differently. with otezla, 75% clearer skin is achievable. don't use if you're allergic to otezla. it may cause severe diarrhea, nausea or vomiting. otezla is associated with an increased risk of depression. tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts or if these feelings develop. some people taking otezla reported weight loss. your doctor should monitor your weight and may stop treatment. upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. tell your doctor about your medicines, and if you're pregnant or planning to be. ♪ ♪ otezla. show more of you.

my auntie called me. ♪ ♪ she said uncle's had a heart attack. i needed him to be here.

your heart isn't just yours. protect it with bayer aspirin. be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. is ises the purifier removes 99.9% of the virus that causes covid-19 from treated air. so you can breathe easier, knowing that you and your family have added protection. ♪ ♪ i always had a connection to my grandfather... i always wanted to learn more about him.

i discovered some very interesting documents on ancestry. this is the uh registration card for the draft for world war two. and this is his signature which blew me away. being able to... make my grandfather real... not just a memory... is priceless. his legacy...lives on. welcome back, everyone. any minute now we're expecting a taped playback from the president inside the oval office meeting with a bipartisan group of governors and mayors talking about infrastructure across american cities and states. it comes on the heels of the president's trip over to the senate where he seemed optimistic about the effort to try and get a nearly $4 trillion infrastructure package passed through bipartisan efforts as well as reconciliation efforts or reconciliation.

we'll keep an eye on that and bring you that taped playback as soon as it gets under way. actress and pop star olivia rodrigo is team up with the biden administration with a message to her many millions of fans. the covid vaccine is good for you. >> it's important to have conversations with friends and family members encouraging all communities to get vaccinated and actually get to a vaccination site that you can do more easily than ever before given how many sites we have and how easy it is to find them at vaccines.gov. >> the push comes as vaccination rates continue to lag behind other age groups and the stakes couldn't be higher. covid cases are yet again on the rise nationwide doubling over the past three weeks alone. now that's creating a dire scenario for states with largely unvaccinated populations like those across the south and central regions of the united states. according to local reports in kansas, quote, the seven-day rolling average for new cases

rose to 214. the average has not been this high since february 13th. joining me now from kansas city is nbc news correspondent shaquille brutes ter. shaq, you're covering a lot of the outbreaks and you were in las vegas recently. what is the challenge of getting people vaccinated in the places where you are visiting now? >> ayman, it seems to be getting folks to understand the sense of urgency around vaccinations, getting people who are slightly skeptical or who are just not excited about the idea of getting a shot in their arm, getting them to believe that now is the time to do it. i was speaking to a doctor here in kansas earlier today who sailed that things are not as bad as they are in neighboring missouri where new covid wards are being built and they have having the surge of staff in some hospital systems there, but he says he is seeing that increase that you just detailed there, and his concern is that in some counties here in kansas, they are seeing vaccination rates that are lower than what they are seeing in missouri

which is currently that hot spot, so they are concerned about a spillover effect and that's why you have local officials doing what's happening behind me, for example, a mega vaccination site where starting today they have a spin to win where they have bringing people in an incentivizing, they can bring them in and get an instant prize. trying to bring up the incentives and boost the incentives. i spoke to people who came in to get vaccinated today and there's differing reasons for why they chose to do it now. this person said she's a grandmother and mentioned her grandkids in her decision to come and get her vaccine today. >> everybody said go to kmart right now and get a season pass and get a gift card and get your vaccine. >> exactly. >> it's a win-win. >> i've been thinking about it for a while. i said let me do this now. need to do this because there's another strain. >> the delta variant? >> yes. >> that's what got you in today?

>> yes. >> the hope for dock stores that more people see this as the moment to get that vaccination and get their vaccines to help stop the surge that you're seeing across the country. ayman. time is of the essence. >> stay safe, my friend. i want to bring in the founder and ceo of advancing health equity and an msnbc contributor. doctor, great to have you back on the program. let's talk about what you're hearing from your patients and providers along about the challenges in getting people vaccinated. are you coming across people who are still reluctant to get vaccinated and if so why? >> well, thank you so much, ayman, for having me. what i'm seeing is still a lot of concerns about safety of the vaccine, pesly people are concerned about the long-term effects, and i think that it's been a concept that's been kind of difficult to explain to the general public and so people are concerned about the safety effects. they are also concerned about fertility issues as well as costs, and then there are others

who think that the pandemic overall has been overhyped. i think those are the people that will be the most difficult to move, but those other wait-and-see, like the grandmother in that segment, aink hoping especially with the recent surge in cases due to the delta variant that that will actually motivate some unvaccinated folks to go out and get their vaccinations. >> speaking of that, as we see the white house shift to community focused vaccination efforts, what role can the white house in addition to focusing on community outreach play in getting more people inoculated? does the outreach by celebrities and others work, or is it more effective on a local level as you mentioned, intimate people that they know in their local communities? >> right, right. i definitely think it has to be a multi-pronged effect. when the survey data we learned that celebrities may vin fluns but it's really health care professionals, people's own primary care physicians or

family physicians. we know people who are likely, people who unvaccinated are more likely to listen to their employers if their employers are encouraging vaccinations offering paid sick leave and so i think for some of those folks, if there employers were to have mandates, we would see that half of them would get vaccinated so i think the biden administration really needs to put pressure on employers an businesses to step up, step up offering on site vaccinations and incentives, cash and other types of incentives for employees to get vaccinated because we're at that point where you have to push hard to get others vaccinated. >> it's a conversation we'll have in the weeks and months ahead. doctor, thank you so much for your times, as always. >> thank you. the cyber hackers behind the biggest ransomware attack ever have suddenly gone dark. what happened to make them disappear from the interet? first, let's get a quick check on the markets before the

market close for the day. federal chair jerome powell says the fed bank is not close to altering its monetary policy. the dow traded near the flatline today and the s&p 500 hit a new intraday record and the nasdaq 1% lower while apple shares hit an all-time high. you're watching "ayman mohyeldin reports." watching "ayman mohyen reports. loaded the td ameritrade mobile app? yeah, actually i'm taking one last look at my dashboard before we board... and you have thinkorswim mobile- -so i can finish analyzing the risk on this position. you two are all set. choose the app that fits your investing style. ♪♪ ♪ ♪ when technology is easier to use... ♪ barriers don't stand a chance. ♪ that's why we'll stop at nothing

to deliver our technology as-a-service. ♪

group behind the attacks of more than 360 targets in the u.s. alone hand more than 350 companies around the world alone over the fourth of july weekend has suddenly disappeared from the internet. we don't know who or what was behind the site's vanishing but it comes days after president biden spoke with russian president vladimir putin on the phone and warned him if he did not take action against the ransomware groups that were based in russia, the u.s. would act. joining me now from moscow is nbc moscow nbc news' matt. what more have you learned about this ransomware gang group going off line? >> these hacker stories are always a bit murky, but this one might actually take the cake. we got a very interesting analysis from flash point, a cyber security firm that follows some of these russian hacker groups and they reported that they've been monitoring the forums as well. we're on day two now.

all of this group's infrastructure remains off line. yesterday the moderators of this hacker forum on the dark web banned the user accounts of a user acting as the spokesperson for this group. now the analysts say that does not necessarily mean that any kind of law enforcement action is taking place against the user but the admins themselves actually were afraid that account would be hijacked by law enforcement, and there's a lot of discussion on the forums about what happened. a lot of speculation and concern, perhaps fear, of a law enforcement action. now that would have happened here in russia, presumably, considering it's a russian group with russian infrastructure. we're hearing very, very little here from the kremlin, from really anyone in russia. of course this did come up today in the daily kremlin press briefing with the spokesman. he just said he knew nothing about this group, nothing about them being taken off line.

right after he said that, he then said that russia, of course, does see cyber crime as unacceptable and then kind of launched into the traditional talking point we've seen the past few weeks, the past few months, that russia is very interested in cyber security cooperation with the united states. so make of that what you will. we don't know too much. >> matt, in the areas of cooperation, presidential envoy for climate, john kerry, is in moscow this week. he is meeting with his russian counterparts and the kremlin reports they spoke with president vladimir putin about his portfolio of climate change. what more can you tell us about that? are we seeing any areas of cooperation break through here? >> reporter: strangely, another very vague interaction, if you will. we've only seen a readout from the kremlin that very dryly states john kerry was here. he had a phone conversation with president putin about climate change. and this is an area where the u.s. and russia can work

together. what is interesting, however, is that the npr correspondent did catch up with kerry today, and he said when he spoke with vladimir putin, they did briefly talk about cyber. >> interesting. >> there seems to be some kind of dialogue going on. >> matt bodner live for us. thank you for covering both of those stories. theresa payton, a former white house chief information officer under president george w. bush. thank you so much for your time. i know that as we were just talking about the sites coming down, we don't know what caused them to go down. how are cyber security experts like yourself interpreting this ransomware group suddenly going dark? >> there could be a variety of different reasons, and one of my first thoughts was for any unfortunate victims who may have paid, been wait to go receive their encryption keys to

deencrypt the data and didn't receive it because these guys went dark. there's a couple different reasons that could be behind this. the first one is it could be that the russian government asked them to go dark or took them off line. it could be the hosting site got nervous and took them off line. there might be a u.s. government operation that we're not going to get all the details on. and then, lastly, just like dark side, they may have decided that the heat got a little hot. they're going to lay low. and then they're going to retool and re-emerge as someone else operating under a different name, recruiting new affiliates. i doubt that they have decided it's time to be good people for their neighbors. they'll be back. >> you bring up an interesting possibility the u.s. may have been behind it. one, does the u.s. government and its agencies have the technical capabilities from your area of expertise to launch such an attack? and, as i mentioned, we don't know if the u.s. was behind the group going dark, but is having u.s. law enforcement or military

assets targeting and taking down these sites the best defense against ransomware attacks? >> it's a capability we have. we have to use it with caution. attribution in the early hours and days and weeks of an incident can be hard. and we can have unintended consequences. we could end up escalating into some type of a cyber situation that we don't want to have between us and another country. they could also be using somebody else's infrastructure and hiding behind it. and when we attack in an offensive or an attack kind of way, we could have innocent victims have their infrastructure taken offline and not really know until we do the attack. we do have the capability. we just have to be careful how we use it. >> yes, it's a fascinating conversation. i'm sure one that will continue as we go forward. the president recently saying it's not just a criminal act. it's a national security concern.

i'm sure it will get a lot more attention. theresa payton, thank you for your time. >> thanks for having me. that wraps up the hour for me. you can hear the latest news and updates from your favorite hosts anytime, anywhere on any device with tune in. go to tunein.com/nbc 2021. "deadline white house" with nicolle wallace starts after this quick break. ith nicolle wallace starts after this quick break i honestly feel that that's my calling-- to give back to younger people. i think most adults will start realizing that they don't recall things as quickly as they used to or they don't remember things as vividly as they once did. i've been taking prevagen for about three years now. people say to me periodically, "man, you've got a memory like an elephant." it's really, really helped me tremendously. prevagen. healthier brain. better life.

why choose proven quality sleep from sleep number? because a quality night's sleep is scientifically proven to help increase energy. the new sleep number 360 smart bed helps keep you asleep by sensing your movement and automatically adjusts to keep you both effortlessly comfortable. proven quality sleep is life-changing sleep. only from sleep number. i'm still wowed by what's next. even with higher stroke risk due to afib not caused by a heart valve problem. so if there's a better treatment than warfarin,... i want that. eliquis. eliquis reduces stroke risk better than warfarin. and has less major bleeding than warfarin. eliquis has both. don't stop taking eliquis without talking to your doctor as this may increase your risk of stroke. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding.

don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. while taking, you may bruise more easily... or take longer for bleeding to stop. get help right away for unexpected bleeding, or unusual bruising. it may increase your bleeding risk if you take certain medicines. tell your doctor about all planned medical or dental procedures. the number one cardiologist-prescribed blood thinner. ask your doctor about eliquis. ♪ watch the olympic games on xfinity ♪ ♪ root for team usa and feel the energy ♪ ♪ 7000 plus hours of the olympics on display ♪ ♪ with xfinity you get every hour of every day ♪ ♪ different sports on different screens ♪ ♪ you can watch it anywhere ♪ ♪ and with the voice remote ♪ ♪ you never have to leave your chair ♪ show me team usa. ♪ all of this innovation could lead to some inspiration ♪ ♪ and you might be the next one to represent our nation ♪ ♪ this summer on your tv, tablet, or any screen ♪ ♪ xfinity is here to inspire your biggest dreams ♪

mm. [ clicks tongue ] i don't know. i think they look good, man. mm, smooth. uh, they are a little tight. like, too tight? might just need to break 'em in a little bit. you don't want 'em too loose. for those who were born to ride there's progressive. with 24/7 roadside assistance. -okay. think i'm gonna wear these home. -excellent choice.

hi there, everyone. it's 4:00 in the east. might the texas democrats who fled their state to block voter restriction laws there jump-start voting rights legislation in washington, d.c., simply by being there? that's the question this hour as jim clyburn wages a lonely public battle against the filibuster in cases of voting rights. >> we all know that the filibuster is not in the constitution. it's not a law. it's a tradition. and traditions means the past. in order to move to the future we must begin to look at what is necessary for this great country to continue its movement. the filibuster, i think, has its place but not when it comes to voting and other constitutional issues. >> now president biden's address yesterday on