we'll have an answer by the end of the weekend or monday whether or not schumer is going to put this to the right. >> anna palmer, we'll be sure to read that newsletter when it hits our inboxes. thank you so much for being here. thank you to all of you for waking up way too early with us on this thursday morning. "morning joe" starts right now. >> today the house demonstrated that no one is above the law, not even the president of the united states. donald trump is a clear and present danger to our country and that once again we honor our oath of office to protect and defend the constitution of the united states so help us god. >> the president bears

responsibility for wednesday's attack on congress by mob rioters. he should have immediately denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolded. these facts required immediate action of president trump. he quelled the brewing unrest and ensure president-elect biden is able to successfully began his term. the greatest statesman understood the most dangerous threat to freedom is lawlessness. a young lawyer abraham lincoln famously said there is no grievance that's a fit object of readdress my mob law. they tried to interfere with the constitutional law. some say the riots were caused by antifa. there is absolutely no evidence

of that. and conservatives should be the first to say so. >> that was one year ago today exactly as the house impeached donald trump for the second time. one of those two leaders standby her remark and the other is hiding from his. >> it's remarkable. the president bears direct responsibility. mob law tried to interfere with constitutional law. willie, we have all said and we have talked about kevin mccarthy well a year ago today saying that on the floor. watching it again is such dark and a direct reminder of just how shameless and gutless he and the republican party and all of those who are claiming that january 6th of much adieu about

nothing shows they're not only lying to americans but they're lying to themselves and they know it. >> they told the truth for a moment. that was an extraordinary document to hear mccarthy speaking that way. if you are wondering how long that sentiment lasted for republicans, two weeks after mccarthy was down at mar-a-lago assuring donald trump that she was still with him and taking a photograph with him and letting republicans know he was still with him as well. >> i know some people just tuned in and listened to it. tj, do you have it cued up. can we play it again. just the mccarthy part. play it again. it's so striking. the president bears responsibility for wednesday's attack in congress by mob rioters. he should have denounced the mob when he saw what was unfolding.

these facts required immediate action of president trump except to share responsibility, quell the brewing unrest and ensure president-elect biden is able to begin his term. the greatest statesman in the history of our country understood that the most dangerous threat to freedom is lawlessness. a young lawyer named abraham lincoln famously said there is no grievance that's a fit object of readdress by mob law. yet for several hours last week mob law tried to interfere the constitutional law. some say the riots were caused by antifa. there is absolutely no evidence of that. and conservatives should be the first to say so. >> that was kevin mccarthy and

two weeks later he was with the president who he said bears the direct responsibility to mob law and interfereing constitutional law and also said two weeks before standing with donald trump that the lawlessness that the man he was standing next to was quote "the greatest threat to freedom." let's just let that sink in for a second there. two weeks earlier he said donald trump was the greatest threat to freedom, the lawlessness he was responsible for and two weeks later he's gripping and grinning and leaking a picture to donors. >> he went to rehabilitate the president down there. there was a moment in time that only lasted a couple of days

where republicans could have turned and walked away from donald trump based on what happened on january 6th. that day sure sounded like and if you listen to lindsey graham saying enough is enough. lindsey graham was saying i can't support mitch mcconnell talking about the majority leader unless he shows he supports donald trump. all these people who were so outraged and disgusted show no courage whatsoever. they were cowards walking away because they heard noise from donald trump supporters and they're worried about their political future. >> we got jonathan lemire with us and eugene daniels with us. house minority leader says he will not cooperate with the january 6th committee after the panel requested an interview with the california lawmaker.

the committee is seeking details of mccarthy's communications with donald trump. mccarthy's refusal comes despite his agreeing last may to cooperate with an investigation with the riot. >> would you be willing to testify about your conversation with donald trump on january 6th if you were asked by an outside commission? >> sure, next question. >> so he said he would and the request letter committee chair thompson says the panel had text messages from multiple witnesses indicating after the attack, mccarthy may discussed the possibility of impeachment of trump or removal of office under the 25th amendment and even the option of immediate resignation in refusing to cooperate, the only objective is to attempt to damage its political opponents.

the panel likely weighed whether to subpoena his testimony. the vice president chairwoman suggested that mccarthy is attempted to hide what transpired on january 6th. congresswoman liz cheney told us last night i wish he was an honorable man. he has an obligation to come forward and we'll get to the truth. >> why make it so hard? >> he's objectively not being an honorable man and running away from the truth. the truth he stated and he was on the phone screaming at donald trump. he was proud and told other members that he screamed and yelled at donald trump.

we ask for five years what it tags for these people to break from donald trump. they were calling and screaming telling donald trump to call off the mob. even when their lives where are in danger. they were in danger if you listen to what they said that day and the weeks followed. >> there is as video. >> well now a year later, this is a partisan witch-hunt and there is nothing to this. kevin mccarthy says it was mob law that threaten constitutional law and quote, "the greatest threat to american freedom." >> yeah these guys were hiding in rooms with chairs propped up against the door to try to keep the insurrectionists out. who was that person we just saw a year ago? who was kevin mccarthy standing

up there and saying it was not antifa, you know, donald trump is responsible for this. it's hard to reconcile if that was the same kevin mccarthy today because he changed his tune so much in part to hold onto power. he believes he can't remain the leader of his party in congress if he did not take this tact. it shows you the grip that donald trump continues to have on the republican party. these guys are so scared of making him upset and making him angry and until that changes, i don't think we are going to see any thing different mccarthy and other republican party. >> there is been this desperate attempt one year later to say this was just any other day and -- oh, there were riots and attacks during the black lives matter and there were. there is this small percentage

and we are clear here that anybody who did that be thrown in jail and thrown in jail immediately. here it happened though at the heart of america's democracy. this was a direct attack in minneapolis. this was an attack on american democracy. they know the difference. this was direct attack from american democracy and i don't know who these republicans think they're fooling when they pretend this is much to do about nothing. they're doing it. >> they have and they started early, right? though you had mccarthy and other leaders of the republican party on the 13th and 14th saying donald trump held the party. the whitewashing of january 6th started early on. that's something that the

republican party leaders of the republican party blown to and had been doing this the entire year. you had months and months that people saying the election was going to be stolen. the election happened and they say it was stolen. you have a year of them whitewashing what happened on january 6th and the people that are republican and republican voters. they don't think anything happening that bad in 2021. that's the larger problem is, there does not seem to be any when it comes to courage about saying what happened, you do have some senators who are more likely to say what happened that day. you have mitch mcconnell and senators talking about that and talking about how the president lost the election but in the house, they know mccarthy wants to be speaker one day.

unless he has donald trump on his side however long they're going to do this, he's not going to be speaking. >> there is a deference between the republicans and the senate other than let's say ron johnson and the two people that conspired to lead the insurrection and ten couraged the mob, there is a split namely some of the house republicans who are spreading the lies and doing the whitewashing of a horrific day. of course along with their allies in the media who are shameless and gutless and horrible and irresponsible spoke people by donald trump everyday by saying nothing happened on january 6th. they should be ashamed of themselves as americans. >> some of those people you are talking about, the media

personnel has a role in all of this communicating with the white house in realtime how the should go down. it's not just the crazies in the house who are dismissing january 6th and ignoring these requests. it's the man who wants to be speaker of the house and may well be as you say a year from now mccarthy. liz cheney said yesterday i may support the idea of subpoena to get mccarthy up here. what happens if someone is central from this investigation and mccarthy won't show up? what's the move of this select committee? >> we talked to congressman kinzinger about this subject when they would offer a subpoena to other members of congress. cheney's colleague. none more prominent than mccarthy. they have to check on how feasible it could get done.

it's something they are taking seriously and it would be dramatic escalation of the politics surrounding this committee's work and certainly we have seen them making steady progress and more high profile of what they are doing and discussing in primetime hearings in the weeks ahead bringing mccarthy in front of them would be an extraordinary move and to reiterate the point here. mccarthy is just only more closely ally himself to donald trump similarly by the day. our friend jonathan swan had brand new reporting that mccarthy is telling colleagues that he were to be speaker and electoral map looks favorable for republicans. if he were speaker, he'll trumpify the party even more and pushing forward a populist agenda to lay the ground work

for trump's return in 2024. this is all political calculation and all about mccarthy doing what he thinks he needs to do to be speaker again and that means to stay in trump's good graces. >> let's be clear. when he says he'll trumpify the party, we are not just talking about cooperations, what we are talking about is going after western democracy. >> uh-huh. >> donald trump has along with the forces in the party and not only emulated -- a guy dismisses western democracy and despises a free and independent judiciary, they endorsed him. donald trump want to do what

ervon had done in destroying democracy in hungary. this is not about immigration. >> no. >> this is not about sort of the policies we debate in between the guard rails of democracy. donald trump tried to bust through the boundaries of democracy. he tried to get rid of checks and balances. he would try his best to destroy freedom of the press and so when mccarthy says he's taking the party in that direction, it's an un-american, ill liberal approach to politics. >> we thought the 2020 election was bad in terms of how trump continues to try to challenge the arizona's results for example, we have seen nothing yet if we don't stop him in 2024. if mccarthy becomes speaker, he'll make it that much easier for republicans to break down democracy and break down the

pillars of our institutions and take democracy away from all of us. there is a lot of say and i know eventually we'll talk about voting rights, that reiterates why we have to pass a federal voting rights bill to protect what we can now while democrats still have control in the house and the white house. >> we'll get to that in a moment. the frustration is how do democrats explain this choice because when they do it's oh my gosh they're too dramatic and snow flakes or this and that when the choice is in reality just as you put it joe. >> well, they're going to do two things at once. americans are not going to go to the polls on this issue. i have had republicans tell me, people don't care about january the 6th. you look at the polls they don't care about january the 6th and they'll move on. it's the responsibility of us to care about january 6th. it's the responsibility of the media and leaders and congress

to care about january 6th. you got to hold this and continues the investigation and you worry about things that do move people because how you address inflation, how you address the supply chain and how you address immigration and the southern border, eugene, those are the actual issues that's going to determine how people are going to vote. it's not going to be on january the 6th. it's going to be what impacts the people tomorrow. >> part of that is leadership. following what voters want only or also about telling them what the truth is. making sure that people realize donald trump is the way he operate is donald trump and how he's done it for a long time. he does not think about democracy in the same way that you outline or a lot of people who are in the building right behind us think about it. we do have to walk and figure

out how to chew gum at the same time. the white house is trying to figure out what's the messaging around inflation and how do we talk about getting back to build back better bill and how do you talk about the infrastructure bill. we are thinking about how important democracy is. it's a hard balance. it's not something that's animating voters right now. i honestly find it shocking. i think about it quite a bit. >> there is been a lesson for i think a lot of us over the past five years. the things that donald trump did day in and day out that were so shocking and ill-liberal that led to january 6th. we found a lot of voters didn't care about it. okay, whatever happened in d.c. they were concerned of the

economy and the pandemic and getting their kids back to school and virginia concerned of inflation and impact on grocery prices and they voted for the guy who was endorsed from donald trump. he did talk about tax cuts on groceries. you got to do two things at once. by the way, he used to drive us crazy in the house and senate that bill clinton could say whatever he says and his approval ratings went up to 60% and he still, it took us five years and until 2005 to go they just cared about the economy. they didn't care about any of the details. it was a lesson. you put in your head. it's in my head and i am going to take it out and read the note and it tells me people don't care about the craziness they

should care about here. much, much worse than what i saw 25 years ago. it's the same thing people care about their groceries and taking care of their families. >> that's reflected in national polls this week which shows january 6th had fallen down and covid-19 fallen down a little bit and at the top of minds of american voters because of everything that's happening in the country right now and everything you said, inflation being at the top of that list. everything is costing and we just saw 70% of inflation and gas prices doubled and all the things that affects people lives. that does not mean critically important to investigate. this was an attack of our democracy and an attempt to over turn. this has to go on. i think kevin mccarthy is not just reading his own party. he's reading the country a little bit and saying the country is not as focused and obsessed on january 6th as

washington is. he wants to move forward, he has a role in it so he'll have to account in it. he's going to try to look forward and put it in his rear-view mirror. eric holder joins us to weigh in on the need of voting rights legislation ahead of the midterms. plus, former president trump criticizes politicians who refused to say whether they received a covid booster shot, calling them gutless. could he be referring to desantis? there is as growing concern of low covid-19 vaccine rates among children. what it means for kids in the classrooms as case number rise from coast to coast. also ahead, the lead singer of the 1960 trio, the run-x has passed away. the group was famous for hits

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trust me, after 15 walks... gets a little old. ugh this morning we mark the passing of a 1960 icon. ronnie spector dies at 78.

the girl group toured england with the rolling stones and befriended the beatles. spector became known as rocking cat eye makeup and a beehive hairdo. their 12 tracks made it to the u.s. billboard card. spector was 78 years old. one of my favorite stories, brian wilson, no slouch when it comes to music and one of the greatest song writers in american music says he was driving the road and the first time he heard "be my baby," when the chorus came in sort of that explosion of sound, he had to pull his car on the side of the road, he was blown away.

he is just stared on the radio, what planet is this music being brought in from because it was the most incredible. >> brian wilson also called "be my baby" the most favorite pop being recorded. that tells you how influential and how great that song was. she was from harlem and she started the group with her sister and cousin and she married the producer, bill spector that's why her name became ronnie spector. she was one of the most important artists of the 20th century. she opened for the stones, they all wanted her on the bill when they were traveling around the world. >> bill spector obviously, a terrible inn but it was

spector's sound really changed production and changed everything and he did that through ronnie spector. it was that voice that really changed so much. by the way, while we are talking about music. i talked yesterday with quesla. i don't know if you have seen "summer of soul" yet. it was harlem music festival that was a couple of weeks before woodstock and everybody talks about it. quest love and the producer put together something that i am sure it's going to win awards this year because it's time capsule from 1969. you got stevie wonder performing the same day neil armstrong

walking on the moon. sly was doing things that no body has done. david ruffin in the middle of a very hot harlem day wearing all wool. man, he was a temptation and he was going to wear all wool. no sweat. it really is politically and culturally summer of soul. a great movie to stream this weekend. >> all right, coming up, former president trump is suddenly a big supporter of vaccines and boosters. where did that come from? now he's calling out other politicians who are staying silent on their status.

it sure does not look like he's calling out ron desantis. >> i feel like it. we'll explain that coming up next on "morning joe." plain thap next on "morning joe."

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donald trump is calling out politicians refused to say whether they receive a covid-19 booster shot. the far-right cable channel, trump said he had a booster and criticized those who won't reveal their status. take a look. >> i have taken it. i had the booster. many politicians, i watched a couple being interviewed and one of the questions was did you get

booster because they had the vaccine and they're answering it like they don't want to say it because they're gutless, you got to say it whether you had it or not. the fact that the vaccines have saved tens of millions of people throughout the world. i had no side effects. i had it like other people have had it and nothing's special. >> trump did not mention anyone by name but his remarks appeared to be directed at ron desantis who's considered a possible republican contender for president in 2024. desantis has so far refused to say whether he's he perceived a booster shot. >> have you gotten a booster? >> so i have done whatever i did the normal shot and that at the end of the day as people's individual decisions about what they want to do.

>> what adam world he lived in. i don't know if his whole solar system is down? he's afraid to say whether he got a booster shot? how can anyone be so weak? >> i don't know. >> good question. let me ask jonathan lemire. you are afraid to tell people whether you got a shot or not? >> donald trump -- >> my god. what would it be like a man living in that world? i really wonder what man would be afraid to tell people whether they got a shot or not? >> that's a weak, weak world he lives in. >> he wants to take credit for the vaccine. >> i was talking about desantis. >> he killed several hundred

thousand people. >> lemire, trump is playing the long game? >> let me take control of the car for a second here. >> okay. >> you just hold on. >> oh yeah. >> tell me jonathan lemire, i am sure you saw the whole interview, the interviewer was doing his best, he had the tinfoil hat on and signaling to common sense of a special message to him. trump seemed pretty focus saying the booster is the thing to do but he swerved out of the way to hit poor desantis who was afraid to answer questions about getting a shot. >> there is a few things at play here, a few people i talked to close to the former president. you saw the governor there, he staked the position being far right of anti-mask and vaccine

mandates. which is ridiculous. >> he staked out a position. >> as far as the former president goes, there is been a shift where he's looking for credit. we heard him talking about the vaccines and people should get the vccines and he's got the booster himself. he wants to credit credit for that. there is something more here which is not about what anger trump. it's not what desantis had not said whether he gotten a booster, what anger trumps is that he would not run for president in 2024 if trump does. so many other candidates have suggested that hey, if the former president wants in, i will bow out. desantis has poignantly not done that. that's what angers trump as he weighs his possible come back leading towards 2024 run.

that's what i am told really angers him. >> have you heard and figured out donald trump? he's really tiring when you start to say donald trump starts talking about vaccines. >> oh, he says it once or twice. >> there was at least something that stands out. i guess everybody thinks everybody else is stupid as they are. we are not. let me ask you jonathan lemire for those that are not bathe in stupidity. when did he make this break and decide he would talk about one of the most significance things in his administration. do you have any reporting or people around trump. what are they telling you, this is quite a massive break from not just his silence for the most part on the issue of vaccines but also on chasing the

trumpest corner of the trump. this is the first time in his career he has not. >> let's take a half step back. he's got his own vaccine behind closed doors. he did it in front of camera. trump got his and no one saw it and for months would not say a word. as we have been talking about and something we feel like this is as signature accomplishment of his administration as an eye on the possible run, look, i did this for america and this is something that we did. he's always started doing it recently and also if you look at the poll numbers and he sees there are some republicans harden their position against

it. we know that the pandemic right now has had such a far devastating impact on those who are unvaccinated. who are those largely? republicans. that's part of this as well. >> i think that's a big part of it. he's saying that the numbers shown a lot more of his supporters are dying or having really bad impact from covid than biden supporters and he thinks that way. state attorney for palm beach county, david, i have got to play this clip again for ron desantis to live in fear. >> have you gotten the booster? >> so, i have done whatever i did the normal shot and you know

that at the end of the day is people's individual decisions of what they want to do. >> dave, what is he afraid of? >> he's afraid, joe, of losing the maga base because he's focused on running for president in 2024 that be running for reelection. this whole trump and desantis is long below the surface and finally reached the public's view. trump is right he created desantis. desantis who had no chance of winning the republican nomination four years ago. trump endorsed him and he won handedly. part of the reasons is that desantis is not sufficiently -- he's one of the few leading republicans candidates for president in 2024

who has not stepped aside for trump. the reasons why he won't do that because he's running for reelection and he thinks for 2024 is bad for reelection. he's in a bind right now. this is like what tony sopranos does. this is trump's warning desantis, he roughed him up a little bit. next time he'll mention desantis by name and that could put a shift in desantis's political career. >> part of it is what's his standing it and we know the maga folks -- if you have a sense of how he's seen in florida as a leader during covid-19 especially. >> the polls seem to show that desantis is fairly popular. he dipped a bit and saying he'll

defund school. he keeps on bouncing back and even though florida had record number of covid cases, by the time he's running for reelection on november, i suspect he's focus on bigger issues like critical race theory and he's in great shape to win reelection because he's going to have $100 million in funds, he's becoming a national maga. he's getting tons of money outside the state and we have three democrats running for governor right now and they're not raising nearly the money desantis is. in the end, florida is some what of a swing state. there are two things that i think could up hand his reelection. if donald trump really goes after kemp and if the supreme court overturns roe v. wade and they'll do so in the summer.

desantis comes out saying he'll support mississippi. florida is different, that's the kind of things that shows the out of touch floridians and could jeopardize of certain elections. >> he's raising a ton of money because people are expecting him to run for president. so many are hoping he's donald trump's ill appearance. dave, thank you for being with us. it's not a foregone conclusion if trump attacks desantis that it's going to end like other attacks. the contributors like desantis. it may be that moment where donald trump attacks somebody who can stand their ground and that's a real nightmare scenario

for a guy who's built his political career on a bully that everybody like kevin mccarthy or lindsey graham are afraid of. still ahead what's driving a nearly 40 year high for inflation and how long will it last. steve ratner has charts on that. it's not just the rising price of goods, it's about whether you can find them. we have new reporting on what's behind the grocery shortage in some stores. "morning joe" is coming right back. stores. "morning joe" is coming right back with voltaren arthritis pain gel. my husband's got his moves back. an alternative to pills, voltaren is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory gel for powerful arthritis pain relief. voltaren, the joy of movement. ♪ ♪ ♪

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[copy machine printing] ♪ ♪ who would've thought printing... could lead to growing trees. ♪ just getting by. could lead to it's an ongoing struggle. that's why president biden and democrats in congress have a plan to lower costs for america's working families. lower costs of health care premiums. and the price of prescription drugs. pay less for electric bills by moving to clean energy. we do it all by making the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share of taxes.

it'd be a win for the everyday american family. right when they could really use one. congress, let's get this done. (music) ♪ i think to myself ♪ ♪ what a wonderful world ♪

government officials in

austria are still looking to deport novak djokovic. austria's prime minister told reporters the vast majority of australians disapproved of djokovic's traveling into the country. djokovic cancelled visas earlier this week. yesterday's draw was delayed more than an hour over djokovic's visa status. if he's allowed to remain in the country for the australian open, he'll begin as the top seed in the tournament playing. the australian open begins on monday. it's not clear why this is taking so long. why the administration administer is looking a the longer this goes on, he can start his tournament. so he gets in the country and

they cancel his visa and it's outraged and now now they are looking at it again. time to make a decision. >> looks like they already made a decision that they're going to let him play. if that's the case djokovic will be able to play sending signals to everybody in austria that the rules apply to you don't apply to this guy who not only is not vaccinated but also lied on his forum saying he's isolated for 14 days and been in the country when he's been on a world tour, christmas vacation. >> we'll keep on following this. eugene daniels and

adrienne elrod. >> we won't look like a big huge mask but still n-95 masks. >> that's all we are asking for. >> thank you. those exist? >> they do. we have been looking them up online. >> come on eugene. >> remember the suit the other day, you were amazing. this guy is to ask. a lot to get to this morning, anthony blinken joining us live talking about the ongoing negotiations with russia on what's happening at the ukraine border and the winter olympics three weeks away, lindsey vonn will join us, our gold medallist, we'll be right back. gold medallist, we'll be rt back

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okay, it's the top of the hour, a live look at the white

house as the sun has yet to come up. >> what are those? >> they're boots. >> nothing is wrong with them, right? >> my daughter says they're really cool. >> looks like you are marching into mud. >> come on, i know is not bad, right. >> we have no camera here on msnbc. >> welcome back on this thursday on msnbc. we have michael steel, our political analyst and jonathan lemire is still with us as well. good to have you on board. >> this is your first time. >> first time on a set since the primary with casey donna. a lot of home cameras. >> yeah. >> speaking of president biden, thank you mike to the swift

turn. he'll attend a closed door democratic caucus lunch today at the u.s. capitol to push senators into backing the party's two bills on voting rights and change the filibuster rule if needed. chuck schumer wrote a memo detailing a work around to get the bills for the senate floor for debate even if a final vote seems unlikely. the memo reads in part, we'll have an opportunity to debate voting rights legislation something that republicans have denied. senators can make clear to the american people where they stand on protecting our democracy and preserving the right of every eligible american to cast a ballot. schumer said he wants a vote on a potential rules change no later than monday which is martin luther king jr.'s day. majority leader mitch mcconnell gave a blistering repute of

president biden. >> i known and personally respected joe biden for many years. i did not recognize the man at the podium. the president's rant yesterday was incoherent and incorrect beneath his office. you can't invent a better advertisement for the filibuster than a president abandoning rational persuasion for figure demagogue. >> president was asked about mitch mcconnell and he told reporters, quote, "i like mitch mcconnell, he's a friend." >> he's already.

god love him. he's ideal. >> i love it. the take away was the tag. i did not recognize the man at the podium. dude -- that's been the story for the country we are looking at the republican party. we don't recognize the men and women behind the various podiums across the country that are out here now shielding for the proud boys. we are talking about do you stand with voters as something as fundamental as the right to vote. the reality of it is you are standing behind the podium refusing to denounce the fact that the former defeated

president is out here claiming that he's still president. so when you are ready to pronounce that then we could begin to recognize the man behind the podium. this is a lot less for joe biden and look for him in that regard. the problem he's going to have still and mike's reporting on this. how do you get this caucus to finally get the fact this is a win for them. they just won it. >> what was the president doing yesterday when he brought up jefferson davis. it's not about being white or black. it's not about being anything. it's about what does a president need to do to get vote rights

passed which led us very clear we on "morning joe" for over a year have said they needed to do these voting rights bills before they did bbb and infrastructure and this should be a top priority. when i asked this question, i am not asking it because i believe democrats should be playing by the rules. i think they should fight like republicans. what do you think he's going to achieve doing that? >> i was in atlanta and it was out of character. i gasped when he made the comparison invoking mcconnell. >> why the gasp? >> because he makes his peace success is you can question a man's judgment and you can never question their motive. if you are not for rule changes

and not for this bill, you are jefferson davis. the crowd loved it. this is a white house that's been careful with how they use political capital. they don't want to put the president out there for any fight. no one thinks this rule fight on the hill is going to end well. i was thinking of an adviser who told me a few months ago. he was concerned that democrats framing this fight completely wrong by making the rules changed rather than the issues itself. they were spotlighting among democrats rather than what he thinks should be happening. >> which is bbb, they have been fighting each other for over a year. >> the president is going to meet with them across today. i do think that is a departure from a few past presidents. i mean joe biden has worked on

capitol hill and he has no problem going in there roll up his sleeves and talking it through which he plans to go through today. >> can i go back to the question of the references? the politics of it actually makes sense to me. i mean -- where do you begin to draw? you got to draw a distinct line. if he comes out swinging out on a field and you are not used to seeing him in a position he's in. okay, he's got your attention now. people are asking themselves, what is this reference really means? outside the country, it causes people kind of going why would you say that and you begin to look at what's at stake here and

so i think the president sort of making this pivot in a way that's out of character and not consistent with the joe biden that we have seen is okay. you are sitting here and we just watched republicans going out and denounced books they written as fake news. you had ted cruz griping to tucker carlson and everyone seems to think that's okay. politically that's okay. they look at biden making a statement like this, oh my god, hair on fire. >> you often like democrats don't fight hard enough. they don't fight tough enough and don't fight ugly enough and here he goes in there and he takes a few swings. >> there is inside gang and there is an outside gang. the outside gang breathes fire. whatever works.

if you are a republican and you know somebody decides that they want pave an off ramp and if you want to call them communists, go try and see if it works. so the only thing i am saying here is after again saying democrats need to fight like hell and learn to be meaner and tougher. >> right. >> you know that when you are doing the outside game. joe biden needs votes. hold on. he needs to get -- he needs to get his 50 votes. >> he played the inside game.

>> okay, now i am going to find out where they stand. look at this poll yesterday. a huge flashing red light, only 25% approval rating among independence. there is also concerns about the fact that he's only 70% with democrats. if you are not over 80% or 90%, you are in trouble. i was speaking with jim clyburn. he wants to see the president taking his gloves off with his own party. he reminded republicans of the promises he made the night he accepted as president-elect to always have black voters back. when the president came down to south carolina delivering the commencement with clyburn at his alma mater, he urged him you need to do more. as we head into election year to

reenforce his support. and we'll see how he leverages within his caucus and the level of blow back he gets and some of that will leak out at some point. i think at some point tp the president has to decide whether this fight is worth it and to what degree he's willing to sacrifice political capital to get game. he's dragging and the polls among his base and among independent voters. how do you jump start that fight if you got the leadership particularly in the black community saying to you, we walk with you and now we need you to walk for us. draw that line in the sand and get schumer to start putting down the votes and get people on

the record. >> that makes sense because he's been lagging among black voters and hispanics and he's now lagging among independence. that's more of an outside game. i don't think it will help him get this legislation passed but may help him sure of support. again, in the outside game. one other concern that i would have as a democrat would be we have seen this talk before where they call georgia bills and some of these other things, jim crow 2.0, obviously it's not jim crow 2.0, it's a rhetorical over reach. republicans over reached to rhetorically as well. the only concern is when you look and see what voting is like in georgia compares to new york state or new jersey.

i am not so sure if it's that much harder to vote in georgia. >> it's fascinating to watch progressives out rage. many of them are the same and obsessed over build back better bill, you have to get this through as well. i think president biden has a case of sort of his head spinning on where you want me to focus and now he's on voting rights. while the speech felt good, it felt good with progressives and activists. what is he going to say to joe manchin and to sinema and maybe john tester and and chris kuehn about getting rid of the filibuster given the fact that publicly manchin and sinema have

said over and over again, i am not for scrapping the 60 votes threshold. >> manchin said it again yesterday after the president's speech in atlanta. he seems to unmoved. he wants to be republican support. that seems like it's not going to go anywhere. the white house aides have said they expect special appeal from the president. he'll talk about the threat of democracy that the voting rights, the changes that republicans control legislatures have have made it threaten to democracy. it's unclear whether it will go anywhere, the politics of it than actually getting something done. senate majority schumeme senate edure is going to be calling to have role call votes on these

legislation in the coming days. democrats hopefully using it against republicans. they're still in the expectations this will pass requiring 60 votes so they're nowhere near that. the white house responding to growing agitation to members of their own party and civil rights groups saying we want to hear more from the president of the issues of voting rights. mlk day on monday, it looms. if we don't see some progress by then, where are we going to hear from us? >> whether this is enough for them to be seen. >> i don't have to go back to 1967 or summer to find an example of hypocrisy by all of

these theorists. whatever they say because it's all nonsense and gibberish. they're lying. when it was time the figure out how to raise the debt ceiling around the filibuster, they should figure out just like that. and now a month later, we can't change the filibuster. this will ruin the institution. so here is the deal -- republicans already have an exception to the issue that matters the most to them and that's the selection of supreme court judges. >> of course. >> they can pass tax cuts wit court with 50 votes. of course republicans. >> right. >> of course republicans want to keep democrats in place with no

exceptions on things that matter the most of voting rights. >> protecting the rights of black voters and hispanics and people of color. of course they want to keep the filibuster in place. so come on, you don't have to call them jefferson davis, just call them, i would call them -- hypocrites. they already got theirs but now they're acting oh, we can't do for voting rights. well, we did one month ago. >> let us be very clear. we know where mcconnell is the majority leader again and it's a tight fit in the senate which he wants whatever he wants for the agenda.

that's the way the game is played. you rightly pointed out just a month ago everybody got off their purified horses and sat down. so i can understand why the president has finally just come out with at least one gun blazing. and typical washington, i grew up here and i have seen this move before. oh my god, did you hear the president he used the b word, right? and so the reality is for the man who knows the senate and knows how to tweak the buttons there, what is he prepared to do? and at least right now the president seems that he wants to engage in this fight. he wants to create a new turf if you will. whether or not democrats are willing to follow him remains to be seen but here is the rubber at the end of the day. if you are holding out this idea, this fanciful notion that

this thing is so -- if you for some reason decides to give him for filibuster voting rights that when republicans take control that they can do to same thing, trust me. that's already baked in baby. you can only do the here and now. you can't worry about what other party may do if they get power a year or two years from now. this is your moment. the house is on the line. you either want to control the house in 2023. you are down about 37 seats right now. stop and do the math. you are down about three seats in the senate, you want to give power back to the party that looks at january 6th and what happens across the street here and says oh well we condemn it on january 7th but we'll go to florida and bend the knees to donald trump.

>> that should be it. >> and understanding this could happen again easily in 2024. if republicans -- the same people that are telling us january 6th is much to do about nothing could be the same people in charge in 2024, that's dangerous. mike, tell us about the book. you are writing about biden. >> i am writing about biden. we are week shy, a year since the president was sworn in. 50 years ago was when he announced his first run for senate. i have been covering him the last 15 years, a good chunk of that time, one, is biden running and is he running again? when is your biden book coming out? i am thrilled to announce, the long run and really to take a look at how this man who has inspired to be president for so

long, how he got there and now how he's going to fight. >> he ran three times and had so much tragedies in his life and served for decades here in washington. that's a great story to be following. >> boy, i can't wait for it. >> mike, thank you very much. still ahead on "morning joe," law enforcement fatalities spiked in 2021. the leading cause of death, coronavirus. congresswoman and former orlando police chief val deming is standing by. we'll talk to her about that. you are watching "morning joe," we'll be right back. g joe," g joe," we'll be right back. so i only pay for what i need. how about a throwback? you got it. ♪ liberty, liberty - liberty, liberty ♪ uh, i'll settle for something i can dance to. ♪ liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty ♪

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anthony blinken coming on this morning, we have breaking news from the wall street journal in geneva and paris

struck with havana's syndrome. we'll be talking to anthony blinken about that breaking news. >> coming up on "morning joe," yesterday we reported on the rise in consumer prices by 7% in december. the sharpest inflation hike in four decades. for more this morning, we bring informer treasury official and "morning joe" economic analyst, steve ratner. steve. >> i have charts for you and i am going to try to put this into perspective and how it affecting americans and president biden's approval ratings and you can see here the dramatic increase in inflation from anything you have experienced the last 40 years. over in the right where you see right now a dotted red line and

hyper inflation and a few of us remember back when not only inflation was high and interest rates was 9%. we have not seen anything like this in a while. it's across the board, prices going up everywhere. people will see on things like furniture 14% and meat is up 14%. used car prices are up 30%. the one that consumers pay most attention to is gasoline. it's $3.30 cents now. why is all this happening? you have a combination of enormous demand of a lot of stimulus in the economy. people have gone back to work. the unemployment rate is down. and they did not spend a lot of money during the lockdown so they have extra money. you will have supply shortages and things like that. one of the things that's interesting about is how much

this was missed by the government sector and considerable degree by the private sector. this shows you what projections were in the course of last year. if you look at the first full bars to the left. you can see they're all projecting 2% inflation all the way through the may forecast. it's only starting in july they start to catch up with the idea that there was in fact going to be substantial inflation and you can see a rise. they never got to the 7% we reported just the other day as we mention. this was really missed and larry summers caught it. it was missed by the vast bulk of the professionals and most importantly by the biden administration, by the federal reserve. what's the impact on this on

americans? not good and surprisingly. i am sure you have read about increasing wages. it has not gone up faster especially people at the bottom with higher minimum wages. none the less, on average this inflation, the 7th inflation last year wiped out all the wage gained by the average americans by a margin. i broken out a few professions on the left you can see fallen behind, information, health and manufacturing all well below the 7%. overall was the turquoise part in the middle. wages when up 5%. that's 1.2% less than inflation. you had some folks on the right, people driving amazon trucks, their wage went up faster than inflation. people working in the energy sector where energy is booming again because of all demand going up more.

it's been less and so all of this i think we would agree is a major factor of why biden's approval rating is sitting in the low 80s. inflation broken out separately as a significant issue for americans. that's the inflation picture. >> wow. >> steve, larry summers and a few others warned us a few years ago, what's a way out of this and what's your recommendation and what's larry summers' recommendation and to the feds and the white house and congress, what needs to be done? >> at this point we used call team trans itory is off the field. jay powell's hearing yesterday

acknowledged this is a problem. you will see interest rates going up sooner and faster than a year ago. the fed is talking about three interest rates next year. the fed is going to have to step in here and they'll sell their assets and shrink their balance sheet sheet and trying to lean against this. the biden administration is not doing that. they're still eager to pass their bbb bill which would increase deficits and put inflationary pressure back into the economy in the short run. they're not doing an. 's really in the fed's hands and i think we are all expecting a meeting for the feds to act. it's not better at the moment or if it's at all. >> steve ratner, thank you very much. joining us now congresswoman value demings.

she's running for marco rubio's senate seat. we have practiced this. for florida's leaders and politicians, this is an important question. >> i think we practice this. >> you joked at it. >> it was a practice. >> i say this because she's a former police chief and tino there is a lot of struggle within police departments to get police officers to get vaccinated and help save lives and there are some politicians who have a problem with this question. are you boosted? >> yes. >> that's all i have to say. >> you obviously understand law enforcement better than just about anybody in congress. i don't understand -- we showed a new story that had more deaths

for law enforcement officers through covid than anything else. i have gotten a friend who everybody in the family gotten two vaccines and boosted and except for one member in law enforcement, when i talked to them, it's a cultural thing. i don't understand it. can you explain? >> joe, let me say good morning to everybody. before i answer the question, i want top say happy founder's day to the women, 109 years, by the way. i spent 27 years serving in law enforcement. one of the things we realize everyday that if we can't keep the officers safe, we can't keep the community safe. we want to make sure officers

have the training they needed and the equipment they needed and the support they needed and the vaccinations they needed. i remember the hepatitis series we all stood in line to get because they were ordered to do so. i attended the memorial every year, i help to read the names of the officers who died in the line of duty as you stated overwhelming majority as a result of covid. we know the best weapon is to get vaccinated. i don't know about the culture. i know different police departments do different things and somehow pretty significant of percentages of people being vaccinated. when you go out and interact with the public everyday. it's critical that you make sure you are safe that you can't contract the virus or spread the virus. as a former police chief sitting

here this morning, i would encourage every man and woman in law enforcement to get vaccinated. >> any insights on why i seems to be -- police officers who obviously rightfully felt at times not supported enough and yet here the greatest risk of their lives for the second year running is covid and so many are making decisions not to get the vaccines. >> few look at every profession, police department made up of police of our society such as, as we look across the board, we have seen people of all professions who decided not to get vaccinated. many of them think it's their personal choice or freedom, they don't have to do it. they need to look at the responsibility they have to their fellow officers and to the

people in the public they serve. willie is with us. >> good morning congresswoman, it's good to see you. let me change the subject to voting rights. we saw president biden in atlanta making the case for voting rights but not persuasive enough to a small group of senators who'll not get rid of the filibuster and had been clear about that. how do you see a path forward? you spoken of the urgency and you talked about your personal story and your parents in terms of voting. how do democrats get there? >> willie, i am going to say this to you and it's good to see you this morning. we have got to get this done. i told my story yesterday about my parents of the maid and the janitor who worked long hard hours but never missed the opportunity to vote. it's the corner stone of our

democracy and while some debate the filibuster several months ago, any tools that obstrucs and impedes legislation that involves people's rights, we need to get rid of it. it won't matter if every eligible voters is not allowed to cast their votes and have their voices hear, does it matter whether we keep an obstructive procedure in the u.s. senate? no, it does not. i do believe we should have conversations earlier. the two senators we continue to talk about sinema and manchin, do they want their legacy to be that they should have had an opportunity to ensure that everybody voter was able to cast their vote and they supported and antiquated obstructive rules

than the people of this country. i don't think that's what they want their legacy to be. with all of the back and forth and all of the interviews and discussions both have had. i believe william invite me back if i am dead wrong, i believe at the end of the day we'll get this done and we'll get it done through the u.s. senate. >> congresswoman, joe and i were sort of going back and forth a lit in the last segment of the president's rhetoric and how that may or may not be framing the upcoming meetings he's going to have with the caucus. you are running in florida, how do you see this sort of national ma -- clearly impacted the

president's numbers in the low 40s, 25% among independents, how do you see candidates around the country, democratic candidates having to pivot and maneuver given the fact that manchin and sinema have the agenda on lockdown. you have progressives who have their version of bbb and putting that on lockdown. >> i am proud that we are the caucus that are on this side of every american and while we may have different ways to get it there, the child tax credit is

important or the cost of prescription drugs is important testing and protecting medicare and public education, all of these things are important. but what should be the tide binds democrats together should be protecting democracy and protecting the corner stone of our democracy and that's voting rights. if we are looking for an issue because none of the other things on our agenda will matter if we do not protect the right to vote. congresswoman val demings, thank you for coming on the show this morning. we appreciate what you doing, thank you very much. >> coming up, lindsey vonn competed in her first race when she was just seven years old. going onto become the most decorated woman in her sport,

three olympic medals, the champion skier joins us with her story of her rise to the top. next on "morning joe." the top next on "morning joe." welcome to silversneakers. are you ready to get moving? (throws punch) our new virtual classes were designed for you and millions of seniors like you. you can now choose from thousands of live virtual classes every week. get moving wherever you have an internet connection. and when you're ready, enjoy access to thousands of locations nationwide. with silversneakers, you're free to move. enroll today at no additional cost by visiting getsilversneakers dot com. subway®... has so much new it didn't fit in our last ad.

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lindsey vaughan, a wide range of guests, straight ahead on "morning joe," we'll be back in a moment. "morning joe," we'll be back in "morning joe," we'll be back in a moment saved the world from tyranny. in an office we know as "oval," a new-generation president faced down an imminent threat of nuclear war. on a bridge in selma, alabama, the preacher of his time marched us straight to passing voting rights for every american. at a gate in west berlin, a late-generation american president demanded an enemy superpower tear down a wall and liberate a continent. american generations answering the call of their time with american ideals. freedom. liberty. justice. for today's generation of leaders, the call has come again to protect our freedom to vote,

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she is the greatest glider in the world. and now in the green by 0.2. vonn just the third skier down the hill but going through the final few gates for the final time in her storied career. vonn to the line in sweden. yes, on top for now. >> that is three-time olympic medalist lindsey vonn in their illustrious career at the world ski championships in sweden in 2019 and the most decorated female skier of all time joins us now, the author of the new memoir titled "rise my story."

there's so much to talk about with this. it's coming up on two years now since the last race of your career. you skied probably just about every day since you were 6 years old, since were you so good and such a phenom that you and your family moved out to colorado. that have the last two years been like for a world-class athlete like you who has competed every day of her life to now step away from skiing? >> well, it's great to see you, willie. and it was really challenging, actually, much harder than i thought. i had always -- i always knew that i would be retired at one point, and i tried to set up my business and everything so that when i retired i would have plenty to do, but it still didn't really prepare me for the transition. to your point, i grew up skiing and have been skiing since i was 2 1/2 and skiing with my dad before i could walk in a backpack. it's been so much of my life. i woke up one day and it was no longer there. it was tough but i think it was really important for me as a human being to go through that transition and figure out who i am without ski racing.

>> well, we get to see in this book so much of what was going on behind the scenes. we all watched you at the olympics. i got a chance to spend time around you through the "today" show at all those olympics and to watch you compete and succeed. and we saw you on red carpets and we saw you on the commercials being the star you are, but we learned that you were battling depression during a lot of this time and you had to fight through ideas about body image and people talking about you as you became more famous. the more you won, the more people talked about you. so what was it like for you to sit down and talk about your depression and to write about it in the book as you were, in fact, winning gold medals, you weren't feeling so good? >> that's a part of my story, and i think it would be disingenuous if i didn't talk about it. and i also think a large part about me talking about it is to help others so they feel the confidence to speak out about it as well. there were certain times it was worse than others. for example, during my injuries when i missed the sochi olympics in 2014, that was back-to-back

acl reconstructions almost two years recovering from those injuries. and that was a really tough time, but i picked myself back up. i think my love for skiing is what drove me through those times and my support system of my family and friends, my physical therapist. i'm in a great place now, but definitely had some difficulties over the course of my career but, again, really the reason i talked about it is to help others. >> lindsey, congrats on the book. we are a couple weeks away from our second olympics being held in a pandemic, and things are obviously going to look very different. there will not be fans or not clear how many fans there will be. a real challenge will be posed. we talked why it's important to still have games go on. what do they mean? >> i think the olympics are incredibly inspirational. i grew up watching them and became the person i am through the stories of the olympics. i think during these times when everything is so uncertain and, you know, we're lacking

inspiration, i think the olympics are something we can all look to for hope. there may not be fans and it may not be the same but i think it's still very important nonetheless. >> lindsey, it's mika here. i'm so glad you addressed mental health and i would think in your sport especially that balance between mind and body is so important to the success and even safety. you also touched on social media and how it impacted you. did it impact your mental health? and what was it you found especially challenging about it? >> it was hard. right when i won the olympics is when facebook and social media was becoming such a huge presence in the world of athletes, and so it was a difficult transition figuring out, okay, how do i use this in a positive way? and then learning how to deal with the comments and getting thicker skin.

i had always dealt with criticism in print media and news media, but social media is a whole new realm of negativity in a lot of ways and there's a lot of people that hide behind a computer screen and say things they would never say to your face on social media. it was hard to manage, but i think over time i was able to deal with it better. body shaming was a big thing for me. i started going to red carpet events and things like that, and i was comparing myself to other people, but also everyone else was comparing me to other people. so it was hard to lean in to who i am without judging myself and letting other people judge me. >> the new memoir is "rise: my story." lindsey, thank you so much for sharing with us and for writing the book. thanks for being on this morning. and still ahead, former president obama is voicing support for president biden's

changing filibuster rules. and we'll be joined by former obama administration attorney general eric holder. you're watching "morning joe." general eric holder. you're watching "morning joe."

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look, i've known, liked, and personally respected joe biden for many years. i did not recognize the man at the podium. the president's rant -- rant -- yesterday was incoherent, incorrect, and beneath his office. you could not invent a better advertisement for the legislative filibuster than a

president abandoning ration persuasion for pure demagoguery. >> and to that president biden responded by saying, i like mitch. he's a friend. welcome back to "morning joe" this thursday, january 13th. jonathan lemire and michael steele are still with us along with joe, willie and me. president biden will attend a closed door democratic caucus lunch at the u.s. capitol to push senators into backing the party's two bills on voting rights and change the filibuster rule if needed. now former president barack obama is speaking out on voting rights in the first opinion piece he's authored since leaving the white house. the piece for "usa today" is entitled we need to follow john lewis' example and fight for our democracy. and he writes in part, protecting our democracy wasn't always a partisan issue. the voting rights act was the result of democratic and

republican efforts, and both president reagan and president george w. bush signed its renewal when they were in office. but even if senate republicans now refuse to stand up for our democracy, democrats should be able to get the job done with a simple majority vote. in recent years the filibuster became a routine way for the senate minority to block important progress on issues supported by the majority of voters. but we can't allow it to be used to block efforts to protect our democracy. that's why i fully support president joe biden's call to modify senate rules as necessary to make sure pending voting rights legislation gets called for a vote. and every american who cares about the survival of our most cherished institutions should support the president's call as well. now is the time to follow john lewis' example.

now is the time for the u.s. senate to do the right thing. future generations are counting on us to meet that test. >> let's bring in now the former attorney general, eric holder, chair of the national democratic redistricting committee. thank you so much, mr. attorney general, for being with us. let me first, before we talk about voting rights, let's talk about the national redistricting committee and talk specifically about the court case that came down yesterday in ohio. how important was that decision? >> well, i think it's probably the most important judicial decision we've seen with regards to redistricting in this cycle. the ohio supreme court essentially said what the republicans did in ohio was to not obey what the voters put in place which was an amendment to the ohio state constitution. they said you can't draw lines on a partisan basis and what they put in place gave

republicans far more representation than their vote would indicate they should have. the scheme they put together was one that was questioned by the governor as well as by the republican secretary of state. it was an extremely important decision. >> we have been hearing for the past year that republicans were going to pick up a lot of seats because of redistricting. and for some reason it hasn't worked out that way despite the fact we've seen some terrible gerrymandering maps across america. but tell me exactly why, why are democrats faring better than expected? >> we have focused for the american people. 2021, 2022 than in 2011 and we

left reform measures. i think about 173 seats done in states that use reform measures will have in place by these investment commissions. and so i think it's going to focus on the issue in 2021-2022 that was not there in 2011. >> everybody has been trying to figure out what's gone wrong with american democracy over the past 20 years. i know that even when i was in congress 20 years ago republicans had to deal with democrats. democrats had to deal with republicans in the house. yes, there was some crazy districts drawn but it's gotten so much worse. i look at what democrats have done in maryland. what republicans have done in wisconsin. we could go state by state by state. you look at texas, look at

florida, and i just wonder, i mean, americans don't like this. they hate -- americans hate gerrymandered seats and it cause as dysfunction in the house of representatives. do you foresee a day when we can move towards a more representative house of representatives where republicans and democrats actually have to work together to do the nation's business? >> i think you hit on an extremely important point. when you have gerrymandered seats, when seats aren't safe for one party or the other, it is a disincentive for people to reach across the aisle and try to make compromises because the reality of the thing you are most concerned about is a primary and you want to make sure you show the party you are a part of that you are true to that party's beliefs and reaching across the aisle and trying to make compromises makes you seen as weak and you invite a primary challenger.

as a result, nothing hams. people don't talk to one another. you see gridlock that breeds cynicism in the people of this country. so my hope is that we get through this redistricting cycle in a better place than we had in 2011 and that going forward we'll put in place these independent measures to draw the lines, that we'll have greater transparency, greater voter involvement in this process. if we do that, if we come up with ways in which we draw the lines in a fair way all across the country, it will incentivize people to focus on general elections and that will mean there will be greater interaction between members of both parties. >> general, michael steele here. to follow up on that, you have the work you're doing with the redistricting committee, and i know that work very well as i was involved heavily as state chairman suing on the maps that were being drawn in maryland at the time and working through the process.

at the end of the day you still didn't have the battleground for democrats to compete on and that is holding the house and hopefully expanding the numbers and regaining more seats in the senate. how do these efforts connect up in terms of getting democrats in a position first with the redistricting process but then on the back end with the voters to actually hold those lines? the president's numbers are under water. how do you see them navigaing that space on redistricting maps but still can't get across the finish line politically because of the dynamics out there across the states? >> i actually think that where we have a fair line drawn, where

democrats have the ability to compete in a fair system, the democrats will do fine. if you look at what happened after the redistricting in 2011, republicans got millions of votes fewer than democrats and ended up with a 33-seat majority. that wasn't a function of popularity, of policies or candidates. it was the way the system had been gained. and so if we take that out of the system, if we make the system fair, the democrats will do just fine. now there have to be political gains made between now and november. i think chief among them would be to pass the voting rights bills so the democratic base pass a build back better so the president and people running for the house will have a record of accomplishments that they can point to. so it's a question of both. it's making policy achievements as well as making sure that the system is fair.

>> attorney general holder, good morning. it's jonathan lemire. there's increasing pressure on attorney general merrick garland to bring charges against the ringleaders of january 6, not the participants who storm the capitol but the ringleaders, former president trump himself, a post you used to hold. what is your perspective? should the attorney general bring those charges? would that be appropriate? >> well, i think as a certain inevitability here with regard to who will ultimately be investigated, the work of the january 6th committee coupled with what the justice department is doing with regard to those people who are bringing charges against who actually participated on january the 6th, what the media is doing in terms of investigating, i think all of this will ultimately result in a justice department investigation of highers-up.

who ultimately will get charged? i know merrick garland and we have to take him at his word. the law, the evidence, the facts will determine who ultimately gets prosecuted. as i said it's inevitable there will be an investigation of people in the white house even all that we have heard, all that i'm sure we want to hear and especially the january 6th committee is doing. >> if you look at polls, americans aren't moved right now by discussions of january the 6th or when we talk about threats to democracy it's a little too general. they're more interested in inflation and the cost of groceries and the things that hit them more closely at home. so as we talk about these voting rights acts and john lewis voting rights act in particular, let's get specific about it, if we can. can you talk specifically since

the supreme court's decision a few years ago was handed down that told congress they were going to have to reauthorize the voting rights act? talk specifically about the roles, the number of people purged from roles. this is not pie in the sky talk about democracy or the rights of voting. let's talk the specifics here. can you go down the specifics for our viewers so they understand the real world implications for why this is making voting harder for americans? >> yes, since the shelby county decision in 2013, 1,700 polling places around the country have been closed. a disproportionate number of those places closed in communities of color, a disproportionate number of polling places closed in states that had been under the jurisdiction of the voting

rights act but are no longer. if you look at it in a practical way in atlanta in the last election, if you were a white voter in atlanta you had to wait six to seven minutes to vote. if you were a black voter you had to wait about 51 minutes in order to cast a ballot and longer actually in other places. and so that's a direct result to do the things they were able to do before the shelby county decision. we focus a lot on the house of representatives. gerrymandering impacts the state legislatures. these heartbeat bills that come out of state legislatures, unpopular, but gerrymandered legislators have the ability to do things inconsistent with the desires of their constituents and still get re-elected. the failure of governments at all levels to come up with gun safety measures favored by the people, to come up with criminal

justice reform, a whole range of things that are directly connected to the failures of our political system. the argument for voting rights has to be so people understand this isn't something that is an academic discussion. it impacts their lives on a day-to-day basis. >> former attorney general eric holder, thank you very much for being on the show this morning. it's good to see you. >> thanks for having me. house minority leader kevin mccarthy says he will not cooperate with the january 6th select committee after the panel formally requested an interview with the california lawmaker. the committee is seeking details of mccarthy's communications with then president donald trump throughout the capitol attack and in the days that followed. mccarthy's refusal comes despite his agreeing in may of last year to cooperate with an

investigation of the riot. >> would you be willing to testify about your conversation with donald trump on january 6 if you were asked by an outside commission? >> sure. next question. >> sure. next question. >> in the request letter bennie thompson said the panel has text messages from multiple witnesses indicating that after the attack mccarthy may have discussed the possibility of impeachment with trump or removal from office under the 25th amendment and immediate resignation. in refuse to go cooperate the minority leader said the objective is to attempt to damage its political opponents. the panel will weigh whether to subpoena his testimony. liz cheney said last night, i wish that he were a brave and honorable man. he's clearly trying to cover up what happened. he has an obligation to come

forward and we'll get to the truth. >> how many times have we seen this, they debase themselves for donald trump, they humiliate themselves. we have kevin mccarthy going on the floor a year ago today talking about how this -- what happened, the president bears direct responsibility, mob law took the place of constitutional law. he had a responsibility to quell the unrest and didn't do it and he said this mob law was, quote, this lawlessness was the greatest threat to freedom and he blamed it on donald trump. a couple weeks later he's there getting a picture with donald trump and now a year later he wants to white wash all of this. i can't help but think if this plays out like it's played out for everybody else who has debased themselves for donald trump, kevin mccarthy ends up getting thrown under the bus,

probably will never be speaker of the house. you don't have to be an elected member. donald trump can roll over kevin mccarthy. mccarthy will have debased himself like a busload of people in washington, dc, had before him. maybe i should say a stadium full of people thinking they are going to figure out a way to curry favor and he betrays every last person. mccarthy is doing this for no reason. >> they think there's an upside but there isn't. at the center of all of this is donald trump. it doesn't take a whole lot to get on the wrong side of a conversation. just ask governor desantis who was blind sided with a smack to the vaccination status by the president calling out all

politicians who refuse to acknowledge their vaccination status this coming from donald trump. >> wow. >> you're saying, where did it come from? the fact that desantis is making those moves to become the nominee of the party and he needs to cut that off. if mccarthy thinks donald trump is going to embrace his potential speakership in a way that is going to be long term and consistent, he's fooling himself. the question then becomes what does he do? this is what he does because he thinks in the end he's going to come out and donald trump will be there with him. when he made the clip, yes, i'll show up, i was laughing. he had no intention of showing up. we need to stop acting like there's a chance. he has to do his duty. >> this guy who is so shapeless and debased himself is in line

to be the next speaker of the house. >> marjorie taylor greene told us that's not a given. since she is de facto one of the leaders in the caucus, i guess we have to listen to what she says. still ahead this morning on "morning joe," school districts are struggling to stay open. we'll tell you about the potential boost in test that go could help keep students and teachers in the classroom. also ahead, new reporting on the reason why some store shelves are empty of products. >> mika, we also have breaking news coming from britain that omicron appears to have peaked there. that's great news for us. a lot going on with russia. secretary of state antony blinken joins thus hour. you're watching "morning joe." . you're watching "morning joe."

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welcome back. one of the biggest tests for american schools these days is simply trying to stay open amid the surge of covid cases. here is nbc news correspondent stephanie gosk. >> reporter: millions of free covid tests will soon be heading to schools nationwide. the white house promising a monthly stream of 5 million rapid tests and 5 million pcr tests in k-12 schools in states this apply for them. the first shipments are expected to arrive as early as this month. how important is testing for keeping your schools open safely? >> it is vital. i think next to vaccines and the boosters it's the only way that we can continue to keep our teachers and our students safe. >> reporter: the new testing push comes as schools struggle to stay open amid omicron surge.

austin's school superintendent says she started employing staff with teaching experience as substitutes to keep class going. >> even if it's not as perfect as it would have been with our great teachers, we know that it's better than our students not having that support. >> reporter: hospitals are struggling, too. in an icu 5% of the staff is out sick, the national guard now helping to clean, test, and deliver meals. >> the reality is we have an overwhelming number of covid patients occupying our icus, our emergency rooms are overcrowded, that our teams are exhausted. >> reporter: a new study out of southern california finds omicron is far less likely to cause severe illness or death compared to the delta variant but that doesn't mean the public should let its guard down. the white house is considering increasing the availability of higher quality masks and the cdc has said it will update its guidance on masks. the director reiterating any

face covering is better than none at all. >> the best mask that you wear is the one that you will wear and the one you can keep on all day long that you can tolerate in public indoor settings. >> that was stephanie gosk reporting. up next, another impact of the pandemic -- the spike in prices from the gas station to the grocery store. nbc's tom costello digs into that straight ahead on "morning joe." digs into that straight ahead on "morning that straight ahead on "morning joe. y'all heard it here. if you wanna be fresh, you gotta refresh, like subway®. like the new baja steak & jack tender, thicker-cut steak and. wait sooo you're not coming out of retirement? i'm just here because subway has so much new, they bought time in this press conference to talk about it. ♪ i see trees of green ♪ they bought time in this press conference ♪ red roses too ♪ ♪ i see them bloom for me and you ♪

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you're never responsible for unauthorized purchases on your discover card. biden: this is the challenge of our collective lifetime. and every day we delay, the cost of inaction increases. we have the ability to invest in ourselves and build an equitable, clean energy future, and in the process, create millions of good-paying jobs and opportunities around the world. there's no more time to hang back or sit on the fence or argue amongst ourselves. so let this be the moment that we answer history's call.

we brought you the numbers as they crossed yesterday. inflation rising at the highest rate in four decades. as nbc's tom costello reports that means a spike in the cost of groceries if you can find

them at all. >> reporter: just a quick glance at your bank account shows the situation from the food in the grocery aisles to the gas in your gas tank, even the roofs over our heads prices across the board continue to climb. >> i've noticed that prices have increased for some basics and gas. >> reporter: the consumer price index shows inflation reached 7% last year. the fastest pace since 1982. among the items with the biggest sticker shock, used vehicles, up more than 37% with the average price for a used car topping $29,000 late last year. and despite a dip at the end of the year a gallon of gas still up $1.24 from a year before. supermarket staples have seen prices soar, a gallon of milk increasing, a carton of eggs up more than 30 cents and a pound of ground beef up nearly 60 cents. >> we're going to pay more for

everything because of the grains that feed the cows, the packaging we put the soda in. everything is going through the roof. >> reporter: adding insult to injury the combo of covid staffed shortages, winter weather and a stretched supply chain have led to shortages on shelves at grocery stores nationwide. roughly 15% of items out of stock compared to 5% to 10% in a typical year. >> we are experiencing shortages, and a lot that have is tied back to labor. and how we're experiencing our own issues with the omicron variant. >> reporter: the food industry trade groups says some stores and manufacturers have up to 40% of staff out sick with covid. one silver lining experts point out that while inflation is up annually month to month it's actually slowing down. >> as products become more available whether they're computer chips or potato chips that will bring down prices.

>> our thanks to tom costello for that reporting. coming up, we know china has done a number on its own environment. as keir simmons reports, the damage doesn't stop at the border. his report from thailand is next on "morning joe." subway's eat fresh refresh on "morning joe. has so many new footlongs, here's how they line up. we got the new chicken & bacon ranch, new baja steak & jack, and the new baja chicken & bacon, aka "the smokeshow." save big. order through the app. just getting by. save big. it's an ongoing struggle. that's why president biden and democrats in congress have a plan to lower costs for america's working families. lower costs of health care premiums. and the price of prescription drugs. pay less for electric bills by moving to clean energy. we do it all by making the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share of taxes.

it'd be a win for the everyday american family. right when they could really use one. congress, let's get this done.

it's been nearly two years since the pandemic started. our students and teachers tried their best, but as a parent, i can tell you that nearly 18 months of remote learning was really hard. i'm so angry that instead of helping our kids get back in the classroom, the school board focused on renaming schools schools that weren't even open . please recall all three school board members now. for the sake of our kids, we can't wait one more day, never mind a whole year for a fresh start.

coral reefs are one of the world's most stunning ecosystems. also one of the most endangered. in thailand much of the threat comes from china. international correspondent keir simmons. >> reporter: it's a stunning corner of our world but even this paradise has not escaped china's growing influence. tropical fish flock to coral

reefs, ecosystems that have existed for 200 million years. local diver charlie shows me where the coral is bleached. it sustains life here. itself lifeless. the cause rising temperatures and pollution. charlie clears away garbage as he dives. changes are happening frighteningly fast, he says. thailand's neighbor, china, bears much responsibility t. produced 28% of the world's greenhouse gases in 2019 compared with the u.s. at 11%. beijing has promised to be carbon neutral. china's massive economy is struggling to reduce its reliance on burning coal and the

middle class have been traveling more, too. in 2019 almost 28% of all of thailand's tourists were chinese. many make this trip across the sea off thailand's coast. we're heading to an isolated island made famous by the movie "the beach." the trouble is the beach became too well known. the movie led to an explosion of tourism. the pollution caused by humans in boats severely damaging the ecosystem, so in 2018 they closed the beach and then cope individual stopped visitors. this month they reopened with restrictions. the boats aren't supposed to go any further than these buoys. a nice pristine beach and look from above because while we're here, the sharks are still there.

the bay home to a family of reef sharks. >> the sharks have returned and marine life have returned. >> reporter: then there's threes guys. marine biologists say pollution and habitat destruction has caused thailand's numbers to fall by 4/5. global rising temperatures may mean a drop in male turtles. fewer males? >> yes. >> reporter: so that means fewer turtles. the good news local scientists have been working to rescue as many as possible. each has a microchip, a tag, even a phone number. if you find this turtle, give us a call. >> give us a call.

>> most of them across the sea to the other side of the ocean. >> reporter: they would go as far as australia? >> it's possible. >> reporter: internationally many are critical of china where co2 levels kept rising even during the pandemic and of the u.s. yet to pass legislation to meet all of its climate goals. >> china and america, you are the leaders of this it world. you should be the leader in stopping climate change, too. >> reporter: as the turtles begin their remarkable lives in the ocean -- ready to go, my friend. here we go, freedom. -- their futures may depend not only on local people but decisions made thousands of miles away in washington and beijing. >> that was nbc's keir simmons reporting. coming up, someone who knows plenty about washington and beijing, the u.s. secretary of state, antony blinken, he joins

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welcome back to "morning joe." a live shot of paris, france. it's a different time there. 2:47 in the afternoon. >> maybe we should do "morning joe" there. we would have to wake up at 11:30. >> i'm looking to "good morning warsaw." u.s. officials serving at diplomatic missions in geneva and paris are suspected to have been afflicted with the ailment known as havana syndrome. "the wall street journal" reporting this morning the suspected attacks were reported internally last summer to

officials at those posts and to the state department in washington. at least one of the officials was evacuated back for treatment. people tell the paper at least three americans were suspected to have been afflicted. joining us u.s. secretary of state antony blinken, and thank you very much for being on this morning. i think we should start right there, what more do we know about havana syndrome and at least what the united states, what our government is doing to try to get to the bottom of it and to protect diplomats serving abroad? >> first of all, good morning, mika, joe, everyone. great to see you. great to be with you. we are working overtime across the entire government to get to the bottom of what happened, who is responsible, and to care for anyone who has been affected and to protect all of our people to the best of our ability. we've got the intelligence community. we have the defense department. we have the state department,

our scientists all trying to get to the bottom of this. to date we don't know what's happened and who is responsible but i've met with employees of the department around the world who have said they've been affected. i've heard them and can't help but be struck how they've disrupted their lives and well-being. we're doing everything we can to care for them. we have a program with johns hopkins to get the best possible care to anyone affected. i was out there visiting before christmas. mika, our determination is to do everything we can to get to the bottom of this and, meanwhile, to protect our folks and to care for them. >> so given the lack of answers as we're searching for where this is coming from, does the united states validate that this is some sort of attack on our diplomats? >> there is no doubt in my mind that people have been directly and powerfully affected. i've talked to them. i've listened to them, heard

them, seen them. but we have to get to the bottom of exactly what happened and who might be responsible, and that's what we're determined to do. we have virtually the entire government working on this at the president's instructions. we're not there yet, but we will get there. we will figure this out. meanwhile, we have meanwhile, we have to do what we can to protect people and as i said, care for them. >> media reports have suggested since this story broken that russia may be involved. do you have any evidence of that? >> joe, i can tell you we've raised this with the russians but we still don't have a determination of who -- of who is responsible. so we've made clear that if they are responsible, for that matter anyone who is responsible, will suffer severe consequences, but i don't -- you know, i want to be very clear, we don't yet have a determination. >> and where are we right now with the talks with russia regarding -- regarding ukraine? >> so we are in the midst of these very important and intense

conversations with the russians. we're doing that directly with them, bilaterally between the united states and russia. we just had meetings at nato with russia, we are having meetings at the organization for security and cooperation in europe that brings together 57 countries including ukraine, including russia, including us. the jury is out on which path vladimir putin is going to choose. is he going to choose the path of diplomacy and dialogue to resolve some of these problems, or is he going to pursue confrontation and aggression? joe, just to take a step back for one second, why should people care about this? because i know that some of our fellow citizens are wondering about that, it seems to be half a world away. why are we standing to strongly for ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, it's because of this, it's bigger than ukraine. there's basic principles that are at stake here. basic principles that really go to international peace and security. principles like one nation can't simply redraw the borders of another by force. that one nation can't dictate to one of its neighbors its

choices, its people's choices about their policies, about with whom they will associate. that one nation can't say that they are going to exert a sphere of influence and subjugate its nations. other countries will hear the message, they will act similarly and that's a recipe for tension, conflict, for war. we want to avoid that and that means standing strongly getting it, bringing other countries together to stand against it to make clear to russia that there will be massive consequences if it engages in this aggression. my strong hope is that russia will take the path of diplomacy and dialogue, we're prepared and leaning in to do that, but are prepared if they don't. >> what are the massive consequence that is they would face? >> joe, i'm not going to telegraph the details of what we're planning, but, first, when it comes to massive consequences it's not just me, it's not just us saying it. the g7, the leading democratic

economies in the world came together and made clear there would be massive consequences so did the european union and so did nato. together we are putting together significant sanctions, financial, economic and others, things that we have not done in the past. at the same time, we're looking at shoring up even more the defenses of ukraine, if necessary, as well as nato's defenses. joe, what's really almost ironic about the situation is this, everything that president putin has done over the last years has been to precipitate what he says he wants to prevent. before russia seized crimea and invaded eastern ukraine in 2014, maybe a quarter of ukraine's population supported ukraine joining nato, now it's about 60%. nato itself had to position more forces and more equipment close to russia, which russia says it doesn't want, after russia went into ukraine. spending in nato on defense went up after president putin went into ukraine, and, of course,

before that georgia, russian forces in moldova against the will of the government. everything that president putin is doing is going exactly against the direction he says he wants to go in. >> and we hear finland and maybe another country wants to join nato now. >> that's right. >> is that something the united states would consider? >> well, nato's door is open and if countries want to join it's their sovereign right to decide if they'd like to be a member. if they meet the criteria and nato members agree, nato's doors are open. that's a fundamental principle. >> i was going to ask at the end of the day does this really all come down to the united states taking ukraine and nato taking ukraine off the table for admittance into nato? they go back to something that james baker supposedly said back in, i think, '89.

is that what this comes down to? >> that is largely what it comes down to, and if that's what it comes down to we're not going to agree, period. nato's door is open, it will remain open. it's a fundamental principle of nato itself, it's in its founding treaty, it's in virtually every agreement that we sign with russia since the end of the cold war. secretary baker was clear that there was no such commitment and so was gorbachev the president at the time. that's simply not on the table. here is the other thing, joe, you know, the russians complain about the threat from nato, but nato didn't invade ukraine, russia did. nato didn't invade georgia, russia did. nato didn't leave forces in moldova against the will of its people and government russians did. so if there is a challenge to european security it's not coming from nato it's coming from russia. now, there are ways to address this diplomatically through dialogue. we put on the table ideas and our conversations with the

russians at nato, both the nato secretary general, will do the same thing today at the ose about how we can together improve security with the united states and europe taking steps matched by russia. we will see if russia is prepared to engage on that. if it is, if it does i think we can resolve this peacefully without conflict and that's clearly preferable for everyone. >> mr. secretary, michael steele here. let's shift to afghanistan. you had the taliban this week basically calling on the world for aid as afghanistan gets into a have i, very rough winter where it's estimated close to a million people could suffer or even die. what is the administration's response to that and sort of gathering partners from around the globe, working with the united nations and others to address this particular issue? >> michael, i'm deeply, deeply concerned about that. even as we are determined to told the taliban to commitments

its made about the way it treats its people, about combating terrorism, about making sure that it's upholding the rights of its people, we also want to make sure we're doing everything possible to help afghan people who are in need. you're right, the situation is dire. with he remain the largest provider of humanitarian assistance to afghanistan, at the same time our treasury department has issued licenses to make it clear to countries and entities around the world that they can provide that assistance without fear of u.s. sanctions. we've made sure that a fund that used to exist for the afghan government before the taliban to support it that some of its moneys that remain in that fund could be used for humanitarian assistance. we're working with ngos, with the u.n. to get that aid to the afghan people. i want to get ways to get more liquidity into the economy in ways that don't go to the taliban but do go to people into their pockets so they can provide for themselves. we're focused with this with the u.n., world bank, countries

around the world. we want to make sure to the best of our ability the afghan people don't suffer. >> mr. secretary, good morning, it's jonathan lemire. great to see you again. wanted to shift focus to north korea. they had gone quiet for a stretch during the height of the pandemic but have had a series of missile tests in recent weeks, including one just a few days ago. the u.s. has levied sanctions against them. please tell us more about those, but also bigger picture, how concerned are you right now by this more aggressive posture by pyongyang firing these ballistic missiles near south korea. >> jonathan, some months ago we made it clear that we were prepared to engage the north kraens, to sit down with no preconditions to see if we could find a way forward with them at the table toward the total denuclearization of the korean peninsula. we've made clear we have no hostile intent toward north korea and we have waited to see if they are prepared to engage. unfortunately not only has there been no response to the overtures but the response we've seen as you've pointed out in

recent weeks has been renewed missile tests, something that is profoundly destabilizing, dangerous and it couldn't convenience a whole host of u.n. security council resolutions. not only are we sanctioning north koreans, we are deeply engaged both at the u.n. and with key partners like south korea, like japan, on our response. i think some of this is north korea trying to get attention, it's done that in the past, they will probably continue to do that, but we are focused with allies and partners in making sure that they and we are properly defended and that there are repercussions, consequences for these actions by north korea. >> u.s. secretary of state antony blinken, thank you very much for coming on the show this morning. we look forward to having you back. >> thanks, meek king abdullah, thanks, joe. great to be with all of you. >> thanks so much, mr. secretary. it really does, at the end of this day, michael, this just all comes down to whether we take

ukraine off the table for admittance into nato. not anything we are going to do anytime soon but russia wants us to make a guarantee that obviously the biden administration -- >> they're not prepared to make it. you couple that with other global issues like north korea and afghanistan, you can see where this administration is right now. >> all right. that does it for us this morning. stephanie ruhle picks up the coverage right now. ♪♪ hi there, i'm stephanie ruhle, live at msnbc headquarters here in new york city. it is january 13th, let's get smarter. we start this morning with huge news on capitol hill. house minority leader kevin mccarthy saying he will not comply with the january 6th probe. explaining his decision just moments ago. >> this is a distraction. this committee is not a legitimate committee. they don't have a legislative purpose to