good evening and welcome to politicsnation. tonight's lead, the quiet part out loud. ♪ ♪ ♪ right now we are barely four weeks before midterm elections. republican candidates have reverted to what has always worked for them. racism and moral hypocrisy on cue, as expected. last night, alabama republican now -- joined donald trump at a rally for maga candidates in nevada. the city senator from one of the nations blackest states

said this: >> the democratic party, they have a majority. they can stop this crime today. some people say, well, they are soft on crime. no, they are not soft on crime. they are pro crime! they want crime! and they want crime because they want to take over what you got! they want to control what you have! they want reparations because they think that people who do the crimes are owed that! bullshit! they are not owed that. >> you'll note that -- he stopped short of identifying juiced who these criminals are, just who it is the democrats want preparative justice for. but then for his audience, identification is unnecessary. because whether it's a campaign ad or a trump rally, gop candidates in swing states have weaponized crime as the cudgel against democrats. with that, they've embraced a

time honored tradition on the right. when all else fails, blame black people. even in states they barely live in. across, the irony of insurrection apologies, making statements while criticizing democrats for being soft on crime is not lost on me. but what gives me just as much pause as the racism is that more than half of the republican general election candidates seeking statewide office or federal office are in denial that joe biden won the that presidency two years ago. some of them have made this theme central to their campaigns. and they are on the cusp of potentially remaking congress. as you can tell, we are starting off strong tonight on politicsnation. and that is noble. here we go.

joining me now, congresswoman -- democrat of maryland. congressman, appreciate you being here is always. i have to start off with your reaction to that sound we played at the top. sitting republican alabama senator tom eatable ville saying democrats want crime, that they want to take what republican maga voters have presumably so they say can give reparations to those responsible for crime. of course, he is not the first or only gop politician that employed dog whistles connecting democrats to black people and crime f ahead of next month's elections. but you also have senate races in wisconsin and pennsylvania. republican candidates in both those races attacking democrats over the issue. some democratic critics calling the attacks racist dog

whistles. in his case, it's more like a scream. what should democrats do in response, congressman? >> democrats should take note, first of all, that these are not things that periodically happened. they've always happened right before a major national election. and his comments are about the most vicious, violent, repugnant, racist things i've heard in a long, long time. and this is how violence gets started against black people as in the case in buffalo, against latinos, as in the case of uvalde, and people who simply worship it -- as in the charleston church. people take, that basic once, and a figure they have to do something to extend the senators philosophy. i would hope that every elected official on both sides of the aisle condemn that. he is a bigot. until he says something different, he will always be seen as a bigot. more importantly, there are a lot of black people and that's

state. in fact, you know, a large number of black voters who are democrats and republicans who are outraged, i'm sure, at this as well. we see this as playbook. it happens every time we get close to a national election. in this instance, it has simply gone too far. black people have had it being the targets of crime and the targets of this and that. every time there's a reason something is wrong, we are the ones that are responsible. nobody is asking him to give a comment on reparations. reparations were already voted on in the congress in the 1980's for japanese americans. it's not something you. even the bill that's their creates conditions to study and report back. he's couched that in the framework of they won't review that, as we said. they want to take what you have, -- and they will take it and turn you around, which is the summation. it's a bad, bad track to get on. i hope people speak up.

i doubt very seriously if we'll tuberville ever apologize. >> let's not be confused with that reparations that is now being moved into congress but your fellow -- your colleague congresswoman -- talking about reparations for african americans. he said that we were getting crime as reparations. clearly, this is more than -- congressman, going back to your former life as head of the naacp. i worked with you as the head of the national network when you wear their. you championed that reform of marijuana laws. together with those of us in the civil rights community at the time. including repaired of justice for communities harmed by the war on drugs. i want to get your take on president biden federally pardoning thousands of americans for simple marijuana possession. calling on the department of

justice and health and human services, respectively, to review marijuana at the federal we drug classification. what do you want to see happen next? >> i think people have to couch it in the right terms and to know that marijuana usage is a similar, whether you are african american, latino, white american, anything else, there is no despairing use because of the group that you are in that's racial. this situation has gone on for a long time -- states of the nation are moving toward decriminalizing marijuana. i think the president is doing what where we are today. he's doing where states are in terms of taking a look at this and realizing that it's a health issue more than anything else. decriminalizing it and getting rid of the crime, making sure that people have the chance to be able to apply for a job, be able to get employment, get an education, find themselves as a productive member of society,

obtain it by this curse of a sentence as a result of marijuana possession or marijuana usage. he, in my opinion, is doing the right thing at the right time. he's following the states in this regard. and the whole issue of marijuana is something the country is going to deal with whether he deals with it or not. i applaud his efforts. >> quickly, we are out of time, congressman, but i want to make sure we have time to hear about this bill you and maryland democratic senators moved a last month to create a national council of african american history and culture. what does it entail? what are you trying to push back against that's happening in red state classrooms right now? >> what we are trying to push back against it is this notion that critical race theory is taking over our schools and destroying our kids and making some of them feel guilty. the fact that folks are being removed from libraries every day, the fact that teaching now

has been performed so that the teaching of american history does not include the contributions or the work of particularly african americans, is moving at a rapid rate. this bill creates, within the national endowment, opportunities for us to create a 12 member commission designed to study and to report back on african american history and culture since the beginning of the nation. we think it's the right thing to do. teachers have applauded us on this. senator of maryland and myself have put forth that legislation. >> all right, congressman. thank you for joining us again. joining me now is former attorney general under president barack obama. the first african american attorney general in the history of this country. eric holden, chair of the national democratic redistricting committee. mr. holden, first of all, we appreciate you being with us tonight.

let me get to why you are here first and foremost. the supreme court reconvened last week hearing or arguments monday over whether to uphold alabama's voting map, in which six of seven congressional districts are majority white and republican. only one's majority black. the imbalance was noted by a federal court panel earlier this year, which joint claimants in ruling that the map discussed emission black voters influenced by confining it to what, again, is one district in the state that is nearly 30% black. in violation of the voting rights act. alabama vlad to the supreme court to block that ruling. in february, five of the courts six conservative justices agreed that it be re-visited, allowing the map to stand during next month's election. the kicker, for me, is that

alabama has argued that drawing a second district for black voters would itself be racially discriminatory because it would favor black voters at the expense of other voters. yet, with all that, it appears after this for past week, the conservative majority on the supreme court is poised to uphold the map. do you have -- first of all, do i have all that right, mister attorney general? >> yet, you do have it right. african americans comprise about 27% of the population in alabama. the black population in alabama is sufficiently numerous and geographically compact so that you could draw a second black opportunity district, which is consistent with the voting rights act passed in 1965, interpreted by the supreme court previously, reauthorized overwhelmingly by congress. every time it was reauthorized, it was signed by a republican president. for them to rule against the

plaintiffs, and these are plaintiffs who we have supported, to rule against the plaintiffs and to rule for the state, the supreme court would have to reinterpret the voting rights act of 1965, which, as i said, has historically had overwhelming support. >> according to the washington post, 299 of the republican parties candidates for congress and top state executive positions are election deniers. that's more than half of all gop candidates. more than 170 of them favored to win their race. in addition to holding power over state elections, election deniers -- in what may become a republican controlled house could end up choosing that next speaker, who could potentially preside over another contested presidential election in 2024. how do you fight this kind of existential threat to our democracy, mr. holden? >> well, one of the things we

have to do is focus on making sure we elect people at the state legislative level who are going to stand for our democracy. here is the deal. i think that inflation is important, crime is obviously important. we need to deal with those issues. the price of gas. the ability to get baby formula. but the most important thing that's on the ballot this november is our democracy itself. what kind of nation are we going to have? half of the people, as you say, half of the people running for congress and these important state races are election deniers. if they are elected, they've already indicated, they don't believe joe biden won the election back in 2020. and they have pledged to use their power to try to make sure -- a coalition of secretaries of state to make sure that things are done, in his words, the right way the next time. i'm sure that will probably mean something inconsistent with the way people want to have the votes counted, but

consistent with their ideological desires. our democracy is on the ballot this november. i hope that will drive people to the polls. ovember. i hope>> i want to leave some to get your take on the current climate ahead of the midterm elections. i respect your judgment as much as any five people in the country, one of the other five is mrs. holden. we will talk about that off air. republican senator tommy tuberville made comments last night at a nevada trump rally, suggesting democrats want crime so that they can take from maga voters and give whatever it is they are taking to criminals in the form of reparations. as a veteran of the obama administration, what's your reaction to that kind of rhetoric? >> you know, people will show you who they are by what it is they say, by what it is that they do.

i'd like to hear the senator tell us exactly who they are. who are you referring to here? -- he's a person who made a reputation as a pretty good football coach. he's a terrible senator, but a pretty good football coach, on the backs of young black men, you know? who sacrificed, risked concussions, and all the other things, so that he might be successful. now, as a representative of the state of alabama, as i said, with a 27% population african american, he is saying things that are at best, at best, race changed, and at worst racist. i think people in the republican party need to take him to task, need to hear from other republicans criticism of what it is he said. i want to hear the republicans say they will distance themselves from those remarks. what he said is extremely dangerous. is the kind of thing we have seen too often in this country.

they're kind of racial divisiveness, racial polarization that leads to frequently to violence. i would hope that we will see him taken to task for what are some really awful remarks. if you look at the logic of what he is saying, he sounds like a damn fool. in addition to everything else. >> adding insult to injury, many of the crime -- much of the crime happening is certainly not all done by blacks and much of the crime that is done by blacks are against other blacks. what preparations are we talking about? let me ask you this. you were assistant attorney general in the 90s with many of us debated and you were part of those discussions about how we deal with drugs, how we make sure that we don't over incarcerate. how do you deal with the response, the reaction to president biden's pardon of

marijuana but -- possession on a federal level this weekend, calling for governments to do the same on a state level? >> i think that's the exact right approach. to make sure that people who have been charged and convicted of federal possession of marijuana get pardoned, to talk about the rescheduling of marijuana. it is now schedule 1:12, which is just absurd. and then call in the states to make sure that they do similar kinds of things. that's consistent with what we try to do during the obama years, when i was attorney general. i try to unwind this so-called war on drugs, which has a disproportionate negative impact on communities of color, it was unfair. when you look at the crack powder disparity. a whole range of other things. i think what the president did in announcing this new policy is exactly right. it's consistent with where the nation's. and the nation views marijuana use now in 2022 in a fundamentally different way

than it did in in the 1990s. our laws need to reflect this societal change, the way in which we view the use of marijuana. >> again, i note, you took that position when you were assistant attorney general in the 90s and when you became attorney general, you try to unwind it. i can be a witness to that. from u.s. attorney general eric holden, thank you so much for being with us. still to come, we are checking it on a historic and hotly contested senate race in north carolina. democratic candidate cheri beasley, judge cheri beasley, joins us fresh off friday's fiery debate. and later, president biden pardons thousands of nonviolent marijuana offenders. it was high time! the push has begun to spark a similar reform movement in the states. first, my colleague with today's other top news stories. >> good sunday to you.

a russian missile attack sunday struck an apartment block in a residential building in the south eastern ukrainian city of zaporizhzhia. it killed at least 13 people and injured 87 others. this includes ten children, according to ukrainian officials. the city is home to europe's largest power plant. south korean officials warn north korea's recent missile launches could signal it soon resuming nuclear testing. north korea fired two short-range missiles into its eastern waters this weekend. this is the seventh launch in recent days. hurricane julia made landfall this morning in nicaragua. flash floods and mudslides expected. that storm has weakened to a tropical storm but is still producing winds up to 70 miles an hour. more politics nation with reverend all sharpton right after this break.

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there's 30 days left until the

midterm elections. early voting kicks off in november -- north carolina in just over a week. the race for senate in the title state is going down to the wire. according to the real clear politics average, republican congressman ted budd leads in the polling by just a percentage point and a half over his democratic opponent, cheri beasley. former north carolina supreme court justice cheri beasley joins me now. justice beasley, let's start with the core issue in your campaign. reproductive rights. the opponent congressman but is one of the co-sponsors of the house version of a national abortion ban that would ban abortions after 15 weeks. how has the overturning of roe redefined your campaign? and what are your plans to address this issue if you are successfully elected to the senate?

>> you know, reverend al, this is a really critical issue for folks in north carolina. people are angry and afraid. they are scared. i heard from the grandfather a few nights ago who was very fearful for his granddaughter's. and while my opponent, congressman bud, is a cosponsor for this legislation, he has been very clear that he's aligned himself with the extremist faction of his party and has promoted an absolute ban on abortion without exceptions for rape, incest, or risk to a mother's health. we know that means women who are sexually assaulted will be forced to carry the pregnancy to term. people with a topic pregnancies, miscarriages, their bodies -- uterus is, if a lifesaving treatment for those conditions is and abortion. if they can't get it, it means when women will die. that's unacceptable. we know the real fundamental question here is that this is the right of a woman and her position to make this decision

without government interference. i will fight in the senate to make sure roe v. wade is the law of the land and it has been a constitutional right for almost 50 years. >> a new washington post report reveals nearly 300 republican nominees on the ballot this november across the country are election deniers. this figure includes eight for north carolina. during your senate debate on friday, ted budd acknowledged that joe biden is the president of the united states, although he was one of many members of congress who voted against certifying the 2020 election. we reached out to your republican opponent, invited him on the program. what do you make of his past and now his present stance on this very fundamental issue to our democracy? >> you, know reverend al, he's been dancing around this issue.

the reality is that january 6th, he called those folks just patriots standing up. even after all that violence, he voted against certifying the election. even today, when he was asked during that forum whether he would accept the election results in this election, he was dancing around the issue. what's not clear about whether or not he would. the reality is, we have to believe that elections are administered in a fair way. i will support and accept the results of the 2022 election. what we also know is that republicans have spent millions and millions against me in my race. i've served as a judge and chief justice of the supreme court for over two decades. they are working really hard. they don't spend that kind of money unless they know they could absolutely lose this race. >> it's difficult to paint you as soft on crime when you've been the one sitting on the bench for the last couple decades. you've highlighted also your

opponents ties to donald trump, the former president has endorsed the congressman and campaigned with him. during friday's debate, representative but try to turn the tables, calling you a rubberstamp for president biden. what is your response to this? do you feel this race will be defined by national politics or issues closer to home in north carolina? >> i'm talking with folks in north carolina about what they care about, which is the fact that the next senator needs to fight hard to lower cost. the bottom line is congressman bud has to defend his rhetoric. he has done not a thing for north carolina. he's been in congress for six years and he's voted in the interest of corporate interests, special interests, and his own, not the people in the state. he voted against lowering the cost of gas and took thousands of dollars from big oil companies. he voted against lowering the cost of medications and took thousands of dollars from big pharma. and the reality is, congressman

bug has shown who he is, he does not speak for north carolina and for all the ways in which people need the next senator to be responsive, he has not done. so and when people show you who they are, you better believe them. i would ask your audience to please, for more information about my campaign, to please go to cheri beasley.com. democracy is on the line. we've got to fight back and make sure that not only we are successful for today, but this election is so important for our future. >> we are out of time. but let me ask you this briefly. today, there have been only 11 black u.s. senators elected in the nation's history. and two were black women. what would it mean to you not only to represent the tar heel state you love, but also become one of the few black women to ever hold this position? >> i'm not at all -- it doesn't fall short on me that representation matters in all our government --

whether it's the supreme court, or the u.s. senate. i certainly know there are a whole host of issues that i'm prepared to fight for for north carolina. it's important we have diversity and our talents represented at the table. while it's important how the senate looks, it is also important how the senate works. what i know is that it's absolutely not working for north carolina. >> all right. cheri beasley, the democratic candidate for senate in north carolina. thank you for being with us. still ahead, donald trump told his supporters to fight like hell and some of them did. the january 6th committee is gearing up to make its strongest case yet against the former president. our political panel will have a preview next.

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let's turn to my political panel for their insights on today's top stories.

kimberly atkins, of boston globe columnist and political analyst. rick tyler, republican strategist and cofounder of we foundry strategies. in four days, the january six committee will reconvene for its final public hearing. let's take a listen to former senior technical adviser to the committee on the sunday show, about how he expected investigators to make critical connections. >> they are marching to the tune of one drummer. that drummer was donald trump, who really was the person who said this election was overthrown. and by december 19th, after his tweet, we see a full court press. -- >> what do you expect? we'll thursday culminate to a grand finale for the committee? >> i think that's what i'm expecting. i think that's what it has to do. a crucial part of the committee's work is gathering facts and explaining in the way

the american people can understand what happened, and understand the importance of what happens. i think this final hearing will both be revealing whatever is left for this committee in their fact finding, and they've said that there is more in terms of footage, evidence, that they are going to put forward. they need to bring it all together to paint a picture of exactly what this means. i think that that is right. i think that it will, in fact, point to donald trump in a very meaningful way. but also it will involve other people. one thing i'm looking for is what, if anything, the committee says about the recent testimony of ginni thomas, the wife of supreme court justice clarence thomas. she's one of the folks who have been interviewed since the last hearing. of course, she was asked about january 6th. we know from reporting that she urged people in various states, lawmakers in various states, not to certify the results of those elections.

that's one piece i'm looking for. i think this will really tie together the whole story the committee has been trying to tell all these months. >> rick, what will you be looking for as -- from the january 6th committee? also political reports, republicans are winning on pocketbook issues. gop governors attempts to make immigration more of a top concern for voters fell flat. right now, the top three issues nationally are still the economy, threats to democracy and abortion, according to the polling. republican governor ron desantis and greg abbott said venezuelan migrants into northern states to make a political point. it didn't fare well across the country. but what did this move say to their base ahead of the reelection bids? >> first, let me say about the january 6th committee, i am also looking for them to essentially make an indictment,

not a legal indictment, but an indictment of donald trump. that's where this is leading to. many people have been convicted, including someone who got a nine year sentence who never entered the capitol building because he was seen as coordinating events that led to the breach of the capital building in the fighting against the capitol police. donald trump is in that category. i think they're going to lay out donald trump's culpability in all this in a very powerful way. in terms of the midterm elections, i think anybody who says they know exactly what's going to happen doesn't know what they are talking about. there are two major issues. one is an economic issue. the other is the dobbs decision. a month ago, the dobbs decision was quite strong and democrat certainly pulled that they were going to vote based on the dobbs decision. since then, the intensity of that issue has diminished. it is still strong but it's not as strong as it was. in the end, most republicans and most independents still

look at pocketbook issues. so do democrats, of course. they are hit by them every day. gas prices have come down a little bit. but overall, food prices, gas prices, inflation is quite high. that impact peoples ability to spend money in which they want or make ends meet, if he will. i think that's probably strong for that republicans in the closing weeks of this campaign. >> let me stay with you a minute, rick. this tuesday, senators rick scott and tom cotton are going to rally for herschel walker, senate candidate in georgia. this comes as donald trump's super pac is swooping in at the last minute to buy ads for the georgia republican senate candidate, following a bruising week of headlines. what do you make of republicans unwavering support of walker in the wake of the recent allegations against him? >> it's interesting because

republicans abandoned tie aiken for a mere utterance, not an act. here they are backing up herschel walker. it all has to do with power. herschel walker will be on the ballot. there is no possibility of removing him from the ballot. they are going to try to get him across the finish line anyway they can. they are looking rather hypocritical doing so. >> kimberly, alabama senator tommy tuberville delivered and overtly racist statement during his speech at a trump rally last night in nevada, where he mentioned democrats reparations owed to people who do crimes. what do you statements like that -- what does it say about the politics of today? some republicans willing to lean more anti racist rhetoric to appeal to their base. >> in a word, yes. i mean, i think they believe what has worked in the past is

fear and demonization. we saw that with donald trump most clearly talking about building the wall and how people who crossed the border from southern countries are rapists and murderers. it's easy to use fear to get the idea that people of color who are entitled to equal rights like everyone else, lawmakers trying to ensure that are trying to give something to scary people. and black people have been demonized as scary for the entire history of our nation. that's a playbook republicans have repeatedly gone to, the same way that with herschel walker they are hoping that the same thing that happened after donald trump's access hollywood tape was released would happen again. which is, voters would not care. i'm not sure that that republican establishment may be behind these kinds of tactics. i'm not sure all republican voters are.

one thing i'm taking some hope in, and that's all i can have, is that when we talk about concern for democracy being a big issue on the minds of voters, it's not just on the minds of democratic voters, although the percentage is higher on that side. republicans are concerned about that as well. what that means is in the eye of the beholder. maybe they think it has to do with election fraud or something. that's how that republicans were generally concerned with democracy. gas prices go up and down. democracy is fragile. if that's broken, that's difficult to repair. i'm hoping that this time around, that the regular playbook doesn't work the exact same way. i think ric is right. we won't know until the election results are counted. >> kimberly atkins and rick tyler, thank you both for being with us. coming up, legalize weed has a big business. it has been big business in many states for several years. but it took until this week for an american president to start

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the most epic sandwich roster ever created. ♪♪ it's subway's biggest refresh yet! welcome back to politicsnation. president joe biden announced on thursday that he will grant pardons to thousands of americans charged with simple marijuana possession. he also ordered a review of

federal marijuana regulations and urged state governors to take similar actions. our next guest has been at the forefront of the fight for reform of the country's marijuana laws. we are joined by congressman troy carter, who represents louisiana's second district. congressman, you are the lead sponsor of the bipartisan marijuana misdemeanor and expungement act which seeks to clear the records of the people who've been pardoned by joe biden's -- executive order. why do you think it's crucial to take this one step further to clear the records of the thousands of people who have been charged for simple marijuana offenses? >> thank you very much, reverend al, for having us here to talk about this very important issue. the expungement is the natural next step. having a pardon, obviously, is huge. i applaud the presidents for this action. we were in the white house

talking about this very thing. i'm very happy and proud and honored that the president is moving forward with the pardons. but the natural next step is the expungement. because we know that people that have these cases on their record can't access federal loans in some cases. can't access jobs in some cases. can't access housing in many cases. this gives us an opportunity to have a clean start, particularly given and that in some 38 states, marijuana in some shape form or fashion has been legalized. to have people that are still saddled with this mark, when we know that the prosecutions have been disproportionately heavier in communities of black and brown, this is an opportunity to set the record straight and balance that scales, if you will, in the way of true justice. >> the decades-long war on

drugs has led to an explosion of the prison population. mostly targeting black and latino communities. following the announcement on thursday, activists lawmakers said that these marijuana pardons represent a step forward, racial equity, with this executive action. president biden said he is trying to address decades of discriminatory drug policies that disproportionately hurt or harm to people of color. studies have found that despite similar consumption patterns, black americans are nearly four times as likely as whites to be arrested for marijuana related violations, though they have the same pattern of using and possessing marijuana. what's your take on this, congressman? >> we see that every day, we have seen it for years. unfortunately, we still see that level of disproportionate prosecution, disproportionate

arrest, disproportionate challenges or arresting individuals, or probable cause. oftentimes, that is a use that turns into something that's escalated that ends up being dangerous and deadly. so we know that taking away these tools, if you will, -- let's say rogue cops, who are looking for reasons to pick a certain segment out to challenge them or abuse their, writes we are balancing that field to make it level. this is all a part of the criminal justice reform. this is all about making sure people are not being held in prisons for misdemeanors or being labeled for the rest of their lives for something, again, that is legal. i underscore that it's legal. people are making millions of dollars in our country legally selling cannabis. yet, people in many communities

are still treated as if it were a drug that was being prosecuted at the fullest extent. we also know that the president is asking that there is a revenue revisit asian on the schedule. we know that marijuana, believe it or not, is actually scheduled in the same class with heroin. higher than fentanyl. fentanyl is about as high a drug as you can get. higher. >> let me say one point you touched on. texas governor greg abbott said on thursday that he won't consider president biden's call for pardon simple state position offenses. his apartment -- better o'rourke said he would. research shows that support for legal marijuana is currently at a record high of 68%. recreational marijuana use is currently legal in 19 states and is decriminalized in 27. as you've been a proponent of marijuana legalization in your

state of louisiana, what do you think is stopping more states from legalizing this substance? >> to be honest with you, i'll tell you that i think a part of what's been slowing the process down is some are waiting on how they can monetize it. we've seen this happen with casino gambling. we've seen this happen in many cases where the engine to slow down and enterprise until some have an opportunity to figure out how to capture or monetize it, instead of allowing the marketplace to determine it. many states have allowed the marketplace, i think that's what we should do. i think what ends up happening, why you find this slow roll into these things, it's not necessarily because of the disbelief in the efficacy of that legislation. many times it's because of an effort to control and the economic engine of it. >> congressman, while i have you, senator jon kennedy, who represent your state of louisiana, recently released a new ad campaign, a campaign ad,

i should say, as he seeks reelection this mid term season. in it, he uses language that underscores rhetoric on the war on drugs, saying, quote, if you hate cops just because they are cops, next time you get in trouble, call a crack head. what's your reaction to an ad like that? >> i think it's unfortunate that senator kennedy chooses to blow the dog whistle of racism. listen, we all recognize that there are good cops and there are bad cops. but the somehow suggest and use this dog whistle attack, to use hurtful language about an issue that we know is in fact as much and issue as the opioid crisis, when people are addicted to crack in the mid 80s, it was, oh, lock them up! but then when it became an issue of opioids, then we recognized, wait a minute, there's an illness associated

with this. the same thing is applicable for those people that are addicted to crack cocaine. we now recognize we should do something about it by providing treatment. arrest people who break laws and commit crimes, people addicted to drugs should get treatment. first senator kennedy to try to use this as a political ploy, it's unfortunate, unnecessary, and it doesn't do any good to unify our country or move it forward with resources we have to protect and serve. >> congressman troy carter, you succeeded a very effective congressman in cedric richmond. it's gonna be hard once he left and went to the white house. he said you have to see the guy coming behind me. the early forecast has been very positive. i've heard a lot about you last, week we were both at the congressional black caucus. thank you for being with us. up next, final thoughts. stay with us. stay with us bs. the most epic sandwich roster ever created.

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howard university, here in washington. and i'm doing other colleges, i'll speak up morehouse college later this week. i'm saying to young people, you have four weeks until the midterm elections. and you and your parents and everybody you know needs to vote. why? because, when you have people like governor standing up, using straight out racial references, calling reparations something that is aligned with crime. when you have senators saying crack heads who you should call next time there is a crime. they are not even trying to be subtle. and they are guessing and hoping that you won't vote in numbers that will stop them. when they have taken women's right to choose, you have got to vote in big embers. you want to know who is on the ballot? you are. i'm not telling you who devote, for i'm telling you, come and vote for yourself.

and protect your interests. anything else is not acceptable. that does it for me, thanks for watching. i'll see you back here next weekend at 5 pm eastern. american with alicia menendez, my friend, starts right now on msnbc. on>> thank you so much, reverend sharpton. hello everyone, i'm alicia menendez and we begin the sunday with a look at the next, possibly finally, hearing by the january six committee. committee member jamie raskin says the hearings focus will connect all the dots to the biggest threat to our democracy. >> the central culpability of donald trump is how we began the story. and in some sense, it has to end their. i do hope that will be able to underscore the continuing clear and present danger that democratic institutions and the right to vote face in america because of this onslaught unleashed by donald trump. >> current, clear and present danger. thursday's hearings will