focuses on women who struggle to be seen for her talent and for who she really was. it honors her -- americas aapi community. 11,000 sets incidents since the start of the pandemic, according to the stop aapi hate. long was a strong, gifted, beautiful asian american women, and it does it by honoring all those parts equally. that's all the time i have for today. i'm alicia menendez, so back here tomorrow at 6 pm eastern for more american voices. for now, i handed over to my colleague, ayman biden. hi, ayman. >> hey alicia, good evening, into your evening. welcome to ayman tonight. truth and consequences. the january six committee subpoenas trump, and steve bannon is held accountable. plus, intimidation nation, election officials and voters are facing threats but a secretary of state candidate. cisco aguilar is here, and the

gop's team, breaks them republican dark money efforts to control our efforts. i'm ayman mohyeldin, let's get started. tonight, we begin with some good news, i know it's hard to imagine up but people who did wrong are actually being held accountable for their actions. i know, it sounds like a novel concept, but we do want to start with the biggest news of the week. the january six committee formally subpoenaed donald trump, and he must hand over to the panel all relevant documents relating to his efforts to overturn the 2020 election by november 4th. that includes everything, phone calls, texts, and put their messages, emails and make sure you remember if this statement, november 14th, that's when trump has been ordered to testify under oath in front of that committee. they have warned the testimony could last for several days,

and that's no surprise when you look at the laundry list of allegations that the committee has been laying out against donald trump. a letter accompanying that subpoena claims that trump purposely and maliciously disseminated false allegations of fraud related to the 2020 election, attempted to corrupt the justice department by soliciting and enlisting officials to make false statements. legally pressured state officials to change election results orchestrated and oversaw an effort to obtain and transmit false electoral sucked for six. he pressured his own vice president to refuse to come to vote on generic six. pressured members of congress to checked about state electors. but all false information under oath and in federal court, summoned thousands of angry and arm supporters to washington, d.c. on january the six and then refuse to dispense those rioters once they stormed the capitol. that's a lot when you see it all together, isn't it?

after the subpoena was released, trump's team said they would quote review and analyze it and respond as appropriate, while trump may be on the fence about what he should do next. it's clear what the american people want to see him do. a new mahmut poll out this week found that 60% of the american public believes that trump should in fact testify before the committee. if trump wants to see what may happen if he does not comply with this order, well, he could call up his old pal, steve bannon. on friday, a judge sentenced ban into four months in prison and fined him 65 -- 60 $500 for his failure to comply with a subpoena from the same committee. he's expected to stay out of prison for the time being, pending appeal. bannon's verdict makes one thing clear in all of this, actions, at least for some people right now, have consequences. finally, this obeying a lawfully ordered congressional subpoena is a punishable offense, and trump might end up learning that lesson the hard

way. let's discuss this with lisa graves, she served as a deputy assistants of the attorney general and the office of legal policy during the department of justice in the court in administration. and jessica levinson, a professor of -- great to have you both with us. jessica, i'd like to start with you. walk us through this subpoena here and what the committee is asking of trump. >> so, i think you laid out so clearly in those bullet points why the committee is saying we need to hear from the former president and briefly, what i saw at the end of the last hearing is loose cheney really explaining why the former president is at the epicenter of everything that they are looking at, the violence that occurred at the capitol and the attempts to tour the peaceful transfer of power. there are a lot of details there, but i think it basically falls into those two buckets. there was violence, it was not just foreseeable, but it was set into motion, the committee

will say by the foreign president, and he was really behind the plan to try to stop the certification of the electoral college vote. now, that's why they are saying that they need the president. they also said, look, we asked for this information. we asked for a lot of people close to you to testify, and there was that really damning video evidence for they had all those people like michael flynn saying, fifth, fifth, pleading the fifth amendment and saying that they have a right against self incrimination. they're not going to respond, and other people, like peter navarro saying, i will not comply with a subpoena. that was their closing argument for why after 8000 witnesses, thousands of documents, that they are left with no other choice but to say, we need to hear from the former president. >> alicia, if trump refuses to cooperate with the subpoena, the committee could refer the matter to the full house for a vote to hold him in content. they've done it four times already. obviously, the most notable is

the bannon, who was just sentence, as we just outlined. what does it mean if trump is not going to appear? what do you think the committee should do here? people are looking at this is two systems of justice between those hold accountable like steve bannon and those who may test the limits of what the committee can do and run out the clock, so to speak. >> i think that's right, we have a real serious situation here, where donald trump has been so resistant to any real legal process at every single turn. so, if he refuses to testify on november 14th, that committee has to act quickly to hold him in contempt to have a full vote and then to ask for the full house to hold him in contempt and refer it as quickly as possible to the justice department and prosecution, because he certainly acts with content. i expect him to acquit contempt. maybe, his ego will get the best of him and he will want to have that stage, but i certainly hope that if he fails to testify, the sentence will be stiffer than the sense given to steve bannon, which was four

months but only 60 $500. the justice department was already asking for $200,000. unfortunately, the judge appointed by donald trump, who is a former clerk for justice clarence thomas gave bannon a slap on the wrist, which she sort of touted in his courts have steps. >> what do you think that was? what was the legal basis for going so cleanly on the benin to find the subpoena? >> i was surprised, the judge put the difference in terms at the request, because the justice department was asking for six months, and bannon was asking for probation. the judges that bannon was unlikely to commit a crime again. i don't think that is so, and i think the full fine of two dozen dollars was certainly warranted in this case. >> jessica, on wednesday, a federal judge ordered trump attorney and the architect of the coup, if you will, john eastman to turn over more documents to the committee. the judge said several emails don't qualify for attorney-client privilege because they are evidence of a likely crime. writing the emails shows, quote,

president trump knew the specific number of voter fraud were wrong but continued to tout those numbers, both in court and in the public. in a new piece on msnbc.com, you called that decision stunning. tell us why that is, and how this could contribute to the committee's case. >> really good questions. here, again, we have a federal judge, and let's remember that this is judge davis carter, who in march said, it looks like on a similar question of whether or not john eastman, who was a counsel to the president, whether or not he had to turn over certain emails. there, he said that former president trump and john eastman had undertaken this really extraordinary plan to try and overturn a valid election, i am paraphrasing of course. then, last week, again, we have another really important ruling from judge carter where it is clearly the case that typically if you are advising someone, acting as the legal counsel,

then emails that you receive or send, they refer to the issue where you are providing them with legal advice they would be covered under either the attorney client privilege or the attorney were client privilege. except if you for instance chart to obtain advice in order to commit a crime. that's what judge carter said here is more likely than not. he found that both with respect to a verification that the former president had signed in court that said, yes, i think that there were more than 15,000 votes that should not have been cast, judge carter said there is no way you could think that. there is even more evidence here in the case that those were not correct numbers. he also found evidence that the former president was following these postelection litigation cases not because he thought that they were going to gain legal relief, but because he wanted to delay. that's also improper, so it was

really does to reasons together that judge carter said again, i am finding the crime fraud exception, all of which means that john eastman, give over your. emails >> that misses over a moment and ask about senator lindsey graham. you had him basically asked the supreme court, as a matter of emergency, to get involved in preventing the subpoena to have him testify in the case that prosecutors are investigating with potential overthrowing of elections or irregularities or illegalities, whatever you want to say the georgia investigation of the 2020 investigation. as gone to clarence thomas, not for any nefarious reason, it is happens to be, because he oversees the 11th circuit. but he is a person whose wife is allegedly implicated in an attempt to overturn our elections and that is what the georgia investigation is touching upon. should he recuse himself? he has the power to decide whether this decision is state

or not, but he can also refer to the broader court, or he could recuse himself. i have not seen the other two yet, so we will see what happens, but what do you think he should do? this is a guy whose wife is implicated in overturning the election, now has to make a decision about nfl geisha involving the attempt to overturn an election? >> unfortunately, as senator whitehouse and others talk about, this in court has no binding ethical rules, no binding impossible rules for recurring someone to recuse. to the ordinary person, he's no business to preside over the case, given his wife's role on the documented evidence that has been presented so far to the public about her role in urging that the vote be stopped, that the can't be stopped at the vote. if he were an honorable man, he would recuse, but he would have recused a long time ago before he was the sole vote in favor of stopping congress from getting access to trump's emails in the first place. unfortunately, in my opinion, clarence thomas is not an honorable man, and he is unlikely to recuse or pass this case back to the full court to

hear lindsey graham's arguments. i personally think that lindsey graham's arguments are without merit. he should be held to account, just as anyone else should. no one is above the law, not lindsey graham, not donald trump, that's the benin. but in this, case we have a supreme court justice who has in many ways, in my view, flooded what ordinary people think of a conflict of interest, a very serious conflict of interests with his wife. >> again, it's mind-boggling that he would have any say with any case that involves anything to do with the 2020 election news, when his wife is front and center in this alleged plot. lisa graves, jessica levinson, thank you both, we appreciate your time and insights. up next, election workers are being there and, borders are being intimidated and republicans want to make it even worse going forward. i am going to discuss how we can push back on the nevada secretary of state candidate, cisco actually are. cisco actually are ♪

(customer) save yourself?! money with farmers. (burke) that's not wrong. when you bundle your home and auto policies with farmers, you save yourself up to twenty percent. (customer) that's something. (burke) get a whole lot of something with farmers. kinda creepy. ♪ we are farmers. bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum ♪ trelegy for copd. [coughing] ♪ birds flyin' high, you know how i feel. ♪ ♪ breeze driftin' on by... ♪ if you've been playing down your copd,... ♪ it's a new dawn, it's a new day,... ♪ ...it's time to make a stand. start a new day with trelegy. ♪...and i'm feelin' good. ♪ no once-daily copd medicine... has the power to treat copd in as many ways as trelegy. with three medicines in one inhaler, trelegy helps people breathe easier and improves lung function. it also helps prevent future flare-ups. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems.

tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. do not take trelegy more than prescribed. trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. take a stand and start a new day with trelegy. ask your doctor about once-daily trelegy, and save at trelegy.com. breakthrough heartburn... means your heartburn treatment is broken. try zegerid otc. it contains the leading medicine to treat frequent heartburn, uniquely designed for absorption. get all day, all night relief with zegerid otc. right now, there is a very real

possibility that the midterms could slip into chaos, and that is unsurprisingly, because a far-right trump loyalist. a new reuters of estimation found a wave approach trump activists are working to replace local government leaders with election deniers. the outlet identified 44 counties in 15 different states, where local officials have based efforts to change voting rules since the 2020 election

and all signs point to nevada being ground zero for this crisis. let's look in at it for a moment. ten and nevada 17 counties, have seen their top election officials resign, retire or decline this seek, reelection since 2020. four of those officials said that the harassment or continued efforts to challenge the 2020 results were among the reasons for leaving, and as that washington post dana milbank warrants, the worst-case scenario for nevada is that conspiracy minded county commissioners might refuse to certify the results, which raises the likelihood that the state legislator could step in and throw at the results at any contested state election, from assembly all the way up to governor and install the candidate of their choice, something that actually is allowed under about a law. joining me now is cisco ugly are, the democratic nominee for one of the most important positions in that state, secretary of state in florida and nevada. sir, thank you so much for

making time with us this evening. let me start up by your concern, how concerned are you about what is going on in your state right now? how concerned should the rest of the country be? >> thank you for having me. i am glad to be here to explain the situation. we are definitely concerned here in nevada, but we are prepared. we're working hard to ensure that every vote in nevada's candid. we are going to be there to be prepared. we have a legal protection ready to go. the democratic party is working hard to ensure that all nevadan votes are counted at this election cycle. >> your opponent, jim margin, appeared at a trump rally two weeks ago. i want to play for you and our viewers, some of what he set. watch this. >> you're going to elect me as their secretary of state because i oversee the election system. [applause] we're going to make sure that you have a fair and transparent election system, because if we do, we are a red state, i guarantee you. >> i want to give you a chance

to respond to that. would you make of what he said and what he continued to say as well, and some interpreted -- if elected, he would mixture in 2024, donald trump would be president. some people interpret it as rigging the election for him. >> you know, it's unfortunate because he has not appeared before nevada voters to explain his positions or why he is right for secretary of state. all of a sudden, he appears on the national stage to ensure the election for nevada, without knowing the will of the that are voters. that's unfortunate. we have looked all over the state to confront them on those issues and have a discussion why he believes what he believes, but he has refused to appear. he refused to explain to nevadans why he has not -- has that belief. it's unfortunate, unacceptable. look, he's not a serious candidate for secretary of state. the threat he represents is extremely serious, and we are here to combat that and explain away why he is telling lasted

nevadans consistently. >> trump allies have targeted the ballot drop boxes and mail-in voting. jim marchand, your opponent, is calling for elections by paper ballots and hand counting, which i guess is that going back to the 1800s. what is your reaction to these proposals that they're doing? >> again, he's trying to change the rules on the election cycle because he knows that if he does not change the rules, he and his friends could not win elections like this. extremists are not welcomed in nevada. nevada one people who are pragmatic, will be honest and tell them the truth and be transparent about their actions and decisions when it comes to elections. nevada has worked really hard to increase access. we are same-day voter registration, we have early voting which started today, we're pretty excited about it. we also have mail-in ballots, which are making elections extremely accessible throughout the state. nevada has a very urban core. we have a very strong rural committee. we also have a very strong native community, and the last election cycle, native

communities have increased their engagement in voting by 25%. that's pretty incredible. we need to continue to fight for more access. we did make sure all nevadans have the opportunity to express their opinion. this is no longer about -- this is about protecting the rights for nevadans across the state, whether you're republican or democrat. we need to ensure that we're listen needing to citizens and doing what is best. unfortunately, jim marchand continues to lie to all nevadans about the vision and future of the state. that is unacceptable. >> let me ask you about voter intimidation if i can. there are local reports in arizona that say friday night police were called to investigate armed and masked individuals near a ballot drop box. it's one of the latest alleged voter intimidation and our state. arizona secretary of state katie hobbs has already referred the matter to the department of justice. what do you make of that? have you seen any similar allegations in your state? are you concerned about voter

intimidation interstate? >> i am absolutely concerned, and that's why if i am elected secretary of state, the first but we have introduced since -- to make it a felon to harass or intimidate election workers and volunteers. they are humans, they are numbers, they are relatives, they're doing the job we need them to do to protect our democracy and make sure that the system is fair and transparent for all nevadans. it's unacceptable that people would have to go to work in fear. it's not a great state to note that when you are working in fear, you're not going to get the results that we need to have, especially when you're trying to protect democracy and make sure that all elections are secure, but also to making sure that everybody's vote counts and everybody vote counts equally. >> all right cisco aguilar, thank you so much for joining us, appreciate your insights this evening. >> thank you for having me, glad to be here. >> up next, republicans decade long dark money scheme to influence the courts. that liberty mutual customizes your home insurance, here's a pool party.

look what i brought! liberty mutual! they customize your home insurance... so you only pay for what you need! ♪young people having a good time with insurance.♪ ♪young people.♪ ♪good times.♪ ♪insurance!♪ only pay for what you need. ♪liberty liberty. liberty. liberty.♪ moderate to severe eczema still disrupts my skin. despite treatment it disrupts my skin with itch. it disrupts my skin with rash.

but now, i can disrupt eczema with rinvoq. rinvoq is not a steroid, topical, or injection. it's one pill, once a day, that's effective without topical steroids. many taking rinvoq saw clear or almost-clear skin while some saw up to 100% clear skin. plus, they felt fast itch relief some as early as 2 days. that's rinvoq relief. rinvoq can lower your ability to fight infections, including tb. serious infections and blood clots, some fatal, cancers including lymphoma and skin cancer, death, heart attack, stroke, and tears in the stomach or intestines occurred. people 50 and older with at least one heart disease risk factor have higher risks. don't take if allergic to rinvoq, as serious reactions can occur. tell your doctor if you are or may become pregnant. disrupt the itch and rash of eczema. talk to your doctor about rinvoq. learn how abbvie can help you save. they say you eat with your eyes first, so here's a good look at our new thick n fluffy french toast. artisan challah dipped in vanilla cinnamon batter. french toast the way it's meant to be.

try all three flavors. only at ihop. download the app and earn free food with every purchase.

♪ ♪ mercedes-benz is turning electric... completely on its head. bringing legendary design... and state-of-the-art technology... to a fully-electric suv. the all-new, all-electric eqb from mercedes-benz. this week, the supreme court

unveiled its december argument calendar featuring two highly anticipated bombshell cases that could fundamentally reshape american culture and democracy. on december 5th, the justices will here at 303 creative llc versus alanis, -- found on the intersections of same-sex couples, religious liberties and freedom of speech. at the crux of the case is a colorado-based website designer who feels her, quote, christian opposition to same sex marriage should allow her to discriminate against customers who want to create an online ad involving gay weddings. notably, the justices agreed to take up the case on a first amendment basis, which could have major implications for exemptions to existing civil rights law. down just a few days at that, on december 7th, the justices will turn their attention tomorrow versus harper, and the question on whether a democracy should continue as we know it. look, we've spent a lot of time and spent that particular case

on the show. on the issue in that case centers on the gop and it's gerrymandering effort that was ruled unconstitutional by the north carolina supreme court. republican litigants from the tar heel state argue that their man should not have been shut down due to the little known bonkers independent state legislator theory. if the court rules in republican favor, it could get right wing state legislators near complete power over the administration of elections in many states, meaning there will be no to little oversight from the other branches of state government and how elections are run. we're not hyper ventilating about what is at stake here. let's remember, it was the first week of december 2021 when the justices heard oral arguments for dobbs versus jackson. the case ultimately overturned roe v. wade. this is the judicial moment conservatives have been waiting for. it is the combination of countless fast the bargains

that led to the department of justice corsica, justice kavanaugh and justice barrett. the combination of decades of conservative work to reshape the federal judiciary to create their preferred version of america from the ground up. it is a project that dates back to 1982, hatched by neocons who recognize the only way to obtain that version of america was not through legislation, it was all too unpopular to pastor congress. the american people would not accept a. their project would focus on the courts. the federalist society, one of the loudest voices of conservative judicial activism has spearheaded much of this effort, and the effort began in part by a groups one-time failure. the federal society champion robert bork's nomination to the supreme court back in the 19 80s, in fact, his nomination was later rejected in part due to his strong opposition to the civil rights act of 1964.

but here's the thing. we the federalist society learned from that failure, and it made the group smarter, it made the group more radical in their tactics. radical to the point where federalists society members started training their fire on federal conservatives. going so far to say george abortions scotus nominee, harriet myers in 2005, purportedly because she was not reactionary enough. as the years went on, the group gained even greater influence on conservative judicial bullies. in the lead up to the 2016 election, leonard leo, the longtime vice president of the federalist society even provided then-candidate trump with a list of approved prospective judicial nominees. gorsuch, kavanaugh, barrett, all of them were handpicked by the federalist society. and the groups influence is still growing. and it's growing for one simple reason, money. leonard leo and his ilk of -- conservative profits help

receive millions of dollars in recent years, from mostly undisclosed donors. we do not even know who they are. all to remote conservative judges and causes. senator sheldon whitehouse has been raising the red flags for years on this dark money, and after giving some 18 speeches on the senate floor and educating all of us during judicial confirmation hearings. he has now written a book on this very subject, entitled this scheme: how the right-wing uses dark money to capture the supreme court. after the break, i will be joined live by senator whitehouse to discuss that gop scheme and more. stay with us.

quote, the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he did not exist. that is a legendary line from one of my favorite, and instant classic movies, the usual suspects. and it is a particular favorite of my next guest, who uses in his new book to illustrate how the gop's gaslighting campaign surrounding their decades long covert effort to subvert american democracy through the judicial system. joining me now is senator sheldon whitehouse, a member of the senate judiciary committee and author of the new book the scheme: how the right-wing use dark money to capture the supreme court. senator whitehouse, it is great to have you back on the show. thank you so much for making time for us. let us start very broad here for a second. what is the scheme you

investigate in your book, sir? >> well, i think you gave an excellent summary of it in your previous segment. the only thing i would add is that i think behind the federalist society effort were a bunch of billionaires who were using the federalist society as kind of a screen. and down the hall from the federalist society, literally in the same building, was the judicious creations network, where the same billionaires dump their money to run their ads against garland and for gorsuch kavanaugh and. barrett and in the court now with the 6 to 3 majority seeing flotillas of phony front groups come in, also backed by billionaire interests, to give the court instructions, now that they've got them on the court, as to what it is the billionaire interest who put them on the court now want them to do. >> you say at multiple points in the book that citizens united was effectively when the rubicon was truly crossed. why was that decision so

terrible? >> it was so terrible because it allowed unlimited money into politics. and when it allowed unlimited money into politics, it open the gates for enormous amounts of anonymous unlimited money. of the most you can give is $5, 000, there is really not much point in hiding it. if you plan to give $50 million to set up a super pac and to just crush a senate candidate, for instance, now it becomes really important to be able to hide who are. and that is why this elaborate apparatus of super pacs and donors trusts and 501 c fours, not active in politics before citizens united, scummy as all get out, that has all emerge because of citizens united. >> yeah, it's muddied, if not completely destroyed. the waters are dirtied, the waters of our politics. >> yeah. >> let me ask, you some who might be watching this,

certainly, conservatives may be watching this and asking what difference it the federal society from their scheme and left leaning groups like the american constitution society demanding justice? what would you say to them that is different from what we've seen actually happening in politics? >> i think several differences. first, they actually in a back room got together and selected supreme court nominees, who trump then immediately put on the court. so, they have actually stack the court. no left leaning group as ever managed to do that. second, they have systematized it over decades. this is their intent. a left leaning group makes a pitch for a particular candidate at a particular time is not part of a similarly robust and persistent systemic attack on the judiciary. and the third is that it is very closely coordinated with the dark money in politics. npr reported today that we are

about to hit one billion dollars in dark money spent for republican senate candidates. so, if you've got a troubled supreme court nominee like brett kavanaugh, and you need to stuff him through a confirmation process, even though he's got troubles galore, that kind of power, the ability to draw a billion dollars in dark money ads to support republican senators is exactly what makes republican senators abandon their consciences, throw out their principles, trash the rules of the senate, and do what they're told. >> there are inevitably, sir, those who are going to agree with you with the dangers of dark money. i certainly am one of them. but there are others who are gonna push back on scotus conservatives being lockstep federalist society zombies or ideologues, and they will point to neil gorsuch writing the majority opinion and saying that title seven of the civil rights act of 1974 protects

employees against discrimination because they're gay or transgender. or they will point to amy coney barrett siding with the biden administration on student loans just a couple of days ago. what would you say to them in response to them saying these are not idealogue justices? >> i do not think their idealogue justices as they are justices who are carefully selected by very big and powerful republican donor interest to assure that they would do what those big donors wanted. and if you are not batting one hunted percent, but you're only batting 82%, that is still not calling balls and strikes. and all of the big stuff that really matters to them, getting regulators off the back of polluters, because so many of them are polluters, making sure that dark money in our political system is protected, because as you said in your statement earlier, they cannot win. america hates their stuff. they have got to use the courts and floods of dark money to try to shove their agenda down our throats. and on those big key issues

keeping corporations out of court, allowing them to take care of people who have been hurt by them, and stuff them into mandatory secret arbitration. all of these things align with the interests of really big republican donor interests. and all that 92% every day, even ted williams did not do that well. >> when you say that well, it makes a lot of sense. some of these issues, i think the baseball analogy is spot on. let me touch base in some cases, sir, that we are going to hear in this term. we have been trying on the show, at, least to spotlight some of these critical cases, more versus harper, creative, a few others that may be working their way. but is there a case that stands out to you that concerns you that we should be watching even more closely? >> no doubt about it, the scariest one is more versus harper. the independent state legislatures theory that is being pushed by these interest groups in that case is the same theory that was pushed by the

legal effort to allow trump to overcome the will of the voters and steal the presidential election. it's the same theory. it got thrown out over and over and over again in courts that had the chance to review it. but the groups, and the individuals that actually participated in a legal effort to steal trump the presidency, have now turned up in the supreme court. and in a big phalanx of amicus briefs and appearances as trying to shop this failed theory to the supreme court. i hope and expect that even amy cooney barrett, even roberts, we'll see that this is a bridge too far for the court. that it's just a preposterous legal idea. but it's scary to think that we even have to consider whether or not the united states supreme court would give credence to a theory like this that was part and parcel of the insurrection effort to throw over an election and put trump back in power. >> yeah, i would certainly hope

so. before we go, sorry, i have to ask you really quickly about expanding the court. a growing number of little voices in your party have come out in support of some form of expansion. and yet, there are some notable, like the former president barack obama, who have been a little bit more reserved on that proposal. where do you come down on this? what do you think should happen? >> i think the first thing that we need to do, and the reason i wrote the book, is that we need to make sure that we have the american people with us. they understand what happened. this is not a conservative court. this is a captured court. this is a court that does not follow conservative doctrine, it follows the test of who wins. and once you understand, that once that has sunk in, then people, i think, are going to be open to a whole lot of broader remedies. it's hard to accept the cure, unless you acknowledge the illness. and so, if we get too far ahead of our skis, i worry that we will end up taking a public meeting because we have not

done our homework of explaining to the american public why these remedies are needed. >> yeah, i think that is violently said. i think when you frame it like that, it becomes much more clear as to why that is the solution. it's a captured court, not a conservative one. senator sheldon whitehouse, it's always a pleasure. thank you so much for your time. again, the book, the scheme: how the right-wing use dark money to capture the supreme court. thank you, sir. up next, president biden's big promises on abortion access. we are going to discuss his mid term moves with former texas state senator wendy davis after this.

in the final weeks before the midterms to protect abortion rights -- biden promise that the progress mint julep house and senate, the first bill he had pushed to the us in congress would be legislating condom vying abortion rights. that comes amid continuing republican threats to criminalize abortions. this week, the wisconsin attorney general candidate believes that the aid should be able to cross county lines in order to prosecute abortion cases. the fight to protect abortion access now rests in the hands of the people and people power is what has time and time again helped protect the right to choose in this country. >> moments in the day when the building would literally come alive, i could feel it in my feet. [applause] >> upset by the

cross behavior, lieutenant governor jim hearst rita to folks there as an unruly mob. they've since taken that mantra and won it with pride. >> that was a clip from the new msnbc documentary, shutting down midnight. it airs tomorrow night at msnbc. it's about the fight for abortion rights in texas and the effect that former texas state senator wendy davis had other movement at the she let a 13-hour filibuster to protect access back in 2013. wendy davis joins us now. wendy, it's good to see you, thank you so much for joining us this evening. what do you make of president biden's announcement this week because the immediate thing that jumped out to me is that democrats do control the house and do control the senate right now, and they can still get things done if they wanted to between now and the new term and the new congress is sworn in. why not do it now? why wait until the new house and senate? >> -- that's a great question, i am

in, and of course, we understand why not do it now because some of our democratic senators are not on board with making the have been, and they are not on board with ending the filibuster in order to make it happen. it is our hope that we are actually in a position to pick up a couple of senate seats that will hopefully change the game in that regard, and it's just another reminder of how important it is for us to vote with abortion at the forefront of our mind this november. i know that the economy and crime have been rising more and more, and the day-to-day concerns of voters minds. i understand the, absolutely, but we also of course understand that crime and our economic concerns tend to ebb and flow. things will get better and in a bipartisan way, people are

committed to helping commit to make sure that they will be better. this abortion law is going to be with us for as long as it takes for us to elect people who are ultimately going to put national protections into place, that are going to restore the rights of roe. i hope that people will feel the urgency and also just the long term impact if they are not voting for abortion as one of the most important issues top of mind for them when they go into the box this november. >> you probably saw this as well, with not this and the biden interview, he said that he would support a federal fund for people that need to take time off of work to get abortions. today, the cost could be up to $1,000 of folks need to cross the lines. can you talk to us about this added financial toll for people who are already in very stressful situations? >> sure, i was really happy to

see the biden administration talking about the, understanding that there are many barriers to people to be able to access abortion care outside states like texas. it's not just the cost that the procedure, which as you set, can be in the thousands of dollars a few at the procedure and travel cost to gather. it's also that many people cannot afford to take off work. they cannot afford the child care for other children that they have in order to travel to access that care. this is the biden administration's way of trying to remove as many barriers as they have in their tool kit to remove, including the pentagon saying that they will pay travel costs for members of the military who have to travel for abortion care. but the reality is, with all the help, there are people who still will not be able to access that care. one of those reasons is, if you can imagine, having to say to

an employer, i need to take off time from work because, i need to access abortion care. there are not a lot of people who will want to had a conversation with their employers, and of course, there are many who don't have the privilege of being able to take off work. they will lose their jobs, if they have to take off for three or four or five days, whatever the time period is going to be for them to travel and receive the care that they need. it creates a cast system of abortion rights, where people who have the privilege, who can afford to go elsewhere, who have jobs that they can take time off from, who can afford for the children to be put into childcare, will be able to access that care, and people who cannot afford those luxuries will not. >> wendy, i want to go back for a moment to the nbc documentary for your remarkable and very moving filibuster back in 2013, where you read aloud the

letters of women who share their abortion stories with you. one of those letters was from a woman named carol will. i want to play the samba. which -- >> i asked my doctor at one point, which he tried to breathe if i delivered her while she was alive? and he nodded, no, i am done, i can't do that. i can't watch or tried to breathe when there is nothing they can do for. we did not find out until we were 20 weeks old, which is completely normal. if we had not had the choice to have her heart stopped and and produced by labor, then we would have had to wait for her to pass on her own or lead to state. >> because at the abortion ban throughout the country that we

are seeing now, many people face mounting obstacles in getting lifesaving abortions like the one that you talked about in that documentary. talk to us about the urgency of this moment. >> it's a reminder, ayman, that this is a right that you don't really realize you will need until you do. i had a very similar story to carols. as you can imagine, it made this all too real and all too important for me. i think we're starting to hear more and more of these stories in abortion prohibitive states now, where people are actually able to say, you know, i could actually put myself in the shoes, i can a magenta happening to me. it is causing, i hope, more and more people to understand the abortion's health care, it is a right, a private right of health care that each of us should be able to access. we can't imagine what tomorrow

may bring in any of our individual lives that make us face this very same decision, all the more reason that whether we believe personally that this is something we might do, we need to protect the ability for those who choose this health care for themselves to receive it when they need it. >> wendy davis, thank you so much for your time and making time for us. i greatly appreciate your insights and everything you're doing on this front. a quick programming note, as we mentioned, tomorrow night, after ayman, msnbc films will present shouting down midnight, a film shining light on wendy's efforts to protect women's access to reproductive health care. it is the first installment of the new documentary series, the turning point, executive really produced by trevor noah. watch shutting down midnight tomorrow night at 10 pm eastern on msnbc. it's also streaming on peacock. up next, the new court ruling

affecting presidential biden student forgiveness lump robe ram, we'll talk about that more. at more contestants ready? go! only pay for what you need. jingle: liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. at fidelity, your dedicated advisor will work with you on a comprehensive wealth plan across your full financial picture. a plan with tax-smart investing strategies designed to help you keep more of what you earn. this is the planning effect. breakthrough heartburn... means your heartburn treatment is broken. try zegerid otc. it contains the leading medicine to treat frequent heartburn, uniquely designed for absorption. get all day, all night relief with zegerid otc.

it's nice to unwind after a long week of telling people how liberty mutual customizes your car insurance so you only pay for what you need! (limu squawks) he's a natural. only pay for what you need. ♪liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty.♪ kids getting hooked on flavored tobacco, including e-cigarettes. big tobacco lures them in with flavors like lemon drop and bubble gum, candy flavors that get them addicted to tobacco products, and can lead to serious health consequences, even harming their brain development. that's why pediatricians urge you to vote yes on prop 31. it stops the sale of dangerous flavored tobacco and helps protect kids from nicotine addiction. please vote yes on 31. an important update on a story

vote yes on prop 31. we have been covering. president biden's student debt relief program that was set to begin this weekend has unfortunately had a roadblock. last night, a federal appeals court that has filed -- excuse me, that is filled with trump appointees temporarily halted biden's relief program, granting our quest by yes, a

republic