way to become the head of the national hockey league players association. there is a fight growing as to who could be his replacement. what's the reporting you have? >> it's actually the first brewing, maybe minor civil war within the democratic party during this session. asian-american lawmakers are pressing for the california labor secretary to get this position. they'd love to see an asian-american individual in a high-profile position in the cabinet. but some very influential democrats on the hill. nancy pelosi still is pushing for sean patrick maloney, the former new york congressman who headed the dccc heading into the recent midterms. who could be the leader next is not clear, but there's debate already. >> that'll be a big topic next week, as well. senior politics reporter gene scott, thank you. thank you for getting up "way too early" on this friday morning. "morning joe" starts right now.

>> dear colleagues, your subcommittee could become part of a proud history of serious, bipartisan oversight, stretching from the teapot dome investigation to the boeing investigation to the watergate hearings to the tobacco hearings to the select committee on the january 6th attack. or you could take oversight down a very dark alley, filled with conspiracy theories and disinformation. a place where facts are the enemy and partisan destruction is the overriding goal. >> appears house republicans are going to go with the dark alley path. the first hearing for the subcommittee to investigate the, quote, weaponization of the federal government was nothing but grievance politics. meanwhile, in the senate, minority leader mitch mcconnell is trying to distance the party from a fellow republican senator. who could that be? it comes as president joe biden takes his post state of the

union message to florida, keeping the focus on the fate of social security and medicare. and the administration is receiving support from a prominent republican over its handling of the chinese surveillance balloon. we'll have that and new details about the balloon from the state department. good morning. welcome to "morning joe." it is friday. friday finally, willie. february 10th. joe is on assignment this morning. willie, your pick for this sunday, "sunday today" or super bowl? >> my pick for "sunday today" is paul rudd. >> really good. >> my pick for the super bowl, i've been thinking about it a lot. i'll stick with what i said last week, the chiefs. i'm a giants fan, so i have an anti-eagles bias, but i root for the team in my division. but my head is telling me mahomes, who won the mvp again last night, the chiefs do it. >> i'm thinking with the eagles. i've been taking in a lot of information from joe and his

son, jack. i'll be watching "sunday today." paul rudd, amazing. how great. we'll look forward to more of that later. host of "way too early," bureau chief at "politico," he just keeps going, lemire. he does five hours, we do four. is he well, mike? >> something wrong with him. >> it is debatable, i suppose. >> calm down and go home. >> what is that? needy, actually. go home, man. he just keeps going. >> wow, this took a real turn. this was not at all in the scripts whatsoever. i got chiefs 27-23, by the way. >> oh, good. glad to hear. glad to hear. by the way, i haze our youngest participants in the "morning joe" family, and i say needy with love, lemire. >> it's a word that usually ka

has affection. thank you. >> elise jordan is here, msnbc political analyst. and the host of msnbc's "politics nation" and president of the national action network, reverend al sharpton is with us this morning. thank you, all, for joining us today. so the newly created republican-led subcommittee created to investigate the alleged, quote, weaponization of the federal government held its first hearing yesterday. republicans on the panel claim the government has been unfairly used to target conservatives while democrats argued the committee itself is kind of an example of improper use of the government. chairman of the subcommittee, republican jim jordan of ohio, laid out his plans for the panel in his opening statement. while delegate staey plaskett of the u.s. virgin islands, who serves as the panel's top democrat, expressed her concerns

about what republicans on the subcommittee are actually doing. >> americans have concerns about the double standard at the department of justice. americans have concerns about the disinformation governance board that the department of homeland security troy edtried . we expect to hear from government officials and experts like we have here today. we expect to hear from americans who have been targeted by their government. >> there is a difference, my colleagues, between legitimate oversight and weaponization of congress and our processes, particularly our committee work as a political tool. i'm deeply concerned about the use of this subcommittee as a place to settle scores, showcase conspiracy theories, and advance an extreme agenda that risks undermining american's faith in our democracy. >> members of that committee heard from two panels. the first included republican senators chuck grassley of iowa

and ron johnson of wisconsin, and former congresswoman tulsi gabbard of hawaii. she left the democratic party to become an independent. each of them slammed the justice department, social media companies, and democrats in congress. for the sake of time, we have boiled this hearing down to its essence. here's what it looked like. >> hunter biden's laptop. hunter biden's laptop. >> hunter biden's business arrangements. >> hunter biden laptop story. >> the hunter biden laptop. hunter biden laptop. >> secretary clinton, regarding her use of a private email server for official business. >> jonathan lemire, you get the idea. a lot of hunter biden's laptop. a lot of talking about hillary clinton, what, seven years ago now during the presidential campaign. again, as it was yesterday, as we showed the committee with the twitter executives, this is precisely what republicans promised in the fall. if you elect us, bring us into power, which they did in the house, we will go after the fbi.

we will go after the military. we will go after the justice department. we will go after social media companies. here we are. >> yeah, at least they can't be accused of flip-flopping. they have made good on this campaign promise, to be sure. it was extraordinarily predictable yesterday. an airing of grievances and conspiracy theories. and making a bet that the american people cares at all about hunter biden and his laptop and business dealings. look, if there was wrong jng wrongdoing, it'll be investigated by the proper authorities, and that remains to be seen, whether or not that will happen. this is something that they have talked themselves into a corner. these conspiracy theories, what use to be in the fringes of the internet, became more mainstream thanks to republican talking points. they live on in primetime fox news shows. for an element of the republican base, they want to see this happen. republicans have told me they feel like they'd be punished by voters if they didn't see

through here. but there are a lot of republicans, elise jordan, who are nervous about this, who see president biden talking about social security and medicare, talking about big jobs numbers, and at least an element, a loud element of their party is obsessed about stuff that only plays to the smallest part of their base. >> jonathan, they come into a little bit of power, a teensy bit of power, because the margin is so narrow, but is the house just going to look like all they're doing is a consistent grievance train and not actual legislating, not bringing anything to the floor and voting? and you've got, on the senate side, rick scott going completely off message on social security. ron johnson, too. you know, even mitch mcconnell is taking, you know, "oh, this is not where we are." but giving biden and democrats more to punch back at them with.

>> i'm going to add to that description of yours, elise, grievance train. the obsession with hunter, for whatever they might find, is -- i think it'll backfire, as well. this is president biden, who is extremely well-liked. many believe he has accomplished something in his first two years in office. they're going after him with such vigor. i'm not sure that's a good look for them. while their former president, they literally closed their eyes, put blinders on to an insurrection. i just don't know how that will translate, and i think we learned in the midterms that the american people are clued into democracy matters. they don't like insurrections where people get tortured and killed. they kind of like joe biden. they kind of like him. they don't like someone who is cruel. they don't like someone who will just go after people for the sake of going after them. and the hunter thing, for whatever might have gone wrong

there, that is not president biden. meanwhile, their former president just skates by, in their minds, having done criminal act after criminal act potentially. he had multiple, i think six, seven legal investigations, potential indictments, potential arrests looming over him. but they have blinders on. i just don't know how that pans out in the long run. president joe biden, meanwhile, took his economic message to florida yesterday in tampa. the president directly called out florida senator rick scott for his plan to put medicare and social security up for congressional approval every five years. >> the very idea the senator from florida wants to put kansas -- social security and medicare on the chopping block every five years. it will not happen.

i'll veto it. i know a lot of republicans, their dream is to cut social security and medicare. let me say this, if that's your dream, i'm your nightmare. >> scott, meanwhile, continues to double down on his plan while simultaneously accusing the president of lying about his position. the florida senator also challenged president biden to a debate. please do that. the white house has not responded. that would be fabulous. as elise mentioned, senate minority leader mitch mcconnell is looking to distance the party from rick scott's plan to sunset social security and medicare. >> well, unfortunately, that was the scott plan. that's not a republican plan. that was the rick scott plan. the republican plan, as i pointed out last fall, if we were to become the majority, there were no plans to raise taxes on half the american people or to sunset medicare or

social security. so, it's clearly the rick scott plan. it is not the republican plan. and that's the view of the speaker of the house, as well. i think we're in a more authoritative position to state what the position of the party is than any single senator. >> so, rick scott is really not back in the fold yet after he ran against you for leadership? >> this doesn't have to do with that. this is just a bad idea. i think it will be a challenge for him to deal with this in his own re-election in florida, a state with more elderly people than any other state in america. >> i mean, what else does mitch mcconnell really have to say? it is a bad idea. biden is completely owning, owning, mike barnicle, the republicans, on their attempt to own the libs on so many ways. but in this case, he's calling them out by name. he is very joyfully getting in the debate. the bottom line is, rick scott

has a plan that does that. he is lying about it. so, too, is mike lee when he says he never spoke loudly about getting rid of these programs. the president is calling them out and is doing something very simple. he is sticking to facts and owning them on their own facts. >> yeah. it's one thing for the president of the united states to be doing what he is doing, which is understandable and predictable. it is quite another thing for us to just hear mitch mcconnell kill another republican senator. kill him. indicating that, you know, he's going to have a tough time getting re-elected, carrying his own baggage. that is an amazing statement from mitch mcconnell. >> that's a problem. >> he knows what he is doing every single second of his professional political life. he knows what he is doing. reverend al, it leads to the spectacle that we saw part of earlier this hour, of the republicans living in their own

cocoon. jim jordan, who apparently can't afford a blazer, sits in the committee in his white shirt, giving the image of a working guy. i came to work, don't wear a coat because i'm too busy, stuff like that. talking about issues that mean nothing to the average citizen. people who you know and people who i know. they're not talking about, did you get your social security check on time? did it come on time? taxes, we'll fix your taxes. we'll have a fairer tax system. things that actually matter to people. where are they going? >> i really don't think they know where they're going. reminds me of the dog chasing the milk truck. when he catches it, he can't drive it. not only are they talking about things that the average person you know or i know would care less about. the things they care about, they haven't been able to deliver. when i look at their whole

committee hearing on what goes on twitter, and they couldn't call a credible candidate or one to testify that could say, well, i worked in government. i worked and this is what we did. it's like, okay, you got your committee. now, you don't even have witnesses to call to back up your crazy. i mean, at least give me a crazy witness. i guess george santos was busy. they couldn't even get anyone to fabricate evidence. >> to the point you just raised, let me ask you a question. have you ever been walking down second avenue or broadway, the west side, and have someone come up in the street and say, "hey, did you see this tweet?" >> right, no, never. >> never. >> never. >> oh, my god. >> in fact, the people i tweet to don't even say they saw my tweet. i think it is a little overindulgence. my real point is they really have no message beyond grievance, beyond anger, beyond

conspiracies. there's no message. there's no there-there. the significant thing president biden has been able to do is put a message up. i'm for this. i'm for that. this will mean this to you. they've not been able to counter that. they've been barking at the moon while he has been methodically doing what he's done. i think the other unsaid thing that he's done is, according to polling, the concern about his age. this man is doing 20 city. three weeks ago, he did our martin luther king breakfast for national action network. i had to rush back for an afternoon session. when i called back to our people that run the washington office and said, "did everything end all right?" they said, "the president is still in the ballroom shaking hands." here is a man showing energy, showing the opposite of what they're trying to project. >> jonathan lemire, you and i know barnicle stands at 67th and

broadway outside of the movie theater and says, "hey, you want to see my tweet?" it is disturbing. usually the nypd is called in, but we don't need to go further into that. john, clearly, the president and this white house feels it's found something. he'll carry the rick scott brochure with him probably the next year and a half on the trail if he, in fact, decides to run for re-election. mitch mcconnell wants nothing to do with it. he doesn't like rick scott to begin with. rick scott tried to briefly run to become the majority leader and failed in that attempt. mitch mcconnell kicked rick scott off the commerce committee. there's no love lost there. but republicans, by and large, want nothing to do with rick scott. but president biden will have that brochure with him for a long time here. >> mcconnell in the interview denied that rick scott was kicked off that committee because of his bid to oust him as leader. sure, we can fact-check that. this is another moment of, if you come at the king, you best not miss, to quote "the wire,"

one of the best tv shows we've ever seen. but there's no question here, though, mitch mcconnell is good at politics. like him or not, he knows how to do this. he knows this is a terrible idea. it is being hung around the necks of the republicans, and the white house is gleeful to do it. i was in wisconsin on wednesday when the president held up the brochure and made sure he read aloud and showed the audience. yesterday in florida, a copy of the brochure was left at every seat in the venue for every elected official. more importantly, every florida senior who attended it to read. this is going to be, even as we heard the state of the union the other night, republicans, a lot of them, shouted, no, no, we won't touch social security and medicare. president biden's argument will be, okay, do you believe them? i have it in black and white, that's what they want to do. they feel this is a fantastic issue for them. right now, before the republicans get to the point where they have a front-runner, a presidential nominee, rick scott and the jim jordan types in the house, the democrats in

the white house, they're going to paint them. this is your republican party right now. rick scott, jim jordan, marjorie taylor greene, that's who we're running against. they feel good about the contrast. >> i want to point out. wednesday, you do five hours of "morning joe" and get on a plane to wisconsin. just curious, lemire. then you came back? >> i did duck out early on wednesday to make the plane. yes, this is the on the ground reporting that i bring to this show and to our grateful viewers. >> it's true. >> yeah. >> need coffee. the latest from ukraine as russia launches a new series of attacks in the eastern and southern regions of the war-torn country. plus, china called it a weather balloon, but u.s. officials are disclosing new details about what that alleged spying equipment was actually capable of. we'll dig into that and the reaction from capitol hill. also ahead, what's next for

former congressman sean patrick maloney? former house speaker nancy pelosi seems to have an idea. steve rattner says there has been a string of recent data showing a strong u.s. economy. he joins us next with charts. somebody on the plane yesterday was talking about steve's charts. you're watching "morning joe." we'll be right back. whoa. okay. easy does it. we switched to liberty mutual and saved $652. they customize your car insurance, so you only pay for what you need. with the money we saved, we thought we'd try electric unicycles. whoa! careful, babe! saving was definitely easier. hey babe, i think i got it! it's actually... whooooa! ok, show-off! help! oh! only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ science proves quality sleep is vital to your mental, emotional, and physical health.

oand we know 80% of couples sleep too hot or too cold. introducing the new sleep number climate360 smart bed. the only smart bed in the world that actively cools, warms, and effortlessly responds to both of you. our smart sleepers get 28 minutes more restful sleep per night. proven quality sleep. only from sleep number. for adults with generalized myasthenia gravis who are positive for acetylcholine receptor antibodies, it may feel like the world is moving without you. but the picture is changing, with vyvgart. in a clinical trial, participants achieved improved daily abilities with vyvgart added to their current treatment. and vyvgart helped clinical trial participants achieve reduced muscle weakness. vyvgart may increase the risk of infection. in a clinical study, the most common infections

were urinary tract and respiratory tract infections. tell your doctor if you have a history of infections or if you have symptoms of an infection. vyvgart can cause allergic reactions. the most common side effects include respiratory tract infection, headache, and urinary tract infection. picture your life in motion with vyvgart. a treatment designed using a fragment of an antibody. ask your neurologist if vyvgart could be right for you.

(psst psst) ahhhh... with flonase, allergies don't have to be scary spraying flonase daily gives you long-lasting, non-drowsy relief. (psst psst) flonase. all good.

ooh, the chewy app. clumping litter. salmon paté? we have enough to splurge on catnip toys! i feel so accomplished. pet me please! great prices. happy pets. chewy. nearly a week after the massive earthquake destroyed entire parts of turkey and syria, survivors still are being pulled from the rubble. this is the death toll now climbing past 20,000 people. gabe gutierrez has more from turkey. >> reporter: incredibly, the rescues are not over. nearly 100 hours after this week's devastating earthquakes, this young girl is pulled out

alive. a moment so overpowering, one of her rescuers collapses in tears. we witnessed a 57-year-old woman pulled out on a stretcher. and this boy smiles after he and his family are hoisted to safety. people rejoicing against all odds, even as the death toll tops a staggering 20,000. including this american who sent his family this photo after the first quake, saying he was okay. his building later collapsed. he and his family were on the fifth floor. >> they died together, the children being held in the parents' arms. >> reporter: the world health organization is now warning of a second disaster for quake survivors enduring brutal conditions. in turkey, the quake's epicenter, a massive tent camp has sprung up inside a stadium. among the most sought-after

items, coats and blanket for another cold night. this couple's grandson is believed to be trapped when his home collapsed. >> what are you most praying for today? >> reporter: we pray for patience, he says. for others, their patience is wearing thin. this woman just learned her son was killed. logistical problems blocked roads, and poor communication complicated rescue efforts. so as the sheer size of the disaster. among bystanders here, there is frustration, that a professional, specialized rescue team didn't arrive to this location in the busy city center until four days after the earthquakes. the window is closing to finding survivors. more international search teams are on the ground, including two from the u.s. nbc's matt bradley is with them. >> this american rescue team is from fairfax county, virginia. they just got here, and there is talk there might be someone living inside this rubble still.

>> people are trying to help. they're doing amazing things, but it is chaotic. >> reporter: in northwestern syria, the situation may be more dire. only 5% of damaged areas are being covered by search and rescue operations. so many across the region are struggling to hold on. like this heartbreaking image, a father clutching the hand of his 15-year-old daughter killed in the quake. never wanting to let go. >> oh, my gosh. that is gut-wrenching. gabe gutierrez reporting for us from turkey. mika, as devastating as that number is, more than 20,000 dead, you heard gabe said they've only reached about 5% of these areas. >> i know. >> that area expected widely to go up from here. >> this is just truly epic, epic. we move now to ukraine, a country that's reached out to help the victims of the earthquake. an air-raid declared in all of ukraine, urging all residents to

take shelter. explosions have been heard in the capital of kyiv and the surrounding area, as russia unleashed a new wave of missile strikes on critical infrastructure in southern and eastern ukraine. overnight attacks knocked out power supplies to parts of kharkiv, the second largest city in ukraine. this morning, at least 17 missiles hit the city of zaporizhzhia, home of europe's largest nuclear power plant. officials say the barrage marks the most intense period of attacks in the area since the war began. coming up, what we are learning about the chinese spy balloon recovered in the atlantic ocean after it was shot down off the coast of south carolina last weekend. plus, new reporting on efforts to restrict china's access to advanced weapons that could be used in war. "morning joe" will be right back.

♪♪ remember the things you loved doing... before your asthma got in the way? get back to the things you love... with fasenra. fasenra is an add-on treatment for eosinophilic asthma. having too many eosinophils, a type of white blood cell, can cause inflammation and asthma symptoms. fasenra is designed to target and remove eosinophils and helps prevent asthma attacks. fasenra is 1 dose every 8 weeks. fasenra can help patients to breathe better. most patients did not have an asthma attack in the first year. and fasenra helps lower the use of oral steroids. fasenra is not for sudden breathing problems or other eosinophilic conditions. allergic reactions may occur. don't stop your asthma treatments without talking with your doctor. tell your doctor if your asthma worsens. headache and sore throat may occur. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection.

get back to better breathing. and get back to your life. ask your doctor about fasenra. if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. i have moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. now, there's skyrizi. ♪♪ with skyrizi, most people who achieved 90% clearer skin at 4 months... had lasting clearance through 1 year. serious allergic reactions and an increased risk of infections, or a lower ability to fight them, may occur. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms, had a vaccine or plan to. ♪nothing is everything♪ talk to your dermatologist about skyrizi. learn how abbvie could help you save. welcome to zulily, a shopping paradise with deals on every scroll. you don't have kids, do you? uh yeah... ♪ but good deals aren't just for kids. there's stuff for you. you look great! so do you... don't forget the house!

the house is like a best friend to buy presents for. for the house. save big on the brands you love. zulily. fun is part of the deal. the virus that causes shingles is sleeping... in 99% of people over 50. it's lying dormant, waiting... and could reactivate. shingles strikes as a painful, blistering rash that can last for weeks. and it could wake at any time. think you're not at risk for shingles? it's time to wake up. because shingles could wake up in you. if you're over 50, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about shingles prevention. if your business kept on employees through the pandemic, getrefunds.com can see if it may qualify for a payroll tax refund

of up to $26,000 per employee. all it takes is eight minutes to get started. then work with professionals to assist your business with its forms and submit the application. go to getrefunds.com to learn more.

beautiful picture of the united states capitol at 6:32 on a friday morning. former congressman and former chairman of the dccc, sean patrick maloney, may be headed back to washington. nbc news reports nancy pelosi has been making calls, pushing to have the white house name maloney as the next secretary of labor. maloney lost his seat in a close race in the midterm election. current labor secretary marty walsh expected to step down in the near future for a job with the nhl players association. not all house democrats, though, are thrilled about maloney's potential return to the capitol. fellow new york lawmaker

alexandria ocasio-cortez tweeted yesterday she, quote, couldn't think of a more divisive candidate for the job. wow. in a statement, the white house said it had no personnel announcements to make about secretary walsh yet, but sources familiar say his number two in the president, julie su, is the heavy favorite for the job. maloney declined to comment. pelosi would love to see maloney continue in public service, perhaps even in this administration. clearly, jonathan lemire, this is not a united idea from democrats. there could be an internal favorite inside the white house who are not sean patrick maloney. >> a lot of asian-american lawmakers would like to see walsh's deputy, julie su, take over the position, a high-profile position in the cabinet. maloney has critics, including aoc, but defenders, incluing

former speaker pelosi, carries a lot of influence. though maloney lost, many think he deserves credit for a better than expected showing by house democrats this fall. it was his home state of new york that many point to as potentially costing the dems the majority. they were expected to lose by 30, 40 seats or more. instead, the republicans' margin in the house on a handful. there is some groundswell to give maloney some sort of job, mika, whether it is this one or not remains to be seen. >> interesting. he is very talented. joining us now, someone who is also very talented, former treasury official and "morning joe" economic analyst, steve rattner, who somehow branded his charts. he is known across america. i was at a dinner party. i never do that, steve. your charts came up. everyone at the table said, my god, steve rattner is the star with the charts. you've got charts on the state of the economy. is it good news or bad news?

>> well, mika, i'm happy to report good news today. i often come with not such great news. the economy really is in spite an amazing sweet spot at the moment. great timing for joe biden and his state of the union. we created 517,000 new jobs last month, you'll recall. that brings the total of the biden administration to 12.1 million jobs. that is more than -- in two years, that is more than any president created in four years. what you can see on this chart, this is also amazing, is how fast we've recovered the jobs that we lost during the covid shutdown. this chart is the covid recovery against various other recoveries we've had. the great financial crisis, the dot com and so forth. we've recovered faster from this turndown than we did from the great financial crisis or the dot com or even the before before that. it is an extraordinary record on jobs.

>> and -- so the record on jobs is looking really good, especially the unemployment number, steve. despite inflation, though, where are we headed in terms of inflation? i feel there are weak spots in the economy. that's obviously the cost for people but also housing. people looking for an apartment or trying to get the first house, it still feels like an impossible uphill battle. >> on the first point, inflation is certainly a problem. it affects everyday americans and food prices, which americans have to bear. if you look, again, at the covid period, the three years of covid we've lived through and recovery, surprising how well the average american has done. up 2.6% in real wages. that's after adjusting for inflation. still a little ahead. what this chart does is breaks people down into four buckets by

income, top to bottom. completely the opposite of what we've seen during much of the decade before. you can see that on the right side, the bottom quarter of americans have actually done the best. their incomes after inflation are up about 12.5%. those on the other end, the wealthy people, up about 2.6%, average. the people in the upper-middle class, the second bar from the left, are the ones who flagged. the real news about this is how much of the gains and income over the last three years have gone to people at the bottom and really raised their real wages by a very material amount. >> steve, what do you say to people who, as you just pointed out, the real wages have gone up, especially people at the bottom, as you just phrased it. you know, they come out of the grocery store and say, "i'm not feeling this progress." interest rates are up. inflation continues to, you know, bump along and everything like that. what do you say to these people

to make them believe, hey, you're doing really well, better than you think? >> well, you know, really well, i'm not sure i promised them really well with 2.6% on average. but better than they think. yeah, the problem is that a lot of the sticker prices they see, eggs famously at the moment because of the avian flu, though they're coming down, we had an episode of gas prices, obviously, going up enormously, those kind of things are hard to explain. you can see on this chart here, inflation really did run at a very high level coming out of covid, after the shutdown. price of goods were higher. labor shortages made wages go up, which is good, but also prices went up. you can see on the chart how fast inflation has come down. averaged 1.9% the last three months. prices actually went down in december. i wouldn't promise that or advertise that as where we're headed, but for the moment, inflation is moving in the right direction. what you have to watch, and jay powell, the chairman of the fed,

talked about that this week, is you have to watch wages, which is the right side of this. we all want wages to go up. if wages go up too fast, it makes inflation go up. wages need to continue -- wage increases need to moderate, unfortunately, to get inflation down and make real wages go up. it's been happening. they're still in the 4% to 5% range. they need to get down closer to 3% for inflation to get down closer to 2%, which is the fed's target. >> steve, we heard a lot of economists talk about the recession, and we kept waiting for the bottom to fall out with the recession. now, we'rebetter economic forec that we may avoid a recession. what does that mean to the average person that becomes concerned about the price of eggs and the price of gas, the fact there may not be the recession we were afraid of? what does that mean to me at home? >> to the average person, not

having a recession is good news. because recessions mean layoffs, they mean job cuts, they mean income is going down. it's bad for the economy as a whole. we've had two quarters the last six months of last year, we had very substantial growth. there is a chance we might avoid recession. it is not a fore gone conclusion. i think the odds have gone down, but the fed still has work to do. as it raises interest rates, it raises house prices, as mike was speaking about this, and that affects the average american. recessions are bad for the average american. it just makes them less well-off. it makes the economy less well-off. the flip side is if we avoid a recession, the jobs machine continues, hopefully wage increases continue, and it's not perfect but life is decent for the average american. >> willie, given your level of affluence, which is considerable -- [ laughter ] >> mike, be careful, my friend. >> -- what are your thoughts on the economy and the charts? >> like mika's dinner guests, i

too, love the charts. i like we're getting them twice a week. we want steve to stick around to talk about china here. we're learning more about the surveillance balloon shot off the coast of south carolina saturday. according to a senior state department official, the balloon was fitted with multiple antennas capable of collecting signals intelligence. the balloon was described by the official as carrying equipment designed to carry communications. china insisted it was a weather balloon. the equipment was described as inconsistent as to what is typically aboard a weather balloon. yesterday, the house approved a resolution, condemning china's use of the balloon, calling it a, quote, brazen violation of united states sovereignty. that vote following briefings given to the full house and senate earlier in the day. during a senate appropriations defense subcommittee hearing on the balloon, senator jon tester of montana was frustrated during his questioning of witnesses.

>> do we have a plan for the next time it happens and how we're going to deal with it? because, quite frankly, i'll tell ya, i don't want a damn balloon going across the united states when we potentially could have taken it down over the aleutian islands. no offense to alaska. >> following the briefing in the morning, republican lawmakers expressed their concerns. >> china sent a spy balloon to fly all across america. the biden administration had a chance to shoot it down over alaska and chose to let it spy all across america. end of story. >> what my feeling is right now is that this should have been shot down over alaska. >> no nation state, particularly an adversary, should be able to fly any platform over the air space of the united states without it being confronted and stopped. in this particular case, they had opportunities to do so. they knew it was headed toward the continental u.s. before it actually entered. i believe that they had the ability to bring it down and chose not to. >> the experts are disagreeing

with the department of defense who said they should wait until it was over water. mitt romney of utah telling reporters yesterday, quote, my questions were satisfactorily answered, and i believe the administration and the president, our military and our intelligence agencies acted skillfully and with care, mika. that's from senator romney. >> yeah. let's bring in "new york times" reporter ana swanson, who writes about trade and international economics. she has new reporting this morning on the biden administration preparing new rules that would restrict u.s. dollars from flowing to china amid growing concerns about the communist nation's military and economic ambitions. there's so many ways we are connected with china. what are you looking at here? >> yeah, that's right. so the biden administration has mostly finalized an executive order that would ban u.s. officials from investing in chinese companies that are developing certain advanced technolo technologies. the united states already bans

the sale to china of these advanced technologies. things like parts for super computers that can test advanced missile systems or crack u.s. codes. and the united states is already reviewing chinese investment that comes into the u.s. for security threats. but there's basically no oversight now of money going in the other direction, from the united states to china. and critics are arguing that this is a major loophole because u.s. dollars could be going to china to fund their own development of homegrown versions of these technologies that the u.s. doesn't want china to have. >> all right. what's the level of interdependence that we have here financially? also, does this balloon incident change the dynamic at all? >> yeah. the economies are really interdependent. china is one of our largest trading partners. it's also, you know, becoming one of our most prominent geopolitical rivals. that makes this relationship

really tricky to have. the balloon situation has, i think, highlighted for a lot of people the national security risk that china poses. you know, obviously, some of this is politics, but the national security threat is also real. advanced technology is really key to america's military prowess, and u.s. technology has already gone to help china develop some, you know, missile systems or its surveillance technology, for example, that it uses to follow dissidents within china. >> ana's piece in "the times" is interesting on a number of levels, given the fact that so much of corporate america is interwoven with the chinese economy. how do we unwind this given the technological and espionage aspects of what's going on? >> it's hard, mike, because the world has become very intertwined. certainly, our relationship, economic relationship with china, has become intertwined.

capital flows all over the world. many chinese companies are listed on the new york stock exchange. many u.s. investment firms invest in chinese stocks, both in new york and hong kong and shanghai. it's very interdependent. what we can do, and i'm certainly not opposed to it, i think it has merit, is restricting u.s. investment from certain companies, what ana is talking about, putting them on a prohibited list. let's be realistic. the chinese have trillions of dollars of dollars and local currency in the bank. they're not short of capital. taking away our capital may or may not have meaningful effect on them. the flip side of what we have been doing is restrict exported technology. they have technology they're years away from developing. i'm all in favor of curtailing things that lead to espionage and other actions that are not

our friends. they're our biggest strategic rival, and we have to recognize that. >> we need to talk about tiktok. steve rattner, thank you very much. ana swanson of "the new york times," thank you for your reporting. please come back. we appreciate it. still ahead on "morning joe," the 2024 republican presidential field continues to take shape. we'll talk to new hampshire governor chris sununu about whether or not he intends to jump in the race. plus, there are currently 12 women governors across the country. that is a record. i recently spoke with half of them. that important conversation is straight ahead on "morning joe." we're back in just a moment. chevy silverado factory-lifted trucks. where will they take you? with the capability of a 2-inch lift. ♪♪ the versatility of the available multi-flex tailgate. ♪♪

and the connection of a 13.4” diagonal touchscreen. chevy silverado. taking adventure to a whole new level.

postmenopausal women with hr+ her2- metastatic breast cancer are living longer with kisqali. so, long live family time. long live dreams. and long live you. kisqali is a pill proven to help women live longer when taken with an aromatase inhibitor. and kisqali helps preserve quality of life. so you're not just living, you're living well. kisqali can cause lung problems or an abnormal heartbeat which can lead to death. it can cause serious skin reactions, liver problems, and low white blood cell counts that may result in severe infections. avoid grapefruit during treatment. tell your doctor right away if you have new or worsening symptoms, including breathing problems, cough, chest pain, a change in your heartbeat, dizziness, yellowing of the skin or eyes, dark urine, tiredness, loss of appetite, abdomen pain, bleeding, bruising, fever, chills,

or other symptoms of an infection, a severe or worsening rash, are or plan to become pregnant, or breastfeeding. long live hugs and kisses. ask about kisqali. and long live life. why give your family just ordinary eggs when they can enjoy the best? eggland's best. the only eggs with more fresh and delicious taste. plus, superior nutrition. which is now more important than ever. ♪♪ avoiding triggers, but still get migraine attacks? qulipta™ can help prevent migraine attacks. qulipta gets right to work. keeps attacks away over time. qulipta is a preventive treatment for episodic migraine. most common side effects are nausea, constipation, and tiredness. ask your doctor about qulipta. after my car accident, constipation, and tiredness. wondnder whahatmy c cas. ask your doctor about qulipta. so i called the barnes firm. i'm rich barnes. youour cidedentase e woh than insurance offered? call the barnes firm now to find out. yoyou ght t beurprpris

call the barnes firm now when that car hit my motorcycle, yoyou ght t beurprpris insurance wasn't fair. so i called the barnes firm, it was the best call i could've made. call the barnes firm now, and find out what your case could be worth. ♪ call one eight hundred, eight million next week, civil rights leaders led by reverend al sharpton will gather in florida to protest governor ron desantis' attempts to remove

portions of the curriculum in the new advanced placement african-american studies course. governor desantis' office rejected the class over topics like black queer studies and black feminist literary thought. the ap course is voluntary for students and is meant to be taught at the college level. students who place high enough in an end of the year exam receive college credit for the course. the college board, the non-profit group that runs ap courses, and the s.a.t.s reportedly discussed the curriculum with florida officials and removed several of the lessons in question. critics of the move accuse the college board of bending to political pressure. reverend al, i mean, i don't know where to begin on this. i do think this is sort of desantis' playbook. the question -- two questions. number one, what do you think of

this? number two, how really will this play on the big stage if and when he decides to run for president? >> well, first of all, i think that it is clearly a bigoted and biased way the governor has tried to go after african-american studies, women, lgbtq. he has this whole thing of us against them. but to poise it in an educational curriculum, where you deny knowledge to students, is why we're going to do this march and rally next wednesday. reverend r.b. holmes that leads national action network in tallahassee and pastors one of the churches, and mckissi, who was on the national board, called the march. i'm going down to help lead it. we're saying, how do you educate students without them knowing

the history of the country? you're going to take out parts of the country, parts of the culture. yet, you're telling them they're rounded students in these advanced programs. where it plays on the big stage, mika, is that desantis is playing a more polished version of donald trump. he's having a divisive, us against them politics he is trying to emerge. if he can become a more manicured version of donald trump, he thinks he can win the nomination. i think he will be right there, but he won't be able to win in a general election if he becomes the nominee. america is tired of the divisively and the even subtle bias and bigotry. >> yeah. well, and, elise jordan, it's, again, the sort of grievance issues, hatred issues, and they are issues that, across the

board, americans are worried about what joe biden is talking about. i think, you know, ron desantis is doing something that may work in tallahassee, may work in his bubble, but when you are talking about what the future looks like and who is going to lead this country, i think there's a growing exhaustion for these grievance issues and this gesticular politics. >> ron desantis tasted a little success with the base over the disney culture war, and he's trying to go for the next issue. honestly, mika, i think it is probably introducing a generation of young readers to a lot of great, mind-blowing lit sure. i know when i was a teenager, anything i was told not to read, i went directly and found. >> that's true. >> it just is the way that it works. so the irony of this is that by speaking out against any of

these great books, you know, i think "slaughter house 5" by kurt vaughnaget was banned. it'll draw teenagers to these great books like moths to a flame. >> reverend al sharpton, we will be watching. thank you very much for coming on the show this morning. we appreciate it. coming up, super bowl lvii is two days away. we'll be joined by the mayors of kansas city and philadelphia, as the chiefs and eagles prepare to face off finally. it feels it's been a long time, to get to the super bowl. "morning joe" will be right back.

research shows people remember ads with a catchy song. so to help you remember that liberty mutual customizes your home insurance, here's a little number you'll never forget. did you know that liberty mutual custo— ♪ liberty mutual. ♪ ♪ only pay for what you need. ♪ ♪ only pay for what you need. ♪ ♪ custom home insurance created for you all. ♪ ♪ now the song is done ♪ ♪ back to living in your wall. ♪ they're just gonna live in there? ♪ yes. ♪ only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ it's time for the ultimate sleep number event on the sleep number 360 smart bed. science proves quality sleep is vital to your mental, emotional, and physical health. the sleep number 360 smart bed. it's temperature balancing, so you stay cool. it senses your movements and automatically adjusts to help keep you both comfortable all night. our smart sleepers get 28 minutes more restful sleep per night.

and now, save 50% on the sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed, plus free home delivery when you add an adjustable base. ends monday

after my car accident, plus free home delivery when you add an adjustable base. ends monday wondnder whahatmy c cas. so i called the barnes firm. i'm rich barnes. youour cidedentase e woh than insurance offered? call the barnes firm now to find out. yoyou ght t beurprpris ci had no idea how muchw i wamy case was worth. c call the barnes firm to find out

what your case could be worth. we will help get you the best result possible. ♪ call one eight hundred, eight million ♪ welcome back to "morning joe," as we say good-bye to burt

bacharach. it is friday, february 10th. elise jordan, mike barnicle and jonathan lemire are still with us on this friday morning. willie geist, if politics is about contrasts, yesterday, we saw a big one between president biden and house republicans. >> americans have concerns about the double standard at the department of justice. americans have concerns about the disinformation governance board that the department of homeland security tried to form. over the course of our work in this committee, we expect to hear from government officials and experts, like we have here today. we expect to hear from americans who have been targeted by their government. >> the idea the senator from florida wants to put social security and medicare on the chopping block every five years i find to be outrageous. so outrageous, you might not even believe it. i guarantee you, it will not happen. i will veto it. i know that a lot of republicans, their dream is to cut social security and medicare. let me say this, if that's your

dream, i'm your nightmare. >> oh, yeah, president joe biden took his economic message to florida yesterday, directly calling out florida senator rick scott for his plan to put medicare and social security up for congressional approval every five years. while on capitol hill, the newly created republican-led house subcommittee created to investigate the alleged, quote, weaponization of the federal government, held its first hearing, claiming the government has been unfairly used to target conser conservatives. willie, it seems to me that they're a little off the mark here, but okay. >> yeah, last couple of days have been exactly what they said they were going to do. it's exposed o lot. joining us now, columnist at "politico," jonathan martin. jonathan, great to see you. >> hey, willie. >> let's talk about what we've seen here in the last couple days from republicans, which is,

coming out of the state of the union address, president biden clearly is going to make this rick scott plan -- by the way, mitch mcconnell yesterday was clear to say it is a rick scott plan, not a republican plan. doesn't have a lot of love for senator scott. but president biden is going to use this. republicans want to perhaps put in jeopardy social security and medicare. republicans now saying none of them actually want to do that, but the plan is the plan. it's in the brochure. on the other hand, you have republicans in the house going after things like hunter biden's laptop and going after their tweets being taken down a couple years ago. >> right. >> is this a contrast -- >> it's really important stuff, willie. >> yeah. >> look, those two clips really capture the contrast in the parties right now. the gop has sort of learned all the wrong lessons from the trump era, which is, you never have to leave the cocoon of your primary voters. you can live in a primary ever. you don't have to pivot to the general electorate. when you see jim jordan talking

about hunter biden's laptop or big tech companies, it's a reflection of what their core voters are interested in. that's why they're talking about it. it's not the priority, to put it mildly, willie, of the broader electorate. because they're worried about the issues that president biden is discussing. you know, bread and butter, medicare, entitlements, that kind of thing. i think this is one of the challenges that the gop has. can they get out of their own internal echo chamber and talk about issues that are sort of moving a much broader sloth of the electorate? like inflation, for example, like the border. they do seem to be much more fixated on the stuff that's going to energize their core supporters. >> hey, it's jonathan lemire. let's talk about man in the news, senator rick scott, who gave, of course, the white house a political gift last year with this plan. president biden mentioning it every chance he gets. >> right. >> i want to get your take,

though. we heard from senator mcconnell yesterday with a scathing interview, even suggesting scott might have trouble getting through a republican primary in a re-election bid. go. >> yeah, that was the most striking part of that interview. you know, not only is mcconnell running down scott's proposal on a policy issue, which he's not been shy about doing since scott floated this, i guess, a year and a half ago, but mitch mcconnell, the leader of the senate gop, openly saying, my colleague, who, by the way, guys, is up next year for re-election in 2024, he could have a pretty hard time with all those seniors in florida if you're talking about sunsetting these entitlements. that's a huge deal, and it captures how angry mcconnell still is to this day about scott challenging him after the midterms last year. we already know that scott got taken off of one of the committees, the commerce committee, and now you have mcconnell in public, on the radio, saying, you know, scott

is going to have a tough cycle down there. you don't hear that chatter very often by a senate leader talking about their own senator who is facing re-election next year. >> you know, elise, as jonathan just pointed out, i mean, the mitch mcconnell thing on rick scott is striking, but the more striking thing in the long run might be the clip that we came in with, with jim jordan, you know, no sport coat on, whatever, white shirt, i'm hard at work here for the american people. the media has a tendency, i think, to always be attracted to the loudest voice. jim jordan is one of the loudest voices. yet, my question to you is, given your knowledge of the republican party, is the loudest voice the dominant mover now in the republican party? is that the voice that's going to push through the house of representatives? >> well, you look at who is going to get the television hits and who is the shiny object and who will, thus, fundraise well

after getting the fox news television hits. yes, they are going to dominate a lot of the conversation. that's why i think that the republicans, overall, have a crisis of identity right now. they can cling to these culture war issues, but is it really going to move the needle enough, like jonathan was talking about, with the other voters they need to appeal to right outside of the base? that's what we haven't seen. who is going to step up and be able to thread the needle, so that you are hitting the sweet spot that the base responds to? it'll help you in the early states. also, you have a vision and a policy platform and a plan to bring america out of this moment of, frankly, a lot of doubt about the american dream writ large. an update to a story we brought to you earlier in the week. the influential conserative group, the club for growth, will

hold its donor retreat in florida early next month. for now, donald trump is still not on the guest list. nbc news has confirmed the event will take place the first week of march at a resort in palm beach. "the new york times" reported earlier this week that the invitees include several potential republican presidential candidates. a source confirmed to nbc news that virginia governor glenn youngkin has received an invitation. the club for growth is trying to distance itself from trump with the group's president telling "the times," the republican party's chances of retaking the white house in 2024 would be diminished if trump were the nominee. the group's own recent polling shows florida governor ron desantis has a small lead over former president trump in a hypothetical head-to-head matchup. in a number of early key primary states. but trails trump in a poll that includes more potential candidates. pretty awkward, though, because

isn't donald trump in palm beach? nationally, new polling shows former president trump and florida governor ron desantis dominating the potential 2024 republican presidential field. according to a new monmouth university poll, when asked who they'd like to see as the gop's nominee, 33% of republican voters answered trump. another 33% said desantis. 2% of the voters said mike pence. no other candidate got more than 1% of responses. when asked about a hypothetical two-way race between trump and desantis, 53% picked the florida governor, while 40% chose the former president. yeah, he's kind of losing interest. people are losing interest. joining us now, someone with potential presidential aspirations of his own, republican governor chris sununu of new hampshire. great to have you back on the show. thanks for coming on this morning. >> you bet. morning. >> good morning.

so how would a candidate break through? it is so difficult to break through on the national stage. if a candidate like you were to join the fray, would you have to make sure that you appease to trump every step of the way, or what would the angle be? >> clearly not. donald trump is not going to be the nominee, right? we're just moving on as a party, as a country. >> wait, he's not? >> no, donald trump is not going to win the nomination. no, no, clearly not. i mean, look, we're still a year out, and you have a former president running and, already, he's having trouble leading in the polls, right? >> chris, donald trump says he is going to be the nominee. >> oh, i'm sure he does. no, it's not going that way. we're all moving on. the race hasn't even started. we're a year from the first in the nation primary, which will be in new hampshire, by theway. candidates have to make their case. you have to do the live free or die thing, where you get in the trenches, shake people's hands, look people in the eye. the people have to buy off on you as a person before we get to

the policies. we're still way, way far out. a lot of politics to be played. folks will get in the race and out of the race, and that's a good thing. i don't care how many people get in. people were nervous about a diluted field. as long as you have the discipline to get out, right? that's the trick of it. it's kind of if you say, i guess, the referee a little bit of the first in the nation primary, we'll make sure everyone has an open lane, an open path. i mean, right now, i mean, if the election were today, desantis probably wins in new hampshire. i think other states, as well. it's not getting better for the former president. thank you for your service, and let's move on. >> we had a conversation on the show earlier this week. i think it was former speaker nancy pelosi who said, it is important to have a strong republican party. >> yeah. >> that's a great -- would be a great thing for america. so i'm curious, because it seems like the party is a little bit dominated by the extreme wing of

it. what do you think in 2024 republican -- to sort of bring the party back to its true core values, what do you think they need in a candidate? >> look, it is similar to the democratic party being driven by the extreme wing of the left wing, right? at the end of the day, america is looking for low taxes, limited government, local control. i mean, those are the things we do in new hampshire. results driven. it can't just be headlines, can't be about a fight every time. fights are good. you have to have the fight, but you have to get stuff done. i'm had republican legislatures and democrat legislatures. we always get stuff done in new hampshire. we have to be the model, not just chris sununu but the new hampshire model is what americans are looking at. owning the good and the bad, being transparent, building up public trust and being inspirational. we're in the united states of america. it is an amazing place, amazing place of opportunity. being inspirational and positive. let's make the party bigger. bring in the next generation.

let's bring in the folks that might be outside our comfort zone. they want to be part of the team. you know, lately, maybe kind of the leadership isn't necessarily what they're looking for. so that next generation is having a voice, it is having a bigger spread, and it is going to be very influential as we go through '24. >> i mean, you make a lot of sense. i'm curious, you're not announcing at this moment, and if you are, let me know, but your campaign, presidential campaign for a strong republican leader, whether it be you or someone else, would a top priority be transgender sports and banning books? would it even be on the top five? >> yeah, look, i got to be honest, i think our top priorities are immigration reform, securing the border, health care reform, good fiscal discipline. i'm a fiscal hawk. i think there's no greater responsibility than managing other people's money. washington is terrible at that. states are actually very good at that. all these things that didn't get done, we are hoping to get them done in 2017 and 2018.

republican house, republican senate, republican president, did not get done. those are priorities. if you can't manage your fiscal house -- because it is not our money, the government's money, it is your money. we've been given the awesome responsibility of managing it really well. in new hampshire, we have surpluses. we always balance our budget. it can be done. it is actually not nearly as hard as folks in washington tell you it is. they just don't want to have the courage to make the tough decisions. kind of getting outside leadership, some, i think, governors running is a really good thing. you have to be in the trenches a bit to understand how systems work. how does mental health work? recovery and treatment for a family? what are the opportunities? most importantly, we're not here to solve your problems. we're here to create the doors of opportunity, then you do you. you find your path. find the door that fits your family's needs. if we start from that core model, i think there is a huge openness of opportunities for the republican party going forward. >> so, governor, at the gridiron dinner in 2022, you said of

trump, quote, he is f-ing crazy, just stresses me out so much. i don't think he is so crazy you can put him in a mental institution, but i think if he were in one, he ain't getting out. but then when you were asked about it, you know, whether or not you -- >> it's funny. >> -- would support him. >> it is funny. >> look, mika, if you're going to do my joke, you have to get the delivery right. for god's sake, you have to get the delivery right. >> no, i know you said on cnn it was a joke. >> it is a roast. it's a roast. i roasted msnbc. you know, i roasted everybody. i roasted myself, my family. >> i want to know about supporting the nominee if it is trump. would you do that? >> it's not going to be trump, no. it's just not going to be trump. but, you know -- >> that's not an answer. let's say lightning struck twice. because, lightning struck. trump won on the one day he could win in a million different ways. what if it happens again? what if he becomes the nominee? would you support him?

>> of the former president, myself, one of us is a lifelong republican. one of us will always support the republican nominee. >> but is he a lifelong republican? >> no, that's me, mika. >> i think i got your answer. >> willie, take it. that's fine. good job. >> do you remember the day -- there was a day when bloomberg was a republican and trump was a democrat, right? i mean, that wasn't that long ago. it's crazy. >> i know, i know. i hear ya. i hear ya. i got the answer, too, willie. >> governor, a lot of people are trying to wish donald trump away, and i understand what you're saying there. but the reality is, he's still a force in the party. so help us understand, and i mean this totally sincerely, because you're not alone in this position, which is, you've said he contributed to the insurrection. his rhetoric led those people to the capitol on january 6th. shaking the foundations of democracy. thankfully it held. yet, if he did become the nominee, you would support him.

bill barr has said that. many people have written books criticizing him, saying he is terrible, bad for the country, but, yeah, i'd support him again. how do you get to that place? >> we're not going to get to that place. >> he is bad for the country, but i'll support him again. >> look, we're not getting to that place, guys. think about the american spirit. >> we might, though. >> we never as americans settle. we never settle for the technology. we want the next shiny thing, the next new idea. we want our companies to grow. we want business and opportunity to move forward. you cannot tell me that it is in the conservative or american values to say that the best opportunity for future leadership is yesterday's leadership. that is not in our dna. that's why i'm so hopeful and so optimistic, that with all these other candidates, and they're all very good candidates in terms of the alternatives, there's always another great opportunity. the race hasn't even started yet, and he is not leading in a lot of the polls. guys, it ain't happening. by the way, he knows it. i really, truly believe he knows it. he'll have trouble in iowa, a

lot of trouble in new hampshire, trouble in the follow heing states. it'll be a circus, i will give you that, but there is no way that former president trump is going to be the nominee. >> do you believe some of those people are going to get into the race, like governor desantis? do you think he is going to challenge donald trump? >> sure. >> a man he supported through all his campaigns? he is getting in, you think? >> yeah, yeah. i think most of the people on the screen, most of them, will likely get in. i think that's good. it forces the conversation to be a little better. forces us to be about what we're truly about. i think, hopefully, it makes all the candidates a little better, a little more focused. when you come to new hampshire and iowa, you got to get on the ground. you have to shake hands. you have to listen. that empathetic ear. what is the issue driving this individual? why didn't they get the v.a. benefits? how can we provide solutions and redesign systems? i'm an engineer by trade, i love that stuff. they'll get in the trenches, get the feedback, and be part of not just headlines, sound bites and political stunts, they have to be part of the conversation and

deliver solutions. they have to be results driven candidates. i think it'll be an exciting time for republicans. >> governor, you're a smart guy who understands politics. you know a big field, if they split, maybe creates a lane for donald trump. i know you want to say he can't be the nominee. of course he can be the nominee. again, if you can, we've asked this to many republicans, how you rationalize saying he is destructive to the company, but if he's the nominee again, i'll support him. how do you get there. >> look at the alternatives. inflation, the worst tax on the poor. a party that wants to drive energy prices through the earth, which hurts low-income families. policies out of washington that want to force everybody through that same door. it is our door, highway or nothing, forced down to the local level. opposed to supporting locals and believing and understanding it ain't about us. it's about the voters. the voters know better than we do. so that kind of republican value of local control and limited

government is always going to, excuse the pun, trump big government authoritarianism you're seeing out of washington right now. nobody likes that. washington ain't getting done, and america is noticing. >> side by side, you believe joe biden is more destructive to america than donald trump? >> no, i didn't say destructive. i said the policies of the left wing are incredibly, much more destructive than what the conservatives can bring. >> what about a president who helped to lead a coup against the united states government, that's better than joe biden, in your view? >> again, look, you're going back to january 6th. it was an absolute disaster. trump is not going to -- as much as you guys are trying to paint the picture, trump is not going to be the nominee. we'll have a lot of folks in the race. >> governor, if i got you in private, you'd say donald trump most certainly can be the nominee. >> oh, look, he can be. a lot of folks can be. but it's just not going to happen. if you understand the politics, how to get from a to b, there's no path there. is he going to go up in the polls? no.

it's only going to get worse. that's just a political reality as the race even starts to kick off. >> hey, governor, you're very popular in new hampshire. >> oh, you. >> you know, you get around. people like you. you do your own grocery shopping at market basket. >> i do. >> but, you know, what happens if you decide to run for president and you're presented with an option of going further right towards the book burners and the, you know, weaponization committee people in the republican party, what happens if you drift over there, seeking substantial support from the fa. how would you come bck to the middle? >> this car don't drift, buddy. these are the abcs of me. i'm super transparent. that's the foundation of public trust. you like a policy, you don't. most importantly, we try to be accessible. we try to have the open ear, the empathetic connection.

when you understand what you're about, you're confident in it and can deliver good results with the positivity that people are looking for, the end of the day, you don't need to shift, go right or left. that's what i'm trying to bring to the country. don't over think the politics. be normal. be genuine. be who you are. >> hello. >> just let the chips fall where they may. >> governor, i love new hampshire because i love the libertarian leanings of the state. live free or die. they want government out of your lives. how do you navigate abortion in a republican primary, when there are plenty of republicans out there issuing draconian statements about total bans on abortions, women's rights to health care that they need has now been banned in certain states across the country. how do you address all of that? >> well, look, i don't think it is going to be a top issue for republicans, but, to your point, it will be a top issue for democrats in terms of their messaging. democrats are very good about framing republicans as extremists. they use that issue, i think, very well, frankly, to frame

folks as extreme and not connected to the concept of choice and opportunity. so i think the entire conversation, what is pro-life, what is pro-choice, what is this middle ground everybody else is kind of in, 20 weeks, 24 weeks, i think all those definitions are going to change. because nobody can -- if you're pro-life, nobody can lean -- a governor can't say, well, the federal government says i can't ban it, so i might be pro-life but i can't ban it. yes, you can. you have the opportunity to do that in your state. maybe that's what your voters want, and that's the state's choice. that'd be your choice. most of us are in many middle lane of 20 weeks or 24 weeks, appropriate, you know. we have a ban on third term, which i think most of america agrees with that. that's where we are. so i think just the whole conversation is going to change a little bit. >> i wouldn't disagree with that. republican governor chris sununu of new hampshire, it is great to have you on the show. thank you for being on today. >> thank you for the time. >> see you again soon. appreciate it. all right. jonathan martin, i'm curious,

you know, he had a lot of great things to say, but there's still this navigating of donald trump that's going on. i do agree that he probably won't be the nominee. >> right. >> but he is such a force in the republican party, and you see this navigating going on. when you look at the potential field out there, there are a lot of names, mike pence, nikki haley, former members of his administration are even considering running. >> yeah. >> i guess the big question is going to be, how will they navigate him? because there could be, like, a collective team effort to say, let's just move on. >> right. well, that's the question. is there going to be that consensus among the not trumps to, at some point, come together and, you know, hold hands and jump off the cliff and find one alternative? if they don't find that single alternative, he does have a lane. mika, i thought the headline there that jumped off the screen was the governor of new hampshire saying that ron

desantis would win in the new hampshire primary today. it was extraordinary to me for a couple reasons. first of all, he is the governor of new hampshire, it's his own state. second of all, to be candid, he and other gop governors are not the biggest fans in the world of ron desantis. he does not play well in the gubernatorial sandbox. he doesn't get along well with them. for the governor to say that, today, desantis would win is not because of any personal affection. that's a pretty shrewd assessment of where his voters are today. i think that gets to the heart of trump's challenge. even desantis' critics and potential opponents like chris sununu are basically talking about his strength in early states, almost a year out from the primaries. look, that's the challenge trump has. if this race does get to a head-to-head versus desantis or somebody else, it'll be a real problem for the former president. >> yeah, there's no question there. the former president's campaign off to asununu, no fan, would

take a swipe by suggesting desantis would be the favorite in new hampshire. and to jonathan's point, you know, governor desantis also not tested nationally. he's certainly proven effective to pulling the levers of government for political purposes in florida. some people think he's overstepped his bounds there, but he's done that and was rewarded with a landslide re-election last year. not clear how it'll play in the rest of the country. the last point from the governor, he made a couple of oblique references to it in our interview there, was that new hampshire, of course, has always been the first in the nation primary state. democrats want to change that. new hampshire is fighting it. it is state law that new hampshire has to go first. he doesn't seem he is willing to play ball. the republicans will hold their first primary there and democrats don't, that'll make a mess of the early presidential field next year, even if it is simply coronation for president biden. >> so interesting. senior political columnist at

"politico," jonathan martin, thank you very much for being on this morning. that was fun. >> thank you. ahead on "morning joe," jetblue has been busy trying to expand its reach with two big moves. we'll talk to the airlines' ceo about that, and some of the issues the industry faced during holiday travel. plus, kansas city chiefs quarterback patrick mahomes is awarded the trophy ahead of the super bowl. we'll explain why his win last night could be a bad omen for sunday night. next week on "morning joe," we'll have big news on who is coming to the 3050 summit in abu dhabi. "forbes" and know your value are spearheading a global event around international women's day. it is just over three weeks away. wait until you hear who is coming. we've slated hillary clinton, gloria steinem, malala, ayesha curry, misty copeland,

billie jean king, and so many more. go to know your value.com for more information. you're watching "morning joe." we'll be right back. (vo) the fully electric audi e-tron family is here. with models that fit any lifestyle. and innovative ways to make your e-tron your own. through elegant design and progressive technology. all the exhilaration, none of the compromise. the audi e-tron family. progress that moves you. having diabetes can raise a lot of questions. like my morning ride, will it help lower my glucose? with the freestyle libre 2 system, you can know where your glucose level is and where it's headed without fingersticks. know what activities work for you. manage your diabetes with more confidence and lower your a1c. ask your doctor about the freestyle libre 2 system.

it's covered by medicare for those who qualify. visit freestylelibre.us/medicare to learn more. ♪♪ research shows people remember ads with a catchy song. so to help you remember that liberty mutual customizes your home insurance, here's a little number you'll never forget. did you know that liberty mutual custo— ♪ liberty mutual. ♪ ♪ only pay for what you need. ♪ ♪ only pay for what you need. ♪ ♪ custom home insurance created for you all. ♪ ♪ now the song is done ♪ ♪ back to living in your wall. ♪ they're just gonna live in there? ♪ yes. ♪ only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

why are 93% of sleep number sleepers very satisfied with their bed? omaybe it's because you can adjust your comfort and firmness on either side... your sleep number setting. to help relieve pressure points and keep you both comfortable all night. and now, save 50% on the sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed. ends monday. ubrelvy helps u fight migraine attacks. u rise to the challenge. u won't clock out. so u bring ubrelvy.

it can quickly stop migraine in its tracks within 2 hours... ...without worrying if it's too late or where you are. unlike older medicines, ubrelvy is a pill that directly blocks a protein believed to be a cause of migraine. do not take with strong cyp3a4 inhibitors. most common side effects were nausea and tiredness. migraine pain relief starts with u. learn how abbvie could help you save. ask about ubrelvy, the anytime, anywhere migraine medicine. ♪♪ giorgio, look! the peanut butter box is here. ralph, that's the chewy pharmacy box with our flea and tick meds. it's not peanut butter. ♪ the peanut butter box is here ♪ i'm out. pet prescriptions delivered to your door. chewy. when aspen dental told me that my dentures were ready, pet prescriptions delivered to your door. i was so excited. i love the confidence. i love that i can blast this beautiful smile and make the world smile with me. i would totally say aspen dental changed my life. aspen dental makes new smiles affordable.

right now, get 20% off dentures. we do anything to make you smile. a top southwest airlines executive testified in front of congress over the holiday meltdown. to mess with him, when he showed up for the hearing, congress canceled. yeah, he said the problem is solved, but i'm not sure i believe. he flew to d.c. on jetblue. >> the u.s. airline industry is coming under increased scrutiny as congress launches investigations into southwest airlines and the faa. some lawmakers are also pushing to increase consumer protections. the doj is cracking down on mergers for fear of anti-trust violations. joining us now, the ceo of jetblue, robin hayes, and mike barnicle, who is with him, has the first question.

>> robin, thank you for being here today. nothing joins americans together more than their frustration over airlines. now, jetblue, which i fly frequently, too frequently, actually, is about, perhaps, to merge with spirit airlines. you have a deal with american airlines. how does that help me or others, average travelers, how does that help make our lives more convenient? >> mike, first of all, thank you for flying jetblue so much. we do appreciate it. look, this is all about -- >> bump up his status. >> we can talk about it off air. look, we happen to think a bigger jetblue is better for everybody. the biggest challenge we have is we are 5% of the market. you have four massive airlines in the u.s. that have about 20% of the market, so 80% all together. the rest of us have 20% between us. so whether it is our commercial

partnership with american here in new york and boston, which has enabled us to transfer slots from american and add a load more jetblue markets out of new york and boston, or whether it's our acquisition of spirit, which will almost double the size of jetblue. we'll still be a distant fifth, but it is going to allow -- you know, if you think what jetblue stands for, low fares and great service. we don't think you have to choose. there's been conversations about consumer protections. we've had it since 2007, if we cancel or delay a flight, and it is in our control, we automatically send customers compensation. we think a bigger jetblue is better for everybody. >> what is your biggest nightmare, running an airline? is it lack of employees or what is it? >> well, i mean, i've been doing this over 30 years. you know, it's always something different. you know, i think covid was a near death experience for our industry. we didn't really know, as we were in it, when that was going

to end. but the digging out of it and building out of it has almost been a bigger challenge. i think all of us last year, not just here in the u.s. but airlines around the world has challenges with the ramp-up. demand came back quickly. you know, getting staffing was challenging. as, the supply chain is still behind. every airplane we've had in the last two years has been late. so, you know, you load a schedule 11 months out, and if airplanes are coming late, it creates challenges then operating the schedule. i do think '23 is going to be a lot better than '22. i think that's the good news. but we are -- at jetblue, we are not flying our airplanes anything like as much as we used to because there's still a lot of constraints out there. >> robin, part of the problem is that the faa says that they need more funding. and their systems are antiquated. what should the biden administration do to make sure that the faa is running at top

speed so that airlines can operate seamlessly for their customers? >> yeah, i mean, for the system to work, the faa and airlines, we have to work together. consumers aren't interested in people blaming each other. airlines have made significant investments in the technology that we need to allow us to operate in a more modern system. i think people would be surprised to know that here in the u.s., paper strips is still used fairly frequently as part of air traffic control. so we have in every jetblue airplane, we have effectively a gps. it's called adsb, but it is really a gps unit. so we know exactly where if the airplanes are. faa knows where they are. faa has to upgrade their tech stack, and there's a program to do it but they've fallen really behind. it'll allow us to modernize and reduce delays. the big benefit in this time when everyone is so focused on

climate change and airlines are concerned about climate change, too, we can save so much by the way of carbon emissions by cutting down on those delays. if you ever sit in a cockpit at 5,000 feet holding to land at an airport, you see the fuel gauge just moving very quickly. we can end all that. the airlines and the faa, we have to work together to modernize our tech stack, to modernize our technology, and really bring -- make sure the u.s. is operating with a state of the art system. >> all right. ceo of jetblue, robin hayes, thank you very much for coming on the show this morning. good to see you. coming up, we're going to be joined by a former member of the oath keepers who is out with a new warning about the perils of extremism. why we should be concerned about a future civil war. that conversation is ahead on "morning joe."

♪ ♪ start your day with nature made. the #1 pharmacist recommended vitamin and supplement brand. why are 93% of sleep number sleepers very satisfied with their bed? maybe it's because you can gently raise your partner's head to help relieve snoring. the #1 pharmacist recommended so, you can both stay comfortable all night. and now, save 50% on the sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed. ends monday.

♪ ...i'm over 45. ♪ ♪ i realize i'm no spring chicken. ♪ ♪ i know what's right for me. ♪ ♪ i've got a plan to which i'm sticking. ♪ ♪ my doc wrote me the script. ♪ ♪ box came by mail. ♪ ♪ showed up on friday. ♪ ♪ i screened with cologuard and did it my way! ♪ cologuard is a one-of-a kind way to screen for colon cancer that's effective and non-invasive. it's for people 45 plus at average risk, not high risk. false positive and negative results may occur. ask your provider for cologuard. ♪ (group) i did it my way! ♪

new projects means new project managers. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. when you sponsor a job, you immediately get your shortlist of quality candidates, whose resumes on indeed match your job criteria. visit indeed.com/hire and get started today. shingles. some describe it as pulsing electric shocks or sharp, stabbing pains. ♪♪ this painful, blistering rash can disrupt your life for weeks. a pain so intense, you could miss out on family time. the virus that causes shingles is likely already inside of you.

if you're 50 years or older, ask your doctor or pharmacist about shingles. it's official, america. if you're 50 years or older, xfinity mobile is the fastest mobile service. and gives you unmatched savings with the best price for two lines of unlimited. only $30 a line per month. the fastest mobile service and major savings? can't argue with the facts. no wonder xfinity mobile is one of the fastest growing mobile services, now with over 5 million customers and counting. save hundreds a year over t-mobile, at&t and verizon. talk to our switch squad at your local xfinity store today.

it's a live picture of philadelphia at 7:42 in the morning. two days before the super bowl where the eagles will take on the chiefs in glendale, arizona. as you can hear from the tune there, we learned yesterday that burt bacharach died at 94. nbc news correspondent gadi schwartz has more on one of the most celebrated figures in american music and the countless hits he leaves behind. ♪♪ >> reporter: burt bacharch's greatest gift may have been knowing exactly what we needed to hear. ♪ what the world needs now is love, sweet love ♪ >> reporter: but as a kid, he

had no dreams of becoming a musician. >> i remember playing a recital. i think i had to play "claire de lune," and i blew it. >> reporter: his mother kept him in lessons, and it propelled him to 50 years of hits. ♪ that's what friends are for ♪ ♪ hoping and praying ♪ ♪ do you know ♪ >> reporter: living in new york city, the young composer met hal david, a lyricist who provided words to make his melodies soar. their discovery of a young dionne warwick took the duo to the top of the charts again and again. soon, hollywood was enchanted. ♪ raindrops are falling on my head they keep falling ♪ >> reporter: the score from "butch cassidy and the sun dance kid." over the years, hollywood kept calling ♪ together, forever that's how we must be ♪ >> mr. burt bacharach.

♪ what the world needs now ♪ >> reporter: music so iconic. ♪ how can i forget you, girl ♪ >> reporter: it's been remade across every genre. leaving behind an unforgettable catalog of music that will always remind us of its maestro. ♪ always something there to remind me ♪ >> nbc's gadi schwartz reporting there. mike, burt bacharach is, of course you know the name, know some of the music, then you read and go, he wrote that song and that song? he has been the pen and the melody and the music behind so many songs that are just a part of our lives over the years. >> you know, you're exactly right, willie. that's the same thought i had when i found out yesterday that he had died at the age of 94. the imprint that he has left on america, on the world, actually, through his music, is astounding. you don't realize it, sadly,

until the man passes away. i'm reading "the times" obituary today. it is quite extensive. you come across songs, like, for instance, everybody knows that, you know, "raindrops," he wrote it. everybody has seen "butch cassidy and the sundance kid." if you haven't, one of the best movies made. the imprint of his music sustained over decades is incredible. back to the point, sadly, that you raised, he passes away and you're reading the list of songs that he's written. you go, wow, wow. >> amazing. yeah, it's an incredible, incredible career and talent. coming up, a record-setting 12 female governors were sworn into office this year, and i recently sat down with six of them. our conversation is ahead on "morning joe." plates. plates. plates.

there's somehow no better way to travel this place, than on a plate. and when you add price drop protection, expedia pays you back if your flight becomes cheaper. so you can taste your way, through every single plate and never wonder if you found a good deal. because the good deal found you. ♪♪ why are 93% of sleep number sleepers very satisfied with their bed? maybe it's because you can adjust your comfort and firmness on either side... because the good deal found you. your sleep number setting. to help relieve pressure points and keep you both comfortable all night. and now, save 50% on the sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed. ends monday. your shipping manager left to “find themself.” leaving you lost. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire avoiding triggers, but still get migraine attacks? qulipta™ can help prevent migraine attacks.

qulipta gets right to work. keeps attacks away over time. qulipta is a preventive treatment for episodic migraine. most common side effects are nausea, constipation, and tiredness. ask your doctor about qulipta. ♪ ♪ ♪ cargurus. shop.buy.sell.online. ♪ this feels so right... ♪ adt systems now feature google products like the nest cam with floodlight,

with intelligent alerts when a person or familiar face is detected. sam. sophie's not here tonight. so you have a home with no worries. brought to you by adt. in two seconds, eric will realize they're gonna need more space... gotta sell the house. oh...open houses. or, skip the hassles and sell with confidence to opendoor. wow. request a cash offer at opendoor.com something's happening at ihop. something... huge. ant-man and the wasp have arrived. spend $30 on your next visit to ihop and get a fandango movie ticket to see marvel studios' ant-man and the wasp: quantumania. doesn't your family deserve the best? eggland's best eggs. classic, cage free, and organic. more delicious, farm-fresh taste. plus, superior nutrition. which is now more important than ever. ♪♪

ban assault weapons now! ban them now! once and for all. i led the fight to do that in 1994. in ten years, the ban was law. mass shootings went down. mass shootings tripled after letting the law expire. let's finish the job. >> president biden calling for congress to ban assault weapons in the united states during this week's state of the union address. fred guttenberg joins us now. his 14-year-old daughter jamie was murdered in the 2018 mass shooting in parkland, florida. next week marks five years since the shooting that claimed the lives of 17 people.

fred continues his tireless work to try to keep other families from having to go through this nightmare. thank you for coming back on. how are you holding up? >> five years but it feels like five minutes. you know? i was just sitting here. we were talking about the table how five years ago today jamie was still alive. the way my day started when jamie was still alive was with me getting up before anyone in the house but when jamie woke up in the morning the first things out of her mouth, she started by saying -- dad! she'd yell down the stairs. are you watching "morning joe"? five years ago i heard that day

that voice. because of what happened to my family i spend my life dealing with gun violence, supporting families affected by gun violence because i never want to have to meet another dad that loses that voice, stops hearing the kid, can't find new pictures and share new memories. it ain't be easy but we push forward. >> no. well, it's an understatement. we are still dealing with mass shootings on a weekly, daily basis. >> yep. >> while there have been some steps taken, it just seems like we are getting further away from the goal. are you still hopeful that we can have decent gun reforms and measures to make our children in safe? >> i am. we passed big legislation this

year and takes a while to bend the curve on gun violence. we have an atf director who is challenged legislatively he is doing everything he can. in the past three elections we have elected more and more people who want to reduce gun violence. in spite of the looney bin in the united states house i believe that's a two-year phenom and will be gone. we'll still get more legislation done. when jamie was killed five years ago we had 300 million weapons on the streets. we now have over 400 million ghost guns. the former guy made gun shops essential businesses but i do know with certainty there are so

many common sense things to do to curb gun violence. these are possibilities. we were just talking about it before at the table. over 80% of america wants done and i think we'll get it done. >> good morning. it is willie. always so good to see you. heart breaking and beautiful to listen to you talk about jamie and so happy you are part of our family now. >> thank you. >> i want to talk about the generational change. the people that make the laws didn't live through school shootings. i was a little bit too old to worry about that. i didn't lockdown drills the way my kids do. i didn't turn on the tv a couple times a week and see another mass shooting the way we do now. are you hopeful that new

leadership may rise up and change the way we think and talk about guns in this country? >> heck yeah! in florida alone we did elect two people and jared personally very affected by parkland. he is the reason that gun legislation got passed. dan goldman from new york going to push to do more. we have a lot of work to do. they get it. we'll elect more people like them. you know? listen. anyone on the republican side that doesn't want to reflect the will of the american people and who doesn't want to take on their party, who seems to have accepted that it is okay to have gun violence, okay to raise a

generation of kids who grow up expecting gun violence. that's a sick thought but that's where we are with our kids today. we ought to fire them because they put our children at risk. we don't have to be okay with that. >> fred, five years goes by like that. five years. jamie would probably be getting ready to do second semester at a great college. >> university of florida. she was going to be a gator. >> okay. her shouting down the stairs, dad, are you up? what are you doing? that voice, talk about that voice that i know you still hear and how that voice and the fact that she forfeited her future to political cowardice. >> yeah. >> how does she keep pushing you

forward? >> jamie was a lot of things. the toughest person i'll ever know which as her dad was amazing and sometimes challenging but i miss it like you have no idea. she was tough but jamie was someone who fought for others, who always wanted to do good for ohs. she volunteered her time for kids with special needs. hated bullies. she was a petite little thing. her voice is what pushes my wife and i forward to do the political work. jamie was obsessed with her dogs. we started a paws of love initiation. first year, whether food,

grooming, training. because it is what she would have wanted us to do and how we can honor jamie's memory. we'll do a lot of things because her voice will live in my head forever. i know there's another one around the corner and will be for that family when it happens. >> i admire how you turned your grief into a superpower and doing the work and going out there and making a difference for other people who maybe haven't had the courage or the ability and the resources. that's admirable. thank you. you are in new york to be at u.n. to fight anti-semitism. >> i was there yesterday. housed by the second gentleman emhoff put together by andrew weinstein serving at the u.n.

currently. anti-semitism is on the rise throughout the world, right here in the united states of america driven by evil forces. by the way, a lot of the same forces pushing gun violence across our country and utilize the same methods to organize. the places that evil exists. anti-semitism was on the -- they were taking it on yesterday at the united nations. the importance of dealing with it. it is not just a threat to jewish people but to democracy. it was an important conference. i'm glad i was invited to be a part of it. i do as an american and an american jew i fear the connection between anti-semitism and guns in america because that

is why in our country you will see certain types of targeted hate violence. so i was really glad that at the united nations yesterday you saw it being taken on. we as a country have got to do better at it. >> fred guttenberg, always good to see you. thank you so much for coming on this morning. we should let the viewers know that fred has a new book coming out this year titled "american carnage." thank you for staying with us. >> thank you. >> we appreciate you. >> thank you. still ahead, russia this morning says it's pushing back at western sanctions by cutting oil production. we'll speak with andrew ross sorkin who it means. the next hour of "morning joe" starts right now. >> your subcommittee could be

part of a proud history of serious bipartisanship stretching from the boeing investigation to the watergate hearings to the select committee on the january 6th attack. or, it could take oversight down a very dark alley filled with conspiracy theories and disinformation, a place where facts are the enemy and partisan destruction is the overriding goal. >> it appears house republicans go with the dark alley path. the first hearing for the subcommittee to investigate the weaponization of the federal government was nothing but grievance politics. in the senate minority leader mitch mcconnell is trying to distance the party from a fellow republican senator. who could that be? president biden takes the post state of the union message to florida keeping the focus on the

fate of social security and medicare. and his administration is receiving support from a prominent republican over the handling of the chinese surveillance balloon. that and new details about the balloon from the state department. good morning and welcome to "morning joe." it is friday! friday finally, willie. joe is on assignment this morning. your pick for this sunday, "sunday today" or super bowl? >> my pick is paul rudd. >> really good! >> i think i will stick with and ride with the chiefs. i'm a giants fan. had an anti-eagles bias. my head is tells me mahomes the chiefs do it. >> i'm with the eagles. i'm taking in information from joe and his son jack.

paul rudd, amazing. we look forward to hear more about that. we have the host of "way too early" jonathan lemire. he keeps on going. we do four hours. he's not well. mike, is he well? >> no, no. something wrong with him. >> there is. >> go home. >> needy actually. go home. man. he just keeps going. >> wow. >> wow. took a real turn. this was not expected and not in the scripts whatsoever. i have chiefs 27-23, by the way. >> good. okay. glad to hear. by the way, i haze our youngest participants in the "morning joe" family. >> connotes affection.

thank you. >> we are lucky to have you. former aide to the george w. bush white house elise jordan is here. host of "politics nation" and president of the national action network reverend al sharpton with us this morning. thank you all for joining us today. newly created republican led subcommittee to investigate the quote weaponization of the federal government held the hearing yesterday. they say the government is used to target conservatives while the democrats say it's an example of improper use of the government. chairman republican jim jordan of ohio laid out the plans for the pant in the opening statement while delegates stacey plaskett who is a panel's top democrat expressed her concerns

about what republicans on the subcommittee are actually doing. >> americans have concerns about the double standards at the justice department, the governance board that the department of homeland security tried to form. we expect to hear from government officials and experts like today, americans targeted by the government. >> there is a difference between legitimate oversight and weaponization of congress and our processes, particularly our committee work as a political tool. i'm deeply concerned about the use of this select subcommittee as a place to settle scores, showcase conspiracy theories and advance an extreme agenda that risk undermining faith in the democracy. >> members heard from two panels, one with chuck grassley

and ron johnson and former congresswoman gabbard of hawaii. she became an independent. each slammed the justice department, social media companies and democrats in congress. for the sake of time we have boiled the hearing down to the essence. >> the laptop -- the lap top. >> hunter biden's business arrangement. >> the hunter biden laptop. >> secretary clinton regarding the use of a private email server for official business. >> you get the idea. lap top and hillary clinton, seven years ago in the presidential campaign. again as it was yesterday showing the committee with the twitter executives this is what republicans promised in the fall. if you elect us and bring us in power we will go after the fbi,

the military, the justice department, and social media companies and here we are. >> yeah. at least they can't be accused of flip flopping. they made good on this campaign promise to be sure. extraordinarily predictable yesterday. an airing of grievances and conspiracy theories and making a bet that the american people care about hunter biden and the laptop. if there's wrongdoing it will be investigated but this is something they talked themselves into a corner, these theories used to be on the fringes of the internet became more mainstream. they live on in prime time fox news shows and for an element of the republican base they want to see this happen and republicans have told me they feel like they would be punished by voters if

they didn't see through here. there are republican who is are nervous about this, who see president biden talking about things like social security and medicare and a loud element of the party is obsessed to the stuff that plays to the smallest part of the base. >> they come into a little bit of power because the margin is narrow. will the house look like it's a consistent grievance train and not legislating? you got on the senate side rick scott going completely off message only social security. ron johnson, too. even mitch mcconnell is taking -- oh, this is not where we are. but giving biden and democrats more to punch back at them with. >> yeah. i'm going to add to that

description of yours. grievance train. they add to the train. the hunt, the obsession with hunter for whatever they might find i think will backfire. this is president biden who's extremely well liked. many believe has accomplished something and going after him with such vigor. i don't know that's a good look for them while former president trump they literally close the eyes, put blinders on to an insurrection. i don't know how that will translate and i think we learned that the american people are glued in to democracy matters. they don't like where people get tortured and killed. they kind of like joe biden. they don't like someone who's cruel and will go after people for the sake of going after them. the hunter thing, that's not

president biden. meanwhile their former president skates by in their minds having done criminal act after criminal act potentially. he has multiple -- i think six, seven legal investigations, potential indictments and potential arrests looming over him. i just don't know how that pans out in the long run. president biden meanwhile took his economic message to florida yesterday. in tampa the president directly called out florida senator rick scott for the plan to put med care and social security up every five years. >> the idea is i find to be outrageous that you might not believe it. i guarantee you it will not happen. i will veto it.

i know that lot of republicans the dream is to cut social security and medicare. if that's the dream i'm your nightmare. scott doubles down on the plan and accused the president to lie about the position. and challenged president biden to a debate. please do that. the white house is not responding. that would be fabulous. senate minority leader mitch mcconnell is looking at the plan to sunset medicare and social security. >> that is the scott plan and not the republican plan. the republican plan is as i pointed out last fall if we were to become the majority, no plans to raise taxes on the american

people. it is clearly the rick scott plan and not the republican plan. that's the view of the speaker of the house, as well. i think we are in a position to state the position of the party than a single senator. >> he is not back in the fold? >> doesn't have anything to do with that. this is a bad idea. i think it will be a challenge for him to deal with this in his own re-election in florida. a state with more elderly people than any state in the country. >> biden is owning, owning, mike barnacle, the republicans on the attempt to own the libs on so many ways but in this case he is calling them out by name. he is very joyfully getting in the debate and the bottom line is rick scott has a plan that

does that. he's lying about it. so too is mike lee saying that he never spoke loudly about getting rid of the programs. the president is calling them out and doing something simple. sticking to facts and owning them on their own facts. >> yeah. it is one thing for the president of the united states to be doing what he is doing which is understandable and predictable. quite another thing for us to hear mitch mcconnell kill another republican senator. >> oh. >> kill him. indicating that he will have a tough time getting re-elected carrying the baggage. >> that's a problem. >> he knows what he is doing every single second of his professional political life. reverend al, it leads to spectacle we saw earlier of the republicans living in their own

cocoon. jim jordan who apparently can't afford a blazer giving the image of a working guy. i don't wear a coat. talking about issues that mean nothing to the average citizen, to people you and i know. they are not talking about did you get the social security check on time? your taxes, we got to fix the taxs. a fairer tax system. where are they going? >> i really don't think that they know where they are going. reminds me of the dog chasing the milk truck and when he catches it he can't drive it. not only are they talking about things the average people we know would care less about. the things they care about they haven't been able to deliver. when i look at the whole committee hearing on what goes

on twitter and they couldn't call a credible candidate or one to testify that could say, i worked in government, i worked in twitter. this is what we did. you got the committee now. you don't have witnesses to call to back up the crazy -- at least give me a crazy witness. i guess george santos was busy because they couldn't get anything to fabricate evidence. >> let me ask you a question. have you been walking down 2nd avenue or broadway on the west side and have someone come up and say, hey, did you see this tweet? >> no. never. >> no. >> never. the people i tweet to don't say did i see -- did they see my tweet. i think it's a little over indulgence. they have no message beyond

grievance. there's no there, there. i think that the very, very significant thing president biden's been able to do is put a message out. i'm for this, that. this will mean this to you. they have not been able to counter that. they bark at the moon while he is doing what he's done. i think the other unsaid thing he's done is according to the polling the concern about the age is showing vigor. he is doing 20 cities. three weeks ago he did the martin luther king breakfast. i had to rush back to harlem. when i got back to the airport and said did everything end okay, they said the president is still in the ballroom shaking hands. he is showing the energy and the opposite of what they try to project. >> jonathan, we know that barnacle stands out the movie

theater there saying do you want to see my tweet? usually the nypd is called in. >> exactly. >> clearly the president and the white house feels they have found something. will carry the rick scott brochure with him on the campaign trail if he runs for re-election. mitch mcconnell wants nothing to do with it. doesn't like rick scott. he tried to run to become the majority leader. he failed. mitch mcconnell kicked him off the commerce committee. no love lost there. republicans want nothing to do with rick scott but president biden will have that brochure with him for a long time here. >> mcconnell denied that rick scott was kicked off this committee because of the bid to oust him. if you come at the king you best

not miss. to quote "the wire." mitch mcconnell is good at politics. like him or not he knows how to do this. this is a terrible idea hung around the republicans and the white house is gleeful to do it. the president held up that brochure and showed the audience. yesterday in florida a copy of that brochure left at every seat and every florida senior to read. this is going to be even as we heard state of the union republicans a lot them shouted we won't touch social security and medicare. president biden will say, do you believe them? i have it in black and white that's what they want to do and they feel like this is a fantastic issue for them. right now before the republicans get a nominee rick scott and the jim jordan types in the house, the democrats in the white

house, will paint them. this is the republican party right now. rick scott, jim jordan, marjorie taylor greene. coming up my conversation with six governors all women and all making major moves on key issues coast to coast. it is a fascinating roundtable with trail blazing leaders. that's straight ahead on "morning joe." ♪ ♪ ♪♪

voltaren. the joy of movement. ♪♪ why are 93% of sleep number sleepers very satisfied with their bed? maybe it's because you can gently raise your partner's head to help relieve snoring. voltaren. the joy of movement. so, you can both stay comfortable all night. and now, save 50% on the sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed. ends monday. something's happening at ihop.

something... huge. ant-man and the wasp have arrived. spend $30 on your next visit to ihop and get a fandango movie ticket to see marvel studios' ant-man and the wasp: quantumania.

nearly a week after the massive earthquake in turkey and

syria survivors are being pulled from the rubble. nbc's gabe gutierrez has more from turkey. >> reporter: incredibly the rescues are not over why nearly 100 hours after this week's devastating earthquakes this young girl is pulled out alive. a moment so overpowering a rescuer collapses in tears. we witnessed a 57-year-old woman pulled out on a stretcher. and this boy smiles after he and his family are hoisted to safety. people rejoicing against all odds as the death toll tops a staggers 20,000 including this american who sent his family this photo after the first quake saying he was okay but the building collapsed. he and his family were on the

fifth floor. >> they died together. >> reporter: the world health organization is warning of a second crisis. in turkey at the epicenter a massive tent camp sprung up inside a stadium. most sought after items is blankets and coats. this couple's grandson is among the missing. what are you most praying for today? we pray for patience, he says. for others their patience is wearing thin. this woman just learned her woman was killed. logistical problems complicated rescue efforts and the size. among some there's frustration that a professional specialized rescue team didn't arrive to this location in a busy city

center until four days after the earthquakes. more international search teams on the ground including two from the u.s. matt bradley is with them. >> this team is from virginia and talk there might be someone living inside this rubble still. >> people are trying to help doing amazing things but it is chaotic. >> reporter: in northwestern syria the situation may be more dire. 5% of damaged areas are covered. so many are struggling to hold on like this heart breaking image, a father clutching the hand of his 15-year-old daughter killed in the quake. coming up, turning back to politics. not just big donors stepping away from donald trump but key republicans on the right.

vaughn hillyard joins us next to explain. we tried electric unicycles. i think i've got it! doggy-paddle! only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ i'm lindsey vonn, and ever since i retired from skiing, only pay for what you need. i've had trouble falling asleep and staying asleep— you know, insomnia. before i found quviviq, an fda-approved insomnia medication for adults, you would not believe the things i used to think about when i couldn't sleep. hey, linds. i need you to sign this business contract. all 114 pages. lindsey! lindsey! hey, lindsey! it's workout time. hey, big man, we're in the middle of something here. yeah, it's called physical fitness. just a couple dozen more questions, lindsey. don't forget to pack your phone charger for tomorrow morning's flight. it's plugged in right over there. lindsey? quviviq helps you get more sleep. and when taken every night, sleep continued to improve over time.

that's why i take quviviq nightly. quviviq works differently than medication you may have taken in the past. quviviq is thought to target one of the biological causes of insomnia: overactive wake signals. do not take quviviq if you have narcolepsy. don't drink alcohol while taking quviviq or drive or operate heavy machinery until you feel fully alert. quviviq may cause temporary inability to move or talk or hallucinations while falling asleep or waking up. quviviq may cause sleepiness during the day. quviviq may lead to doing activities while not fully awake that you don't remember the next day, like walking, driving and making or eating food. worsening depression, including suicidal thoughts, may occur. most common side effects are headaches and sleepiness. it's quviviq. ask your doctor if it's right for you. ♪ ♪ why are 93% of sleep number sleepers very satisfied with their bed? maybe it's because you can adjust your comfort and firmness on either side... your sleep number setting. to help relieve pressure points and keep you both comfortable all night. and now, save 50% on the sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed. ends monday.

welcome to zulily, a shopping paradise with deals on every scroll. there's stuff for kids... and there's stuff for you. you look great! so do you... save big on the brands you love. at zulily.com you love closing a deal. but hate managing your business from afar. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire shingles. some describe it as an intense burning sensation or an unbearable itch. this painful, blistering rash can disrupt your life for weeks. it could make your workday feel impossible. the virus that causes shingles is likely already inside of you. if you're 50 years or older, ask your doctor or pharmacist about shingles.

joining us now, former treasury official and economic analyst steve radner. i was at a dinner party. i never do that. your charts came up. everyone said you are the star with the charts and you are charts on the state of the economy. is it good news or bad news? >> good news today. i auburn come with not great news but the economy is in a sweet spot at the moment. great timing for joe biden in the state of the union but you will recall we created 517,000 new jobs last month. that bring it is total of the biden administration to 12.1 million, more in 2 years than any president created in 4 years. what you can see on this chart

is how fast we recovered the jobs lost in the covid shutdown and this is the covid recovery against other recoveries we have had. we have recovered jobs faster from this turn down than from the financial crisis or the dotcom or the one before that. it is an extraordinary record on jobs. >> the record on jobs is looking really good. especially the unemployment number, steve. despite inflation, where are we headed in terms of inflation? i think there's two weak spots in the economy. that's the cost of things for people and housing. it is for people looking for an apartment or trying to get that first house feels like an impossible uphill battle. >> on the first point inflation

is a problem. it affected food prices in particular. but what's surprising is how well if you look at the covid period. three years of covid. surprising how well the average american is doing. what this chart does is breaks people into four buckets by income top to bottom. completely the opposite of what we have seen in much of the decade before you can see on the right side the bottom quarter of americans did the boast. incomes after inflation up 12.5%. those on the other end, the wealthy people up about average. upper middle class, second bar from the left only ones that lagged but the real news about this is how much of the gains in income over last three years to

people at the bottom and raised the real wages by a material amount. >> what do you say to people who as you just pointed out the real wages have gone up especially people at the bottom, think about the grocery store. they say i don't feel this progress. interest rates are up. inflation continues to bump along why what do you say to the people to make them to believe you are better than you think. >> really well i'm not sure i would promise really well at 2.6% on average. but better than they think. the sticker prices, eggs famously, gas prices going up enormously, those are hard to explain to them. you can see on this chart that inflation did run at a high level coming out of the covid

shutdown. we had supply shortages. and wages went up and prices went up. what you can see on the chart is how fast inflation is coming down. it is average 1.9% over the last 3 months. prices down in december. i wouldn't promise that or advertise that as where we're headed. what you have to watch -- jay powell chairman of the fed said watch the wage growth. if it goes up too fast it makes inflation go up. it's been happening there but it's the 4% range. 2% is the target. coming up, is lebron james the greatest basketball player

of all time? that's when "morning joe" comes right back. i'm javi, i'm 31, and i'm a fitness instructor. i saw myself in a photograph. and we were all smiling, and i looked closer, and i was like that- that's what everybody sees? i'm back, and i got botox® cosmetic. the lines were so prominent it's all i saw in the photograph, so now when i take photos, and i see myself in photos, its- it's me, i just have fewer lines. botox® cosmetic is fda-approved to temporarily make frown lines, crow's feet, and forehead lines look better. the effects of botox® cosmetic may spread hours to weeks after injection causing serious symptoms. alert your doctor right away, as difficulty swallowing, speaking, breathing, eye problems, or muscle weakness may be a sign of a life-threatening condition. do not receive botox® cosmetic if you have a skin infection. side effects may include allergic reactions, injection site pain, headache, eyebrow, eyelid drooping, and eyelid swelling.

tell your doctor about your medical history. muscle or nerve conditions, and medications including botulinum toxins. as these may increase the risk of serious side effects. see for yourself at botoxcosmetic.com why are 93% of sleep number sleepers very satisfied with their bed? maybe it's because you can gently raise your partner's head to help relieve snoring. so, you can both stay comfortable all night. and now, save 50% on the sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed. ends monday. for adults with generalized myasthenia gravis who are positive

for acetylcholine receptor antibodies, it may feel like the world is moving without you. but the picture is changing, with vyvgart. in a clinical trial, participants achieved improved daily abilities with vyvgart added to their current treatment. and vyvgart helped clinical trial participants achieve reduced muscle weakness. vyvgart may increase the risk of infection. in a clinical study, the most common infections were urinary tract and respiratory tract infections. tell your doctor if you have a history of infections or if you have symptoms of an infection. vyvgart can cause allergic reactions. the most common side effects include respiratory tract infection, headache, and urinary tract infection. picture your life in motion with vyvgart. a treatment designed using a fragment of an antibody. ask your neurologist if vyvgart could be right for you.

humpty dumpty does it with a great fall. ask your neurologist wonderful pistachios. get crackin' just look around. this digital age we're living in, it's pretty unbelievable. problem is, not everyone's fully living in it. nobody should have to take a class or fill out a medical form on public wifi with a screen the size of your hand. home internet shouldn't be a luxury. everyone should have it and now a lot more people can. so let's go. the digital age is waiting. business can happen anytime, anywhere. so help yours thrive and stay connected with the comcast business complete connectivity solution. it's the largest, fastest, reliable network. advanced gig speed wifi. and cyberthreat protection. starting at just $49.99 a month. plus, you can save up to 60% a year when you add comcast business mobile.

or, ask how to get up to a $750 prepaid card. complete connectivity. one solution, for wherever business takes you. comcast business. powering possibilities. it's been an incredible year for women in politics, especially at the state level. a record setting -- count 'em -- 12 female governors are in office this year. shattering both age and gender norms. six of those women governors representing red and blue states join me on the stage. welcome to you. gretchen whitmer of michigan, laurie kelly of kansas. janet mills of maine.

cathy hochul from new york. i understand you get together a lot. there's a bond here which makes sense. i find that women are realizing the strength in numbers, for sure. you go to dinner. you meet up as much as possible in constant communication. gretchen whitmer, if you can talk about this bond and the relationships that you all are developing together and helps you in doing your own job. >> no question. we have been through fire especially the last couple of years and being able to connect with my colleagues, troubleshoot, help one another or to have someone who understands the unique moment and job that we all have. we're all human beings and ordinary people with extraordinary roles serving

under extraordinary circumstances and a friend to call and someone that understands it to help is really powerful and important and no one else is doing jobs like this to understand the challenges. >> exactly. >> executive sorority. >> as women it's a whole new world with more and more of us in leadership positions. governor hochul, first female governor of new york. can you give us an example of this bond here? is there a time when you can think of that you came together to support each other? what's the lesson men can take away from this playbook? >> it is quite extraordinary because the women have been through the experience i went through. had a run for office. it was a very tough year nationally. people predicted the demise. the steel to have in the veins

to get through this. >> it is hard. >> it is hard. you can talk about what it did to my kids. my daughter was there. and governor whitmer's daughter was there. the sorority of the children of mothers that run for office. there's something that families go through and helping strategize how to get a colleague's tax cut through and what to do to that individual holding out. we talked about did you try this? did you try this? i think there's shared storieses and experienced. i'm the first mom and grandma governor of new york. i think it's just going through something like that and you're absolutely right. we went through fire together. you are so tough and very few win, maybe ceos but this bonds you together for life and have

opportunities to talk about how we got through. dealing with the party and i can call on any one of them. >> we were sharing information ant what you do in the political associations but the crime ad attacks not relevant in many of our states and communities. how we responded to that and sexist and sexism aspects in campaigning and on the job is very useful. i hope as a result we turn the tide so that more americans can -- little boys -- we are about that young but man will be president, we have not shifted that that little girl will be president and our work can shift the nation. >> absolutely shifting what it looks like to be in this

position and unfortunately in this time a dangerous job. governor whitmer, i wonder if the support of this group is that there are moments that are not great. to say the least. that is an understatement of the world but for you especially has been through it. >> we all had a taste of that. i think that's something that is really important to share. i was talking -- i have a midwest governors' group and only woman in the group and convenes the calls but a colleague saying, you know, gretchen, you make the same tough decisions but you take so much more heat for it. >> is heat the word that's used? >> we have more colorful language but he said -- wait. don't answer that question. i know the answer. you are the woman. i know that governor kelly dealt with the ugliness and misogynist

and every one of us dealt with it in some respect for another. >> changing the norms. i'm the third woman to follow another woman. the norm of women following women in the governor's office we have to change that. >> that's right. >> we are doing it. >> what will it take to get more women elected to public office? you are co-chair of the female fund and this is an issue you spend time on. >> we need more women to run. >> step up! >> step up. it is hard. >> no one can do it for you. we know that. >> we are being elected because of our records. those records that the notion politically that women in elected positions focus on

family issues solely and then the notion that male candidates do not and that the economic aspects somehow these are mutually exclusive, it is women elected and women governors who are clear that economic issues, we had better success as a group frankly than most colleagues across the country on doing both. so i have cradle to career education. the nation's leading free college. universal child care -- >> women's group. >> a right. >> pre-k and the fourth best economy last year as compared to -- >> it is! >> no. i think governor mills nailed it. >> we can all make that statement. talking about crushing it economically because she is.

>> give us your state of the union speech. >> new capital investment. most in state history. >> amazing. >> you got to be able to speak the accomplishments and loudly. >> we get things done. there's healthy ribbing here but we want each other to be successful. that is unique. sometimes there's competition between the boys. look, your state is important. >> michelle, supporting her in her wedding. four of us were brides persons. >> their fought i had to get married. there you are. >> there you go. there's pressure. i'm curious. i will go around the table and rapid fire. i have the 50 over 50 list which is so successful with "forbes" and i believe everyone here is over 50.

did you imagine your career in the 50s and the greatest impact over 50? >> i thought i would be a sport broadcaster. i would never fathom to be the governor of michigan. >> i thought i would be a comedian and some respects i have fulfilled that. that came true. i didn't seek a political career. it happened but i love it and my job and the impact i'm having. >> i was reflecting being on back in d.c. almost four decades ago. i was in college here. seeing homelessness for the first time. it was the reagan years. now as governor solving our housing issues in oregon. i'm so proud to be there. no one plans for this, but i think we're all really glad to have the roles we have. >> did you plan in your 20s for

having your greatest impact after the age of 50? >> no. i did not imagine. i really wanted to replace mickey mantle. i have to say that i had a very fulfilling career, two of them actually, before i became governor, before i became state senator. there's no job that's given me more satisfaction than this one. you have the ability to get up every morning and do some good for people. >> when you were in your 20s, did you say when i'm 55, i'm going to be -- >> no. i dropped out of college. i went to san francisco, the summer of love. that's how old i am. then i hitchhiked through europe. my heros were margaret chase

smith, a good friend of the family, and nancy drew, neither of which led me to think one day i'll be governor. i knew i could do things. i didn't choose to run for office until much later. i was the first woman district attorney inspect northeast united states, first woman a.g. and first woman governor. i'm hoping there will be a lot more firsts for a lot more women in trades and other professions too. >> did kathy hochul in her 20s go, i'm going to be so impactful in my 50s. >> there's a lot of 18 or 22-year-old guys going i'm going to run for president. the sans no for my generation. i was a staffer right here on capitol hill. i was an attorney daniel patrick moynahan. i was always going to be the brains behind the guys who ran

for office. i wrote their speeches. i wrote their policy. i never envisioned it but i want that to stop with our generation. >> really quickly, all around the table starting with governor hochul. president biden blasted republicans for talking about cuts to social security and medicare and then denying it. are you hearing from your constituents about this? >> oh yes. >> what are they saying. >> democrats start owning issues that were always ours, social security and medicare. that's how i got elected to congress a decade ago in the most republican district in new york. president biden is right to call them out and stand up in support of it. >> he's done a great job in so many ways. he doesn't get credit, not in the least. we're hearing about the ribbon cuttings that we're doing all

across our states, even in red states. people are responding very well to the projects that are being done that this president promoted. >> in kansas, we're a little bit different. we tend to stay away from the national issues and really just focus like a laser on things happening right there at home. so, no, i haven't gotten a lot of feedback from my constituents on that particular issue, but i do know they're very excited about the bipartisan infrastructure law that was passed making a huge difference in our state. >> how is the abortion issue playing out in your state? >> we saw what happened in august when 60% of kansaswent to

the polls to make our own private medical decisions. i think they know now it will be much more of an uphill battle. i think the people of kansas, who tend to be more moderate, tend to believe in women's reproductive rights will be able to vote their conscience. >> what are you hearing from your constituents about social security and medicare? >> we're hearing they want their leaders to get things done. what the president said on his message was let's get it done. let's work together. >> governor grisham. >> we have one of the fastest

growing aging populations in the country. i have the third largest over 60 population per capita in the country. social security and medicare are bedrock issues in new mexico, always have been. the shift after biden's speech is we assume after the trump tax cuts, which created in large part the issues with the national debt and the budgets, new mexicans now unequivocally believe the republican agenda is to protect big corporations and not men and women who retired successfully and need social security for dignity. >> governor whitmer. >> michigan is similar to new mexico with an aging population. these are important aspects to feeling secure knowing that this president is going to fight to protect all of these important

programs. also, similar to what my colleagues said, i ran on fixing the damn roads. my first term had a legislature that would not work with me. i did everything i could unilaterally. but it was phenomenal to have those resources coming in from the federal government. i'm proud the nation's fix the damn roads guy now calls michigan home. >> governor gretchen whitmer of michigan, tina kotek of oregon, janet mills of the great state of maine and kathy hochul of the great state of new york. hy hoche great state of new york. nexium 24hr prevents heartburn acid for twice as long as pepcid. get all-day and all-night heartburn acid prevention with just one pill a day. choose acid prevention. choose nexium.

something's happening at ihop. something... huge. ant-man and the wasp have arrived. spend $30 on your next visit to ihop and get a fandango movie ticket to see marvel studios' ant-man and the wasp: quantumania.

i got a lot of problems with you people! now you're going to hear about it. >> hunter biden's laptop. >> hunter biden's business arrangements. >> the hunter biden laptop. >> hunter biden laptop. >> secretary clinton regarding her use of a private e-mail server for official business. >> it truly is festivus when you think about it. the so-called weaponization committee created by house republicans aired its old grievances, and i mean old, yesterday on capitol hill. meanwhile, president joe biden continues to hammer a gop tax plan that does not protect medicare and social security, taking his message straight to the senator who proposed it in his plan. he denies it, but it's in his plan. plus the republican race is

still a two-ran race for now. and this sunday is super bowl sunday. we'll be joined by the mayors of kansas city and philadelphia for some pregame trash talking. mike barnicle and elise jordan are back with us and claire mccaskill joins us as well. joe is on assignment. claire, you're here for the chiefs game, right? all kansas city? >> yes, yes. i'm definitely going to talk about the chiefs today. i heard willie pick the chiefs. i heard mika, with bitter disappointment, that you think the eagles are going to win. barnicle and elise, i haven't heard from you.

>> i'm going with kansas city because i think patrick mahomes' ankle is fully repaired 100%. the only worry i have is philly's defensive line is maybe the best in years. but i'm going with patrick mahomes. >> elise. >> i'm going with the eagles. i have a feeling, just a feeling. >> i know their defensive line is amazing. but keep in mind, when mahomes gets the ball out of his hands in four seconds, we are going to have a great day. i think our offensive line has been disrespected this week. i think they may surprise you. >> are you going to be on the

sidelines, claire? >> i'm going to be there, but i won't be on the sidelines. >> i picked the chiefs before you got here. mike is pandering to you now. go chiefs! >> i heard you bright and early. go eagles. >> okay. we'll discuss more later. president joe biden took his economic message to florida yesterday in tampa. the president directly called out florida senator rick scott for his plan to put medicare and social security up for congressional approval every five years. >> the very idea a senator from florida wants to put social security and medicare on the chopping block every five years i find to be outrageous, so outrageous that you might not even believe it. i guarantee you it will not happen. i will veto it. i know that a lot of

republicans, their dream is to cut social security and medicare. let me say this. if that's your dream, i'm your nightmare. >> senator scott continues to point out that his plan would sunset all federal legislation after five years, which we'll note would include medicare and social security. i love the way president biden in one of his speeches actually held up his plan. he's got it there. it's written out, senator scott. you did it. meanwhile mitch mcconnell is not too happy with rick scott. he's trying to make it clear that rick scott doesn't speak for the party. >> unfortunately, that was the scott plan. that's not a republican plan. that was the rick scott plan. the republican plan, as i pointed out last fall if we were to become the majority, there were no plans to raise taxes on

the american people or to sunset medicare or social security. it's the rick scott plan. it is not the republican plan. that's the view of the speaker of the house as well. i think we're in a more authoritative position to say what the position of the party is than any single senator. >> so rick scott's not really back in the fold after he ran against you for leadership? >> well, this doesn't have anything to do with this. this is a bad idea. i think it will be a challenge for him to deal with this with his own election in florida, a state with more elderly people than any other state in america. >> to the point the president has been making now since the state of the union, and in two campaign stops where he's carrying around the rick scott plan with him, obviously using that as a political cudgel.

it's going to stick to him if president biden has anything to say about it. >> there's a brief window when congress changes party hands. and it did, the house. there's a brief window where the american people with sit back and say what are they going to do for us? so far the headlines have been dominated by this ridiculous house un-american activities committee that was a joke yesterday and the trap republicans walked into in the state of the union where the president said, hey, i'm not making this up. the leader of the republican party, rick scott, has in writing to cut medicare and

social security. it is really a political malpractice of the highest level. i'm just glad joe biden is smart enough to take advantage of rick scott now trying to back the truck up without much success. >> new polling shows former president trump and florida governor ron desantis dominating the potential 2024 republican presidential field 33% of voters said desantis, 2% said mike pence. when asked about a hypothetical two-way race between trump and desantis, 53% picked the florida governor while 43% chose the former president. we've had reporting recently about prominent conservative groups breaking with donald trump, including evangelical leaders club for growth and the

koch brothers network. vaughn hillyard joins us with new reporting on a growing rift between trump and another influential conservative organization. which group is it now? >> that would be turning point usa. this is the organization that is focused on youth engagement in the conservative movement. it's led by charlie kirk, who has a podcast. i think this is notable. we'll get a little bit more into the details in a second. we're going to be posting on nbc.com an extensive article on this here in the coming hours. for the first time, i think i'm actually convinced there is a true scramble within the republican party here with power. you see americans for prosperity, the koch-backed group that is saying in 2022 bad republican candidates were

selected. they're going to be investing money into primaries, including the presidential primary to essentially make sure it's not donald trump. then you have club for growth, which is going to be holding a retreat for donors at the breakers hotel in west palm beach, just a stone's throw away from mar-a-lago the first week of march as they gear in towards a non-trump candidate. when you talk about turning point, this is a quote from somebody close to trump's political orbit. charlie kirk just did an interview about three weeks ago as he tried to unseat rnc chair ronna mcdaniel. this came after turning point hosting a tour around the country for ron desantis last year. there were some questions. was charlie kirk turning towards ron desantis? i just want to read you a quote. there's a coordinated effort for tp usa to build that

relationship with ron. charlie wants to be next to the new shiny thing on the block. like so many others, there would be no charlie kirk without donald trump. this is a question of not obviously where the power structure is, but also if donald trump potentially loses, you lose club for growth, you lose the koch brothers. you start to have even sarah huckabee sanders in her state of the union suggest that the republicans have a new generation of leaders. and now you have charlie kirk saying he still supports trump publicly in 2024. there's questions though of if you're losing the likes of charlie kirk, who does donald trump have around him next? >> if turning point usa isn't maga, what is maga? their whole rise a donald trump. donald trump propelled the organization. he propelled charlie kirk. and charlie endorsed him way early too. how would he be able to go back on that endorsement?

>> this is the issue republicans are going to be facing. charlie tells us in a statement that he is still supporting donald trump, but just engaging with ron desantis. some allies of charlie kirk say he's just maintaining relationships with conservatives. but for donald trump, that's not how this is going to work. you can't maintain a relationship with ron desantis and still publicly support donald trump. what donald trump's frustrations are mounting to is let's look toward cpac. donald trump is going to cpac. who's not going to cpac? ron desantis. >> charlie kirk, how old is he? who is he? where is he from? how did he get where he is and why are we talking about him? >> charlie kirk i believe is 29

years old. this organization he conducted tp usa, he moved it out to arizona. they teamed up largely with the arizona gop. folks that i talked to including the likes of matt salmon, the congressman who was the cofounder of the house freedom caucus. i talked to him this weekend. he says the issue for the arizona republican party in 2022 was that they were joined at the hip to turning point usa and charlie kirk. kari lake is an ally of charlie kirk. one suggested to me that charlie kirk was trying to do to the rnc what he did to the arizona gop. to concede would be to suggest that one has shame.

>> is he a young fraud or not? >> that is not for me to suggest. as matt salmon called it, it's a mirage. he does have a mega phone. there are young conservatives he's gotten into the organization. kari lake's campaign was largely build by young staffers. i don't think we're going to see the end of charlie kirk any time soon, because so many of the young people that have become engaged in the party today did it because of the podcast, because of turning point usa, because of charlie kirk. he does have influence. whether it's enough to change an election outcome, that's to be determined down the road. ron desantis has every reason to try and get him as well as trump. >> there's been a lot of losing

going on on the trump maga kari lake side. vaughn hillyard, thank you very much. we're going to turn to the death toll from that powerful earthquake in turkey and syria, which continues to rise, now passing 21,000 people. despite the frigid temperatures, emergency crews have made a series of dramatic rescues since monday's disaster. nbc's matt bradley has more. >> reporter: today turkish rescue workers still making miracles, saving more after being trapped for almost 100 hours, including, incredibly, a 10-day-old baby and his mother. the earthquakes left hundreds of thousands homeless. now they're sleeping rough in

cars, makeshift shelters and the streets. more than 50 countries pledge aid to help the victims, including the u.s. these americans just got here from fairfax county in virginia. they're looking for someone who might be alive and they're using a dog. this is the first time i've seen someone using a dog and i've been here for three days. this is vader as in darth vader. >> we're going to run the dog to look for anybody possibly alive. i guess they had verbal communication with someone last night. >> reporter: vader gets a positive hit, the scent of survivor. >> very well trained, knows what to look for. if it responds to the handler, they know there's a possible proof of life. >> reporter: the dog can distinguish between a dead body and a living person?

>> that's right. >> reporter: the us aid team calls in reenforcements. >> they're putting out a listening device to help them hear underneath the rubble to see if they can hear anything. >> reporter: it's going to be hard with all this. >> it will be very difficult. it's a chaotic situation. >> reporter: then turkish rescue workers managed to recover a living victim. >> you can see what looks like a middle-aged man being pulled out from this wreckage. an ordinary man who's accomplished an extraordinary feat of endurance simply by surviving. we're learning new details about the chinese spy balloon the u.s. shot down last week and the surveillance equipment it had on board. chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell has details. >> reporter: as military and fbi

teams continue to scour the water off south carolina, u.s. officials say they've gleaned significant intelligence from that suspected chinese spy balloon. the balloon as tall as a 20 story building was carrying a payload as large as a regional jet. before shooting it down, american surveillance planes circled the balloon, managing to capture images of the technology on board. they include multiple antennas that a state department official describes as capable of collecting signals intelligence from cell phones or radio frequencies. that runs counter to china's claim it was just a weather balloon. >> china's irresponsible actions were visible to us and also to the world. china, as a result, has a lot to answer for. >> reporter: on capitol hill, lawmakers outraged over the balloon flying over their states. >> as an alaskan, i am so angry. >> i'll just tell you i don't

want a damn balloon going across the united states. >> reporter: several senators arguing the takedown should have happened more quickly. >> the biden administration had a chance to shoot it down over alaska and they chose to let it spy all across america, end of story. >> reporter: shooting it down over alaska would have made recovery efforts more difficult and dangerous. president biden defended the decision to wait. >> i said i wanted it shot down as soon as possible. they were worried about the damage that could be done even in a big state like montana. this thing was gigantic. what happened if it came down and hit a school? >> reporter: the president saying the balloon was not a major security breach. >> the total amount of intelligence gathering that's going on by every country around the world is overwhelming. it's a violation of international law. it's our air space. once it comes in our space, we can do what we want with it. >> claire, we heard some

republicans in there who claim to know better than the department of defense about when this should have been shot down out of the sky. the president wanted to do it last wednesday. the department of defense said let's wait for it to get out over water. they did that six or seven miles off the coast of south carolina. sometimes better to leave these matters to the experts. >> yeah. i don't recall where tom cotton answered the question about chinese spy balloons during the trump administration, which the department of defense has said unequivocally that was going on while trump was president and nobody shot anything down. this is a win for the united states. we now have recovered valuable intelligence about china. more importantly, we've got xi on his back foot. if you look at what has changed in the world since biden became president, both putin and now xi have blemishes on the world stage they didn't have before

joe biden became president. putin and his failures in ukraine, the display of the lack of military training and ability to control any kind of battle space in the ukraine. and now xi, huge faux pas. i think joe biden let the people who know best make the decision and all the rest is political noise. this morning russia is unleashing a new wave of missile strikes on critical infrastructure in southern and eastern ukraine. russia also announced plans to cut its oil output by 500,000 barrels a day next month to counter energy sanctions. let's bring in andrew ross sorkin. what's the impact of that on oil prices? >> the impact is clear. oil prices are going up around

the world as a result. and clearly russia effectively weaponizing or at least trying to weaponize its ability to impact the price of oil around the world. there are some analysts who say they're reducing their output as a function of the fact that the sanctions may be working to some degree. thinking about the g7 and so many european countries no longer doing business with russia over oil. having said that, you still have india and china that are buying enormous amounts of oil from russia. the caps for those countries at least are not working. here we have this unique situation. it's unclear how long russia can do this for in as far as the truth is they need revenue too. they're selling it about $50 a barrel, relative to $80 a barrel for the rest of the world. they've lost about 46% of the

revenue they get from oil year to date. the more they try to weaponize this for everybody else, the more they may be weaponizing it for themselves. >> what more can you tell us about the plans for the united states to curb investments in china and the impact it will have? >> this is a huge -- the hawkish nature of what we're hearing out of washington is a complete sea change for so many multinational companies, investors and the like. for a very long time, there was a concern and view about what china would do to multinational companies that are doing business there, meaning, what's the risk to be in china if china decides to throw you out of the country or to limit your production. that's no longer the risk. the new risk is actually what washington will do. so the question is going to be

what companies are considered national security risks. if you're a technology company, they may not want you doing business there. it is the topic within the business community now. >> andrew ross sorkin, thank you very much. have a great weekend. coming up on "morning joe," the special counsel investigating donald trump's role in the january 6th attack sends a subpoena to someone who did not talk to the january 6th committee. plus, the latest from the fallout on the events of that dark day as a man who carried a confederate flag in the capitol was sentenced to prison. and we'll be joined by a former member of the oath keepers, who has a new warning about the perils of extremism and concerns of a future civil war. f extremis of a future civil war.

humpty dumpty does it with a great fall. wo there are some who get want to divide us,

to make a political point or turn a profit. joe biden just wants to get things done. in just two years, joe biden's done a lot. biden brought both parties together to rebuild our roads and bridges and passed laws that lower the cost of prescription drugs, deliver clean drinking water, and bring manufacturing jobs back to america. president biden knows we can get more done if we come together. because joe biden's a president for all americans. ♪ limu emu & doug ♪ hey, man. nice pace! clearly, you're a safe driver. you could save hundreds for safe driving with liberty mutual. they customize your car insurance so you only pay for what you need! [sfx: limu squawks] whoo! we gotta go again. only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪

the virus that causes shingles is sleeping... in 99% of people over 50. it's lying dormant, waiting... and could reactivate. shingles strikes as a painful, blistering rash that can last for weeks. and it could wake at any time. think you're not at risk for shingles? it's time to wake up. because shingles could wake up in you. if you're over 50, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about shingles prevention.

when you tell me he should testify because he's going to tell the truth, that's so silly, because it's somebody's version of the truth.

beautiful live picture as the sun comes up over los angeles at 6:28 on a friday morning, 9:28 on the east coast. former vice president mike pence has been subpoenaed by the special counsel investigating donald trump's effort to overturn the 2020 election. pence's subpoena is related to the january 6th attack on the capitol. both pence and special counsel jack smith declined to comment on the matter. smith was appointed to lead the probe back in november by attorney general merrick garland. since then, he has subpoenaed local officials in key presidential swing states for any and all communications involving trump, his campaign and his allies. this comes as the house committee that investigated the capitol attack found evidence fake electors submitted false certifications of trump

victories in the national archives in the hopes pence would substitute them for the real votes that made joe biden president. a delaware man who carried a confederate flag through the capitol building during the january 6th insurrection has been sentenced to three years in prison. photos of him carrying that confederate flag became a symbol of january 6th. the 53-year-old was convicted of five charges stemming from his participation in the riot including obstruction of an official proceeding. now a new book is offering a revealing look at the extremist group the oath keepers by the former spokesman for the far-right group just months after stewart rhodes and kelly meggs were convicted of seditious conspiracy in connection with the january 6th attack on the capitol.

"the perils of extremism" details jason van tatenhove's time with the group. he joins us now. what is your warning about extremism moving forward in this country? >> i think we just need to take it very seriously. i think that there has been a cycle where we've seen these events that they've partaken in and plugged into have escalated from bundy ranch through to january 6th. where do you go in a cycle of escalation from a failed coup of the capitol building? it continues to escalate. it continues to ratchet up. i think right now we're kind of in a holding period waiting to see what's going to happen next, waiting to see whether these groups will regroup, what's

going to happen with the next election cycle. i think we just need to not become complacent and think that everything is over. >> no. >> there's still a lot of work to do. >> there is a lot of work to do. i would agree with you about that. given your special insight, what are one of the problems with extremism is those who go join a cult or a group based on conspiracies and promulgates violence is that they do not feel like they're having a shared experience. >> i think we need exit ramps. i think we need to be more understanding. a large portion of the country has kind of drank the cool aid.

in order to get back to a sense of normalcy, we need to begin listening to one another again. we need to start treating each other as human beings again and dial down on the violent rhetoric. political violence is becoming a common occurrence. it seems every day on our news feeds, it's popping up again and again. i think that's just from largely a breakdown in treating each other as human beings. i think there's been a large divide between rural and urban america and we need to look at what has led to those divides and begin listening to one another again. >> how do we do that? i totally agree with you that we need to understand each other. meet people where they are. but how to do that if you're talking with someone who is ginned up with conspiracy

theories from either the vaccines to what happened on january 6th and when facts are completely not in agreement. i'm not trying to set you up here. i'm truly asking, are we missing something in our approach to reaching out to the other side when it comes to creating an understanding that you say will help give people exit ramps? >> i think that we need to really take a look at the advent of conspiracy theory. it has been the life blood of these movements. it's ever evolving. we need to look at teaching critical thinking skills again. i think we've largely lost that. teach our children and teach each other when we're consuming media and we have a strong emotional reaction, that's a red flag. we need to step back and examine why am i having this strong emotional reaction.

but we've also got to get back to checking sources and really digging into things as far as conspiracy theories go, because what conspiracy theories do is they hook us with an emotional outrage that kind of overrides our critical thinking skills. that leads us to places like january 6th. i think we also need to look at what has worked for deprogramming techniques. there are a lot of similarities between what has happened in some of these communities that have been so affected by conspiracy theory and this rhetoric and what we've seen previously in cult communities. we need to look at some of the ways that we found to get to better places from there. again, i don't have the answers. i'm just a guy who went and got himself embedded with the oath keepers. but i think it all starts with

human conversation again, trying to reach out. it seems like over the holidays we were divided. we can't even invite parts of our family over for holiday dinners because we're so divided as a country. i think that's indicative of where we are as a country politically. we need to really look at finding ways to reengage with conversation again. >> jason, you've written before and talked to us and write again in the book about social media being gasoline on this fire and certain social media channels, not even the ones we talk about a lot like twitter and facebook -- and they're having hearings about that now related to january 6th. but there are so many other avenues. as you write and say, most of the people who believe these things will never have to encounter an opposing point of view because of the

reenforcement in the echo chamber that they get. what do you do about that side of it where people can find community in people who believe conspiracy theories like them without hearing the other side anywhere? >> part of that is the algorithms that have happened in social media. i think it's kind of this perfect storm. i don't know if it was intentional or just manifested. it seems to have played a significant part that when you're in these echo chambers, you hear nothing but reenforcing narratives that are not giving the other side of the story. you know, i think we've got to get offline more. i've completely gotten off social media and i think that has done wonders for me. and i encourage others to look at life without social media. it's larger than that. it's not just social media. it's what we're getting through our radio media, through our news feeds, our tv media.

again, i think it's just reengaging on a human level. we've got to get out and talk with our neighbors and become active. no one's coming to help us. we're going to be the ones who have to fix this. so i think reengaging with local campaigns and local politics is a good start, local activism. but we've got to get off the computers and really engage as human beings again. >> jason, let's back up to your reference to the cool aid that you mentioned a couple of minutes ago. what happened in your life to make you not only drink the cool aid but swim in the cool aid in a tremendously violent, disturbing, damaging outfit? what happened to you? >> i had moved from colorado to montana. i had kind of become isolated. i had moved my family up to

rural montana. i was going to start a new tattoo shop up there. i had a tattoo shop in colorado that i had sold. but that didn't work out. you know, i kind of was spinning my wheels. i kind of was lost. i think being in a vulnerable place, my wife was medically disabled, her health was not doing well. things just weren't going as i planned. i think when things aren't going as someone has planned in their life, you're in a vulnerable place and more apt to take in this media. for me, it was alex jones, infowars and my father that i was trying to reconnect with who was listening to a lot of rush limbaugh. i just found myself in this new culture being exposed to new media. you know, i was at a low point in my life. i didn't know what i was doing

and here comes this group that wanted me to be the national media director after embedding with them for bundy ranch and they paid really well, better than i made working mainstream media, working for a local newspaper affiliate. they tell you they have something for you to do and something that's important for the country and they give you a sense of community. i think fostering that sense of community is one of the way they're able to tap into people's psyches and get their hooks into them. >> jason, thank you so much for that insight. thanks for being on this morning. we really appreciate it. jason's book "the perils of extremism" is available for preorder online and will be in bookstores on february 21st. coming up, there's more than just the lombardi trophy on the line this sunday.

we'll find out what the mayors of kansas city and philadelphia are putting on the big game. that's next. before we go to break, willie, it's not just the super bowl. what do you have planned? >> different network, but i like to think of myself as part of the super bowl pregame show. it starts on the east coast 8:00 a.m. eastern coast over on nbc. the great paul rudd is my guest, always one of my favorite people to sit down and talk with. he's, of course, starring in the new "ant-man" movie, the billion dollar franchise he fronts. and also "only murders in the building" with steve martin, meryl streep joining the cast. just a fun, great conversation with one of the most beloved figures in the country, mr. paul rudd, this sunday over on nbc "sunday today." sunday over on "sunday today.

- here we go. - remember, mom's a kayak denier, so please don't bring it up. - bring what up? kayak? - excuse me? do the research, todd. - listen to me. kayak searches hundreds of travel sites to find you great deals on flights, cars and hotels. - they're lying to you. - who's they? kayak? - arr! - open your eyes! - compare hundreds of travel sites at once. kayak. search one and done.

lomita feed is 101 years old. when covid hit, we had some challenges. i heard about the payroll tax refund that allowed us to keep the people that have been here taking care of us. learn more at getrefunds.com. [♪♪] to keep the people that have been here taking care of us. if you have diabetes, it's important to have confidence in the nutritional drink you choose. try boost glucose control®. it's clinically shown to help manage blood sugar levels and contains high quality protein to help manage hunger and support muscle health. try boost® today.

something's happening at ihop. something... huge. ant-man and the wasp have arrived. spend $30 on your next visit to ihop and get a fandango movie ticket to see marvel studios' ant-man and the wasp: quantumania. great party, carly. movie ticket to see marvel studios' you must have blown your budget. not exactly. you have great name brand snacks tons of meat, and where did you get this imported cheese? hello. grocery outlet bargain market looking for some great snacks during the big game. grocery outlet has got you covered. this week, we have 30 ounce bag blue diamond almonds for $9.99. that's a savings worth celebrating. ♪ grocery outlet bargain market ♪

my asthma felt anything but normal. a blood test helped show my asthma is driven by eosinophils, which nucala helps reduce. nucala is a once-monthly add-on injection for severe eosinophilic asthma. nucala is not for sudden breathing problems. allergic reactions can occur. get help right away for swelling of face, mouth, tongue, or trouble breathing. infections that can cause shingles have occurred. don't stop steroids unless told by your doctor. tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. may cause headache, injection site reactions, back pain, and fatigue. ask your asthma specialist about a nunormal with nucala. the sun is up in glendale, arizona, just two days from the super bowl played right there

between the chiefs and the eagles, two teams left standing in the nfl, just one game left to play this season. the chiefs and eagles meeting for super bowl lvii in glendale, arizona. joining us now are the mayors of the two cities. kansas city's quinton lucas and philadelphia's jim kenney. good morning to you both. appreciate you being here. >> morning. >> i'm going to start with you, mr. mayor of kansas city. chiefs are underdogs. they're 14-3. i guess they're about a 1 1/2 point underdog. i'm going to give you the first word. why are the chiefs going to win on sunday? >> first of all, great to be with you. the chiefs have been one of the most exciting teams to watch for the last four years. they find a way to win. patrick mahomes on a bad ankle two weeks ago, our defense stepping up, last-second field goal. i think we are all coming in as believers even if the betting

line isn't quite there for us. >> mayor lucas making a strong case. mayor kenney, your case for the eagles, sir? >> first of all, it's going to be a great game. it's got so many subplots, the kelce brothers, coach reed, first two black quarterbacks in history in the super bowl. it's going to be a fun game to watch. i think the eagles at this point in time are probably the best team they've ever been. jalen hurts is the real deal. we have the best offensive line in the league. our defense is fierce. we have great receivers, running backs and special teams. i think it's going to be a close game, a good game, but i think we win in the end. >> claire, i'm sure you have some very tough questions for mayor lucas as you guys cheerlead for the chiefs together. >> i can call him quinton. a lot of people in kansas city call him mayor q. i know we have huge respect for the eagles, the team and for

their fanatical fans. and we relate to that in kansas city. in kansas city, if you're not a chiefs fan, you're just not allowed. i think it's going to be a terrific game. mayor, layout why you think the disrespect that maybe has been paid to the lines, our offensive and defensive lines, speak to that. i think there's been so much talk about how strong the pass rush of philadelphia and how strong their lines are. you know, we've got a rookie secondary, but our lines are pretty good. why don't you explain to everyone why the chiefs are going to prevail even against a great team like philadelphia. >> a few different things. by the way, claire, it is great

to see you. we always love when you're back in kansas city and look forward to seeing you at the game on sunday. this was an o-line that was able to defend patrick mahomes on a hobbled ankle last week with good defensive pressure again and again. mahomes had the opportunity to make a few important plays down the stretch, including, actually, a good run play that help set us up for a field goal. i think we have a team that is incredibly ready for the challenge. philadelphia has not had the same competition, i would submit to you, throughout the pro season, whereas us going against cincinnati last week, good defeat of jacksonville before that. you saw kansas city tested again and again throughout the entire season and winning. i think very highly of philadelphia's team. certainly watching jalen hurts is incredibly exciting, but i think we'll step up. the other thing that's intriguing about the chiefs this year, our defense was a little bit of a trouble spot in years

past. that's why i don't think we made the super bowl last year. you've seen great improvements from steve spagnolo. i think you're going to see us bring it home this weekend. >> both of you are so well versed in your teams. this is clearly not two mayors who were fed talking points. these are real fans of their teams. mayor kenney, the stakes are pretty high. i understand you have a friendly bet on the game. >> i'm going to love eating those kansas city ribs, i can tell you that. honestly, this is a rivalry, but you have to understand we love coach reed. we're not going to love him for three or four hours on sunday, but he was he was a fixture here do have great affection for him. it's not like we're playing the cowboys or playing the giants. we don't necessarily hate them, kansas city, but we're going to beat them. >> and mayor q, what are you

putting on the line here? are you ready to eat some philly pizza? >> i would love to eat their pizza, drink their beer. i love getting to philadelphia, so perhaps the mayor and i will dine on some good philly food after the chiefs win. we're putting out barbecue, it's kansas city's thing, claire can tell you the best barbecue in the world is in kansas city, gates barbecue, good beer and other snacks coming their way. >> that i agree with, best barbecue in the world, it's city. >> best team in the nfl eagles. >> it should be a great game. i think we can agree we got the two best teams in the nfl playing on sunday. cannot wait to watch along with you. kansas city mayor quinton lucas, philadelphia mayor jim kenney good luck to you both. >> go birds. >> go chiefs. last night the nfl took time out it o'honor their best from the past season, nbc news correspondent jacob soboroff has more on that. >> reporter: overnight at nfl honors, the league naming its

mvp, a familiar face to football fans. >> patrick mahomes. >> the chief superstar qb scoring his second most valuable player award. >> my teammates, i would never be standing here today without you all. >> reporter: the night reflecting on the harrowing minutes following damar hamlin's cardiac arrest. the bill's safety taking the stage with the medical team that saved his life. >> my vision was about playing in the nfl, but god's plan was to have a purpose greater than any game in this world. >> reporter: the ceremony emceed by kelly clarkson, the first woman to host the event. >> i want to shout out some of the amazing women shaping the nfl, the sports casters, y'all, give it up. the officials, the coaches, the executives and of course the woman who single handedly made this year's super bowl even possible, donna kel donna can, her ovaries. >> reporter: mounting

anticipation for rihanna's return, giving a preview. >> you're trying to cram 17 years of work into 13 minutes. it's difficult. >> reporter: it's rihanna's first live production in five years and the first since becoming a new mom. >> when you become a mom, there's something that happens where you feel like you can take on the world. >> reporter: the desert is heating up with fans of all ages testing their football skills. even i had to get in on the action with a little help from a very big man. former offensive lineman andrew whit worth gave me tips. >> you want to have those feet on the ground. >> reporter: before it was my turn to attempt a tackle. >> humiliation is my middle name, let's do this. >> fast feet, fast hands, get down low, get to the bag. oh, let's go. >> that hurt.

>> and that is the nfl experience, baby. >> and jacob went undrafted after that performance at the combine. jacob soboroff with that report. joining us now best selling author, columnist, mike luciba. man, two great teams, really even matchup on paper anyway. who do you like on sunday? >> willie i've been going back and forth i think like the betters have all week. when jalen hurts was healthy, i thought the eagles were the best team all season. i'm not sure how good his throwing shoulder is, and we don't know how good patrick mahomes' ankle is. i asked somebody at the game last night, how close is mahomes to being mahomes, and he said close enough. willie, when everything looks even to me, i always follow who's the best player in the gym philosophy. at the end of the day, patrick mahomes is the best player in

the gym. >> mike, this is claire mccaskill, thanks for recognizing that when it's a close game you call on the one who is the best, and clearly mahomes is the best. talk a little bit ant the rookies on these squads. i know our chiefs team, we've got a huge number of rookies, especially in our secondary. how do you see that playing out against a healthy jalen hurts, assuming his shoulder is going to perform well against the speed they have with their receiving crew? >> you know, claire, i can see why you just did so well in the city hall pregame show, so congratulations on that, by the way. listen, hurts has shown he can throw against anybody. the problem is he really hasn't been tested yet in the playoffs. mahomes has shown already that he can take a punch and take his team down the field.

he got lucky with that call at the end, and so i don't think the secondary is going to be a problem. i'm going to be interested to see early in this game which quarterback is running the most and running the best. >> all right, we will see on sunday. i want to talk about the column, back page of the daily news a couple of days ago after lebron james sets the all-time scoring record in the nba passing kareem abdul-jabbar. you declared him the greatest to ever play. i can't get past michael at number one. people watching the show, they want kareem, bill russell, magic, kobe, all with great cases to make. for you why is it lebron? >> i told you this before, if i had to pick one guy to play one game for my life, it would be michael. but if i had to pick one guy over all the years it would be lebron james because i believe

on every night he has done more to help his team win than any other player in history. he could have been an all star at any position on the court. not only is he the all-time scoring leader, he's fourth in assists. willie, this guy has been famous since he was 14 years old. not only is he the greatest all around player i've ever seen, he's the greatest teammate too, and at this age after everything he's done, i believe he would be the mvp this season if he didn't have that cyo team playing around him in los angeles. >> i got to tell you, you know, i get michael jordon. i get lebron the greatest of all time, but if i got the one game that i needed the guy for, larry bird. >> bob, bill, make, whoever you are. mike, listen, i'm shocked that that would be your opinion coming from where you come from.

i went to college in the same city and i love larry bird. when you add it all up, when you look at what he does on a game to game basis over 20 years in that sport, he's the guy i'd pick, and he's -- >> thanks, dan. [ laughter ] you guys have known each other for what, 40 years, you're still figuring out each other's names. >> it's too long. it's too much. we've known each other too long. >> it's a great point about lebron. i don't think people realize fourth on the all-time assist list. he kind of puts michael and magic together and makes one player unlike we've ever seen before. you make a pretty good case. thanks so much. the latest book called "the house of wolves" co-authored by james patterson, it is a big "new york times" best seller. that does it for us this morning. josé diaz-balart picks up the coverage in 90 seconds.

he will be joined by jose andres are from turkey to talk about how the world's central kitchen is providing meals to people affected by the devastating earthquakes there. we will see you on monday. the virus that causes shingles is sleeping... in 99% of people over 50. it's lying dormant, waiting... and could reactivate. shingles strikes as a painful, blistering rash that can last for weeks. and it could wake at any time. think you're not at risk for shingles? it's time to wake up. because shingles could wake up in you. if you're over 50, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about shingles prevention. millions have made the switch from the big three to the best kept secret in wireless: xfinity mobile. or pharmacist that means millions are saving hundreds a year with the fastest mobile service. and now, get the best price for two lines of unlimited. just $30 per line. there are millions of happy campers out there.

and this is the perfect time to join them... right now, switch to xfinity mobile and save up to $800 on the new samsung galaxy s23 series. to learn more, visit your local xfinity store today. good morning, 10:00 a.m. eastern, 7:00 a.m. pacific, i'm josé diaz-balart at nbc news headquarters in new york. this morning, miracles at the scene of monday's