>> good day to all of you from

msnbc world headquarters here in new york. welcome everyone to alex witt reports. we begin with breaking news, the u.s. racing to recover and learn more about that mysterious object shot down by u.s. fighter jets over alaska. here's what we know at this hour. the high altitude object was described as roughly the size of a small car, it was likely not man. it was flying in 40,000 feet, is for spotted on thursday before being brought down on friday. this comes a week after the u.s. military shot down the chinese spy balloon off the south carolina coast after flying over several states. here is what democratic congressman told me in the last hour. >> i don't know that anyone, on the committees have been briefed. recovery operations are taking place, it is quite possible at 40,000 feet, a very expensive missile shooting down a weather balloon. other than that, we just do not

know. it didn't seem to have its own ability to maneuver. that limits it's -- >> two more breaking news, the fbi found another classified document at former vice presidents indiana home. it was discovered in a five hour search which came weeks after pence reported finding a small number of classified documents at his residence. it comes after the former vice president also faces a subpoena in another case. special counsel jack smith wants pence to testify under oath in the investigation into former president trump's rule on the attack and trump's efforts to stay in office after losing the 2020 election. and president biden tripling down on hammering republicans who floated making possible cuts for changes to either medicare or social security. >> i know that a lot of republicans, the dream is to cut social security and medicare. when you say this, if that's a dream, i'm your nightmare.

[applause] we had a debate on the state of the union. i'm glad to see everyone says we are not going to cut social security and medicaid. i hope that is true. >> julie noted. now, one of the republican senators singled out by the president, rick scott, has come out with a new plan that he says will safeguard funding for both programs. we are going to talk about whether some republicans can change their tune on this. we will do that with howard in later this hour. but first, the breaking news on that object shot down over alaska. let's go to monica alba who's joining me from the white house once again. monika, welcome, what are we learning today? >> we know that the recovery efforts are now underway, alex. this is very different than what we saw a week ago because again, that chinese spy balloon was shot down over open water off the coast of south carolina and they knew that they're gonna have to dispatch the navy

to go and retrieve parts of it. much of it was underwater at that point. off the coast of alaska, we understand that they are going to try to get whatever fell from this unidentified object, which again they are not saying is a balloon, we don't know what it is, we don't know who owns it. in fact, there are a lot of questions that still remain about it. the fact is that the terrain out there is so much more difficult because it is a mix of ice and snow out in the arctic right now. it may take a while for u.s. officials to be able to reach whatever was down, bring it back, study it, and then let us know what they have been able to find. it is been a week since they were able to start to pull some of that debris from the chinese building and they still having given us a huge picture of what was discovered. these things just take a little bit of time. as soon as they are able to do that, the white house in the pentagon says they will try to share more information. there is still so much information not known about this. what we do know is that the president really decided and

acted very quickly here, compared to the chinese balloon last week. they first detected this object on thursday evening, and by friday afternoon, the president had authorized fighter jets to take it out of the sky with a missile. here is a little more from white house spokesman john kirby on all of that and how that decision was made. >> the president was absolutely involved in this decision, he ordered it at the recommendation of the pentagon leaders. we are calling this an object because that is the best description we have right now. we do not know who owns it, whether it is state owned or corporate aunt, or privately owned. we just don't know. >> one other thing that the white house says they do know though is that this is very different in size to what we saw with the chinese spy balloon, which was about 20 stories high with a satellite component at the bottom. that was about the size of a regional jet. this object resemble more of what is like a small car, alex.

that is important piece of the context here as we work to find out a lot more about it. >> very much so, thank you so much for that report monica from the white house. joining me right now is washington post national security reporter ellen nausea and former fbi special agent tracey walter. welcome to you both, ellen, i will start with you. the white house, pentagon, state department, they have offered few details about this latest object that was shot down over alaska. again, monaco reporting there, is roughly the size of a car. they have confirmed that, they have not conclusively identified it. what new information have you learned about what this was and the decision to shoot down yesterday? >> as the congressman said, there really isn't much new to report yet. there is recovery efforts still underway. we are waiting and hoping for more information, maybe even later this afternoon. >> why ellen, don't we know the origin of this object? you think things like this would be tracked, right? as they are crossing the skies. does the pentagon really not

know, or are they just not saying. you have any reporting at all on where it came from? >> i do not have any reporting where came from and yesterday the pentagon and john kirby said that they still do not know who owns the aircraft. this object, even what it is. i think we'll just have to wait until they recover some of it from the bay area. >> ellen, are you surprised by that, the fact that they don't know more at this point? >> no, part of it is this object was smaller, and by some reports, it broke into some pieces when it landed on the ice and snow. the recovery efforts there are just much more challenging and difficult given the frigid temperatures and the ice. i'm going to wait and see what

they say. >> i'm gonna move to you now, tracey. from an intelligence standpoint for which you have a lot of experience, what do you think the pentagon actually knows about this object? it could be different than what we are being told in the public realm. >> you know, they may have an idea about where the object came from, but what they don't have an idea of is what the object was collecting. one of the things that i think is important to note about this object is that it was flying at about 20 to 25,000 feet lower than the chinese spy balloon that was taken, that was shot down over the coast of south carolina. that is different and that is different in terms of what you can collect. at those levels. also, the decision to shoot down was made so quickly because the reality is that passenger aircraft fly at about that altitude. it was confirmed that this particular object did not have the capabilities to steer itself so that does pose an imminent threat to the civilian population. i do think that it's going to

take a bit to be able to ascertain what this was collecting, but i think they may have an idea in terms of where it it will have come from. >> okay, i will hit on that point as far as a country of origin. what have we heard from china if this object came from? they're particularly on the heels of that, we did shoot down a week ago. do you find it odd that no country so far has complained about the u.s. shooting down an aircraft? >> in my opinion, no. i think the message that we have received from china over the past week since all of this began is actually one of confusion which is it surprising to me. and initially, when the spy balloon, i spy balloon was shot down they kind of gave us a message of we regret that this happen. and now we see a message sort of of anger. not taking our phone calls, not wanting to engage in a dialogue with us. i am actually not surprised that we haven't heard from them about this object, if it is theirs because the messaging

that we have been getting over the past week has really been one of confusion from them. which typically is not the case, they typically try to sort of play the victim and situations like that. that is pretty consistent across the board. this is a little different and how they have responded here. >> let me ask you about what we know about the pentagon not hesitating ellen, to shoot down the object. unlike the china spy balloon that wasn't downed until the atlantic and that followed the journey of several days across the u.s. mainland. what questions you have about the decision to delay shooting down that balloon and was delaying the interest of citizens safety, was that the right move? >> so there is quite a bit of debate ongoing now over whether that was the right decision on the hill on thursday both republican and democratic senators really took aim at the administration. questioning why there was this delay in shooting down the balloon, particularly when it

was over more remote areas of alaska. that you know pentagon officials who were at the hearing continue to insist that at the time, they wanted to both continue to gather information and intelligence from this balloon and they had determined that it wasn't of a danger or imminent danger to civilian life at that point. they decided to kind of track it and they cast it as somewhat as even an intelligence coup by having been able to gather information from the balloon as it was traversing to come to them. >> wait, i want to press you on that ellen. as there are more to the story about what intel the chinese spy balloon gathered? our officials telling you it is not as bad as some might think or to china really gather

sensitive information from the u.s. and if so, what kind of information? >> well what we know so far is that coming from some of the information from the spy things gathered as the balloon was crossing the united states and some from other balloons that have been recovered in the past is that this is a part of a big, broad chinese aerial surveillance program. it looks like for instance, this below and that was shot down last week was powered for instance by some solar panels that could power the intelligence and surveillance gathering. by indications, it looks like we don't know for sure yet. we don't know what the balloon collected but i suspect having spoken to experts that it's more of a tactical nature. perhaps of sort of by flying over military installations and

bases, they might be looking for information on weapons and weapons signals that can be emitted from these weapons. that could tell give them a little bit more information about how they might be able to jam, disrupt these weapons. >> that's a brain thought there. can you, tracey, read anything into the timing of both of these events? you have a week after every traverse of the continent, the u.s. snuffed out this on known objects as it enters our airspace. we have never seen anything like this before. now you know, two and less than a week. >> you know, i am not sure the timing is purposeful on the part of the chinese. i am not certain that they were taking this action on the heels of a really important trip, quite frankly by the secretary of state to their country in terms of our relationship with them. i do believe that the chinese spy balloon was absolutely collecting what we call mass and or signals intelligence. from, there you get electronic intelligence, communications

intelligence. i think that's what it was collecting and it looks like that pay load from what we are seeing is going to be recovered relatively intact. and i would argue that is a great thing from an intelligence perspective. however, i do think in terms of the timing, one of the things that they paid my interest is i believe it was on february 2nd. we signed a military agreement with the philippines which really expanded our military reach. somewhat close to taiwan and i am certain that that was not yet know well received by the chinese quite frankly. you know this could have been a reaction to that, although i don't see this as a reaction to that. >> interesting, all right alex knock russia and tracey walter, thank you so much for sharing your expertise and insight. we will see you again. and then meantime, other breaking news, the devastation in syria and turkey reaching a new grim milestone, at least 25,000 people are declared

dead. look at that number, it's remarkable. five days after that earthquake and its aftershocks rescue workers are still pulling people out alive. they are working around the clock and racing against time to find survivors, reality on the ground is pretty hard to imagine. many people have been forced to take shelter in a stadium turned shelter, desperately trying to escape freezing temperatures but the basic resources like food and water, they are hard to come by. let's go to nbc matt bradley who is joining us now from the epicenter there in turkey. you know, matt the death toll, the number jumping a few thousand today alone. do we have any sense of how many people are still unaccounted for? >> no, not really. i mean behind, me we understand that there is more than a dozen in this, building once the truck moves out of the way we are able to see. and this building, alone dozens who are unaccounted for. multiply this building times thousands, some 6000 falling buildings in turkey alone. probably more and then there is even more in neighboring syria.

we are still talking about huge numbers of unaccounted for people. some of those people are still dead in the wreckage. some of those people might still be alive and breathing even five days later, as i told you in the last hour. we are still seeing people coming out alive, just recently and today we heard of a family of five people who were all rescued alive. so we are still holding out hope, even as that death toll keeps climbing. >> that is extraordinary, that family of five. give me a sense of the challenges that remain to help those trying to recover. is it just about getting everything out? getting that the brie out? i mean that's a huge problem right there. >> well these are all delicate and desperate operations at the same time because it's also as you mention a race against time trying to find these people, look at to them, get them out before they died. we are well past that 72 hour

window when experts say you can expect the living rate, the survival right to really fall precipitously. by you know it still is a delicate maneuver because you are talking about removing people and not having the entire edifice of what is left. that did not kill them or that actually protect them from dying during the initial earthquake could still fall on top of them and kill them. that is always going to be very difficult. one of the things that i told you about that rescue operation that we witnessed last night. there is something called the -- problem. when you remove a living person, who has been either crushed or has been sedentary at lying down in one position for a long period of time, the toxins that form in their blood and in their body in order to protect them, back and be released and that can cause almost immediate death. there are health risks after that person has been moved or recovered. alex? >> matt, so hard to hear the

reporting about we are grateful they are bringing to us nonetheless. thank you matt bradley. how mike pence's relationship with the former president just got a lot more complicated this week. plus what we know about a classified document found at pence's house. pence's house. just buy any footlong in the app, and get one free. free monsters, free bosses, any footlong for free! this guy loves a great offer. let's see some hustle!

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pence is now at the center of two new developments out of the justice department right now. the doj is in possession of a several classified documents discovered in his indiana home on friday. the five hour search was conducted just 24 hours after special counsel jack smith subpoenaed pence as part of the doj's january six investigation. joining me now is meredith mcgraw, national political correspondent for politico. meredith, welcome, good to see you. first question, what was recovered from pence's home and where did investigators find those materials? >> so, yesterday investigators conducted a 56-hour search, the

former vice presidents home in carmel indiana. and they found one classified document and then five additional documents. what they were looking for was of course additional classified documents as they have in searches at biden's own, and of course in the former president trump's. but also, anything that we covered under the presidential records act that the national archives would be interested in. of course, his property of the government. >> let's look at something else that happened, which was on the heels of the pence search. we're learning today that trump's team has voluntarily turned over some additional materials to federal investigators. this happened over last several months. what we know about those items? >> well, trump's team has uncovered even more classified documents as they continue to go through his own belongings and documents there. >> wait, meredith, let me

double check. have they said that they have everything already? they assured investigators that they have everything, correct? >> yes, and they gave that assurance multiple times. >> i'm sorry to interrupt, continue. >> but, it is the latest tranche, it is ongoing, this back and forth efforts to collect even more classified documents that have been found. like i said, former president trump, president biden and of course vice president mike pence. >> as we cycle back to trump, pence, he has officially been subpoenaed by the doj. what does this pretty big step tell you about where the doj is in this investigation? >> this does seem like a pretty significant move here by the doj. giving a subpoena to mike pence, they are looking for any additional correspondence that

he may have had with former president trump. anything he can talk about in terms of conversations they had, leading up to january 6th. and of course, his own eyewitness account that he has detailed in his own memoir. pence is known for being an executive privilege hawk. it'll be interesting to see how he asserts there. we do know that trump's team does not plan to intervene here, at least for now. >> how important is it to get mike pence under oath? >> i think it would be incredibly important to the direction of the investigation. you know, mike pence has shown, even in the face of january 6th, he has continued to be loyal to trump in a lot of ways, even after all of that. but he has talked about what he went through that day, how is making decisions about efforts

that were being pushed against him by the former presidents own team. getting any of that information i'm sure is incredibly important to the investigation. >> look, he also mentioned his book, the fact is that a lot is out there in the public realm. does that nullify his ability to claim executive privilege, were he to try to use that to avoid testifying on certain issues? >> i think that is a big question. he has published this book, there have been photos and conversations that revealed from that day. it is all part of what investigators are interested in. >> well, always interested in hearing what you have to say about pre-match everything, meredith. i will see you again soon, thank you very much. they came looking to distract and turn the state of the union to a hot mess, and maybe it was mission accomplished, but not in the way they hoped. we are going to talk about this headline, with howard e. next. headline, with howard e. next. like the subway series menu.

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times that you have an intention to run for reelection but you haven't made the decision yet. what is stopping you from making that decision? >> i am just not ready to make it. >> there is no motive behind that? >> no. >> there you heard, it president biden now says he is not yet ready to decide whether to run for reelection in 2024. this after months of signaling that he was preparing for another presidential campaign. joining me now is vermont, former vermont governor dean and also a former democratic presidential candidate. currently a good friend to us, good to see you howard. what do you make of his hesitation. and it has been wildly presumed that the president will be running in 2024. we have just been all waiting for him to make it official. that is the statement he made

right there change out at all for you? >> not a bit i mean look the president would like to control his own agenda. the news media like to control the presidents agenda. who do you think will win that fight for the sake of the president? here is just fencing and aggressive, interview or this will be the first or the last time in his 50-year career that he is done that. >> okay so let's take a look at a new opinion piece that comes from the washington post. takes a look at why democrats are not lining up to run against biden and it says the main reason biden is almost certain to beat democrats 2024 nominee is that the party does not have a clear way to choose a strong alternative candidate. weigh in on. that do you agree? >> no, it is just ridiculous. this is now become a washington post or given as you know i think washington is basically middle school on steroids. hardworking smart people or 13 years old with the majority of 13 year olds are always about them. this is silly, this is an editorial power game.

of course it would be difficult to unseat an existing president. of course it would, it is always difficult. until that happens. the last time that i think it happened was one mccarthy unseated johnson, that it was pushed out of the way by kennedy and then mcgovern are so this is just a washington park or game. biden will decide my personal bet is that he will run again. and i actually think that he has done a great job. the biggest problem that he's got is that he's 80 years old. well so what? put me in the camp of wishing we had a 40 year old. we don't and i think joe biden's done a hell of a job. i really have to say that and i was not particularly a biden guy but he has really done great. i thought his state of the union was masterful. you have to go back a very long way to find somebody that did that. >> yes, all right let me move to speaking of the masterful part. the president is trickling down the street on the protection and the future of social security and medicare.

it was days after that tense exchange during the state of the union and what you sparred with republicans. and a lot of time over the matter, take a listen. >> some republicans want medicare and social security to sunset, i am not saying it's a majority. and a buddy who doubts it, contact my office. i will give you a copy. i will give you a copy of the proposal. >> you may have had someone on a debate on the state of the union but i was glad to see everybody says we will not cut social security and medicare. i noticed that happen but i hope that's true. >> all that back push there, the op of the word was some republicans. that is absolutely true. i could listen right now but that said what do you make of that exchange and how he handled it? >> biden was brilliant. he baited them into it and he rose right to the bait. rick scott who has all kinds of problems and his background including trying to cheat the government out of 1 million and a half dollars when it was the

head of some company that i've forgotten which one it was. the hcca i think? so he comes out with this plan to cut this on such a security and medicare, he did not think that would get caught doing that. -- >> he put something for that said it basically would have to be voted every five years to see if you want to continue with this. >> exactly, that's right. he got caught with his pants down and biden called him out on national television in front of 27 million people. i thought that biden, i was really a great speech. i have no idea who helped him write it but somebody always helps the president write the speeches. i have to go back, maybe as far as lyndon johnson's speech, where he said i have the power to use it on the anti-poverty program. it was a great speech. >> it was a great, speech let's also say the interestingly, 72 hours later, rick scott came out with a plan to safeguard medicare and social security.

okay so let's talk about the new article, this one comes from time magazine. w it's a just power that heckles to in the state of the union into a biden 2024 ad. saying the president sees and handling the exchange with republicans, in front of the audience in millions to your point. analysts said the establishment is not yet ready to toss their 80 year old standard bearer overboard. you know look, do you agree? there was a performance under pressure, does it strengthen his standing as a possible 2024 campaign candidate? >> it certainly does but look, the establishment the quote unquote establishment whoever they are wasn't going to trust biden overboard anyway. they probably can't. i mean you would have to have a much younger candidate with a whole party behind them, that is not the way the democratic party or the republican party works for that matter. that will not happen, as i said before it's a washington park lure game and biden really, really did a good job and i

think he did strengthen his standing. he strengthened the enthusiasm inside the beltway, here is a guy that knows how to punch well above his weight. you just cold cocked the republicans and everybody is writing about it which i think is great. >> yes, let me ask you quickly though i am out of time, south carolina moving up to number one other democratic primary. what do you think? >> i think it is fair, i am a little uneasy about. it certainly i what was never going to happen. it is through the iowa and new hampshire and mostly white states and our core party is very mixed. it looks like the rest of america unlike the republicans of course. i don't think it's unreasonable to give south carolina attorney. i like small state first because i think that you force people to meet individuals and not go in there with a gazillion dollars and buy a television. i think it makes a lot of sense. >> okay howard dean, you make sense as always, thank you very much my friend. let's go now to arizona, this year's super bowl upping the ante happening for the first time in a state that allow

sports betting, that kansas city chiefs in philadelphia eagles are gearing up for the big game in arizona. that is also where we find nbc shaq brewster who is joining us now. so shack you have the eagles and the chiefs, they both have very loyal fan bases and now you have the governors of pennsylvania -- they are even wagering on this game. what is going on? it is like the thing to bet on the super bowl. >> that is exactly right. the last hour we talked about how many fans are placing that sports wager, now you have the governors of both of the teams, the states going and making that bet as. well the past hour or so, they each met together, they exchange the teams flags and they made a bet that the losing team needs to fly the winning teams flag over the state capital. they are getting in on the action as well. i want you to listen to a little bit of what we heard from that missouri governor, mike parson about what led to

this bat and this wager. >> yes, i am always a game or you know? i like sports all my life and i think when we first be able to do, this make a little bit you know it's the best food or something like that. as that hey i want to exchange the flag, let's make this interesting and kind of man up and see where we go with this. it is fun. >> man up, and let's see where we got. it apparently they signed the flag before exchanging it as well. there you, have it little bipartisan but here the super bowl weekend. >> yes, let me ask you quickly. confirmed yes or no, is the president doing the traditional pre-game interview? a lot of back and forth on that. >> yes, a lot of back and forth but continues into today. as of this point, it looks like that is not happening. this is a presidential tradition that goes back to president george h. w. bush's. president bush did, it blocked it and even president trump did the super bowl interview. usually lighter topics that the host will ask the president a fine kind of event before the

game. what happened with this the white house said no longer happening. fox says it is what the white house says no, that is not true. a lot of back-and-forth, we will see what ultimately happens tomorrow. >> i have to urge for you, stay tuned. okay thank you my friend, good to see you. they knew battle looming and abortion rights on top of wendy davis about a texas judge who will make a ruling that could ban abortion pills nationwide. ationwide. ♪♪ what will you do? will you make something better? create something new? our dell technologies advisors can provide you with the tools

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for a safe and legal abortion access here in the u.s.. women will now have access to the abortion pill met a prayer stone for at least another two weeks after a texas federal judge extended the deadline in a lawsuit that is blocking access to the medication. joining me now is when he, davis former and founder of the deeds not words. welcome back wendy, let's get into this because if this lawsuit is successful, it blocks nationwide access to this abortion pill. even in the states that have recently ensured access to abortion and their state constitution. is there any validity rather to the loss claim that the fda lacks the authority to approve the drug and did not adequately study its safety and efficacy? because i am curious what the fda's response about the health outcomes for a woman who rely on this pill to safely and pregnancies?

>> you know the fda points out that this drug went through a four-year analysis for its approval to go on the market for this particular use and the year 2000. and the drug is used not only to terminate pregnancies but it's also used in other instances, autoimmune disorders for example is the shrug and i think it is really been a bit of a challenge to get the administration, biden administration and others in congress to really take seriously this particular challenge because even though you may live in a state where abortion is legal like california or new york, the right to an abortion doesn't give you the right to a particular method of abortion. what can paxson and texas is trying to do, filing this suit with the judge was shown himself to be an extremist, who has been very anti abortion and other opinions as to basically block the use of this drug for

anyone no matter where you live at. more than 50% of abortions right now across this country are used, non surgically, performed by using this drug. it would have an impact that is incredibly widespread. >> to your point, it is the most common method and terminating a pregnancy in this country. how many women would potentially lose access to abortion if it is banned? >> gosh i, mean hundreds of thousands honestly. when you think about right now what is happening. if you live in a state where i live, taxes and you need an abortion and you need a surgical abortion, you are traveling to another state to get that procedure. as medication abortion is removed as an option, it's going to create a catastrophic situation where the clinics that are barely able to keep pace right now with demand from people coming from states like mine are suddenly going to be having to keep the man with

100% of the abortion procedures for us right now, less than 50% of those that are being performed using medication abortion. >> yes you mentioned texas attorney general ken paxton who this week, before this week of course aggressively and antiabortion stance. he filed a lawsuit challenging federal guidance for pharmacies to fill prescriptions for abortion inducing medication. this is after the department of health and human services, after roe was overturned, reminded pharmacies of their obligations under federal civilized laws. so tell me about the paxton lawsuit and his money efforts to restrict safe and legal abortions in your state of texas? >> yes, i think a good place to start alex when we think about this is the fact that in texas, abortion is already criminalized and yes, our attorney general continues to take these really aggressive approaches by what impact

people in texas but also elsewhere around the country. when the biden administration did was basically to say to pharmacies, just a reminder if a prescription is presented to you for this medication, you are required under federal guidelines to fill it. what paxton is trying to say that that is actually indeed not the case. and so he is kind of going with a 12 punch here. number one, the drug itself should be illegal. it should be taken off of the market. a number, to even if it is legal, pharmacies across the country can't refuse to dispense it. i think a lot of people will use this drug for purpose is helping them to complete the termination of a miscarried pregnancy have already found themselves trying to fill these prescriptions at pharmacies that have their own conscious

objections to the use of this drug. and they are certainly being reminded by the biden administration that they are required to fill it. >> it is an ongoing conversation we will, have bring you back very soon to further discuss it. thank you wendy, good to see you. coming up next, the author of this new article about the economy and why some see it as too good to be true, despite inflation. with floodlight, with intelligent alerts when a person or familiar face is detected. so you can listen in... sam. and even speak up. sophie's not here tonight. i can show her the video tomorrow, and you can keep playing. thank you. that would be great. ♪ this feels so right... ♪ when the most trusted name in home security adds the intelligence of google, you have a home with no worries. brought to you by adt.

♪ ...i'm over 45. ♪ you have a home with no worries. ♪ 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! ♪ we are back now with a new take in a not have yet heard on the economy, and ongoing contrast as inflation remains though cooling a bit, the labor department and the market rather is tighter than ever with historically low unemployment. our next guest looks at this complicated economic picture and finds quote one plausible explanation for this, to get to be true economy. washington post editorial writer and columnist heather

longest running the. nice to see you how they're. you actually pointed out multiple possible causes but you say quote that the most plausible explanation of all is at the pandemic and subsequent recovery are so unusual that the normal rules of economics don't apply. but if the rules don't apply, walk us through how all of these factors low unemployment, high inflation, record profits, how does it all fit together? >> yes so -- two factors that are really driving -- [inaudible] we're so good, we sought the widest profit margins since 1950. they were able to raise prices, just keep raising those prices and so normally and those profit margins would calm down like what we are seeing now, companies would be looking to fire workers and cut costs at

every -- but the reality is most -- does not expect [inaudible] return to normal as opposed to a doomsday situation. [inaudible] such low unemployment. we do things coming on, one is companies affording workers. they do not want to let workers go. but many industries think about [inaudible] they don't have enough workers to even be at that normal scenario. they don't want to let people go right now, like then might have in other times. on top of, that immigration has finally picked up legal immigration. we all know what happened to that under the trump administration during covid. no one coming into the country. suddenly, it's a little bit easier to find more workers. again very unusual to see that 3.4% unemployment. >> well i will say this all

makes a lot of, sent trying to piece them together for us. but they are still forthcoming. we have had a little trouble with your audio, a little bit of breaking news, i will wrap it up right now. we will see you again my friend, heather long. this is what we have to share with all of, your breaking news on the special counsel subpoena of former vice president mike pence. nbc news has just learned that attorneys for former president trump are expected to fight that subpoena on the grounds of executive privilege. the trump campaign has not responded to requests for comment. there is trump world attorneys have also declined to comment but again, we do expect that the donald trump and his attorneys will fight to the special counsel subpoena a former vice president mike pence on the grounds of executive privilege. that will do it for me on this edition of alex witt reports, i will see you again tomorrow at noon eastern. my friend yasmin vossoughian continues our coverage. with just one pill a day. choose acid prevention. choose nexium.

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