tv Alex Wagner Tonight MSNBC June 28, 2023 6:00pm-7:00pm PDT
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educators. and limit the students ability to actually have an environment where they are able to freely learn. >> the book is called my shadows for, for already today and i thought it was great. and i thought it was as you said inclusive and about understanding and about maybe not fitting into the way people think you should be. but how that is okay. and katy is a teacher down there in cobb county, georgia. now facing possible termination for the violation of reading that what under georgia state law. katie, thank you so much for telling us your story tonight. >> thank, you chris. >> that is all in on this wednesday night, alex wagner tonight starts right now, good evening, alex. tonight chris, you know, there e always been so many appalling challenges in the road for teachers in america. and then what is happening in states like georgia and in florida to make them terrified for their livelihood. because they want to have an
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inclusive curriculum is just. i mean, it's really -- >> folks should check out the book, but the idea of this book is divisive worth a threat as a little hard to stomach. >> yeah, and then the after effect on what happens to kids? >> yes. >> anyway, that is a great story and it's good on you to cover it. >> thank you to you at home for joining us this hour. if you follow politics at all then you will remember that president trump's lawyer rudy giuliani held a news conference right after the 2020 election, it was held, if you remember, at four seasons total landscaping. a gardening business just off the interstate in philadelphia, nestled in between an adult bookstore and a crematorium. honestly, i don't know that we ever definitively settled on why the press conference was held there. but the whole reason rudy giuliani trotted himself at that morning in front of the gardening business was to baselessly claim that the election had been stolen. the real chef's kiss here is that that fever dream of a
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press conference took place exactly at the national news network we're calling the election for joe biden. and honestly as unbelievable as that series of events was, it was not even the most memorable news conference that rudy giuliani held that month. just over a week later mr. giuliani held another one, where he appeared to be, for lack of a better term, melting? during that press conference he claimed that trump had won pennsylvania by 300,000 votes. that michigan was won by 50,000 votes. i knew there was no evidence of that. but he promised that it was coming. giuliani made those claims alongside another trump lawyer who alleged that the election had been stolen by the venezuelans and the cubans and the chinese and that the voting machines had been hacked by hugo chavez. even though hugo chavez had died seven years prior. all you have to do here was connect the dots. so those bizarre spectacles
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were memorable. but these are just the, what should be safe? the amuse-bouche for what was to come. by early december giuliani had testified before georgia state lawmakers spreading an elaborate conspiracy theory that two poll workers had brought in two cases full of fraudulent biden ballots and scammed those fraudulent ballots through the tabulation machine multiple times. giuliani showed surveillance video that he claimed showed the poll workers exchanging u.s. the memory sticks, saying it looked like they were passing vials of heroin or cocaine. in reality that video showed one of the women passing the other one a ginger mint. the effect of that testimony was that those two women's lives were destroyed. they faced death threats. they were forced to quit their jobs. they went into hiding. and yet giuliani's conspiracy theories did not end. they rolled on like a freight train.
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january 6th committee uncovered substantial evidence that mr. giuliani had personally pressured officials in swing states to draw up alternate slates of electors. claiming trump the winner in states that biden had actually won. so to this and giuliani called the pennsylvania house speaker on a nearly daily basis. it did not matter that that lawmakers attorneys eventually told mr. giuliani to please stop. giuliani kept calling. >> this is really giuliani and jenna ellis. we are calling you together because we would like to discuss obviously the election. >> hey, brian, it's rudy. we really have something important call you to your attention. i think it can really change things. >> i understand that you don't want to talk to me now, i just want to bring some facts to your attention and talk to you as a republican. >> giuliani did the same thing in arizona, again pushing for state officials to overturn the election results. and when giuliani was pressed
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for evidence of voting malfeasance, well, he famously admitted, quote, we have got lots of theories, we just don't have the evidence. aside from pressuring lawmakers, giuliani helped file a raft of baseless lawsuits with other members of trump's dubiously named elite strikeforce. more than 60 cases were brought forth on the president's behalf. and none of the allegations of fraud panned out. as things were more desperate, giuliani's department an hours long meeting in the oval office. in which he and other outside advisers, batted around the idea of having the military seize voting machines. and although we thought that that was maybe a fringe too far, giuliani personally asked the department of homeland security about seizing those voting machines. when all of this went nowhere, giuliani became a key part of the presidents war room at the willard hotel in the white house. in that room giuliani appeared up with other trump loyalists for the last stand, an effort
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to block the certification of electoral votes on january 6th. and on january 6th itself, rudy giuliani famously stood in front of thousands in the capital and made these remarks before all heck broke loose. >> this will right, a lot of them will go to jail. >> so let's have trial by combat. i am willing to stake my reputation, the president is willing to take his reputation on the fact that we are going to find criminality there. >> it is by no means an overstatement to say that rudy giuliani was a central figure in president trump's effort to stay in power. and that history is well to remember because it makes the league's reporting today in the new york times all the more notable. according to the times giuliani was interviewed last week by federal prosecutors investigating the mr. trump's
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efforts to overturn the 2020 election. a voluntary interview which took place under what is known as a proper agreement was a significant development in the election interference investigation led by special counsel jack smith. and the latest indication that mr. smith and his team are actively seeking witnesses who might cooperate in the case. the session with mr. giuliani focused on the ways that mr. trump thought to maintain his grip on power including the fake electors scheme. the conspiracy theories pushed by trump's legal team. and the scene at the willard. a political adviser to mr. giuliani says -- entire voluntary and conducted in a professional manner. now it is worth noting exactly what a proper agreement entails. as the times notes, a proper agreement is an understanding between prosecutors and people who are subject of criminal investigations that's can then proceed a formal cooperation deal. the subjects agreed to provide
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useful information, sometimes to tell their side of the story. to stave off potential charges. which to avoid testifying under subpoena for a grand jury. in exchange, prosecutors agree not to use those statements against them in criminal proceedings unless it is determined that they were lying. this is certainly reporting that makes you sit up and pay attention. it also raises a whole lot of questions. joining us now is mary mccord, former acting assistant tierney general for special security and now executive director of the institute for constitutional advocacy and production. and a professor at the georgetown university law center. she is also of course the co-host of the great msnbc podcast prosecuting donald trump. also with us tonight is michael moore, former u.s. attorney for the middle shift of georgia. and a current partner at the law firm warhol in atlanta. very, michael thank you for joining me. my first question, mary, is who pushed to hear? giuliani or the special counsel.
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>> well i didn't see that in the reporting. and so i am not sure and it could go either way. sometimes in investigations that i took part of when i was at the u.s. attorney's office and also even at the national security division, when we were getting close to an indictment or sometimes even earlier on in those stages of an investigation. we would reach out to people who had information that we thought could be very helpful. and often that opportunity to come in in accordance with a proper agreement. sometimes called a queen for the agreement because that agreement says that you come and tell us things and you are essentially queen for a day. we can't use anything you tell us against you. if you are ultimately to be prosecuted. with one caveat, that being that you can't lie. if you lie all bets are off. which we can use all of this against you. but oftentimes it also would be instigated by the defense attorneys. they were either worried that potentially they're quite willing to be indicted. or early on an investigation
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just wanted to get out there in front of it and try to stay off of anything, including as the new york times reporting says, a grand jury subpoena. so it could go either way. and it's sometimes -- beneficial. let the defense wants to get that chance. so look what you saw information i have in the hope that we will not end up in a plea agreement. but will end up just completely not prosecuted at all in return for your information. the government gets to kind of get a little sneak peek of what you have to say. to corroborate things, think they ought to know. learn new things. and decide if they want to enter into some sort of cooperation agreement with particular individual. >> yeah, michael, i mean, the sector also of fani willis and her criminal investigation down in your state and georgia have to figure into this as well? what it's not? >> yeah, well i am glad to be with you, marianne. i do think it probably plays and at some point. i, mean they're very different investigations. on the one hand you've got the special counsel who is really
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investigating -- this returnee. luckily electric -- specifically looking at violations of state law. whether or not these were committed now? the problem for the former mayor of new york city is that he came out here in search of those who are not apparently true to say the same legislator. and that places him indifferent category. maybe that he is dealing with with the special counsel at this point. so there is a little bit of an inner movement story here to be told. but again there are different courts are doing prosecutors, there are different allegations. and i am not so sure that any type of proper agreement of the special counsel made unless he is more hoping to work this out older is, documents didn't have any impact on the georgia investigation right now? >> mary was with you on that in terms of the degree to which this council is even talking about fani willis and her investigation? and the fact that she has
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basically telegraphed that charges may come at the end of july or early august in terms of jack smith's own timeframe for all of this. >> yeah i agree with michael, with respect to sort of how the proper agreement might factor in. rudy giuliani is sort of facing different things in georgia and in the jacks mitt federal investigation. but i do think the timing to your question project smith the timing is important. he has got to be thinking about the timeframe that fani willis indicated. you know, a special grand jury or the grand jury coming there in august. then actually asking the court there to not hold the court for a few days weeks. and that certainly was a signal to a lot of us that maybe there was going to be action during that time period and she was trying to make arrangements. she is being very concerned about public safety and the whole alarm that comes against a former president. for jack smith it's probably got that timeline, in mind.
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we also as the timeline of if i'm gonna bring an indictment, and if it is going to involve donald trump, we'll be able to get to trial before the election in november 2024? so i think he is above both of those things in mind. and he certainly may have a reason to want to be fani willis to it. i mean, he is a federal prosecutor, his case is bigger and it is more expansive. and might want to just get a jump before bonnie willis comes in with her case. but i think he is really gonna be. also he has another big case he's prosecuting. and he's got to think about the timeline for that as well. >> michael, in terms of, i mean, giuliani knows a lot about what went on in terms of trump's efforts to undermine the 2020 election. of the reporting that we have we know that special counsel investigators are focused on a few areas. one is the place of fake electors. two is the hold of other lawyers including john eastman and sidney powell. and three is the scene at the
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war room at the willard hotel on january 5th. if you are looking at those things, what is of most interest to you in terms of what giuliani can give you? what is the most useful for a federal prosecutor in terms of his vantage point? >> you, know i really think it is likely the idea of the fake electors. and that was because it was happening across multiple states. that's something that federal prosecutors look at. you know, how broad is the net? how do i get outside one state should-ish diction? do i look at if we cross state lines with this crime or with this fraud? i think in that instance they have. we know that the special counsel issued in this because he has been talking to other witnesses. he has had people come in, he has had folks in other states come in and talk about how this got set up. so the idea that the architects of this scheme might somehow be of interest to him would be important. whether or not giuliani is one of the architects that is what he is looking to find out i think at this point.
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so if i think i were looking, and i do think it was just a matter of fact that the cases better prosecuted than the federal courts. because of this, because of sort of the historic nature that we are talking, about with a former president. but also because you have a federal coalition that sort of reaches outside of the territorial jurisdictions of state lines. i said, look, i've got to talk about everything that happened from here to the, you know, to the west coast. and so that is going to be important. so, you, know my guess at this point is that probably he is interested in that. and that is where he was looking at giuliani about having some information on how that came about. it is not illegal to think about alternative legal plans. it is not illegal to think about strategy, it may be out there. i am not seeing any of them really had merits. you know, folks who believe that the earth is round and not square. but that is where we are right now. so if he is thinking, about look, how do i move forward with a possible criminal case? how do i get information about what might be out there? the idea that people were
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thinking at the time after they viola cast lost in election that they should've known, they are thinking, well, is there something else we can do? is there anybody else we should talk to? is there any other people that may have some information? that may not be legal. but the idea of having individuals come in and say i am an elector now, or maybe do something that appeared to be fraudulent or filing false statements or giving false testimony. making false representations of courts, or legislative bodies. that is a different thing. so that is the answer you're looking for? >> to be clear, the earth's round. it is not square. and -- >> but some folks believe -- >> yeah, some of us. mary, you know, the other part, to michaels point sitting aside the scheme or the backup plan of false electors, giuliani can speak to trump's knowledge of whether or not he actually thought the election had been lost. whether he knew what he was doing and saying was fraudulent.
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and the degree to which he was personally involved in the recruitment and the strategizing timed knowingly false slates of electors going forward, right? i mean that seems that trump's involvement here, giuliani seems to be the key and the lock to basically growing that open? >> yeah. that is absolutely right. all of those things. and i do think in addition to looking into the fraudulent electors scheme, i agree with michael that sort of initially if you are still litigating in certain states about who is a winner, it's worth having conversations or spreadsheets about the trump electors. but remember, by january 6th all of the litigation, you know, had been resolved against mr. trump. in those swing states, the positions have been made by the court that joe biden was the winner. and nevertheless there was still this effort to get those slates of electors to the vice president on january 6th.
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i mean some of the witnesses that have recently been talking to the grand jury and jack smith including michael roman and his deputy were on january 6th trying to get those falsely developers to the vice president. and so i think what jack smith is trying to do here is people to tell the big picture story and to all the people things each to, alex. like what did mr. trump know? what did he believe? who told him? and we know some of this from the house. and that committee. but all of those top advisors had told him that there was no fraud in the election significant enough to make any difference in any of these swing states. what did he know about the fraudulent elector scheme inside of the litigation anything states? and, you know, what was his involvement? certainly we know he was involved in pressuring some state officials. like secretary of state raffensperger. while they were just in his orbit pressured other state officials. and i think there is another aspect of this besides the fraudulent electors scheme that i think is also an jacks mitt writer. and that is the funding that he
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was doing based on his claims of fraud in the election. fundraising supposedly to actually continue to litigate the, you know, his claims of a fraudulent election. and that is a real red bread and butter kind of case for the government to make. if there is fraud in this solicitation of money. that is pretty simple wire fraud type of case. so i think that is another place that jack smith is looking for bite size things. he will tell a big story if you bring the indictment, but he doesn't need to, you know, boil the ocean and bring every possible charge that he could. he needs to be able to have a coherent theory. and. he took off all of the elements of that for the jury in front of -- >> yeah that's what he's doing in mar-a-lago, right? simple. willful retention of documents, straightforward, not bringing in the bedminster case. just going with what they had. and to your point, it remains to be seen as he takes that
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narrow very prove-able not a novel path forward on something like january 6th going for something like wire fraud. we will see, mary and, report michael moore, thank you both for your time and expertise this evening. i appreciate it. >> have a good night. >> we have a lot more to get to this evening as the state of texas suffers from a lethal heat wave. some recent news by republicans, they are not doing anything to cool things down. but in russia another plot twist in the attempted mutiny by mercenary fighters. we will have more on that coming up next. up next with a majority of my patience with sensitivity, i see irritated gums and weak enamel. sensodyne sensitivity gum & enamel relieves sensitivity, helps restore gum health, and rehardens enamel.
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as you can see prigozhin, the chief of the russian mercenary group known as the wagner group was launching an open rebellion against the russian military. russian president vladimir putin was nowhere to be found, he wasn't talking to reporters, there was no official statement, he was effectively michigan action despite the most traumatic challenge to his leadership in 23 years. and when putin finally did surface, some 48 hours later, he only did so to deliver a short message that raised more questions than answers. but now president putin can't stop talking. on monday night he met with a security council, a televised event showing putin sitting near his general.
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and sure the kremlin ruled out the mud -- to deliver another speech thinking the military. and then he met with a group of military servicemen and meeting the kremlin also put on national television. >> with these messages it appears that putin's intent on -- convoy or thousands of mercenaries launched a rebellion with wednesday to stop them. -- where that mitt in the case. -- u.s. intelligence officials is reporting that and he russian generals immune named -- real about for goshen's insurrection all along. and the wall street journal reports today that prigozhin's plan was to capture russian military leaders likely with the help from other russian officials. prigozhin originally intended to capture the defense minister and the chief of russia's general stuff. but the federal security service found out about the
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plan two days before it was to be executed. prigozhin's blot relied on his belief that a part of russia's armed forces would join the rebellion and turn against their own commanders. western officials said they believe the original plot had a good chance of success. but failed after the conspiracy was leaked. forcing prigozhin to emphasize and an alternate plan. the kremlin now claims it to know about prigozhin's plan ahead of time. but if it did why did the kremlin not stop him and why was prigozhin and the wagner group able to take control of a large russian city without firing a single shot? well, i have just the right person to ask. joining me now is andre -- former russian minister of foreign affairs. mr. -- thank you for being with me tonight. and i first would love to get your perspective on whether you think prigozhin did in fact have internal support. and whether he would have gotten this far without it? >> well i think that i hear
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some contacts and definitely has people in the army. because he was fighting in ukraine. and he was fighting and other places to. with their support. and putin now -- the whole arrangement as opposed to -- when you have that service even before. and then it was just a state enterprise. it's called a private company, but nothing private when they get weapons from the international state. they get -- so they are just another apartment so to say, of the ministry of defense. and that's why if you had better people. and many in russia and in the
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-- hour appearing disillusioned with what happened in ukraine. they thought it would be blitzkrieg, but it turns out a long and bloody war. and many of them critical of the leadership. so he had all -- may be some conversations which encouraged him to believe that he would be supported and whether -- overthrow putin. so the land -- insurrection. and that is misleading. it was a giant idea to change the leadership of the newest --
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in revenge. and many people would be very sympathetic and many people will be very sympathetic with that. but they are also -- they are -- that is why it failed. but putin definitely earned it. and that is why he went out speaking against -- that nonsense. and now he is kind of trying to calm down. and the meeting with the people and his entourage. with the police and all of that. so it shows that he is not a strong command in leadership. he is just a strongman as of
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this statement. and he is a dictator. but he is, you know, caught up. he is trying to hide everything now with iraq. but you know what, of course they knew a lot. because that is the organized crime organization, the russian leadership, the russian government, putin's regime is just a -- and and russia people know each other. and they conspire against each other and they conspire and divide all the time in hidden fleece to get a better -- something like that. they're fighting inside for all of that. and that is what --
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the fight for power and the fight for criminal organizations. >> yes, in the process putin may have lost two of his most effective fighting forces in ukraine. general seraphin and the wagner group. we will see how it all pans out, andrea, thank you so much for your time -- >> thank you. >> when we come, back a brutal heat wave makes texas one of the hottest places on earth right now. certain republican politicians would rather let people die and pay for air conditioning. stay with us. and it could strike at any time. think you're not at risk? wake up. because shingles could wake up in you. if you're over 50, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about shingles prevention. when the murrays discovered gain scent beads, they fell in love with the irresistible scent. ♪ ♪ huh, huh, so did their dog roger. ♪ ♪ gain scent beads keep even the stinkiest stuff smelling fresh.
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heart this morning. in the last eight days in our county we have lost nine presidents to this heat. >> that was the webb county texas medical examiner on monday at the u.s. mexico border. since then two more people died in webb county from the current heat wave. last monday more than 500 miles away on the other side of texas the 35-year-old power line mechanic died after stopping work because of heat exhaustion. the next day another 200 miles away in dallas a u.s. postal service workers died on the job. these deaths are not outliers. they are the new normal. last year, texas saw 279 people died from heat related causes. and that number is likely an
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undercount. so how is texas's leadership setting up the state to handle this new reality? earlier this month republican governor greg abbott signed a bill that eliminated workplace safety ordinances for outdoor workers like mandated water breaks and require to rest. eliminated. now tens of millions of americans from arizona to florida are sweltering under this heat wave. texas is currently one of the hottest places on earth. with temperatures rivaling the sahara desert and parts of the persian gulf. extra -- extra taxes power grid, which is the thing powering or veered conditions in the state, history demand on that power grid search to its highest point ever. and for the most part the power actually stayed on. you may remember that that power grid failed after demand surged in a winter storm about two years ago. at the time texas governor abbott blamed green energy for the grid's failure, despite the fact that the state ran mostly
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on fossil fuel power and it was the fossil fuel part of the system that failed. you may be wondering how high is the texas power grid stayed on this around? the answer is green energy. specifically solar power. the amount of solar energy generated in texas has doubled since the start of last year. and experts credit that increase with keeping the power grid online. but when pushing a proposed tax incentive program for energy production in texas earlier this year. governor abbott's big deadline was that no renewable energy projects being included in it. >> i support not providing economic incentives for renewables. as it concerns especially energy. and power and the power grid. our focus is on dispatchable power. to make sure that we will have the needed dispatchable power to provide reliable electricity to everybody in the state. >> and then there is the texas prison system, where more than two thirds of prisons do not
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have air conditioning in living areas at all. did the texas tribune reports that since its latest heat wave gripped texas, at least nine inmates have died of heart attacks or unknown causes in prisons lacking air conditioning. earlier this year the texas state house voted in more than $500 million to install air conditioners in all texas prisons over the next decade. but last month the republican -controlled state senate rejected that proposal. now if that may sound like a lot of money until you realize that texas currently has a nearly 33 billion dollar budget surplus. we are in this wild moment in which red states are at the forefront of some of the greatest impacts of climate change, and at the same time republican leadership in these states is so adamant about not acknowledging climate change, not being coward by the libs, they are literally letting their citizens die. we are gonna talk to one of the democrats pushing for some real sensible action here coming right up next.
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state jail. which is the maximum sentence. two years felt like a death sentence for lunar and the other women in that jail, because of the heat. which was in the triple digits. with the state now shattering heat records, state lawmakers in texas have attempted to pass laws to protect inmates in the summer by requiring air conditioning. but republicans have largely tanked those efforts. texas inability, or it's resistance, to respond to this climate related crisis is not that different from what happened in the state after 2021 winter storm, when mass blackout resulted in hundreds of deaths. after that deadly winter, democratic state representative james tele-rico trying to pass a climate action bill. calling the storm a wake up call, that is fit's bill failed and committee again on party lines. in the meantime, texas is grappling with the deadly reality of a changing climate, instead of enacting measures that might help its citizens adapt to rising temperatures, or at the very least, survive them, republicans in the state
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have sought to rollback assistance and unwind regulations and make texas a sanctuary state. for the oil and gas industry. joining us now is texas state representative james tele-, rico hooligan, authored one of the many climate bills that republicans and legislature have stifled. as well as -- david wallace-wells. thank you both for being here tonight. representative, let me start with you, since we talked a lot in the wind up to this about texas and what's happening there. i am struck by the inherent cruelty of some of these republican lawmakers, who understand very much, that their constituents are dying. because of this heat. and seem very, i mean, uninterested in doing the basic, taking the basic measures to help them. can you offer any insight into why the resistance, in terms of putting air conditioning in texas prisons, which get to be in the triple digits, in terms of heat? >> well, if you grew up in
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canada like ted cruz or you grew up in maryland like our lieutenant governor, dan patrick, you may think that texas summers have always been this hot. texans know that our climate is changing. i'm an eighth generation texan, my family's been here since it was mexico. i remember, on summer days, just like this one, i could ride my bike all day long. when i was a kid. it was hot, but it wasn't this hot. now, we are quickly approaching the point in this state when it may be too dangerous to let our kids outside to play in the summertime. the last eight summers have been the hottest summers in recorded history. just in the last decade, texans have faced historic droughts, devastating wildfires. 500 year floods, and the deadliest winter storm in our state's history. this is historic eat wave is not the first climate disaster, and it will not be the last. in the last legislative session, republican politicians spent
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all their time banning books, banning drag queens, when we can't even keep the heat on when it gets cold, we can't keep the iran when it gets hot. maybe instead of obsessing so much about people's private parts, they should come together with democrats, fix the grid, invest in renewables, and save our state for future generations. >> you, know david, i was struck, we played some of the sound of governor abbott saying he did not want renewable energy to be part of a portfolio of tax incentives. for energy production in the state of texas. i guess that's owning the lives. really, you expect, at some point soon, the pendulum tips. republicans acquiesced to the fact that climate change is, here it's very real, and this becomes a matter of survival. are you surprised we have not gotten to that point yet? >> i guess what's interesting to me, they're doing that a little bit on the renewable side. in many parts of the country in texas, that's one of the renewables are such a booming business. it's impossible to resist. there's a big change there. just a few years ago, oil and
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gas did not want the state intervene in energy policy. they wanted the state to get out of the way. now, the renewables are rushing forward, it takes the support of state to stop that revolution. an advantage oil and gas. now, they're in the fight. in general, i think renewables are moving forward, taking seriously the climate challenge. the problem is, on the adaptation side, we're just seeing more and more cruelty. that's what striking about the air conditioning, the signing of the bill banning water breaks for laborers outside. this is an ugly feature, i worry about it more globally, just in texas. i think it is unfortunately a global future, we're now that we're seeing the consequences, we want to protect ourselves. and to some degree, even punish other people, when we have the opportunity. >> yeah, that's such a great point. it felt like, james, i don't know if you can elaborate further on this, it's almost like a hunger games attitude towards. us if you are unlucky enough to be one of the people whose
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marginalized or most vulnerable in terms of dealing with the worst effects of climate change because you're working class, or your poor. you don't have air conditioning, you can't take breaks. because you're on the hourly clock. tough luck. the notion that these people, effectively, deserve what they're getting, seems to be at the root of some of this heartlessness, around policy. we say, oftentimes, the cruelty is the point in republican politics. here, it really seems like it's coming home to roost. >> that's right. i'm one of the youngest elected officials here in texas. i know that climate change is going to affect my generation much more than can affect older generations, which is why i have introduced bills that would set ambitious mission standards for 20, 30 2040, 2050. i try to marshal estee resources to fight climate change. because texas is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the nation. which means that, if we get in the game, texas can help lead the country, and lead the world,
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to a safer, cleaner, greener future. in the process, create thousands of new jobs. new, industries new businesses. that's why this shouldn't be partisan. temperature is not partisan. it's not just getting hot in red parts of the state. it's not just getting hot in blue parts of the state. getting hot everywhere. there is, in my mind, nothing more conservative than conserving our environment. there's nothing more capitalist than starting the new industries of the future. the new businesses of the future. frankly, there is nothing more christian than protecting god's creation. i pray every night that my republican colleagues will come to their senses and join us in this fight against climate change. >> there is a reality of republican red meat politics, and what works for them. as a strategy. then there's the reality of constituents and citizens dealing with climate change and acknowledging that it's real. i was really interested in at 2023 survey from this --
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george mason. three quarters of americans think global warming is happening. when you have smoke descending from canadian wildfires, we have mudslides in atmospheric floods in california, when you have droughts plaguing the southeast, or heat waves. it's no longer a theoretical debate to own the libs are not. one wonders whether, like, the republican and democratic debates on this are one thing. the rest of the country seems like they sort of move past, it they understand it's real. >> i think, in a lot of ways, the dynamics have shifted favorably in the last couple of years. the i.r.a. was this massive, massive bill, climate bill. signed just before the midterms. it didn't show up in that campaign, at all. republicans were not campaigning against the i.r.a.. they're just, like we're gonna let that go. then what a fight that fight. unfortunately, you see some of these other issues cropping up, now not on renewable energy, which i think is a kind of some room for some bipartisan consensus, on how we're gonna protect the most vulnerable.
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they there, are unfortunate, the republican party is really failing us. i also think collectively, we're normalizing what used to be completely unprecedented, extreme a vents. you know, just talk about five, 500 year storms in five years. that means we've had several millennia of intense weather, concentrated in just a period of a few years. all of us, we're waking up to climate, we're worrying about. but we're not worrying about it nearly as much as the science tells us we should be. >> i am. privately, i'm terrified every day. the data is staggering. and deeply distressing. david wallace-wells, sort of is on the show. representative james talarico, very, very thankful for your time. and everything you're doing that in the state of texas. when we come back, he was wrongly convicted of rape and he became a swarm enemy of donald trump, but now, he's on the verge of helping govern the biggest city in the country. that is next. that is next
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to make something with this platform that they gave me. 13 years after we were accused, the truth came out that was political candidate yosef salaam, appearing on this show back in april. now salons platform is his notoriety. he and four other black and latino teenagers were wrongfully arrested and incarcerated for the rape and assault of a woman in central park in 1989. back then, donald trump took out full page newspaper ads calling for the death penalty for the teens. a public campaign that thrust them into the national spotlight. in 2000, to the teens had been known as the central park five, got a new nickname. the exonerated five. after dna evidence linked to someone else to the crime. salaam has taken the trauma from that experience, and become a motivational speaker and author, and last night, he took a commanding lead in a new york city council primary, with nearly 51% of the vote. now, a winner has not been declared. but it is looking very likely
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that youssouf salaam will win, and because the seat is heavily democratic, he is then likely to win the seat in november's election. here's what he had to say last night. >> every single thing that happened to you, happens for you. having to be kidnapped from my home, as a 15 year old child, to be lodged in the belly of the beast and, i was gifted to turn that experience into the womb of america. i was gifted because i was able to see it for what it really was. a system that was trying to make me believe that i was my ancestors wildest nightmare. i am my ancestors well dream. >> that's our show for tonight, now it's time for the last word with lawrence o'donnell. good evening,
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