florida governor ron desantis will be here. a lot to look out for at the iowa state fair, ana. >> they have sunshine and fried pickles and, you know, the works. thank you, dasha burns. that's going to do it for us this busy week. thanks for being here. have a wonderful weekend. my friend jose diaz-balart picks up our coverage right now. good morning, 11:00 a.m. eastern, 8:00 a.m. pacific, i'm jose diaz-balart reporting from new york. breaking overnight in hawaii, the number of people killed in those devastating wildfires is now up to at least 55. survivors are returning to their homes only to find piles of smoking rubble. >> people lost everything. homes, jobs, their cars, their pets. there is still people missing. >> right now in a washington, d.c. courtroom, former president donald trump's lawyers are in a

hearing with special counsel jack smith's team. they're trying to determine what evidence trump may discuss publicly in the election interference case. plus, we have two nbc news exclusives today. new reporting about the special counsel's investigation into classified documents found at president biden's office and home. and democratic senator joe manchin skipping a major white house event as he considers running against president biden. and celebrations are being held around the world today. the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. ♪♪ we begin this morning with breaking news for the third straight day. catastrophic wildfires are tearing through hawaii with six active blazes. six still burning.

it is now the second deadliest wildfire in u.s. history. 55 people died. the death toll is expected to rise as the fire is just 80% contained as of right now. with over 1,000 structures burned, thousands of acres of land scorched, the governor says it looks like a bomb went off and that's the likely -- the largest national disaster in hawaii history. residents describe the devastation as apocalyptic, a war zone, with many saying they have lost everything. one man who jumped into the water to escape danger said he was there for about three hours before being rescued. >> explosions, screams like out of a horror movie. i called the cops again. they couldn't come. the third time i called them, they said you have to go in the water. i said you want us to jump in the hurricane? it is black, you know? the ocean was pulling us at the same time. we're trying to have debris falling on us, trying to get wet

and not burn. i just started praying and said, please, god, not today. this is it. >> reporter: dana griffin joins us from maui wlachlt are you seeing there today? >> reporter: good morning to you. right now it is about 5:00 a.m. local time. all is quiet. people are still inside sleeping. hundreds once again slept inside this evacuation center. many have had their lives upended and some barely escaped the flames. we are seeing images as you can see on your screen of this burned out skeleton of lahaina, the historic town, which is the ocean front tourism industry that is -- that is just -- as you can see, obliterated. you can still see some of the smoke and the ashes that were left behind as these wildfires quickly moved through. we know that at this hour about 80% of the fires have been contained according to officials. again, the death toll right now

remains at 55. that number is likely to grow. i've spoken to several people including a doctor who made his way to lahaina, that same day as the fire swept through. he described it as apocalyptic. and just was really thrown off by how devastating this fire was. take a listen. how many people do you think are dead? >> i think right now it is still under 100. i definitely think it is going to be a couple hundred. it took me by surprise. i walked in, i was, like, i'm in a war zone. this is something next level. like, 9/11, people just jumping out of windows. they ran into the ocean because there was hundreds of people that swam out, hundreds of people went out on surfboards and rafts. you got to be strong. we're only human. you go home. it is, like, you know, somebody scraping their fingernails on a chalkboard, hearing a mom cry how she lost her child or her

husband. >> reporter: and those are just some of the stories that we're hearing from this doctor. he went in to try to help people thinking he was just going to need to provide medication. he wound up giving people food, treating their infections, their cuts. he says some people are still staying behind for various reasons. some have pets that they are trying to find. others are still looking for relatives and loved ones. right now we know that the search and rescue is ongoing as they're trying to comb through homes. if anyone is still inside and may have been burned when this fire moved through. we're hoping to get an update on the numbers. and what this area looks like. the road still has not been opened. but surprisingly, jose, we have heard so many stories of resilience. a lot of people did everything they could whether they had to walk, jump in the ocean, and one thing we're hearing from a lot of people is that they are so grateful to be alive and have their loved ones that did

survive. so this is a very resilient community. and a lot of them think that they will bounce back. >> just what a heart breaking reality. dana, have you seen a lot of help arrive? >> reporter: we have been stationed here at the evacuation center. so we have not gone to the front lines where you're seeing the national guard and other federal resources deployed there. we have seen videos of that, but we have seen a lot of people drop off donations, food, water, blankets, really trying to step up. the community is banding together in this really tough time, trying to help each other out. the whole spirit of aloha, which is really embraced throughout this entire state, and we're definitely seeing that here. >> dana griffin, thank you so very much. later this hour, we're going to speak with hawaiian state senator who represents maui about what people there need and how we can help.

now to breaking news from washington where a federal judge just ruled moments ago that a protective order in the election interference case against donald trump will only apply to sensitive materials and not all evidence. this just happened during a hearing with trump's lawyers and special counsel jack smith's office on what trump and his lawyers will be able to say about evidence gathered during the investigation. trump himself is not at today's hearing. this comes one day after the special counsel asked the judge to begin trump's election interference trial on january 2nd, less than two weeks before the iowa caucuses. trump's team will come back with a proposed timetable before another hearing on the 28th of august. former president reacted on his social media site calling the january 2nd date quote, maximum election interference and it should happen after the election. with us now to talk more about this, nbc news investigative reporter tom winter and dave

aaronburg attorney for palm beach, florida. what more can you tell us what happened today? >> the judge will continue to get notes from outside the courtroom, the media room and our colleague daniel barnes, they're discussing the idea of posting some of these items of evidence or discovery online, specifically about trump doing it himself. the judge apparently said, and i'm going to read a quote, coming from the court, so it may not be perfectly precise, your client's defense is supposed to happen in this courtroom, not on the internet. and to the extent your client wants to make statements on the internet, they always have to yield to witness security, witness safety, the judge continued saying i can see the possibility of a lot of problems here. trump's attorney assured the judge that president trump will, quote, scrupulously abide by the conditions of his release and the judge reiterating he's a criminal defendant, he's going to have restrictions like every single other defendant. so it appears at this point that

the focus is on one -- not limiting the president's counsel in the former president's from posting this information online -- from talking about this discovery, but a restriction on certain sensitive materials on what can be shared and not shared. this is an incredibly thorny issue because what is coming up in the courtroom right now, we have a situation where trump is competing against mike pence, he's far ahead in the polls, but they're competing against each other in a republican primary, and mike pence is definitely appears from the indictment going to be a witness against him. and might want to address some things that mike pence said on the campaign trail, comments we heard last week. you can imagine this is just a really thorny issue for the judge. what is trump allowed to say, what can trump say, when does it cross the line of saying, you know, mike pence is wrong, he's a liar, et cetera, if trump were to make those statements and

when does that become witness intimidation. chuck todd raised it last week on the air when the arraignment was going on, what is going to happen on a debate stage? so i think there is really a lot of things for the two sides to hash out. to your point, the judge does seem to rule that it will just be sensitive materials, it will be under the protective order, but she then went back and said, all right, well, what is the orbit of people that are covered by that protective order knowing that trump's defense team is going to have to hire a number of people to work on this, paralegals, et cetera, she says that she wants a defined list of who has access to it and both for the special counsel and for trump's team they have to sign on to this so that everybody realizes the rules of the road. >> let's talk about a little bit of the rules of the road and something that hasn't happened before in american jurisprudence. what is, for example, sensitive material? who determines what is sensitive material? and then just this whole issue of what tom was bringing up, that so many intertwined relationships, moments, and

political realities that go along with this. >> jose, i think this is actually a win for the government because within the orbit of sensitive materials, judge chutkan included witness transcripts, which means that if donald trump refers to what mike pence and other witnesses said, he'll be violating the order. the whole purpose of this protective order is to avoid witness intimidation. and the judge reminded donald trump that at his arraignment he was told that he would violate the terms of his pretrial release if he attacked witnesses. so he cannot attack mike pence for his participation in this case. he cannot refer to what any of the witnesses said. thus, i think, this is a win for the government. >> so, when do you -- i'm thinking because if there is one thing we all know is pretty consistent in donald trump is that he doesn't necessarily stick to what the agreement and the rules are as far as what he can and cannot say. what is it that will determine whether something he says about,

for example, his former vice president, could be seen as crossing that line. who decides that? >> good luck. >> well, yeah, that's a $64,000 question. to date me a little bit, here's the deal. jack smith is going to go to the court if he thinks that trump has crossed the line. it will be up to judge chutkan. to impose an order like this, if you impose a partial gag order which hasn't happened yet, you have to be prepared to enforce it. that means you got to be willing at some point -- >> to do what? >> to put trump in an orange jumpsuit if necessary. that's the last resort. if he continues to blast people on this social media site, that would be witness intimidation, then he could end up in jail. >> wow. so what is the difference of protective order and gag order? >> protective order here applies to what trump can say about the evidence in the case. a gag order would be broader. you can't even talk about how bad prosecutors are, you can't say that jack smith is a

deranged crack head anymore. so the gag order would be broader and that has not happened yet. i think a partial gag order would come down the line. trump is running for president, how can we forget, and he does have the ability and the right to speak about campaign stuff and political stuff. at some point it does cross into witness intimidation and that's the line that everyone is going to be watching. >> and so, tom, go ahead. >> prosecutors have to apply for a gag order. that, in any case in the system, is something that is very, very rare that it is even applied for let alone granted by the judge. quick update from the courtroom, the materials obtained by the special counsel's office from other government agencies and i can think of a couple here outside of the justice department and the fbi, those will be considered sensitive materials under the protective order. it is possible, this came up in a january 6th committee, that there was an odni report and intelligence reports that looked at the possibility of foreign

influence or influence on voting machines. that type of thing might be classified that might come from some other government entities, other members of the intelligence community. sounds like that type of stuff will be deemed sensitive here. there is an ongoing discussion and since it appears it is still midstream, i don't want to get into it just yet, but there is a discussion about the january 6th select committee in the materials that they were able to uncover and are those going to be treated as sensitive or not. we'll continue to follow this here as we talk. >> and, tom, i remember, it is a lot easier to have you on the set than when you have to run in and out of a courtroom and live on the air on msnbc. i'm wondering, very quickly, if i could, tom, on the prosecution pushing for the january 2nd election date, they want that -- the trial to begin on the 2nd of january, what can we expect trump and his team to do? >> i imagine they would point to what we're looking at right now, this election calendar, the

other legal issues the former president is contending with and saying, your honor, we're in a tough situation here, we have someone running for president and what are -- we're going to be held and not be allowed to be out on the campaign trail. he has to be in court for this, not something where for instance today's hearing he can wave his appearance. donald trump is not in this courtroom. >> you can't do zoom appearances. >> you can't do zoom appearances. that's not going to be allowed by the judge. it is a serious issue. it underscores this seriousness and the fact that -- i'm not somebody who likes to say, you know, unprecedented, bombshell revelation or anything like that. but it is unprecedented because we have somebody who is running for president, who was once president, about the idea of our elections, who now has the potential trial date in the middle of the next election. it is just -- it is unchartered territory. >> and one of the witnesses is maybe his former vice president who is running for the presidential -- you know, it is as complicated as things get.

tom, dave, thank you, both, for being with us this morning. appreciate it. up next, we're going to have two nbc news exclusives about president biden. new details about the special counsel's investigation into biden's handling of classified documents. plus, a fellow democrat set to skip a major white house event as he considers challenging biden for the white house. we're back in 60 seconds. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. os u're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. rsv can be a dangerous virus... [sneeze] ...for those 60 and older. it's not just a cold. and if you're 60 or older... ...you may be at increased risk of hospitalization... [coughing] ...from this highly... ...contagious virus. not all dangers come with warning labels. talk to your pharmacist or doctor... ...about getting vaccinated against rsv today. shingles. the rash can feel like an intense burning sensation

and last for weeks. it can make your workday feel impossible. the virus that causes shingles is likely already inside of you. 50 years or older? ask your doctor about shingles. age is just a number, and mine's unlisted. try boost® high protein with 20 grams of protein for muscle health versus 16 grams in ensure® high protein. boost® high protein. now available in cinnabon® bakery-inspired flavor. learn more at boost.com/tv 17 past the hour. we have a brand-new nbc news exclusive regarding the special counsel's investigation into president biden's handling of classified documents. nbc news learned that for the past month, attorneys for the president and the special office of special counsel robert hur have been negotiating under what terms biden would be willing to sit for an interview. according to two people familiar with the matter. the white house and a spokesperson for biden's personal attorney declined to comment. joining us now is one of the

reporters behind this exclusive, nbc news white house correspondent monica alba. good morning. what more have you learned? >> reporter: this is a normal course of order for an investigation like this, jose. we expect that for months now the advisers around the president had really believed that the special counsel would be asking for an interview, which typically takes place, especially for the person at the center of the investigation, but there is a lot of specifics and logistics to be worked out. so we have learned now that the team of attorneys for the president and the special counsel's team have been going back and forth for about a month or so over things like where this would take place, if it takes place in person, how that would happen, whether the scope of this would be limited in any way, what kind of questions would the biden team maybe be presented ahead of time in terms of the documents that could be covered here so that they could prepare some of the answers in a combination of anything potentially written or again in person. they still need to agree on all

the terms before then this would happen and we know the president has committed to cooperating fully and completely with this special counsel. this all stems back to documents discovered at a personal office late last year and then earlier this year at his private home in wilmington, delaware. most relating to his time as vice president in the obama administration. but some of them going all the way back to his time and service and decades of being a u.s. senator. there are some questions too about whether that will be included. this has been going on now from the investigation standpoint for eight months or so in totality. there are other things that could be at play, like more document review, other folks that the special counsel would need to talk to. and the white house said again that they are continuing to cooperate, but this is being handled completely independently through the department of justice and they do continue to make the point that it is a very different situation from the mishandling of classified documents of former president trump who has been indicted on those charges and is facing that in the coming weeks and months,

that, again, he refused to hand over thousands of classified documents where as biden team gave those to the national archives upon discovery. jose? >> monica alba at the white house, thank you very much. and now to another nbc news exclusive, when president biden makes remarks on the anniversary of the inflation reduction act next week, senator joe manchin will not be in attendance. the west virginia democrat helped write and name the ira, but manchin has been distancing himself from biden as he weighs a third party presidential run in 2024. joining us now is one of the reporters behind this exclusive, julie tsirkin and symone sanders townsend. and former chief spokesperson for president harris. what more can you tell us about manchin's reasons for skipping this event? >> well, according to manchin and the white house, they're really downplaying manchin skipping this, they're saying, look, it is recess, he's back home in west virginia, making this trip to the white house is

something that he's not going to do. but, remember, last year he not only attended the signing during recess, but he stood behind president biden when he did so, president biden handing him the pen he used to sign the bill into law. manchin yesterday making some news during a radio interview, flirting with the idea of becoming an independent, distancing himself from the implementation of the bill, saying that president biden is catering too much to the left and not playing up the energy security investments as part of the bill and defending the moniker that he gave the bill, saying that it brought down inflation rather than enhanced, at times sparring with the host of that radio show. what is interesting is that mere hours later, president biden in utah at a fund-raiser said he wished he never called it that. just another example of these growing contradictions between the two men that i expect will continue in the coming months as manchin crystallizes his plans and announces them. not only is he contending with that potential third party run for president, but if he decides

to run for re-election for his fourth term in west virginia, this is a ruby red state. he's up against a bench of republicans and he's up against a lot of money that republican minority leader mitch mcconnell is throwing at them. for example, at governor jim justice of west virginia, and manchin is the only state wide elected democrat left in that state. so a lot for him to contend with. a lot for him to make a decision on. and i assume we'll see more of this rift between the president and between manchin in the coming months as he tries to crystallize himself as a conservative democrat. >> and symone, how concerned do you think the white house is about a potential third party challenge from manchin? >> i think a third party challenge in general, i think the president's re-election campaign and the white house would be -- are definitely concerned about. i don't know if it is going to be joe manchin. julie mentioned that manchin was at the bill signing when the inflation reduction act was actually signed because we remember around that time joe

manchin was the focal point, he was the -- he was the person that came in and struck this deal with the president's senior aides and remember progressive democrats were upset because they were blind sided by the deal. and so joe manchin was the focal point. he -- the attention was on him. and in this instance the attention would not be on him. i think this conversation around manchin, potentially he himself saying he will switch to be an independent, i don't think folks should freak out about that just yet because the reality is the question is who does he caucus with? if he's still caucusing like a democrat, won't change their numbers. >> yeah, do you think there is anything that the white house or the senator can do to repair that political difference of a relationship? >> well, i think there is what happened in public for the cameras and on the radio. and then there is what happens in private. and i think i know president biden pretty well and a lot of the folks that are around him

right now and the strategy has always been not to do this in public. so joe manchin wants to go out and speak, that's on him. but privately folks are going to work those channels because he is still, you know, the margins in the senate are very slim and he is still someone that the white house needs if they want to continue to get anything done. >> julie tsirkin, symone sanders are townsend, thank you so much. more news out of hawaii, the devastation there apocalyptic after deadly wildfires burn a historic town to the ground. we'll talk to a state senator who represents maui. plus, what's next for the five americans imprisoned in iran, expected to be released soon in a prisoner swap? you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. e? you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. hi, i'm john and i'm from dallas, texas. my wife's name is joy. we've been married 45 years. i'm taking a two-year business course. i've been studying a lot. i've been producing and directing for over 50 years.

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28 past the hour. five americans imprisoned in

iran are now under house arrest as the biden administration is taking steps toward a planned prisoner swap. the u.s. will allow the release of $6 billion in iranian assets that were previously blocked by u.s. sanctions, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the matter. also part of the deal, an unknown number of iranians detained in the u.s. will be transferred from u.s. custody to iran. joining us now is an iranian journalist who was herself targeted in an assassination plot by a group with ties to iran, an assassination attempt to be carried out in the united states. thank you for being with us. first, your reaction to this deal? >> first of all, i'm happy that the innocent prisoners are free. but in the first place, the u.s. government must have warned the u.s. citizens not to go to my beautiful country iran because it is not a land of tourism. it is a land of terrorism. and they support terrorists around the world as well.

so, sending $6 billion to the hostage takers, actually, it is a signal from the u.s. government to the iranian regime that you can take more hostages. >> on the other hand, they would say this is $6 billion that was ours and we're getting it back, it is not under our control, et cetera, et cetera. >> exactly. right now there are many europeans in iranian prison. so iranian regime is going to say that, okay, how many money you can get me? so, for that, i believe that the u.s. government should have a policy to end hostage taking diplomacy. not bowing to the hostage takers. look, my own family was hostage in the hand of iranian regime. my brother. and now the -- the younger brother, my chief office of staff, his brother is in prison right now. right now in iran. >> why? >> because the iranian regime sees that hostage taking,

diplomacy works, because the u.s. government tell them that you can take more hostages instead of actually the u.s. and biden administration can ask its own allies the europeans, come together, get united and downgrade your diplomatic relation with the hostage takers. then they're not going to take more hostages. >> this is the same regime -- >> i was going to say the u.s. government must learn from iranians because we never bow to the hostage takers. not iranians -- they can be an example for the u.s. government. don't bow to the hostage takers. >> this is, you know, you referred to them as hostage takers, this is a regime in power since 1979. and including things as recently as today this is a regime that is supplying drones that kill innocent ukrainians in ukraine by -- in the hands of russians. this is a regime that utilizes money to create drones and to export terror to other places.

>> thank you so much actually for mentioning that. because many americans might say that, we have nothing to do with iranian people. let them fix their own problem. but when the u.s. government give billions of dollars to this regime, the lives of europeans are in danger, the lives of americans are in danger. the money goes to the revolutionary guards to send drones to put in to kill innocent ukrainians. money goes to morality police to kill innocent women and girls in the street. the anniversary is coming. >> ten months. >> i have to say, my heart is broken. i'm happy to see siamak namazi is released. this is a betrayal to americans and iranians that the u.s. government was trying to get a deal with such a hostage taker, such a barbaric regime.

>> a regime that has literally hundreds and hundreds of its own people in prison as political prisoners and a whole lot more. thank you. >> thank you so much for having me. >> thank you for being with us this morning. and now to an update on the shocking assassination of a presidential candidate in ecuador. eke dorn authorities arrested six colombian men yesterday for the fatal shooting of politician fernando villavicencio. one of the attackers was previously killed in gunfire with police. villavicencio was one of the most outspoken candidates against the drug cartels. ecuador's interior ministers say the suspects were connected to organized crime. the fbi has just recently sent a team into ecuador, a petition of the current ecuadorian president to help in the investigation. up next, we'll take a turn, a 600 pound butter cow and deep fried corn dogs. yes, it is all coming with a hefty side of politics at the iowa state fair. almost all of the republican

candidates are there over the weekend. we'll play for you what first in the nation voters say, what they want to hear from candidates, next. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. next you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports" on msnbc. rd by this football pro. and proferred by this football pro who actually uses her feet. and if we profer it, we know you'll prefer it too. i use my feet. have you seen me scramble? (christina) wanna know the secret ingredient to running my business? (tina) i usher. feet. (christina) being all over, all at once. (tina) all the time. (christina) but my old network wasn't cutting it. and that's not good for baking. or judging. or writing. so, we switched to verizon, the network businesses rely on. with verizon business unlimited, i get 5g, truly unlimited data, and unlimited hotspot data. so, no matter what, i'm running this kitchen. (vo) make the switch. it's your business. it's your verizon. age is just a number, and mine's unlisted. try boost® high protein

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38 past the hour. presidential hopefuls are heading to the iowa state fair over the weekend and what happens there could echo through the entire 2024 race. candidates are making their pitch to voters who will vote first in the primaries.

miami mayor frances suarez is with iowa governor kim reynolds as we speak. former vice president mike pence is answering questions from voters after he spoke with the iowa governor earlier today. donald trump and ron desantis will be arriving there tomorrow. someone who is already there, nbc's dasha burns, in des moines, with the very latest. dasha, good morning. what are you hearing today? >> reporter: well, jose, the former vice president is on his way right now to a must see, must stop location, the pork chop on a stick stand. he'll be flipping some chops, i think some others will be stopping here as well. we know governor burgum is headed to the location we showed you yesterday, that very famous butter cow, the iowa state fair tradition like no other, clearly. this is a real opportunity for these candidates at the fair

site chat with the governor. we were there when mike pence was speaking with her. a lot of voters showed up there. the vast majority of folks he's been speaking with, they are open minded, though say. they are not decided yet. they're here to kick the tires and listen to what all the candidates have to say and mike pence got an applause after one of his key points that he made mention of today. take a listen to what he said. >> if i'm your president, we're going to shut down the federal department of education. we're going to send those resources -- >> he's got it. >> we're going to revive federalism in america because america's governors, republican governors, are proving every day that you can deliver prosperity and security and opportunity for your future. >> reporter: he got a great response to that. that's a point that republican voters are particularly interested in. they said they're sick and tired of hearing about these indictments. they want candidates to talk about the issues and look around here. this is an opportunity to reach

thousands of people, to reach those caucusgoers and this critical caucus state that, jose, iowa is do or die for these candidates. if trump wins in iowa, it might be over. if one of these candidates can win or can come very, very close here it could open the doors to an alternative to former president trump. what happens in iowa in january will be make or break for this primary, jose. >> dasha burns, thank you so very much. good to see you. coming up, a milestone for hip-hop as the world celebrates its 50th anniversary. we'll hear from two women who have been turning the industry on its head. plus, we'll go back live to maui where at least 55 people have been killed in fast moving wildfires. this morning, lahaina is described as a war zone. we'll ask a state senator about what we can do to help. t what we can do to help

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45 past the hour. the historic wildfires hawaii has been dealing with that are scorching the island for the third straight day, killing at least 55 people and destroying just thousands of structures, like this historic 200-year-old church, which has been standing since lahaina was the capital of the kingdom of hawaii in the 1800s. the picture on the left, the church before and that's today, the church -- photo of the church in flames. one resident says everyone he knows is homeless. what's more heart breaking than anything else, for many, is the loved ones they lost. >> we're alive. but i just want to go get my dogs ashes, i want to get their bodies and that's it. that's all i want. they sent me pictures, they said i should take a picture. this is the only thing i have now. >> joining us now from maui,

hawaii state senator gilbert keith agaran. thank you for being with us. just our condolences to everyone there. talk -- describe what it is that you're seeing there. >> you know, thank you, jose. thank you for having me on this morning. you know, we have been involved in the last couple of days now on responding to the needs of the people that were able to get out. and we're continuing to search and rescue. i think we still want to keep that hope that we'll find some people that may have survived and may be sheltering outside of the shelters and are staying with friends and neighbors on the west side. and, you know, i know the pictures that are being shown all over about the results of

that fire are horrifying in a lot of ways and very apocalyptic. but i think we are still trying to focus on people, the people that we lost, of course. but also the people that we need to help survive. so we have been trying to find the best ways to get food, water, the west side has lost all electricity. and i think we just restored some electricity on other parts of the island that are also going through the wildfires and that's what we're going to be focusing on is trying to make sure we have the most efficient and the most fair way to get food and water, clothing, blankets to people. and with that area being isolated, i think that's one of the challenges. one way in, one way out. >> yeah, senator, i didn't mean

to interrupt you. just when you think of the numbers and, you know, it is so cold to just talk about numbers, but we're talking about 55 people confirmed that have lost their lives and we're talking about maybe a thousand or more still missing. how can we help all of you? >> i think there is a couple of ways. obviously the simple way, of course, would be to make a donation. the community foundation set up, maui strong are accounts and there are links on the website. and we also appreciate all the support that we're getting and all the good wishes we're getting from people. we would ask and i think we all asked that if you were scheduled

to travel to maui, especially the west side, to consider maybe shifting to one of the other islands. the rest of the hawaii remains open. and you can come and help us that way, because we expect tha trying to rebuild lives as well as the structures is going to take -- could take a decade, but the immediate thing that people can do to help would be to support funds like maui strong. >> lahaina is such an important historic place, you know? i mean, just -- its importance is -- how do you describe it? >> well, it's really a place that captures all of the history

and culture and challenge, the push and pull of both our native culture, the missionaries that came, the american whalers who probably gave lahaina the kind of reputation it had, but it also reflects the diversity of our entire island. you showed one of the churches that burned down, which is probably the cradle of christianity in hawaii, one of the first churches built, but the other -- right next to it was -- down the street a bit was lahaina mission. so the loss was actually a loss of a lot of our culture heritage. that we can rebuild, but what we won't be able to rebuild is the loss of our people and i think that's -- that's the challenge and that's what we're focusing

on. >> all our thoughts are with you and with the extraordinary people. i thank you, state senator, for being with us this morning. >> thank you for having me. we have breaking news out of washington, d.c. a judge has ruled on a protective order in the election interference case against donald trump. i want to bring in nbc's legal analyst lisa rubin who has been inside the court all morning. lisa, what is it that happened today? >> reporter: you know, josé, it was a really interesting and particularly well-litigated hearing, i thought both parties were exceptionally professional, as was judge tanya chutkan who made very clear donald trump is going to be treated like any other criminal defendant in her courtroom, not better, not worse, and this is a case where she made very clear to the parties it doesn't matter to me that he is a candidate for president of the united states. that is not going to bear on my decision-making at all. she, therefore, entered a fairly routine protective order but did not give the government all that

it wanted. it is not what we refer to as a blanket protective order, it doesn't cover every single bit of evidence in the case, but what it does cover is a wide swath of sensitive materials, including importantly witness statements, interviews and audio recordings both inside and outside the grand jury. one of the biggest revelations today was the government telling the judge that their default practice is to make an audio recording of every interview they conduct with a witness outside the grand jury and that there are hundreds of them, josé. >> what does that really mean and why? >> reporter: why? because they -- you know, you conduct witness interviews outside the presence of the grand jury for a number of reasons. one, you might want to do it for preparation for what the person is going to say in front of the grand jury, therefore, you want a recording both to hold them to their statements when they get in front of the grand jury but also to remember what they've said, to create a transcript, to go over what's important to you. you might interview somebody,

for example, a far away from washington, d.c., we know that the special counsel's office traveled to georgia and interviewed brad raffensperger there. there must be a number of other witnesses who similarly were interviewed not in the presence of the grand jury but somewhere outside of it. but i was very interested in finding out that there are hundreds of those recordings that donald trump and his legal team will get access to them and that they will have protection under this protective order so that they cannot be disclosed to the general public. >> lisa rubin in washington, d.c., thank you so very much. good seeing you. i want to take a look at -- well, today we're celebrating 50 years of hip hop, the musical and cultural gift to the world. nbc's antonia hylton spoke with a female rap duo who has flipped the script and represents a new era for the genre. great seeing you. >> nice to see you, too. >> talk toe into about this duo. >> hip hop was born 50 years ago at a block party in the bronx

but from its early days it was a male-dominated genre, often criticized for sexist and exploit testify behavior but now the women are on top of the game and changing it. take a look. ♪♪ >> reporter: five years ago a new rap duo emerged out of miami with a swag ring in your face sound. ♪♪ >> reporter: in a male dominated industry that often elevates only one woman at a time. these best friends who go by young miami and jt burst on to the scene together. i caught up with them at the blue lounge in l.a. >> here is the thing, the city girls is about being yourself. >> it's relatable. >> reporter: in the tradition of jackie o., trina and missy elliott, their music is boastful and raunchy. ♪♪ >> reporter: the city girls often encourage women to take advantage of men, the juxtaposition of men in hip hop

that have long degraded women. they say growing up in poverty shaped the way they see the world and made both determined to find financial freedom and control. >> why do those themes matter to you? >> everything about miami is money so we always feel like we had to have money to be something. it's about money. >> how are you keeping it all together? >> i mean, i feel like you just have to. in life a lot of stuff will come at you fast and you have to just work. >> i always tell myself that if i ever feel like, damn, i can't do something, yes, you can. this or you can do that. like this is nothing. like you've already got the means the money so how are you going to tell yourself you can't do it now? >> reporter: only one other female rap duo achieved the same number of hits, salt and pepper. >> what role did women play in bringing us to this point? >> not just the role, but the creation.

i think about the women being alongside the men not behind them. >> reporter: some argue the women are ahead. this year not a single man was nominated for artist of the year for the vma's. anyony minaj, cardi b., megan thee stallion have topped the charts. >> what draws you to the city girls' music? >> first of all, they are so funny. when i hear their music i feel it's my alter ego. >> they pit artists against each other. you have to be really strong-minded and not let it in your head. >> i don't think they do that to males. >> reporter: jt is open about time she spent in prison for fraud an helps incarcerated women. five years ago young miami was criticized for making homophobic remarks, she later apologized and has recently hinted about her bi-sexuality. she's also open about her mental health after the father of her son was killed. >> i was like in and out. i was there but i wasn't there.

>> how did you get through your grief? >> actually it kind of helped working because it took my mind off of it. >> reporter: this week they shot the cover for their third album which they describe as quintessentially them. they say they never set out to be an example to others, just to be honest. >> that's what makes hip hop so special because it's a story and a feeling. everybody's story in hip hop is the grind. >> where do you think the city girls will be in ten years? >> on top. >> that's great. fantastic. you actually spoke to them in los angeles. >> that's right. while they were getting ready to shoot the cover of this next album which they say pays homage to many of the greats who got their start here in new york. part of what makes their act so special, experts say, is that they were able to break through this male dominated field by using the internet, by showing their personality, by being funny. it's what's allowed women to connect with audiences that right now frankly the men are struggling to. >> 50 years ago told, right? >> that's right. >> thank you so much.

so great seeing jaw before we go some good news and some hope for the people of hawaii amidst all the massive destruction, the death, just the horrendous what's going on in lahaina, there's this. it's famous and beloved banyan tree still standing. the 150-year-old tree and dozens of trunks spans an acre in the heart of lahaina. the tree was scorched by the wildfires but the roots could still be healthy. the iconic tree was planted in 1873 in honor of the 50th anniversary of the town's first protestant mission. there is always hope. that wraps up the hour for me. i am jose diaz-balart. you can always reach me on social media @jd balart and watch highlights from today's show online @jd balart msnbc. thank you for the privilege of your time.

andrea mitchell picks up with more news right now. and right now on andrea mitchell reports, the government's case against donald trump for allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election, front and center in a washington courtroom today. with district court judge tanya chutkan quickly ruling from the bench that the protective order in the dc case will only apply to sensitive materials and not to all discovery materials turned over to the defense. the trump team also pushing back on the special counsel's proposal to start the trial right after new year's day in 2024. just as the iowa caucuses and the early primaries are heating up. plus, breaking news from nbc on a special counsel -- different special counsel investigating those classified documents of president biden's office has turned over to the government. nbc news learned that the president's lawyers are in lengthy talks with that special counsel about