harris presidency, i think that is a matchup we can win. i don't want to overstate trump's advantage, but it is there. he's a couple of points stronger than he was a '16 or '20, that we may see some of that naturally change. this is going to be a dead heat race. and i do think a more energized democratic party and volunteers and grassroots people, you know, spending time and really getting motivated matters. g mo. more energized democratic party and volunteers and grassroots people, you know, spending time, really getting motivated matters. that is what it takes reto win presidential race on the democratic side. >> david, thank you so much for joining us. i want to welcome in my colleague, who has joined us gu for this breaking news. it is the top of the hour, 4:00 in new york city. what an incredible day, 56 years, that is the last time

there was a situation like this where president stepped aside and the person who will take his place will not have gotten a single direct vote in the t primary process. it has not happened in a long ne time. there is all this talk about kamala harris, as you have been hearing. there is a little bit of a gap there that has been left open by democratic leadership and certainly by former president obama. so far, not endorsing harris, not even mentioning her name. ev 56 years, joe biden would become a u.s. senator. >> just five years after that, i think. what an absolute huge risk and huge opportunity for the democratic party. at the main problems i saw with joe biden was he was too old. they have someone, at least by joe 03 statement, 59 years old in kamala harris. if there is a problem, they believe, with his mental acuity, kamala harris has spent much of the last year prosecuting big, big issues for

democrats. that, obviously is abortion. i heard you talking about that earlier. the real question is, what happens next? i want to bring in democratic senator chris of delaware, a close ally of president biden. senator, i am sure this is a very emotional day, a very emotional time for you. but i want to get your take, just very simply on the decision that was made by president biden today. >> thank you and thank you for the chance to speak to this moment in our nation's entry. joe biden has served our nation more than 50 years. he has always put our country first. he has an incredible legacy of service and leadership. in 36 years in the senate where he chaired the foreign relations committee and the judiciary committee, vice president for eight years and the most consequential president of my lifetime. i still remember being at the front of the capital during his inaugural speech. he had inherited three different crises at the same moment. a deadly global pandemic that had taken millions of lives around the world and had shut

down our economy and an economic crisis because of the pandemic and the crisis of democracy because of january sixth. he was one in just two weeks after january sixth. he gave us soaring, optimistic, hopeful speech about how, if we could come together, there was nothing that could stop the united states. i know there were folks, pundits and colleagues of mine who thought his call to th bipartisanship, for coming together, was quaint, was outdated. then i got to be with him in the following years as joe fo biden signed into law massive pieces of critical legislation to reinvest in our infrastructure, to rebuild our manufacturer, to confront climate change, to make our country safer from gun violence, to invest in caring en for our veterans, to do more for community health and anyoneo in decades. his legislative accomplishments are epic. i was very much lelooking forwa to fighting hard for his election this fall. but there is one thing joe

biden has done that i admire more than anything else. that is to put our nation first. i look forward to rolling up my sleeves and working alongside him this next six months. just this coming week, heb -- you will be welcoming prime u minister benjamin netanyahu to washington. there is unfinished work there. it was his thproposal for a cea- fire hostage release in gaza os that was endorsed by the un communities council and the g7 and he is determined to move forward to achieve a lasting ar peace for gaza and the israeli people. i look forward to him ok accomplishing that. he's got more work to do here at home, too, in our appropriations bill, the defense authorization bill, does another initiatives. in his last six months as our president and the most senior and respected leader of our party, i know he will play a

central role in the campaign this fall to make sure donald trump is not returned to the white house and that our next nominee, who i hope will be vice president kamala harris, is elected this fall to continue the important work that president biden and vice president harris have successfully carried out these last three and half years. >> you hope it will be vice president kamala harris. is that a question? might it not be? >> look, i don't think there is a real question. joe biden chose kamala harris as his vice president because looking at the next generation of leadership of our party, he believed her to be the most capable and competent. he chose her so that had there been a tragedy in the last three and half years, she would be president. i have served with her in the senate, i served with her as vice president. i have seen what she is capable of and i am confident we will come together and support vice president harris at our convention in chicago next month. >> i am wondering, senator, exactly what the process looks like now. the chair the dnc just said this the party would undertake a transparent and orderly process to move forward as a united democratic party. what has to happen in the

coming hours and in the coming days? we do understand that vice president harris is already on the phone, talking to members of congress, trying to shore up their support. what is the process? what does it look like? you say it looks like this is what will happen but how? >> well, i am not a master the dnc rules. the timing makes it possible for us to still convene as a democratic party at our convention in chicago this time. and to nominate for the presidency one of the folks who i believe is most qualified and capable of doing so, vice president harris. i believe jamie harrison and the dnc leadership will help all of us who are delegates for chicago understand exactly what the consequences are, but as the person who has been on the

ticket with joe biden this entire time, my understanding is that vice president harris would inherit all of the staff and the field offices and the funding and the ballot access and the media access that has been secured by the biden- harris campaign up until now. c i believe that is what will happen but i don't want to misspeak because i am not the leader of the dnc or expert in the roles. given the timing, i think our , president made the most important decision he could for success for this fall. i also want us to just take a moment today and reflect on his legacy before we hurtle forward to asking the question who's next, what's next, what can happen next? joe biden has made a lasting difference for a nation and his lifetime of service should be recognized and honored. i look forward to a convention where d we dedicate time to thanking ic

joe biden for being an bi incredible public servant for decades and to honoring him for the lasting difference he has may. if we want to secure his legacy as president, his role as one of the most important presidents in our history, the best way to do that is to ensure that a united democratic party succeed in defeating donald trump and jd vance is fall. >> senator, i just got a statement, we just got a statement from vice president kamala harris. it is a bit lengthy but given the significance of the moment i will read it in full because it is very telling. on behalf of the american people, i think joe biden for his extraordinary leadership as president of the united states and for his decades of service to our country. ce his remarkable legacy of accomplishment is unmatched in modern history, american history. surpassed the legacy of many presidents who served two termsn in office. it is a profound honor to serve us as vice president and i am deeply grateful to the president, doctor biden and the entire biden family. i first came to know president biden through his son, beau, we were attorney generals of our

homestays. beau would tell stories about his dad, the kind of father and the kind of man he was and the qualities both revered in his father are the same qualities, the same values i have seen every single day in joe's leadership as president. his honesty and integrity, his big heart and commitment to his faith and his family and his love of our country and the american people. with this selfless and patriotic act, president biden is doing what he has done throughout his life of service, putting the american people and our country above everything else. i am honored to have the president's endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination. over the past year, i have traveled across the country, talking with americans about the clear choice in this momentous election. that is what i will continue to do in the days and weeks ahead. i will do everything in my power to unite the democratic party and unite our nation, to defeat donald trump and his

extreme -- >> i am really sorry but i have to leave. >> senator, we can let you go. thank you so much for being here. >> the last part of the statement is, we have 107 days until election day. together we will fight and together we will win. we want to thank senator chris thank you very much for being with us. symone sanders-townsend now. you know, being here the past few hours, we saw president biden immediately endorse, almost immediately endorse kamala harris. we have not seen harris stendor from leadership of democrats in congress, although, as craig is reporting, we are about to see it from congressman clyburn. we also did not see it from former president obama, although we saw it from both bill clinton and hillary clinton in the endorsement for harris. in my reading too much into this part first part of the statement, earn and win this

nomination? could this be an indication that the democratic party does, the leadership does have a plan for something of a mini primary to get her tested? to get her to earn and win the nomination? >> well, katy, there is a process. there was always going to be a process. i know that it seemed as though the members on capitol hill were leading this effort in terms of asking the president to step down, but the democratic national committee, the party, will administer this process. in the event there is not a nominee prior to, i have been on the phone with actual dnc members and some former party chairs. in the event there is not a nominee, which now that is the case, there is a process that has to be run. people would like to submit their names to be the new nominee, they would have to go l and get a certain number of signatures from dnc members. i believe you need, i think it is about 600 signatures that bo are needed. i would remind folks out there that president biden and vice president harris had over 3000 n

delegates. i don't think it will be tough for vice president harris to get the signatures from the membership of the democratic national committee. that would officially put her in the running, if you will pick up it is my understanding from dnc members, particularly folks from the rules and bylaws committee that this meeting to vote on the nominee prior to the seventh is going to hold. so that truncates the timeline very, very shortly, right? the rules and bylaws committee, they met on friday. the credentials meeting was today, sunday. the credentials committee was meeting, the rules and bylaws committee sets the rules for the convention. they have to certify who the delegates are for the convention, the people credentialed to be down there on the floor. more meetings, another meeting, i believe, will happen to the end of this coming week and then the delegates will vote on who the nominee will be pickup you see that statement from vice president harris. she intends to put her, she

intends to seek and win the nomination. i have not heard right now anyone else, any other, you know, potential, i know there are a lot of names out there named but i haven't heard of anyone else who also intends to seek the nomination. there will be a process. as you have seen from vice president harris, she intends to be successful on that. >> simone sanders, thank you very much. >> senator claire mccaskill, now a msnbc political analyst. let's bring in the latest, most recent reporting. >> this statement from vice president harris, i think, is significant in weighing out which path is ahead. the fact she has already been on the campaign trail throughout the year, talking tog voters about what is at stake

in this election and her determination to unite the party in this moment. there will be a process, of course, as symone is laying out for the dnc to outline what the next steps will be. the dnc chairman in a statement earlier today said that statement would be forthcoming. i think this moment is one in which democrats are both h looking backwards and ahead. my calls and text messages are flooded with people who want to take time to honor pleasant -- president biden for what they know was the most difficult decision any person could have to make in politics. he felt so much deep in his bones he could still do this job and could still win reelection and he has been

determined for the last 25 days to do everything he can to put himself in the position to do so, even as the calls for him to step aside continued to build and, frankly, the tension between him and some of his most respected fellow leaders and the party grew, as well. i have been saying since not long after the debate that president biden would be 100% id in this race until the moment he was 100% out of it. it does appear, based on the reporting from our entire nbc team, who is been working so hard, to learn more about this decision at is happening, it was a decision shared only with the most senior people even around him, moments before we saw that we, that letter go out in which he revealed this ch decision, the president is somebody who has given his life to this country, to the hi democratic party. it was 54 years ago, katy, when joe biden first won his first election to the county council in delaware. two years later he won the upset election to become the united states senator, what are the youngest people ever to take office as a united states senator.

he ran for president in 1988, 2008 and thought about running a in 2016. obviously, he made the decisionu not to run, ultimately after the toll of losing his son, beau, proved to be too much. the opening of the door yet again when he thought the door was closed for a run for the office after donald trump won his election in 2016. i took some time yesterday, katy, to drive not far from here in rehobeth where the president still is at this moment to a place that is dedicated to beau biden in honor of his service to the state and the country at a state park here. it is a place that reminds us of what president biden said about his decision to run and not to run in 2016 but to run again in 2020 that he would not give up his service, his engagement, in the political process at this most important time. this is a moment that president biden is now spending close with his family. he will be making a decision soon about how to address the country more falsely about the decision and what is ahead. katy, i think it is not too much for me to say that this president will make it clear he is not done, he will continue, through every last day he is in the oval office and through

every last day in this election to do everything he can to make sure the work he has done and the work of his administration will see through to a democratic victory this november. that will be a big part of the conversation in the days ahead. >> thank you so much for that, mike memoli. for those who may just be joining us, it was just about two hours ago that joe biden, and a post on social media, said he was stepping down. he will not be running for reelection as president of the united states and then again, within minutes, he said he would endorse his vice president, kamala harris. i want to bring in claire mccaskill, if i can. it was only in this fast-moving news world that we are living in, katy is just back from the rnc a little more than 48 hours ago. republicans left minneapolis feeling very sure of themselves . they were feeling unified. they love the contrast between what they saw as their unity and the chaos in the democratic party. my question for you is, does this decision by joe biden, is at the beginning of the end of the chaos or does it put the party in a different kind of chaos? >> no. i definitely think it reis the beginning of the end of what has been an emotional and, in many ways, heartbreaking roller coaster ride. i have to begin with saying the

obvious. joe biden is such a patriot. you know, you really have a contrast here between one of the most selfish man is not men that have ever crossed the stage of the united states of america and a man who has shown such selflessness. he put aside so many good reasons he have for remaining s in the race and put his country first. it is really, in this moment in history, i think it will do so much for his legacy. i think the history folks are going to be very, very kind to president joe biden, not just because of what he has gotten done, but the way he has handled this really difficult moment in his life. i feel, all of us that are friends with joe biden, we feel for him and his entire family and i hope he feels that love

and support. i do not think this process will be chaotic now. you know, really, you see kamala harris saying she wants to earn this nomination. people are saying, it will be a coronation. no, it really is a constitution. joe biden selected her to be n there in case, for any reason, he could not serve. it is easily transferable to the race for the presidency. ra she was on the ballot with him. she got all the votes he did in the primary process. so, i think it is great she is using the word earn and that there is a process here but this is a woman who is ready. joe biden knows it better than anyone else. he has worked shoulder to h shoulder with her for the last four years, getting more done than never donald trump trumped up. i think you d will see a real coming together of the

democratic party of the next week. i think our f convention in chicago is going to be much different than people were visualizing just a few days ago. >> book your tickets now. k there is a quote that is attributed to lenin but it is arguable if he said it. there are weeks when nothing happened and weeks when decades happened. you have been in politics a long time. how surprising is this moment to you. >> well, i know from many people looking from the outside, it looks like elected officials and folks, like us who talk on television, were somehow pushing joe biden into something that was wrong. but behind the scenes, katy, there are leaders of our party that were hearing from voters, not ceos, not elite people, not, you know, fancy folks,

they were hearing from voters that they believed that joe biden was not capable of doing what he needed to do to beat donald trump. that is really what this is about pick up our party is so unified around that concept. i think our leaders behind-the- scenes were doing a lot of good were. i think joe biden looked at the data they brought to him and looked at the reality on the ground in these battleground states and said, you know what? i love my country. i am going to do this because i think this is the best way to beat donald trump. i think history will prove him right once again. >> among the cautions, symone, we heard when this decision was still in process was, you can't just take a campaign and handed over to soma. people have different constituencies. they will have a different focus. they will look at different

parts in different states. talk a little bit about that, as somebody who has been on the ground in those, yes, staff i funding field offices, they are all in play. can you just say joe biden is not the candidate anymore, it is kamala harris? at the very least, you start with who are there constituencies in which democratic constituencies, assuming she is the nominee, which he have to work on? >> that would absolutely be the thinking. folks have to remember, vice president harris has been on en the ticket with president biden since this time 2020. she helped him win that last election against donald trump and in the primaries earlier this year, the 14 million y people who voted for joe biden

also voted for kamala harris. the money that has been raised, the apparatus and infrastructure has been shut set up in the name of joe biden and kamala harris. the one person other than joe biden with the claim to the infrastructure and the money isr in fact the vice president. you saul right after president biden's statement came out, his account also tweeted if you t would like to donate to her, donate here. they are already moving the apparatus to have vice president harris' name at the top of the ticket. i have heard over the last couple of, i would say week or two, as people are pontificating about what does this mean? the vice president could ouwin southern states because this will play up black voters by. everyone should take a step ne back as a think about a coalitions. again, vice president harris was on the last ticket. s she did an event with republican women earlier this week that was eyebrow raising for me. instead of all this talk about,

the campaign apparatus going in, going in and talking to republican voters across the board, republican women, especially. she herself went into michigan, moderated, she had a moderated conversation with republican women. the republicans in the room, re olivia troye, who moderated the conversation, joined our shop "the weekend" to talk about her experience. she said as a republican, it was impactful for her to have the vice president come to them and be willing to have a conversation where they meet and their values me. >> just a second, can i interrupt you? you sparked something in me. sp i have been getting some tips from women and i think katy mentioned she has, as well. io everyone remembers what the yo day after the election of donald trump was like at what the day after the loss of hillary clinton was like. teenage girls stayed home from school. they were crying because they thought they were going to see the first american president, groups that formed, the grassroots groups that formed, that are dedicated to getting candidates in the pipeline who are women, groups dedicated to getting women in the pipeline for women of color.

does this change the equation in any significant way, not just in terms of the women who vote, but what will be needed on the ground, in terms of the grassroots, volunteers and the excitement that, frankly, this candidacy lacks? >> i think the biden campaign had a very robust apparatus. we have all talked about the fact that the biden campaign t was opening offices and what not and the fundraising money was going to the infrastructure. meanwhile, the trump campaign, they were closing offices. w they were not opening up offices and engaging with voters on the ground. the good thing for vice go president harris is in fact id that the apparatus is in place and the women's groups, i think they are already fired up. re i got calls and text messages from folks who were affiliated l with almost all the women's groups, notably, i spoke with no someone from emily's list who on said they are ready and excited to help elect president kamala

harris. you have to remember, before she was vice president, she served as only the second woman ever elected to the united e states senate at the time in california. she was an emily's list canada. there are a number of these groups that are not strangers, if you will, to the vice president, who are specifically ready and willing to move in to help her. i do think there will be resources at the fingertips of the actual campaign apparatus and an extension apparatus and i am sure super pacs are popping up as we speak. in

the work will still be on the ground here. you know, just knowing the folks that are still engaged s and involved, i think they are very clear eyed about that. this will still be a close race. this idea the race was only close because people were a little concerned about president three age, that is poppycock. that is only word i am allowed to say right here on television. the race was close in 2020 and it will be close now. people need to realize, yes, there are folks across this country that want to vote for donald trump and jd vance. they want what they are selling. the vice president's campaign and whoever she chooses as her running mate, they will still g have to do the work of going around the country and selling d their agenda, what they will do in a harris administration, to a the american people and if i know vice president harris the way i think i do, i don't think she will have any problem doing that. >> that is a good point. when i talk to people on the fence, democrats are going big on the threat donald trump poses to democracy saying this could be the last election and they believe that that message is not exactly resonating with the voters i spoke with who say they are still deciding between the two. they are thinking more about re their pocketbook, they are thinking more about what would a democratic nominee be promising them for the future. they hear a lot of mrs. from president trump. they weren't hearing as many promises from president biden. that is not me saying it, that is them saying it in interviews i have bad.

does this change? does vice president harris, if she is the nominee, does she go out on a tour of the country, selling a second administration? the first administration for her but a second stadministrati that she was already part of, the policies that come along with that. let's bring in the democratic congressman of california, eric swalwell. it is good to have you. what do you think at this moment of kamala harris and of leadership so far? >> well, first, this decision by joe biden shows the j difference between a selfless president and in donald trump, n a selfish person. i first half immense gratitude toward joe biden. tu he has always put country above everything else and has book ended his life if you think about it, he was elected as a senator and then his wife and daughter died. he still healed his family and held -- helped his constituents. and then his son died and then

four years later he answered y the call to save the country and beat donald trump in a landslide. because of that my kids and your kids will drive on the roadways he built, they will feed their families with the jobs he created and they will power their cell phones with chips manufactured in america, just, you know, a lot of gratitude to him in this moment right now. >> so, congressman, kamala harris, is she the one? , should more members of congress, particularly the leadership, come out and endorse her? >> i am all in for kamala harris. she has had the best mentor she could have in joe biden. d he was vice president himself. for these rights that are under attack in america, you know, the right, the right to read

what you want to re-, the right to vote and have it counted, the right for clean air and the right to have your kids free from gun violence, she is tough, she is real, she is smart and most importantly, she is ready. or i can't speak for others and what they will do just take >> do you think she will face the challenge, congressman? >> you know, that is up to others and the format that is designed but a number of folks are getting behind her. she has the resources of, you know, the biden-harris infra , structure. my phone, by the way, hahas abo 500 unread text messages and un just by scanning it right now, i see volunteers and supporters saying where do i donate, where do i knock on doors, how do i get to michigan and pennsylvania to look voters eyeball to eyeball and make the case. al people are fired up for kamala only have 15 weeks ago. >> thank you so much, congressman eric swalwell. i want to bring in democratic congresswoman debbie dingell. you are just with governor ar witmer. i would love to be a fly on the wall for that conversation. what can you tell us about it.

>> well, i will just read what she keeps saying. she is not a candidate for president this year. that is what she keeps saying. i will say that to you now. i did endorse kamala this afternoon because i believe she will make a great president. i think this is a sad day and the way much of this has played out with the knives put in his back, we have been supporting kamala harris and we think she will do a good job. the party is unified. people, by the way, people voted but a lot of people are concerned, billions of voters who supported the biden-harris ticket voted for the ticket . i will support kamala harris.

>> we see some polling at a michigan that shows donald trump in the lead, this is before president biden decided to drop out of the race. governor witmer is so popular in michigan, she won reelection easily. which he entertained being vp? >> i will let her officially answer that question. i will say to you she has repeatedly said she is not a candidate for any office this id year. when rumors circulated last year she was being vetted and have been asked for material, she was not aware of it, i was not aware of it. >> how about this? congresswoman, would you want to see her as vp? >> i love gretchen whitmer. she has been my friend just for not a few years but for decades. i think she means it when she says she is not a candidate for any office this year. she got reelected for the office of being governor. >> i hear you on that and i respect that. i am asking you. would you want to see her as a

candidate for vice president because of how, your friendship aside, because of how important the state of michigan is to the democrat's prospects for reelection, to get back in the white house, the democrats need michigan. because of that, would you want to see gretchen whitmer as a he vice presidential contender and do you think she would help? >> i will answer this question this way and be very clear. i am going to work with the governor to win the state of michigan. she has repeatedly said she is not a candidate. i will always support her, whatever she runs for. we will work hard together to win the ticket in michigan. michigan is a competitive state. those polls, you all told anme was crazy so i don't believe polls, you know that. we have a lot of work to do. we will roll up our sleeves and work hard so people know what is at stake and deliver michigan. we have to do that.

i know there is a lot of work ahead of us. >> what you think about timing? how important do you think it is to solidify this ticket, but that the top of the ticket and for the vice president? what you think, obviously, you were very close to and a huge supporter of joe biden, his legacy is on the line here in the same way that barack obama felt his was if donald trump gets redirected. -- reelected. many of the things he fought for and accomplish would be overturned. what is the strongest ticket and how does a party move forward in that regard? what is your role in that? >> i think today is a day we should all be thanking joe biden for what he has done for this country. he has been one of the most effective presidents we have seen in the history of this country from protecting workers rights to make her own health care decisions and to make sure everybody has access to quality healthcare. i think we need to remind people joe did that. what he did with nato, he did a

lot of things. i think what really matters right now as we have had a circular firing squad. i have had private conversations with a lot of people. i think private conversations should be private th conversations, quite frankly. i think we need to give the president do for his effectiveness in being president and make sure we id protect the programs he has gotten into place. so that they are not overturned and we define very strongly the contrast between who the democratic candidate will be and who we know the ticket of donald trump and jd vance is. >> debbie dingell, representative of michigan, big supporter of joe biden and key

member who will be fighting in one of the battleground states this fall. thank you so tlmuch for taking the time to be on the program with us. we do appreciate it. let me bring in msnbc political analyst and chief editor for the new york times, peter baker. what can you tell us? what is your latest reporting? what now? >> well, both looking back and looking forward. looking back, of course, how much of a shock this was to people. as late as last night, people who are allies of his were thinking he was actually digging in, in fact, moving g further away from the idea of stepping down. there were campaign aides who we were talking with friends who felt very despondent as recently as a few minutes nt before he made the announcement the campaign and was still making phone calls to democratic delegates to pressure them to stay with the president. they did not know this was coming. it was a shock. they were not told in advance of the letter. this was a decision he made in

rehobeth beach where he is th isolated with covid. there were very few people, it is a very interesting moment we are continuing to learn about. o as we go forward, obviously, kamala harris mama by making ri her his choice, he shuts and a lot of the conversation. it has not necessarily ended but it is hard to see how anybody could surpass this in a short timeframe. that is the biden camp would like to close down the t discussion about internal fighting and focus on going after donald trump. >> they certainly must be tired of the conversation being had t for a month, what will happen on the democratic ticket? at the same time, peter, it does seem to be that the question remains open and we haven't seen an endorsement of harris from former president obama. we have not seen an endorsement of harris notably from democratic leadership. cliburn aside, i have not heard from hakeem jeffries, chuck schumer nor from nancy pelosi,

the speaker america. vice president harris left the door open, as well, saying, my intention is to earn and win this nomination. i wonder if there might have been plans made in private between schumer, jeffries and pelosi about what the next steps might be and whether the there would be some many e primary. also, from the potential of the people in this race, no we just heard from debbie dingell about gretchen whitmer but the other governors are not endorsing harris emma either, in their statements about president three decision. >> yeah, a lot of people are still absorbing what is

happening. we will see in the next 24 hours, it will be critical. s, some of them will come around after having wage possibilities and deciding what the landscape looks like. it is conceivable somebody could jump into the race against her. it is hard to see how they get traction. among other things, you know, on you have been talking about a governor who doesn't have a national network core national apparatus. you are talking about somebody who would be hard to displace, the first woman of color, to be on the head of a national ticket. that would not go over well with a lot of people. you saw endorsements of her already. it is possible speaker pelosi s and the other congressional leaders still have something int mind. you can't be somebody with nobody. it is not clear who that would be right now. who could, in fact, come in. it will be very clear in a very short amount of time. there is not much time to wait. >> peter, thank you very much.

let's do a little bit of a receptacle again, we have been covering this breaking news. president biden announcing just before 2:00 this afternoon he decided to step aside. he will not run for the white house. in his words, he was passing off the nomination. his endorsement for the nomination to his vice president, kamala harris. who is kamala harris? in 2008, she announced her 00 candidacy in california for attorney general. she was one in as attorney general of california, she did win that first race in 2011, the first woman, the first black american and the first s. asian american to hold the office. in november 2014, she was reelected as california's attorney general. in november 2016, she won tethe u.s. senate seat previously held by barbara boxer. she called, barbara boxer, our friends by the way, we should

call her and get her on. i would love to get her take on what is happening. in january 2017, she was one in as a junior u.s. senator from california. january 2019, officially announces her candidacy for presidency of the united states. she withdrew her candidacy in december 2019. in march 2020, she daendorsed j biden for president. in august 2020, joe biden us announced he had chosen her as his running mate. she was elected, along with joe biden, in november 2020 and on this day, sunday, july 21st, she is now the leading contender for the presidential nominee for 2024. let's bring in claire mccaskill once again. i want to ask you this question about senator schumer and beaker pelosi, hakeem jeffries, who will be joining the show in the next hour. why have they not come out and endorsed harris as quickly as joe biden has, as president biden has? >> well, i think joe biden is in a unique position to endorse

quickly. i would not put ontoo much into the timing of who is endorsing and who isn't. or i know it is tempting to think, okay, there will be another chaotic conflict in the democratic party. i don't ithink so. i really don't. if there was someone out there who was going to challenge the sitting vice president in this n nomination, i think we would be hearing more about it right in now. especially if that was an effort that would be successful. look at this contrast. you've got someone who is a prosecutor, going head to head with someone who is cute it. you have someone who is a real populist against a phony populist. this is a woman who took on big banks. this is a woman who took on for- profit colleges for ripping off students.

donald trump had a college that was ripping off students and ri providing them nothing in return for their hard-earned dollars. i really think this contrast isn unbelievable. i think she is going to really bring the party together in very short order. and i don't think we can gloss over the fact that those 14 million people that voted for joe biden in the primary also voted for her. she's got everything going for her for all the right reasons, very smart, very tough, she has shown herself on the campaign trail as more than capable of taking the fight to donald trump. i think most of the people in the democratic party, whether they are in leadership or a somebody who wants to knock on doors, they just want to unite right now and beat donald trump. >> thank you so much, claire. i want to bring in democratic congressman from california, robert garcia. we have seen you have endorsed

symone. why and have you spoken to governor newsom today? >> first of all, we are incredibly just grateful to president biden and his incredible service. it is important we take this day just to honor his legacy and probably, for me at least, the most productive and successful president of my lifetime. he has endorsed vice president e harris. i am all in to support vice president harris. of course, she is a californian from our state. fo when she ran in 2020 in the primary, i was one of her campaign cochairs. i have known vice president harris for a long time in california politics as friends. i cannot wait for the country to get to know the vice president in the way we know her out in california. she is going to prosecute the case against donald trump every single day. we will defeat him with her at the top of the ticket come this

november. people are fired up. mb people are excited. i am hearing from our grassroots activists. you can see elected officials, members of congress, mayors, people are flooding in with endorsements and support for her. i expect that our state will unite behind the vice president. >> tell us about the bevice president, as you know her, as a californian. >> i mean, look, at first, people have to understand about her record. it is long and it is a record that is progressive and always focuses on people and helping se others. when she was da e in the san francisco area, in the bay ci area, she always protected women. she took on initiatives to ok

support, particularly women that were in abusive relationships. she always fought for the community and for working people. of course, she moved on itto become attorney general and that was a tough race in california. during her time, not only did she support law enforcement andu took on big banks and took on criminals and took on largal corporations, she also ensured the office was there to support and reform issues around the re criminal justice system, to uplift communities. she understood that we had to ha change the way that our criminal justice system interacted with people that needed our help. she was always ready to take on the bad guys. a lot of us, of course, got involved in her senate campaign, which was incredible in the state of california. t she had a record again in the senate as someone who got along with folks, her own caucus, a leader in the state, she did incredible work, particularly around issues that were supported by cities across the state of california and the country. i support the vice president. ou she is an incredible leader. i just want to remind folks, think back to those days when kamala harris was prosecuting

as a senator all of those nominees, over and over again, and taking them and their records apart. that is what she will do to donald trump. one final thing, besides kamala harris that we all know as a prosecutor and as a great vice president and partner, she is also a kind person. she is a good person. i am very grateful to support her. we are fired up. >> so, you mentioned you s thought more people would come out to support her. i was just handed a sheet of paper saying senator john aust cough is the latest person to say he is behind vice president harris. he says he is supporting her info. is it your expectation, would t you like to send a message to leadership in both houses that r you would love to see the democratic party coalesce behind her should barack obama h get behind her? how important is it, as you

stand, to have the democratic party united and move forward un with a plan? >> absolutely. the message is, it is time to unite behind the vice president. our president, joe biden, has r asked us, first and foremost to do that. a lot of us, out of respect to him, at this moment, of celebrating him and, of course,r as part of that, supporting the vice president. the party is rtunited around th vice president. there are dances of members of congress with dozens of conversations happening across the country. you are seeing folks reaching out, posting their endorsements from the senate to congress to mayors. you will see governors come out in support the vice president. as far as folks and whether they will coalesce, we are already doing so. tonight, by tonight, you will see an incredible wave of

support for the vice president that will roll into the next few days. let me just that, in concert with the campaign already, the t campaign is already working. the campaign is already turned on a dime to support the vice president. they are making the calls and g doing the work. they are raising the money and we are making the phone calls and like she said, she is in this to earn peoples votes and earn our support. that is really, really important that we are all important to her and we are all looking forward to the country getting ready to get to know her even better. the person i am most excited to get to know her is donald trump. she is going to defeat him. there is no one better to do that work. >> congressman, thank you very much. let's bring in nbc's mike memoli. normally we would linger on president biden three history and career in this moment and the bravery it has taken him to step aside, the nobility for him to step aside in this moment but there is not that much time. there is only a few more weeks before the democratic national convention and there is a en process that's got to get

started very quickly. i am switching between joe biden and kamala harris, campaign stats switch over, money switch over, ballot issues. the actual production of the democratic national convention. i just came from the rnc and the production supporting donald trump was immense. there is that whole process. how is the democratic national convention going to look with a new person at the top? what is the first step? >> well, the first question that so many, even members of joe biden's campaign staff are asking themselves right now. what happens to the team that was hired to work for the biden- harris ticket now orthat is is harris question ticket or is it even her? that is the question a number of democrats are asking me as we all ask each other these questions, will someone step up

to challenge vice president harris? i understand a lot of the last minute discussions in the lastc few days have revolved around this thorny question about whatt happens next? will the president fully endorsed vice president harris? will he endorse some sort of process as other democrats haves artie been talking about. we might end up somewhere between where very few people, if any, in the democratic party will choose to challenge vice president harris, now for the nomination but there is still a process where she could be seen as earning the nomination goingi through, talking to the dnc delegates and other institutions within the party, the constituencies in the partyo to try to earn that. we have been talking about, for instance, former president obama's statement and the fact he did not mention vice president harris in that statement. i am told by your source for me with his thinking, he is

looking like he did in 2020, we had a very crowded field including his vice president, joe biden, at the time. there were moments in the campaign where joe biden would n lean on his relationship with obama, that was done with some degree a blessing from the obama team. they always felt obama needed a to hold off in reserve for when the nomination was decided. he ultimately, just a week after bernie sanders ended his candidacy in 2020 as the only other remaining candidate in the case, it was only then that barack obama fully endorsed biden in 2020. se it is a similar dynamic now. he will be as enthusiastic as anybody in supporting vice president harris if she is decided by the party infrastructure to be the nominee. at this point, he feels that this moment he needs to be there to bring the process to a conclusion. there are other democrats, people close to other names we might consider as a potential candidate or people who might

be, if not a candidate for president, candidate for vice president. they are saying, listen, we will put out a statement that will support president biden in this moment and his decision. we want him to have his day but ultimately, they will fall in line behind vice president harris, as well. those are the clues to the dynamics. it is very late, as you laid out, katy. there is a lot of uncertainty at this moment. rt there has been so much on the convention in chicago for biden- to abruptly now has turn on a dime. so many of the tributes and testimonials on behalf of president biden and his leadership will be part of , i am sure, a very rousing and emotional send off for him. na when we do hear from president biden publicly in explaining his decision to the american public, i do think we will also hear him say he will continue to do everything he can for yt these last 100+ days to make sure a democrat remains in the a white house after january 20th. >> we just got a tweet a few minutes ago from liz cheney, who is no fan of donald trump. she says the framers of our constitution knew the public --

republic would only endure for president have the character and honored to put duty ahead of self-interest. president biden deserves our gratitude for his decades of service to our nation and his courageous decision today. claire, hope you're still with us. i want to talk more about process. does all the money necessarily go to vice president kamala harris now? what about capping dethe a >> campaign staff? did she and herridge 03 sh campaign staff? what about the delegates? ge they are not bound, legally a bound, until they actually cast their votes at the convention. what sort of leg up there she have in convincing them? >> well, i think, i really do think some of the hesitation on some people coming out to endorse her today has more to do with respect for joe biden. more than it does in a big disagreement in the party. i think people are holding back because there is a certain amount of respect that joe biden is due for this day and the rest of his days on this planet for who he is and what he has done. yes, somebody could gather the signatures and put their name

forward but they've got a lot of work to do. yes, she inherits all of the donations. i will make a bold prediction. i make a prediction that the contributions are rolling in right now. i think we will get news in the next two or three days that records are being set as people give money and want to support joe biden's endorsed candidate for president, kamala harris. so, yes, there is a process to go through. yes, she must earn s it. she earned it in many ways when joe biden selected her to be ed his vice president. i just don't see this party turning their back on joe biden after he has said this is the person i trust to take over the

job that we have begun, but much more work needs to be done. i think it will very quickly move into the discussion about who her vice presidential candidate will be. si >> you know, i was speaking to a top democratic donor just a moment ago, one who was not pleased with joe biden staying e in the race, he thought his debate performance was scary and has been advocating for him to leave now r the month since that debate performance and worried openly about the monies that they would be giving money directly to the vi biden campaign instead of a third party and the get out the vote ever. i said what about now? sa this person said, blue way. the money will be pouring in. we will see when the financial statements come out in just a ou few days and then the reporting and the quarterly reporting that we have on this.

claire mccaskill, thank you so e much. what a major day, just about 1:55 this afternoon, president joe biden released a statement posting on social demedia, hitting all the right boxes, saying he has decided to step aside. he will not be running for the white house in 2024 any longer. he endorsed his vice president, kamala harris. that is the first time anything like this has happened in 56 years. not since the 1968 convention. that will do it for me this past three hours. s thank you so much for joining us. i will hand off r special coverage to my colleague, chrise jansing, after very quick break. quick break. ...without the stuff you don't. so, here's to now. boost. (♪♪) when life spells heartburn... how do you spell relief? r-o-l-a-i-d-s rolaids' dual-active formula begins to neutralize acid on contact. r-o-l-a-i-d-s spells relief. [introspective music] recipes. recipes written by hand and lost to time.

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