♪♪ good morning. it's saturday, december 14th, and you're watching "velshi" on msnbc. i'm charles coleman jr., filling in for my friend and colleague ali velshi. we've got a lot to talk about. halfway between election day and inauguration day, there's a flurry of news in all directions, from both the outgoing and incoming administrations. on capitol hill, some of donald trump's more embattled cabinet picks spent the week negotiating and meeting with senators who support they'll need in order to be confirmed to their new roles. then there's mounting pressure on republican senators who haven't been fully supportive of trump's picks just yet. senators like joanie ernst, the first female combat veteran to be elected to the senate. this was senator lisa murkowski at an event for the centers group no labels this week. >> my friend joanie ernst, who

is probably one of the more conservative, principled republican leaders in the senate right now, is being hung out to dry for not being good enough. and you're going to get primaried. >> meanwhile, ver at the white house, president biden commuted the sentences of 1500. that's more than any other president commuted in a single day. many of the 39 who received pardons were convicted of nonviolent offenses and completed their sentences. this move wipes away their criminal records. the 1500 whose sentences were commuted were released from prison more than a year ago under a pandemic-era law to reduce prison crowding. and there could also be more. president biden said in a statement he will take, quote, more steps in the weeks ahead. white house lawyers said many recipients have volunteered in their community, pursued their education and even served their country after pleading their sentences. some of the president's clemency

recipients raised eyebrows, however. for example, a former ohio county commissioner was convicted in march of 2012 of 32 corruption related charges, including racketeering, bribery and conspiracy. a former comptroller of dixon, illinois, was also convicted in largest municipal fraud case in u.s. history. another computation recipient, former pennsylvania judge michael t. con han was sentenced to 17.5 years in prison for funneling juvenile defendants to private, for profit detention centers. he received kickbacks from. a mother whose son died by suicide after he was put in juvenile detention by this kids for cash scheme called the decision deeply painful and even pennsylvania's democratic governor josh shapiro said the president got it, quote, absolutely wrong, with his computation. the power of the pardon is in sharper focus right now, two

weeks after president biden pardoned his own son hunter and as president-elect trump vowed to interview with "time" magazine this week to pardon january 6th rioters and even begin looking at those pardons, in quote, the first nine minutes of his administration. joining me now to unpack all of this for our second hour is rita-shah, a former campaign spokesperson and founder of relax strategies and joyce vance, msnbc legal analyst. she is also the author of "civil disclosure with joyce vance on sub stack." joyce, again, taking off my glasses to talk to an attorney, specifically from the doj. i want to ask you if you're a u.s. attorney at this point, how are you squaring the idea that on one hand, the doj is continuing to prosecute people for offenses related to january 6th and on the other hand,

donald trump has already said that he is looking to pardon all the january sixers within the first few minutes in office. >> so the pardons that donald trump is contemplating are very different sort of creature from the pardons that joe biden has just issued. you know, prosecutors don't always love it when someone receives a pardon after they've obtained a conviction. but there are very strong standards that have been used for evaluating these cases involving perhaps most importantly whether or not someone who is up for consideration would pose a threat, a danger to the community, if they were released f they were pardoned. that's the issue that donald trump seems to be willing to set aside here. these are not people who have shown remorse. these are not people who have reintegrated with their communities. these are people who in many cases continue to avow their support for donald trump and who, if released, would add to his base, would add to his loyal

level of followers and communities, which is clearly what these pardons are about, when the power is, in fact, given to presidents in order for them to do mercy and restore people who have shown rehabilitation instincts and rehabilitation success into their families and communities. >> rita, a former doj official who is on kash patel's deep state list for potential retribution. she wrote something "the new york times" i want to ask you about where she said she did not want a pardon from president biden. i'm going to read from that piece. she said, if we broke the law, we should be charged and convicted. if we didn't break the law, we should be willing to show that we trust the fairness of the justice system that so many of us have defended. and we shouldn't get permission to future presidents to pardon political allies who may commit real crimes on their behalf. what do you make of that statement? >> well, the key words, the phrase in that statement is, trust the fairness of the

system. and i think that is what -- if you look at the past year in particular, that is what americans have been screaming about is that their trust is shaken in the system. and whether you're looking at federal or state or local governments, we're seeing americans feel like the government, as one entity, does not serve them. so, i think what sarah isgur had to say was very good because preemptive pardons definitely bring up a land field of i think not just legal but political arguments about what is right and fair. you know, there are constitutional curves, charles, that we have to bring up time and again when people talk about having lost hope and faith that a system can serve them. you know, the aftermath of this election, as we have seen these nominations from trump world come down very fast, very furious, with people that some of us feel have no business serving at the highest level of government. what we have to remind folks is that there are checks and balances. and within these three branchs that check each other our

founders outlined a system that can do better for all of us. that is what sarah is getting at when she says she doesn't want a preemptive pardon despite knowing that kash patel could be confirmed and could be the next head of the fbi. >> joyce, is there any hope for continued impartiality as we look forward with respect to a potential ag in bond and fbi led by kash patel. is there any hope for the integrity of these democratic institutions, if you will, to remain independent and impartial? or are we sort of looking at a train that has left the station with respect to the doj and the fbi being weaponized for political purposes? >> so, institutions are defined by the people who work in them. you know, we talk about the justice department. well, the justice department is people. it's people who take an oath to the constitution and serve the american people. and sometimes when political

leadership goes astray, those people, the career people, stand up and make sure that the institution continues to do the right thing. that is an awfully large burden in this particular instance to place on the shoulders of career employees. you know, kash patel, this notion that an fbi director would come into office with a hit list that would be carried in his pocket when he assumed office, that's unprecedented. and i know many people say we over use the word unprecedented, but we nonetheless live in unprecedented times that will require unprecedented solutions. this, i think, is why donald trump and project 25 both advocate for the use of schedule f, this new policy that would permit them to fire career employees at the justice department and other federal agencies. it suggests that they are very concerned, perhaps afraid, of what the career people could do to keep the institutions on

track. i think that perhaps gives us a road map for going forward and one of the big questions will be what can communities do to support in many cases these sort of nameless, faceless folks who do their jobs everyday, keep their heads down, deliver justice, serve the american people, how can we make sure that they're free to do that even with the pam bondi as the attorney general. >> rina, you're the founder of relaxed strategies. i'll ask you a strategic question now. donald trump is facing a number of embattled cabinet picks and trying to get them through right now. in unusual fashion, he is expending a considerable amount of political capital on pete hegseth, rfk jr. and others to push these things through. how long do you think we'll see that before donald trump does what we're used to him doing, which is basically throwing people under the bus, no matter whether they're his allies or not? >> and one thing that trump is known to do, which we know from

his four years in the white house, is he does twist arms at the 11th hour. will he do it this time? i don't think so. because we're looking at somebody who sees this second term, his re-entry to the white house, as a legacy moment. and therefore what has always been at play in politics is really salient here. the psychologically thrilling aspect of it all. what he's putting forward right now is meant to not just sensationalize who he is and how he does things and continue again politics as entertainment, vice versa, essentially what he really wants to do is stick it to the democrats. say look what i can do that is so different that makes people wake up and open their eyes to what's been happening around them. this is is sort of sentiment he's always promulgated. i thought at play in the last stages of his campaign he kept promising this fundamental rethink of the federal government. and i see it played out completely in these nominations.

no matter whether they're embattled or not, what trump loves is the thrill of the chase. people chasing down what he's got to say about the people that he is hand picking and how those people will lead this legacy, therefore, again, it's vis-a-vis his. and that is entirely what's going on here. it's not too simplistic a view to say that trump wants to inject this feeling of that he is a change maker in washington. a la obama, better than obama. it's the hope and change that he feels that he can do better than what the democrats did back again during obama 1 and 2 terms. >> rina shah and joyce vance. thank you both. coming up, i'll discuss what the future of journalism could look like during the next trump administration with the pulitzer prize winning creator of the 1619 project nikole hannah-jones. and why civil rights leaders are sounding the alarm on trump's pick to lead the civil

rights division at the doj. plus, secretary of state antony blinken is the middle east for talks on the future of syria following the fall of the assad regime. after your break, we'll go live to damascus for the latest. but first, breaking news on another government in turmoil. hours ago south korea's parliament voted to impeach president yoon suk yeol following yoon's controversial decision to briefly impose martial law. last week a previous impeachment attempt failed after yoon's party walked out of the proceedings. he remains in the presidential residence but suspended from state duties while the country's constitutional court decides the next steps. the prime minister is now serving as acting president although he, too, could face impeachment in his role in the martial law declaration. we'll continue to bring you the latest on this fast-moving situation. you're watching "velshi" on msnbc. c. oh, we got a weathertech gift card!

weathertech is the perfect gift for everyone. may i? (laughs) laser measured floorliners protect carpet in the front and second row. cargo liner protects the rear. the side window deflector offers more protection. my turn! the sinkmat contains spills in cabinets. something for you too, buddy! pets eat safely with the non-toxic pet feeding system. find these american made gifts or get a gift card instantly at wt.com. i'll be home for christmas.

you can count on me. please have snow and mistletoe and presents under the tree. right now all over the country, kids at shriners hospitals for children™ are able to go home and be with their families for the holidays. and it's only possible because of the monthly support of people just like you. thanks to a generous donor, every dollar you give, will go three times as far to help more kids. with your gift of just $19 a month, only $0.63 a day. we'll send you this adorable love to the rescue® blanket as a thank you and a reminder of the care

you'll be providing so kids can be with their families. christmas eve will find me where the love light gleams. it only takes a moment to call the number on your screen. or you can visit loveshriners.org right now on your phone or computer. your gift of $19 a month will have three times the impact in the lives of kids like me. because every child just wants to be home for the holidays, and your gift makes that possible. your call is the best gift of all. your gift will be my favorite christmas present this year. please call the number on your screen or go online right now with your monthly gift. and when you become a monthly donor, your first gift will be tripled. thank you for giving. craig here pays too much for verizon wireless.

so he sublet half his real estate office... [ bird squawks loudly ] to a pet shop. meg's moving company uses t-mobile. so she scaled down her fleet to save money. and don's paying so much for at&t, he's been waiting to update his equipment! there's a smarter way to save. comcast business mobile. you could save up to an incredible 70% on your wireless bill. so you don't have to compromise. powering smarter savings. powering possibilities.

♪♪ now to the latest in the chaotic situation in syria, following the over throw of bashar al assad's regime. secretary of state antony blinken is currently in jordan for talks with officials from several arab nations regarding the best ways to support the political transition. last hour blinking spoke about america's role in the future of syria. >> our message to the syrian people is this -- we want them to succeed. and we're prepared to help them do so. we agree that the transition process should be syrian led and syrian own and produce an inclusive and representative government the rights of all syrians including minorities and women should be respected. humanitarian aid should be able to reach people who need it. state institutions should deliver essential services to the syrian people. syria should not be used as a base for terrorist groups or

others who threaten syria's people, its neighbors or the world. chemical weapons stockpile should be secured and safely destroyed. syria should have peaceful relations with its neighbors. >> joining me now live in damascus, syria, is nbc nus international correspondent matt bradley. matt, thank you for being with us. the rebels that are now in charge seem to be trying to put out an air of authority around themselves and for at least right now the transfer of power appears to be going peacefully. what can you tell us about what being in damascus? >> reporter: yeah, charles, not just authority. they're trying to reinvent themselves a force for liberalism, for inclusiveness. you could call them woke ji ha dis. a very, very different atmosphere than we have seen the middle east in the past from other groups associated with them, like al qaeda, like isis. these are groups that had past associations with hayat tahrir

al-sham the group that moved in and took over the capital just about a week ago. now this group has for the past several years trying to reinvent themselves. they're still listed and its listed jolani is listed as a terrorist by the eyes and by several western countries. turkey, israel also lists them as terrorists. we just heard from jolani just today. actually they're not going to have any involvement in the palestinian question. and this is something that kind of sets them apart from a lot of islamist groups throughout the world. it sounds as though he'll be focussed, at least he says he's going to be focussed, on issues here in syria. and on that question, he's made all the right noises trying to appeal to western governments and international organizations. he said that he's going to try to end the drug trade coming out of syria. he's going to try to return all these refugees who scattered throughout the world, syrians who fled the war. he wants to invite them all backcome will be welcome news for europeans. huge number of refugees coming

from the middle east because of the wars that came out of the arab spring. he also says he'll be offering full rights to women, minorities ethnic and religious and essentially introducing something like democracy. we don't know exactly what that will look like and charles, this is the big question here. i spoke with people out in the streets of damascus just yesterday. they were all out for a huge rally, celebrating this new revolution, looking forward to the new syria. people were saying, and they all said the same word, that they can now breathe. but they can say what they want to say in public. now, whether or not that lasts for a long time, that's yet to be seen. >> that was nbc's matt bradley in damascus. thank you. coming up on "velshi," trump's pick to lead the civil rights division at doj is a fierce lawyer and a fixture of the maga legal movement. what does that mean for the direction of the department of justice in a new trump administration? we'll have that and more after

this short break. stay tuned. hat and more after this short break stay tuned okay everyone, our mission is to provide complete, balanced nutrition for strength and energy. yay - woo hoo! ensure, with 27 vitamins and minerals, nutrients for immune health. and ensure complete with 30 grams of protein. (♪♪)

look at this skin baby! she is glowing. she is 1 of 1! olay hyaluronic body wash has 10x more vitamin b3 complex. for visibly-nourished skin. my skin is so much more moisturized. olay body wash and lotion. discover yours. 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. welcome back. you're watching "velshi" on msnbc. i'm charles coleman jr. in today for ali. now donald trump's pick to lead a top post at the department of justice in the civil rights division has civil rights advocates sounding the alarm. trump picked dhillon, a san francisco attorney and trump loyalist to lead the civil rights division at the doj. now she's played a central role in conservative legal cases filing claims against election fraud and challenging diversity initiatives, trans rights and even covid lockdowns. msnbc's jones who writes for the read out blog and reporting on this role as a key player for the maga movement with respect to dhillon.

for the past two years he argued that trump's selection for dhillon reveals quite a bit about how trump intends to use the justice department in the second term. quote, if she is confirmed by the senate the doj division responsible for defending america's most precious rights, including importantly the right to vote, would be led by someone who has supported trampling on those very rights. jahon jones joins me now. he's a multimedia producer and writer for the reid out blog on msnbc.com. let's get right into it. we are going from potentially a doj that has a civil rights division led by christian clark to this. can you just explain for our audience what a contrast this is and how important sit that they understand the big difference and what that could look like for civil rights. >> sure thing. thank you for having me, by the way. so, like you mentioned, i've been following harmeet dhillon

the past couple years. in the blog you mentioned i talked how she launched a failed bid to be the rnc chair. she was trying to oust then romney mcdonald. the premise of his bid was she thought the rnc needed to invest in a larger army of lawyers to kind of wage these consperitorial lawsuits alleging that trump was the rightful victor of the 2020 election. and so, in this podcast that she appeared on with far right influencer charlie kirk in december of 2022 they talked about how they wanted someone with a killer instinct, who would literally be able to help conservatives win elections before they occurred. so what does that mean? it means that you're doing all you can to purge people from voter rolls. block people from access to the ballot. that obviously is a disturbing thing to imagine being effectuated throughout a civil rights division that is largely responsible for upholding people's voting rights.

there are current cases right now that the do-j is involved in supporting black voters who have seen their rights being struck down or being attacked rather. and so, when harmeet takes over, if and when, kristen clark's role as lead of the civil rights division at the doj, we could see the doj taking a completely polar opposite stance that it's taken in the lawsuits, siding with states that have used their power to disenfranchise black voters and the like. >> this is very interesting to me because, as you think about christian clark leading the civil rights division at the doj and think about dhillon being the successor, the end of the day, two women of color. if you're not paying attention to the details, you might say, there's nothing wrong here. obviously things are working in the right direction. you have a woman and a woman of color. two women of color, following each other. different political idealogies, until you start to get into the details. until you start to look much more closely.

then you see actually there's a very big difference here. it seems to me that donald trump and civil rights together is somewhat of an oxymoron. so how does dhillon from an ideological place fit or further enforce where donald trump is on many of these issues? >> sure. so as you mentioned, she's spread anti-trans propaganda. she aligns with donald trump's view that diversity, equity and inclusion policies constitute discrimination in and of themselves. and so, when donald trump earlier this year did an interview with "time" and spoke how he sees his priorities to tamp down on anti-white feelings, he would not select someone for the civil rights division unless he felt confident that they were going to act on those ideals that he has. and so, harmeet dhillon expressed those openly. we're going to see, i hate to say it, america, we're going to

see an out right onslaught against people's civil and human rights under this person who has not been coy about her views toward diverse populations and the ways we include them in our society. >> tamp down anti-white feelings is perhaps the wildest thing that i have heard. >> in an interview. >> that is crazy work. that is wild. >> the conversation around dei has been a big one for me as a civil rights attorney, as a dei practitioner. where does dhillon fall on that? is anything of note that we should be bracing ourselves for. we have already seen a corporate roll back of dei initiatives in many workplaces. is this something now we should expect the doj to be enforcing through its civil rights division. >> i would say so. donald trump in a video last year talked about how he would use the laws to target any university that has diversity, equity and inclusion policies

and to award injury to those who felt like they were discriminated by those policies that are meant, again to include people who had been marginalized. so we're going to see that kind of perverse flip of what the civil rights division is intended to do if and when harmeet dhillon and nominated and ultimately approved. i think this is like an unavoidable part of our political discussion as well. there's been so many discussions post election about what democrats can do to win elections. what they can do to win over voter. but when you have someone in a civil rights division that is tasked with not only supporting dei but people's fundamental rights to vote, all of these other conversations about what democrats can do to win over voters will be completely moot if we have someone -- leading the civil rights division who is an enemy of voting right. who is an enemy of treating marginalized groups, marginalized racial and ethnic

groups as though they're human beings. that's what dhillon represents and that's the fear that i'm trying to instill in america when it comes to their view of this candidate. >> fresh from the reid out blog and msnbc, the brilliant jahon jones. thank you so much for being with me on this hour of "velshi." up next the mystery in the sky. what's up with the drones hovering late at night in the skies above several northeastern states. i'll be looking at that when we come back from a short break. more "velshi." stay tuned. lshi." stay tuned can neuriva support your brain health? mary. janet. hey! eddie. no! fraser. frank. frank. fred. how are you? support up to seven brain health indicators, including memory. when you need to remember, remember neuriva. for more than a decade farxiga has been trusted again and again, and again. ♪far-xi-ga♪

♪far-xi-ga♪ ask your doctor about farxiga. (children speaking) conflict is raging across the world, and millions of children's lives are being devastated by war, hunger, disease and poverty. we urgently need your help to reach children in crisis. please call or go online to give just $10 a month. only $0.33 a day. we need 1000 new monthly donors this month to help children in crisis around the world and right here at home. you can help us provide food, essentials, and lifesaving medical care to children in the most need.

in the darkest times children suffer the most. you can help by calling right now and giving just $10 a month. all we need are 1000 monthly donors. please call or go online now with your monthly gift of just $10. thanks to generous government grants, every dollar you give can have up to ten times the impact and when you call with your credit card, we will send you this save the children tote bag as a thank you for your support. your small monthly donation of just $10. could be the reason a child in crisis survives. show them they're not alone.

please call or go online to givetosave.org to help save lives. when i was a kid, my mom would always put harry & david pears in our stockings. and if you got that gold one, it was like you had won christmas. my grandmother started it and now it's a tradition that i get to pass on to my kids. and that means a lot. ♪♪ vicks vapostick provides soothing non-medicated vicks vapors. easy to apply for the whole family. vicks vapostick. and try new vaposhower max for steamy vicks vapors.

♪♪ alarm continues to grow this weekend as there have been more and more sightings of what are believed to be drones in the skies across the northeast. there are about 08 reports of sightings in one day in new jersey alone. and now there have been spotted in other states as well including new york, delaware and maryland. so far the mysterious objects have not presented any danger, but the questions remain, where are they coming from? and who's controlling this them? eric mclaughlin has this story, nbc news correspondent. >> getting home from work. >> reporter: mysterious sightings spread from maryland to new york, new jersey.

>> i have never seen anything like it. >> reporter: and beyond so too do calls for answers and accountability from state officials. >> no state can become the wild west of drone activity. >> reporter: and now high profile officials are among those reporting sightings. larry hogan says he captured this video appearing to show dozens of large drones overing over his home. andy kim says he saw this over a reservoir while out drone hunting with local police. >> some appeared to hover or at least seemed to be in position. >> reporter: that sighting among the 79 reports overnight in new jersey, according to a senior official with reports every evening since november 18th. except for thanksgiving. the state's governor firing off a letter to the president, demanding answers. saying that existing laws limit the ability of authorities to counter this activity. >> we don't know who's flying them or what information they're collecting. >> reporter: in new jersey, the mayor is taking action. setting up a task force to track the activity. this started in november.

is it possible that people just started looking up in november? >> i think it's possible. i spoke to the sheriff. he told me drones have been around for a while, but not to this degree. >> reporter: the naval weapons station earl confirming several instances of unidentified drones entering the air space above the facility. >> the fbi should be standing at a podium and briefing the public. >> reporter: the faa responding for the first time on camera to the drone sightings. reminding the public of the rules. >> it's okay to fly them in most areas, as long as you stay below 400 feet. and if you're flying at night the drone must have certain lighting. >> reporter: with anxiety spreading online -- >> i'm freaking out over here. >> reporter: officials acknowledge there's still many more questions than answers. >> that was nbc's erin mclaughlin reporting. the fbi has weighed in on this drone mystery and has said it could not yet explain what's happening but it maintains there's no national security risk to the public. coming up next, we could be days away from a government

shutdown. we're going to head to capitol hill for the very latest on where negotiations stand after the break. you're watching "velshi" on msnbc. you're watching "velshi" msnbc. the freestyle libre 3 plus sensor tracks your glucose in real time, and over time it can help lower your a1c. ♪♪ this is progress. learn more and try for free at freestylelibre.us ♪♪

[music playing] interviewee: my son is winston, and he is eight months old. my son has a brain tumor. my parents have donated for years, ever since i was a child. i remember my mom talking about st. jude. i just never thought that i would ever need them. narrator: today, you can give a gift like no other,

a gift that can help st. jude children's research hospital save lives. interviewee 2: anybody who is supporting this organization, i'm not sure that they know the impact that they're having. narrator: when you call or go online with your credit or debit card right now, we'll send you this st. jude t-shirt you can wear to show your support. interviewee 1: it means everything. thank you for the future of my son. interviewee 2: i couldn't be more thankful. interviewee t. jude will always have a place in my heart.

♪♪ with just over a week until the deadline, congress appears to be closing in on a government spending bill. house speaker mike johnson has signalled that he would prefer a three-month stopgap bill which would keep the federal government operating through march. congressional leaders are negotiating other the details of a disaster aid package, which is expected to be included in the bill. joining me now on capitol hill is nbc news correspondent gary grumbach. tell us more about the disaster relief expected to be in this deal. >> reporter: i think they're close. nobody has an appetite for government shutdown this time around. they want to get back to their districts, enjoy the holidays and deal with this again in

march. but there are two sticking points before they can get home tone joy those holidays. first, as it relates to that disaster aid, as you mentioned. the biden administration wants $100 billion included for clean-up related to hurricanes milton and helene. that money will go in part to fema n part to some of the farmers that lost their crops, especially in western north carolina. the rest of it will go towards some overall spending costs as it relates to administration. so that's that money and that issue right there. the second issue has to do with the irs. on january 20th, when donald trump takes office, the irs will look very different perhaps in donald trump's mind. and there's $20 billion that the money -- of money for the irs supposed to go into this funding bill. that's a little bit up in the air right now, too. but we are expecting to have some answers here soon hopefully by the end of the weekend we should be getting text of this funding bill and expect both chambers to vote on this this week and head to president biden's desk by the end of friday night.

charles? >> that was nbc's gary grumbach on capitol hill. thank you. coming up next, nikole hannah-jones, the pulitzer prize winning creator of the 1619 project joins me here on set to discuss what the future of journalism looks like in the next trump era. you're watching "velshi" on msnbc. patients who have sensitive teeth but also want whiter teeth, they have to make a choice- one versus the other. new sensodyne clinical white, it provides 2 shades whiter teeth as well as providing 24/7 sensitivity protection. patients are going to love to see sensodyne on the shelf. patients are going to losofia vergara: at st. jude, there's one thing that makes us all family-- finding cures, saving children. one in five kids in the us still won't survive cancer.

join our st. jude family. we need you. please donate now. (man) mm, hey, honey. looks like my to-do list grew. "paint the bathroom, give baxter a bath, get life insurance," hm. i have a few minutes. i can do that now. oh, that fast? remember that colonial penn ad? i called and i got information. they sent the simple form i need to apply. all i do is fill it out and send it back. well, that sounds too easy! (man) give a little information, check a few boxes, sign my name, done. they don't ask about your health? (man) no health questions. -physical exam? -don't need one. it's colonial penn guaranteed acceptance whole life insurance. if you're between the ages of 50 and 85, your acceptance is guaranteed in most states, even if you're not in the best health. options start at $9.95 a month, 35 cents a day. once insured, your rate will never increase.

a lifetime rate lock guarantees it. keep in mind, this is lifetime protection. as long as you pay your premiums, it's yours to keep. call for more information and the simple form you need to apply today. there's no obligation, and you'll receive a free beneficiary planner just for calling. where can nfl fans get a great deal that turns christmas day into game day? x marks the spot. the nfl is streaming christmas day games exclusively on netflix, and you don't want to miss a moment.

gather round the game because nothing says holidays like family and football. now xfinity customers can add streamsaver including netflix, peacock, and apple tv+ for just $15 a month. stuff your stockings with tons of entertainment and tons of savings. bring on the good stuff. xfinity. ♪♪

back on january 21st, 2017, which was the first full day of donald trump's first term, the first press briefing from his first press secretary, sean spicer, included what was probably among the most petty and inconsequential falsehoods pedalled by trump and his allies at this point. remember this -- >> this was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration period. both in person and around the globe. >> period. who could forget it. and then there was also this, the next day, when trump's then senior counselor kellyanne conway appear on nbc's "meet the press" chuck todd challenged her on the actual falsehood. >> you did not answer the question of why the president asked the white house press secretary to come out in front of the podium for the first time and utter a falsehood. why did he do that? it undermines the credibility of

the entire white house press office on day one. >> no, it doesn't. don't be so overly dramatic about it, chuck. you're saying it's a falsehood. they're giving sean spicer, our press secretary, gave alternative facts to that. but the point remains -- >> wait a minute, alternative facts? >> period. it wasn't a lie itself that mattered but what it signaled. the size of trump's inauguration crowd was never of any consequence whatsoever. that's right, folks. size doesn't matter. but, his obsession with it, his insistence about lying about it and then getting his staff to lie about it and the invention of so-called alternative facts, all of this pointed to a new era in politics and journalism. frankly in our country's collective regard for the truth. "the washington post" started a tally of the number of false or misleading comments that donald trump made during his first term. they found that at least 30,000 of those were made in his first four years. but as journalists have worked

to hold donald trump to account, trump has continuously pushed back. he popularized the idea of fake news. he's repeatedly labeled the media the enemy of the people. just before this year's election, trump said he wouldn't mind if an assassin shot through, quote, the fake news standing in front of him. on at least five occasions during his first term, his administration selectively excluded some news organizations from press briefings, taking back press credentials from individual journalists and barring so outlets. he's even suggested that entire media companies, including abc, cbs, and nbc news should lose their broadcasting licenses all together. and now, donald trump has chosen kash patel to head the fbi, a man who has explicitly promised to come after the media. listen to this. >> we will go out and find the conspirators not just in government but in the media, yes, we're going to come after the people in the media who lied

about american citizens who helped joe biden rig presidential elections. we're going to come after you. whether it's criminally or civilly, we'll figure that out. yeah, we're putting you all on notice. >> that is the landscape that journalists and media companies are facing in a new trump term. and for more on this, i'm joined by pulitzer prize winning journalist nikole hannah-jones, a domestic correspondent for "the new york times" magazine and the creator of the 1619 project. but for you all's purposes the most important thing you need to know is she teaches at me alma mater howard university. that's what you need to know. thank you so much for being here this morning, nikole. i want to start by asking you, at this point it might even be a badge of honor that the 1619 project is basically been singled out by donald trump in materials of he's threatened to stop funding to schools that engage that as part of their curriculum. what does that say to you, not just as the creator of the project, but as someone whose background is rooted in

journalism and story telling and truth telling? >> well, i think what it says to me is that we are facing an epic battle in the next four years with an administration that we know -- i mean, as you just laid out, has a history of attacking journalists, of calling for violence against journalists, of suing journalist, you are vailing journalists and also seeking to legislate against the work of journalists, which is what trump tried to do with the 1619 project. so, we as a press face a time where the community to protect journalists says we are seeing more attacks on the press than we've seen. we are seeing more threats against the press. and a fear of restriction of press freedoms. >> you know, i think that truth telling in any form requires a degree of courage. and that courage in a country where we enjoy freedom soft press probably has not been tested to the degree that it is likely to be tested over the

next four years. some of what i predict may be the backlash to this has to come from the public, not just from journalists or that media space. what do you think is actually going to take before the public starts taking this as serious as it should be? >> so i don't ever try to predict the future. we can't tell what voters in the public are going to do, but i think what's krit critical is t public understands why does the press exist, why does the press exist in a free society, only profession protected by the first amendment. the founders for all their flaws understood that democracy if yo independent press that can hold power accountable. we exist to inform the public. we exist to serve as a check on power, to be a watchdog. and so when, in fact,ed a an administration is attacking the press, they're attacking the public's right to know. they're attacking the public's right to understand the inner workings of government so we can

choose, is this the government we want or not. we have the ability to fight back against things we don't agree with or think are anti-democratic. i hope that the public will understand that there's a reason why authoritarians target the media, why they try to discredit the media and why they threaten the media. they want to make us afraid to do our jobs. they want to make the public not believe what it is that we report when we expose the way that power is being used against us. and i think that we have to be really worried as a press that we are not doing as timothy schneider said obeying in advance. that we are not getting exhausted. that we are not simply saying, well, trump lies all the time. so we start to be accepting of those lies as normal. >> right. >> i think that that's why i'm saying we are facing an epic battle, but the public has to be involved in that battle. the public, whether they don't like what we do all the time, whether they don't agree with what we do all the time, they have to understand that they must protect the press if they

want to maintain a free society. >> you know, threading that needle between engagement and exhaustion is something that i have conversations with people about all the time. i want to talk to you about the notion of the intersection of where you sit and others like you in particular being someone in media and journalism but also being a black woman and how that uniquely shapes your lens going into the next four years as any one of those groups faces a special and unique set of attacks but then to have the culmination of what that represents in one person n one human body, how does that change how you navigate the space of doing what you're supposed to do as a story teller? >> well, we can look at the way that trump used his most vile rhetoric and attacks against black women journalists, against ya mee sha alcindor, april ryan. we saw this again and again. we can expect more of that. there's a reason for that that black women hold a very particular position in the society.

black women also were those who voted against trump at the highest rates of all racial groups. and so, when black women seek to hold that power accountable, that's seen as more dangerous. and that black women are less protected in this society. so, i know that as a black woman journalist, you know, my former twitter handle i'm no longer using as a platform anymore, was idabwells. that was me always trying to center myself in a tradition, a tradition of the black press, a tradition of black women who were determined to tell the truth, even if it cost them. we know that when ida b. wells spoke the truth about white men lynching black men. she become a refugee away from memphis. she was forced out. we understand as black women what is required of us to be journalists and to tell the truth. but that also means that because of that history, we stand on strong shoulders. and we are going to continue to do what we've always done which

is hold power accountable in this country. >> your last statement made me think about something that i hadn't planned to ask but will now. given how the results in november played out with respect to exit polling and everything that we saw, has the coalition or any notion of a coalition between black women journalists in this space been tampered with, broken down or has that had no impact on how you all are approaching moving forward and working with other groups? >> i definitely am hearing from a lot of black women that they feel betrayed. that they feel alone in the struggle. and that's not including black men, but that's including others who are not black, right? and that there is a sense of exhaustion, of wanting to step back. but then very quickly there's the reality that we don't have a choice. that we can't step back. so i know a lot of black women who are taking these last few weeks of the year before the new administration comes in to really fortify themselves, to

try to replenish those reserves and then the black women i know fully intend to fight for our communities, to fight to protect the most vulnerable and to hope to rebuild those coalitions because the thing about being black in america, we're 13% of the population. we have to build coalition. there's no way for us to safeguard our communities, to push forward an agenda that we consider to be humanistic without building coalitions. so black women are human beings. we have a right to be tired. we have a right to be upset. but then black women are going to go out and do what black women have always done which is try to save this country from itself. >> if that