try now. >> for free. >> visit otter.ai or download. >> the app. >> all of this can be overwhelming, but it is important to remember there are still checks and balances. there's a lot being thrown at the american people right now and it is really important to pay attention to it, but it is just as important to recognize how many of those things are getting announced. but they're not happening at all, or at least not yet. just try to remember we are not looking at the final score. we are still in the first quarter. keep your pads on. the game has just begun. >> right now. elon musk doubles down on his doge demands, posting that president trump has his back with a new threat of termination for federal workers who don't respond to his five bullet point accomplishment. email. on capitol hill this hour, house democrats are

protesting the republican budget, with speaker johnson set to put that bill to a vote tonight. but does he have the votes? plus, divisions between the president and u.s. allies widen over ending the war in ukraine. with vladimir putin looming over the process and a surprising vote at the un. also, we are following all the developments from the vatican, where the pope's health is front and center. hello again. i'm ana cabrera, reporting from new york. let's get you right to capitol hill, where fired federal workers are protesting. they're going office to office there on the hill. there's also another protest against the latest wage cuts about to start in washington. all this as the roughly 2 million federal workers who for now remain on the job, are trying to navigate contradicting guidance about a doge request to justify their job. the so-called five accomplishments. after extending

last night's midnight deadline. elon musk posted, quote, failure to respond a second time will result in termination. but that's even after another email telling these agencies and their workers that the survey is voluntary. are you confused yet? do you think workers are confused? one of the federal workers trying to sort out the chaos spoke with our nbc station in the san francisco bay area, and we're protecting his identity for fear of retaliation. but listen to his words. >> many of us are. >> looking. >> at our email on a daily basis because we're. we're anticipating things like this happening all the time. it's not shocking anymore. there are people behind these jobs. there are people in the community. there are the friends, family, neighbors. they're not just faceless people pushing paper and collecting paychecks in washington, d.c. they're all around the united states. >> let's bring in nbc news white house correspondent erin gilchrist, republican strategist susan del percio, politico's

white house correspondent eugene daniels, and boston globe columnist kimberly atkins, store cohost of the sisters in law podcast. erin, the president is standing by doge, but some trump cabinet members are taking a stand against it. at least this five accomplishments email request and one supporting that directive, initially including health and human services secretary robert f kennedy jr. has now warned employees and staffers that their responses could be read by malign foreign actors. so what's the white house saying about all of this? >> well, ana, let me add to the confusion a little bit here. we just heard from a counselor to the president, spoke out on the driveway outside the west wing a little while ago, and was asked about clarifying the directive to respond to this email that went out on saturday or not to respond to it. and she said that the president does expect people to respond, to tell them what accomplishments they made. and part of her statement was that

if you don't, there will be repercussions. of course, that is counter to what we understood yesterday was the directive from opm to some of the folks at different agencies around the federal government that responding to that email on saturday would be voluntary or is voluntary, and that there would not be it would not be taken as a, as a, as an as a resignation if people did not respond to it. of course, as you noted, there were also agency heads who instructed their workers not to respond for various different reasons. alina habba seemed to suggest that people who dealt with classified information perhaps should not respond and follow the directions of their agency heads. i do want you to hear, though, what president trump had to say about this when he was asked about elon musk and about this email that went out on saturday, he called it genius. listen to this. >> by asking the question, tell us what you did this week. what he's doing is saying, are you actually working? and then if you don't answer, like you're

sort of semi fired or you're fired. i think it was actually there was a lot of genius in sending it. >> so elon musk went on social media last night and said that that initial email was was really an inane test. he called it something that was trivial. and then later on, a few minutes later, as a matter of fact, posted on social media again saying that there could possibly be a second email if president trump feels inclined to send a second one and that people should respond to it or they would face resignation. and so i think, anna, that is creating the angst for some federal workers not really knowing what is going to happen or what's not going to happen from one moment to the next, and from whom they should be taking direction, whether it's elon musk directly or their supervisor or secretary of a department, there's just still a lot of confusion. >> it sounds like a big mess, suzanne. some republicans are now warning that doge could backfire. i want you to listen to what we're hearing from

senator lisa murkowski of alaska. but she told nbc's ryan nobles. >> just a little bit of humanity and dignity to the process, i think, is what many of the alaskan federal. >> employees are asking for. >> and i don't think that that's asking for too much. there is a way to do this that is proper, that is lawful, and also treats our federal. employees with a little bit of dignity. >> dignity, compassion. susan, are we starting to near that limit in terms of how far mush can push? musk can push this. and is trump now starting to lose the pr battle when it comes to compassion? >> well, it's not just compassion. and i also think it's logic. i think that's what people are looking for. for example, if you're going to fire a certain amount of your workforce, typically you let agency heads know how, what's the percentage. and it's up to them to make the cut. the idea

of compassion and donald trump are not two things that typically go together. i think mostly of his immigration policies when i say that. but what we're starting to see, for example, is veterans who are being fired just across the board. and if you look at some place like the department of defense, that can mean about 30, i think 30% of their personnel are veterans, and you're just going to randomly cut people and that they're going to be included. you're going to see the backlash. but as long as elon musk is bearing the brunt of it, donald trump is okay with it because donald trump will be fine until it starts hurting his poll numbers. and then probably throw elon musk under a bus. >> eugene. other reporting we're tracking right now. politico, your outlet has this reporting that the president's allies are floating a plan to use a private civilian army of military contractors to carry out mass deportations. what are you

learning about this? >> yeah. >> i. >> mean, that that this conversation that's happening in this. deportation plan is they realize that the federal government. donald trump and his allies, that they don't have the resources within the government. >> to. >> do the. >> things that. >> they promised on the campaign trail that really that he wanted to do in the. >> first. >> four years. >> of his administration. >> so looking. >> to other ways to do that, folks. >> like erik prince. >> right, who a lot of folks know that name with blackwater to create this, you know, private. >> force, private army. >> call it what you want to go out. >> and find people. >> and this is just like with dodge. >> another question. >> of the legality. >> of that, right? >> can a private group of human beings go around on behalf of the federal government, snatching people out of their homes, out of their out of their workplaces, and possibly out in public when they're out with their family? those are the kinds. >> of questions. >> that folks still don't have answers to. but my colleagues and my award did a lot of work

on this, and it's a really fascinating piece. and it's not the end of that story either. >> kim. >> just yesterday, a federal judge blocked ice arrests in churches for some religious groups. we've not seen any instances at least bubble to the public service of church arrests since the president gave the. okay. but this lawsuit is one of roughly 80 now facing the president. his policies, elon musk and doge. can the courts keep up with the administration's pace? the president's scheduled to sign more executive orders just this afternoon. >> well. >> so far they. >> have been. and i. >> would keep. >> a close eye, particularly on comments that we have heard in the last week or so from two federal judges, including yesterday in a courtroom in d.c. questioning the legal authority of doge and of elon musk. there was an exchange between a doj attorney and judge kollar-kotelly who who the judge was kept asking, who is in who?

name one doge administrator who is in charge of doge. >> and. >> the doj. was going to such contortions to keep elon musk away from that, saying that he has no role with doge for the clear constitutional reasons, and could not name a single administrator of that. and the judge said, well, how am i supposed to judge the legality and constitutionality of this organization if you can't even tell me who's in charge? so i think sooner than later we will get the first of orders that are casting doubts, aspersions on the constitutionality of this. keep in mind, to create an agency, it's usually done by an act of congress, and then the leader of that agency has to be confirmed by the senate. neither of those things have happened here. clearly, elon musk, through his twitter account is in charge of this, but that would be unconstitutional. so i think that's one of the first and clearest defeats that the trump administration may be heading toward. >> kimberly atkins store. aaron

gilchrist, susan del percio, eugene daniels, thank you all for starting us off. and joining us now is everett kelly, the national president of the american federation of government employees. this union's part of a lawsuit filed against doj's mass layoffs, which now includes any of the lawsuits that stem from that email request calling for the termination of people who don't respond. you've called this one of the most massive employment frauds in the history of this country. everett, i know the union represents 800,000 workers. do you have any sense of how many of your members have been laid off since doge took charge? >> well, thank. >> you first of all for. >> having me, but i don't have an. >> accurate number at this time. only doge would have that information. but you know, one is too many for no apparent reason whatsoever. >> so what types of jobs then? did you know these people who are impacted hold? how are the

firings or potential firings impacting the agencies that they've dedicated their careers to? >> yeah. you know, and some of these nurses working for the va, you know, they're doctors, you know, some are, you know, people that inspect the food and these type of things, these are jobs that are providing essential services to the american people. and the american people need those people on the job, doing the job every single day. >> when it comes to this five accomplishments email, you said your organization doesn't oppose justifying an employee's work, but you do take issue with how this request breaks the chain of command. so what are you advising members to do amid this chaos and the confusion and the threat of losing their jobs if they don't respond? >> yeah. >> you know. i've never seen nothing of the such. >> you know, i. >> wish i had. >> time to really respond to these emails that the employees are receiving and wish they had the time, but they are actually performing services. but we are

telling the employees, you know, that you don't work for elon musk. you work for your various agencies, consult with your agencies, and if your agency feels that you need to respond, respond to them. but even so, many agencies know that this was, you know, not the right way to approach this situation. and so they in turn, told the members and workers not to respond to this email. so we are saying, you know, talk to the people that you work for, not to doge and not to elon musk, because you do not work for them. >> and musk has said his email was trivial. this request for the employees. what is your message to elon musk right now? >> well, you know, you know, i really wish that elon musk would spend some time just to figure out what it is that the federal employees does. you know, these are the people that are actually making sure that the food we eat is safe. these are people that

take care of veterans. >> these are people. >> that make sure that our most vulnerable people, elders, receive their beneficiaries every single month, you know, take time and listen to the federal workforce. ask them what it is that they do, and you won't have so many mistakes. you won't have to repeat yourself over and over and over. okay. >> we heard from senator murkowski. at the top here talking about having compassion, humanity, dignity around these layoffs. do you feel in those that you represent feel that lawmakers are listening to those concerns that you have? >> you know, we wish that this congress would stand up and really hear the concerns that we have because, you know, in essence, we don't think that they are paying attention because it's inhuman. it's un-american to treat these veteran employees the way that they are treated when they are patriotic. employees wanting to provide the services for the american people have done an outstanding job of providing services to the american people,

so we wish they would hear the concerns of the working americans. >> how's morale right now with federal workers? >> say that again. >> how is morale right now? federal workers? >> i mean, you know, you got to understand that anytime you're constantly harassed, you know, morale is going to go down. but what i'm proud about is that the employees that i represent, they are so patriotic, they're going to get the job done and they're going to do it with care, and they're going to do it, you know, with patriotism, you know, so they're still going to get the job done irregardless of how they harass it, regardless of how low the morale is. and it is low, you know, but we're going to continue and we're going to make sure that we stand up and continue to fight against those that attack the workers that are providing these services for the american people. >> i mean, it must be hard to figure out the right move. do you put your head down, keep plowing forward, doing the work the best you can or do you fight back, try to, you know, take a

stand. you've been out there attending rallies. what more can federal employees do to show their concerns without risk of retaliation? >> well, they should continue to consult and talk with their congressional. delegation to the senators you know, that represent them and express to them exactly how they are feeling. you know, we are hearing from employees that losing their jobs for no apparent reason whatsoever. you know, i spoke with one lady yesterday, you know, who lost her job, had been in the services for quite some time, you know, but took another promotion. now she's pregnant now with no insurance, no anything. you know, i mean, these people are crying to us, you know, and people need to feel that these are real human beings, you know, that's undergoing this type of stress. that's uncalled for. again, i say it's un-american and people need to just continue to contact their congresspeople and their

senatorial people and let them know what they're feeling every single day. the phone needs to ring off the hook. and i encourage every not just federal employee, but every american to stand up with working america to make sure that the democracy of this country stay intact, and that we are still able to have a government that functions for the american people. >> eric kelly, appreciate you joining us. thank you for helping to shine some light on the situation. and when we're back in 90s, speaker mike johnson tries to hold. together his razor thin house majority to get the president's vision through congress. what we know about a crucial vote today. about a crucial vote today. next. ever feel like a spectator in your own life with chronic migraine? 15 or more headache days a month, each lasting 4 hours or more. botox® prevents headaches in adults with chronic migraine. in a survey, 91% of users wish they'd started sooner. so why wait? talk to your doctor. botox® effects may spread

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>> he's a dreamer, frank. >> elena kagan and doug. >> well. i'll be. >> that bird. >> really did it. >> only pay for what you need. liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty. >> on capitol hill right now. speaker mike johnson still struggling to lock in the votes. he needs to pass a massive budget bill. deficit hawks in his own party are demanding more spending cuts. but there's also bipartisan objections against any potential cuts to medicaid. the speaker sounding very uncertain just a short time ago. >> there may. >> be a vote tonight. >> there may not be. >> stay tuned. that's why you get paid. hang around here. you'll have lots to report on. >> okay. there maybe is maybe isn't going to be. >> a vote. joining us now, nbc news chief. capitol hill. >> correspondent ryan nobles and former republican house member david jolly. ryan, he doesn't sound very confident there. let's listen to democratic leader hakeem jeffries drawing a

red line just moments ago on the budget. >> house democrats will not provide a single vote to this reckless republican budget. not one. >> not one. >> so, ryan, does he have the votes? does speaker johnson have the votes without a single democrat joining? >> well. >> i think if he. >> did have the votes. >> he would. >> be a bit. >> more declarative about his plans to. make the. >> vote happen later this evening. >> it's very clear at. >> this point. that he. >> still needs to wrangle a pretty sizable group of his republican conference in order to get on board with. >> this. >> spending package. >> and the issue. >> for mike. >> johnson is going. >> to be. >> the. >> issue that. he faces. >> time and time again. the margins are so tight. >> he can. >> only afford. >> to lose two votes. and the more. that he takes from. >> one side, he loses from. >> the other. >> so if they continue to cut and cut and cut the way. >> that many of these. >> deficit hawks are looking. >> for him to do, he. >> risks alienating the more. moderate members in.

>> his. >> caucus who are concerned about the. >> future of entitlement. >> programs like. >> medicare and medicaid. just take a. >> look at what the house republicans are proposing right now in. this budget. they're talking about a $4.5. >> trillion. >> in tax cuts. >> you got to pay for. >> that somehow. so they're. >> looking for $2 trillion. >> perhaps that much. they haven't. >> fully defined. >> how much they want. >> in cuts. >> in mandatory spending. >> they would also include. >> a. >> $4 trillion. >> debt ceiling hike, which a lot of hard right republican. >> members are not in. >> favor of. >> and then $10. >> billion for immigration and border security. so this is. >> a very. >> very tight. >> rope that. >> the. >> speaker is. >> walking on right now. >> and there. >> are more than. enough republicans who. >> are declared. >> noes right now. >> to kill this. >> measure on the house floor. so how he gets them. >> to a yes. >> between now and when they come to vote? well, that's an. >> open mystery because there's nothing. >> they can do right now to change the bill. >> and so it's going to have to be just. >> a lot of convincing on the part of the speaker.

>> and, ryan, fast forward for us, even if this house budget passes, isn't it different from the senate's version? >> yeah, these are. >> two completely. >> different packages. >> the senate version. >> that has already. passed does not even. >> touch the tax. >> cuts that. >> donald trump. >> would like to see employed. >> and that's part of the. >> reason is because. >> senate republicans know what a high bar it's going to be, to. find all the cuts that are necessary to then also install a $4.5 trillion tax cut without blowing up the budget deficit. that's why they chose to focus narrowly on a border security package and military funding. >> and then. >> deal with the tax cuts and larger spending cuts. >> further down. >> the road. >> that's where the disagreement exists between these two houses. but speaker mike johnson's pitch is if i can get 218 votes for a package. you should be able to get. >> 51 votes. >> john thune on. >> the senate side right. >> now. that calculation is being put to the. test in the house of representatives.

>> congressman jolly, republican leader, majority leader steve scalise, tried to blame democrats for. not getting on board with this. and, you know, if the budget the budget vote fails, obviously, republicans control the house, even if it is by just a few members. so what kind of a test is this for speaker johnson and the gop? >> yeah. it's significant. >> i mean, the numbers are the numbers. >> and i think. >> history would suggest. >> even with. >> as slim as the numbers are. >> when you have a republican president, a republican senate. >> and house, this likely gets done. >> i mean, history would. >> suggest that. >> if it's this. >> week or if it's next month. however, with only two. >> votes to lose, it's. >> interesting because. >> i think within the house republicans right now, you have. >> the medicaid. >> caucus who might be brought along. they can probably find. >> a way. >> to negotiate. >> and then you've got kind. >> of four members who. >> are. sticking out. >> right now. and you don't know. >> are they just. >> a never know. or are they a no because they want something. >> who's the four that you're watching. >> so the nos. >> who want something or warren davidson from ohio and tim burchett from tennessee, they're looking to run for higher office. probably in ohio and

tennessee. the never nos. are probably. >> thomas massie. >> from kentucky and olivia. >> or victoria. >> spartz from indiana. i don't know. >> any way. >> they get there. and what i. >> will give credit to for massie and spartz, i love this. this is a. >> lived moment for me. the math never. >> adds up. >> no, it never. >> ever, ever. >> adds up with the cuts versus the spending. the deficit increases. >> that's right. so for the other 216. >> republican members who might. >> vote yes. >> now. >> the math isn't going. >> to add up for them. they're just looking the other way. >> for victoria. >> spartz and thomas massie. >> this is actually. >> a. hill they're willingde vo. >> to move for speaker johnson. >> well, sometimes it requires constituents to help move their, you know, their leaen polling, this is a long time trump pollster who did this poll here. finding both trump voters and swing voters are prioritizing working class families over the high earners and corporations. and when we're talking about tax relief, i mean, does that resonate, do you think, with house republicans? >> it does. >> you know, it's interesting. this is really a procedural

vote. now without unlocking this procedural vote, nothing else happens. >> but this. >> allows all of the republican committees to write kind of the draconian measures. so the tax bills that create economic disparity or the cuts to medicaid or the. >> cuts to. >> ag spending. >> so they still, if they pass this, have to go back. >> and do the hard work. here's where it gets interesting. >> i think. >> hakeem jeffries point, very importantly, you don't give them a vote on this procedural reconciliation measure. but i think the bigger test for democrats right now, given all of the anxiety among constituents, is in three weeks, do you give republicans a single vote. >> to keep. >> the government open or. >> raise the debt ceiling? >> because the truth. >> is. >> republicans are facing that moment right away. all these changes to immigration and everything else they've got until the end of the year, the trump tax cuts. but in 2. >> to 3 weeks. >> they've. >> got the government shut down. >> and raise. >> the debt ceiling. >> and i think for democrats, don't give them a single vote. republicans own it. they bought. >> it. >> if they broke it. let the american people watch it. >> former congressman david jolly, thank you. ryan nobles, thanks. keep us posted. up next,

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you think those phone guys will ever figure out how to keep 5g home internet from slowing down during peak hours? their customers have to share a wireless signal with everyone in their area. oooh. you know, it's kinda like when you bring a really big cake for your birthday, and then there's only a little, tiny sliver left for the birthday girl. aw. well, wish her a happy birthday. happy birthday... -it's... ...to her. -no, it's me. have your cake and eat it, too. don't settle for t-mobile or verizon 5g home internet. get super fast xfinity internet you don't have to share. forty's going to be my year. small businesses. >> welcome back. russian president vladimir putin today offered the u.s. rare earth minerals from both russia and ukraine, from territory russia has seized during the war. president trump has been pushing ukrainian president zelensky to

give up some of his in exchange for u.s. aid. nbc news chief foreign correspondent richard engel is in odessa, ukraine. richard. >> this is. >> the hotel. >> that i and our team normally. stay in here. >> in the ukrainian city of odessa. >> but we're not. >> staying here. >> now because the hotel was. bombed by russia. they're still. >> trying to. >> fix it. >> this is the reception here. but right now it's out of commission. >> and the reason. >> that that. >> i'm doing the. >> report from. >> here is. >> because this. >> is the kind. >> of thing that can happen. >> now. >> any time. >> any place. >> in ukraine. >> we always. >> used to stay here. >> we enjoy. >> staying here. >> this time we came and we were found out. no, you can't stay there because it's been bombed. >> and when you. >> live under that environment, like ukrainians have been living for the. >> last three years, it makes it. >> all the. >> more shocking when they see the united states joining with russia. to shut down a

resolution that would have blamed russia for starting. >> the war. >> or when ukrainians hear. >> from president trump. >> that they. >> started the war. >> and that they're. >> responsible for this conflict. >> when at any time. >> of. >> the day. >> you can be. >> in your house or in a. hotel and suddenly a russian drone or. >> bomb. >> explodes from the sky. >> and now. >> ukrainians are in. >> another very. >> unique position. >> is in that they. >> are. worried that. >> this country. >> is being. >> chopped up. >> and that they. >> have to. >> sign a minerals. >> deal with. >> the united states, or. else they're. >> going to lose. >> all support. >> from. >> washington. and vladimir putin is watching this. >> and vladimir putin has. >> a very interesting strategy. >> he's playing. and he just. >> spoke a. >> few minutes ago. >> saying that. >> he has. >> a minerals deal. >> he has a deal ready to go that. >> if ukraine won't. >> sign, russia. >> is. >> open for business. >> the same kind of business

that president trump wants to. >> do here. but vladimir putin also. added an extra caveat. >> he is saying that not. >> only is russia full of rare earth minerals, so the. united states wants to make a deal. he's ready. >> to make a deal. but he said there are also these rare earth minerals. in areas. >> of ukraine that russia has occupied. >> and he said he's. >> willing to make a deal about the minerals. in those territories, too. >> and it. >> is a bit of a trap. because if. >> president trump. >> engages and. >> says, yes, we want to know more. >> about the minerals. >> in these occupied territories, then from putin's perspective, it would be the united states effectively recognizing. >> russia's sovereignty. >> over that occupied land. >> recognizing its right. >> to what is beneath the. >> surface as well. >> our thanks to richard engel for that reporting. and joining us now, former cia officer marc polymeropoulos. he's a nonresident senior fellow at the atlantic council. thank you, mark, for joining us. let's listen to some of the latest comments we're hearing from president trump. this was as he

met with french president macron yesterday, where he said a lot of progress has been made in his efforts to negotiate peace in ukraine. >> we've done a lot of things in a very short period of time, four weeks. as i've said before, it's my hope that my greatest legacy, however, will be as a peacemaker and a unifier. >> his greatest legacy as a peacemaker and a unifier. if that is the president's goal, are his actions and rhetoric supporting that? >> well, not at all. in fact, we've. seen a rather stunning change in the us as a tremendous ally to ukraine. then almost shifting to a period of neutrality, which was kind of the sentiment over the munich security conference. >> that occurred. >> last week. now to one in which we're tilting towards moscow. >> and it's. >> really a stunning change. and we almost. have this, you know, mercantilist attitude towards this mineral deal. >> we almost are acting. >> like a mafia. >> state, you know. >> two mafia dons negotiating.

>> over, over something. >> you have the underbosses meeting in riyadh, and then. somehow they're going to decide. what happens in their city. i mean, it's really a betrayal of us values. and trump is not being a peacemaker in any way. he's actually betraying a country, ukraine. >> that. >> i would remind people, is an ally of the united states. there were ukrainian special operations forces on the ground in the airport in afghanistan and kabul. when we when we withdrew, they. >> actually were there afterwards. >> they have been by us as an ally and we are betraying them now. >> well, trump's allies will argue he may do things unconventionally, but he gets results. could that be the case here? >> well, i'm not. >> sure what the result. >> would be here because this. >> deal. >> of course, has. >> there's no there's no notion yet of what are the security guarantees. i mean, what does ukraine actually get for this? and that is an unknown. and i really think you see countries. >> in europe. >> understanding this. and, you know, for, you know, one perhaps positive outcome is that the europeans are stepping up, but they're the ones who are going

to have to come through in the end. i would note. that if somehow zelensky finds this palatable, he's also going to have to get this deal past the ukrainian parliament as well. >> and that's that's. >> an unknown, because, frankly, as zelensky has been standing up to trump, his popularity is certainly rising. he is not in any way, as trump seems to, to define him as a dictator. not in the least. >> well, the president was asked yesterday if putin was a dictator and he wouldn't answer that directly. watch. >> a dictator would. >> you use the same words. >> regarding putin? >> i don't use those words lightly. i think that we're going to see how it all works out. let's see what happens. i think we have a chance of a really good settlement between various countries. >> you note that the president did call ukrainian president zelensky a dictator. as a former intel officer, how do you make sense of that? and i'm curious what you're hearing from your contacts or former colleagues who have served in russia or ukraine.

>> well, you. >> know, that i think. >> is a really. interesting point because i had a unique perspective on this conflict. i have one as a as a former cia officer because, you know, i served overseas in the field with indigenous groups like. >> the afghans or afghan fighters. >> in afghanistan, or. >> with the iraqi. >> kurds up in northern iraq. and so we break. bread with them, we fight. >> with them. >> we plan operations with them, but they become, you know, we become one with them. can you imagine on a right now, if you're a member of the us intelligence community or the special operations world, and you have to look your your ukrainian partners in the eye, i think it's pretty dismaying. russia was the aggressor here. russia has raped and pillaged throughout ukraine, there's no doubt about that. and it really kind of gives the question of where is the us credibility on this. you know, there's going to be other conflicts in the future. what happens in 2027, when former cia director bill burns noted china would be ready, would have the capability to invade taiwan? do you think the people of taiwan are looking to the united states now as a guarantor of their security? i think not, and so i think

there's some profound implications of this, this policy switch. >> marc polymeropoulos really appreciate your perspective. thank you very much. up next, an interesting ruling from the supreme court this morning on the future of a death row inmate in oklahoma. stay with us. >> sadly, windshield chips can turn into windshield cracks, but at least you can go to safelite and schedule a fix in minutes. safelite can come to you for free. don't wait. go to safelite.com and schedule now. hi. >> i'm jay jackson. for almost 20 years, abacus life has been purchasing life insurance policies for. >> seniors. >> and in just seconds, you can use the free calculator@abacus.com to learn what your policy might be worth. >> for many of my clients. >> selling their. >> life insurance to abacus was right. >> for. >> them and their estate planning. >> don't sell or lapse your policy without going to abacus.com first. there are no fees and no obligations. get the

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already asked for a budget reminder. >> smart mom by morning. >> got it, got it. boss otter. you got this. >> we're back with some breaking news from the supreme court today. in a 5 to 3 decision, the justices threw out an oklahoma death row inmates murder

conviction, ruling that the man, richard glossip, is, quote, entitled to a new trial. that's because a key witness in his 1998 murder trial lied in court, and prosecutors withheld that information. writing for the court's majority opinion, justice sonia sotomayor said the prosecution, quote, violated its constitutional obligation to correct false testimony. let's get more on this from nbc news justice and intelligence correspondent ken dilanian. ken, talk to us about the significance of this decision from the high court today. >> well. >> as you know. >> ana, this is a supreme. >> court with a. >> 6 to 3. >> conservative majority. >> and it's a. court that. >> rarely has intervened. >> to prevent. >> executions from taking place. >> but in. >> this. >> case, the injustice seemed pretty clear. >> prosecutors knew, but. >> did not disclose. >> that the key witness against the defendant had been diagnosed. with bipolar. disorder and. prescribed lithium. >> after his arrest. >> even oklahoma's republican. >> attorney general had. decided that the conviction was unsound. >> and the supreme court. >> agreed by a.

>> vote. >> of 5 to 3. >> in an opinion written, as you said. >> by liberal. >> justice sonia sotomayor. conservative neil gorsuch. >> did not participate. >> so a rare supreme court victory for a death row inmate. >> right. this was a death penalty case. ken. so what precedent might today's decision set more broadly? >> this case. >> doesn't so much set a. >> precedent as reinforce a long standing one. >> as a lawyer. >> for the. >> defendant put it. >> prosecutors cannot hide critical evidence from. >> defense lawyers. >> and cannot stand by. >> while their witnesses. >> knowingly lie. >> to the jury. >> it's notable. >> though, that. >> an oklahoma. appeals court upheld the death sentence. >> last year, and the state's. >> pardon and parole board. >> voted against granting clemency. >> in a dissent. >> justice clarence thomas argued that the high court did not have the authority. >> to overrule the state court here. but his. >> side obviously. >> did not prevail. prosecutors will now have. >> to decide whether. >> to retry the defendant on them. >> okay. and obviously, there will be many more supreme court decisions that you and i will be discussing as the term continues. ken dilanian, good to see you. thank you, my friend.

and now to a story affecting millions of women in this country. it's something so many of us have to go through. i've been there too. you get a mammogram and you're told you need a follow up screening to make sure you don't have breast cancer. but for many of us, insurance won't cover that second screening. here's nbc's stephanie gosk. >> regular breast cancer screenings for women over the age of 40. >> save lives. >> but over half of those women need more than just the annual. mammogram because they are considered high risk, according to the american cancer society. and that's when the battle with health insurance begins. >> how many women. >> in your. family have gotten. >> breast cancer for? >> for my grandmother, my mother, my sister. and then we. >> recently had another person. >> in the family diagnosed. >> given that history. >> what do. >> doctors advise. >> you do for screenings? >> i am. >> supposed to have. >> a. >> mammogram every. >> six months.

>> molly smith's private insurance, like many plans, only covers the annual. a second mammogram, she says, could mean hundreds of dollars out of pocket. it's a similar story for women with dense breasts. >> last year, the fda ruled. >> that mammogram providers need to tell women. >> if they. >> fall in that. >> category because. >> they should consider getting additional screenings as well, including ultrasounds. >> we're seeing a lot of patients now where insurance isn't covering. and so. these patients are stuck. >> doctor madhvi. >> raghu is a radiologist in connecticut. some of her patients are on medicare. medicare covers. >> mammograms, but the ultrasound is not covered. >> is that a change? >> it is a change because, you know, prior to that it was not an issue as it is now. >> she provided nbc news with patient records showing their reimbursements for the newly recommended procedure were declined. >> medicare says. >> ultrasounds are covered when provided as a diagnostic test. meaning if something suspicious has. already been found. but for women with dense breasts. doctor

raghu says the test is needed to see if something is suspicious. >> it's disheartening. >> because sometimes i've. >> seen patients develop cancers. >> that, you know, you could. >> have caught. >> that we could. >> have caught, you know, that. >> are aggressive. and it's a. >> very different conversation. >> at that time. >> what else do. >> you need? >> when smith went in for her first mammogram, she had to get multiple additional tests and says she ended up paying roughly $1,000 even though no cancer was found. worried she would go through it again, she just didn't go back for two years. >> if you want. >> people to be able to take care of themselves. you've got to make it easier. you've got to make it. >> so that it's. >> affordable and something that you can do on a regular basis. >> stephanie gosk, nbc news, myrtle beach, south carolina. >> next news from the vatican. pope francis feeling well enough to take some meetings this morning. we have the latest after a series of health setbacks next.

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systems, jeopardize americans sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services. we will not lend our expertise to carry out or legitimize doj's actions. they also honor their colleagues who were indiscriminately terminated, warning the sudden loss of their technology. expertise makes critical systems and americans data less safe overseas. now, pope francis is showing slight improvement but remains in critical condition, according to the vatican, the pope is eating normally and has been able to resume some work from his hospital bed. he's even been able to continue his nightly phone calls to the catholic parish in gaza. the vatican says the pontiff's kidney problems are no longer an acute concern, but the 88 year old is still being treated for double pneumonia. joining us now, nbc news foreign correspondent claudio lavanga. claudio, you're at the vatican. sounds more positive for pope francis today. how hopeful are doctors that he will recover?

>> hey, ana. >> well. >> earlier in the day, the vatican. >> said that not. >> only he shows a slight improvement, he. >> managed, he had. >> a good night rest and he managed to. >> get out. >> of bed, which he's of course, positive. at the same time, the doctors keep repeating that this is still an 88 year old man who has a bilateral pneumonia. pneumonia. >> he has. >> an infection. >> of the. >> respiratory tract. and of course, this means that this is. >> a. >> day to day scenario. this is a pope who is still in critical condition. so despite the fact that they said that there is a slight improvement, which is of course reassuring, we need to wait for that update every day. and the next update we're going to get from the doctors in the vatican is literally in ten minutes from now. >> okay, so ten minutes. we should have even more information. at least we hope we're starting to see people around the world come out and gather to pray for the pope and show their support. what are you hearing from those who have gathered outside the vatican today? >> well, and this is a

particularly busy year for the vatican. it is jubilee year. it comes every 25 years. so there's a lot more pilgrims here at the vatican than usual. and of course, everybody was hoping to see pope francis. but francis was meant to hold many, many, many events here. but of course, you know, they're not disappointed. they are concerned because of the pope is in the hospital. and a lot of people who came here as pilgrims, they end up praying for pope francis to get better and to return here at the vatican as soon as possible. anna. >> we have about 30s, but as far as the kind of work the pope has been able to resume, what can you tell us about that? >> well, we learned today that yesterday he had a visit from the vatican, number two, secretary of state pietro parolin. and they just did some work essentially this morning they told us that he made some appointments, he accepted some resignations. he even called for the making of new saints. among them. there's also an american chaplain who served in the second world war and died in the korean war. so he's almost going by his normal day to day

business. so that's also good news. >> claudio lavanga, thank you for that update. that does it for us today. thank you so much for joining us. i'll be back tomorrow at 10 a.m. eastern. for now i'm ana cabrera reporting from new york. chris jansing from new york. chris jansing picks up our coverage [dog whimpering] sorry bud, not while i weed. [loud splash] ♪ who let the dogs out? ♪ ♪ spruce! spruce, spruce, spruce, spruce! ♪ ♪♪ hey, who let the dogs out?! spruce - a new weed and grass killer that's safe for use around people and pets! does it actually work? [music whittles out] visible results in 1 hour and dead weeds in 1 day. [robotic voice] spruce. works. spruce - the new, hard-working, worry-free weed & grass killer. ♪ it's spruce! ♪ psoriatic arthritis symptoms can be unpredictable. one day, your joints hurt. next, it's on your skin. i got cosentyx. feels good to move. feel less joint pain, swelling and tenderness, back pain, and clearer skin, and help stop further joint damage with cosentyx. don't use if you're allergic to cosentyx.

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